text:
The game is too easy.
The difficulty is about right.
The game is too hard.
Random results? Probably.
For sure MP 2nd and 3rd string at 0 IMHO had not a big impact as someone says.
The ever-present DC matches the supposed issue - 8 goals from 20 attempts, 40% conversion. The other guy has 7 from 29 attempts (24%). Unless I've misunderstood, it was suggested that 1 goal in 5 attempts is realistic. Therefore this means that the ever-present has scored 4 'too many' and the other guy has maybe 1 'too many'. (For the record I have not adjusted set-piece instructions for any set-piece, other than to name the takers themselves)
Where I find it difficult is in uderstanding how these 5 extra goals across 30 games is the reason I have won 27 out of 30 and average 3.3 goals a game, especially when there was one game recently where both of them scored 2 each, so you could argue that at least 2 of these 'extra goals' came in one match
A better way to see the effect of the MP would be to use two human users. Make sure that the one team is 100% familiar with the tactic it uses (and only use that one during the entire match without any changes) and the other team far away from any familiar settings. This way you might be able to see if the MP 'familiarity' makes a difference (and how much)...
Last edited by Loversleaper; 14-11-2011 at 17:15.
Although as others have pointed out, Riz wrote the MP code so if he says it does what it does, I'm happy to go with that....
... but... still... very tempted to give this test a go just to kill off any lingering curiosity. Human manager v Human manager... hmmm.
*must resist temptation and get back to updating my DB*
Damn you Loversleaper
Yep, I understand your point and I agree.
But my point is not the same: we're arguing about what could or could not be the big "bug" (I don't like the term in this case). MP, Morale after a positive streak, set pieces etc.
We know that in a single game AI teams use 2nd and 3rd string formation more than often.
A 0 familiarity with 2nd and 3rd string tactics could signify a disaster, in real life, especially if (and it's the case) these tactics are used in emergency situations.
What I've said is "IMHO there are no evidence that MP 0 familiarity on 2nd and 3rd string formations are strongly linked with strange outcomes of the matches".
Probably a tweak is needed BUT I'm really convinced that MP is not the main issue (unfortunately).
Last edited by Erimus1876; 15-11-2011 at 10:54.
Last edited by Loversleaper; 14-11-2011 at 21:04. Reason: forgot a word...
Say that for every game you get a 'gimme' goal, you win. You also win 1/3 of your games fairly. After 30 games your record would be circa W20 D5 L5. However, if you add in some of the morale advantages that 'hangover' from winning streaks and your MP advantage, you can award yourself a few more wins. Voila, you have 27!
Scoring 7 or 8 goals is maybe not realistic for a Dc to score in a season, but it's acceptable. It surely doesn't make a game from being easy to chalenging. Far from it.
For me being able to have 20+ shots per game is just as annoying. Probably even more.
I never swap the two CDs from their left/right sides, so the default corner instructions are always the same too. Noticed that the ever present DC (who for the record has scored another in the next 4 games, from a corner obviously) always attacks the near post rather than the far.
I understand more from your answer, so the only thing I'm seeing that seems to be against the grain is that I'm having a far greater impact from the DC attacking the near post (however, he is also the much higher rated player)
Last edited by Jari Rantanen\'s Shorts; 14-11-2011 at 21:59.
I'm the earlier thread chap. They key attribute difference between the 2 DCs was that the one getting all the goals had a very high STRENGTH attribute. He was inferior in Head/Jumping. They both have poor attributes in anticipation and off the ball.
Anyways, I'm glad this thread became very useful to SI to improve the game. Thank you to everybody who contributed
BTW, just seen someone in the Tottenham thread who beat Manu 10-0
Tottenham are over-powered!!
Naturally if you have multiple tactics trained, then any changes you make during the match are checked against all the trained tactics to see if the new match tactics have been trained previously. And even if they haven't been trained, the players will still keep a part of the trained level of familiarity depending on how much the new match time tactics differ from the ones they had trained for.
Well, I have seen roughly 20-25 penalties both from AI and mine and roughly 95% of them have been scored.
This is not a shout like the easiness one, this is only a side question I posted to listen to your opinions
* eagerly awaits the next update/patch *
Nb. I get very little success from free kicks. My free kick takers don't have good attributes (neither do my corner takers), so that seems right to me.
I was wondering, does the 'familiarity' have any effect on goal conversion rates (since we are talking about set-pieces/corners as well elsewhere)?
Last edited by Loversleaper; 15-11-2011 at 17:33.
about right i feel.
I am certainly being more successfull in FM12, whether thats down to me just playing better (transfers, tactics etc) or the game is actually easier, I'm not sure...
Corners goals have a bug or something?? Is so easy to score from a corner :S
Just won another 1st season save - this time Grasshoppers (predicted 7/10). I am 3/4 first time league winner now. Only Wolfsburg took me 2 seasons from the bottom of the table. Differenet tactics in each team and in the last one - not a single tactical change all season... I feel ashamed to be called "wonder-maker" by the game, for it probably everyone is.
Grasshoppers are over-powered in my game too (AI managed), I think that some of the players like de Ridder, Landeka, Bertucci, Paiva etc. are a lot better in FM than in reality.
Last edited by KUBI; 15-11-2011 at 22:18.
I just saw in the other thread , C. ROnaldo scored 19 goals in first 5 games. WHats more interesting , in same thread, P. Crouch score 43 goals in a season. This game really need some balance and realism. Peter Crouch never was scoring machine, only time he score 20+ goals was for Liverpool, but in 3 seasons, hehehe.
I really dont know whats happening with this game, but i know that you must make this game harder to beat. Put some challenge in FM13, before its too late.
Actually, its pretty sad that i didnt play with the clubs i support, for 8 years (real life), Ac Milan and Arsenal, because its too easy to play with them. YOu must make some challenge for top teams too. Many players actually support bigger clubs, not smaller ones.
Only club i like and its not in first league is Sheff. Wednesday, but im tired of playin with them.
Last edited by Matej; 16-11-2011 at 03:40.
in my 6th season the most goals i've had by 1 player in the league is 24 by suarez, that was once. he's hit 20 twice, and then never more than that. neymar gets 15-18/season. and a regen i have gets 10-15. but i'm not getting anyone with 30, 40, 50 goals...
Theres was a old football manager (i dont remember the name atm), where you pick the team you want... but always start in the 4th division.
So for example, you could pick your favourite team (Arsenal), and start the save in the 4th division.
This could be arranged in the game along side with the option to play with fictional players.
And maybe SI could arrange also a little introduction story like..."Arsenal got relegated to the 4th due to finances issues..." or something like that.
This could be a nice challenge to many players, imo... and a very easy one to implement in the game.
This is possibly one of the most important thread for years; let's not derail it with daft ideas.
I don't think this game's any easier than FM2011, to be honest. I'm playing as Lazio and I've been humbled by stronger teams (Barca, OM, PSG) etc. Haven't won the league yet in 4 seasons though I do have an italian cup. In FM11 I would be ripping the league/europe/intercontinentals apart with my B-team.
And yes, I do keep my player morals high all the time.
I'm regulary having silly amounts of shots with Real Madrid. This is a little analisys of real life squad and my in FM.
IRL Real have scored 23 goals in last 6 matches, won them all. Real has scored 3,83 goals per game.
vs Osasuna 7:1 (Real had 16 shots)
vs Sociedad 1:0 (12 shots)
vs Villareal 3:0 (13)
vs Malaga 4:0 (13)
vs Betis 4:1 (23)
vs Espanyol 4:0 (15)
Together they had 92 shots, which meens 15.33 shots/game.
Real in my FM save: we have scored 14 goals in last 6 games. 2,33 per game. If I don't count two super cup games with Barca which is also managed by me then we had 3,5 goals/game.
vs Bayer 4:0 (36 shots on goal)
vs Espanyol 2:1 (21)
vs Zaragoza 2:0 (40)
vs Sporting 4:0 (23)
vs Barca (managed by me also) 0:1 (9)
vs Barca (managed by me also) 0:1 (12)
This meens 141 total shots or 23,5 per/game. If I don't count games with Barca we had 30 shots per game on avarage.
I'm able to have twice as more shots per game than real life Real, with goals/game being lower. This is a big problem I think and surely one of the reasons why this game is easy. Especially for people who play with big clubs, or become such in few years or have a good tactic. WHich includes almost everyone at one point I guess. The reason why it is happening is in poor defensive AI and tactical system which could be easily improved.
In this two games just Ronaldo has as many shots as Real has on avarage in real life:
Last edited by Mitja; 16-11-2011 at 16:27.
A very interesting thread. Thought I'd chip in.
Here's a shot taken just after preseason of my match preparation (if it appears):
Attributes improving nicely, I'm sure you'll agree. Tactics 1 and 2 are both 442, but #1 is a disciplined counter-attack setup and #2 is a more fluid standard setup. This obviously explains why the majority of values are similar. There's not a great deal of difference between the two.
What I find confusing are the values for tactic #3. Tactic #3 doesn't exist. I have never trained it and have not used another tactic during a match if I remember correctly. So what do these values represent? Are they various shouts that I've used? I've experimented with most of them throughout the preseason.
Anyone else experiencing this? It seems to fall within the remit of the game being easier than I was expecting as the players seem to be gaining knowledge of tactics that I know nothing about. I do have a "fairly professional" squad, so maybe they're spending the evenings doing background reading
Last edited by FishBowlMan; 16-11-2011 at 23:58. Reason: spelling
Isnt too easy.
Almost got the sack twice in my 2nd season and once in my 1st.
But in my 2nd season, spurs signed an unknown African striker. 28goals in 10+ apps? Before January even started.
Wayne rooney was at 14, and my Leandro Damio was 3rd at 13. How did he even hit 28? ._.
So Tottenham are top of the table. Same point as united, but top of table because of GD
I agree with the people saying it isn't to easy. The problem is you have a few select forums members who have been playing the game for years who know every trick in the book in regards to the ME and how to get results. Personally I have found this version of FM far more playable and enjoyable, it reminds me of the old Championship Manager games actually.
I can't help but feel after seeing Paul C reading comments from a few 'experts' that once again they will patch the game and basically ruin what in my opinion is the most fun version of FM series for a very long time. This whole topic brings up once again the whole difficult setting option. I for one see no reason why this cannot be implemented (linked to manager starting reputation maybe), either way it is clear you have a lot of people who really enjoy the full on technical aspect and ultra micromanagement of FM, and then you have others like me who like something simpler and yes easy.
After 13 pages of very fruitful discussion with SI, we now have people offering opinions who haven't bothered to read the thread. That makes those view utterly worthless and are just degrading the debate. Have a read of what people have actually done and discovered. Since it has proved to be extremely important to Paul Collyer himself, I don't think someone who hasn't bothered to understand the issues knows better than the creator of the game.
Correct me if I am wrong but didn't Paul C say himself that he needs to be VERY careful in what changes are made as it seemed a hell of a lot of people are actually loving this version of FM?
That is indeed what I said.
If I can reduce human exploitation of corners where it occurs, and also reduce extremes of morale I think everyone will be happy. But so far we havent even started testing some of this internally.........
Last edited by Mitja; 17-11-2011 at 09:38.
It's the exploitation of holes in the ME that makes the game easier than others find it. It's easy to download a tactic from various forums that has bee successful, load it in and get results without doing very much. The ME will never be perfect, but there's clear improvement. I love this years match engine, and I build my own tactics and use the roles and shouts because I feel that way you're not exploiting any holes (unless you happen to stumble on one), and your tinkering makes a difference in the game.
If you're against player naming do not read on. Although no key details revealed.
Alright this is after 50 games in a season with Stoke. Huth and Shawcross are my starting CB's and both assume the default roles of front post back post, Shawcross front, Huth back. I know for a fact that Shawcross scored all his goals from corners whilst Huth did score some long shots also. One player that is drastically skewed is Situ who has a percentage of goals to shots at 42%, and I know that he scored all but one from corners in a spell where he replaced an injured Shawcross. All these goals were scored from the FRONT post glancing the headers in, in between the keeper and the man on the post almost every time. Crouch being the big man he is, didn't score from corners at all.Code:
PLAYER POSITION SHOTS/GOALS RATIO % PENS Tomas Hubocan RB - - - Robert Huth CB 4/21 19 - Kenwyne Jones ST 4/21 19 - Andras Nagy ST 2/3 66 1 Felice Natalino RB - - - Wilson Palacios CM 1/8 12 1 Jermaine Pennant RM 5/42 11 - Bjorne Helge Riise RM 2/11 18 - Karim Rossi ST 3/15 20 - Ryan Shawcross CB 2/18 11 - Ryan Shotton RB 0/2 0 - Darnel Situ CB 8/19 42 1 Johnathon Walters ST 1/8 12 - Marc Wilson CM 3/16 18 2 Danny Collins LB 1/1 100 - CORNER Peter Crouch ST 2/4 50 - NONE FROM CORNERS Yassine LM 4/40 10 - Rasmus Elm CM 0/25 0 - Matthew Etherington LM 3/33 9 - Rasmus Falk ST 1/40 2 - Gary Hooper ST 10/73 13 -
Just my findings.
And as I posted this Shawcross has scored 2 from a corner and a free-kick.
Poolfan, for me a key issue that sets this thread apart from many others is that it is a mature discussion. I ignore the many rant threads about how people hate the game, worst ever, rubbish ME etc etc. Nobody in this thread is saying that. Like most other contributors here, I believe FM12 to be the best version ever, but it is not flawless, and we have identified some problems for which PaulC, Riz Remes, wwfan and others involved in creating the game are grateful and want to put right.
I dont think paul is meaning intentional exploitation, the standard set ups seem to be the ones doing the most damage, but since the AI does not use the same standard set ups as we do, it does not benefit from the problem.
Jumping: 16
Heading: 15
Strength: 16
Anticipation: 15
Off The Ball: 8
Which suggests he's a beast.
Antwi at the near post has got himself completely free of his marker, running towards the inswinging near-post corner. He has a free header and scores.
There is terrible marking from the AI at this corner. Why do Preston have 2 people on the edge of the 18 yard box doing absolutely nothing? Why has the man on the far post suddenly run towards the penalty spot?
It seems to me that the defenders and goal keeper are completely unaware of Antwi's prescence, and that the corner is aimed at the near post, thus anyone attacking this side of the pitch is posing a threat.
Look closely at the Keeper's actions. When he finally works out the trajectory of the ball, he runs towards the edge of the 6 yard box, right in the middle of the goal, presumably to be in a position to catch the ball. He has not worked out there is a danger posed by the attacking player. He either has not seen him, or assumes that he will miss the ball and wants to be in a position to catch the cross.
After the ball is headed, the keeper tries to move back to the goal line, only to bang into the person who has left his back post position.
My guess is that something is wrong with the decision making of the goalkeeper. Surely he should anticipate the main danger is from the attacking player at the near post and position himself accordingly. If the attacker misses the ball, then he must rely on a defender to clear the danger, and get himself in position to deal with the next threat.
I have noticed this behaviour many times from the AI goalkeeper dealing with corners and general crosses where an attacker gets in front of where he wants to position himself to catch the ball.
To be fair, it is a pre-season friendly. This is when players are just starting to be familiar with the manager's tactics and instructions. I see any amount of defensive howlers on both sides in pre-season.
i've been scoring heads like this all season, and although it seems to be a glitch, I don't want to NOT do it, just beacuse it's getting me a lot of freak goals. I worked on the set pieces myself so feel I deserve it!
There's always going to be exploits it's just whether you choose to exploit them. If I find my own exploits, I use them - if I read about exploits, I tend not to
The standard attacking corner tactic is exploitative because it is set up intentionally to draw everyone away from the two CD's who are attacking the near and far posts. They typically have only one opponent near them, and that is in my experience typically their shortest player.
As long as the defending corner instructions are so generalized as they are, and marking their one main aerial threat with two or more players remain impossible, corner kicks will continue to be unbalanced in this game.
Besides, too many good corner kicks come from players who are not good at corner kick taking. Making that attribute more sensitive would fix part of this problem. 15+ 1/3 hits target, 11-14 1/5 hits target, 6-10 1/10 hits target, 1-5 doesn't target... I say why not?
I could understand it if the attacking player just managed beat him to the ball, but there's often 5 or 6 yards between him and the attacker, often with a completely clear view.
It certainly isn't that simplistic. Getting the stats to match up to RL across the various levels we simulate means it's a constant balancing act.
Hampton & Richamond Borough ( First season )
Media Prediction : click here
After 24 games : click here
can't say anymore ...
Last edited by Spurs_Q8; 17-11-2011 at 23:54.
Hardly reveals anything, Bournemouth irl got to the play-offs last season despite being tipped for relegation due to a lack of funds and only a limited amount of players where it was often the case they had to field reserve/youth players.
The rest of us just whip it in aiming at a general area and with an attempted curve... and the force of that kick is the maximum we dare to do because we know that our technique doesn't allow any more - too much force and the ball's in orbit.
Once we have kicked the ball into that general area, the rest is up to the players in the box.
What set piece experts do is, as explained above, an entirely different story. FM needs to reflect this for the sake of realism and I believe it would fix the amount of corner goals, but not entirely - not until the set piece instructions also reflect real life by allowing multiple markers of the main aerial threats.
For me, this game is a little bit easier than FM 11 but... till april. I've played one save with HSV and one with West Ham. In both situations, my team played very good, we were leaders with great advantage, but in april everything changed. I couldn't win a single game. My players forgot how to play. Last 6-7 matches both with HSV and West Ham were without a win. I've tried changing my tactics, team talks etc., but it didn't help. Like a curse. How do you deal with such problem?
(sorry for my english)
Until you get players with high Determination, pressure handling, professionality, big matches, ambition etc... that will remain a problem for you. Reducing the pressure in the team talks can help, but at the same time, low-pressure team talks (like "go out and have fun") are typically unable to motivate the players to fight hard and give everything they have, so they can backfire.
Can you just confirm tactic used, teamtalks and goals from corners.
Anty transfers?
PaulC, do you have success with fixing corners and moral prob? When you could release next patch? Are we talking about few weeks or couple of months? Im not rushing things, just dont know should i wait week or two, or start playin. I didnt play real career (usually 10+ seasons) since FM2011.
Suggestion for FM2013. It would be good that strikers dont score so many goals, usually my striker(s) score 40+ goals per season. Last few days i didnt write much, but i was investigating that problem here and on other forums, and many players have same thinking. On this forum you have some threads where P. Crouch, for example, scored 43 goals in one season. Thats impossible mission for him in real life, if you look his career statistic.
One more thing for FM2013, i noticed that my players play much better for me, then for AI clubs. Every time i sell some player, and go to his history 3-4 years later, i see he has much worse avg. rating in AI team. That happens in 95% of the time. Same thing is when i buy some player from AI club. if he played 6.42 for AI club, im sure he will play over 7 for me. Are we so better then AI?
Last edited by Matej; 18-11-2011 at 14:03.
No timeframe decided yet Matej.
does anyone else experience a problem like your own players dont wanna play for your, because they think, "the lack of experiences could damage the team"??? Ive started a save with everton, my managerial reputation is very low, from the first day on, almost the whole team was struggling to motivate themselves to play for me. now 10 games played, 26 out of 30 points, leading the table, qtr finals in carling cup and still there are several players with the same problem. its really annoying, as I cant get the best out of my team, when some players are not motivated. in fm 11, this problem was very quickly solved, mostly after the first 4-5 friendlies, very you really convinced everyone or at least after the first couple of games. but in fm 12, in another save, even reaching the 3rd place with everton and winning the carling cup, in the next season, there were still players, who had motivation problems, because of my low reputation. what do you guys normally do? do you set your reputation to high when you manage a pl team?
When he moved to Man United, he start playing in a 442 formation, as a left winger. Of course he scored much fewer goals. Also he average rating droped just below 7 (less goals, less rating). But this could be related to the fact that the english primier division is much more competitive then the portuguese league.
I usually play in Portugal, so usually the players move to a better league (spain, england, italy, germany). It's harder for a player to get a higher rating when the competition is fiercest.
In my saves, i have lots of examples like the Gaitan one, so this is why i never thought about this as an issue (bug?).
Nb. regarding your quick question, did you notice PaulC saying a few posts back that he hadn't started on it yet? Patience ...
Keyzer Soze- i know what you thinking and i agree with you, in that part. Problem is it happens ALL THE TIME, like phnompenhandy said. Even if you sell your player in league where you play, he would play worse. Doesnt metter if the AI club is stronger or weaker then your club. Maybe 1 in 20 times player would play better in AI club. THats weird.
jdrawmer- same answer
Lots of problems with AI squad building can in my opinion only be addressed by rewriting the AI to look at players in a much more detailed and human manor.
whilewolf - yes, i think you said good reason why this is happening. I really didnt know AI sees ONLY age, pos, rep and CA. THats horrible. I knew its because of bad AI, thats why i wrote it would be good to fix that in FM13. I know they really need new AI, this one is close to the death.
Last edited by Matej; 18-11-2011 at 19:51.


text:
I have three pairs of points in 3D space. These may or may not be coplanar. I want to find a point such that it is equidistant from each pair of points. I know that may or may not be possible depending on the positions of the points. What I want is the best average point, which I can take safely as the centre and draw a sphere from there whose radius is the maximum distance of this point from any of the six points, then I want all the points to remain inside the sphere.
Distance from a pair of points instead of from each one of a pair of points does not seem to be well defined. However, you could simply take the centroid of all six points (add the coordinates and divide by 6 in each axis), then compute the distance to each of the six points, and use the maximum for the radius of the sphere. It is not clear how you want us to use the fact that the points come in pairs instead of six single points.
You want mini ball.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Popular Recipes
Skillet Chocolate Chip CookieBy Nikhita Jose
No reviews
How to Make This Recipe
- 1 Butter
- 1/2 cup White sugar
- 1/2 cup Light brown sugar
- 1 Egg
- 2 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1 1/4 cups All-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp Baking soda
- 1/2 tsp Salt
- 1/2 cup Semi-sweet chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup Milk chocolate chips
- Optional Vanilla ice cream
In a large mixing bowl, beat together 1 stick of butter and both sugars until combined and creamy.
Add egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated.
In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt and slowly add that into the butter mixture. Mix until incorporated but don't over mix.
Add chocolate chips and just mix until incorporated.
Grease your cast irons with 1 tbsp. of butter on all sides.
Divide dough in half (if using small pans) and press dough into skillet, coming up on the sides. Bake at 350° F for 20 minutes or until the edges begin to brown.
No items found
Customer Reviews


text:
After my spectactular failure of an attempt in Wales, I am back to try again!!!
This time my aim is to win the 6 major continental competitions.
Starting Rep: Semi-Pro
Database: Small
Africa - Egypt (Down to 2nd Division), South Africa (Premier League)
Asia - China (Down to 1st Division)
Europe - England (Down to BSN/BSS), Wales (Premier League)
North America - Mexico (Down to Promotion League), USA (MLS)
Oceania - Australia (A-League), New Zealand (NZ1 US1 Premiership)
South America - Brazil (3rd Division), Colombia (2nd Division)
A nice mix of countries and hopfully it will show the DLR in full affect as there are countries from every continent.
The African countries were chosen as they are the power houses of Africa.
China was picked as the country itself is untapped potential due to having billions in population and them developing as a footballing nation.
The North American and Oceania countries were picked as they are rivals with each other.
Europe is a case of the biggest and smallest playable leagues to see both sides of DLR.
South America is a case of Everybody loving Brazil while Colombia is my dark horse of the leagues picked as I feel they can improve and are worse then Brazil and Argentina but better then the likes of Peru and Venezuela.
Updates - End of Season or new job.


text:
Tuition & Aid
- Home
- Tuition & Aid
98% of Keystone College students receive financial assistance. Paying for your education is a great investment in your future.
Keystone College is committed to working with each student and their family to ensure that the cost of a college education is not an obstacle to future goals. We provide a full spectrum of financial aid and tuition services to assist with funding your college education.
Federal School Code: 003280


text:
Progress in Usability: Fast or Slow?
Summary: Over the past decade, usability improved by 6% per year. This is a faster rate than most other fields, but much slower than technology advances might have predicted.
The good news? We're making progress in usability. Websites and other user interfaces get better every year, and the improvements accumulate across the decades, making current quality levels substantially higher than those of the early days of the Web or the personal computer.
Even better: Usability progress is faster than most other forms of human progress.
The bad news? Usability advances at a much slower rate of progress than other areas of computing.
Even worse: it'll take us 74 years to reach acceptable user experience quality.
Usability Improvement Rates
I typically like to report success rates, because they're the simplest usability metric and very easy to understand: can people use the design or not? However, for this article, I'll consider the failure rate, which is simply the reverse of the success rate.
For example, a website success rate of 70% means that users are able to accomplish 70% of the tasks they attempt on that site. This, of course, means that they fail 30% of the time, which is the failure rate.
I use failure as the metric in my current analysis because it allows a more straightforward comparison with other fields of quality.
During the last decade, we've collected formal usability metrics for 262 websites. In 2000, the average failure rate was 39%; in 2010, the average failure rate is 22%.
That's what I mean by "substantial advance" over time. In just a decade, we've almost doubled Web usability . This improvement compares well with two other views of the big picture:
- Website conversion rates also approximately doubled, from an average of about 1% to about 2% across sites. (Some are better, of course, but some are worse.)
- Research on usability ROI shows that attention to usability approximately doubles desired business metrics.
(Our latest study in 2010 did slightly better than indicated above, but I have excluded those 15 sites from the present analysis, because this study was conducted for our "Big and Famous Sites" project. This data set is thus deliberately biased because we wanted to tease out the usability lessons from well-designed sites. So, for example, we tested bbc.co.uk because we know there are several good aspects to BBC's user experience. It's nice to see this confirmed by a 17% failure rate [which is a good score, sadly], but BBC's performance is not representative for sites with more average usability budgets.)
We can also analyze Web usability's long-term improvement in two other ways:
- The rate of improvement is 6% per year. By this, I don't mean that failure rates drop by six percentage points each year, but rather that each year's failure level is 1.06 times smaller than the previous year's level. Given the magic of compounding interest, improving that much in each of 10 years produces a cumulative improvement of 77%, which matches the relative failure-rate gain from 39 to 22.
- A six-sigma analysis of usability shows that, in 2000, we were at a 1.8 sigma level — which was horrible compared to any other field of quality assurance. Now, in 2010, we're at 2.3 sigma. With a mere 0.5 gain in sigma level for the decade, we still have far to go before we reach level 6.
This six-sigma analysis shows how bad usability is relative to industrial quality levels. At a rate of half a sigma per decade, it will take 74 years to reach six-sigma quality. (The only good news? This ensures lifetime employment for usability professionals.)
Progress in Other Fields
Usability improves at a rate of 6% per year. How does that compare with progress in other areas?
Stephen Moore and Julian L. Simon wrote a book called It's Getting Better All the Time that summarizes improvements in 100 different fields across the 20th century. Following are some of their statistics (all from the United States):
- Infant mortality: 100 per 1,000 births in 1915, dropping to 9 in 1998. Improvement rate: 3% per year.
- Children without dental cavities: 26% in 1971, increasing to 55% in 1988. Improvement rate: 5% per year.
- People showering or bathing daily during winter: 29% in 1950, increasing to 75% in 1999. Improvement rate: 2% per year.
- Time worked to buy a chicken (at an average worker's salary): 2 hours in 1920, dropping to 15 minutes in 1999. Improvement rate: 3% per year.
- S&P stock market index: 6 in 1900, growing to 1,400 by 1999. Improvement rate: 6% per year. (As it turns out, 1999 was a bubble year, and the S&P later dropped, but for the sake of the long-term analysis, I'm sticking with the book's 20th century data.)
- Toy sales: $2 billion in 1921 (adjusted to 1998 dollars), growing to $45 billion in 1998. Improvement rate: 4% per year.
- Farm productivity, sacks of onions per acre: 200 in 1950, increasing to 800 in 1999. Improvement rate: 3% per year.
- Deaths caused by Chicago heat waves: 10,000 in 1901, dropping to 300 in 1995. Improvement rate: 4% per year.
- Airplane speed: 37 miles per hour in 1905 (Wright brothers Flyer III), increasing to 2,070 miles per hour in 1965 (Lockheed YF-12A). Improvement rate: 7% per year.
I could go on (the book has 100 datasets), but the conclusion is clear: Human progress happens at 4% per year, averaged across many fields, ranging from 2% to 7%.
Suddenly, usability's progress rate of 6% per year doesn't look so bad. We're doing better than most other fields.
Why do we expect (even) better of usability? Two reasons:
- Usability defects are very tangible. Every time we find a bad user interface, we know how it could have been better if only the designers (or their managers) had followed well-documented usability guidelines. It's not like having to invent a faster airplane, which requires new research. Most usability improvements require only that companies implement what's already known. That's why it's extra frustrating when they don't.
- Although usability applies to anything with a user interface — from elevator controls to consumer electronics and remote controls — it's most prominent for websites and software applications, which run on computers and are thus compared with progress in computer technology. Such progress tends to be rapid:
- Moore's Law for increasing computer power: 60% per year.
- Nielsen's Law for growth in Internet bandwidth: 50% per year.
When we're part of a business that routinely sees 50–60% progress per year, our 6% usability improvement rate seems puny indeed.
So, why is usability less like technology and more like all other fields of human progress? Because usability is about humans, not computers. We're designing around the fixed limitations of the human mind, and we have to improve websites and products within the constraints of organizational inertia . It's not enough for a designer to attend a usability seminar and learn the guidelines for making websites easier. The designer also has to convince the marketing VP, which can take years. (It takes about 20 years from a company starts doing usability until they have the process right.)
So is the glass half full or half empty? I say half full, because we have indeed made progress in usability, and we're doing so at a faster pace than most fields. Still, some other areas of human progress are moving faster than us, so we can't rest on our laurels. Usability progress could easily speed up to, say, 7% per year if we improved our ability to communicate the power of user-centered design.
Share Twitter | LinkedIn | Google+ | Email:


text:
The Blade Barrier spell can be a Wall or a Ring without stating if the Wall has to be a straight line. Can the Wall have a curve or a turn in it?
Sign up
- Anybody can ask a question
- Anybody can answer
- The best answers are voted up and rise to the top
Blade Barrier's effect line lacks the Shape-able (S) tag. This means that its shape cannot be changed and so it must be either a straight line or a circle.
By contrast, look at the effect line of Wall of Stone. There, the (S) tag means you can shape its area (see the magic section of PFSRD) within the limits stated by the spell.
It doesn't say and there's no official effect definition of "wall." I would tend to rule that it must be flat, because it seems cheesy to stack it thick or whatever to create a "zone of blades" - that would be a higher level spell in my estimation!


text:
Anti-fascist researcher Dave Emory (spelled E-M-O-R-Y) goes into all the hidden truths and details about evil men and their trade practices.
Dave Emory's show is also available as a podcast. For more info on how to have the MP3 archives of Dave Emory's show delivered automatically to your computer and/or MP3 player, visit our Podcast Central page.
Click on any show number to view and comment on For The Record programs.
Problems listening? Contact the WFMU stream team.
RSS feeds for Dave Emory's show: MP3 archives feed| E-mail Dave Emory | Other WFMU Playlists |


text:
Norah's Knits: Small Projects for Spring – Hand Warmers
I quit wearing my coat a few weeks ago. It's not that the weather was warm – far from it, actually – but I am simply done with winter. This time of year, sometimes a pair of hand warmers can make the difference between being cold and being comfortable. Read more


text:
Located in the heart of cowboy country,
Our guest ranch family is dedicated to providing you with the best dude ranch vacation you can find. We have worked hard to create a special, friendly atmosphere where you can get a glimpse into the old west while enjoying the beautiful NW Arizona desert and all the peace and quiet one could hope for. We invite you to stay with us and be part of our guest ranch family, even if it is only for a little while.
Ride in the beautiful Arizona desert with our friendly wranglers who have made our dude ranch their home for years. We offer slow scenic rides amongst the cactus landscape. For the more experienced riders we offer trotting and loping in the desert washes. Our guest ranch borders over 360,000 acres of natural western desert beauty at the foot of the Mohave and Hualapai mountains. You can be assured of breathtaking views and constant sunny days.
Set up like a little Western town, our dude ranch will make you feel like you've stepped back in time living the life of a true cowboy.
Your hosts, JP and Tricia McCormick invite you to try this special guest ranch! We welcome all travelers to come and experience our dude ranch where the Old West blends with the new. The staff at our guest ranch will do everything they can to make sure everyone who stays here has the most memorable western experience possible! Come see how the west is really fun!
Stagecoach Trails Guest Ranch offers an all inclusive package that includes three delicious meals a day, accommodations, two horse back rides a day (no riding on Sundays), unlimited access to the swimming pool, hot tub, hiking and much more. Each room has a patio with rocking chairs, some with courtyards, extra large bathrooms, Western themed decor throughout.
{Copyright (C) 2015 Stagecoach Trails Guest Ranch, Inc. All Rights Reserved}
"With our great rates, wonderful family atmosphere, excellent weather & unbeatable horseback riding program, you will not find a better guest ranch for your next vacation"
JavaScript Slideshow
JavaScript Slideshow
Contact Us
Horseback Riding
Family Reunions
Horseback Riding at its Finest
Authentic Dude Ranch Experience
We were the proud recipient of the Special Travelers' Choice award in 2005! We also received TripAdvisor's Certificate of Excellence Award in 2012, 2013 and 2014! We thank all our great guests who have consistently given us such great reviews!
Our horseback riding program is second to none. As soon as you leave the corral you will see nothing but beautiful desert scenery surrounded by cactus and mountain ranges. This is cowboy country, the Wild West.
Frontier Lodge is the main focus of the dude ranch. With a western flare, this is where everyone gathers after a wonderful day out on the ranch. A huge fireplace is surrounded by comfortable couches and chairs.
the Old West
The Guest Ranch
Proud member of the
Dude Ranchers Association
Stagecoach Trails Guest Ranch, Inc.
19985 S Doc Holliday Rd, Yucca, AZ, 86438, United States
Phone: 1-866-444-4471 Local: 1-928-727-8270
mail: firstname.lastname@example.com
From Exit #20
About Us
Wheelchair Access
About Us
Stagecoach Trails Guest Ranch
WINNER! TripAdvisor Travelers' Choice
"You'll come as guests, and leave feeling like family"
Meet Peanut!


text:
Women Nobel Prize Winners for Literature
6 of 14
Nelly Sachs (1966)
Nelly Sachs was a German poet and translator who lived in Sweden. Sachs describes her own experiences and the sufferings of the European Jews in the collections In den Wohnungen des Todes [In the Apartments of Death] (1947), Das Leiden Israels [Israel's Suffering] (1969), and Die Suchende [The Seekers] (1960).
Fun Fact: Nelly Sachs shared the 1966 Nobel Prize in Literature with S. Y. Agnon.
Source: Columbia Encyclopedia.
Next: Nadine Gordimer (1991)
Provided by Infoplease—an authoritative, comprehensive reference website that offers an encyclopedia, a dictionary, an atlas, and several almanacs. Visit Infoplease.com to find more resources endorsed by teachers and librarians.


text:
Western, NY Current Weather and Forecast
Our New York forum, Our weather forum.
Back to Western detailed profile, New York big cities, New York smaller cities, New York small cities, All US cities.
City-data.com does not guarantee the accuracy or timeliness of any information on this site. Use at your own risk.


text:
Basketball Photos
Basketball slideshow
Cricket live: England v Pakistan
Ball-by-ball coverage of day of the Second Test as Joe Root hits a double hundred More »uk.sports.yahoo.com
Premier League: Sunderland appoint Moyes as Allardyce replacement
Sunderland have confirmed David Moyes has been appointed as the club's new manager after Sam Allardyce was handed the England job. More »Omnisport - 6 hours ago
Premier League: Chelsea 'launch €50m bid for Edinson Cavani'
Chelsea are said to have lodged a bid of €50m for Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani, with reports in France claiming that the Uruguayan forward is one of the Blues' main attacking targets this summer. More »90Min - 2 hours 33 minutes ago
Picture this: The best Scottish managers ever in English football
David Moyes has been appointed Sunderland manager, maintaining the record of a Scotsman running a top flight team in England every season for the past 70 years. Yahoo Sport looks at the most successful Scots in English football More »5 hours ago
Chelsea Fan View: Should they stay or should they go?
Chelsea blogger Amy Christophers issues her list of players she'd like to remain at Stamford Bridge - and the ones she'd like to see cashed in on More »Yahoo Sport UK - 3 hours ago


text:
Mark Your Calendar for the 10th annual International Bullying Prevention Conference which will be held at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Nashville, TN—November 10-12, 2013.
© 2016 National Sexual Violence Resource Center – Founded by the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape
This site is supported by Grant/ Cooperative Agreement No. 1UF2CE002359-03 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


text:
12-12-12: Behind the Scenes
In putting together Wednesday night's "12-12-12" concert benefiting Sandy relief efforts, a trio of heavy-hitting producers reached out to some of rock's biggest stars and Hollywood's blockbuster names.
Harvey Weinstein, a third of the producing team and chairman of the Weinstein Company, traded phone calls with Mick Jagger, who joined the effort by declaring: "'The Rolling Stones pop group is officially in.'"
"That's what he said," Mr. Weinstein reported. "And then we worked out a set."
But even before a single hip shake from Mr. Jagger, the Madison Square Garden MSG 0.20 % concert is already a potential fundraising powerhouse: The size of its total audience is estimated to be 2 billion people, dwarfing past efforts like "The Concert for New York City," held in October 2001 at the Garden after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. That event was produced by the three men who have reconvened for "12-12-12": James Dolan, executive chairman of the Madison Square Garden Company; John Sykes president of Clear Channel Entertainment Enterprises; and Mr. Weinstein.
This time around, they're armed with everything they learned a decade ago—plus unprecedented distribution options.
"With technology growing as it has since we did 'The Concert for New York City,'" said Mr. Sykes, "there are new, robust platforms that are allowing us to reach millions and millions more people."
"The Concert for New York City" was broadcast only on VH1, and it raised about $35 million through ticket sales, a telethon, DVDs and CDs. (Another $30 million came in afterward.) Already, "12-12-12" has raised $32 million in ticket sales and donations, as opposed to $19 million that the Sept. 11 concert raised before the show.
In Mr. Weinstein's estimation, superlatives are justified. "This is the biggest rock concert and the biggest grossing event ever. This will dwarf everything," he said. "The last time, we learned as we went along—and we were the most successful then."
While the fundraising concert will be streamed free on the Internet, it is also being carried live by 37 television networks, which prompted Mr. Dolan to point out: "We have an interesting television strategy in the United States. Basically, if you want to watch television on Wednesday night, the only thing you can watch is the concert."
Added Mr. Weinstein, "People were willing to buy the rights to this for television. Jim [Dolan] said no to that. He said, let's get as much coverage as we can, go on a global basis and raise the money."
That massive audience translates to an immediate fundraising opportunity, according to David Saltzman executive director of the Robin Hood Foundation, which has set up a fund to administer the aid.
"These three guys have been relentless in reaching out to make sure that everybody everywhere can see this show and learn how people in New York and New Jersey and Connecticut have been crushed by this storm," said Mr. Saltzman. "Our hope is that when people watch and listen, they are moved to help."
The Robin Hood Foundation also administered funds raised for the Sept. 11 benefit, and the producers chose to work with the charity again based on the speed with which it distributed support.
"People don't have heat now," said Mr. Weinstein, adding that funds from ticket sales have already been put to use. "Sometimes it takes almost two years for charities to distribute the money. We've put $10 million on the street already."
The celebrity participants for the evening include Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, Bon Jovi, Kanye West, Alicia Keys, Eddie Vedder and the Who. Actors including Steve Buscemi, Jimmy Fallon, Chris Rock and Kristen Stewart are also slated to take pledge calls and to mix with a group of civilian heroes who have been selected by Robin Hood to attend for free.
In some ways, the celebrity involvement during "The Concert for New York City" was something of a primer for "12-12-12," said Mr. Sykes. "They saw their true power. We're seeing it magnified for this event."
Ticket prices range from $150 to $25,000; the top end sold out immediately. When it became clear that there would be scalping, the producers raised the pricing levels, but the hope was to keep some low enough that fans could attend.
"We were worried that we were pricing ourselves out," said Mr. Dolan. "Even I blush when I say, 'Would you please pay $25,000 for a ticket.'"
"I don't!" said Robin Hood's Mr. Saltzman.


text:
Print this page
Product Reviews
Longwood Floral Wool Tufted Rug
100% wool rug. Floral rug. Tufted. Cotton backing. Rug pad recommended (sold separately). Vacuum regularly; professionally clean. Imported. Exclusively ours. Due to the size and weight of our larger items, special care and handling is required. Therefore, an additional shipping charge of $25 will be added to the 8 x 10' and 9 x 12' rugs. Shown With: Curved Nailhead Bed in Buckwheat Velvet (ZM07) William and Mary Matelassé Coverlet, Bedspread, Bedskirt, Sham and Pillow in Buttercup, Bone and Linen (CW93, CW92, GO01, N1D3) Florals brighten any space in an instant. Our Longwood floral wool tufted rug will refresh your home with a burst of lively color and cheerful design. Available exclusively at The Company Store, our beautiful floral wool rug strikes the right balance between artistry and ease. The lovely blossoms in pretty spring shades capture the upbeat mood of the season and create a warm and welcoming vibe in any room in your home, from bedrooms to living rooms and more. Start with the right rug and the room takes off from there. Made from 100% pure tufted wool backed in cotton, our durable Longwood floral rug will stand the test of time. A spirited solution to high-trafficked areas, the colorful Longwood floral rug has the ability to stylishly uplift any room in the house and look great year after year. The high-quality rug is also looped and sheared for dimension. Choose from five different shapes and sizes and make our charming Longwood floral wool tufted rug an integral part of your home's décor. Truly the easiest way to let your good taste bloom year-round. Recommended to be paired with our super stop rug grip (sold separately).
Customer Reviews for
Longwood Floral Wool Tufted Rug
This product has not yet been reviewed.
Click here
to continue to the product details page.


text:
How should I address a female who is senior to me (in both age and rank) in an official letter?
Sign up
- Anybody can ask a question
- Anybody can answer
- The best answers are voted up and rise to the top
As an Australian English speaker working in a typical office environment (health/academic sector), if first name use is not appropriate ('Dear Janet') then I would use the person's preferred title depending on their position or qualifications:
This should be fine in most contexts irrespective of gender.
I think it would be most unusual to use 'Madam' or similar to refer to a fellow employee, no matter how senior. Perhaps if addressing the Governor General, a High Court Judge or such there may be 'protocols' that are meant to be adhered to. There are also potential cultural differences of course, with the respect accorded to high-ranking employees varying from country to country.
As Snubian said, addressing her by her title, or by Ms is appropriate and respectful.
Please don't use Madam, since that has negative connotations attached. The "mam" honorific is a shortened for of Madam, and sounds rustic and casual.
If you are writing the letter to her, write in second person. If you are writing about her to another, use third. For example.
Third Person
I think Madam or Ma'am is appropriate and formal. Heck, it's how you refer to the queen after the first introduction :)
Madam also lends itself well if you append her position. "Madam Chairman[woman]", "Madam President",etc...


text:
- Advertisement
Recent Stories
Coaches share their Olympic strategies July 22, 2016 2:34 ET
More than 800 incoming, current and former NCAA student-athletes will compete at the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics in Brazil, which begins on Aug. 3 and opening ceremonies on Aug. 5.
UK signee assures mom will see her swim April 15, 2016 9:54 ET
A secret can be a frightening thing for the parents of an 18-year-old, and Shane Winstead knows her daughter Madison has them.
Georgia captures seventh national title March 20, 2016 12:01 ET
ATLANTA, Ga. --- The Georgia women's swimming and diving team claimed the program's seventh national title on Saturday in the NCAA Championships in the McAuley Aquatic Center on the Georgia Tech campus. Th...
Georgia wins the 2016 DI Women's Swimming and Diving Championship March 19, 2016 11:17 ET
Georgia claims their third title in the last four years finishing with a total of 414 points. Stanford finished second with 395 points and California finished third with 358 points.
DI Women's Swimming and Diving: Day Three Recap March 18, 2016 11:01 ET
On day three, California and Georgia battle for the top spot while Lilly King of Indiana makes US history in the 100 yard breaststroke in DI Women's Swimming & Diving.
- DI ChampionshipMarch 15-18, 2017Indiana University NatatoriumIndianapolis, Ind.


text:
Is there any time limits for the running time of the movies in hollywood?
Unlike Bollywood and Kollywood , Hollywood movies run for only 1.30 to 2 hours.
But in case of Bollywood and Kollywood, movies run minimum 2.30 hours.
Is there any time limits for the running time of the movies in hollywood?
Unlike Bollywood and Kollywood , Hollywood movies run for only 1.30 to 2 hours.
But in case of Bollywood and Kollywood, movies run minimum 2.30 hours.
Fact 1. Let us categorized first what Hollywood movies are. Hollywood is a district in Los Angeles, California. Due to its fame and cultural identity as the historical center of movie studios and movie stars, the word Hollywood is often used as a metonym of American cinema. Therefore, when we say Hollywood, that would mean the United States cinema or movies produced in the United States.
Fact 2. Then there is also the case of what could be considered a film/movie. According to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, American Film Institute, and British Film Institute, a feature film runs for 40 minutes or longer, while the Screen Actors Guild states that it is 80 minutes or longer.
To prove my point, here is a list of popular shortest and longest American films:
Longest running time:
Note: The Cure for Insomnia, directed by John Henry Timmis IV, was officially the world's longest movie, according to Guinness World Records with 5220 minutes (87 hours).
Greed, a silent film directed by Erich von Stroheim is one of the longest American film ever made with 462 minutes (almost 8 hours) running time.
Shortest running time:
But there is no clarification i found for India movies yet.
Although there seems to be a a good length defined for Hollywood movies, Bollywood produced 2.30 hours length movies. There are a number of reasons for that:
1)Bollywood movies are long because they do have singing and dancing, but it also gives the masses a chance to get out of the heat of India and into some air conditioning. The singing/dancing added to the story simply makes the movie a more rounded entertainment experience for the average movie goer.
Movie tickets in India are cheaper than in the U.S. Yet the population is poorer, so they want good value...paisa vasool(make the most of the money)...for their money.
2) While Bollywood films have singing and dancing, classifying them as "musicals" isn't totally correct. Hollywood musicals have the actors breaking into song in the middle of a scene. In Bollywood, the song sequences are generally stand alone, meaning a lot of times, they are nearly like music videos (and they are marketed like this to help promote the movies). Sometimes, the songs are used to push the storyline along with various scenes of the actors doing something. In this way, it actually shortens the film by pushing the plot along without excessive dialog. Bollywood movie soundtracks can be as important to the marketing of the film as the movie themselves.
3) Another difference is that religion can play an important role in Bollywood movies. While not every one features something about religion, it is important to note that religion is an important aspect of Indian culture, so you will find more religious tones or ideas in Bollywood films than you will in Hollywood. So it goes without saying that nudity or overt sexual scenes are not prevalent in Bollywood films. Beautiful women in swimsuits? Sometimes. Steamy sex scenes (sometimes not even kissing) are a no-no. Many times, it depends upon the actor's feelings as to whether he/she will kiss in a movie. Some will, some won't. These are real facts in Bollywood movies.
However we are seeing changes:
At the end I would like to add a picture to describe although Indian films are cheaper to produce, cheaper to promote or lengthy in time it is the business which has forced hollywood production house to come to India.


text:
Most trucks built by Volvo have been designed for a wide variety of different transport tasks and for global use. Sometimes national legislation has forced the introduction of very special trucks designed for one single country and built in fairly limited numbers.
Swiss legislations
Perhaps the most unique special legislation has traditionally been enforced by Switzerland, for a number of reasons. Switzerland's special landscape and road conditions (including severe winters) have necessitated restricting the width of the vehicles to 230 cm, while most European countries have always permitted a maximum width of 250 cm (today 260 cm for refrigerated transport).
The hilly landscape and other factors (including the need to restrict the efficiency of trucks in favour of the railway) have also contributed to the fact that Switzerland has restricted the GVW and train weights to levels below those normally valid for other countries.
The special "CH230"
Volvo faced larger problems in this area than most other manufacturers in the late 1970s, since the designers in Gothenburg decided to make the F10/F12 truck with 'full width' (250 cm) for maximum space in the cab for the driver and his passenger, and also offer the longest possible bunk in the sleeper cab (which is of course dependent upon the width of the cab).
For this reason, Volvo decided to make a special version 'CH230' for the Swiss market, combining the F89 truck (which was made two years longer than the F89 truck in itself) with the narrow F86 front axle and a narrow N10 rear axle, thus offering a very powerful truck for an intermediate period, until a new specially adapted truck was available.
A compact powerful truck
The second (and final) version of the CH230 truck was presented early in 1980 at the Geneva truck show. This was in fact a chassis derived from the F10/F12, but with narrower axles and an F7 cab. Thanks to its optimal adaptation to Switzerland (sometimes with a cab painted in the Swiss colours of red and white) the CH230 soon gained a fair market share of the fairly small but respected Swiss truck market.
Due to the limited permitted total length and GTW figures, Swiss trucks often have had more than two, often three or even four, axles. For this reason the CH230 was most often delivered as a four-axle 8x4 chassis for construction work, something which contributed to the elegant shape of these powerful narrow compact trucks.
The CH230 was a success. In 1986 it was superseded by the 'FS10' truck.


text:
In Team Fortress 2 as the spy, when you change to your Disguise Kit, you are presented with an option to change the team you are disguised as. Why would you ever want to disguise yourself as someone from your own team? Doesn't that defeat the purpose of the disguise kit?
Friendly disguises are mainly used to hide from the enemy that there are Spies in your team, as well as to fool an enemy into thinking your team employs a certain class when in reality it does not. There's little more utility for friendly disguises than that, but they're very handy during setup time when the enemy can see you through the setup gates, as well as when you're among your teammates. There's more of this in the community Spy strategy wiki article.
Remember that since you're disguising as your own team, the opposing team will see you as an enemy player (whichever class you're disguised as) and act accordingly, and enemy Sentry Guns will target you as well. When you're about to infiltrate into enemy lines, use your cloak and/or switch to an enemy disguise.
Any of the cloaking devices works well; in fact, if you use the Dead Ringer with a friendly disguise, you will drop a fake corpse of the class you're disguised as. If you were disguised as an enemy, you would drop a fake Spy corpse, which often sends a stronger signal to opposing players of a possible DR Spy.
The short answer is: disguising as your own team gets you killed less in many situations and helps you get behind enemy lines where the spy is most effective.
Using friendly disguises help you get through your own friendly territory more easily. The following will explain how friendly disguise helps getting through friendly territory.
Equipped with standard cloak traveling through friendly territory
Let's say you spawn and immediately change classes to the enemy class at your spawn. Any enemy you encounter will see you running towards their base and immediately attack you because they know[1] you are spy... they will very likely kill you or force you to circle back to get health... causing you to lose a lot of time... making you NOT get behind enemy time and making you less effective.
Things to understand from this example:
So now you know why it is bad to be disguised as enemy team in friendly territory. One alternative is "oh then i will use cloak to run through friendly territory and thus not draw attention to myself". Well cloak doesn't last long enough to stay cloaked from spawn to "behind enemy lines where there is a safe decloak spot". So you will end up decloaking somewhere in the middle and then likely get killed because you can't use your cloak... and being dead isn't really being a good spy.
Now the problem becomes if you can't use cloak the whole way, what do you? Well you can run as an undisguised spy while in enemy territory. Any enemy you encounter will immediately attack you because spies are easy kills and they are high priority[2]. Suddenly you are a dead spy AGAIN.
If you can't be disguised as enemy, use cloak, OR even stay an undisguised spy... then again the question is: what do you do?
If you disguise as a your own team's pyro or demoman your speed is 100% and the enemy won't immediately prioritize you as the #1 target. Now you can more easily get through your own friendly territory (as compared to all the other scenarios I outlined).
Once you are near, at, or behind the enemy line
For those of you not familiar with using friendly disguise (which is presumably why you are reading), you will obviously NEED to change from friendly team disguise to enemy team disguise when you are near or past the enemy line.
The reason is obvious but I will explain anyway: when you are near or past enemy lines the situation has changed 180 degrees. Suddenly being disguised as your friendly team makes you the #1 priority target... and being disguised as enemy team makes you less of a target. Hence being disguised as enemy team is good again.
Getting through friendly territory is not always a walk in the park. Using friendly disguise is one of the best ways to get through friendly territory and not get killed/hurt... which means you are spending more time behind enemy lines and being more effective!
[1] they don't know 100% but instead the chance of you being a spy is very high
[2] spies are high priority because a good spy once behind enemy lines can cause long periods of their entire defense being very weak
Generally used just for the heck of it, to trick a scout to avoid a soldier sometimes (I do anyways). Otherwise if I know the other team has many spies, I will disguise as my own team as a pyro to deter them.
As others have said, it's all about misdirection. One other niche application, when using the Dead Ringer, is to trick enemy demomen into detonating their stickybombs. This can help your team-mates push through congested chokepoints, or if your team's spawn exit is being camped.
Disguising your self as a enemy team is one of the best ways to use the dead ringer.
Disguise your self as a same team pyro, run at them like any normal pyro.
Now to make it look more believable you do want to get hit more then once or it will be obvious that you are a dead ringer spy. Take about 2 hits then activate dead ringer, this will make them think they just killed a (w + mouse 1) pyro easily.
You can now slip right past them and disguise as an enemy unit now.
This works much better then disguising as an enemy and trying to sneak past them, as you are running the wrong way they will shoot you and notice that you are a dead ringer spy and then be on the lookout for you. The above method prevents this.
Basically everyone on the opposing team is less likely to spy check or be prepared for a spy assault if the enemy doesn't see a spy present.
Out of sight, out of mind.
I usually start as a scout or some other aggressive class, that way it isn't a surprise to the enemy when I easily exploded out of the starting gate (or so they think).
It's a good way to start a play-dead run. After the first play dead you can often get behind enemy lines by running from ammo to ammo, if possible. And if no one sees a spy up until that point, they won't be watching their backs.
protected by fredley♦ May 30 '14 at 10:36
Thank you for your interest in this question.
Because it has attracted low-quality or spam answers that had to be removed, posting an answer now requires 10 reputation on this site (the association bonus does not count).
Would you like to answer one of these unanswered questions instead?


text:
Mallorca Family Cottage/pool
Size150 m²
Floor No.
- Family/child friendly
- Kitchen
- Washer/dryer
- Indoor fireplace
- Parking available
- Disabled access
- Pool
|Ma- A km, 07320 Santa Maria de cami, Spain
|Property type
|Property ID
|Acceptance rate
|Response time
|A few hours
|Calendar updated
Country house with swimming pool. 3 bedrooms, sleeps 6 - ideal villa for a family.
The house has 3 bedrooms very cozy and spacious in a plot of 1800 m², in an absolutely perfect location on the outskirts of the village Santa Maria. The House is in an area that the kids could splash and shout in the pool with no worries about disturbing any neighbors. It is a 15 to 20 minute drive to a wide variety of lovely beaches and Santa Maria has most of the essentials. If you are looking for mountain views and tranquility this Villa is perfect.
The house is perfect for 6 people and was completely renovated and refurbished in 2011. The modern interiors with the Mallorquin-Mediterranean style and designed like an open loft house. Large living room with chimney, windows ensures a light-filled ambience. Off the living area is the open kitchen with dining area and bathroom are located directly behind it and the sleeping area with a king size bed for two people and the others two bedrooms one with tow single beds and other bunk bed. A front terrace offers views of the orange groves. They are a pool with sun beds is slightly elevated.
Situated at 20 minutes from the sandy beaches, 12 km from the close to golf course "Golf Son Termes", 3 km from the town of Santa Maria with supermarket, cafeteria, fantastic restaurant, great old pizzeria, and the Celler "Sa Signy" and ,1,8km from Festival Park shopping center and cinemas. Airport and Palma center is only 15 minutes away. It is a railway station "Train Station of Festival Park" is only 1.8km in a charming rural area.
The house is very comfortable for 6 people with heating and hot water and all amenities (washer, stove, etc.) there is an open fire-place for chillier evenings. Outside there is a swimming pool set as the old "soufreix" in a sand mallorquin stone.
Every Sunday in the town of Santa Maria it happens one of the largest and well know market in the island. Ideal for people which like to go walking to the mountain of Tramuntana with famous hiking and tracking trails or cycling to any of the town or just to explore the island. The mountains, Palma and beaches are within easy to reach, ideal base for exploring the entire island.
The house is located in the center of the island and with easy access to any corner of the island, to the beach, and Palma center city. Ideal for cycling
The house has all bed linen and bath towels, however you will need to bring your own beach towels.
Features: fireplace, iron, heating, private pool, parking area, ceramic hob, refrigerator, microwave, oven, freezer, washing machine, crockery / cutlery, cookware / kitchen, coffee maker, toaster.
The rental of this property is based on the Spanish Law on Urban Leases (29/1994, 24th November). According to this law the property is available for seasonal renting, however, the contract does not offer any tourist service. It is only for the use and enjoyment of the property.
-Flexible changeover day, arrival at 15:00 hours departure at 10:00
hours. We work hard at accommodating every body's needs so your holiday runs smoothly. If an earlier/later arrival departure into the apartment is needed please enquire at the time of booking, it is not always possible but we will try to help.
-We request information about the day and time of flight arrival and departure to organize the reception of clients and their departure.
-There is a charge of € 80 for final cleaning and laundry.
-Prices are for this property in Euros.
-Refundable deposit required of 300 Euros for any willful damage to the property or its contents, to be paid upon arrival. This deposit will be refunded after checking the apartment and its contents. If the guests leave before 11.00am the deposit will be refunded by bank transfer at 48hours after the departure, so for all guests we will request your bank details (full name, name and address of the bank, IBAN, swift or bic number) on arrival.
|Maximum nights
|2 months
|Check-in after
|Check-in before
|On arrangement
|Check-out before
|Cancellation Policy
Vi fik ikke lejligheden på Mar 16 ,så den er svær at anmelde. Men lejligheden vi fik på San Miquel var 4 stjerner , men vi manglede at der var ikke 2 badeværelser som vi havde bestilt. Men eller var det et godt byt - tror vi.
Subito molto disponibile nei nostri confronti. L'appartamento, molto bello innanzitutto e come da descrizione, ha evidenziato qualche problema fin da subito (uno stipite della porta rotto dai precedenti affituari), la luce di un bagno non funzionante dopo un giorno. Purtroppo non siamo riusciti ad avere una risposta immedata dal proprietario.
Per il resto l'appartamento è dotato di ogni comfort, e situato in una zona residenziale di Palmanova.
Fin och fräsch lägenhet i Palma med bra läge för shopping och restaurangbesök. Bra med en lägenhet med två badrum!
Trevlig, väl utrustad och mycket bra belägen lägenhet. Trång brant trappa till tre trappor. Inget för småbarn.
Lage zentral. Dennoch ruhig. Sauber. Wenig Sonneneinfall, aber im Hochsommer wahrscheinlich angenehm. Keine Spülmaschine vorhanden. Sehr netter Kontakt vor Ort. Super hilfsbereit.
- Quality assured accommodation
- Every host is verified by telephone
- Secure payment via SSL encryption


text:
People all over the country are saying thanks to our veterans Monday. Veterans attended a luncheon Monday at the Bowling Green V.F.W. Branch.
Former War Veterans spoke at the event reminding veterans of the thanks they deserve. One veteran, Don Jenkins, was recognized at the ceremony. Jenkins is a recipient of the Congressional Medal of Honor.
wbko.com Extended Web Coverage
Origins of Veterans Day
Source: www.vfw.org contributed to this report.


text:
HICKORY, N.C. --- The Pioneer Sports Network will be broadcasting Saturday's South Atlantic Conference basketball doubleheader between Tusculum College and Lenoir-Rhyne University. The women's game tips off at 6 p.m., followed by the men's contest at 8 p.m.
The "Voice of the Pioneers" Brian Stayton will describe all the action from Shuford Gymnasium in Hickory, N.C, beginning at 5:45 p.m. with the Pioneer Pre-Game Show, prior to the women's game.
Fans can listen to the PSN feed in Greeneville on WSMG 1450 AM and in the gym at 90.5 FM. An audio web stream will also be provided at the following links on the Internet:
Women's Audio: http://www.redzonemedia.com/viewschedule.asp?sportID=3&SchoolID=85
Men's Audio: http://www.redzonemedia.com/viewschedule.asp?sportID=2&SchoolID=85
The Lenoir-Rhyne Sports Information office will be providing Live Stats for both games at the following links:
Women's Live Stats: http://lrbears.athleticsite.net/livestats/wb/xlive.htm
Men's Live Stats: http://lrbears.athleticsite.net/livestats/mb/xlive.htm


text:
WEIRTON - City Council will be asked Tuesday to sign off on pay raises for municipal employees, as well as a new health insurance provider.
Weirton's finance committee on Thursday recommended 3 percent pay raises for employees, retroactive to the start of the new fiscal year in July.
City officials previously said they finished the 2011-12 fiscal year with a $2.6 million cash carryover, though all but about $250,000 had been built into the budget projections for the year.
Article Photos
DONATION SUPPORTED — Weirton Ward 3 Councilman Fred Marsh, left, discussed a proposed contribution to the Brooke-Hancock Veteran's Memorial Park, while City Finance Director Tom Maher looked over paperwork. The city's finance committee on Thursday recommended council approve the donation. -- Linda Harris
The first reading of the proposed ordinance will be at council's Tuesday meeting.
The committee also recommended switching to Highmark for health care coverage for city employees.
City Manager Valerie Means said the Highmark plan uses the same provider network as the previous carrier, Carelink.
"We made sure of that before we made the recommendation to change," she said. "And I'm very happy with the price that came in - a little under a 3 percent (increase). They were very competitive.
"It's virtually the same plan," she added.
Ward 3 Councilman Fred Marsh pointed out the 3 percent rate hike is nominal "considering the year before the increase was around 8 to 12 percent."
The committee also recommended council enter into an agreement for HRA DirectPay coverage, as well as dental insurance benefits for eligible employees.
Means said switching dental carriers will bring "a decrease in cost and a better plan." The cost of the coverage is shared equally by the city and individual employees.
The committee also recommended entering in a contract for annual aerial and ground ladder truck testing and certification for the fire department; contributing to the Brooke-Hancock Veteran's Memorial Park; purchasing a thermal imaging camera for the fire department; contracting for engineering services for the safe routes to school grant program; approving general fund budget revisions; and hiring Teed and Associates of Charleston to handle the 2011-12 audit.
(Harris can be contacted at firstname.lastname@example.com)


text:
ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia finally figured out the best way to avoid another close loss was to build a bigger lead in the closing minutes.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 25 points and Georgia recovered after blowing an 11-point lead to beat Tennessee 78-68 on Saturday, ending the Vols' six-game winning streak.
Georgia had lost four of its last five games, including in overtime at Mississippi, by two points at Arkansas and by one point at Vanderbilt on Wednesday night after leading by 17 in the first half.
The Bulldogs had enjoyed no satisfaction for consistently having chances to win.
"It was important for us to get back off the mat," Fox said.
"You have to get rewarded for doing it right. You have to have successes along the way."
Georgia led by 12 with about 3 minutes remaining and kept the lead in double figures for the final minute.
"The last couple of games we've left the ball in the opponents' hands in the last couple of seconds," said freshman Charles Mann, who had 18 points. "It felt good to have the big margin at the end."
Mann called the win "a confidence-booster."
"Tennessee is a heck of a team," Mann said. "To get the win puts us back on track."
Tennessee (17-11, 9-7 Southeastern Conference) suffered its first defeat since losing to the Bulldogs 68-62 in Knoxville on Feb. 6. Jordan McRae set career highs with eight 3-pointers and 35 points to lead the Vols before fouling out with about 1 minute remaining.
Georgia (14-15, 8-8) took its first regular-season sweep of the Vols since 2001. Mann made 12 of 14 free throws. Georgia made 22 of 26 attempts overall.
The Vols, who moved into NCAA tournament consideration with their longest winning streak of the season, were denied their first streak of seven straight SEC wins since 2008. Kenny Hall had 10 points but no other Tennessee player scored in double figures.
Trae Golden, last week's SEC player of the week, made only 1 of 10 shots from the field for four points, eight below his average. Skylar McBee missed his first seven shots before finally sinking a 3-pointer for his only points. Jarnell Stokes had eight points and 10 rebounds.
"I felt like we didn't get the shots we were looking for," said Tennessee coach Cuonzo Martin. "Give Georgia credit defensively, but when we don't get production from Trae and Jarnell, it's going to be a long night."
McRae, who averaged 28 points in his last three games, continued his hot streak. He had 27 points in the Vols' 64-58 win over No. 8 Florida on Tuesday night. His previous highs of six 3-pointers and 34 points came in an 82-72 win over LSU on Feb. 19.
McRae made eight of 11 3-pointers but said he couldn't enjoy another career high.
"We lost, that's all that matters," McRae said. "The personal stuff doesn't mean much. It goes right out the window."
McRae said the Vols had to shoot 3-pointers because Georgia sealed off the lanes to the basket.
"Every time we tried to drive, it was like driving into a wall," McRae said. "There was nowhere to go. It was tough."
Georgia had success from the 3-point line in each win over the Vols. After making 11 of 20 3s at Tennessee last month, the Bulldogs made 8 of 16 3s on Saturday. The Bulldogs led by 11 at 25-14 late in the first half. The Vols rallied to lead 41-40 on McRae's 3-pointer about eight minutes into the second half.
Georgia had a quick answer. A jam by Tim Dixon gave the Bulldogs the lead for good.
Freshman Kenny Gaines, who returned after missing one game with a heel injury, hit a 3-pointer with 5:20 remaining to give Georgia a 53-45 advantage. Gaines' added another 3 with 2:56 remaining to push the lead to 12 points.
"Coach said to keep fighting and stay with the process," Gaines said.
Tennessee tried to rally behind McRae, a junior from Midway, Ga., who sank two 3-pointers in the final 2:30. McRae sank two free throws with 1:10 remaining to cut Georgia's lead to 69-62. After Mann answered with two free throws, McRae fouled out with 1:02 remaining.
Georgia had five turnovers before it scored its first points. The Vols led 7-0 but couldn't take full advantage of Georgia's string of giveaways. The Bulldogs finished with only nine turnovers for the game, including only two in the second half.


text:
This 20th century Flemish mansion, in the very heart of Bruges, has been renovated with great flair and is now a superb small hotel hidden down a side street. A family run hotel, with a warm ambience and a feeling that the guests are all-important.
In the heart of Brussels, opposite the magnificent Bourse building, Marriott Brussels is a short distance from the Grand-Place, one of the most beautiful squares in the world.
Pullman Brussels Airport, a 4-star hotel, has 125 luxurious rooms. These are built around a lovely garden with a heated swimming pool. The hotel has a Wellness Center:fitness, jacuzzi, turkish bath,... Free airport shuttle service & spacious parking.
A nice 3 * * * familial hotel with a fine food restaurant CYRANO Hotel open at 04.00 pm, closed at 11.00pm
The Best Western Hotel Dinant is located in an idyllic countryside setting, only a few miles from the city center.
The Hotel Cascade Midi situated in the Anderlecht neighborhood of Brussels is eight miles away from the Brussels Airport (BRU).
Located at the top of a hill in the Condroz Namurois region, the hotel Chateau de la Poste enjoys an extraordinary location.
The BEST WESTERN Hotel Arlon is located close to the border with the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, just 20 kilometers from Luxembourg City. Its location along
Centrally located in Ghent, one of the most beautiful historic cities in Belgium, Europe and 45 miles from Brussels Airport.
This Hotel With Garden And Terrasse Will Accommodate You In One Of Its 51 Rooms. French, German And Spanish Are Spoken At Desk. - 51 Rooms - 2 Levels
Select your destination in Belgium. Browse thousands of listings for accommodations, adventures, tours and travel services.


text:
4 comment(s) |E-mail|Print | Text Size | Bookmark
Naugy's D'Agnone steals the show in rout of St. Paul
NAUGATUCK — For a night in which a pair of quarterbacks combined for 559 yards and 10 touchdown passes, it was a defensive back who stepped up and stole the show.
Naugatuck's Mike D'Agnone blew open the Greyhounds' game Saturday night at Veterans Field with a pair of interception-return touchdowns and added two more scoring receptions as Naugy scored 63 points in the first half of a 70-33 win over St. Paul.
"Mike's a hard-nosed player," Naugatuck head coach Shawn Kuczenski said. "He comes to play. He knows he's not the fastest guy or the strongest guy on the team but he brings everything he has. He's a fun guy to have on the team."
D'Agnone had plenty of fun in the second quarter of a game that was dominated early by both teams' passing games.
Naugatuck (2-1) quarterback Jason Bradley hooked up on scores with Brandon Kuczenski and Mick Pernell while St. Paul (0-3) slinger Logan Marchi connected twice with Reid Morin, all within the first 13 minutes of a competitive game.
Both of Morin's touchdowns came against D'Agnone. But after the second score, which pulled the Falcons to within 21-14 early in the second quarter, Naugy adjusted its defense.
"St. Paul picked up our first defense and we couldn't get to the quarterback, so we switched it up," Shawn Kuczenski said. "We had a safety come over the top and the linebackers dropped into their zones. I think it confused them and it worked."
D'Agnone made a change, too, and saw it pay off in a big way.
After Pernell scored his second rushing touchdown of the night to give the Greyhounds a 28-14 lead with 9:30 left in the second, Marchi took over at his own 35-yard line. He decided to attack D'Agnone again, but the 5-foot-10 senior was ready. D'Agnone jumped Morin's route and cruised 37 yards into the end zone.
"Early in the game I was a step or two behind. They were targeting me," D'Agnone said. "I started getting good reads on balls."
Seven minutes later Pernell scored again, this time from 26 yards out on a crossing route from Bradley, to make it a 42-14 game. But when Marchi decided to attack D'Agnone one more time on the ensuing drive, the Greyhound struck again with a 47-yard pick-six.
D'Agnone added two touchdown catches from Bradley inside the last two minutes, including a 30-yarder on the last play of the half, to give the 'Hounds a 63-14 lead at the half.
"It's the greatest feeling in the world," D'Agnone said of his four-score performance. "Mick played his butt off tonight as always but it felt good for me to step up."
Pernell, as is becoming normal, had 261 total yards and scored four times. Bradley enjoyed his breakout game, rebounding from a subpar game at Derby to go 8-of-9 for 234 yards and five touchdowns.
"It was unbelievable," Bradley said. "When I threw my first touchdown I figured it was going to be a good game. Then I threw a 7-yard pass to Mick and he takes it all the way (for a 60-yard touchdown in the first). My line was great. The only time I got touched was when I ran."
Reader Comments
The following are comments from online readers like you. In no way do they represent the view of The Republican-American.
gohounds wrote on Sep 30, 2012 2:18 AM:
" How did dagnone steal show when Pernell has four TD's and goes over 100yds rushing and rec in the 1st half. Sounds more like a dynamic duo!!! "
Naugyeducation wrote on Sep 30, 2012 10:05 AM:
" Gohounds the title of the article is a play on words which references the interceptions. An interception, in case you are not aware, is when the defender takes the ball, aka: steals, from the offensive team. D'Agnone intercepted two an returned them for touchdowns. Interceptions returned for touchdowns are given a higher degree if difficulty on the TD scale as there is no set play as there is on an offensive running play.
Does it really matter who gets the headline as long as the TEAM wins is the important thing? "
Naugyman wrote on Sep 30, 2012 10:56 AM:
" They weren't taking anything away from mick pernell and dagnone even said that himself. Mick played unbelievable as he has these last three weeks. But it was a treat to watch this kid step up and put on a show like he did. Dagnone scored the four touchdowns in a matter of like 6 minutes, one after another. To me he had the crowd going behind him and was the show for the first half. I Can't wait to see if naugy's new breakout player can continue his tremendous play. Great job kid "
BigBluecoach wrote on Sep 30, 2012 12:28 PM:
" Great job to the hounds and Dags. Always had a nose for the ball on D. Mick had a great night too. Nice to see the most impotant thing....a W. In defense of gohounds. He prob wasn't there to witness the Dags show and just looked at stats. "
Submit a Comment
We encourage your feedback and dialog.
Please be civil and respectful.
Registered users comments will be posted automatically.
All other comments will be reviewed by our staff before appearing on the Web site.
If you're witty, to the point and quotable, your reader comments may also be included on the Around the Towns page of The Sunday Republican.
Redzone News
Redzone Videos
Redzone Blog
XML_Parser: undefined entity at XML input line 8:18
Photo Galleries


text:
The Schrödinger Equation provides a Probability Density map of the atom. In light of that, are either of the following possible:
- The orbital/electron cloud converges to a 2d surface without heat (absolute zero)?
- heat is responsible for the probability density variation from the above smooth surface?
I have taken two calculus based physics, and Modern Physics with the Schrödinger equation, Heisenberg Uncertainty Principle, Etc.


text:
I'm looking for an app that can count my daytime minutes usage. I only get 200 free airtime minutes between 7am to 7pm Mondays to Fridays until the 24th of each month. (After 7pm my plan has unlimited minutes.)
Preferably, I want to be alerted by the app when I'm going over, i.e., by the 28th it alerts me if I've exceeded 26 minutes.


text:
Firefighter pipe band bar hops for St. Patrick's Day
Quinn Russell Brown / The Herald
Janet Jaeger, the president of Snohomish County Firefighters Pipes & Drums, plays her bass drum at Shawn O'Donnell's on St. Patrick's Day.
Quinn Russell Brown / The Herald
Members of Snohomish County Firefighters Pipes & Drums pack up their instruments in a storage unit below Shawn O'Donnell's Irish Pub.
Quinn Russell Brown / The Herald
A few members of the band play a quick set for a woman in a wheelchair who couldn't access their upstairs performance.
Quinn Russell Brown / The Herald
A piper holds the coin he received upon becoming "kilted." The number "15" indicates that he is the fifteenth member of Snohomish County Pipes & Drums to receive the honor.
Quinn Russell Brown / The Herald
The band put down their pipes and drums to sing "Happy Birthday" to Jay Merzlak, left, who turned 29.
"We got 20 minutes till the bus leaves," one of the firefighters announces. "We gotta be out there in 10."
Across the room, a drummer with a dyed-green goatee huddles up with a bandmate. They're wondering if it's possible to play a quick set for a lady in a wheelchair who wasn't able to see them play in the second-story restaurant. She's eating down the hall in the buffet room with a handful of other people.
"Do we have a piper?" the man with the green goatee asks.
Pipes blare. They have one now.
"Quarter of!" a woman's voice calls out to the room. It's Janet Jaeger, a drummer who recently became the president of the organization.
"It's quarter of? We gotta leave!" someone says, scrapping the idea.
"It's 1:46 right now," Jaeger says. "That's OK, go in and play the set."
A bagpiper and three drummers hustle through a narrow hallway and into the buffet room. Jaeger follows behind, scooping up a plate from a stack of clean dishes. "I'm gonna grab some corned beef before I pass out!" she says.
The quartet performs three songs, marching out during the third and falling silent as they squeeze back into the cramped hallway.
"We have to go to the bus, like right now," one of them says.
Snohomish County Firefighters Pipes & Drums was formed in 2007. The drummer with the green goatee, a driver from Fire District 7 named Ryan Englund, was there from the start.
"We weren't practicing as a group, we were taking private lessons with an instructor, taking private lessons at his house," Englund said. "We were kind of inventing the wheel at that time, leaning on the other regional bands."
The other regional bands are made up of firefighters in Seattle and Bellingham. A Northwest Firefighters Pipe Band Association brings them all together.
The history of firefighter pipe bands in America goes back to the 1800s.
"Back on the East Coast, when the police and fire service first started, there was a lot of Scottish and Irish immigrants that had those jobs," said Dave LeDuc, a piper who claims his ancestors fought with William Wallace. "That's where the tradition of pipes and drums comes from."
Above all else, LeDuc says the music is a way to honor past service and remember the fallen. This is done by performing at memorials and funerals; the regional bands all learn a certain number of standardized ceremonial pieces so they can come together and play after line-of-duty deaths.
"Our primary goal is to be able to do a mass band memorial and do it well, for fallen firefighters or police officers," Englund said.
In the meantime, the Snohomish County pipe band stays fresh by making the rounds every St. Patrick's Day. This year they started with a lunchtime performance at Shawn O'Donnell's, followed by stops at Piccadilly Circus in Snohomish, Scuttlebutt Brewery in Everett and A Very Taki Tiki Bar & Grill and Engel's Pub in Edmonds. Nine hours after they began, they returned to Shawn O'Donnell's for an encore.
Before entering a bar, the band began playing outside and marched in mid-tune, each member carving out a spot within the claustrophobic crowd and securing it for the duration of the set. (Every bar was likely packed past capacity, though if fire codes are to be broken it's probably best to break them in the company of firefighters.)
They played two sets of four songs at each bar, with a break in between to grab a bite and raise money for a raffle. The setlist was mostly the same from bar to bar, though there was the occasional improvisation. During the lunchtime trip to Shawn O'Donnell's, for example, the band set their pipes and drums aside to sing "Happy Birthday" to a patron named Jay Merzlak, who was turning 29.
There are 16 members in the Snohomish County pipe band, five who play highland bagpipes and 11 who play either bass, snare or tenor drum. All of these members are said to have been "kilted," which means they have mastered a repertoire of eight songs and passed tests in music and marching.
The kilted bunch come from different departments around the county. In addition to the time commitment, they pay $50 a month for instructor fees. Money from T-shirt sales, gigs and donations pays for travel and those ornate red-and-black uniforms, which cost $2,500 apiece.
Leading the band is pipe major Chris Stablein, a driver from Fire District 7. At a certain point during each St. Patrick's Day set he stood on top of a chair as he played, much to the delight of the crowd, and he leads the band in parades.
On the executive side is Jaeger, the new president. She keeps the band organized by hollering at them when it's time to go, or giving them permission to play a special set. A battalion chief in Fire District 7, Jaeger is also involved with community outreach and deciding how the band will give back. Right now they donate to the Firefighter Cancer Support Network.
"This is one of the best ways to connect with our public," Jaeger said of playing on St. Patrick's Day. "We get to see them, talk to them and get out there. That's probably my favorite thing about it."
In addition to the 16 members in the spotlight, there are a number of Snohomish County firefighters who practice every day in hopes of one day being kilted. They're known as "recruits" — firefighters who play pipes or drums but aren't at the level of public performance yet. They sold T-shirts and badges during the St. Patrick's Day festivities.
One of these recruits is Bill Ekse, who's been practicing the pipes for four and a half years. He's been with Snohomish County Fire District 7 since 1998.
"I've never played an instrument before, so it's very challenging," Ekse said.
His desire to be involved with the band goes back to 9/11, when Fire District 7 raised $190,000 for the widows and family members of fallen firefighters. Ekse flew out to New York for the memorials.
"During the funerals, we watched the pipes and drums go by — what it meant to the families. That is when I said I would do this," he said.
Back at Shawn O'Donnell's at 9:30 p.m., the band gets into formation and climbs the staircase for its final set of the night. They march past a long line of people waiting to get into the bar, a drunk few slurring insults. The grandparents and toddlers from the lunchtime set have made way for a young, noticeably intoxicated demographic.
One face is familiar: Jay Merzlak, who the band had sung "Happy Birthday" to at lunch, is near the back of the line.
"I got kicked out earlier!" he says proudly, then turns and asks the person standing next to him if they have ever met before.
Inside, an increasingly buzzed crowd drinks Guinness as the epitome of the St. Patrick's Day experience unfolds: bagpipes blaring in a bustling Irish bar. Along the back wall stands one of the band's youngest recruits, a 20-something firefighter who fidgets with an excitement that hasn't wavered after nine hours and five venues. One of the pipers had convinced him to come out for St. Patrick's Day last year and now he's back again.
"I started playing the pipes three weeks ago," he says, gazing wide-eyed at his kilted peers.
You can find out more about Snohomish County Firefighter Pipes & Drums or donate to their cause at their website. They're also on Facebook.
See sample | Privacy policy


text:
LAMPASAS (October 2, 2012)--A Lampasas man was arrested after neighbors reported a man had repeatedly undressed in his front yard exposing himself.
Neighbors reported to police that on several occasions a man would walk outside, undress himself and stand in his yard.
Police estimated that one neighbor witnessed it at least three times in one month.
"We decided to investigate and within a matter of days a warrant was put out," a police spokesperson said.
Mathias Martin, 34, was arrested Monday on a Lampasas Municipal Court warrant charging indecent exposure and was taken to the Lampasas County Jail.
His bond was set at $2,500.
Martin bonded out the same day.


text:
I've been searching for this anime for years, but I can't find it! It was shown in the early 90's on a Chinese channel so I never got the name of it. I can't really remember much but here some stuff that happens in the anime:
The main character is a young boy who plays like an ocarina
He finds mecha in a mountain (i think)
When he first finds the mecha he rides on its shoulder and it only walks when he plays the ocarina
All mechas i remember can be entered from the torso of the mecha (entry point to mecha is through like an orb?) And be controlled within the mecha.
There was also a girl character with pink hair who the main character meets (I think their first meeting is he catches her while she's skinny dipping lol)
Pink hair girl characters brother is on the evil side
All the bad guys have a tear drop on their face
Can anybody identify this anime?