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The first of its kind Web Technology Conference on Open Source Technology, WebOSS '07 was being organised in Kolkata today and spoke at the event as one of the participants and thought I will share my presentation here. As download requires you to register at the forum I am sharing the content of the presentation here as well.
PDF version of the presentation is available to download as an attachment.
- Database design
- Query Optimization
- Fewer HTTP Requests
- "Expires" Header
- Gzip your output
- CSS at the Top
- Scripts at the Bottom
- Avoid CSS Expressions
- External JavaScript and CSS
- Reduce DNS Lookups
- Minify JavaScript
- Avoid Redirects
- Duplicate Scripts
- Configure ETags
- General code optimization tips
Database design
- Every book will tell you to create the database as Normalized
- Now the brief idea of Normalization is
- First normal form (1NF)
- Eliminate Data redundancy
- Second normal form (2NF)
- Remove subsets of data that apply to multiple rows of a table and place them in separate tables.
- Create relationships between these new tables and their predecessors through the use of primary and foreign keys.
- Third normal form (3NF)
- Remove columns that are not dependent upon the primary key.
- Fourth normal form (4NF)
- A relation is in 4NF if it has no multi-valued dependencies.
- First normal form (1NF)
- Thumb rule of Normalization and database design or gist of all Normal forms can be
- Eliminate the data redundancy by having the data organized in such a manner that related data is kept together.
Database Design Practical approach
- Lets take an example of one of the most happening site on internet orkut
- If you look at the profile page on Orkut you will see lots of things but lets concentrate on the followings
- Your profile
- Your friends (Some 8 or 9)
- Now lets see the what could be the database for such a situation
- Now to display the page what you should be doing.
- Fetch all the data from the UserProfile Table and then
- Join the table UserProfile with UserNetwork
- Or Execute 2 queries based on the profile, fetch his friend.
- Now think how costly this join could be when you have millions of users like Orkut and each one of them have thousands of friends.
- You are fetching 8 or 9 records out of millions of them.
- Other solution could be to duplicate the recently used friends data in the UserProfile table itself which will save us querying millions of records.
Query optimization
- As we have seen that design of the database is one of the most important factors in the performance of your web page.
- Better database design also need optimal queries to perform optimally.
- You should also concentrate on designing your query.
- Always think over the query and ask yourself if the same thing can be achieved with some alternate queries and in more efficient manner.
- As an example
- Lets take a very common example with the above database,
- To know all the Employees in a particular department.
- One of the solution could be joining the tables
Code: SQLSELECT e.EmpId, e.SDId, e.EmpName, e.EmpAdd, e.EmpPhone
FROM Employee e, SubDepartment sd, Department d
WHERE e.SDId = sd.SDId
AND sd.DeptId = d.DeptId
AND d.DeptId = MyDepartment
- The above solution of joining 3 tables to give output for the MyDepartment as the id of the department is a very common but is a very expensive one.
- Any organization should have employee to department ratio high and if we can avoid joining an Employee table to Department table.
- If we analyze the above solution then we are getting the output for only one Department i.e. MyDepartment. So our aim should be to find the Sub-Departments in our MyDepartment.
Code: SQLSELECT SDId FROM SubDepartment WHERE DeptId = MyDepartment
- Now all we need is employees in the above Sub-Departments.
Code: SQLSELECT e.EmpId, e.SDId, e.EmpName, e.EmpAdd, e.EmpPhone FROM Employee e WHERE e.SDId IN (SELECT SDId FROM SubDepartment WHERE DeptId = MyDepartment)
Advantages of query optimization.
- With the above solution we have avoided joins from the 3 tables.
- Avoided querying Department tables as well.
Fewer HTTP Requests
- When any page is fetched from the server it makes an HTTP request to the server.
- Most of this time is tied up in downloading all the components in the page: images, stylesheets, scripts, Flash, etc.
- Reducing the number of components in turn reduces the number of HTTP requests required to render the page.
- Combined files are a way to reduce the number of HTTP requests by combining all scripts into a single script, and similarly combining all stylesheets into a single stylesheet.
- Majority of web developers think differently and will not agree on this.
Fewer HTTP Requests Case Study
- Say I have a program where I need to be doing some disk operations.
- Disk operations are one of the slowest operations and very few will disagree on this.
- Now say we take 2 test cases
- 10 small File I/Os by opening reading and then closing it.
- 1 time File I/O where the content of the file is loaded in memory.
- Analogy is Web server needs to be doing lots of small Disk operation is to one disk operation.
"Expires" Header
- Expires header makes your web components like scripts, stylesheets, images, and Flash cacheable
- A first-time visitor to your page may have to make several HTTP requests, avoids unnecessary HTTP requests on subsequent page views.
- Expires headers are most often used with images, but they should be used on all components including scripts, stylesheets, and Flash components.
- The major disadvantage of using it is you have to change the component's filename whenever the component changes and the best way of doing is to make the name based on version number of the file or the date on which it was last modified to be added with the file name.
- Using Expires header has an advantage if you have returning users but for the new visitors you have no added advantage.
Gzip your output
- Use of latest browsers helps you send the page content in the zipped format.
- Browser sees the headers and unzips the content and then render it to the screen.
- Gzip is supported by almost all browsers and web servers are also responding to the same and are going hand in hand.
- Gzipping as many file types as possible is an easy way to reduce page weight and accelerate the user experience.
- The disadvantage of using such things is you may not be able to see the web page correctly if you are using a very old browser.
CSS at the Top
- Used correctly most of the time.
- Putting CSS in the HEAD element allows progressively display of web page and the web page itself can behave as a progress indicator.
- Also the layout of the page can change dramatically with the final CSS and so many browser do not render the pages progressively if CSS is at the bottom.
Scripts at the Bottom
- Used incorrectly most of the time.
- Moving scripts as low in the page as possible means there's more content above the script that is rendered sooner.
- The disadvantage is its not always possible to b able to push the JavaScript down and you may have some content in the JavaScript which updates the page (like document.write) and so it should be at the top of the page
Avoid CSS Expressions
- Internet explorer supports expressions in CSS which based on some JavaScript expression you can set some values.
- Example
background-color : expression((new Date()).getHours()%2 ? "#0000FF : "#FF0000");
- The problem with such expressions is that the expression may just execute the expression infinite number of times when you move your mouse or resize the window.
- Other disadvantage is you cannot use the CSS caching ( due to every time changing nature of CSS ) which can help you save some HTTP requests on your web server.
External JavaScript and CSS
- One of the most debatable topic is
- Should they go for external to the page
- Makes more HTTP requests.
- Allows caching
- Should be inline with the page
- Less HTTP requests
- My opinion is if we have the option of caching we should go for it
- because it reduces the HTTP requests for returning user.
- The size of the HTML document is reduced without increasing the number of HTTP requests.
Reduce DNS Lookups
- Say we have 10 image servers for the domain go4expert.com as img[0-9].go4expert.com
- Now we have 2 options
- Fetch the images using the host name as img1.go4expert.com
- Fetch the images using the ip address of the server.
- Its obvious to use the ip because it does not need to be resolving the host name saving you some milli seconds.
- The disadvantage of using such method is you should be having static ip address which should not change frequently.
Minify JavaScript
- Its not minimize the use of JavaScript but its to minify the JavaScript.
- Minification is the practice of removing unnecessary characters from code to reduce its size thereby improving load times.
- When code is minified all comments are removed, as well as unneeded white space characters (space, newline, and tab).
- In case of JavaScript, this improves response time performance because the size of the downloaded file is reduced.
- JSMin is one of the open source software available.
- JSMin is a filter that omits or modifies some characters. This does not change the behavior of the program that it is minifying. The result may be harder to debug. It will definitely be harder to read.
- JSMin removes comments and white space from the code.
- Obfuscation is an alternative optimization method that can be applied to source code which converts function and variable names into smaller strings making the code more compact as well as harder to read.
- The most famous example is iGoogle:-
- Look at the source code of iGoogle page and you will see that lots of JavaScript but you are unable to read or debug it and the reason behind it is that its reduced and is uncommented.
Avoid Redirects
- When you link to your internal pages like
- It actually redirects you to
- Note :- See the trailing slash
- Avoid HTML code linking to the site without the trailing slash to avoid un-necessary redirects on your server.
Duplicate Scripts
- Manage your script module such that you do not include the same JavaScript file into the web page more than once.
- Some browsers make duplicate requests to the server and thus you make an additional HTTP request.
Configure ETags
- ETags helps understand the browser to understand if the cache version of the file is same on the server or modified.
- ETags are created based on file information and server.
- ETags won't match when a browser gets the original component from one server and later tries to validate that component on a different server, a situation that is all too common on Web sites that use a cluster of servers to handle requests.
- If you're not taking advantage of the flexible validation model that ETags provide, it's better to just remove the ETag altogether. The Last-Modified header validates based on the component's timestamp. And removing the ETag reduces the size of the HTTP headers in both the response and subsequent requests.
General code optimization tips
- Avoid using regular expression where possible.
- Avoid declaring variable inside the loops.
- Always go through the documentation of the APIs for optimal use of them.
- Some languages allow you can do away with variable declaration. Try avoiding use of such automatic variable declaration system.
- PHP allows you to have the header files inclusion when you need. Do that. Do not go for including all the header files at the beginning.
- Remember OO programming is for better maintainability and not for optimal performance but the performance lost is worth the gain.
PDF version of the presentation is available to download as an attachment.


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Back to infrastructure solutions
Fleet optimization for travel and transportation
Reduce costs while improving productivity
You require the capability to track and monitor your vehicles, trucks, drivers and cargo while in-transit or in maintenance, not merely when they are parked in the lot. You also need to be able to communicate with fleet operators at all times—anywhere they happen to be—to facilitate scheduling and improve utilization, productivity and efficiency. And you need a way to improve safety and customer satisfaction, while driving down the costs of maintenance, fuel and insurance.
Use your fleet assets to make better decisions
Fleet optimization from IBM enables your fleet of vehicles and trucks, and their cargo, to become more instrumented. Whether an asset is in transit, in maintenance or on the lot, the solution provides the technologies—such as global positioning system (GPS) devices, radio frequency identification (RFID) tags and integrated vehicle telematics—to capture and transmit data about the location and status of that asset in real time. In addition to data-only options, the solution can also include capabilities for voice, text-to-speech and voice recognition over mobile connections.
Our fleet optimization solution takes the data captured by your fleet assets and integrates that data with your enterprise systems—including enterprise resource planning (ERP), customer relationship management (CRM), supply chain management (SCM) and billing systems—interconnecting all functional areas of your business and streamlining your processes.
The solution also employs built-in vehicle diagnostics and advanced analytics integrated into your enterprise systems. This ensures that critical information gets to the systems and people who need it, thereby improving decision making and helping you achieve greater efficiencies and savings.
Transform your fleet for success
Fleet optimization from IBM can help transform your business by:
- Managing fleet assets and organizational workloads.
- Pinpointing the location of tractors, trailers, containers and other assets.
- Reducing unscheduled maintenance costs and driving down operating costs.
- Lowering fuel expenses and greatly improving driver productivity and safety.
- Monitoring the condition of cargo to prevent loss and potential spoilage.
- Increasing asset utilization, recovering lost assets and preventing fraud.
The solution that grows in scale and scope
This solution is built on a service oriented architecture (SOA) foundation that is platform independent and provides flexibility, extensibility and scalability to maximize business value and reduce risk. The solution toolset can be customized to your needs.
- Tools for reliable data capture:
- IBM® WebSphere® Application Server
- WebSphere MQ and WebSphere Message Broker
- IBM Rational® development tools
- Software to capture data with existing systems:
- WebSphere Application Server
- IBM DB2® data management tools
- WebSphere MQ and WebSphere Message Broker
- Software to help you gain new insights:
- IBM Tivoli® product suite
- WebSphere MQ for devices
- WebSphere Process Server for event processing
- Services:
- Telematics technology deployment
- Application customization services
- Device management implementation

subset: commoncrawl


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Learn about Barco products, view online manuals, get the latest downloads, and more. Get service, support, and professional advice from Barco.
Regularly looking for product support? Use your myBarco account to get all the latest updates for your products!
Our helpdesk provides you with prompt phone support. A team of experienced support engineers is at your service for any professional assistance.Select your support country & market


text:
Steel plans announced
January 22, 2013
What exactly a newly announced deal between two family-led steel companies will mean for development and operations of two steel mills in Yorkville is not yet clear, but the announcement Monday......
The first, extraordinarily long sentence makes no sense. Isn't it an editor's job, regardless of how painful the experience might be, to edit stories and make them more palatable to the reader?
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10 Dec 2012 11:14 PM #1
Ext JS 4.2 Beta is Now Available
Today we are excited to make available the beta release of Ext JS 4.2.
For those eager to get the bits, you can download the beta here:
The most significant change in Ext JS 4.2 is in the Grid component. There is an excellent newsletter article on this, so I highly recommend taking a look at it for details. In addition to the exciting grid improvements, Ext JS 4.2 contains all of the bug fixes found in Ext JS 4.1.2 and Ext JS 4.1.3 that have previously been shipped only to support subscribers.
Let's dive in to the other highlights of this release.
With Ext JS 4.2 we now have much improved IE 10 support. The introduction of IE10 brings an entirely new challenge to consider in your applications, however: 2 quirks modes! That's right. All other browsers to date have a strict mode and a quirks mode (the mode you get with no DOCTYPE specified). With IE10, strict mode is enabled as you would expect: when you specify the DOCTYPE. What is a surprise is that when you do not specify a DOCTYPE, the new "interoperable quirks" mode is enabled. This quirks mode is not at all like previous "IE Quirks" modes. The old quirks mode is enabled only with the following meta tag:
<meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=5">
For the official story from Microsoft on IE 10 and its document modes, see http://blogs.msdn.com/b/ie/archive/2...e-in-ie10.aspx
In addition to Grid, the long anticipated support of Right-to-Left (or RTL) languages has arrived in Ext JS 4.2! The core functionality of RTL is provided as a set of overrides in the Ext.rtl namespace. Enabling RTL on your viewport is a two-line addition:
Ext.define('MyApp.view.Viewport', { extend: 'Ext.container.Viewport', requires: [ 'Ext.rtl.*' ], rtl: true });
In all browsers except for legacy IE (that is, IE6 in all modes and IE7 to IE9 in quirks mode), it is possible to change the "rtl" mode of child containers, say for a portal where not all portlets have the same RTL mode. In legacy IE, however, RTL is a global option. Simply including the RTL css file will cause many things to flip in to RTL.
The additional RTL support code is not included in ext-all.js but instead in ext-all-rtl.js. Of course, using Sencha Cmd, your application's build will only include the pieces you need and the ext-all-*.js files are only important at development time.
The extra CSS rules are likewise not included in ext-all.css since most users do not need them. Enabling them is as simple as switching to ext-all-rtl.css. To support legacy IE, you will need to dynamically determine whether to include ext-all.css or ext-all-rtl.css since including ext-all-rtl.css will cause the much of the UI to flip to RTL mode. You will still need the support code and "rtl" config to complete the functionality, but the RTL rule CSS selectors in ext-all-rtl.css will match all components and containers in IE6.
Ext JS 4.1 released a ton of new bells and whistles in XTemplate, but like any language, there are always more useful features out there. In Ext JS 4.2, XTemplate has learned a couple new tricks. These can be seen in this example:
<tpl foreach="someObject" between=","> {$}={.} </tpl>
In Ext JS 4.1.3 we started a series of internal fixes to the MVC core classes to help with larger applications that needed to share models, views and controllers between pages. In previous versions, you could do this:
Ext.define('MyApp.controller.Main', { views: [ 'Foo' 'Common.views.Bar' ] });
Ext.define('MyApp.controller.Main', { views: [ 'Foo', 'email@example.com' // maps to Common.views.Bar ] });
Beyond convenience methods like these, the MVC changes have been targeted to also allow you to more easily unit test your controller classes and to share your application classes across pages.
To enable controllers to be unit tested, we have modified the Ext.app.Controller class to no longer require an Ext.app.Application instance in order to be instantiated. This also affects how the events wire up worked since that required the application and a helper object called the "event bus".
You can now write a standard-looking Ext.app.Application derived class and pass its name to Ext.application:
Ext.define('MyApp.Application', { extend: 'Ext.app.Application', name: 'MyApp' ... }); Ext.application('MyApp.Application');
Should you not use them, these internal changes should be transparent to your applications. But if you have previously tried to unit test your controllers and found that you could not … you should try again with Ext JS 4.2.
In Ext JS 4.2, the many grid improvements also serve for trees. Most importantly, the buffered rendering plugin.
One challenge that people encounter when using trees is the NodeInterface class. This class gets injected "on top" of your model class and that can create problems since it may override methods you want to implement. In Ext JS 4.1.3, we added Ext.data.TreeModel as a class from which you can derive your own models for use in a tree. Because Ext.data.TreeModel gets the NodeInterface applied to it, your models are free to override any method you need. The change is simple:
Ext.define('MyApp.models.Foo', { extend: 'Ext.data.TreeModel', ... });
To some degree this is largely an internal change, but it will surely have impact to some applications. In Ext JS 4.1, the auto container layout class had to manage all of its child components individually. This posed performance challenges for containers that had lots of child components, so in Ext JS 4.2, we have added wrapping elements to create a bounding box around auto container contents.
We have heavily tested the interaction of these elements with things like child margins, body padding, scrolling overflow, text flow and the like. The side-effects should, therefore, be minimal to your styling.
This change also affects anchor layout and column layout.
Life-cycle Optimizations
We have also performed a good deal of tuning on the component life-cycle methods (like setUI). We moved more of the DOM element preparation work into the beforeRender phase to ensure that the markup we produce is right and does not need tweaking in afterRender.
One change in this area that could affect your applications is that the "add" and "remove" container events no longer bubble by default. In Ext JS 4.0/4.1, these events would fire for each component you created and they would bubble up to the top of the component hierarchy. In almost every case, there were no listeners to these events and all this work was for naught. In Ext JS 4.2, these events no longer bubble, which allows us to take advantage of our optimized event listener detection and maybe avoid even calling fireEvent (if there are no listeners).Don Griffin
Director of Engineering - Frameworks (Ext JS / Sencha Touch)
Check the docs. Learn how to (properly) report a framework issue and a Sencha Cmd issue
"Use the source, Luke!"-->
11 Dec 2012 2:20 PM #2
- Join Date
- Mar 2007
- Location
- Notts/Redwood City
- Posts
- 30,604
- Vote Rating
- 58
To clarify, Trees will be able to use
plugins: { ptype: 'bufferedrenderer' }Search the forum: http://www.google.com/coop/cse?cx=01...%3Az7of1ufqccu
Read the docs too: http://extjs.com/deploy/dev/docs/
Scope: http://extjs.com/forum/showthread.ph...642#post257642-->


text:
I've read about this code before:
java code:
protected boolean isValidChar(char ch) {
return super.isValidChar(ch) || ch=='.';
The only problem is, I don't know exactly where to put it. I can't alter the source code, because I'm using a Jar file to implement RSyntaxTextArea. If I do have to alter the source, is there another way to implement RSyntaxArea than the jar?


text:
Fire Flyers, LED Tire Light, Bicycle Tire Light, Car Tire Light. Car Tire for $1.09 + free shipping
Coupon code "MLCK822ENL1" cuts it to $1.09. With free shipping
LED light length:3cm (1.2 in )
Motion activated, flash automatically when the vehicle moves
Easy installment, simply screw it into the tire valve stem of your car, bicycles or motorcycle in seconds
Super bright, energy saving and long lifespan LED
Increases night time and bad weather visibility for safety
Made of durable metal and plastic
Brings your car more color and enjoyment
Perfect addition to your car, bike or bicycle
Operated by battery 3xAG10 (Included)
5 Comments add a comment
For a buck o' nine, you can't go wrong. In for 1.
It's $ 1.09 for a pair.
Out of stock.
got these last time they were up. put them on my car and i look like a tooly dbag. Puncked my ricer friend so hard...
i had got few of these before.the quality is pretty good for the price.dont expect them to stay on for ever.3-6 months perhaps and they either fall down or are broken when some road debris strikes at high speed.
for those who missed, this deal comes up occasionally.also try ebay and u may get it cheaper.


text:
Buying the Right Protein for Your Diet
In This Article:
When buying beef, pork, lamb, and veal, look for lean, well-trimmed cuts. Meats are graded by the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) according to their fat content and texture. Prime indicates the highest in fat (unfortunately, it's usually the most tender and juicy because of the marbled fat throughout); choice is moderately fatty; and select is the leanest. Lean meats provide a lot of high-quality protein, along with iron, B-vitamins, phosphorus, and zinc.
|Your leanest beef choices are the following:
|Top round
|Top loin steak
|Chuck steaks
|Lean T-bone
|Lean rump
|Lean porterhouse
|Lean flank
|Ground beef (only extra-lean)
|Eye of round
|Round tip
|Bottom round
|Your leanest lamb and veal choices are as follows:
|Leg of lamb
|Lamb roast
|Arm chop
|Lean loin chop
|Veal roast
|Veal loin chop
|Veal cutlet
|Your leanest pork choices are these:
|Top loin roast
|Center loin chips
|Canadian bacon
|Lean ham
|Rib chips
|Sirloin roast
|Shoulder blade steak
Buffalo meat and venison meat are both exceptionally lean.
More on: Children's Nutritional Needs
Excerpted from The Complete Idiot's Guide to Total Nutrition © 2005 by Joy Bauer. All rights reserved including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form. Used by arrangement with Alpha Books, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
To order this book visit the Idiot's Guide web site or call 1-800-253-6476.


text:
I'm passing a JSON-encoded string to
json_decode() and am expecting its output to be an object type, but am getting a string type instead. How can I return an object?
In the docs, the following returns an object:
$json = '{"a":1,"b":2,"c":3,"d":4,"e":5}';
However, if I
json_encode() the string first and then call
json_decode(), the output is a string and not an object:
$json = json_encode('{"a":1,"b":2,"c":3,"d":4,"e":5}');
This is just a simplified example. In practice what I'm doing is pushing a JSON-encoded string to PHP via AJAX. However it does illustrate the problem of converting this encoded JSON string to an object I can read in PHP, e.g., "
How can I return an object type?
thanks for the replies ! The actual context for this question was am using a JSON Response from a API. But when I do the json_decode to this response and try to access the values like - $json=json_decode(json response from API); echo $json->a it gives me a error: Object of class stdClass could not be converted to string


text:
Kate Bosworth's Wedding Dress: Watch Her Get Fitted For It In Oscar de la Renta's Studio!
When Kate Bosworth married Michael Polish in Montana Saturday, everything was picturesque: The scenery. The wildflowers. And, of course, her classic wedding dress.
We were dying to know more about the elegant Oscar de la Renta gown the star wore down the aisle, and now, thanks to Vogue Weddings, we were able to go inside the star's N.Y.C. wedding dress fitting with the designer himself and his head tailor, Raffaele Ilardo. And boy, was it beautiful.
"Oscar is the most legendary designer, in my opinion, ever," she says in the video. "He has such a great mark on American elegance, and I'm such an admirer of his life and his work. There is no one else for me."
RELATED: See more amazing star wedding gowns here!
The camera circles Bosworth as she tries on the muslin for what will eventually be an ivory radzimir satin strapless gown with an 8-ft. long, 16-ft. wide train. And the jaw-dropping rear view was a collaboration between Bosworth and the designer himself. "Because I love minimalism and I love a clean line so much, I knew that I didn't want any embellishments in the dress," she says. "So I spoke to Oscar [and] he loved the idea about having the drama in the back. So I knew that was going to be perfect."
True to Bosworth's fashionista reputation, she has plenty of opinions on how to make the gown fit in perfectly with the dramatic outdoor setting. And she sweetly talks about her relationship with now-husband Polish (and flashes that stunning engagement ring!), giving us a romantic glimpse inside their love story.
Check out the video above to peek in on Bosworth's dream wedding gown experience, and be sure to subscribe to the Vogue YouTube channel for even more gorgeousness. Then tell us: What do you think of Bosworth's gown? Are you excited to see the finished product?
–Alex Apatoff


text: The Copyright Act, 1978, governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under the provisions of the Act libraries and archive repositories are authorised to supply photocopies or other reproductions. One of these provisions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be used for any purpose other than private study or personal or private use. If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes not permitted by the Act, that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its opinion fulfillment of the order might involve violation of the Act.


text:
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text:
Home for the Holidays
DUBLIN, New Hampshire (October 19, 2007)–Yankee Magazine's November/December issue features 24 easy and elegant recipes, including Yankee's most famous cookies ever. The "Home for the Holidays" issue, on sale October 28, 2007, also explores the traditions, warmth, and giving associated with the holiday season.
"I don't know whether a single issue of a magazine can be a gift, but in these pages we've tried to distill what the holidays mean to us," says Editor Mel Allen. "Just as opening the door of a loved one's home promises good cheer within, we hope that each page of this issue of Yankee brings you special pleasure."
Here is an overview of some articles from the current issue.
Angels (p. 122): "Angels Among Us, 2007," by Carol Cambo, features five New Englanders who have made a difference in the lives of others. Last year, Yankee Magazine ran its first "Angels Among Us" article, which resulted in such positive reader response that for this year's holiday issue, editor Mel Allen decided to continue the tradition of recognizing New Englanders who make a difference.
Orphan Holidays (p. 118): Holiday images usually focus on large family gatherings and festive, happy scenes. However, being alone is a reality for many people, making the period between Thanksgiving and New Year's a difficult time. Edie Clark, the beloved writer of "Mary's Farm," a column in Yankee Magazine, explores this issue in "Orphan Holidays," a special edition of "Mary's Farm" excerpted from Saturday Beans & Sunday Suppers, Clark's newly released memoir about special people, special places, and special foods, available now at www.edieclark.com.
Sweet Exchange (p. 78): The November/December issue of Yankee Magazine revisits a story first published in 1982 about the Wellesley, Massachusetts, Cookie Exchange, exploring the phenomenon of friends and neighbors sharing their favorite sweets. The 2007 version includes the members of a new generation, who are carrying on the tradition by hosting their own cookie exchanges.
Easy, Elegant, Delicious…(p. 102): Yankee presents a showstopping array of holiday recipes–every dish simple to prepare.
Let the Spirit Move You (p. 58): Matthew Mead, New England's decorating genius, whose client list includes national chain stores, magazines, and more, offers tips to help readers style their homes from Thanksgiving through the New Year.
Holiday Gift Guide (p. 28): Yankee Magazine searched the region to find some of the best classic-yet-innovative toys to delight children this holiday season. The six items are featured in "Jingle All the Way," Yankee's "New England's Finest" column for November/December.
An Island Captured (p. 96): Block Island photographer Malcolm Greenaway's pictures are featured in Yankee Magazine's November/December issue. In addition to showcasing some of Greenaway's island photographs, the article also includes vivid descriptions of the circumstances that allowed him to capture such rare scenes.
The Most Surprising City in New England (p. 38): Pittsfield, Massachusetts, is featured in Yankee Magazine's November/December "Travel" section, highlighting the city's rebirth as the cultural capital of the Berkshires.
# # #
Note to media: Yankee welcomes the media to interview our writers and editors, who are experts on New England. For more information, contact Heather Atwell.
About Yankee: Yankee Publishing Inc. is an independent media company based in Dublin, New Hampshire. Yankee Magazine ("New England's Magazine") was first published in September 1935 and is the only magazine dedicated to New England. The Old Farmer's Almanac ("Often Imitated but Never Equaled") is the nation's oldest continuously produced periodical. Products include The Old Farmer's Almanac All-Seasons Garden Guide, The Old Farmer's Almanac for Kids, <a href="http://www.YankeeMagazine.com">YankeeMagazine.com, Almanac.com, Almanac4Kids.com, YankeeFoliage.com, and various podcasts. The company also produces a wide range of books, calendars, and custom-published products.
Heather Atwell
Communications Manager
Ph. 603-563-8111, ext. 180


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I am planning to do a ceviche entrée in Ireland but I am limited in the choice of seafood and most likely won't find Peruvian/Pacific ones. Any recommendations for? substitutes
I think just about any large flaky-fleshed fish that's not too fatty is a good candidate for ceviche. Salmon can work, though it's a tad fatty. Tuna is not a good choice, in my opinion. Cod and any kind of bass can work really well. I would think haddock or even sole or flounder could work too.
There is lots of white-fleshed fish available in the North Atlantic, and many will do great in ceviche. Take a look at the flesh and see if it seems similar to what you would usually use, and when in doubt ask the fishmonger for advice. Even if they don't know ceviche, if you can tell them what fish you'd usually use, they can probably advise you on substitutes.
Tuna, Shrimp, Squid, Mackerel, etc. should all be available in your area to some degree. Any of them would be great ingredients.
I'm a sucker for Tilapia, seems to work out quite well


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I maintain a journal(diary) to keep track of personal targets, habit changes, etc. and seeing its positive effects, I would like to maintain something similar for academic/professional acivities. The diary is somewhat of a personal/emotional space hence I would prefer to maintain something different for this.
So, what ways are there to maintain a record or log of academic targets, professional development activities and professional milestones achieved, etc. ?


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Regularly Hitting Soccer Ball With Head Linked to Memory Problems
Nov. 29, 2011 (Chicago) -- Using your head in soccer may not always be the best thing.
Regularly hitting a soccer ball with your head -- even just a few times a day -- has been linked to traumatic brain injuries, researchers report.
In a preliminary study, 32 amateur soccer players who "headed" the ball more than 1,000 to 1,500 times a year, the equivalent of a few times a day, had abnormalities in areas of the brain responsible for memory, attention, planning, organizing, and vision.
Young men who headed the ball less frequently did not show these abnormalities on brain scans, according to the study, presented here at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.
A previous study of the same 32 amateur soccer players also showed that those who headed the ball more than 1,000 times a year scored worse on tests of memory and reaction time, says researcher Michael Lipton, MD, PhD, associate director of the Gruss Magnetic Resonance Research Center at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, N.Y.
"The new study shows that there may be a safe range where you can head the ball without adverse consequences to the brain," Lipton tells WebMD.
Until more soccer players are studied for longer periods of time, however, "we don't have enough evidence to say 'XX' amount of heading is absolutely bad for you. So my advice is to try to minimize heading, especially during practice drills where players often head the ball back and forth 30 or more times at a shot," he says.
AAP: Not Enough Data on Heading
Soccer is one of the world's most popular sports. More than 250 million people play regularly, according to FIFA, the sport's governing body. In the United States, up to 18.2 million people play, with 78% under age 18.
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines say there is not enough evidence to support a recommendation that young soccer players completely refrain from heading the ball. However, the academy recommends that heading be minimized.
A hard hit can cause symptoms of a concussion, including lightheadedness, confusion, and headache, that require immediate attention, Lipton says.
But this is the first study in which players underwent a series of imaging scans to see what's going on inside the brain, Lipton says.


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Oracle GoldenGate Veridata Repair is here!
By Irem Radzik-Oracle on Jul 08, 2014
By Joe deBuzna, Director, Oracle Data Integration Product Management
Fix your out of sync data with a single click using the new Oracle GoldenGate Veridata 12.3 heterogeneous data repair feature!
I am so happy to finally be typing that sentence because I get asked about the Veridata Repair feature all the time. So YES, it's really here! Call me biased, but this is one of the most highly sought after, killer features in the Oracle Data Integration product line, if not all of Oracle Fusion Middleware. And while it's part of the Oracle GoldenGate product suite, it can compare and fix data between any two databases regardless of how you're moving the data around: Oracle GoldenGate, Oracle Data Integrator, Oracle Streams, Logical Data Guard, Oracle Advanced Replication, SQL scripts, custom batch jobs, SQL*Loader – it does not matter! As long as Veridata has the right database connection permissions and supports the platform, you're good to go.
And why does data go out of sync? Let me count the main ones, so we can keep this post short and sweet. The big ones we see include bad source data (e.g. out of bounds characters from wrong NLS settings and bad dates) got inserted or updated, no logging source operations caused data gaps in logical replication products, and bulk data loads/copies into target systems were timed incorrectly (improperly "instantiated" for replication). And here's the one we don't like to talk about: we work in extremely complicated IT environments and sometimes people just make mistakes. Sometimes we inherit those mistakes. And it's ok to have mistakes. But far better if you can quickly identify them and it is absolutely crucial to fix them as soon as possible to avoid domino effects of inconsistent data.
So don't just hope your data is in sync, prove it and have confidence knowing it. Have confidence when you're about to pull the switch on your cloud migration or failover; have confidence looking your CEO in the eye telling him that his "single source of truth" still is; have confidence that complex, multi-master conflict detection and resolution setup you designed, or inherited, is actually keeping everything in sync.
You can learn more about the repair feature via a few new resources we have for you below. Take a look and see how you can pick and chose only which tables and specific rows you want to repair; what we did to make this feature fast and secure; how we can suppress target triggers; and more:
You can also watch a half hour video of me talking about and giving a demo of both Oracle GoldenGate Veridata and Monitor 12.1.3 here:
Oracle University Learning Stream video for Oracle GoldenGate Monitor and Oracle GoldenGate Veridata.
For Oracle GoldenGate Veridata 12.1.3 we now include in a single download Oracle GoldenGate Veridata Server, Veridata Java agents, Oracle GoldenGate Monitor Server, and Oracle GoldenGate Monitor agents. This single download can be found on eDelivery.oracle.com and on our Oracle Technology Network page.
And since we're now based on Oracle Weblogic Server 12.1.3, you'll need to also download the Oracle Application Development Runtime Infrastructure.
To see which platforms are supported, you can click on the
Certifications tab in My Oracle Support, or download the spreadsheet "System
Requirements and Supported Platforms for Oracle Fusion Middleware 12c (12.1.3)".
Finally, please feel free to leave comments and feedback below. For those willing to share, I'm always looking for interesting stories on how you've seen data going out of sync and how you ended up fixing it.


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Local 4-H elects new officers, plans year
By Colton Hoiby and
Evangelina Abdallah,
Missouri Valley Bunch Co-Reporters
The Missouri Valley Bunch 4-H Club met at the Eagles Park, Mandan, Sept. 21.
Karla Meikle, 4-H Youth Development Extension Agent, demonstrated air rockets. Club members created and launched their air rockets toward a hula hoop target.
Plans for other projects, such as photography, baking, first aid and glue solutions, as well as visiting an elder care center, were made for the next year.
Election of new officers were held. The officers are Kathryn Goettle, President; Maddie Klee, Vice President; Margaret Bjelanovic, Secretary; John Goettle, Treasurer; Colton Hoiby and Evangelina Abdallah, Co-Reporters; Ellie Bierman and Grace Klee, Recreational Leaders. Vanessa Hoines is Club Leader.
Club members and their families enjoyed a potluck picnic.
Awards night is Friday, Oct. 10. The next club meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m.


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KILLEEN (November 8, 2012)--The Central Texas Community Veterans Day Parade will get underway on Saturday.
The parade route will begin on W. Avenue D and head north on 4th Street.
The parade begins at 11 a.m. and will follow a different route through downtown than in previous years because of a construction project in the area.
After heading north on 4th Street, the parade route will head to E. Avenue B to N. 8th Street before heading south.
Spectators are encouraged to arrive early to secure a parking spot.
1st Cavalry Division Deputy Commanding General Thomas S. James will serve as the grand marshal.
Killeen is one of four cities in Texas to be designated as a 2012 regional site for the observance of Veterans Day.


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My machine won't boot, or won't choose the right operating system when I choose it in the grub menu, what information do I need to provide in my questions so people can help me?
The boot info script it a great way to get information for what's going on, especially to troubleshoot what's going on with your boot and partitions.
For 12.04 and newer:
And then run
If you need to share the information with someone to help you with your partitions (especially here on Ask Ubuntu, you can use it in conjunction with
This will automatically send the information to paste.ubuntu.com and return a URL for you. Take that URL and then edit it to your question.
For 11.10 and earlier:
If you have pastebinit installed you can send the results directly to paste.ubuntu.com:
When you are able to boot into your installation, the way to go is given in Jorge Castro's answer. Additional info gathered from Boot logs is appreciated. (For details, scroll down.) When your system is totally broken, and refuses to boot the installation at any cost, here is an alternative.
Here is a video that helps. More can be found on Rescatux homepage.
Include bootogs, if possible:
To access boot logs:
To burn a CD:
To make bootable usb-stick:
Install boot-repair it will help...
If you can't boot into the system, use the "try out" mode of the ubuntu install cd. This will give you a graphical desktop running from your cd/dvd.
You can then mount your root partition and reinstall grub using boot-repair.
If it is the same as http://bootinfoscript.sourceforge.net/, then it can be downloaded and run manually on 10.04.


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At Mary Kay we believe it's possible to love your job. Whatever your role, we offer rewarding opportunities that can be shaped by your creativity and initiative. And at Mary Kay, we realize that we do well by doing good – every aspect of our work is quite literally about enriching women's lives, from the women in our independent sales force to the women and children in our communities. If you're looking for an opportunity that is challenging and meaningful, all while living a balanced life, Mary Kay is the place for you.
Mary Kay Ash was on to something. The corporate culture she created began with practices such as imagining that everyone she met wore a sign that read "Make me feel important" and identifying the selfless pursuit of the great good known as the Go-Give® spirit. She steadfastly believed in keeping one's priorities in balance, with her personal priorities of "God first, family second and career third," as well as always doing what is right, honorable and ethical with hard work and fortitude.
We continue to honor the culture our Founder created by carrying on this extraordinary legacy today. Walk through the halls of Mary Kay in any of our markets across the globe, and you'll experience an atmosphere of teamwork and respect where working relationships are built upon trust, honesty and kindness. We're all a part of the Mary Kay family.
At Mary Kay, we're not just enriching the lives of women around the world, we're helping our employees develop their full potential through a variety of training, leadership and mentoring programs. We do this with a spirit of encouragement and positive support.
Our employees also enjoy tangible rewards, such as a competitive benefits package and exciting recognitions and prizes for jobs well done. And we never miss an opportunity to celebrate. Our employees recognize birthdays, anniversaries, successes and milestones, both personally and professionally. Ours is truly a company that celebrates people. Mary Kay once said "You can take away all of our assets, leave us our people, and we can do it again because people are our most important asset."
As a Mary Kay Family, we take great pride in our legacy of caring. Giving was a way of life for Mary Kay, and we've been taught as well to understand the importance of giving back. The Golden Rule isn't just a smart business principle; it's an extraordinary way of life. And it reaches into every corner of our business around the globe.
Mary Kay is changing the lives of women and children around the world with efforts that range from providing reading resources to girls in Taiwan, to supporting children's charities in Kazakhstan, to partnering with Habitat for Humanity® to build homes for families in need in the United States. We're also proud to support The Mary Kay FoundationSM as it funds research on cancers that affect women and strives to eliminate domestic violence against women and children. These causes were close to the heart of Mary Kay Ash, and at Mary Kay, you can help make a difference every day.
Join us as we work to enrich the lives of women and children around the world. As a matter of fact, it could change your life too. Is it your mission to love your job? We're here to tell you, it's possible.


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Genetic testing now allows personalized treatment. Find out more.
Search for a doctor by name or specialty. Search now.
Our patients have amazing accounts of hope and resilience. Read their stories.
Your gifts help us push the boundaries of cancer treatment. Ways to Give
Cryotherapy, or cryosurgery as it is sometimes called, is a treatment freezes and destroys prostate cancer cells. During the procedure, needles containing liquid nitrogen or argon gas are inserted in the prostate. Ultrasound or MRI is used to guide the needles directly to the tumor and monitor the freezing of the cancerous cells, thus limiting damage to nearby healthy tissue.
Cryosurgery can be used to treat men who have early-stage prostate cancer that is confined to the prostate gland or men who have previously had radiation to treat prostate cancer. The technique is not as well established as standard prostatectomy and various types of radiation therapy in its effectiveness and long-term outcomes.
Do you have questions about the PSA test? Read this Q&A with Dr. Christopher Kane.
Watch short video clips of our physicians explaining risk assessment, "watchful waiting," radiation therapy, robotic surgery and more.
These side effects may occur more often in men who have had radiation to the prostate.
At UC San Diego Health System, our specialists Dr. C. Lowell Parsons and Dr. J. Kellogg Parsons have expertise in the procedure that ranks among the world leaders in experience with prostate cryosurgery.
Official Web Site of the University of California, San Diego.


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Many photographers are obsessed with gear. They love comparing lenses, focal lengths, apertures and all manner of technical specs. But I tend to get overwhelmed trawling through forum after forum of photographers discussing countless features that will no doubt make photos closer, wider or more exciting. While I realise that yes, gear is important, I'd prefer take a leaf out of C.J Chilvers' great book and blog, A Lesser Photographer, which is one of the best arguments for the minimal-gear approach.
Living and working as a writer and photographer in the Solomon Islands over the past few years, I had the opportunity to travel extensively throughout the 900 islands of the Solomons, which is a fairly remote part of the world. Given how tough a place the Solomons are to get around in, I tried my best to travel lightly – generally just with my camera, one lens (a Nikon 35mm f/1.8)… and always, my Fuji Instax Mini – essentially a modern version of the Polaroid, that produces credit-card size prints.
The majority of the places I visited were to destinations with very little (if any) electricity, nor a functioning postal service. In short: there was very little chance I would be able to provide printed copies of photos to the people I'd met and photographed.
That's where the instant camera came in. Being able to give someone a photo of themselves – even one as small as a mini Instax print – was, for many people, a pretty special gift. People love having a photo of themselves, their family and friends. And even today, where point-and-shoot cameras or camera phones are readily available in most parts of the world, a printed photograph is far too rare.
And as a general rule, my photos are better because of it. When your subject comes to realise that you genuinely appreciate their time and want to make sure they too have something to show for the experience you've had together, they are far more willing to open up. That 5 minutes you would have had with someone becomes 30 minutes, or becomes a conversation about their family, where they grew up, etc. And the photos generally reflect that.
My Instax has often even become a fun little form of entertainment. As the "Shake it like a Polaroid picture" song lyric goes, I'd often find myself doing an awkward version of the chicken dance with a bunch of kids in villages, dancing around to make the image on an instant print colours appear. (Side note: I have no idea if this actually makes a difference…).
With that said, this post is not meant to be a long advertorial for Fuji's instant cameras. Nor do I don't want to suggest my travelling with an instant camera is simply a ploy to take better people photos. Far from it. This is more about learning to appreciate the benefits – tangible and intangible – of putting the camera down for a minute and spending more time engaging, listening and get to know the people whose lives we, as photographers, journalists or simply as travellers, have the chance to be a part of.
Take Brenda Pilly, for instance. Brenda (pictured above, second from right and below) has an extraordinary life story. As I documented in my book SOLO (pardon the shameless plug…); in September 1943 Brenda was 10 years old when World War II arrived on her remote island of Mono, which sits near the border of the Solomon Islands group and Bougainille/Papua New Guinea. Japanese troops took control of the island with the plan to use it as a launching pad for a further push south towards Guadalcanal, and eventually, Australia. American and New Zealand troops soon followed to push the Japanese back, and the Battle of Mono began. As a 10 year old girl who'd spent her entire childhood on an island of less than a 1000 people, to be suddenly surrounded by aerial bombings and trench warfare, was as Brenda put it in pidgin, "barava no gud". Together with her family, Brenda escaped to the opposite side of Mono, where she lived in and out of caves for nearly six months as her island became a warzone. If I hadn't stopped and sat down with Brenda and her family one afternoon, I would never have learned her incredible story.
Brenda's story is just one of countless examples of what I learned because I focused less on the image and more on the subject. Despite that relationship between photographer and subject being the bread and butter of what photographers should do, too often we get obsessed with lighting, composition and lenses and forget that the relationship between photographer and subject is very much two-way. Even the language we often use for photography – we 'take' photos – demonstrates this. But photography shouldn't be about 'taking'; it should be about learning a bit more from each other and sharing in an experience. And the images, if done respectfully, should reflect this.
In closing this little brain-dump, I should clarify that I'm still very much in my infancy when it comes to learning about the craft and art of photography. I like to think I've got the technical basics reasonably well sorted, but it's this stuff – the psychology, the relationships and the thinking behind the art of photography – that I find far more interesting than infinite techno-babble about lenses and apertures.
Because while the rare buzz of looking back at an image and seeing something you're genuinely proud of is of course a nice feeling, that moment of pure joy when someone that you've built a bond with has, in their hands, a printed photo of themselves for the first time in years is, without question, far more satisfying.


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Shopping in Costa Rica – Trading with Local MerchantsPosted by Nov14, 2013 Comments /span>
At some point you're going to want to investigate the local stores in your area to see what's on offer. You'll want to get some souvenirs to take home to your family and friends. Shopping in Costa Rica isn't about high-end retail brands. It's about local economies and merchants selling their wares. It's a very traditional way of shopping, especially if you're outside cities like San Jose.
Get Your Priorities in Order
Little trinkets and other items have passion infused into them. They aren't soulless products which came off of a factory line somewhere. A lot of effort went into their creation. Don't bring your jewellery and other expensive items. This is an adventuring holiday. It's not a European nightclub excursion.
Match the locals and you won't get taken for a fool. Moreover, in some marketplaces wearing lots of expensive apparel will make you an easy pickpocketing target.
Bartering with Local Merchants
Bartering with the locals is perfectly acceptable here. Feel free to pick up an item and ask what the price is. They'll give you a price and you can see if they'll accept anything lower. Some sellers absolutely won't budge, but other see bartering as standard practice. It's why these sellers will always issue much bigger initial offerings with the view to entering into negotiations.
Know When to Stop
The important thing is to know when to stop. Pura Vida will only take you so far. You'll know by instinct when someone absolutely won't budge. Once this happens, it's time to accept the price or walk away. Pestering them won't win you any friends, and it certainly won't get them to lower the price any more.
Furthermore, your goal isn't to try to fleece an honest merchant out of a day's work. Remember, the average daily wage is about $10. You have the money to spend. You're contributing to the local economy by paying a fair price for something you want to buy.
Watch What You Buy
This whole exercise is pointless if you can't take the item you're buying home with you. Costa Rica is a country famous for its fruit and coffee. Any fruit won't be allowed back home with you due to fears over contaminants. Coffee, on the other hand, may need to be opened and put into a clear bag for it to pass the security checks.
The regulations differ between countries, though. The regulations are much stricter in the US than they are in the UK and other European countries. Check the relevant travel website before buying anything. Most items, such as clothes (of which Costa Rica is a centre for Latin American fashion), will be perfectly fine to take home with you. Ask us if you are unsure.
Famous Costa Rican Sayings – Part 2Posted by Nov12, 2013 Comments /span>
We started this introduction to the language of Costa Rica with a selection of regular sayings and their meanings. Today, we're going to continue this rundown of some of the phrases you might encounter on your holidays. We've included a selection of the common, the uncommon, and the downright strange.
Perro Amarrado
This applies to debt and it directly translates to tied dog. It basically means you've been in debt to someone for quite a while. You're the dog and you're tied up because you owe money. You don't have the freedom to do what you want and you're under the control of the creditor until you can successfully pay off your debt.
There are a lot of way you can imagine how this would look. The main theme is a loss of control, and since dogs are usually under human control this entered the language.
This is the word for parachute and is normally used to apply to people who turn up to events uninvited. With any luck, you'll never have this term applied to you. The name appears to come from the simple action of flying in on a parachute. There's no grand meaning or story surrounding this term.
Mae is similar to the American term 'dude'. In the US you might hear anyone calling someone 'dude', but in Costa Rica it applies to someone who's between friends. You're acquainted with them without being friends.
This appears to be one of the areas where western intervention has succeeded. It's a piece of slang and it's highly likely a lot of the young Ticos got it from their American counterparts. This isn't something you'll hear older Costa Ricans say.
Hasta Aquí me la Presto Dios
This rather long expression means 'until now God borrow me'. You'll hear someone say this if they've ever found themselves in a life-threatening situation. As a tourist, you'll encounter this more than you'd expect as you're likely to hear exciting stories from the lives of people you meet.
This clearly has a rooting in the Catholicism of Costa Rica. Even though there's complete religious freedom in the county and a lot of people don't identify themselves with any religion, they continue to use this term.
Buena Nota
Buena nota is used to describe someone who has done a good deed or someone who is a good person. You might hear parents say it about their children, or women gossiping in the town. It literally means 'good grade'. This is obviously similar to something you would say in an educational environment.
Nobody seems to quite know how it entered the mainstream language, though. If you read through our posts on how you should act whilst travelling you'll hear this in the language of Costa Rica quite regularly.
The Story of the Costa Rican Civil WarPosted by Nov09, 2013 Comments /span>
The Costa Rican Civil War is the defining event of the 20th century for Costa Rica. It's influenced the country and its consequences reach out to today. We always say you should make every attempt to understand a country. This is why we're going to talk about the civil war and what you'll notice when you travel to Costa Rica.
In the 1940s the political scene was dominated by Rafael Angel Calderón, a surgeon who would become president of Costa Rica from 1940 to 1944. He was a powerful man who wanted to hold onto power, but after 1944 he was constitutionally ineligible to run until 1948.
He supported President Teodoro Picado. The Picado Years, as they came to be known, saw very few changes. It was widely thought he was controlled by Calderón and his followers so he could return to power in 1948.
Picado was forced to release the military onto the general public multiple times to maintain order, and this was what finally started the 44-day civil war.
The Civil War Begins
Rebel commander Jose Figueres rose up against the government and aimed to supplant Picado and Calderón after disputed elections in 1948 when opposition leader Otilio Ulate was widely thought to have won.
The forces of Figueres were anti-communists and a combination of centre left and right wing fighters. Their National Liberation Army began exchanging fire with government forces on March 12, 1948. This saw the official start of the war.
The Civil War Ends
The Civil War ended relatively quickly with the rebels working their way up the Pan American Highway and capturing numerous cities along the way. The government was weak and in the face of US-supported rebels with only support from Nicaragua they quickly folded. The Fall of Cartago convinced Picado to surrender before the rebels could lay siege to San Jose.
Contrary to what people think, Picado actually completed his constitutional term whilst on a visit to Nicaragua. His vice president, Mr Santos Leon Herrera was the person who signed the official surrender terms.
Ulate was given power a year and a half after the end of the Civil War. Figueres brought in a new constitution which abolished the military, before removing the provisional governmental junta. Calderón would later return from exile in Mexico, but he would never lead Costa Rica again. Picado, on the other hand, would live out the rest of his live in Nicaragua.
The Scars of War
With 2,000 dead, the figures of the Civil War live long in the memories of Ticos. They show great distaste towards military conflicts and actively seek to live peaceful lives. When you travel to Costa Rica, avoid bringing up any support for any military conflicts. Conflict simply isn't in the Tico mind-set.
You will only find a single memorial to the Civil War, and even this isn't particularly grand. It just shows how much Ticos hate the idea of conflict and the military. Pura vida arguably came out of the Costa Rican Civil War, and this philosophy has shown no signs of abating.
Odd Mistakes Foreigners Make When Travelling to Costa RicaPosted by Nov05, 2013 Comments /span>
Travelling to Costa Rica is your chance of experiencing things you'll only ever encounter once in your life. The local Ticos do come from another culture and they're not familiar with many Western customs, either. The differences in Costa Rica can lead to a lot of embarrassing scenarios if you make a mistake. Here are some of the oddities you should aim to avoid.
Milk deserves a whole section to itself because it's such an important part of life in Costa Rica. They don't sell them in cartons or bottles like they do in the US. You'll find your milk in a little plastic bag which you have to cut the edge of with a pair of scissors.
Inexperienced travellers might attempt to tear the top of the bag open. Unlucky tourists who think they know what they're doing will accidentally squeeze the bag whilst they're cutting it. It takes a delicate touch to avoid being covered in milk.
Always stock up on perishable items in advance of when you actually need them. Dairy products like milk and eggs are never sold refrigerated. They're placed in a low-power fridge which keeps them cold. This doesn't mean they're refrigerated enough to eat. Buy them and take them to the nearest cool box so they can cool down before you tuck into them.
Buying Wine
If you want to surprise that special someone with a prestige bottle of wine, forget about it. Authentic Tico wine is sold in a little plastic box which you have to refrigerate for a few hours first. If you're staying at a resort, you can still get bottled wine, but it might well be more expensive.
The Locks
If you can see a traveller desperately trying to work out how to unlock a door, you know they've fallen for a classic Tico housing feature. Doors have inward locks. We in the West have outward locks. Remember to change the way you approach it. It's like how people from the UK have to change the way they drive when they visit the US because they drive on the opposite side of the road.
Assume Marriage
Marriage in Costa Rica is different from other places in the world. If you see a couple living together you shouldn't assume they're living in sin due to a difference in their last names. A woman uses her full maiden name for life, even when she gets married. A man keeps his last name. Any children they have between them automatically take the father's name.
Don't Fall
The older generations of Ticos were much shorter than the Ticos of today. Furniture is therefore built about six to eight inches lower than the furniture found in the US. Ease into a chair carefully or you might find yourself misjudging the distance and falling through it when travelling to Costa Rica!
Photo credit: Stuck in Customs / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA
The Money Issue – What Should You Do About Money in Costa Rica?Posted by Nov03, 2013 Comments /span>
We all need money to survive in this world. Even Ticos with their Pura Vida philosophy acknowledge a wad of bank notes in your pocket can take you places. Once you're in Costa Rica, you want to have all your financial affairs taken care of so you can get on with your holiday. Here's a complete guide to dealing with money in Costa Rica.
Exchanging at the Airport
The first thing you should never do is exchange your money when you touch down at San Jose airport. It's the worst thing you can do because the rates are so horrific. The rates will leave you out of pocket. Try anywhere, but never use the airport. They can afford to charge such poor exchange rates because they know you're trapped.
Why Exchange at All?
You don't even have to exchange US dollars into Costa Rican colones if you don't want to. The vast majority of stores, in areas where travellers visit, will accept US dollars. You can guarantee yourself a fair deal because the exchange rate between colons and US dollars has remained the same for the last few years.
In short, it's about 500 colones to one US dollar. The easiest way to make sure you know what you're paying for something is to hack three zeros off of a standard colon bill and double it. For example, a 5,000 colon bill would equal $10 in US money.
Protect Your Credit Lines
Banks and credit cards make a commitment to protect their customers' financial details. It's only right because if they get lax it will let the international fraudsters in. Inform the bank and your credit card companies about your intentions of travelling to Costa Rica.
If you suddenly start withdrawing money from so far away from home they'll think someone has managed to steal your card details. In the event you get blocked it can be a real hassle to unfreeze your account. The best solution is to not get into this situation in the first place.
Calling Home
Avoid bringing your own mobile phone to Costa Rica. The costs of calling from abroad make it a bad idea. Instead, you can pick up a mobile phone in Costa Rica, with calling card included, for under $50 USD. At the airport, there's a booth called ICE. This nationalised company will allow you to buy a temporary phone and calling card.
Your money in Costa Rica will go far for calling. The reception is good in most places and you do get good value for money with a Costa Rican phone. We would also recommend a temporary phone for safety reasons. Losing a cheap phone is one thing. Losing an expensive phone is quite another.
Let us know your best tips for saving money in Costa Rica!Photo credit: Speaking Latino / Foter.com / CC BY
Fun and Fantastical Facts about San Jose in Costa RicaPosted by Oct31, 2013 Comments /span>
San Jose is the seat of government and the most important city in Costa Rica. It's a city which brings in thousands of tourists each year. Before you make your trip to the Tico capital, let's take a look at these facts about Costa Rica and the capital city. They'll help you prepare for your trip and learn about what you can expect from this high-altitude urban sanctuary.
Working Environment
The majority of Ticos live outside the city centre in the suburbs. Yet despite its low population density, more than a million people travel through the city centre each day. This is in a country with just 4.5 million permanent residents, plus any tourists. This makes it commercially the most important part of the country.
Favourite Food
The favourite food of San Jose is Gallo Pinto. You'll see practically every restaurant serving what is now the official national dish of Costa Rica. It's a mixture of fried rice and black beans. Lots of working Ticos will have little lunchboxes carrying a dish of Gallo Pinto inside. It's a relatively cheap dish which is readily accessible.
Tropical Rainforest
San Jose is technically in the middle of a tropical rainforest. Go outside the city for a few miles and you'll soon encounter trees, humidity, and all those animals you'd expect to find in Costa Rica's rainforests.
It actually rains in San Jose for about 170 days each year. The high altitude of the city means it isn't as hot as you would expect. In the winter time (or the rainy season as they call it) you might even have to put a jacket on (which is a big stretch for anyone in this country).
The City Without an Airport
The San Jose International Airport is where the majority of travellers fly in. Yet so many of them are shocked to find the city of San Jose doesn't have an airport. The airport is actually 45 minutes away from the city in a town called Alajuela. To save on costs, consider staying in Alajuela instead of staying in San Jose. Accommodation is much cheaper and more welcoming for tourists.
The reason why San Jose lends its name to this airport is simply because the difficult terrain of the city makes it impossible to build a huge international airport here. By building it a short distance away they can retain the benefits of having air travel links without making it seem as if San Jose is in the middle of nowhere.
If you're heading for Shaka, check our travel page for more details on getting here from the airport, or contact us prior to departure.
Latin American Crime
Another of the interesting facts about Costa Rica is San Jose is one of the safest cities in Central America. The government has clamped down hard on crime with huge security budgets and a complete equipment overhaul for the police force. So rest assured, when you visit us at Shaka you're in for a safe stay.
Famous Costa Rican SayingsPosted by Oct29, 2013 Comments /span>
Your Guide to the Weird Lingo of Costa Rica Part 1
The language of Costa Rica is Spanish, but practically everyone can speak some English. There are some sayings which might leave you scratching your head. Whilst some sayings have obvious meanings, others have simply been passed down and even those saying them have no clue where they came from or what they were originally supposed to mean.
We take a look at some of the common (and uncommon) sayings around this country so you don't find yourself confused and befuddled.
Con Luz
Con luz is what a Tico might use to describe a pregnant woman. It means she's 'with light'. This has a very obvious rooting in the Catholic faith. At one point, Spain ruled over Costa Rica. It was part of its vast global empire. They brought Catholicism and it remains prominent today.
More and more Ticos are becoming indifferent towards religion, but they still say this. Children are revered and every young person matters here.
Pura Vida
This is the one you'll hear the most. It's the national motto of Costa Rica. It means 'pure life' and it harkens back to this country's stance on the military and violence in general. They're a peaceful people who don't believe in war, which is they don't have a regular standing army. It's used as a greeting and a way to say goodbye.
Back in the UK it might be equivalent to 'chill out' or 'relax'. Ticos tend to say it with a big smile on their faces.
Detras del Palo
Now it's time for one of the stranger sayings in the language of Costa Rica. Detras del palo means 'behind the tree'. It's commonly used in conversation when you have no idea what happened. The first image which springs to mind is someone slipped out of a party or a gathering to go to the bathroom behind a tree or in some bushes. They've now missed out on what happened.
Another similar expression is mianda fuera del tarro, or 'taking a pea out of the can'. It seems to mean the same thing, but we can't even begin to wonder where they got this one from.
Que Pega
Que pega means 'what a stick'. It's used to describe someone who's annoying or boring. In English it's the equivalent of 'stick in the mud'. Ticos are very relaxed and know the value of taking some time to relax on the beach or in their homes. Que pega is the exact opposite. It implies someone can't relax or fit in with the group.
If they're using this to describe you, it's time to change your tune.
Lava Huevos
If you want to mock that kiss-ass colleague at work, you can say lava huevos, or 'wash the eggs'. It basically means someone is always sucking up to the boss and doing whatever they ask as a means to curry favour. We'll let you work out which part of the human anatomy 'eggs' might be referring to!
Do you know any more Tico sayings? Pop over and let us know on Facebook!
Year AnniversaryPosted by Oct25, 2013 Comments /span>
One of the things I am most proud of is my surfing, I've only been at it a year and have made some amazing progress….helps to have awesome instructors like we do at Shaka. It feels really good to tackle something as physically and mentally challenging as learning to surf has proved to be.
I have also acquired a few new furry friends. My first new friend is my dog Pinta Pants, she is freaking adorable and quite the little entertainer. She came with my apartment by the super market. I am so grateful for her company, she follows me around everywhere I go….me and my shadow.
The latest addition, is my goat Blanquita, I got her about a month ago and she just had a baby!! Mulita Chiquita Bonita Cabrita is her full name, but I call her Mulita for short! Baby goats are some of the cutest little creatures on the planet! So, in addition to teaching yoga, surfing and learning Spanish, I've taken up goat herding too! I love Costa Rica!!!
I've been a busy girl! We only get one go at this life, so we might as well live it up and do the things we love to do! If a year goes by as quickly as this one did, a lifetime can slip by just as fast! I hope next year will be just as wonderful and exciting…… I guess only time will tell 🙂
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Home > Volkswagen > Volkswagen Cross Coupe Concept 2011
Below you will find the high resolution car wallpaper for Volkswagen Cross Coupe Concept 2011. You may use the car wallpaper for any of the following widescreen screen resolutions:
1920x1200 | 1680x1050 | 1440x900 | 1280x800
Volkswagen Cross Coupe Concept 2011
Volkwagen is ready to unveil its concept of a future SUV: the Cross Coupé, at the Tokyo Auto Show 2011. The Volkswagen Cross Coupe 2011 is an efficient SUV with fuel economy of 2.7l/100km (87mpg) using an innovative AWD and plug-in hybrid power train. You would think efficient cars don't have performance. Well, this car proves the theory wrong with sprint time (0 to 100km/h) in just 7 seconds. Pretty impressive!


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