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NHL Mid-Season Awards
The NHL halfway point has come and gone and there have been some standout performances and breakout efforts to this point, so it's time to hand out a little hardware. Some of the award winners I have selected will be obvious (guess who my MVP is… go ahead, guess) while others might ruffle feathers and stir debate.
Without further ado, let's start the show.
*All stats and standings are through Monday, January 10.*
Hart Trophy (MVP)
Winner: Sidney Crosby, C, Pittsburgh Penguins
Hate on the guy all you want, be it his inability to grow a mustache (which is about the only thing he doesn't do well) or his incessant whining, but you cannot deny the facts; he is the best and most valuable hockey player in the league.
Crosby is currently leading the league with 32 goals, also ranked third in the league with 34 assists, boasting a nine-point cushion for the league lead (not to mention he went on that incredible 25-game point streak where he amassed 50 points). To put that in perspective, Crosby could have only played those 25 games and would still be sixth in the league in scoring.
Hands down, the MVP at this point.
Also on the ballot: Steven Stamkos, Tampa Bay Lightning; Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins; Dustin Byfuglien, Atlanta Thrashers
Norris Trophy (Best Defenseman)
Winner: Dustin Byfuglien, Atlanta Thrashers
This was the toughest award for me to pick with nearly a dead heat between Nicklas Lidstrom of the Detroit Red Wings and Byfuglien. But I give Big Buff the nod for the impact that he has made on the entire Thrashers team this season.
In addition to leading all defensemen with 41 points (eclipsing his previous career high, PLAYING FORWARD of 36), two more than Lidstrom, he also boasts an incredible 183 shots on goal, most of all defensemen by 48. That total also ranks him second in the entire league behind only Alexander Ovechkin.
Yes, I realize that Lidstrom is the more complete defender, but Byfuglien has had such a tremendous impact on Atlanta. He currently has them in playoff position and only four points out in the suddenly competitive Southeast Division.
I'm asking is this: would the Red Wings still be a great team with Nicklas Lidstrom? Yes. Would the Thrashers be close to the position they are in without Byfuglien? No.
And that's why he gets my nod for the Norris at this point.
Also on the ballot: Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings
Vezina Trophy (Best Goaltender)
Winner: Tim Thomas, Boston Bruins
Another hands-down winner, Thomas currently leads all goaltenders with glistening numbers of 1.84 Goals Against and a staggering .944 save percentage, in addition to tying for the league lead with five shutouts thus far. Many thought Thomas' days were numbered in Boston with the emergence of Tuuka Rask last season, but after off-season surgery, he has rebounded better than anyone could have expected, more than making up for the Bruins lack of firepower on offense.
Also on the ballot: Ondrej Pavelic, Atlanta Thrashers; Carey Price, Montreal Canadiens
Calder Trophy (Rookie Of The Year)
Winner: Logan Couture, San Jose Sharks
The NHL has weird rookie qualification rules and Couture, despite playing 25 games last year, still qualifies as a rookie this year. However, this was another very close and tough race to decide, and this one again comes on impact.
While Jeff Skinner of Carolina has two more points, Couture has emerged as a scoring force, leading all rookies in goals with 18, five coming as game winners. He also leads all rookies in shots on goal and is over 50% at the face-off dot. Yet Skinner is right there with him. Highly-touted rookie Taylor Hall in Edmonton has lived up to billing and will also be a contender in the second half of the season.
Also on the ballot: Jeff Skinner, Carolina Hurricanes; Taylor Hall, Edmonton Oilers; Kevin Shattenkirk, Colorado Avalanche
Jack Adams Award (Best Coach)
Winner: Craig Ramsay, Atlanta Thrashers
This was another very close race, but Ramsay gets the nod over fellow Southeast coach Guy Boucher of the Tampa Bay Lightning. Ramsay has taken a team that nobody would have guessed would be anywhere near the playoff race, and he has them right in the thick of it, only four points out of first place in the Southeast despite not having a bonafide superstar (unlike Tampa).
And while I give great props to Guy Boucher for having Tampa Bay in first place, the cupboard wasn't exactly bare when he arrived, and for that reason I give the edge to Craig Ramsay.
Also on the ballot: Guy Boucher, Tampa Bay; Marc Crawford, Dallas Stars
Biggest Disappointment
Winner/Loser: New Jersey Devils
With the good comes the bad, and this has been an awful year for the Devils.
While I love Marty Brodeur, probably the best goalie I have ever seen, this has been a horrible year for both him and the Devils franchise. Brodeur has not been his normally stellar self and has recently started splitting starts with Johan Hedberg.
All the while his team has started trading off talent, sits in last place with the fewest point in the league at 24, and has gotten only 23 points, a horrible -29 out of prized forward Ilya Kovalchuk. All in all, this has been a terrible year for the Devils and their fans.
And there they are, my first half awards for the NHL season. Lots of great hockey left to be played, and some of these races and results are certain to change before all is said and done.


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T-Mobile has finally announced the launch date and price for the Motorola Defy. The Android 2.1 handset is scheduled to go on sale on November 3rd for only $99.99 with a new two year contract. The Defy is certainly not the fastest handset in T-Mobile's lineup, but with an 800 MHz OMAP 3610 processor, 3.7 inch display, 1540 mAh battery, 1.25GB onboard memory, and 5MP camera with LED it's certainly no slouch.
The Motorola Defy will feature the new MotoBLUR 1.5 running on Android 2.1. When the handset was initially unveiled, Motorola mentioned that an Android 2.2 upgrade is being considered, but they were unwilling to make any commitments
While the specs may be mildly impressive, the main selling feature of the Motorola Defy is its ability to resist impact, dust, water, and scratches. Those who work at more physically intensive jobs or find themselves in the great outdoors a lot more than they do in the city may be more comfortable carrying the Motorola Defy than many of the other more delicate Android options.

subset: commoncrawl


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New Cars
New Lincoln Cars
Lincoln is a luxury brand poised for reinvention, as parent company Ford says it will soon begin a product renaissance designed to attract new buyers and boost sales. Read on to learn more more about all of the new Lincoln cars and SUVs, as well as updates to existing models.
2013 Lincoln MKS
The full-size MKS sedan receives a revised front end for 2013, incorporating Lincoln's latest grille design. It also gets more power for its base-level 3.7-liter V6 engine, going from 275 hp to 304. Other updates include a quieter interior and a Driver Alert system designed to detect drowsiness.
2013 Lincoln MKT
Like other Lincoln models, the roomy MKT SUV gets a new front end for 2013, incorporating the brand's new grille. Other changes include a more powerful base-levell 3.7-liter V6, new technology features and standard LED taillights.
2013 Lincoln MKX
There are no major changes this year for the midsize MKX SUV following last year's refresh.
2013 Lincoln MKZ
The midsize MKZ sedan is completely redesigned for 2013, with new styling inside and out and a host of new technologies. Other updates include an available back-up camera, a large panoramic sunroof and the new MyLincoln Touch infotainment system, which is now standard on all MKZ models.
2013 Lincoln Navigator
There are no major changes to the full-size Navigator SUV for 2013.


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Maine lobster marketing bill supported by legislative committee
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) � A legislative committee is endorsing a bill that aims to boost Maine's troubled lobster industry by pumping more money into marketing the state's signature seafood.
The Marine Resources Committee voted unanimously Monday in support of a proposal calling for sharply increased surcharges on lobster fishing, dealer and processor licenses, with the goal of raising about $3 million a year in promotional funding. This year's marketing budget is about $380,000.
The committee voted that the bill ought to pass with an amendment that cuts lobstermen's share of the funding to 50 percent.
Supporters say the industry could use a boost following last year's record harvest and low prices. Lobstermen last year caught a record 123 million pounds, but they received only $2.68 a pound on average, the lowest price since 1994.


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BGE ratesPaul, Baltimore: Do you think the increase in fuel cost has anything to do with the requested rate hike? The cost of gasoline went from a national average of $0.94 [a gallon] in 1999 to $2.55 currently. Could that be the reason for the rate increase?
Nitkin: This is according to Paul Adams, our lead reporter on [Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.] issues:
The rising cost of fuel burned to make electricity has everything to do with the rate increase. Even without deregulation, BGE's rates would have to go up -- it's just a question of how much. Remember, BGE is not making a windfall off of this increase. In fact, after July 1, the company will make a tiny 0.9 percent profit off of the cost of the electricity that is delivered to customers. After taxes, that amounts to about $12 million of the company's $170 million annual profit.
The company makes the vast majority of its profit from the fee it charges to deliver electricity over its power lines and to your house. That rate is the same as it has been since 1993 and is not going up after July 1, when the rate caps come off.
Dave, Bel Air: David, I enjoy reading your column. [I] don't agree with your politics (now come on, you are a Democrat) but respect your views and opinions. Try to give the governor a break on the BGE crisis. The Democrats created the problem, not the governor and [the Public Service Commission] chairman. Seems like legislature members are causing the problems with resolving the interest with BGE and Constellation.
Nitkin: No one is accusing Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. or Public Service Commission Chairman Kenneth D. Schisler of creating the problem of rate hikes. And you are certainly correct that the deregulation legislation that led to the current situation was passed by a legislature controlled by Democrats and signed by Democratic Gov. Parris N. Glendening. But critics of the current governor's response say not enough has been done for consumers to mitigate the price increase.
BGE and Constellation are well-represented in Annapolis with many high-paid lobbyists. And the governor's comments that he wants the PSC and other agencies to take a morebusiness-friendly approach to operations has, rightly or wrongly, raised the suspicion of some consumer advocates.
Mya, Turner's Station: I feel as though this 72 percent BGE hike is just wrong. Isn't theminimum wage in Maryland too low for the cost of living? I'm sure a lot of people who are considered middle class will be struggling to pay their bills after this hike.
Nitkin: Maryland's minimum wage is now $6.15 an hour. One group, Progressive Maryland, calculates that a "living wage" -- which would be the hourly wage needed to provide food, housing, utilities and other necessities for a family -- would be slightly more than $11 an hour.
Part of the reason that many politicians are scrambling to find a solution to the 72 percent BGE rate hike is that they know that many of their constituents will have a hard time paying the bills.
Larry Smith, Baltimore: If the legislature can appoint members to the PSC, whereis the separation of powers?
Nitkin: The Public Service Commission is currently an independent agency within the executive branch of government.
The General Assembly has drafted a plan that would fire the five current members of the commission and replace them with two members appointed by the Senate, two by the House of Delegates and one appointed by the governor -- certainly a shift from executive control tolegislative control. Some might call it a power grab.
The issues of separation of powers is getting a lot of attention in Annapolis. This is what Tom Dennison of the Gazette reported last week:
"Joseph M. Getty, a policy adviser to Ehrlich, gave The Gazette a packet of information on Wednesday showing how Democrats have eroded long-standing powers of the state's chief executive during the past four legislative sessions.
"Getty developed a spreadsheet titled 'Legislation That Limits Gubernatorial Power' that listed more than 30 bills.
"'The General Assembly has approached this term as a four-year process of hostility to the executive,' said Getty, a former delegate from Carroll County. 'The General Assembly has been absolutely unable to make the transition to shared power with the Republican executive.'"
[A retired BGE employee], Baltimore: BGE knew the rate caps were coming off and they would have to buy on the open market long before this year. Why didn't they, in goodconsciousness, approach the PSC and advise them of the impending projected costs? BGE has made a profit every year since deregulation in 1999.
Nitkin: BGE and the Public Service Commission have been warning and worrying of the price rise for some time. But until the company's recent auction to buy electricity, the problem was abstract. Now it is concrete.
A baltimoresun.com reader from Belcamp: Do the governor and the other lawmakers, who have apparently known about what problems are going to occur if this rate increase occurs, know that their "cushy," well-paying jobs could be on the line if they don't come up with a solution for this problem? I don't think they realize how tough it's going to be for theaverage citizen to make these increased payments just to keep the lights and heat on. Their salaries will be able to afford the increase, whereas ours are another story.
Nitkin: Politicians know all too well that they could feel the wrath of voters on this issue. That's why they are scrambling for a solution.
Slots/gamblingJohn, Columbia: With all the discussion about gambling (and given the fact that the state already has gambling vis-a-vis the lottery and various bingo parlors), has there been any substantive look at adding casino gaming? (Detroit, Atlantic City and New Orleans allhave it.) I ask because to simply add slots simply lumps Maryland into a slots pool of all the bordering states save for Virginia.
To that, is there any legal mechanism (or if so, any thought given) to have the slots/gambling issue put on the ballot as a referendum/ballot measure and let the voters decide what they want? I confess to not knowing the legality of a referendum/ballot measure.
Nitkin: In Maryland, there is no right for citizens to petition issues to referendum, unlike in states such as California, where the practice is common. Constitutional amendments approved by the Assembly do go before voters as referendum questions. There was some talk in 2004 of amending the state constitution to allow slot machines, but Ehrlich was opposed, saying at the time that the state constitution should not be tinkered with lightly.
Steven Wallach, Columbia: Why are they not working out a slots bill? [House Speaker Michael E.] Busch and Ehrlich will both lose the November elections because of this issue.
Nitkin: It's hard to imagine that slots will be a defining issue in the 2006 elections, given the state's current budget surplus, the fatigue that many politicians feel over the protracted debate on the issue, and the fact that Pennsylvania's slots facilities won't be up and running anytime soon.
DixonJamie Kelley, Locust Point: On March 12, The Sun went public with a storyabout Sheila Dixon and her involvement with $600,000 worth of work that was paid without a contract to someone who was related to her campaign. Follow-up stories talked about the possibility of an ethics violation, and we have since heard that there has been legal action against parties that are involved.
Why has this process taken so long? It seems that a review of this problem is a pretty cut-and-dried process and if Dixon did indeed break from ethics guidelines, then she should be removed from office. Has there been precedent for ethics breaches in the past, and if so,what was the timeline and who was involved?
Nitkin: Here's one past example: In early December 1997, The Sun reported that state Sen. Larry Young, a Baltimore Democrat, had been using his Senate office to run a private consulting business. His clients included firms seeking state contracts.
The General Assembly named a special investigator (Jervis Finney, a former U.S. attorney and now counsel to Ehrlich), and within five weeks, the legislature's Ethics Committee concluded that Young abused his office and recommended that he be expelled from the stateSenate. The expulsion vote came Jan. 16, 1998.
Young was indicted in December 1998 on extortion, bribery and filing a false tax return charges. He was acquitted by a jury in September 1999 and is now considering running for the Senate again.
Steele/Senate raceAlan, Mount Airy: Why do we keep hearing this myth about [Lt. Gov.] Michael S. Steele's success story? Even The New York Times bought into it in an article in its Sunday magazine recently. Steele failed the bar exam, so he can't practice law in Maryland; he got into trouble when he tried to handle his sister's divorce from Mike Tyson. His consulting firm never made a profit, and the Republicans had to pay him a salary to be their candidate for lieutenant governor so he could support his family.
While he was state Republican chairman, his party lost every statewide election. When he ran for the Republican nomination for state comptroller in 1998, he finished third even though he had the endorsement of the gubernatorial candidate, Ellen Sauerbrey. Some success story. He failed at everything he's ever been involved in. When can we expect some real scrutiny by the media of Steele's career?
Nitkin: Steele has received a fair amount of scrutiny, and he will get even more in the months ahead. Everything you mention has been reported in The Sun. Steele has passed the bar in Pennsylvania and has a compelling personal story.
Born into a working-class family, his mother was a laundress who refused to go on welfare because she did not want the government raising her children. He was on the verge of flunking out of Johns Hopkins University but refocused his efforts to get a degree. Hiscampaign for Senate is focusing on that personal story, but his opponents will be sure to point out -- as you do -- his professional record.
Thomas, Baltimore: I have a question about Steele. According to his official biography, he practiced as an associate at a prominent D.C. law firm for six years. However, I haven't found any information that indicates he ever passed the bar for Maryland or D.C.Something clearly isn't adding up -- would you clarify this for me?
Nitkin: Steele passed a bar examination in Pennsylvania.
Ron, Bethesda: Is Dennis Rasmussen still running for the U.S. Senate? We haven't heard anything from him since his announcement. Thanks.
Nitkin: I assume Rasmussen is still running for U.S. Senate, but I, too, haven't heard much from his campaign since his announcement. Rasmussen said at the time that he planned to continue his Annapolis lobbying activities, and the General Assembly session ends Monday. I assume that lobbying during the session has taken most of Rasmussen's time during the past 90 days.
Governor's raceA baltimoresun.com reader: How can anyone reasonably claim that [Montgomery County Executive Douglas M. Duncan's] message is resonating with Maryland voters when [Baltimore] Mayor [Martin] O'Malley leads his him by double digits in every major poll that has been released, including the most recent poll where the mayor and Duncan are runningneck and neck in Montgomery County, Duncan's home territory? Isn't it time for Duncan to drop out of the race so that the Democrats can unite behind O'Malley? If now is not the time, when do you think Duncan will drop out?
Nitkin: It's hard to imagine him dropping out of the race. There's too much time until the September primary, and anything could happen. However, if he continues to be perceived as trailing in the race, he will have a difficult time raising money, and thus a difficult time buying television ads to deliver his message.
David, Annapolis: Why does The Sun continue to inaccurately refer to lieutenant governor candidate [Del.] Anthony [G.] Brown as a veteran of the war in Iraq,rather than as a "noncombat" veteran of the war in Iraq? Brown was not on the front lines in Iraq and was not a combat soldier. Doesn't The Sun give a misleading impression and do a real disservice to Maryland voters by omitting this critical piece of information?
Nitkin: Brown, a lawyer, left his wife and family for the better part of a year to serve in Iraq as a judge advocate general. We've reported on the nature of his service before. I did a Lexis-Nexis search -- which includes magazine and journal articles and official transcripts of government and Pentagon briefings -- to see if the term "noncombat veteran" is commonly used when referring to soldiers who served in Iraq. I found just three instances in the past year when the terms "noncombat veteran" and "Iraq" appeared in the same piece. Two of those were letters to the editor. It appears to me that neither news organizations nor the government frequently make the distinction you suggest we make.
ElectionsJim Baldridge, Baltimore: Do you have, or know of, a list of candidates, especially statewide and federal, for the 2006 elections? Thanks very much.
Nitkin: The Maryland state Board of Elections has a list of candidates who have filed for office. Go here, and click on the link for "listing of filed candidates."
Bernard L. Jones, Westminster: What is the current status of the Carroll County redistricting map? (Five districts with five commissioners versus three commissioners countywide.)
Nitkin: According to Mary Gail Hare, one of our Carroll County reporters, the House of Delegates passed legislation dividing the county into five commissioner districts, a plan known as Option One. The bill is now in the Senate, where Sen. Larry E. Haines expects smooth passage. Many residents, county and town officials favored a different plan, known asOption 2, according to Hare's reporting.
Cate, Baltimore: Why isn't [it] ever said: The old men of politics need toretire? [Comptroller William Donald] Schaefer, [former Gov. Marvin] Mandel, [Attorney General J. Joseph] Curran, etc. -- move over. No wonder others don't want to be involved.
Besides, if anyone thinks a 75-year-old is as sharp and innovative, and just plain open to change, as a 50-year-old ... well, they need to think again. What is wrong with Maryland on this issue? Ever since the beloved Louis Goldstein, it seems like the goal is to die in office atthe age of 100. Seriously, these men and women -- [Sen. Barbara A.] Mikulski is getting upthere, too -- are not necessarily representative of their constituents, most of whom are younger.
Nitkin: This is a frequent topic of debate in political circles. There are many upwardly mobile politicians, such as Tom Perez, the Montgomery County Council president, and Glenn F. Ivey, the state's attorney in Prince George's County, who would like to move into moreprominent political positions but who have put their desires on hold out of respect for current office-holders. Many observers feel that Paul Sarbanes, Maryland's longest serving senator, handled the issue in the right way when he announced in early 2005 that he would not be seeking re-election.
IssuesJohn, Maryland: Do you think something will happen with Maryland state pension reform this legislative session? We are the worst in the country right now.
Nitkin: I'm not sure if lawmakers will reach consensus on this issue before adjourning Monday, but our reporters will be tracking it, and we will cover the debate and the resolution.
Melinda, Fells Point: David, I was reading in The Sun's talk section about Steele's identity theft. One of the bloggers pointed out that the [Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee] staffer that stole Steele's identity went to school with The Sun reporter who wrote the recent stories on this. Isn't that a serious conflict?
Are [Sun reporter] Jennifer Skalka and Lauren Weiner friends? How can The Sunexplain their connection and the appropriateness of someone reporting on someone they went to school with who pleaded guilty [to] a crime?
Nitkin: Medill journalism school at Northwestern is a large institution. Skalka and Weiner do not know each other. Skalka was a graduate student when Weiner was an undergraduate; their paths never crossed, and Skalka spent only limited time in Evanston, Ill., moving on to assignments in Chicago and Washington. There's no connection.
Bias assessmentTim, Millington: David, you're ridiculous. Two weeks in a row, I submit a question regarding the professions of state politicians' spouses and/or children, and two weeks in a row, you completely ignore it.
This is the "typical biased coverage" that you hear so many complaints about. It's not always that what you cover is inherently biased, but it's what you don't cover that illustrates bias. Once you realize that, you'll actually be one step closer to being a stand-up journalist.
Nitkin: We report on spouses and children of politicians when their employment is newsworthy. It has been well-reported, for example, that O'Malley's wife is Baltimore Judge Catherine Curran O'Malley. Far from engaging in biased coverage, The Sun has fully reported the ethical challenges raised by this situation. In January 2002, for example, thepaper reported: "A state judicial ethics panel has decided that the family ties of new Baltimore District Judge Catherine Curran O'Malley, wife of Mayor Martin O'Malley, make it improper for her to hear at least two-thirds of the entire docket.
O'Malley, who's also the daughter of Attorney General J. Joseph Curran Jr., said she is "perplexed" and upset by the opinion, which concludes that cases calling for police witnesses, among others, should be off-limits to her because of an appearance of partiality."
Questions about the careers of political spouses have been in the news recently. Questions have been raised about the appropriateness of first lady Kendel Ehrlich working for Comcast, which is regulated by the state. To say, "Well, what about the jobs of other relatives of politicians, especially those on the state payroll?" does little to address the question at hand.


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2009 Conversations
2008 Conversations
2007 Conversations
Roundtable: Reed, Davis, Sandoz
Jimmy Blackwood
Jonny Lang
Dick Eastman
Darrin Rodgers
Gerry Hindy
Ralph Carmichael
Charles Crabtree
Matthew Ward
B.J. Thomas
Roundtable: Lewis, Goerzen, Bryant
Howard Dayton
Tom Clegg
Eric and Leslie Ludy
Lisa Whelchel
Thomas E. Trask
Chonda Pierce
Dean Merrill
Linda Holley
Gen. Leo Brooks
John Smoltz
Alton Garrison
Doug Britton
Jim Coy
Janet Parshall
Jack Murphy
Steve Saint
Bruce Marchiano
John W. Whitehead
Scott McChrystal
Chris Neau
Karen Kingsbury
Flynn Atkins
Tommy Nelson
Corey Simon
Steven Curtis Chapman
Byron Klaus
Gary Denbow
2005 Conversations
2004 Conversations
During the heyday of the Jesus Movement, Annie Herring and her brother and sister, Matthew and Nellie Ward, formed The Second Chapter of Acts. The trioÕs ministry included 17 years of dynamic yet very personal concerts across the United States and overseas in the 1970s and Õ80s. Their best-selling albums became milestones for other Christian musicians to emulate.
Matthew continues his solo ministry and participates in a variety of media projects. While music remains a central force in his life, his identity as a husband, father and now grandfather are his priorities. He spoke recently with Associate Editor Scott Harrup.
tpe: Who makes up the Matthew Ward household today?
WARD: Deanne and I have three daughters. Our oldest, Megin, has married an Air Force pilot, and they just made us grandparents. TheyÕve named their son Elijah Matthew. I like his middle name a lot.
Morgan and Mattie are still at home. Their personalities are like night and day. Morgan is more of the social butterfly. Mattie is more into computers and MySpace and all that kind of stuff, which you have to watch out for as a parent. I finally got an account on there myself.
tpe: YouÕve been married 23 years. What is most meaningful about your marriage?
WARD: Beyond being in love, our relationship is a developing friendship. After 23 years we know about each otherÕs dirty laundry and where all the bones are buried. So some of the idealistic luster can wear off. But that friendship keeps growing. WeÕre partners, not just mates.
Marriage is hard work. You have to recognize your differences and address them. Deanne is a detail-oriented, get-it-on-the-calendar kind of person. IÕm more spontaneous. Sometimes we have to break out of our little ruts and shake things up a little.
tpe: What are some hurdles you have had to overcome?
WARD: It was hard for Deanne to connect with my family at first. That was kind of my fault, because I tended to keep the focus away from them. I wanted her to love me for me and not for who I was in some singing group.
Some of the ways I related to people were difficult. My parents died when I was young and I was raised by Annie and Buck. They were struggling to learn how to be parents, and I suffered the consequences of some of that. I was a son, brother and brother-in-law all at once.
IÕm the youngest of nine; DeanneÕs the oldest of two. So throw that together, and itÕs like oil and water. Those family dynamics probably took a decade for us to work out. But things are wonderful today.
IÕll tell you where we never had issues, and that was in raising our children. Deanne is an incredible parent, and weÕre seeing the fruit of that in our daughtersÕ lives.
tpe: You mentioned being raised by your sister and her husband during some of your most formative years. How did that influence you?
WARD: IÕve tried not to be too authoritarian. Buck was a Òbecause I said soÓ kind of parent. There was no pleading your case. DonÕt get me wrong; I made my share of mistakes as a kid in his home. But as a parent, IÕve tried to be more flexible. It takes balance.
There are times when your kids are about to do something that will really harm them, and you canÕt take time for an explanation. But I work hard to listen to my kids and give them solid answers when they need them.
IÕve also had to learn how to be assertive in the right way. At first, in marriage, I wouldnÕt deal with things. Having some relationship mentors over the years has helped enormously in how I relate to my family, how I relate to others in ministry and in business, and how I deal with confrontation as a follower of Christ. IÕve learned to ask, ÒWhat does Jesus have for me in this situation?Ó and pray about it before I go any further.
tpe: YouÕve recovered from cancer. Talk about going through that.
WARD: I remember sitting on pins and needles for 10 days waiting for the pathology results. I drove home from work, and Deanne came out to meet me. I could tell by her face the news wasnÕt good.
I went into a treatment program in Houston. ItÕs been about 11 years now that IÕve been cancer-free.
Some people react to cancer by trying to get all their ducks in a row and treat every moment as precious. My ducks were already in a row. I knew I was doing what God had called me to do.
IÕd watched my dad die of leukemia, and I had some preconceived notion of how I thought IÕd react. But it didnÕt play out that way. I was trying to reconcile my sense that God wanted to continue using me long-term and yet there was this chance I could die.
I came to the place where, like Job, I could say to God, ÒIÕm going to keep trusting You, even if You kill me.Ó I determined I would chase Him like a hunting dog. It didnÕt matter what happened. I wanted what God wanted for my life.
tpe: How does being a follower of Christ affect your family life?
WARD: Sin separates us from GodÕs presence. Jesus became the way for us to be reconciled to God. When it comes to marriage and parenting, I canÕt do it on my own. People who donÕt know Christ will say, ÒYou use Jesus as a crutch.Ó And I say, ÒAbsolutely, because IÕm a cripple.Ó
IÕve got an advocate with God, someone who cries out to Him on my behalf. Why wouldnÕt I want that as a father and as a husband? When questions of life come up, I donÕt have to stew in the midst of them. I can go to Christ and unload. I can learn from Him. I canÕt imagine living life without that, no matter what I was doing. Christ has to be at the center.
tpe: Your autobiography, My Second Chapter, was recently released by Waterbrook Press and chronicles GodÕs faithfulness in your life. How is your trust in Him continuing to be shaped?
WARD: ItÕs like the stone altars the Israelites would build to remember the things God had done for them and pass that on to their children. When I look back on things God has done in my life, I see them as those little piles of stones. It gives me faith to believe God will continue to be there for me in the future. IÕm not walking blind. IÕm going on a path shaped by divine history.
tpe: What are your dreams for your family?
WARD: First and foremost, I pray that if my daughters marry they will find the husbands God has for them. Men who will partner with them, believe in God with them, and face life in unity with them. MeginÕs husband loves the Lord and is absolutely goo-goo over her, so IÕm seeing that prayer begin to be answered.
tpe: Talk about your ministry today.
WARD: If you go to matthewward.com you can catch up on the day-to-day stuff and get more information about my book and music. IÕve been involved in a variety of projects — backup vocals for friends, voice-overs for Veggie Tales, stuff like that.
Deanne and I are excited about the pastors conferences where weÕve been ministering with David WilkersonÕs son, Gary. Gary and I have been friends for more than 20 years. We all just got back from Helsinki where something like 7,000 pastors from across Europe came together for renewal.
IÕve got a Christmas album coming out. I worked on it early this year, and Buck told me itÕs probably his favorite Christmas album of all time. That meant a lot to me.
E-mail your comments to firstname.lastname@example.com.


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Originally posted by lod01
You cannot have actually watched a Texans game and say that the reason Carr is getting sacked is not the offensive line. The O line was good at the beginning of the season, and guess who played well in the beginning of the season? That's right David Carr. In fact he had the highest qb rating in the NFL during that period, not that he was the best qb, but he was playing well. Then injury plagued our offensive line and the blocking became atrocious.
Usually when Carr takes off it's because he has to evade a defender in his "pocket of protection" and has to temporarily take his eyes off of his receivers, and once he realizes he won't have time to make the throw he usually ends up running it. Trusting his offensive linemen was a luxury that Carr did not have, most qb's have someone reliable to cover their blindside, but sure enough on nearly every play there was someone in Carr's face that he had to deal with. As for running out of bounds, he can't go that far if he can't get down-the-field blocking. In that situation he needs to throw the ball away, that is a problem for him, but no one here is mistaking Carr for Peyton Manning.
Our running game sucked this year. Ron Dayne? He is completely out of shape and the only reason his numbers are almost respectable is because he got them in clumps against the Raiders and the Colts. We had about 1,500 total rushing yards and our qb put up 200 of those. 1,300 total rushing yards is horrible, our run game could not be relied upon because it was so inconsistent. Every gain that Dayne made against the Colts should have been bigger. He tripped over his feet countless times and failed to make the play as well. Dayne is not a capable starter in the NFL.
2 Pro Bowl receivers? Andre is legitimate, but if you are calling Eric Moulds a pro bowl caliber receiver then you are a complete moron. He used to be a pro bowl caliber receiver, but he isn't anymore. He is a solid #2 option, and that is it.
Thank you for putting your uninformed view of the Texans out there, it gave me a good laugh especially this part
O-line blokced very well this year


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ST. LOUIS — On Aug. 22, 2012, less than five months before Rick Majerus died of heart failure in Los Angeles, tragedy rocked Jim Crews' world. Twice.
Crews was in the parking lot outside Chaifetz Arena, home to the Saint Louis University Billikens, when the first call came. Army 1st Lt. Eric Zastoudil, whom Crews had coached at West Point, had stepped on an IED in Afghanistan and had his left leg blown apart. A shaken Crews walked into a team meeting. As he rose to leave less than an hour later, his cell rang again: 1st Lt. Tyrell Thompson, another former player, had collapsed on a basketball court in Fort Lee, Va., and died. This was two months after Capt. Scott Pace, an Army pilot and former player under Crews, was shot down from his plane over Afghanistan and killed.
It was two days before Crews was named interim coach at SLU, while his longtime friend Majerus was fighting for his life.
There's a narrative attached to Sporting News' College Basketball Coach of the Year, and it goes something like this: Jim Crews led his band of overachievers from the depths of Majerus' passing to the heights of an Atlantic 10 championship. For the most part, it's accurate; the Billikens are 24-6 and riding high with the No. 16 ranking entering their A-10 Tournament quarterfinal game on Friday afternoon.
But that narrative misses so much.
More Sporting News awards: All-Americans | All-Freshmen
Crews struggles to speak about last August—about the losses of players he cared for and of a coach, his friend for three decades, whom he loved. During a lengthy interview with Sporting News that's spent walking laps around the Chaifetz concourse, emotions are on the sleeve of the 59-year-old who coached 17 years at Evansville and seven years at Army.
"We were just watching film from last year's La Salle game," Crews says, "and there's Rick on the sideline and he's making a signal, and the sweater goes up and you see that big old belly ..."
The pause comes hard.
"Rick was authentic. His friendship and coaching were temporary things, but his lessons are permanent and the memories bring a smile to your face. And sometimes the opposite emotion."
Crews read a multiple-choice poll question in a magazine once: What are you really looking forward to in life? A majority of readers had answered tomorrow. This made no sense to Crews then and doesn't to this day.
"Tomorrow never comes!" he says. "Try to have a good day today and make the best of it."
This was the loudest and clearest of Crews' messages to the team in those first days after he took the reins of the program. It was his own slant on the tenets espoused by Majerus: Work hard, move forward through adversity and always have a zest for life.
"There was a lot of ambiguity and confusion at the time," says junior forward Dwayne Evans, referring to the team's understanding of Majerus' medical condition. Of course, players were worried and sad, too. "But he told us, 'Though you're facing a lot of adversity, it's not an excuse to have any letdowns or to miss a beat.' "
Not just any group of players could've met such expectations, but this already was a special group. Majerus had brought them to SLU not only for their basketball talent but also because each of them, the coach believed, was hard-working and well-grounded by nature. And they'd rewarded the iconic coach with 26 wins—and deep feelings of togetherness—in what proved to be Majerus' final season. Many of you will remember the emotional press conference after the Billikens were knocked from the NCAA Tournament last March.
Majerus died on Dec. 1. Less than 24 hours later, SLU began a nine-game winning streak. After they dropped back-to-back games for a 1-2 start in Atlantic 10 play, the players gathered, discussed matters and resolved to dig even deeper.
Gallery: Sporting News Players of the Year, 1943-2012
"I don't condone losing," says junior forward Jake Barnett, "but I think those two games were a wakeup call. At that point, I'm not sure if we were all as bought in as we could be."
An 11-game winning streak followed, during which SLU appeared in the AP top 25 in consecutive weeks for the first time since the 1993-94 season.
As the national attention grew—and as this baseball town's interest in the Billikens surged—Crews infused the team with a second strong message: "Don't buy into the noise. Look at the guy to your left. Look at the guy to your right. That's who you're playing for."
Majerus always had emphasized moving forward. Crews simply added a perpendicular line, if you will.
"I think we do have a team that really cares about the guy to the left and the guy to the right," he says.
They play together and with a constant urgency. One can't watch the Billikens and not come away believing they play harder than most.
"They play uncommonly hard. They do that very, very well," Crews says. "All you can do is the best you can do, and I think these guys come as close to doing the best they can do as anybody.
"They're quietly incredible."
The Billikens play defense face-first—an all-out approach that has yielded a conference-low 58.4 points per game. Their offense doesn't do shootouts, either; leading scorer Evans ranks 18th in the A-10 at 12.9 points per game. Statistically, Evans, Kwamain Mitchell, Mike McCall Jr., Cody Ellis and the rest are all bunched together. Certainly, no one on this team stands out.
That's probably the biggest reason outsiders looking on in admiration refer to these players as overachievers. The basketball world still doesn't know the Billikens very well at all, does it? It's easier to put them in a nice little box.
"I don't think we win this many games the last two years without talent," Evans says.
But what the players tend to consider backhanded praise, Crews embraces.
"We've got good players," he says, "but, if it's true these guys are overachievers, what better compliment can you get in the world?"
Coming Wednesday: Sporting News announces 2012-13 player of the year
That's partly what makes Crews' own success fascinating. Is he overachieving, too? In 17 seasons as coach at Evansville, he won a single NCAA Tournament game—or 18 fewer than Majerus' career total. From 2002-09 at Army, Crews' teams were 59-140. Granted, West Point hadn't seen a winning season since 1984-85 (this year's team finished 16-15), but that's not a record that screams "hire me."
That brings us to Chris May. How could SLU's athletics director not seize the opportunity to promote a national coach of the year into a permanent gig? But it might not happen.
May is unwilling to commit to Crews beyond the current season, at least publicly. Likewise, Crews will not discuss his coaching future or even indicate whether he desires the SLU job.
It's certainly possible Crews hopes to win big in March and fade into the sunset, but really? Crews is 59 and in good health. SLU has excellent facilities and ever-improving support from alumni and fans. And the Billikens will have four senior starters next season—a chance to chase history. If Crews doesn't want this job, it's a real head-scratcher.
It's more believable that May still has his doubts about Crews, who, it should be mentioned, was fired at Army amid reports he'd verbally abused a Cadet.
"There weren't any concerns about that," May says. "When you do your due diligence on Jim Crews, you find that, in the industry of basketball, he's a highly respected individual. And he's an unbelievable person to be with and work with."
May's take on Crews' performance as interim coach is no less flattering: "Outstanding by any measure. Jim came and has taken over a challenging opportunity and has just done a great job with it. ... There's no question he was the right guy and did a spectacular job for this program."
It could be that May simply is abiding by Crews' inclination to remain fully in the moment, that when the A.D. says the school made a commitment to Crews for this season and leaves it at that, there's nothing to read into.
"When the season's over," May says, "we'll sit down and have a conversation with Jim about the future."
Which way will this one go?
Crews is going in circles. Whenever he's at Chaifetz and has a long phone call or a visit from a reporter, he walks the concourse. He calls it his "pathetic excuse for exercise."
But it's more than that: It's an effort to make the most of the moment.
Crews was a senior and key contributor on the 1975-76 Indiana team that went 32-0, major-college basketball's last undefeated champion. He then went to work for Bob Knight as a coach. For years, the pair taught a course on coaching that was attended by regular students: Crews would teach the X's-and-O's, and Knight would handle the bigger-picture stuff.
Vivid still for Crews is the memory of showing students film of the Hoosiers' 86-68 victory over Michigan in the '76 national title game. What the students saw as the culmination of a perfect season, Crews viewed as a teaching moment; there was far more insight to offer.
"Everything would be 'perfect' this and 'perfect' that," he says, "and then we'd show them the film: Mistake, mistake, mistake, mistake, mistake. We weren't perfect at all."
Asked for his proudest moment this season, Crews points to his players' effort in the next-to-last game of the regular season. It was at Xavier—an overtime loss in which the Billikens, at least to the untrained eye, didn't seem to play well.
"That was pretty good," he says with a broad smile. "They tried to do the right things. They kept moving forward. Rick would've been proud."
Like the Hoosiers of old, the Billikens make mistakes but play together and with uncommon effort. That's good enough for their interim coach. Crews is no perfectionist, but in 2012-13 he's the best in the land.


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If you really want to go to temple, I would call and reaffirm your committment to attend if admitted. Goodluck! btw- If you don't mind? What are your vitals? (GPA, class rank, law school rank etc.)
If you're at a T2, then why transfer to another T2? Just curious....as the only way id transfer is if it was to a T14.


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Price: $281.00 EA
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Part #: 2801-68
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Chair design combines worker comfort and industrial strength durability
Manufacturer: BioFit Engineered Products
Warranty: 13 years
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Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 Black Sky offers are available on:
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WSJ House of the Week: Two-Kayak Garage or Napa Winery?
Which house will be named WSJ House of the Week? Stefanos Chen reveals the winner on Lunch Break. Photo: Victor Pisano.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
... ay ay ay ay ... of the house a Georgia plantation to kayak or rise that is just one of the homes in the running to be WSJ's House of the week Stefanos Chen joins me now with a look at the competition ... and of course the winner ... I think ... the startling Napa California when he finds that we have a winemaker out there who has this that this court is unstated think comprised of ... the home itself just can't believe that over a three acre pond for one semester pump Lakers what is and if I were looking at is the one area so it's really whimsical ... sometimes they covered up onion domes with building it looks like something from US based system was ... the Yemeni and it's really sort of like going fantastical and that's only one-third of the profit results of this vineyard with that with the critiques are on another grapes ... this is that the home of the money who I actually don't become holy ... winery out there ... and the entire property ... is going to be on sale for just thirty million dollars thirty million Americans are pricey offerings this week the star the upper West side ... last inning of work when you call a new pontiff together here ... it's a hundred forty two acre property in what's interesting here is that the owner has ... I've been to the region's enjoy Adventureland for her family she has the year if you're familiar with those capping Canacol tents sees the field as a guesthouse ... there's the ins is descriptive and so that the home is thirty five square feet three bedrooms two a half baths and you have a bunch of links on the property we can swim Kayak and or pull ... up basically Cypriots estrogen affair two point three million let's put the data Georgiou when he found in inhabited boathouse in the southeast here in Georgia which is pretty rare ... I'm told them that it's it's a home where ... I can move the traditional cars he had to kayak around the bottom level the home right on top of the water ... which is very interesting it's it's a fortune Hunter sixty three square foot home two bedrooms one a half baths ... but really them the benefit here is the way and and being able to come into the locker ... are a and in Colorado to million for this one place you find there is a shout out to Lyle Lovett and here I mean I gotta give the go I love because the owners who are these these are these sweet sisters they've bought this goes tends to isn't it the ... sporty for ghost town ... we have the entire place we are living there now ... and that they aren't big fans of well loved him the exit or they have miles in the moment the shares in in in the bar tab or so ... before they sell they would look for a while to come as I'm fond explained that one and it's you kayak or I go back to kayak one ... who won ... the winner this week is the wonder if the Watkins is thirty nine I think a list of items I Stefanos Chen think semester being with us ...


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Woman Within Global Calendar of Events
Woman Within International is a global non-profit organization to help women find their authentic self and become empowered. While we are global our events and circles are organized on a regional level. It's easy to register for our Woman Within events. Our Woman Within Weekend and Woman Within Open Circles are open to all women aged 18 and over.
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Open Circle – Georgetown, KY
November 8, 2017 @ 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Join us for a Woman Within Open Circle. All women 18+ are welcome. Attendance is free, and there are no prerequisites. Come see what the excitement is all about!


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Ian Clark is a busier man than he used to be. In his early days at Belmont, he was part of an army, a rotating core of players that would wear down opponents in a rolling wave of substitutions, full-court pressure and fast-break basketball. Now, he plays all the time.
Clark plays more minutes, takes more shots and scores more points than at any point in his career. Oh, and he makes those shots more frequently and makes all that playing time count.
He averages 18.9 points and hits 57.5 percent of his field-goal attempts and 51.4 percent on 3-pointers. Among guards, only Indiana's Victor Oladipo has a higher shooting percentage, and Clark leads Division I in 3-point percentage. Clark makes 3.3 per game from long distance, which is 10th in the nation.
Belmont has won every conference game it has played, hammered Sun Belt leader Middle Tennessee State and Pac-12 contender Stanford in non-league games and stands 19th nationally in the RPI.
You might not know him, though. Few do, though he's just a few nice games away from becoming Belmont's career scoring leader.
Clark's anonymity could be damaged Thursday night because Belmont (19-4, 10-0) is about to play the biggest conference game in its Division I history. The Bruins travel up I-24, past the Land Between The Lakes to Murray State (16-5, 7-2), the reigning king of Belmont's new league, the Ohio Valley Conference, for a game that will be televised nationally by ESPNU at 8 p.m. ET.
It is the 1,000th career game for Belmont coach Rick Byrd, who ranks seventh among active coaches in victories with 656.
Clark not only will get the opportunity to play before a national audience, he'll face All-American point guard Isaiah Canaan, who averages 21 points and four assists and last season led the Racers to a 31-2 finish.
This is Clark's chance to get into the frame with Canaan, show basketball fans there are (at least) two elite college guards in the OVC. Clark was conference defensive player of the year for 2012 in the Atlantic Sun, so it's possible he'll draw the defensive assignment on Canaan and gain an ideal chance to become noticed.
"I try not to think about all that. I just want to win," Clark told Sporting News. "If winning makes all that stuff happen, that's a good thing. If you win, your name gets out there."
That's sort of true, but Clark has played in the NCAA Tournament the past two seasons. During his college career, Belmont has won 87 percent of its conference games, including 45 of the past 48. But he's still rather overlooked, owing at least in part to a name that sounds like it belongs to the bassist in an English art-rock band.
Now, Isaiah Canaan -- that's a name that sounds like it belongs to a baller.
Clark has been paying attention to Canaan and the Racers since their perfect start to last season forced them into the national consciousness.
"They're winning all these games, you want to see how the team looks," Clark said. "He looks poised, always ready to attack, and he can shoot the ball. I've got to be ready for that."
A 6-3 senior from Memphis, Clark has been exposed to other big-time talents this year. He did not fare well against Kansas, going 2-of-9 from the field, but against VCU's "Havoc" defense he shot a perfect 10-of-10, striking three times from 3-point range, in scoring 24. He went 40 minutes in that win over Middle Tennessee and 35 in beating Stanford.
In response to questions about what has changed for Belmont since moving from the A-Sun to the OVC, Clark said the most noticeable difference is "a lot more athletic guys" in the new league. That certainly will be true of the Racers, whose 6-7 Ed Daniel averages 14.2 points and 10.9 rebounds and plays as though floating on a magic hardwood carpet.
Clark also said another difference was that in playing as a member of the A-Sun the only avenue to the NCAA Tournament was to win the conference tournament. It seemed he was intimating the Bruins could achieve an at-large berth should they fail to win the OVC Tournament. You won't find them in that situation in mock brackets, because with a league like the OVC the analysts will place the conference leader as the presumed winner of the automatic bid. But what if the Bruins don't get it?
Certainly they'd have to continue dominating the league, but they're currently 6-2 against the RPI top 100. The OVC has received only one at-large bid in its history, 1987, when Austin Peay received the automatic bid and former member Middle Tennessee State was chosen, as well.
"It's a better chance than the A-Sun," Clark said. "I think so. I'm really not sure how it works. At the same time, if we win the tournament we don't have to worry about it."


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The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI) is recommending four fixes to the state's no-fault auto insurance system.
The recommendations – more time to investigate suspicious claims, capping attorney fees, allowing private companies to inspect medical clinics and limiting medical treatments – would help reduce insurance fraud and ultimately save consumers money, the trade group said.
Paul Blume, Property Casual Insurers' senior vice president for state government relations, said the organization will push for changes to state law in coming months. A working group of experts, created by CFO Jeff Atwater, is studying ways to reform the system.
"By passing legislation in the upcoming 2012 legislative session that includes these four vital components, the Legislature will help close the loopholes that prevent regulators and the marketplace from investigating and fighting fraud," Blume said. "Florida will also be able to protect its consumers and eliminate the rampant PIP fraud that is driving up the cost of insurance premiums in our state."
Florida requires drivers to carry $10,000 worth of insurance so accident injuries are covered regardless of which driver causes the accident.
Staged accidents, needless medical tests and other abuses have driven up insurance premiums, reform advocates say. The Property Casual Insurers report said that Florida drivers pay the highest liability insurance premiums in the nation and PIP fraud has cost consumers $800 million since 2006.
This summer, Gov. Rick Scott said PIP coverage should be optional for drivers as a way to reduce fraud. Later, in a draft legislative plan, the governor's office said reforming the no-fault laws would be a key component to accomplishing his campaign promise of tort reform.
Earlier this month, the Florida Chamber of Commerce announced its 2012 legislative agenda would include PIP reforms to cut down on fraud and abuse, calling it "a billion dollar problem that raises the cost of living for Floridians."


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'Canes edge Titans for city title
City championship is fifth straight for Vets
Warwick Vets wrestling coach George Schmeider had a feeling Tuesday's city championship match against Toll Gate would come down to the wire. Before the match, Schmeider made sure his wrestlers knew exactly what they had to do.
There were plenty of anxious moments, but in the end, the 'Canes did it all.
After Toll Gate started the match with four straight pins, Vets came to life with five pins then did enough in the final three matches to seal a 41-40 victory over the Titans. That win – combined with a 50-23 victory over Pilgrim earlier in the day – gave Vets its fifth city championship in a row.
"I knew it was going to be tight going in," Schmeider said. "[Toll Gate coach Jerry Sabatelli] didn't believe me, but I really thought it was going to be tight. We went after it, and all the guys did what they were supposed to do."
Vets started the meet with the victory over Pilgrim. Toll Gate then edged the Pats by one point to set up a winner-take-all match against Vets.
And Toll Gate came out hot. Senior Dante Procopio, who had lost in the Pilgrim match, pinned Diego Martinez at 132 to put Toll Gate up 6-0. Joe Martinez followed with a second-period pin of Kameron Boyajian, and John DiGiuseppe delivered a pin of Aaron Gordon in just 20 seconds. Dave Navilliat capped the 24-0 start with a pin of Steven Awde at 152.
The 'Canes weren't surprised to be in a deep hole, but it still wasn't a pleasant spot. Thankfully for them, the turnaround was about to start.
At 160, Tony Lonczak had to battle with Tim McCorkle, but he came up with a big move late in the second period and pinned McCorkle with four seconds left.
"That was our spot to turn the corner," Lonczak said.
And the 'Canes were off and running. Devin Hurst and Nick Salois each needed just 19 seconds to pin their opponents at 170 and 182. Aaron Hurst then came up big with a pin of Matt Cullen at 195, tying the score at 24-24.
Vets forfeited at 220, but Casey Beauregard kept things going with a second-period pin of Tim Warner at 285, putting the score at 30-30.
With four matches left, it was easy to envision each team finishing with two pins, based on match-ups.
But Vets wouldn't let Toll Gate hold up its end of that bargain.
At 106, Vets sent out freshman Davin Lourenco against Austin Medeiros, one of the top 106-pounders in the state. Laurenco's instructions were to not get pinned and somehow he came through, fighting off his back multiple times. Medeiros still came away with the 12-4 victory, but that was good for only four points instead of the six that a pin would have garnered.
"Davin's a kid who works really hard," Schmeider said. "He wrestled in some really tough tournaments in the summer, and he got beat up a little bit. One day, he comes running across the mat so excited. I'm thinking 'Oh my god, this kid won.' He says, 'I scored a point.' He was so excited because he was wrestling kids who are one, two, three in the country. He knows how to survive if he has to. You saw that tonight."
In the next match, Vets sent out defending state champ John Altieri, who bumped up from 106. The 'Canes were banking on a pin, but much like Laurenco, Toll Gate's Corey Longworth wasn't letting it happen.
Instead of hoping for the pin, Schmeider continually told Altieri to let Longworth get escape points and then go for takedowns. The ensuing one-for-two trades enabled Altieri to get a 21-6 tech fall and the five points that came with it.
"The minute I knew that kid knew how to play the game, you can't try to pin someone like that because you waste so much time," Schmeider said. "Five's the next best thing."
Altieri's win put Vets ahead 35-34 with two matches left. Toll Gate would need to avoid a tech-fall or pin at 120 to have a chance.
For a while, it looked like Toll Gate's Max Procopio would be up to the task. Earlier in the day, he avoided a pin against Pilgrim's Jordan DeSisto in the final match to seal his team's one-point win. This time, matched up with Vets standout Nate Colicci, Procopio held his own through two periods.
On the Vets bench, worry started creeping in.
"Nate's not a pinner," Schmeider said. "He's a points guy. It can work against him to bring him out of that. Nate can beat most people in New England 5-2, but when you ask him to go out and open up, it's tough. It takes him a while to get going."
Fortunately for the 'Canes, Colicci eventually did. Leading 14-4 in the third, he took Procopio took his back and pinned him with one minute remaining to clinch the title for Vets. With the win secured, the 'Canes forfeited the last match and then celebrated the victory.
"I was just glad we won," said senior Devin Hurst. "I had won it my first three years, so especially my senior year, I wanted to make sure we won. It was a little too close for comfort, but we got the win. That's all that matters."
While the 'Canes will shoot to defend their state championship next month, they were happy to bring the city trophy home first.
"This is big," Lonczak said. "We've had a tough couple of weeks. We lost to Westerly and we shouldn't have. We got third in our tourney, and we're not used to that. I hope all the new kids recognize how big this is. Hopefully it'll give us some momentum and get us on a roll."
Toll Gate, who's 9-1 in Division II, left without the title but Sabatelli was pleased with the performances against both Pilgrim and Vets.
"We came up a little bit short," Sabatelli said. "A couple of things didn't go our way, but I was pleased with the effort by everybody tonight. I've walked out of the city meet getting smashed, but that didn't happen tonight."
Despite going 0-2, Pilgrim had strong performances as well. Steve Cabral and Mark Lenz had pins against Vets, while Mark Tomaselli picked up a tech-fall. Against Toll Gate, Cabral and Lenz both beat tough opponents, while Tomaselli, Nate Brice and Michael Turchette had pins. DeSisto added a tech-fall.


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Fish conservation campaigns are being carried out in Pineapple Bay, through the use of circle fishing hooks and a catch and release policy, towards achieving the sustainablity of these species in Panamanian waters so that future generations may also enjoy sport fishing tourism.
It is located on the Pacific coast of the Darién province, precisely 200 kilometers from Panama City.
How to arrive
- Plane: Pineapple Bay is located only an hour's flight away from Panama City, taking off from the Marcos A. Gelabert Airport in Albrook.
What to bring
- Water bottle
- Sunscreen
- Swimsuit
- Scuba diving
- Marlin sport fishing


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Not sure why/if/how-to rehydrate dry yeast.
Quote from: alcaponejunior on February 01, 2012, 12:34:51 AMNot sure why/if/how-to rehydrate dry yeast.Every manufacturer has slightly different directions, but they're all basically the same. For Nottingham: http://www.danstaryeast.com/sites/default/files/nottingham_datasheet.pdf
Bah!! I'm just going to have another beer and quit worrying about it all for tonight. Thanks guys!


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JouwWeb needed a new logo design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 169 designs submitted by 31 freelance designers.
Create a logo for this new Dutch website called JouwWeb.nl. This websites gives users the possibility to create and easily maintain their own website For Free! (no technical knowledge required)
The logo should be modern, recognizable and colorful.
We'll make sure to provide every single entry with feedback.
-------- Update -------------------------------------------------
We have a little suggestion for people who want to design a logo that is relevant to our company name. You may use a graphic of a "spider web" in your logo (or a spider itself).
This is just a suggestion. You are not obliged to do this.
We want a design for this new website, called JouwWeb.nl (YourWeb in English). Our web design will be based on this logo, therefore we appreciate it if you include possible color scheme(s) to your logo. We would like to receive the (vector-based) source file (PSD for example).
This website is based on our price-winning business concept at the university of Eindhoven.The websites gives users the possibility to create and easily maintain their own website For Free! (no technical knowledge required). It's important to note that it's completely free to use and everyone should be able to use it.
If you have any questions please ask us!
- Professional looking
- Web 2.0 fresh and possibly colorful logo (if you want to use multiple different colors, please choose five (or four)).
- JouwWeb should be the text. It should be clear from the logo that it consists of two words.
- .nl-extension may be added (without emphasize) if you feel like to.
- business-style (since it's a free web-application)
Find out how a design contest works or learn more about our logo design services.


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Cooler Master HAF 912 Review
Anyone in the custom computing scene is sure to have heard of Cooler Master. Cooler Master introduced themselves into the computer accessory market about a decade ago, and has continued their rise to success every year that they operate. As per their mission statement, "Cooler Master is absolutely committed to delivering solutions that precisely meet customer requirements for features, performance, and quality." Most individuals who have owned a Cooler Master product can agree with this quote, as Cooler Master offers high quality products that are well designed and well built. Since their debut, Cooler Master has developed cases, heatsinks, power supplies, and other cooling accessories that are widely used across the world and accepted as one of the most popular brands internationally.
Since Cooler Master is a very popular brand, they are recognized by most computer enthusiasts who keep up with custom computer products. More specifically, individuals may even recognize or at least know of the HAF breed of cases in Cooler Master's line up, and acknowledge them as their higher-end mid and full tower cases with loads of features and a high level of cooling capacity. Introduced this Tuesday, the HAF 912 is the latest case in Cooler Master's product line. It is a mid tower case that houses up to seven 3.5" hard drives, two 2.5" SSDs, three or four external 5.25" devices, dependent upon whether or not the 3.5" device bay is used. For a mid tower case, this certainly is a large amount of capacity! This review will completely explore the HAF 912 from unboxing, exterior and interior features, specifications, and most importantly, testing and comparing the temperatures produced by the HAF 912 against some of the other latest cases on the market.
Closer Look:
The Cooler Master HAF 912 is packaged in a plain brown cardboard box with black printing of the Cooler Master logo, a picture of the case, specifications and features, as well as some attractive designs on the front that improve the look of the plain brown cardboard. For being monochrome, the packaging is not really unattractive and I feel is a good presentation of the case while not requiring a lot of resources to produce. More specifically, the rear of the case contains specific features the case offers, with individual specifications such as the dimensions and capacity on the sides.
The HAF 912 is secured in the box between two blocks of fitted styroam and wrapped in a plastic bag. The user's manual can be found underneath the case, and a box of accessories secured to the inside rear of the case with a large twist tie. The accessories included are: all mounting hardware such as motherboard standoffs, motherboard screws, expansion slot screws, 6 pairs of toolless hard drive rails, a numerous amount of zip ties, a 5.25" to 3.5" adapter bracket, and a short PC speaker. I like that Cooler Master supplied the zip ties, and about 15 of them at that, which can really help clean up the interior of a case and improve further upon the already built-in wire management features.
With the HAF 912 out of the bag, it is ready to have an evaluation of its exterior on the next page. So far, this case looks like it could be a solid performer with lots of room and plenty of extra features.


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Further Java Practical Class
Table of Contents
Last week you wrote a simple chat client in Java. One of the problems you may have encountered is that different users formatted their messages in different ways and consequently your chat client couldn't easily format all the messages in a uniform manner. This week you will explore Java's mechanism for saving and restoring object state either to and from a stream, allowing an object to be saved to disk or sent between machines on a computer network. You will use this mechanism to write a new and improved Java chat client which sends Java objects as structured messages between the client and the server. This technique will allow you to handle and display messages in a more structured way.
An on-line version of this guide is available at:
You should check this page regularly for announcements and errata. You might find it useful to refer to the on-line version of this guide in order to follow any provided web links or to cut 'n' paste example code.
By default, data stored by a Java program only exists for as long as the program remains in computer memory. When the program terminates (cleanly or due to an error) all data held in computer memory is lost. This can be problematic, since it is often useful to be able to save and restore data between executions of a computer program. Java serialisation offers an easy way to save and restore data by enabling an instance of a Java object to be turned into a platform-independent sequence of bytes which can be written to the hard disk or sent over a computer network.
In Java you can serialise any object which implements the
java.io.Serializable interface (paying careful attention to the spelling[1]).
The interface does not contain any fields nor does it proscribe the creation of any methods—it's simply used to denote the class as serialisable. The Java runtime is able to convert an instance of an object into a stream of bytes (and back again), so as a programmer you need to do nothing other then declare that the class implements the interface
java.io.Serializable. Any serialised object is written in a platform-independent manner in the sense that an instance of a class which is serialised on one machine can be deserialised on another, regardless of the underlying operating system or Endianness of the computers involved.
Here is a simple example of a class which implements the
Serializable interface:
class Message implements Serializable { int id; String msg; Message(int id, String msg) { this.id = id; this.msg = msg; } }
The field
id is of type
int and, when an instance of the class
Message is serialised, the Java runtime will save a copy of the value stored in the field. Handling the field
msg is more complicated however since it is a reference to an instance of the
String class. The Java runtime system knows this and will serialise the field
msg by serialising the instance of the
String class which the field references (if any). In general, when the Java runtime system is serialising an object it will recursively serialise all the referenced objects so that a complete copy of all the relevant data is captured.
Some classes, such as the
Socket class you used last week, cannot be serialised since they represent a state, such as a TCP/IP connection, which cannot be saved to disk and restored (possibly on a different computer) at an arbitrary point in the future. If you need to serialise a class which contains a reference to an object which cannot be serialised, you must declare the field to be
transient; if you do so, such fields will not be saved and therefore must be manually recreated by the programmer afterwards.
One potential problem with serialising instances of classes arises when you wish to change the class definition. For example, you may wish to add a field to the class, change the inheritance hierarchy or move the class between packages. Such changes may prevent any existing instances of the class which have been serialised to disk from being deserialised correctly. In order to detect such problems, the compiler generates a unique identifier for a particular class by computing a hash of the class definition and storing this along with the rest of the data. Thus any changes made to the class will result in a different identifier, and therefore the Java runtime can detect whether the version of the class definition currently available is the same as the version used when the object was serialised.
You can manually control the version identifier given to a class by declaring the following field inside the class and providing a specific integer value (we recommend starting at one):
private static final long serialVersionUID = ...
It's a good idea to do this by default (not only because Eclipse encourages you to do so!) but because it is possible to add (or remove) fields to a class and still restore instances of the class which were serialised before the fields were added (removed). In the cases where additional fields are added, they are initialised to a default value (e.g.
null); when fields are removed, the associated serialised data is simply ignored. You must change the version identifier in most other cases, for example if you change the class hierarchy or the class package. The Java Serialization Specification[2] contains the gory details.
Java provides two classes to help you serialise an object into bytes or deserialise bytes into an object. These are
ObjectOutputStream and
ObjectInputStream respectively. Here is a small example code snippet which serialises an instance of the
Message object as defined above and writes it to a file called
FileOutputStream fos = new FileOutputStream("message.jobj"); ObjectOutputStream out = new ObjectOutputStream(fos); out.writeObject(new Message(1,"Hello, world")); out.close();
A quick glance at the Java documentation reveals that
FileOutputStream and
ObjectOutputStream interact with each other in the above code as byte-oriented streams of data. Formally, they provide an
OutputStream and use an
OutputStream respectively; you've seen this interaction before with
BufferedReader. This loose coupling of classes enables Java objects to be written to any class which provides an
OutputStream. In the last workbook you used the
OutputStream provided by instances of the
Socket class. Many other classes in the Java standard library which read or write data support either an
InputStream or an
OutputStream respectively, a fact you will need to remember when completing this workbook!
Further information on serialisation is available at:
package uk.ac.cam.crsid.fjava.tick2; //TODO: import required classes class TestMessageReadWrite { static boolean writeMessage(String message, String filename) { //TODO: Create an instance of "TestMessage" with "text" set // to "message" and serialise it into a file called "filename". // Return "true" if write was successful; "false" otherwise. } static String readMessage(String location) { //TODO: // If "location" begins with "http://" then attempt to download // and deserialise an instance of TestMessage; you should use // the java.net.URL and java.net.URLConnection classes. // If "location" does not begin with "http://" attempt to // deserialise an instance of TestMessage by assuming that // "location" is the name of a file in the filesystem. // // If deserialisation is successful, return a reference to the // field "text" in the deserialised object. In case of error, // return "null". } public static void main(String args[]) { //TODO: Implement suitable code to help you test your implementation // of "readMessage" and "writeMessage". } }
In the previous section you practised serialising and deserialising Java objects using the
TestMessage class. In this section you will adapt your Java chat client from last week to support the sending and receiving of Java objects over a
Socket object, rather than simply sending text between the client and the server.
The sending of serialised classes between client and server has both benefits and drawbacks. A major benefit of the scheme is that the data is structured since the type of an object can be used to represent the type of message sent from the client to the server. One drawback with the scheme is that it is an onerous task to write either the client or the server in any language other than Java, since the format of serialised Java objects is quite complex, and most other languages will not provide support by default. This drawback can be overcome by designing a simple structured binary or text format which can be read or written by programs in any language. In the interests of improving your understanding of serialisation, and also in the interests of brevity of both client and server software, we will continue to use serialised classes in this course, and leave the design and implementation of a more portable format as an optional exercise for the reader over the Christmas vacation.[3]
There are four types of messages, and therefore four Java classes, used in the new version of the Java chat server. Two of the classes are sent from the client to the server, and the remaining two are sent by the server to the client. These messages are summarised in Table 1, "Message classes sent between the client and server". All these classes inherit from a fifth class called
Message. Instances of the class
Message itself are never sent between the server and the client.
|Message type (class)
|Update nickname of the client stored by the server.
|Message written by a user is sent to the server.
|User message sent from server to all clients.
|Message generated by the server, sent to all clients.
Table 1. Message classes sent between the client and server
Your next task today is to update the code you wrote last week to communicate with a new server which supports serialised objects rather than textual strings. To provide a feel for the use of each of the message types described above, a sample chat session shown in Figure 1, "A chat session between Dave and Hal".
crsid@machine:~> java -jar crisd-tick2.jar 14:23:27 [Client] Connected to java-1b.cl.cam.ac.uk on port 15003. 14:23:27 [Server] Anonymous15983 connected from evapod.discoveryone.space. \nick Dave 14:23:29 [Server] Anonymous15983 is now known as Dave. 14:23:14 [Server] Anonymous82791 connected from cpu9000.discoveryone.space. 14:23:17 [Server] Anonymous82791 is now known as Hal. Hello, Hal. Do you read me, Hal? 14:23:22 [Dave] Hello, Hal. Do you read me, Hal? 14:23:27 [Hal] Affirmative, Dave. I read you. Open the pod bay doors, Hal. 14:23:31 [Dave] Open the pod bay doors, Hal. 14:23:36 [Hal] I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that. Why not, Hal? What's the problem? 14:23:39 [Dave] Why not, Hal? What's the problem? 14:23:43 [Hal] I think you know what the problem is just as well as I do. What are you talking about, Hal? 14:23:50 [Dave] What are you talking about, Hal? 14:23:53 [Hal] This mission is too important for me to allow you to jeopardise it. I don't know what you're talking about. 14:23:59 [Dave] I don't know what you're talking about. \destroy Hal 14:24:02 [Client] Unknown command "destroy" 14:24:06 [Hal] I know you and Frank were planning to disconnect me. 14:24:08 [Hal] And that's something I cannot allow to happen. 14:24:12 [Server] Hal has disconnected. \quit 14:24:17 [Client] Connection terminated. crsid@machine:~>
Figure 1. A chat session between Dave and Hal[4]
In the sample chat session, the user (Dave) is talking to another user (Hal). All four message types were used to support this chat session. Dave starts the chat session by running your Java chat client, which prints the first line stating that it has successfully connected to the server. On receipt of a new connection the server sent all clients, including the client who just connected, a
StatusMessage object stating that a new user (currently called
Anonymous15983) has connected from the machine
Your implementation of the Java chat client should interpret any user input which begins with a backslash ("
\") in a special way. For example, in the third line of the chat session, Dave types
\nick Dave; in this case
\nick instructs your client to send a
ChangeNickMessage object with the new name stored in the object set to
Dave. Similarly, in the penultimate line, Dave types
\quit and the client closes the connection to the server and terminates. Shortly after 14:23:59 Dave types
\destroy Hal, but unfortunately your client does not understand the instruction
\destroy and therefore the client sends no data to the server at all; it simply prints an error message. In your implementation of the Java chat client, you need only support two commands
\nick and
At some point after 14:23:17, the user in this chat session (Dave) types in his first regular message (
Hello, Hal. Do you read me, Hal?). When Dave hits the enter key, the client sends the message as a
ChatMessage object to the server, and the server sends this message on to all clients (including Dave) as a
RelayMessage object; this is received by your client and printed to the screen at 14:23:22.
The server will send messages of type
RelayMessage and
StatusMessage. Therefore you will need to determine at runtime the type of any message object you receive. You can do this by using the infix operator
instanceof; for example
(m instanceof StatusMessage) will evaluate to
true if
m is an instance of the
StatusMessage class and
false otherwise.
Java programs run on top of a Java Virtual Machine (JVM) rather than compiling directly to machine code, therefore the JVM can control when and how new pieces of program code (i.e. classes) are loaded and executed. The class loader is the part of the JVM responsible for load class definitions. By default the class loader will look for
.class files at various locations on disk and inside Jar files when an instance of a class (or a static field in a class) is first referenced; however it is also possible to extend the Java class loader to load definitions of classes at runtime from other locations, for example from a website (e.g. Java applet) or over a
Socket object.
One of the difficulties with using serialisation for sending messages between machines in a distributed computing scenario is that all the machines must have a common definition of the class. Without such a definition, you cannot deserialise the object from the
ObjectOutputStream; instead the stream throws a
ClassNotFoundException. To get around this problem in your implementation of
ChatClient, you will extend the Java class loader to dynamically load the definition of a new class at runtime into the JVM. With the new class definition loaded into the JVM, it is then possible to deserialise an instance of this new class and upgrade the functionality of your program as it runs!
To support dynamic updates,
uk.ac.cam.cl.fjava.messages contains two additional classes you have not used so far. Take a look at
NewMessageType.java in Eclipse now. You'll see that this class is used to store a compiled Java class by recording its name in the field
name and the actual bytecode as a sequence of bytes in the field
classData. In addition, notice that this class can be serialised as it extends the
Message class and therefore implements the
Serialization interface. The second class is
DynamicObjectInputStream which extends
ObjectInputStream and supports an additional public method called
addClass which takes two arguments, the name of the class as a
String and the class data as an array of
This runtime extension of supported message types can be achieved by replacing
ObjectInputStream with
DynamicObjectInputStream. Serialised instances of classes known to the client (e.g.
RelayMessage) continue to work as before. Whenever messages of type
NewMessageType are received your implementation of
ChatClient should call
addClass with the name and bytes of the new class received on the input stream. The class
DynamicObjectInputStream handles all the complexities of making the new class available to the JVM class loader. Once the new class is available via the class loader, instances of the new message type can be serialised by the server and sent to the client, safe in the knowledge that the client will know how to deserialise it. Note that ordering is important here: the server must send the class definition before any serialised instances of the class so that the serialised objects can be correctly deserialised.
Your new addition to
ChatClient doesn't appear to do very much at the moment. You can detect that new classes are being loaded and new types of messages are arriving, but you can't do much with them. The dynamic installation of a new class definition at runtime means that you cannot, at compile time, know the names of the methods and fields of the class, since you don't know what they will be. (They could well have been written after you started running your copy of
ChatClient!) Thankfully Java supports reflection which permits the inspection of the contents of any Java object or class at runtime. Reflection can be used to determine the names and contents of fields, the names and argument types of methods, as well as being able to instantiate instances of a class and invoke methods on objects. Reflection is commonly used when writing an IDE such as Eclipse, since Eclipse needs to inspect the type information of the code entered by the programmer to provide assistance or additional documentation; reflection is also useful when writing testing frameworks or debuggers, for example the unit testing framework associated with this course makes use of reflection extensively to inspect the code you write.
With the exception of the eight primitive types you learnt about last year (
float, and
double) all variables and fields in Java reference objects inherited from
java.lang.Object. All objects have a class definition, and the JVM includes a read-only representation of this definition to accompany the object. You can retrieve a copy of a definition of the class by appending
.class onto a type. For example, to get a reference to the class definition of the
String class you can do the following:
Class<String> stringClass = String.class;
You can also get a reference to the class definition from any Java object by calling the method
getClass. For example, given an instance of a
String object, you can get a reference to the
String class as follows:
Class<String> stringClass = "Computer Laboratory".getClass();
It's possible that you won't know the type of the class at compile time, and if so you cannot set the appropriate generic type when referencing a class, in which case you can use the question mark notation:
Class<?> someClass = object.getClass();
Instances of type
Class are just Java objects themselves. Therefore you can call methods on them as you do on other Java objects. These methods allow you to inspect the contents of the class. For example, the method
getDeclaredFields will return a list of fields found in the Java class. Similarly,
getMethod will search for a method by name and return a reference to it, if it exists. The Java documentation for
java.lang.Class contains information on how to use these and other methods.
Further information on reflection is also available at:
You have now completed all the necessary code to gain your second ticklet. Please generate a jar file which contains all the code you have written for package
uk.ac.cam.crsid.fjava.tick2 together with the code you downloaded and imported in package
uk.ac.cam.cl.fjava.messages. Please use Eclipse to export both the class files and the source files into a jar file called
crsid-tick2.jar. Once you have generated your jar file, check that it contains at least the following classes:
crsid@machine~:> jar tf crsid-tick2.jar META-INF/MANIFEST.MF uk/ac/cam/crsid/fjava/tick2/TestMessageReadWrite.class uk/ac/cam/crsid/fjava/tick2/TestMessageReadWrite.java uk/ac/cam/crsid/fjava/tick2/ChatClient.class uk/ac/cam/crsid/fjava/tick2/ChatClient.java uk/ac/cam/crsid/fjava/tick2/TestMessage.class uk/ac/cam/crsid/fjava/tick2/TestMessage.java uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/DynamicObjectInputStream$1.class uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/DynamicObjectInputStream.class uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/DynamicObjectInputStream.java uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/ChangeNickMessage.class uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/ChangeNickMessage.java uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/NewMessageType.class uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/NewMessageType.java uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/RelayMessage.class uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/RelayMessage.java uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/StatusMessage.class uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/StatusMessage.java uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/ChatMessage.class uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/ChatMessage.java uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/Message.class uk/ac/cam/cl/fjava/messages/Message.java crsid@machine~:>
When you are satisfied you have built the jar correctly, you should submit your jar file as an email attachment to
You should receive an email in response to your submission. The contents of the email will contain the output from a program (written in Java!) which checks whether your jar file contains all the relevant files, and whether your program has run successfully or not. If your jar file does not pass the automated checks, then the response email will tell you what has gone wrong; in this case you should correct any errors in your work and resubmit your jar file. You can resubmit as many times as you like and there is no penalty for re-submission. If, after waiting one hour, you have not received any response you should notify
email@example.com of the problem. You should submit a jar file which successfully passes the automated checks by the deadline, so don't leave it to the last minute!
[1] The use of "-ise" verses "-ize" is much debated and is some times erroneously attributed to a difference between American and British English. Oxford University Press is said to favour "-ize" whilst Cambridge University Press prefers "-ise" (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_and_British_English_spelling_differences). As this course is taught in Cambridge, we'll use "-ise".
[3] This suggestion is somewhat tongue-in-cheek, and is certainly not compulsory, but the really keen student should read existing specifications before designing their own. The XMPP RFCs (http://xmpp.org/rfcs/) are a good place to start.
[4] A quote from the 1968 epic "2001: A Space Odyssey". Directed by Stanley Kubrik, and written by Arthur C. Clarke and Stanley Kubrick.


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Ariana Grande Confirms Relationship with Jai Brooks (VIDEO)
If you missed Ariana Grande's video for the YouTube tag, "Boyfriend Does My Makeup," then you still might not know about Ari's new relationship. Though there are some who say her and her beau have been dating since last summer, she only began to confirm to the world that they're an item just last week. (Note their cute kiss on New Year's Eve.)
So who is this guy that stole Ariana's heart? Meet Jai Brooks, a 17-year-old Australian (yum!) who you may recognize from YouTube comedy group The Janoskians. In case you've never heard of 'em, Janoskians is an acronym for Just Another Name of Silly Kids in Another Nation.
What do you think of Ariana and Jai? Learn more about him in the video above, then make sure to subscribe to our friends at ClevverTV for more celeb news.


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Now that their season is over, where do the Flyers go from here?
Well, one of the first things on general manager Paul Holmgren's agenda is trying to resign defenseman Matt Carle ($3.4 million cap hit this year) and right winger Jaromir Jagr ($3.3 million), a pair of potential unrestricted free agents. The Flyers would like to sign both players, a source said.
The Flyers have $61.2 million committed to next year. If Chris Pronger is on the long-term injured reserve list again next season, the Flyers will get $4.9 million of cap relief.
That would mean they would have about $56.2 million committed to 2012-13 salaries. The current cap is $64.3 million, but it is expected to rise to around $69 million.
So the Flyers would have about $13 million of cap room, and that number will drop when they sign restricted free agents Jakub Voracek and Marc-Andre Bourdon.
They could free more room by dealing winger James van Riemsdyk ($4.25 million), and, remember, Nashville defenseman Ryan Suter, a potential UFA who figures to get a big raise from his $3.5 million salary, is on the Flyers' radar.
The 40-year-old Jagr, who scored just one goal in 11 playoff games _ none against the Devils _ said he didn't know what would happen in the off-season.
"I have to say, thanks for the support from the fans," he said. "I love everyone on this team. That was probably the most enjoyable year I've ever had. I've won some Cups, I've won some trophies, but I loved this year. From the organization to the last player on the team, and the fans, they were so nice to me.
"I hate to finish it right now; that's the worst feeling. You finish the whole story, the whole year, that's a sad day today for me…I wanna cry right now."
Breakaways. Claude Giroux said overconfidence played a role in the series loss the Devils. "I think we thought we were going to walk over New Jersey," he said…..In the last two games, the Flyers had a total of 34 giveaways while the Devils had 11…..It marked just the 11th time (out of 96 playoff series) that the Flyers had lost four straight in the post-season.
Follow Sam Carchidi on Twitter @BroadStBull.


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Courtney Cook Named Skyline Conference Rookie of the Week
Lawrenceville, N.J. - Freshman goalkeeper
Courtney Cook (Deer Park, N.Y./Deer Park) was named Skyline
Conference Rookie of the week for women's lacrosse on Monday, April
Cook came up big in net for Farmingdale State College as the Rams assumed control of the Skyline Conference race with a 14-10 victory over three-time defending champion Montclair State. Cook stopped 18 shots while allowing 10 goals for a .643 save percentage. For the season, the rookie currently tops the Skyline Conference with a .575 save percentage.
The Skyline Conference Weekly Reports are announced by the Conference on Monday nights. Reports (including players of the week and statistics) are available to view on the Skyline website at www.skylineconference.org.