text:
Responding to reports of endlessly rebooting PCs that flooded support newsgroups last week, Microsoft Corp. said on Tuesday it had pulled an update designed to prep Windows Vista for Service Pack 1.
Although the update -- actually a pair of prerequisite files that modify Vista's install components -- has been temporarily pulled from Windows Update, Microsoft has not yet produced a fix for users whose machines either won't boot or reboot constantly.
"Immediately after receiving reports of this error, we made the decision to temporarily suspend automatic distribution of the update to avoid further customer impact while we investigate possible causes," said Nick White, a Vista program manager, in a post to the company's blog Tuesday afternoon.
White downplayed the problem. "So far, we've been able to determine that this problem only affects a small number of customers in unique circumstances. We are working to identify possible solutions and will make the update available again shortly after we address the issue."
According to White, Update 937287 was the cause of the problem. In a support document, Microsoft describes that update as one for Vista's installation software, "the component that handles the installation and the removal of software updates, language packs, optional Windows features and service packs." Along with a companion update pushed to users starting Feb. 12 and another that was offered to machines running Vista Ultimate and Vista Business in January, the guilty update is required before Vista can be upgraded to Service Pack 1 (SP1).
Shortly after the two prerequisites hit Windows Update last week, users began reporting problems on Microsoft's support newsgroups. Most said that the update hung as the message "Configuring Updates Step 3 of 3 -- 0% Complete" appeared on the screen. When users rebooted hoping to clear the error, their PCs went into an endless cycle of reboots. A smaller number of users said that their computers refused to boot normally.
Some users have been able to regain control by booting from a Vista install DVD and selecting the "Restore from a previous restore point" option.
What's it doing in there?
It's uncertain whether Microsoft knows exactly why Update 937287 is hammering PCs. Even after White posted the company statement to the Vista blog, Darrell Gorter, a Microsoft employee, was asking users to send him system logs. "I still need more log files for the investigations that we are doing," Gorter said in a message on the support newsgroup. Late last week, Gorter made a similar request on the same message board.
Also unclear is the actual extent of the problem. Although White called the number "small," the traffic on the Vista SP1 newsgroup is heavy. One thread had been viewed more than 35,500 times by late Tuesday.
But the problem is not new. Computerworld has found messages describing the endless reboot problem dated Dec. 13, one day after it first offered a Vista SP1 release candidate to the general public. That build of SP1 also required the prerequisite updates, including 937287.
Microsoft was not available for comment Tuesday night to answer questions about whether, and if so how, the snafu will impact its plans to start offering SP1 to most users next month. Currently, only beta testers, Volume Licensing customers, and subscribers to TechNet Plus and Microsoft Developer Network have been able to download legal versions of the service pack.
That will change in mid-March when SP1 is set to land on Windows Update as an optional update, and again in mid-April when Microsoft said it would start installing SP1 automatically on most PCs running Vista.


text:
2012 NFL Mock Draft: June 16th
2012 NFL Mock Draft: Round 1: 17-32: Round 2
1. Denver Broncos: QB Andrew Luck*, Stanford:
While the Broncos had a decent draft, they completely ignored their DT position, and I think that will prevent this defense from being too effective. Combine that with the Broncos essentially starting a rookie quarterback, relying on an undistinguished backfield, and just hoping that Brandon Lloyd can repeat his performance from last season, I think there is a pretty fair shot of Denver ending up with the top pick.
If they do it will be a dream come true for the Broncos as John Elway can bring in a fellow Stanford alum to revitalize the organization like he did nearly 30 years ago. Luck is perhaps the best quarterback to come out since Eli Manning in 2004, and seems poised to have an immediate impact. This would be a no-brainer decision for the Broncos brass and they'd look to potentially move Tebow for the best package they can get.
2. Carolina Panthers: WR Alshon Jeffery, South Carolina:
The Panthers are likely headed for another bad losing season, and their pick of Cam Newton will prevent them from drafting a quarterback here. That leaves the Panthers with either drafting a WR or a DE. While I would go for the defensive end here, far too often teams look to add a weapon for a young quarterback over more pressing needs.
Jeffery has franchise receiver potential and would give the Panthers the elite threat they are looking for. Unfortunately, I'm not sure Newton is the quarterback who will get the most out of him. Jeffery should immediately come in and be the big target this team is lacking so I think even with mediocre QB play, he will have an impact.
3. Tennessee Titans: DE Quinton Coples, North Carolina:
I think the Titans are in store for some major growing pains with Jake Locker, and even if they do find a veteran to start I think their offense is going to sputter. I think Tennessee will look to add a playmaker on offense, but Coples is a bigger need and a better value here. With Jason Babin likely to leave via free agency, Tennessee could use another pass rusher as they look to rebuild this team. Coples is the best defensive prospect in this draft and he should be an instant impact starter for the Titans.
4. Washington Redskins: QB Landry Jones*, Oklahoma:
Washington passed on a signal caller this year, and while it was the right move it will force them to address the position in 2012. While the Redskins had a good draft and look a lot better for the future, this next season is likely to be a struggle.
Most people would prefer Matt Barkley to Landry Jones, but I think that is a serious mistake. Both young gunslingers have basically started two full seasons (though Jones came in more as a replacement), and thus far Jones has far outplayed Barkley. Now I'm not just talking about passing yards since the Sooners have a more wide open offense, I'm talking about completion %, interception ratio, and down right play. In basically every category Jones has come out on top. Another good test is how Jones faired against his best competition, which for the most part he was elite against the best teams he faced. Barkley on the other hand wasn't nearly as impressive. He had a couple really good games against good teams, but he had some downright awful games as well. After Luck, Landry Jones is the best quarterback in this class, and a great fit here for the Skins.
5. Cincinnati Bengals: CB Dre Kirkpatrick*, Alabama:
I don't know if the Bengals can afford to keep both Jonathan Joseph and Leon Hall, so if they lose one look for the Bengals to address that need early in the 2012 draft.
Kirkpatrick has all the makings of a shutdown corner and with another big year he should lock down his status as a top 10 pick. I like this move if it is to replace Joseph, but if they keep him look for them to target an offensive lineman or a defensive end.
6. Arizona Cardinals: OT Matt Kalil*, USC:
I know there are those who would call on the Cards to take a quarterback here, but Matt Barkley is the top one on the board. I see that as a no deal for the Cards brass as the last time they went QB in the first round from USC it didn't workout too well. Instead I think they will take his blindside protector in Kalil and finally fix the gaping hole at LT.
7. Buffalo Bills: OT Jonathan Martin*, Stanford:
I know there will be calls to go quarterback here, but Buffalo has a greater need at LT. Ryan Fitzpatrick might not be a top 10 or 15 quarterback, but he also isn't awful. The Bills' revolving door at LT on the other hand is down right awful and needs to be fixed. Martin was Luck's blindside protector and he looks capable of starting day one (something that can't be said for Matt Barkley).
8. Jacksonville Jaguars: WR Justin Blackmon*, Oklahoma State:
The Jags could address a number of holes on defense (which would be smarter), but I'm banking that they want to give Blaine Gabbert as many weapons as possible. Blackmon is an excellent receiver prospect and would have been a surefire first rounder this past season. He will give Jacksonville the big play receiver they have lacked since Jimmy Smith.
9. Seattle Seahawks: QB Matt Barkley*, USC:
Barkley was recruited by Pete Carroll and played his freshman season under him, making him very likely the quarterback of the future for Seattle. Personally I think this is high for Barkley unless he really has an incredible year, but there is no way he gets past Pete Carroll.
10. Minnesota Vikings: ILB Vontaze Burfict, Arizona State:
The Vikings could use a young stud middle linebacker, and Burfict is flying up draft boards. He appears to be an absolute stud middle backer, and has major impact potential.
11. San Francisco 49ers: CB Stephon Gilmore*, South Carolina:
Gilmore is an exceptional cover corner prospect and one that I think can start from day one. I think he gives the 49ers an elite playmaker in the secondary and is well worth this pick.
12. Cleveland Browns: DE Donte-Page Moss*, North Carolina:
The Browns added one DE in Jabaal Sheard, but they need to add another pass rusher to bring pressure from the other side. Many see Moss as a rush linebacker, but he plays the run well and I think he can hold up as a 4-3 end.
13. Miami Dolphins: ILB Luke Kuechly*, Boston College:
Kuechly is an absolute star in the making and should be a top 15 pick if he comes out. He racked up over 180 tackles this past season, and displays excellent instincts in diagnosing plays. He takes good angles and is very talented in coverage as well. The Dolphins can look to play him next to Dansby inside and turn their good defense into something great.
14. Kansas City Chiefs: OT Mike Adams, Ohio State:
Adams is one of the OSU players who will miss the first part of the season, but I still could see him going high in the first round. He has excellent potential and should be a blindside protector for years to come. This will allow the Chiefs to move Branden Albert over to RT where I think he is better suited anyways.
15. Detroit Lions: CB Chase Minnifield, Virginia:
The Lions didn't address their CB position at all in this draft and I see that holding their defense back this season. Look for them to remedy that mistake in 2012, by making CB their top priority. Minnifield has the potential to be an elite corner, and possibly be even better than recent high 2nd round picks Chris Cook and RasI Dowling, whom he played with. Minnifield's father was a very good NFL cornerback, which should give the Lions quite a bit of faith in their projection for the younger Minnifield.
16. Dallas Cowboys: S Ray Ray Armstrong*, Miami:
Armstrong is the next in a long line of elite Miami safeties and could fill Dallas' need at FS or SS. Armstrong is a big time tackler, but also flashes elite ball skills that lead some to say he is the next Sean Taylor. I don't think his stock is that high, but he is an elite player.
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subset: commoncrawl


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Move over, Black Widow. Take a break, Maria Hill. There is another Marvel movie woman who has changed the face of the Marvel Cinematic Universe ever since she was introduced in the X-Men films: Mystique.
Sure, she's not in a licensed Marvel movie (hear that Fox, could you give them back now please?) but the First Class films have revitalized the X-Men franchise after the awful crash that was X3. Now, with the upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past, mutant fans have to wonder: is there a place for a Mystique solo film.


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Last week we held a little contest which would leave fourteen lucky Gizmodo readers with portraits painted by our artist Sam Spratt. Now we're ready to share the incredibly awesome winners and their new portraits with you. Take a look!
These are the lucky winners as they normally look:
And here are their awesome new portraits. Be sure to click on each of them for a closer look and some commentary by Sam Spratt.
Amazing, no? In case you're curious about the comments with which all these folks won a portrait, we made sure to save them right here:
Illustrations by Sam Spratt. If you want to see more of Sam's work, check out his website, become a fan of his work on Facebook, follow his tweets, or read his personal blog. If after all that you still haven't had enough, you can pick his brain on Formspring.


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Handprinted Junior Cushion (Kid's pillow) – Jaipur - Mauve
A Swedish designed pillow handprinted by artisans. The cover is made of GOTS certified organic cotton and has been tested for harmful chemicals to ensure a toxin-free product. Comes with a customized, anti- allergenic pillow. Use as a decorative home furnishing or as the perfect pillow for kids.
|Suitable for toddlers & above
|Product Dimension (in cm)
|38 x 55
|Packing Dimension (in cm)
|27 x 39 x 3
- Warning: For infants never use this pillow for sleep, suffocation hazard
- Material: Cushion cover made of 100% organic sheeting fabric, certified by GOTS
- Tested for harmful substances (Oeko-Tex)
- Pillow with anti allergenic filling included
- Care: Delicate wash 40 degrees C, wash case inside out, do not iron print


text:
Technology checklist for oil tool automated assembly
A machine vision robotic assembly application for an oil tool industry manufacturer used the following technologies. See related application article.
The following technologies were used in a machine vision robotic assembly application for an oil tool industry manufacturer. Read the application details in this related article: Vision-guided robots automate oil tool assembly, linked at the bottom of this file.
System integration: JMP Engineering: In addition to hardware integration, JMP programmers wrote a graphical user interface for the workcell in Microsoft Visual Basic that performs vision operations by calling vision tools.
Machine vision camera: Basler Ace camera attached to the second robot locates the pipe for thread protector installation.
High-speed vision communication standard: GigE Vision from Automated Imaging Association (AIA)
Control: Frame grabber card on a Beckhoff Automation industrial personal computer.
Lighting: Tectivity light emitting diode (LED) inside the camera enclosure for red lighting to help overcome ambient lighting to capture the image.
Brick Red Light from Smart Vision Lights shines on the pipe at an oblique angle to create a shadow that enables accurate measurement of the pipe diameter.
Machine vision software: Cognex VisionPro library, which provides preconfigured, tightly integrated acquisition support for the complete range of industrial cameras and video formats. The QuickBuild application development environment makes it possible to configure acquisition tools, define vision tasks, and make pass/fail decisions without any programming. The VisionPro library includes Cognex tools such as PatMax, PatInspect, PatFlex, IDMax, and OCVMax that gauge, guide, identify, and inspect parts despite variations in part appearance due to the manufacturing process. Cognex PatMax geometric pattern matching technology learns an object's geometry using a set of boundary curves that are not tied to a pixel grid and then looks for similar shapes in the image without relying on specific gray levels. The result is a significant improvement in the ability to accurately find objects despite changes in angle, size, and shading. Cognex VisionPro circle tool is used to check the diameter of the pipe to ensure it matches the thread protector and also more accurately determine the location of the pipe.
Robotics: Two Motoman HP50 multi-function robots with 55.2-in horizontal reach and 80 kg payload capacity: One moves the camera above the bin and signals that it is in position to take a picture of the bin. It hands the part to a second Motoman HP50 robot that applies the thread protector to the pipe.
Technology and service supplier URLs
www.visiononline.org/vision-standards-details.cfm?type=5 (AIA GigE)
– John Lewis is market development manager, Cognex Corp. Edited by Mark T. Hoske, content manager, CFE Media, Control Engineering.
Do you have experience and expertise with the topics mentioned in this content? You should consider contributing to our CFE Media editorial team and getting the recognition you and your company deserve. Click here to start this process.


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Thanks for all the tips in the thread, some good Gnome Shell tips haven't been added as that section is getting out of hand already and I gotta keep it down to the most useful (as far as I can guess what is useful to an average Minter)
Please note: these tips are for - and tested in - MGSE, the default Linux Mint 12 login session, the one that looks like this. Use them in other distros, other desktop environments and other login sessions at your own risk. I don't think many of of these are of much use to MATE or Gnome Classic users. Unless otherwise noted all tips have been tested on my machine but I cannot guarantee that they work for you as well as they did for me. If you're not comfortable running terminal commands, ask in the thread if there is another way of applying the fix.
1. System
a. Get all programs and services back in Startup Applications
b. Create desktop launchers
c. Get the screensaver back
d. Configure window buttons
e. Disable Guest session login screen option
f. Login automatically to your session
g. Advanced power settings
h. Icons duplicated?
i. Remove MATE icons from Gnome Shell menus
j. Remove MATE altogether
k. Disable bluetooth on startup
l. Configure auto-mounting of drives
m. Reduce laptop screen brightness persistently
z. Don't like Mint 12?
2. Gnome Shell
a. Browse official Gnome extensions
b. Recommended extensions
c. Disable the bottom panel
d. Get Mint logo corner ripple
e. Change the default theme overview button image
f. Disable the Native Window Placement extension
g. Less spacing between notification area icons
h. Deactivate top left hot corner
i. Change size of overview grid icons
j. Get full(er) Icon captions (application names) in the overview grid
k. Activities button behaviour in single panel shell setup with Mint menu
l. Change Mint Menu font size
m. Permanently hide bottom notification bar
n. Disable window edge tiling ("Aero snap")
o. Disable the Show Desktop panel icon
p. Clock in the middle of panel
q. MGSE with MATE bottom panel
- NB: as the Mint themes and extensions are in the Mint PPA, they will be updated occasionally and whatever changes you make to the theme/extension system files will be overwritten each time. A way around this is to copy the theme/extension folders and use the copies for your fixes. That way you won't get updates for themes and extensions, but you won't lose your tweaks either. You can also just apply your tweaks after each update, doesn't take too long once you get the hang of it.
3. Applications
a. Install Ubuntu One
b. Install USC (Ubuntu Software Center)
c. Manage grub settings with Grub Customizer
d. Lose excess weight with bleachbit
e. Install Google Chrome
f. Jupiter for burning laptops
g. Tweak Gnome 3 with Ubuntu Tweak
4. Themes and appearance
a. How to install window themes
b. How to install icon themes
c. How to install Gnome Shell themes
d. Change login screen background
e. Updated version of Mint's icon theme
1a. Get all programs and services back in Startup Applications
You may have noticed Startup Applications is now a rather empty place and that's because most entries are now hidden by default. To unhide everything:
Code: Select all
sudo sed -i 's/NoDisplay=true/NoDisplay=false/g' /etc/xdg/autostart/*.desktop
If the "GNOME Login Sound" entry isn't showing on your list (and you want it to), try opening "libcanberra-login-sound.desktop" as root:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /usr/share/gnome/autostart/libcanberra-login-sound.desktop
1b. Create desktop launchers
By default in Mint 12 you can create a new folder or a new document in the desktop right click context menu, but not a new launcher. To get that option, simply open gedit, paste the following line into the document
Code: Select all
gnome-desktop-item-edit ~/Desktop/ --create-new
Right click the file and under the "Permissions" tab make sure "Allow executing file as program" is checked. Done. Now you can right click on the desktop and choose "Create New Launcher" under Scripts:
Create a launcher for e.g Firefox like shown
1c. Get the screensaver back
Modern hardware has long since rendered the need for screensavers obsolete and Gnome 3 no longer includes them by default - you have to install xscreensaver if you miss it anyway:
Code: Select all
sudo apt-get remove gnome-screensaver
sudo apt-get install xscreensaver xscreensaver-gl-extra xscreensaver-data-extra
1d. Configure window buttons
)Windows buttons can easily be configured in the new Ubuntu Tweak 0.6 (see 3g) so if you're not comfortable executing terminal commands, use that instead.)
If you prefer buttons on the left side (Ubuntu and Mac style):
Code: Select all
gconftool-2 -s -t string /desktop/gnome/shell/windows/button_layout "close,maximize,minimize:"
Code: Select all
gconftool-2 -s -t string /desktop/gnome/shell/windows/button_layout ":close"
Code: Select all
gconftool-2 -s -t string /desktop/gnome/shell/windows/button_layout "menu:minimize,maximize,close"
Code: Select all
gconftool-2 -s -t string /desktop/gnome/shell/windows/button_layout ":minimize,maximize,close"
1e. Disable Guest session login screen option
Open "lightdm.config" as root:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /etc/lightdm/lightdm.conf
Code: Select all
1f. Login automatically to your session
Open System Settings and find "User Accounts" - unlock in top right corner and turn automatic login on.
1g. Advanced power settings
The Gnome 3 power settings are bare minimum and in order to do some more advanced fine tuning, you can install "dconf Editor" and edit the relevant strings manually:
Code: Select all
sudo apt-get install dconf-tools
1h. Icons duplicated?
I had this happening after logging into MATE and back into Gnome Shell, most application icons had both their Mint-X theme icons and their inherited Gnome icons visible. To undo this, install the for some reason no longer included by default program "Main Menu" (aka alacarte):
Code: Select all
sudo apt-get install alacarte
As an alternate method, some users have had more luck simply uninstalling the "menu-xdg" package. Consider trying that if you can't get the above to work.
1i. Remove MATE icons from Gnome Shell menus
Using alacarte (see previous fix), easily hide the out of place MATE icons (the red car with open hood "Configuration editor", "Sound Recorder" and "Volume Control") from all your Gnome Shell menus by unticking them in the categories "System Tools" and "Sound & Video" - don't untick the proper square icon "Sound Recorder" supposed to be visible in Gnome Shell.
You can also do this manually by navigating to ~/.local/share/applications/ and delete the "mate"-prefixed .desktop files.
1j. Remove MATE altogether (fix by user runol)
If every single mb is important to you or you just don't even want the option of logging in to MATE, it can be expunged with this command:
Code: Select all
sudo apt-get remove caja gir1.2-mate-menus libcaja-extension libmatedesktop libmatekbd libmateweather mate-backgrounds mate-conf-editor mate-control-center mate-desktop mate-doc-utils mate-file-manager mate-media mate-menus mate-notification-daemon mate-panel mate-polkit mate-session-manager mate-settings-daemon mate-terminal menu-xdg mint-artwork-mate mintmenu python-mate-desktop python-mate-menu
1k. Disable bluetooth on startup
Open rc.local as root:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /etc/rc.local
Code: Select all
rfkill block bluetooth
exit 0
1l. Configure auto-mounting of drives
By default, when you insert a USB or an external harddisk, nautilus opens a window AND a system notification pops up asking you if you want nautilus to open a window.
If this bugs you (I can't see why it shouldn't!), there are a few options:
Pop-up notification only:
Install "dconf Editor":
Code: Select all
sudo apt-get install dconf-tools
No pop-up and no window:
Find "Removable media" in the "System Settings" menu, check "Never prompt or start programs on media insertion".
Removable drive top panel icon:
A neat little extension that adds a removable drives icon to the top panel when you insert one, from there you can then choose to open a nautilus window or eject. Get it at the Gnome extensions website (remember the site only works with Firefox).
1m. Reduce laptop screen brightness persistently (tip by user esteban1uy)
You can change screen brightness in the Screen settings dialog, but it won't be persistent, you must repeat it every time your boot up your laptop. This has bugged many users so thanks to esteban for pointing to a relatively easy fix.
First you have to find out what the "max_brightness" is on your system. Navigate to "/sys/class/backlight/" and in a relevant subfolder (mine is named "acpi_video0") find the "max_brightness" file and make a note of the number in it, mine was "15", esteban's was "976", yours may be a third number - this is the numerical value of your maximum brightness setting. Then create a start-up script to reduce brightness:
Code: Select all
gedit ~/.lowerbrightness.sh
Code: Select all
#change brightness setting on startup or resume
pkexec /usr/lib/gnome-settings-daemon/gsd-backlight-helper --set-brightness 8
Code: Select all
gsettings set org.gnome.settings-daemon.peripherals.input-devices hotplug-command "/home/USERNAME/.lowerbrightness.sh"
1z. Don't like Mint 12?
If the new Gnome 3 desktop environment frustrates you, consider logging into MATE. MATE is a Gnome 2 fork and works and looks like the old Gnome 2 desktop, albeit with a few hiccups that haven't been ironed out yet, but it's getting there. Change login session by clicking the cog wheel next to your username from the login screen.
Short video demo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNEB-fXBhoc
2a. Browse official Gnome Shell extensions
The long-awaited GNOME Shell Extensions website is now up and running. This will be the place from which you customize and enhance you shell setup, in a way similar to how Firefox addons work for Firefox. The site is in alpha and so far only works with Firefox. I've tested a few extensions and the installation process works perfectly (no progress bars to indicate installation process, though), just remember to reload the shell (press ALT+F2, press r, press enter) every time you install an extension.
2b. Recommended extensions
appSearch for Mint
This was a thoroughly brilliant idea - install software from Mint's repositories via the overview search/filter box. If you want to install e.g. Skype, simply press the Windows key, type "skype" and press enter, then you're installing it. It even makes CTRL+ALT+T + "sudo apt-get install skype" seem cumbersome, and yet it's all GUI.
Hide dash
Dash, the vertical left favourites bar in the overview, disappears with this extension activated. It's a little weird at first but after a while you've forgotten about the favourites bar and don't want it back - creates more space for windows and apps.
Jump lists
Or quicklists as they're called in Unity - this makes the above mentioned favourites bar much more useful if you don't want to remove it.
Remove Bluetooth
A must if you never connect to bluetooth devices - removes the bluetooth icon from the panel.
Remove Panel App Menu
The little focused window button at top left next to the overview button is useless if you use the MGSE bottom panel, and, well, also useless if you don't.
These are not yet on the site but can be installed through the webupd8 ppa:
- gnome-shell-extensions-autohidetopbar
Self-explanatory, toogles top panel autohide mode on and off by simply double clicking on the panel.
- gnome-shell-extensions-weather
Find your city on weather.com - on the city page, copy the last 8 letters of the url in the address bar (e.g. DAXX0009 for Copenhagen, Denmark), paste it into the WOEID field in the extension's preferences and press enter (the code for Innsbruck, Austria is there by default, so you can skip this step if that's where you live!).
2c. Disable the bottom panel
Simply turn off the bottom panel extension with Advanced Settings under "Shell extensions". This moves Mint menu and the minimized window tabs up in the top panel, if you also want those gone, turn off the menu extension and the window list extension as well.
2d. Get Mint logo corner ripple
Best tweak! In action: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A28hy6m-AQc
Method: Download the attached corner-ripple-ltr.png. Head to usr/share/themes/Mint-Z/gnome-shell/ as root. There's a file already there of the same name, rename it so it doesn't get overwritten, then move the downloaded mint logo into the folder. Reload the shell or choose another shell theme with gnome tweak tool and choose back again. Mint ripple, baby. (Shout out to boss man justviper @ deviantart who I nicked it from.)
2e. Change the default shell theme overview button image
Open the default theme's gnome-shell.css file as root:
Code: Select all
/* Replaces the activities text with a custom image. Height and width should use the same size as the image file. */
// #panelActivities {
border: none;
background-image: url("start1.png");
background-position: 0 0;
width: 58px;
height: 24px;
color: rgba(0,0,0,0.0);
// #panelActivities:hover {
transition-duration: 300;
background-image: url("start2.png");
background-gradient-direction: vertical;
background-gradient-start: rgba(140,200,255,0.0);
background-gradient-end: rgba(61,149,231,0.0);
box-shadow: inset 0px 0px 1px 1px rgba(255,255,255,0.0);
// #panelActivities:active,
// #panelActivities:overview {
background-image: url("start1.png");
background-gradient-direction: vertical;
background-gradient-start: rgba(140,200,255,0.0);
background-gradient-end: rgba(61,149,231,0.0);
box-shadow: inset 0px 0px 1px 1px rgba(255,255,255,0.0);
2f. Disable the Native Window Placement extension
Because this has a bug where it moves window captions in the overview half into the window title bars for the infinitesimal benefit of showing windows slighly more accurately where they are placed on the desktop in the overview, consider turning it off.
2g. Less spacing between notification area icons
Almost all available shell themes set a very wide spacing between the icons (panel buttons, to be exact). To get less spacing, open the css file as root:
Code: Select all
.panel-button {
-natural-hpadding: 6px;
-minimum-hpadding: 6px;
As this pushes the username button up against the screen's right edge, also set the top panel border-right to 6px instead of 0px, like so:
Code: Select all
#panel {
border: 1px solid rgba(255,255,255,0.2);
border-top: 0px;
border-left: 0px;
border-right: 6px;
border-radius: 0px;
2h. Deactivate top left hot corner
if this thing bugs you (there are already two other ways of opening the overview), disable it by opening layout.js as root:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /usr/share/gnome-shell/js/ui/layout.js
Code: Select all
this._corner = new Clutter.Rectangle({ name: 'hot-corner',
width: 1,
height: 1,
opacity: 0,
reactive: false })
2i. Change size of overview grid icons
Open the default theme's gnome-shell.css file as root (or obviously the relevant other .css if you have changed theme):
Code: Select all
/* Apps */
.icon-grid {
spacing: 16px;
-shell-grid-item-size: 118px; /* was 118px */
.contact-grid {
spacing: 16px;
-shell-grid-item-size: 272px; /* 2 * -shell-grid-item-size + spacing (was 272px) */
.icon-grid .overview-icon {
icon-size: 64px;
And this is with "-shell-grid-item-size: 64px" and "icon-size: 48px":
2j. Get full(er) icon captions (application names) in the overview grid
The icon captions in the overview application grid can only take up one line and can't stretch beyond the icon, so a lot of application names are cut short:
The only "fix" I know for this is to make the icons bigger and thus give more horizontal space for text titles. Open the default theme's gnome-shell.css file as root (or the .css for whatever theme you use):
Code: Select all
.icon-grid {
spacing: 16px;
-shell-grid-item-size: 160px; /* was 118px */
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.icon-grid .overview-icon {
icon-size: 128px; /* was 64px */
2k. Activities button behaviour in single panel shell setup with Mint Menu (fix by user gorellana09)
If you have disabled the bottom panel extension and still keep the Mint menu extension, your activities button will be pushed to the far right of the panel:
f you'd rather have it next to the menu button, open the Mint menu extension.js as root:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /firstname.lastname@example.com/extension.js
Code: Select all
/* if (!bottomPosition) {
// Move Activities button to the right and change its label
Main.panel._rightBox.insert_actor(activitiesButton.actor, Main.panel._rightBox.get_children().length);
} */
2l. Change Mint Menu font size
Open the menu extension stylesheet as root:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /email@example.com/stylesheet.css
Code: Select all
.category-button {
padding-top: 7px;
padding-left: 7px;
padding-right: 7px;
padding-bottom: 7px;
font-size: 16px; /* new line */
font-weight: normal;
.category-button-selected {
padding-top: 7px;
padding-left: 7px;
padding-right: 7px;
padding-bottom: 7px;
color: white;
background-gradient-direction: vertical;
background-gradient-start: rgba(255,255,255,0.2);
background-gradient-end: rgba(255,255,255,0.08);
box-shadow: inset 0px 0px 1px 1px rgba(255,255,255,0.06);
border-radius: 4px;
font-size: 16px; /* new line */
16px is of course just an example, you can choose whatever suits you.
2m. Permanently hide bottom notification bar
Open the default theme's gnome-shell.css file as root (or the .css for whatever theme you use):
Code: Select all
/* Message Tray */
#message-tray {
background-gradient-direction: vertical;
background-gradient-start: rgba(0,0,0,0.1);
background-gradient-end: rgba(0,0,0,0.4);
border: 1px solid rgba(255,255,255,0.2);
border-radius: 0px;
border-bottom: 0px;
border-left: 0px;
border-right: 0px;
color: white;
height: 0px; /* was 36px */
NB! This worked smoothly for me but if you're experiencing the same as lurkatron, try to change to 1px instead of 0px.
lurkatron wrote:regarding changing the height of the message tray to 0px i found that crashing my gnome3 and when logging in im left with a desktop without panels. changing it to 1px however worked and no crashes and no message tray visible that i can see
2n. Disable window edge tiling ("Aero snap") (tip by user borfo)
I.e. auto-maximize when you drag windows to the top of the screen and window snapping when you drag to left and right edge. Launch "Configuration Editor" (gconf-editor), navigate to desktop/gnome/shell/windows and uncheck "edge_tiling"
2o. Disable the Show Desktop panel icon (tip by user Middy)
Open the Window list extension extension.js as root:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /firstname.lastname@example.com/extension.js
Code: Select all
// Create a show desktop button
// Main.panel._leftBox.add(button.actor, { x_fill: true, y_fill: true });
2p. Clock in the middle of panel
That's where the clock is by default in "vanilla" Gnome Shell. In Mint the notification extension moves the clock to the right in order to free up space for notification area icons to expand left. To get the clock back in the middle you can either disable the notifications extension or tweak its extension.js, like this:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /firstname.lastname@example.com/extension.js
Code: Select all
/* Move Clock to the right */
// let _children = Main.panel._rightBox.get_children();
// Main.panel._centerBox.remove_actor(clock.actor);
// Main.panel._rightBox.insert_actor(clock.actor, _children.length-1);
2q. MGSE with MATE bottom panel (tip by user dalcde)
I haven't tried this myself but if you disable the MGSE extensions ("Menu extension" + "Bottom panel extension" + "Window list extension") and add "mate-panel" to startup applications (see 1c on how to add entries to Startup Applications), then you'll get MATEs bottom panel with the good old full-featured Mint Menu instead of the MGSE facsimile, within a Gnome Shell session:
With MGSE top panel not set to autohide:
dalcde has not disabled the MGSE specific extensions in the screenshot above - I think that's worth doing to avoid unnecessary duplication and to keep the shell from running more activated extensions than it has to, if you're gonna try this out.
3a. Install Ubuntu One
Add the Ubuntu One stable PPA:
Code: Select all
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:ubuntuone/stable
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ubuntuone-stable-oneiric.list
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sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install ubuntuone-control-panel-gtk ubuntuone-client
3b. Install USC (Ubuntu Software Center)
There was a time when Mint's Software Manager could look down on Ubuntu's Software Center - with the revamped USC 5, tables have turned and Software Manager now feels like a truncated and outdated version of the big brother counterpart (despite being definitely on the sluggish side) with options to e.g. easily view installed or installable packages by PPA among other basic functionality currently missing in Software Manager. Installing it does pull 50mb of dependencies, though.
Code: Select all
sudo apt-get install software-center
The Ubuntu default "Startup Manager" is something bordering on useless and wisely has been dropped in Mint 12, but that leaves Mint without a grub editing GUI. The best available grub manager application I know of is Grub Customizer:
Code: Select all
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:danielrichter2007/grub-customizer
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install grub-customizer
With it you can easily choose which entries you want to appear in the grub menu, rename them, set timeout, set default boot, set kernel parameters, change text and background colour and more.
3d. Lose excess weight with bleachbit
Code: Select all
sudo apt-get install bleachbit
3e. Install Google Chrome
If for some reason Chromium (Chrome minus the dodgy) doesn't cut it for you, install Chrome with these commands:
Code: Select all
wget -q -O - https://dl-ssl.google.com/linux/linux_signing_key.pub | sudo apt-key add -
Code: Select all
sudo sh -c 'echo "deb http://dl.google.com/linux/chrome/deb/ stable main" >> /etc/apt/sources.list.d/google.list'
Code: Select all
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install google-chrome-stable
This creates two identical sources and therefore an update error - so open "Software Sources" and in the tab Other Software, remove one of the "http://dl.google.com/linux/chrome/deb/" lines (if there are 2). That's it, launch Google Chrome:
3f. Jupiter for burning laptops
Like many others I've had problems with excessive laptop power consumption in Linux for some time now. Occasionally the CPUs just take off as if you were watching 3 HD movies simultaneously. Read the Phoronix article on the issue for more info. Adding kernel parameters hasn't really worked for me, what has worked is the Jupiter power management applet. To install it:
Code: Select all
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:webupd8team/jupiter
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install jupiter
Worked brilliantly for me despite some terminal error messages on installation - no more CPUs suddenly for no apparent reason going into overdrive - not guaranteed to work for everyone, but worth trying if you have similar issues. If you're using "Power Saver" mode by default, remember to change setting to at least "High Performance" before watching videos of playing graphics heavy games.
3g. Tweak Gnome 3 with Ubuntu Tweak
Finally the new version is out. It has a revamped interface and a few less tweaks than in previous versions (tweaking Gnome 2) but is still as useful as ever. Ubuntu Tweak 0.6 is of course designed for Ubuntu 11.10 and a few tweaks like "Compiz Settings" and user menu settings under "Session Control" won't work in Mint 12, but most of the tweaks work in Mint 12 as well.
Code: Select all
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:tualatrix/ppa
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install ubuntu-tweak
The repositories handling and especially purging repos is unfortunately gone but it still has a handy little source editor:
It also features some advanced system cleaning options:
(I use Mint-Xtra, an updated and cleaned icon theme for Mint (see 4e) - if you're using the Mint default Mint-X, spot the slightly embarrassing mistake in the Ubuntu Tweak screenshot below
4a. How to install window themes
2 great web resources for GTK3 window themes:
Example, install GnomishDark window theme:
Download the compressed folder and unzip it. Right click on the extracted folder and choose "Open as administrator". In the new root nautilus window that opens, press F3 to get an extra pane. In the one pane, navigate to usr/share/themes/, in the other stay in your download folder. Move the extracted theme folder into /usr/share/themes/:
Then launch "Advanced Settings" and set both "GTK+ theme" and "Window theme" to GnomishDark:
Reload the shell for theme to be fully in place (press Alt+F2, press r, press enter). Some themes come with an installation script and a few you can install via PPA but most themes you'll have to install like this. NB: Your themes must be compatible with your current shell version. Most available Gnome 3 window themes are made for version 3.0, not 3.2, and they won't work properly in Gnome 3.2 (current version in Mint 12).
4b. How to install icon themes
2 great web resources for icon themes (well, same as above):
Most of the popular icon themes for linux come with either installation scripts or have a dedicated repository you can add.
The probably most popular icon theme "Faenza" can be installed by adding the repository:
Code: Select all
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:tiheum/equinox
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install faenza-icon-theme
Code: Select all
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:alecive/antigone
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install awoken-icon-theme
The icon themes that don't come with installation scripts or PPAs you install the same way you install window themes (see 4a above), except the downloaded icon folder must be moved to "/usr/share/icons/" instead of "/usr/share/themes".
4c. How to install Gnome Shell themes
Once again, the 2 best places to find Gnome Shell themes are:
Download and extract the theme folder into /usr/share/themes/ the exact same way you do with window themes (see 4a above) and select it with the Advanced Settings tool:
"Minty" is a recommended dark shell theme designed for Mint and customized to work with the MGSE extensions. It can be previewed here and installed like this:
Code: Select all
sudo apt-add-repository ppa:satyajit-happy/themes
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install gnome-shell-theme-minty
4d. Change login screen background
(This can be done easily in the new Ubuntu Tweak 0.6 as well (see 3g), so of you're not comfortable editing system files, use that instead.)
Open "unity-greeter.conf" as root:
Code: Select all
gksu gedit /etc/lightdm/unity-greeter.conf
Code: Select all
4e. Updated version of Mint's icon theme
See the Mint-Xtra thread.


text:
Faster signal storage and optical processing in nanomachined devices edge closer to realization
A system that has only two possible stable states, such as a light switch, is called bistable by scientists and engineers. Bistability in microscale devices could pave the way to compact optical switching and memory elements. In the bistable systems found so far, however, switching between states takes too long to make the approach practical. Now, thanks to the recent observation of bistability in an array of micrometer-sized rings, fast microscale optical switches in novel photonic devices are a step closer to development.
Yefeng Yu of the A*STAR Data Storage Institute and his co-workers in Singapore and France observed this bistability in a device consisting of two 60-micrometer-wide silicon rings into which they could feed laser light of wavelengths specific to the particular ring geometry they used. One segment of each ring hung above a gap, and these free-hanging arcs deformed slightly as light flowed through the ring. The deformation of the rings, in turn, changed their optical properties. As a result of this interplay between optical and mechanical forces, the researchers observed stable behavior at two wavelengths of the light; not at one, as expected. By changing the wavelength of the incoming light, Yu and co-workers could conveniently switch between these two states.
"To our knowledge, this is the first time that optical bistability has been induced by optical forces acting on mechanical motion," explains Yu. "Similar phenomena are usually produced by thermal effects." Relying on heating mechanisms, however, means that the typical times required to switch between the two stable states are relatively long, on the order of milliseconds. Using optical effects gave Yu and his co-workers a much faster means to control the switching process. "The switching time in our system is currently at the microsecond level," says Yu. "But there is some space for reducing this time through design optimization."
This thousand-fold acceleration should assist practical applications. The two stable states of the system, for example, can be used to encode information in terms of 'zeros' and 'ones', as it is in digital computers. But instead of using electrons to process information, the two states of Yu and his co-workers' optomechanical device should allow the representation of information.
"We envisage using our new system to implement optical logic gates for data processing," Yu says. But there may be many more possible uses for these devices. "Applications we want to explore include tunable lasers, biosensor and optomechanical memories."
More information: Yu, Y. F., Zhang, J. B., Bourouina, T. & Liu A. Q. Optical-force-induced bistability in nanomachined ring resonator systems. Applied Physics Letters 100, 093108 (2012). dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.3690955
Journal information: Applied Physics Letters


text:
Tamron 150-600 f/5-6.3 VC
The Tamron 150-600 f/5-6.3 VC lens will be available in the USA on January 17, 2014. Pricing hasn't yet been confirmed, however we have heard it would be under $1100.
Thanks Johnathon
Tamron Press Release
December 13, 2013, Commack, N.Y. – Tamron Co., Ltd. (President & CEO: Morio Ono), a leading manufacturer of precision optics, has announced the release of an innovative ultra-telephoto zoom lens with a focal length range of 150mm to 600mm for full-frame and APS-C format DSLR cameras. The SP 150-600mm Di VC USD lens will be available in the USA on January 17, 2014.
Tamron's current 200-500mm (Model A08) is a popular, compact, easy-to-use ultra-telephoto zoom lens, but customers have shown great interest in having a lens that provides an even greater focal length range
This all-new ultra-telephoto zoom lens features VC (Vibration Compensation) image stabilization, speedy, precise USD (Ultrasonic Silent Drive)(3), state-of-the-art eBAND (Extended Bandwidth & Angular-Dependency) Coating, which significantly reduces the unwanted light reflections that cause flare and ghosting, and a sophisticated and stylish new external finish.
Its 4x ultra-telephoto zoom capabilities, with a focal length range from 150mm to 600mm, enhance the creative potential of telephoto photography, a captivating feature for all photographers, particularly nature, wildlife, and sports shooters.
Product Highlights
- 4x ultra-telephoto zoom lens with a focal length range of 150mm to 600mm
The focal length range of this lens was extended by 50mm on the wide-angle side and 100mm on the telephoto side compared to the existing model A08, making it possible to take even more striking photographs of birds, wildlife, sports, and other distant subjects. Mounted on APS-C DSLR cameras, it has a stunning near1000mm telephoto equivalent focal length range of 233mm to 930mm.
- World class image quality
Employing 20 elements in 13 groups and boasting an advanced optical design, the lens delivers a superior balance of resolution and contrast for sharp, clear images. The front group contains three LD (Low Dispersion) glass elements (two in the first group, one in the third) for enhanced optical correction effectiveness, enabling the lens to thoroughly compensate for on-axis aberrations at the telephoto end. The lens also adopts eBAND Coating, developed from state-of-the-art coating technologies, and conventional BBAR (Broad-Band Anti-Reflection) Coating to greatly suppress ghosting and flare even when shooting under adverse lighting conditions.
- Achieves a 600mm focal length in a compact easy-to-handle package
Ingenious optical design features minimize the movement of lens groups within the lens when zooming. This reduces the amount of barrel extension needed to cover the complete focusing range, making the entire lens more compact.
- Beautiful background blur effects
Adopting a 9 blade circular diaphragm enables users to create beautiful background blur effects (Bokeh), which provide even greater potential for creative expression. This circular diaphragm retains a nearly circular shape even at two stops down from its maximum aperture.
- VC (Vibration Compensation) mechanism creates greater opportunities for sharper handheld photography
Tamron's proprietary VC (Vibration Compensation) image stabilization system uses a three-coil system, delivering significantly sharper images and creating greater opportunities for handheld ultra-telephoto photography.
- Comfortable autofocus
Tamron's new SP 150-600mm F/5-6.3 Di VC USD features a USD (Ultrasonic Silent Drive) ultrasonic motor drive for swift and accurate AF response, it delivers high torque, very fast response times, and very low noise. The full-time manual focus mechanism allows users to make fine manual focus adjustments at any time even when AF is engaged.
- New elegant, high-class external finish
Tamron has upgraded the cosmetic design and finish of this lens to create a more sophisticated, high-end look in keeping with the demands of discerning full-frame DSLR users. Employing a sophisticated linear pattern rubber grip on the zoom and focus rings and an attractive and stylish tungsten silver brand ring, this newly designed model accentuates its visceral presence with understated elegance and class.
- Easy-to-use tripod mount
The tripod mount has been completely redesigned to provide superior stability, durability, ease of use, and portability.
- Comes with "SILKYPIX Developer Studio for Tamron", RAW image development processing software for Tamron's SP lenses
The SILKYPIX Developer Studio software can develop high-quality images from RAW data, incorporating adjustments that can express the personal style and taste of the photographer. These include white balance, color, sharpness, and the tonal curves recorded by digital cameras. The SILKYPIX Developer Studio for Tamron provides a range of functions, in addition to the basic adjustment capabilities, such as correcting aberrations (chromatic aberrations of magnification, distortion, peripheral light fall-off), based on the optical data. Used in tandem with Tamron's SP series lenses – renowned for their high-depiction capability – this advanced technology efficiently produces images that meet photographers' most exacting demands.


text:
Winterfest 2011: Inside the 'out' side of jazz
I didn't really care for jazz. Or maybe I just didn't get it. Could be as simple as that, but the truth is that I suppose it just kind of sounded the same to me and tended to go on for a long time.
Then someone taught me how to listen to Jelly-Roll Morton and Bill Evans; how the players each take turns with their own version of the song, and how the audience applauds after each solo. Then I started getting into it.
Dubbed by Congress a "National Treasure," the public persona of jazz may be that it's out of the mainstream, and even out of the loop. But this year's new series of panel discussions at the Long Island Winterfest aims to put that illusion to rest.
Catering to jazz neophytes and aficionado alike, "Inside the 'Out' side of Jazz" is a three-event series of one-hour talks presented by the East End Arts Council at locations in Greenport, Southampton and Riverhead. Topics ranging from John Coltrane and Duke Ellington to social media, aesthetic realism, YouTube and Kickstarter.com will orbit around the general theme of the "relevance of jazz music in today's world.
The series launches at 1 p.m. Saturday at Brecknock Hall in Greenport with internationally renowned saxophonist David Liebman and author, scholar and pianist Dr. Lewis Porter. Hosted by trombonist Ray Anderson, these heavyweights will discuss the recorded artistry of the great John Coltrane in "Trane's Travels: Giant Steps to Ascension." In addition, Dr. Porter and Mr. Liebman (who has performed and recorded with Miles Davis, Elvin Jones and Chick Corea, among others) will also demonstrate musical examples by performing them in the spectacular surroundings of Brecknock Hall's Victorian mansion.
Dr. Edward Green is an award-winning composer and Fulbright Specialist in American Music. Dr. Green's presentation on the value of the aesthetic realism method for the future of musicology is at Southampton Cultural Center on Feb. 26 at 1 p.m. This event, "Ellington, Jazz, the Opposites — and You!" will examine the creative process and sociology of music as they relate to our everyday lives. Dr. Green will also use recorded examples and his own demonstration at the piano.
The third event, "Reaching the Audience: Jazz in the Digital Age," is a three-speaker panel discussion at Vail-Leavitt Music Hall in Riverhead on March 12 at 1 p.m. Featured speakers are NPR writer and Princeton University Professor Lara Pellegrinelli; Adam Schatz, concert promoter and founder of Search and Restore; and Ken Druker, general manager, Jazz at Lincoln Center Media. Sharing thoughts on jazz through the ages and the impact of digital technology and social media on traditional and modern improvised music, this panel is moderated by Vail-Leavitt president and jazz enthusiast Bob Barta.
For many listeners, experiencing jazz from the outside has left them wondering what all the fuss is about. The goal of this series is to shed new light on the subject from the inside and to reveal its role and relevance in our time. Newcomers and experts alike are invited to enjoy these entertaining and informative discussions.


text:
Welcome To Costas Inn
We're a family owned business since 1971. Our world famous crabs are flown in daily, hand sorted and graded to ensure only the freshest and fullest available. Try our award winning crab cakes and made to order entrees. Zagat rated since 1999. Best Crabs, Best Pit Beef and rated by the Baltimore Business Journal and Baltimore Magazine.
We host live jazz music on Wednesday nights from 8pm – 11pm, and live classic rock on Friday and Saturday nights from 9pm to 1am. Check out our calendar tab for Friday band listing. Sunday is NFL Football, we have 10 jumbo plasma TV's to enjoy the Ravens games.


text:
Hello Everyone!
I wondered if anyone had a chance to listen to Sirius' Channel 126 Client #9 programming this past weekend? What did you think? Not bad for putting together programming on the fly! Although, personally, I thought the subject suffered from burnout as the days went by. There's just so much you can discuss on a certain subject before all the questions have been asked and answered.
I hope some of you had a chance to listen to Vinnie Politan's segments. No matter what the subject, Vinnie can pull it off! And, he did it with class. No off color language and with a legal spin on the scandal. And, frankly, isn't that what great radio hosts are made of?
Okay, I am biased towards Vinnie but if any of you did hear Vinnie Politan and don't agree with me, nows your chance to take a swing at me! LOL


text:
OMAHA BEACH, Normandy On a bluff above the sand and a half a mile from the ocean's edge at low tide, which was the condition when the first allied soldiers left their landing craft, a round circle of concrete five feet in diameter provides a collar for a hole in the ground. On the morning of June 6, 1944, the hole was Widerstandsnest (nest of resistance) 62, a German machine gun emplacement.
Hein Severloh had been in it since shortly after midnight, by which time U.S. aircraft were droning overhead, having dropped young American paratroopers Severloh's age behind the beaches in order to disrupt German attempts to rush in reinforcements. Severloh had been billeted near Bayeux, home of the 11th-century tapestry depicting a cross-channel invasion that went the other way, taking William, Duke of Normandy, to become William the Conqueror, England's sovereign.
Severloh believed he killed hundreds of GIs, so long and slow was their walk to the safety, such as it was, of the five-foot embankment where the beach meets the bluff. Severloh returned here in sorrow and was consoled by survivors of the forces that waded ashore.
Today, in an America understandably weary of a war of choice that has been defined by execrable choices, a frequently seen bumper sticker proclaims: "War is not the answer." But here, especially, it is well to remember that whether war is the answer depends on the question.
War was the answer to what ailed Europe in 1944. "In 1942," writes Timothy Garton Ash of Oxford and Stanford's Hoover Institution, "there were only four perilously free countries in Europe: Britain, Switzerland, Sweden and Ireland." Twenty years a historical blink later, almost all of Western Europe was free. Twenty years after that, Spain, Portugal and Greece had joined the liberal democracies. Today, for the first time in 2,500 years, most Europeans live under such governments.
Ash argues that Europe cannot define itself negatively as not America or not Islam. "Europe's only defining 'other' is its own previous self" its self-destructive, sometimes barbaric past. "This is," Ash says, "still a very recent past."
In 1951, just seven years after Severloh and some other Germans surrendered on June 7 to Americans at the village of St. Laurent, Europe began building the institutions that, it hoped, would keep such young men out of machine gun emplacements. It created the European Coal and Steel Community, precursor of the Common Market (1958), which led to the single market in 1993 and the common currency in 2002.
The implicit hope was that commerce could tame Europe's turbulent nations. The perennial problem of politics mankind's susceptibility to storms of passions could perhaps be solved, or at least substantially ameliorated, by getting Europe's peoples to sublimate their energies in economic activities. The quest for improved material well-being would drain away energies hitherto tapped and channeled by demagogues.
Reminders of Europe's problematic past were recently found a few miles from St. Laurent. Workers preparing a foundation for a new house overlooking Omaha Beach came upon parts of the bodies of two German soldiers. There was scant media attention to this because such discoveries have not been rare.
Also near here, 21,160 German soldiers are buried at the La Cambe Cemetery. Thirty percent more than 6,000 were never identified, so some German parents conducted "assumed burials." They placed metal markers bearing the names of their missing sons near the graves of unknown soldiers who were known to have died near where the parents' sons were last known to be fighting.
Such heartbreaking stories are written into Normandy's lovely landscape. At the American Cemetery overlooking this beach, amid the many rows of white marble gravestones, are two, side by side, marking the burial places of Ollie Reed and Ollie Reed Jr., a father and his son. The son, an Army first lieutenant, died in Italy on July 6. His father, an Army colonel, was killed July 30 in Normandy. Two telegrams notified the father's wife, the son's mother. The telegrams arrived in Manhattan, Kan., 45 minutes apart.
The 19th-century French scholar Ernest Renan, from a Brittany town on the English Channel, defined a nation as a community of shared memory and shared forgetting. Europe's emotional equipoise, and the transformation of "Europe" from a geographical to a political expression, has required both remembering and forgetting. Americans who make pilgrimages to this haunting place are reminded of their role, and their stake, in that transformation.
George Will is a Washington Post columnist. His e-mail address is firstname.lastname@example.com.
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text:
Published 12:00 am Sunday, June 16, 2013
SALISBURY — Saturday's Juneteenth event offered snow cones, Corvettes, a talent show and other festivities, but many who gathered at Kelsey Scott Park said freedom was the real reason to celebrate.
Juneteenth marks the day — June 19, 1865 — when Union soldiers landed at Galveston, Texas, with news that the Civil War had ended and enslaved people were free. It took two and a half years for word to reach Texas that President Abraham Lincoln had signed the Emancipation Proclamation.
Forty-two states now observe Juneteenth, including North Carolina, and Saturday marked the 19th annual celebration in Salisbury.
"It's not about coming out to hear choirs or eating food or running around like the kids like to do," Connie Campbell said. "This means something to us as black people."
And to all people who cherish freedom. In fact, Juneteenth means so much that Campbell's organization took over sponsorship of the event to make sure it continued. Campbell is associate matron of the Vashti Chapter No. 122 of the Order of Eastern Star.
Juneteenth was in danger of folding last year, so the chapter agreed to raise funds, organize vendors, schedule entertainment and more, Campbell said.
"So far, it's going good," she said just before the gospel choirs took the stage, the most anticipated event of the day.
Organizers booked more vendors than expected and had booths offering everything from baked goods to airbrushed T-shirts. Children danced in front of the stage during the first Juneteenth Apollo contest, where Danielle Burris took home the top prize in the adult category.
Elaine Hardy and husband George Hardy traveled from Greensboro to sell an herbal body wrap and said they were enjoying their first Juneteenth.
"It's a wonderful event," Elaine Hardy said. "The atmosphere is great."
Dressed in matching highlighter-yellow tops, the North Rowan High School Dazzling Emeralds dance team sold chips and sodas as a fundraiser.
Young people need to know what Juneteenth really means, said Mary Young of East Spencer. Just as word of emancipation didn't reach Texas for years, many people don't know the importance of Juneteenth today, she said.
"I believe some people have heard the meaning, but others don't really understand," said Young, who sat with her family from Spencer and Asheville.
The tradition should be handed down to each generation, said Young, who supports the campaign to make Juneteenth a national holiday.
There are several possible explanations about why it took so long for word of emancipation to reach Texas, according to the website www.juneteenth.com. Some say a messenger with news of freedom was murdered on his way to Texas.
Others say the news was deliberately withheld by the enslavers to maintain the labor force on the plantations. Yet another explanation says federal troops actually waited for the slave owners to reap the benefits of one last cotton harvest before going to Texas to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation.
All or none of the versions could be true, according to the website.
The word "Juneteenth" was coined as a combination of "June" and "nineteenth."
"It brings us all together as one," said Alverta Simpson of Salisbury.
Contact reporter Emily Ford at 704-797-4264.


text:
A study led by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital shows epigenetic changes that turn genes on and off are as unique as alterations in DNA and may be as important in causing the most common childhood cancer
Changes in an epigenetic mechanism that turns expression of genes on and off may be as important as genetic alterations in causing pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), according to a study led by scientists at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and published in the June 10 online edition of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.
The results suggest the mechanism called cytosine methylation plays a previously under-appreciated role in the development of leukemia. Cytosine methylation involves adding or removing methyl groups to cytosine, which is a building block of DNA.
The study is the most comprehensive effort yet to identify and understand genetic and epigenetic factors that work together to cause ALL, the most common childhood cancer. ALL is a cancer of white blood cells known as lymphocytes. Scientists at St. Jude and Weill Cornell Medical College collaborated on the project.
Researchers used a variety of techniques to examine hundreds of thousands of methylation sites across the genome in normal and leukemic lymphocytes, including samples from more than 160 children with ALL. Investigators found that known ALL subgroups, which are defined by chromosomal alterations, have unique methylation profiles. Those profiles correlated with different patterns of gene expression.
"It is well known that different leukemia subgroups have distinct patterns of gene expression that are important in the development of leukemia," said Charles Mullighan, MBBS (Hons), MSc, M.D., an associate member of the St. Jude Department of Pathology. Mullighan and Ari Melnick, M.D., Gebroe Professor Hematology/Oncology at Weill Cornell Medical College, are the study's co-corresponding authors.
"We have assumed that the underlying genetic changes are important determinants of those gene expression profiles. We now know that changes in methylation state also have key roles in influencing gene expression," Mullighan said.
The study used tissue samples from 137 St. Jude patients with B-cell leukemia and 30 children with T-cell leukemia. The patients represented all major ALL subgroups.
"The data show that aberrant epigenetic gene programming can now be considered a hallmark of acute lymphoblastic leukemia, occurring in all patients regardless of the presence of genetic mutations," Melnick said. "This offers the opportunity for development of epigenetic targeted therapies for patients with ALL that could be broadly applicable to many patients."
For comparison, researchers also checked B and T cells from 27 healthy children. Investigators found that leukemia cells shared a core group of abnormally methylated genes. The genes included ones involved in regulating the cell division and proliferation. "This remains to be tested, but the findings suggest that alterations in methylation are an important early step in the development of leukemia," Mullighan said.
The research provides further evidence that genetic and epigenetic events are both important in establishing different subgroups of ALL. For this study, researchers conducted genome-wide sampling of methylation, gene expression and DNA structural abnormalities, including the gain or loss of DNA. Shann-Ching Chen, Ph.D., St. Jude Pathology, developed many of the methods used to integrate and analyze the results. Chen and Maria Figueroa, now of the University of Michigan and formerly of Cornell, are the study's co-first authors.
The study also found that more than one-third of 71 genes targeted by genetic alterations are also abnormally methylated in ALL. The methylation changes involved known tumor suppressor or oncogenes genes including CDKN2A, CDKN2B, PTEN and KRAS. "The findings suggest these genes are inactivated or deregulated more frequently than suggested by simply analyzing structural changes in the genome," Mullighan said.
The other authors are Anna Andersson, formerly of St. Jude and now of Lund University Hospital, Sweden; Letha Phillips, formerly of St. Jude; Mondira Kundu and James Downing, both of St. Jude; Yushan Li, Cornell; and Jason Sotzen, University of Michigan.
The research was funded in part by ALSAC. Mullighan is a Pew Scholar in the Biomedical Sciences and a St. Baldrick's Scholar. He was supported in part by an American Society of Hematology Scholar Award and an American Association for Cancer Research/Aflac Career Development Award. Andersson was supported by the Swedish Childhood Cancer Foundation. Figueroa was supported by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Melnick is funded by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and the Sackler Center for Biomedical and Physical Sciences. He is also a Burroughs Wellcome Clinical Translational Scholar and a Leukemia and Lymphoma Society scholar.
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is leading the way the world understands, treats and cures childhood cancer and other life-threatening diseases. It is the only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted solely to children. Treatments developed at St. Jude have helped push the overall childhood cancer survival rate from 20% to 80% since the hospital opened more than 50 years ago. St. Jude shares the discoveries it makes, and every child saved at St. Jude means doctors and scientists worldwide can use that knowledge to save thousands more children. To learn more, visit stjude.org or follow St. Jude on social media at @stjuderesearch.


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Associated Press//July 26, 2012
//July 26, 2012
NEW YORK — J.C. Penney is changing its pricing — again.
Just six months after the mid-priced department store chain got rid of the hundreds of sales it offered each year in favor of everyday lower pricing, it is reversing course.
Penney on Feb. 1 began using a three-tier pricing approach that called for consistently lower daily prices, month-long sales and periodic discounts on merchandise throughout the year. But starting Aug. 1, Penney will eliminate one of the monthly sales and bring back the word "clearance." Penney also plans to tweak its advertising to better communicate the pricing plan to customers.
The moves come at a time when shoppers — and investors — have voiced confusion over Penney's pricing strategy, which was spearheaded by CEO Ron Johnson when he took the helm in November. In May, Penney's stock plunged nearly 20 percent in its biggest decline in four decades after the retailer posted a larger-than-expected quarterly loss and a 20-percent drop in revenue on poor reception from shoppers for its pricing strategy.
The change also calls into question how patient Main Street and Wall Street will be with Johnson, a long-time retail executive who has been lauded for being the mastermind behind the success of Apple's retail stores and Target's cheap-chic strategy. The pricing plan is presenting a challenge for Johnson because it's turning out to be a tough sale to shoppers who have come to expect deep discounts and investors who are looking for Penney to turnaround its business quickly.
Brian Sozzi, chief equities analyst for research firm NBG Productions, said since Johnson's strategy is long-term, investors likely will give him at least until 2013 to prove himself.
"With a visionary type of strategy like this you have to take a lot of painful medicine upfront," he said, adding that Johnson "is essentially trying to change the consumer mindset."
Johnson, who asked investors to be patient during a meeting with them in May, said he's confident that the pricing strategy will work. Johnson has acknowledged that Penney has a long way to go to convince shoppers that they don't have to wait for sales to get low prices at Penney, and he said this week that Penney's first-quarter sales drop is "the price we're paying to get integrity back."
"We thought simplifying 590 unique sale events into three types of pricing would be easier, but it turns out … customers and others found the pricing a little confusing," he said. "Now we're going from 590 to 3 to 1: The first price is the right price."
'We're just trying to be straightforward'
Under the new system, Penney is keeping "Every Day" low prices that are consistently 40 percent lower than regular prices before the company eliminated sales. That level of pricing has account for about 70 percent of sales since the company began the new strategy, Penney said
It also will keep its periodic discounting events, which make up 15 percent of sales, but increase their frequency to every Friday. The company will also change the name of them from "Best Price" to "Clearance." And Penney will get rid of "Month Long" deals, which account for 15 percent of sales.
Johnson said the new approach should make the pricing plan easier for customers to understand.
"We thought: 'Why are we trying to teach customers new language to shop?'" he said. "We're just trying to be straightforward."
To go along with the new pricing, the company will tweak its ads. That will include inserts in newspapers every Friday during the back-to-school season that will highlight specific products like jeans. A TV ad will tout free haircuts that the stores will offer students during the back-to-school season.
The new ads are in stark contrast to the spots that Penney rolled out at first to introduce its new pricing plan. The "fair and square" brand campaign featured TV ads with dogs, kids and bright colors — but little explanation of Penney's pricing.
In one TV spot, for instance, a dog continuously jumps through a hula hoop that a young girl is holding. The text reads: "No more jumping through hoops. No coupon clipping. No door busting. Just great prices from the start."
"In some ways marketing during the first six months entertained versus educated," Johnson said. Now, "the most important thing is to educate consumers on the price changes and make sure the core customer understands J.C. Penney still has products they love, at exceptional value, every day."
Penney, based in Plano, Texas, is hoping the tweaks to its pricing plan and advertising will help stem growing concern about whether Johnson's plan will help the retailer turn around its business.
The first sign that Penney's pricing strategy wasn't resonating with customers came in May when Macy's CFO Karen Hoguet told analysts that sales were rising at her company's stores that share malls with Penney stores.
A week later, J.C. Penney Co. reported that it lost $163 million, or 75 cents a share, in the three months ended April 28, compared with a profit of $64 million, or 28 cents a share, a year earlier. Revenue dropped 20 percent to $3.15 billion for the quarter as customer traffic slipped 10 percent. Meanwhile, revenue at stores open at least a year — a comparison used to measure a retailer's health — fell 18.9 percent. That's much steeper than the 11.4 percent drop Wall Street was expecting.
A day after Penney reported the disappointing results, its stock fell 19.7 percent, or $6.57, to close at $26.75. That's the largest percentage drop for the company since at least January 1972, when FactSet's daily stock price records begin.
Investors, who initially sent Penney shares soaring 24 percent to about $43 after Johnson announced the pricing plan in late January, since have pushed them down about 37 percent since the beginning of the year. On Thursday, shares slipped another 33 cents to $21.67.
And earlier this month, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered the retailer's credit rating into junk status, saying changes have yet to take hold
J.C. Penney reports second-quarter results Aug. 10.t


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Simple blue tulle long prom dress A line blue formal dress
♦ Total delivery time = Tailoring Time + shipping time
Tailoring Time: 15-18 Days
Shipping Time: (5-8 working days)
This dress is Made-To-Order. Whether you choose a standard size or custom measurements, our tailors craft each dress to order.
Learn more about Our Shipping Policy.
Please feel free to contact us within 7 days of receipt if you are not satisfied with your items. Therefore, it is recommended to inspect and try on all the items as soon as you receive them.
Learn more about Our Return Policy.
- Description
Delivery times:
Fabric: tulle
Length: length
Back Details: lace-up
Built-In Bra: Yes
Color: blue
Product number:PRO112
Custom made: For custom order, we need the following information in the order notes when you check out :
bust______ cm/inch
shoulder to shoulder :_______cm/inch (measured from back of shoulder)
shoulder to waist :_______cm/inch (measured from middle of shoulder over nipple to natural waist)
shoulder to hem with shoes on:_______cm/inch (measured from middle of shoulder over nipple to end of skirt)
armhole__________cm/inch (end of arm) only used for one shoulder or off shoulder dress.
Delivery times:
Total delivery time = processing time + shipping time
Processing time: 15-18 days
Shipping Time: 5-8 days
All the dresses are not in stock, no matter choosing a standard size or a custom size dress, all of our dresses are personally tailored for you from the beginning. The total time to receive your order is around 20-25 days. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions, thank you!
If you need rush order service, please click on: Rush My Order


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|Black & White laser printer, max. 1200x600 dpi, works Perfectly
|Recommended Driver: epsonepl (Home page)
|Generic Instructions: CUPS, no spooler
Known not to use a standard protocol as PostScript or PCL; not to be confused with the EPL-5900.
Dr H. T. Leung and Roberto Ragusa have developed a driver; based on reverse-engineering of the printer's protocol.
Printing works through both the parallel and USB port.
Consumables/Refills: Separate photoconductor drum and toner cartridge
The following driver(s) are known to drive this printer:
Recommended driver:
|This driver is free software.
|Type: IJS


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Multiple whooshes of air that serve as a magical or physical attack in a fantasy film, cartoon or sci-fi computer game. It can be a ninja star (shuriken) or a staff flying or a wind magic spell cast by a wand or wizard (0:01). Can also be a symbol of the action 'throwing something away' for interfaces.
This sfx was created for games, movies, films, entrance flash presentations, business projects, news, telecasts, podcast, slideshows, corporate videos, websites etc.
Useful for realistic, science fiction or fantasy settings and comedic or serious themes.
Available in both 320kbps mp3 and 16 bit, 44100 hz wav audio file format.
Relevant Sound Packs
All qubodup Sounds
- Browse my sound effect collections
- Find more in my portfolio


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Welcome 2016! Haulover Inlet Sunrise (Day 1/366 - Photo 1)
I decided to embark on another photographic journey, and this time I'm starting with the calendar year. I'm praying for the endurance make it as successful as my last. I'm hoping to discover new techniques, locations, and ideas, while networking with others. I give you this year's first photo, the first sunrise of 2016, taken at the Haulover Inlet. I hustled out of the house this morning, after brief nap, to catch the first sunrise of the new year with some other very passionate and sleep deprived photographers.
Studying the Light (Day 1/366 - Photo 2)
A fellow photographer admiring the unfolding magic.
Let There Be Light (Day 1/366 - Photo 3)
Golden rays and Silhouettes.
Panama Rose (Day 2/366)
Today's photo is a garden macro of the very scented Panama Rose.
Whence It Came (Day 3/366)
After enjoying a rainy afternoon at home, I went out for a stroll with the dog and came upon this. Can you see it?
On the 11th Day of Christmas: A Glass of Red and Bokeh (Day 4/366)
On the this 11th day of Christmas, I'm enjoying a glass of red and the last bit of Christmas lights.
Where's The Party? I'm Ready! (Day 5/366)
The piggy bank has been emptied. It is time for some fun.
Just Hanging Out, For The Roosting (Day 6/366)
Caught a spectacular show this evening of these birds roosting in Brickell area. They are incredibly vocal. I'm amazed they allowed me to get this close.
Signs of Progress: 8 Street MetroMover Station Open Once Again (Day 7/366)
A few months ago the 8 Street MetroMover Station re-opened after being closed because of the surrounding construction for what seemed like an eternity.
Blocked In? Or Blocked Out? (Day 8/366)
I was definitely having a creative block today so this photo is representative of my experience.
Self Portrait (Day 9/366)
On this day, I give you a self-portrait. As part of this year's project I'll be experimenting more with my speed lights and light modifiers. I'm hoping to find other willing subjects to help on this challenge. Otherwise, there will be more selfies in store for you guys :-)
Here Comes the Sun (Day 10/366)
I found myself hustling to get to beach on time to see the sun crest on the horizon. As I looked ahead I saw the heavy cloud cover low on the horizon. Simultaneously heard the water lapping on the rocks that lined the walkway to the beach. I slowed my stride and took a deep breath of sea air, while reminding myself to enjoy this experience. By the time I reached the sand my pace was a quarter of what it was when I first left my car. And then I waited. I waited for this. Happy Sunday.
Stars (Day 11/366)
"I think that we are like stars. Something happens to burst us open; but when we burst open and think we are dying; we're actually turning into a supernova. And then when we look at ourselves again, we see that we're suddenly more beautiful than we ever were before!"
C. JoyBell C.
An Early Mid Week Celebration (Day 12/366)
In Dust of Dusk (Day 13/366)
In The Rain (Day 14/366)
Today's photo taught me that I need a little more prep and a couple of pieces of gear to execute the photo that was in my mind. I might try this again sometime later in the year when I'm ready.
David Between Goliaths (Day 15/366)
The First Presbyterian Church of Miami in Brickell.
Foggy Fishing (Day 16/366)
These fishermen weren't going to let a little fog stop them.
Waking (Day 16/366 - Photo 2)
The fog was thick and heavy, as it challenged the sun to wake us on the misty South Florida morning. Deviating from my landscape norm, I chose to use a shallower depth of field. That combined with the fog helped to give this image a dreamy, soft appearance. Let's see what mother nature has in store for us tomorrow.
I'm Going With You, Right? (Day 17/366)
(Brickell In) Red (Day 18/366)
I photographed this image as part of the Dogwood 52 Week challenge. The theme is Red: "Shoot whatever inspires you. Red should be the focus of the image. Don't be afraid to get creative."
Red Hot Kettle (Day 19/366)
This was more difficult than I expected, but here is my second photo for #dogwoodweek3 of the #dogwood52 week challenge with the theme of #red. I had occasion to use a flash filter for the first time.
Red Rose (Day 20/366)
In these folds I give to you the promise of love to bloom.--Layla Llewelyn
I was playing with a flash grid tonight for the first time. I like the result for this, my third photo of #dogwoodweek3 of the #dogwood52 week challenge with the theme of #red.
Running on "E" And Still Miles Away (Day 21/366 )
Tonight's photo is a real-time state of being I'm sure many are familiar with.
I Deserve This! Salad! (Day 22/366)
After a difficult two week period, I am celebrating with this adult beverage. This image is an iPhone special, as there is only 30 minutes of the day left.


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Space Shuttle Pays Tribute to Gabby Giffords
The space shuttle Endeavour honored wounded ex-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords before landing at Edwards Air Force Base in California on Thursday at the tail end of a cross-country trip to Los Angeles to begin its final mission as a museum exhibit.
The specially modified Boeing 747 with the newly retired spaceship perched on its back touched down safely at 12:50 p.m. local time (3:50 p.m. EDT) at Edwards, about 100 miles (160 km) north of Los Angeles in the Mojave Desert.
NASA retired its shuttle fleet last year after completing the U.S. portion of the $100 billion International Space Station, a permanently staffed research complex that is owned by 15 nations and orbits about 250 miles (400 km) above Earth.
Endeavour embarked on its last cross-county "ferry" journey on Wednesday from Cape Canaveral, Florida, and made several low-altitude passes over NASA centers in Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas before stopping for the night at Ellington Field near the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
The trip resumed early on Thursday, with Endeavour and its carrier jet making additional flyovers – one over Tucson, Arizona, in a salute to former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, Mark Kelly, the retired astronaut who commanded Endeavour's final flight on his last mission in late May 2011.
Giffords, still recuperating from a gunshot wound to the head suffered in an attempt on her life last year, watched the flyover from the roof of a Tucson parking garage with her husband and mother, according to former aide C.J. Karamargin, who joined them.
"When it came into view, Mark said, 'There's my plane!'" Karamargin recounted. "Gabby was just elated, hooting and hollering like the rest of us were."
From Arizona, Endeavour and its carrier jet flew on to California, where the spacecraft was built two decades ago, for the landing at Edwards Air Force Base.
The sprawling installation used to serve as the primary landing site for NASA's shuttle program before the space agency built a landing facility for the orbiters at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Edwards then became the principal backup landing spot for shuttles in case of bad weather at Cape Canaveral.
Endeavour made seven landings at Edwards during its active tenure at NASA, most recently in November 2008.
The shuttle was scheduled to depart Edwards on Friday for its very last ferry flight, and the final airborne journey of the entire space shuttle fleet, headed for Los Angeles International Airport.
The 75-ton (68-tonne) winged spacecraft will then undergo preparations to be moved next month through city streets from the airport to its permanent home at the California Science Center in downtown Los Angeles, where the shuttle will be put on public display starting Oct. 30.
To make way for the mammoth orbiter along its 12-mile (19 km) route to the museum, crews are cutting down nearly 400 trees, raising overhead utility wires and temporarily removing hundreds of utility poles, street lights and traffic signals. The science center has agreed to plant 1,000 new trees to replace those slated for removal.
Endeavour was built as a replacement for Challenger, the shuttle lost in a 1986 launch accident that killed seven astronauts. It went on to fly 25 missions, including 12 to build and outfit the space station, and logged nearly 123 million miles (198 million km) in flight during 4,671 orbits.
Endeavour is the second of NASA's three surviving shuttles to be sent to a museum. Discovery, NASA's oldest surviving shuttle, is on display at the Smithsonian Institution's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center outside Washington.
Atlantis, which flew NASA's 135th and final shuttle mission in July 2011, will be towed down the road to the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex in November.


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Designing a Site from Scratch in Dreamweaver
- Prepare to Plan to Prepare for a Development Plan
- Visual Site Design
- How to Structure Your Site
Prepare to Plan to Prepare for a Development Plan
Nobody ever wants to plan anymore. People don't have the time. They just want to get going. It's like that scene in Spaceballs where Dark Helmet says to Colonel Sandurz, "What are you preparing? You're always preparing. Just go!" Then he gets dumped into his seat. Good news, though: There's coffee!
I'll admit, planning isn't the most glamorous thing to do, but I really enjoy parts of the process, like organizing content and especially coming up with a design template for the entire site. The more you can determine upfront, the easier the actual site construction will be. Most people are really eager to start building pages right away and don't bother with any planning at all. Trust me, this results in a lot of extra time spent reworking pages, changing navigation structure, and so on. But before we get into the nitty, let's cover a most important subject...coffee!
What Do You Want to Say and Who Do You Want to Say It To?
There's a cold, hard fact in marketing, and I think it applies here. It may come as a surprise, but here it is (brace for impact): Not everyone wants what you have to give. It's true. When asked who would buy their product, many inexperienced entrepreneurs immediately say "Everyone! Everyone will want my widget!" That's why we see shotgun marketing like spam, mass flyer distribution, and telephone blitzes. The truth is, there's a very specific group of people who will want an entrepreneur's widget, and the same goes for your web site. Not everyone is as exited as you are about guinea pig migration patterns, conspiracy theories behind your neighbor's vegetable garden, or the Travel Buddy comb/toothbrush/nasal trimmer toolkit.
If you can find out who your niche audience is, you'll build a much better site. So ask yourself: Who specifically am I trying to reach, and what am I trying to say? Once you know that, then you can begin to tailor site content, navigation, and functionality to what your audience wants, not what you want. Would the Granny's Club of St. John's Anglican Church appreciate thundering death metal intro music? Well maybe. You know those wacky granny clubs... But seriously, design it for them. The idea is that if you can define who your site is for, you can focus your site's design around that.
Get the Glue—We've Gotta Build a Navigation Model
There are four traditional models of navigation used online. These have been morphed and mashed together for different sites, depending on the content being presented. Have a look at each and consider which is best for your site—or consider using different models for different parts of your site as content requires. What do all those different page icons mean? See the sidebar "Web Page Types" later in this chapter.
Keep 'er Straight with the Linear Approach
Before the web was born, our media was linear. A book has a page-by-page sequential order. A movie has a definite beginning and a definite end. But when the web came along, suddenly information could be conveyed in whatever order the visitor wanted. However, many sites still want to control the sequence of content, maybe for an online tutorial or a slideshow. These examples require a specific, orderly web page sequence that doesn't provide a way for the visitor to jump to different topics or locations.
Long Live the Queen: The Hierarchical Model
Also called a tree structure, the hierarchical model the most popular navigation model online. With this structure, a site would begin with an opening page that provides several choices that link to main category pages, called landmark pages. Landmark pages provide links to more specific subsections. From this point, the site might branch into more subpages, getting more and more specific as the structure continues.
Burning Rubber with Spokes and Hubs
In a spoke-and-hub structure, the home page is at the center, with spokes linking to the different categories of the site. From these categories, the site might be organized into deeper structures, depending on the organization and content.
Get Your Fill with the Full-Web Design
The full-web or full-mesh style uses virtually no structure at all, with each page linking to every other page. This is great in that it allows visitors to explore the site in any way that they want, but navigation can get complex and frustrating.
Sorting Out the Types of Sites
There are all kinds of web sites, large and small, online. Here, we'll take a look at the major types and the audiences they target. These site types are certainly generalized, and there are countless sites that fall into more than one category, or none at all. In addition, sites can be grouped into three categories according to who can access them: public sites, intranet sites, and extranet sites.
Public sites are the most common. They're available on, and useable by, anyone on the Internet. There are no restrictions as to who can access a public site. Intranet sites are sites used within a company or organization to provide internal information to employees. Extranet sites are accessible on the public Internet, but users must have access privileges, usually a username and password are needed to log in.
The site types that follow typically fall into the public site classification, but theoretically they can occur in all three.
Cashing in on Commercial Sites
A commercial site is one whose primary purpose is to generate profits by providing goods and services to a body of customers. Some companies build commercial sites to support their "bricks and mortar" locations, while other companies are based entirely online, with no physical store that a customer could visit. Good commercial sites provide multiple ways to browse, search, and shop their catalog of goods. Consider, for example, the king of them all: Amazon.com.
Get Informed with Information-Based Sites
If a site's main purpose is to inform and educate, then it's considered an information-based, or content-based, site. Such sites include government service sites, the sites of nonprofit organizations, travel information sites, and news sites. A small site for your church would count, but so would a massive news site. An interesting thing about news sites is that they all have a similar look and feel in their design and navigation. Compare cnn.com with cbc.ca.
TV'S Dead—Entertainment Site Takeover
Many everyday people have made names for themselves by creating sites that simply entertain the rest of us. An entertainment site might be the site of a funny online comic, a sports analysis site, or even a site where you can watch web-based movies. There are lots of them out there—but check out www.storewars.org, a site that delivers a great message in a very funny and entertaining way.
Find Your Way with Navigational Sites
Search engines, community portals, and online directories are considered navigational sites, because they help people find their way around. Unless you know the exact site you want to visit, a navigational site will be your starting point. Many nav sites are now offering additional services to gain surfer loyalty. For instance, Google.com now offers e-mail, catalog searching, maps, and a zillion other very useful services.
Join the Club—Community Sites
Community sites provide a centralized place for people with similar interests to meet and interact, usually in online forums. Here, they can discuss current events, ask and answer questions, and share information. Whatever your niche or unique interests may be, there's a group out there sharing ideas about it. If you're a Lego nut (or if you'd just like a good example of a community web site), click on brickfilms.com, an online community of Lego movie makers.
Expressive Artistic Sites
Artistic sites may provide content and information, but often these sites are a work of artistic expression themselves. Many artistic sites are simply a place for someone to express his or her opinion, feelings, or interests, with no economic considerations. My own site, geoffblake.com, is entirely artistic—just a fun place to express myself creatively.
Personal Sites (Getting to Know You...)
Sometimes called a person's home page, personal sites are often a forum for personal expression. Often, they're used to share photos, stories, and recent events with friends and family members. Others use their sites to test and experiment as they learn HTML and web design. My friend Jason Allin has a great personal home page that he uses to keep others up-to-date on what's new with his acting endeavors. Say hi at jasonallin.com.


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Tag Archives: reflective triangles
California trucker killed sideswiping truck parked overnight on shoulder of I-16
A young truck driver from California lost his life on the side of I-16 in Laurens County, Georgia, on March 2nd. This tragedy highlights how truck drivers are in one of the most dangerous occupations.
According to news reports, a 22-year-old California truck driver was killed when he sideswiped a disabled semi in predawn darkness on … Continue Reading