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Now that is a good idea. No better marketing than the player that keeps wasting you with a mechanical gun that has no real maintenance.
this is what i think
AGD could still b in the game, we all know TK is the man, and legend! isnt that y we r all here? his product, some being 10+ years is still going, still has a strong market. If he would had jumped in the custom side... just offering some other options like bodies, frame( XMT and Luke) he would have cash rolling in. im not saying do everything that XMT and luke do but they are examples of what is out there. TK provided a platform and it grew from there and we all love to customize our mags. heck different color markers, shirts jerseys. u dont need to re amp a marker every year and make it that much cooler. if it was pushed and sponsor some teams, and get that name out there show all the new blood what is out there the name would be known and a younger player wouldnt call mt Rt a spyder( lol he tried)! everybody has there take and options where he could still b in the game. not everything has to be done by a company but he could give it some more power if it was pushed. On the other side i feel he thinks he did what he needed to do, lay it out, provide it and let it grow. a automag was my second marker, i didnt want it at first it was 600$ but my local field he said there is nothing like this rt, it is a beast and u will love it. he gassed it up and i shot it and i still have it. and i understand all this preorder crap and it sucks to try and b the middle man and have your other side fail and bring you down. it is a risk and and most stay away from it. I have always thought Tuna or luke would buy it up and keep it going. but hey we have great providers who stepped in and gave us options others dont have and its all good with that said i would buy i if he made it.
How about a factory fresh pump mag,eh???
(Yes,I know it won't happen)
Correct me if I undersood it incorrectly.
And it is still my opinion that aftermarket bodies should be exactly that, aftermarket. Focus on what you do and do it well rather than venturing off into custom work.
Last edited by OPBN; 03-15-2013 at 12:41 PM.
I'm going to try to keep this short.
They can't go buy a new classic mag, and certainly not one in my configuration. You want a new mag, you have to go buy the RTPro, which quite frankly is priced-to-fail.
"Accuracy by aiming."
Definitely not on the A-Team.
If someone puts the business cards together, I'll buy in on it to give out to folks that say (what's that your shooting):-) :-) just let me know
I suck at design etc, so its not something that I will undertake, but would be willing to pay for postage or whatever to take 10-15 of them to keep on me when I play.Originally Posted by Dodge3500
There are so many companies holding so many different (often sketchy) patents it's hard for any company to make anything other than a cookie cutter spooly. Forgive me if my facts are wrong or out of date but just some I can think of:
WDP: Frames forward of 86 degrees
PTP: Pnuematic assisted triggers
Smart Parts: Triggers(?anything that activates the firing of a paintball)
AGD: on/off
I'm not clear on the details of any of that but IIRC that is the basic reason why we rely mostly on small runs of custom made stuff.
Other than that for Mags to make a comeback we would need to see a shift away from batteries and circuit boards. In an unlimited BPS mech semi-only format Mags would own. It would take some high profile marketing. Reaching out to stores, fields, and players. An all mech/mag team winning a major event would be nice. The trick is in creating mechanical=skillful / batteries=entry level association.
For some reason that has always been the way I thought. I got rid of both of my e-mags for that reason. I would love to see a high capacity pneumatic loader. I digress.
The Mag I'd like to see back in the stores is an entry level mag with an X-Valve and cheep-o everything else. Then posters with a bunch of Mags from the MOTM winners thread. Put some printed materials in the box with lots of pictures of what a Mag can be.
What Dave z told me is that they had the slugs made from pouring hot metal in a form or what ever. he said something like if they did a big run like 200-300 they could do it. we r talking a good 7 years though. but they did the ule and tack 1 bodies. i guess as long as they advertise or something they would c more $. I have wanted to make a slug square instead of round... more meat but dont tell XMT or luke she is pissed about the new parts lol
i dont think there is a after market body that sucks.... outside of ptp, thats just me
The Mag could greatly benefit from a reboot. The X-Valve base is just fine, but the parts around it could use an update. Some of these parts people will say aren't worth including or updating because the Mag toters will just replace them, but the question I ask is - "with what?". Your options for "upgraded" or replacement parts is not getting any bigger. The task for AGD would be to make the parts much like the valves in their guns - not worth replacing! Make a lever clamping feedneck that is low profile, STURDY (but not chunky) and easily adjustable. It is not like the market is flooded with tons of new, worthwhile Angel feednecks. You make this one part right and nobody would want to replace it! How about a new rail with the vertical ASA integrated. I don't mean held on there by a screw, but actually a part of the rail!
I would dump a huge chunk of change on AGD if they'd revisit the Classic RT with a couple twists. Give it a body that resembled the X-Mag, run the air thru the rail and update the valve to accept the ULE trigger. Update the trigger frame by enlarging the trigger guard area and give it an integrated rail for the on/off ASA. And for the love of God please license one of RPG's triggers!
As for marketing, I'm not sure how much the "pro" teams are worth, or even magazines like APG or sites like PBN. AO's members and word of mouth at the field are going to be your best bet, the business cards are a great idea. Of course all of this means nothing if AGD won't produce anything new...
Nobody wants to invest in a company that seems to be sitting still.
Steve Shuey , Team Crimson Reign
suffice to say, no magic business man is going to fly in and push this company forward. as much as we all like TK, he doesn't care about AGD anymore as he has said that "there is no money in paintball". how long did it take to get the new AGD? has the financials been released so we know where our money went to? even though there is want and need for new parts other than the X-valves, RT Pros(do we really need a rehash of a classic?), what would people actually want to do?
pump kits will never come. as i remember it, the AGD pump kits sat for years and was a flop. its when pump play has become more prevalent AFTER the kits where sold that there is a clamor for them. i really think its more of the fact that the price for used is still high, that people want new so that the price will come down.
Emag, agian won't happen. Emags never flew off the shelves to begin with. you will always have people talking about them you either sight the design of it not progressing(same layout-though in retrospect i feel that the Mag is the Porsche 911 of the paintball world), or that its entirely too heavy. the cost of electronics is the biggest factor against them. you either need a total redesign of the system(different noids and such) or take in an existing board to help power it.
the warp feed was a flop. not that you need people in tourneys to use it, but there is always that one guy that you see with it, but yet it never catches on. besides, with modern forcefeed, you don't need the extra weight of it.
so tell me that i'm wrong and show me where my thoughts can be changed for the better and prove me wrong. i love AGD and my Mag, but this is a dead issue. the life support is there, but it won't pay for the transplants.
See, the monkeys are already hard at work on the advertising problem! Bananas for everyone!
I think all these sluggo based bodies are useless. All they do is pretty up your gun at the expense of your pocketbook, and worse, they are a waste of time. Whoever is designing these things is wasting their considerable design capability on aesthetic crap when they could be designing something actually functional.
I say just go back to the steel tube. The classic body is just fine with some minor modifications.
Yet somehow it happened.
If there's no money left in paintball, then how valuable is the AGD IP? How about just the classic, which you seem to assign no value to?
Considering the introduction of the ULE not only decreased the weight, it also allowed for the use of real detents, clamping feednecks, and cocker threaded barrels I would consider it a substantial performance increase over the SS bodies that required using elbows. In regards to price, the last rendition of SS bidies that came with clamping feednecks were about $120, not much less than what ULEs cost. Having the ability to use Cocker threaded barrels alone is worth the price of a ULE.
And if you don't like aesthetically pleasing parts... Don't buy them, but saying that people are wasting their time and talents making them is a bit harsh. Actually pretty douchey really.
Given the complexity of producing the ULE's, I have to wonder if making the stainless bodies is actually easier and cheaper, if you're smart about it. I mean it's great that they do such a nice welding job on those feed necks... but it's also unnecessary. I could be wrong here and maybe they could just revamp the ULE body and not do such complicated things, but the ol' stainless tube seems pretty easy.
I'm sorry but if you are really arguing that AGD or others should have pursued development of the ultimate SS body rather than the ULE, there's no reasoning with you. Troll on.
You guys all talk big about having choice. But there is no choice for a less expensive automag body.
That's great that you can buy all the stupidly expensive bodies that you want, but where does the choice exist for a reasonable, basic, inexpensive body that literally isn't from the 90's? I'm not talking about pursuing the ultimate -- I'm talking about the exact opposite. Pursuing something REASONABLE.
Last edited by GoatBoy; 03-15-2013 at 08:43 PM.
There are TONS of classic bodies out there. Why would anyone need to make more? So let's take one and add an AC adapter for $40. Say we lucked out and found a CF SS one and only paid $45 for it. We're now up to $85. We cut the feednecks down and add an ego feedneck for another $25. Now we are up to $110. For an extra $15 I could have a ULE body already AC threaded, so no adapter to get stuck, nice detent, and threaded for a clamping feedneck. And it weighs probably 1/2 of what the SS does. How does that make sense?
Maybe you should take lead on this. I'm sure there's a massive market out there for inexpensive SS bodies for Automags.
I get what he's saying. He isn't talking about beauty, he's talking cost only. He's saying something basic based around the classic valve could compete in todays market with similar mechs (Tippmanns) and probably lower-end electros. ULE bodies are apparently more expensive to produce than soldering a steel tube to another steel tube, then throwing in an insert with cocker threads and a normal detent.
That said, i think it's really sad we're taking about how to make a mag compete with the Tippmann price range. Automags were once held leagues above any Tippmann maker. It's sad to realize their fall.
Fall? What fall?
Mags were -never- cheap and they still aren't. Nor should they be. They aren't some off the shelf, generic knock off marker produced by the thousands. They are one-off, highly customizable pieces of art and are reflected as such by their price tag. And honestly, they are a sight cheaper than some of the $1200 electros out there that come out with a new model every year where they tweak... the milling... or the color...
Remember back in the day of the classic automag? When you bought one, it was a grip, valve and body. No barrel, everything else was added and customized.. it wasn't until later that they came with everything else. ;P
the modular breech on an Xmag allows you to switch from a warp feed to a vert feed. its nice to have when you want to go from a hose to a pose. hell, a smaller vert feed with a smaller hopper brings the mobility up on the gun so that you don't have this huge long brick that you are trying to move around. you are able to bring the center of gravity of the gun towards your hand and not above it. plus, all the steel adds up. guns that weigh less make for a more mobile person. why do you think that the stainless barrel fad is gone?
but the aftermarket bodies are personality. look at even the Eclipse body kits. they gave the person the option to personalize their gun. no one want to have the same thing that the person next to them has. its functional, but i'd take a vert feed clamping feed next over a powerfeed any day. i hated the elbows but it was a necessity. it also eliminates a break point. the elbow will fail before the body or the hopper.
ummm, we the people paid the money to have the forum moved. TK didn't care, but listened to the people. he moved things around, but it wasn't his choice, it isn't his doing about redoing the forum, these are the people posting. also, TK himself said that there is no money in paintball. that's why he left AGD. hell, it will be worth talking to him at Tunaball and see what he says, if he does show up.
IPs couldn't tell you how much they are worth. don't care, i don't deal in them. but regardless of the item, an object is only worth what someone is willing to pay. to those on AGD, its worth a lot. to the people who post here, who do business only here. the rest of the world could care less.
I'm with rehkal, back in the day I spent over $250 for my classic, by the time i was done with 2-3 different frames, hyperframe, barrels, etc... I was up in the dm13 price range by today's standards. I played in probably 20-25 local tournaments with and without the hyper, either way, it was heavy, reliable, and one of the most accurate guns out on the field.
I personally wouldn't care if agd made another mag or not. I've got mine, I still find the parts I need, and it still turns heads every time I pull it out of the bag.
Id rather have my mag that maybe (a big maybe) 10 people in the world have in the exact configuration I have, than have a flood of mags out that look the same and generic but they are "new".
And as far as fancy stuff, get a one off made. Like everyone else is saying, if it were cost effective it would have been done already and there would still be stock on someones shelves... oh wait, agd still has purple ule bodies from 2000 on the shelf, that should say something right there
Part of the problem I think is the idea that bringing back classic valves and bodies would instantly create a cheaper entry level marker. I would wager that building new classic valves wouldn't necassarily be that much cheaper. If someone wants an entry level Mag, buy used. When people want a Vette, but can't afford a new one, they buy a used older model. It's the way things work.
Get them with anything with an X-Valve for under 300 retail and the sky is the limit.


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Jefferson County Open Space unveiled a list of goals for 2013, including building 4 miles of natural surface trail on South Table Mountain.
Amy Ito, manager of park planning and construction, outlined the plans in a study session at the monthly meeting of the Open Space Advisory Committee on Nov. 1.
The $3.45 million budget includes $1.4 million to complete a design/build contract for 4 miles of the Peaks to Plains trail from Mayhem Gulch west to Clear Creek County along Clear Creek.
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Products >
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Genomic_DNA >
The NucleoSpin FFPE DNA kit provides a convenient, reliable, and fast method to isolate DNA from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded (FFPE) tissue specimens. The procedure omits the use of flammable and malodorous xylene or d-limonene commonly used for deparaffinization. Further, the procedure omits the difficult removal of organic solvent from often barely visible tissue pellets. NucleoSpin FFPE DNA employs the odorless Paraffin Dissolver (patent pending) and allows efficient lysis in a convenient two-phase system.**
First, the paraffin of FFPE sections is dissolved in the Paraffin Dissolver. Tissue is then digested by proteinase to solubilize the fixed tissue and release DNA into solution. Subsequently, heat incubation with a specially designed buffer effectively eliminates crosslinks from the previously released DNA. After addition of ethanol, the lysate is applied to the NucleoSpin FFPE DNA Column. DNA is bound to the silica membrane. Two washing steps help to remove salts, metabolites, and macromolecular cellular components. Pure DNA is finally eluted under low ionic strength conditions in a small volume (5–30 µl) of Elution Buffer BE, yielding highly concentrated DNA.
Isolated DNA is high in concentration, formaldehyde crosslinks are reversed efficiently, and the DNA quality of the sample is well preserved during the complete process (deparaffinization, decrosslink, purification). Thus, isolated DNA shows good performance in typical downstream applications like PCR.
**Users preferring xylene deparaffinization will find protocols utilizing xylene for deparaffinization in the manual. Deparaffinization using xylene shows the same efficiency as deparaffinization using Paraffin Dissolver. Xylene is not included in the kit.


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2005 BMW X3 is in great condition with 56,000 miles, for sale by first owner. Please call 404-219-1000 for VIN number and set up time to see the vehicle. Vehicle includes the following:Stability Control Hill Descent Control Sport Pkg Dual Front Air Bags Front Side Air Bags Air Conditioning Power Steering ABS (4-Wheel) Power Windows Traction Control Power Door Locks Leather Telescoping Wheel Dual Power Seats Cruise Control Moon Roof AM/FM Stereo Roof Rack MP3 (Single CD) Alloy Wheels In addition, vehicle has satellite radio and premium wooded interior finishing. Thank you for your interest!
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The New Castle County Department of Public Safety Police Division has been dealing with rising bullet costs and has also been anticipating which vehicle would replace the iconic Ford Crown Victoria as the department's police interceptor, among other budgetary items.
The New Castle County Department of Public Safety Police Division has been dealing with rising bullet costs and has also been anticipating which vehicle would replace the iconic Ford Crown Victoria as the department's police interceptor, among other budgetary items.
NCCo Police Chief E.M. Setting presented a proposed budget of $57 million for 2014, a modest 2.71 percent increase, at the New Castle County Council's budget hearing held earlier this week.
The biggest increase among the line items was the 31.1 percent increase for materials and supplies, NCCo Police Chief E.M. Setting said. This was simply because of the increase in costs for bullets due to the laws of supply and demand, he said. Namely, bullets were flying on the shelf everywhere – a result of public response to gun control measures nationwide – and police had felt the effects of the laws of supply and demand, Setting said.
"We are seeing dramatic increases in the price of bullets," he said. "That cost is being driven by society stockpiling bullets. We're not stockpiling; we're using the same exact amount of bullets required by COPT (Council on Police Training). You can't get much of anything."
Councilman George Smiley (D-New Castle), Finance Committee chairman, said a woman recently complained to him that she could not find "22 shorts" – a variety of .22 caliber bullets.
"I started to look at her and didn't think she took size 22 but I kept my mouth shut," he said. "That time I kept my mouth shut."
Councilman William Powers (D-Townsend) said people were trying to stockpile bullets, but the feds, namely the U.S. Department of Homeland Security – were buying up bullets and making it harder to find ammunition. As a result, .22 longs and .22 shorts were hard to find, Powers said.
"You can't find them anywhere," he said. "As soon as they come in they're gone."
Personnel costs would comprise the vast majority of the budget, as with every other county budget. But, from a percentage standpoint, salaries and wages would only increase 1.19 percent and employee benefits would increase 7.51 percent, Setting said. Personnel costs comprise 82.63 percent of spending within the Division of Police, Crossing Guards and Public Safety Administration.
Discussion then turned to replacing aging police interceptors in the fleet when Councilman John Cartier (D-Holly Oak) asked Setting if he had selected a new police car for the department. Setting expressed his desire to see the department transition to the Chevrolet Tahoe because of its V8 engine power and its relatively improved fuel performance compared to the traditional Ford Crown Victoria police interceptor.
"The car that Ford is putting out now is a fine vehicle in regards to its speed, power and all that fun stuff in the all-wheel drive Taurus," Setting said. "But I can't put an officer your size in that car. I mean, you'd have to fold him in half like luggage. We can't put our equipment in the trunk. And, not to mention, the all the all-wheel drive wreaks havoc on the transmission."
Councilman Bill Bell (D-Middletown) agreed that it was impractical to fit good sized officers in some of the newer police interceptors, such as the Chevrolet Caprice.
Plus, the other SUV available, the Ford Explorer did not perform well in high speed situations given the limited power of its V6 engine, Setting said.
"I just want the Tahoe," he said.
But, ultimately, Setting said he would have to go out to bid, per law.
The NCCo Department of Public Safety Division of Police, Crossing Guards and Administration comprised the biggest piece of the budget presented to the Finance Committee.
New Castle County's entire Department of Public Safety budget for the 2014 fiscal year would increase spending 4.78 percent compared to 2013to $84.7 million and keep the number of positions funded at 621 for the second straight year, NCCo Public Safety Director Joseph Bryant said.
New Castle County Executive Tom Gordon has proposed an overall operating budget of $250.9 million 2014 fiscal year budget that would increase spending by 3.24 percent. The 2014 budget begins on July 1, 2013.


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AZGman wrote:service provider
provider directory
pooflady wrote:provider directory
directory assistance
Volunteer Moderator
KtCallista wrote:directory assistance
assisted living
dontwantaname wrote:assisted living
living color
KtCallista wrote:living color
color guard
pooflady wrote:color guard
guard house
dontwantaname wrote:guard house
house arrest
pooflady wrote:house arrest
arrested development
dontwantaname wrote:arrested development
development stages
pooflady wrote:development stages
stage presence
AZGman wrote:stage presence
presence chamber
GodfatherND wrote:presence chamber
chamber maid
lplady wrote:chamber maid
maid service
norcalbecca wrote:maid service
service animal
GodfatherND wrote:service animal
animal crackers
norcalbecca wrote:animal crackers
Cracker Barrel
dubsnap wrote:Cracker Barrel
barrel racing
stacipurv wrote:barrel racing
Racing Junk
dubsnap wrote:Racing Junk
junk food
dontwantaname wrote:junk food
Food Coma
dubsnap wrote:Food Coma
coma scale
pooflady wrote:coma scale
scale remover
norcalbecca wrote:scale remover
remove spots
pooflady wrote:remove spots
spot color
norcalbecca wrote:spot color
Color Blind
dubsnap wrote:Color Blind
blind devotion
olcubmaster wrote:blind devotion
devotional songs
pooflady wrote:devotional songs
song lyrics
stacipurv wrote:song lyrics
Lyric Scooter
dubsnap wrote:Lyric Scooter
Scooter Pie
AZGman wrote:Scooter Pie
pie hole
pooflady wrote:pie hole
mouth breather
AZGman wrote:mouth breather
breath deeply
AH-HA!!! AZ went from pie hole to mouth breather. This is Banana Boat!
dontwantaname wrote:breath deeply
deeply disturbed
norcalbecca wrote:deeply disturbed
Disturbing Noise
pooflady wrote:AH-HA!!! AZ went from pie hole to mouth breather. This is Banana Boat!
I saw that too but thought perhaps there was a "missing link" post that was deleted later.
While we seem to be playing pretty free and loose with the rules at times (dropping an s from a plural, breather to breath) I'm amazed at the creative minds at work here.
hole punch
dubsnap wrote:Disturbing Noise
noise maker
(yep - we got parallel banana boats running if we don't stop the madness)
olcubmaster wrote:hole punch
punch drunk
View All →


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I didn't see any threads here at Chiefs Crowd related to an NFL Yahoo Pickem Challenge League already existing...so, if any at Chiefs Crowd are interested:
A couple weeks ago I formed a private Yahoo NFL Pickem Challenge League, and y'all are more than welcome to join & play along. The info you'll need to join is at the end of my post. I enjoy playing Pickem Challenge, it's quick, easy & competitive fun.
The only other website's I've participated at in my PC life on a regular basis is a recording artist's fan club website. I write short stories there on occasion, & participate with helping emotionally support some of the kids who are fan club members with serious illness', etc.. Although a controversial artist in the media sometimes, he's not quite the person behind the scenes the media makes him out to be often, haha...he's a good guy, has a big heart...and contributes much time & money to childrens foundations and our Military Soldiers & families...he is Kid Rock, haha. :)
Anyway, for a few years now I've started up a private Yahoo NFL Pickem Challenge League for those at that fan club website who are also NFL fans, as well as for any friends, family, etc.. So please feel free to join in if interested. :)
Info you'll need to join...
1) If you don't already have a free Yahoo account, you'll need to create one.
2) Go to Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Pro Football Pickem
3) Click join existing group, then enter group ID #3163...it's the group ID #, not the name of the group you need to enter. The password is kr09tbt , then choose your 'set name', which is your player user name more or less...I'm RedzoneCJ.
I check the option of having Yahoo send me weekly email reminders to make my picks, because sometimes life get's hectic & I may forget, especially those games on Holidays & Thursday nights. I've seen people come from behind if they miss a week picking, but it's best not to of course. I've set the league up to where you have 5 minutes before each games kick off time to pick.
For some reason this year I'm having trouble getting people to play compared to previous years, so we do need players to make it fun, competively speaking. Hope some of you will join me and play along. :)


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Part I: Beginning
Part II: 21 – 39
Part III: 40 – 58
AoE Grinding: Frost Mage Edition
Once you hit level 58 it's time for you to make your way on over to the Outlands. The easiest route is to head to any major city of your faction and head towards the Portal Trainer. There you will fine a portal to the Blasted Lands (which only a level 58+ can activate) which takes you right outside of the Dark Portal that leads you to the Outlands.
You will still have excellent opportunities to put your AoE grinding skills to use in Outlands, and in some cases even more so than you did back in vanilla content (I'm looking at you, buzzards). You'll also notice that when they tell you it's a group quest now, they actually mean it. If you were able to wear plate then you might be able to ignore that little warning, but since you don't, you can't. If it's a group quest, and not not PvP related, then you can pretty well rest assure that you aren't going to solo it. At least not on level. If you would like to prove me wrong on that point, then by all means do it. Just be sure to take a screen shot if you want me to believe it. ;)
Important Spells
General Spells
Teleport: Shattrath at level 60 lets us port ourselves to Shat, which makes traveling quite a bit easier, and helps to solidify our ability to set our Hearthstone in whatever zone we're questing in, knowing that we can now teleport ourselves to any city we want (except Dalaran) with our spells rather than our hearth. We also get the portal version, Portal: Shattrath at level 65 so that we can teleport our party members as well.
Molten Armor at level 62 provides us with the Armor spell that we will use for most of the rest of the game. It gives us a bonus to Crit Rate equal to 35% of our Spirit as well as reducing the chance that we will be critically hit ourselves by 5%. It also deals Fire damage to enemies that hit us which is a nice little bonus even if it's not very much.
Invisibility in all its greatness shows up at level 68, allowing us to become invisible for 20 seconds so long as we don't take any actions (with a few exceptions which note such, like Herbalism's Lifeblood spell). It also has a wonderful little feature that removes all of our agro when we use it. So if you find yourself in a dungeon and you just pulled off of the tank, or you find that you're getting close to doing so, use this and then cancel it off of yourself and get back into the action without having to worry about your threat.
Frost Spells
Ice Lance shows up at level 66 giving Frost an instant cast at long last that has a small mana cost and similarly small damage, unless the target is frozen in which case its damage is tripled (quadrupled if you have the glyph).
Arcane Spells
Arcane Blast finally shows its face at level 64, making the Arcane spec viable and able to stand on its own Arcane legs rather than relying so heavily on other spell types. It is the key and primary nuke of an Arcane Mage.
Frost Rotations
Frost Option 1: Frostbolt, Frostbolt, Frostbolt, Fire Blast
Frost Option 2: Frostbolt, Frostbolt, Frostbolt, Fire Blast – [Ice Lance x2 when Frozen]
There's that same old rotation for Frost that we've been using for next to forever. You're the king of spamming a single button, and that's all there is to it. Sure we've got Fire Blast to finish of the mobs which is likely a separate button, and if we take Brain Freeze then we'll have a third for the instant-cast Fireballs, but otherwise you pretty well eat, sleep, and breathe Frostbolt spam.
If you want to change things up just a little bit then you can switch over to using Ice Lance whenever an enemy is frozen, or when you use your level 60 talent, Deep Freeze. Ice Lance is an instant cast that does 300% damage if the target is frozen, so if you get Frostbite to proc you can usually get 2 casts in there, Deep Freeze allows 3 casts during its duration (or 4 if you have a healthy amount of haste, which you probably do not), and Frost Nova will allow 1-2 depending on whether or not it crits since FN is broken based on damage where the others are not.
If you do get into the habit of using Ice Lance, just be sure not to cancel a Frostbolt cast in order to use it or else you're losing DPS. Send the bolt, and then follow it up immediately with an Ice Lance instead. If you aren't already queuing up your spells, or don't know how to, then it's time to learn that. I may need to include a video about queuing up your spells to show you how to do it in case you don't already know. If you're doing it right, then your Frostbolt and Ice Lance will basically hit the target at almost the exact same time. If FB hits and then the IL launches, then you know you're actually wasting time and losing DPS.
Queuing Up Your Spells: Chain Casting
Alright, first thing's first – go download the Quartz addon (link to Curse.com). Doing so will give you a movable cast bar that will also display the latency on the server to you so that you know when your spell "should" actually happen as opposed to when your interface thinks that it will happen.
The Red part on there is the server latency. The Yellow strip in the bar is where your spell is actually going to cast. The Blue part is the progression of the spell you are casting and it will continue to move right until it hits the Yellow strip for the actual cast. The Grey portion is just the background of the bar, showing the portion of time you have remaining before the actual cast.
Now, the "SWEET SPOT" is where you can activate your next spell and put it in the queue. Even though just looking at the bar you would think you can't cast anything yet because you aren't finished with the current spell, the game actually lets you put your next spell in queue so that you start casting the next one immediately. Now, the Sweet Spot covers a range because it's actually a little bit different for everyone and other things in the game that you can't see can impact how large or small that section is as well. Generally it's at about 85-90% of the current bar reaching hitting the left side of the latency area.
If you aren't used to queuing your spells then I suggest you go find yourself a training dummy and start practicing to get the hang of it. The longer you practice it the more you'll grow used to the look and "feel" of your casting that you'll know when you hit the Sweet Spot and when you didn't, but hitting it before the cast goes off is the key to maximizing your DPS through your interface alone.
Now, on to Arcane.
Arcane Rotations
Arcane Option 1: Arcane Blast, Slow, Arcane Missile, Arcane Barrage, (Fire Blast)
Arcane Option 2: Frostbolt or Slow, Arcane Blast, Arcane Missile, Arcane Barrage, (Fire Blast)
Arcane Option 3: Frostbolt or Slow, Arcane Blast x2, Arcane Barrage, (Fire Blast)
Requires Level 64: Why? Because you don't get Arcane Blast until level 64, that's why. Until then I don't care how much you want to call yourself an Arcane Mage, you're not. You've got two spells up to that point – Arcane Missiles and Arcane Explosion. Two spells does not an Arcane Mage make you. But three? Now that is a different story.
Don't bother with Arcane until 64. You can do it, it's possible, but you're unnecessarily taking the hard road to get there. Level as Frost, and then if you want to switch to Arcane do so at level 64 or higher, though preferably not 80.
The (Fire Blast) on the end there is just to finish off any mobs that might still be up. They should be dead before then, but just in case they aren't.
As far as spamming the same buttons goes, Arcane isn't much better off than Frost is to be quite honest. The big difference is that you're going to be killing things on a mostly individual basis rather than using AoE. The key to doing this effectively while also maintaining survivability, without that fancy Frost Barrier you've likely gotten used to, is keeping your targets slowed so that they never reach you in the first place.
Slowing targets also gives you the added benefit of increasing the damage of all of your primary Arcane damage spells spells by 12% because of your Torment the Weak talent. I found the Slow spell to be incredibly valuable while leveling because it's an instant cast and it slows for 60% where Frostbolt is only 40%, and it also slow attack and casting speed as well.
Arcane burns through a lot of mana, not necessarily because the spells have a high cost, but because the spell you're spamming, Arcane Blast, increases the mana cost of every spell that comes after it until you use the stacking buff that it gives you. I'll talk about the specifics of using the spell in the Tactics section. Because of this you will want to make use of your Mana Gems as well as your Evocation spell. Another good thing about Arcane is that the talent points I have you take for it will reduce the cooldown of Evocation from 4 minutes down to only 2, so you will almost never run out of mana without being able to get it back quickly.
Leveling in Outlands
The first thing you'll notice about leveling in Outlands is that mobs have a little bit more health than what you've been used to fighting in Azeroth. Not so much more that it really matters, but you'll notice it. So if you've been comfortable enough with your class to know that "this" combination of 3-4 spells kills any mob you face, then you might get bumped out of your comfort bubble…at least until you level a time or two.
There are a lot of gear upgrades for you in Outlands, and a mage can replace a decent amount of gear in Hellfire Peninsula alone.
General Tactics
I still suggest that you AoE grind everything you can for questing and if you're running instances where your tank generates some decent AoE threat then focus almost entirely on Blizzard for that as well.
Just keep in mind while grouping, that not all tanks are considered equals when it comes to AoE on trash. Give your tanks a few seconds to establish AoE threat before you start using AoE yourself. Until then just cast single target spells on the tank's target. Always keep an eye on your threat.
As for Arcane, you're not going to worry too much about AoE, instead you'll be focusing on burning down single targets in the blink of an eye. I switched to Arcane at level 66 on my current Mage, Belsynis, and I went from doing 600 DPS with Frost to 1500 DPS with Arcane with nothing but a respec. You might not be the King of AoE anymore, but you can definitely lay the smack down when it comes time to kill the bosses.
Arcane is going to survive by slowing down its targets, and then firing beautiful beams of Arcane ownage through their target's face. Slowing opponents gives you a boost to your damage, so use whatever means of slowing you have available. I personally prefer the Slow spell from the Arcane tree, but others prefer pulling with a Frostbolt for the damage as well as the slowing effect. Do whatever suits you better.
The key to max DPS with Arcane is to build up your four stacks of Arcane Blast and then fire off a Missile Barrage proc to send your Arcane Missiles out at super speed. If you don't get a Missile Barrage proc in the four casts you have two options. You can either cast ABlast again hoping for the proc, or you can cast another Arcane damaging spell to remove the stack and start over so that you can conserve your mana. It's also acceptable during leveling to fire off Missile Barrage procs at less than four stacks, but hopefully you have 3-4 ready when the proc happens.
I prefer to go with a fifth ABlast before giving up on the proc at which time I will cast Arcane Barrage if I am solo questing, or Arcane Missiles if I am in a dungeon. The damage bonus from the Arcane Blast buff applies to the full spell you discharge the stack with, so if you use Arcane Missiles then the damage buff hits all of the missiles, not just the first one.
Macro Suggestions
As for macros, I only have one to suggest at this point.
/cancelaura Invisibility
/cast Invisibility
This macro will cancel Invisibility if you already have it on, or it will cast it for you if you do not. You may also want to macro the "/cancelaura Invisibility" portion to other spells to make it easier on you. You don't necessarily need this macro, it just comes in handy. I used it on my first 80 Mage, but I haven't bothered with my new 80. It's up to you whether you use it or not, my play style just doesn't call for it so I don't use it anymore.
Addon Suggestions
For Frost I suggest you grab the ShieldMonitor addon (link to wowinterface.com) so that you can keep track of your Ice Barrier's remaining strength.
I also recommend the MageAlert addon (link to Curse.com) for audio queues that your procs are active. It will help with any mage spec you decide to go with. I have used this addon since I rolled my first Mage back in 2008 and it has served me very well the entire time.
And finally I suggest you grab TidyPlates and its companion addon ThreatPlates to visibly monitor your agro on all of the mobs in the area. When you're using AoE spells it's hard to know which mobs are getting close to coming after you rather than the tank, so these are a huge benefit and I really wish I would have had them while I was leveling.
Talent Points and Glyphs
Frost Spec
Here we're building onto the talent tree we already established in Part III.
Chilled to the Bone +1, 4/5: Increases the damage caused by your Frostbolt, Frostfire Bolt and Ice Lance spells by 4% and reduces the movement speed of all chilled targets by an additional 8%.
Deep Freeze 1/1: [Instant Cast] Stuns the target for 5 seconds. Only usable on Frozen Targets. Deals damage to targets permanently immune to stuns.
Chilled to the Bone +1, 5/5: Increases the damage caused by your Frostbolt, Frostfire Bolt and Ice Lance spells by 5% and reduces the movement speed of all chilled targets by an additional 10%.
Precision +1, 3/3: Reduces the mana cost and increases your chance to hit with spells by 3%.
Improved Frostbolt 5/5: Reduces the casting time of your Frostbolt spell by 0.5 seconds.
Improved Fire Blast 2/2: Reduces the cooldown of your Fire Blast spell by 2 seconds.
We finish of Chilled to the Bone and Precision for their full effects. Deep Freeze is great for questing and killing single mobs, and it's now also very good for fighting bosses since it damages targets that can no longer be stunned. I have not tried it out myself since I haven't switch over to a Frost Raid spec myself, but I do plan on trying it out soon so I can come back and report on it later. We also finally get around to taking Improved Frostbolt since a lot of times we do get forced into fighting single targets and it's better to get them down quickly.
I move us then into the Fire tree for Improved Fire Blast to reduce its cooldown and help us maintain our DPS a bit better for fights that require us to move a lot. The point of going into Fire is to get World in Flames here in a few more levels so that we can get an extra 6% Crit Chance on our Blizzard spells for grinding. Fire doesn't really offer us much beyond that, which is why we'll duck back into Frost afterwards, but again this is when you have AoE grinding in mind, or when you're going to run a lot of dungeons that will make use of your AoE strengths. If you're looking for better performance for end game, you'll most likely be branching off into the Arcane tree instead of Fire.
Special Note
This is the talent build I prefer when leveling as Frost because of my focus on AoE grinding. If you are going for a Frost Raiding spec, then you'll need to do a respec to change up a lot of what we've done in Frost up to this point because Frost was not viable as a Raid spec when I started writing these guides. If you do want to raid as Frost, then I will refer you to the masters of such: SpicyTunas and Frost is the New Black.
Arcane Spec
Arcane Focus 3/3: Increases your chance to hit and reduces the mana cost of your Arcane spells by 3%.
Arcane Subtlety 2/2: Reduces the chance your helpful spells and damage over time effects will be dispelled by 30% and reduces the threat caused by your Arcane spells by 40%.
Arcane Concentration 5/5: Gives you a 10% chance of entering a Clearcasting state after any damage spell hits a target. The Clearcasting state reduces the mana cost of your next damage spell by 100%.
Spell Impact 3/3: Increases the damage of your Arcane Explosion, Arcane Blast, Blast Wave, Fire Blast, Scorch, Fireball, Ice Lance and Cone of Cold spells by an additional 6%.
Focus Magic 1/1: [Instant Cast] Increases the target's chance to critically hit with spells by 3%. When the target critically hits your critical hit chance with spells is increased by 3% for 10 seconds. Cannot be cast on self.
Student of the Mind 1/3: Increases your total Spirit by 4%.
Torment the Weak 3/3: Your Frostbolt, Fireball, Frostfire Bolt, Arcane Missiles, Arcane Blast, and Arcane Barrage abilities deal 12% more damage to snared or slowed targets.
Student of the Mind +2, 3/3: Increases your total Spirit by 12%.
Presence of Mind 1/1: [Instant Cast] When activated, your next Mage spell with a casting time less than 10 seconds becomes an instant cast spell.
Arcane Mind 4/5: Increases your total Intellect by 12%.
Arcane Instability 3/3: Increases the damage done by your spells and your critical strike chance by 3%.
Arcane Potency 2/2: Increases the critical strike chance of your next damaging spell by 30% after gaining Clearcasting or Presence of Mind.
Arcane Power 1/1: [Instant Cast] When activated, your spells deal 20% more damage hwile costing 20% more mana to cast. This effect lasts 15 seconds.
Arcane Empowerment 3/3: Increases the damage of your Arcane Missiles spell by an amount equal to 45% of your spell power and the damage of your Arcane Blast by 9% of your spell power. In addition, when you score a critical hit with Arcane Missiles, Arcane Explosion, Arcane Blast, or Arcane Barrage all party and raid members have all damage increased by 3% for 10 seconds.
Arcane Mind +1, 5/5: Increases your total Intellect by 15%.
Arcane Flows 2/2: Reduces the cooldown of your Presence of Mind, Arcane Power, and Invisibility spells by 30% and the cooldown of your Evocation spell by 2 minutes.
Mind Master 3/5: Increases spell power by 9% of your total Intellect.
Missile Barrage 5/5: Gives your Arcane Blast a 40% chance, and your Arcane Barrage, Fireball, Frostbolt, and Frostfire Bolt spells a 20% chance to reduce the channeled duration of the next Arcane Missiles spell by 2.5 seconds, reduce the mana cost by 100%, and missiles will fire ever 0.5 seconds.
Netherwind Presence 3/3: Increases your spell haste by 6%.
Spell Power 2/2: Increases critical strike damage bonus of all spells by 50%.
Arcane Barrage 1/1: [Instant Cast] Launches several Missiles at the enemy target, causing 936 to 1144 Arcane damage.
Ice Floes 3/3: Reduces the cooldown of your Frost NOva, Cone of Cold, Ice Block, and Icy Veins spells by 20%.
Frostbite 2/3: Gives your Chill effects a 10% chance to freeze the target for 5 seconds.
Precision 3/3: Reduces the mana cost and increases your chance to hit with spells by 3%.
You'll see that a large portion of the Arcane tree is designed around increasing damage or crit rating, either directly or by increasing stats such as Intellect and Spirit which provide those bonuses as well.
We move into the Frost tree after level 60 for some key talents there. Frostbite doesn't help us a whole lot, but since we do occasionally drop into Blizzard mode when running instances it's better than Improved Frostbolt which we'll never cast except to pull, and even then only while we're leveling. Ice Floes on the other hand reduces the cooldown on some of our defensive spells (Frost Nova and Ice Block) and especially Icy Veins which is the whole reason we're going into Frost to begin with, even if we don't have it just yet. Precision provides us with an additional 3% Hit Rating which stacks wit
Special Notes
If you're leveling Arcane from the beginning rather than switch to it at level 64 as I suggest, then you want take Arcane Stability 5/5 rather than Arcane Focus and Arcane Subtlety so that you don't have any pushback on your Arcane Missiles, which is your only real source of Arcane damage up to that point other than Arcane Explosion.
You may also wish to replace the two additional points in Student of the Mind with two points in Improved Counterspell instead, to provide a 4 second silence on your targets. It may be more geared towards PvP, but it also has its uses in Heroics and Raids as well.
Glyphs for Leveling
Major Glyphs: Frost
Evocation: Your Evocation ability also causes you to regain 60% of your health over its duration.
Ice Block: Your Frost Nova cooldown is now reset every time you use Ice Block.
Ice Barrier: Increases the amount of damage absorbed by your Ice Barrier by 30%.
Water Elemental: Reduces the cooldown of your Summon Water Elemental spell by 30 seconds.
Eternal Water: Your Summon Water Elemental now lasts indefinitely, but your Water Elemental can no longer cast Freeze.
Molten Armor: Your Molten Armor grants an additional 20% of your spirit as critical strike rating.
The Glyph of Evocation is invaluable if you are soloing. You can get by without it, but it goes a long way towards reducing your down time to have it.
If you are going to do a lot of AoE grinding, then I suggest you go for Evocation and Ice Block as those will be the most helpful to you at this point.
If you want to do more leveling via dungeon runs, then I suggest you go for Eternal Water and Frostbolt instead, as they will provide you with the largest boost to your DPS. Eternal Water removes one of your best AoE grinding tools, but you can deal with that if you need to. You may also want to swap Frostbolt for Ice Barrier if you plan to solo quest as well as run dungeons to give you more survivability.
If you want to increase your DPS you may also consider Molten Armor at level 62 for increased Crit Rate, though you'll probably get more use out of that at higher levels than you will right now.
Major Glyphs: Arcane
Arcane Blast: Increases the damage from your Arcane Blast buff by 3%. (Requires Level 64)
Arcane Missiles: Increases the critical strike damage bonus of Arcane Missiles by 25%.
Mana Gem: Increases the mana received from using a mana gem by 40%.
Molten Armor: Your Molten Armor grants an additional 20% of your spirit as critical strike rating.
Arcane Blast being your primary nuke and a buff to other Arcane spells, having another 3% damage from the buff can add up real quick. You'll use it at 80 if you stay Arcane, so you might as well get it now.
Arcane Missiles is your second most common nuke spell, and considering the high crit rate that Mages generally have, an extra 25% damage when it happens is great. This is another one you'll use at 80, so grab it now.
Mana Gem I list specifically for leveling purposes, because it is amazing for restoring your mana and thus reducing your downtime. I suggest you pair it up with Arcane Blast if you do take it.
Molten Armor is the third glyph you'll be toting around at level 80, and another worth considering now. Additional crit is never a bad thing. I usually save this one for my level 80 slot, but go with whatever works best for you.
Minor Glyphs: All Mages
Slow Fall: Your Slow Fall spell no longer requires a reagent.
Frost Ward: You have an additional 5% chance to reflect Frost spells while your Frost Ward is active.
Fire Ward: You have an additional 5% chance to reflect Fire spells while your Fire Ward is active.
Mages have crap for minor glyph selection, so the only one I really care for is going to be Slow Fall. Get that one for your first slot at 15 and then fill in the others as they open up with whatever you fill like sticking in there.
I had some other glyphs listed here in the previous articles, but now that you're getting ready to push on into Northrend I'm not going to bother with fluff that provides no real value, so these are the only Minor Glyphs I suggest as they'll likely be what you use at 80. You'll use Frost Ward in ICC for instance, and Fire Ward comes up in Ulduar a time or two, but at least they provide some lasting value at times where others generally do not.
Gearing Up for Spellcasting
Nothing new here at all. Spell Power and Intellect > All, with Hit, Crit, and Stam being next up on the usefulness list.
There are some specific quests I suggest doing for gear upgrades, and several of those are found in Hellfire Peninsula. You can replace most of your armor as well as your staff in Hellfire alone, and for this reason I suggest you go ahead and do almost every quest in the zone, at least until you get the achievement for questing. Overlord/Cruel's Intention and Blacktalon are two of the key quests you want to be sure you complete.
For Nagrand I strongly suggest you get a group together or call on your guild mates to help you out with the Ring of Blood chain for another great staff upgrade. If you're using a BoA Staff then you won't need to upgrade it of course, but it's still a great source of both experience and gold for doing the quest chain, and you can sell the weapon from the final reward if you want to as well.
Suggested Instances
Once you hit level 60 I suggest you run every instance you get the chance to in Outlands. Put yourself in the queue and then get right to questing. When the queue pops go run the dungeon and then put yourself right back into the queue and quest while you wait for the next one to pop. Do that over and over and you'll find yourself hitting 68 in no time and likely a decent set of starting gear as you prepare to head into Northrend as well.
If you have rested experience then dungeons is the best way to burn through it and do so quickly. Not only will you get the rested bonus, you'll also get the group bonus for doing it with a full group. That's enhanced even further of course if you happen to be wearing the heirloom chest (+10% exp), shoulders (+10% exp), and/or ring (+5% exp).


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Avocado Salad
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- 3 Avocados, peeled and sliced-sprinkled with lemon juice
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Mobile money – the use of cell phones for money transfers, payments and more sophisticated financial activities such as credit, savings, and insurance – is increasingly popular in East Africa but could benefit from region-wide rules to coordinate and harmonize regulations, a new UNCTAD study says.
The report, Mobile Money for Business Development in the East African Community: A Comparative Study of Existing Platforms and Regulations, focuses on the East African Community (EAC1) as a way of addressing wider issues raised by mobile money. More than half a billion dollars are transferred in the region using cell phones each month through the largest of a number of commercial services on offer. The practice is burgeoning in developing regions where traditional banks and banking activities are in short supply, and most people lack access to financial services taken for granted in industrialized countries.
The report is available at http://unctad.org/en/PublicationsLibrary/dtlstict2012d2_en.pdf
To ensure that mobile money services bring the desired broad benefits, especially to the poor, governments in the region need to address issues relating to telecommunications and financial regulation, the report says.
The EAC is a world leader in offering mobile money services and hosts more than one quarter of all known such systems in Africa. In a region where most people lack access to formal financial services, mobile phones offer a practical channel for obtaining them (see tables 1 and 2).
Given the pioneering role of the EAC in the field of mobile money, advances there are of particular importance. According to the GSM Association, which tracks mobile money deployments around the world, some 130 mobile money systems have been implemented as of March 2012. Africa has taken the lead in mobile money implementation, with about 60 mobile money services already in place, a quarter (16) of which are in the EAC. Three of the EAC platforms now have more than 1 million active subscribers. M-Pesa, operated by Safaricom of Kenya, is currently the most popular platform. It has 15 million active customers who transfer an estimated $658 million every month. In addition, M-Pesa reports that it has over 37,000 mobile money agents, is linked with 25 banks and can be accessed via 700 automated teller machines (ATMs).
The rapid growth in mobile money services has added urgency to the need for an effective and robust legal and regulatory framework, UNCTAD says. The study provides an overview of the current mobile money landscape in the EAC, describes the status of the regulatory framework in each of the five EAC countries and makes broad recommendations geared for easing access to mobile money services, making the tools offered more useful, and protecting those who use them.
UNCTAD stresses that ensuring the successful growth of mobile money will require heightened coordination and cooperation across various regulatory and market sectors, such as telecommunications, banking and electronic commerce. Building consumer confidence and trust in the systems is essential, the report says. Steps are needed to address concerns related to consumer protection, registration and transaction limits, regulatory collaboration and interoperability, meaning interconnection between telecommunication networks.
The study calls for more harmonization and collaboration at the EAC level in regulating mobile money so that intraregional use of the technology can be expanded – a step that could boost regional economic growth. The report recognizes progress made by the EAC Task Force on Cyberlaws in preparing regional guidelines on electronic transactions, electronic signatures and authentication, data protection and privacy, consumer protection and computer crime2. One option to increase regulatory collaboration around mobile money would be to undertake similar work to promote harmonization in the area of mobile money services, the report says.
1 - Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda and the United Republic of Tanzania.
2 - The Framework for Cyberlaws was adopted by the EAC Sectoral Council of Ministers on Transport, Communications, and Meteorology in 2010. The EAC Task Force has prepared a second Framework dealing with intellectual property rights, competition, taxation and information security.
Table 1. Mobile money snapshot across the East Africaan Community, as at 31 August 2011
Source: UNCTAD field interviews, EAC Communication regulators' websites and United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, World Population Prospects: The 2010 Revision, CD-Rom
Table 2. Categorization of different mobile money services available in the East African Community
Source: Operators websites and UNCTAD field interviews
UNCTAD Communications and Information UnitT: +41 22 917 5828 T: +41 79 502 43 11 E: firstname.lastname@example.com: http://unctad.org/en/pages/Media.aspx
United Nations Conference on Trade and Development
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Ogallala Hypodown Down 800 Fill Power Pillow DescriptionThe Ogallala Hypodown 800 Fill Power Pillow is quite simply the best pillow we have ever seen. First of all, Hypodown is an absolutely unique product. There is nothing else like it. Combining down with Syriaca clusters has been proven in tests by allergists to render the down hypoallergenic. This means that unlike all other down and feather pillows, Hypodown pillows do not require the use of a barrier cover to retain the hypoallergenic properties. In fact, they Hypodown pillows are guaranteed by the manufacturer to not cause an allergic reaction for ten years. Although these pillows are certainly not inexpensive, the savings in eliminating the need for a barrier cover make them far more affordable. Now, on top of all that, these pillows are amazingly comfortable. Pillows with 800 fill power are very rare. This makes them super-light, even when selecting the medium and firm varieties. Highly recommended.
Ogallala Hypodown Down 800 Fill Power Pillow Specification
- What is Hypodown?
o Hypodown is a blend of 80% goose down, 20% Syriaca Clusters
o Syriaca clusters come from the milkweed plant
o The down and syriaca are blended at high speeds to make them inseparable
- Why is Hypodown hypoallergenic?
o Syriaca clusters trap the dust and dander inside the down, so they cannot escape and cause allergies
- Other benefits of Hypodown versus normal down:
o The blending process makes it far more durable than regular down
o More breathable because it wicks moisture away from your body 30% faster than regular down
o Lighter weight allows for better circulation
- 800 Fill power is extremely high. The softest, lightest pillow we've found.
- 312 thread count unbleached, undyed cotton shell
- Shell specially designed to keep the down in the pillow
Standard 20" x 26" Queen 20" x 30" King 20" x 36"


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2012: A Record-Breaking Year for Americas Solar Industry
As most industries across the country slowly climb out of the recession, solar remains one of the fastest growing sectors of the economy. How fast? According to an in-depth report by the US Solar Energy Industries Association and GTM Research, the number of solar installations increased 76% from 2011 to 2012.
Let's break this number down.
The report reveals that in 2012, the U.S. 3.3 GW of total solar capacity. In just one year, the country nearly doubled its photovoltaic (PV) load, which now stands at 7.2 GW (or the equivalent of 7 nuclear reactors). And these installations weren't just for major utility-scale projects. In 2012, roughly 83,000 homeowners decided to go solar—a remarkable feat.
What does 3.3 GW mean in strictly monetary terms? It means going from $8.6 billion to $11.5 billion, making solar 34% more profitable in 2012.
These impressive numbers don't even factor in the downstream benefits of solar's meteoric rise. Just imagine all of the tangential training, employment, and investment opportunities indirectly tied to solar energy.
The sun is both literally and figuratively fueling our nation's economy. And by the end of this year, total installed solar capacity is expected to reach 10 GW.
The Reason Behind America's Solar Boom
There exist any number of ways to explain this fantastic growth:
- With super-storms and global warming, more Americans are becoming serious about the environment
- Better outreach and marketing are helping to make solar a household concept
But the most convincing explanation behind the current solar boom comes down to economics. Fuel prices are on the rise while solar prices are in decline. From 2011 to 2012, for example, the average per-watt cost of a new installation fell from $4.10 to $3.01—a decrease of nearly 27%.
Faced with the decision to pay increasingly high electricity bills versus harnessing free energy from the sun—the choice is easy.
What's truly remarkable is that despite this phenomenal drop in prices, the US solar market's net worth still grew by more than 33%.
Some Surprising Findings of the 2012 Solar Report
When you think of solar potential, Maryland is not a state that immediately comes to mind. But according to the report, it was last year's 8th most active solar market, beating out Texas, New Mexico, and even the Sunshine State (Florida).
Two factors help to explain why this Mid-Atlantic state is quickly emerging as one of the top solar spots in the country.
- Maryland offers some of the most generous solar PV incentives in the U.S.
- Maryland enjoyed the largest PV price decline of any state in the nation (-33%), making solar an attractive option for approximately 11,000 homeowners
While solar may not be an ideal investment for every home or every climate, it's rise in 2012 is historic for the U.S. solar energy industry.
Ryan McNeill is the president of Renewable Energy Corporation, a Maryland solar solutions firm. Ryan frequently contributes to renewable energy publications across the Web as well as Renewable Energy Corporation's solar blog.
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The No. 2 Maryland men's soccer team kicks off its preseason slate with a match at Penn State Tuesday at 7 p.m.
The Terps are ranked second in both the NSCAA and TopDrawerSoccer.com preseason polls heading into the 2013 campaign.
Maryland will play host to St. John's in its lone home exhibition this Saturday at 7 p.m. The squad then heads to the West Coast for a pair of contests at Stanford and California on Aug. 30 and Sept. 1 before returning home for an epic battle against Duke Friday, Sept. 6.
The Terps return seven starters - including MAC Hermann Trophy winner Patrick Mullins - from last year's unit which advanced to the College Cup and won both the ACC regular season and tournament championship.


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National model boat races held in West Valley City
07/13/2013 8:56amDecker Lake drew a lot of visitors Friday as the National Racing Finals of the Model Boat competitions commenced.
Governor calls special session for lawmakers in Swallow investigation
07/13/2013 9:39amThe Utah Legislature is being called into special session Wednesday by Gov. Gary Herbert to clarify issues surrounding the new House committee created to investigate Attorney General John Swallow.
Teen charged with arson in group home fire, police say
07/13/2013 10:05amA 17-year-old boy accused of setting a fire in his room at a group home has been charged with arson.
SLC Airport fire crews practice emergency response after SF plane crash
07/13/2013 12:59pmThe Salt Lake City International Airport has examined and re-evaluated the response time of their emergency crews after the fatal airplane crash in San Francisco.
Summer months drain blood supply; Red Cross seeking donors
07/13/2013 1:27pmNationwide, blood donations to the Red Cross dropped 10 percent from May to June, a seasonal drop resulting in about 50,000 fewer donations than the Red Cross seeks to fill blood needs.
Threatened desert tortoise gets big money for conservation
07/13/2013 3:58pmThe state gets lots of money to help desert tortoises in Washington County as part of an effort to conserve the species. The money will be used to purchase land in the Red Cliffs Desert Reserve, which has been damaged by wildfires.
Semitrailer overturns, spills propane in northeastern Utah
07/13/2013 4:32pmA semitrailer carrying 10,000 gallons of propane toppled in northern Utah near the Wyoming border Saturday, spilling some of the hazardous material on the road. A young couple helped get the driver out of harm's way.
DoD brings some closure to Utah families of missing soldiers
07/13/2013 5:55pmFamily members of missing American servicemen gathered at the Radisson Hotel in Salt Lake City in hopes of getting closure on their loved ones.
Kayaker drowns near Antelope Island, sheriff's office says
07/13/2013 6:37pmA 53-year-old man was found dead near a kayak near Antelope Island State Park Saturday. Officials said the death appeared to be a drowning, but don't know if some unknown medical condition was a factor.
Norman the dog breaks scooter-riding world record
07/13/2013 6:59pmA scooter-riding sheepdog breaks the world record for the fastest ride.
Utahns may get more than $1M in Apple price-fixing settlement
07/13/2013 8:39pmUtah consumers are set to get more than $1 million for their part in an antitrust lawsuit against Apple Inc. and five U.S. publishing houses.
Utah's Sudanese celebrate second year of nation's independence
07/13/2013 9:20pmAround 100 of the South Sudanese community in Utah gathered to celebrate their country's second year of independence by gathering for speeches, dancing and games.
Teen found dead on road near Payson identified
07/13/2013 10:12pmUtah County officials are investigating after a body was found in the middle of a road near Payson Saturday morning.
Homemade explosive forces evacuation of 3 homes
07/13/2013 10:31pmA homeowner looking to evict some tenants found more than he expected to find: A homemade explosive.
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Visitors love to come to Ashland, and that means many residents end up playing bed-and-breakfast owner, unpaid maid and tour guide to all the friends and relatives who descend upon their homes.
Most Ashlanders also love to travel, meaning they may find themselves in the role of guest in another person's home.
"The Art of the Visit: Being the Perfect Host, Becoming the Perfect Guest," by Kathy Bertone, is a handy guide to navigating these roles with grace.
The book is divided into two parts, with the first half offering tips on how to be a good host.
While Bertone seems to relish the role of host more than most, she still acknowledges that having house guests can feel like a home invasion.
Being prepared and making guests feel welcome and comfortable can ease the anxiety, she writes.
Her practical tips include making sure that sheets are freshly laundered, providing a variety of pillows (flat and fluffy), making some room for guests' items in closets and drawers, putting a night light in bathrooms and providing books, especially ones about local attractions.
Avoid putting loud ticking clocks in guest bedrooms, have toiletries for guests, use liquid soap in bathrooms instead of a slimy bar of used soap and, for your outdoorsy guests, have insect repellent and sunscreen available.
One often overlooked courtesy is to move your vehicle so guests can park in your driveway or in front of your house, thus avoiding long treks with heavy luggage.
While opinions differ on whether to schedule events for the visit, Bertone recommends making a flexible plan for practically everything, from outings to meals to who will handle the dishes and other household chores.
She also notes that you don't have to spend every minute with your guests. Everyone enjoys some alone time, and a break from each other will leave everyone refreshed and with more patience.
I approached the second half of Bertone's book with some trepidation.
With warm, welcoming and generous relatives living on the Oregon Coast and in Central Oregon, I confess to being a serial moocher of the free lodging they offer. Yet I always feel a bit guilty about taking advantage of their generosity.
Luckily, I found out I'm not the world's worst house guest, and that I generally follow good guest rules — although there's always room for improvement.
Always try to arrive on time, call if you will be delayed, and give your host a warning call about an hour before you arrive. A small gift will help show your appreciation, Bertone writes.
She recommends keeping all your stuff inside the guest bedroom with the door closed, rather than letting your junk clutter up the host's house. Pack appropriately, remembering that you are not moving in with all your belongings, but be sure to bring essentials and the things that will make you comfortable.
Always offer to help, even if the answer will be "no," and if you can, sneak in some secret chores, such as pulling weeds in the garden.
Pick up after yourself when you are packing to go, and leave the guest bedroom and bathroom as clean — or cleaner — as when you first arrived.
Finally, send a thank-you note after you're back home, preferably by snail mail rather than email, to let your hosts know how much you appreciated their hospitality.
Reach reporter Vickie Aldous at 541-479-8199 or firstname.lastname@example.com.
Being the perfect host, becoming the perfect guest
Visitors love to come to Ashland, and that means many residents end up playing bed-and-breakfast owner, unpaid maid and tour guide to all the friends and relatives who descend upon their homes.