text:
Cha, cha, 1, 2, 3."
"Cha, cha, 2, 2, 3."
"Cha, cha, 3, 2, 3."
I said it out loud, over and over. In just 30 minutes, I'd be onstage before 375 people, performing a six-minute cha-cha routine with a man I'd partnered with just that afternoon.
My legs were shaking. Before I'd arrived at Dance Camp Las Vegas four days earlier, I'd never done the cha-cha. Now I had to step and turn and spin and wave my arms dramatically while keeping a smile glued on my face, even if I screwed up. ("Smile, ladies," ordered our Ukrainian instructor, Artem Plakhotnyi. "Always smile.")
Would I forget a step? Would I fall? Would I run off the dance floor in shame?
I love dancing, but I'm by no means a dancer. This isn't for lack of trying on my parents' part. They'd been big dancers when I was a girl, turning the basement of our home in Queens into a party room, complete with a full bar and neon lights, where they and their friends danced salsa, merengue and cumbia well into the mornings. But I moved out of our largely Latino neighborhood 17 years ago and haven't kept up with my salsa. My only hope now was that dance boot camp had made me a better hoofer than I was before.
After all, if the Karate Kid could learn how to do a sexy salsa number on "Dancing With the Stars" last season, why couldn't I pull off a similar move?
In case you hadn't noticed, the country's gone dance crazy. It's not just the popularity of shows like "DWTS" and "So You Think You Can Dance?" Nowadays, there are dance-themed cruises and dance camps nationwide to help you learn how to hoof it like Fred and Ginger. (Or pale — and probably ponderous — approximations thereof, anyway.) I'd caught the fever, but could I corral my feet?
At the four-day Mastery Camp by Dance Vision at the Paris Las Vegas hotel, classes ran from 8 a.m. to about 6:30 p.m. each day, with a 90-minute lunch break. The selection of dance styles went on and on: rumba, mambo, international and American tango, East Coast swing, quickstep, international and American waltz. I'd never even heard of some of the dances.
The day before our closing-night performance, I'd been on the verge of giving up. My feet had inflated as much as my confidence had deflated. In practice, I'd miscounted and started the second half of the routine too early, throwing off our timing. Our instructor, Inna Berlizyeva, a lithe blond Ukrainian, had made us redo it multiple times. Seven other couples would be performing with us, and I didn't want to let them down.
After practice, I'd run into Ron Davidson, a longtime dancer from central Pennsylvania, who tried to pump up my confidence. "Everyone up there messes up. The main thing to do is to keep going," he counseled. His pep talk had worked — but only briefly. As showtime approached, I was losing my nerve again.
My new partner, Mark Brown, an always-grinning 50-something Texan, was trying to calm me down.
Apparently, I was over-rotating the spin that starts the second part of the routine. Instead of ending up directly in front of Mark, I was landing two to three steps to his right. He had to take a few steps toward me so that we'd be facing each other for the second half of the routine. It didn't look graceful at all. We practiced my spin several times before our performance. So many times that I got dizzy. Then my shoe slipped off, and I almost fell.
We came up with a plan. When it was time for me to start my turn, he'd squeeze my hand to let me know it was time to go and thrust me forward. Then I would do one and a half revolutions — fewer than I'd been doing — so that I'd land in front of him.
"Will you catch me if I fall?" I asked Mark.
"Don't worry. I'll catch you."
He wrapped his hand around mine. Places, please.
The dancing started immediately at the opening-night reception at Dance Vision's camp. I ended up at a table with Ron. He was an "ambassador," someone who'd been to the camp at least five times and was now tapped to welcome newbies like me.
"Everyone starts with two left feet," he said, looking dapper in a maroon tie and crisp black pants. "If you can't do something, sit it out. There's no caste system among ballroom dancers."
That night, I sat out most of the songs, even though a few people asked to get on my dance card. Then Ron grabbed my arms and dragged me to the floor to show me the box step, the most basic move in dancing. "You have to get this down," he said. "It's the basis of everything."
I tried to follow his lead, but clearly, I had my work cut out for me.
It wasn't even 8 a.m., and many of our instructors were wearing sequins. But then, this was Vegas.
Kasia Kozak, a fierce-looking, well-toned dancer in a hot pink shirt with matching highlights in her hair, led us through the beginners' level of Ladies' Latin technique. We tapped our heels together and swayed from side to side. We balanced on the balls of our feet, then on our toes. We segued into the box step.
"Your feet are slaves to your legs," she said. "Think of the foot as the tire and the leg as the wheel. Your tire does not move without the wheel."
Next was East Coast swing. Inna and Artem, the Ukrainian power couple, were our instructors. First they demonstrated the dance. Their bodies moved effortlessly, blending into each other at all the right moments. "It's easy," Inna said. Easy for her to say.
"Triple step, triple step, rock step," she shouted when it was time for us to try it. The women outnumbered the men, so we ladies had to be aggressive and grab partners before others did. I managed to lasso one guy who looked almost twice my age. "You're forgetting your rock step," my partner told me.
I moved on to the next guy, who was only slightly younger. "You're having trouble with swings," he said.
East Coast swing was clearly not my thing. Neither was the American fox trot. I glided backward down the ballroom, pulling my partner too hard. So hard that we almost fell.
Donald Johnson, our instructor, made everyone stop and then singled me out as an example of what not to do.
"You're going too fast," he scolded me. "If you step first and he steps on you, whose fault is that? Yours."
By the time I got to tango class, I had a full-blown migraine.
"Come with me," Lynn Magnaye whispered. We sneaked out of the room.
Lynn was a Canadian dance instructor taking classes for her certification. "It's too much," she said. "Too long of a day."
She advised me to pick and choose the dances I wanted to learn rather than try to learn them all. Then she looked down at my sneakers and told me that I needed better shoes. Of course, there was a vendor on site selling real dance shoes, the kind you see contestants wearing on "DWTS."
I tried a few on but they were either too tight or too loose, or, frankly, too ugly. The vendor stared at my feet. "Your feet are shaped weird," he told me.
Apparently, having two left feet was the least of my problems.
"This is a sexy dance," Inna said as she and Artem demonstrated the bolero. "You have to feel the man."
They looked deeply into each other's eyes as they breezed through the routine. I felt like a voyeur watching them. When the music stopped, they couldn't disengage from each other because their belt buckles had gotten entangled. The room erupted in laughter.
Now it was our turn. They separated the men from the women and showed each of us our steps. Then they had us pick partners. I chose Ray Wiedmeyer, whose wife I'd befriended in an earlier class.
"I have such a hard time with the bolero," he said.
I was thrilled to hear someone else admit to having trouble with a dance.
"Slow, quick, quick, slow," Inna directed.
Ray wasn't moving his leg far enough back, which made it hard for me to take my two quick steps to the right. And when it was time for us to turn, I missed the timing and turned during the slow step when I was supposed to do it during the two quick steps.
"Sorry," I said to Ray.
"Don't worry, it's me, too," he replied.
By the end of class, I was starting to get the steps right. Then I breezed through mambo class. My confidence was growing. Until I got to international waltz.
The room was packed and my partner was spinning me around so much that I got dizzy, lost my balance and bumped into another couple. It wasn't just me, though. We looked like a roomful of human bumper cars.
Donald stopped us to give us a pep talk, of sorts.
"I know this seems tedious, but I'm planting the seeds," he said. "Let them germinate. Muscle memory. You have to do something 10,000 times to master it."
He paused and surveyed the crowd. "Yes, we have a long way to go," he declared.
I had a very long way to go with my cha-cha routine. At the first practice, I couldn't even get the basic steps down; then, during each session, Inna and Artem added more moves. I needed help, so I texted Lynn that second night of camp.
"Show me what you can do," she said when I arrived at her hotel room.
I performed the first steps of the routine. Rock step back, cha-cha to the left, cha-cha to the right, rock step forward. Repeat. Then side step with arms up high.
"Okay, stop," she said. I was too stiff, she told me.
"Seduce your partner. The cha-cha is a flirty dance. You step to the side, you're saying, 'Here I am.' Then you step forward with your left leg. You're saying 'This is what I've got.' Then you step back. You're saying 'I'm taking it away.' Dance is all about lies. It's all about illusion."
Somehow, it all started to make sense.
On the final day, our schedule was once again packed with classes, but my mind was only on the cha-cha.
Annette Gadberry, a flight attendant from Texas who'd become my closest friend at camp, was also standing on the sidelines at most of the classes. She was at the camp with her husband, who takes ballroom dance classes regularly back home. Annette was undecided about performing the cha-cha that night, even though she'd been practicing all week.
"If you do it, I'll do it," she said over lunch.
"If you do it, I'll do it," I repeated.
I returned to practice determined to get through my routine. First, I'd get rid of my partner, who was impatient and unfriendly. I ended up with Mark after his more experienced partner agreed to switch with me. I'd met Mark a couple of days earlier, during American waltz. As usual, I'd been struggling with the routine and had sat down. When class was over, he grabbed my arms. "Don't pay attention to the instructors," he told me. "Let's just waltz." After his tutorial, I found myself waltzing correctly.
Ninety minutes before showtime, I went to Lynn's room for a final rehearsal and some primping.
"Why am I doing this?" I asked, as she curled my hair.
"Because you're spreading your wings," she replied. "Remember that you're in a group, and no one is looking at just you. Even the professionals get butterflies."
I looked in the mirror. My hair looked great. Now if only my routine would.
It was chaotic backstage as we tried to line up in the proper order. One woman was missing. Another dancer in my group was calmly drinking a glass of white wine and offered me a sip. As tempted as I was to gulp it down to calm my nerves, I worried that it would make me lose my balance.
When the announcer gave us our cue, Mark squeezed my hand. I tried to smile, but managed just a weak grin. I lifted my arm and walked onto the dance floor as confidently as I could.
Mark counted out the routine for me the entire time and never stopped smiling. I kept my eyes on him, not on the crowd.
Then the music stopped. I'd been a bit stiff, but I hadn't fallen, and I hadn't given up.
I listened to the applause. And then I smiled.
For real this time.


text:
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
Khronos Releases WebCL 1.0, EGL 1.5 And SYCL 1.2 Specifications
WebCL 1.0 supports OpenCL 1.1 Embedded Profile functionality and can also be layered over any conformant OpenCL 1.1 or OpenCL 1.2 implementation. The final WebCL 1.0 specification are available for immediate download at: https://www.khronos.org/webcl.
WebCL 1.0 features and utilities include:
The WebCL 1.0 specification is the result of feedback from the Web community based on the public working draft and the Khronos WebCL Working Group, including; Adobe, AMD, Aptina, ARM, Google, Imagination Technologies, Mozilla, Intel, Nokia, NVIDIA, Opera Software, Samsung, and Qualcomm.
The second set of specifications released today by the Khronos Group is the SYCL 1.2. SYCL is a royalty-free, cross-platform abstraction layer that enables the development of applications and frameworks that build on the underlying concepts, portability and efficiency of OpenCL, while adding the flexibility of C++. For example, SYCL can provide single source development where C++ template functions can contain both host and device code to construct complex algorithms that use OpenCL acceleration - and then enable re-use of those templates throughout the source code of an application to operate on different types of data.
The SYCL 1.2 provisional specification supports OpenCL 1.2 and has been released to enable the community of OpenCL developers to provide feedback before the specification is finalized.
"Developers have been requesting C++ for OpenCL to help them build large applications quickly and efficiently and there are lots of useful C++ libraries that want to port to OpenCL," said Andrew Richards, CEO at Codeplay and chair of the SYCL working group. "SYCL makes this possible and we are looking forward to the community feedback to help drive the final release and future roadmap. We are especially keen to work with C++ library developers who want to accelerate their libraries using the performance of OpenCL devices."
SYCL 1.2 features include:
The EGL 1.5 specification. EGL is a royalty-free standard that defines a portable interface to underlying operating system and display platforms to handle graphics context management, surface and buffer binding, and rendering synchronization. EGL also provides interop capability to enable efficient transfer of data and events between Khronos APIs. The new EGL 1.5 specification incorporates functionality for enhanced rendering flexibility and security, improved interop between OpenGL or OpenGL ES and OpenCL for mixed compute and rendering acceleration, and standardized support for multiple common operating systems including Android and 64-bit platforms. The EGL 1.5 specification, header files and links to feedback forums are available at: www.khronos.org/egl.
GL 1.5 Features

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Saa7162 devices
In March 2005, Philips Semiconductors announced "the industry's first integrated PCI Express dual global video and stereo decoder for digital home PC desktops and notebooks" (press release). The new analog decoder chip, the saa7162, uses the increased bandwidth of the PCI Express bus to capture to two simultaneous analog channels of live tv or baseband video (cf. product flyer) or up to four independent simultaneous digital TV streams (cf. http://www.nxp.com/acrobat_download/literature/9397/75015302.pdf Philips/NXP SAA7162 data sheet]).
According to Philips' reference design, there's a Linux driver; someone needs to e-mail Philips to get it.
The PCI-SIG lists SAA7162 (dual A/V decoder) and SAA7160/SAA7161 (multimedia A/V bridge) as PCIe devices. The CX23885/6/7/8, found on some of these cards, are also PCIe chips.
DNTV PCI Express cards
- DNTV Live! Dual Hybrid PCI Express (a rebadge of the FlyTV Express MST-T2A2EX)
- DNTV Live! QuattroS PCI Express
Philips PCV290
Dual DVB-T and Dual DVB-S Reference Design
Uses 2xTDA8263 DVB-S Tuner, 1 x TDA10093 Dual Channel DVB-S channel decoder, 2xTDA8275A DVB-T Tuner, 2xTDA10046A DVB-T channel decoder, 1xSAA7162E TV video/audio decoder/PCI express interface)
KWorld PCI Express Hybrid
An early example of a card that uses the saa7162 decoder chip is this hybrid card, which also supports Intel's serial digital video out (SDVO):
See product page.
(Someone needs to tell them it's hybrid, not hybird!)


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Rescuers and The Rescuers Down Under, The (US - BD)
Gabe revisits a personal favourite and its decent sequel for the first time on Blu-ray
The Rescuers
After receiving a panicked plea for help (in the form of an old fashioned message in a bottle) from an orphan named Penny (Michelle Stacy), The Rescue Aid Society, a tiny, mouse-run multi-country organization beneath the United Nations, springs into action. Hungarian representative Miss Bianca (Eva Gabor) volunteers herself and a shy assistant named Bernard (Bob Newhart) to journey to 'The Devil's Bayou' to solve the case. Soon they find the kidnapped girl in the evil clutches of Madame Medusa (Geraldine Page), her clumsy business partner Mr. Snoops (Joe Flynn) and her loyal alligator henchmen, Brutus and Nero.
The Rescuers gets my vote for the most undervalued animated feature in the Disney canon. It's not exactly 'underrated,' as I've never heard a particularly negative reaction to it in my life, it's just easily forgotten by the mainstream in favour of the original classics, like Snow White and Cinderella, or flashy, modern classics, like The Little Mermaid and The Lion King. Disney historians and a relatively small gang of fans (myself included) tend to be the only people that really recognize the archival value of the film. The Rescuers was released in the middle of a very dark period in Disney's history, both in terms of popularity and quality of animated output. Following the success of The Jungle Book in 1967, the last film to have personal input from Walt Disney himself, they released two of their worst and cheapest productions – The Aristocats (1970) and Robin Hood (1973). History has been kinder to both films than expected, but for some time they were considered massive failures (neither is really very good). The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh was generally better received, but The Rescuers was 1977's bigger animated release (including a huge opening weekend box-office take) and, briefly, Disney was back on the rise. But The Rescuers proved instead to be only an island, not a true return to form and the following decade-plus was pocked with more money-losing mediocrities like, The Fox and the Hound (1981), The Black Cauldron (1985), The Great Mouse Detective (1986), and Oliver & Company (1988). Finally, in 1989, The Little Mermaid was released and started a second Golden Age of Disney animation.
I understand the criticism occasionally levied against the film's darker tone and frightening bits with the serious threat of child abuse. There are definitely some things about the film that mark it as more adult-oriented than most Disney animated features; but that's not really a problem, considering the constant growth of Disney's audience and the fact that adults continue watching them into their older age. Lady and the Tramp and 101 Dalmatians are the only other two movies in the studio's Silver Age that match it in terms of 'adult' drama, themes, and relationships. Bernard and Bianca are, at their base, still talking mice in adorably tiny clothes, but their interactions aren't entirely simplified for a younger audience and their dialogue is refreshingly natural, almost as if it hasn't even been scripted. Their budding relationship is among the most endearing in film animation, without sacrificing the major plotline, or the taut time period allotted for an animated feature. The character work benefits from some unexpected, but not overstated, quirk as well. Bernard's nebbish, superstitious attitude, Bianca's flirty nature (both trademarks of the Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor, respectfully), and the fact that Penny isn't really afraid of the giant alligators (she even calls them by name) are all examples of unexpected twists on very Disney-esque character tropes.
The Rescuers was co-directed by Wolfgang Reitherman (better known as Woolie) and John Lounsbery, both member of the studio's famed 'Nine Old Men.' This gives it a certain animation pedigree that started to die off (literally) at the onset of the 1980s. The animation shows signs of technical frailty, thanks to kinks in the still relatively new Xerographic process, but the characterizations aren't lost in the sketchy lines or minor painting artefacts. To the contrary, Bernard, Bianca, Medusa, and Mr. Snoops are among the most expressive and dramatic characters in the studio's repertoire. The action set pieces are more hit-and-miss, especially when the animators are aiming more for serious danger; the more comedy-laced action, like the bit where the alligators force Bernard out of a pipe organ by smashing the instrument's keys, hold up quite well. The hippy-dippy original songs – written by Sammy Fain, Carol Connors and Ayn Robbins, and performed by Shelby Flint – haven't aged too well, but mostly date the film in a positive, nostalgic manner, rather than invoking eye-rolls.
The Rescuers Down Under
While adventuring in the Australian Outback, a young boy named Cody (Adam Ryen) rescues and befriends a rare golden eagle named Marahute (a non-speaking role, for some reason), who returns the favour by showing him her nest and eggs. Later, Cody falls into an animal trap set by an evil poacher named Percival C. McLeach (George C. Scott). McLeach finds one of the eagle's feathers attached to the boy's backpack and reveals that he has already killed Marahute's mate. Excited to capture another valuable golden eagle, McLeach kidnaps Cody and tosses his backpack to the crocodiles in hopes of tricking the local Rangers into assuming he was eaten. However, the mouse Cody was trying to save from McLeach's trap witnesses the kidnapping and runs off to alert the Rescue Aid Society, who employs their top agents, Bernard and Miss Bianca (once again voiced by Bob Newhart and Eva Gabor).
The Rescuers Down Under started the now long-running tradition of sequelizing the studio's biggest hits. It remains a rarity, however, because it had a huge budget and was theatrically released. If memory serves, the only other directed animated sequels to see a theatrical release were Return to Never Land in 2002 and The Jungle Book II in 2003. It's probably no coincidence that the included behind-the-scenes featurette on this disc sees the filmmakers putting huge emphasis on the film's technical achievements. The Rescuers Down Under is a big technical achievement for sure, especially for being the first traditionally animated feature to be entirely digitally coloured and composited. The effect has become the mainstay, but was super new and super exciting at the time of release. Even apart from the technological additions, the basic animation is fantastic throughout. The characters are full of life, both in natural and caricatured terms, and they all blend with their backgrounds quite smoothly. The scale of the film is especially impressive, as scene after scene, tiny critters are set against backdrops that would dwarf a full-sized human. Sadly, the bevy of entirely digitally-created set pieces aren't nearly as successful as they'd be in future CG-enhanced animated productions or even 1986's The Great Mouse Detective[I]. These are the one animation element that still dates the film.
There's a sense that [I]Rescuers Down Under was put into production for the sake of experimenting with this technology and that the plot is secondary. Storytelling can be quite effective within the confines of a single scene, working best when words aren't even being spoken (the sequence where word of Cody's kidnapping reaches the Rescue Aid Society is wonderful), but, as a whole, the narrative momentum and merging is off. Bianca and Bernard's relationship isn't sacrificed too much for the sake of more action, but bumps in the road are mostly made up of forgotten side plots, like an extended sequence where Cody hangs out with some of McLeach's captured animals, only to be released anyway as a ruse on the poacher's part. None of the animals he meets are ever seen again. Other good examples of the film working better in parts are found in the funnier moments, like a mid-film subplot involving Wilbur the albatross' brief stint in a sadistic mouse infirmary. These scenes are quite amusing, thanks in no small part to John Candy's performance, but have no bearing on the rest of the story and are quickly forgotten as Wilbur escapes to coincidentally run into our heroes again – only to be forgotten a second time (which pays off in the form of a last minute, pre-credit gag).
I was a bit nervous that cramming both films on a single Blu-ray would lead to some compression issues, but there aren't any major problems with this 1.66:1 transfer. I can't imagine anyone having major complaints concerning this transfer, unless they're uncomfortable with the original material showing its age. The Rescuers isn't one of the studio's cleanest features, thanks to the sketchy nature of the '60s and '70s era Xerographic process and a somewhat limited budget (the studio clearly recycled character designs between this and The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh to save a buck). The flaws in the illustration and frame paint are clear for the world to see in 1080p, along with a steady sheen of film grain. The clarity here is so impressive that you can see the shadows occasionally cast by the cells over the painted backgrounds. Occasionally some unintended texture appears in the form of dirt and dust on the frame. Most of these appear to be related to dirt on the animation cells, however, not actual print damage.
The Rescuers Down Under is also presented in 1.66:1, 1080p video and its relatively recent vintage helps ensure it looks a bit more impressive overall than the first film in HD. It's not an entirely perfect transfer; there are issues with thin haloes on the high contrast edges and some dirty bits of film, but even without a big digital overhaul, the 1080p qualities this film looks sizably better than any DVD release. The then-new digitally assisted colouring process allowed the animators to include more consistent blends and overall hue vibrancy. The clarity of the transfer allows these consistent and vibrant colours better separation and deepens the visual field to the film's intended, pseudo-3D depths. The sharper details lead to more animation-related artefacts the filmmakers would likely prefer we didn't notice, like rough cell edges and dirt, but these, along with a basic film of grain, are part of the 'shot on film' process and should not be considered a negative against the transfer. Black levels are plenty sharp as well without absorbing too much of the surrounding hues.
There aren't any specific errors in The Rescuers' DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 mix, Disney has just set themselves a high enough bar in the field of audio restoration that minor inconsistencies stand out. Their animated releases are among the only films that have ever been naturally modernized into a 5.1 arena thanks in large part to the studio's habit of archiving material. The problem here is less in weird stereo and surround effects (of which there are a few) or even dialogue and effects leaking out of the center channel; the problem is almost exclusively an issue of volume consistency. Volume levels bob up and down in a few key places and some of the performances are muddled against effects noise. Directional enhancement is limited mostly to some choice bits of boat noise (both human and mouse size) and gurgling water effects. The musical score is definitely crisp and benefits the most from the 5.1 remix.
The Rescuers Down Under benefits from being made in the digital audio age. This disc's producers didn't have to do much of anything to match modern audio surround standards, making this DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1's uncompressed nature its best quality. The stereo and surround channels are mostly utilized to create an immersive quality (the storm that accompanies the climax, for example), not so much for the sake of directional effects, but ambience is still quite strong for type and the occasional center to left or right movement. The LFE track features some strong creature effect support, especially the snorting razorback Bernard procures for his big rescue. Bruce Broughton's big, exciting score almost nothing like the original film's score and carries the film over its massive vistas with genuine majesty. The score cuts through the effects without competing with them and features plenty of stereo and surround endowment.
The extras, which cover both films, include 'Peoplitis,' a deleted Rescuers song sung by Louie Prima (4:40, HD), Three Blind Mouseketeers Silly Symphony short (8:50, SD), Water Birds: A Walt Disney True Life Adventure (30:40, HD), 'Someone's Waiting for You' Sing-Along (2:10, HD), The Making Of The Rescuers Down Under (10:30, SD), and trailers for other Disney releases.
The Rescuers is still among Disney's most unique and satisfying animated pictures. The animation is a bit rough, but the story is tight and the themes more mature than we're taught to expect from the studio. The Rescuers Down Under is a bit sloppy in story, but is an underestimated technical achievement for Disney and a pretty good follow-up to the original film. It's actually quite nice to have both films in one place without paying the usual two-release price. Both films look and sound about as good as can be expected in HD, minus the double film status creating any major compression effects. Extras are lacking, unless, like me, you're willing to accept the inclusion of the second film as a supplement itself.
* Note: The above images are taken from the Blu-ray and resized for the page. Full-resolution captures are available by clicking individual images, but due to .jpg compression they are not necessarily representative of the quality of the transfer. Thanks to Troy at Andersonvision.com for the Blu-ray screen-caps.
Review by Gabriel Powers
DV20 Member Join Date: July 2012 Location: United States Posts: 36
I like both of them, but I have to say the sequel in my opinion is better. Because the animation is breath-taking, the music is up roaring, and the sets and characters aren't cheesy like the first movie, or most of Disney's other features.
All ages admitted
Disc Details
Release Date: 21st August 2012
Discs: 3
Disc Type: Blu-ray Disc
RCE: No
Video: 1080p
Aspect: 1.66:1
Anamorphic: No
Colour: No
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 English, Dolby Digital 5.1 Spanish and French
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Extras: 'Peoplitis' Deleted Song, Silly Symphony Short, Disney True-Life Adventure, Sing-Along, The Making of The Rescuers Down Under, DVD Copies
Easter Egg: No
Feature Details
Director: Wolfgang Reitherman, John Lounsbery, Art Stevens, Hendel Butoy, Mike Gabriel
Cast: Bob Newhart, Eva Gabor, Michelle Stacy, Geraldine Page, Joe Flynn, John Candy, Tristan Rogers, Adam Ryen, George C. Scott
Genre: Action, Adventure, Animation and Comedy
Length: 156 minutes
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Our Media, Not Theirs
The Kansas City Public Library hosts Nation magazine columnist John Nichols for a critique of mainstream media outlets during a program called Our Media, Not Theirs on Friday, October 3, at 7 p.m. at the Central Library, 14 W. 10th St.
Nichols is the Washington correspondent for The Nation, the oldest weekly journal published in the United States and self-described "flagship of the left." His articles have appeared in The Progressive, In These Times, The New York Times, and The Chicago Tribune. Nichols is also co-founder of Free Press, a media reform network.
This program will be preceded by a video address from Senator Claire McCaskill as well as Federal Communications Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein.
Admission is free. Click here or call 816.701.3668 to RSVP. Free parking is available in the Library District Parking Garage at 10th and Baltimore.
As part of Media Reform Week, this program is sponsored by Friends of Community Media as well as the ACLU/KC Metro Chapter, American Friends Service Committee, Common Cause, Cross Border Network, UMKC Department of Communications Studies, Free Press, Heartland Labor Forum, Kansas City for Ranked Choice Voting, KC Iraq Task Force, 90.1 FM KKFI Kansas City Community Radio, MAINstream Coalition, Media Watch, Missouri Association of Social Welfare, Peace Works, ReclaimDemocracy.org – Kansas City Chapter, Social Workers for Peace and Social Justice, Shalom Catholic Worker House, The Greens of Kansas City, and The Nation.


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Elite media – the biggest Super Bowl losers
The New England Patriots and their fans were unfortunately disappointed at the outcome of the game on Super Bowl Sunday. The contest could have gone either way. But both the Giants and the Patriots had a major win. They prevailed over the so-called elite media.
In their relentless campaign to sensationalize newsworthy and not-so-newsworthy events and create controversy whenever possible, big media lost badly when they focused their efforts on pitting the Patriots against the Giants in a trash-talking verbal battle.
Tom Brady and Eli Manning are too classy and too gentlemanly to allow cliché-spewing, grammatically inept sports reporters suck them into the gutter by baiting them to make even the smallest unsportsmanlike comments.
The best the big papers could claim was quoting Tom Brady at a Foxboro pep rally when he said, "Hopefully we have a lot more people at our party next weekend" – trash talk in its mildest form.
On the other side of the ball, Giants' safety Antrel Rolle was quoted as saying, "We're going to win this thing." Not exactly words that warrant drawn pistols and swords.
Before the game, players from both teams showed tremendous respect for each other by saying things like, "They're a great football team. It's going to be a tough game," and "It will be close; nobody's going to walk off the field with a huge win." Those remarks and similar comments came from both players and coaches of the Pats and Giants. Brady and Manning had nothing but praise for one another's abilities.
In my opinion, that was the greatest win of the day. The Super Bowl was a respectable contest between two first-class teams that gave fans their money's worth. As hard as the dreaded media tried, they couldn't succeed in dragging the teams and the sport into their vitriolic sewer.
It's too bad that our country's politicians can't follow the Pats and Giants example. The elite media is having a field day covering the caucuses for the upcoming presidential election. It is what they do best.
After reading reports from the biggest papers in New York, Washington, Miami and Boston, I have yet to find any verbiage that covers anything of substance that the candidates said. Not one report gave readers a reason to consider electing a candidate.
One paper did report that Mitt Romney made comments about how Mr. Obama did not live up to his promises of turning the economy around, and that he (Romney) would rectify the country's economic problems if he were elected president. As good as that sounded, he never said anything about how he planned to accomplish that task. If he did, his methodology was not reported.
Apparently, the only news worth reporting at any of the caucuses was the personal mudslinging and caustic remarks made by the candidates in their efforts to discredit one another. If the media moguls were sent licking their proverbial wounds from the Super Bowl for lack of sensationalized news, the political arena certainly filled that void.
One would think that our country's leaders have done enough to weaken our image in the eyes of the world. Big media doesn't seem to think so. They love to air our dirty laundry to make the land of the free look like the land of the immature and confused.
The media has done such a thorough job of making the Republican candidates look like a consortium of buffoons, that when election time mercifully rolls around, the candidates will be lucky to even be considered as worthy of running. The infighting in the party as reported by the press is so intense that party unity appears to be a grossly overrated concept.
When a candidate finally emerges to represent the Republican Party, do they really think that the public will believe the party is no longer dysfunctional after the drubbing it suffered from the press during the primaries?
The pre-election coverage is unconscionable. What happened to the concept that defined the duties of the news media as a resource that informed and educated its readers and viewers about issues and events that affected their lives?
That's why I like writing for local newspapers. They are not obsessed with making news at any cost. They still attempt to sell accurate information.
Nonetheless, kudos to the Patriots and Giants for a major win over the insufferable vermin that comprises big media.


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Before you think about where you want to go to college, think about what you want to do after you graduate. What kinds of things do you enjoy? Are you a people person? Do you like to travel? Do you have any special talents? Discover the careers that will make the most of what you enjoy doing and lead you to the life you want.
Find a career you love,
get great experience
and nail the interview.
What are the fastest growing careers in Indiana?
Looking for real-world experience? The search starts here.
Are you career ready?
Take a career interests survey.
For teachers, counselors and community partners.
Start a campaign in your school or community! Posters, lesson plans and event guides will help you organize college and career planning activities for students.


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Welcome to the spinning section of Interweave.com. For over 40 years, our mission has been to bring you into the exciting world of spinning fiber, handspun yarn, tools and trends with a focus on fun. We bring you expert advice from the spinning community's most trusted contributors plus our own top-notch magazine editors.
If you're looking for a passionate group of fiber enthusiasts, the contributors and editors at Interweave have got you covered. We live and breathe spinning in all its wonderful forms. There is nothing we'd rather do than spread the word about this art and to provide you with the inspiration and instruction to make your spinning the best it can be.


text: Direct discussion By Christopher Hosford. Published on June 11, 2012. To take the pulse of the direct and database marketing industry, BtoB East Coast Bureau Chief Christopher Hosford conducted a virtual roundtable, with executives from leading direct marketing ad agencies, to talk about how marketers can gain better customer insights that give better direct marketing results. Participating in the virtual roundtable were Lauren Goldstein, VP-strategic planning, Babcock & Jenkins, Portland, Ore.; Dimitri Maex, managing director, OgilvyOne, New York; Michael McLaren, president-MRM East, New York; and Billy Mitchell, president-senior creative director, MLT Creative, Atlanta. BtoB: Given today's digital marketing environment, what is direct marketing to you? Billy Mitchell: It still comes back to listening first and offering well-timed suggestions and personalization. In fact, the phone is still the most valuable technology in b-to-b marketing for lead quality and generation. It all still comes down to a conversation and having great listening skills. Direct marketing is self-defining: It's the right information at the right time to the right person. Lauren Goldstein: Back in the day, the notion of a targeted, personalized experience was called junk mail. It wasn't considered real marketing even though it was accountable. Now we've come full circle. Our clients are very aware of statistics, especially the one that says that 70% of a buyer's journey is complete before sales gets involved. So buyers are expecting personalized experiences—and that the company knows what business they're in and their challenges. The other scientific part of this is marketing automation. It's not an option anymore. People get it. You need the right tools to accomplish the task. An example is content management systems, the backbone of the corporate website. Like marketing automation, a CMS system understands where you came from and modifies the stuff you see. When you combine this with other tools, a website experience can be highly customizable and follow you on your buyer's journey. Dimitri Maex: With direct marketing, it's always easier to count where the money is coming from. If you send something out, you can assess whether the recipient does something or not. Of course, direct marketing is becoming more complex; the channel mix is complicated. So that raises the question of attribution, about which touch actually contributed to the overall sale. It's very important to get this right. In b-to-b, this is especially complicated. You obviously have long sales cycles; and the longer the sale cycle, the harder it is to determine the cause and effect between sales touches and the ultimate sale. Also there's the fact that decisions aren't being made by individuals but by teams. Michael McLaren: The word we pound into people's heads here is relevance. The battle for relevance is everything. People will engage more readily with a message that's relevant to them. The more we can identify and understand target-specific messages and offers, the level of engagement and conversion jumps dramatically. Also important is the landing page the offer drives you to. Once you land there, the more the environment reflects that you know something about me and what I'm looking for, the better. Once again, the engagement conversion levels jump off the page. Relevance rolls off the tongue easily, but it's hard to do when sending millions of messages out to wide sets. It's an opportunity for marketers who get it right. BtoB: What major direct marketing trends are you seeing? McLaren: One of the key trends becoming more and more important is the ability to customize and personalize communications with different customer or prospect groups. The ability to do it was limited in the past, but today's direct marketing techniques are more sophisticated. Then there's targeting, which is a key dimension. We're starting to see some pretty interesting technology where you can identify people, locate them through geolocation and customize offers based on what we know about their history. A lot of marketing these days is opt-in marketing, and you must be respectful of privacy concerns here. One way to do that is with a quality-value exchange. If you offer something the prospect sees as valuable, he's more likely to volunteer information about himself. It's a give-and-give situation. Maex: A big trend is ascertaining effectiveness and ROI, which in b-to-b is not always easy. It entails really trying to understand which channels perform better. This whole focus is fueled by data, which has grown tremendously over the past few years. But it's also been driven by a demand by marketers, especially during the recession, to put this on steroids. Marketers can't afford not to know what works and what doesn't work. BtoB: How do you see direct marketing informing revenue performance? Mitchell: Direct marketing is more than just promotional messaging. It is about having the best database possible and creating compelling content that is not initially based on selling. But it also comes back to sales and working with the sales force. You can do emailing and direct mail, but nothing is more direct than your field representative. Maex: While sales enablement is not a new topic, for b-to-b companies, it's the biggest opportunity. We have a specialty company, Leopard Communications, and we work closely with them to make sure that whatever we do from a marketing perspective is adopted by sales. And their statistics are pretty striking. For example, only about 10% of all marketing materials produced for salespeople are actually used; and, on average, sales-people spend 40 hours a month developing sales tools for themselves. This shows the extent of the dysfunction but also the opportunity. BtoB: What are you advising clients about new media, such as social and mobile? Goldstein: We look at mobile and social as just other channels, another opportunity to engage. It's not either-or, but all. The exciting thing about social is that content strategy applies to social perfectly. However, the biggest challenge with clients is that sometimes they just want to try it, and social isn't something that you just put your toe in the water for three months, like a media buy. It's something that requires sources and content. It's kind of a forever thing. As for mobile, all the buyers our clients are selling to are reading email and consuming content on mobile devices. Sometimes when people think mobile, they think it means a text-message campaign, but that's not it. More broadly, email, a website and content are easily consumable on a mobile device. The way marketers use it will evolve. Today, at a minimum, it means optimized email and websites; but we may also find that mobile apps work well in certain sales-enablement situations. If you're using an app because it's cool. or engaging or easy, that's a metric in and of itself. Maex: Mobile is a huge, untapped opportunity for b-to-b—in particular, in sales enablement. Because of mobile devices, salespeople are increasing their time selling in the field by about 28%. Think how a salesperson relates to the client. Here, the laptop is a barrier. The iPad is more natural and inviting. Also, sales materials can be orchestrated from a center and pushed to sales automatically, making sure sales has consistent materials. The last piece of mobile is using it to change services and products. We've done some work with Siemens and its healthcare division, using tablets to make hospitals more efficient by putting tablets in the hands of doctors and nurses. The importance in this setting of data and information, and real-time patient information, is tremendous. At OgilvyOne, we help our clients create new products, and a lot is centered around opportunities with information and data. That's the big mobile opportunity. Mitchell: Everyone is intrigued by e-books, the ability to put high-value customized content in print. It could be a provocative e-book written by the CMO or a scientist. And instead of giving out gifts at trade shows, you could give out this game-changing book. We also believe video is hard to beat. It offers an immediate, believable presentation of the advantages a company may have. It's hard to beat video for the "three Ps": personality, passion and purpose. Social media, however, is still a big frustration. It can be difficult to scale it to your audience. And companies often are too quick to start broadcasting content—and they forget to listen and follow others. Nothing is more discouraging than to see a company touting its social marketing and how many friends and followers they have, but they're not following anybody back and there's no curating of information. We encourage clients to start in social by being good listeners and providing helpful information to customers. The best direct marketing is being at the right place at the right time with a good suggestion. McLaren: A lot of people are still just dipping their toes into social. It's at a nascent stage at making it work and ensuring that the information you're starting to put together is relevant and as important as other channels. As for mobile, hyper-local marketing is increasingly important. Also people on mobile devices are more prone to gamification than on desktop or laptop computers, so marketers can use game technology to drive engagement. Mobile is a different user experience, and the more customized you can create that experience for the user, the better. Don't ask them to work too hard. BtoB: What are your thoughts about the future of direct marketing? Maex: For us, it's no longer about making pretty pictures and nice copy. It's about how we can help our clients drive their business. We do have creativity as our anchor, our heritage. That's why people come to agencies. But we're thinking about that creativity in a broader way now. It's designed to help clients build platforms to allow them to engage with customers more deeply with more innovative products. Our point of view is creativity has a huge role to play in more ways that just pure-play communications. McLaren: All these emerging direct marketing trends are about what I call relationship marketing—trying to form relationships and have interactive exchanges, improve conversations. And the more our b-to-b clients know about effective targeting, customization and personalization the better. Mitchell: One of the best b-to-b books, "Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose" (Business Plus, 2010), was written by a b-to-c person, Tony Hsieh of Zappos.com. He suggests never outsourcing customer service. It's about taking one of the loneliest places on earth, sitting in a cubicle talking to customers, and turning it into the biggest part of the company. Every customer-facing contact an organization has is the most powerful direct-marketing tool you could ever ask for. How you take advantage of that human contact can make or break a direct-marketing program. Most Popular In this article: BtoB


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The big rage among the enviro left on campus today is to pressure universities to divest their endowments of all stock holdings in "fossil fuel" companies. (I put "fossil fuels" in quotation marks for a reason: see the addendum below.) Plainly this is a page borrowed from the divest South Africa movement of the 1980s.
Harvard has had a look at the idea and said, "No, thanks." President Drew Faust's message released yesterday follows the party line on how seriously we must all be bummed out over climate change, but can't avoid acknowledging the unseriousness of the divestment campaign, tacitly admitting that the whole idea is more about feeling good about our own moral purity than doing something real about the issue:
I also find a troubling inconsistency in the notion that, as an investor, we should boycott a whole class of companies at the same time that, as individuals and as a community, we are extensively relying on those companies' products and services for so much of what we do every day. Given our pervasive dependence on these companies for the energy to heat and light our buildings, to fuel our transportation, and to run our computers and appliances, it is hard for me to reconcile that reliance with a refusal to countenance any relationship with these companies through our investments.
I wonder if Faust is tiring of Harvard's presidency, and phoned Larry Summers for advice on how to get fired. I'll add that I've often said that if the climate divesters were serious, they'd be calling on their campuses to eschew all forms of fossil fuel energy on their campuses, and replaced them 100 percent with "renewables." And watch their tuition skyrocket even more. This suggestion is met with silent glares or a change of subject. Heh.
Addendum: "Fossil fuels" is one of those formulas that is clearly intended to portray our principal energy sources as obsolete, etc. You wouldn't want to be an "old fossil" would you? But it isn't entirely accurate. It is more precise to refer to oil, gas, and coal as hydrocarbon energy, because it is the hydrocarbon molecule, not the residue of an old seashell, that provides the energy. Corn ethanol is a hydrocarbon, but we don't call it ia "fossil fuel" do we, even though it comes from the husks of corn just as oil comes from the husks of bacterial creatures. They're both organic in origin. (We'll leave aside for now Thomas Gold's hypothesis about the possible abiotic origins of oil and gas.)
This raises a question for the divesters: Suppose Exxon-Mobil succeeds in making algae- biofuels? It would be the ideal renewable fuel, but still a hydrocarbon. And just who would look like an old fossil then?


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OVB: Outside Vertical Bar
VRCB: Volatility Reduced Compression Bar
Core Position: $50,000,000
PowerShares DB Agriculture (DBA):
09/07/2012 Closing Price: 30.24
Intermediate Term Trend is bullish.
Current Position: FLAT
Current Downside Targets = 27.94 – 27.40
Projected Weekly Range: .56
Trading 185,000 Shares
- DBA is a comprehensive agricultural ETF. Holdings include fairly equally-weighted futures contracts in sugar #11, live cattle, corn, soybeans, cocoa, coffee, lean hogs, wheat, and cattle feeder.
- Although DBA closed out the previous week in the upper 20%, it failed to make new weekly highs. Instead, last week's range was restricted to a lower high and higher low, forming an inside vertical bar. Friday's close in the lower half of the weekly midrange, lower than Tuesday's open and lower than the previous week's close, all indicate trading should be lower this week. Commodities have recently struggled to continue the bullish momentum seen two months ago. Weak closes and insignificant price action lead us to believe trading should be slightly lower this week. If this week trades 29.88, a new I.T. top will form, signaling a correction has begun.
iPath DJ-UBS Grains (JJG):
09/07/2012 Closing Price: 63.36
Intermediate Term Trend is bullish.
Current Position: LONG @ 62.25 on 08/20/2012; STOP @ 62.25
Current Upside Target = 70.95
Upcoming Cover Price: 64.93; Cover 17,400 (20%)
Projected Weekly Range: 2.32
Trading 87,000 Shares; COVERED 17,400 (20%) @ 64.45,
- Initial trade risk was $191,400 or .38%. Current trade risk is 0%. Current trade profits are $115,536 or .23%.
- JJG is concentrated in agricultural grain futures, holding 46% soybeans, 30% wheat and 24% corn.
- JJG has formed an inside vertical bar for the second consecutive week. Nondirectional price action is characteristic during times of consolidation at the top and accumulation at the bottom of markets. Friday's close barely lower than the weekly midrange is a weak indicator of future trading. The restricted range resulted in a Volatility Reduced Compression Bar, frequently seen near tops and bottoms. Failure to continue higher over the last two months has resulted in an additional Sell Coverage of 17,400 shares at 64.93.
SPDR Gold Shares (GLD):
09/07/2012 Closing Price: 168.44
Intermediate Term Trend is bullish.
Current Position: LONG @ 158.81 on 08/21/2012; STOP @ 161.89
Upcoming Cover Prices: SELL 7,000 (20%) @ 169.35
Current Upside Target = 165.88 – 176.15
Projected Weekly Range: 5.33
Trading 35,000 Shares; COVERED 3,500 (10%) @ 164.12
- Initial trade risk was $139,650 or .28%. Current trade risk is $0. Current trade profits are $321,930 or .64%.
- GLD's single holding is gold bullion.
- GLD continued its exceptionally bullish climb last week, fulfilling 100% of our upside price target, published on July 21, 2012. We have issued a revised, more aggressive price target of 176.15. Price action was clearly bullish for the third week, closing in the upper 11% of the weekly range. The stagnant accumulation period from mid-May till mid-August has certainly been worth the wait; our highly anticipated long position is currently up $321,930 or .64% of our core position. Last week nearly met our second profit-taking price of 169.35 where we will sell an additional 7,000 shares and lock-in $75,460. There exists an 82% probability of trading 169.01 this week with a very small chance of retracing to 163.65.


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The foreclosed home in Aurora, Ill., was an outdated, unkempt eyesore until crews arrived this fall, performing thousands of dollars of work to make it attractive and modern, inside and out.
But it wasn't until workers walked across the street to ask for some water that neighbors Mario Cervantes and Oralia Balderas-Cervantes learned that a corporation, not a consumer, had bought the house, intending to turn it into a rental property. Despite being landlords themselves, the couple aren't sure they like the idea.
"If it's going to be a company that is watching out for the community, yes," Cervantes said. "If it's going to be a company that is watching out for themselves, no."
Added Balderas-Cervantes: "I'd rather see a homeowner. A lot of renters don't care. It's like renting a car versus buying a car. It's different."
Similar scenarios and concerns are unfolding in markets hard-hit by the housing crisis. Well-capitalized, out-of-town private equity funds are scouring neighborhoods, paying cash for distressed single-family homes and renting them out. The opportunities are plentiful, enabling investment groups to profit from low home prices, rising rents and an increase in the number of potential renters.
The transactions are returning vacant properties to active use. But they also are stoking fears among neighbors and municipalities about the long-term effect of large, private investors — including many that are operating under the radar — in their communities.
"This scares the hell out of me," said Ed Jacob, executive director of Neighborhood Housing Services of Chicago Inc. "In this rush to say this is a new asset class, are we creating the next community development problem?
"You talk to them, and it's all about neighborhood recovery. They all have the narrative down."
The general strategy of the companies is the same: buy low, make the necessary upgrades, fill them with tenants and then sell the homes in three to seven years. With companies and analysts anticipating projected returns of at least 8 percent, there also is talk of creating publicly traded real estate investment trusts.
"What this reminds me of is the dot-com boom," said Rick Sharga, executive vice president of Carrington Mortgage Holdings LLC, a California firm. "That's what this feels like. Every investor in America wants to buy foreclosures and turn them into rentals."
Two statistics increasing that appetite are the homeownership rate and rental rates. Foreclosures, tight lending conditions and wary consumers have pushed down the nation's homeownership rate to 65.5 percent at the end of September, according to census data. Meanwhile, the percentage of vacant rental units has been on a steady decline since 2010 as more people opt for leases rather than mortgages.
But investors aren't flocking to all neighborhoods equally. Most want homes in desirable neighborhoods with strong area employment. They also look at the strength of local rules protecting landlords in disputes with tenants.
After vetting the tenant and securing a lease, property managers say they routinely drive by the homes and sometimes schedule inside inspections to protect their investment.
It remains to be seen whether their expectations will be met. One problem with the business model is there's no performance track record to speak of. And as housing prices slowly recover, acquisition costs also will increase and cut into returns.
There also isn't any history on property management firms tasked with overseeing so many scattered-site rental properties. Any well-publicized mistakes involving poorly maintained properties or wronged tenants could taint investors' reputations.
That's one reason why big-name players are likely to avoid buying in neighborhoods where they fear a greater chance of eviction proceedings occurring.
"You make one mistake in those properties, and you'll be toast," Sharga said.
While some funds have outlined plans for foreclosure-to-rental conversions, it's impossible to easily quantify the purchases. For one thing, purchasers have formed various corporate entities to do the deals. In other cases, there's uncertainty about whether investors plan to resell the homes immediately or rent them and outsource property management to other firms.
An early leader in the sector is Waypoint Real Estate Group LLC, which recently secured more than $300 million in financing from Citigroup to expand its national portfolio. Unlike other companies, Oakland, Calif.-based Waypoint is handling the purchase, rehab, renting and management of homes internally.
"We're providing an answer to what has been a challenging period of time," said Charles Young, Waypoint's regional director.
By design, its portfolio includes homes of various sizes in different types of neighborhoods, with rents running from $1,250 to $2,600 a month. On average, it invests $20,000 in property improvements; much of that work is done in the kitchens and bathrooms. It likes two-year leases because it finds the occupants act more like owners than renters.
In fact, Waypoint tries not to use the word "renters" because it argues the term has negative connotations. "We call them 'residents,' " Young said. "We find ourselves trying to change that perspective."
Felipe and Mily Mendoza and their family have been renters since losing their home to foreclosure in 1998. Five weeks ago, they moved into a Waypoint home in Aurora close to an elementary school. It's a home with updated bathrooms and a spacious kitchen that easily accommodates the large oval table for their extended family.
Felipe Mendoza doesn't mind the $1,575 monthly rent because the home is in much better shape than their last rental, and he likes the two-year lease. He's also participating in a Waypoint program that rewards him with points for taking care of the property, paying the rent on time and repairing any credit problems.
At the end of the two years, accumulated points are credited toward a purchase of the home, something Mendoza would like to do, now that he's gotten to know the neighbors. "Everybody told me, 'We hope you keep the home,' " he said.


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LOS ANGELES (AP) — Cable TV company Cablevision says that it is suing Viacom, arguing that the operator of pay-TV networks like Nickelodeon, MTV and Comedy Central is "illegally forcing" it to carry 14 channels that aren't watched very much.
Bethpage, N.Y.-based Cablevision Systems Corp. said it filed the antitrust lawsuit in federal court in New York on Tuesday.
It calls the way that Viacom sells programming illegal and bad for consumers. It says that if it refused to take the lesser-watched channels, it would have to pay massive penalties.
Responding in a statement, Viacom Inc. says it provides a discount to TV distributors who take more channels.
Network operators and TV distributors have been fighting over the rising cost of programming, which cuts into distributors' profits and causes higher monthly TV bills.


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and Hutchins Farm
HP LIFE Faculty Ambassador: Dr. James W. Dottin, Professor of
Community College: Middlesex Community College
Lowell, MA Student: Jason Staci
Business Name: Hutchins Farm Business Location: 754 Monument
Street Concord, Massachusetts 01742
Business Type:
A more than
seventy-five acre USDA certified organic fruit and vegetable farm.
What products and services do you currently provide?
We grow more
than 115 varieties of fruits and vegetables as of right now. We grow everything
from watermelons, lettuce, blueberries, rutabagas, and many more.
We also offer locally sourced honey, salad dressings, and
How will HP LIFE helps you grow your
Social Media
Marketing was one of the greatest lessons I was taught by HP LIFE. In today's
ever changing society, we are surrounded by social media. In our everyday lives,
we see it from your own phone, to the news and more. As a more traditional and
laid back farm, we have yet to fully explore this venue. We have a Facebook
page, however it lacks in certain aspects to attract even more new customers.
With other outlets like Twitter and Instagram, we have the potential to expand
our customer base with these easy to use and free promotional tools.
HP LIFE showed me effective ways to incorporate social media
more into the business. We could set up a Twitter and Tweet about today's
fresh vegetables, or take an Instagram picture of the freshly harvested
lettuce. Through HP LIFE, I learned how to successfully employ Social Media Marketing
into my own business.
How is information technology
important in growing your business?
In today's
society, information technology is so important. Whether you are in farming or
retail, it is a huge part of everyday business. Even as a small farm, we use it
every day. We use it to log what produce was harvested for the day or what
chemicals were put on the crops. It helps us respond to our customers through
email and even Facebook.
What type of support do you have
on/off campus to help you start your business?
Off campus as a
farmer, there are a tremendous amount of resources available. The MA Dept. of Agriculture
is helpful in getting loans and land. There is also the BFN, the Beginning
Farmers Network. This is where new farmers, up to ten years in the business,
can find information and talk to fellow farmers about anything related to
Every two years, we also have the New England Fruit and
Vegetable convention where you can learn about new innovations in agriculture
as well as speak with fellow farmers. As a new farmer or old, you have a wealth
of resources to help you grow your business. Now, HP LIFE modules are one of those
resources that provide insight into Customer Relationship Management and Social
Media Marketing to grow our customer base.
At Middlesex Community College, students have access to the
Small Business Assistance Center. The center assists in the writing of business
plans, marketing plans, financial projections and micro loans applications.
Also, the college has formed a partnership with the Merrimack Valley Sandbox
Campus Catalyst. The Campus Catalyst is also in partnership with Northern Essex
Community College, University of Massachusetts Lowell and Merrimack College. The
Sandbox provides students with connections, support, and seed grants to launch ones
business ideas through the assistance of this regional incubator.
Part 4 in a series of blogs about how an entrepreneurial mindset, small business growth and technology are fueling a local economy in North Carolina. Click here to see video.
"A lot of people look at a community and they will look at the big businesses and try to get those big jobs in there. We call that the Buffalo Hunt. People call them the economic engine of the economy. Well if those big businesses are the economic engine of the community, then small businesses are the rest of the car. Small businesses create the personality of the community. It is that personality that draws those big businesses in."
– George Millsaps, state director of North Carolina's Small Business Center Network
Community colleges across the country are tapping the power of entrepreneurship to reinvigorate their local economies. Sparks are igniting at all corners of the campus and in the cloud. Community college presidents are not only encouraging entrepreneurship in their students and local small businesses, but acting like entrepreneurs. Small business centers help communities "grow their own jobs" by helping entrepreneurs launch and small businesses grow via online courses. The rise in the number of women-owned businesses and the convenience of technology fuels small business growth. With all of these actions in motion, one economy is growing.
HP LIFE partnered with NACCE to propel and document this transformation in Hickory, NC via the work of Catawba Valley Community College. Watch this video to see how entrepreneurship and technology are fueling economic growth. Read below for lessons learned and apply them to your community.
Start-ups and small business growth fuel an economic recovery.
"North Carolina's economic system is continuing to evolve through the economic downturn…" says Dr. Garrett D. Hinshaw, President, Catawba Valley Community College. "It's important for us to look at all opportunities for new business starts-ups, especially those that are innovative and scalable and that will create jobs. We need new businesses that will have a long-term positive impact on the ecosystem."
Community colleges are an integral part of their local entrepreneurial ecosystem.
"My role as a community college president is to make every effort to inspire entrepreneurship and make sure it's a priority for all of our programs here at Catawba Valley Community College," Dr. Hinshaw adds. "Part of that is bringing in innovative programs like HP LIFE e-Learning that can help students learn business and IT skills and turn their business ideas into realities.
Community college presidents need to think like an entrepreneur, set their affordable loss and take calculated risks.
"As a leader in higher education," Dr. Hinshaw states, "we always have to think differently in terms of how we do things, how we reach our constituents, how we ensure our citizens have the right skills and access to the resources they need. We have to be willing to take those risks and then work hard to make sure that our commitment and our focus remains on those."
Women-business owners are a critical part of small business growth.
"The number of female entrepreneurs in our community is growing, and they are making a big impact on the revitalization of our economy," says Gary Muller, CVCC Business Programs Department Head. "They are involved in all segments of the business community."
Mastery of technology is essential to small business success.
"Few businesses can survive today without technology and even fewer that can flourish without technology," said Dr. Millsaps.
"Good IT skills and knowledge are critical to effectively manage and grow a business," asserts Dr. Hinshaw. IT affects every part of a company from bringing products and services to market quickly to interacting with customers. HP LIFE e-Learning is just one example of the incredible role technology is playing in fueling learning, business and community development and economic growth."
The convenience of online learning is highly appealing for entrepreneurs.
Counselors use online courses to give the entrepreneur a jump start before one-on-one counseling begins or to provide entrepreneurs needed knowledge between counseling sessions. They can learn at their own pace and on their own time.
Part 3 in a series of blogs about how
entrepreneurial mindset, small business growth and technology are fueling a
local economy. Click here to see video.
Across the nation, networks of centers
serving small businesses, many located on community college campuses, provide
invaluable assistance to entrepreneurs as they seek to get their businesses off
the ground or to pursue business growth. Increasingly, counselors at these
centers are using online business learning programs, such as HP LIFE e-Learning, to help educate
their clients about key business building topics. This online content is used
to supplement in-person counseling or as the basis for one-to-many training.
Given the large number of small business center directors in
our membership and the integral role they play in the community college
ecosystem and our partnership with HP LIFE, we at the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship wanted to learn
more about how and why small business centers co-located at member colleges are
employing online learning. We spoke about their experience with online learning
with George Millsaps, state director of North Carolina's Small Business Center Network; David Copeland
Norcross, acting director, Maricopa
Small Business Development Center (SBDC) in Phoenix,
Arizona; and Robert Sainz, general manager of City of Los Angeles' Economic
& Workforce Development Department, which operates nine BusinessSource Centers across the
Here's what these directors had to say about the value online
learning in their centers.
Online learning supplements counseling
Directors each pointed to how online
learning can be adaptable and relevant to counselling work, citing a few
"One of the great things about
online courses such as HP
LIFE is that the SBC counselor can employ them in a variety of
ways," says George Millsaps. "Some counselors use online courses to give the
entrepreneur a jump start before
one-on-one counseling begins. Others use online learning to continue
providing entrepreneurs needed knowledge between
counseling sessions."
"Online resources are examples of how technology can assist
entrepreneurs in doing research for their business idea," says David Copeland
Norcross. "It also provides opportunities for them to see other businesses in
real time and how those businesses use a specific business model that has
succeeded. Using online resources for
market research is invaluable for entrepreneurs and small business owners."
"I can't tell you how invaluable it is to have a technology
platform like HP
LIFE that is free for people to use," said Robert Sainz. "Also
having the HP brand behind it that people are familiar with takes away any
skepticism. It is hugely important for us to reach small businesses in our many
ethnic communities. So having an online
learning platform that offers the training in Spanish and various Asian languages
is very valuable to us."
Convenience of online learning is highly
appealing for entrepreneurs.
In addition to relevance to
counselors, directors also noted the value of online resources from
entrepreneur perspective, focusing on convenience, adaptability and
According to Norcross, online
learning appeals to clients because it highly convenient. "Clients are able to
use the tools at their own pace and with their own timetable, and at their own
locations without having to travel," he says. "This is definitely one of the
benefits to the online training courses. Online learning is particularly
effective if it can be followed up with one-on-one counseling sessions to
specifically address areas of interest and concern."
Millsaps believes online learning is beneficial because not
everyone learns the same way. "Some people have had some exposure to small
business concepts and can whiz through the parts they know," he says. "Other
people are contemplative and like to review material more than once to get that
deeper meaning. Online training allows the potential entrepreneur to learn when
they want to and how they want to."
"Small business owners
are working from morning to night and they often don't have time to sit in
classrooms," says Sainz. "With online learning they have the ability to do
it on their own time. Also, they can access any of the 22 subject modules in HP LIFE whenever they need to know more about a
specific topic rather than waiting for when a college is running a course on
that topic. And they're using it in a safe environment, which is important to
older people, who may not be comfortable asking questions in a classroom
Mastery of technology is essential to small
business success.
Finally, the small business thought leaders
we talked with all agree that technology plays a very important role in
supporting business start-ups, business growth and overall community
development - online learning helps walk the walk.
"This SBDC strongly believes in the use of technology in
startup businesses, particularly in the area of social media as a marketing
tool," said Norcross. "We also provide online tools to assist in financial
projections and the development of business plans. We use technology to counsel
clients online as well as in person through email and other tools available
through our website."
"Few businesses can survive today without technology and even fewer that
can flourish without technology," said Millsaps. "Most people can't take
years to get a degree in business to supplement the expertise they already have
in their craft. Technology provides access to quick knowledge. Nor can a small
business owner pour over mounds of paperwork each day. Technology provides the
platform for programs that make quick work of bookkeeping, inventory, security,
and most importantly can help increase customer satisfaction. All of these lead
to increased profitability and survivability of a small business. To me
technology is the great equalizer for small businesses. Show me a tech savvy
small business and I'll show you a small business that can compete, and beat,
the big box stores."
For more information on how George
Millsaps uses online learning to provide services to entrepreneurs and small
business owners, we invite you to view this video.
For more about HP LIFE e-Learning
and how it supports both business and ICT skills for the aspiring and nascent
small business see
Small Business Centers
growth in women-owned businesses exceeds all small businesses
The impact of female
entrepreneurs on the American economy is greater than ever. Women own over 8.6
million businesses in the U.S., according to American
Express OPEN's 2013 State of Women-Owned
Businesses Report: A Summary of Important Trends, 1997-2013 via Julie
Weeks and Womenable. Together, these businesses generate over $1.3
trillion in revenues and employ nearly 7.8 million people. The growth in the
number, revenues and employment of women-owned businesses during the 16 years
covered by this report exceeds the growth rates of all but the very largest,
publicly traded corporations in the country.
Every day, the community
colleges that make up the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship
(NACCE) witness the impact the growth of female entrepreneurship is having on
local communities as more and more women turn to NACCE members for entrepreneurship
education and business support services. One such college is Catawba Valley Community College (CVCC)
in Hickory, North Carolina. There, Business Programs Department Head Gary
Muller and Business
Instructor Darcie Tumey talked with us about their observations.
owners represent all industries in Hickory
"The number of female entrepreneurs in
our community is growing, and they are making a big impact on the
revitalization of our economy," says Gary Muller. "They are involved in all
segments of the business community; there is not just one area that their
businesses are addressing. Female entrepreneurs also are becoming much more
visible in the business community; they holding many of the leadership roles in
our community organizations and making a difference."
Muller has
observed that would-be female entrepreneurs take a different approach to
starting their business than would-be male entrepreneurs do. "They do more
analysis of the potential business before they push forward," he says. "This
is a key reason for their success. We see their male counterparts move forward
with their passion, without thinking of the possible problems. Female
entrepreneurs are more open to help and support, which enables them to make
adjustments to their plans before big problems may adversely impact the
of online resources to support small businesses
Muller and Tumey think one of the reasons
more women are starting businesses is the availability of resources via the
Internet that make it easier to explore opportunities than in the past.
According to Tumey, who is also a NACCE Ambassador for HP
LIFE, "Ten
or twenty years ago, individuals would have to seek out information in person
and deal with individuals in face-to-face situations. As a result, if an
individual didn't receive the information they needed or had a negative experience,
then their search either ended and/or became more difficult. Today, the
Internet has opened up a whole host of resources (for example, success
stories, resources for a fee or free, examples of mistakes, and ideas). Women
can learn from others, access resources 24/7, and still make arrangements to
speak with individuals for assistance at Small Business Centers, banks,
industry meetings, etc."
HP LIFE e-Learning helps launch student
Hewitt is one of Tumey's students who has benefitted by using technology to
fuel her entrepreneurship learning. One of the tools she has used is HP LIFE
e-Learning, an innovative e-learning program that Tumey uses to help her
entrepreneurship students learn business and IT skills and to turn their
business ideas into realities. Hewitt runs a business that is part of the auto
industry but is planning to open a spa.
found HP
LIFE to be very valuable in working on my business plan project,
especially the financial modules," says Hewitt. "The templates provided me with
the format and an outline of how to set up my start-up costs and monthly expenses.
We also used the HP LIFE modules to aid us in understanding the different
sections of our business plan."
says her reliance on technology will continue as she gets her business of the
ground. "In our spa business, we will be using technology in how we track our
billing, book our clients, and track the income for renting out space to
different individuals (message therapists, dermatologist, etc.)," she says.
Watch this video to learn more about
how community college educators are using technology like HP LIFE to support
women in achieve their goal of becoming entrepreneurs.
female entrepreneurs
female entrepreneurship
Across the nation, a revolution is occurring in how
community colleges view their role in serving their communities. Seeking to
bolster local economies, many community colleges, including the 300-plus
members of the National Association for
Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE), are adopting a holistic
approach to fostering and supporting entrepreneurship and business growth. Not
only are these colleges educating entrepreneurs, their presidents are using an
entrepreneurial mindset to implement creative solutions to existing problems. The
use of technology has been part of their innovation solutions.
Entrepreneurial Presidents Facilitate an
Entrepreneurial Culture
According to NACCE President and CEO Heather Van
Sickle, these entrepreneurial colleges have cultures requiring an
entrepreneurial mindset for all who work at the college. "They focus on the
foundational elements: the right people, the right culture, to increase the
talent base in their community and add value that only the community college
can in the entrepreneurship ecosystem. This culture results in an environment
fertile for starting and sustaining successful businesses in the greater
An Entrepreneurial President in Action at CVCC
Catawba Valley
Community College (CVCC) in Hickory, North Carolina, is a prime example of
an institution that has enthusiastically embraced an entrepreneurial mindset. Garrett
Hinshaw is president at CVCC and also the incoming chair of the North Carolina
Community College Presidents Association.
"North Carolina's economic system is continuing to
evolve through the economic downturn that we just experienced," says Hinshaw.
"It's important for us to look at all opportunities for new business
starts-ups, especially those that are innovative and scalable and that will
create jobs. We need new businesses that will have a long-term positive impact
on the ecosystem and will make our state competitive in a global market.
"My role as a community college president is to
make every effort to inspire entrepreneurship and make sure it's a priority for
all of our programs here at Catawba Valley Community College," Hinshaw adds. "Part
of that is bringing in innovative programs like HP LIFE e-Learning that can help
students learn business and IT skills and turn their business ideas into
realities. Good IT skills and knowledge are critical to effectively managing
and growing a business. IT affects every part of a company from bringing
products and services to market quickly to interacting with customers. HP LIFE e-Learning is just one
example of the incredible role technology is playing in fueling learning, business
and community development and economic growth."
Can Revive an Economy; Community Colleges are the Hub for that Revival
The economy of Hickory and its surrounding region
was dominated by manufacturing for many decades. That all changed during the
economic downturn. "Now it's critical for us to focus on entrepreneurship as a
new way of inventing jobs and assuring that our citizens have access to
quality, relevant jobs for the future of this region," says Hinshaw. "One of
the key things that we've continued to do is support our existing manufacturers
through our Advanced Manufacturing Solution Center, looking at ways to affect
that bottom line so those companies can create jobs that are going to make a
difference in our region.
"We are creating an environment where every new
idea has a chance to succeed," he adds. "Through HP LIFE e-Learning and the different programs
we're initiating at our college we want to ensure that all citizens have the
ability to get beyond friends and family and into the marketplace where they
can grow a business, create jobs and obtain follow-on funding."
Presidents Take Calculated Risks
Hinshaw believes it's very important for the
leaders of all 58 of the community colleges across North Carolina to think
about the calculated risks they must take to make their environments relevant. "For
example, right here on our campus, we're created a 28,000-square-foot simulated
hospital, which is the largest east of the Mississippi," he says. "This has
changed healthcare training in our region. We have to take existing resources
and assure that they are relevant for the 21st century. We're taking
a former restaurant and turning it into an innovative corporate development
center that features small business support. As a leader in higher education we
always have to think differently in terms of how we do things, how we reach our
constituents, how we ensure our citizens have the right skills and access to
the resources they need. We have to be willing to take those risks and then
work hard to make sure that our commitment and our focus remains on those.
According to Hinshaw, the Hickory community was
built by entrepreneurs who knew how to make things and were real craftsmen. "This
area is going to continue that tradition, but we just have to change the way we
think and change the way we do business," he says, "and technology like HP LIFE
e-Learning is helping us do that. We're seeing those manufacturers who are
sustained here changing the way that they reach out to the community and how
they engage with each other and really changing how we do business here in the
Catawba Valley region."
Watch this video to learn more
about how one community college president in North Carolina is using an
entrepreneurial mindset to restore the local economy.
Catawba Valley Community College
Located in Hickory, NC, Catawba Valley Community College is an innovative,
comprehensive community college that fosters and promotes a multitude of
learning experiences, enabling and empowering its students, faculty, staff, and
stakeholders to identify and to serve higher purposes in their lives and in
their communities. CVCC was founded in
1958 and welcomed its first class of 77 students in 1960. Today, the college
serves over 5,000 students with career training in a wide variety of technical
and industrial fields through its Business, Engineering Technology,
Environmental and Life Sciences, Health and Human Resources, and Industrial
Technology Divisions. Also, many students transfer to a four-year college after
completing their first two years at CVCC.
National Association
for Community College Entrepreneurship
(NACCE) is an organization of educators, administrators, presidents and
entrepreneurs, focused on inciting entrepreneurship in their community and on
their campus. NACCE has two main goals: 1. Empower the college to approach the
business of running a community college with an entrepreneurial mindset; and 2.
Grow the community college's role in supporting job creation and entrepreneurs
in their local ecosystem.
Founded in 2002, NACCE is at the
heart of the "entrepreneurship movement." Through membership, an annual
conference and exhibition, regional summits, a quarterly journal, monthly
webinars, a dynamic list-serv, and training resources, NACCE serves as the hub
for the dissemination and integration of knowledge and successful practices
regarding entrepreneurial leadership, entrepreneurship education and student
business incubation. These initiatives and resulting actions advance economic
prosperity in the communities served by its member colleges. NACCE is a
founding member of the White House-led Startup America
Partnership. For more information, visit http://www.nacce.com. Follow us at @NACCE, like us
on facebook.com/NACCE, and join our LinkedIn group.
Catawba Valley Community College
entrepreneurial college
Garrett Hinshaw
After attending the eLearning 2014 conference, if someone
were to ask me to identify my favorite tool from the many I was introduced to
at the conference, it would be like asking me "which of your children is
your favorite?" Of course, I don't have an "overall favorite"
child but I do know which is my favorite when it comes to a shopping trip, a
game of racquetball or an afternoon of trying out recipes. The same is true for
"web enhancement" tools. As I begin to use them or expand my use of
some I'm already familiar with, I will have favorites depending on the
application and benefits they offer to my online and face to face classes.
Here are a few
that I am bringing home in my tool bag to try out or expand upon and how I'm
planning to test them:
Visual content
My students seem to struggle with the industry section of
their business plan. The time they spend trying to organize industry revenue,
growth and trends into cohesive paragraphs seems to take away from the main
point of the assignment...looking at the data itself. I have high hopes that
putting the data into infographics will make it more meaningful to
them....we'll see!!!!
An application shared at the conference has also inspired
me to sometimes use Learnist (which has been described as the Pinterest for
sharing learning resources) an alternative to discussions when students are
expanding their business ideas. I don't know about your students, but mine are
tired of discussion boards...and so am I.
I had only recently heard about badges and wasn't
convinced that there was a place for them in our curriculum. However, after
attending a session on badging and gamification, I can't wait to create some
for our program and my student club as well as share the concept with student
services as a means to increase student involvement.
I've used some voice tools for online conversations with
students but, sparked by presentations at the conference, I can't wait to use
one of these tools to give verbal feedback to my students on their financial
spreadsheets. Why hadn't I thought about this before? It will be so much easier
for me to explain concepts to them and I believe, easier for them to understand.
I'm not even sure how to categorize this last
tool....videonot.es. If I had to chose a favorite, this would be it. Partly
because I've not been exposed to anything like it before and partly because it
solves a problem I've been wrestling with.
Videonot.es allows students to watch a video and synchronize their notes
with the video content. They can submit this assignment....video and
synchronization....for grading. In my mind, this provides a more meaningful
learning experience than a video followed by a quiz or a post to a discussion
One last thought. This is just a sampling if the many,
many tools I saw at the eLearning 2014 conference. Categorizing them and
keeping up with new ones could be a full time job. I was thrilled when I
learned that the Instructional Design departments at some schools have an
online resource page that categorizes and updates web enhancement tools for
their faculty. One of my first stops when I return to my campus will be at our
Educational Technology office requesting this service for our faculty.
If you have favorite tools that apply well to
entrepreneurship, please share them with us in the comment section below.
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text:
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — An Iranian pro-reform candidate on Tuesday pulled out of this week's presidential election to give support to a centrist whose campaign has gained momentum in recent days.
The decision by Mohammad Reza Aref is seen as a major boost for Hasan Rowhani, who now faces off against five conservative candidates in the vote on Friday.
Aref's website Draref.ir said he made the decision at the urging of reformist ex-President Mohammad Khatami. State TV and media also reported his withdrawal.
Aref said he received a message from Khatami telling him that his continued candidacy in the June 14 election "is not in the interest" of Iran's reformers.
He said his campaign could be a "base and great social capital" for the reform movement.
Soon after Aref's statement, Khatami released a message thanking Aref, calling him "dear brother," urging all reformists vote for Rowhani.
"I will give my vote to his excellency the esteemed brother Rowhani. And I ask all reformists to see the presence of Rowhani (in the race) as an opportunity for achieving their demands," Khatami said.
The former president is considered a father of Iran's reform movement, and Aref has been a close ally of Khatami's since his 1997-2005 terms in office. Rowhani has close ties with both Khatami and another influential former president, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, who was barred in May from standing in the election by a clerically run constitutional watchdog.
Zahra Mostafavi, the daughter of late founder of Islamic Republic, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, put out a statement supporting Rowhani.
"Rowhani is the preferred candidate," said Mostafavi, the head of a women's association.
On Monday, a hard-line candidate withdrew to avoid splitting the vote with other conservative candidates.
Under the Iranian system, if no candidate gets a majority in the first round, then the top two have a run-off.
The election will choose a successor for outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who under the law cannot run for a third term.
It is also a major test for Iran's clerically dominated establishment after the disputed 2009 re-election of Ahmadinejad, which was followed by unrest and massive crackdown of reformists, many of them still in prison.