text:
I expressed concern after last week's episode that The Walking Dead had fallen into a pattern where horrible things needed to happen every episode in order to keep its audience entertained. I thought they were going to keep the parade of misery rolling in the wake of Lori's death, but I was glad to be proven wrong this week — at least in the short term. This episode was action-packed, but less shocking and crazy than the season's first four installments, and honestly, that's just fine. It's important to see our characters adjusting to the messed up world that they live in, rather than continuing to survive a cavalcade of horror week after week. An event like Lori's death is certainly going to have an impact, but what I enjoyed about this episode is that it gave the characters goals to focus on, rather than simply wallowing in the misery of their existence. It's a struggle that many shows face in the wake of a major character death, and The Walking Dead pulled it off better than I expected.
Sending Maggie and Daryl on a mission together was fun, and I really wish that we had gotten to see more of it. They have one brief encounter with an opossum at the daycare where they find the baby formula, (which was one of my favorite moments of the show) but it would have been fun to check in on them once or twice more. I was sure for a second that they were going to have to fight a horde of zombie children, and I'm not really sure if I'm glad or disappointed that that didn't turn out to be the case. Regardless, it was smart to send them off after something practical like baby formula, since Lori is not in any shape to breast feed. Or, um, any shape at all.
It certainly doesn't hurt that Daryl and Maggie are, in addition to being two of the most badass characters on the show, two of the most consistently and strongly written. So it was nice to see the writers pair two people who they understand together, and their interactions carried an ease not often seen on this show. I like Glenn a lot too, but the writers seem to be starting to forget that what makes Glenn so likeable is his affable nature and his sense of humor in the face of danger. I worry that by making him all gloom and doom, as he was in this episode, they are going to lose what makes him awesome. Fortunately, the relationship between him and Maggie is still nice, since it's a functional, adult relationship in the face of crazy hardship, but they make it work. I'd honestly like to see a bit more focus put on it, although it's possible that it could wear out its welcome.
T-Dog gets a bit of character development now that he's dead, which is totally hilarious to me. Oh, poor T-Dog.
The only moment we really get with Carl (apart from Beth being asked to keep an eye on him to which I will repeat: weird) is when he hands the baby to Daryl, who asks if he's picked out a name yet. He reveals that he's narrowed it down to the name of every female character who died on the show, but it seems likely that they'll pick Lori or Sophia. It's a bit that's nicely acted by the kid who plays Carl, who I shockingly don't hate this season. I'm actually excited to see how his character develops in the wake of shooting his mom in the face.
Carol's not dead. Let's all just agree on this, yeah?
This episode spent a large amount of it's time over in Woodbury, where things got pretty talky, but also moved forward a decent bit. It wasn't just a repeat of 'Andrea wants to stay, Michonne wants to go' like it was last week. Well, for the first half it kind of was, but at least people were being proactive. Michonne actually left, and discoveries were made. The cold open was excellent, first starting us off with a jarring shot of a little girl chasing a dog at a BBQ that you instantly assume must be a flashback, before quickly revealing that the Woodbury folks are just having a good time. Milton (who I still don't like) is being a buzzkill, but Merle tells him to relax. Meanwhile, the Governor is hanging out with his zombie daughter in his apartment, which is, you know, totally normal.
I liked that the show dropped the Penny bomb so early on in the episode, and then kept giving us reasons to be freaked out by the Governor, like his creepy notebook. It's nice knowing more than the characters, sometimes, and it seems certain that Andrea is gonna regret sticking around. Michonne stole her sword back, killed some hostage Walkers, and held her blade at the Governor's throat — all of which was a bit drawn out but interesting. Michonne seems like a bit less of a cypher than at the beginning of the season, although we still don't know her as well as I think we should by now.
Andrea and the Governor got all googly-eyed at each other again, which carries some added menace now that we know how unstable he is (although I think we're probably still scratching the surface of his craziness). However, Andrea's comfort turns to disgust and unease when she witnesses the night's main event, a battle between Merle and some other dude in a ring full of zombies. She freaks out, saying that it's barbaric, so the Governer reveals that the fights are staged, and the Walkers have all had their teeth removed. She still doesn't like it, but the way it's presented at this point, it kind of doesn't seem all that bad. It's probably a dangerous idea that is bound to backfire at some point, but the audience does seem to be having a good time, and the logic behind it is pretty sound, that people need to let off steam. But this is The Walking Dead, so no good will come from it.
The staging of the fight itself was fun, with decent choreography, although I kind of wish the fact that the teeth had been removed from the Walkers had been revealed at the end of it, rather than earlier in the episode. As it was, it sapped all of the tension out of it.
The last big thing I haven't talked about is Rick, who literally didn't say a word this week until the very last moment of the episode. He was running around a cell block killing Walkers with an axe, and these scenes were all pretty well done. Andrew Lincoln is a pretty decent actor when he's not talking in his hilarious accent, and the rage and guilt was pretty believable here. He finds the walker that ate Lori's body, it's stomach swollen in a grotesque mimicry of Lori's pregnancy, and he shoots in the head and then stabs it in the stomach a whole bunch of times. Then… the phone rings. Rick answers it. "Hello?"
Showing Rick's descent into madness is very cool, even if I thought it was happening a bit fast before, but at this point, I buy it. His relationship with Lori was so fucked up at the time of her death that I think his reaction to the loss makes sense and is much more interesting than if she had died while they were getting along. As a reader of the comics, I know what the deal with the phone call is, and while I won't spoil it, I will say that Rick has a long, hard road ahead of him for the rest of the season, and for the sake of the show, I really hope there's some light at the end of the tunnel for him.
Or he could hit things with an axe for the rest of the season. I'm okay with that too.


text:
"Märzendorfer produces yet another clean, crisp, finely drawn reading of the score. (Verdi would have died for a conductor this good in some of his productions.) When Violetta (Kristiane Kaiser) first begins to sing, the voice is slightly off-mike, which produces a beautiful ambience around it
. François Borras, is a shaggy-haired young tenor with the kind of French vibrato I thought had died out with Georges Thill
. I am much taken with his elegance of phrasing, the likes of which I haven't heard in many a long year
. Borras sings his offstage interjections in 'Sempre libera' more beautifully than I've ever heard them
and Kaiser also sticks to the score by omitting the traditional high E flat at the end. Verdi would have been proud of her
. Act II arrives on the impassioned wings of Borras's 'De' miei bollenti spiriti,' and I've not heard a more exquisite performance in ages. His singing here reminded me of Fernando de Lucia's elegant, impassioned interpretation, but without de Lucia's distortions of phrase and tempo. This is, indeed, bel canto at its best."Fanfare
"Borras is an effective Alfredo, acting the part with imagination and commitment, and singing it with a distinctive mellifluousness."American Record Guide

subset: commoncrawl


text:
To Toronto: Millsap, Pekovic, Ridnour
To Minnesota: Gasol
To LA: Bargnani, D. Williams, M. Williams
To Utah: Fields, Anderson, Barea
This is a very unlikely trade, and is based entirely around the idea that Minnesota really wants Gasol. There's no way they can acquire him without moving salary, and in Pekovic, Williams, Ridnour, and Barea, they don't move any pieces that are crucial to their long-term plans.
LA gets rid of Gasol and gets a couple young bigs in Bargnani and Derrick Williams, both of whom fit with D'Antoni's system. Mo Williams is just expiring filler here.
Utah gets a couple wings who are probably upgrades to anyone they currently have on the roster, other than Hayward. In Barea, they get some PG insurance for a roster that has only Alec Burks signed beyond this year. (If they preferred Ridnour over Barea, that would work too. Or Shved, but I assume that Rubio and Shved are the PGs that Minnesota wants to keep).
For Toronto, this only makes sense if they're prepared to spend well into the tax to keep both of Millsap and Pekovic. If so, it allows them to completely firm up their bigs rotation (Millsap, Valanciunas, Pekovic, Johnson).


text:
It's rare that I am asked about economics. For any number of reasons. But today I saw an article that made me think about personal economics, and it made me consider the fruits of someone's labor being cheap, overpriced, or maybe just right. Here goes…
Don't you feel good when you eliminate a borderline frivolous expenditure (like trips to the drive-thru's or fancypants coffee) that gives you a few extra dollars back each week? Usually there are trade-offs, but frequently the rewards are substantial. Take the car thing. Ever opted out of some cool button or whistle because it made your car payment $20 or $30 less per month? And if you did, aren't you glad? (Until somewhat recently I had a car without power windows or a CD player. A very shrewd cost-cutting maneuver, I'd thought, until the anxiety of cranking windows and listening to cassette tapes sent me maniacally into drive-thru's and prompted the purchase of fancypants coffee).
Now think about people who entertain us. What are they actually worth to you? Can Ashton Kutcher earn his $700,000-an-episode keep on Two and a Half Men?
Clearly no one can argue with the fact that anyone who shaves off a few bucks each and every week will invariably be better off down the road. In fact, according to TV Guide, CSI is doing precisely that by switching out their stars, and with the exit of one they are saving plenty. I mean really and truly, why pay Laurence Fishburne $350,000 an episode when you can pay Ted Danson just $225,000 instead? Those are substantial savings. Wouldn't you want to save $125,000 a week for 22 weeks?? That's $2,750,000 saved! Not bad. Plus, I don't think Ted Danson does too much wrong and suspect he'll be a super-welcome addition to that cast. I know it's a little icky/ridiculous to be discussing numbers like these in the context of today's tough times. But audiences still want to be entertained. Plus, within a thriving entertainment business (which, by many people's standards, Hollywood still has) at least TV stars work regularly and consistently. In Hollywood, a TV series is as steady a gig as one can have. Isn't that sort of a compelling justification for Hugh Laurie's $700,000 an episode – or Mark Harmon's $500K a week? You want Tim Allen and Kiefer Sutherland back on network television? That'll be $225,000 per episode each for their new fall shows. And even though TV-actor money looks pretty good, it's the "personality" types who seem to do even better. Letterman leads the late night pack with $28 million dollars a season, while Leno trails just behind with $25 million. Apparently poor Jimmy Fallon is still cutting his teeth and learning the ropes, because he only brings in $5 million (which is at least better than George Lopez who earns $3.5 million annually).
The point is, these people make big bucks because the folks who produce the shows believe they're worth it – because they make us laugh, or cry, or whatever. What do you think? Are they worth it? Would you be disappointed if your favorite stars weren't on TV because of their salary demands? It's clearly a controversial topic – but we do want to know what you think.
Today's poll:
TV Guide's salary rankings are here. Voice your choice in today's featured poll and tell us which of these top TV earners is your favorite:
1) Hugh Laurie ($700K/per episode)
2) Mark Harmon ($500K/per episode)
3) Jim Parsons ($250K/per episode)
4) Tim Allen ($225K/per episode)
For the latest pop culture news and voting, make sure to sign up for the People's Choice newsletter!


text:
Bradley likely to make roster with Sweeney out
Prospect in good shape as Red Sox opt not to purchase veteran's contract
By Ian Browne / MLB.com
Before Thursday's game against the Twins, there were two roster spots available between the trio of Bradley, Mike Carp and Ryan Sweeney.
Following the game, the Red Sox informed Sweeney that the club will not purchase his Minor League contract.
"They didn't purchase my contract, so I'm the odd man out," Sweeney said after being summoned to manager John Farrell's office.
Meanwhile, Bradley left JetBlue Park on Thursday still not knowing for sure if he had made the club.
"I haven't heard anything yet," Bradley said. "I hope I would be the first one. I want to know before y'all. I'm still waiting to hear. I haven't heard anything yet."
Sweeney was a non-roster invitee, while Carp -- acquired from the Mariners last month -- was already on the 40-man roster.
The idea with Bradley at the start of Spring Training was that this would be an ideal chance for him to get his first exposure to Major League camp. He was a non-roster invitee just hoping to absorb wisdom from veterans.
But when David Ortiz's right Achilles injury from last season lingered, an opportunity opened and Bradley seized it.
In 26 Spring Training games and 59 at-bats, Bradley is hitting .441 with four doubles, a triple, two homers, nine RBIs and a 1.165 OPS.
However, the numbers aren't what have impressed the Red Sox the most.
"We look at it the consistency of the at-bats," Farrell said. "You look at certain counts he finds himself in and how his approach has been to that. One at-bat that stands out to me is the other day against [Pedro] Strop. He gets down two strikes, he takes two split-finger fastballs that are Major League-quality pitches, gets back in the count and there's a two-run single.
"So if you look at the consistency and control of the strike zone, getting himself in good hitters' counts and what he does in those situations, I think that goes beyond the overall batting average."
Bradley, ranked as Boston's second-best prospect by MLB.com, has passed every test the team has presented him with, and would seem to be in position to get regular at-bats until Ortiz returns from the disabled list.
For a few days, the Red Sox had been mulling their options with Bradley. Things appeared to start swinging in his favor when he started in left field against Phillies lefty Cliff Lee on March 24. That was the type of test that could help the Sox gauge whether Bradley could handle hitting lefties and righties. In that game, Bradley hit a three-run homer in his first at-bat.
"You look at the Spring Training he had, the talent that he is, and you try to put together the best team with the best players that you can," said Farrell. "We've allowed him to go this deep into camp, so we're not afraid and not unwilling to break with him. If that was the case, we would have sent him out four weeks ago. But all those things are considered."
There were also service time issues to consider. If Bradley spent the first 12 days -- or nine games -- of Boston's 2013 season in the Minors, it would guarantee that he couldn't reach free agency until after the '19 season.
If he breaks camp with the Red Sox -- which now seems close to certain -- Bradley would be a free agent after the '18 season, unless he spent 20 consecutive days in the Minors at some point over the next three years.
"I think it's balancing the [short and long term]," Farrell said. "We can't control tomorrow, let alone six years from now."
Sweeney broke camp as Boston's starting right fielder last season, but went into a slump in midseason and then broke his hand punching a wall in the clubhouse after a strikeout just before the July 31 non-waiver Trade Deadline.
Red Sox place Drew on seven-day DL
FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Red Sox shortstop Stephen Drew, who is still feeling symptoms from the concussion he sustained on March 7, was placed on the seven-day disabled list prior to Thursday's night game against the Twins.
The move was made retroactive to March 27. If everything went perfectly, Drew could be activated for Boston's second game of the season on April 3 at Yankee Stadium.
However, Drew is likely to need more time, when you consider he hasn't played in three weeks and is still having symptoms. The seven-day DL was created specifically for concussions.
"The fact is he's back on the field taking BP, which he will do today, so at least some of the base work is still being performed," said manager John Farrell. "He's still staying in shape with the ground balls he's been taking. By no means is he game speed. The amount of reps he'll need once he gets back into a game remains to be seen."
Though the Red Sox haven't placed David Ortiz on the DL yet, it is a mere formality that they will do so before the season starts. Ortiz again took batting practice on Thursday and seems to be making progress each day with his ailing right heel.
While Drew will stay back in Fort Myers for extended Spring Training when the Red Sox head north, Ortiz will accompany the team to New York so he can continue his work with trainer Dan Dyrek. Once Ortiz is ready to start playing baseball, he will likely head back to Fort Myers and start game action there.
Ian Browne is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Brownie Points, and follow him on Twitter @IanMBrowne. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
HTC put it in the Hero
At least on the gallery and browser.
Very nice it is too.
I suppose Apple are patent-trolling it again.
Wish the US would grow up and ban software patents. It's damaging products the rest of the world would like.
A celebrated Android hacker has released software that greatly enhances Google's Nexus One smartphone, endowing it for the first time with the same coveted multitouch features that grace Apple's iPhone. Operating under the moniker Cyanogen, the hacker released the updates on Wednesday. The hack came as Google formally made the …
At least on the gallery and browser.
Very nice it is too.
I suppose Apple are patent-trolling it again.
Wish the US would grow up and ban software patents. It's damaging products the rest of the world would like.
...that HTC paid apple to do so.
I do wonder whether Google's open sourcing of the OS is to avoid paying the tithe on the first version of the phone that looks like a serious attempt to take on the iPhone?
I imagine that open sourcing it makes it easier to deliver the multitouch update in a manner that non-techs feel comfortable with, as opposed to the root and flash approach that the early android-adopters (androiders?) are used to.
Why they don't put it in for units shipped to the civilised world, where we don't allow for moronic software patents.
Motorola did with the Droid - the 'Milestone' as it's known in Europe does feature the multitouch missing from the US Droid. As there isn't yet an official UK version of the Nexus One, we don't know yet, maybe they will.
They do, sort of. The HTC Hero has always had multi-touch in the "civilised" world, but not in USA. There was, and still is, much speculation as to whether the Nexus 1 will be different in Europe compared to USA.
Yeah, it's definitely needed. I got my Nexus One yesterday for development and as it stands without multi touch it feel basic and old. I wish you could double tap to zoom in to a column in the browser too, but it just zooms in closer.
Pretty disappointed with the speed too, for a 1 ghz processor it scrolls like a dog with too much on the screen.
I've had one since it was released, lag is virtually non-existant - and it's not like I don't have a lot of apps installed! Have a look at the battery usage information, see if some app is hammering the system unduly.
A lot is being made of this 'missing feature', but the hardware and the OS both support multitouch, there is software out there, including an image viewer and a web browser that exploit this fact. It is just google maps, the default installed web browser and image viewer that lack it NOT the device! Install alternate apps and you are sorted, no flashing, no nothing!
I do agree with the other posters, companies need to be prevented from patenting vague or quite frankly obvious things. And fanbois could probably do with not thinking 'pinch to zoom' is a deal breaking feature, it looks cool but double tap to zoom takes les effort!
*for the record I don't own a smartphone - fanboi neutral!
If so I trademark the one fingered salute.
"Introduced and trademarked by Apple, multitouch gives users ..."
Are you saying that Apple have trademarked the word 'multitouch' for use on touch-sensitive input devices? If so, that is amazing and amounts to 'restraint of common language' (I think I just coined that expression). I hope I've misunderstood this.
From what I've heard, and just like the Droid/Milestone, the lack of multi-touch is a US-only "feature" of the Nexus One. The versions of such Android handsets distributed in Europe support multitouch just fine.
My Windows Mobile Phone has had multitouch for a while now. Good to see the Googlephone catch up there.
(Yes it's an HD2)
...and only benefit a select few nasty pocketses...
Is multitouch really a software patent? I've never used it, but my understanding is it's an innovative way of using a touchpad. Touchpads have been around for decades, but it took a bright mind, followed by significant R&D at Apple to come up with a new way of using them which makes for a much better and easier to use product. Is that not a perfectly valid use of patent protection?
Genuine question, BTW. I've never owned an Apple product and am certainly not a fanboi. I also hate software patents as much as most clued up IT people. This just struck me as people being rather quick to jump on the "software patent" argument just because a company wants to protect a useful idea they came up with.
I understood that it was significant R&D at Fingerworks, which Apple then swooped in and bought - the whole company, not just the IP. So the inventors are being heavily rewarded and are now Apple employees but the actual original work was performed elsewhere.
Not sure if that makes the conversation more palatable to the usual brand aware but otherwise braindead rabble or just plays into their hands. But I would imagine that whoever funded Fingerworks would have been unlikely to do so if there was no way of owning the IP.
I'm definitely anti the "a device for applying the colour red to text upon demand"-type patents, but this doesn't feel like one of those.
The work in this is in the hardware, to get it to detect more than one touch. After that the software is trivial and obvious (read the device's outputs, Duh). Certainly far below the standard needed to get a patent in any sensible world.
So, if the Google machine detects your fingers in a way which is different from the Apple one I can't think of any rational argument for preventing anyone and everyone from using it as a multitouch device (BTW, "multitouch" is far too generic a term to deserve a trademark).
"Is that not a perfectly valid use of patent protection?"
No. It's just an innovation, and should "entitle" them to nothing apart from any market advantage it gives them until a competitor copies or improves on it.
With patent protection for things like this, it's hard for competitors to _improve_ on it as they're not allowed to use it as a foundational component.
i.e. no "standing on the shoulders of giants" to make better products
With patent protection for things like this, we really seem to be shooting ourselves in the foot as a culture/species/etc.
Catchy name !
"Introduced and trademarked by Apple, multitouch ........"
Surely you mean Apple trademarked their techology method for achieving this function, not the actual function itself.
That would be akin to trademarking the mouse
Oh wait ...
As far as I understand.
Without knowing much about Android... if multitouch is hacked into the OS won't all the apps for the phone need to be rewritten to support it correctly?
And if so, isn't this just going to result in patchy multitouch support, repeated pinching trying to figure out IF an app uses it, hours of searching to find one that does and then inevitable frustration with an inconsistent interface?
Sorry, the phrase "all or nothing" springs to mind.
it's just not implemented in Google's apps.
...then in a naive interpretation of patent rules, Google can't put it in without getting a licence or getting a lawsuit. And the same would apply to some hacker adding the feature afterwards, if they're within reach of U.S. law - and nowadays that reach is surprisingly long. They'd start with a cease-and-desist letter and maybe finish with the guy in jail. I expect that multitouch function is useful to terrorists as well as anyone else.
In a less naive interpretation, doing something you -could- be sued over isn't always bad business, and, leaving aside the justice or injustice of software patents, anything you make a computer do probably breaches someone's patent. You just hope they breached someone else's and you get what I think is called a Mexican Stand-Off.
As for trademark, if it -is- a trademark, I don't think "multi-touch" is a common phrase since time immemorial, but on the other hand it's been bandied around for Windows 7 and Microsoft Surface without comment, so I'll presume that was a mistake.
...But it should be open to everyone. Best advancement in mouse technology since the laser/optical mouse! Makes using a laptop so much easier, just a shame Apple haven't got it quite right in W7 yet. Well that and the fact W7 managed to brick my OSX installation by overwriting core files...
Sue him, ban the hack! Infringement of patents, unauthorised interference with trademarked material.
... who/what this Cyanogen person/entity/gas is.
There's a project hosted on google code that is devoted to making an updater for the Cyanogen ROMs:
The conspiracy theorist in me thinks that Cyanogen may well be an oompa loompa, or at least related to one.
...whether or not multi-touch is patented by Apple, this guy is doing work that would make any Google developer proud, and having the additional burden of figuring it out for him/herself.
'nuff said.
Seems to go back to mid 80s and its the phrase "multitouch" as a trademark that is Apple's
Looks like this article could do with some more research. It seems that multi touch has been active since andriod 2.0, just not on the core apps provided by Google.
The dolphin browser for Andriod has pinch and zoom. Nice.
HTC Hero is still on Android 1.5 and has multi-touch.
It's used in the default browser, image viewer and in the email app.
Apple appears to be claiming "Multi-Touch" as trademark. But someone else (somewhere else, does SA = South Africa??) claims "Anywhere MultiTouch". A couple of documents in French imply that "Multitouch" is a Microsoft trademark, if "tm" does mean that in French. Maybe it's short for "le touch multi".
But a term very close to someone else's trademark is about as much a violation as using an exact match.
Then again, if everyone is using your chosen trademark to refer indiscriminately to your products and your competitors', you've lost.
Apple has the multi-touch patent specific to handheld devices. They filed for it long after multi-touch demos had been publicly shown with various proof-of-concept works including what eventually because Microsoft Sphere. (Some college kids came up with it. Probably engineering students, I'd guess?)
US patents are ridiculous. There are far too many, they are too vague, and they are awarded despite the technology not being unique, innovative or even well-described. They are frequently used as a club for lawsuits and licensing deals which prohibit actual innovation and harm consumers.
All Google recently did was release the newest 2.1 Software Development Kit, Android has been OSS since Google first released it, it's not some sudden giant turnaround 'wow google open sourced their OS'
"Android has been available as open source since 21 October 2008. Google opened the entire source code under an Apache License"
Also Android OS and the Nexus 1 and Droid hardware completely support multitouch, the Google apps do also but the apps have the pinch-zoom function crippled in the US due to some licensing problem, the milestone simply had that cripple removed for europe before shipping the droid/milestone phones and software are identical. All Cyanogen did was remove that same software lock for the nexus, they didn't 'code multitouch for android' just disable a small software cripple in the same way hackers are making Google Navigation work outside of the US (again only disabled due to as of yet unresolved licensing issues).


text:
The event was created to show donors, sponsors and the community the impact The Boys and Girls Club of the Arkansas River Valley has on local youth, Cathy Andrasik, executive director of The Boys and Girls Clubs, stated in a news release.
Richardson coached the Arkansas Razorbacks from 1985 to 2002, and to a NCAA national championship in 1994. In 2008, he was elected to the National Collegiate Basketball Hall of Fame.
Standing Ovations will be catered by Opal Mae's and will feature a silent auction, a salute to local supporters, Richardson's speech and other special guests.
Andrasik said The Boys and Girls Clubs of the Arkansas River Valley, which opened in 1989, has helped thousands of children. She said the organization couldn't have been so successful without the community's support.
The organization will present the Golden Triangle Award at the event, which "will honor the club's founders by recognizing our outstanding club member, community volunteer and business supporter of the year," the release stated.
Andrasik said the group was pleased with last year's turnout and looks forward to this year's event, which will begin on Aug. 22 at 6:30 p.m. at the L.V. Williamson Boys and Girls Club at 600 E. 16th St., Russellville.
Tickets are $25 and must be purchased by Aug. 20 at the Boys and Girls Club.
For more information, contact Andrasik at (479) 968-7819.


text:
Hawthorn win is one for the ages
Goals: Hawthorn: I Smith 3 L Breust 3 P Puopolo 3 C Rioli 2 J Gunston 2 J Roughead 2 B Hill D Hale G Birchall L Shiels M Suckling W Langford. Fremantle: M Pavlich 4 P Duffield 2 A Sandilands C Mayne D Pearce H Ballantyne R Crowley.
BEST Hawthorn: Mitchell, Lewis, Hill, Shiels, Breust, Smith, Rioli, Birchall, Suckling. Fremantle: Pavlich, Sandilands, Hill, Mundy.
Umpires: Brett Rosebury, Luke Farmer, Nicholas Foot. Official Crowd: 43,583 at MCG.
They've won 11 flags since 1961. They've come back from nine goals behind to beat Geelong in a storied regular season game in 1989, and heroically hung on in that grand final with concussions, collapsing lungs and bleeding kidneys.
They've won one for Crimmo. They've beaten the Geelong invincibles in 2008. They've beaten the Kennett curse. They've dismantled Essendon in '83 by 83 (points). In 1991, they conquered a dominant West Coast in a Perth final, before repeating that result in the Batmobile grand final at Waverley. They got up from 20 points down in the last quarter of the '71 grand final - a game so violent the replay should be rated R.
They've had too many flags and victories to mention.
But have the Hawks ever played a better half than the opening two quarters of this grand final ''replay''?
Hawthorn trainspotters can argue about the merits of their team's first half - in which they breached the Fremantle defensive dam and scored 12 goals to two against a team written and directed by Ross Lyon - but it is difficult to remember the Hawks producing anything that was superior to that one crowded hour, not in Alastair Clarkson's time.
It might have been Hawthorn's finest hour. Not in the sense that the ''finest hour'' cliche is usually applied - this wasn't heroic like Dermie and Dipper in '89. No, it was the finest quality of football that a team can produce.
Consider first the outs for the Hawks: No Luke Hodge calling the shots, no Brian Lake or Ben Stratton in defence. Ben McEvoy's withdrawal left them without an experienced ruckman, forcing lightweight Jon Ceglar to grapple with the competition Godzilla, Aaron Sandilands.
It didn't matter. The Dockers, too, had significant absentees - accentuating the non-grand final feeling - and perhaps the lesson is that frontline midfielders (Nat Fyfe and Michael Barlow) are harder to cover than defenders or rucks.
Hawthorn didn't need Lake, Stratton or Hodge dropping back, for this simple reason: they had the ball in their hands.
Of the many numbers that tell the tale, none - besides 12.5 to 2.8 - speak louder than this: That the first-half Hawks had 261 disposals to Fremantle's 128 - yes, that's more than double, which is extraordinary in any game, much less one between the flag favourites. Another staggering fact - the Hawks had 90 contested balls to the Dockers' 54 in the first half; 90 ''earned balls'' in a half is a stupid number. It should embarrass everyone who played for the Dockers, regardless of the missing midfielders. The minor injuries that Fremantle accrued - Chris Mayne (ankle), Hayden Ballantyne (hip) and Garrick Ibbotson (shoulder) - came after the Hawks had reduced it to rubble.
This task was completed in 17 minutes from the first bounce, when Sam Mitchell was laid on his back by Mayne as the Hawks vaulted forward. A brilliant Cyril Rioli rover's goal - with a trademark evasion - started the blitz.
David Hale slotted the next - alarm bells were sounding for purple people. When Jarryd Roughead's snap from a scrimmage took a sharp left-footed leg-break and bounced through, you sensed that Fremantle needed to do something - like getting the ball. By the 17-minute mark, small forwards Luke Breust and Paul Puopolo had hit the board, and Grant Birchall had nailed one from outside 50 metres. The scores were 6.1 to zero. This doesn't happen to teams coached by Lyon, no matter who's absent
Hawthorn made the Dockers look as dismal and inept as Collingwood were rendered in the season opener.
The pattern didn't alter one iota in the second quarter. The ball remained in brown and gold hands. Ominously, the leading ball-getters included not just usual suspects of Mitchell, Jordan Lewis, Shaun Burgoyne, Roughead and Josh Gibson, but next generation midfielders Liam Shiels, Brad Hill, while Will Langford snapped a brilliant shot from the boundary. Rioli provided a few electrifying moments.
The only way to compete with the Hawks is to either prevent from winning the ball - and using their elite feet - or apply massive pressure that forces them to falter, as Sydney did in the 2012 grand final.
The Dockers managed neither.
The game was gone in 17 minutes, and a rout in 60 minutes.
Hawthorn's most complete hour of football was a reminder to all of the pecking order in this competition. All else that happened - particularly Fremantle's last quarter flurry - was as irrelevant as … the grand final.
Jake Niall is a senior sports writer at 'The Age' specialising mainly in coverage of the AFL. He writes a weekly column for 'The Sunday Age' and has been on staff with 'The Age' or 'Sunday Age' since 1995. Jake, who combines original news with commentary, match-based writing, features and analysis, has won a number of awards, including the Alf Brown award for the best performer in AFL media in 2012, the Melbourne Press Club's 2007 Quill award for best sports story in any medium and a Walkley award, shared with colleagues Richard Baker, Nick McKenzie, Caroline Wilson and John Silvester, for best coverage of a major issue (Essendon scandal) in 2013.
Get the Morning Edition
Sign up for our daily wrap of the news you need to start your day.


text: "[Linda] Landrigan, AHMM's editor-in-chief, has done an outstanding job of selecting 34 short stories to represent the half-century of her magazine's existence.... The writing is uniformly excellent, making it hard to single out individual stories for praise, but Donald E. Westlake's 'Good Night! Good Night!' about a murder victim's search for his killer, which echoes Joel Townsley Rogers classic novel The Stopped Clock, and Bill Pronzini's Nameless Detective tale, 'Death of a Nobody,' are standouts. Perhaps this volume's greatest virtue is providing a showcase for the gifts of lesser-known writers such as Stephen Wasylyk and Henry Slesar. This will be a must-have for all serious mystery readers."Publishers Weekly (starred review)


text:
Jenkins: The Definitive Guide
Continuous Integration, or CI, is a cornerstone of modern software development best practices. Jenkins, an Open Source Continuous Integration tool, is by far the most popular Continuous Integration tool on the market, and for good reason! It's intuitive user interface and powerful features make setting up a Continuous Integration service a real breeze.
This book will teach you how to build a powerful and robust CI infrastructure using Jenkins. It is both a tutorial-style introduction and a comprehensive reference to implementing Continuous Integration and automating the build process with Jenkins. It's intention is not only to describe and document Jenkins, but also to provide a wealth of best practices and real-world tips enabling readers to get the most out of their Continuous Integration environment.
Jenkins: The Definitive Guide is an open source book, and is freely available online and in PDF form. The printed copy and eBook versions (ePub, mobi) are also available for purchase here.
Table of Contents
Book Resources
Try out Jenkins!
Launch Jenkins through Java Web Start for a test drive. Once it launches, visit http://localhost:8080/ to get to the Jenkins. Any configuration that you do with this Jenkins will be stored in the local ~/.jenkins directory, so your data will survive through Jenkins process restart.
Download the latest version of Jenkins
Download the latest version of Jenkins here, or directly from the Jenkins website.
Download the code samples
Download the code samples used in the book here.
Platinum Sponsors
Gold Sponsors
|Odd-e is a small company focusing on software quality, agile and lean development, training and coaching.
Also helping out...
|XMLMind have contributed licenses for XMLMind Professional Edition
|LeanKit Kanban have contributed an online Kanban board for the book contributors.
Become a Sponsor!
About the author
John Ferguson Smart is a consultant specializing in Enterprise Java, Web Development, and Open Source technologies, currently based in Wellington, New Zealand. Well known in the Java community for his many published articles, and as author of the Java Power Tools book, John helps organizations optimize their Java development processes and infrastructures and provides training and mentoring in open source technologies, SDLC tools, and agile development processes. John is principal consultant at Wakaleo Consulting, a company that provides consulting, training and mentoring services in Enterprise Java and Agile Development.


text:
Rock in the Stolby National Wildlife Nature Reserve, Krasnoyarsk, Russia. Heartland area. If you look to the rock from the east, you can see the head of the courageous and strong thinking about something an old man with a high forehead, which pulled down the cap. Straight nose and lowered the chest beard reinforce the impression. On the opposite side of the rock looks like a laughing grandfather. The view from the East. Taken on August 11, 2012.
Just in case you mistakenly heard that it was all ice and snow in Russia, take a peek at the Big Bikini Exposition. This is right on the river Moskva in Moscow!Moscow has been the capital of Russia for almost its entire history. The exception is during the period of the Russian Empire, which lasted from 1721 until the Russian Revolution 1917. For these two centuries the capital was St. Petersburg. The Russian Empire was the second largest contiguous Empire in world memory; only the Mongol Empire had been greater.Check out what's happening north of Mongolia these days, in ChitaAlthough you may not have heard of Sochi, on the Black Sea, they're building up quickly and hope to host the 2014 Olympics.Other periods of Russian history include the Tsardom of Russia, from Ivan IV to Peter the Great, and the Grand Duchy (14th-16th centuries).The earliest period of Russian history was ruled by the Novgorod Republic and Kievan Rus, which was the first Russian state dating back to 800AD in Kiev.Modern Russia remains one of the world's superpowers. They launched the earth's second satellite, called Sputnik 1, and were the first country to put a human being into orbit around earth. (The first one is called the Moon.)After the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia became a federal republic of 83 states.Text by Steve Smith.


text:
I have no problem with any of the teams remaining except the pair from Big Brother.
I do admire the Kentucky team very much although I didn't like them at first. That being said and because of their popularity with the viewers, I can't help but wonder if this would have been a non-elimination leg if a different team had come in last.


text:
Admittedly this is only from reading its fine manual, but it looks more like
git svn than a "proper" importer. i.e. it concentrates on bidirectional tracking of one remote branch in a subversion repository, not on untangling the "branches are branches and tags are branches too*" mess that a subversion repository can get into, not on converting them all to first class tags and first class branches.
* but really they're all just copies within a directory tree.


text:
Many companies still consider stakeholder engagement a good idea they'll consider sometime in the future when they'll have the time and resources. But for Gap Inc. it became clear about a decade ago, after being targeted several times due to labor violation accusations as well as redwood forest degradation, that not only they have to start interacting with stakeholders, but they also have to do it right.
The company then started a journey that made Gap one of the most professional and successful companies when it comes to stakeholder engagement. Their experience is a great example of a strategic approach that provides results, and it also offers valuable lessons for other companies. Actually, every company should review the Gap stakeholder engagement strategy – not just for their stakeholders' benefit, but for the company's own good.
A good starting point is a new article released earlier this month on MIT Sloan Management Review (Summer 2011), which chronicles Gap's journey. The article, 'How Gap Inc. Engaged With Its Stakeholders', by N. Craig Smith, Sean Ansett and Lior Erez is based on in-depth interviews conducted in 2009 with Gap management and key external stakeholder representatives.
According to the article, Gap's efforts actually began almost two decades ago. In 1992 Gap published a set of sourcing principles and shared it with vendors in the garment industry. Four years later, in 1996, the company developed a code of vendor conduct (COVC) and made it public. Gap explains that its COVC "establishes the legal, social and environmental requirements that all manufacturers and factories must meet in order to do business with our company." "Our code," they added, "is designed to ensure that garment workers are paid fairly, work a reasonable number of hours, and do their work in a safe, healthy environment."
Gap believed that establishing such a code and creating a compliance team that will monitor and police it will do the work. They were wrong. In her book No Logo, author Naomi Klein explains that codes of conduct are awfully slippery. "Unlike laws, they are not enforceable. And unlike union contracts, they were not drafted in cooperation with factory managers in response to the demands and needs of employees."
Despite its flaws, Gap thought its COVC is the right tool to make sure its contractors treat their employees fairly. Still, the allegations kept coming – from a legal suit over labor conditions in a supplier's factory in Saipan (1999) to a BBC documentary accusing Gap (and Nike) of ignoring the problem of child labor in a subcontractor's factory in Cambodia. These episodes and the protests that followed against Gap got the company to understand that its "legalistic risk-mitigation approach" doesn't work. Gap's executives decided to look for an alternative strategy.
The company's search for a new effective model of stakeholder engagement can be divided, according to Smith, Ansett and Erez' article, into five phases.
The first step was to identify who they're actually dealing with and develop a stakeholder map. It wasn't only about mapping the stakeholders, but also about prioritizing them. "We recognized that it would not be possible for us to have a strategic relationship with each of the stakeholders, so we highlighted those who we deemed to be the most key," Deanna Robinson, Gap's head of monitoring and vendor development explained to the authors.
After identifying key stakeholders Gap started meeting with them to better understand their point of view. These conversations led not only to better communication and in some cases to partnerships with stakeholders, but also to the second step, which was identifying the material issues, in other words – what the most important social issues the company need to deal with.
The third step was defining objectives based on the input received from the stakeholders Gap met with. One of the company's top objectives was increasing its transparency and as a result the company published its first CSR report in 2004. Gap was the first big retailer to do so and the report got a general positive response because of its willingness to be open and honest about problems and failures. Nikki Bas, of California-based Sweatshop Watch, told the Guardian back then that it was "the kind of information we have been pushing them to provide for years."
Gap's next step was resolving issues collaboratively, working simultaneously with multiple stakeholders to address a specific problem, and even initiating a series of stakeholder meetings in one case to discuss the company's strategy in the era after the phasing out of the Multi Fiber Arrangement.
The last step Gap took was to embed stakeholder engagement into the company and make sure skeptics both inside and outside the company understood this is not a gimmick, but part of the company's strategy. Cleverly, Gap hired "boundary spanners," people familiar with both the corporate side and the stakeholders side, to defuse potential tensions and make sure communication lines will stay open and work effectively.
Gap's strategic approach didn't end their subcontractors' labor and environmental violations, but it helped the company to establish trust among its stakeholders and improved its ability to solve complex problems. It also led to reduced risk of negative headlines and protests against the company, as stakeholders provided the company with the opportunity to address issues before they reach the media as the stakeholders trust the company and its willingness to improve its stakeholder practices.
These results only prove that just like with CSR, when it comes to stakeholder engagement good intentions are not enough. A truly effective win-win model can only be based on a strategic approach. Just ask Gap.
Picture credit: Old Navy products, from parent company Gap
Raz Godelnik is the co-founder of Eco-Libris, a green company working to green up the book industry in the digital age. He is also an adjunct professor in the University of Delaware's Alfred Lerner College of Business and Economics.
Want to learn more?
Jurat Software enables you to centralize engagement projects into a single database, sharing information, retaining corporate knowledge and reporting globally.
[contact-form 2 "Jurat Email"]


text: I think this is one of my primary complaints. Some people paint it as a black and white situation: either you spank your kids, or they'll be animals running wild in the streets. There is a middle path. I don't like the term "punishment" as much as I like the idea of natural/logical consequences. That's how learning takes place, IMHO. I think spanking "teaches" them the wrong lessons. JMHO I've never had a situation, in 18 years of parenting, when spanking seemed necessary. I will admit that there were times I wanted to, but if I am brutally honest that was about my anger, not about some noble intention to "teach them something". And just for the record, our 18 year old has a 4.2 GPA and is off to college this fall. The 10 year old is a straight A student, a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, and just the sweetest, kindest little boy you've ever met.


text:
Playback of logged data. More...
Playback of logged data.
The readlog driver can be used to replay data stored in a log file. This is particularly useful for debugging client programs, since users may run their clients against the same data set over and over again. Suitable log files can be generated using the writelog driver. The format for the log file can be found in the data logging tutorial.
See below for an example configuration file; note that the device id's specified in the provides field must match those stored in the log file (i.e., data logged as "position2d:0" must also be read back as "position2d:0").
For help in controlling playback, try playervcr. Note that you must declare a log device to allow playback control.
- Compile-time dependencies
- none
- Provides
The readlog driver can provide the following device interfaces.
- laser
- ranger
- position2d
- sonar
- wifi
- wsn
- imu
- pointcloud3d
- opaque
- ptz
- actarray
- fiducial
- blobfinder
- camera
- gps
- joystick
- position3d
- power
- dio
- aio
The driver also provides an interface for controlling the playback:
- Requires
- none
- Configuration requests
- Configuration file options
- filename (filename)
- Default: NULL
- The log file to play back.
- speed (float)
- Default: 1.0
- Playback speed; 1.0 is real-time
- autoplay (integer)
- Default: 1
- Begin playing back log data when first client subscribes (as opposed to waiting for the client to tell the log device to play).
- autorewind (integer)
- Default: 0
- Automatically rewind and play the log file again when the end is reached (as opposed to not producing any more data).
- Example
# Play back odometry and laser data at twice real-time from "mydata.log" driver ( name "readlog" filename "mydata.log" provides ["position2d:0" "laser:0" "log:0"] speed 2.0 )


text:
You are straight up and down and have balanced shoulders and hips with an undefined waist.
Thanks to your naturally sporty look, simple, minimalist cuts and androgynous silhouettes look fabulous on you.
The key to dressing your shape is to opt for clean lines, angled shapes and structured fabrics that flatter your figure rather than highlight your lack of curves.
When choosing shirts, play with proportion by opting for styles with asymmetrical or dipped hems. Forgo sweetheart or plunging necklines which will emphasise your small chest for tops with breast pockets, front pleats and ruffle details that will give your bust a boost.
When it comes to jackets, look for mannish tailoring like streamlined duster styles and boyfriend cuts that will complement your straight silhouette.
Wide leg trousers look great on you, as they add curve and volume to your lower body.
If you prefer a more feminine look, optical illusion dresses that create curves with clever print, design and colour blocking are perfect for you. Empire lines look good if you love pretty, floaty styles, along with A-line skirts which create a shapelier bottom half.
Fabric is a clever way to add softness and femininity to your look – silks and chiffons that gently drape are lovely on your frame.
Not your body shape?
Discover the other shapes:Find your body shape with our test >
Shop suitable items
for you
Sign up to our newsletter and receive
15% off on your first order
Subscribe to our exclusive navabi newsletter today


text:
According to the article, http://www.dishwashersinfo.com/Features/The-Magic-Mineral-in-Boschs-New-Dishwasher.htm?utm_source=outbrain_recirc&obref=obnetwork, there is a new dishwasher that contains pebbles of zeolite that do the following:
At the end of a wash cycle, moisture in the wash tub is churned into a container of zeolite "pebbles" beneath the main cavity. There, it undergoes a natural chemical process of adsorption, the byproduct of which is intense heat—enough to boil water. (Bosch reports that simply blowing moist air over a handful of dry zeolite pearls will cause the material to become painfully hot.) The remaining moisture in the wash tub is gradually siphoned out of the tub and sucked in by the zeolite.
The article claims that the pebbles will never need to be replaced, but if all you need to do to create such heat is add water, why is this not an alternative energy source? My second question is, what would happen if I were to pour sea water on a zeolite rock? Would all the water evaporate, leaving the salt behind? Sounds like easy desalination to me!
Finally, it looks like this zeolite stuff if sold for use in aquariums. Does that mean I could buy this stuff http://www.petfooddirect.com/product/50134/Loving-Pets-Acurel-Ammonia-Away-Green-Zeolite?extcid=PLA&gclid=CO_FkfHBlrYCFdE-MgodQW0ASQ and use it to heat my apartment? I don't pay for water.
It sounds too good to be true.


text:
Maria Canals Berrera Curly Formal Updo Hairstyle
Description(Added: 2nd October 2013 )
This formal hairstyle is set in hot rollers to achieve elegant waves through the mid-lengths to ends, then pinned over to one side to create this stunning half up-do best suited to compliment a long face. This is a great style for any special occasion and needs product for shine and hold.
- Hair Category: Formal
- Hair Length: Updo Medium
- Hair Elasticity: Wavy
- Gender: Women
- Face Shape: Oval, Oblong, Square, and Diamond
- Hair Density: Medium/Thick
- Hair Texture: Fine/Medium
- Age: 21 - 30, 31 - 40, and 41 - 50
- Height: Any
- Weight: Thin/Average/Large
- Glasses: Suits with and without
- Styling Time: 30+ minutes
- Styling Tip: Allow up to 2 hours styling time for hot roller setting, teasing, pinning and spraying. This long lasting style is great for all occasions and all weather conditions.


text:
Bonifacio hits DL, awaits MRI results on rib cage
By Erik Bacharach and Teddy Cahill / MLB.com
PHILADELPHIA -- Emilio Bonifacio was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Friday with rib cage inflammation after injuring himself during Thursday night's game against the Pirates.
On the second pitch of the game, Bonifacio grounded out to short, but he never left the batter's box. As he swung, he fell to the ground, grimacing in pain. Head athletic trainer PJ Mainville had to support Bonifacio as he limped off the field.
Bonifacio had an MRI on Friday.
"We'll wait until they give us the MRI to actually find out what it is," Cubs manager Rick Renteria said.
In the meantime, the Cubs have activated Ryan Sweeney from the 15-day disabled list. Sweeney, who had been sidelined since May 3 with a right hamstring strain, got the start in center field Friday night and was put in the No. 2 spot in the order.
Sweeney, Justin Ruggiano and Junior Lake will all get time in center field with Bonifacio on the DL.
"I'm going to keep using Sweeney and Ruggiano or Lake or any number of those three guys, because they've all done it," Renteria said. "I think as we continue to move forward, we'll just continue to do what we actually have done in the recent past here. Try and kind of match up and see what we can do with the lineup."
Bonifacio's absence also creates a void atop the Cubs' lineup, as the speedy center fielder was Chicago's everyday leadoff hitter. Renteria plans on using Chris Coghlan, Lake or Sweeney to get things started from that spot.
"Of the guys that are here, [Coghlan] has actually led off before in Miami. And we have led off [Lake] in the past," Renteria said. "So we're just going to try to mix and match and see where we go with that."
Renteria said he would consider moving up Luis Valbuena to leadoff, but for the time being, he prefers keeping him in the fifth spot in the order.
"Is it tempting? Yes. But I think that the three-, four-, five-slot there for us is working pretty well," Renteria said. "Doesn't mean that we wouldn't possibly go there somewhere down the road, but right now, I think with [Starlin] Castro protecting [Valbuena] and [Valbuena] protecting Castro ... [Valbuena] has a way of putting together really good at-bats. And it'd be nice to continue to have him there, especially with runners on base."
Castillo progressing, taking swings off tee
PHILADELPHIA -- Welington Castillo, who has been on the disabled list since June 2, did some rehab work on Wednesday as he comes back from left rib cage inflammation.
The catcher took 25-30 dry swings and 15-20 swings off the tee.
"Doing better," manager Rick Renteria said. "Took some dry swings, some tee work, some frontside with no complaints. Did some conditioning with no complaints. He's coming along."
Before being sidelined, Castillo was batting .242 with five home runs and 21 RBIs in 43 games.
John Baker has received the bulk of the playing time at catcher in Castillo's absence.
Cubs' top pick Schwarber homers in pro debut
Just eight days after the Cubs made him the fourth overall pick in the 2014 First-Year Player Draft, catcher Kyle Schwarber hit his first professional home run to power short-season Boise to a 4-2 victory against Tri-City on Friday.
With the Hawks trailing, 2-1, in the seventh inning, Schwarber came to the plate with two on and two out. Facing right-hander Marc Magliaro, he got ahead in the count 3-0 before driving a towering fly ball out to right field.
Right-hander David Garner pitched two scoreless innings to secure the Opening Day victory for the Hawks.
Schwarber finished the night 3-for-4 with two runs and three RBIs. He started the game at catcher and made a throwing error in the first inning.
Schwarber began the year playing for Indiana University. He hit .358 with 14 home runs and a .659 slugging percentage and helped lead the Hoosiers to the Big Ten championship. He was the first position player selected and became the highest drafted player in school history when the Cubs took him last Thursday.
Erik Bacharach is an associate reporter for MLB.com. Teddy Cahill is a reporter for MLB.com. Follow him on Twitter at @tedcahill. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text: As you point out, there are a number of ways of doing asynchronous IO. Given the number of packages, deciding which path to take becomes a non-trivial choice. The difference between Coro and the other choices, is that Coro is threaded, and all of the other solutions are single-threaded. The are a number of differences between writing a single threaded aysnc application and a multi-threaded application. Threading means timing problems, semaphores and the rest of the overhead that goes with threading. Plus, debugging timing problems is hard. Peter On Fri, 2009-12-04 at 23:42 +0200, Yuval Kogman wrote: > I think required background would be a 5 minute intro on how to do > this "by hand" with a select() loop. Understanding how an event loop > is built on top of that simple primitive (or its more modern > replacements) is very helpful in getting a view of the big picture, > especially when resource management becomes an issue. > > I would also recommend looking at AnyEvent::Handle next, since it's a > pretty thin wrapper on top of that level of stuff. > > IO::Lambda provides a very high level abstraction for event driven > stream processing, with several event based drivers. > > POE is a similarly high level abstraction layer, but it has a very > structured OO approach for organizing large applications in a very > different way from IO::Lambda (no opinion on "better" or "worse" ;-). > > Secondly, IO::AIO exposes POSIX aio which is a very different approach > to nonblocking IO, each AIO request is sort of like a thread that can > only do that IO operation, so some people find that a little more > comfortable than event driven nonblocking IO, it's also worth a > mention. > > Lastly, you can do async IO with ithreads by simply allocating one > worker per handle, but since ithreads are expensive that's usually not > a good way of approaching it. > > A nicer solution for threaded IO (at least IMHO), is Coro and > Coro::Handle, which uses AnyEvent::Handle as the underlying > nonblocking IO framework but wraps it in blocking primitives. > > FWIW, I would be happy to give one or more presentation(s) on any > combination of these things if there is still interest and Peter > hasn't covered them, but only after I come back in Israel in March. > _______________________________________________ > Perl mailing list > Perl at perl.org.il > http://mail.perl.org.il/mailman/listinfo/perl


text:
'Show what you are made of'
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — In her first public appearance since being fired from The New York Times, Jill Abramson focused on resilience during personal setbacks.
Abramson, who was dismissed Wednesday as the paper's executive editor, opened her commencement address at Wake Forest University by recounting a conversation she had with her sister the morning after her firing. Her sister, she said, reminded her of a key piece of advice from their father that Abramson then passed on to the graduates: "You know the sting of losing or not getting something you badly want. When that happens show what you are made of," she said.
Story Continued Below
Abramson's remarks were watched with intense interest throughout the media world to see how she would handle the subject of her dismissal. She did not serve up any specifics regarding the circumstances of her ouster, though she spoke openly about getting fired and her uncertainty about what will come next.
( Also on POLITICO: Abramson's 10 best lines)
She cited Anita Hill as someone who turned humiliation into power, bringing up David Brock's quote from his book "Blinded by the Right" that he was able to make Hill seem "a little bit nutty and a little bit slutty."
"Anita was one of many people who wrote to me last week to tell me they are proud of me," said Abramson, who along with Jane Mayer co-authored "Strange Justice: The Selling of Clarence Thomas," a look at the confirmation hearings that vaulted Hill into the national spotlight. "Those messages are so appreciated."
Abramson also referenced being "dumped" and "not getting the job you want."
"Some students asked me, 'Are you going to get that Times tattoo on your back removed,'" Abramson added later, referring to the "T" Magazine logo she has tattooed on her back. "Not a chance."
But she also sought to deflect attention from her own news, focusing instead on the 1,880 Wake Forest graduates.
( On POLITICO Magazine: Editing while female)
"I think the only real news here today is your graduation from this great university," she said to laughter at the top of her remarks. "First of all, congratulations."
"I'm impressed that your achievements have attracted so much media attention," she added, later saying that "the little media circus" that's been following her made her question delivering the address. She decided to go through with it, she said, to honor the graduates.
Speaking of the Times, Abramson commended the paper's journalism and said it was "the honor of my life to lead the newsroom."
She also discussed her own future: "What's next for me? I don't know," she said. "So I'm in exactly the same boat as many of you. And like you I'm a little scared but also a little excited."
Abramson was introduced by Bloomberg News' Al Hunt, a Wake Forest alumni and one of Abramson's mentors from their time together at the Wall Street Journal, who called The New York Times the "gold standard of American journalism."
The Times "shines brighter than ever," Hunt said. "She leaves it better, stronger, more vibrant than ever."
( Also on POLITICO: New details on Abramson firing)
"It is said she can be tough, no nonsense, even pushy in her passionate commitment to truth, no matter rank of party," Hunt said. "That's what makes a great editor."
"Smart, supportive, relentless, she is absolutely fearless," he said.
Abramson's address was the subject of heavy media intention on Monday. The speech was covered live by MSNBC and streamed online by NBC News and CBS News.
The speech elicited a standing ovation from the audience at Wake Forest and was well received by media watchers elsewhere.
MSNBC's Chuck Todd said on his show "The Daily Rundown" that Abramson's theme of resiliency is something that will resonate with many people.
( Also on POLITICO: The boys on the bus are back)
"So kudos to Miss Abramson for what I think is a terrific theme to be talking about with the spotlight on her the way it is right now," Todd said.
CNN's Christiane Amanpour tweeted "Bravo, Jill Abramson. With dignity, humor and feeling you showed Wake Forest grads how to adopt resilience in face of 'soul-scorching loss.'"
Her remarks Monday were her first in the five days since the announcement of her abrupt departure from the Times, which came after longstanding internal frustrations with her management style. Abramson was also scheduled to receive an honorary degree from Brandeis University on Sunday, but backed out after her firing, telling the Associated Press it's "not my year to be there."


text:
Justin Leeper's Blog
I spent 8 years as a professional game journalist -- first at Game Informer, then freelancing around willy-nilly. I shipped 3 games at THQ, writing/designing/directing a trio of WWE video games.
My first novel is titles Still Man Fights, and it's available on Kindle or paperback at Amazon. I'm also a SAG-AFTRA union actor and an experienced stunt fighter.
Expert Blogs
Justin Leeper's Comments


text:
Biden: Don't let immigration die like gun control
Vice President Joe Biden's message to immigration reform advocates: Don't let your issue die like gun control did.
Speaking on a conference call of Catholic clergy and other faith leaders, Biden said it will be incumbent upon immigration reformers to be louder and more engaged with Congress than reform opponents.
"Work the districts so these members understand how all their constituents feel, not just the loudest ones," Biden said. "This kind of reminds me of the gun control kind of fights we had, and gun safety. You know, the people who don't want anything changed to have a more rational position, they're the ones who show up in large numbers. The ones who strongly support us, they don't show up. You guys have to show up."
(PHOTOS: Immigration reform rally on the National Mall)
The White House lost its fight for expanded background checks for gun purchases when the Senate killed the legislation in April.
POLITICO obtained an invitation to the call, which was intended to be a private conversation with advocates. The call was organized by the Catholic social justice agency Network, which plans to distribute 11,000 pro-immigration reform postcards to members of Congress Wednesday.
(DRIVING THE DAY: What is, isn't on Congress agenda)
Biden's office declined to elaborate on his comments, but his official Twitter account noted that on Tuesday "VP Biden spoke to Catholic leaders across the U.S. about the importance of passing commonsense #immigration reform."
Several times on the call Biden referred to comments made by Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), the foremost opponent of immigration reform in the House, that suggested all immigrants crossing the border from Mexico are ferrying drugs.
"Real good Christian comment," Biden said. "He may be a good Christian, but his comments sure the hell aren't, excuse my language."
(PHOTOS: 10 wild immigration quotes)
And Biden asked the faith leaders on the call to encourage friendly Republicans and offered advice on how best to interact with those who remain undecided about including a path to citizenship in an immigration reform package.
"Thank the Representatives when you call who are already in favor of reform, especially the 32 Republicans who have expressed for a path to citizenship," Biden said. "Give them a little bit of love and appeal to their better angels, the better angels of those who are still on the fence to take a politically courageous decision."


text: As a lifelong Knicks fan, I root for the name on the front of the jersey, not the one on the back. If Lin is going to take his talents to Houston next season, then so be it. Anyone who wants to abandon ship & jump over to the Nets bandwagon please be my guest. Up to you how you want to spend your money. Personally I'm 1 of those fans who think all these years of suffering are going to pay off... someday... hopefully.


text:
Your basket is empty.
Tap for gallery
If the Sixtieswas the period when the West's fascination with Indian music and culture blossomed to its fullest extent, then the seeds of that fascination were planted in the previous decade with the release - in both Britain and the United States - of the formative albums by the great emissaries of Indian music, Ali Akbar Khan and Ravi Shankar.
Ali Akbar Khan was, and remains, the master of the sarod a 25- stringed instrument of the lute family who, beginning at the age of three, was taught by his father over a period of some 20 years.
Among his father's fellow students at one point was the 18-yearold sitar player Ravi Shankar, with whom Ali Akbar came to share a lifelong devotion to teaching and performance around the world, even into his eighties.
As young men, the two learned together like brothers, inspiring each other to greater heights, the celebration of which manifests itself in such jugalbandis (musical duos) as the electrifying performances that are the centrepiece of this edition.
Hindustani classical singer Ustad Amir Khan was one of the greatest musicians India has produced.
His sublime Raga Marwa (featured here) was described by Ravi Shankar as one of the four or five immortal recordings of the entire world .
Half a century has elapsed since these recordings were made, yet the passage of time has done nothing to dim their transcendent beauty.
You won't encounter the formal trappings of Western psychedelia but this is music that will transport and elevate and enrich the listener
RAVI SHANKAR and ALI AKBAR KHAN
1. Raga Palas Kafi 20.07 2. Raga Bilashkani Todi 19.55
3. Raga Marwa 18.26
RAVI SHANKAR and ALLA RAKHA
4. Raga Madhu-Kauns 21.01
eCommerce by CubeCart


text:
DescriptionWe recommend Elegant Theme :
Ecommerce the WordPress Way
Haute is built to make use of the Cart66 or Cart66 Cloud ecommerce plugins, making your WordPress install an awesome looking store. Haute makes it easy to get your products front and center to start making sales. Clean and minimal, Haute can bring your high class fashion to the world.
If you have any questions about how the cart systems work, please visit Cart66.com or Cart66 Cloud and try the free plugins yourself. This theme simply styles how the Cart66 and Cart66 Cloud plugins look and display, it does nothing to the functionality of Cart66 or Cart66 Cloud.
Affiliate Mode
Affiliate Mode makes it easy for affiliates to create products and link the Buy Now button to another website with your affiliate link. It's as easy as copy and paste. Cart66 not required.
- Translation file included! – Use Haute WP in any language
- Fully responsive and Retina/Hi-Def display ready
- Styled for Gravity Forms
- CSS3 transitions and hover effects for your products and the featured Tiles on the home page
- Simply upload your product images to that post and Haute will automatically generate a lightbox gallery on that product's page. No messy shortcodes or plugins needed. It's like magic.
- Color picker tools for your links and buttons
- Custom "Featured User" widget
- Custom "Recent Products" widget
- Social Media Icons
- Easy setup with easy to follow instructions
- Valid XHTML
Support is provided to all customers at http://support.designcrumbs.com. You'll need your Purchase Code to access this theme's section in the forum. To find your purchase code, go to your Downloads page, click on "License Certificate" on the theme you wish to get support on, open the file and look for the "Item Purchase Code". That's what you'll need.
Some images in demo courtesy of Fox Valley Media Arts.
- 1.2.1: Cart66 Cloud shortcode button now on all posts and pages in backend, small CSS fix for mobile menus
- 1.2: New Cart66 Cloud version included, retired Cloudswipe version, added features to comments
- 1.1.1: Fix for responsiveness on iPad
- 1.1: Included a new Cloudswipe version, removed the featured image from galleries, retina logo is now done by jQuery
- 1.0: Initial release


text:
and Motorola have announced that they are adding a pair of new Android
smartphones to the lineup. One of the new smartphone is the Motorola
Titanium and it looks more like a Blackberry than your typical Android
smartphone. The Titanium has a QWERTY keyboard on the front and a 3.1" touchscreen.
Inexplicably, the smartphone is still running the relatively ancient Android
2.1 operating system instead of the current Android 2.3. The device is made to
be rugged and suitable for those that spend a lot of time outdoors. The
Titanium is certified to Milspec 810G for dust, shock, vibration, pressure,
temperature and more. The smartphone is also able to take advantage of the
Sprint push to talk network making the Android device a walkie-talkie.
The Titanium has access to corporate email servers, a 5-megapixel camera with
camcorder function, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, and a microSD card slot. The
smartphone comes with a 2GB card and supports up to 32GB. The battery of the
smartphone is an 1820 mAh unit.
The other new smartphone from Motorola and Sprint is the XPRT
that looks very similar to the Titanium. The XPRT has a 3.1" HVGA resolution
screen, 1GHz processor, full QWERTY keyboard, runs Android 2.2, and it is a
world phone.
The XPRT supports all Google Services, corporate email, 3G mobile hotspot for
up to five devices, and a 5MP camera with dual LED flash. The smartphone also
has a 2GB microSD card included. Rounding out the features are Wi-Fi,
Bluetooth, and an 1860 mAh battery.
"Motorola XPRT and Motorola Titanium blend feature-packed consumer experiences
with an optimal set of productivity and security tools," said Jeff Miller,
corporate vice president of sales, Motorola Mobility. "We are pleased to
partner with Sprint to deliver each of these unique business-ready devices to
their continuously growing enterprise customer base."


text:
By Courtney E. Smith
It's been a long wait, but Mariah Carey has finally confirmed her new album's title and release date.
In an online video, Carey revealed her new album art, which features a variation of the sea-chanteuse artwork we've seen already and a back cover designed by herself — a self portrait, drawn at age three. She also let it be known that the album will be called Me. I Am Mariah…The Elusive Chanteuse. And that it will officially drop on May 27, pushing back the May 6 date that was bandied about previously.
The video, below, also gives us the album's track list. Among the songs making the cut are her hit duet with Miguel "Beautiful;" the current single "You're Mine (Eternal); and features from Wale, Nas, Fabolous and Dem Babies a.k.a. Monroe and Moroccan.
Read more and watch the video on Radio.com.
Read More Music News On Fresh1027.com:


text:
A long-term bridge rehabilitation program and the occasional presence at the planning desk in Woodside Town Hall of an in-house architectural consultant are among the late-approved allocations from the town's budget for the 2014-15 fiscal year.
For the bridge program, the Town Council, at its June 24 meeting, authorized the seeding of a capital reserve fund with $750,000 from the general fund. The reserve fund is slated to grow by $250,000 annually until the 2018-19 fiscal year.
The town had the wherewithal to create this fund, in part, due to a 2013 one-time back payment of just over $1 million in property tax revenues from San Mateo County.
As with plans to sequester $100,000 annually over five years to rehabilitate the town's storm-drain system, allocations to the bridge program will be placeholders, Town Manager Kevin Bryant said. Costs could exceed what town finances could bear, in which case the council may turn to traditional ways of capital project fundraising: bond measures, low-interest loans and grants.
Bridge fund
Three century-old bridges -- on Kings Mountain Road, Portola Road and Mountain Home Road -- are not equipped for modern two-way traffic, with its heavier, larger and more powerful vehicles. The state designated all three bridges "functionally obsolete" and the council is facing choices that could involve millions of dollars and potentially affect Woodside's rural character.
Federal funds are available for 90 percent of the costs, but such funds bring with them federal safety standards, including 40-foot-wide roadways -- a more modern appearance than is typical or desired in Woodside.
A $159,000 forensic analysis of the three bridges is underway to determine whether they're safe and can be maintained to state standards without the need for federal funds.
Architect in Town Hall
Members of the Planning Department staff at Town Hall have been working long hours as the economy improves and home construction and remodeling surge. The burden is also heavy on the town's Architectural and Site Review Board, particularly for projects that reflect insufficient attention to residential design guidelines.
Planning Director Jackie Young, during an earlier budget discussion, noted that the city of Mountain View has an in-house architect to help applicants with designs early in the process.
"Maybe that's the right addition, an architectural consultant," Town Manager Kevin Bryant said at the time.
"The town staff and the town would benefit enormously," Councilwoman Anne Kasten said. "As the projects get more complex, we need to get more precise."
Councilman Peter Mason, an architect himself, noted the value an architect can bring by simplifying a project.
The budget includes $50,000 for architectural consulting, with a focus on complex projects.


text: Submitted by Josh Duplechian on Thu, 2013-11-21 10:01 Vote Up Down +116 + JD2_8352.jpg by Katherine McKalip WASHINGTON – Two bills being voted upon this week by the U.S. House of Representatives would undermine leasing reforms intended to balance energy development activities on public lands, require a set percentage of nominated acres to be offered for lease regardless of potential impacts to fish and wildlife, and limit the federal government's ability to conserve public lands resources important to hunters and anglers, Sportsmen for Responsible Energy Development announced Tuesday. "These bills continue the onslaught on public lands that attempts to prioritize energy development over all other resources values," said Kate Zimmerman, the National Wildlife Federation's public lands policy director. NWF is a member of the SFRED coalition. "There is nothing strategic about an energy policy that eliminates balance between development and other resources values and threatens the nation's vibrant and critically important outdoor recreation-based economy." House bill H.R. 1965 would cancel onshore oil and gas leasing reforms introduced by the Interior Department in 2010. By enabling advance analysis of potential energy leases and increasing opportunities for public engagement, the reforms have benefitted both industry and sportsmen by reducing the prevalence of lease protests. Early engagement by the public in the leasing process, large-scale planning, and identification of key habitat areas well in advance of leases being offered all are common-sense components of the reforms. H.R. 1965 also would require that the Secretary of the Interior offer for lease at least 25 percent of the annual nominated acreage of public lands not previously made available. These leases would be offered arbitrarily, regardless of potential impacts to fish and wildlife habitat and hunting and fishing opportunities. "Hunters and anglers support responsible production of oil, gas and renewable energy on public lands," said Brad Powell, senior policy director of the Sportsmen's Conservation Project at Trout Unlimited, also an SFRED member. "Unfortunately, H.R. 1965 would undoubtedly result in more appeals and litigation, harm fish and wildlife, and threaten hunting and angling opportunities on public lands." A vote on H.R. 1965 was expected to occur later Tuesday. Read more on the Sportsmen for Responsible Energy website. Log in or register to post comments


text:
Class supply lists have been posted at businesses in Russellville, Atkins, and Dover.
Open House is August 15 from 5:30-7:30. All teachers will be in their classrooms and elementary student class lists will be available during that time.
If you need more information, please call the elementary office (479-284-3586) or the high school office (479-284-3536).


text:
This year, once again the Grove Park Inn hosted the 19th Annual Gingerbread Competition. The temptation is to call it a "gingerbread house" competition but this would be misleading. While many of the entries do consist of houses, an equal number do not. In fact, this years winner was a cowboy boot (granted it was made into a house but still…)
So the Friday after Thanksgiving, James and I took the girls and his mother up to the Grove Park Inn to see what this year's entries look like. The Grove Park Inn is a mammoth stone structure built in one year (1912-13) by more than 400 men . While there are those who argue its esthetic appeal, it is nevertheless a landmark in Asheville and worth seeing for the lobby alone: 120 feet across, 24 foot ceiling and two 14 foot high fireplaces. I think we could fit the entire downstairs of the Carolina Bed & Breakfast inside it!
Anyway because of the size of the inn and the two hotel extensions built on both sides, it is well suited to display the more than 325 entries to this years competition. One wanders through the halls and stairs following a path past entries from all ages. Children as well as teens and adults enter. We even saw some "houses" made by first and second grade classes. (There was a third grade teacher next to me who allowed as that she couldn't get her whole class to concentrate on lining up to go home, which made this a real achievement!)
The pieces must be made entirely of edible ingredients and sometimes they don't hold up. It is always sad to see a crumple mess of cookie with some poor entrant's name on it. And, like the Biltmore Estate, this is one of those things which men think they won't enjoy doing and yet always seem to find it more interesting than they thought they would.
With so many entries to be exhibited, some are relegated to the Grove Arcade in downtown Asheville.But I have to say that I stopped by to look at them while I was shopping the other day and they are, for the most part, not representative of the quality on display at the inn.
The pictures here are of the top ten runner ups. If you would like to view some more you can do so on our facebook page by clicking here
|This entry has to be shown in two parts as this is the front
|And this is the back!


text:
(Ethan Miller/Getty Images for APR)
Just because his time as a judge on The Voice is over doesn't mean CeeLo Green is slowing down. In fact, it's the exact opposite.
His latest single "Only You" showcases CeeLo's pristine falsetto with foot-stomping beats and Motown flavor. Sharing the spotlight is Lauriana Mae. While her sultry voice recalls that of Amy Winehouse, Lauriana manages to put her own flavor on the track.
"It's about two people on different paths, hoping for the best, hoping that those paths lead to each other," Green tells Rolling Stone. "It's like love lost or the acknowledgment of a love lost, but it's still optimistic."
"Only You" is the first single off CeeLo's forthcoming solo album.
-Annie Reuter, Radio.com


text:
Personal computing discussed
Moderators: Captain Ned, emkubed
druidcent wrote:As long as what you put in the pockets are metallic then they will blend right in to the background and you should be able to pass through the nudie scanners just fine http://tech.slashdot.org/story/12/03/07 ... y-scanners You'll still get stopped if the scanner breaks and they send you through the metal detector arch.The only other thing I'd look at is how it would fit while traveling (being TSA compliant would be great)
cjcerny wrote:A decade ago some people I knew were trying to do wearable computing / augmented reality stuff, and they bought surplus "tactical vests" to stow all the gear (and especially the batteries... so many heavy batteries). Turns out holsters designed for ammunition clips and whatnot fit a lot of technical equipment quite well. Of course they ended up looking just a keffiyeh away from a Hezbollah paradise-seeker, which wasn't too much of a problem in the late 90s but wouldn't fly now.I think I've seen something similar to this at a gun show, only with a more gun oriented slant. I believe the gun holster people have already caught on to this idea. tekholster.com maybe?
drfish wrote:Do you want me to send them to different addresses or just to one place? I bet you could hang a walker from the d-rings so if you needed to sprint it would go with you...
drfish wrote:Do you want me to send them to different addresses or just to one place? I bet you could hang a walker from the d-rings so if you needed to sprint it would go with you...
Indeed. She's a nerd too though, actually thinks its sexy.
drfish wrote:Thanks! ...but we're not exactly doing pre-orders yet, I'll just send one your way in exchange for contribution to this discussion.
I added some "better" photos of the full size TechSling to my first post. I should have some professional shots soon. The full size one will be what is initially offered for sale and is what I'm sending out for you guys to test.


text:
A controversial proposal to build a radio tower atop a mountain peak overlooking Wildwood Canyon State Park in Yucaipa goes before the San Bernardino County Planning Commission for a third time Thursday for consideration.
For five years, the Oxnard-based Lazer Broadcasting Corporation, which owns and operates 19 Spanish language radio stations in 10 California markets, has been doggedly fighting to erect a radio tower near the intersection of Oak Glen and Wildwood Canyon roads, west of Pisgah Peak Road.
Placement of the tower atop Pisgah Peak would expand the company's broadcast range into Hemet and increase its number of listeners from roughly 191,000 to more than 2 million in San Bernardino and Riverside counties, according to a Planning Commission staff report.
But the company has faced fierce opposition from the city of Yucaipa and a grassroots group calling themselves Citizens for the Preservation of Rural Living.
Lazer Broadcasting and opponents of its project have each submitted thousands of letters or signatures to the county in support of and against the project. Supporters say the radio station provides a valuable public service to its Spanish-speaking audience. Opponents say the tower would forever spoil the scenic vistas of the park and is not conducive to the area's rural environment.
Lazer Broadcasting initially proposed to the Planning Commission in 2007 a 140-foot lattice tower, a 250-square-foot equipment shelter, overhead electrical lines and a backup generator with a 500-gallon fuel tank. But opposition forced the company to reduce the tower size to 80 feet and propose running the electrical lines underground.
The Planning Commission approved the revised proposal on a 4-1 vote in November 2008.
Opponents appealed the Planning Commission's approval of the project to the Board of Supervisors in January 2009. The board granted the appeal and denied, with prejudice, the project, meaning Lazer Broadcasting would have to wait a minimum of one year before resubmitting another application with the county.
Supervisor Neil Derry, whose district includes Yucaipa, said at the time that the proposed tower would have a significant visual impact on the park and was universally opposed by the community.
Lazer Broadcasting resubmitted its application with the county on May 6, 2010. The latest project blueprint calls for a 43-foot monopole antenna, a 100-square-foot equipment shelter, a 30-foot fire buffer zone, one parking space and perimeter fencing on roughly 38 acres.
On its website, Citizens for the Preservation of Rural Living are rallying for people to attend Thursday's public hearing to voice their opposition to the project.
Officials at Lazer Broadcasting could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
The Planning Commission meeting begins at 9 a.m. in the Robert A. Covington Chambers, on the first floor of the San Bernardino County Government Center, 385 N. Arrowhead Ave., in San Bernardino.


text:
Rangers eye the market for a starter
Millwood, Padilla's health remain issues for rotation
By T.R. Sullivan / MLB.com
"That's fair to say," Daniels said. "Nothing has changed at our end. We're looking at ways to improve the club. We're walking through our options and staying in touch with other teams and seeing if there is a fit."
The Rangers did talk to the Indians about first baseman Ryan Garko as a possible platoon partner with Hank Blalock at first base. But starting pitching is still a top priority.
"It's what we're trying to do," Daniels said. "We've got a lot of confidence in our whole pitching staff. We have a lot of reasons to feel good about our pitching staff. We'd like to add to it, but it has been a strength of the team."
Finances are a major part of it. Owner Tom Hicks is trying to sell either part or all of the team and the Rangers are unlikely to add any major payroll at this point.
"It's an element," Daniels said. "It's a different environment than we've dealt with in the past. We haven't made that a secret. It's unlikely that we'll be able to add significant money. But that doesn't mean we can't improve the club. It just makes it more of a challenge."
So the Rangers will try to piece together their rotation from what they have from within the organization. Right now they are waiting to see when Kevin Millwood and Vicente Padilla will pitch again.
Padilla was supposed to start on Tuesday but was scratched because of lingering effects from the swine flu. He threw in the bullpen instead and there is a possibility he could pitch later this week.
"It went good," pitching coach Mike Maddux said. "He just has to overcome this thing. We have question marks about other guys making their starts, but fortunately we have some options. As soon as Vinny gets his strength back, he'll be ready to go. The bug hit these guys hard. It takes some time. You don't just bounce back and be at full strength. It takes five-to-seven days."
Doug Mathis took Padilla's place on Tuesday and Scott Feldman is scheduled to go on Wednesday in the finale of a three-game series against the Tigers. Padilla could come back into the rotation either Thursday or Friday.
The Rangers are still waiting on Millwood, who is dealing with a strained left gluteus muscle. He reported improvement on Tuesday and played some catch, but he's still not sure if he'll be ready to pitch on Friday.
"It's still there, but it definitely feels better," Millwood said. "If it improves tomorrow as much as it did today, I'll be fine."
Right now Holland is scheduled to start on Thursday. He could be pushed back if the Rangers decide to pitch Padilla on Thursday. Holland could go either Friday instead of Millwood or wait until Sunday.
The Rangers could also use Dustin Nippert, who won on Wednesday in a spot start against the Red Sox and again on Sunday in relief of Millwood against the Royals.
"After [Wednesday] it's all 'to be determined,'" Rangers manager Ron Washington said.Right now the Rangers' two best starters are Tommy Hunter and Feldman. Hunter beat the Tigers, 5-2, on Monday by allowing one run in seven innings and now has a 1.46 ERA in his past five starts, going back to June 28. In one month since then, he has the second lowest ERA in the American League among pitchers with at least five starts. Oakland's Brett Anderson has a 1.36 ERA. Hunter has allowed one or fewer runs in four consecutive starts. The last Rangers pitcher to do that was Chris Young in five straight starts back on Aug. 17 to Sept. 7, 2005. Matt Harrison won four successive starts from April 27 to May 14 earlier this season, but he is out for the year. Harrison, who has Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, underwent surgery on Monday to remove a rib bone that was pressing on a nerve in his left shoulder. He will not pitch again this season but should be ready for Spring Training and may pitch in Winter Ball.
T.R. Sullivan is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


text:
A huge excavator bites into the earth of an open-cast mine, as the operator skillfully mans the controls in a cabin four storeys from ground level.
For the small Baltic state of Estonia, rock is the future of energy.
The European Union nation of 1.3 million generates 97 percent of its electricity thanks to oil shale -- sediment formed 400-450 million years ago, containing hydrocarbons. Its industry forecasts that shale's use can only expand.
"Estonia has 1.1 percent of global oil shale reserves, but what makes us unique is that we have used it and developed the technology for a hundred years," Sandor Liive, chief executive of state-run power firm Enefit, told AFP.
Enefit is betting on shale beyond the nation's borders, from the Middle East to the United States.
After already having signed a development deal with Jordan, this month Enefit announced the acquisition of a 100 percent stake in the US-based Oil Shale Exploration Company for an undisclosed sum.
Enefit said the firm had the largest tracts of privately-owned oil shale reserves in the United States, with over 3.1 billion tonnes of oil shale containing almost 2.1 billion barrels of oil.
The United States is home to 72 percent of global oil shale reserves. Besides Jordan, it is also found in Australia, Brazil, China and Morocco.
Asked why Enefit thinks shale makes economic sense, Liive said it hinges on the high prices for conventional oil.
"If you believe that oil will be more than $60 a barrel, then the answer's yes. Yes, it's profitable to produce oil from oil shale," he said.
Estonia has long used shale without actually extracting oil, however.
The Estonian word for it is "polevkivi" -- "burning rock". It is mined and then burned in the country's power stations.
Shale is the main mineral resource in the former Soviet-ruled republic, which won independence from Moscow in 1991 after five decades of communist rule and joined the EU in 2004.
Estonia's shale hub is Narva, in the northeast near the Russian border.
Two underground mines and two open-cast pits in the area feed a duo of power stations -- the world's biggest oil shale-fired electricity plants.
"To get one tonne of oil shale we first need to extract 10,000 cubic metres of water," production manager Pavel Onuchak told AFP at an open-cast pit.
After blasting the surface rock, the miners dig down to the shale, which lies 20-30 metres below ground.
"We replant 90 percent of the land. That's why you see so many young trees around here," Onuchak added.
Out of Enefit's 7,400 employees, 3,000 work at the mines.
In recent years, Enefit has mined an annual 15 million tonnes of shale. It uses some 90 percent to fire the power plants.
"From one tonne of oil shale we produce 850 kWh of electricity," the power plants' risk manager Andres Kurling told AFP. The process generates 870 kilos of C02, however.
Alternatively, the same quantity of oil shale can produce 125 kilos of oil for 180 kilos of C02 -- similar to emission levels from regular oil-refining or the chemicals sector, says Enefit.
"We're currently working on technology to enable the use in cars of fuel made from oil shale," Igor Kond, head of Enefit's oil operations, told AFP. "It is going to be a very big step for the whole world."
By 2016, Enefit aims to produce high-quality liquid fuels in Estonia, with a production target of 20,000 barrels per day.
"Global shale reserves are at least 400 billion tonnes. The amount of oil in the world's shale deposits is considered to be three to nine times greater than proven conventional oil reserves," Liive said.
"There's been a boom in oil sands and shale gas, and we believe the oil shale boom is coming next," he added.
Not everyone in Estonia is onside, however.
"Mining and using oil shale is not environmentally friendly," Green lawmaker Toomas Trapido told AFP. "It causes high CO2 emission, pollutes water and creates a lot of ash. We should work more on better solutions like solar energy."
Explore further: Oil and gas production a major source of Dallas-Fort Worth smog