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AEC Tech News (#305)15 Sep, 2011 By: Cadalyst Staff
How to Configure a Workstation for CAD
Performance, longevity, value: Your next system can have it all if you know how to shop. We're here to help.
By Alex Herrera
Let's face it: If you were to make a list of your favorite ten — or even one thousand — ways to spend your time, shopping for a new computer isn't likely to be on it. Choosing the right system for yourself or your entire department takes time, patience, and know-how and is fraught with the risk of unwisely spending an awful lot of money. And yet, you can't keep using that old clunker forever.
We're here to help. We can't promise to answer your real question, "I've got $2,000; which workstation is best for me?" There are too many variables specific to your job and your workflow to provide a black-and-white answer for anyone, let alone a universal solution to satisfy everyone. But we can provide some insight about workstation components and how they affect system performance, plus some practical guidelines to help you determine what's more important, what's less important, and how to get the most bang for your buck. You'll still need to do a fair amount of your own research, but it will be time well spent, as upgrading to a state-of-the-art machine will reap productivity dividends that will save both time and money.
In the interest of keeping this article to a manageable length, our focus this time around will be on desktop professional workstations. We won't be discussing standard PCs or mobile workstations, although much of the information shared here is universally applicable.
Now is a great time to buy a new workstation, thanks to good, old-fashioned free-market competition. On the platform side, we're seeing tremendous advances in performance per dollar and performance per watt. And the competition between the professional graphics card developers has been heating up in recent years, raising the level of graphics performance your dollars can buy. Read more »
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Alex Herrera is senior analyst at Jon Peddie Research, covering 3D graphics and professional computing. He writes JPR's Workstation Report.
ArchiCAD Insights Tutorial: IFC Made Easy
An IFC file is the best solution for transferring BIM models — but what is it?
By Matthew Brewster
Because more firms are embracing BIM (building information modeling) as their preferred design tool, questions are arising about how to work together more efficiently. As the old standards of DWG and PDF exchange are slowly fading away, BIM offers a better exchange of information allowing the exchange of intelligent 3D data. This is obviously more valuable as the data is being used for things such as energy analysis and facilities management. So what is the best way to exchange this data with the people you work with? The new standard is evolving around IFCs.
But what the heck is an IFC? While various BIM applications have their own file formats, there is a universal format that allows these applications to talk to each other. IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) is a vendor-neutral file format that handles the information in a BIM model. With IFC, you can use your BIM of choice and have the confidence that your files will be compatible with minimal effort. There is no longer any need to worry about which software your consultants are using.
When you transfer information with an IFC file, walls remain walls, doors remain doors, etc. Material and 2D data can be transferred with this file format as well, but it is really the 3D model and underlying data that makes it the best solution for transferring BIM models. In addition, IFC further extends the data in model elements. For instance, an ArchiCAD wall contains information regarding size and shape, structure and finish. The IFC data can add information such as fire rating, manufacturer, reinforcement, etc. This data becomes part of the BIM model and is transferred through the IFC exchange. Read more »
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Matthew Brewster is the founder and president of ARCHiDEAS.
Mark Your Calendar: AEC Events
Bentley Plant User Group Conference
October 5–7, 2011
Biloxi, Mississippi
This annual user conference is in its 13th year. Attendees can learn about upcoming Bentley product releases and how other companies have utilized the software, and discuss customization and problem-solving issues by participating in a group breakout session. Read more »
Meridian Systems 2011 User Conference
October 11–13, 2011
Huntington Beach, California
This annual customer event will bring together project-based organizations from several infrastructure-intensive industries to share best practices and customer case studies for Meridian's two primary product offerings, Proliance and Prolog software. Read more »
AVEVA World Summit
October 25–27, 2011
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
The AVEVA World Summit Americas program provides an opportunity for delegates from different engineering industries and disciplines to tap into the collective knowledge of management, technology professionals, and global leaders from the plant and marine industries. Read more »
For a complete list of CAD meetings, conferences, training sessions, and more, check out our calendar of events on Cadalyst.com. Are you hosting an event that you would like to include in our calendar? Submit details at least two weeks in advance to firstname.lastname@example.com.
What's New at Cadalyst.com
IMAGINiT Tricks Tutorial: Create Product Documentation with Inventor Publisher 2012
Even though you may refuse to read the instructions sometimes, they are important — and the latest release of Publisher includes new tools to help you create them. Read more »
Thinkbox's Render Management Solution Helps CGI Studio Burn Rubber
Burrows CGI processes massive vehicle visualization files in less time with Deadline software. Read more »
Circles and Lines Tutorial: Everyday Improvements in AutoCAD 2012
They might not be showy, but these important features will save you time and reduce tedium. Read more »
About the Author: Cadalyst Staff
AutoCAD Tips!
In her easy-to-follow, friendly style, long-time Cadalyst contributing editor Lynn Allen guides you through a new feature or time-saving trick in every episode of her popular AutoCAD Video Tips. Subscribe to the free Cadalyst Video Picks newsletter, and we'll notify you every time a new video tip is published. All exclusively from Cadalyst!


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I gathered inspiration from Stuck Sketches for this adorable layout of Jaxson when he was a puppy.
All of that papers and embellishments on this layout are from my stash! Oh my god... I have dog papers and embellishments for days (and days and days and days...)!
But seriously...can you even get enough of those ears?
It is fun to go through your stash and pull out things you had forgotten you even had <blushes>.
Thank you for stopping by to take a look today!

subset: commoncrawl


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At Copley Auto, an ASE certified technician will examine your entire brake system, including the pads/shoes, anti-lock systems, hydraulic fluids, rotor/drum wear and calipers. Upon completion, we'll tell you what, if anything, is needed.
If it does turn out that you need any parts replaced, rest assured, we only use reliable, high quality replacement parts which meet or exceed your vehicle manufacturer's specifications.
To ensure that your brake rotors/drums have a clean, even surface which is necessary for proper braking, we'll resurface or "turn" them, keeping the rotor/drum within your vehicle manufacturer's recommended specifications for minimum thickness. If they need to be replaced, then we will tell you up front and provide you with a written estimate.
Sometimes braking can become unsteady simply because of air bubbles in your vehicle's hydraulic brake line. By "bleeding" your brakes, we can remove troublesome air bubbles and refill your hydraulic brake fluid to the manufacturer's recommended level with hydraulic fluid that meets or exceeds your vehicle manufacturer's specifications.


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Web Reviews
Hear all about your new fave web chiz and new product reviews!
Hot New Clubs
Join your friends and find out about new opportunities with cool My-Clubs!
Exclusive New My-Books
Read all your fave My-Book previews exclusively on our site!
Free Movie Previews
Watch all of your fave movies and vids right here on MyFace!
Hope you had a Happy Halloween and have a turkey-tastic Thanksgiving!
Welcome to MyFace!
Hey, everybody...and welcome to MyFace--the ONLY place where you can share vids, profiles, pics, and comment on your faves! And the gr8 thing: its completely free (and fun)! So grab a soda, eat some chips, and hop down in front of your computer to spend some time w/ your friends! See you on my face :P
The 3 Rules of MyFace:
- Respect others. Never say something on anyone's page, video, pic, etc. that you wouldn't say to them in person.
- Don't upload anything inappropriate. If you do so, it will be removed IMMEDIATELY.
- Don't misuse your account. Hacking into other people's accounts (aka Cyber-Bulling) will NOT BE TOLERATED. If you do not follow this simple rule, what you have said will be deleted and you will be notified.
Refusing to follow these rules will lead to the "Three Strikes" policy: If you break a rule once you will be notified, if you break one of these rules a second time you will be warned on your User's Page, if you break one of these rules THREE TIMES--you will have an email sent to a parent--you're account will be deleted--and you will not be able to access MyFace for a minimum of 30 days.
Thank You, and enjoy MyFace!
Our Funny "Inspiration"
When old Mrs. Higgenbottom went on Facebook, she had heard about MySpace earlier that morning, and her first tweet was, "I'm on MyFace, you're on MyFace, Carl's Dad is on MyFace--EVERYBODY's on MyFace!" Thus, "MyFace" was born...
A Letter From the Editors
Hey everybody on MyFace and pepes thinking about joining it! If you are wondering why we created MyFace, your answer is but a sentence away:Sooo...many people in Mason, Caleb , and I's classes argued about how their parents wouldn't let them get on Facebook, so we decided to help them--this website is the result of what happened. It is a free, safe, fun, easy-to-use social networking wiki where kids can upload pics, vids, profiles, and such under their parents' permission! It is always updating, monitored 24/7, and we have atleast five new users joining each day! That's pretty good for a website created by three teens! So join today and enjoy exactly what kids are enjoying right now by the click of a button! Thank you for checking out MyFace :]
10 Reasons You Should Join MyFace
1) It's fun, safe, and easy-to-use!
2) 96% of MyFace users are satisfied along with their parents!
3) You can easily upload videos, pictures, and status updates by the click of a button!
4) It was created by kids just like you!
5) It is monitored 24/7 so that no one posts anything innapropriate such as unnecessary comments or media.
6) You can create a profile or fanpage and share info with your friends!
7) You can write a big blog or create a small blogpost to share with friends!
8) MyFace is and always will be free.
9) Depending on how awesome your uploads are, they could be featured on the front page of the wiki!
10) MyFace will soon be expanded into a website that can be used all around the world!!
FEATURED VIDWe have chosen the funniest video on MyFace so far, and here's the winner.....
Featured Page
Hey, MyFacers! Are you excited for the new Hunger Games movie to come out? I know I am! Well, our friends on thewiki have created a fanpage for the awesome series and movie, and you guys should totally check it out! To the side is one of the original posters.
New Ideas
- A page all about birds
- A video of you eating the world's biggest sandwich
- A game that tests your knowledge of fried chicken
- A trailer for a new movie coming this year!
- A poster for the newest Super Mario video game
- A picture of you on a huge roller coaster
- A list of every book you've ever read
- Seven pictures for every day of the week
- A video of a sneezing kitty
- A random assortment of numbers
- A Can You Find It? Picture
- A commercial for M&M's
- A picture of a ZEBRA!
New Poll
Here's a question for you, MyFacers...
[http:// WWW.ITSMYFACE.WIKIA.COM] DOES NOT DISTRIBUTE ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION FROM THE SET-UP SECTION OF YOUR ACCOUNT. THE ONLY INFORMATION SHARED IS THE PUBLICLY POSTED PART OF YOUR PROFILE.


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Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), also known as progressive rod and cone degeneration (PRCD), refers to a group of degenerative eye disorders that cause blindness in both eyes. The retina is a delicate membrane lining the back of the eyes. It is responsible for absorbing, reflecting and perceiving light and is essential to vision. PRA isn't well-understood, although it probably is a genetic disorder. The first symptom of PRA is night blindness. Affected dogs are reluctant to go down stairs, go outside, navigate unfamiliar areas or jump on or off furniture in darkness or dim light. The surface of their eyes becomes cloudy, gray, and may take on a greenish sheen. As the disease progresses, dogs bump into furniture and walls and stumble over familiar objects. Fortunately, retinal atrophy rarely is painful, and most dogs adjust to the progressive loss of vision. Owners should consult with their veterinarian to accurately diagnose and manage this condition.
Usually, the first sign of progressive retinal atrophy is night blindness, including a reluctance to go outside at night or to navigate unfamiliar areas in dimness or darkness. Other signs can include:
Most forms of progressive retinal atrophy are passed from parent to offspring in an inheritance pattern known as "autosomal recessive." This is especially true in Collies, Irish setters, Miniature poodles, Cocker spaniels, Briards, and Labrador retrievers. In these breeds, if a dog has inherited the gene responsible for PRA from only one parent, it will not develop the disease but will be a carrier of the trait – meaning that if bred, it can pass that gene on to its offspring. However, if a dog inherits the "PRA gene" from both parents, it will eventually develop clinical PRA.
In several breeds, particularly Samoyeds and Siberian huskies, PRA is passed on in a dominant inheritance pattern, meaning that even if a dog gets only one copy of the gene, it will develop the disease. In many breeds, the mode of inheritance is not known.
The key to preventing PRA is held by responsible breeders of affected breeds. These animals should be genetically screened for PRA by a board-certified veterinary ophthalmologist and have the results of that screening registered through the Canine Eye Registration Foundation (CERF). Dogs found to be carrying the gene for PRA – whether or not they actually have the disorder – should not be bred. Offspring of affected dogs likewise should not be bred. Responsible breeding practices are the only way to remove animals with PRA from the breeding population.
Genetic testing of blood samples is available to identify whether a particular dog carries the gene for PRA. The best way to ensure that your new dog does not carry the PRA gene, and therefore will not develop the disorder, is to have both of its parents tested, if possible. This is especially important if the dog you are considering belongs to one of the commonly affected breeds, and even more so if you are thinking about breeding the animal in the future. Any dog found to be carrying a PRA gene should be spayed or neutered.
PRA is diagnosed through extensive eye examinations. In many cases, general practice veterinarians will refer the owner to a specialized veterinary ophthalmologist to perform the diagnostic tests and arrive at a diagnosis. Routine eye examination can suggest the presence of progressive retinal atrophy. A definitive diagnosis typically is made by a veterinary eye specialist using an electroretinogram (ERG) to measure the retina's ability to respond to light. During this examination, one electrode is placed on the dog's cornea, and neutral electrodes are placed on the skin around the eye. The results of this test are conclusive.
Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) is always bilateral (affects both eyes) and always ends in complete blindness. There is no way to reverse or to treat retinal degeneration, or the total loss of vision that inevitably accompanies it.
Progressive retinal atrophy will eventually result in blindness. There is no cure, prevention, or treatment currently available. However, with minor environmental accommodation (avoid rearranging the furniture, etc.), most affected dogs adjust very well to vision loss and can live long and healthy lives, particularly if their sight deteriorates gradually.
Dog Health Center
Lead Poisoning
Dogs can be poisoned when they ingest lead – especially if they have repeated exposure to the substance. Lead is found in a number of places and in a number of different things
Learn more about: Lead Poisoning


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I shivered as I looked out over the side of the mountain. It was covered in snow; perfect and white and just as beautiful as it had been every time I'd come here for the last nine years. I turned the heat up a little more in the rental I was driving, hoping to shake off the chill.
My eyes focused back on the curving road. Even though it had been cleared and salted, there was still slush to contend with. And the occasional patch of black ice. Nothing would be worse than starting off the holiday week with an accident. Especially one that could end with me and a rented Jeep veering off the side of a mountain.
The sound of generic Christmas music played in the background. Honestly, I would have preferred my iPod, but some things were just habit. And we'd been doing this since before any of us could even afford an iPod. Hell, we'd been doing this since before we could actually afford to do this.
This was important.
These people were important.
And no matter what happened – where we all went or what we all did – these people would always be my family. Always.
Alice, Rosalie, Jasper, Emmett and Edward. Maybe the same blood didn't run through our veins, but they were more important than any blood. Like I said, they were my family.
As I continued the long drive up the mountain, I couldn't help but think about how we'd all come together over fifteen years ago.
I met them all the first year I was placed in the group home after Charlie and Renee died. With no living grandparents or other family members to take me in, I became a ward of the state of Washington. It's still hard to think about it that way, but that's exactly what I was. I didn't belong to anyone. Not even myself. I had no possessions to speak of. Just the sad brown backpack filled with the few clothes I'd packed before they took me from my home. Two pairs of jeans and three shirts.
The first few months were the hardest. I was thirteen then. Too young to really grasp what was happening, but old enough to understand the threat of what living in a group home might mean. It's funny how quick a child can learn.
I learned.
I was scared a lot in the beginning. But Emmett liked me right away. Well, mostly he felt sorry for me I think. There was an incident with one of the older guys that first week. He was sixteen. He got a little too close one night in an empty hall – touched me a little more than I was comfortable with. It was terrifying, but Emmett stepped in. He was only fifteen, but so much bigger than the other guy. He threatened to "beat the fucking shit out of him" if he touched or even came near me again. It was the first time I'd ever heard a curse word. And in that moment, his vulgar language was the safest thing I'd ever heard. Still is.
Emmett and Edward were brothers. Edward was fourteen. Nervous like me. I don't think he said more than three sentences to me for the first year after we met. And that was because Emmett made him. But I liked him, even if he didn't really like me at all. I felt a sort of kinship to him. I loved the way he was always reading a book. Keeping to himself. And I always found him impossibly unearthly in his beauty.
The same went for Jasper and Rosalie. They had all been there for almost a year. While Emmett and Edward lost their parents much like me, Jasper and Rose – well, their mom was an addict. She was deemed an unsuitable parental figure. They never knew their dad. Honestly, they never knew if they had the same dad. They were only ten months apart. But a part of me always thought they had to have the same father. They looked just like twins.
Alice and I were both alone. She came to the home not too long after me. They said she had some emotional and psychological disorder. But really, who of us didn't? She didn't know her family. Or if she did, she never really talked about them. But I loved her right away. We were the same age, and for the first time ever in my life, I had a best friend.
So, the six of us were as close to a familial unit as we were ever going to get. All of us stuck together. All of us in our own little way protected and loved each other as much as we could. And because of them – all of them – my time in the home wasn't as terrible as it could have been. I might have been a ward of the state, but at least I had a family.
That was until the next year when we met Dr. Cullen. He did all the annual physicals for the group home. He brought his wife back a few days later. I guess that Dr. Cullen had met and loved Edward immediately. He thought he was gifted. Which he was. And since he obviously couldn't separate him from Emmett, they wanted to take and adopt them both.
According to Edward, Emmett was the one to say something first. He told the doctor and his wife that there were four others. He told them that he couldn't leave us there unprotected. He was always so worried and fatherly. Even then. Plus, by that time, he and Rose were already in love. And I knew he really didn't want to leave here there in the home.
So, they took us all. It was crazy. Even now when I think about it, I still can't believe our good fortune. They took all six of us. Every single one. And we weren't young kids by any stretch. Alice and I were the youngest at fourteen. But that didn't seem to matter to them. And it couldn't have been easy. We all had issues with trust. Except with each other.
I'll never forget the day we left the group home. I still had the same brown backpack – only this time it was filled with different clothes. Hand-me-downs and donations given from people in the community. But they were all I had. And they were mine. And with my family beside me – holding Alice's hand and oddly enough, Edward's – I walked inside the house that would be our home for the next few years.
The sight of another car pulled me from my thoughts. Shifting, I sat up straighter in my seat, gripping the steering wheel tighter. Only a few more miles until I was there. This was a tradition. It didn't matter what we did in our own lives, every year, the week before Christmas, we all met in the mountains and spent the week together. Carlisle and Esme always came up on Christmas Eve. But for the five days before, it was just us…just the kids.
Only we weren't kids anymore.
The snow was really starting to come down by the time I reached the top. I was hoping that I was the last one to arrive. Although, I knew I probably wasn't. I turned off the road and onto the drive way. It was gravel, but covered with snow, and I could feel the slight slide of the tires as I made my way to the house.
The lights were on, and because all of us generally flew in and rented cars, I didn't know who was here already. Nervous and excited, I checked myself in the rearview mirror. And just as I was about to hop out, my phone chimed, letting me know I had a text.
"I'm going to miss you for Christmas."
I smiled in spite of myself. And quickly responded.
"I'm going to miss you, too. But you know this is my family."
His response was immediate.
"I want to meet your family."
I looked at the text for a while. Rubbing my fingers softly over the letters. This was so complicated. More complicated than I imagined. But he knew where I stood. He knew what I thought and how I felt. And for now, he was okay. But a sinking part of me knew that wouldn't always be the case.
So, I typed my response out slowly. Thinking about each and every word.
"I know you do, Jacob."
I looked back up to the warm glow of the house. The lights were shining softly over the snow at twilight. It was beautiful. So, with a pounding heart, I quickly hit send, and then I turned my phone off and dropped it in my purse.
Then I headed inside.
Reviews are love.
Please leave me some.
This story will post daily and complete before Christmas. Thank you so much for reading.
Thanks and love to Marvar – my beta and best friend. Thank you for loving me more than you hate angst. I love you more than…well, anything.
I have the best pre-readers in the world: Caren, JaimeArkin, Kourt17, Laura_1025 and Raina. Seriously. I don't know if I would have pushed through writing it, if not for your love and encouragement.
See you in the morning!


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TAMPA — Citrus greening, the insidious disease that is laying waste to Florida's signature agricultural industry, marches on with insect soldiers the size of a freckle that pass the lethal bacteria from tree to tree. There is no cure for the scourge that takes about five years to kill off a healthy tree and now has been reported in 37 of Florida's 67 counties, including Hillsborough, Pinellas, Pasco and Polk.
Last year, citrus greening was blamed for a loss of about 20 percent of the expected harvest, industry observers say. More worrisome, it's causing more and more citrus farmers to pull part of their groves out of production of Florida's iconic fruit — or get out of the business entirely.
Agricultural researchers continue to work to come up with a cure, which isn't on the horizon, or at least a way to control citrus greening, which every day seems more likely.
Preliminary predictions say that next season's yield will be down dramatically from years past, though some industry analysts dispute that. Over the past two decades, citrus growers have abandoned 300,000 acres, leaving a total of about 60 million trees on 500,000 acres.
Of that 300,000 acres lost, about 135,000 acres were abandoned because of citrus greening, said Mike Sparks, executive director of the Lakeland-based Florida Citrus Mutual, the largest citrus industry advocate in the state.
Still, growers are hopeful about the research that's going on, he said. That optimism is fueled by a new U.S. farm bill that, Sparks said, includes $125 million over the next five years to be spent on research into citrus greening.
Researchers have come up with some methods that extend the lives of infected citrus trees so they can continue producing fruit and keep the $9 billion industry afloat long enough for a cure to be found. One therapy involves heating sick trees to 128 degrees with material wrapped around the tree that uses the sun's heat. Tenting the trees for two or three days seems to delay the tree's demise.
"It doesn't kill the disease, but if you can do that, it gives another four or five years of productivity," Sparks said.
He says other research into disease-resistant root stock also is promising.
"Encouragement," he said, "is in the air."
A hybrid peach tree, that a few years ago was being touted as a replacement for the Florida citrus crop has lost its luster, Sparks said.
"A peach crop here is a very nice niche market," he said. "Some growers have five or 10 acres here and there, but I doubt we will see 500,000 acres of peaches. That's never going to replace the citrus crop here. The soil, the heat, the humidity, the rain; it's all perfect for citrus."
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has imposed a quarantine on shipping out of state any citrus plant material, including nursery stock, to curb the spread of citrus greening to other states or countries.
The USDA called citrus greening "one of the most serious citrus diseases in the world." Greening already has decimated crops in Asia and South America.
The citrus greening bacteria do not pose a health threat to humans, livestock or pets. The disease is transmitted from infected plants to healthy plants mainly by an insect called a citrus psyllid, which is the size of the head on a pin.
Symptoms associated with the disease first appear as yellow shoots or blotchy mottling and/or yellowing of the leaves, says the USDA on its website.
"As the disease progresses, the trees suffer excessive leaf drop and foliage becomes sparse with fewer or smaller leaves and tip dieback," the website says. "The disease also affects the fruit, causing it to ripen unevenly and become lopsided, visibly smaller and bitter-tasting.
"Once the host plant becomes infected," the website says, "there is no cure for the disease."
Harold Browning is the chief operating officer with the Florida Citrus Research and Development Foundation, established by citrus growers around the state to work with the University of Florida in researching ways to benefit the citrus industry.
He said the citrus greening research is encouraging and that finding a cure in time to save the industry may be the biggest obstacle.
"We're doing everything possible to push the science faster," he said.
A cure may be years away, so the focus of the research now is to keep the trees from dying so they can keep them producing tasty and juicy fruit.
There are different approaches, he said, mentioning the heat therapies as well as chemical solutions.
"Some antibiotics can knock the bacterium back the same way antibiotics work in humans," he said. "They can slow down the decline and stabilize the conditions of the trees.
"That's the major thrust of the foundation's work right now, and it's proven effective," he said. "None of these things are ultimate solutions. I hate to use the term 'Band-aids,' but these are methods to keep the productivity around while more durable solutions can emerge."
The disease has taken its toll on growers, particularly small, family-owned groves.
"I'm not going to replant citrus," said Richard Skinner, owner of Hawkins Corner Nursery in Plant City, who was forced to rip up 1,600 citrus trees last year after they had become infected with citrus greening. On the land where those citrus trees grew, some for 80 years, he will plant peas in the spring and summer and greens in the fall and winter to make the land productive.
"And I'm the microcosm of thousands of other little guys."
He said planting another grove of citrus trees is too costly and the risk that it will be re-infected is substantial. Plus, it could be a half-dozen years before the newly planted trees start producing fruit.
"I'd be 80 years old before I get anything out of it," he said,
Out of his nursery, he still sells small citrus trees for backyards. The quarantine doesn't apply if the trees don't leave the state.
He hasn't given up hope the state will win the battle over citrus greening, but he's not optimistic it will happen anytime soon.
"In the near future," he said, "if you're addicted to orange juice or oranges, it'll be more economical to grow your own in your back yard."
(813) 259-7760


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I want to understand how the timezone works, in the particular case of shared calendars :
1) We can setup the timezone in the Control Panel, and for each calendar : which have priority on the other ?
2) We are two admins. I can change the timezone on each of my calendars, and I can immediately see the change ( using chrome on linux ), but it doesn't work for my co-worker ( using safari on mac ) : there is no time update.
Is there a log file to find the error ? What can possibly be the error ?
I have shown in /app/onlyoffice/CommunityServer/logs/web.$date.log, but didn't found anything helpful.
3) If a Alice share a calendar to a group with false timezone, do each member of the group have to update manually the timezone ?
I tried to change the timezone by Alice, but it not seems to change the timezone by the other users.
Thanks !


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April 20, 2012
"To the Arctic" Director Greg MacGillivray Tells a Story of Motherhood in the Frozen North
Filmmaker discusses the emotional impact of documenting Arctic families
Four years in the making, "To the Arctic" tells the story of life at the northern tip of the globe. The film crew ventured five times into the bitter cold and rugged terrain, capturing awe-inspiring footage of Canada's Porcupine River caribou herd crossing the frozen tundra toward their summer feeding grounds in Alaska. On an icebreaker 5,500 miles north of Norway, they documented the struggles of a polar bear family in an unforgiving environment of melting ice. And off the shores of Canada's Baffin Island, they dove into the underwater world of 1,700-pound mother walruses teaching their calves to dive for clams.
The landscapes are majestic, but at its heart, "To the Arctic" is the "story of motherhood," says director Greg MacGillivray, an award-winning documentary filmmaker, "and how it's always been tough to be a mother in the Arctic north and how it is even a little tougher [now]."
In this edited interview with HSUS staff writer Ruthanne Johnson, MacGillivray discusses his experience filming in a frozen land and the impact he hopes the film will have on audiences.
How did you capture the footage of the polar bear family?
It just so happened that the ice floes in this particular year and month had been blown into an inland area. We had 200 bears compressed into a small area. A mother bear and her two 7-month-old cubs camped out by our boat the whole time. It's 24 hours a day of sunshine, so I had my crew on a 24-hour schedule. For five and a half days we were observing this one family of bears. It was amazing.
What impressed you about the Arctic's wildlife?
The thing that amazes me the most is that they can put up with the cold. We would occasionally see a musk ox. They look like buffalo, but they're adapted to the cold. They will stand in the middle of a gigantic storm in the winter. The wind will be whipping at them, but they have so much insulation that for them it's just fine. For us, we were all bundled up. I was still cold.
The polar bears never wasted energy. It looked like they were lounging around a lot, but they were conserving energy. They were ready to go whenever they had to go, either running from a predator or finding a seal they could sneak up on and grab. There is not much to eat out there. They have to outsmart everything.
How do caribou moms interact with their calves?
The nurturing when they are just born is spectacular. They lick them clean. They hold them close and lie down together to stay warm. We saw examples of animals moving slowly, and the little guy was running alongside nursing, trying to get a drink on the run. I never got a good shot of that, but it was funny to watch.
What about the walrus moms?
They are just as protective as the other moms. The little calves are very curious. So when we were photographing them underwater, the calves wanted to come right up to the cameraman. The mother was continually putting her flippers around the calf to hold it and swim away with it. At one point, a cameraman was photographing, and one of the mothers came down and head-butted the camera as if to say, "It's time for you to get out of here."
What was the greatest challenge of filming wildlife in the Arctic?
Making an IMAX documentary is tougher that anything. You are dealing with gigantic cameras that are noisy and hard to operate—and heavy! Even unloading the camera film is a unique situation that you don't learn in school. It's so cold that it's hard to get things done. Cameras don't like the cold. The batteries absolutely hate it. It's a tough job to shoot a movie up there. It took us a long time.
What made actress Meryl Streep the right narrator for this film?
I wanted a woman, and I wanted a mother. And I wanted someone who is well-respected around the world—the mother who you know is intelligent enough to be saying these words.
Was it difficult to remain detached observers?
Absolutely. The polar bear family was the hard one. Though they mostly eat ringed seals, male polar bears will prey on polar bear cubs. There were four chases in the five-day period we were there. The mother had to be vigilant and smart and alert all the time. We wanted to shout, but you can't interfere. The bears made it. It would have been tough for us [otherwise].
How did making this film affect you?
The major emotional impact for me is telling the story of motherhood, and of this mother polar bear and her two cubs and what a poignant, touching relationship they have. She clearly loves her cubs beyond anything else and is willing to risk her life for them.
Presented by IMAX Filmed Entertainment and Warner Bros. Pictures, "To the Arctic" opens April 20 in select IMAX theaters (see imax.com/tothearctic for details).
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'Stargate' shoot goes full circle
EmptyAs the submarine slips under the ice, water splashes a cameraman who is lying on the ice's edge with a submersible camera. Here in the Arctic Circle, the temperature is minus-37 degrees Fahrenheit -- the point at which mercury turns solid -- and this crew member is in immediate danger of freezing.
Director Martin Wood quickly radios for help, and the cameraman is whisked away by helicopter to the base camp. He's treated and will be OK.
The shoot is taking place as close to the North Pole as possible -- at the Navy's Applied Physics Laboratory Ice Station, 3,000 kilometers north of Vancouver and 200 nautical miles north of Prudhoe Bay, the northernmost city in Alaska. A team of about 15 crew and actors arrived Thursday for a seven-day shoot of six scenes for MGM's direct-to-video movie "Stargate: Continuum," a $6 million-$7 million production that is an extension of the long-running sci-fi series "Stargate."
The "Continuum" production, headed by Wood and writer-producer Brad Wright, is housed in prefab plywood huts with stove heaters called hooches. Drinking water is obtained by going outside, grabbing a chunk of ice and melting it in a container on the stove. The closest Internet connection -- and shower -- requires a flight to Prudhoe Bay.
Charles Cohen, MGM senior executive vp finance and corporate development, sat in on the Navy briefings before the shoot and stressed two points.
"One, if you fall in any water, it's so cold that you have about 10 seconds to get out or you're dead," he said. "And two, the polar bear situation."
"A bear and a cub were spotted 14 miles away when we first got here," Wood said in an interview via satellite telephone. "(The other day) they were five miles away, so we're expecting them (to come) closer."
Riflemen stand guard in case they do.
The complicated sequence, filmed last weekend, called for the USS Alexandria to break up through the ice, surprising a lost Stargate team. The submarine was rigged with a camera, and a hole was cut through the 4-foot ice so that a submersible camera could be placed about 18 feet below the surface. The ice was then cleared of snow, with an 'X' marking the area where the sub would, in theory, break through.
On the first try, the whole sub came up pounding though the ice. On the second take, it fought to grind through, not quite hitting the mark. Each time, the crew and actors were surprised.
"They say if you want to be in the safest position when the submarine comes up, stand on the 'X' because it never hits it," Wood said.
The landscape changed daily, because of the constant breaking and reforming of the ice atop of the Arctic Ocean. But Wood said continuity wasn't a problem. "Because everything that we're looking at is pretty much ice and pressure ridges," he said. "It's as nondescript a background as you can get."
The production opted for the difficult terrain because the filmmakers were convinced it couldn't be replicated in a studio or CG environment.
"I don't think it could have been done with the same sort of intensity that you're going to have by shooting it real," Wood said. "I don't think you can capture the right feeling and sound if you tried to re-create it in an unnatural way."
Frank's 'Lookout' not in Kansas any more
Although it's set in Kansas City, Kan., "The Lookout" -- writer Scott Frank's directorial debut being released Friday by Miramax -- was filmed in Winnipeg, Canada, in January 2006. The determining factor, as you would expect, was economics.
"We couldn't shoot in Kansas, it was too expensive," Frank said.
Frank learned that "Capote" shot in Winnipeg and "thought it looked so beautiful and I thought it looked just like Kansas that I thought I'd do the same thing."
But while the topography and geography of Winnipeg and its environs were a perfect match, the cold winter was a different story.
"A lot of it was night exteriors so it was a really difficult shoot," Frank said. "It was difficult because you're so cold that you're rushing yourself. And you have to make sure you're really getting what you want to get and not rushing just because you want to get inside somewhere warm. It slowed everything down."
But there was a plus side that he warmed up to. "One thing it did do is it bonded everybody, cast and crew. We were all in it together."


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Institute for War and Peace Reporting | Giving Voice, Driving Change
Major Hospital in Afghan East Struggles to Cope
Mobin Khan's 12-year-old son Samiullah clearly needs specialist medical help. Both his legs were broken in a car crash in 2010, and two years later he remains confined to a wheelchair.
After a recent visit to the run-down Jalalabad Public Hospital in the eastern province of Nangarhar, however, Khan has little hope that Samiullah will make a full recovery.
There is hardly any medicine available at the overcrowded hospital, he said, and patients' relatives are expected to pay for gauze and bandages themselves.
"This hospital does not resemble a hospital at all," Khan said bitterly whilst pushing Samiullah's wheelchair. "So I am taking my son home."
With shortages of medicines and trained doctors, healthcare provision in Afghanistan remains poor. (See Unregulated Pharmacies Prompt Health Fears in Afghan Province, and Healthcare Crisis in Central Afghan District.) But patients and medics say Jalalabad's hospital, which caters to a sizable chunk of the southern and eastern areas bordering Pakistan, stands out for its poor facilities, crowded wards and overstretched staff.
To the untrained eye, the hospital could be mistaken for a market or bus station. Cars, motorbikes and rickshaws are parked outside; water spills out from beneath a restroom and broken pipes leak into empty gutters overgrown with shrubs and weeds. Only the staff in white coats and people clutching prescriptions give away its true function.
Constructed 60 years ago, the hospital's main building was designed to hold 100 beds. Today, it often has around 500 inpatients. Patient demand has outstripped the hospital's capacity, but it still has roughly the same amount of staff and medical equipment as it did when it opened.
Dr Nawroz Shinwari heads the orthopaedic ward, which has ten doctors and two nurses on duty in the daytime, and only two doctors at night. Staff lack the supplies they need to mend broken bones, such as plaster and pins, and patients have to buy most of the medicine and materials they need, he said.
"Sometimes patients remain on the operating table for hours because of a lack of personnel, medicines and equipment," he added.
Shinwari says his staff numbers have shrunk while admissions have spiralled – a result, he says, of more accidents since the roads in Nangarhar were paved and cars started driving faster.
Another orthopaedic doctor at the hospital, speaking on condition of anonymity, agreed that
"Even compared with hospitals in Kabul, let alone in other countries, we have very little equipment," he said. "We're still using carpenters' drills for drilling bones."
Nevertheless, the doctor said, medics had conducted over 700 major surgical operations and applied nearly 1,000 plaster casts in the past month. His own ward saw nearly 50 patients a day.
Dr Moqadasa Meraj, the hospital's deputy director, says that in a typical month, between 5,000 and 6,000 patients are admitted and treated by the 32 specialists and 123 general doctors working there.
Dr Meraj says the hospital has seen some improvements thanks to help received from the Provincial Reconstruction Team, a joint military-civilian force run by the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force. It now has wards for children and sections for ear, nose and throat complains, eye problems and mental health, she said.
But she acknowledges there is still a long way to go.
"In terms of medical equipment and personnel, our hospital cannot be compared with the average hospital in other countries in this region," she said. "Our equipment is 30 years old... and the staff are not capable of using more advanced equipment."
Dr Sahel Nasrat, who works on infectious diseases, is exasperated by the lack of facilities to test for hepatitis, or to conduct CAT and MRI scans.
"There is no intensive care unit and no medicine for emergency cases," Dr Nasrat said. "Nor do we have lab equipment for diagnoses."
Doctors are supposed to receive additional training, but are hampered by the lack of either a library or internet access at the hospital, and there are no plans to send them abroad to go on courses. Given these problems, Dr Nasrat asked, "How can one learn?"
Dr Meraj sees little hope of radical improvement because HealthNet International, a non-government group that supports the hospital, has a limited budget.
Dr Homayun Zaheer, HealthNet's director at the hospital, said out-of-date census figures hugely understate the size of the population served by the hospital.
Official numbers show the province with a population of 1.6 million, and this figure is used to determine the budget, Dr Zaheer said. But these numbers are out-of-date, and he believes Nangarhar now has as many as three million residents, nearly twice the official estimate.
"Donors approve our budget according to the province's population. If Nangarhar's statistics department put the population at three million, the hospital would get a bigger budget," he said.
As well as Nangarhar, the Jalalabad hospital also serves the Laghman and Kunar regions, as well as parts of Kabul and Logar provinces.
HealthNet gets its funding from the European Union provides, and the NGO is currently operating under an agreement with the Afghan health ministry running from November 2011 to May 2013.
Under the agreement, HealthNet agreed to provide for 420 beds, but 50 more than this are in use, and 27 more staff are working there than the 527 stipulated.
"Even now, we are providing services that are not covered by our budget," Dr Zaheer said. "This an extra financial burden that our NGO has shouldered."
Not everyone is unhappy with the hospital's services. Allahnazar recently admitted his one-year-old son for a two-week stay and the boy has since been discharged in good health.
"I am grateful to Dr Abbas – my son had a lung ailment and he treated it," Allahnazar said of the doctor involved. "Without that, I would have had to take him to Pakistan, where I'd have needed to pay a lot of money to doctors and the police."
Hijratullah Ekhtyar is an IWPR-trained reporter in Nangarhar province.
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Hallluuuuu I'm back! Teehee. Well cause I feel so fresh today and thats why I'm beginning to publish another post. So lets make it happen!
As you can see, the date I mentioned above was about 11 months ago. See how lazy I am? I'd prefer Instagram & Twitter rather than Blog nowadays. Why? Cause you dont really have to cramp your mind just to think about what craps should you put in your blog. Or even choose any relevant pictures to relate with. Or even decide when to publish it. See? Thats why I still salute people who blog everyday expect for those gossip blogs etc. So, enough with this crap.
On the 14th of September 2013, I was engaged to this man. It was so random. I remembered the time when Abah asked me if I want to get engage with him first then we'll decide on the exact date to get married. At that time, I was quite confused cause he once told me that I should get married if Im done with my study. I guess that's my call. Alhamdulillah Allah permudahkan jalan. Alhamdulillah. The preparation was only for two weeks since I finished my intern on the 31st August then only I can start preparing for my engagement day.
So as of today, I am Anis Azmani's fiance and soon to be his wife, InsyaAllah. I need your doa people :)
Many people often ask me about the fact that I am in a Long Distance Relationship which at the same time, engaged to the person who is literally far away by 10000++km from me. Of course, there are many ups and downs between this journey. Sedangkan lidah lagi tergigit ye dak? I guess I am lucky enough to find someone who is willing to accept me just the way I am, to calm me whenever I need a shoulder to cry on, to stay up until 4-5am in the morning because of the 7/8 hours time difference, to wait for me to come back and many more. Alhamdulillah. I pray to Allah that he is my Jodoh sampai Syurga. Amin.


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So what does worship in the early church look like? Paul gives us the clearest description in his letter to the Corinthians. He addresses them for two reasons: they had written him with pressing questions, and he had received inside information about serious problems.
In chapter 12 he takes up spiritual gifts, in 13 how the gifts flow out of love, then in 14 the two most common gifts, prophecy and tongues. In the second half of the chapter, he speaks about how these gifts find expression in worship. It does not look like the typical service we are accustomed to.
What strikes me is the level of trust in one another to pull off a service like this. But the trust is more in the Holy Spirit moving than in someone messing things up by saying something weird.
Jesus often chose the well-ordered worship services of the Jews in His day to change the agenda by healing someone. He was telling them that it was more important to show mercy to people than to give token worship to God, quoting from Hosea: "I desire mercy, not sacrifice" (Matt. 12:7). If that Lord inspired Paul to write his letters, then we need to pay heed and go with the book rather than with our traditions.
Participation. Paul writes, "When you come together, everyone…" Pentecost leveled the playing field. This is not a one-man band. This extent of participation suggests a small assembly, house church size. We have drifted from this picture of highly relational and unscripted worship.
Relationship. This kind of service presupposes relationship and trust. Just as love remains on center stage for the operation of spiritual gifts, love for one another stays important for worship.
Liabilities. Opening up a service means that it will get messy. The person with nothing to say may speak too long. A pastor puts in many hours preparing a message. A person giving a spontaneous teaching takes one minute to gather thoughts. Some worship services may get a little thin. I have not, however, felt this way in the recent services of this kind that I have led. The prophetic words have hit their mark and have opened up rich ministry. The ministry times more than the instruction took center stage, because that seemed to be the greater need, echoing the words of Jesus, "I desire mercy…"
1) Release of gifts. We have seen slow growth in the maturing of spiritual gifts, because people have not had sufficient opportunity to develop them. Gifts grow when practiced. As faith grows, so do prophetic words, which further enriches the potential for engaging and encouraging worship services.
2) Ownership. People grow when they come to give rather than to receive. Congregations easily develop a co-dependent relationship with the pastor. See what John had to say about this (I John 2:27).
3) Growth of relationships. This service is charged with interactions, personal ministry, and words of exhortation and encouragement. It builds relationships better than the typical service, which provides little occasion for interaction.
Personal conclusion: I would rather deal with the messes of an open-ended service than miss what God has for us in Paul's description. I have seen the gains when I have given it a try. In I Corinthians 14, Paul uses the word "edify" five times. He is concerned than the members are built up in worship. That has not been the main focus of our worship services. What could happen if it was? Let's find out!


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Photos: RedEye's 2nd Annual Chicago's Hottest Server contest--round 2, female
You sent in tons of nominations for the city's most eye-catching male and female servers. In round 2 you've narrowed it down to the top 5 men and top 5 women. Learn about the female finalists here, then click here to vote for your favorite female server. Click here to vote for your favorite male server. Round 2 voting ends at 5 p.m. June 25. The top 3 of each move on to round 3 June 26. -- Matt Pais, Renee Pinckney
Copyright © 2018, RedEye Chicago


text: Download E-book! Within the ever-changing world of environmental compliance, air emissions management has become a top priority for many organizations. It can be a daunting task to keep track of the latest revisions and nuances, and with constantly evolving standards and regulations, compliance has become a moving target. To help with this issue, we have curated top educational resources - white papers and webinars - to put together the ultimate air emissions management guide -... Read more →


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FOXBORO — There's an old Latin proverb that says, "Greatness is but many small littles."
FOXBORO — There's an old Latin proverb that says, "Greatness is but many small littles."
Whoever said it must have foreseen the reign of Bill Belichick in the kingdom of New England, and the ruthlessness and brilliance of his trusted captain, Tom Brady.
As the standard-bearers of Patriot nation continue on their road to perfection Saturday night against the Giants, the refrain continues.
"I don't think it distracts us," said Brady. "It's always one-week seasons. We've said this all year, that we're just focused on the team that we're playing and this week it happens to be the Giants.
"If we win it we'll be 16-0, like last week was 15-0 and the week before was 14-0. It's very short-term goals that hopefully at the end of the season you can look back and be very proud of what you accomplished."
It's the same old story. But if it works, why change it? We all remember when the Steelers shot their Super Bowl music video before losing the AFC Championship Game to the Patriots.
Despite their denials, don't let the Patriots fool you. They most certainly know that what is at stake Saturday night is a premier spot in football history — and their place in history is very important to them.
The bellowing of the national media has been at their locker room door since Week 1. You remember Spygate?
It's been building louder as the wins have come, first about running up the score, then about asterisks, and finally about perfection.
They know. They just don't want to hear about it from anyone wearing a media badge.
"The captains here are veteran guys, who have been around, been to playoffs and to Super Bowls," special teams ace Kelley Washington said yesterday. "We know they know what they're talking about. They have a great understanding of winning and what it takes to be a winner.
"They're not going to let anyone else outside the locker room take that away from us. We hear about it all the time as far as what's in the news and the media, but again, I guess (I'm) almost brainwashed, to me it's not even an issue.
"Again, it's a record, but our main goal is to win the Super Bowl."
I don't know about you, but I can't imagine any other team in this situation not having players crowing in the media, "Look at us, we're going to be undefeated. We're the best ever! I'm the best ever!"
Hear that from Foxboro?
No. You do not.
How cool would it be to be Tom Brady at this moment. He's gone from a sixth-round draft choice to a three-time Super Bowl champion to this, quarterbacking a team on the verge of becoming the first in league history to finish the regular season 16-0.
Only the fourth team in the 88-year history of the NFL to finish the regular season without a blemish in the loss column. On top of that, he's one touchdown pass from tying Peyton Manning's record 49 scoring throws in a season. Brady's favorite receiver, Randy Moss, is one scoring catch away from tying Jerry Rice for the most touchdown receptions (22) in a season.
For Brady, they're all just stepping stones to the real goal.
"We're in team sports, so part of achieving anything in sports is you rely heavily on everybody else. I'm only as good as the guys I have playing around me," Brady said yesterday. "For every touchdown pass you throw, you need somebody to catch it, you need somebody to block for it. Nothing in this sport is achieved on its own.
"Like I said, being 16-0 would be the most important thing for all of us.
"If you take any energy away from that as a goal, then you're not really doing yourself or your team any justice. Maybe when you look back at the end of your career, you look at those things, it's a cool thing to have, but everything I've experienced in the NFL and the greatest moments I've had are not when you throw five touchdown passes. It's when you win championships."
As Brady held court with a large media contingent, old sage Rodney Harrison was down at the other end of the locker room with a smaller gathering of reporters, pretty much saying the same thing.
He was asked point-blank what being 16-0 would mean.
"We won 16 games," he said, in all seriousness. "Maybe once I'm done playing I can sit back and reflect on that, if we win. Right now is not the time."
And Harrison won't put up with anybody talking to him about an undefeated season, even if it's family members calling.
"I hang up on them," he said. "My family knows not to say anything about an unbeaten season. It's pretty easy for me. When I go home my wife is telling me to clean up the kitchen or take the garbage out. I don't really have to deal with it. I think the focus on the guys in this locker room is not look ahead, focus on the game at hand."
Do that, and the win will come.
One more small little evolving into greatness.
Staff writer Russ Charpentier can be reached at 508-862-1263 or firstname.lastname@example.com.


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That Newark Mayor Cory Booker, Virgin founder Richard Branson and the Rev. Al Sharpton are expected at the Thursday premiere of "Breaking the Taboo," a doc by Branson's son Sam about the war on drugs. A panel discussion will also be led by Katie Couric . . . That the Spin Doctors will perform alongside Morgan Stanley's James Macedonio and RBC's Peter Carrara at Wall Street Rocks Battle of the Bands on Tuesday, in front of 1,000 bankers and wealth managers at Irving Plaza, to raise money for the Salvation Army.
We hear . . .
By PageSix.com Staff
December 1, 2012 | 5:00am


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February 2016 – Ruben Digital Media
Come explore the newly re-launched Ruben Digital Media blog! Our new and improved website is bursting with color and opportunity. The RDM blog will keep our valued community (YOU) in the loop with important updates – client launches, latest industry trends & further launch our identity in the digital world. In this tech-savvy era, a business can only grow relative to the strength and quality of their web presence. RDM creates original digital products designed to fit each client's needs. We balance a strong commitment to customer service with competitive pricing to offer you a unique combination of reliability and affordability. Exploring creativity with our community isn't just work…it's fun! As a customer investing in a service, you want to feel comfortable and trust who you're working with – hence why RDM focuses on building strong client partnerships. Get to know us more by reading the team page !
Frank Karkazis is proud to support local marketing, technology, and design company, Ruben Digital Media. Check out their blog today!


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I couldnt figure out how to put a background image on my site. Could someone help me!? It would be awsome if someone would put a link to a video tourtoial on how to do it, if there are any.
Click here to register or to donate.
Auto self-registration is not available here - far too many spammers. This forum has many, many backlinks and because of that there is an intense desire among spammers to drop their links here.


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TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran executed a prisoner Sunday linked to the opposition group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq, the official IRNA news agency reported, despite a last-minute plea from Amnesty International, which said he had not been given a fair trial.
The report said Gholamreza Khosravi was sentenced to death in 2010 for providing photos of the country's military facilities as well as financial aid to the MEK, and for helping to recruit for the group.
IRNA said the death sentence was approved by the country's Supreme Court after an appeal by Khosravi's lawyer. It said the trial was held in a court in Tehran which deals with security-related charges, and that Khosravi's lawyer was present. The report did not detail the method of execution, but death sentences in Iran are usually carried out by hanging.
Iranian state television said Khosravi was executed after being convicted of "spying for foreigners."
Khosravi was arrested in 2007, after having been previously detained from 1981 to 1986, IRNA said.
The MEK began fighting to overthrow the Islamic Republic shortly after the 1979 revolution that toppled a pro-Western monarchy.
The group was based in Iraq during the reign of Saddam Hussein, who waged an eight-year war against Iran in the 1980s that killed more than 1 million people on both sides.
Amnesty International on Saturday had urged Iran not to execute Khosravi, who was sentenced to death in 2010 for "enmity against God."
"Yet again Iranian authorities are about to execute a man who did not even receive a fair trial in total disregard of both international law and the Iranian law," said Hassiba Hadj Saharoui, Amnesty's deputy director for the Middle East and North Africa.
Amnesty said Iran executes more people than any other country except China, with at least 151 officially acknowledged death sentences since the start of the year. The rights group said its sources have reported another 180 executions in the same period.
Iran insists it only executes those convicted in fair trials, and that criticism of its judicial system is part of a Western effort to undermine the Islamic Republic.


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Improvement #2 - Increased session timeout
This is the second post in the series 10 improvements in 10 days. Yesterday we introduced a new feature named HTTP method on URLs. Today, we introduce an improvement which may not have required as much code, but on the other hand have been requested by a lot of you: Increased session timeout (to 60 minutes).
We are currently using a combination of ASP.NET Forms Authentication and the open source SimpleAuthentication library for authenticating against social providers. We may want to switch to ASP.NET Identity, but for now forms authentication is the framework of choice. Forms authentication defaults to a session timeout of 20 minutes, meaning that you will automatically be logged out, if you're inactive for 20 minutes. As of today, the timeout has been increased to 60 minutes.
Some of you asked us to remove session timeout completely. While we see some benefits of doing so, removing session timeout also introduces security issues. Your error logs are a delicate thing and you dont want people outside your organization getting access to your logs. To learn more about why ELMAH logs should be kept a secret, check out Troy Hunts awesome blog post: ASP.NET session hijacking with Google and ELMAH.
This post was brought to you by the elmah.io team. elmah.io is the best error management system for .NET web applications. We monitor your website, alert you when errors start happening and help you fix errors fast.
See how we can help you monitor your website for crashes Monitor your website


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when you find yourself in the south of the netherlands and you talk about bathroom facilities you are automatically talking about sphinx. It is an important player in the european bathroom market, which is celebrating 175 years in business.
the amazing things is that you imagine hundreds of people working in the factory. especially because my experiences with ceramics are reduced to making some cups. I've expected that working with this fragile material is a primary manual work. but in fact there are just 15 employees in the rotating shifts. basically the hole production is accomplish by machinery. just the technical details and frequent observations are still done by humans.
sphinx factory inside – on the right is the massive oven
around 1000 sanitary arrangements are manufactured every day
toilet mould made of porous plastic material – its more expensive than plaster but can be used about 30.000 times
freshly moulded clay washbasin
air-dried, glazed toilets with a screenprinted logo
which are ready for baking
on the way into the oven – assembly line baking at 1200 degrees


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Star Wars-inspired "SW_03 Series" from 1000Tentacles
In continuation of his previous 2 x Star Wars-themed series, this year (Series 01 / Series 02), 1000Tentacles has released Series 03! Consisting of a total of 5 characters - Each character has a limited edition of only 25pcs worldwide. Estimated Delivery Date of these resin figures - designed, sculpted AND hand-painted by WanKok Leong himself (!!!) is the 2nd quarter of 2018.
Available to purchase individually or as a Set of 5, folks interested are to contact/direct email "firstname.lastname@example.com" or DM via their Facebook for pricing and availability details - Tell them "TOYSREVIL Sent You!" :)
Meanwhile, scroll thru to see further individual images of the crew - along with words/notes from WanKok about his process - with the whole SW_03 sculpting-to-coloring process taking around 5 months to complete, "on and off amid my other toy projects." ~ shared WanKok!
(Above) PRINCESS
- Figure Dimension: 6W x 4.5L x 20.5H in cm
- Wooden stand: 6.5 cm
- Worldwide Limited Edition: 25pcs
"When designing, the first thing that comes to my mind is how to present the characters with a new twist, giving them a new breath of design, (while still) maintaining my style, and yet people will still recognize (the characters). This is the main challenge for me. Second to that, are the coloring issues…" - shared WanKok.
(Above) SAND BANDIT
- Figure Dimension: 9W x 7L x 15.5H in cm
- Wooden stand: 6.5 cm
- Worldwide Limited Edition: 25pcs
Play toy, stay youthful. 玩玩具的人不会老。Posted by Play toy, stay youthful. 玩玩具的人不会老。 on Saturday, May 20, 2017
(Above) GOLDEN DROID
- Figure Dimension: 8.5W x 3.5L x 22.5H in cm
- Wooden stand: 6.5 cm
- Worldwide Limited Edition: 25pcs
"…For instance, the Golden Droid. It poses some difficulties because of it's "gold" color. To capture the right kind of gold is not easy. I have tried different approaches of painting, tested with various brands of Gold colors. Adding to the challenge is the weathering effect on him. (I had never intended) to have him looking "shiny and brand new". I want him to look a bit (worn-out).
On the designing aspect - as you can see - the abdoment of Golden Droid. Instead of plain wires going around, I had purposely made them look like "intestines". I like gory stuff :)" - revealed WanKok.
(Above) LONG EAR
- Figure Dimension: 5W x 6.5L x 18H in cm
- Wooden stand: 6.5 cm
- Worldwide Limited Edition: 25pcs
(Above) MERCENARY HUNTER
- Figure Dimension: 6W x 4.5L x 23H in cm
- Wooden stand: 6.5 cm
- Worldwide Limited Edition: 25pcs
"The main challenge this time is different from Golden Droid. It is the issue of proportion. The very first design is very different from what you see now. I disliked the initial design and scrapped the whole sculpture. The proportion just did not click with my taste. I changed the head, making it way smaller and elongated the body. I dressed him with a cape covering half his shoulder, all the way back. With the cape flowing, it has a feel of a "monk" hunter." - shared WanKok Leong of 1000Tentacles


text:
Curt Schilling is one of Major League Baseball's most exciting pitchers and would makes for an excellent speaker at your next event. He is one of the key figures that led the Boston Red Sox to their first World Series Victory in 2004, after 86 years of heartbreak for that city. His natural leadership skills were also on display in 2001 when Schilling was part of an Arizona Diamondbacks team that shocked the league by beating the New York Yankees in the World Series. That win for Schilling and the Diamondbacks marked the fastest time that an expansion team took home a World Series Title after joining the league.
**Curt Schilling Speaker**
With TSE's proven track record of negotiating on your behalf to get the superstar athletes you want to see, we can handle Curt Shilling speaker engagements or Curt Shilling appearances for you or your company. TSE is the best in the industry at brining you the top-of-the-line, inspirational or motivational speakers you desire to see at your next event.
With the numerous honors, awards and inspirational material that he's gathered throughout his career so far, Curt Shilling speaker topics could give his audience an insight into the mind of a proven winner and avid humanitarian. His work raising money for ALS research has put him in front of many people in his lifetime. His vocal support for a cause that he believes in deeply as well as the story of his career would be the perfect match for any company who is looking for a powerful and motivational speaker to make an appearance at their function.
**Curt Schilling Appearance**
Curt Schilling appearance power comes from the strong leadership skills and commitment to winning that led him to be part of two World Series winning ball clubs. TSE is a specialist in fitting high profile athletes and celebrities with your organization for a special appearance that will have people talking for a long time to come
**Curt Schilling Endorsement**
Over the last nineteen years, Curt Schilling has continued to stand out as one of the elite pitchers in all of Major League Baseball. Curt Schilling endorsement value has been rising since his early days with the Phillies. His first appearance on the national stage came in 1993, when his underdog Phillies defeated the heavily favored Atlanta Braves, which got Schilling into his first World Series. Although his first showing in a World Series match-up didn't result in a win, his stellar pitching in Game 5 of that series was a ringing endorsement to his value on the field.
For more information about booking athletes and celebrities with the help of TSE Speakers, please fill our our detailed contact form or call us at (866) 520-7081 to speak with a dedicated TSE representative.
|01. Jeter, Derek
|02. Reyes, Jose
|03. Seaver, Tom
|04. Varitek, Jason
|05. Banks, Ernie
|06. Schmidt, Mike
|07. Pujols, Albert
|08. Maddux, Greg
|09. Fisk, Carlton
|10. Palmer, Jim


text:
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Arlington Framing Articles
Beware of Framing from Sports Sellers and Framers not Familiar with Museum Quality Framing
Many times people show me documents and photographs that have badly faded images and virtually invisible autographs. What was once a valuable signed photograph or document becomes a nearly worthless piece of memorabilia. This doesn't have to happen. After all, why would someone frame an important treasure to proudly display on his or her Read the full article…
Also posted in Alexandria framing, Antique photos, art, Autograph collecting, conservation care, Conservation Framing, custom framing, Diploma Framing, Document Framing, Framing, Historical Autographs, Interior Decorator, Interior Designer, Museum Framing, Sports Jersey, Sports Jersey Framing Leave a comment
High Quality Prints of Historical Photos of Washington, D.C.
Recently, I picked up a collection of very high quality reproductions of photographs of people and period vehicles by Washington D.C. landmarks such as the Lincoln Memorial and U.S. Capitol. These prints measure a nice displayable 14″ x 17″ and are printed on sturdy acid free paper. These images will maintain their crispness and Read the full article…
1805 Letter Signed by Napoleon as Emperor referencing Lord Horatio Nelson and other key military content, RARE this nice
…Admiral Nelson was in the Straits of Messina… Rare Incredible Manuscript Letter Signed "Napoleon" in French, 1 1/4 pages recto and verso, 4to, Chateau De Stupini, near Turin (Italy), 3 Floreal, An 13 (April 23, 1805). An important war date letter, informing Admiral Ganteaume of Vice Admiral Villeneuve's departure in pursuit of the Read the full article…
Is Your Art Protected When Being Framed?
Over the past few years, I have seen a proliferation of people entering the framing business who are either not familiar with framing to protect the art and other works on paper, like a historical document or even a diploma. When a document, print or other work on paper is matted with other than a Read the full article…
Also posted in Alexandria framing, Autograph collecting, conservation care, Conservation Framing, custom framing, Diploma Frame, Diploma Framing, Document Framing, Historical Autographs, Museum Framing, Uncategorized Tagged Alexandria, alexandria framing, antique maps, antique prints, archival framing, arlington framing, art framing, artwork framing, autographs as gifts, cheap frames, conservation framing, cotton, custom framing, diploma, Diploma Frames, Diploma Framing, museum matting, museum quality framing, Preservation Framing, University Bookstore, Washington DC framing Leave a comment
You Worked Hard For Your Diploma. Frame It Well.
Young people spend years achieving their diploma through hard work and study. In addition to the time spent, many and/or their parents invest a lot of of money assuring a good education and the end result from finishing and graduating with a degree… and a diploma. With so many businesses offering to frame your Read the full article…
Thank You For Supporting Museum Framing in 2015… And Previous Years, too!
It is my humble appreciation of thanks and gratitude that I appreciate the support you all have shown me in 2015 and past years. I look forward to a continued relationship this next year and forward! Rick has operated this business since 1989 and continues to do so. Rick firmly believes that great framing comes Read the full article…
Museum Framing will be open New Year's Day 2016
Because I took a nice family vacation to visit my wife's family in Mississippi during the Christmas holiday, I am ready to get back to work serving my clients and their framing needs. I will be open New Year's Day. Just call me at 703-299-0100. With Museum Framing, you won't deal with part time help Read the full article…
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The Guitar Hero series of games unleashed the beginnings of video games developed for the inner musician within all of us. Playing guitar on such classic songs from Metallica, Led Zeplin, and Guns & Roses, players could challenge friends and other players with their rock star status. Opening the door for fellow game Rock Band to follow, Guitar Hero did more than just show that music games can work.
In this guide, we'll take a look at all of the games within the Guitar Hero series, as well as song lists, artists, cheats, tricks, and tips on how to play. We also look at which game is best, and of course how to beat that dreaded orange note.


text:
The most effective way to put an end to spam is by contacting the service providers that are responsible for bringing the content to your desktop. Of those, the registrar is often the most effective administrative body to contact. This is because often the spams are sent from hacked machines, whose administrators may be slow or unable to respond to the problem.
Registrars on the other hand, as ICANN accredited administrative organizations, are obliged to uphold certain rules and regulations, and have the resources necessary for dealing with abuse complaints.
Not all registrars respond with equal force to abuse complaints, but addressing your complaint to the correct person, and composing your letter in a correct and clear way may make the difference between a suspended spammer domain, and an ignored complaint.
Why Complain?Edit
One of the proven methods in combating spam, has been to file a complaint with the registrar of a spamming domain, or its web host.
A well composed and targeted complaint will in most cases result in a quick suspension of a spamming domain.
How do I report spam advertising web sites?Edit
Complainterator is a new program for the Windows OS for complaining to the registrars who provide the DNS records that resolve access to spammed sites. It generates an optimized complaint report and sends it to the correct addresses.
This program is quickly becoming one of the most effective reporting tools today. For a list of some successful removals, check out this forum.
A list of spammer name server domains can be found at RSS.URIBL listings.
As a general rule, each abuse complaint should include a sample of the spam you received, along with the spam's full header. This is because the "from" address is nearly always fake.
The Fight Back! forum has an excellent and well-developed section devoted to spam fighting tips and techniques.
What if the registrar does not act?Edit
If you don't get a response at all, try a different e-mail address before all else.
If the registrar customer service agent does not seem to understand what it is you are talking about (as in this example), ask that your e-mail be sent to his or her supervisor, or to someone in the legal department.
see also WDPRS
Web hosting companiesEdit
Web hosting companies may be varied. Some ISPs operate web hosting as a side business, while other ISPs offer primarily web hosting services. Some are shared webhosting, while another type of web hosting is dedicated hosting. Understanding this, helps one know that how you have an upstream provider, such as Sprint who may provide the bandwidth. The downstream may be a hosting company itself and/or its own resellers. Such information is obtained in the nameservers of the domain. Typically you will find this when researching spamvertised domains.
For more detailed information about web hosting, check out the web hosting wiki entry. In nearly all cases, when one reports spam, it will involve more than one ISP (or web hosting company).
Sometimes when doing WHOIS on an IP address or a domain, a spam researcher may figure out there are layers of upstream providers and downstreams. In other cases, it may not be that obvious unless one investigates spamming reports over and over and starts noticing the same providers come up on a regular basis.
After a period of time, a spam reporter may often tell in most cases whether or not the spam in question is sent through a compromised host, or is set up to be allowed to send out spam. Pill-related spam is often relayed through web servers that are compromised. The server reported spewing spam could have an open relay or the mail software is misconfigured or in need of software updates. Some of these servers may be rooted or compromised, so that they are part of a larger botnet which sends out massive amounts of spam.
When reporting spam, make sure to put in all the headers and body of the spam because the spam could be originating through a zombie at one host, but spamvertised at another host or ISP. Some spam may even be relayed through more than 1 zombie.
The action taken by various abuse desks who manage the abuse email inboxes for web hosting companies vary tremendously. Some web hosting providers have very proactive abuse departments, while others seem to be non-responsive to the abuse reporter. It seems that some abuse desks are so poorly managed, that the actual abuse email account does not even accept email. One can research this or report such activity at the official InterNIC report site for ICANN. If you are curious about specific providers, researching Google groups may give you an idea of how responsive a particular web hosting company is. One can also research a web host by reading its (Acceptable Use Policy) AUP typically found on its website.
How do I report spam that doesn't advertise any websites?Edit
Many common types of spam do not include a URL, or website address. It requires more effort to report some of these, and it can be difficult to know if your report has been acted upon. On the other hand, these are often very malignant types of spam as far as the monetary impact on victims. Spending some of your time can help save a lot of other people's retirement savings when reporting stock scams or 419 spams, for instance.
Stock spamsEdit
The classic stock spam is called "pump and dump:" The sponsor of these spams will buy a large amount of a stock that sells for a very low amount of money -- less than one US dollar often. He then hires mailers to send out spam that claims that company is on the verge of a major change in fortunes that will cause a tremendous increase in stock price. Everyone has heard how much money people made by being the first to buy IBM stock, and they'd like to be that lucky themselves -- so they all try to buy the stock being promoted. All those buyers makes the price rise. It may only go up a dollar or two, but as a percentage of the price the spam sponsor paid, it is massive. The sponsor sells his stock at the new higher price. The victims then watch as the price settles back down to the original price. Again, the decrease is only a few dollars, but as a percentage of the price they paid, it means they have lost a huge portion of their investments. And since companies selling for under one dollar a share are often on their way to bankruptcy, even a buy-and-hold strategy won't allow them to make up their losses over time.
In reality, if any of these stocks were such a good deal, the sponsors would be taking out loans to buy more shares for themselves while the price was still low, not sending out emails to strangers to cause the price to rise sooner.
Most of these spams relate to stocks traded in the U.S. and should be reported to U.S. regulatory agencies:
- The Security and Exchange Commission (SEC): For all stocks and investments. firstname.lastname@example.com
- The National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD): For stocks traded on the NASDAQ exchange email@example.com
- Over the counter stocks (not listed on NYSE, AMEX, or NASDAQ, generally because their prices are too low to qualify -- "penny stocks"): firstname.lastname@example.com
- U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ): investigates violations of federal law; includes the FBI and other national law enforcement agencies. firstname.lastname@example.com
- The Federal Trade Commission (FTC): regulates advertising, such as commercial email, on the national level. This address accepts reports about any spam. firstname.lastname@example.com
Advanced fee fraud spamsEdit
This includes 419 spam ("Nigerian" spams, which ask for help transferring large sums of money, such as an inheritance or the estate of someone who died without heirs, in exchange for a percentage of the total), lotteries you won without entering, dying people looking to bequeath their wealth to someone more deserving than their own ungrateful relatives and associates, etc. All of these schemes appear to require no risk on the part of the victim, but once someone responds, the scammer starts pumping them for money to cover taxes, shipping, bribes, etc. Each new communication promises that this one last payment will solve the problem and release the promised money to the victim. It plays on people's greed -- if the amount of money involved is large enough, the are willing to lose more of their own money on the chance the offer is real.
One especially pernicious variant of this is the pet-rescue scheme, where good Samaritans are asked to adopt abandoned pets from war zones. In this case, the victims are not even acting out of greed, but are swindled anyway. Contrary to what George C. Scott's character in the movie The Flim-flam Man says, you can cheat an honest man.
In these cases, any URL in the spam is generally an innocent third party, such as a news source with an article describing the plane crash that killed the fabled Nigerian princess. The victim is expected to contact the spammer via an email address in the body of the spam or a "reply-to" address in the headers, or else occasionally there will be a postal address that is actually the address of a mail drop company. The email addresses are usually with free email services (no advance fee fraud spammer ever spends a penny of his own money), and complaints should go to those email services' abuse departments. The most common ones are listed below.
Reporting AddressesEdit
Registrar AddressesEdit
The response time of a complaint can vary greatly depending on where you sent your complaint.
ICANN maintains a list of contact details for all accredited registrars.
Below are some effective complaint e-mail addresses for some of the more commonly abused registrars.
Where to send your complaints:
|Name of the registrar
|Reporting addresses
|email@example.com email@example.com
|firstname.lastname@example.com email@example.com
|email@example.com firstname.lastname@example.com
|email@example.com email@example.com
|email@example.com email@example.com
|email@example.com email@example.com
Law Enforcement Reporting AddressesEdit
An excellent list of reporting addresses across multiple categories has been assembled by SpamCop. Categories included are
- Software piracy
- Multimedia piracy (Music, Video, Cable)
- 419 or "Nigerian" scams
- Lottery scams
- "Spoofing" or "Phishing" for banking or credit card data
- Other spoofs, password scams
- MLM / Ponzi / Pyramid schemes & chain letters
- Stock fraud, securities fraud and investment-related spam
- Pornography involving children ("kiddie porn") or animals
- Drugs, On-line pharmacies, (bogus) health products
- General spam and country-specific reporting addresses
Abuse of free email addressesEdit
Many of the internet service providers (ISPs) which either have large numbers of subscribers or which provide free email addresses often have their addresses spoofed in the "from" field of spam. People can't blacklist all emails with those addresses, since they are sure to have friends using those services. A large number of spams will list "from" addresses of [somebody]@aol.com, but almost none of those will actually come from America Online, for instance.
That means those ISPs get a huge number of reports from people who receive such emails and don't understand that the "from" address is meaningless, accusing them of sending spam. They put filters on their abuse mailboxes to block any reports that don't include headers showing the spam originated on their networks.
So what do you do when you already know the spam didn't originate on their network, but the spammer is using their email service to receive replies from victims? You have to be persistent. When you get the initial autoreply, paste the entire autoreply, with its headers, into a second report, again explaining that you know the spam didn't originate from their network and that they need to suspend the contact email for violation of their terms of service. (Remember, no one actually saw your first report, so be polite and explain from the beginning.) Try to explain the problem succinctly in the subject of your reports, and try to use the same wording every time, in case their filters are learning which reporters' emails are "good." For example: "Subject: Lottery spam with Yahoo contact address in BODY of spam."
- America Online: firstname.lastname@example.com
- Comcast: email@example.com
- Hotmail: firstname.lastname@example.com . Note that Hotmail has special reporting addresses for child pornography, phishing, threats/harrassment, or hacked accounts: email@example.com
- MSN: email@example.com . As with Hotmail, more urgent types of spam reports go to firstname.lastname@example.com
- Yahoo/Geocities: Either use the webform at http://helpme.att.net/servabuse.php or else email firstname.lastname@example.com
Security Incident Reporting AddressesEdit
For reporting of major criminal events involving security breaches, you can select from a list of FIRST groups.
FIRST stands for the Forum for Incident Response and Security Teams.