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Zika virus (ZIKV) is a teratogenic mosquito-borne flavivirus that can be sexually transmitted from man to woman. The finding of high viral loads and prolonged viral shedding in semen suggests that ZIKV replicates within the human male genital tract, but its target organs are unknown. Using ex vivo infection of organotypic cultures, we demonstrated here that ZIKV replicates in human testicular tissue and infects a broad range of cell types, including germ cells, which we also identified as infected in semen from ZIKV-infected donors. ZIKV had no major deleterious effect on the morphology and hormonal production of the human testis explants. Infection induced a broad antiviral response but no IFN upregulation and minimal proinflammatory response in testis explants, with no cytopathic effect. Finally, we studied ZIKV infection in mouse testis and compared it to human infection. This study provides key insights into how ZIKV may persist in semen and alter semen parameters, as well as a valuable tool for testing antiviral agents.
Giulia Matusali, Laurent Houzet, Anne-Pascale Satie, Dominique Mahé, Florence Aubry, Thérèse Couderc, Julie Frouard, Salomé Bourgeau, Karim Bensalah, Sylvain Lavoué, Guillaume Joguet, Louis Bujan, André Cabié, Gleide Avelar, Marc Lecuit, Anna Le Tortorec, Nathalie Dejucq-Rainsford


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With a special resolution, commissioners of the South Jersey Transportation Authority honored the service of one of their own.
Madelyn Rumowicz does not appear on the formal list of board members, since she is the designate of Transportation Commissioner Jack Lettiere, but Authority Chairman Frank Spencer said her steady service since returning from her first retirement from DOT in 2003 has seen the SJTA through unprecedented growth and development.
"Her knowledge and her guidance have been invaluable," Spencer said.
Actually, her involvement with SJTA goes back a lot further, Ms. Rumowicz said at the Dec. 13 board meeting. As the late state Sen. Walter Rand's chief aide, she played a significant role in drafting the enabling legislation that created the Authority in 1991.
Commissioner Louis Toscano said he knew that for a fact. "I was there too, working for the (Atlantic City) mayor's office," he noted.
Ms. Rumowicz, who lives in Ewing Township, Mercer County, says she has no plans for retirement -- noting that she wasn't allowed to stay retired the first time.

subset: commoncrawl


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BOSTON (REUTERS) - A US judge on Tuesday, Jan 14, 2014, agreed to extend a deadline for attorneys for the accused Boston Marathon bomber to determine whether they will seek to move his trial outside of Boston.
Lawyers had argued that the Feb 28 deadline was unreasonable given that the US Justice Department is not expected to decide until late January whether accused bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, 20, will face the possibility of execution if convicted.
US District Court Judge George O'Toole made his decision known in a brief electronic filing in Boston federal court. The filing did not explain his reasoning or give a new deadline.
US laws generally require a person accused of crimes to face trial in the district where the crimes were committed, though defence attorneys may seek to have the proceedings moved to a district where potential jurors may have been less influenced by pre-trial publicity.
The trial of Timothy McVeigh, for instance, who was convicted of the 1995 bombing of a federal office building in Oklahoma City, was moved to Denver.
Tsarnaev is accused of planting two homemade pressure-cooker bombs at the crowded finish line of the marathon on April 15, killing three people and injuring more than 260.
He has also been charged with murdering a Massachusetts Institute of Technology police officer three days after the bombing as he prepared to leave Boston with his 26-year-old brother, Tamerlan, who helped plot the attack and died after Dzhokhar ran him over with a car during a gunfight with police after killing the university officer.
Tsarnaev has pleaded not guilty to all charges linked to the worst mass-casualty attack on US soil since 9/11.


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Collaborate project w/ designer Scott Yerkey, Scott Arthur Yerkey Design.
New Concept 180 is committed to being the very best. The associations that we belong to promote ethical standards and excellence in the remodeling industry. We strongly support continuing education and industry specific certifications.
Licence Number: GC's License: TGC033325
New Concept 180, Inc
Northbrook, IL 60062
(847) 566-7606
If you're ready to remodel your whole house, transform your kitchen or bathroom, we can create and build a unique design, inspired by your needs and preferences. We are prepared to accept your challenge and work with you in Chicago's North Shore area, including but not limited to Chicago, Oak Park, River Forest, Wilmette, Glencoe, Deerfield, Winnetka, Western Springs, Northbrook, Northfield, Kenilworth, Lake Forest.
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Great Ways To Get That Healthy Glow In Your Skin
Everyone prefers to look good. Having great skin is very important to that end. To keep it looking its best, use a skin care regimen that works for you. It is important to know what skin treatments do and do not work. This article contains a number of skin care tips. You need to exfoliate to have great skin. Exfoliating removes dead skin cells which makes your skin softer. Exfoliation can really help in your efforts to reduce your acne. If you are trying to treat oily skin, enlarged pores, and acne in the same area of the skin, a wash containing lemon juice can help. Weekly washing with a lemon-based skin wash can help minimize pores and eliminate excess oil. The best treatments to use when trying to acquires beautiful skin would be any one that contains alpha-hydroxy. These acids are normally found in milk, fruit and wine. These acids break down protein bonds that can make dead skin linger. Ex-foliate gently to remove dead skin. To protect your skin from the sun, try getting pomegrana


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|Please consider a donation to the Higher Intellect project. See https://preterhuman.net/donate.php or the Donate to Higher Intellect page for more info.
Difference between revisions of "Packard Bell"
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* [[Packard Bell Legend 790 Supreme]]
* [[Packard Bell Legend 790 Supreme]]
* [[Packard Bell Legend 822CDT]]
* [[Packard Bell Legend 822CDT]]
* [[Packard Bell Legend 2050]]
* [[Packard Bell Legend 2050]]
* [[Packard Bell Legend 2276]]
* [[Packard Bell Legend 2276]]
Revision as of 02:07, 1 January 2021
Packard Bell NEC, Inc. develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of desktop and notebook computers, monitors and servers for the home, business, education and government markets. The company markets its computers and peripherals globally under the Packard Bell, NEC and Zenith Data Systems brand names.
The merging of these brands now makes up the third-largest PC vendor in the world and second-largest in the United States according to International Data Corporation, an independent industry research firm based in Framingham, Mass.
Packard Bell NEC and its predecessors claim a long history of providing quality products at affordable prices—connecting millions of people to the expanding world of new ideas through advanced technology. The Packard Bell brand name itself dates to 1926 when it was used for consumer radios, and later, televisions. The current company reintroduced the brand in 1987 to pioneer the mass-marketing of PCs through the retail channel. In July 1996, Packard Bell Electronics, Inc., and NEC Corporation's worldwide personal computer operations outside of Japan (formerly a part of NEC Technologies, Inc.) merged to form Packard Bell NEC, Inc. In February 1999, the business was reorganized so that all markets in the Americas are part of a single legal entity, while operations centered in Europe are part of Packard Bell NEC Europe, and those in Japan are part of NEC Japan. These three entities are closely linked and cooperate on a number of global initiatives covering everything from product development and customer services.
Packard Bell NEC now seeks to balance its business between retail and commercial accounts, while also making the most of the commercial and service opportunities presented by the Internet. The company further seeks to market highly innovative and differentiated products that will merit sufficient demand as to propel the company into a position where it can eventually become publicly traded and a top three global PC company.
Desktop PCs
- Packard Bell Legend 316SX
- Packard Bell Legend 386X
- Packard Bell Legend 600X Supreme
- Packard Bell Legend 30CD Supreme
- Packard Bell Pack-Mate 50CD
- Packard Bell Pack-Mate 7800
- Packard Bell Legend 204CD
- Packard Bell Legend 300CD
- Packard Bell Legend 406CD
- Packard Bell Legend 520SX
- Packard Bell Legend 650X Supreme
- Packard Bell Legend 660
- Packard Bell Legend 725DX
- Packard Bell Legend 730
- Packard Bell Legend 790 Supreme
- Packard Bell Legend 822CDT
- Packard Bell Legend 2033
- Packard Bell Legend 2050
- Packard Bell Legend 2276
- Packard Bell Legend 2430
- Packard Bell Legend 933
- Packard Bell Legend 950
- Packard Bell Legend VI+
- Packard Bell Force S16X
- Packard Bell Force 1872CDT
- Packard Bell Force 101CD
- Packard Bell Spectria 150
- Packard Bell Axcel 453CD
- Packard Bell Axcel 833CD
- Packard Bell Axcel I+
- Packard Bell Multi-Media
- Packard Bell PB 500
- Packard Bell PB VX88
- Packard Bell Multimedia R510
- Packard Bell Platinum Pro 755


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G6EVO bollards in renforced version can stop a 2,5T pick-up travelling at 48 km/h. It's an ideal solution to secure schools, high schools, shopping centers, hotels or condominium buildings, where the level of security is moderate.
Removable jacket & easier maintenance
The G6 EVO bollard is equipped with an innovative interchangeable sleeve system for customizing the aesthetics of access points and refurbish any damaged bollard heads in less than 5 minutes. The bollard is composed of a raw cast iron head, which provides high impact resistance, covered with a sleeve in steel or stainless steel. The new G6 EVO concept makes on site jacket replacement easy and quick, without using any hoisting means.
G6EVO - Bornes escamotables semi-automatique
Conception: Urbaco Monobloc® certificate : 3 elements of structure : casing, cover and bollard head each molded one piece spheroidal cast iron material.
Use: Occasional openings
Material: 11mm average thick cast-iron material
Reflective band: Class II reflective band (White)
Protection of the lock: The key opening is protected by a bronze cover plate stopping the ingress of dust or gravel.
Standard imprint key: E11 (The locking key matches with the imprint of the lock rod)
Operating safety: Reinforced push-to-release bar and lock bolt
Impact resistance: Ø200 : Middle (1,2T at 50km/h), Ø250 : High (2,5T at 55km/h)
Reability: 4.5 million of operations without any failure neither part replacement
Standards: ISO EN 124 – E600 Class – Accepted vertical load: 60T per axle / In compliance with NFP98-310 standard / In compliance with the French PMR decree
Dimensions (mm): Ø200 x H750 I Ø250 x H750
Design: CYLINDER
Related products:
The motor-powered solution, even transponder-fitted, for for highly trafficked pedestrian passages.
Related products:
ONE40 Evo: Removable
High-security removable bollard.
Related products:
Ideal solution for fitting in historical town centers and private and public venues.
Related products:
Ideal for fitting onto vary large gates.
Related products:
The digital control for all automated operators.


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|Home ▸ Catalog ▸ |Greek Coins| ▸ |Geographic - All Periods| ▸ |Anatolia| ▸ |Pontos||View Options: | | |
Pontus is a historical Greek designation for a region on the southern coast of the Black Sea, located in modern-day eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey. The name was derived from the Greek name of the Black Sea, Pontos Euxeinos ("Hospitable Sea"), or simply Pontos. The extent of the region varied through the ages but generally extended from the borders of Colchis (modern Georgia) until well into Paphlagonia in the west, with varying amounts of hinterland. Several states and provinces bearing the name of Pontus or variants thereof were established in the region in the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods, culminating in the late Byzantine Empire of Trebizond. Pontus is sometimes considered as the home of the Amazons, with the name Amazon used not only for a city (Amasya) but for all of Pontus in Greek mythology.


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The alternative energy industry is going through a major transition, which has left a number of companies in bankruptcy. Most recently, Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. (ADR) (NYSE:STP), formerly the largest solar manufacturer in the world, defaulted on loans and was forced into insolvency.
Today, I will take a look at the hopes for survival of three high-profile companies in alternative energy that have many challenges ahead.
GT Advanced Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:GTAT)
A year ago, I was very bullish on the businesses GT Advanced Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:GTAT) operates in, and optimistic about the future of the company. But since then there's been a continuation of falling prices in end markets, and equipment orders aren't coming through as quickly as investors once hoped.
The HiCz System was supposed to change the game for solar, bringing cell efficiency from 18.5% to over 22%, a huge improvement for the industry. But its commercial launch has been pushed back to 2014 and it appears that order intake is slower than expected.
Sapphire technology started with a bang for GTAT and could be used for everything from lighting to cell phone screens, but similar cost pressures as those in the solar industry have hurt orders. During the second half of 2013 the industry is expected to pick up as new applications begin to gain market adoption.
The company fell to a $159.4 million loss in Q4 2012; with $297 million in debt versus $418 million in cash the company can't afford to have many more quarters like that. The problem is that management expects to lose money on a GAAP basis again this year, despite a $1.2 billion backlog.
Will GTAT survive? I think so because the company has a decent balance sheet and should have long-term growth in the markets it serves. But this isn't a bet I'd make until we see demand and cash flow pick up, something for which we've been waiting a long time.
Power One Inc (NASDAQ:PWER)
The inverter market is supposed to be hot, but Power One Inc (NASDAQ:PWER) can't seem to gain any traction on the stock market. Micro-inverter competitor Enphase Energy Inc (NASDAQ:ENPH) has actually been the hotter stock recently, while Power-One bounces around near 52-week lows.
What's maddening for Power-One investors is that the company makes money (unlike Enphase) and has a flawless balance sheet (unlike Enphase).
Investors are struggling with the direction of results, both on the top and bottom lines. A great balance sheet is only a strength until you start burning cash with losses, something we've seen before in alternative energy. If declining sales continue that's where Power-One is headed.
In the end, Power-One is in a growing business, it's making a profit, and it's generating free cash flow. I'm not confident enough to say Power-One will outperform the market but I think this is one company that will survive for years to come.
First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)
The story of First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) over the past decade encapsulates that of the entire solar industry. There was euphoria in the mid-2000s when European countries handed out generous subsidies and there was more than enough demand for all the panels First Solar could make. But as the decade wore on, China began building a solar behemoth, driven by easy money from state-run banks. The solar bubble burst and companies began dropping like flies across the industry. At the same time, First Solar's stock dropped like a rock.
So far, the company has survived the worst, but the real challenge lies ahead. First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR)'s thin-film technology is falling behind its rivals', particularly those making high-efficiency panels like SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ:SPWR). First Solar has virtually no share in the steady growing residential market, also dominated by SunPower Corporation (NASDAQ:SPWR), relying instead on giant projects to generate revenue.
The problem is, these huge projects are drying up. Utilities in the U.S. are getting enough renewable energy from distributed solar (residential and commercial) and don't have to sign up for huge projects to meet mandates anymore. Worldwide, First Solar is having some success signing big deals, but it's not enough to fill its backlog.
TheFirst Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) we see in 10 years will look nothing like the First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ:FSLR) we see today. The company may spin off its project-building unit into a REIT or an MLP, or the company may just shut down manufacturing if it can't improve efficiency.
First Solar is one company I'm confident won't survive without major strategic changes. The company is setting up to make that happen but investors shouldn't buy into the future until they know how this plays out.
If you're looking for continuing updates and guidance on the company whenever news breaks, The Motley Fool has created a brand-new report that details every must know side of this stock. To get started, simply click here now.
Foolish bottom line


text:
American Electric Power Declares Quarterly Dividend On Common Stock
25 Apr, 2017, 12:53 ET
COLUMBUS, Ohio, April 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Directors of American Electric Power Co. (NYSE: AEP) today declared a regular quarterly cash dividend of 59 cents a share on the company's common stock.
The dividend is payable June 9, 2017, to shareholders of record as of May 10, 2017, and is the company's 428th consecutive quarterly common stock cash dividend. AEP has paid a cash dividend on its common stock every quarter since July 1910.
American Electric Power is one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, delivering electricity and custom energy solutions to nearly 5.4 million customers in 11 states. AEP owns the nation's largest electricity transmission system, a more than 40,000-mile network that includes more 765-kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined. AEP also operates 224,000 miles of distribution lines. AEP ranks among the nation's largest generators of electricity, owning approximately 26,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP supplies 3,200 megawatts of renewable energy to customers. AEP's utility units operate as AEP Ohio, AEP Texas, Appalachian Power (in Virginia and West Virginia), AEP Appalachian Power (in Tennessee), Indiana Michigan Power, Kentucky Power, Public Service Company of Oklahoma, and Southwestern Electric Power Company (in Arkansas, Louisiana and east Texas). AEP's headquarters are in Columbus, Ohio.
SOURCE American Electric Power


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Whipping Up A Second Serving Of Atlantic Beach Pie
Whipping Up A Second Serving Of Atlantic Beach Pie
In an encore installment of our Found Recipes series, cookbook writer Katie Workman talks about an amazing citrus and whipped cream pie called "Atlantic Beach Pie," which she had at Crook's Corner in North Carolina. Bill Smith, the restaurant's chef, also explains pie's origins.
And now a good story about a great pie.
KATIE WORKMAN: The most amazing pie I think I've ever had.
SIEGEL: That's Katie Workman, author of "The Mom 100 Cookbook," and frequent contributor to our Found Recipes series. Today as a summertime treat a rebroadcast about her first encounter with Atlantic Beach pie.
WORKMAN: I went down to North Carolina, and I made a beeline for Crook's Corner which is a fabulous destination restaurant. It's been there for a very long time. It's a shrimp and grits and fried oysters and hush puppies, kind of Southern food restaurant. And the longtime chef, Bill Smith, was sending us out so much food and we were having this amazing dinner, eating more than I think I've ever eaten in my entire life. I had no intention of eating dessert. And then he sent out this pie. It is a creamy citrus filling, much like the filling of a key lime pie or lemon meringue pie, covered with billows of whipped cream. But the crust is made out of saltines. So it's this dense, crispy, thick, saltine, salty crust which is such an amazing balance to this tanginess and the sweetness of the inside. When I first took a bite of this pie I think the only reaction I had was oh my God, oh my God, oh my God. For quite a while that was pretty much the only thing I could say. It was definitely a slightly "Harry Met Sally" moment. I think I was under control but I was in sort of a fugue state so I can't be sure.
BILL SMITH: Well, first of all, it's not really my pie. It's a pie that served all over the coast of East and North Carolina. My name is Bill Smith and I am the chef at Crook's Corner Restaurant in Chapel Hill North Carolina. I called it Atlantic Beach pie but down there it's just called lemon pie. When we were growing up everybody believed that, for some reason, that if you ate any kind of dessert after having seafood that you would drop dead sick. I asked my mother about that, I said, why did we think that? She said, I still think that. And she still won't do it. But anyway, the one exception was this lemon pie that all the fish restaurants along the coast served. The best thing about this dessert is it takes like four seconds to make. You cook the crust for like 15 minutes and then the filling another 15 minutes. You don't have to wait for the crust to cool. The only thing that takes any time is it has to cool enough when you're done so you can cut it without making a mess but it couldn't be faster.
WORKMAN: Oh, yes, I have that recipe, and the pie was so ridiculously easy to make. But I'll tell you there was a slightly sad grim finale to this pie which was we ate a chunk of it, and I covered it gently with Saran wrap. And we took it in the car some place, and my husband left the car, jumped back and jumped into a different seat in the car and sat on the pie. And I said, did you just sit on my pie? And he said, I think I did. How do you not know if you sat on a pie? And I was so sad. Not sad enough to not eat it but sad, nonetheless. It was squished but it was so good still.
SIEGEL: Katie Workman talking about Bill Smith's Atlantic Beach pie. And yes, you also heard Bill in there. You can get the recipe and see a picture of Katie's pie before it was sat on, on our Found Recipes page at npr.org. You're listening to ALL THINGS CONSIDERED from NPR News.
Copyright © 2014 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR's programming is the audio record.


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Dimming LEDs offer the following advantages:
Saves energy, because less energy is used for reduced output levels.
Extends life; the electronic components run cooler. This not only extends the life of LEDs but also increases the life of the phosphor coating that is used to produce white light.
Helps designers create ambient lighting presets to create mood settings.
Increases flexibility in usage of space. A brightly lit space for reading or an office space can turn into a presentation/conference area by dimming.
Increases productivity by enabling individual control of lights in order to reduce eye strain and fatigue, or to improve concentration.


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Fossil Q Wander Gen 2 Light Brown Leather Touchscreen Smartwatch FTW2102
Price: $317.00
(as of Oct 04,2023 20:38:42 UTC – Details)
Q Wander is our everyday digital display watch that connects seamlessly to your phone. Strapped in smooth leather, the tech-savvy dial with touchscreen functionality includes the all-new Wear OS by Google's interactive dials (for info at a glance), user-friendly messaging, customizable watch faces and automatic activity tracking. Smartwatches built with Wear OS by Google are compatible with iPhone and Android phones. Wear OS by Google and other related marks are trademarks of Google LLC. Touchscreen smartwatches built with Wear OS by Google require a phone running Android OS 4.4+ (excluding Go edition) or iOS 9.3+. Supported features may vary between platforms.
With built-in activity tracking, you can track your everyday accomplishments including steps, distance, and calories burned. Automatically syncs to your phone so you can keep tabs on your activity and notifications without ever pushing a button
Customize the face of your smartwatch anytime you want. Choose a Fossil or Wear OS by Google design, adjust the colors, and assign your favorite apps to the dial. Fit your style with interchangeable straps – compatible with all Fossil brand 22m straps
Effortlessly charge your Fossil Q by placing it on the inductive charging magnet (included). This wearable has an estimated 24-hour battery life, based on usage
Powered with Wear OS by Google, a trademark of Google LLC. Your wearable is compatible with Android and iOS smartphones, specifically with Android OS 4.4+ (excluding Go) or iOS 9.3+. All devices have Bluetooth(R) 4.1 Low Energy and Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n


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Monday, June 27, 2011
Negative Qualifiers
The OSGi version is defined as linearly increasing where the floor is the shortest form of the version. That is, 1.2.3 is less than any other version that starts with 1.2.3. A side effect of this model is that it is hard to model pre-release versions. A common approach is to use a snapshot version for artifacts that are on their way to becoming a release version. For example, 1.2.3-SNAPSHOT indicates that this artifact is becoming version 1.2.3 but is not there yet.
You can do this in OSGi with the qualifier but it is awkward because you want the final release version to be sort highest. Like 1.2.3.A1, 1.2.3.A2, 1.2.3.FINAL. The fact that you cannot just release 1.2.3 but have to use 1.2.3.FINAL generally offends our highly developed aesthetic sense.
The maven solution is to use a magic keyword: -SNAPSHOT. However, we felt a bit uncomfortable with a magic keyword. The qualifier in OSGi is left open for enterprises to implement a release strategy and it would be nice if they could do the same with a qualifier that came before the actual release. So why not have negative qualifiers?
The syntax for the OSGi qualifiers specifies a period as separate between the version and the qualifier, for example 1.2.3.qualifier. If we allow a minus sign instead of the period we can interpret the qualifier as coming before the version instead of after. That is, 1.2.3-qualifier is actually less than 1.2.3. This contains the special case of -SNAPSHOT but enables the use of qualifiers to track build, patch, or other variations.
So what about ranges? Bundles that depend on artifacts normally specify a range like [1.2.3,1.2.4). I think this should include a version like 1.2.3-SNAPSHOT but there was some discussion about this, some wanted snapshot only when the range indicated snapshots, e.g.[1.2.3-,1.2.4-). For me this is awful because it requires rebuilding and retesting after you released. In think [1.2.3,1.2.4) must accept any negative qualifiers on 1.2.3. The discussion is ongoing.
Negative qualifiers would really help bndtools. We could always build with a 1.2.3-${tstamp} to capture the build time. If one day the artifact is released, we take the JAR and convert the minus in the version to a period. For example, the artifact has version 1.2.3-201106261020 if it comes from the development tree/repository. Once it is released, we change the manifest to version 18.104.22.168106261020 inside the release repository. No need to recompile or retest.
There are some loose ends with version ranges but I am sure we can work this out. However, the fact that got excited about this idea (world hunger has to wait another meeting) does of course not mean that the OSGi will start using this model tomorrow. BJ is working on an RFP to there is hope for the future. If you have any ideas, let us know.
Peter Kriens
12 comments:
I'm not sure this is such a good idea. Very often, the manifest is contained in a jar. The jar may be signed as part of the build process. Changing the manifest would require a rebuild anyway in such a case. BWT, the qualifier is also in the jar name so the jar name also changes. As such, for many people it's a new artifact.ReplyDelete
We are technical and understand the qualifier and an impact caused by changing from dash to dot. However, for a lot people a rebuild and/or new artifact means re-test. That's the process. Best (in such scenarios) really is to not touch artifacts *after* final test and sign-off.
Sounds like a lot additional complexity for aesthetic reasons.
I think automatically signing a JAR during a continuous build is a bit of a red herring. I think that you can release as described in a way that you proof you do not introduce any changes. Time will tell.ReplyDelete
However, the negative qualifiers are also useful in many other scenarios.
Why not only have negative qualifiers? Do we really need both?ReplyDelete
It would surely be a risk to change the semantics of the current qualifiers (even though we have the means for that now, by bumping the manifest version to 3) but I honestly don't see why we would need both positive and negative qualifiers.
Make a choice, dump one!
Interesting idea. However, for backward compatibility we still would need to interpret the old semantics so we still need a new character. I also like the idea that the release version has a time stamp, which would require a positive qualifier. So getting rid of the existing semantics is hard but I am sure the use will change.ReplyDelete
I think Marcel has a point.ReplyDelete
If you bump the manifest version there should be no problem; just do the old sorting on manifest versions lower than 3 and the new sorting on versions 3 and higher.
Well, Bundle-ManifestVersion bumping is a pretty big step. Not likely that we'll do this for such a minor change. I also like the symmetry actually.ReplyDelete
Anything that allows OSGI versions to play a bit nicer with Maven versions will be greatly appreciated I think.ReplyDelete
Not using the 'magic keyword' is a good way to look at it too - as is the use of timestamps instead. I like it.
Maven compatibility is a good point, though. Peter, do you know if the "dash" separator is compatible with Maven?ReplyDelete
If you use negative qualifiers and sort them in ascending order, you can still use timestamps for 'snapshots' and you do not need positive qualifiers anymore. The release obviously then always is the highest version, which makes sense. And I would break backward compatibility to do the right thing instead of having both, which to me is only confusing. The change is not compatible anyway as it breaks version implementation classes, probably included in every single framework.ReplyDelete
@marcel: Though I think you're scheme works well (and might even use it) I do not see why we should force everybody to change to that particular scheme?ReplyDelete
I think adding the negative qualifier is a great idea for compatibility reasons with MavenReplyDelete
But, release management should be a different concern in my humble point of view
Starting with the following requirements:
- Upon a successful build allow for the Continuous Integration build to deploy the resulting artifact to a repository accessible to the team and to other CI builds (according to the criteria that will be specified latter)
- Allow a person to promote an artifact or a group of artifacts through a predefined process:
Development > Testing > Staging > Live
- Don't setup things such that an artifact needs to be modified in any way after being tested
One way of achieving the above could be:
- Introduce, a new metadata to represent the artifact promotion level,
- This information should not be stored inside the artifact, but it should rather be maintained in the repository
- The promotion level should be updatable without the need to redeploy the artifact to the repository
- The promotion levels could include a level for demoting artifacts like "Failed" or "Deprecated" which evaluates to be used for cases where the artifact didn't pass the formal testing phase
- Add new syntax to allow choosing the minimum promotion level required while declaring a dependency range in a dependent artifact, examples syntax: "[1.2.3,1.2.4)@Testing" which would match an artifact that has been promoted for testing or higher
Open Questions:
- Should the promotion levels be standardized, or not?
Summary: I don't think the qualifier should have anything to do with the status of the Artifact and whether it is released or not. The -SNAPSHOT convention in Maven is a pain point in my experience
I am becoming more and more convinced that scoping the repository is the solution. As you said, the artifact should no longer be modified after it has been approved.ReplyDelete
A repo for released artifacts also allows artifacts to be removed. So maybe the status of an artifact can by definition not be reflected inside the artifact.


text:
Political concerns fuel Japanese business pessimism in China
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The Japanese business community is increasingly pessimistic about the Japan–China relationship. For the past three years the US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and the Japan-based Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) have surveyed Japanese business people about their attitudes to the bilateral relationship with China. Results from the most recent 2016 survey, released in July, reflect a Japan that has grave fears about the political, security and economic dimensions of the relationship with its most important neighbour.
Read full article Political concerns fuel Japanese business pessimism in China by Amy King published in East Asia Forum.


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WASHINGTON — The United States and Cuba will resume talks this week on restarting direct mail service despite a deadlock between Washington and Havana over detainees that has largely stalled most rapprochement efforts, a U.S. official said Monday.
U.S. and Cuban diplomats and postal representatives will meet in Washington on Tuesday and Wednesday for technical talks aimed at ending a 50-year suspension in direct mail between the United States and the communist island. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the matter publicly before Congress is notified. Lawmakers were to be notified of the meetings starting Monday morning, the official said.
The resumption in talks does not signify any change in the Obama administration's Cuba policy, the official said, stressing that the discussions are taking place in the context of the Cuba Democracy Act of 1992 and are consistent with the U.S. interest "in promoting the free flow of information to, from and within Cuba."
Cuba and the U.S. have had no direct mail service since 1963, though letters do go back and forth via third countries.
The U.S. delegation for the talks will be led by Lea Emerson, who is the director of international postal affairs at the U.S. Postal Service. Jose Cabanas Rodriguez, Havana's top diplomat in Washington, will lead the Cuban side.
In and of themselves, the discussions are not particularly significant, but the fact the two Cold War enemies are talking at all is. And, in the past, both governments have used the bilateral meetings as a pretext to discuss wider issues. In 2009, a senior State Department official in Havana for mail talks ended up staying six extra days and even spoke secretly with Cuba's deputy foreign minister — then the highest-level meeting between the two sides in decades.
The mail talks and separate negotiations on immigration have been on hold since then over demands by Washington that Cuba release jailed American subcontractor Alan Gross.
Gross was arrested in December 2009 while on a USAID-funded democracy building program and is serving a 15-year sentence after being caught bringing communications equipment onto the island illegally.
Washington has continued to insist that no major progress in improving ties is possible while Gross is in jail. Cuba, for its part, is asking Washington to release four Cuban intelligence agents serving long jail terms in the U.S. A fifth completed his sentence earlier this year and was allowed to return to Cuba after he renounced his American citizenship.
In recent months, Cuban and U.S. officials have spoken of a better working relationship, with diplomats on both sides routinely granted approval to travel outside each other's capital. But whether the behind-the-scenes thaw will result in any improvement in the countries' formal relationship is anybody's guess.
Analysts say the resumption of the bilateral migration talks would be an even more significant development and could signal real progress is on the way. Cuba is also insisting that Washington remove the country from a list of state sponsors of terrorism.
Washington has maintained an economic embargo on Cuba for 51 years, and U.S. law says the sanctions cannot be rescinded while a Castro remains at the helm.
Paul Haven reported from Havana.


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Posted by Editoress on 11/19/12
Firemen's Park Cross is less than a week away. Pre-register now to avoid day-of registration fees and save up to $20 by registering for both days of racing. Sunday is also the S-Cup series finale, so for those of you chasing points this is your last chance to best your opponents.
Both days will have electronic chip timing, great courses and generous prizing. Coffee and other hot beverages will be sold by the Stamford Center Volunteer Firemen both days.
A full schedule of events and technical guide can be found at www.nancweb.com/cxfever/firemens.
Pre-registration is available online at www.ontariocycling.org and closes at noon on Thursday, November 22nd. Day-of registration is available (cash only).
Thank you to the following for making this event possible:
J. Safka Photography/Cyclingphotos.ca
Zoom Leisure Bikes and Tours
Liberty! Bicycles
Real Deal Racing
St. Catharines Cycling Club
NA Consulting
Canadian Cyclist
Stamford Center Volunteer Firemen's Association
|Return to Cycling 4 Women homepage | Return to Canadian Cyclist homepage | Back to Top


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As followers of my blog may remember this weekend I followed in the footsteps of the Red Army and progressed through Poland, into the old GDR (East Germany sans Erich Honnecker obviously) and then on to Berlin.
Unlike the Red Army, after the war, I returned home, but I have come back with some great pictures.
Here is one of Görlitz, a medieval town that lies on the banks of the river Lusatian Neisse. Today they say that Görlitz is opposite the Polish town of Zgorzelec but actually they were the same town until 1945 but that doesn't detract from its beauty.
The town is so picturesque that several movies have been shot there, 'The Reader,' 'Inglourious Basterds' and 'Around the World in 80 Days' to name the only three I know, mind you I can dazzle you a little and show I was listening to the chap who was telling me all of this and now mention that Quentin Tarantino shot the movie-in-a-movie 'Stolz der Nation (Pride of the Nation)' for 'Inglourious Basterds.' Unfortunately for Görlitz the location of the story is Sicily!
The folks who made 'Around the World in 80 Days' used Görlitz as a location and shot the 'Paris' footage there, if you see what I mean.
So now onto the sign which I thought was rather jolly! It's in German, a language that likes to bolt words together like oh I don't know um… 'Schwangerschaftverhütungsmittel' which means contraceptive or even better 'Unkameradschaftlichkeit' which is a form (as if there are different types!!!) of unsporting-like behaviour!
Yes you read it correctly and no I am not going illuminate here, I think it's sufficient to say that the Germans have a 'place' for people who are old and a little unsavoury – must be all that sauerkraut I imagine!
About the Author
The Cat is one of the most successful feline authors in the history of Catkind. His sharp elegant wit has produced the bestselling book 'Getting Out – Excerpts from a Cat's Diary' and of course the much plagiarised gag of the same name which appears on all of the funniest joke sites on the internet.
Copies of the Cat's masterpiece of feline literature 'Getting Out – Excerpts from a Cat's Diary' and his latest wonderful book 'The Cat's Travelogue' can be purchased at a bookstore near you or from the internet at Amazon.com and here for the Travelogue The Cat's Travelogue Paperback Edition or at what The Cat calls his www – wickedly wonderful website here www.thecatsdiary.com where you can not only learn more about me the genius Cat but also play my games they are all paw picked by me and have been described as "exactly what free on-line games should be, fun, free and fantastic."
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Cat, Cat Diary, free games, free on-line games, Getting Out – Excerpts from a Cat's Diary, The Cat, The Cat's Diary, The Cat's Travelogue, www.Amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.com, www.wickedlywonderfulwebsite


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In this week's New Yorker, Ariel Levy complains that feminism has turned into "identity politics," focusing on getting women in positions of power but not on what they should do when they get there.
Levy's main target is Leslie Sanchez's book You've Come a Long Way, Maybe: Sarah, Michelle, Hillary and the Shaping of the New American Woman (note the first names), in which Sanchez comes out against "bra burning" and in favor of "calm concern for how women [are] faring in the world." But how they're faring seems to mean mostly whether or not they have jobs in government and corporations. This isn't, of course, a trivial measure of women's success, but as Levy points out, it isn't the whole story. Sanchez is a Republican political strategist, and her prime example of successful contemporary womanity is Sarah Palin. She writes, "most of us are Sarah Palins to one degree or another," and complains that Gloria Steinem's criticism of Palin sent the message that, "you can run, Sarah Palin, but you won't get my support because you don't believe in all the same things I believe in."
Which, well, duh. The idea that men had the luxury of choosing candidates they actually agree with but women had to vote with their vaginas was one of the most upsetting things about the 2008 election, and the fact that Sanchez doesn't think Steinem's beliefs are an acceptable basis for her political choices says a lot about how women are, in some quarters, expected to behave. The message of Sarah Palin's entire vice presidential bid was that women were supposed to care not about issues, or even about competence, but simply that one of "their own" appeared on the ticket. As Levy says,
If a demand for revolution is tamed into a simple insistence on representation, then one woman is as good as another. You could have, in a sense, feminism without feminists. You could have, for example, Leslie Sanchez or Sarah Palin.
In a way, feminism-without-feminists is a depressing reversal of the optimism of the second wave. Movements for womyn's lands and political lesbianism implied that there was something special and good about being a woman, and that all-female societies and relationships would necessarily be healthier and more feminist than the messed-up mixed-gender world. Womyn's lands themselves may actually have been (and continue to be) feminist havens, but the idea that women leaders are always better for women is all too easy to turn on its head: if women are so great, people like Sanchez can say, what's wrong with Sarah Palin?
The truth is, equal representation for women is important — but as an end, not as a means. Women deserve opportunities to serve in government and the corporate world because it's fair and right, not because they will necessarily act as advocates for feminist causes. Just as feminists need to accept that not all women will share their goals, non-feminists must understand that feminism isn't just "identity politics" — feminists won't sit down and shut up just because there are, as Levy says, a significant "percentage of people with government jobs who wear bras." Levy writes persuasively of the real need for government-subsidized child care that still goes unmet after a near victory in the seventies, and there are many other issues from reproductive rights to equal pay that won't be resolved by electing George W. Bush clones with two X chromosomes. In order to resolve them, women need to claim not just representation, but another right that men have always taken for granted: the right to stand up for what we believe in, even if it means disagreeing with one another.
Image via The New Yorker.
Lift And Separate [New Yorker]
You've Come A Long Way, Maybe: Sarah, Michelle, Hillary, And The Shaping Of The New American Woman


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When you go into a restaurant and you see a sign that says "No Dogs Allowed," you might think that sign is purely proscriptive: Mr. Restaurant doesn't like dogs around, so when he built the restaurant he put up that sign.
If that was all that was going on, there would also be a "No Snakes" sign; after all, nobody likes snakes. And a "No Elephants" sign, because they break the chairs when they sit down.
The real reason that sign is there is historical: it is a historical marker that indicates that people used to try to bring their dogs into the restaurant.
Most prohibitive signs are there because the proprietors of an establishment were sick and tired of people doing X, so they made a sign asking them to please not. If you go into one of those fifty year old ma-and-pa diners, like the Yankee Doodle in New Haven, the walls are covered with signs saying things like "Please don't put your knapsack on the counter," more anthropological evidence that people used to put their knapsacks on the counter a lot. By the age of the sign you can figure out when knapsacks were popular among local students.
Sometimes they're harder to figure out. "Please do not bring glass bottles into the park" must mean that somebody cut themselves stepping on broken glass while walking barefoot through the grass once, and it's a good bet they sued the city.
Software has a similar archaeological record, too: it's called the Options dialog. Pull up the Tools | Options dialog box and you will see a history of arguments that the software designers had about the design of the product. Should we automatically open the last file that the user was working on? Yes! No! There is a two week debate, nobody wants to hurt anyone's feelings, the programmer puts in an #ifdef in self defense while the designers fight it out. Eventually they just decide to make it an option.
It doesn't even have to be a debate between two people: it can be an internal dilemma. I just can't decide if we should optimize the database for size or speed. Either way, you wind up with things like what is unequivocally the most moronic "wizard" dialog in the history of the Windows operating system. This dialog is so stupid that it deserves some kind of award. A whole new category of award. It's the dialog that comes up when you try to find something in Help:
The first problem with this dialog is that it's distracting. You are trying to find help in the help file. You do not, at that particular moment, give a hoot whether the database is small, big, customized, or chocolate-covered. In the meanwhile, this wicked, wicked dialog is giving you little pedantic lectures that it must create a list (or database). There are about three paragraphs there, most of which are completely confusing. There's the painfully awkward phrase "your help file(s)". You see, you may have one or more files. As if you cared at this point that there could be more than one. As if it made the slightest amount of difference. But the programmer who worked on that dialog was obviously distressed beyond belief at the possibility that there might be more than one help file(s) and it would be incorrect to say help file, now, wouldn't it?
Don't even get me started about how most people who want help are not the kinds of people who understand these kinds of arcana. Or that even advanced users, programmers with PhDs in Computer Science who know all about full text indexes, would not be able to figure out what they are really being asked to choose from.
To add insult to injury, this isn't even a dialog… it's a wizard (the second page of which just says something like "thank you for submitting yourself to this needless waste of your time," to paraphrase). And it's pretty obvious that the designers had some idea as to which choice is best; after all, they've gone to the trouble of recommending one of the choices.
Which brings us to our second major rule of user interface design:
Every time you provide an option, you're asking the user to make a decision.
Asking the user to make a decision isn't in itself a bad thing. Freedom of choice can be wonderful. People love to order espresso-based beverages at Starbucks because they get to make so many choices. Grande-half-caf-skim-mocha-Valencia-with-whip. Extra hot!
The problem comes when you ask them to make a choice that they don't care about. In the case of help files, people are looking at the help file because they are having trouble accomplishing something they really want to accomplish, like making a birthday invitation. Their birthday invitation task has been unfortunately interrupted because they can't figure out how to print upside down balloons, or whatever, so they are going to the help file. Now, some annoying help-index-engine-programmer at Microsoft with an inflated idea of his own importance to the whole scheme of things has the audacity, the chutzpah, to interrupt the user once again and start teaching the user things about making lists (or databases). This second level of interrupting is completely unrelated to birthday invitations, and it's simply guaranteed to perplex and eventually piss off the user.
And believe you me, users care about a lot less things than you might think. They are using your software to accomplish a task. They care about the task. If it's a graphics program, they probably want to be able to control every pixel to the finest level of detail. If it's a tool to build a web site, you can bet that they are obsessive about getting the web site to look exactly the way they want it to look.
They do not, however, care one whit if the program's own toolbar is on the top or the bottom of the window. They don't care how the help file is indexed. They don't care about a lot of things, and it is the designers' responsibility to make these choices for them so that they don't have to. It is the height of arrogance for a software designer to inflict a choice like this on the user simply because the designer couldn't think hard enough to decide which option is really better. (It's even worse when you try to cover up the fact that you're giving the user a difficult choice by converting it to a wizard, as the WinHelp people did. As if the user was a moron who needed to take a little two step mini-course in the choice that they are being offered so that they can make an educated decision.)
It has been said that design is the art of making choices. When you design a trash can for the corner, you have to make choices between conflicting requirements. It needs to be heavy so it won't blow away. It needs to be light so the trash collector can dump it out. It needs to be large so it can hold a lot of trash. It needs to be small so it doesn't get in peoples' way on the sidewalk. When you are designing, and you try to abdicate your responsibility by forcing the user to decide something, you're probably not doing your job. Someone else will make an easier program that accomplishes the same task with less intrusions, and most users will love it.
When Microsoft Excel 3.0 came out in 1990, it was the first application to sport a new feature called a toolbar. It was a sensible feature, people liked it, and everybody copied it — to the point that it's unusual to see an application without one any more.
The toolbar was so successful that the Excel team did field research using a special version of Excel which they distributed to a few people; this version kept statistics on what the most frequently used commands were and reported them back to Microsoft. For the next version, they added another row of toolbar buttons, this time containing the most frequently used commands. Great.
The trouble was, they never got around to disbanding the toolbar team, who didn't seem to know when to leave good enough alone. They wanted you to be able to customize your toolbar. They wanted you to be able to drag the toolbar anywhere on the screen. Then, they started to think about how the menu bar is really just a glorified toolbar with words instead of icons, so they let you drag the menu bar anywhere you wanted on the screen, too. Customizability on steroids. Problem: nobody cares! I've never met anyone who wants their menu bar anywhere except at the top of the window. But here's the (bad) joke: if you try to pull down the File menu, and you accidentally grab the menu bar a tiny bit too far to the left, you yank off the whole menu bar, dragging it to the only place you could not possibly want it to be: blocking the document you're working on.
How many times have you seen that? And once you've done this by mistake, it's not clear what you did or how to fix it. So here we have an option (moving the menu bar) that nobody wants (ok, maybe 0.1% of all humans want it) but which gets in the way for almost everybody.
One day a friend called me up. She was having trouble sending email. Half the screen was grey, she said.
Half the screen was grey?
It took me five minutes over the phone to figure out what had happened. She had accidentally dragged the Windows toolbar to the right side of the screen, then accidentally widened it:
This is the kind of thing that nobody does on purpose. And there are a lot of computer users out there who can't get themselves out of this kind of mess; by definition, when you accidentally reconfigure one of the options in your program, you don't know how to re-reconfigure it. It's sort of shocking how many people uninstall and then reinstall their software when things start behaving wrong, because at least they know how to do that. (They've learned to uninstall first, because otherwise all the broken customizations are likely to just come back).
"But wait!" you say. "It's important to have options for advanced users who want to tweak their environments!" In reality, it's not as important as you think. This reminds me of when I tried to switch to a Dvorak keyboard. The trouble was, I don't use one computer. I use all kinds of computers. I use other people's computers. I use three computers fairly regularly at home and three at work. I use computers in the test lab at work. The trouble with customizing your environment is that it just doesn't propagate, so it's not even worth the trouble.
Most advanced users use several computers regularly; they upgrade their computer every couple of years, they reinstall their operating system every three weeks. It's true that the first time they realized you could completely remap the keyboard in Word, they changed everything around to be more to their liking, but as soon as they upgraded to Windows 95 those settings got lost, and they weren't the same at work, and eventually they just stopped reconfiguring things. I've asked a lot of my "power user" friends about this; hardly any of them do any customization other than the bare minimum necessary to make their system behave reasonably.
Every time you provide an option, you're asking the user to make a decision. That means they will have to think about something and decide about it. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but, in general, you should always try to minimize the number of decisions that people have to make.
This doesn't mean eliminate all choice. There are enough choices that users will have to make anyway: the way their document will look, the way their web site will behave, or anything else that is integral to the work that the user is doing. In these areas, go crazy: it's great to give people choices: by all means, the more the merrier. And there's another category of choice that people like: the ability to change the visual look of things, without really changing the behavior. Everybody loves WinAmp skins; everybody sets their desktop background to a picture. Since the choice affects the visual look without affecting the way anything functions, and since users are completely free to ignore the choice and get their work done anyway, this is a good use of options.


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Security News
Data Breach Threat Intelligence By The Numbers
Robert Westervelt
Retail Made Up Most Breaches
For the first time, the retail industry made up 45 percent of Trustwave data breach investigations, representing a 15 percent increase from 2011. E-commerce websites were the No. 1 target, accounting for almost half of its data breach investigations. Attacks on those websites surpassed the amount of attacks targeting point-of-sale systems.


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A number of people in the lounge have reported problems posting from PCs today - the request keeps timing out. Might've a problem somewhere.
The server was fine when I checked. I will look into it, though.
Still not working from my PC - when you try to "Post Reply" in the forums, it can't connect and times out. "Fast Reply" doesn't have any problems, though.
"Post Reply" still isn't working for me, on both home and work PCs, IE and Firefox, but does work with Safari on my iPad. No problems posting prior to Tuesday morning. I tried closing both borwsers completely and reloading BBTF, no change. I tried logging out and logging back in, no change.
My home PC was affected at the same time as everyone else. Neither Fast Reply nor Post Reply work as expected. They both time out 100% of the time. Even reading the lounge from the PC often times out.
iPad works fine.
I don`t know if you`re not listening. And I don`t know if you don`t care -Tower Mountain
I can't post at all on IE, but Firefox works fine.
Mainland works okay for me in Firefox. The Lounge "post reply" doesn't work for me at all, I have to use "fast reply."
"I never say it can't get worse."
-Buddy Bell
Also, please post what browser you're using, on which OS.
No problems here with Safari on OS X or iOS.
I have been having problems posting via Windows/Firefox, but I am not now. Typically the first time I try to post it hangs for a while and then either succeeds or fails, but gets better on subsequent attempts. Although a couple of days ago I could only read the forums and not post for the entire morning. For me there was no difference between Fast Reply and Post Reply/Quote.
Sheer Tim Foli - 27 March 2014 09:59 AMMy home PC was affected at the same time as everyone else. Neither Fast Reply nor Post Reply work as expected. They both time out 100% of the time. Even reading the lounge from the PC often times out.
iPad works fine.
Thanks Tiffytoes.
My issue is with a Windows 8 machine running Chrome.
Safari works for reading and if this goes through also for posting. Firefox on Linux was timing out trying to reach anything on baseballthinkfactory.org but could get to bbtf.org fine. Cleared cookies this morning and can read but not post from ff/Linux now.
I am having problems with loading & posting from droid phone. and both IE and Firefox.
Weirdly, the first attempt on droid always works: I go to site, and load a Hot Topic and it works ok.
Then, when I click on the next Hot Topic, it times-out. But if I click to another site altogether, and then
back to BBTF, it'll work for one Hot Topic at a time, and I just have to repeat the cycle.
Strange, eh?
The server's network has been having issues. I'm monitoring things and waiting for a response from them about the problem.


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FAH has a BLOG up now , with the Stanford group posting the latest buzz ... for what it's worth
And for the latest speculation , the new folding forums is here:
Stanford has always been tight lipped and secretive.
Just Folded Space From Arrakis
Tip for users folding with multiple Linux computers.
I have six Arch Linux computers that I use for folding. The six computers are in 3 different locations spread throughout the house. Here is an easy way to keep track of the progress of your folding machines.
From my main computer, I open a terminal window, then ssh into one of the remote computers, as such:
$ ssh user@host
Once you are logged into the remote computer, use the tail command to view the last few lines of the FAHlog.txt file. By using the -f option, the tail command will update any time any lines are added, constantly giving you an up to date listing of the file. So, any lines added to the FAHlog.txt file will also appear in this terminal window. Enter the tail command as such:
user@remote$ tail -f ~/folding/FAHlog.txt
of course your path for FAHlog.txt may vary. I open a terminal window for all six of my Linux computers in workspace 3, and it looks like this:
Now any time I want to see the status of my folding clients, I just click on workspace 3 and I can see how all six of my Linux computers are doing. Notice that since you enter the ssh command first, then the tail command once logged into the remote computer, user@host appears at the top of the window. This uses just a tad over 1 MegaByte of RAM for each window, and doesn't seem to increase my network traffic hardly at all. Bear in mind, I am doing this in my home, so my computers are in a secure area. You may not want to do this in a dorm, work, etc where you can't control who will sit down at the computers.
Anyone needing a tutorial on ssh can find one here on my website.
Last edited by Pudge (2008-02-05 03:34:03)
You could make this even quicker
in your .bashrc file, create alias's to your machines
alias folding3='ssh 192.168.0.2 tail -f ~/folding/FAHlog.txt'
and if you wanted to make it FASTER yet...... use passwordless login using gpgkeys..... then you could simply open a terminal and type folding3 and up pops the screen
I also have a tip. I have multi cpu workstation and I wrote a simple script that outputs a progress of each CPU.
while [ $X -le 8 ]
INFO=`cat $F_DIR$X/unitinfo.txt | grep Progress`
echo $X $INFO
1 Progress: 48% [||||______]
2 Progress: 12% [|_________]
3 Progress: 81% [||||||||__]
4 Progress: 11% [|_________]
5 Progress: 63% [||||||____]
6 Progress: 60% [||||||____]
7 Progress: 9% [__________]
8 Progress: 99% [|||||||||_]
I use "qd" along with "qdinfo.dat" to display my fah stats:
http://linuxminded.xs4all.nl/?target=so … -tools.plc
the normal output will give you all 10 queue entries , the current WU and the last 9 finished WU , so I use it like this:
cat ./wuvu
cd ~/ ;echo " ";echo " "
./qd -cif FAH1|tail -n11|head -n5|cut -b -79;echo "*LL1*"
echo -n "*** LL X2 6000+ *** "; date ;exit
which gives me:
Index 6: folding now 1760.00 pts (58.783 pt/hr) 3.21 X min speed; 58% complete
server: 184.108.40.206:8080; project: 2605, "Protein in POPC"
Folding: run 7, clone 218, generation 26; benchmark 0; misc: 500, 200
issue: Mon Feb 4 14:07:01 2008; begin: Mon Feb 4 14:11:39 2008
expect: Tue Feb 5 20:08:05 2008; due: Fri Feb 8 14:11:39 2008 (4 days)
*** LL X2 6000+ *** Tue Feb 5 07:36:09 CST 2008
Each machine has a "wuvu" bash script along an "amdt" script to give me a tail:
cat ./amdt
# amdt Version 0.2 AMD Time
echo ""
if tail -n6 $FAH_PATH\1/FAHlog.txt | grep -q Shutdown;then :
else tail -n20 $FAH_PATH\1/FAHlog.txt ;echo " ***"$PUTER_NAME"1***"
( obviously my bashing skills are not up to par )
And lastly , from my Mac Mini , I use an alias to log into or view whichever remote Folding Blade I want , or all of them:
alias lal='laz;lbz;lcz;ldz;lez;lfz;lgz;lhz;liz;ljz;lkz;llz'
alias lala='laa;lba;lca;lda;lea;lfa;lga;lha;lia;lja;lka;lla'
alias laz='ssh email@example.com ./wuvu'
alias lb='ssh firstname.lastname@example.com'
alias lba='ssh email@example.com ./amdt'
alias lbz='ssh email@example.com ./wuvu'
Just Folded Space From Arrakis
Hi everyone! First up, well done team! Over a million points in a month is pretty impressive
Second, as discussed earlier in this thread, the SMP client sometimes hangs before submitting a WU.
See: http://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php? … 47#p321347
I wrote a small bash script to watch the log file and if it sees things are hung up, it will kill the remaining cores. As Pudge mentioned before, this causes the WU to finish and the results to be sent to Stanford. As a bonus, the script will start the client if it's not running already.
This script is only useful if you are running the SMP client AND only one instance of the client per machine, it's not sophisticated enough to handle multiple clients on the same machine
If you're interested, the current version is available here: http://www.danman.ca/downloads/scripts/fah-start.sh
Please be sure to edit the options at the start of the script, mainly point to the directory your client lives in!
edit: Updated script, fixed a harmless bug which caused my 'debug' statements to always be sent to the log file!
Last edited by dmartins (2008-02-09 20:11:58)
I'm 29 points from my goal of making it into the top 20 !!!! I knew I'd make it eventually lol !
Congrats Crouse ! Looks like you Made 20th Spot !
We had a bunch of storms roll thru last night , weirdest time ever with My blades ...
I have 8 on UPS and another 4 thru surge protectors only , the lights did a brief flicker , and One UPS blade and One surge blade shut down !
An hour later , I heard a single UPS go Bleep .. and the Other 3 surge blades shut down ... but the First surge blade kept running !
Just Folded Space From Arrakis
I could have Sworn you were at 20th yesterday !
now your shown as 22nd ?
Come on , Man , we're getting impatient !
Just Folded Space From Arrakis
He was at 20th.
Ok..... who just bumped me........ ?
/me looks around for the PS3 and any spare computers........
Last edited by crouse (2008-02-07 21:23:50)
I wrote a small bash script to watch the log file and if it sees things are hung up, it will kill the remaining cores. As Pudge mentioned before, this causes the WU to finish and the results to be sent to Stanford. As a bonus, the script will start the client if it's not running already.
This script is only useful if you are running the SMP client AND only one instance of the client per machine, it's not sophisticated enough to handle multiple clients on the same machine
Thanks! I am trialling your script on one of my machines. So far it has performed as expected. If things are going well on Sunday, I will put it on all my SMP machines. Good job of scripting.
Ok..... who just bumped me........ ?
/me looks around for the PS3 and any spare computers........
Oops sorry. My bad...
I'll vacate the 20th spot for you ASAP.
...not that i have much interesting to add...
but i'm folding@home too now! woohoo!
Thanks drewbug01 Welcome to the club
Welcome to the fold drewbug01! Every single person and every single CPU helps, it all adds up.
Hey, there is a Linux / BSD oriented web site out of Michigan (I don't think it is too far from Detroit) called Raiden's Realm. They have tutorials, distro reviews, and discussions of different distros without the fanboy flame wars. You might want to check it out.
EDIT: Darn you Crouse, you beat me to it!
Last edited by Pudge (2008-02-08 15:31:27)
thanks, i'll have to check it out!
I quite like that site's Top 25 games list. Now I have a few new ones to waste my time on!
BTW, I updated my script a little to fix a harmless bug. Pudge and anyone else trying the script, you may have noticed an awful lot of info being sent to the log file. Most of this was supposed to be turned off by setting DEBUG=false near the start of the script, however it was still being logged. That is fixed now.
New version, and future versions can be found here: www.danman.ca/scripts
Very interesting script there , dmartins !
About 3 X longer and 8 X more complex than what I have had to bash together so far
Welcome to the fold , drewbug01 !
It's not the speed , but the stamina that counts , every WU adds up !
@ Crouse:
Looks like you are firmly into the top Twenty ! Next stop is a Single Digit Midget
and last but not least:
Go Pudge ! We are on track for another 1,000,000 point Month !
Go Team !!
Last edited by Pick2 (2008-02-12 03:00:51)
Just Folded Space From Arrakis
I've been folding for some time now. Sometimes I run over WU's that seem to take ages, usually a WU would take me somewhat between 1-3h per %. Then one I'm with now takes about 12 or more. Is this normal behavior, or did I get a bad WU? (Running on a Athlon64 3500+ SingleCore)
So long!
Unknown Horizons - Open source real-time strategy game with the comfy Anno 1602 feeling!
If when the WU starts up, it says "protein in POPC" and gives "Warning: long intervals 1-4" or something similar, then yes that is normal for a single core CPU.
I have an idea how to recruit more people for folding. We could convince site administrators to add link for this forum thread or wiki folding@home entry under "Community Links" on Arch Linux first page ...
A new recruit is working on some units
A new recruit is working on some units
Very cool !
In order to cut down on hardware expenses, a lot of people try to utilize thin clients for dedicated folding computers. These thin clients would ideally be headless (no video monitor or keyboard) and diskless (no hard drive). Basically a mother board, CPU / CPU cooler, RAM and a power supply and nothing else. This cuts down on initial hardware expenditures, and on power consumption.
Micro ATX mother boards with integrated graphics fill the bill nicely as the integrated graphics are great for installation. Most new BIOS have a setting to ignore keyboard errors (such as no keyboard installed) and with integrated graphics you won't get video errors when booting with no monitor attached. So, after installation and configuration, you can remove the monitor and keyboard and still be able to boot. You then do administration from a remoter computer using ssh. This takes care of the headless part.
To take care of the diskless part, most people try to use the boot from lan option in the BIOS to boot from a network server. This Building A Diskless Folding @ Home Farm article describes how to accomplish this. As you read through this, you can see it gets complicated real fast. There has to be an easier way to eliminate the hard drive. So I thought why not a USB Flash stick instead of a hard drive. USB sticks are getting ridiculously cheap, are much faster now, and draw very little power. That's almost as good as diskless and a whole lot easier.
I am now running one Arch Linux dedicated folding computer from a USB Flash drive. There is no hard drive attached to this computer. Eliminating the hard drive cuts down on cost, heat, and power consumption. Since I have fans cooling the hard drive on all my dedicated folders, this also cuts down on fan noise.
To accomplish this, I simply plugged in a Corsair Voyager 4 GB USB flash drive into one of the rear USB connectors. I temporarily hooked up a CD/DVD ROM drive. With no hard drive attached, I booted into the Arch installation CD. Since the USB stick was the only mass storage unit installed, it showed up as SDA. Using the "Prepare Hard Drive" section of the Arch installer and cfs, I set up the following partitions on the USB drive, listed as they appear in /etc/fstab.
/dev/sda1 /boot ext3 defaults 0 1 # (50 MB)
/dev/sda2 swap swap defaults 0 0 #(512 MB)
/dev/sda3 / ext3 defaults 0 1 # (The rest of the 4 GB stick)
I then did a FTP install of Arch Linux base. A base install of Arch is all you need to run a dedicated Folding@Home computer. I then installed ssh, fuse, and sshfs. This installation will fit comfortably on a 4 GB drive without the need for any file compression. Just be sure to keep the /var/cache/pacman/pkg directory empty. This setup boots into a runlevel 3 CLI only console window surprisingly fast.
The main problem with a Flash drive is the limited number of writes. With a Corsair Voyager drive, each memory location is guaranteed for 10,000 writes. With a Corsair Voyager GT drive, each memory location is guaranteed for 100,000 writes. As do most, if not all USB dirve manufacturers, Corsair uses a flash drive dynamic wear leveling algorithm. If you keep writing the same file over and over, it writes it at different locations all the time to prevent wearing out a section of the Flash memory. Even with this, running a folding client on a USB directory might very well shorten the life of a USB Flash drive as the files in your folding directory and the "work" subdirectory are very dynamic. To prevent this, I use ssh and sshfs to mount a network hard drive which is located on my server. Fuse and sshfs trick the computer into thinking a directory on a remote server's hard drive is actually part of the local filesystem. I then run folding@home from the networked hard drive. Thus the USB stick is mainly used to boot up Arch Linux base, then start the folding client on the networked hard drive. After that, the USB drive basically just sits there. An occasional entry into a log file should be the only USB Flash stick activity while running the folding client. Hopefully, this will solve the longevity problem of the USB Flash.
I then use the following script to start the folding client:
sshfs user@remote_computer:/server/folding1 /home/user/folding
cd /home/user/folding
fusermount -u /home/user/folding
user@remote_computer:/server/folding1 is a directory on the server's hard drive which contains the folding@home client and associated files. /home/user/folding is an empty directory on the local filesystem (the USB stick) that is used as a mount point for the remote hard drive directory.
Right now I am trialling this on a spare i686 machine. If everything proves to be stable and reliable, I will try it on one of my 64 bit dual core machines with the smp client. I have four computers in my "Folding Farm". Three are dedicated folders, and one is my server / folding computer. If this works out, I will be able to eliminate three hard drives from my Folding Farm.


text:
Denver UFO sighting
The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating a mystery in the sky. A mysterious object flying over Denver nearly caused a mid-air collision Monday evening, 9Wants to Know has learned.
As far as investigators know, the mystery object did not show up on radar Monday.
Investigators believe this object, whatever it is, could pose a serious safety hazard to planes.
Radio transmissions from LiveATC.net confirm a nervous-sounding pilot reported a strange object at 5:17 p.m. Monday.
The pilot is heard telling air traffic control: "A remote controlled aircraft, or what? Something just went by the other way … About 20 to 30 seconds ago. It was like a large remote-controlled aircraft.
The corporate jet, a Cessna Citation 525 CJ1, was flying at 8,000 feet above sea level over Cherry Creek when the mystery object came close enough to make any pilot nervous.
"That's an issue because now we have something in controlled airspace that poses a danger," Former NTSB Investigator and 9NEWS Aviation Analyst Greg Feith said.
Feith listened to the air traffic recordings and believes the object could be one of three things:
- A military or law enforcement drone. – A remote controlled aircraft. – A large bird.
"Was this an unmanned vehicle that was part of some sort of law enforcement operation? Was this somebody that had flown a large model aircraft inadvertently into the airspace? Or was it just [a bird that] caught the pilot's eye so he believed it was an aircraft but could have been a very large wing span bird," Feith said.
Any one of those things can be catastrophic if it collides with an airplane.
Three years ago, a bird strike took down a commercial airliner that managed to land safely in the Hudson River. All the passengers survived.
FAA spokesman Mike Fergus says investigators will talk to the pilot and look at other clues.
"The threat is there from a collision standpoint. We'll do as much as we can here to try to track back what time it was. Probably talk with some remote-control clubs, that type of thing," Fergus said.
The mission of investigators now is to identify that mystery object before another close call, or worse.
9Wants to Know has reached out to sources in the military, local, and federal law enforcement.
So far, nobody has been able to tell us if a drone was flying over Denver.
We also called local airports and model aircraft clubs.
John Dickens, president of the Denver RC Eagles, says members are not permitted to fly more than 400 feet above ground level or about 5,700 feet above sea level, due to possible air traffic interference with Centennial Airport. Dickens said he would look into the incident.


text:
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text:
Related links:
Type of Wind: Northeaster
Northeasters, also known as noreasters, are cold winds that can bring heavy snow or sleet. These winds blow from 40-55 mph (64.5-88.7 kph). They are classified as gale winds. Most snowstorms in the eastern United States are called northeasters. A northeaster forms when a low pressure system over the Eastern United States gets warm moist air from the Atlantic Ocean. Studies have shown similarities between northeasters and hurricanes. This radar image shows a northeaster traveling up the east coast of the United States.
In February 1969, a northeaster hit New England. An astonishing 164 inches or almost 14 feet (4.2 meters) of snow fell in Pinkham Notch, NH! In New Jersey in 1992 there were wind speeds of 90 mph (145 kph) during a northeaster!
Another cold wind is the Texas norther or blue norther. Northers usually bring snow to Texas and the Gulf of Mexico.
Most places in the world have different names for a cold wind. A cold wind in Central America is called a norte. In India, there is a cold dry wind named terrenho. Brazil uses the name sur for a cold wind. A cold northern wind in Spain and Portugal is called a gallego. Greece uses the word vardar for a cold wind. Native Americans in Alaska call strong irregular gusts of wind a williwaw.


text:
Announcing the 2012 NIH Regional Seminars on Program Funding and Grants Administration: Indianapolis, IN and Washington, DC
Release Date: January 27, 2012
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
NIH is taking its experts on the road in 2012! How would you like the opportunity to meet and discuss grant issues with approximately 35 HHS and NIH officials, as well as networking with others in your field? Have you been looking for a comprehensive program that provides valuable information about the NIH grants process, including such topics as peer review, grant writing for success, pre-award and post-award issues for administrators and investigators, compliance, how to interact electronically with NIH, or how to map your career with NIH? If so, make plans to attend one of the 2012 NIH Regional Seminars on Program Funding and Grants Administration.
Optional NIH Electronic Research Administration (eRA) computer workshops are also offered the day prior to the 2-day seminar. These ½ day workshops are designed for administrators and investigators, providing attendees with hands-on experience utilizing the eRA Commons and the overall electronic grants process.
The NIH Regional Seminars are intended for those new to the grants process, including sponsored project officers and departmental administrators, investigators, faculty, graduate students, etc. However, it is also an opportunity for those with more experience to obtain updates on grants policies and procedures. These seminars are expected to draw approximately 500-600 attendees, providing extended opportunities for sharing and learning from peers as well as NIH experts. Due to the popularity of these seminars, early registration is highly recommended. Space is limited.
April 16-18, 2012 – Indianapolis, Indiana (REGISTRATION OPEN)
June 20-22, 2012 – Washington, DC (REGISTRATION OPENS FEBRUARY 2012)
Held twice each year, the NIH Regional Seminars provide an unparalleled opportunity for participants to gain a better perspective of NIH policies and programs, network with their peers, gather helpful NIH contacts, and to return to their offices and/or labs with inside information, resources, and tools to assist in obtaining and managing NIH awards. We hope to see you there!
2012 Program and Registration Information for Indianapolis, IN: https://grants.nih.gov/grants/regionalseminars/Indiana_2012/index.html
For information on future NIH Regional seminars and to subscribe to its listserv, visit the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) Regional Seminar website at https://grants.nih.gov/grants/seminars.htm.
Additional inquiries may be emailed to firstname.lastname@example.com.
Weekly TOC for this Announcement
NIH Funding Opportunities and Notices
Office of Extramural
Research (OER)
National Institutes of Health (NIH)
9000 Rockville Pike
Bethesda, Maryland 20892
Department of Health
and Human Services (HHS)
Note: For help accessing PDF, RTF, MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Audio or Video files, see Help Downloading Files.


text:
Disclosure : This site contains affiliate links to products. We may receive a commission for purchases made through these links.
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text: You want to embrace cloud computing because it makes your IT operations leaner and less expensive. But your understanding of cloud security hasn't advanced much in the last year, so you have to be cautious.2011 Global State of Information Security analysisBusiness partners a growing concernThe cloud security struggleThe CIO\/CISO disconnectThat's one of the takeaways from the Eighth Annual Global Information Security Survey CSO conducted along with sister publication CIO and PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Some 12,847 business and technology executives from around the world took the survey, and many admitted they're still a bit scared with the idea of putting critical data in the cloud.Also see part 1 of this series: Business partners a growing security concernSixty-two percent of you have little to no confidence in your ability to secure any assets that you put in the cloud. Even among the 49 percent of respondents who have ventured into cloud computing, more than a third (39 percent) have major qualms about security.Asked what they think is the greatest risk to their cloud computing strategy, respondents said they were uncertain about their ability to enforce security policies at a provider site, and were concerned about inadequate training and IT auditing. James Pu, information security officer for the Los Angeles County Employees Retirement Association (Lacera), is among the skeptics. He says he loves the flexibility and agility cloud computing could provide, but he's just not convinced that today's cloud technology is ready for prime time."As good as it is today, you don't have the same reliability as you have with a local-area network," says Pu, who does double duty as Lacera's CIO. "I also worry about the third parties involved." Cloud vendors, he notes, use third parties to host data centers and hardware. And those hosts may hire people without doing necessary background screening. "When data goes into the cloud," Pu says, "all it takes is a software bug to accidentally reveal my data."Before cloud computing can become universally accepted as a secure option, a few things have to happen, says Ken Pfeil, CSO for a large mutual fund company in the Boston area and formerly CSO for financial companies Capital IQ and Miradiant.First, he says, security experts must come up with more specific guidelines for which kinds of data it is acceptable to store in the cloud, be it customer information or intellectual property. He also wants clarification from regulatory agencies such as the Securities and Exchange Commission as to how financial reporting controls should work in the cloud.He's not satisfied that those questions have been answered, especially when it comes to the kinds of financial data that can go to the cloud. Therefore, his company is avoiding it for now.Larry Bonfante, CIO of the United States Tennis Association (USTA), on the other hand, is among those IT leaders who are cautiously moving to the cloud. From a security standpoint, his greatest concern is protecting consumer data -- a tall order given that, for example, approximately 80 percent of tickets for U.S. Open matches are purchased online. He isn't ready to let those transactions happen in the cloud yet because he is not convinced that all the technological pieces are in place to do it securely. But he feels differently about his back-end financial and reporting systems.He's moved all internal back-end systems to the Amazon Web Services platform, believing that Amazon's security resources will supplement those of his own organization. Bonfante says the benefits include lower costs and fewer servers for his IT staff to baby-sit, which has allowed him to deploy new solutions more quickly. He says the cloud has also reduced the USTA's carbon footprint: Less on-site hardware means less energy is used to power the IT shop.


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22 Genius Ways to have THE Perfect Disney Vacation on a Budget
A Walt Disney World vacation will definitely be an expense but it doesn't have to be expensive. Follow these tips to have the perfect Disney vacation on a budget.
This post is sponsored by Orlando Fun Tickets. The #1 ticket seller in Orlando.
Table of Contents
Disney World Hotel Discounts
One of the decisions you will make, while planning your Disney vacation, is whether to say on site or off site.
An off-site hotel not only has the option of being cheaper, but you can get more for your buck.
However, I do see the pros to staying on site. And this is the choice I will go with most of the time.
If you would like to stay on Disney property, I would consider one of the 7 Disney Springs hotels or take advantage of the special deals that Disney offers.
Disney has four resort tiers; Value, Moderate, Deluxe, and Deluxe Villas. Value resorts are always the cheapest at an average of $130/night.
Read More: Staying at Disney on a Budget
Up to 70% off of Disney's Deluxe Resort
I'll mention the Disney Vacation Club again later in this post but even if you aren't a DVC member you can still stay at Disney on points!
Renting DVC points to stay at a deluxe resort can save so much money.
Read More: Renting DVC Points
Disney World Ticket Discounts
It's not impossible to save money on your Disney World tickets. In fact, its suggest (as are all money saving techniques).
The easiest and quickest way to save money on your Disney World tickets is to use an authorized ticket reseller. The most highly rated and popular one is UnderCover Tourist.
Furthermore, the easiest and quickest way to waste money on theme park tickets is to overbuy. Plan your vacation and allocate your time correctly to see what ticket works best for you.
Read More: Discounted Disney World Tickets
Package Discounts from Disney
Disney markets their Magic Your Way Vacation Packages, and what this really just is, is combining your room, theme park tickets, and dining into one. It almost never is the most economical choice, even with the add-ons you can get.
However, Disney does give out some awesome deals. Always found on their special offer page.
Their most popular one is the Free Disney Dining Plan. More info here.
Disney World Discounted Transportation
I am in the midst of planning am 8 day Disney World vacation and I am at the point of figuring out if we should rent a vehicle. I will share my thoughts with you.
I am a DVC Member so I am booking my accommodations with my points. In a very simple way, each resort requires a different amount of points/ night. For this reason, we are resort hopping. That way we can stay at more costly, (in terms of points), resorts. Anyway, a car would be way easier to travel with then the Disney transportation system.
So I went on Priceline to check the prices, and it would cost like $226 for the week. Which isn't terrible, but is it necessary?
Enter Uber
Uber is car sharing, very similar to a taxi but less expensive. You can get anywhere within WDW for about $8 or less with an uber. So even if I switch hotels three times, that's only $24.
Get a free Uber ride with my promo code: VIRGINIAS515UE
Read More: The Definitive Guide to Uber at Disney World
Disney World Budget Worksheet
Seeing the numbers in front of you, what your vacation budget is going to look like, can be shocking. But it's important to go through that shock. So you can take saving money as serious as possible!
I've created a free worksheet that you can download in pdf or excel format.
Free Stuff at Disney World
There are so many free things and stuff to do at Disney World. And they aren't mediocre either. Part of going to Disney on a budget is taking advantage of all of these things.
- Celebration Buttons
- The Boardwalk
- Movies
and more!
Read More: Free Stuff at Disney
Disney World Coupons
You can usually get the official Disney World Guide (Currently under $15). The savings/budget part comes in with coupons that are in the back of the book.
I went to Disney World in 2016 and saved hundreds with these coupons.
Free Disney Vacation Planning Video
Request free Disney videos that will help you plan your vacation to the T. I order these videos every single year myself because they're so great. And they will make your desire to go to Disney World even stronger.
Consider Camping
Disney's Fort Wilderness Lodge can sleep up to 10 people for $50/night. It is a super good value for bigger families and you get all of the same perks for being at a Disney resort.
Pack Correctly
You will find yourself spending so much money buying odds and ends that you probably should have packed with you. Not only in your luggage but in your park bag!
Read More: Top Things for your Disney Trip
Groceries, Groceries, and more!
I think about this last minute Disney vacation I took for New Years 2016 where I spent so much money on food because it was a last minute trip and I didn't get groceries. I'm talking triple the amount I usually spend.
Vacation means a lot of eating and snacking. Make sure to get some breakfast foods, snacks, and drinks. You can head to the nearby Walmart or Publix by using an Uber or your rental to get there, or you can use a delivery service like Amazon Pantry.
Swagbucks is one of those websites that allows you to take surveys, watch videos and more to earn Swagbucks that you can convert to gift cards or cash. I signed up last year and have had some good success. I try to earn 200 swagbucks a day, which doesn't take that much time. Join here!
Order Pizza
Ordering Pizza can be an inexpensive meal solution for your family. Not only that, but Pizza places will delivery anywhere within Disney World. All they need is your resort and room number. Make sure to give them your phone number so they can call if they get lost or confused.
Disney Springs
Disney Springs is Disney's downtown shopping and dining marketplace. It's big, beautiful, and a whole lot of fun.
It is also home to the World of Disney, a huge Disney store. Give yourself some time to explore Disney Springs. Consider this a free activity.
Rest Days
It's not uncommon to hear families say they need a vacation from their Disney vacation.
Make sure to plan some rest days during your vacation. I'd say one for every three days.
Enjoy the pool, play some card games, have a few drinks, etc.
Kayak is one of the best travel aggregators for flights. Not only do they have some of the best prices, but they have a buying guide/price trend on the upper left-hand corner.
I always try a few different sites, for flights I like Kayak the most.
Use Credit Cards
I have one credit card I use year round, that usually gives me 2-3 free flights a year. It's a great tool to make your vacation less expensive.
My card of choice is the Chase Sapphire Preferred.
The two main reasons I love this card is because of the easy to earn rewards program and the fact that I am not put in any type of box with the card. Meaning I can use my rewards for whatever I want.
Here's more:
- 1%-3% rewards
- 50,000 point sign up bonus
- No foreign transaction fee
- Travel insurance
- Car rental insurance
- 1:1 transfer to reward programs (like Southwest Rapid Rewards)
- No blackout dates, no travel restrictions.
- & more
Use this link to sign up.
Bring souvenirs from home. You can get them from anywhere, including Dollar Tree. It's so much cheaper to get things at home and bring them with you. Like Mickey Ears! These are about $1.50 each!
Disney Gift Card Hacks
They really do exist and I usee them every single year. Why wouldn't I?
Discounted Disney gift cards can take up to 10% off of your Disney vacation.
Read More: 2018 Guide to Discounted Disney Gift Cards
Hotwire Hot Rate
Use Hotwire's hot rate to use a "name your price" technique to get a Disney hotel room. This isn't full proof but it has worked before.
Make sure you narrow the location options to Bonnet Creek or Disney Springs area AND that it offers an airport shuttle.
JetBlue Getaways.
Basically, you buy your flights and hotel from JetBlue as a package. I like this option so much because it actually saves money.
Sometimes when you use an aggregator to book hotel and flights it just adds the two together and doesn't actually give you a discount. You won't find that here.
This post is sponsored by Orlando Fun Tickets. The #1 ticket seller in Orlando.