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What's next for Puzzle & Dragons and GungHo?
March 28, 2014 Page 1 of 3
On one hand, GungHo Online Entertainment is in the same echelon as King and Supercell, which it purchased a major stake in: It's a world-beating mobile game company, with millions upon millions of installs of its biggest hit, Puzzle & Dragons, and the revenue that comes along with it.
But it's quite different from those companies, too. It's located in Japan, of course, which is a huge cultral difference. It also owns a number of formerly indepedent studios which are focused on developing console games (the jewel in that crown is Grasshopper Manufacture, best-known for cult classics Killer7 and No More Heroes, and its idiosyncratic auteur Goichi "SUDA51" Suda.)
But it's also different because its founder, Kazuki Morishita, still keeps his hand in the console space, designing titles for niche audiences on niche platforms. The Puzzle & Dragons team even developed the extensively reworked 3DS edition of the game, Puzzle & Dragons Z, itself, rather than farming it out.
What does Morishita think about the scrutiny his company, so long never discussed in the West, is under? What is his philosophy toward free-to-play games, and what would he say to the skeptics who mistrust them? This meaty interview, conducted at GDC, gets to the heart of this company's philosophy toward business and game development.
I noticed you'd been reporting a lot more the success of Puzzle & Dragons in the West. Is that something you're emphasizing for 2014?
In terms of our priorities, in terms of our global initiatives, right now Japan is number one, obviously. But outside of Japan, U.S. is number two. So yes, we're trying to focus a lot more on the U.S. side.
What do you think about the global social games market? Is there truly a global social games market, or are the hits going to be different from country to country?
I used to think that way -- that it was segmented. Right now I'm trying not to think of it that way, obviously, because it closes all the doors.
There's no way for me to think with a Western mentality, because I'm Japanese. After reincarnation, maybe I'll be a Westerner, but that's the only way.
This goes for both the U.S. and Japan as a market, but I've never really created games based on the user base. It's more that, as a company, we create what we think is good at GungoHo. Internally, whatever we think is good, we always try to release that.
We're not trying to focus on the user base -- we're trying to create a game that's solely good based on quality, and what we think is good. If that sticks, then good. If not, we've got to go back to the table and rethink everything.
In terms of the service that we're providing, whether that's on the backend side, or customer support, that all has to be culturalized, so we have to base it off of the country that we're handling.
I think it's a layered, step-by-step process that we're trying to take. Obviously, that takes a bit of time. But I think that's our focus right now. We're taking it one step at a time, being able to have a presence in the U.S. that's as strong as it is in Japan.
In terms of gaming, we're not really focused on creating social games. That's not our thing. Obviously the business model is completely different, but in terms of how we create games, when we try to make a game, we put it on par with creating a console game -- whether it's mobile or console.
Even our mobile titles, we have a lot of experience on the console side as well. We have a lot of creators on the console side, and those are the people creating our mobile games right now in our company.
I really believe that the success that we're having is because we're creating games off of the console model and treating our games as seriously as the console games we've done.
Obviously, Puzzle & Dragons started off as a smartphone title, but it evolved into Puzzle & Dragons Z, which is the 3DS version. That's already gotten a million sales within the first month after release, so we believe that's our strength. And that's the same team. Smartphone, console, whatever -- it's the same team, the same members working on the title.
Puzzle & Dragons Z, for the Nintendo 3DS.
You say you have that strong console background which you're bringing to the mobile game sphere. Are there differences in the way you make these games, or do you really not see it that way? Do the knowledge and your approach transfer directly?
In terms of the business model, it comes after. Obviously, like I mentioned earlier, we focus on the good of the game. Whether the game is good or not is probably the most basic, core point we base our development off of. The business model itself comes later.
I'm deeply involved in the creative side of the games. I do a lot of game design as well. When I'm doing game design, I really don't think about the sales potential or the monetization.
We've released six mobile titles from 2012 till now. They all have been profitable. Four out of the six are making more than a million dollars a month. Obviously, Puzzle & Dragons is a huge hit for us, so everybody focuses on that. But we do have other titles that we're actually releasing and are doing great. Some of them, we're making multi-million dollars a month. We're not really thinking about sales when we're creating games, but obviously the sales are following the quality, is what we're thinking.
GungHo has been around for a long time. What's it like to suddenly have so many people outside of Japan following your company, and scrutinizing it?
In terms of scrutiny, for example, everybody's following our sales. So if it dips a little bit, everybody says, "Oh, Puzzle & Dragons is already done. They've got to find something new." We do have a dip in our sales, sometimes. They compared our third quarter 2013 sales to our second quarter. It did go down. I mentioned that our fourth quarter would be higher and nobody believed me, but that's how it turned out to be.
Note the dip for 3Q and the jump for 4Q. Deliberate, says Morishita.
The fourth quarter was probably the highest sales we've ever had. The reasoning is pretty much easy to explain. During the holiday season our MAU does increase. And special events -- if we have a good event that is successful, our ARPU goes up. But we don't really want to max out the ARPU. From our standpoint, we don't want it to be too high.
It's on purpose. If ARPU goes up one quarter, for the next quarter we want it to go down a little bit. The higher the ARPU goes up, it's sort of similar to starting to a bonfire. If you keep feeding it kindling, it starts burning faster and stronger, and sooner or later you'll run out of kindling. That's what we're trying to avoid.
We do have our own business logic that we're basing it off of. Scrutiny is great, but we do have our own business strategy. People can scrutinize us, but we have to do our own thing, our own business model. It's not that we ignore it, but we don't take it too seriously.
I'm sure that some people will like us; some people will be anti-GungHo. It's bound to happen. Our continued focus will be to focus on creating good games. That's where we want to stay.
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Sequel to Taken. When Katherine Cole comes back to...
Taken(A One Direction FanFiction)
- by ItsNat
- Rating:
- Published: 29 Sep 2012
- Updated: 28 Feb 2013
- Status: In Progress
Katherine Cole and Zayn Malik have been good friends for a long time, both liking each other. But when Katherine moves to California she falls in love again. And well Zayn has gotten busy with his big success in the band One Direction. One day Katherine's best friend Lily takes her out to a signing in L.A. What will happen when Katherine and Zayn meet again? Will Katherine dump her new boyfriend and run after Zayn? Or will she stay with her other love?
**Sequel is out: Back For You** (thanks for reading guys!)
**Sequel is out: Back For You** (thanks for reading guys!)
Join MovellasFind out what all the buzz is about. Join now to start sharing your creativity and passion
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subset: commoncrawl


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Giants select forward Tyler Benson with first overall pick in WHL bantam draftNHL.com @NHLdotcom
CALGARY - The Vancouver Giants have selected Tyler Benson with the first overall pick in the 2013 Western Hockey League bantam draft.
Benson played last season with the Southgate Lions of the Alberta Major Bantam Hockey League that captured the Alberta and Western Canadian triple-A championships.
The Edmonton native broke the AMBHL record for the most points in a season with 146 (57 goals, 89 assists) in 33 games played.
"We are very excited to have selected Tyler with the first overall pick. He has proven to be a mature player who doesn't only produce but also makes everyone around him better," Giants vice president and general manager Scott Bonner said on the team's website.
The Regina Pats selected forward Sam Steel from the Sherwood Park Flyers of the AMBHL with the second overall pick. Steel led his hometown Flyers in scoring this season with 104 points (52 goals, 52 assists) in 31 games.
The Prince George Cougars took defenceman Josh Anderson with the third pick. Anderson, a six-foot-one, 202-pound native of Duncan, B.C., recorded 18 goals, 52 points and 80 penalty minutes in 52 games last season with the Cowichan Valley Tier 1 Capitals.
The Brandon Wheat Kings selected right-wing Nolan Patrick of the Winnipeg Hawks with the fourth pick. Patrick led Division 1 of the Winnipeg AAA Bantam Hockey League with 75 points despite playing only nineteen of the team's 30 games this season.
The Moose Jaw Warriors took left-wing Brett Howden with the fifth pick. Howden had 11 goals and 24 points in 30 games With the Eastman Selects of the Manitoba Midget triple-A Hockey League.
Rounding out the top 10, Brandon selected defenceman Kale Clague sixth after acquiring the pick in a trade with Lethbridge. Everett picked right-wing Tyson Jost seventh. Seattle followed by selecting defenceman Dante Fabbro, while Kootenay chose left-wing Jared Legien with the ninth pick. Medicine Hat selected defenceman David Quenneville 10th.


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The idea that you should wait until you're ready to update a legacy application before moving it to the cloud is frankly crazy. With portfolios of hundred or thousands of apps, CIOs must take advantage of the economies of scale cloud computing delivers. Trust us, the startups gunning for your customers aren't being held back by a circa 1992 CRM system.
Don't get us wrong. The question isn't, "Can all legacy applications live in the pure and fluffy cloud?" Clearly, the answer is no. But can many legacy applications leverage at least some of the technology advances inherent in infrastructure-as-a-service? The answer to that is yes, certainly.
Note that "Can this legacy application shift to SaaS?" is a different and less interesting question that hinges on whether a given software provider can revamp its business model and provide a specific application as a service. This ain't Salesforce; it's "Can SAS provide SaaS?" One interesting finding of InformationWeek's 2013 State of Cloud Computing Survey, which asked 446 business technology pros about their cloud use, is an eight-point drop in the percentage of cloud adopters using SaaS.
It turns out that many independent software vendors aren't equipped to meet the demands of today's enterprises. Their infrastructure costs tend to be high and their response times poor because they're not running IaaS -- they're running multitenant, big-box, hosted infrastructure in one or two data centers. Because it's "as a service," they call it cloud, but it's really not. It's hosting. If the price point and features work for you, great. But our experience is that ISVs turned hosting providers tend to charge more and deliver less.
True IaaS providers deliver savings, agility and scaling benefits. So why do IT shops run so many applications on their own servers? "Part of the reason you don't see apps aggressively moving to the cloud is because of the refresh cycle," says Josh Crowe, senior VP of product development at Internap, a content delivery network and cloud hosting provider.
In short, IT teams have other stuff to do, and they're content to wait. But CIOs need to push back, given the benefits to be had. Here are the top five objections to moving apps to the cloud and our suggested responses.
1. Our legacy applications are too complex to move to IaaS.
Erik Sebesta, CTO of Cloud Technology Partners, a professional services firm, says he sees plenty of companies "taking legacy spaghetti and making it cloud spaghetti." We would argue that most complex applications started like those 100-foot, perfectly wrapped cords you bought six months ago at Home Depot. Over time, they all end up as spaghetti, thanks to moves, adds and changes, so set your expectations accordingly. By transitioning away from in-house infrastructure, most companies can save money, but don't insist that the deployment be elegant.
How much can they save? Sebesta says his firm helped a large telecommunications organization move off expensive legacy hardware that wasn't well utilized and recoup more than $20 million annually.
2. It won't save money because we still have to run a data center.
True, you probably won't shutter your data center. However, there are three compelling scenarios from a cost perspective that CIOs who want to take advantage of sophisticated cloud capabilities can cite.
>> A combination of private and public clouds to do cloud bursting. You keep the ability to host internally and realize savings over a 100% cloud approach, while still being able to scale up for usage spikes. If you've ever paid the bill for running an app 24/7 in Amazon Web Services, you'll appreciate this model. In fact, some n-tier architecture enterprise apps are just about ready to support cloud bursting, though customization may be needed to programmatically monitor, load and request more servers from the provider when needed. Select target applications carefully. Customer-facing apps are much more likely than internally focused systems to need elasticity.
>> Business continuity and disaster recovery. Look at your budget and you will likely see one of two things: massively expensive operational contingency contracts for disaster recovery for important systems, or capital expenditures for building out and maintaining disaster recovery hardware and associated data center assets, yours or hosted.
BC/DR fairly begs for the automation and pay-as-you-go capabilities offered by IaaS providers. You can spin up apps in the cloud for a fraction of the cost of your own infrastructure build-out or using a conventional DR -- or SaaS -- vendor. We recently spoke with a CIO who was being pitched by a SaaS vendor on its costly DR capabilities: "You just have to let us know a week before you test so that we have the people in place to handle it." Oh, yes, that's just what we want -- a vendor that demands warning before testing its premium-priced ability to handle a disaster.
>> Development and testing. This use case seems piddly compared with the resources expended for business continuity and disaster recovery, but over time, costs add up. Since there's always infinite demand for a free service (or apparently free, since most app dev costs aren't well aligned with or transparent to departmental spending), business units think nothing of building multiple test environments. We've seen more than a dozen for some enterprise apps. Think about being able to tell business units: "You can have as many test environments as you want for $20 per hour, each." All of a sudden you're not only reducing the number of test environments from "willy-nilly" to what's really needed, you're also likely saving considerable staff time, since setup will be far more automated.


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Was specifically formulated to help meet the hydration and electrolyte needs of pregnant and breastfeeding women. It is free of artificial colours, and sweeteners.
It is ideal for:
- • All stages of pregnancy,
- • Labour and childbirth,
- • Breastfeeding.
It tastes great! Is easy to drink and helps keep you hydrated even when you're feeling nauseated.
• Contains a small amount of folic acid to help you meet your daily needs.
• Is low in sugar with only 2.5g per 100mL. This makes aquamamma® very drinkable while containing a lot less sugar than sports drinks and fruit drinks.
• Is low calorie, having only 47 kj/100mL. This is significantly less than other drinks – meaning you can enjoy keeping hydrated with aquamamma® daily.
• Is low in sodium.
Ingredients: filtered water, sucrose, food acid (citric acid), flavours, minerals (sodium citrate, potassium citrate, magnesium citrate), vitamins (ascorbic acid, folic acid), natural colour (lutein), natural sweetener (steviol glycosides).
Additional information
|6.5 kg
|16 x 23 x 24 cm
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Only logged in customers who have purchased this product may leave a review.


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AVI-SPL has expanded further internationally with the opening of four new offices outside the U.S., including London, Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto.
"AVI-SPL is committed to being a truly global provider," said AVI-SPL CEO John Zettel. "Today's companies operate around the world so we're growing our footprint to keep pace with their needs wherever they are, while providing the highest level of video communications service."
AVI-SPL has launched European operations with headquarters in the UK. Leading operations as managing director is James Shanks, an industry expert with strong leadership experience in the unified communications market in Europe.
"The UK office will operate independently but will benefit from access to AVI-SPL's global resources," said Shanks. "With AVI-SPL's financial stability, strong vendor relationships, and rich capabilities in managed services, we're confident about the future of our business in Europe."
AVI-SPL has also added operations in Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto through the acquisition of selected assets from audio video and information technology firm Duocom. Industry veteran and recognized IT business leader Zoreena Abas will lead AVI-SPL's eastern Canada offices. With this addition, AVI-SPL now operates in five Canadian cities which also include Calgary and Vancouver.
"I'm excited to join the AVI-SPL team as the company strategically positions itself for rapid growth outside of the U.S.," said Zoreena Abas, managing director, AVI-SPL. "AVI-SPL's excellent reputation and breadth of services and expertise will allow us to reach our goal of becoming number one in Canada."
The new UK and Canada offices are staffed with solution architects, engineers, project managers, and installation and service technicians. AVI-SPL's VNOC Symphony software platform and Customer Care International Help Desk will also be a part of the UK operations.
AVI-SPL's new operations in the UK and Canada will offer complete video communications solutions from design and integration to ongoing support. This includes solutions from video collaboration and conferencing support, to digital media and signage, advanced 3D visualization, advanced audio engineering, and command and control centers.
"It's strategic moves like this that make AVI-SPL a leader in the industry," said Rob Arnold, senior analyst at Frost & Sullivan. "Last year's acquisition of Iformata added VNOC services which strengthen AVI-SPL's managed service offering.They've built upon that to take a significant step towards expanding internationally in order to meet customer demands for high quality video solutions backed by locally provided support and services."
"The expansion of our geographic footprint reinforces our overall sales growth strategy. AVI-SPL's new international offices will be supported by our sales operations teams just like the rest of our offices," said Don Mastro, executive vice president of sales. "Starting off the year with four new international offices is very exciting and we're looking forward to a big year."
AVI-SPL will exhibit at ISE January 29-31, 2013 in Amsterdam RAI, NL. To learn more, visit www.iseurope.org.
For more information about AVI-SPL's international expansion, refer to the following FAQs.
In the press:
Commercial Integrator's editor Tom LeBlanc speaks with CEO John Zettel and EVP of Operations Doug Carnell about how video managed services led AVI-SPL to expand internationally. Read the story
Chris Fitzsimmons, editor of InAVate, interviews AVI-SPL's new UK Managing Director James Shanks and Doug Carnell to learn about the enticing factors leading AVI-SPL to set down roots abroad. Read the Q&A
The Ottawa Business Journal's Courtney Symons catches up with Brad Fairhold, who leads the new Ottawa office, to discuss how thrilled the Duocom team is to join AVI-SPL. Check it out


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I have a confession to make.
I'm utterly addicted to tracing my family's roots. Vic says that kicking a heroin habit might be easier, but I have no intention of overcoming my addiction. I enjoy it too much.
I lay the blame on my mother and my Aunt Marcella. They spun fascinating tales of their Thomas grandparents going west in a covered wagon, leaving from Indiana.
One of my great-great-grandfathers, the Rev. Dr. William Joseph Thomas, lived with the Kaw Indians in Kansas. My aunt saved the letters that he wrote to his son — her grandfather Andrew Thomas — from the frontier in 1875. He wrote of the marvelous crops that could be grown on the prairies. He also reported how dishonest the Indian agents were and how they cheated the Indians.
In one letter, he boasted that he had cured an old chief when no other doctor could. He said that the chief killed a turkey and they had a high time of it. I can only imagine.
And that's what those tales did. They sparked my imagination and made me want to learn more about those days and my ancestors who lived then.
My great-grandparents, Andrew Thomas and his wife Louisa Caroline (Hedrick) Thomas, traveled to Kansas and then the Red River country in Texas around 1880. They, too, lived among the Indians.
When my great-grandmother had a baby in camp, she was too ill to nurse him. An Indian woman saved the baby's life by feeding him mashed pumpkins. The parents named their baby boy after the woman's husband, Charley Horse. That's how I ended up with an uncle Charley. My mother swore that was a true story.
My great-grandparents didn't like what they saw on the prairies. The ground was literally white with the bones of buffalo killed a decade or so earlier. The land was too harsh and dry for them, so they returned to the tall hardwood forests and lush cornfields of Indiana.
I love those stories. But it is the era of yet an earlier generation that has caught my fancy. I never grow tired of imagining the lives of my ancestors in the early 1800s, family after family who were the first farmers on their land.
I come from a long line of people who kept moving a few more miles west to find new land to clear. From colonial times in Virginia and North Carolina to the post-Revolutionary period in Tennessee, Kentucky and Indiana, these people were pioneer farmers. I don't know if it is genetics, but I'm happiest when I'm working the ground to plant my crops. The farming gene is deep in my DNA.
The ancestor who fascinates me most is one of my great-great-great-grandfathers named Isaac Shirley. He was a farmer born in Kentucky in 1785, a contemporary of John James Audubon and frontiersman Davy Crockett.
A true frontiersman in his own right, Shirley was on the move constantly, claiming and clearing one patch of land after another. Most settlers stay and farm their land for the rest of their lives, but not him. As soon as an area had a few settlers and the farms were established, he left to find new land to clear. He moved from Kentucky to southern Indiana to Grundy County, Missouri, and then back to Indiana, where he died in 1859.
He and his wife had 12 children, who in turn produced 127 grandchildren.
Almost all of Isaac Shirley's descendants have an oral tradition that this family was part Native American. Ironically, Shirley was an Indian fighter, participating in battles against both Indians and British during the War of 1812.
When Shirley was born in the mid-1780s, many white settlers in Kentucky lived in log forts. They went outside the forts only during the day to tend to their livestock and crops. While their counterparts on the East Coast lived in fine brick, stone and frame mansions, the frontier families lived in one- or two-room log cabins with native rock fireplaces.
They enclosed their fields of corn and tobacco with split rail fences and were always on the lookout for raiding parties of Indians and marauding bears — even deer and raccoons that ate their crops.
Men on the Kentucky frontier tended to dress more like the Native Americans than like their white counterparts in the east. They wore fringed leather hunting shirts, leather moccasins and pants made of homespun linsey-woolsey or even leather leggings as the Indians wore.
They grew flax in the fields, which was thrashed and pounded to get linen fibers. The women spun the fibers into thread, which they then wove into cloth. They sheared their sheep to get wool, carded it to align the fibers and then spun it into yarn. The linen and wool were then woven together to produce the homespun linsey-woolsey cloth of the frontier era.
Buffalo and wolves still roamed the woods east of the Mississippi back then. Flocks of billions of passenger pigeons darkened the sky during migration. It must have seemed to the settlers that this bounty would never run out, but as we all know, it did. The last passenger pigeon died in 1914. Buffalo were shot nearly to extinction. Only by a miracle did a small herd survive in the remote wilderness of the Yellowstone country.
In 1820, Audubon lived just south of the Ohio River in Henderson, Kentucky, not far from where Shirley lived with his family. Audubon's writings provide insight into the rapidly changing landscape of that place and time. He wrote of rivers choked with logs felled by the settlers, the water the color of tea because of tannins from the logs. A lingering smell of smoke from burning stumps filled the air and the woods rang with the constant thud of axes on trees.
I like thinking about my pioneer ancestors who cleared land, grew crops, raised livestock and tended their gardens. I like emulating them by growing my own food, preserving it for future use, tending my hens and cooking delicious dishes from scratch. Like them, I try to get by on what I have instead of craving more and more material goods.
Modern life is stressful. We cope with a cacophony of sirens, barking dogs and overhead helicopters and airplanes. We fight frustrating traffic. We wait in lines. We worry about the economy. And those of us who are environmentalists are concerned about the specter of climate change that is hanging over our heads like the sword of Damocles.
My garden brings me peace in these troubled times. It connects me to my ancestors and to the land in wonderful ways that I am at a loss to describe. And so I continue to search for more information about my ancestral roots. Building a family tree is a project that has no end.
VIC LEIPZIG and LOU MURRAY are Huntington Beach residents and environmentalists. They can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.


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The blog community is this crazy group of people who come from all different parts of the globe but, come together over a common interest. Friendships are made, secrets revealed, lessons taught, and laughter shared all via a keyboard, camera, and screen. I have been a lurker for over a year now. I have sat on the play ground and watched the cool kids play together. I never asked to play but, I did admire them with such envy. Last month I saw a post about the secret recipe club. I loved the concept. You get assigned a blog and then you get to make anything you want from their blog. This was such a fit for me. I got to read a new blog and make something that I was interested in and fit my family. Many of the groups don't fit my needs and I can't waste food. I reached out to the hostess and with in a few minutes I had a friendly greeting and a play date with the cool kids. I like being cool. I was assigned group B which will post next week but, one of the hostesses reached out to the group to help support an orphaned blog in group A. This was my chance to be a part of the community. A community that reaches out and helps when needed. The help is given no questions asked to people you have never met face to face. I think that is rad. I think kindness is rad. Almost as rad as these soft chocolate milk chocolate chip and toffee cookies adapted from connor's cooking. The call went out to the group Tuesday afternoon. I quickly got sucked into connor's cooking blog who is written by a mom who enjoys baking and cooking for friends and family. These are my kind of recipes. They are ones my family would love. From oreo turtle brownies, to cinnamon bear popcorn, to chocolate dipped pretzels and hot chocolate cupcakes. When I saw these soft chocolate chip cookies I was fixated. I am not sure if it was the picture of the golden soft puffy cookies or her adorable 2 week old babe but, I was sold. I came down to the kitchen to find out I was out of vanilla pudding and only had chocolate. We love pudding cookies so, I followed the recipes with the exception of subbing chocolate pudding for the vanilla and instead of 2 cups of semi sweet chips I subbed 1 cup milk chocolate and 1 cup heath toffee bits. They came out so soft and packed with bits of sweet toffee and chips. This is a great recipe which can be customized so many ways. It is adaptable just like this group of food bloggers that I am very excited to join.
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
¼ cup white sugar
1 small package instant chocolate pudding
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 ¼ cups flour
1 cups heath toffee bits
Preheat over to 350.


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MONTROSE, Colo. (KKCO) -- The dog that caused an internet uproar in Montrose will be put down.
Judge Richard Brown for the Montrose Municipal Court handed down the decision Thursday morning after hearing testimony from Dutch the dog's owner, Jeremiah Aguilar, and the victim-- who, for safety reasons, has not been identified.
The four-year-old American Allaunt's story received national attention when it was published on DogHeirs.com. The writer claimed that the female victim-- Dutch's former owner and Aguilar's future sister-in-law-- beat the dog, which then attacked her out of self-defense.
Thousands shared the story, adding 264,712 signatures to the "Save Dutch the Service Dog" petition and 22,591 likes to the Facebook page "Save Dutch," which has since been taken down.
However, Judge Brown said Thursday that the internet portrayal of the victim as a cruel dog-hater isn't accurate and is lacking details.
According to Montrose Animal Control, on Nov. 14, 2013, the victim was taking care of Dutch while the Aguilars were out. Dutch got in a fight with one of the victim's dogs in her yard, so she tried to break up them up. She hit Dutch once with a tiki-torch --not a metal rod contrary to some reports-- then pulled him away using his collar. Animal Control says as she began to clean blood off his face, Dutch turned on her. He bit her deeply on her buttock, thigh and hand before she was able to escape to her bedroom.
When she testified in court on Thursday, the victim says she feared for her life when Dutch pinned her down on her stomach and wouldn't let her move.
The judge said he found no fault with the victim's actions, but he saw many red flags in Dutch's behavior. A big warning sign was that Dutch would attack a woman who raised him for two years without incident. That's why the judge decided on euthanasia, not rehabilitation as Aguilar requested.
Internet reports said that Dutch was a longtime service dog for Aguilar, a veteran who suffered from PTSD. However, the judge revealed that Dutch was not a registered service dog until after the incident occurred. Judge Brown further said that even though Aguilar was a veteran, it had nothing to do with this case except add a positive sympathy factor.
In his testimony Thursday, Aguilar said losing Dutch would be like losing a member of his family. He said he had to go to the Grand Junction VA Medical Center Wednesday night because he suffered an anxiety attack and passed out. His lawyer made the point that the situation is causing Aguilar both mental and physical pain.
The victim said she also has anxiety after the attack, suffering from nightmares and post-traumatic stress. She's been forced to incur $28,000 in medical bills, and her fiance has been sleeping with a gun in his bed because he's aware of the threats against her online, she said.
Judge Brown says the stories posted online are incomplete and misleading, making the victim out to be a dog abuser rather than a reasonable woman working to prevent a dog fight. He says he does not blame her for trying to break up the fight.
The judge repeatedly expressed his concern over the "lynch-mob" mentality forming against the victim, and the various internet attacks and threats she's received. Judge Brown says there has also been no apparent attempt by Aguilar to correct the false stories about the victim.
Weighing all the factors, Brown said the victim's story has always been consistent, and he is not willing to risk another attack from Dutch.
However, Brown ordered Animal Control to take no action until all appeals are complete. Aguilar's lawyer promised to file an appeal before his client rushed out of the courtroom.
Aguilar was also sentenced to 20 days in jail (18 days suspended, two days served) and $500 in fines ($250 suspended). He is also required to pay $1,000 in restitution to the victim.
Aguilar has also been instructed not to harass or intimidate the victim through any online postings.


text: John, I'd go for AMD thing. Think about it more than 4x more cache a stream processor, as they got 64 of them doing 5 instructions a cycle or so, versus nvidia has 240 of them. Seymour Cray's law has a better balance for it than Nvidia. Additionally it will be easier to find documentation and information about AMD as they are a processor manufacturer used to give out information about their hardware, Nvidia still has to learn that. As for speed of course today Nvidia with a new GPU faster end this year AMD, next year who knows, but usually it will be turning a coin each time. Each newer GPU you can assume to be faster. Adding cores for those guys is relative easy in contradiction for CPU's. In case you plan to make an algorithm that's not embarrassingly parallel, Nvidia has a problem that AMD doesn't. It has 2 layers of parallellism versus AMD just a single one. AFAIK in AMD/ATI you've got 64 processors that get each the same instruction stream, justlike 1 block of nvidia; but nvidia additionally to that has also a grid of blocks; that means you have to make special parallellistic algorithm also between blocks which is different from the parallellism from just 64 stream processors that execute instructions @ 5 units at a time. Additionally debugging blocks is going to be tougher than debugging 1 block; If you have 1 block that all executes the same code at the same time, then that's reasonable deterministic (could be memory writes to the same adress aren't deterministic in case you plan to do those). Think about it 4x more cache a stream processor (assuming cards have same amount of cache and potential, which averaged over a few years of time will be the same). Crucial to FFT type workloads. Vincent


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Akon Win Case in Throwing Kid off Stage - Post Interview
Hot97 TV reports "Fresh off his court win for throwing a kid off the stage, you have to love this country"
Please click the "Report" button below if the video on this page is not working properly.
Comments will only be displayed by verified emails. No Spamming or Racism.


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"From grade inflation to global calamities, Albert Mohler is a steady guide. From the psychological coddling of the American ego to the hollowing of the American conscience, Mohler is unremittingly clear-headed. From Nineveh to New Orleans, Mohler holds the mirror at a blazing forty-five-degree angle between heaven and earth. The burning light of divine wisdom illumines a hundred shadows of our human folly. And at the center of the blaze is the mighty cross of Jesus Christ defining the final meaning of everything. I thank God for Albert Mohler."
–John Piper, pastor for preaching and vision, Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, MN
"Al Mohler is a unique gift to the church. His writing combines penetrating theological discernment and insightful cultural analysis with a passion to faithfully proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. I'm delighted that Al's wisdom is now available in this book. May it be the first of many."
–C. J. Mahaney, Sovereign Grace Ministries
"In The Disappearance of God, Dr. Mohler has provided a striking, biblically-based treatment of a coterie of compelling issues which threaten the religious public at every turn. With his usual incisive and scintillating analysis, he sorts out healthy from unhealthy influences and charts a path for future church development. If you are serious about navigating our contemporary world, this is a necessary read."
–Paige Patterson, President, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary Fort Worth, Texas
"Here is a picture on the life of the church where it is being troubled, seduced, and attacked by today's dominant cultural forces. Its analysis is clear and to the point., and its answers are biblically framed, thoughtful, and helpful. I wish there were more books like this!"
–David F. Wells, Distinguished Research Professor, Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
"There is a paucity of prophetic Christian voices today speaking about the dangerous trends in our churches and culture. Albert Mohler is one of those leading voices who provides clarity and conviction in a culture of ambiguity, aimlessness, and ambivalence. I am thankful for his book The Disappearance of God and the clear direction it provides in the murky culture in which we live. Above all, I am thankful for Dr. Mohler and his heart for Christ's church."
–Thom S. Rainer, president and CEO, LifeWay Christian Resources, and
author of Essential Church and Simple Life


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By most accounts, wearable technology will be the next "it girl" in the fashion world. Investors are sinking millions into gadgets—from Google Glass to medical apparel—with built-in sensory devices. A report by Credit Suisse predicts that the market will increase to $50 billion over the next three to five years.
But wearable tech has a fashion problem. Until recently, most technology hasn't been designed with women in mind. Most wearables on the market are more fashion neutral than fashion forward. "I feel like we're going to see some exciting design partnerships across tech and fashion companies," said Elana Fishman, senior digital director of Luckymag.com.
It's already happening. In October, Apple made its own fashion statement when it hired former Burberry CEO, Angela Ahrendts.
Consumer demand is driving the trend. Intel researcher Genevieve Bell found that women are the heaviest users of today's most vital technologies. Another study finds that women (58 percent) outnumber men among prospective buyers of wearable technology devices.
Here's a look at some innovative companies already rushing to fill the lucrative void in this market niche.
By Nia Hamm, Special to CNBC.com
Posted 16 March 2014


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I'd like to see a supplement of vehicles, detailling new rules and vehicles templates of all kind. The M&M core rulebook now serves, but is still very basic! Vehicles are not a constant in the comics, but for some heroes in particular, come to be a "icon"! What would Batman without his famous Batmobile? Outside his "batplane" too. Ghost Rider without your bike? And the X-Men without their Blackbird, that takes them to cosmic adventures once in a while? Of course, the Fantastic Four and the FantastiCar! And it has too the famous Wonder Woman's "Invisible Jet" , loved by some hated by others, which was ignored after Crisis on Infinite Earths, but then again, gone, returned ... Anyway ... The fact is that many super-heroes and some teams use vehicles from time to time, be simple bikes (as Robin and Nightwing), to super modified cars (Batman) to sail spacecraft to space (X-Men , Justice League, Fantastic Four ...).
In addition a vehicles Handbook could be generic enough to give room for adventures of Agents of Freedom (military vehicles, police cars, etc.), common vehicles (for generic modern adventures without superheroes), and action campaigns with "super-vehicle" based on classic shows of the 80s as Blue Thunder (a super police helicopter), Airwolf (a supersonic helicopter), Street Hawk (a super bike) and perhaps the most famous of which : Knight Rider (a super car)! Of course, Sci-Fi series also has its "super vehicles" too or do you think about the Enterprise of Captain Kirk is a "common little ship" ? And the Han Solo's highly modified Millennium Falcon? And anyone here remember the super-submarine Seaview from Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea or even the futurist Seaquest from Seaquest DSV (90s TV series)?
I think it would be a nice generic supplement about vehicles, both for the adventures of superheroes same as for campaigns of all kinds and ages. Could also have older vehicles and campaigns for fantasy and medieval adventures like Warriors & Warlocks, as coaches, chariots, boats, sailing ships, galleons, also magic vehicles like airships and magic "astral vessels" (similar to astral ships and spelljammers from D & D 4th Edition).
Tell us what you think of this site, request features, make suggestions, or let us know what you would have done differently. We'll always listen to what you have to say, and sometimes we'll even change things accordingly!
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Liebesbrücke – GC2EJCE – GEOCACHE OF THE WEEK – OCTOBER 4, 2012
Love locks are a romantic symbol of true love: Walk across a bridge with your sweetheart, affix a lock scrawled with your names to the structure, and then toss the key into the river below.
This tradition is said to have originated in Italy many years ago, but few bridges are as popular or as decorated with love locks as the Hohenzollern bridge in Cologne (Köln), Germany. Situated on the Liebesbrücke (GC2EJCE), or "love bridge," geocachers have fallen in love with this difficulty 3, terrain 1.5 micro Geocache of the Week.
Fascinated by the thousands of love locks that are legally placed to add a little glitter to a bridge that is otherwise gritty and dull, Huelva decided to add a love lock for all Premium Member geocachers who love the hobby.
One geocacher writes, "I find that many premium-only caches tend to be especially creative and very unique. This one falls nothing short of that. It was almost freaky how many locks there are to be found. This was a clever hide and it blends in quite nicely with the rest of the love locks. Lots of locks, lots of love. What a wonderful idea!"
More than 3,200 geocachers have logged a "Found it" and awarded it nearly 730 Favorite Points. With Geocaching.com's request, Huelva has agreed to temporarily grant access to basic members for an opportunity to view and find this popular geocache.
For more information on Geocaching Premium features, such as Premium Caches, please visit Geocaching.com/Premium.
Continue to explore some of the most engaging geocaches around the globe. Check out all the Geocaches of the Week on the Latitude 47 blog or view the Bookmark List on Geocaching.com.
If you would like to nominate a Geocache of the Week, send an email with your name, comments, the name of the geocache, and the GC code to firstname.lastname@example.com


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Price: $7.99
In Stock Add To Cart
Encourage students to develop six good habits related to organization and class work. The 4-page teacher's guide suggests activities such as role-playing and completing checklists. Includes seven 21" x 6" headers and two accent pieces. Artwork by Susan Winget.
This product is acid-free per industry standards; contact us for technical information.
Reviewed By: paytonsmom
I can't wait to use this as a constant reminder of good work habits.
Reviewed: 07/29/2013


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While you might not know it from her youthful looks, Kathryn Bigelow has been around the Hollywood block and then some.
Gracing the cover of the latest issue of Time, the 61-year-old filmmaker not only opens up about entering her fourth decade in the business, but sounds off further on the controversy that's erupted over "Zero Dark Thirty's" torture scenes and her artistic intentions in including them.
Here's what she and some of the actors she's worked with, including the Oscar-nominated film's star Jessica Chastain, has to say to critics--including many government officials with intimate knowledge of the CIA's detainee program--who've claimed that "ZDT" endorses the use of torture.
"Zero Dark Thirty" torture controversy: Kathryn Bigelow writes open letter defending film
- On the widely reported assertions that the thriller inaccurately portrays the CIA's euphemistically-named enhanced interrogation methods as having directly led to the capture of 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden:
"This territory has been controversial since the early part of the decade, so I knew that the film was going to be controversial, though perhaps I didn't anticipate this kind of volume," Bigelow tells the magazine. "I feel we got it right. I'm proud of the movie, and I stand behind it completely. I think that it's a deeply moral movie that questions the use of force. It questions what was done in the name of finding bin Laden."
- On the matter of "Zero Dark Thirty's" perceived moral ambiguity, Chastain backs her up:
"The film creates a conversation," adds the star, who play the film's protagonist, CIA operative Maya. "I believe that was Kathryn's intention when she made the film--to open a conversation. She ends it with an unanswered question, 'Where do you want to go?' She's asking the audience, 'Where have we been, and where do we go from here?'"
"Zero Dark Thirty" premiere target of anti-torture protesters
- Regarding Bigelow's procedural take on the story, Willem Dafoe, who worked with the director on her first feature, "The Loveless," says that Bigelow approaches her subjects with a clinical eye.
"Kathryn then is the same Kathryn now," remarks the actor. "She's attracted to something instinctively, and then she researches it, and her research becomes an adventure...and she's still interested in learning the language and rituals of hidden worlds. Just look at her titles--"Hurt Locker," "Zero Dark Thirty." It's like coded language and she's cracking the code."
As for her Zero Dark collaborator, screenwriter and producer Mark Boal, he remains adamant the movie doesn't give a false impression.
"If the general impression you get from this movie is that torture played a role in the hunt for Osama bin Laden, that's because that's true. That's a fact. It doesn't mean they had to torture people or that torture is necessary or torture is morally right," he says.
For the full profile on Bigelow, visit Time's website.
Here are some other notable fillms nominated for next month's Academy Awards


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Arthur Bear needed a new logo design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 171 designs submitted by 59 freelance designers.
go.nu is a very simple concept - type go.nu into your browser and it will take you to a new website. If you don't like it just hit the back button and it will take you to another until you find something you like.
Explained in more detail here go.nu/~
Seriously, the whole planet. We have users form Europe, Asia and the Americas. We don't keep any data about our users as the system is completely anonymous however we have to assume that users are from a very broad spectrum of society.
The logo must be good for web buttons, favicons etc. Therefore it must be extremely simple.
We want 90% visual aspect of the design to be the letters"GO.NU" (capitals preferred).
The other 10% of the visual aspect should be the clever twist that you can add to make the URL memorable.
The clever twist is something that has been just impossible for us to work out which is why we are looking for a professional solution from you!
The fundamental requirement is to get people to remember that they just have to type go.nu in their browser to be sent to cool new websites.
Colours...maybe orange or purple.
Find out how a design contest works or learn more about our logo design services.


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Spring 2009: From Our Readers
|Printer-friendly version | Email this article
Alive in Memory
It was only in April, reading WM, that I learned Professor William Placher '70 had died. In some ways, I am glad I did not learn about his death until the week
As a young student, I had figured such a legendary professor as Bill Placher would be unapproachable, and I shied away from initiating a relationship with him. But during the summer before my senior year, Dr. Placher reached out to me, inviting me to lunch that we might get to know each other better and so he could help give me direction regarding what graduate programs I should apply to. His ability to listen to me as a student and help clarify my own thoughts and even God's calling on my life are an important part of who I am today.
And so I am glad to have only learned of his passing in light of our recent celebration of Easter—resurrection is so real to me. Bill Placher's love, righteousness, and firm grasp on who God is live on
—Rev. Eric Helms '01, Pastor, United Methodist Church, Somers Point, NJ
Love the History Blog!
Editor's Note: Wabash Archivist Beth Swift is getting great reviews of her history blog on the Wabash Web site. A sample:
Dear Beth,
I just wanted to drop a note to tell you how much I enjoy reading your history blog. The stories and pictures of Wabash through the years provide a wonderful background and context for understanding Wabash College, and are always a source of some nostalgia.
The photo of downtown Crawfordsville with the old interurban tracks reminded me of a couple of years (1965-67) when the College's Scarlet Masque theater group was housed in an old interurban "barn" downtown for our theater. It was a bit of a dilapidated building on the intersection of two alleys (behind a drive-through liquor store).
George Tuttle was the theater professor and director, followed by Bob Clymire. lymire wrote several one-act plays that we performed in a "cabaret" style—the audience sitting around tables (made from huge cable spools we got from one of the utility companies). We even took one of those plays to the Yale Drama
—Earl Houck '67, Woodbine, MD
Jim, Not Jack
The article on page 70 of the latest WM ["Saluting Eli's Birthday"] was actually written by Jim Engledow '78, not Jack Engledow '78. Though Jack '53 would have been pleased to have written the article about a typically funny and zany Wabash event, and particularly pleased to be associated with the youngsters in '78, he didn't do it.
—Jack Engledow '53, Carmel, IN
Editor's Note: Our apologies to both Jim Engledow '78 and his father, Jack. Don't know how we mixed up father and son, but thanks for taking our error with good humor.
"To Savor and Enjoy Words"
Holding a quality product to savor and enjoy words, thoughts, and feelings is an increasingly rare experience. You offer that in WM and I think I would say that even if I hadn't graduated from Wabash.
The Winter 2009 WM is inviting for all the tastings of the Northwest offered.
—Tim Conlon '61, Bend, OR
Corrections: The story "Seasoning" by Austin Rovenstine [WM Winter 2009] issue was incorrectly attributed to The Bachelor.
The photo of Professor Eric Olofson of WM Winter 2009 was incorrectly attributed. It was taken by Chad Simpson '10.


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Abolosin needed a new other design and created a contest on 99designs.
A winner was selected from 14 designs submitted by 4 freelance designers.
Octopus-ITSM.com provides the best IT Service Management tool for Small and Medium Businesses. We offer an On Demand solution that works out-of-the-box, that supports ITIL v3 Best Practices and that costs less than 50$ per month per technician.
Launched in 2005, Octopus-ITSM.com has been the first ITIL solution designed from the ground up to help organizations get the benefits of an ITSM tool in a matter of weeks; not months.
Today, customers from around the World trust us to deliver a reliable, fast and easy to use Service Desk system that technicians and end users like to use and that evolves with the organization. With no upfront investments, low monthly payments and absolutely no obligations, Octopus-ITSM.com makes ITIL more accessible than ever.
The market we're targeting here is IT professionals ranging from Managers to CIO's.
They're very analytical, yet they don't bother with too much details. Simplicity and boldness are key factors to attract them.
They want to see why they should bother with our company, how we can help them right now and how simple it is to do business with us.
What we want is a new graphical concept for our 3x3 feet expo stand.
The main theme you should aim for is "SIMPLICITY".
Here are some examples of other people's work:
Here are some of the many possibilities you can use for the stand's settings:
We would like you to use these keywords:
- ITSM for SMB
- On-Demand
Some ideas to get you started:
• No assembly required (like an IKEA furniture in pieces with a big "X")
• ITIL (or ITSM) TO GO (Ready to be used, ready to implement)
• ITIL (or ITSM) Made Simple (ITIL is more accessible than ever since Onctopus has all ITIL modules in it already)
• Ready out-of-the-box (a box with ITIL written on it)
Here are some of the advantages of our product:
- You will have no infrastructure to implement and to manage
- You will be operational in only a few minutes
- You will always be using the latest version
We're aiming for a theme that could be just like the "EASY" button from Staple's: http://www.staples.com/ Please don't COPY this concept, just have it in mind when we speak of simplicity. :-)
Don't hesitate to contact me for any questions!
Thank you.


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Get a quote for one man bands in Moygashel now by completing our quick and simple enquiry formGet your free quote
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Presenting "ROCKET MAN - The Elton John Tribute Show UK ". . The show is a brand new show based in the UK. Featuring experienced and professional Male...


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WALTHAM — Avery Bradley's defensive reputation casts a mighty shadow over every other aspect of his game. It's unlikely that will change, which is really a nod to just how effective he is as one of the NBA's most elite perimeter defenders.
As such, Bradley is often tasked with guarding an opposing team's top perimeter scorer, which means the Celtics guard has the unenviable chore of trying to shut down one of the league's most dynamic players Saturday at TD Garden: Cleveland's all-everything guard Kyrie Irving.
"I'm going to try to take everything away from him . . . try to make everything hard on him," Bradley said after practice Friday. "And I know my teammates will be there to have my back."
For the Celtics (12-17) to snap a three-game losing streak, Bradley will probably need some help defending Irving, who is averaging 22.1 points and 6.1 assists and is coming off a 40-point performance in the Cavaliers' double-overtime loss to Atlanta on Thursday.
Typically, defense would be Bradley's sole focus, but this season, he has emerged as one of the Celtics' top scorers, which has raised eyebrows because offense hasn't really been his bread and butter.
The fourth-year guard is averaging 13.9 points per game — the third-most on the Celtics — on 46 percent shooting from the floor.
Yet it's his recent production that is grabbing headlines.
Through 10 games this month, he's averaging a team-high 16.1 points while shooting a blistering 51 percent from the floor. That includes a 26-point game against Washington on Dec. 21.
Even more impressive, Bradley is shooting an absurd 57 percent from 3-point range this month, making 20 of 35 from beyond the arc, with 18 of those long-distance connections coming from the corners — his sweet spot.
"He's always been a good shooter in my eyes," said Celtics forward Jeff Green. "He's just being more aggressive, but we need him to be."
Bradley has also been aggressive early, averaging 7 points in the first quarter — or nearly half his output per game this month.
"We're doing some stuff towards him," coach Brad Stevens said of Bradley's first-quarter performances. "But at the same time, we're usually moving the ball and pushing it up the floor well and he starts off with a good amount of energy in most games."
Bradley's impact this month becomes more impressive when one takes a glance at the team's advanced statistics.
When Bradley has been on the floor in December, the Celtics own an offensive rating (points per 100 possessions) of 109.2, the best mark on the team. When he is on the bench, that number nose-dives to 93.2, the worst mark.
His offense has ramped up, but his defense hasn't suffered. This month, the Celtics' defensive rating is 103.4 with Bradley; that figure is about one point higher when he's sidelined.
"He plays both ends, and that's what sets him apart from a lot of people," Green said.
No doubt, Bradley's offensive game is blossoming, but it didn't look that way when the season started. Then, he was playing point guard to fill in for Rajon Rondo, who is sidelined while recovering from knee surgery. The position overwhelmed Bradley, and he struggled, especially with turnovers.
But after four games, Stevens moved Jordan Crawford to the point and Bradley to shooting guard. The move was a stroke of genius, as Crawford has flourished in his new role and Bradley has in his, too.
"He's comfortable in his role and clearly understands what he's supposed to do, where he's supposed to be, how he can best pick his spots," Stevens said.
Crawford agreed that Bradley has become more comfortable, and Crawford noted how Bradley has become more adept at catching the ball on the wing, then taking one or two dribbles toward the basket before pulling up for a mid-range jump shot, usually from around the elbow — one of his sweet spots.
Bradley's consistency at making those mid-range jumpers and corner 3-pointers has complemented his slash-to-the rim skills on offense, making him a more versatile threat. "He does those things exceptionally well where it's hard to guard it . . . even if you see it on tape," Crawford said.
On the subject of his improved offense, Bradley was modest, crediting his teammates and little else. As for his improved play this month, he said, "That comes from not only Jordan Crawford but from the rest of my teammates as well, having that confidence in me. That confidence that they give me, puts me in a rhythm."
Stevens said that Bradley has become more of an offensive threat than at any point in his career, an undeniable truth even if Bradley is only in his fourth NBA season. What excites Stevens most is that there is still plenty of room for Bradley to improve on offense.
"I do think expanding and extending that range at the top of the key will be kind of the next step for him, to shoot those shots consistently, whether it's off the bounce or off the pass," Stevens said. "But he's really picking his spots and shooting the ball exceptionally well."
It has added another element to the Celtics' offense, too.
"It just opens up the floor for everybody else," Green said.
But for Bradley, it still starts with defense.
"My defense gets my offense going," he said. "I'm a defensive player first, bring that energy. But at the same time, I have confidence that I can make open shots."
Bradley's offense may catch up to his defense at some point, but if this past month is any indication, he's already on his way to becoming one of the most complete players in the NBA.Baxter Holmes can be reached at email@example.com Follow him on Twitter @BaxterHolmes


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MPAA To USTR: More Shutdowns Like Megaupload, Please
from the protectionism-at-its-finest deptThe USTR has released the various comments sent in for its annual "notorious markets" report. This is related to its annual Special 301 report, and it's where the USTR basically takes the list of sites and countries that the entertainment industry (and the pharmaceutical industry) don't like... and declares them "notorious" for not doing enough to please the execs in those industries in cracking down on infringement. TorrentFreak points us to the latest filing from the MPAA, which is chock full of... not a single surprise. Basically it just names all the websites that it doesn't like because they challenge its business model. Same old story. But where it gets a little interesting is where the MPAA gleefully talks up how totally awesome it was when the feds shut down Megaupload, and implies that life would be that much grander if the feds did that kind of thing more often:
This year's seizures of Megaupload.com and Megavideo.com by the Department of Justice illustrate the extent and impact that hosting hubs have on the online landscape. Prior to the seizures, Megavideo.com (Alexa 177) and Megaupload.com (Alexa 72) were estimated to receive 3,447,7741 and 2,640,8452 unique visitors each month, respectively. Megaupload.com alone was estimated to have consumed 11.4% of the Internet bandwidth in Brazil. When these two websites were taken down, many linking websites, custom search engines, and custom streaming scripts that relied on the sites for content became inoperable. Some websites were abandoned by their operators, others lost traffic, while still others shifted their business model. For example, Wupload.com (Alexa 918), which was featured in MPAA's filing last year, disabled file sharing. Affiliate programs that paid uploaders for content were also discontinued or removed by many hubs. Further, infringing content was purged by operators in bulk, which was followed by uploaders who deleted their own files to prevent the hubs from profiting on the uploads without paying incentives. In sum, the impact of these seizures was massive and the hub landscape is still recovering.I have to admit that I'm not sure I understand the comma notation in those unique visitor numbers (don't you normally put a comma every 3 digits rather than 4? Is that a phone number? Are they talking about 3.4 million or 34 million?).
But, either way, the whole bit of glee over Megaupload is fairly unseemly given a few key points. First off, the absolute disaster of the case against Megaupload so far. Eventually, they may get their act together, but to date, it's involved missing or destroyed evidence, questions about the warrant, illegal spying, more requests to destroy evidence and general attempts to demonize the people involved. While Megaupload may eventually be found guilty, that's far from certain at this point. All of these errors are certainly raising significant doubts about the DOJ's ability to understand what's actually happening.
And it's that last fact which highlights why the takedown process here is totally broken. Even if Megaupload is eventually cleared, the company will have lost more than a year (and likely more) to fight the lawsuit, and the company, as it is, is basically dead. It's still never been adequately explained why the MPAA can't do what the law requires, and take the targets to court, seeking an injunction. These aren't drug lords they're dealing with. They can be tracked down and found (without resorting to illegal spying). That's not to say the sites should be legal, necessarily. That's fact-specific. But, the idea that the US government, at the urging of Hollywood, should just take down a business, without letting the site owner even express their side, is so extreme as to be laughable. You would think that, given how badly this whole thing may backfire in its face, that MPAA would have started backing away from the whole "Megaupload is a perfect example" stump speech by now. But it seems to want to play out that lie for a while. To then play that up as a good example really suggests that the MPAA is in denial and still thinks that the scary caricature of Kim Dotcom that it has built up in the minds of Hollywood execs, is still a legitimate thing.
Filed Under: censorship, notorious markets, ustr
Companies: mpaa


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Kraft Says Good Morning With Belvita Breakfast Biscuits
East Hanover, N.J.-based Nabisco, a Kraft Foods brand, introduces belVita Breakfast Biscuits to the U.S. While breakfast biscuits are new to Americans, Europeans have enjoyed them for years. In fact, Kraft Foods introduced its first breakfast biscuits in France more than a decade ago and now sells belVita biscuits in more than 10 countries including Belgium, Czech Republic, Portugal, Hungary, Poland, the UK and Brazil.
Available in the cookie/cracker aisle, belVita Breakfast Biscuits are lightly sweet, whole-grain, crunchy breakfast treats, specially developed to provide nutritious sustained energy to fuel your body for the morning, yet fit into today's busy on-the-go lifestyles. Kraft Foods worked with nutritionists to create belVita, which provides sustained energy from a combination of ingredients and a special baking process that helps preserve the integrity of the grain so that the carbohydrates are slowly released in the body.
Each individual package of four biscuits is portioned for breakfast, has 18-20g whole grains per serving, is a good source of fiber and has four B vitamins. They contain no high-fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oils, artificial flavors or sweeteners. They're available in three varieties: Blueberry, Golden Oat and Apple Cinnamon.
"What I've come to love about belVita Breakfast is its versatility," says Connie Guttersen, registered dietitian, author, creator of "The Sonoma Diet" and nutrition instructor at the Culinary Institute of America. "Whether pairing belVita Breakfast Biscuits with peanut butter, sliced bananas and a glass of low-fat milk or enjoying it on-the-go with a non-fat latte and an orange, there are numerous ways to enjoy belVita Breakfast as part of a nutritious breakfast."
Suggested retail price is $3.69.


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What You'll Get
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The Real Racists
By James Coleman
A New Visions Commentary paper published March 1999 by The National Center
for Public Policy Research, 777 N. Capitol St. NE #803, Washington, DC 20002, 202/371-1400, Fax 202-408-7773, E-Mail email@example.com, Web
http://www.nationalcenter.org. Reprints permitted provided source
is credited.
Far too many Americans have it in their heads that racism makes a home on the right wing of our political spectrum.
It is the political left, however, that has presided over the decline of our inner cities. It is people from left-wing circles of thought that equate poverty and minorities, oftentimes using the terms "black" and "poor" interchangeably. This mindset, of course, is the impetus behind "affirmative action" policies for minorities in general and blacks in particular. Leftists assume that all blacks need a hand, even if their last name is Cosby or Winfrey. It is also the left that assumes that black children can't learn proper English and should therefore not be criticized for speaking "ebonics." And it is the left that says our children shouldn't be held to the same academic or ethical standards of "normal" people.
Luminaries of the left, led by people like Jesse Jackson, say we even need to rethink thousands of years of western jurisprudence because black men can't resist the sort of behavior that lands them in jail. While racism might actually play a role in higher conviction rates among black felons, most of those men had to do something to land in court in the first place. Clearly, leftists see black people as "less than" and "regrettable."
Now leftists have gone even further into the muck that is racism. When Clarence Thomas was nominated to the Supreme Court, his former co-worker Anita Hill came forward to accuse him of talking about things that were inappropriate in a work situation, especially between a boss and his subordinate. Then-Congresswomen Barbara Boxer and Patricia Schroeder led a deafening call to attempt to deny Thomas his appointment to become an associate justice. At the time, racism didn't come to my mind despite Justice Thomas's reference to the campaign against him as a "high-tech lynching." Since I am not one to look for racism under every rock, I chalked Thomas's opponents' tactics up to part of an ideological war.
But that was B.C.: Before Clinton. Now, President Clinton stands accused of rape. Gone are the Coke cans of the Thomas controversy. There are no pubic hairs or no porno movie reviews that dogged Clarence Thomas - this concerns bare, naked, criminal rape. Where is Senator Boxer now? Where is Patricia Schroeder? Why aren't the feminists storming Capitol Hill demanding "blood" like they did after hearing Anita Hill's accusations? Is this just another salvo in an ideological war or something more insidious?
In times past, white men could do horrible things and get away with them while blacks could be accused of less and catch hell. Even without knowing for sure if Clinton or Thomas are guilty, the way the accusations are treated speaks volumes about the who is seen as guilty and who is not. A black man alleged to have talked about the size of his sex organ and his sexual prowess with no corroboration sent feminists into hysterics. When a white man was accused of a violent rape with actual physical evidence of an assault, however, feminists turned a deaf ear toward the accuser.
Ideological? Maybe. But in light of liberal attitudes that blacks can't live up to the same standards as white Americans, it is highly likely that these liberals believe a black man probably did do what that woman said he did. "Everybody knows" that black men can't control their animal sexuality (or, as Jesse Jackson and his posse might suggest, their antisocial urges).
As much as the opinion-makers might like to paint the conservative movement as the modern home of racism, the double-standard of the left looks a lot like the same double-standard we used to see in the Jim Crow jurisprudence of our not-distant-enough past.
(James Coleman is a member of the African-American leadership network Project 21 and a former member of the Black Panthers. He can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com.)


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text:
Barbara Oliver, a pillar of the Bay Area theater scene and the founder of Berkeley's celebrated Aurora Theatre, died Monday at her home in Berkeley. She was 85.
A silver-haired dynamo with a keen intellect and a quick wit, Oliver suffered a debilitating stroke in March, and her condition recently took a turn for the worse. She died in her sleep surrounded by her family. The loss can be keenly felt in the tight-knit regional theater community.
"She was without a doubt the Grand Dame of local theater," says Terence Keane, former communications director at Berkeley Rep, "She was so generous with so many people, and she had such a huge impact on local theater. She will be dearly missed. Her creativity, her intelligence, her encouragement, her warmth. It's a real loss."
Born in Ohio in 1927, the veteran actor and director studied drama at the Carnegie Institute of Technology, now Carnegie Mellon University. She ran a community theater in North Dakota with her late husband, Bill Oliver, who went on to become a legendary theater professor at Cal.
In 1958, the power-theater couple moved to Berkeley, where they raised their children, all of whom became artists in their own right. Soren became an actor, Anna is a costume designer and Michael is a musician. Barbara Oliver first came to fame as one of core company members in the early days of Berkeley Repertory Theatre. As time passed, Oliver feared becoming pigeonholed in the roles of "nannies and grannies" as she often put it.
"I am deeply saddened by the loss of Barbara, who was an inspiration to me. Her generosity of spirit, her profound intelligence and her devilish wit were only parts of what made Barbara one of the greatest artists I have ever known," says Jonathan Moscone, artistic director of Cal Shakes. "I will miss her."
An indomitable spirit never daunted by a challenge, she took matters in her own hands. She produced a play about George Sand, Dorothy Bryant's "Dear Master," which was such a runaway success it launched the formation of the Aurora Theatre in 1992.
"Like many people in the Bay Area, my life has been irrevocably changed for the better by having met Barbara Oliver," said current Aurora artistic director Tom Ross. "Trying to distill the legacy that Barbara left … is difficult, as she created such a vast foundation, but ultimately, I think that she instilled the belief that we should move forward and grow steadily with absolute integrity and to show unequivocal fairness to all."
Oliver stewarded the troupe from its early shoestring days in the cramped confines of the Berkeley City Club to its current posh downtown venue. She retired as artistic director in 2004 but frequently stole the limelight with her acting. She gave heart-melting turns as the aged governess Anfisa in "Uncle Vanya" at Berkeley Rep and the ashcan bound Nell in "Endgame" at San Francisco's American Conservatory Theater. She also directed many memorable shows such as "Wilder Times" at the Aurora.
"It goes without saying that she was a talented actor, director, and teacher," says Ross. "Her passion was endless, and she could inspire nearly anyone."
Indeed, Oliver nurtured more than one generation of theater artist. She always had time to dole out sage advice, encourage women to take leadership roles in a craft dominated by men and call you "kiddo."
Asked about her legacy, set designer Mellie Katakalos perhaps put it best: "Barbara Oliver was fierce."
A private funeral service will be held on June 8. A public memorial service has yet to be scheduled. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made to the organizations close to her heart: Saint Mark's Episcopal Church in Berkeley and her beloved Aurora Theatre Company.
Contact Karen D'Souza at 408-271-3772. Read her at www.mercurynews.com/karen-dsouza, follow her at Twitter.com/KarenDSouza4 and like her at Facebook.com/Dsouzatheaterpage.


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The Bluffton High softball team kept its season alive Monday with a 4-1 home victory over Cane Bay in the SCHSL Class AAA playoffs.
Bluffton (18-3), ranked third in Class AAA, will visit No. 6 Georgetown at 5 p.m. Wednesday in the District VII finals. The Bobcats will need to win twice to advance to the Lower State tournament. Georgetown upset top-seeded Bluffton 3-2 on Saturday.
Courtney Smith pitched a five-hitter with eight strikeouts to end Cane Bay's season. The sophomore gave up an unearned run on a first-inning error.
Mikyla Houghlan drove in Whitney Morrell on a groundout to tie it in the fourth. Morganne Parker scored Brittany Windish on an infield single and Alexia Cortez raced home on a throwing error in the fifth.
Houghlan made it 4-1 with another RBI grounder in the sixth, scoring Kim Kerby.


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Jack Kibbie served Iowa well
As the Iowa Senate convenes Monday, it will do so without one of its longest-serving stalwarts.
Jack Kibbie, who represented north central Iowa in the Senate continuously since 1988, chose to retire in the wake of redistricting in 2012. Most recently, Kibbie represented what was until this year Senate District 4, which included Emmet, Kossuth, Palo Alto, Pocahontas and Humboldt counties, as well as the townships of Jackson, Deer Creek and Johnson in Webster County. Prior to his retirement, Kibbie, the longest-serving member of the chamber, served as president of the Senate, co-chair of the Ethics Committee, vice chair of the Rules and Administration Committee and vice chair of the State Government Committee. He also served on the Agriculture and Veterans Affairs committees and the Government Oversight Committee.
Though Kibbie had been a constant presence in Iowa's upper house for more than two decades, his service to the state spanned a much longer time span.
Kibbie served in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1960 to 1964, and served an earlier term in the Senate from 1964 to 1968.
It was during this initial term that Kibbie helped create Iowa's community college system, a vital component of education in the state. Kibbie sponsored legislation to establish the system in 1965, actions which have lead many of his colleagues to refer to him as the "father" of Iowa community colleges. The legislation created 15 community college districts across Iowa, governed by local boards of trustees. The former junior colleges in each of those districts became a part of the newly created community college districts.
During his senate tenure, Kibbie has continuously been a strong advocate for community colleges, to the benefit of these institutions and the communities they serve. In 2011, Kibbie was the inaugural recipient of his namesake John P. (Jack) Kibbie Champion of Community College Award, created in his name by the Iowa State Education Association Higher Education Committee.
Kibbie's actions toward this goal leave a legacy of state-spanning educational excellence of which he – and Iowa – may be very proud indeed. The Messenger salutes Kibbie's service to the state and wishes him all the best in retirement.


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This Another Place In Time photo features Ruth Whaley Simpson at home on Falmouth-Williamstown Road on an unknown date. Simpson was a cafeteria worker at Grant County High School during the late 1980s and early 90s.
Thanks to her daughter, Rekenna Simpson Rogers, for submitting the photo and Steve Jenkins of Williamstown for calling in a correct guess.
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i think we got some wind today at pt jolly
becouse of a cut off low..just off sf coast,
that poped up on the sat.image ?
... ... ..... . .. .. .
Todays wind at berkely..
Local weather resources and topics.
Moderator: BayAreaKite
Todays wind at berkely..
i think we got some wind today at pt jolly
becouse of a cut off low..just off sf coast,
that poped up on the sat.image ?
... ... ..... . .. .. .
the wind was super steady too, right up until 5:50 (very easy to identify from the graph) when out of nowhere it shut off for a minute and when it came back on it was a bumpy ride back to the beach on punchy gusts. standing on the sand after coming back in, we could see the gusts coming in 30 seconds ahead of time out on the water.
i, too, thought it was just coming down as i launched, but you called it charlie. "looks like you guys gonna get a session". that was like the opposite of crying wolf... i think..
Sherman switched from north to west 18 after sundown; that's usually a pretty good sign for the next day. If the north wind is done, the valley's gonna heat up pretty good tomorrow and start pulling the onshore flow in. Saturday is supposed to get stronger Onshore and clouding up so it might get gusty but still good.
Going out on a limb here, since the marine forecast is still calling for 5-15.
aka Pablito
It says 10M, but it's really a 9.
check out paul...call n it, and ya no wind forcast today...yet.
http://sat.wrh.noaa.gov/satellite/satlo ... fog&size=2
i hope you get nice and toastie today paul.
bobby iam not a master,like you iam still learning.
flip, when i left there were 9 kiters out some of them up and some of them down
ya berkelys holie, so just kite the gust.
i hope we all get to do it again today.
Sorry Dave, it's all cloudy now; some low coming in from up north I guess. It was warmer at 8 am than it is now. Not looking good.
They're calling for 20-30 NW on the coast Sunday. Might be a good Stinson day for us beginner wave riders.
aka Pablito
It says 10M, but it's really a 9.
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General Inquiries and Collection Information
Allison J. Shultz, PhD
Assistant Curator, Ornithology
(213) 763-3378
Kimball L. Garrett
Collections Manager
(213) 763-3368
Our mailing address:
Ornithology Department
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County
900 Exposition Blvd.
Los Angeles, California 90007 USA
Get special access to the Museum's vast collections on these exclusive tours!
Learn More
Ornithology, the study of birds, is one of the founding disciplines of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. At the core of the program is a research collection of 121,000 bird specimens, representing over 5,400 species. Our collections are particularly strong for North America, Africa, South America, and the Pacific Ocean. The bird skeleton collection, representing over 17,000 individuals, is among the three largest in western North American and is an important resource for the Museum's well-known studies of fossil birds.
Dr. Shultz started as the Curator of Ornithology at the Natural History Museum in 2018. She is an ornithologist who integrates research across evolutionary timescales to gain a comprehensive understanding of the processes that produce the patterns of biodiversity. She received her BA from the University of California, Berkeley in 2007, where she worked at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology. She received her MS in 2011 at San Diego State University under Dr. Kevin Burns, where she studied the evolution of plumage color in the tanagers. In 2017, she obtained her PhD under Dr. Scott Edwards at Harvard University, where she studied the genomic impacts of host-pathogen co-evolution in birds. After graduating, she spent a year as a Bioinformatics Scientist at the Informatics Group at Harvard University. Learn more about her research on her research website.
Dr. Campbell has been a Curator at the Natural History Museum since 1977. His first duties were as Curator of the large collection of fossil birds from the Rancho La Brea tar pits at the newly opened George C. Page Museum, then as Curator of all fossil birds in the collections of the Natural History Museum. He has served as Curator of Birds, responsible for all collections of birds, both fossil and recent, since 1997. His research interests focus on the study of fossil birds and avian functional morphology. A critic of the hypothesis that birds are living dinosaurs, he has argued that all so-called "feathered dinosaurs" are, in fact, simply fascinating early members of the avian family tree unrelated to dinosaurs. Dr. Campbell also has led numerous geological and paleontological expeditions to the Amazon Basin of South America, and he has published extensively on the geologic history of the Amazon and its paleofaunas.
Having served as Collections Manager since 1982, Kimball Garrett is responsible for the care, use, and growth of the ornithological collections as well as the databases associated with the collections. He is considered an authority on the field identification and status and distribution of the birds of California and particularly of the Los Angeles region. He is a past president of Western Field Ornithologists, a long-standing member of that organization's California Bird Records Committee, and has served on the American Birding Association's Checklist Committee.
Free-flying parrots and parakeets are a familiar sight in urban areas of California, as well as in southern Texas and Florida. The Yellow-chevroned Parakeet, Brotogeris chiriri, native to the southern Amazon Basin of South America, was imported to the United States in large numbers in the 1970s and 1980s for the pet bird trade; such importations are now mostly prohibited by the Wild Bird Conservation Act of 1992. These small parakeets thrive in the Los Angeles area because of abundant food from planted trees such as the silk floss tree (which provides abundant seeds in its large green pods), date palms, and coral trees and certain eucalypts with their nectar-rich flowers. Exposition Park regularly hosts flocks of these birds — watch for them in the silk floss trees (the ones with the thorny green trunks, big green seed pods, and, in season, showy pink flowers) around the north side of the Museum, the coral trees at the east end of the Rose Garden, and any flowering eucalyptus trees. Flocks are also often seen in the Los Angeles Civic Center, Macarthur Park, Echo Park, and many other areas. In the ornithology collections at the Natural History Museum we have added a number of specimens of parrots and parakeets from the populations established in Southern California, all collected through the salvaging of birds found dead or moribund. Such series of specimens help document the identification, morphology, and genetics of "founding" populations which, over the decades, may become abundant and widespread in urban regions.


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AceShowbiz - Drake is officially the most streamed artist in Spotify's first decade of existence.
The music streaming service launched in October 2008, with bosses at the firm celebrating its 10th birthday this month. To mark the occasion executives have released lists documenting the most streamed artists since the launch.
Drake leads a male-dominated most streamed artist list, ahead of Ed Sheeran, Eminem, and The Weeknd. The first woman on the list is Rihanna in fifth, who was also the first artist to reach 1 billion streams, a milestone she reached back in 2013.
Kanye West, Coldplay, Justin Bieber, Calvin Harris and Ariana Grande complete the top ten most played artists.
There's no place for Beyonce Knowles and Taylor Swift in the top ten - as Taylor boycotted the service for three years before relenting last year, and Beyonce debuted her smash hit 2016 album "Lemonade" on her husband Jay-Z's rival firm "Tidal".
Both did make the list of Spotify's top ten female artists however, alongside Rihanna, Ariana, Sia Furler, Nicki Minaj, Adele, Selena Gomez, Katy Perry, and Shakira.
Spotify chiefs also revealed their most streamed albums of the past decade, with Ed's 2017 record "÷" (divide) coming out on top. Justin Bieber's "Purpose" takes second spot, ahead of Drake's "Views" in third.
The "Thinking Out Loud" hitmaker also has the most played song on Spotify, as his track "Shape of You" has proved the most popular of the decade with users. Drake's "One Dance" is listeners' second favourite, while The Chainsmokers and Halsey's "Closer" is third.
Spotify bosses also released a list of the most played songs of each year, with The Killers' "Human" the most played in 2008, and, "Shape of You", users' favourite last year.
Most-streamed songs of all time:
Top-streamed artists of all time:
Most-streamed female artists globally:


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H. Lee (Henry Lee IV) to Judge Woodward (Augustus Brevoort Woodward) September 15, 1824.
Six page, double-sided letter, except for the last two pages, which are single-sided. The last page contains a note from John C. Calhoun. Letter found in Florida Supreme Court case files, Wallet 774.
This early territorial letter was found among a batch of 1850s case files from the Florida Supreme Court. In the letter, Henry Lee IV (1787-1837), son of General Henry Lee (1756–1818) and half-brother of Robert E. Lee, writes to Judge Augustus Brevoort Woodward, judge of Florida's Middle District superior court, asking Woodward to support and file a claim on Lee's behalf for land in East Florida.
According to Harry Lee (an historian and speechwriter for politicians, including John C. Calhoun and Andrew Jackson), his father, General "Light-Horse Harry" Lee of Revolutionary War fame, acquired the property in East Florida (the location of the property is not mentioned) from Colonel Thomas Brown (1750-1825), a British officer who led Loyalist troops in Florida and Georgia during the American Revolution. General Lee may have met Brown in the Bahamas or elsewhere in the Caribbean, where Lee spent the last years of his life, and where Brown lived after Britain's defeat in the Revolutionary War. Harry Lee reinforces his claim to the Florida property by enclosing three documents (not found with the letter) that he believes will secure his ownership. These documents, separated from the letter at some point and believed lost, were later found in case files from the 1830s. The enclosed documents are included after the note from Calhoun. One of those documents, a copy of an original land grant from the Creeks and Seminoles to Thomas Brown, can be seen here
Lee's correspondent, Judge Woodward (1774-1827), was one of Florida's earliest territorial judges. Before arriving in Tallahassee in 1824, Woodward had achieved prominence as a jurist in Michigan, where he served as one of the original superior court judges, chief justice of the territory's supreme court, and planner of the City of Detroit: Woodward drew up extensive plans for the redesign of Detroit after fire destroyed the settlement in 1805. Judge Woodward served on the Florida bench for only three years (he died in 1827), but during that time he organized Florida's territorial court of appeals.
The final page of Lee's letter to Woodward consists of a note from John C. Calhoun, who testifies that Henry Lee is the son of General Lee. A congressman, senator, vice president of the United States, and frequent holder of cabinet-level office, Calhoun (1782-1850) was serving as secretary of war under President James Monroe when he wrote the recommendation for Lee, who had written speeches for Calhoun.
The following transcription of Lee's letter contains all of the original text (no changes have been made in spelling or grammar).
Dear Sir,
I must beg you to excuse the liberty I am about to take with you, and must trust to your goodness for my apology. By inspecting the enclosed papers No—1, 2, and 3 you will perceive that No. 1 is an authentic copy of a grant from the Creek and Seminole Indians of a certain territory in E. Florida to Col. Thomas Browne an officer of the British army during the American War—that No. 2 is an authentic copy