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Ava Devine281,451 Views, 728 Likes, 3,778 Favorites Tags: Average Body, Brunette, Enhanced Tits, Innie Pussy, Large Tits, Latina, Medium Ass, Shaved Pussy
Videos of Ava Devine
Watch this video now!
Two big black dicks double penetrate
Monsters of Cock - 87,832 Views, 4 Likes, 2,475 Favorites
I know you not reading this to read about how Ava Devine got gaped open by a monster. No she didnt do that. She got stuffed by two monster cocks!! Ava is so nasty with it she can take anything. This week shes going to get fucked by Jack Napier and the new kid,They call him Moe the monster and he's about to bite a lot more than he can chew. Ava loves having cock in her mouth and in her ass and then in her pussy and back to her mouth. You gotta watch this double team its intense.
Watch this video now!
Pornstar takes on 8 random cocks that
Bang Bus - 87,174 Views, 1 Likes, 1,660 Favorites
Hey guys! The BangBus guys wanted me to come down to Miami and team up with them and find random guys on the street to fuck me in any hole they wish! It was a huge success and I got to fuck a couple hot young guys and loved every minute of it and I know will will too!
Watch this video now!
College party gets invaded by a lot of
Dorm Invasion - 68,636 Views, 1 Likes, 1,251 Favorites
College boys better shape up or ship out. These girls are here to tuenthings up . We got Diamond Kitty who loves to torture the boys into doing shit they thought they'd ever do. Then we got the gorgeous Britney Amber who is holding some grip is slapping that thing around making all the boys feel in adequate (lets just say they don't match up). And finally the nastiest and sluttiest Porn super star to come along AVA FUCKING DEVINE! She is going to fuck all the boys in college ten at a time. I don't think there is a enough college for these three girls.
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Pound Mom's Asshole!
BangBros Remastered - 58,829 Views, 1 Likes, 1,531 Favorites
A classic for the fans of BangBros! We found a good one for all of you to enjoy. This is a MilfLessons featuring the sexy AvaDevine. This mom loves young men fucking her fat pussy and tearing her tight ass-hole apart. Who else better to give it to her just the way she likes it, but JMAC. He does her justice. Just the way AvaDevine likes it. Deep and hard. Oh lets not forget her facial. Enjoy!
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The Amazing Ava Devine!!!
Magical Feet - 28,525 Views, 47 Likes, 374 Favorites
On today's new update of Magical Feet. We have the always sexy and talented Miss Ava Divine. Showing off one of her many talents. This delicious flesh of a woman is something to witness. She's tall, sexy, thick and a wonderful sight. Damn! I would love to have my cock stuffed between her feet. Mojito is in for a fantastic treat. What a lucky fucker. Enjoy!
Watch this video now!
Three Cocks Divine!!
Bang Bus - 50,160 Views, 126 Likes, 1,153 Favorites
Hey there ladies and gents, do we have a treat for you guys..this week we have Ava Divine and were out huting for some guys out in the beach and we came across a lot of guys out there but a lot of guys got scared or intimidated(same thing) but we do get around some brave young men who deicde to get on the bus with this woman lol..but let me tell you something they did there thing in there and this girl loves every minute of it..STAY TUNED
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Ava Divine has found her match?
Can He Score? - 58,683 Views, 186 Likes, 1,503 Favorites
OMG! Ava Divine says the dirtiest things I've ever heard. Check this out, We hooked up Ava up with some Chump on a blinddate. I swear within minutes of them meeting, She was eating out his asshole. Slurping out last nights dinner. This chick has no shame. And the words that come out of her mouth..wow! She is just dirty. We took her to a porn shop and she started sucking off all the customers dicks..while her date watched! Wait til you see what she does when she's alone with him.CAN HE SCORE!?
Watch this video now!
Ava Devine Takes on The Petite Dildo!
Big Tit Cream Pie - 52,061 Views, 4 Likes, 1,615 Favorites
Welcome back all of you Big Tits Cream Pie lovers. On today's new update we have the beautiful and talented Ava Devine. This babe does wonders! Mike was amazed at Ava Devine's many talents. She literally shoves bat sized dildo's inside her tight butt-hole. Crazy right, but Mike didn't mind not one bit. he enjoyed every minute of Ava Devine. Especially when it was his bat shoved up her ass. Come check this crazy shit out. Enjoy!
Watch this video now!
Ava Wants A Big Cock!
MILF Lessons - 48,838 Views, 1 Likes, 1,217 Favorites
Ava Devine is one fine milf with a hunger for some serious cock. She drove up in her banging car to sooth her everlasting urge for cock. Ava came in horny as fuck touching her self, and sticking foreign objects in her wet cookie and asshole, rubbing her huge tits, and fucking herself with anything she can find. Once Ramon showed up, Ava almost lost her fucking mind; she was on his cock like white on rice! After sucking off Ramon, Ava wanted that big cock up her mature pussy, then she would ask for it up her ass! That's right, she took it like a champ and with a smile!
Watch this video now!
Ava Devine likes the taste of her ass.
MILF Lessons - 41,507 Views, 1 Likes, 1,030 Favorites
This week Ava Devine came to my house. She was hot and extremely horny. Her body was glisining with sweat and sexual excitement. Everything she touched made her hair stand up and her goose bump. She was aroused as she massaged her body and teased her breast. Ava Devine is hott. Ava then began to describe what she wanted to do to my cock and where she wanted to put it...in her Ass! I watcher Ava caress her pussy and finger her ass, suculantly placing that same finger in her mouth and sucking the ass juices that had accumilated there. She then playfully massaged her pussy until she came. Ava wanted my cock and I was all too willing. I let her unzip my pants and slobber my cock. She kept me...
Watch this video now!
Happy Endings Massage with Anal!
Milf Soup - 49,539 Views, 2 Likes, 1,595 Favorites
That day Enzo decided to go and get some massage. So he called and made an appointment. The same day Ava (a local masseuse) was dying to suck some dick and get fucked in the ass. Fortunately for Enzo, Ava was available for scheduled appointment and fortunately for Ava, Enzo happen to have a giant cock that Ava was so hungry for. I don't know if I should tell you the whole story of whats happened there cause there is no way I can describe it in words. I'll just tell you that once she saw his monster she became speechless. All the action was nearby his erection. Massage slowly turned into a hand job and then was faded completely. He fucked the shit out of her ass. That was amazing. Check it...
Watch this video now!
Ava's Misbehavin'
MILF Lessons - 29,846 Views, 90 Likes, 839 Favorites
Ava Devine is the new teacher on the block. She's been having trouble with C-lo who's been nothing but trouble for her in her class. She discussed her issue with the other teachers who's had him before and they all suggested the same thing. That she keep him after class and talk to him. But the teachers also told her to do one more thing ...fuck the shit out of him. So thats what she did she sucked his cock and then fucked him on the window sill, on the floor and on her desk. One thing she did different, something no other teacher had done before her she let C-lo put it in her ass and she loved every moment of it.
Watch this video now!
MILF Morning Sex
Milf Soup - 42,314 Views, 2 Likes, 1,174 Favorites
Everyone has wet dreams, but noones knows actually what goes inside a woman's head. Their fantasies, their appettite for sex. In this great episode, we go inside a hot MILF dreams. This hot and sexy MILF starts fantasising giving a blowjob and then fucking like crazy. She is so wet that you are not going to wait to jerk off with their white panties. Now get ready to go inside the perverted sexual mind of this MILF.
Watch this video now!
Usually when you think about a mom words like horny, nympho and cock addict don't come to mind. But thanks to this week's mother, things will never be the same. Her name is Ava Devine and by just looking at her you can tell she is a hot MILF with great huge cans and a Ass Parade worthy butt. But once you sit down with her and engage on a conversation, you will quickly realize you're dealing with a freak. She took control from the start and wanted Jmac to fuck her in the ass instead of the puss. So sit back and enjoy some good ass fucking action from the lovely Ava Devine.


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Whether your child eats the school lunch or your own hand-packed version, there's a chance she might not be getting enough fruits and veggies. U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics show that American adults and teens are chronic under-eaters when it comes to produce. And while we likely do a better job with our little ones, per capita annual consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables has been roughly flat for the past two decades.
Of course, a concerned parent piling produce into lunch boxes might also be pondering the trace levels of pesticides that could be present. It's a valid concern: USDA research shows that pesticides are detected in 7 of every 10 fruit and vegetable samples tested. Very little is known about the safety of real-world pesticide exposures, but the available studies of people point to increased risks of neurological damage in children. While this is unsettling, the answer is not skipping the produce.
So what's a parent to do?
- Buy organic if you can. Yes, those organic peaches and apples are more expensive, but they're a worthwhile investment – especially if you're pregnant or feeding kids. Exposure to toxic chemicals – such as pesticides – is especially risky for smaller, still-developing bodies.
- Buy organic when it matters most. Every year EWG ranks popular fruits and vegetables based on the amount of pesticide residues found on them. Sweet peas, mangos and avocados, for example, are all on EWG's "Clean 15" list, meaning they have the lowest levels of pesticide residue. Celery, peaches and strawberries are among the "Dirty Dozen" with the highest levels. When budgeting your produce dollars, you can feel better about buying conventional when you know which ones have lower pesticide residues.
Download EWG's Shopper's Guide to Pesticides in Produce and the handy iPhone app at FoodNews.org. You can get a grocery bag tag for a small donation, too.
- Take a trip to the farmers' market. Buying local doesn't necessarily mean "pesticide-free," but it does give you the chance to talk to the farmers themselves and find out what growing methods they use. Small farms may not always be certified organic by the USDA, but sometimes they use little or no synthetic chemicals.
Here are a few low-pesticide fruits and veggies we'd like to see in more school lunches, whether packed by parents or offered in the cafeteria:
- Melon (cantaloupe, watermelon, honeydew) : High in vitamin C and potassium, cubes of these sweet, crunchy treats are easy to pack in a lunchbox or scoop onto a cafeteria plate.
- Cabbage: Full of B and C vitamins and fiber, cabbage goes great in salads and coleslaw and can be stuffed and baked.
- Sweet corn: I'm happy to chomp on a fresh, sweet ear of corn, even raw, though this might not be an option for kids who're losing or have lost a baby tooth in front. Off the cob and cooked, corn is tasty hot or cold.
With all this pesticide talk, let's be clear about the benefits of produce: The health benefits of a diet rich in fruits and vegetables outweigh the risks of pesticide exposure. EWG's Shopper's Guide can help reduce exposures to pesticides as much as possible for families wisely seeking to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables. Get the straight scoop about pesticides and produce from Dr. Weil in this short video.
Learn more about healthy school lunches – and the public policies that affect them – from Chef Ann Cooper, known as "The Renegade Lunch Lady," in her book, Lunch Lessons: Changing the Way We Feed Our Children.
Get Dr. Greene's Wellness Recommendations
Sign up now for a delightful weekly email with insights for the whole family.


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Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
There's a lot to learn when it comes to joining the Military, from the first meeting with a recruiter to training, choosing a career and taking advantage of benefits. On our FAQ page, we've collected the most common questions young adults and parents have about service. Keep in mind that these are general answers; more detailed information can be found on our Joining, Training, Working, Living and Guidance pages. For any other questions, it's best to contact a recruiter.
- What are the age requirements for joining the Military?
Each branch of the Service has different requirements. Minimum entrance age requirements are 17 (with parental consent) or 18 (without parental consent).
Review a chart of age requirements
- What are the physical requirements for joining the Military?
Because of the varying physical demands on service members in each branch, physical requirements vary greatly. These differences can vary even within each branch of the Service. Generally speaking, potential service members should be in good physical condition, of appropriate weight and able to pass a standard physical screening prior to entry.
For more specific information, please contact a recruiter.
- What are the minimum educational requirements to enlist in the Military?
Success in any branch of the Military depends on a good education, and a high school diploma is most desirable. Candidates with a GED can enlist, but some Services may limit opportunities. It is very difficult to be considered a serious candidate without either a high school diploma or accepted alternative credential. In any case, staying in school is important for entering the Military.
- How long are people who enter the Military obligated to serve?
The length of commitment depends greatly on the chosen Service, required training and a number of other variables. Military personnel may retire after 20 years of service and must retire after 30 years of service. It's best to contact a recruiter to get a clearer picture of what a potential service member's specific situation would call for.
- Can certain health problems prevent a candidate from serving?
As part of the entrance process for any service, prior to boot camp, new recruits will receive a physical exam. During that exam, they will be asked about their overall health. A recruit's input and the result of the exam will determine his or her ability to meet the health and physical fitness standards for military service. Because of the very particular and personal nature of this discussion, contact a recruiter for more specific information.
- Does having a criminal record disqualify a potential recruit from military service?
Each Service takes a different approach to evaluating the severity and number of offenses on a candidate's record. The results of this evaluation may — or may not — disqualify candidates.
- Are there special considerations for women enlisting in the Military?
All jobs including combat are open to women. The percentage of women serving on active duty in the Military has more than doubled since 1978. Clearly, women play a very important role in today's Military. Each Service has physical requirements specific to female enlistees.
- Can foreign-born American citizens join the Military?
Yes. U.S. Citizens or Permanent Resident Aliens (people who have an INS I-151/I-551 "Green Card") may join the U.S. Military.
- Can people join the U.S. Military if they are not American citizens?
Properly documented non-citizens may enlist. However, opportunities may be limited. Contact a recruiter for more advice on a specific situation.
For enlistment purposes, the United States includes Guam, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Palau.
- If a candidate is married or has children (dependents), can he or she enlist?
Each Service has specific policies relating to dependents, but in general, the Military will not accept applicants with more than two dependents under the age of 18. Waivers can be made on a case-by-case basis.
Contact a recruiter for more advice on a specific situation.
- How can candidates get specific military jobs that they're interested in?
First, candidates need to confirm that the careers they want are available. Thousands of different jobs are available, but not in each Service. Potential recruits and parents should review the job categories in the careers section of this site and then contact a recruiter. They can help candidates tailor their career paths in the Military.
- Where can I see a list of military occupations?
Review the careers section of this site.
- How can a young person learn what job might be good for him or her?
The ASVAB test helps young people identify the things they're good at, the things they're interested in and good job matches.
Learn more about the ASVAB
- What is pay like for military jobs?
For more information on pay and benefits, visit our compensation section.
- Is it possible to switch jobs once in the Military?
The short answer is "yes." However, many military jobs come with time commitments, so a service member might be obligated to remain in a specific career for the length of his or her contract. It is best to ask a recruiter for specifics, or, if already serving, to speak with the command career counselor.
- How often do service members get raises?
Service members usually receive a modest pay raise annually, to keep pace with the cost of living. In addition, raises are received when service members are promoted to the next pay grade. (This is generally associated with a new rank or the amount of time an individual has served.) Time between promotions varies based on service member performance.
Learn more about military compensation
- How long are people who enter the Military obligated to serve?
The length of commitment depends greatly on the chosen Service, required training and a number of other variables. Military personnel may retire after 20 years of service and must retire after 30 years of service. It's best to contact a recruiter to get a clearer picture of what a potential service member's specific situation would call for.
- What's the difference between the National Guard and the Reserve?
Both Reserve and National Guard units can be activated specifically for military missions, including missions abroad, and they may serve side-by-side with active-duty service members. Members of the National Guard, however, can be called up by either their governors or by the president. National Guard members can receive educational benefits that may vary from state to state, in addition to the Post-9/11 GI Bill. It's important to understand that the National Guard is considered an extension of the Reserve component.
- What is the pay rate for different ranks and Services?
Base Pay at each rank is the same across all Services, but many factors affect what a service member will actually earn. To get a better idea of potential salary and benefits, visit our compensation page.
- Will the Military pay for my education?
Qualified Service personnel can receive tuition benefits of up to $4,500 per fiscal year. For more information, visit our paying for college page.
- Can a service member get a degree while serving?
Yes. The Military provides assistance for a wide range of educational opportunities for its personnel. Continuing one's education while serving does require extra work but can pay huge dividends for the future. For more information, visit our paying for college page.
- Are there shorter enlistment commitments available?
Though technically not a "shorter" commitment, the Two-Year Enlistment program is available for some services. Contact a recruiter for more information on Two-Year Enlistment.
- What should candidates and parents ask recruiters?
Whatever they are curious about! Recruiters are the very best source of information about what the Military is like, what young people can get from the Service and all the steps in the process of recruiting. It matters that people get accurate and current information, and recruiters are the best resource for answers to even the most difficult questions regarding the Service.
- Don't recruiters just pressure young people to sign up?
Recruiters are there to find the right recruits, not just any recruits. The image of military recruiters as high-pressure people who stop at nothing to get a candidate to sign on the dotted line is not only old-fashioned — it's wrong. The Military needs candidates with the ability and the real desire to join. As such, pressuring people to join would do a disservice to both the recruit and to the Military.
- How can I find a recruiter to talk with?
A recruiter is the best resource to what the Military — and the specific Service he or she represents — is truly all about.
- What's the difference between a recruiter and an advisor?
There is no difference. All recruiters are advisors, helping you understand more about the options available to young people today.
- Why won't a recruiter call me back/return emails, etc.?
If you have made attempts to reach a local recruiter but received no contact, try again. And if you are having trouble finding a recruiter, be sure to visit our recruiter page to make sure you locate a recruiter convenient to you.
- How long are people who enter the Military obligated to serve?
The length of commitment depends greatly on the chosen Service, required training and a number of other variables. Military personnel may retire after 20 years of service and must retire after 30 years of service. It's best to contact a recruiter to get a clearer picture of what a potential service member's specific situation would call for.
- Are part-time service members eligible for benefits?
Yes. For more information on pay and benefits, visit our compensation page.
- Can members of the Military serve somewhere close to home?
Each of the full-time Services has Basic Training ("boot camp"), which is required for all entrants. After completing Basic Training, depending on further training requirements, a service member may be assigned to a location far from his or her home and may often be asked to relocate for assignments. As such, there are no guarantees a member will serve close to home.
Learn more about Basic Training
- What does "part-time duty" mean?
Part-time duty is service in the Reserve and/or National Guard. The Reserve and National Guard are great ways to serve the country while getting the training, skills and qualities offered by the Military.
- What happens to my job if I am in the Reserve or Guard and I get deployed?
Your job will be protected under the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act (USERRA). When your deployment is finished, you will be able to return. Some employers are also known for having military-friendly policies.
More about USERRA
Military Friendly Employers
- Is my child eligible to serve?
The minimum age required to join any Service is 18, or 17 with parental permission. Upper age ranges vary by Service and may be waived in some cases. Each Service also has specific height, weight and fitness requirements. Other factors that affect enlistment include education level, number of dependents and financial obligations.
See more requirements
- What are the differences between Active Duty, Reserve and National Guard?
The main differences between Active Duty, Reserve and National Guard are in time commitment and where service members are stationed. After enlisting, your child will leave to complete his or her Service's form of Basic Training. After that, active-duty service members are deployed to military locations in the U.S. or overseas and serve on a full-time basis.
In contrast, Reserve and National Guard units serve on a part-time basis in the U.S., so your child can still live close to home and maintain a career outside the Military. Reserve and Guard members drill one weekend a month and serve on Active Duty for roughly two weeks out of the year, mostly for advanced training. Both Guard and Reserve members can be activated and deployed overseas if called upon.
- How long is an average term of service?
While total length of service commitment varies based on Service branch need and occupational specialty, a first term is generally four years of Active Duty followed by four years in a Reserve unit or Individual Ready Reserve (IRR). IRR members do not drill and are not paid, but may be recalled to Active Duty in times of need until their eight-year total commitment has expired. For more specific information, contact a recruiter.
- Will my child be able to choose a specific career?
Jobs, or Military Occupational Specialties (MOS), are assigned based on several factors:
- Current and anticipated military needs
- Individual career aspirations
- Individual skills and qualifications
- Results from the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB test)
Essentially, the recruit has some say in career choice, especially once all critical jobs in a Service have been filled. A recruiter will discuss opportunities with your child to ensure the best career fit.
Explore possible career opportunities
- What are the day-to-day living conditions like?
On-base housing varies by rank and family situation. Most single service members starting out are required to live on-base for a period of time. Their housing is similar to a modern college dormitory or apartment complex. Soldiers with families who live on base have a variety of options, such as apartments or single-family homes.
Service members who live in off-base housing are given a housing allowance based on the number of people in their family and the cost of living in their area. Keep in mind that off-base housing is granted based on a service member's rank, family status, job responsibility and performance. A commanding officer must approve any request to live off-base.
- What kind of lifestyle will my child have?
As in the civilian world, military life varies depending on a service member's job. Once work or training is done for the day, however, a service member can do as he or she pleases. Many people are surprised to find the Military is much like any other job. Even during deployments, service members may have time for recreation and exploring new destinations.
- Can my child have a family while serving?
In general, DoD prohibits the enlistment of any applicant who has more than two dependents under the age of 18. While the Services are allowed to waive this policy, they often will not. In fact, most of the Services are even stricter in their policies:
* Army: Allows married applicants to have two dependents (or more with a waiver)
* Marine Corps: Waiver for any dependents is required. Eligibility for waiver is based on applicant's relationship to the dependent (married, unmarried, separated, divorced, etc).
* Navy: May require a waiver for applicants with dependents, and each case is reviewed independently to determine eligibility
* Air Force: Allows married applicants to have two dependents (or three with a waiver). Single applicants require a waiver for up to three dependents. No waivers granted for anyone with four or more dependents
* Coast Guard: Considers dependent waivers based on service needs
Once serving, all service members are free to marry and have children as they wish. Military health care can be applied to family members and female service members can take maternity leave. For more specific information, contact a recruiter.
- Can my child still go to college?
Yes. All Service branches offer the opportunity for higher education, both during and after service. Many military training programs count toward class credit, while some branches offer classes on-base or online (the Air Force, for instance, has its own community college). All service members are eligible for tuition support through the Post-9/11 GI Bill and other tuition repayment programs.
Learn more about money for college
High school students interested in officer careers may wish to enroll in a Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) program at the college of their choice. In exchange for a service commitment, ROTC provides college scholarships and leadership training.
Learn more about ROTC
Service Academies offer another opportunity for young adults. These academies provide a strong college education with the discipline of officer training.
Learn more about Service Academies
- What kinds of jobs are available to my child in the Military?
There are thousands of Military Occupational Specialties (MOS) across hundreds of fields. Some jobs require prior experience or advanced degrees, but most come with full training. The jobs available at any given time depend on what the Services need, so it's best to speak with a recruiter for specific information. In the meantime, you can explore possible career opportunities.
- What kind of training will my child receive?
To begin with, all recruits undergo their Service branch's version of Basic Training, commonly known as boot camp. While boot camp varies in duration from Service to Service, the focus is the same: preparing recruits physically, mentally and emotionally for their future in the Military.
Learn more about boot camp
Following Basic Training, service members receive advanced training in their specialty. A variety of training methods are used, including classroom instruction, field exercises and simulations. Ongoing training is also available in most specialties to keep service members' skills sharp.
Learn more about advanced training
- Will my child be shipped off right away?
Following boot camp, most Service branches allow new service members a short break to spend time at home. After that, service members generally spend another six months to a year in advanced training for their occupational specialty before deploying overseas or stateside.
- Where will my child be stationed?
With installations all over the globe, it is impossible to predict in advance where a service member will end up stationed. Service members are assigned jobs based on the Service's needs, their skills and training. The good news is that service members generally know well in advance where they'll be going. The other thing to keep in mind is that deployment does not automatically mean going to war. Service members may also be deployed for support in noncombat areas, or may be deployed domestically to help with disaster relief.
- How often will I see my child?
All active-duty service branches offer 30 days of paid vacation per year during which service members may spend time with their families or plan other Rest and Recuperation (R&R). Options like Space-Available Travel allow troops to fly free of charge on regularly scheduled military flights, provided there is a seat available. This is a great, inexpensive way to get to a destination. Family members are also welcome to visit their service member on-base.
- How will we stay in touch?
Even while deployed, service members will usually have access to postal mail, email, instant messaging and phone service (even while at sea). While communication may be restricted during certain missions, modern technology makes it relatively easy for your child to keep in touch.
If there is a family emergency, you should contact your local American Red Cross office, which can relay messages to U.S. military personnel worldwide.
- What will my child earn in the Military?
Military pay is based on rank and time in service, with raises occurring at regular intervals. Compensation is a combination of Base Pay and allowances (housing, medical insurance, and more). All Services use the same Base Pay scale.
Explore factors that affect compensation
Entrance Requirements FAQs
Entrance Requirements FAQs
Age, physical, educational and other requirement-related questions for those considering joining the Military.
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Careers FAQs
Careers FAQs
Questions about military career fields and how careers are assigned.
Expand All
Military Pay & Benefits FAQs
Military Pay & Benefits FAQs
Questions about service commitments, pay, educational, health and other benefits available to service members.
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Military Recruiting FAQs
Military Recruiting FAQs
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Types of Military Service FAQs
Types of Military Service FAQs
Questions about service commitments, pay, educational, health and other benefits available to service members.
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Parent FAQs
Parent FAQs
Common questions parents have about their child serving.
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Schedule a meeting with a recruiter and learn what to expect from your visit.
Get a complimentary DVD and magazine, plus additional information from each Service, sent to your home.
Continue your exploration with hundreds of Joining, Training, Working & Living videos.
FUTURES Magazine
Want to see even more of what life in the Military is really like? Check out our FUTURES magazine page! Order or download a complimentary magazine featuring an in-depth look into the lives of the people who make up today's Military, and be sure to check out the accompanying videos.


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by Mike Masnick
Tue, May 3rd 2011 6:57am
Filed Under:
breach, sony online entertainment
For the few of you left who still trusted Sony, now comes news of yet another massive data breach, this time for Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) users. SOE is their online multiplayer games offering. It sounds like a similar issue to the PSN hack, again with lots of data being taken. Making matters worse, apparently for players outside the US, Sony kept credit card numbers and/or bank details in an "outdated database" (read, one not properly secured or encrypted, apparently). And... Sony is now admitting that the breach occurred a few weeks ago, so this info has probably already been put to use. So, we've got the rootkit, the PSN and now the SOE issue. Who actually willingly pays Sony for anything any more?
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The eejit (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 6:27amThis could bankrupt Sony Entertainment, and speed the decline of Big Content. In the UK alone, such a breach can be charged with a maximum fine of �3 quadrillion, if puniuched to the fullest extent of the law.
As it is, if this is correct, then Sony are in massive breach of the PCI compliance laws in the EU. No wonder they announced freebies for all PSN customers over the weekend - they wanted to bury the bad news.
Dark Helmet (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 7:03am
Re:Yeah, as a PS3 owner I got that email as well. All I could do was shake my head at how pitiful it was.
BTW, I was gifted the PS3. I did not buy it on my own. Frankly, I'd have been perfectly happy playing a bunch of classic PC games from no later than, say, 2005, but oh well....
Marcus Carab (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 8:42am
Re: Re:dear god, when did games from 2005 become "classic"?
Hiiragi Kagami (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:10am
Re: Re: Re:dear god, when did games from 2005 become "classic"?
The moment a classic controller was no longer required to play them.
Kevin (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 2:40pm
Re: Re: Re: Re:You mean Quake III is not longer what all the kids are playing?
PrometheeFeu (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 4:08pm
Re: Re: Re: Re: Re:Those graphical games will never take on. I trust my entertainment to nethack and it has never let me down.
Dark Helmet (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 10:16am
Re: Re: Re:Look at lists of the highest rated games ever made, and you'll notice a trend. Here's an example:
There isn't even a single game on that list later than the 90'S! And when I think of the two glaring omissions in that top 10, they're both 2000 and before as well (Final Fantasy 7 & Deus Ex)....
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 10:41am
Re: Re: Re: Re:#21 Deus Ex
#88 Final Fantasy VII
Marcus Carab (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 11:40am
Re: Re: Re: Re:Yeah, before 2000 I can see calling "classic" - it was the 2005 I balked at. That's the year WoW and COD2 came out... if that's "classic" then most of my favourite games are "antique"
crade (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 3:01pm
Re: Re: Re: Re:Starcraft 2
Sean T Henry (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 8:50am
Re: Re:Or you could just go back to when games were still good (not including FPS) and had more than 8hrs of play and get a NES and SNES then buy used games.
Kingster (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 7:25am
Re:We can only hope that the EU takes this into the courts, as here in Amurica, us consumers can do nothing, now that the douchebags on the Supreme Court have quashed all the class-action lawsuits...
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 8:29am
Re:As it should. They could replace everyone in the company and I still won't buy. They have crossed ethic lines to many times. If you work for Sony, Start looking for work.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 8:41am
Re:Sony will get off with a slap on the wrist. You're delusional if you think this will bankrupt them.
The eejit (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:02am
Re: Re:But it should bankrupt them. Personally identifying data is a shitton more valuable than your capacity to consume. Moreover, I'd like to see you come up with an argument as to why this shouldn't cost Sony their ability to trade; the fact that this was discovered over a month ago opens them up to vicarious liability on failure to prevent fraud.
Had Sony even deigned to notify its consumers of the breach when it occurred, we would have been having a different discussion. As it is, the amount of stupid involved on Sony's part is insane.
Non-hashed PSN info? Check!
Holding CC details (including CVV)? Check!
Refusing to notify people after discovering the breach in a timely manner? Check!
Claiming everything's okay when it's clearly not? Check!
They don't deserve any money from anyone ever again.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 9:06am
Re: Re: Re:I never said that it shouldn't bankrupt them. I have a PS3 and I'm outraged by this news. They will more than likely get a slap on the wrist and get told to be better at protecting data and that is all the punishment they will receive.
I'm sure they will end up spending more money on PR to try and improve their image than they will on improving security. It's disgusting but that's just how it usually seems to go.
Doug D (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 10:51am
Re: Re: Re:The security breach happened a month ago. They found out about it on Sunday. They shut things down Monday. I'm not claiming they're innocent and should be exonerated, but I don't think they can be accused to sitting on this for any period of time.
PRMan, 3 May 2011 @ 10:52am
Re: Re: Re:I thought they didn't have the CVV... (Far be it from me to defend Sony, but I thought I read that.)
The eejit (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 1:04pm
Re: Re: Re: Re:Not for the PSN hack, but for the SOE hack, the CVVs were stored.
DannyB (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:14am> This could bankrupt Sony Entertainment
You say that like it's a bad thing?
Jay (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 7:04amSo let me get this straight...
Sony wants to limit music with Amazon...
They want to spy on you with rootkits...
You have no privacy through their network...
If you research these hacks, they'll sue you...
If you try to help them in any way, shape, or form, they won't work with you...
Well, I guess you don't have much to say except sayonara Sony.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 7:09am
Re:They have dishonored their ancestors and shamed themselves by failing to apologize for it in the traditional manner.
Dark Helmet (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 7:11am
Re: Re:"They have dishonored their ancestors and shamed themselves by failing to apologize for it in the traditional manner."
Well, yeah, but they can catch flies with chopsticks, so they've got that going for them....
Call me Al (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 7:25am
Re: Re:So if the boss of Sony committed ritual suicide then this would be forgiven?
It would probably be cheaper for them in the long run.
Rex Mitchell (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 7:34am
Re:"So if the boss of Sony committed ritual suicide then this would be forgiven?"
I won't be happy until the entire company falls on it's sword.
...Or at least the legal dept.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 9:25am
Re: Re: Re:The boss? That would merely be a good start. All CxO level executives would be a good finish.
The data of tens of millions -- if not over a hundred million people -- was exposed due to their profound negligence. The cost of that in monetary terms is well into the trillions. The cost in human terms is difficult to calculate: how do you give an identity theft victim their life back, their years of suffering and worry?
"Enormous" doesn't even begin to describe the impact of this. As a society, we're willling to lock up someone who merely steals a 4-year-old car. What should we do with Sony's personnel, who have done something that makes that microscopically inconsequential by comparison?
(And yes, 95% of the blame for this rests with Sony. Well-known, test, best-practice security techniques would have left the attackers with a massive encryption problem.)
Berenerd (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:44am
Re: Re:In some civilized countries, men who have failed as completely as you have, would thrust themselves on their swords...
Capitalist Lion Tamer (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 7:40am
Well, shit.I've got a PS3 and my choices are:
- Get an 360 that suffers from head alignment problems
- Step back a generation and get a Wii, along with none of the games I actually want to play
- Shell out a couple of grand on a higher-end computer
This doesn't include the cost of re-purchasing all the games I still like playing. Unfortunately, I've got a lot of money already riding on this hacked-up horse, so I kind of feel like I'm going to stick it out until the next gen arrives.
God help me, I love that locked-in feeling.
On the bright side, my Netflix still streams and I've got a really large Blu-ray player.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 8:01am
Re: Well, shit.Couple of grand?! You're definitely doing it wrong.
Re: Re: Well, shit.Probably. I just don't want to be adding RAM to video cards or swapping them out just to keep up.
I'm resistant to PC gaming anyway. I've only got a limited amount of time to play and I don't want to spend part of it tweaking settings and downloading patches. I know that's short-sighted, but it is what it is. I would also like to take advantage of various mods, but I also like that when I boot up the game on a console, I know it will work.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 8:04am
Re: Well, shit.Do this:
1- Sell playstation.
2- Buy new generation xbox (to avoid RRoD) used on ebay.
3-Get gamefly, that way you don't have to purchase every single game you owned.
crade (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:36am
Re: Re: Well, shit.new gen, old gen, you get < 1 year either way.
Capitalist Lion Tamer (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 1:07pm
Re: Re: Well, shit.New gen seems to have issues with head/tray alignment if Youtube's hundreds of videos on how to solve it is any indication.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 8:54am
Re: Well, shit.The new slim Xbox 360's don't seem to have any problems like the old ones. I use mine nearly every day to watch Netflix and play games and I have never had any problems with it.
captain obvious, 3 May 2011 @ 9:26am
Re: Well, shit.or, stop wasting time playing video games? You locked yourself and the key is right there in your hand.
crade (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:38am
Re: Re: Well, shit.Who has locked themselves and who is free to play video games?
Jay (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 11:23am
Re: Re: Re: Well, shit.There's always free games to play for time wasters... Kongregate
Armor Games
But playing some of the games on a PS3 or 360 can make it quite worth it. Ex. I love Scott Pilgrim, but Ubisoft won't release it for any system other than the consoles. Stupid of them, but it makes them money...
crade (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 3:04pm
Re: Re: Re: Re: Well, shit.Hell theres always work for time wasting. I'm talking about things I actually want to spend my time doing! :)
Re: Re: Well, shit.Whatever, Mom.
Kevin (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 2:47pm
Re: Re: Re: Well, shit.I heard that you were very disrespectful to you mother, so I am going to send you to your room for the rest of night to think about it. I don't wanna hear another peep out of you for the rest of the night.
Capitalist Lion Tamer (profile), 4 May 2011 @ 3:01am
Re: Re: Re: Re: Well, shit.Wherever it is that captain obvious lives, it must always be a beautiful day outside that I'm wasting away inside on the couch. I'm guessing southern California.
Gumnos (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 7:45am
The breech would have been discovered earlier......but malicious parties hid their activities using a rootkit found on CDs about 6 years ago.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 10:30pm
Re: The breech would have been discovered earlier...I would of went with this: The data breech was enabled by a Sony employee inserting a Sony "CD" into their work computer.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 7:59amSOE is dying anyway, with the long slow death of their flagship product EQ and no new games to really take its place (DCuo and Freerealms are flops) lets hope that Smedley is finally given his long overdue walking papers
AndyD273 (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 8:14am
Typo"Who actually willingly pays Sony for anything any more?"
Should read: Who actually willingly uses Sony's free services any more, let alone give them money.
An interesting solution to this and other services, go to a retailer that is a bit more trustworthy and get the PSN giftcards. Same goes for XBox live, iTunes, anyone else that wants your credit card number and might store it wrong.
Sean T Henry (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 8:55am
Re: TypoThe solution is not to use gift cards the solution is to not buy sony products and to legislate a minimum level of protection on stored consumer data. The minimum should not require a specific tech but have requirements that must be met using any means.
If you are really concerned about your CC# then use a CC# generating service provided by several Credit Card companies so the number will be expired by the time anyone could use it.
bADiTCH (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 8:55am
Just got my email for SOEOpened my inbox this morning and low and behold there was an email from Sony about my SOE account. Now I find this kinda funny about the attacks that have been discovered as of yet. But it sucks that my kids do use some SOE games and when i had to tell my son this morning that he won't be able to play his Clone Wars games he was pissed.
Dave C (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:04am
Where to Go?This will be a tough question for everyone. I don't think giving up on the PS3 is the best thing to do. Both systems have their flaws- XBOX 360 and PS3. Sony will learn from this, we can all hope. I'm going to guess that their back-end systems are now much more secure. This is the sort of thing that removes the magical cloud-cover from people's eyes about a company though. There is no reason to be a die-hard fanboy at this point. Personally, I'll keep my PS3, and keep buying content, and playing games. Same for my 360, and whatever new consoles come out from either company in the future.
To comment on a few of the comments above, I do not think this will bankrupt Sony. I would hate to see all of those people without jobs in this economy. I do think, however, that there will be a huge whole ripped into the company by the pending lawsuits. People will get fired, trust me. Now, will the right people get axed, or just some scapegoats...time will tell. I also hope that this is an eye-opener to all companies that they can be breached, no matter how secure they think they are. It's always that one catastrophic FAIL that gets people in motion.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 9:34am
Re: Where to Go?"Sony will learn from this, we can all hope."
Why should they? They didn't learn anything from the rootkit debacle and it cost them less than a slap on the wrist.
As long as the sheeple keep buying their goods and services, there is NO REASON for them to learn. Or to even try to learn.
Sony cares about profit. Always profit, only profit. If they could prostitute children and make money from it, they'd do it without a second thought. They have no conscience, no morals, no ethics, no scruples of any kind.
So to expect them to learn, or to even WANT to learn, is insane. They've already repeatedly proven, beyond all possible argument, that they're not going to. And because the sheeple keep coming back, they don't need to.
Anonymous Coward, 3 May 2011 @ 9:27amTHIS is why I am angry at Sony. Yes, being hacked can be considered a cost of doing business in this day and age. Yes, I am annoyed by someone who understands technology what they let leak and how. What really gets me angry, what makes me want to swear off Sony and sue them into oblivion is their delays.
It took seven days from them discovering the PSN server holding personal information was hacked into before they said ANYTHING that sounded like "Oh, and by the way, you should keep an eye open." Hell the first two days they claimed it was routine maintenance, they outright LIED to us.
And now this WEEKS after it happened? That is what I cannot excuse. The lies and coverups. Hell they probably would still be hiding the SOE breech, but I would wager something forced their hand.
Being hacked? Forgiven. It is the criminal's fault.
Having POS security? It annoys my tech side, but I can understand how they can cling to lumbering beasts or try to skimp with the money. Forgiven, grudgingly.
Hiding all these data breeches and outright lying as to their actions? No way.
crade (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:39am
Re:If being hacked = forgiven, then POS security should be a given.
Hiiragi Kagami (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:50am
My answer."Who actually willingly pays Sony for anything any more?"
Unfortunately, many although I will not be one of them.
This is a shame, too, because I once respected this company, often putting its products first on a list when shopping. However, the rootkit fiasco hit the news and I put my guard up.
The final straw was when Sony purposely proved to the world who really owns its console and this was pretty much it for the company. In fact, I just rid myself of every component of this maker from my house, save an old transistor radio (which is just too damn nice to give up).
It certainly doesn't help to turn and read personal attacks against users and data loss occurred after the "final straw" and I can honestly say I'm glad I left this company.
If anyone from Sony reads this post, I welcome you to the true definition of a "lost sale", and it will take you at least a decade to restore my faith into the company.
Isn't it about time Sony gets started?
Lisa Westveld (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 9:58amWell, Sony still create some reasonable-quality camera's...
Then again, I wonder when Sony will start failing in their photography department also... :-)
ChrisB (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 11:42am
This piling on is ridiculousSeriously. We get it. You'll never buy Sony again. You feel as if they broke into your house and killed your dog. You have spent the last 3 days rocking in a corner because you can't believe people still buy Sony stuff. Some hacker might know your name, so you're having problems sleeping at night and need anti-depressants. Oh, and by the way, games just haven't been the same since Dr. Mario.
Don't forget to keep those posts, so you can just change the company name when someone else gets hacked or screws up. I'm looking forward to your exasperated rage again.
The Devil's Coachman (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 11:58am
Re: This piling on is ridiculousThat must be some wedgie you're sporting there, boy! Probably have your waistband at eye level, at least. Your ludicrous attempt to marginalize people with legitimate complaint is an EPIC FAIL, and your attempt brings into question where your loyalties lie. I think we all know the answer. You think all consumers with legitimate and serious complaints against businesses run by stupid and unethical idiots should be disregarded and held in as much contempt as you were just obviously able to muster. Sod off, you corporate apologist!
Sony.........blows ponies
ChrisB (profile), 4 May 2011 @ 6:53am
Re: Re: This piling on is ridiculousThanks for clarifying. So most of my points above were right, but I forgot that Sony is run by retarded serial killers and, as a collective whole down to the last janitor, engages in bestiality.
The eejit (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 3:55pm
Re: This piling on is ridiculousNo, it's gone beyond incompetence and into maliciousness. I'd say throw the book at Sony, but seeing as they wrote it for Hell...
Ryuzaki, 3 May 2011 @ 3:36pm
Umm..Yeah, it would be nice if X-Box would give us games for the Sony games or at least a discount.
Proof Creative (profile), 3 May 2011 @ 10:12pm
Re: ArticleI don't own a PS3 yet, nor a PSN account, but when I received an email this morning notifying my details may be compromised, I surmised something else may be up, I only have a newsletter subscription from years ago!


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Tesla Model S comes equipped with a large center console monitor that includes a web browser, and some 10% of page views went to the Drudge Report. See full story.
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Twitter says Florida Gators have the loudest March Madness fans based on Twitter mentions since March 31. See full story.
Sports-radio jocks blast infielder for paternity leave; world tells them to get lost
One of the dumber sports controversies of recent years appeared to be laid to rest as Boomer Esiason apologized for saying a Mets infielder should have ordered his wife to have a C-section before Opening Day. But the issue might spur debate over paternity leave. See full story.
What PTSD costs families
While the emotional consequences of the post-traumatic stress disorder are well documented, many don't realize that PTSD can also have significant financial implications for families, writes Catey Hill. See full story.
What buyers and sellers should know about that 6% commission. See full story.
Providing critical information for the U.S. trading day. Subscribe to MarketWatch's free Need to Know newsletter. Sign up here.


text:
Charlie Crist
Charlie Crist
Forty-fourth governor
January 2, 2007 to January 4, 2011
Governor Charlie Crist was born in 1956 in Altoona, Pennsylvania, but his family soon settled in St. Petersburg. As a public school student Governor Crist quickly learned the value of participation, leading him to serve as class president at St. Petersburg High School and, later, as student body vice president at Florida State University. In high school Crist was the starting quarterback his football team. He later played football at Wake Forest University before transferring and receiving his undergraduate degree from Florida State in 1978. Governor Crist then earned his law degree from the Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham, Alabama.
Governor Crist received invaluable experience in Florida's criminal justice system while interning in the State Attorney's Office before accepting a position as general counsel for the minor league division of the Baseball Commissioner's Office. Governor Crist began his government service as state director for U.S. Senator Connie Mack before later returning to the private practice of law with the Tampa firm of Wood and Crist.
In 1992, Governor Crist won a seat in the Florida Senate. For six years in the Senate, Governor Crist served as Chairman of the Senate Ethics and Elections Committee and as Chairman of the Appropriations Criminal Justice Subcommittee. A strong voice for public safety, he sponsored, among other legislation, the Stop Turning Out Prisoners (STOP) bill requiring prisoners to serve at least 85 percent of their prison sentences. This earned him numerous honors, including appointment as an Honorary Sheriff by the Florida Sheriffs Association—only the third person to receive the honor in the organization's long history.
After Governor Crist completed his Senate service, Governor Jeb Bush appointed him as Deputy Secretary of the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. In 2000, Governor Crist won a special election and became Florida's last elected Commissioner of Education.
Governor Crist's path of public service next led him to seek election as Attorney General in 2002. He carried the general election by more than one-third of a million votes to become Florida's first elected Republican Attorney General.
On November 7, 2006 Governor Charlie Crist was elected to serve as Florida's Governor.


text:
Family History News and Views from Lisa Louise Cooke, host of The Genealogy Gems Podcast at www.GenealogyGems.com
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Genealogy Just Got More Exciting! The 1940 Census is Here
National Archives Releases 1940 Census
Washington, D.C. . . Ever wondered where your family lived before WWII; whether they owned their home; if they ever attended high school or college; if they were born in the United States, and if not, where? Unlocking family mysteries and filling in the blanks about family lore became much easier today with the release of the 1940 census by the National Archives and Records Administration. By law the information on individuals in the decennial censuses, which is mandated by the U.S. Constitution, is locked away for 72 years.
In a 9 A.M. ceremony in the William G. McGowan Theater, Archivist of the United States David S. Ferriero declared the 1940 census officially open. This is the 16th decennial census, marking the 150th anniversary of the census. Performing the first search, Mr. Ferriero said, "It is very exciting for families across America to have access to this wealth of material about the 1930s. Many of us will be discovering relatives and older family members that we didn't know we had, picking up threads of information that we thought were lost, and opening a window into the past that until now has been obscured We now have access to a street-level view of a country in the grips of a depression and on the brink of global war."
Dr. Robert Groves, Director of the U.S. Census Bureau added: "Releasing census records is an odd event for us; we spend all our lives keeping the data we collect confidential. However, once every 10 years, we work with the National Archives and Records Administration to release 72-year old census records that illuminate our past. We know how valuable these records are to genealogists and think of their release as another way to serve the American public."
For the first time, the National Archives is releasing an official decennial census online. The 3.9 million images constitute the largest collection of digital information ever released by the National Archives. The free official website http://1940census.archives.gov/, hosted by Archives.com, includes a database of Americans living within the existing 48 states and 6 territories on April 2, 1940.
"There is a great synergy between the National Archives and Archives.com stemming from our passion to bring history online," said John Spottiswood, Vice President, Business Development, Archives.com. He continued, "It has been a tremendous opportunity to work with the National Archives to bring the 1940 census to millions of people, the most anticipated record collection in a decade. In a short period, we've built a robust website that allows people to browse, share, print, and download census images. We encourage all to visit 1940census.archives.gov to get started on their family history!"
The census database released today includes an index searchable at the enumeration district level. An enumeration district is an area that a census taker could cover in two weeks in an urban area and one month in a rural area.
To make the search for information easier, the National Archives has joined a consortium of groups to create a name-based index. Leading this effort, FamilySearch is recruiting as many as 300,000 volunteers to enter names into a central database.
Questions asked in the 1940 census, which reflect the dislocation of the Great Depression of the 1930s, will yield important information not only for family historians and genealogists, but also for demographers and social and economic historians. We learn not only if a family owned or rented their home, but the value of their home or their monthly rent. We can find lists of persons living in the home at the time of the census, their names, ages and relationship to the head of household. For the first time the census asked where a family was living five years earlier: on April 1, 1935. This information might offer clues to migration patterns caused by the Dust Bowl and the Great Depression. For the first time in the census, a question relating to wages and salary was asked. Persons 14 years old and over were asked questions regarding their employment status: Were they working for pay or profit in private or nonemergency government work during the week of March 24–March 30, 1940? Were they seeking work? How many hours did they work during the last week of March? How many weeks did they work in 1939? What was their occupation and in what industry?
1 comment:
Interestingly, the Secretary of Commerce noted on the instructions to Enumerators was none other than Harry Hopkins. Harry Hopkins initially met Roosevelt while Roosevelt was governor of New York. Roosevelt then recruited him to the White House, and during WWII, Harry Hopkins was probably the single most influential person to advise Franklin Roosevelt. Harry Hopkins actually lived in the White House in the "Lincoln Bedroom" to be at the right side of Roosevelt as the United States went to war. It is an interesting association that Harry Hopkins was the Secretary of Commerce during the 1940 census. His educational background was in social work, and thus, I suspect some of the more detailed questions came from Hopkins himself.
I think reflecting on the Roosevelt presidency as the 1940 census was taken, with the start of WWII gives some broader depth of meaning to the census.
I recommend a book by Doris Kearns Goodwin called "No Ordinary Time" Eleanor Roosevelt used this in a speech that WWII was "No ordinary time". As Franklin Roosevelt fought a war basically across the globe, Eleanor Roosevelt became the leader for the home front, the United States. She felt that if we didn't keep up the home front, there would be no democracy worth coming home for.
Although I am not espousing party politics, I think the same is true today. If we focus on the overseas conflicts, but don't protect our own, we will have little to come home for.
- April 7, 2012 at 10:47 PM


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Getting a PGP Key setup.
Many people send sensitive information over public e-mail systems. To this day, I cannot figure out why they do this without using PGP. Its free and easy to use. You can sign, encrypt and decrypt data with a few single mouse clicks.
Your public key will be sent out to the various key servers around the world and anytime someone wants to send you encrypted information, they can download your public key, encrypt the data and send it along to you. At this point, you use your private key to decrypt the information. I will not go into how to secure your key pair nor will I go into detail on how the keyservers work. I will say this, dont go generating tons of keys because they will not be removed from the keyservers. This means that all you can you is revoke the key. It will still be out there and you will have to keep the revoked private key around should you want to decrypt something sent to you encrypted with the revoked public key. It also makes it hard for people to determine which public key to use in order to send you something. This will cause you to have to export your public key and e-mail it to them first.
To step you through the setup of a PGP solution for Win32. In addition, one example will used to show you how to encrypt a simple text file. Please note that there are many ways to setup a PGP solution. This is just one.
Software needed:
WinPT: www.winpt.org
File: http://www.stud.uni-hannover.de/~two...0.9.90-exe.zip
GNUPG: www.gnupg.org
File: http://mirrors.rootmode.com/ftp.gnup...cli-1.4.0a.zip
1) Extract both of these zip files to separate directories. In our example, we will use c:\winpt-extract and Gnupg-extract.
2) Create a directory where you want all of your components to reside. In our example, well use C:\WinPT. After creating this directory, create a subdirectory called locale.
3) Copy the contents of the winpt-extract directory into C:\WinPT
4) Go into the Gnupg-extract folder and edit the gnupg-w32.reg file.
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mingw32]
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mingw32\NLS]
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mingw32\NLS]
Go through this file and change all dirs to reflect C:\WinPT. The file should look like this when you are finished:
"gpgProgram"="C:\\ WinPT \\gpg.exe"
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mingw32]
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mingw32\NLS]
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mingw32\NLS]
"MODir"="C:\\ WinPT \\Locale"
5) Save the file and right click it and select MERGE
6) Cut and paste all .mo files from GnuPg-extract to C:\WinPT\locale
7) Cut and paste all remaining files from GnuPG-extract to C:\WinPT
8) Run WinPT.exe (You can create a shortcut of your liking to point to this exe). If all went according to plan, you should see what looks like a key in your system tray.
9) Right click on the key and select key manager
10) From the pulldown menus, select Key>new>expert. Fill in all the fields it asks for. Do not change any default settings here. Once you generate your keypair, you need to publish them by right clicking on your keypair and select send to keyserver. You can use the default or choose from the list of keyservers presented to you.
Thats it! In about 24 hours your public key will be posted on key servers all over the world and people will be able to send you encrypted information using your published public key!
How it works, a simple test.


text:
With its layers of deeply chocolaty cake spiked with cinnamon and rum and a bright stripe of apricot jam running through the center, the Sachertorte is the most widely recognized Viennese pastry for good reason; this elegant cake is decadent and absolutely delicious.
Reprinted with permission from Neue Cuisine by Kurt Gutenbrunner. Copyright © 2011. Published by Rizzoli. Available wherever books are sold. All rights reserved.
Read more: Bake the Book: Sachertorte
- Yield:makes 12 servings
- Active time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Total time:1 hour 30 minutes plus overnight chilling time
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus more for brushing
- All-purpose flour, for dusting
- 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 4 large eggs, separated
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup cake flour, sifted
- Rum syrup and jam
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 2 tablespoons dark rum
- 1 1/2 cups smooth apricot jam (not preserves)
- Glaze
- 6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (1 cup)
- 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
Heat the oven to 325°F. Brush a 9-inch round cake pan with butter and dust with flour. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a double boiler or a medium bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, or in a microwave, heat the chocolate chips until just melted. Remove from the heat and stir until smooth.
In a large bowl, using a hand-held mixer, beat the butter with the confectioners' sugar and cinnamon until pale and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating after each addition until smooth. Add the melted chocolate and beat until just combined.
In another large bowl, using clean beaters, beat the egg whites at medium speed until slightly thickened and foamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the granulated sugar, and beat until the whites hold a soft peak. Using a rubber spatula, stir one-third of the beaten egg whites into the yolk mixture to lighten it. Gently fold this mixture into the remaining egg whites just until smooth. Fold in the flour.
Using an offset spatula, spread the batter in the prepared pan. Transfer to the oven and bake until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, 35 to 45 minutes. Remove the cake from the oven and carefully flip it onto the prepared baking sheet. Let the cake cool for about 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the rum syrup: In a small saucepan, combine the sugar with the water and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves. Stir in the rum, remove from the heat, and let cool.
Generously brush the cake all over with some of the rum syrup; reserve the remaining syrup. Cover the cake with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
Cut the cake horizontally in half. Brush each cut side generously with the rum syrup. Spread 1/2 cup of the jam evenly over the bottom of the cake. Set the other half on top. Spread the remaining 1 cup of jam evenly over the top and sides of the cake. Refrigerate until set, about 2 hours.
Make the glaze: In a double boiler or a medium bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, or in a microwave, heat the chocolate with the butter until just melted. Remove from the heat, stir until smooth, and let cool slightly. Remove the cake from the refrigerator.
Pour the glaze over the top and sides of the cake, then spread it evenly all over the cake. Refrigerate the cake until the glaze is set, 5 to 10 minutes, before serving.
Transfer the cake to a cake plate, and serve.
This Recipe Appears InBake the Book: Sachertorte
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text:
01 September 2006 11:15
Using GIS data intelligence on the web with Scalable Vector Graphics (SVG)by 1 other
web mapping, location based services, wms, svgx, data editing, svgmapmaker, maps
1 (1 marks)
Founded in late 2003 and heartquartered in France, we are non-profit and independant.
We believe in the open web, think internet services should be sustainable, build for the long term.
While we are re-launching the service, we only accept new members through invitation.


text:
If you live in or around Orange County, shutters can be purchased from a variety of places. Unfortunately, many consumers find out the hard way that all manufacturers do not offer the same quality, fit or warranty. Shutters are an investment that you should be able to enjoy for a long time. They are charming, offer curb appeal and even increase your home's value. It only makes sense to purchase quality shutters from an established company with a solid reputation.
Danmer is Recommended for Orange County Shutters
If you ask around, people will likely tell you to shop at Danmer for Orange County shutters. This is because we make quality products and our customer service is unparalleled. We even offer a free consultation with one of our design experts to ensure you are getting a product that will complement your space. Plus, this allows us to measure to guarantee a perfect fit.
We are also known for our fantastic selection. Whether you are looking for masterpiece, Thermalite or wood shutters, or if you are interested in something from Hunter Douglas, we are sure to have something that will appeal to your personal taste!


text:
Seizing Domains Is Only Training Criminals To Improve
from the wrong-approach dept
The reason we are fighting the good fight is to stop people from doing bad things and hold them accountable for their actions. Whether you are enforcing trademark rights or car thefts, this has to be done one person at a time. In 2010 a client asked me what we could take away from the offenders to make them stop. My simple answer was "Their freedom." Entrepreneurs will always find a way to do business. Bad guys need to be put away to reflect on their actions. Nothing else will stop them. When you take away only the tool, you are training the criminal to improve. I am not in the business of training crooks. Are you?This, of course, is a different perspective. Most of us have been concerned about the free speech and collateral damage issues raised by domain seizures. But Holmes is making the argument that, even when we're talking about confirmed criminal activity, domain seizures are counterproductive because they're going after a tool rather than those actually responsible.


text:
Car Buyers Paying $2,000 More for Vehicles Than They Did a Year Ago — Dollars and Sense
As gas prices rise, consumers often consider switching to smaller, more fuel-efficient cars.
But while those cars are usually less expensive than their bigger counterparts, increased demand has resulted in higher sticker prices.
Mirroring an effect seen in other years when gas prices were high, research and car-shopping site TrueCar says that car buyers are now paying 6.9 percent higher prices than they were just a year ago, which translates to almost $2,000 more for each auto sold.
Experts say that's happening because not only have sticker prices gone up, incentives like cash rebates have dropped. In addition, since demand is high, dealerships aren't as willing to negotiate.
But if you're looking for a new car, getting the best price could be a matter of timing. People who purchase at the beginning of the month often pay more than those who hold off until later when sales staff are trying to meet monthly quota deadlines.
Even the time of the year matters — those who buy in April can expect to shave just five percent off the sticker price during negotiations, whereas people who buy at the end of December often pay between eight and nine percent less than the MSRP.


text:
By Christy Hart-Harris
Twitter: @Christy TDR
COLDWATER � Joseph Bakle , the first collision repair instructor at the Branch Area Careers Center (from 1973-90), left a generous gift after his passing in 2013 to the Branch County Community Foundation in the amount of $156,299.77.
Because of that gift, scholarships will be available to students pursuing careers in auto collision.
The BACC Scholarship Fund housed at the community foundation began in 2001 with a goal to "raise enough money to give a student from each BACC program a scholarship every year."
Bakle graduated from Mark Township High School in Mark Center, Ohio, in 1946 and was hired on an annual authorization requiring him to earn his teaching degree.
Bakle first attended Ferris State University, where he took the National Occupational Competency test in auto body and scored in the upper 25 percent nationally. He then completed his bachelor�s degree in 1983 in secondary education with an auto body endorsement from Ferris State University.
Bakle taught at the BACC for 17 years until he retired in 1990 � at which point he began his nine-year substitute teaching career at the BACC.
Throughout that time he also volunteered many hours to train and prepare students for the collision repair Skills USA competitions and numerous demonstrations for collision repair students.
In 2012 Bakle contributed to the BACC Scholarship Endowment Fund, allowing the BACC to provide a $500 scholarship to one outstanding senior from each of the 14 programs at the center.
That same year, he was inducted into the National Technical Honorary Society. Additionally, Bakle received several awards of recognition for his years of teaching and was involved in various educational clubs.
He served on the Coldwater Zoning Board from 1990-96, volunteered his time at the Community Health Center of Branch County and in Iron Mountain for Habitat for Humanity, Dickinson Memorial Hospital, substance abuse programs and the Breen and Crystal Lake Senior Centers.
Bakle leaves funds to BCCF
By Christy Hart-Harris


text:
Seib & Wessel: How Close to Blows With N. Korea?
WSJ reporter Julian Barnes discusses recent provocations by North Korea and explains the military 'playbook' that the U.S. has been working from.
This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.
the ... there's more ... crazy speeds ... provocations from North Korea's more reactions by the US ... aam and the question I guess that everyone is that isn't actually more dangerous ... or just more soon ... it's probably not more dangers this week that it was last week ... um ... tensions are high whenever tensions are high in this calculation is a possible so we have to buy ... defense officials U S officials say ... they don't think we're close to war they don't think the North is preparing to strike now ... teammate as a rocket that they're not can actually try to show that the U S fertile certain human interest story this week junior colleagues ... about it was the US was responding as forcefully as it was explained a little bit what you guys found that ... shore um ... you know with the North Korean missile test and then the ... nuclear test in December and then in February ... the U S Tomoka playbook ... um ... we now have a more nationalistic government South Korea we now more nationalistic government in Japan they wanted to see a display of American forces ... in the U S government assessed that ... on ... a show of American might want to deter North Korea and would not provoke them ... into attacking so ... that's what led to this playbook that was developed in firstly some of the fifty two flights ... in the B two flights than the F twenty two flights all ... are aimed at reassuring allies showing that the US can strike from far away when so in order to make the ... nationalistic Japanese government and the nationalistic South Korean government happier we have to send stealth bombers Over S Korea ... well what the US doesn't want is South Korea to strike out North Korea in a ... way that isn't on the US doesn't approve of aam Wharf unilaterally unprovoked the U S wants to keep ... you know this is similar to keep them from doing something really stupid ... we do most of portly little show force which was a real attack or as he was he was a statement about what everyone knows in US policy its ... own and this will ensure that ... it stays within the box ... the botanist ration is very concerned ... that this crisis not spin out of control and that they are trying to control and so if they take charge of the shows of force ... that is very tall


text:
My Favorite Flirts is a feature that lets you reach your favorite Flirts easily from My Account or on 1-800-TO-FLIRT.Manage My Favorites
(0 Reviews)
I'm a dirty dirty girl...
For a long time I had this experience during sex that
made me think I was just going to urinate on someone. I didn't tell anyone
about it for a long time and I held back which ultimately kept me from
having an orgasm. Finally I spoke with one of my girlfriends and she
laughed at me. She then explained the urge I was feeling was the need to
The next time my boyfriend and I had sex I just relaxed and let go. He was
fingering me and sticking his fingers in really deep while working over my
clit and g-spot. Next thing I knew, which totally caught him off guard,
was a gush of liquid covering his face and the bed sheets. Since that
night I have been a squirter. I love it.
It doesn't matter, stick your fingers in me or your hard cock and I'm
going to explode. My hot love juice is going to squirt all over you. I
hope you like it. At first it made me feel like such a dirty girl and I
wasn't so comfortable with it. I was afraid the men would look at me
differently. Oh, they look at me differently and they don't stop looking
I embrace that part of me now. I can now even make myself squirt when I'm
masturbating at home alone. However, it is so much more fun to share. Why
don't you call me?


text:
Charles Carreon Tries To Intimidate Parodist With Bizarre List Of Demands Plus DMCA Takedown Threat
from the declaratory-judgment dept
However, Carreon continued to threaten the blogger, leading to a rather bizarre exchange between Carreon and Levy, which relates to some history that Carreon has had with Levy's organization, Public Citizen, and a case we wrote about last year, involving a website run by Carreon and his wife. In the end, the owner of charles-carreon.com felt sufficiently threatened by Carreon's claims that s/he has decided to file for declaratory judgment to stop Carreon from suing. Part of the reason for seeking declaratory judgment was Carreon's direct threat to go after the blogger at a later date in various jurisdictions. He also threatened to use the DMCA takedown process to try to censor the site, because it uses a photo he claims copyright over. There's significant irony in the fact that Carreon is now threatening to abuse the DMCA process to stifle speech -- when what kicked this whole thing off was his DMCA-based defense of Funnyjunk and its failure to remove copyright-covered images.
Carreon's threat-letter response to Levy is something to behold, and can be viewed towards the bottom of the filing (pdf and embedded below). Here's a key part:
As far as when and where I will sue your client, be certain that it will occur if your client does not cede the domain, and advise her of ten things:He goes on to chide Levy and Public Citizen for "leaping to the defense of someone who is in league with a person who has harnessed the lowest impulses of puerile, vituperative Internet youth to generate a Charitable Fund that has been used to bribe two major charities into tacitly endorsing a campaign that is utterly devoid of charitable purpose, and is a mere cover for a hate campaign."
- There there is essentially no statute of limitations on this claim, and the prima facie laches defense would not kick in for at least three years.
- That venue in this action can be validly laid in at least three places, maybe four, if she doesn't live in Arizona, Florida, or California.
- That I am capable of employing counsel to handle my claim against her, who will incur attorneys fees and seek recovery of the same. I filed pro se against Inman simply for sake of convenience and the need for speed, and not from a lack of resources.
- That the law in this area cannot be predicted with certainty, will evolve substantially over the next three years, during which I will be using digital forensics to establish actual trademark damages in addition to seeking the maximum cybersquatting penalty of $100,000.
- That a judgment that recites that the domain was obtained by fraud upon the registrar, in the form of a misrepresentation that she did not know of my trademark on the name, might well be non-dischargeable in bankruptcy.
- That a judgment can be renewed indefinitely until collected, and that California judgments accrue 10% interest, which can compound once ever ten years by capitalizing the accumulated interest.
- That you cannot guarantee that Public Citizen will provide her with free legal services on June 1, 2015, when I may very well send the process server 'round to her door.
- That I have the known capacity to litigate appeals for years (check my Westlaw profile, and of course, the drawn out history of Penguin v. American Buddha, now in its third year, having passed through the Second Circuit and the NYCA, and still hung up in personal jurisdiction in the SDNY).
- That the litigation, being of first impression in virtually every Circuit, grounded in a federal question, involving a registered trademark, and dispositive of many open issues in the field of Internet commerce and speech, might very well continue for a decade.
- That Public Citizen might well be unable and/or unwilling to provide her with representation until the resolution of such an extended course of litigation.
Uh, yeah. At best, this demonstrates that Carreon still has no clue about what's happening. He still thinks that there's some big campaign against him, and he's still lashing out without realizing that every time he does so he just draws more negative attention to himself. Most people tend to learn that when doing something makes the situation worse, they shouldn't keep doing it. Carreon seems unable to make that basic connection. The rather blatant threats against the blog owner -- to go after her in multiples jurisdictions and at a later date when Public Citizen might not be able to take her case -- are examples of the exact wrong way to handle something like this. It's an old-fashioned lawyer attitude: take an extreme position that you can back down from later. But in this case, it just seems to display -- quite vividly for the judge -- Carreon's true intentions: to be such a nuisance that people stop mocking him. One of these days, he may discover that each time he does that, he's only encouraging more and more ridicule.
Oh, and in the meantime, as for his attempt at getting a temporary restraining order to stop the money raised from being distributed, the judge has asked for proof that the charities have received the money -- as has been stated by IndieGoGo and Matthew Inman. If that is shown to be true, it seems likely that the judge will find no reason to consider the TRO request any more, since it's meaningless.


text:
I'd like to be the first to introduce the Bella Monica Flatbread Company. They have been working on creating the best tasting Gluten Free Pizza around for the past several months. I have had the privilege to be one of the first people to taste the retail product and to provide my input. The pizzas are made with Domata Living Flour and made on a dedicated Gluten Free production line which is tested using ELISA to have less than 20 PPM Gluten. Bella Monica Flatbread Company is affiliated with the longstanding Bella Monica Italian Restaurant on Edwards Mill Road in Northwest Raleigh. Stay tuned for more information in an upcoming post about a brand new Gluten Free Menu at Bella Monica. I have sampled the items and was blown away. I've also had the chance to provide the owners/operators with advice on how to safely prepare the new menu items to avoid cross-contamination. STAY TUNED!
The pizzas will be available in 3 different varieties - Margherita, Spinach & Tomato and Mushroom & Herbs in a 10" size. I have had the opportunity to try them all and I'm happy to report that they blow away the competition when it comes to frozen Gluten Free Pizza. My family has also tasted the pizzas and had trouble telling the difference from regular wheat pizza.
Here is what they look like out of the box
And after
As of now, the pizzas are available in Harmony Farms Natural Foods store located on Creedmoor Road in North Raleigh. They should be available on a few GF Grocery online retailers soon. They should also be available in Whole Foods by the end of January.
The following is from Trevor Chambers about how to get the pizzas at your local grocery store...
If your local grocer doesn't carry Bella Monica FlatBreads then please voice your desire for the product with a manager. Suggestions really work – no matter the size of the stores. Let the manager know he/she can purchase it from United Natural Foods (UNFI) – a national distributor of natural food products. You can even print off their product information sheet located here and give it to the manager.
Stay tuned for more information about additional grocery locations where you can find these awesome Gluten Free Pizzas! And also more information about the new GF Menu at Bella Monica!


text:
by Dionne Aiken
In "The Psychology Behind Web Design Part 1", I briefly touched on why psychology is so important to web design in that it not only enhances the user experience but also drives calls to action and thus business results. But how do you get there?
Here are the "hows" behind design considerations taking into account the user experience and psychological needs (click on each item to jump to a section):
- Trust
- Familiarity
- Purpose
- Imagery
- White Space
- User Flow & Information Hierarchy
- Color Psychology and Symbolism
- Logo & Brand Consistency
Safety is the second fundamental human need as defined by Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. By meeting this basic need you can build trust with your users. The bottom line is that people spend time on sites they trust. To build trust, consider the following:
1. Design Integrity: The overall look of the site must be of a certain level of design integrity to make a good first impression and build credibility. This is an extension of your brand. If your site appears unprofessional, users may see your entire business entity as such and it could deter users. (This includes technical considerations also; for instance, adhering to web standards and best practices, providing working links, proper coding structure, and good overall functionality.)
2. Don't Get Too Personal Too Soon: Don't ask for personal information up front or in ways that are counter-intuitive or inconsistent with the user expectations. If these request disrupt the user flow, are abrupt, unexpected or out of place they become a deterrent. Find intuitive ways to integrate these requests seamlessly into your website where they make the most sense.
3. Use Trustworthy Indicators: Adding testimonials from noteworthy clients, reviews, seals of approval, recognizable affiliations, certifications and other trustworthy elements add value to your site and help establish a sense of trust with visitors.
4. Deliver: A website, no matter how superb, is only as good as the actual business entity itself. The business entity must deliver on their product and services to meet customer expectations.
When you go into a grocery store you expect to see aisles of groceries and signage on each aisle that tells you where things are located. You expect shopping carts, registers, entry & exits to be at the front of the store. The same holds true for a website. Once your audience is introduced to your website, there are certain expectations of where "signage," items and locations of said items should be. Consider the following to assist with placing elements in a manner that will assist with user familiarity:
1. Don't Send People on a Wild Goose Chase: Off the bat, people want to know what you do and how to contact you … don't make people search or guess for these key pieces of information. Tell them up front or offer clear ways to access them, i.e., "About Us" or "Contact" pages or even listing a phone number or address in the header or footer on all pages of the site will help too.
2. Provide Road Maps: People want to know how to get from point A to point B and where they are in the site at all times. Have clear navigational elements that stay consistent throughout the site and strong indicators or "you are here" landmarks that show users what page they are on. This can be done with basic design elements, or even a breadcrumb. It also helps to include a sitemap somewhere on the site that lists all the links to your pages. You can have a separate page or section dedicated to the site map and then link to it or, if the site map is small enough, you can add it to the footer so it's present on all pages of the site. Providing good road maps and directional indicators or "signage" not only helps users navigate your site, but also helps search engine crawlers crawl your site pages and links and thus boosts SEO.
3. Above the Fold: Because we are taught to read from left to right and top to bottom in our Western culture, it is good practice to place all of the important website elements in the "top fold" or "above the fold." Logo, branding elements, header, navigation, search fields and so forth should at the very least be visible in the top 800 by 600 pixel-area of your web page to ensure that users can easily and immediately view/access them. This isn't set in stone but you should take into account factors such as varying screen resolutions, multiple stacked toolbars, browser window sizes and so forth when considering your top fold real estate. Creating layouts that auto center with the user's window or fluid layouts can also assist with making sure key elements get the exposure they need.
4. Design Consistency: Design things and place things in an intuitive manner. How many times have you gone to a website and clicked on what you thought was a link or button only to find that it wasn't a link at all? If all the links on your website are blue, bold and underlined, don't make your headings blue, bold and underlined, especially if they aren't links! Make sure you have specific design treatments for each recurring element on your site and that the same approach is carried out throughout the entire site. Design consistency and intuitive placement of items, will help users get familiar with your site.
A great quote from Andy Rutledge's article best sums the purpose of website pages:
"In a very general sense, the purpose of a site's index page is to convince visitors that they should venture further into the site – and compel them to do so. In order to do that the page must engage in advisable psychology (through design and copy) while avoiding distracting and irrelevant purposes that run counter to the primary function of the page. The index page must not attempt to dump the entire site's content into the viewer's eyes in one fell swoop. Rather, the page must make a concise and clean first impression; an impression focused on a specific rather than all-encompassing purpose." – Andy Rutledge
Each page should be specific to its functional purpose. The home page should introduce, attract and direct. The internal pages are where you want to deliver your actual content and pull users further into other pages and areas of your site.
Careful image selection and treatment will support the content on your website and reinforce an overarching concept. Images should also be contextually appropriate and purposeful. If not, they will detract and lessen the impact of your messages.
White Space/Breathing Room
"In a very general sense, a contextually inconsistent environment, clutter and cramped quarters tends to encourage a lack of interest while open space and a consistent context in the environment tends to encourage interest and openness to suggestion." – Andy Rutledge
By grouping things logically and allowing adequate spacing amidst and between copy, you allow users to focus and read your content and thus pull them into your site. An article published by Smashing magazine gives more examples of ways to incorporate white space into your layouts with additional links and resources.
User Flow & Information Hierarchy
Here is an example of a home page layout that has strong information hierarchy and thus strong indicators for user flow of accessing information:
Use strong design elements and employ basic design principles to highlight important areas and elements, support the message, and to direct the viewer's eye and user flow.
Color Psychology and Symbolism
Understanding the psychology behind the use of colors will make for better design decisions and will help better communicate and support your brand and messages. For example, use blues to communicate security or yellow to communicate happiness. There are many resources that talk about color and the psychology behind different colors*:
*It is important to note that the above is in reference to colors in our Western society, the meanings people associate with different colors may vary across different cultural and geographical boundaries.
Logo & Branding Translation/Consistency
When you land on a company's website is should be the same feeling as if you were to walk into their office building. The website should be an extension of their brand, not an afterthought. There is a certain lifestyle, a point of view, a culture, an attitude and aura associated with and unique to each company. It is the designer's goal to make sure all these elements carry over and are communicated in the look of the site.
By addressing these key points, you can tap into the user's psychology and create better web experiences. In the long run, this will contribute to more calls to action and drive business results.