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dimanche 29 novembre 2009
Last week I realized that yet another part of our car was broken (oh the joys of parking in Marseille).
Monday morning it was the left-side mirror that got broken off, then Friday it was one of the back lights.
On Saturday, we made a trip to the junkyard to see what we could find. I had never been to one before, so didn't really know what to expect. There actually weren't many cars sitting there, and they were mostly still intact. Alain joked "We had better be careful, we might come back and find that someone has mistaken our car for one of the junkyard cars."
We went in and told them what we needed, and as luck had it, there was another Fiat Bravo with the same lights. Got the right-rear light set for 45€. Felt strange, like we were cannablizing another poor car.
We went over to Alain's parents, and Alain and his dad fixed it up. Also needed to fix the reservoir for the windshield wiper liquid (it leaks and so is completely empty about a day after filling it up) and glue back a strip on the left side.
Not sure it is actually worth it to buy a less-old considerably better-shape car as it will still be parked in Marseille and we still don't have a garage....
Libellés : Marseille | 2 commentaires
lundi 23 novembre 2009
The day after my birthday, we invited all of Alain's family over to see our apartment and for cake. We didn't tell (warn) them that my parents were here, so I think it was a surprise for some of them, not so much for others.
We had two cakes, a chocolate one (mix that my mom brought from the US) with chocolate icing (also from the US) and a black forest cake that my mother-in-law bought from Carrefour, plus a bottle of champagne left over from our wedding, that was well past its drink-by date.
Alain's sister Lucy managed to get both kids IN the car and TO Marseille, which is quite a feat.
Plus Alain's aunt and parents, so there were quite a few of us. We pulled out the extension for the table and managed to all crowd around.
Lucy left around 4:30, headed back to Toulon before it got too late. Alain's parents and aunt stayed until about 9. They were all impressed with the fact that the apartment was finally (more or less) finished.
All in all, a pretty great birthday party.
We had two cakes, a chocolate one (mix that my mom brought from the US) with chocolate icing (also from the US) and a black forest cake that my mother-in-law bought from Carrefour, plus a bottle of champagne left over from our wedding, that was well past its drink-by date.
Alain's sister Lucy managed to get both kids IN the car and TO Marseille, which is quite a feat.
Plus Alain's aunt and parents, so there were quite a few of us. We pulled out the extension for the table and managed to all crowd around.
Lucy left around 4:30, headed back to Toulon before it got too late. Alain's parents and aunt stayed until about 9. They were all impressed with the fact that the apartment was finally (more or less) finished.
All in all, a pretty great birthday party.
Does he look like he knows what he is doing?
Alain with his neices, who just adore him. Well, Manon (right) does and I am sure Anna will too.
Alain seems to understand kids in a way I don't.
I have no idea how to keep them entertained. I can't even play with dolls for goodness sake. I just sorta wave them around aimlessly.
I can't get around the fact that they are NOT mini-adults.
And yes, blogger messed up my template. Guess I will have to fiddle with this one now.
Libellés : Family | 6 commentaires
dimanche 22 novembre 2009
On Armistice day, my parents, Alain, and I went to go visit Aigues Mortes. We managed to get on the road at around 9, and it took us about an hour and a half to drive there, up past Salon de Provence and Arles. Drove past the restaurant we went to when we went to Stes. Maries de la Mer two years ago, where a woman changed her baby on the table in front of everyone (dad's comment "It wasn't just wet!")
We parked in the nearly empty parking lot and walked around town. Saw the main square Place St. Louis, visited the church Notre Dame des Sablons, tried to walk around the ramparts, but they were closed as it was a holiday. It's a holiday, i.e. a day tourists are likely to be free to come. Let's close!
We saw the outside of the Chapelle des Pénitents Gris, then had a coffee.
Walked around some more, then had lunch at a small restaurant near the square. At around 3 we had run out of things to do, so drove home. Too bad the ramparts were closed.
Bought one of those poorly-translated guide books to the town, you know, the kind like "Nîmes" in French, English, Italian, German, and Spanish with a few pictures and stories for about 5€.
Reading it, I know exactly how it is written in the French version, due to some funny phrasing and not-quite-the-same-in-English metaphores.
All in all, a nice little side trip, but I certainly wouldn't want to live there. Every summer, invaded by touristes, all the rest of the year, nothing to do.
Plus, the houses "intra-muros" are dang expensive and I am sure come with all sorts of rules of what you can and cannot do. Wonder what everyone does for a living there.
Libellés : Provence | 4 commentaires
samedi 7 novembre 2009
Last Friday, (October 30th) a large package arrived in my mailbox. I couldn't figure out what it was. I hadn't ordered anything (that I remembered). Then I looked at the return address and knew-
it was from Jess from Presto Manifesto who sent me a mysterious prize for winning her blog competition.
Opened it up, and what did I find? A large package of candy corn!
Perfect for Halloween. I don't think I have eaten candy corn in years.
Thanks Jess!
Libellés : Misc | 1 commentaires
vendredi 6 novembre 2009
you buy something from Sephora and get "premiér rides" (first wrinkles cream) samples.
Today is my birthday. The big 3-0.
Sure have changed in a decade.
When I turned 20, I was at military school and certainly didn't think that in 10 years I would be living in France and worse! married to a Frenchman.
When I turned 10, I was in elementary school in South America and certainly didn't think that in 10 years I would be going to a military school.
When I turned 0, I was in Virginia, and certainly didn't think anything other than "Wah!"
For kicks, here is one of my early pictures, living in Germany
Got home from work Thursday night and who was there?
Not ONE but TWO parental units who had flown over from the US for a surprise. They had planned it all with Alain and he picked them up from the airport on Thursday. They will be here for about two weeks.
Tomorrow, Saturday, most of Alain's family is coming over, to see our apartment and for a mini-party for me. Mom and Dad's visit will be a surprise.
Libellés : Family | 8 commentaires
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Favorite Posts
I picked up my French passport this morning. It has been ready for awhile, I received the text message saying it was available for pick-u...
The above cartoon for kids to color, cut out, and fold into a cube shape. Then the cube is to be placed in the center of the table for remi...
One thing that you learn very quickly when starting to learn french is that absolutely everything has a gender. And you had better know it, ...
Got back from Strasbourg just fine. My wallet however, did not. After my long train trip back home, and being called "sale race" ...
you buy something from Sephora and get "premiér rides" (first wrinkles cream) samples. Sigh. Today is my birthday. The big 3-0. Su...
(all pictures from previous owner) We have three bedrooms, small, medium, and large. The smallest has blue wallpaper, a window over the ba...
What is this? you may ask. A modernist painting? A new Chinese board game? No my friends, it is the Nespresso capsule wall holder at my ...
It has finally happened. I am in desperate need of clothes. And I am not just saying this in the average woman way. I don't really lik...
In a desperate attempt to find something, anything to talk about, I have been going through my unpublished blog posts, trying to find someth...
I am a champion napper. I fully credit military school for honing my ability to sleep anytime, anywhere. Seriously, I firmly believe there...


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One of Britain's leading one-liner comics returns to ARC with another onslaught of lean, expertly crafted gaggery. A Mock The Week regular and recent star of the new Live At The Apollo series, Gary's shows are renowned in the business for a near unrivalled volume of high-class gags.
You should expect no different from this, his brand new tour for 2018.
Please note Coolio will not be appearing.
★★★★ 'A cavalcade of brilliantly inventive puns' Guardian
★★★★ 'More quality jokes in one hour than most comics have in their entire careers…Quite brilliant' Scotsman
★★★★ 'A master craftsman' Times
★★★★ 'One of Britain's grandmasters of the one-liner'' Chortle

subset: commoncrawl


text:
A Guardian photographer, accustomed to lugging around huge lenses, is capturing the London Olympics with, basically, his phone -- and the images are impressive, if not incredible.
Dan Chung is photographing the games with an iPhone, an app and some after-market lenses or binoculars (but only occasionally).
Chung is using the photo-editing app Snapseed. He also sometimes puts the lens up to a pair of Canon binoculars or the Schneider lens iPro Wide Duo Kit. (His setup is the nearby photo.)
Compare that gear with an 800mm lens (among others), other camera bodies, filters and backup batteries and memory cards.
Traveling light never shot so well.
Click here to see his photoblog on the Guardian's site.


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Fight Your addiction And Go to rehab.
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âThanks s0b â" k9hns0b donât open it 51gk9hn0b yet, â murmured Jim. âHave 9hns0b a drink, Josephine?â said Robert. âNo thank you, â said ns0b Josephine, bowing slightly.
Finding the 1gk9hnsb drinks did not go, Robert went round with the cigarettes. hns0b Josephine Ford looked at the white rolls. âThank 51gk9hn0b you,â she said, and taking one, suddenly licked
her 51gk9hn0b rather full, dry red lips with the rapid tip of her tongue. It was an odd movement, suggesting a s0b snakeâs flicker. She put her cigarette between her lips, and waited. Her
movements were very quiet and well bred; but perhaps too 51gk9hn0b hns0b quiet, they had the dangerous imphiivity of the bohemian, Parisian or American rather than 9hns0b English.
âCigarette, hns0b Julia?â 51gk9hn0b said Robert to 51gk9hn0b his k9hns0b hns0b wife. She seemed to start or twitch, as if dazed. Then she looked up at her husband with a
hi smile, puckering the corners of her eyes. he looked at the cigarettes, not at her. His face had the blunt ns0b ns0b voluptuous gravity of a k9hns0b young lion,
a great cat. She kept him standing for some moments imphiively. then suddenly she hung her long, delicate fingers over the box, in doubt, and hns0b spasmodically jabbed at the
cigarettes, clumsily raking one out at last. âThank you, dear â" thank you, â she cried, rather high, k9hns0b looking up and smiling once more.
He turned calmly aside, offering the cigarettes to Scott, who refused. âOh!â said Julia, sucking the end of 1gk9hnsb her cigarette. âRobert is so happy with all the
good things â" arenât you dear?â she sang, breaking into a ns0b hurriedlaugh. âWe arenât used to such luxurious living, we arenât â" hns0b ARE WE hns0b DEARâ" No,
weâre not such swells as this, weâre not. Oh, ROBBIE, isnât it all right, isnât 9hns0b it just all right?â She tailed off into her hurried, wild, repeated laugh. âWeâre so happy in a
land of plenty, ARENâT WE DEAR?â âDo you mean Iâm greedy, Julia?â said Robert. âGreedy!â" Oh, greedy!â" he asks if heâs greedy?â" no youâre 1gk9hnsb
not greedy, Robbie, youâre not greedy. I want you to be happy.â âIâm quite happy,â he returned. âOh, heâs 9hns0b happy!â" Really!â" heâs happy! Oh, what an
accomplishment! Oh, my word!â Julia puckered k9hns0b her eyes and laughed herself into a nervous twitching silence. Robert went round with the matches. Julia sucked her
cigarette. âGive us a light, Robbie, if you ARE happy!â she cried. âItâs coming,â he answered. Josephine smoked with short, sharp puffs. Julia sucked 51gk9hn0b
wildly at her light. Robert returned to his red wine. Jim Bricknell suddenly roused up, looked round on the company, smiling a 9hns0b little vacuously and showing his odd, ns0b pointed
teeth. âWhereâs the beer?â he asked, 9hns0b in deep tones, smiling full into Josephineâs face, as if she were going to produce it by 9hns0b some sleight of hand.
Then he wheeled round to the table, and was soon pouring beer down his throat as s0b down a pipe. Then he dropped supine again. Cyril Scott was silently absorbing gin and water.
âI say, â said Jim, from 51gk9hn0b the remote depths of his sprawling. âIsnât there something we could 1gk9hnsb do to while the time away?â Everybody suddenly laughed â" hns0b it hns0b sounded so remote and .
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Used 2010 Chevrolet Corvette Z06
Pros & Cons
- Tremendous acceleration, glorious soundtrack, high handling capabilities, comfortable, good bang for the buck, large trunk.
- Not as nimble-handling as some competitors, subpar interior, Z06 and ZR1 lack styling distinction.
Used 2010 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 for Sale
Get More For Your Trade-In
Edmunds' Expert Review
The base 2010 Chevrolet Corvette is one of the world's best performance bargains, the Z06 has one of the world's best motors and the ZR1 is one of the world's best, period. Disappointing interior quality is the car's only serious drawback.
Vehicle overview
The 2010 Chevrolet Corvette is one of those cars whose reputation precedes it, and in this case the reputation unfortunately involves silver-haired Vegas types, gold chains, chrome wheels and automatic transmissions. But truth be told, the only thing about the 'Vette that fits with this picture is its lackluster interior.
Trust us: Driving is believing when it comes to this American icon. Even a short stint behind the wheel will revolutionize your thinking. The Corvette is silly fast in any form, it sticks to the road and it's more pleasant as a daily driver than anything this capable has a right to be.
For 2010 there are even more reasons to sing the Chevy Corvette's praises. Launch control is now standard on all manual-transmission models, a feature that will come in handy for taking the guesswork out of eking out the best acceleration times. The new Grand Sport edition -- an improvement on the discontinued Z51 performance package -- pairs the base engine with unique exterior styling cues; a sport-tuned suspension; Z06-size wheels, tires and brakes; more aggressive gearing; and a dry-sump oiling system for models fitted with the manual transmission.
For the ZR1, Chevy has added a sophisticated Performance Traction Management system that allows drivers to select from five modes (Wet, Dry, Sport with Active Handling, Sport without Active Handling, Race) that optimize power delivery for specific conditions.
One Corvette feature that hasn't changed is its power ratings, which range from the ridiculous to the completely absurd. Even the base 6.2-liter V8 cranks out 430 horsepower. But the Corvette does have some competition that didn't exist even a couple years ago. BMW's sweet-handling M3, for instance, has a starting price that's not too far above the Vette's and provides a far nicer interior. Ford's Shelby GT500 is also much improved this year.
As for the more expensive Corvettes, one shopping for the Z06 could also consider the Nissan GT-R and Porsche's improved range of 2010 cars, including the Boxster S, Cayman S and base 911. The ZR1, meanwhile, is only a few grand shy of one of our favorite sports cars ever, the sublime Porsche 911 GT3.
Still, the 2010 Chevrolet Corvette is undeniably a lot of car for the money, and its honking V8 will bring a smile to its owner's face at every push of the engine start button. Dye your hair silver and don a gold chain if you must -- test-driving a Corvette is worth the effort.
2010 Chevrolet Corvette models
The 2010 Chevrolet Corvette is a two-seater that's available as a coupe with a removable roof panel (base and GS only), a fixed-roof coupe or a convertible. Trim levels include the base Corvette (1LT), Grand Sport (GS), Z06 and ZR1. Like previous Corvette roadsters, the current convertible features a hideaway top, and for 2010 it features a Z06-style rear spoiler.
Standard on the 1LT coupe and convertible are 18-inch front alloy wheels and 19-inch rears, xenon headlamps, cruise control, keyless ignition/entry, full power accessories, OnStar, leather seating, a six-way power driver seat, a manual tilt steering wheel and dual-zone automatic climate control. The standard seven-speaker audio system includes a CD/MP3 player, satellite radio, steering-wheel-mounted controls and an auxiliary audio jack.
The 2LT Package adds Bluetooth and perforated power leather sport seats with power-adjustable lumbar support and side bolsters. The convertible gets a power-operated top with the 2LT package. More equipment can be found on the 3LT, including a head-up display, a power telescoping steering column with manual tilting, heated seats, driver memory settings and a Bose audio system. The top-level Corvette 4LT is similar to the 3LT but adds an exclusive two-tone leather interior (with leather covering the dash top, the console storage cover and the more thickly padded armrests).
The GS is available as a coupe or convertible with the same four equipment packages but adds a sport-tuned suspension that replaces last year's Z51 suspension option; front fender stripes and vents; wider front and rear fenders; a Z06-style front splitter and tall rear spoiler; unique alloy wheels; Z06-size brakes and tires; specific manual-transmission gear ratios and a specific rear axle ratio on automatic-equipped models.
The coupe-only Z06 largely mirrors the base and GS models in terms of feature availability, but gains a race-inspired 7.0-liter V8, a fixed roof, more muscular rear fenders and other bodywork, a lighter frame and body panels, a stiffer suspension, big brakes, special seats and a unique tan-colored interior dubbed "Cashmere."
The top-of-the line ZR1 boasts a supercharged V8, even larger wheels (19-inch front, 20-inch rear), carbon-ceramic brakes, an exclusive suspension with adaptive dampers, and additional lightweight body panels, including a carbon-fiber roof panel and a carbon-fiber hood with a clear polycarbonate "window" that reveals the engine's intercooler.
Major stand-alone options, depending on the model, include a navigation system, a transparent roof panel for the coupe, a two-tone interior, a six-CD changer (not available with navigation), a dual-mode exhaust system and different wheels. For base Corvettes there is also an optional Magnetic Ride Control suspension that automatically stiffens and relaxes the suspension according to how the car is being driven.
2010 Highlights
Performance & mpg
Both the base and GS feature a 6.2-liter V8 that cranks out 430 hp and 424 pound-feet of torque. The optional dual-mode exhaust adds another 6 hp and 4 lb-ft. The Z06 boasts an exotic-class 505 hp and 470 lb-ft from its 7.0-liter V8, while the ZR1 has an otherworldly 638 hp and 604 lb-ft of torque pumping from its supercharged 6.2-liter V8. All 2010 Chevrolet Corvettes have a six-speed manual gearbox with launch control as standard, while a six-speed automatic with paddle shifters is a no-cost option for the base and GS models.
Regardless of which Corvette you choose, you'll get stunning performance. In our testing, a base coupe went from zero to 60 mph in 4.5 seconds. The Z06 will knock that down to 3.9 seconds. The ZR1 isn't much quicker to 60 mph (3.8 seconds) due to traction limitations but has a much quicker quarter-mile time.
EPA fuel economy estimates stand at a laudable 16 mpg city/26 mpg highway and 19 mpg combined for a manual-transmission Corvette. Opting for the automatic drops these numbers by 1 mpg. The Z06 checks in at 15/24/18 mpg, and the ZR1 garners a still-respectable 14/20/16 rating.
Antilock disc brakes and side airbags are standard, as is the "Active Handling" stability control system, which provides noninvasive assistance and includes a "competitive" driving mode that gives the expert driver more leeway while still maintaining a safety net. The ZR1 gets the even more sophisticated Performance Traction Management system described above. Side curtain airbags are not available.
The 2010 Chevrolet Corvette's roaring V8s provide endless grins. The base car is extremely fast; the Z06, terrifyingly so. As for the ZR1, any car whose speed at the end of the quarter-mile approaches 130 mph is just in a different league -- the ballyhooed Nissan GT-R trails the ZR1 by a full 10 mph here. Top to bottom, the Corvette stable has enough broad-shouldered eight-cylinder force to satisfy even the most depraved speed fiend. Nor does this hamper drivability, as all Corvette models are pretty easy and comfortable to drive around town.
Aspersions are sometimes cast on the base Corvette's and Z06's steering feel, but few cars are more capable on a racetrack in the hands of an experienced driver. Moreover, if you really value delicate communication with your tires, the ZR1's extreme internal makeover has yielded just that. The Vette's brakes are strong and fade-free, especially the ZR1's carbon-ceramic binders, and grip from the enormous tires is, well, enormous. However, we'll dock the Chevy Corvette a point or two for its bulky feel in tight corners, a surprising shortcoming given its low curb weight (even the ZR1 weighs in at just 3,333 pounds).
Chevrolet has improved the current-generation Corvette's fit and finish since its debut, but overall interior quality still leaves something to be desired. Step out of an M3 or Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG and into a 'Vette and you'll likely notice disappointing trim pieces and controls.
The front seats are comfortable, but we've found them to be flimsy and deficient in terms of side bolstering. This issue isn't horrible in the base Corvette's price range, but up where the Z06 and ZR1 play, it becomes more relevant. On the bright side, the Vette's large gauges and remarkable cargo capacity (22 cubic feet in coupes and 11 cubes in the convertible) make it a sports car that's easy to live with on a day-to-day basis.
Consumer reviews
Read what other owners think about the 2010 Chevrolet Corvette.
Most helpful consumer reviews
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Posted by: Lee Albaugh - October 21, 2011 07:52 AM
The mayor, and the city, are charged to enforce our laws. Why must I obey them if you are free to choose which ones to enforce? My wife works by the park being "occupied" "illegally". She fears to walk by the park now. Why can the Mayor use tax-payer funds to fly half way across the world in a time like this, when he is charged to enforce our laws in Portland? Why must the tax-paying citizens be charged with police and clean up overages? It seems the Portland Police should investigate and charge the Mayor for circumventing the laws of the City. Perhaps the true Citizens of Portland should wake up, and recall the Mayor. We do need a revolution of sorts, but it should start at City Hall.
Posted by: Amanda Fritz - October 21, 2011 08:49 PM
Thank you for your comment. I work and walk by the parks too, and I continue to feel safe there even late at night, however if your wife is threatened she should call 9-1-1 and an officer will respond immediately. There are often four police officers on duty in and near the parks, and all of Central Precinct's resources just a block away.
We do not have enough staff to enforce many laws. Some drivers who don't come to a complete stop at a Stop sign may get away with it, some receive an oral warning, some a written warning, some a ticket. I suspect many citizens disobey some laws at some times, such as tall grass in the yard, or jaywalking, or speeding. Enforcement is based on staffing and case-by-case decisions, for many minor offenses.
We are managing this camp on a day by day basis, considering resources and balancing rights and responsibilities.
Posted by: Matthew Gordon - October 23, 2011 01:33 PM
I am an advocate of campaign finance reform, corporate regulation, the right of free speech, and the right of assembly. While I support the occupy Portland movement in these goals, I am horrified by the current condition of the parks and the state of lawlessness that has largely taken over. The small group of people who are truly interested in making positive changes are rapidly losing control to the anarchists, drug dealers, mentally ill, and homeless.
Posted by: Amanda Fritz - October 23, 2011 11:23 PM
Thank you for your comment. I disagree that there is a state of lawlessness in the parks. Police officers are present at all times, and are enforcing laws - currently except for the anti-camping ordinance. The turf was ruined within a few days of the start of the Occupation, and the protesters have pledged to fundraise to restore the parks after the demonstration ends.
People suffering from mental illnesses and those experiencing homelessness camp outside every day of the year in Portland. Those protesters interested in making positive changes are experiencing some of the challenges the Council manages daily.
Posted by: Lauralee Ware - October 24, 2011 02:07 PM
Occupy Portland does need to move on to some specific action beyond sleeping in the park and waking the streets. Recently, I have been reading about the Supreme Court and their actions with corporations. When I read that they enjoy the rights given to conscious human beings such as rights of the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth, Seventh and fourteenth Amendments I feel angry. They hold more legal rights than people do. Recently I read the Ted Nace book,"Gangs of America". He tells of the history of the supreme Court and the Corporations. Near the end he gives some specific actions that citizens could act on for change. The August 2011 puplication of Hightower LOWDOWN (www.hightowerlowdown.org/sites/hightowerlowdown.civicactions.net/files/1108Lowdown.pdf) and the CTJ & ITEP Newsletter or July 2011 give information on these matters.
Posted by: Matthew Gordon - October 24, 2011 08:37 PM
The Portland Tribune quotes the Associated Press with the following...
"When night falls in Portland, for instance, protesters have been dealing with fights, drunken arguments and the display of the occasional knife,"
"One man was arrested on marijuana possession charges in the camp."
"Police have also documented an increase in shoplifting and vandalism around the camp since it was created."
Also worth mention are the recent arrests of two previously convicted criminals who were "participating" in the occupation.
Commissioner Fritz, please tell me that you are closely following all of these elements and fulfilling your duty to govern over a healthy and safe Portland.
Posted by: Amanda Fritz - October 26, 2011 11:07 AM
Thank you for your comments.
Yes, my staff and I are working with the Mayor's staff while he is out of the country. The Police and other City bureaus are closely following these issues and reporting to the Mayor's office. The incidents you note show that the Police are making arrests when behaviors indicate the need to do so. We are all working to maintain a safe and healthy Portland.
Posted by: Bob Boikin - October 30, 2011 08:42 AM
The city has spent a quarter million dollars in police overtime coddling these selfish individuals. The parks are trashed. And the politicians are too sheepish to do anything about it.
The majority of Portlanders make me proud to live in Portland. The city's gifts to select developers and now the vagrant takeover make me embarassed of Portland's leadership.
Posted by: Amanda Fritz - October 30, 2011 02:55 PM
Thank you for your comment. Yes, providing public safety while protecting the rights of free speech can be expensive. Portland's costs in police overtime are considerably less than the expenses of managing Occupy events in other cities, and has been more peaceful. Our police overtime costs are also less than other events we manage downtown, such as the Rose Festival.
The protestors and their supporters have pledged to fundraise to restore Chapman and Lownsdale parks after the protests end.
Posted by: jennifer Pedersen - October 31, 2011 09:01 AM
It appears that Portland elected officials are not acting like they were elected by the people of Portland but instead being guided by their own views of the federal government, constitution and free speech.
I have worked downtown for 16 years and am disgusted and do not feel safe to walk around the whole disaster of Occupy Portland. I have walked through the park several times at several times of they day and do feel threatened. I was offered weed on on occasion and heckled on another. I did bypass a river of urine, as well.
You have come up with a retort for all negative feedback on the occupation, so I give you kudos for that. Overtime is less than the Rose festival? I'm not sure how you can compare the events of a sanctioned community event with a handful of professional protestors and homeless folks who are working illegally to block the parks from the rest of us.
Did you know that Citykids daycare located in the City building uses the park for the kids to get fresh air and play. Since the Occupy is safe and all okay, I wonder why all those kids aren't using that space?
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Saturday, March 29, 2008
In-Progress At Martinsville: Truck Series Qualifying On SPEED
The Craftsman Truck Series will qualify on SPEED beginning at 10AM Eastern Time on Saturday. This is a weekend where the NASCAR on Fox production team is handling the Truck activities. The regular SPEED production crew is home watching.
During practice on Friday, play-by-play announcer Rick Allen struggled to try and integrate Darrell Waltrip into the coverage. Allen and his partner Phil Parsons have been doing the Truck Series for years, and normally have Michael Waltrip alongside on the SPEED broadcasts.
DW is a very different person on TV than Michael, and Allen is going to have to figure out how to step-back and let DW have more of the spotlight. In practice, Allen was making jokes and references that were just a little bit outside of DW's base of knowledge, and that did not translate well on TV.
If they can get the on-air dynamic sorted-out on Saturday morning, that will make things much better for the race in the afternoon at 3PM Eastern on Fox. As most fans know, other than Kyle Busch vs. the Truck Series regulars, the other big story is Chrissy Wallace getting in the field for the first time.
It should also be interesting to see folks like Modified standout Donny Lia and some lesser-known names take to the track on national TV to qualify. The Truck Series is always good for some surprises and with Krista Voda on pit reporter duty, viewers should get the inside scoop.
This page will host your comments about the qualifying, and there will be a new post for in-progress comments on the afternoon Truck race. To add your comment, simply click on the COMMENTS button below and follow the instructions.
Here at The Daly Planet we do not want your email address and there is nothing to join. We just want your opinion of the Truck Series qualifying coverage on SPEED.
15 comments:
- Anonymous said...
Why do any of us even watch SPEED programming anymore ?
The coverage is OK.
Very unhappy about how they go about programming a show. What I just saw is a great example on why we need to start TIVO-ing all these shows.
SPEED just ran a commercial break which included not one, not two, not three... but FIVE promos in ONE break for other SPEED shows.
and in that block they ran 2 promos for the SAME SHOW.
Running the commercials I understand, but the show promos are way overloaded.
Lets just run a lower left "bug" / graphic to promo your shows while coverage of practice and or qualifying is on.
- March 29, 2008 at 10:38 AM
- Daly Planet Editor said...
Kind of interesting that there is no DW on this show.
- March 29, 2008 at 10:50 AM
- Anonymous said...
Since there's only 36 trucks entered and no one will DNQ, maybe they felt there wasn't enough on the line to justify having DW in the booth. Plus he'll be involved with the tape-delayed Happy Hour coverage, also he has to record the "taking laps" segment around the track for tomorrow's broadcast....by including qualifying it would've been about an 8 hour day of television for him.
- March 29, 2008 at 11:14 AM
- Anonymous said...
DW is out there putting digger in his hole to sell more Tshirts :)
The 2 in the booth alone. They seem to have that nightly news fake emotion feel going on. "Isn't that something" "How about that"
Think they should grab a cup driver and toss them up there in the booth if DW or MW cant do the qualifying.
Would help the dynamic quite a bit.
- March 29, 2008 at 11:26 AM
- Anonymous said...
Looks like RAIN is going to get in the way of things today at Martinsville.
Possibly by Noon at the track.
- March 29, 2008 at 11:28 AM
- stricklinfan82 said...
It sure would be nice to watch Cup practice as a lead-in to the Truck race. Instead we get a half-hour NASCAR Live with the cars on the track as background noise and then 3 hours of darkness leading into the Truck race.
Thanks Speed, I thought the practice blackouts and late-night tape delays of Cup Happy Hours were over after ESPN left town last fall. Instead as the years go on we get less and less and less and less NASCAR TV coverage. You'd think as satellite TV expands and there are more and more TV channels out there that we would get more TV coverage than we did years ago, not less. Sigh.
- March 29, 2008 at 11:36 AM
- Anonymous said...
once the rain arrives (soon) more drivers to interview.
- March 29, 2008 at 11:47 AM
- stricklinfan82 said...
I find it interesting that 27 minutes into this 30 minute NASCAR Live that they aren't even talking about what's going on live in Cup practice. They haven't as much as told us who's the fastest in practice.
We got 4 interviews - A.J. Allmendinger (who's not racing), and then David Ragan and Bobby Labonte in taped interviews before the practice session even started, and some guy named Marcus Marshall that races Supercars???? We also got Truck qualifying highlights, Cup qualifying highlights, and talked to someone at Richmond trying to sell tickets for the next race there. We also got a sneak-peak at David Ragan's new commercial. Yawn.
I tuned in to this show hoping to get some information about what was going on live on the track during the untelevised practice session and have gotten nothing but a brief Jeff Burton update used to hype his appearance on Nascar Hotpass this week, what a letdown.
- March 29, 2008 at 11:59 AM
- Anonymous said...
I assume DW is resting his voice...
It's really annoying for SPEED to not cover practice, yet they have a live show while the cars are on the track and they are wasting our time interviewing A.J. Allmendinger.
What a waste of time.
Truck qualifying coverage was good though!
It will be funny if Happy Hour is rained out to see what SPEED will use to fill the tape delayed practice broadcast tonight.
- March 29, 2008 at 11:59 AM
- stricklinfan82 said...
Well at least on the 30th and final minute of the show we got a top 10 speed chart to at least tell us a small bit of information about less than a quarter of the field. I would have thought Dillner and Rutledge would have been all over the garage reporting on the practice happenings and Speed would have treated this 30 minute NASCAR Live as quasi-practice coverage (like they did during the 2 hour NASCAR Lives during the ESPN practice blackouts last year) but no, we got irrelevant interviews not related to the practice session, useless highlights of events we've already seen, and two on-air commercials featuring David Ragan and the Richmond people that are in need of ticket purchases.
What a waste of a program. Talk about making the worst of an already bad situation.
- March 29, 2008 at 12:09 PM
- Daly Planet Editor said...
I enjoyed once again the personality stories of the NCTS.
Between Donny Lia and Chrissy Wallace and the two old guys battling for the pole, this series has it for me.
Hopefully, DW will be a good partner for Rick and Phil this afternoon.
- March 29, 2008 at 12:10 PM
- stricklinfan82 said...
Don't forget the Rookie-of-the-Year front-runner Philip, don't call me McGlynn, McGilton :) Hopefully Fox has that cleaned up since their last appearance at a Truck Series race.
It should be a very interesting race. I still have a feeling though that the broadcast's just not going to have the same feel without all the usual Truck announcers on hand working this broadcast. I still wish we could see Michael Waltrip and Ray Dunlap instead of DW and Matt Yocum (or whichever Cup pit reporter takes Ray's place this time), and Krista Voda hosting from the studio instead of Chris Myers.
- March 29, 2008 at 12:20 PM
- Sophia said...
I really noticed the overkill of commercial glut watching that NASCAR confidential. Even taped, when you spend more time ff than watching, there is a problem.
If we could figure out a way to see F1 and WT, we would probably get rid of digital even though we get 20 channels on the SPEED tier alone...but it just seems anymore, SPEED supersizes everything.
The 2 and three hour RACEDAY shows that can EASILY be edited down to an hour and stop the fluff and minutia.
I hope the trucks get the race in but I can't read the weather map and FOX is covering it....so who knows.
- March 29, 2008 at 2:54 PM
- Anonymous said...
I am shocked at the negativity of the comments. Its almost like we have lost sight of the bigger picture here. I thought the coverage was well done. Who cares how many promos SPEED puts in the breaks- you fast forward thought them anyway...right?
- March 29, 2008 at 3:23 PM
- Anonymous said...
No DW ...Sweet...
- March 29, 2008 at 9:49 PM


text:
Okay, so I can't count...
I made 12 squares instead of 9...oops!
This card was made with the help of My Digital Studio!
I was able to enlarge the Christmas Lodge, color it in to my liking
and then printed it out. I smooshed the entire image with
Versa Mark then used and old Stampin' Up! product called
Glassy Glaze, heated it up, then I did three more coats of
Versa Mark, Glaze, etc. Then I popped it in the freezer.
When I took it out I cut it into equal one inch squares and
mounted it on some Early Espresso card stock. THEN...
I bent it a bit so the little frozen pieces cracked.
This is called CRACKED GLASS TECHNIQUE
I thought the sketch challenge looked like a window so
this is what popped in my head to create
I hope you like it
see... this is the sketch we had to work with...
now pop on over to the Red Hot Stampers blog to see what
the other gals did with this sketch
Thanks For Stopping By!
Have A Blessed Day!!
ChristiPin It Now!


text:
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Friday, April 20, 2012
I mean, I want to chat, but I have no idea about what.
I get this way about life in general, in which case it's called "boredom." When General Apathy takes over (usually every day around 3 pm), I kick start myself by calling up a friend and asking what she's making for supper, what gossip she knows (yes, I'm naughty), and whether or not she's had any profound thoughts as of late.
If I'm lucky, she's in a rambly mood and soon I'm puttsing around the house emptying the dish drainer, cleaning off the table clutter, maybe even setting a pot of rice to cook, all the while the phone smashed between my shoulder and ear. By the time I hit the "end" button, I'm smiling, my brain is jumping with ideas, and I have a renewed energy to do what needs to be done.
When I get in a funk, bloggy-wise, I don't call anyone. I stew and mope and feel bad about myself in general.
About a week ago, Joy did a post on Ten (Super Rad) Blog Post Ideas. She had a lot of good suggestions, like to do a how-to post, or a day-in-the-life post, or a best-of post, but I can't (don't, won't) just pull that stuff out of my hat. Which brings me to the next point.
I am incapable of coming up with those extremely popular top ten lists. I struggle to generate basic metaphors or lists of three, you know, where you say the dude at the checkout counter was pimply, greasy-haired, and, and, and—oh crap, I don't know what.
So anyway, I deal with this running-on-empty state of being by doing one of two things: a) nothing, which is deeply unsatisfying and makes me feel like I'm turning into a soggy lump of moldy bread, and b) disciplining myself to type words dagnabbit, itdoesnotmatterwhatwordstheyare. But that feels egocentric and myopic and narcissistic—all those words that are kind of bad but I'm not exactly sure what they mean but I'm probably being them, you know?—because who the heck wants to read a self-discipline session? Exactly.
The bigger issue, the thing that drains me and pulls me down, is that I wish I could spin long, heartfelt, humorous, profound posts like some amazingly gifted people. It's not going to happen, though, because I don't have all those weighty thoughts and because it takes all my mental powers and then some to come up with the 600 concise and meaningful words about eggs (or something equally ordinary) that's due every other week for the paper. I can only do so much.
Yesterday on my way to an appointment to keep me from turning into a wooly mammoth (otherwise known as a haircut), I tuned into NPR just in time to year the end of a talk show in which they were discussing writerly matters. It was kind of hard to hear what they were saying because our van is missing its antenna, but I did make out the guest's main point which was: don't worry about being, or not being, like other people—get to know your own voice and develop your own style. Which is kind of scary because what if my voice is irrelevant, or really hoarse, or worse yet, annoyingly shrill?
In spite of my scary panic thoughts, I found his advice to be both soothing and freeing. I am what I am and that's that. (Brilliant, I know.) I'll just go on wiping up the sticky spots on the floor and calling my girlfriends and making myself type words when I don't feel like it.
Happy Friday, dearies!
This same time, years previous: ground pork and white bean chili, chocolate ice cream, baked spaghetti, chocolate mayonnaise cake, a dirt pile
19 comments:
I depend on my girlfriends for exactly the kind of pick-me-up you described.ReplyDelete
I've been feeling blah for a few weeks. I told my best friend I was having a mid-life crisis. . . I think.
I worry, too, that if I use my authentic voice it will annoy other people (I'm an oldest daughter - are you? I think that kind of fear often goes with the turf).
I love your blog (you!). I put you on my sidebar so I wouldn't miss a post :)Replies
Yes, I'm an oldest child---loud, domineering, yadda yadda yadda. Maybe sometime I'll call you up---my first words will be, "So, what are you making for supper?"Delete
Keep writing! I love reading your blog. And it's all the random sticky messes and similar adventures that make it so relatable...I'm no longer sure if relatable is a word since it's apparently spelled incorrectly and there's not an appropriate option to change it to. I'm going with it anyway.ReplyDeleteReplies
You're sweet. And yes, "relatable" is totally a word.Delete
And then you wrote this post.ReplyDelete
Confession: Sometimes I purposefully don't read Momastary because it just makes me too jealous. Where does she get those words and how does she string them all together? It's just too much.Replies
I think she's a genius.Delete
You ARE a good writer . . . even when you don't feel you have anything to write about.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousApril 20, 2012 at 7:48 AM
you are so pretty. that picture is gorgeous.ReplyDeleteReplies
Aw shucks, thank you!Delete
- AnonymousApril 20, 2012 at 9:03 AM
God makes everyone different and each person special and if you spun long, heartfelt, humorous, profound posts that contained all kind of weighty thoughts, I probably wouldn't read it. Your posts are exactly what I need to make me laugh, get through the day and feel like I'm not the only one. I agree with Faith above that "it's all the random sticky messes and similar adventures that make it so relatable." and I wouldn't wish it to be any other way. VickiReplyDelete
Go make some ice cream.ReplyDelete
well, I'm a lurker who is posting for the first time here to give you a boost! I love your voice. It's quirky and unique and real--even when you're not feeling very interesting. I'd love to have you over for dinner. Margo's a real-life friend of mine, so we could have a little party! Keep writing.ReplyDeleteReplies
Yay for de-lurking! I so appreciate that you took the time to offer some encouragement. And isn't Margo awesome?!Delete
Don't underestimate your voice. I think it's wonderful. Just because you don't think you match up with someone's writing style doesn't mean your own doesn't inspire someone else the way others do to you. :)ReplyDelete
- AnonymousApril 21, 2012 at 4:50 AM
I read you blog because it is you! You make me laugh, cry, ponder, gasp, and that is why I keep coming back! Your real, I can believe you. What you have to share is very valuable.ReplyDelete
L in Elkton
Your blog helps me feel grounded. I love the complex joys you show the world. You don't need grandiose literary talents to create a beautiful thing and sometimes the funk of having no drive it precisely what should be discussed. Keep on writing and sharing even if it frustrates. I, for one, love it all.ReplyDelete
Thank you,
Random girl who has read your rss feed daily for over a year.
I read your blog regularly as an RSS feed and have not commented, though there has probably been something I'd say about every post. I love your blog and have been reading it for over a year. I think what got me interested initially was the home-farm aspect and that you live in a similar place/climate as me but what kept me around was the never ending saga of your wonderful family and as you put it, quotidian existence. I found myself caring deeply for the six of you despite the fact that we don't know each other in the slightest. Don't be discouraged by lack of content, in a way it is the simplicity and normalcy that means the most to me (and in life). Thanks for sharing it.ReplyDelete
Ahh. So THAT's why you ask me what I'm making for supper. Now I'll have to turn that around sometime and ask what YOU're making for supper.ReplyDelete
You know, I think Momastery Glennon is not an Enneagram Eight. She doesn't crave the same kind of control that we do. It's when we give up control that the genius can shine right through. So give it up already... :)
Love & hugs to you.Replies
Oh dear. Now you're on to me!Delete


text:
Cougars fall to No. 14 Beavers 19-6
UPDATED: Sat., Oct. 6, 2012
CORVALLIS, Ore. – He wasn't saying it to place blame solely on quarterbacks Connor Halliday and Jeff Tuel, because certainly all aspects of Washington State's offense had a hand in Saturday's no-show.
But coach Mike Leach provided at least an abridged snapshot of what went wrong in the Cougars' 19-6 loss at Oregon State here on Saturday.
"Connor threw interceptions," Leach said. "And Jeff got sacked. Either way, we need to improve both of them."
And the running game, and the offensive line, and just about everything else that has anything to do with offense, because WSU had very little of it to complement the finest defensive performance anyone has seen from the Cougars in some time.
It's been two years since WSU held a conference opponent without a touchdown in the first half, a feat last accomplished here at Reser Stadium, where in 2010 the Cougars emerged with a surprising 31-14 victory.
This one was surprising, too, in that OSU manhandled WSU's offensive line and receivers despite entering the game ranked 113th in the nation in pass defense.
Halliday threw two interceptions in the first half and another after halftime, and was pulled twice – the second time for good – in favor of Tuel, who wound up absorbing three sacks from OSU defensive end Scott Crichton.
"Offensively, it just became a series of errors," Leach said.
The two quarterbacks combined to complete 20 of 37 passes for 207 yards (Tuel 11 of 17 for 126, Halliday 9 of 20 for 81). Added to a rushing effort that netted just 20 yards on 14 carries, that wasn't enough. Not even on a day when WSU's defense held OSU to 370 yards of total offense, 270 of those in the first three quarters before the Beavers pulled away at the end.
The first half, at least, was the picture of what the Cougars want to be on that side of the ball. They sacked OSU quarterback Sean Mannion twice, forced him into a bad interception by Ioane Gauta, and made the Beavers settle for only two field goals and a 6-3 halftime lead despite reaching WSU's 24-yard line on each of their first three possessions.
"We knew what plays were coming," said WSU linebacker Justin Sagote. "We were calling it out before they even happened. It kind of helped us as a defense to swarm."
But there was no help from the offense. OSU opened the third quarter by finishing a 75-yard scoring drive with a 12-yard touchdown pass from Mannion to Markus Wheaton for a 13-3 lead.
Halliday was intercepted by Jordan Poyer two plays later – the second of Poyer's three interceptions – and the sophomore quarterback headed to the bench for the rest of the game.
"They mixed it up real well," Halliday said. "They kept us guessing and for the most part the offense was confused out there."
It improved with Tuel at the helm, but not greatly. The senior led WSU to OSU's 15-yard in the fourth quarter still trailing by 10, but the drive stalled and the Cougars settled for another Andrew Furney field goal.
And if the Beavers' 12-play, 86-yard scoring drive that followed wasn't the straw that broke the Air Raid's back – OSU took its final 19-6 lead with 4:27 remaining — then it was Tuel's interception to Poyer five snaps later that sealed WSU's miserable offensive performance.
At 2-4, WSU's chances to snap its eight-year bowl-less streak seem grim.
Surprised? So are the Cougars.
"What our potential can be, I don't know if anybody really understands it like we do," said junior safety Deone Bucannon. "It's not just like another loss and we're going to go lay down and sleep like babies. It means something to us."
But Saturday just meant another loss. That these still feel so familiar might be the biggest disappointment of all.
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text:
One from Column A, None from Column B
In yesterday's New York Times there was a funny piece about Jews and Chinese food by Patricia Volk. Best line:
There's an e-joke making the rounds: According to the Jewish calendar, the year is 5766. According to the Chinese calendar, it's 4703. That means for 1,063 years, it's 4703. That means for 1,063 years, Jews went without Chinese food.
And this line about Chinese food in the 1950's: "Every dish contained so much cornstarch, the ingredients appeared suspended."
Growing up Jewish on Long Island in the late fifties, we (just like the Volks), too, went for Chinese food every Sunday (the housekeeper's day off) to China Jade in Hewlett. There were six of us, all big eaters, but my dad would always order "dinner for five" to save money. That meant we ordered five dishes, two from Column A and three from Column B.
This is what I remember eating: wonton soup, egg rolls, roast pork fried rice, spare ribs, roast pork and Chinese vegetables, shrimp with lobster sauce, chow har kew (breaded shrimp) and moo goo gai pan (watery chicken and vegetables). The egg rolls and the wonton soup came with all dinners. I thought the food at China Jade was just incredibly delicious. So when the Hewlett Public Library invited me to speak a few years ago, I went back to China Jade afterwards and ordered a combination plate. The food was awful. Taste memories really do play tricks on us. I would like to hear from readers about their seminal Chinese food eating experiences.
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text:
Are there too few people who understand desktop Linux ?
I just read the ComputerWorld article "Are there too many desktop Linuxes?" and once again I think the author is missing something very obvious and important.
If we are talking about Desktop Linux, we are talking about the consumer and enterprise market. If we are talking about the consumer and enterprise market, we are talking mostly about non-technical people and not me or you (since you are reading my blog, I do not consider you the average computer user).
I usually describe the consumer and enterprise market to be 99% of the population, which I often visualize as: my mother !
For those that are already confused, my mother is non-technical and not a power user. She uses applications and often struggles with tasks I consider basic. But this mostly means I too have a skewed perception of computer users and basic computer skills.
(If your mother is too distracting as an example, consider you are a support engineer of a big enterprise and you are in charge of the enterprise desktop systems of the company's management including the CEO.)
A desktop Linux system is a means to a goal, and not the goal itself for 99% of the people.
Now the following list of facts exists and may be inherited in the consumer and enterprise markets:
- Technical people have little time or patience to upgrade, maintain or provide support for the 99% of other people. I can do it for a selected few only (in my spare time).
- My mother (or your CEO) is only interested that her applications work reliably, she does not need the latest bleeding-edge features, nor does she want new versions of applications or a new OS every 6 months that may look or behave differently to what she is used to.
- I am not interested in updating/upgrading my mom's computer whenever I pay a visit because the OS demands that from me. I'd rather do other things with my time.
- The longer I can have my mom's computer running (think years) in a secure manner, the fewer worries I have.
- Every intervention that can be avoided, is time I can use for something else. Or is money saved for the company.
This means that high-maintenance, bleeding-edge Linux distributions, while very useful to the selected few, are not a nice fit for 99% of the market because they change too often, require work to update them and change often spurs breakage, instability or behavioral change.
"If it ain't broken, don't fix it." applies in the consumer and enterprise market very well (unless maybe when you make money by fixing).
So, we end up dismissing all distributions that:
- have less than 5 years of support (security updates)
- have a new release (and forced upgrade path) that is less than 3 years
- update applications during the course of the lifetime with little consideration to support/stability
Which means most Linux distributions are not suitable as a Desktop Linux for the majority of the population. So not Fedora, not Ubuntu, not OpenSUSE, not any of the other distributions except:
- RHEL/CentOS
- Ubuntu LTS
the Enterprise distributions. And I have nothing against the Fedora/Ubuntu/OpenSUSE/whatnot distributions of today, they are very needed for driving progress and for fostering the Open Source community. But please, not at the expense of the non-technical end-user.
I know that many of you have compelling reasons to like and use bleeding-edge distributions, and that is fine. But please also consider that your requirements are not necessarily the same requirements as my mother or your CEO. And the way you manage your own computer does not scale very well if you need to support 10, 100 or 1000 end-user Linux desktops.
LTSP desktops
I agree with the article, but we're about to migrate our desktops to Fedora 10 since LTSP 5 (with local storage) is not well supported on RHEL/CentOS (https://fedorahosted.org/k12linux/wiki/RHEL5Server). Time will tell if it's worth the hassle.
Would it be supported in
Would it be supported in RHEL6 or CentOS-6 ? If so it might save you some time to wait 8 to 10 months and start off implementing using RHEL6 or CentOS-6 instead.
RHEL 5.4 will have fuse support (and RPMforge has fuse included too) so if fuse is the culprit that can be fixed.
I fear that projects like LTSP are making a big mistake by using Fedora for the desktop, especially because Fedora 9 users are advised to first upgrade to Fedora 10 before upgrading to the upcoming Fedora 11. Going directly from Fedora 9 to Fedora 11 is not supported and will not work.
This basically means that you will have to change the end-user desktop every 6 months, or have to merge 2 updates every year to have security updates. Which is something I would not like to support, or have my users to endure :-/
I hope it works out well and I am certainly interested to hear from your project back in 18 months time (because that is usually when the maintenance drag becomes apparent to the organisation).
"I fear that projects like
"I fear that projects like LTSP are making a big mistake by using Fedora for the desktop, especially because Fedora 9 users are advised to first upgrade to Fedora 10 before upgrading to the upcoming Fedora 11. Going directly from Fedora 9 to Fedora 11 is not supported and will not work."
Wrong. It is supported explicitly. Read the packaging guidelines and lifecycle policy.
I read this in the Fedora 11
I read this in the Fedora 11 release notes
Upgrading from Fedora 9 directly to Fedora 11 using yum is not possible, you must upgrade to Fedora 10 first, then upgrade to Fedora 11. See http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/YumUpgradeFaq for more information. You can also use preupgrade to upgrade directly to Fedora 11 using anaconda, minimizing the system downtime by downloading the packages in advance.
So the devil is in the details. How this works for a typical LTSP setup is non-trivial to me.
Being the desktop Linux
Being the desktop Linux support person (as in, no computer support from me unless it's Linux) for various relatives, I can agree with what you say. However, intentionally slow-moving distros like CentOS have one disadvantage on the desktop: what happens when new hardware comes along? It sometimes does. The user would be perfectly happy with the existing Linux version, but the new computer won't run it. Or an interesting USB peripheral is not supported in the kernel it is running, but would work in the much newer kernel of a bleeding-edge distro. This is where the lack of stable binary driver interface in Linux is a disadvantage.
I agree, but this is changing
I agree, but this is changing since a few releases for RHEL/CentOS. From the changes in RHEL 5.2 and 5.3 you can see that Red Hat spends a reasonable amount of energy in backporting infrastructure that is not server-oriented (wireless drivers, X drivers, power management, ...) but they also backport support for chipsets, storage drivers, etc, which are needed for servers too.
Since more and more companies are willing to pay Red Hat for desktop related features (eg. Cisco was involved with the wireless infrastructure backport in RHEL4 to support their laptops), Red Hat sees a business case in adding more support. And we all benefit from that on the desktop too.
It does require one to choose its hardware based on what is supported (which is something enterprise do anyhow), but consumers are less informed and that offers a challenge. (The CentOS wiki has a list of supported laptops for this purpose, more help is appreciated)
I am optimistic for the future though thanks to the kernel interface needing less and less change which already makes it easier to backport drivers. The same is true for Xorg and other hardware related software components. We have seen a lot of new development in the past few years that focused heavily on the desktop experience (and the required infrastructure for that) of which we can reap the benefits in the future.
I am excited for what is coming with CentOS-6 in that respect.
Agree entirely.
I think you summed it up well.
Using an LTS based distro for the 'main' is quite reasonable.
Those more inclined to tinker may benefit from 6 month refreshes, but the majority won't.
agree... however enterprise desktop is not consumer desktop
I'm running centos5.3+kde3.5.10
its pretty stable and usable linux desktop for corporate market...
if u are talking about consumer desktop it's different story... oem :) rules... imho centos 6.0/6.1 would be first capable consumer oem product...well waitnig for it...
ps. love your work (centos team is changing life of small entrepreneurs like me)... pls don't bother those people complaining about late realese of 5.3...
wish you and your wife happy times together... ;)
There are constant problems in some zones...
Being the Linux support engineer for a large company in Romania, I entirely agree with Dag.
However, there are a few things to note:
There are some zones where little or no apparent progress has been made for YEARS. For example, it's almost impossible to use a scanner in Linux, if you don't own a SCSI one (the models in the official compatibility list, parallel scanners, are sooooo old or poor in an USB-dominated world...)
Another zone is mobile phone interaction - there is still no way to easily syncronize your cell phone with Thunderbird - a task that any non-technical user performs in Outlook Express on a daily basis;
I am a Romanian user. Despite the late progresses, CentOS 5.3 is still unusable as a desktop for non-technical users, because it lacks correct standardisesd Romanian keyboard arrangements and fonts with comma-below diacritics - in other words, one still cannot correctly type a text in Romanian language...
Finally, a desktop user still needs VERY EASY support for a few "gadgets", such as USB or PCMCIA modems from mobile phone companies. In Windows they are used to easily connect to a VPN, in a road-warrior setup; in Linux, even with OpenVPN, it is still problematic to (reliably) run an utility to connect with your USB cell dongle (think Huaweis...)
If a few features like these are completed, users will stick with a more stable (and conservative) distro, like CentOS or Debian, instead of Ubuntu, Fedora or alike...
The consumer market obviously
The consumer market obviously is more complex than the enterprise market, but I did not want to go into the specifics of each. But that is the main reason why Red Hat only targets the enterprise market with RHEL, while Fedora may be Red Hat's strategy for the consumer market. I am not sure whether it is, even less that it should be. But no strategy might turn sour later given that other distributions fill this gap nicely.
Some of the remarks you make are closer to the consumer market to me, but I guess after-hours every enterprise user becomes a consumer too. :-)
Scanner support
I always thought Linux was behind with regards to supporting consumer devices. But when I bought me a cheap scanner/printer/copier device from HP I was surprised that with little effort I can now scan over the (wireless) network.
I did have to build my own gscan2pdf package, but it works better than the Windows tool that HP ships with it.
Once again, buy hardware that is known to work, or return hardware that fails to work on Linux (and specifically mention why you returned it).
Mobile phone interaction
Also in this domain I do not have much experience. I use Google Calendar and sync my Nokia E71 over the network using the GooSync service I pay for.
What does work fine on my CentOS-5 is bluetooth for mobile internet access as well as accessing the phone's filesystem. I have an fstab entry using fuse-obexfs which enables me to press one button in my Gnome Disk Mounter applet to access any file on my cellphone.
Also here, you may have to be careful with the hardware you choose.
Romanian keyboard support
This bit saddens me, because it should be fairly simple to fix this. I am surprised that something like this is (still) an issue in 2009 and stunned that this has no influence on the enterprise market ? Red Hat does have people in Romania, no ?
Red Hat on the Romanian market
As a paradox, features like easy scanning and/or Thunderbird syncronization are requested more in an enterprise medium than at home. That's at least in Romania, where few companies own internal directory services like Red Hat Directory Service, IBM Lotus or Active Directory.
There are mainly independent PCs, pretty powerful and up-to-date, but no brand-names.
In most companies, there is also a lack of regulated IT management (by a qualified and informed IT department).
As for Romanian keyboards, correct support *is* present in Fedora, but adoption in RHEL is delayed indefinitely. Please see bug #450396.
We *do* have a pretty strong localization team, translators, etc...
As for Red Hat's presence in Romania:
Despite a few banks or telecom companies using Red Hat solutions internally, there is no *visible* presence of Red Hat in Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova or even Hungary. Of course, there are two or three local representatives (NOT computer stores), official RH courses, but that's not enough for the "man on the street" being aware (the way they do with Microsoft software). There are no computer stores displaying Red Hat or Canonical products, there is no Red Hat marketing for the large public, no local support, no banners...
The absence of a Red Hat office in Romania, that would coordinate all these, is also a strong dissapointment issue for local Red Hat users/community. Putting the nearest official Red Hat office in Vienna is FAR from enough and a bit disregarding for all countries in the Eastern Europe, from Poland, Czechia and Hungary to ex-USSR republics, Moldova and Bulgaria...
IMHO, the issue of Red Hat (& Canonical) sales in Eastern Europe being pretty low is a reversed effect: the sales are lowered because the apparent "absence" on the local market and lack of "visibility", not because the lack of "need for product" or potential clients. Please think other products, like cars: the DO sell more LUXURY cars in Romania than in Germany. So there are money on the market... ;-)
Ubuntu LTS
I don't want to pick on Ubuntu itself but given your requirements (>= 5y support), I don't think even Ubuntu LTS is suitable as a desktop system.
While Ubuntu LTS is support for five years, this holds only true for a subset of the packages - the "server" ones. "Desktop" packages are only support for three years: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/LTS
Interesting point of view
Didn't think about it this way.
Still, enterprise OSes tend to have less focus on the desktop, but more on the "server" role. Maybe ubuntu LTS does that well, I haven't tried it.
Discussions of how well an
Discussions of how well an operating function performs on the desktop often focus on the "personal" desires of the user, such as support for the persons hardware and preferred applications. This is relevant and almost the whole story for a home computer. In the corporate environment these considerations are only about half the issues. In that environment there are the problems of automatically updating software on machines, controlling security policy, getting commercial software that is designed to work with MS Windows servers to interface with Linux machines, getting Linux to interface with MS "Active Directory" etc. So I think that Mother is only a good picture of %50 of the corporate picture (i.e. she is the ordinary users) Add Mother's son who must maintain the whole clan's computers (i.e. the IT department) and you can see the corporate picture. I think this view explains why Red Hat Enterprise Linux has the upper hand on Ubuntu.
Bleeding edge vs Cutting edge
"This means that high-maintenance, bleeding-edge Linux distributions, while very useful to the selected few, are not a nice fit for 99% of the market because they change too often, require work to update them and change often spurs breakage, instability or behavioral change."
99% users can stay all times up-to-date easily, without problems and secure. ALL THE TIME!
What longer you stay on one version, more features will come to new version and the bigger and more problematic the change will come. What means more teaching, more time and at last, more money spend to new version. If user stays always on the newest version, (6-12month release cycle) there ain't big problems, only small ones. You can keep your current settings without touching them and you get new features.
Every task, can be made better. You can need features what are missing or you do not even yet notice how things could be made better.
The users, normal users are DEVELOPERS as well as all software engineers who code the software. The users (99%) are those who gain experience from the software and they notice what is done well and what is done wrong.
The software engineers should listen the users and they should develop the software to meet those needs what users wants, and more important, _what they need_.
This means that the information from users to engineers is needed to happend in daily purposes. Software engineers should get statics what are problems of the software so they can improve it, bring needed features and do what users want.
And this means that users need to have access to use the upstream version of software. So they can get the improvements and they can get the features what they need. All that makes the users life much easier than stick in years on the old version.
There is lots of problems on the old versions of applications. You can not always fix security/feature bugs on them like you can do on newer version. What older the version is, that harder it usually comes. And that means the old version and the newest version comes too different that maintaining those comes very complex, if not impossible. Longer you use old version, more you slow down your self because you do not get the secure, maintained and improved software. And more money you will spend in long run when you ain't upgrading in short periods what takes just small amount of maintenance time.
The typical transfer between 6-18 month release is not a problem at all. But switch between releases what is longer than 3-5 years, comes very complex. I have not yet seen any good transferr between Ubuntu LTS versions or Debian stable versions. All companies and projects has have more problems on those than the companies what upgrades every 6 months.
They have spend more money to teach users to new features and they have missed A LOT of time and money by using old version of software what does not have features what speeds up their working time and adds features what improves their workflow.
Only lazy IT-support person will suggest to stick on the long term supported version. Corporations etc lives on quartertimed world, where year is sliced to 4 periods. They usually do not plan longer than few periods and in max few years. They can not see the problems what comes on the long term usage because they just think they will save money when they skip versions and do not pay licenses etc.
We all know that corporations and users do not run just the applications what are preinstalled on system. They do not use the predefined settings what is set to applications. They customise the system and application configurations and in long time, there comes lots and lots of the things what need to be transferred seamsly between old and new release of distribution what is few release newer than current one. And things just gets broken because of that.
Software developers makes sure that newest stable is working without problems with the last stable. But they can not make sure that newest stable works well with much older stable version. There might have happend so many changes that you need to reset your configuration files, reconfigure the new version and adapt the new features and that just makes the whole stuff more complex than it could be.
"If it ain't broken, don't fix it." applies in the consumer and enterprise market very well (unless maybe when you make money by fixing)."
Do not use that wrong way! That means it when you code, you do not change the code what is working, so you can maintain the backward compatiblity.
Improving software _ain't_ fixing it. Fixing has nothing to do with the adding features.
Those like you, who use that wisdom wrong way, slows down the development and slows down the whole world because the information between users and software engineers comes very complex, the information comes too old and it ain't valid anymore. Users do not have anymore the correct and newest information what would help software engineers to develop sofware to fill needs what all the _USERS_ need.
There is the wisdom what is the point and over rules what you say. "Release early and release often".
When you update your software to every version, you get new features, bugfixes and security fixes right away. In long run, you do much less task to maintain the software and learn the new features than those who waits years.
Right now you are suggesting that most users in the world, should use old versions of application, old standards and leave out new features.
In contrary, it's like you are saying that Windows users should stay on IE6 and web-developers should make their sites for it.
The softwares gets more features, improvements and fixes and so does all the standards. And you can not get newest standard to old software if it is implented to newest version of the software. You are just in loophole where you can not work together with the world what is going on edge of the development.
Lazy people say "It is better to use this version next 3-7 years so we save lots of money and time". They just slow down the whole world and makes everything more complex what ain't needed.
Lazy people ain't wise enough to plan and design the IT-systems that upgrading is easy and takes no time.
Smart people plan everything and deploy systems so that you can just press a button and upgrade all systems without problems (or just with small unique problems what are easy to repair)..
I work for two company. In other we have over 1300 desktop computers, few hundred of those are around the world (laptops etc) and in other we have littlebit under 500 and only small amount of those are laptops what are outside of office longer than few days.
We use Linux bretty much all of them (there is few Windows XP systems because of photoshops and few other special applications) and we have mainteined now on both corporations, since 2004, all systems without big problems every 8 months. In that time, we have 2 months time to plan the upgrade of systems and wait important fixes for new releases. And almost biggest problems of all, is that we need to get computers to Internet and stay there for few hours. Both companies have saved lots of money by this way and our task is much easier because it just works.
One of my co-worker tried two times the 18 month cycle on simulated environment and it failed on both times. Too many problems all the time.
And yes... I do exactly this for my mother computer too. Every 8 months I just give few commands and after 1-2 hours the system is upgraded and her computer has worked flawlessly since 2005, not a clitch at all. Problems have be very basic stuff... Level of "How do I get added attachment to this email?", no single technical problems at all... (and no, it does not run Ubuntu!)
But, I would not recommended bleeding edge distribution (Fedora) to any normal user. Cutting edge is fine and typical distribution is just perfect, like Mandriva and OpenSUSE. Ubuntu is out of it's class, too much overhyped.
Using Linux as a desktop computer
Well for the non-techies as in those people who have never seen and touched a computer yet, if you let them use Linux for the first time, then I believe they will have no trouble adjusting since it is "Linux" that they first woke up to in the computer world.
I think it is more hard for those who "woke" up using windows to shift to Linux. I believe that for this people the most appropriate solution is to create a Linux desktop distro that works exactly just like windows.
One more thing, I am very much pro-open source, in fact I use Linux on my laptop and open office in all our office desktops. But the fact of the matter is that its very hard to install programs on Linux. For people migrating from windows, installing program in Linux should be made more like that of windows.
By the way I've not tried any of the distros you mentioned by I think Linspire and Xandros is quite close to "windows" but I believe they still need to work more on it.


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Hey now. It's the weekend and though maybe you want to go out and get drunk and be dumb, let's be real. A tiny part of you wants to just stay in and play with all these new apps you're going to download.
Weekend's here. That means debasement and irresponsibility and, best of all, losing stuff. I'm planning on losing my phone this weekend. Haven't decided where just yet, but that's the fun of it. I might replace it with an iPhone, so here are some apps from this week that I'll load it when I buy it.
I have your weekend plan for you: get stupid drunk and see how high this new breathalyser app for your eyes can go. You will probably pass out after this. When you wake up hungover go outside and make cinemagraphs with Cinemagram.
If you want to be ripped like those American Football guys you're going to have to workout. Like all the time. You shouldn't even be reading this post. Quit your job and download an NFL player's workout app. Or if the cold snap has inspired you, go after a hockey puck. Forget it, I know we're all just gonna sit around and play video games on our iPhones.
Automating your tasks on the iPhone seems like a wonderful dream that'll never come true. Well wake up dream warrior, because it's a reality. Also, follow through with your commitments, sing to the world, and take amazing photos.
Start streaming all your videos to your iPhone, Not just those fancy h.264 videos. Start painting with light. Organize your life, and start tracking the elusive Great White shark.
Would you workout if you made money? How about if you lost money by not working out? Get the best budget tracking app. Measure everything with your iPhone camera, and a simple, yet effective, to do app.
Is the whole world of app development on holibobs this week? Sure feels like it. Nevermind, because we have three iPhone apps which will rock your socks off (or burn them off.)


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A Sandwich a Day: Eggplant Miso from LAMill Coffee in Los Angeles
A different sandwich profiled every single day.
In this great country of ours, one could eat a different sandwich every day of the year—so that's what we'll do. Here's A Sandwich a Day, our daily look at sandwiches around the country. Got a sandwich we should check out? Let us know. —The Mgmt.
My trips to LAMill—an airy, super-hip, super-sleek, coffee oasis in the Silverlake neighborhood of Los Angeles—tend to focus squarely on caffeine consumption. Picking up some beans, sipping on a caffe con leche, an occasional splurge on something siphon dripped. But on a recent visit, the cafe's sandwich menu caught my eye, specifically the Eggplant Miso, and even more specifically the housemade nori focaccia on which this vegetarian creation is served.
It's a sizable sandwich, with layers of soft, creamy tofu, earthy spinach, thinly sliced eggplant, and a rich miso glaze. Flavor-wise the components jam really well together; the high notes of sweet and tang and the steady low bass of the savory miso.
Architecturally though it's a little challenging. It's hard to take a bite without the eggplant slipping out. And then there's the question of that tantalizing nori focaccia—it's spongy with subtle nori undertones that pair perfectly with the sandwich's other ingredients. But there's just too much of it; making it tempting to do the unthinkable and go open-face.
On the plus side it comes with amazingly delicious potato chips (salty, crisp, with just a little bit of that fresh potato chew) and for a vegetarian sandwich it's quite filling. But the price ($15) means that like a siphon-dripped single origin brew, this sandwich is a serious splurge.
LAMill Coffee
1636 Silver Lake Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90026 (map); 323-663-4441; lamillcoffee.com/
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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Several San Francisco neighborhoods over the last week have been targeted with illegal campaign flyers against Assembly candidate David Campos — breaking both state election laws requiring the group and its funding source to be identified and local laws against placing political flyers on utility poles and other surfaces.
Former Ethics Commission Eileen Hansen this week filed a complaint about the guerilla campaigning with the California Fair Political Practices Commission, which has jurisdiction over state races.
"I am asking for the intervention of your office into what appears to be a blatant and arrogant violation of campaign finance reporting and disclosure laws in California's 17th Assembly District Primary Election," Hansen wrote in the April 30 letter. "As you well know, the political climate in San Francisco is quite sensitive, and nerves are raw. If this violation is allowed to continue, it will have a chilling effect on the entire election and further alienate voters, and potential voters."
The race between Campos and David Chiu has indeed gotten more heated in recent weeks, but Chiu campaign spokesperson Nicole Derse denies that the campaign has any knowledge or involvement with the illegal campaigning: "We think everyone in this race should be transparent."
In her letter, Hansen casts doubt on the Chiu campaign's claims of innocence: "The wide distribution, professional design, and overnight appearance in distant locations strongly suggest that these flyers have been produced and distributed by a funded political organization aligned with Assembly candidate David Chiu, whose aim is to attack and discredit Chiu's opponent David Campos."
And she even identifies a leading suspect in this illegal campaigning: Enrique Pearce and his Left Coast Communications firm, which has a history of dirty tricks campaigning on behalf of Mayor Ed Lee and other establishment politicians. Hansen notes that the flyers appeared right after the registration of a new campaign committee, San Franciscans for Effective Government to Support David Chiu. Although the group hasn't reported any fundraising yet, its contact phone number goes to Left Coast Communications and Pearce, who hasn't yet returned our calls on the issue. [UPDATE: Pearce called back and categorically denied any involvement with the illegal flyers, and he blasted Hansen for speading what you called "scurrilous lies" with no foundation, saying he has called her directly and expects an apology.]
This campaign stunt in reminiscent of an "independent expenditure" effort in the District 6 supervisorial race in 2010, when Pearce was connected to a mailer supporting Sup. Jane Kim that was funded partially by Willie Brown, again because the supposedly independent group listed his phone number even though he was worked directly for Kim.
The anti-Campos mailers include some nasty and misleading charges, labeling Campos "City Hall's Hypocrite" by falsely claiming Campos ignored rising evictions until he decided to run for the Assembly and that he was concerned about Google buses but wanted to charge them less than $1 per stop. A third flyer claims Campos "lets wifebeater sheriff keep his job" for his vote against removing Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi from office for official misconduct.
"This is a secretly funded shadow organization aligned with David Chiu, committing a desperate move that is as illegal and it is false in its claims," Campos told us, saying he hopes the FPPC is able to stop and punish those involved.


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More On Murdered: Soul Suspect
Update: Square Enix is dropping a few more clues about Murdered: Soul Suspect, including a release timeframe.
The company says it expects the game to hit early next year, and it asks players to solve their own murder. 2014 – That's a long time to have your killer out on the loose.
Original Story:
Square Enix is teasing a new game, but with little information.
VG247 received confirmation of the game's title, Murdered: Soul Suspect, earlier today, with Square Enix telling them, "Murdered: Soul Suspect is an exciting new game from Square Enix which challenges players to solve possibly the hardest case of all."
The game is in development for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. Speculation across the web is that the title is a new Crystal Dynamics IP, though nothing has been confirmed at this point.


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Photo Galleries
Tuesday 8 May 2018
May 02, 2018
General Strike Paralyzes Armenian Capital
Normal life in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, ground to halt after thousands of supporters of protest leader Nikol Pashinian joined mass protests and a general strike on May 2. Pashinian had called for a day of nonviolent, civil disobedience after the Armenian parliament rejected his bid to become interim prime minister. (Photos by RFE/RL's Giorgi Gogua)
April 26, 2018
Haunted Hallways: Chernobyl Engineers Revisit The Doomed Reactor
April 26, 2018, marks 32 years since the accident at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine. Three former Chernobyl engineers returned to their workplace in 2016, accompanied by RFE/RL journalists. For Arcadia Uskova and Oleksiy Breusa, it was not their first visit back. For Oleksandr Cheranov, however, the visit marked the first time he had stood inside the power plant since April 26, 1986, when the fourth block of the reactor was destroyed in the world's worst civilian nuclear disaster.
April 21, 2018
Marches, More Arrests On Ninth Day Of Protests In Yerevan
On the ninth day of demonstrations in Yereva on April 21, Armenian protesters confronted police and police detained more protesters in a cold and rainy capital. The demonstrators oppose a restructuring of the country's governing system that has enabled Serzh Sarkisian -- the newly appointed prime minister -- to stay in power after his 10-year stint as president ended two weeks ago. Opposition lawmaker Nikol Pashinian has rejected calls for dialogue with the government and called on Serzh Sarkisian to resign as prime minister.
April 20, 2018
Protesters Take To Yerevan Streets For Eighth Day
Hundreds of demonstrators took to the streets of the Armenian capital early on April 20 for an eighth straight day against what they see as longtime former Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian attempt to cement his hold on power. (Photos by RFE/RL's Amos Chapple)


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2 items found
Browse the Educator's Adventure Planner
PDF of the full Adventure Planner
Art Exhibition Guided Tour: Frank Hayden
Artworks by Baton Rouge artist Frank Hayden are found throughout our city, from the campuses of LSU and Southern University to public plazas. Students will learn about the life and work of this preeminent Louisiana sculptor whose artworks, which reflect deep spiritual and humanistic concerns with universal themes, are made of wood, plaster, fiberglass, and stone.
This Art Exhibition Guided Tour is available from March 24, 2020 - September 15, 2020.
Program Type: Guided Tours Subject: Art, History & Social Studies
Cost: $2.00 per student & chaperone
Solar System Gallery Guided Tour
Explore the history of our universe from astronomy to paleontology in the Solar System Gallery. Students will encounter interactive displays that allow them to virtually travel to the Moon, learn about gravity, and more. An exhibition of minerals and fossils, including a 65-million-year-old authentic Triceratops prosus skull, will teach students about our aging planet.
Layered Experience: Pairs well with Dinosaur Passage to Pangaea, Dinosaurs: Giants of Patagonia (Planetarium Show) and all astronomy-themed planetarium shows.
Program Type: Guided Tours Subject: Life Science, History & Social Studies, Earth & Space Science, Science & the Environment
Cost: $2.00 per student & chaperone


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Projects of the TMDL Program: Communities Working Together
Participating in TMDL Projects
The TMDL Program works with communities around the state to restore Texas waterways that have limited quality in relation to one or more of their assigned uses, such as recreation, fishing, or a healthy aquatic environment. The latest Index of All Water Quality Impairments, part of the Texas Integrated Report of Surface Water Quality, shows all impaired waterways and the strategies that are planned or underway to improve their quality.
In addition to developing and working with stakeholders to implement TMDLs, the program manages studies that determine the best management strategies for specific waterways. Learn more about TMDLs and How They Are Implemented.
TMDLs & I-Plans
- TMDLs or I-Plans in Development
Listed in alphabetical order by waterway or region name
- Watersheds Where TMDLs Are Being Implemented
Stakeholder-developed plans to implement TMDLs are underway. In alphabetical order by waterway or region name.
- Segments with Total Maximum Daily Loads
A list, in numerical order by segment
- Summary of Completed TMDLs and Implementation Plans
TMDL is complete; I-Plan development or approval may be incomplete.
Includes dates of adoption or approval by the commission and EPA.
Surveys and Assessments
Use attainability surveys and studies to assess the extent or nature of impairments. Listed in alphabetical order by waterway or region name.
All Projects
Both TMDLs and assessments, listed in alphabetical order by project name, which usually begins with a waterway or region name.
Contact the TMDL Program
Please send us an e-mail at email@example.com or call 512-239-6682. Or join the TMDL News e-mail list.


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Export 2 results:Author Title Type [ Year]
Filters: Author is Zhang, Huaizhong [Clear All Filters]
"Systematic infrared image quality improvement using deep learning based techniques", Remote Sensing Technologies and Applications in Urban Environments: International Society for Optics and Photonics, 2016.
"A novel infrared video surveillance system using deep learning based techniques", Multimedia Tools and Applications, vol. 77, issue 26676, 2018.


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Drew Barrymore is reportedly getting hitched for the third time.
Art consultant Will Kopelman popped the question to "The Wedding Singer" star around the Christmas holidays in Sun Valley, Idaho, People and Us magazine reported, each citing an anonymous source.
The pair has been romantically linked since last February but has not confirmed their relationship.
U.S. & World
Barrymore, 36, was previously married to comedian Tom Green for five months in 2001.
Barrymore's first marriage was to bar owner Jeremy Thomas in March 1994, according to the New York Daily News. The couple divorced two months later.
Selected Reading: People, Us, Daily News


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The Winter Olympics will kick-off tonight in snow-deprived Vancouver. While often seen as a less glamorous and important competition compared with the Summer Games, there are still good reasons to watch.
Here are a few, some silly, some serious:
- Sherman L. McClesky, of the Bleacher Report, confesses to being a "trainwrecker" while listing his favorite events at the Winter Games. "I guess when it comes down to it, sports is only as entertaining as its elements of either danger or lunacy," he writes. "So enjoy the Winter Olympics. Just remember one thing: When a huge crash happens, or when something embarrassing goes down and you're afraid to laugh out of fear of your friends, fear not! For somewhere out there lies me, laughing on your behalf. Trust me, I have your back! "
- Rachel Bachman of The Oregonian nominates American alpine skier Lindsey Vonn as the number one reason to tune in. Vonn was supposed to compete in five events, a prospect threatened by "Wednesday's shocking revelation that a right shin injury might keep her from skiing – the equivalent of swimmer Michael Phelps dropping out of the Summer Games," she writes. "The suspense could end Sunday at Vonn's first scheduled race."
- Foreign Policy's Annie Lowrey looks at the "the racial and global socioeconomic implications of the oh-so-white winter games," highlighting the participation of athletes from warm weather countries. "Surely globalization, the world getting flatter, has meant that more countries have started competing in winter games, as their athletes can train abroad. I think this calls for a chart."
- Newsweek's Sarah Kliff, a Canadian citizen, rails against the shutdown of Parliament in her home country where the Games are being used as justification for a two-month hiatus. "Prime Minster Steven Harper, who leads the Conservative Party, was facing a lot of difficult issues: an inquiry over maltreatment of Afghan detainees, economic woes hosting the Olympics," she writes. "So he announced in December that he was basically shutting down, or proroguing, Parliament until March 3, 2010, the day after the Olympics ends." The decision has lead to rare protests in Canada. "I'll definitely root for Team Canada come this Friday. But in terms of ridiculous government deadlock and partisanship, unfortunately, we have already claimed the gold medal," Kliff said.
- "'Cause it's awesome," concludes Summer Olympics swimmer Gary Hall Jr., blogging for the Los Angeles Times from Vancouver in an attempt to "break down the barrier that divides" the Summer Games athletes from the Winter Games competitors.
Check out some of Team USA's ones to watch here.