text:
"Contrary to popular and long-held opinion, recent reports have suggested that a south-facing orientation may not actually be the best way in which to contribute significant amounts of power to the national grid. Energy experts at Opower have conducted an analysis which suggests that a western orientation may be more productive. Given that most solar power systems installed so far in the world face south, this may have significant implications for the way in which the global solar sector installs its systems in the future.
REM talked with Barry Fischer, head writer at Opower to find out more about this situation and how the industry is likely to respond."
December 19, 2014
"Kantenbacher's analysis of the electron reducing potential of socializing at home dovetails with other research, including several analyses conducted by Opower, a software company that works with utilities to help them connect with their customers and reduce their energy use.
Opower's analyses of residential energy data have shown, fascinatingly, that home energy use decreases at Thanksgiving -- by 5 to 10 percent -- and also during the Super Bowl. In each case, Opower attributes the change to the fact that people are gathered together with family or friends in a single home, and thus, are not using energy at multiple homes."
December 19, 2014
"As we await more widespread adoption of Hadoop, good places to look for innovative adoption of tools designed to work with Hadoop are relatively young companies that are using Hadoop extensively. Think of these as companies whose businesses are built on big data.
Opower is one such business -- a utility analytics company that gathers meter-reading data and household data from more than 100 gas and electric companies. It adds in weather data, property data, and more to get a clearer understanding of the size and character of homes and the number of people in each household, since those are big drivers of energy use. The idea is to use that analysis to help homeowners better understand their energy usage so they can reduce consumption and choose more attractive rate plans."
December 18, 2014
"Opower Vice President Kevin Hamilton noted that "across the industry you saw big investments in the underlying technology infrastructure that allows us to push demand response forward."
That underlying infrastructure includes data analytics capable of more quickly analyzing power demand, meaning response programs can be scaled up to millions of customers. It also involves significant work done to consider and improve the customer side of the experience, especially as companies increasingly see that boosting customer engagement with a program is key to maximizing its potential.
That means in the future when utilities are considering demand response they may consider the programs an asset to their customer outreach, not just load management."
December 16, 2014
"2014 was a huge year for energy. Solar surged forward, China and the U.S. got serious about climate change, and new tech continued to reshape our relationship with the power grid.
In case you missed the big stories, here are 8 statistics that capture the year's most important energy trends."
December 12, 2014
"The Fool is in good company on that list this year. A total of six Washington-area companies landed there, including Evolent Health at No. 3, Opower at No. 25, 2U at No. 27, Carfax at No. 34 and newcomer NPR at No. 44."
December 10, 2014
"Glassdoor released its seventh annual Employees' Choice Awards on Wednesday, honoring the 50 best small and medium companies to work for across the U.S. and the UK in 2015.
Among the businesses with less than 1,000 employees listed were six from the D.C. area: The Motley Fool (No. 1), Evolent Health (No. 3), Opower (No. 25), 2U (No. 27), CARFAX (No.34) and NPR (No. 44)."
December 10, 2014
"Opower's Barry Fischer and Ben Harack try to answer the question: "Are your solar panels facing the wrong way?""
December 5, 2014
"Only 9% of 110,000 residential solar arrays in California look toward the Pacific Ocean, according to a new study by Opower, an Arlington, Virginia, company that analyzes consumer energy use for utilities. There's just one problem: South-facing panels produce power at the wrong time of day."
December 5, 2014
"Opower has vaulted itself onto public markets by analyzing energy usage for utility companies and providing charts and other bits from data to ratepayers. Opower has an ambitious master plan, and it involves decreasing energy usage at scale."
December 4, 2014
"A new study finds that only 9 percent of photovoltaic systems face the right direction to generate the most power when it's most needed."
December 2, 2014
"Clean energy buffs have been saying for a while that we should point our photovoltaics to the west, not the south, to maximize the value of the juice produced. Westward-facing solar panels capture late-day sunshine (think about it) when electricity demand is highest.
The wonks at utility-software maker Opower know this to be true, and they recently scoured their enormous stockpile of energy data to come up with some new math on the subject."
December 2, 2014
"About a decade ago, behavioral psychologists hit on an important finding: people are actually willing to save energy when they see how much energy their neighbors are using. A groundbreaking 2004 study revealed that, contrary to popular belief, people do not care much about saving money on their electricity bill or protecting the environment; the single biggest motivator to changing our energy consumption is our desire to keep up—or, in this case, down—with the more energy-efficient Joneses.
In 2007, Dan Yates and Alex Laskey, longtime friends who met at Harvard, decided to launch a startup based on this one powerful finding. The result is Opower, a software firm that partners with energy companies to provide homeowners with energy consumption reports that include details about the norms in their neighborhood."
December 2, 2014
"A new study of 110,000 California houses with rooftop solar systems confirmed that a vast majority of the panels were pointed south because most of the panel owners were paid by the number of kilowatt-hours the panels produced. Pointing them southward maximizes production over all, but peak production comes at midday, not in late afternoon, when it would be more helpful."
December 1, 2014
"When you're a startup, your privacy policy means everything. But how do you build a company that takes privacy seriously from the ground up? By staying in constant dialogue with your customers.
One company that does this well is Opower, an energy-efficiency platform that helps consumers lower their energy use and costs, reduces carbon emissions, and positions utilities as trusted energy advisors."
November 21, 2014
"In a study of Opower's new behavioral demand response program, the company found some surprising and exciting results. The program costs less than traditional demand response programs, and yields more – up to five percent peak reduction."
November 10, 2014
"A summertime pilot program by customer engagement and analytics provider Opower turned up encouraging results for the grid: Even without extra economic incentive, many people will turn down the thermostat when asked."
October 27, 2014
"The company, Opower, estimates that peak power usage was reduced by around 3 percent on each day they sent e-mails. With some back-of-the-envelope calculations, they say that translates to nearly 50 peaking power plants that could be taken offline nationwide if every household with a smart meter participated in the program.
But there's a lesson here for everybody, too. It's not just how much energy you consume. It also matters when you consume it. "
October 24, 2014
"An experiment in Vermont and Southern California finds people will use less electricity - if they're peer pressured into it."
October 24, 2014
"The electricity expert: Emily Bailard, senior director of solutions at Opower, a company that helps utilities reduce consumption across the globe.
Hacking your electric bill probably isn't the first thing that comes to mind when you think of fun fall activities. In fact, studies have shown that Americans only think about their electricity for nine minutes a year — and that's typically only when they receive a high bill or have an outage.
But U.S. Energy Information Administration data shows that, on average, most people are shelling out about $100 a month — and even more during the winter when we spend extra hours huddled indoors, burning lights longer. So if we all devoted just a few more minutes to focusing on dialing back electricity usage, it's remarkable how much money we could save."
October 22, 2014
"The modern cellphone user is highly attuned to energy usage. I assiduously monitor my phone's battery, tracking its decline from morning to evening, and then its return to fullness. There are even special "advanced power strips" that help people save energy while charging their devices. But the truth is that operating a smartphone doesn't require much energy. An iPhone 6 needs just 3.8 kilowatt hours of electricity per year, according to OPower, an energy data firm."
October 17, 2014
"Opower released the new version of its customer engagement platform, Opower 5.5: Flex this week, and the company says the new version will help utilities ensure that their customers get the level of relevant and personal information they want."
October 16, 2014
"After giving its software and analytics engine a powerful tuneup earlier this year as part of a fifth-generation release, Opower is unveiling yet another set of offerings for utility customers today."
October 14, 2014
"The company Opower utilizes this phenomenon, namely that both our environment and whom we focus on in our environment can drive our reference groups and subsequently our behavior and feelings. Opower provides consumers with 'Home Energy Reports', which present their energy usage in comparison to two groups: their 'average' neighbors and 'efficient' neighbors."
October 14, 2014
"Opower has spent $100 million on research in the last few years developing the software platform. The new, mid-year release, in addition to building out new capabilities for utility partners, will enable an open ecosystem of partner capabilities, the company said."
October 14, 2014
"In America, at least, early adopters of plug-in cars are often among the first to start generating their own electricity. Opower found that 32% of plug-ins' drivers (admittedly in the wealthier, sunnier, western parts of the country that it surveyed) also have rooftop solar panels."
October 4, 2014
"A modest 250,000 plug-in cars now glide silently along American roads, and they currently account for fewer than 1% of vehicles sold. But sales have been almost doubling each year (compared with about 5% annual growth for the entire car industry), and homes that own a plug-in car typically consume 58% more electricity, according to Opower, a seller of energy-conservation software."
October 4, 2014
"One of the best-known companies in this area, Opower, uses a psychological strategy: it simultaneously gives people access to their own energy data and lets them compare their energy use to their neighbors' as an incentive to save. Opower partners with utilities to provide this information, and the Virginia-based company has been successful enough to open offices in San Francisco, London, and Singapore."
October 3, 2014
"Several times a year, households in one program receive a two-page sheet that compares their energy use with that of similar homes and "efficient" homes in the area. It also includes tips for saving energy, such as turning off the water heater while on vacation.
The program, run by Opower Inc. of Arlington, Va. for more than 90 utilities, has reduced energy use for participating utilities by 1.8% - 3%."
September 28, 2014
"You plug in your iPhone every night to give it a full charge. But all that battery charging costs you just 47 cents -- a year. That's according to a study conducted by Opower, a software provider for utility companies."
September 25, 2014
"Opower is an energy company whose bills, developed with the help of Smart Design, show customers how much energy they consumed relative to their neighbors. They can try to improve their "personal best", and by seeing how they compare to their neighbors, they can determine whether they're doing better or worse than they think, which motivates them to match or surpass their neighbors' performance."
September 15, 2014
""The average person thinks about energy use for only nine minutes per year," according to Deena Rosen, Senior Director of User Experience at Opower.
How do you get energy customers to make smart and meaningful choices when they might not care very much about it? This is a challenge recently-public energy-efficiency program administrator Opower confronts every day."
September 10, 2014
"Improving energy efficiency is among the major ways that EPA envisions states and power companies complying with the regulation. Opower CEO Daniel Yates is happy about what that could mean for his company.
"These EPA guidelines will work their way through state governments over the next few years. This is just a first step, so there is no immediate impact on our business, but we expect it to be a powerful long-term driver for expansion of energy-efficiency policy and future opportunities," he told analysts on a conference call Tuesday, according to a transcript on the financial news website Seeking Alpha."
August 13, 2014
"More and more utilities are turning to behavioral programs for energy efficiency. That is, they invest in programs that encourage and incentivize customers to cut consumption. Some of them do so by comparing customers to each other, to activate the "peer pressure" reaction.
But utilities have long wondered if such changes would last. Or would they disintegrate as the novelty wore off? This blog post from Opower cites evidence that behavioral change will indeed endure... and may even get better."
August 12, 2014
"Opower launched its customer-engagement solutions with Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), the utility data-analytics provider said."
August 5, 2014
"The algorithm supplies a personalised breakdown of a customer's energy use into categories such as HVAC, appliances and hot water, which Opower says works reliably for customers with traditional energy meters.
Software engineers Justin Spradlin and John Vint said: "When existing hardware is lacking in intelligence, you can often compensate for it by applying software intelligence. Customers whose meters are read once a month can get a level of insight that's very similar to what they'd get if their meter logged data every 15 minutes.""
August 5, 2014
"As a recent Opower report pointed out, EV owners use more electricity than the average consumer, but consumers with both an electric vehicle and a rooftop solar system actually helped to stabilize and smooth demand. It bears repeating: EVs and rooftop solar are two great tastes that taste great together."
August 4, 2014
"Opower launched new customer engagement solutions with Tokyo Electric Power Co. (TEPCO). TEPCO customers will be able to access personalized energy usage insights, energy savings recommendations and energy data visualization tools via TEPCO's free customer web portal Denki Kakeibo."
July 31, 2014
"Opower has built a pretty nice business off the utility industry. The Virginia-based company specializes in selling data analytics to utilities that allows them to better understand how their customers use energy. Opower then encourages customers to cut their energy by showing them their neighbor's energy usage.
Founded in 2007, Opower has quickly ramped up to more than 90 utility partners over the last few years.But after a successful initial public offering in April and reaching a market cap of nearly $800 million, Opower is eager to position itself as a global company. And today it's making a big step into Asia in an announced partnership with Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco), Japan's largest utility and one of the largest utilities in the world."
July 31, 2014
"Opower, software and data services company, found in a recent analysis of 2,000 households enrolled in utilities' discounted charging programs that their energy usage was four times greater than the average level from midnight to 7a.m., suggesting the plans are effective at shifting usage to off-peak hours."
July 31, 2014
"Demand growth has been virtually non-existent for most U.S. utilities as customers seek to reduce their energy consumption. But a recent OPower analysis found that EV owners use 58% more electricity on average than other customers, which represents a significant boost for sales and an opportunity for the utility business. "
July 31, 2014
"As Opower pointed out in a recent analysis, owners of electric cars use nearly 60 percent more electricity than the average customer. And customers who own both a solar system and an electric car consume roughly the same amount of electricity from the grid as an average customer -- offsetting much of the excess solar that utilities must buy back through net metering."
July 30, 2014
"Behavioral energy efficiency programs are deployed by utilities or third parties. Opower, a behavioral efficiency company, works with 93 utility partners in 35 states and eight countries around the world, from North America to Europe, Asia and Oceana, to reach over 32 million households and businesses. "
July 30, 2014
"Electric vehicles are our fastest-growing alternative to oil-derived gasoline. Solar panels are our fastest-growing alternative to coal-powered electricity. They're both getting less expensive and more effective, driving our clean-energy revolution. And there's new evidence that these two great tastes can taste particularly great together, transforming how we consume and produce power in ways that will accelerate that green revolution.
The evidence comes from Opower, a firm that uses software and behavioral science to help utilities promote energy conservation - and has amassed the world's largest storehouse of household energy data along the way."
July 14, 2014
"I often get asked about companies such as Solar City, Silver Spring Networks, EnerNOC and Opower. These are seen as "cool," and reflect the statement by David Crane, CEO of NRG, that "there is no Amazon, Apple, Facebook or Google in the American energy industry today."
He was referring to these four companies' ability to give customers what they want - the three "Cs" - but it applies also to their ability to offer an exciting and innovative place to work."
July 11, 2014
"Long overshadowed by wind turbines, solar panels and other fashionable machines of renewable power, energy efficiency is sparking innovation and interest from tech entrepreneurs, big-data enthusiasts and Wall Street speculators."
July 8, 2014
"U.S power companies have tripled their investment in efficiency programs -- funded mainly through ratepayer fees -- since 2006, with California spending the most per customer.
Now the Obama administration has made energy efficiency a cornerstone of its plan to substantially cut greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. The plan, released in May by the Environmental Protection Agency, pushes states to boost efficiency by business and residential power users 1.5 percent each year.
'We are very excited about the EPA proposal," said Richard Caperton, director of national policy at Opower, a data-mining firm that nudges homeowners to make better energy choices by alerting them when their neighbors are being more efficient. 'We think it opens up more opportunities.'"
July 6, 2014
"Today we once again crack open Opower's energy data storehouse -- the world's largest, spanning more than 50 million households worldwide -- to examine the energy usage behavior of an increasingly important segment of utility customers: electric car owners who charge their car in the wee hours of the night."
July 6, 2014
"A June report by Opower highlighted how in some instances, low-income families consume even more electricity than those at upper levels, even as they lack the means to upgrade and retrofit home appliances to make them more efficient. Yet Opower, a cloud-based software provider that promotes energy saving solutions, says that energy efficiency isn't necessarily all about high priced technology. "
July 6, 2014
"Households with electric vehicles guzzle juice from the grid at night in order to get charged up for the next day, according to a new analysis by Opower, a company that provides cloud-based software to the utility industry. And that could be a problem in the long run."
July 2, 2014
"Households with electric vehicles guzzle juice from the grid at night in order to get charged up for the next day, according to a new analysis by Opower, a company that provides cloud-based software to the utility industry. And that could be a problem in the long run."
July 1, 2014
"A lot of people in the energy business are making predictions about what the future of electricity service will look like. Although scenarios vary considerably, most agree that consumer choice will be one of the biggest factors changing the way power companies deliver service over the next decade."
June 27, 2014
"When trying to predict a World Cup victory, should we compare the countries' athletes and coaches or their energy efficiency? If you had chosen the latter, you would have accurately predicted Germany's victory over the U.S. today.
In a study released earlier this month, cloud-based software company Opower compared the energy efficiencies of 2014 World Cup contenders to predict the winner of three top matches. For the United States, the analysts identify great opportunity for energy savings, such as by following the recent curbing coal proposal and by taking behavioral changes."
June 26, 2014
"The biggest challenge to the utility industry is that "they love their grid." And despite the addition of more instrumentation, more meters and a huge surge in analytics, utilities haven't seen a positive result in call volume or customer satisfaction, according to the Opower CEO.
But Yates does have a sense that across the U.S. "a wave has broken in the last eighteen months." And the result is "a pivot by utilities" to be far more customer-oriented. "
June 25, 2014
"Opower had its initial public offering in April, another key milestone along what has been a rapid growth trajectory for the energy software company. Senior vice president of people Sandy Hynes shared her advice for maintaining a culture during a fast expansion:
'To maintain a culture, every single person is an important element ... It is worse to have the wrong person in a job, or to settle, than it is to hold that job open until you find the right person. Never, ever compromise on your hiring standards. It's better to be without than to be with the wrong hire. You have to be really tenacious.'"
June 20, 2014
"If the World Cup were a contest of energy efficiency instead of soccer acumen, which country would win? Using conservation as a baseline, cloud-based software provider Opower compared a few of the 2014 World Cup contenders, breaking down how each country would fare in head-to-head matchups on environmentally friendly energy policy."
June 20, 2014
"The Obama administration has made energy efficiency a cornerstone of its plan to substantially cut greenhouse gas emissions by 2020. The plan, released late last month by the Environmental Protection Agency, pushes states to boost efficiency by business and residential power users 1.5% each year.
'We are very excited about the EPA proposal,' said Richard Caperton, director of national policy at OPower, a data-mining firm that nudges homeowners to make better energy choices by alerting them when their neighbors are being more efficient. 'We think it opens up more opportunities.' "
June 14, 2014
"A few companies have already started taking social insights to market. The most prominent is Opower, which works from the premise that behavior changes are frequently motivated more by peer pressure than virtue or even self-interest. Opower contracts with utility companies to give personalized assessments of household energy use, which is compared to neighborhood patterns and accompanied by savings advice. So far, they've consistently achieved energy savings of around 2 percent."
June 9, 2014
"The energy-storage part of the equation is still in its infancy. Batteries are expensive, although getting less so, and it's obviously impractical to heat molten salt at home. But the rise of Big Data and other information technology has fueled a boom in products that are designed to help you control, optimize and reduce your energy use. In January, Google spent $3 billion to buy Nest and its wi-fi-enabled smart thermostats. Virginia-based Opower, which went public in April, works with 93 utilities to promote conservation, most famously smiley faces that let homeowners know on their bills if they're using less power than their neighbors. Opower co-founder Alex Laskey says his firm saved customers enough electricity last year to power the city of Miami."
June 5, 2014
"Last September, in the lead up to its public offering, Opower (OPWR) announced its effort to reinvent residential demand response through the use of behavioral science.
"This is game-changing," said Roderick Morris, Opower's senior vice president of marketing, after the company cut residential electricity demand for Baltimore Gas & Electric (BGE) during peak times by 5 percent simply by sending customized emails, text messages, phone calls and mailers to homeowners."
May 20, 2014
"By all indications, the summer cooling season is around the corner. The nation's power grid operators have issued their summer outlooks. Electric utilities have made their final preparations for the upcoming summer demand season. And the Netflix series "House of Cards" has released its second season in which the impact of a summer heat wave on the nation's power grid is a central plotline.
According to energy regulatory experts, though, it is at this point where this particular "House of Cards" episode veers into entertainment. As any FERC observer understands, a U.S. president or vice president cannot order FERC to conduct an investigation. A president who is following the law certainly does not dictate FERC's agenda. "It's a stretch to have the vice president tell the president, 'We'll open up a regulatory proceeding,' because FERC is an independent agency," said Richard Caperton, director of national policy and partnerships for Opower Inc., an energy software and services company. "[I]t is unlikely that it would be used as a hammer against political opponents.""
May 8, 2014
"The answer turned out to be very simple and incredibly effective: They realized that by just letting people know how much energy they were using, in comparison with their neighbors, they could change usage behavior and improve efficiency across entire communities. Seven years later, Opower Inc.(NYSE: OPWR) provides software and services to 93 utilities in eight countries and has, as of April 2014, saved 4.13 billion kilowatt-hours of energy, abated 6.33 billion pounds of carbon dioxide, and reduced consumers' bills by $460 million. Each number climbs steadily by the day, the company says."
May 2, 2014
"A new study by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) outlines how energy efficiency could be used in an upcoming standard by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce CO2 levels with no net cost to the economy. The standard, currently under review by the White House Office of Management and Budget and likely to be released in early June, would set a Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions limit for existing power plants under Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act.
"Energy efficiency is a proven economic driver that can help states already committed to reducing their energy waste, leveraging American ingenuity to create jobs while cleaning up the air," said Richard Caperton, director of national policy and partnerships at Opower."
May 2, 2014
""The EPA has a huge opportunity to grow the economy," says Richard Caperton, director of national policy at Opower, an energy efficiency software company based in Arlington, Virginia.By providing households with daily reports on their energy use and what the average is for their area along with ways to reduce it, Opower will help the U.S. save as much electricity as the Hoover Dam generates this year, Caperton told IPS."
May 2, 2014
""A bit more challenging is setting the utility rate structure so the utilities are not a barrier, but a partner," said Richard Caperton, director of national policy and partnerships at Opower. The company works with utilities using software and energy tracking to guide ratepayers to use less.Utilities, however, are in the business of selling energy, so the sector needs to come up with ways to reduce consumption and make money at the same time, decoupling profits from power use, according to Caperton."
May 1, 2014
"Yates, 36, and Laskey, 37, co-founded the software company, which collects energy-use data on millions of homes around the world and partners with 93 utilities in eight countries. It went public (OPWR) in April and is now valued at $1 billion. Opower's big idea: Tell homeowners how much energy their neighbors are using to motivate them to use less."
May 1, 2014
"But the technology picture is rapidly changing. Opower, which made its name in utility energy efficiency, is now operating demand response programs on behalf of utilities based on analyses of smart meter data. And increasingly, smart two-way thermostats are being used. "
April 29, 2014
"Running an electric utility is a complex task, but the basic idea is simple. Make power and send it to customers, adjust the amount of power you make as needed. Recently publicOpower (NYSE: OPWR ) is looking to apply big data to that equation, and it will make utilities vastly better along the way."
April 28, 2014
"On the first Earth Day in 1970, environmental sentiment was brightly painted, proudly worn, and full of fierce optimism. Ask people about the planet now, and you're likely to hear that our political will has faded, even though our problems are worse. We're facing a climate crisis that's global and accelerating. Grand political solutions are far from view. The problem itself – carbon pollution from fossil fuels – isn't something we can "see" in a traditional sense. It's also irreversible, and a failure to act could tank the biosphere in ways we can't even imagine.And yet, today, I'm hopeful."
April 22, 2014
"We first met Dan Yates and Alex Laskey six years ago when Opower was piloting a new kind of energy efficiency program to just a few thousand homes by a small utility in Sacramento.The program had a simple hypothesis: By giving people personalized data-driven insights about their energy consumption, you could help them save energy. Inspired by Dan and Alex's enthusiasm and belief that Opower would one day become pervasive in the global utility industry, [New Enterprise Associates] led the their first round of institutional venture capital when the company had just 12 employees."
April 13, 2014
"And check out Opower, which just went public. Opower works with utilities and consumers to lower electricity usage and bills using behavioral economics, explained Alex Laskey, the company's co-founder, at their Arlington, Va., office. They do it by giving people personalized communications that display in simple, clear terms how their own energy usage compares with that of their neighbors. Once people understand where they are wasting energy — and how they compare with their neighbors — many start consuming less. And, as their consumption falls, utilities can meet their customers' demand without having to build new power plants to handle peak loads a few days of the year. Everybody wins. Opower just signed up the Tokyo Electric Power Company and its 20 million homes."
April 13, 2014
"What lowers energy use? Behavioral research shows appeals to citizenship and the environment and even promises of cost savings fall flat. Peer pressure, however, works. Opower is a company that uses that insight to redesign electric bills. A typical Opower bill might point out you're using 10 percent more energy than your neighbors and offer suggestions for how to lower that. Now serving more than 90 utilities around the world, Opower says its personalized messages lower overall energy use 1 to 3.5 percent."
April 11, 2014
"It may have been a celestial sign that, smack in the middle of The Wall Street Journal's ECO:nomics conference last week, a company called Opower Inc. OPWR -1.10%launched its initial public offering. Opower uses behavioral science to get homeowners to reduce energy use. It priced at $19 a share and now trades near $22.The message to conference goers: There's still plenty of momentum—and money to be made—at the intersection of business and the environment."
April 8, 2014
"It's fun to see a young, innovative startup succeed where companies like Google and Microsoft failed so miserably. But this is more than a feel-good story of upstarts besting entrenched and well-funded competitors. Opower's IPO is valuable for the entire industry."
April 8, 2014
"Sometimes slow and steady wins the race. And in the same spirit, sometimes a company that plays a low-key ground game with regulators, utilities and the post office can succeed where the savviest tech companies failed.Judging by its initial public offering on Friday, file Opower Inc. OPWR -5.43% among the winners. The software company was valued at just over $1 billion after a 21% pop in its first day of trading, making it a bright spot among efforts by software makers to become players in the electricity industry."
April 7, 2014
"OPower's initial run-up sounds like many successful recent tech IPOs, except, as the Wall Street Journal notes, Opower has neatly done something huge tech competitors couldn't -- convince consumers to use less electricity. Was the trick a better thermostat? More real-time online information about their consumption habits? No.Although the Arlington, Va.-based company uses sophisticated technology, its advantage has been an understanding of people. Alex Laskey, president and co-founder, explained to the Journal that his experience doing political polling taught him that consumers don't want more technological applications in their lives, but would respond to accessible information that could save them money."
April 7, 2014
"After a lull, Opower's success story could pave the way for other cleantech IPOs.Stuart Bernstein, global head of Goldman Sachs' Clean Technology and Renewables Group, expects between "half a dozen to a dozen" cleantech companies to IPO this year, noting that some have already registered IPOs confidentially as Opower just did, according to the Wall Street Journal."
April 7, 2014
"Investors had an appetite for GrubHub, and they were energized byOpower. Shares of GrubHub, the operator of websites and apps for ordering takeout food online, rose 31% Friday, and Opower, an energy-efficiency company that works with utilities to lower consumers' energy usage, rose 21%. "
April 7, 2014
"But there's a reason for all the hype: Opower's IPO isn't just about, well, Opower. Everyone from Wall Street to Silicon Valley is eyeing the energy-data nexus as the next big opportunity – but identifying opportunity and building successful business models around it are different stories.Opower, the market leader in residential efficiency, is one of the success stories. But what made Opower -- unlike so many other promising startups -- so successful? And what's next for Opower and the energy-data opportunity?"
April 4, 2014
"And Opower, a software company whose services help homeowners cut their energy bills, opened at $25 a share after pricing at $19. It finished up 21 percent, or $4, at $23.The warm welcome that the three received shows how much investors are continuing to embrace I.P.O.s. "
April 4, 2014
"Opower, which uses behavioral science and software to nudge consumers into cutting their electricity use, pulled off an IPO on Friday by raising around $116 million and demonstrated a rare public market exit for green tech startups.The shares of the Virginia company rose about 4% to $23.37 per share soon after its debut on the New York Stock Exchange. Opower priced its shares at $19, the high end of the range."
April 4, 2014
"Opower Inc., which debuted today on the public market, may align itself with young software companies now booming on Wall Street, but it's the company's un-Silicon-Valley-like mentality that has propelled its business."
April 4, 2014
"Opower's CEO speaks to CNBC's Squawk on the Street. "
April 4, 2014
"Opower CEO and Founder Dan Yates discusses the company's IPO on Bloomberg Television's "Bloomberg West.""
April 4, 2014
"Shares of Opower Inc. spiked in early trading Friday in the Arlington-based energy data company's debut on the New York Stock Exchange.The IPO raised $116 million for Opower (NYSE: OPWR), which priced 6.1 million shares at $19 on Thursday evening. The stock opened at $25 per share on Friday before settling down to close at $23, up 21 percent."
April 4, 2014
"Opower is exactly why early-stage investors have become attracted to the cleanweb. The company requires no heavy infrastructure to keep growing its service -- just a strong marketing team, the ability to capture meaningful data, and a big enough vision to outpace other software competitors.Opower is a much different company than it was when it started seven years ago. And, assuming it can keep sales high and investors happy, it has the ability to attack other markets without burdensome capital requirements. However, Opower's IPO isn't just about the attraction to cleanweb. It's also about growth in a subsector of the cleanweb: intelligent efficiency."
April 4, 2014
"Opower shares soared on the energy software company's first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange, opening more than 30 percent above their offering price.The Arlington, Va., company, which sells consumer energy efficiency software to the utility industry, priced 6.1 million shares at $19, raising nearly $116 million. Shares opened at $25 but drifted down a bit through the morning.In an interview, Chief Executive Dan Yates said Opower is helping utilities navigate a rapidly shifting landscape, as deregulation offers consumers more options in the marketplace, renewables become more pervasive and demand grows for improved energy efficiency."
April 4, 2014
"Energy efficiency company Opower (NYSE: OPWR ) debuted on the New York Stock Exchange this morning. Priced at $19, shares began trading at $26 before falling to $22 later in the day. Despite some positive buzz, this is not a company that has generated the hype of some other recent IPOs, so we've put together a basic Opower primer."
April 4, 2014
"Energy software company Opower started trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday morning starting at $25 per share, a significant jump from the $19 per share that it priced at last night. Last month Opower set its price range at $17 to $19 per share."
April 4, 2014
"Opower Inc. pulled off a long-awaited initial public offering Friday, earning a more than 20 percent pop in its first day of trading on the New York Stock Exchange.Investors seemed to shrug off Opower's red ink — the company lost $14.2 million last year and $12.3 million the year before — on the promise of continued growth. And CEO Dan Yates is planning to deliver on that growth, both in new utility clients and expanding the coverage of existing ones."
April 4, 2014
"Shares of Arlington-based energy software provider Opower surged 21 percent Friday after it made its debut as a publicly traded company.The stocks finished the day at $23 after opening at $19 a share. Opower hoped to raise $115.9 million in its initial public offering. The company's share traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol OPWR."
April 4, 2014
"Opower had a successful initial public offering today, with its shares rising more than 21% on the New York Stock Exchange. The company has partnered with utility companies to help consumers save money on their utility bills–a strategy at whichOpower succeeded despite previous failures by large companies."
April 4, 2014
""I wrote a check after one meeting, when it was so early they didn't even have a name yet, let alone a bank account, so I had to leave the check blank."These are the words early oPower investor Ali Partovi sent VentureBeat in an email yesterday, ahead of oPower's IPO on the New York Stock Exchange today.The company is trading under the "OPWR" ticker and is offering 6.1 million shares initially priced at $19 each. The IPO is a $116 million deal."
April 4, 2014
"Energy efficiency company Opower is ready for its public debut this Friday. In advance of the IPO I reconnected with their SVP Product & User Experience Alex Kinnier, whom I know from our days together at Google. I couldn't ask Alex specifically about the IPO or future plans but wanted to get some more info on a company that gets less press than your typical social app but is poised for an amazing run."
April 3, 2014
"For decades, regulators, environmental advocates and utilities have struggled to persuade consumers to use less electricity.Now, a fast-growing company that has shown promising results by rewarding energy misers with smiley faces on their monthly statements is taking its concept to Wall Street with an initial public offering of its stock, set for Friday.The company, Opower, which helps utilities use competition among neighbors to encourage residential customers to cut their electric use, hopes to raise more than $100 million through a stock sale that could leave it with a value close to $1 billion."
April 3, 2014
"Opower is due to go public this week, and could raise as much as $110 million from an offering that would give it a valuation of just under a billion. Opower's success is proof of the capital light approach to cleantech, the triumph of energy efficiency, which won't transform the source of our energy but will set us on a slow but steady trajectory of reducing fossil fuel use."
April 3, 2014
"When energy software company Opower starts trading on the New York Stock Exchange, most likely Friday morning, it will show how young tech entrepreneurs can tackle meaningful problems — like energy efficiency and climate change — and still achieve the Silicon Valley dream of financial success. That's in contrast to themantra that all of the young talent and investors are flocking to a flood of startups building decidedly less world-changing products, like social chat and photo-sharing apps."
April 3, 2014
"A lot of these entrepreneurs will realize how hard energy and cleantech is, but they're still out there, looking to build technologies that have a meaningful impact on big world problems. Opower's CEO Dan Yates kicked off the morning by saying he's seen a resurgence in cleantech over the past 18 months, though he also encouraged entrepreneurs to be satisfied with creating incremental solutions to start, rather than trying to bite off the whole problem."
March 12, 2014
"The group of customers who use GEM most actively are already saving 3.4% more power than customers who don't use GEM. The average reduction in consumption across all customers actively using GEM is 1.4%, compared with customers not yet using this technology. What this means is that GEM customers are already on track to save a combined total of about $2 million on their annual power bills.
That's a win-win because, along with the customer savings, we are also seeing early evidence that these customers are beginning to value GEM and the service we provide and are more likely to stay with Mercury Energy as a result. This backs our approach of investing in added-value customer services." Since the launch of GEM, the number of active users has grown to around 80,000 households, which is over a quarter of Mercury Energy's residential customer base."
March 11, 2014
"In a world where on average for every unit of energy we use, we waste nine so even just thousands of people can make a difference according to another, similar minded corporation, Opower.Alex Laskey, is president and co-founder of Opower which works with 90 utility partners and services more than 22 million consumers across eight countries. Founded in 2007, it is based in Arlington, Virginia, with offices in San Francisco, London, Singapore and Tokyo. Opower calls itself "the world's leading provider of customer engagement solutions for the utility industry"."
March 1, 2014
"On Thursday, it released Opower 5: Flex, the latest version of its enterprise software that utilities use to generate customized energy efficiency reports, run demand response programs and communicate with their customers. It's a tool that monopoly utilities can use to transition from treating customers as ratepayers to more active consumers with the ability to do things that weren't possible a few years ago, such as switch providers, go solar for little cost and demand cleaner energy, said Yates. "Utilities are significantly increasing their ability to communicate with their customers and they're beginning to see it as strategic," he said. "
February 28, 2014
"Opower has succeeded in large part because it is a helpful ally to utilities that are required to encourage efficiency. By analyzing utility metering data, the firm sends out messages to consumers through mail, email, text or the web about how they stack against their neighbors. The approach, based on simple behavioral science, has proven remarkably effective for getting consistent residential savings in the 2 percent to 4 percent range -- enough to keep the regulators happy and show that utilities are doing something innovative. But that part of the company's history is old news. As Opower has expanded to 93 utilities and crunched data on more than 32 million consumers, its cloud-based software is becoming deeply embedded into utility customer care and electronic billing operations. The result is a company that no longer just does behavioral analytics, said Yates."
February 27, 2014
"Opower on Thursday released new software boosts its cloud-based platform's "business intelligence, web extensibility, and message targeting," according to a press release. The Opower 5: Flex software uses Elasticsearch, a big data search engine that can sort a utility's customers based on location, income, engagement, energy usage, and other categories. Along with having customized data on the back end, the utility can also customize the web portal."
February 27, 2014
"Alex Laskey, president and founder of Opower, says utility companies are becoming more customer-centric, instead of maintaining the former transactional relationship with their customers. "
February 26, 2014
"America could be on the cusp of a breakthrough in our generation-long quest to reduce the carbon dioxide pollution generated by fossil-fueled power plants. Bold and bipartisan leadership is being provided by President Obama, governors, mayors, corporate executives, and environmental champions across the country, many of whom have embraced ambitious—yet still flexible and transparent—climate change mitigation plans. Companies devoted to helping utilities find technology solutions to meet their reduction targets are integral partners in this effort."
February 19, 2014
"Nancy Hersh, Opower, analytics and consumer marketing VP
Nancy's job at Arlington, Va.-based Opower, a cloud-software provider for utility companies, is to let consumers know how much energy they're using and what they can do to reduce it. And then she tracks the impact the communication actually has on energy usage. The job is perfect for Nancy since she describes herself as a "major data and math geek." She studied engineering and did some management consulting and private equity investing before veering toward pure tech in the late '90s. To witness the meaningful change that makes her proud, just check out Opower's "kilowatt hours saved" counter on its site. Best lesson: Don't regress to what is normal. Figure out where you get energy and what you're really good at.
February 19, 2014
"Republican pollster Frank Luntz and Democratic campaign strategist Jim Messina have joinedOpower's Advisory Board to help guide Opower's policy and communications goals. Luntz pioneered the "instant response" focus group technique. Messina is the mastermind behind President Obama's 2012 re-election campaign."
February 19, 2014
"The co-founders of Opower tell us about the top 5 trends they're watching when it comes to utilities."
February 16, 2014
"Opower has introduced the next generation of its thermostat platform featuring support for Honeywell's Comfort Control API, which extends the platform to additional Honeywell WiFi thermostats. Additionally, another new feature, Set for Savings, incorporates recommendations based on actual energy and billing data to improve the consumption efficiency for thermostats connected to the Opower platform.
Direct Energy is the first retail provider to deploy the solution as part of the company's new smart thermostat initiative available to all residential customers in Texas."
February 16, 2014
"Sunday's Super Bowl was over practically before it even began. The first snap to Denver Bronco's quarterback Peyton Manning was botched in the first 12 seconds (the fastest any team has ever scored in the history of the 48 Super Bowls), resulting in a safety for the Seahawks and setting the tone for the rest of the game. The game ultimately ended in a near blowout- the score a disappointing 43 to 8 (spoiler alert: the Seahawks won, if you didn't already know).
This year's question is, how do Denver and Seattle rate on energy efficiency? In an infographic from Opower, the Seahawks and Broncos go head-to-head in the Efficiency Bowl. This is how they stack up."
February 3, 2014
"Denver also loses when it comes to energy savings during the Super Bowl itself. Virginia-based Opower ranked how much energy would be saved in households in both cities during the game. The theory goes that if everyone is watching football on one television, they are not running other household appliances, lights, or even heat in other parts of the home. "
January 31, 2014
"With the new platform, WiFi thermostats will be better able to measure energy efficiency and the users can then use the recommendations to lower costs and energy consumption."As connected thermostats increase in popularity, there is a significant opportunity to integrate proactive advice based on energy and billing data into the customer experience," SVP or product Alex Kinnier said in the release. "Set for Savings is our latest feature to not only help customers become more efficient, but to make their overall experience significantly more enjoyable.""
January 31, 2014
"Opower Inc. has hired Neel Gulhar, who formerly led programs at one of the startup's main clients, utility Baltimore Gas & Electric, VentureWire has learned. The addition is part of an effort to beef up the ranks of senior managers and to add utility-industry expertise. Arlington, Va.-based Opower, which runs energy-efficiency programs based on its software for utility clients, has been increasing its staff rapidly over the past year, growing to about 480 people from 300 a year ago. Mr. Gulhar joins Opower as director of strategy and product management."
January 30, 2014
"Sound easy? No, but Opower is tackling this challenge head-on. Historically, only about 5% of these businesses participate in utility efficiency programs, even though they spend nearly $60 billion a year on energy consumption—about five times more than residential customers, says Opower."We wanted to reach businesses proactively," says Foster. "We're using the same tools as we're using for residential customers, but making some modifications to make it more effective for small-and medium-sized businesses.""
January 30, 2014
"The Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks will square off this weekend to determine which team will be the next world champion. As you're chomping on those buffalo wings or veggies and ranch dip during the game, you might ask yourself, 'I wonder how Denver and Seattle stack up on energy efficiency?' OK, probably not. But just in case you're wondering, OPower has crunched some numbers to determine which city wins the energy efficiency battle. Their take? Seattle is the winner. Check out the infographic below for all the stats."
January 30, 2014
"Head on over to Opower's Outlier blog to learn more about how Seattle managed to beat its just-as-progressive Rocky Mountain cousin in the Efficiency Bowl."
January 30, 2014
"For retailers like Direct Energy, the offering is more about giving customers control and convenience, as well as the chance to save money through Opower's targeted messaging. Although the platform can be used for specific peak events, it is meant to help shave energy use on more than just the hottest days of the year. Even if utilities control 30 percent of residential thermostats, "That's still 70 percent of homes [that are] not touched at all," said Kevin Hamilton, senior director of devices and real-time services at Opower."
January 30, 2014
"As for which of this year's Super Bowl teams is the greenest, Groh declined to make an assessment. Regardless of who plays, he said, "it doesn't change what the overall impact of the Super Bowl is on the local community."
But in their own communities, the green programs of the Broncos and Seahawks do have an impact, according to Opower, an Arlington, Va.-based energy software company that has compiled a scorecard comparing the teams' energy conservation efforts. "
January 30, 2014
"The product includes a mobile app to control the thermostat, which also gives customer-specific recommendations for savings. This utilizes Opower's "Set for Savings" software feature, which incorporates recommendations based on actual energy and billing data to improve the energy saving potential of thermostats connected to the Opower platform. Opower said that Direct Energy is the first competitive retail energy provider to deploy the solution "at scale.""
January 29, 2014
"Opower announced the release of the next version of the Opower Thermostat Platform. The new version adds support for Honeywell's Comfort Control API extending the platform to additional Honeywell WiFi thermostats, as well as a key new feature, Set for Savings, which incorporates recommendations based on actual energy and billing data to improve the energy saving potential of thermostats connected to the Opower platform. Opower also noted that Direct Energy is the first competitive retail energy provider to deploy the solution at scale as part of their new smart thermostat initiative available to all residential customers in Texas."
January 29, 2014
"Utility cloud-based software provider Opower has announced the expansion of its small and medium business (SMB) solution to deliver energy efficiency savings for three new utility clients, including National Grid. Opower's expanded SMB solution builds on its experience delivering analysis and recommendations to nearly one million SMB utility customers through its energy-insights web platform, as well as its energy efficiency programs with more than 20 million residential customers at 90 utilities worldwide."
January 24, 2014
"SMBs are an important part of a utility's customers base, using on average five times more electricity than residential customers. However, they are a hard group to reach, with utility efficiency program participation rates often less than 5%, according to Opower."
January 24, 2014
"Opower combines a cloud-based platform, big data and behavioral science to help utilities around the world reduce energy consumption and improve their relationship with customers. Opower is transforming the way that utilities interact with their customers, through proven and new solutions, such as Behavioral Demand Response. Opower serves 90 utilities in eight countries, including 8 of the 10 largest U.S. utilities."
January 21, 2014
"This simple idea has fuelled Opower, Laskey's company, which researches utility use around the world and tries to understand what makes individuals engage with energy efficient behaviours. Part of their research has revealed certain aspects about energy consumer's behaviours which hold true across cultures. One of these is that everyone wants to know how they measure up to others in terms of energy use. "
January 21, 2014
"Opower BDR leverages smart meter data to deliver personalized insights to each customer through their communication channel of choice, and motivates them to reduce usage during times of peak power demand, such as hot days when air conditioner use is high."
January 20, 2014
"After selling Edusoft, the educational software company he founded, to publishing giant Houghton Mifflin in 2004, Dan Yates went on a yearlong road trip from Alaska to Argentina. The trip inspired him to think about energy conservation, and he decided to dedicate his next venture to preserving what's left of the planet. In 2007, with his longtime friend Alex Laskey, he founded Opower, which combines behavioral science, data analytics and customizable software that helps utilities help their customers save energy."
January 17, 2014
"While there have been many residential dynamic pricing programs over the years, few have been large deployments like Baltimore Gas & Electric's (BGE) 315,000 customer pilot. But far fewer are based on behavioral demand response.This week, Utility Dive is taking a look at how BGE and behavioral efficiency startup Opower are bringing dynamic pricing to the utility's service territory."
January 15, 2014
"Sometimes energy makes headlines, sometimes it doesn't. But it almost always has important implications for the global economy, the environment, and our day-to-day lives. Here are 10 statistics that capture some of the most noteworthy energy trends from 2013, and that will shape the energy world in 2014 and beyond."
January 15, 2014
"Opower is a software company focused on energy efficiency. Opower works with utilities to monitor how much energy a consumer uses and gives households and businesses incentives to lower their consumption. The idea is that through the use of behavioral science techniques such as peer proof, people will feel compelled to consume energy more responsibly. Dan started Opower in 2007 with his Harvard classmate Alex Laskey. Prior, Dan launched Edusoft, a software company focused on public school assessments, which was sold to Houghton Mifflin in 2004."
January 10, 2014
"Unlike other new residential demand response programs, Smart Energy Rewards does not hinge on customers possessing any particular devices, such as two-way digital thermostats. Instead, BGE expanded its partnership with Opower, Accenture and Oracle to build the program. Accenture provided consulting support, Oracle provides backend support, and Opower uses its behavioral science expertise to engage customers and provide tips for reducing energy."
January 10, 2014
"Turning off lights, lowering the thermostat or air conditioning, and replacing lightbulbs and older home appliances with newer, high-efficiency models are all common ways residential energy consumers cut consumption, lower their utility bills, and reduce greenhouse gases. Thanks to Opower, an Arlington, Virginia–based software and services provider, some 88 million people in 22 million homes in eight countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Australia have something else: monthly or bimonthly home energy consumption reports that detail not just how much energy they use but also how their energy use compares to that of their neighbors."
January 1, 2014


text:
Watch this Author's files
Overall this function is good but is very finicky. It's the best way I've found to get vector graphics out of Matlab, but it's not for beginners.
My admiration to the author for digging into the swamp of Matlab graphics, which even Mathworks is afraid to touch.
If my figure is wider than *exactly* 1253 pixels, pptfigure will not copy it to Powerpoint (2010) correctly -- it will leave a stray garbage "coded" axis to the upper left of the slide.
This axis is created by
line 561: pic = invoke(slide.Shapes,'PasteSpecial',3);
and supposed to be destroyed (but not fully destroyed) by line 601: invoke(pic,'Delete');
Hi Ralf, "negative zero" was actually a fundamental issue with Matlab's printf (on some platforms)
I agree it is an annoyance, and have submitted a new version that should fix it.
To fix the glaring centering bug, change these lines from:
xEdges = [xEdges(2) - xDiff,xEdges(2:end-1), xEdges(end-1) + xDiff];
yEdges = [yEdges(2) - yDiff,yEdges(2:end-1), yEdges(end-1) + yDiff];
xEdges = [xEdges(2) - xDiff,xEdges(2:end-1), xEdges(end-1) + xDiff] + xDiff/2;
yEdges = [yEdges(2) - yDiff,yEdges(2:end-1), yEdges(end-1) + yDiff] + yDiff/2;
In the future, if there's a "simple" fix, why not post it and be helpful?
Good idea, Jan. I've added an example. Hope you find the code useful.
It should be mentioned that the code does not work for plots with log-axes. This is because it is using the OpenGL renderer.
This is a great utility, I just have one feature request: the ability to have the contents of a column left justified. Thanks!
I like this function very much. However, it appears that 0 is displayed sometimes as -0. Can this been fixed?
Comment only
Contact us

subset: commoncrawl


text:
About |
Projects |
Docs |
Forums |
Lists |
Bugs |
Get Gentoo! |
Support |
Planet |
I kind of agree with both points here. :) Let me explain...
If the RCx releases would use updated packages that are in the stable tree
(ie. glibc 2.3.1, gcc 3.2.2, etc) I think people like Per, Nicholas, and
myself would be a bit happier building and testing older systems. :)
If they are in the stable tree why not? Could this be done in the rc4 release?
Another keyword like BUILD_ACCEPT_KEYWORDS = x86 would probably satisfy those
with the urge to be super on edge :) and could probably be done with min.
effort in changes to the scripts to look for another keyword. Yes? No? maybe?
Should I add it to the "bug" report?
On Sunday 16 March 2003 12:00 pm, Nicholas Hockey wrote:
> if your by a river in florida chances yer in a swamp, or near a sink
> hole, not a good place to lay the foundation of your house
> On Sun, 2003-03-16 at 14:49, Felipe Ghellar wrote:
> > Nicholas Hockey wrote:
> > > well there is a reason that the base system is set up a certain way,
> > > it's so that when you do run the bootstrap it will compile, in Linux
> > > there is no real "base system" as there is in freebsd, so the only
> > > logical way around this is to build a good foundation, which is well
> > > known to build a complete system, at the sacrifice of time.
> >
> > Ok, let's simulate the installation process...
> >
> > 1) I preapare everything according to the Install Guide
> > 2) I set up my make.conf the way I want it, with ~x86
> > 3) I run bootstrap.sh; it ignores my "unstable" choice and builds a
> > "stable" base system
> > 4) I run emerge system and then complete the installation
> > 5) later, I run emerge --sync and emerge -u --deep system; it now
> > follows my "unstable" choice and brings in all those packages
> > bootstrap.sh ignored
> >
> > The net result is just that "sacrifice of time" you mentioned...
> >
> > > or they could do it your way, by the way i have some cheap land in
> > > Florida, right next to the river, i'll sell it to you, by your
> > > standards it should be a great place to build a house
> > >
> > > (sorry if this sounds rude i just thought this would be a good
> > > comparison)
> >
> > Sorry, I don't get your point... (and I did't take it as rude)
> >
> > Felipe Ghellar
firstname.lastname@example.com mailing list
Updated Jun 17, 2009
Archive of the gentoo-dev mailing list.
Donate to support our development efforts.
Your browser does not support iframes.


text:
Sunday, December 28, 2014
Follow us:
Time Warner Cable video customers:Sign in with your TWC ID to access our video clips.
Sign in
Free Video Views Remaining
To get you to the stories you care about, we are offering everyone 10 video views per month.
Watch Video
Access to our video is always free for Time Warner Cable video customers who login with their TWC ID.
To view our videos, you need to
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.
Then come back here and refresh the page.
In an effort to get illegal guns off the street, a gun buyback program was held in Brooklyn Saturday.
Those who turned in a working gun received a $200 bank card in return, no questions asked.
Rifles and shotguns could be exchanged for a $20 bank card.
Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes, Councilwoman Diana Reyna and the NYPD hosted the event.
The gun buyback began at 10 a.m. and ran until 4 p.m. at the Evergeen Baptist Church at 455 Evergreen Avenue in Bushwick.
Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited.
© 1999-2014 Time Warner Cable Enterprises LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Web design and web development by Tipit.


text:
Photo Credit: Frazer Harrison/Getty Images Entertainment
Few things are cuter than a sweet, pudgy baby hand, and if recent Instagram activity is proof, that's something that both Khloe Kardashian and Kendall Jenner have discovered.
Last week, Khloe, aunt to 4-month-old North West, posted an adorable photo on the image sharing site of her hand entwined with her niece's, simply captioned "NW" with a lipstick kiss emoji.
Then, three days ago, aunt Kendall posted a similar snapshot to her own Instagram page, showing North's little hand gripping Kendall's finger, with the caption, "Roommates and best friends" with a smiley face emoji.
Photos of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West's little girl have been few and far between, so we hope the Kardashian clan keeps the cute, cropped photos coming. Lipstick print, smiley face.
Lesley Kennedy writes for ShopAtHome.com's Online Shopping Report. Follow ShopAtHome on Twitter @shopathome and Lesley Google +.
Read More:
Yes, She's a Kardashian! See North's Insane Designer Baby Clothes
As Expected, Kim Kardashian's Baby North Sleeps on a Fur
Of Course Kim Kardashian Didn't Do a Normal Pregnancy Photo Shoot


text:
Style.com to Launch a Print Magazine; Jay Fielden Is No Longer Writing Grace Coddington's Memoir
Plus, Anja Rubik wears funny pants on the cover of Australian 'Vogue.'
Skip to content, or skip to search.
Skip to content, or skip to search.
Plus, Anja Rubik wears funny pants on the cover of Australian 'Vogue.'
Plus Nanette Lepore, Michael Kors, Marchesa, Oscar de la Renta.
It's way more affordable.
A lot of people just gave up and went for dinner.
Including Marchesa, Vena Cava, Preen, Elie Tahari, Erin Fetherston, and many more.
The collection's wholesale prices will range from $73 to $250.
Normal people can get in on the fun, too, with boutiques of their own.
And, well, it's pretty cute.
If that isn't a testament to her design strengths, what is?
Sometimes the best new ideas are old ideas.
She closed out the huge DVF show.
Also, Heidi Klum thinks Bryant Park "didn't make sense."
See runway photos, backstage, front row, and more!
Even with her arms pinned to her sides for the entire show!
Including Alexander Wang, Thakoon, Vena Cava, Phillip Lim, Mulberry, and rag & bone.
Retailers say the clothes are stale and ill-fitting.
Can she cut ours too?
Plus, desert-friendly getups from Max Azria and BCBG.
This week's Tastemaker discusses her plans for that infamous tracksuit.
Retailers have complained about the apparel line's quality and designs.


text:
EASi Announces Record 2012 Growth And Attendance At Summit User Conference
PLEASANTON, Calif., March 28, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Equity Administration Solutions, Inc. (EASi), the largest independent stock plan software-as-a-service technology company, announced record sales and bookings growth in 2012 and record attendance at its March 6-8, 2013 Summit user conference in New Orleans, Louisiana.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20121115/SF14611LOGO)
In 2012, EASi grew new sales bookings by 45%+, grew revenue by 30%+ and added nearly 200 new clients to the EASi platform. Both public and private marquee organizations like United Stationers, Workday, Carlisle Companies and LivingSocial chose EASi to streamline management and compliance of their stock plan administration and reporting requirements.
Additional select new customers from 2012 include:
- Fortune 50 multinational consumer goods company
- Top-rated online broker with more than 6 million customers
Select the service that is right for you!COMPARE ALL SERVICES
Action Alerts PLUSTry it NOW
Jim Cramer and Stephanie Link actively manage a real portfolio and reveal their money management tactics while giving advanced notice before every trade.
Product Features:
- $2.5+ million portfolio
- Large-cap and dividend focus
- Intraday trade alerts from Cramer
- Weekly roundups
TheStreet Quant RatingsTry it NOW
Only $49.95/yr
Access the tool that DOMINATES the Russell 2000 and the S&P 500.
Product Features:
- Buy, hold, or sell recommendations for over 4,300 stocks
- Unlimited research reports on your favorite stocks
- A custom stock screener
- Upgrade/downgrade alerts
Stocks Under $10Try it NOW
David Peltier, uncovers low dollar stocks with extraordinary upside potential that are flying under Wall Street's radar.
Product Features:
- Model portfolio
- Stocks trading below $10
- Intraday trade alerts
- Weekly roundups
Dividend Stock AdvisorTry it NOW
Jim Cramer's protege, David Peltier, identifies the best of breed dividend stocks that will pay a reliable AND significant income stream.
Product Features:
- Diversified model portfolio of dividend stocks
- Alerts when market news affect the portfolio
- Bi-weekly updates with exact steps to take - BUY, HOLD, SELL
Real Money ProTry it NOW
All of Real Money, plus 15 more of Wall Street's sharpest minds delivering actionable trading ideas, a comprehensive look at the market, and fundamental and technical analysis.
Product Features:
- Real Money + Doug Kass Plus 15 more Wall Street Pros
- Intraday commentary & news
- Ultra-actionable trading ideas
Options ProfitsTry it NOW
Our options trading pros provide daily market commentary and over 100 monthly option trading ideas and strategies to help you become a well-seasoned trader.
Product Features:
- 100+ monthly options trading ideas
- Actionable options commentary & news
- Real-time trading community
- Options TV


text:
Promoting sociology in Australia
Facilitating sociology teaching and research
Enhancing the professional development of TASA members
50 Years of Social Inquiry, Engagement and Impact
Debra King, TASA President, and Deborah Dempsey & Karen Farquharson (both from Swinburne University)
TASA's Executive Committee (EC) governs the Association and manages its daily business as outlined in the Constitution and by established policies. The Executive make decisions at their quarterly meetings. The photos, on the right, were taken at the pre Executive Meeting dinner on Sunday November 25th.
2012 November Executive Meeting


text:
Start learning with our library of video tutorials taught by experts. Get started
Takes a detailed look at the concepts, tools, and techniques involved in achieving optimal sharpness in your images.
"I'm a new subscriber. I'm 10 minutes in and I can't thank you enough. I'm learning what would normally cost me nearly $1,000!" —Melissa K.
more from our members »


text:
Indoor Waterpark
Field Trip
Treasure Hunt
Future Chefs
2015 Registration information coming soon.
The program draws on the rich and varied resources of Skidmore College and the surrounding area. The camp's home base is Falstaff's Pavilion on the Skidmore College campus, but campers frequent the Williamson Sports Center, Schick Art Gallery, Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery, and Zankel Music Center. The daily enrichment activities led by the qualified staff are supplemented by weekly field trips to recreational and historical sites, and visits by special guests.
Children will also enjoy activities that include arts and crafts, ceramics, games, hiking, and daily swim time. Our goal is to provide a variety of fun activities that happily challenge the imagination, intellect, and body. We hope you will join us this summer.
*Please Note: Campers must be entering 1st grade and be six years old by December 1, 2014. Due to the popularity of this program, and our desire to be fair to the local community, campers may attend Camp Northwoods for a maximum of 6 summers.
Our online application makes it easier than ever to register and pay online. Parents will receive immediate confirmation when they register their camper - no more waiting! Registering for more than one child has been made easier too.
Please Note: A $40 (nonrefundable) application fee for each camper and a 50% deposit is required at the time of registration. $100 per camper, per session of your 50% deposit is nonrefundable. Your 50% deposit will be credited towards the cost of tuition, and $100 of your deposit (per camper, per session) will be forfeited if registration is canceled or changed for any reason.
Please refer to the Fees & Payment Page for further details.


text:
Make your own maps, look up property information and more! Read more
Send breast cancer prevention & screening info to someone. Read more
Ski, Snowmobile, Snowshoe, Snowboard, Snow Tubing Read more
The duties and responsibilities of the Cattaraugus County Treasurer's Office are to receive, deposit and safeguard all County funds or funds in which the County may have an interest.
The Treasurer's Office is answerable for bank accounts; accounting records; investment of funds; payment of all authorized bills and debts of the County government, its departments and agencies. Read more
Facebook, Flickr, Google+, Twitter
Tourism shares Activities, Landmarks, Places, Events and more on Facebook, Flickr, Pinterest, Twitter.


text:
August 2013 Caption Contest: Win $100!
- 4Aug 5, '13 by Joe V AdminAttached is an image with a missing caption. Your mission is to provide a caption for it. You may submit as many captions as you wish.
Caption Contest Rules
To qualify for the prize money and fame, your caption must be posted here in this thread on allnurses.com.
We will choose eight finalists in which you will vote for your favorite. Poll will be available early next week.
Everyone is allowed to participate! Join allnurses.com! It's Free!
Share and tell your friends, family, and co-workers to join the fun!
UPDATE: We have chosen the top 8 captions.
Vote for your favorite -
August 2013 Top 8 Captions - Select Winning Caption
and the winner is aTOMicTom ... the cartoon may be viewed at 5 Healthy Reasons to Drink Coffee - Cartoon Contest Winner
Last edit by Joe V on Aug 26, '13
- 2Aug 5, '13 by blackvans1234"I'm ready for night shift"
- 0Aug 5, '13 by blackvans1234I'm ready for my 12 hour shift...After I get a refill
- 6Aug 5, '13 by BandZero"It took my whole break just to add cream and sugar"
- 2Aug 5, '13 by Lola LouHeres hoping that you can fit a bathroom break in on your shift!
- 4Aug 5, '13 by lorirn2bI think I need to introduce you to the tiny little wonder that is "5-hour Energy".
- 5Aug 5, '13 by Kidrn911Can I have that Intravenously?
- 9Aug 5, '13 by ked20"Is this your first time working nights?"


text:
7:32 p.m. WTOP National Security Correspondent JJ Green
The U.S. will beef up its missile defense against North Korea, but how well does that system work?
7:20 p.m. WTOP Tech Guy Gregg Stebben
Saving your stuff in the cloud is cheap and easy, but how secure is it?
6:50 p.m. Scott Greenberg, Wine Columnist for the Washington Examiner
Not the Georgian wines you're thinking of
4:50 p.m. Gordon Peterson, moderator of Inside Washington
CPAC: Seeking a way forward for GOP
4:20 p.m. Chris Wallace, Fox News Sunday host
U.S. beefs up defenses against N. Korea
3:50 p.m. Rob Pegoraro, columnist for Discovery News and USA Today
Can the new Samsung Galaxy S4 take on the iPhone?
3:20 p.m. Gwen Ifill, moderator of Washington Week
Mitt Romney addresses CPAC
2:20 Eric Prisbell, basketball writer for USA Today
March Madness preview
1:50 p.m. Clinton Yates, Express Local News Editor and Columnist for The Root DC
New etiquette in digital era
12:50 p.m. Sam Litzinger, commentator
Being Biden: Get in the Vice President's mind
Mixed drinks can pack a high-calorie wallup
David Burd,WTOP
HerCampus.com highlights ten of the highest calorie mixed drinks:
- 780 calories = Long Island Ice Tea
- 740 calories = Margarita
- 644 calories - Piña Colada
- 620 calories = Mai Tai
- 594 calories = Mudslide
- 525 calories = Grasshopper Martini
- 438 calories = Chocotini
- 425 calories = White Russian
- 422 calories = Brandy Eggnog
- 323 calories = Key Lime Pie Martini
Read more from Dr. Mark Anderson here.
10:20 a.m. - Brian Kelly, travel blogger and the founder of ThePointsGuy.com
Tips for flying with a dog
Data Doctors
Public Wi-Fi dangers
8:20 a.m. - Candy Crowley, CNN's chief political correspondent and anchor of State of the Union with Candy Crowley
Sen. Portman's change gay marriage view
7:50 a.m. - David Gregory, moderator, Meet the Press
Sen. Rob Portman now supports gay marriage
7:20 a.m. - Jere Van Dyke, CBS News consultant and Afghanistan expert
Afghanistan's president trying to stay alive
6:50 a.m. - Bob Schieffer, CBS chief Washington correspondent and host of Face the Nation
Federal budget discussions have stepped up
Close call for Metro workers
WTOP's Ari Ashe reports.
 Related link: The Washington Post: Metro workers almost struck by oncoming train
© 2013 WTOP. All Rights Reserved.


text:
About Us
Picture this…an art gallery that you don't feel intimidated to walk into; where you don't need to know anything
about the "art-world" but know what you like. I wanted to create an art gallery where clients are not 'hit' by a
sales person when they walk in, they can browse an exhibition and look for that perfect genuine piece of art that
they connect with at their own pace. At Advocate Gallery this is our mission and I believe we have achieved it.
We aim to be the premier gallery in Surrey specialising in the best of British contemporary fine art. We have
well established ties with those artists that we exhibit, so we are able to select the newest works from them first
and in turn offer these to our clients first. We are proud of the fact that we have launched several artist's careers
who are now enormously successful today. I am thrilled when my clients remark that not only does a piece continue
do give them great enjoyment, but they have learnt that it is now proving to be a healthy investment. We do not import
work, deal in reproductions or trade with mass market suppliers.
Unlike most luxury purchases that date and de-value as trends pass, if you choose wisely, art can work in exactly
the opposite way. We are happy to guide you through the process, or - just choose with your heart! Advocate
Gallery grew out of Advocate Art the leading artist agency, over 10 years ago but still benefits from the
association. The gallery is conveniently located on the A24 between Leatherhead and Epsom and close to Epsom Racecourse and the RAC Club. There is ample free parking and we have regular exhibitions, please come in and
find out more.
We look forward to welcoming you.
Caroline Burns - Partner
Advocate Art was founded by Edward Burns in 1992, we started out as an artist's co-operative but have grown
into one of the world's leading artist's agencies. Please click on the website link to find out more about the agency
<< Previous Page


text:
The Montana Senate is wrapping up its final day with more in-fighting and procedural maneuvering.
The chamber stalled for several hours Wednesday over a decision to accept the budget deal negotiated between House Republican leaders and Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock.
But the Senate's conservative faction ultimately backed off its attempt to block the last-minute deal. The conservative Senate leaders have been on the losing end of several major votes this session.
The governor's office refused to reopen negotiations on the budget deal. Governor's officials say Senate leaders gave the agreement their informal approval Monday night before the House approved it and adjourned.
The budget deal adds another $13 million in spending to the state's $10 billion, two-year budget.
Meanwhile, the session is coming to a close with several bills favored by one party or the other failing to make the cut.
Foremost among them was the defeat of Gov. Steve Bullock's plan to expand Medicaid to up to 70,000 residents.
House Leader Rep. Gordon Vance says he considers the bill's failure a major win for the Republican Party.
But it was a blow to Democrats, who say the measure would have enabled the working poor to purchase health insurance.
Bullock vetoed several measures passed by Republican leaders, including bills to restrict bison relocation and gun control.
House Minority Leader Chuck Hunter of Helena says Democrats also were disappointed with the failure of House Bill 217, which would have prohibited churches and so-called "dark money" from funding campaigns.


text:
Guard your Windows PC from malware and Internet based attacks.Windows Version 8.0 ... Added: 12/15/14Total Downloads1,456,602Last Week1,852
Build an empire to wage war in ancient Roman times.Windows Version ... Added: 10/16/98Total Downloads1,957,155Last Week1,046
Determine a random order for a group of people or choose individual random names.Windows Version 126.96.36.199 ... Added: 11/14/14Total Downloads231,598Last Week704
Engage your opponent in one-on-one close quarter combat in a series of "best 2 out of 3" matches.Windows Version 1.0 ... Added: 09/23/13Total Downloads8,847Last Week156
Generate the recommended pool of lottery balls to play based on the latest trends and patterns.Windows Version 126.96.36.199 ... Added: 11/18/14Total Downloads23,299Last Week139
Display a New England winter scene on your PC.Windows Version 6.0 ... Added: 09/25/01Total Downloads136,162Last Week120
Join up with the British infantry in this demo for the WWII first-person shooter.Windows Version ... Added: 09/29/05Total Downloads1,386,542Last Week117
What is AVTECH EagleEyes-lite ?AVTECH EagleEyes-lite is a free application for all valued customer of AVTECH Corporation only.The EagleEyes...Android Version 1.2.5 ... Added: 11/29/11Total Downloads9,420Last Week77
Play poker action games.Windows Version 1 ... Added: 07/23/07Total Downloads7,682Last Week71
- Top 10 Consumer Mobile Apps in India - Nielsen Consumer Rankings - Must Have App - Live Mint - World Class app from Indian App Developer - Next...iOS Version 4.24.37 ... Added: 11/04/14Total Downloads9,454Last Week66
Sexy Party Adult Board Game for WindowsWindows Version 7.0.0 ... Added: 10/08/07Total Downloads36,630Last Week64
Get forecasts on how to succeed at different tasks using western scientific theory of biorhythms.Windows Version 3.04 ... Added: 07/24/08Total Downloads14,078Last Week63
Play Dragon Ball Z classic series games on your Android device.Android Version 3.4 ... Added: 08/26/13Total Downloads7,612Last Week62
Provide assistance for the introductory mechanics of materials course.Windows Version 4.0.0 ... Added: 08/02/13Total Downloads2,474Last Week60
Download files from sources of any kind.Windows Version 1.13 ... Added: 04/17/14Total Downloads2,913Last Week57
Remove programs installed on your system.Windows Version 4.0.141 ... Added: 10/31/14Total Downloads94,091Last Week54
Play fighter game with large choice of characters and several game modes.Windows Version 1.0 ... Added: 12/23/09Total Downloads32,659Last Week47
Learn how to win at roulette and miniroulette online games.Windows Version 1.1.0 ... Added: 09/23/13Total Downloads842Last Week45
You're going for a ride - from the creators of FRUIT NINJA! Now updated to support the beautiful Retina display for the new iPad!** Winner ** -...iOS Version 1.7.5 ... Added: 11/04/14Total Downloads11,618Last Week44
Step up to the plate and play a game between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees.Windows Version 1 ... Added: 03/29/04Total Downloads254,237Last Week40
Create funny animations in seconds.Windows Version 2.0 ... Added: 05/21/09Total Downloads12,013Last Week38
Analyze your Facebook profile and the Pages.Windows Version 5.0 ... Added: 06/15/14Total Downloads5,614Last Week38
Winner of more than 30 Game of the Year awards!*iOS Version 1.9.6 ... Added: 10/10/12Total Downloads81,582Last Week37
*** WINNER - Children's Technology Review Editor's Choice Award ***The biggest leap forward in a decade for the #1 kids drawing and painting...iOS Version 2.0.2 ... Added: 03/04/11Total Downloads3,608Last Week34
Play an online FPS game.Windows Version 18.104.22.168 ... Added: 02/10/14Total Downloads791Last Week34
Take control and automate your mobile phone features.Android Version 1.0.21u ... Added: 07/18/11Total Downloads1,821Last Week32
Manage multiple resumes, cover letters, and insider contacts for your job search.Windows Version 18.104.22.168 ... Added: 11/13/14Total Downloads27,082Last Week31
Sit anywhere in your house and watch movies or TV shows on your iPhone, iPod or iPad. VLC Streamer streams movies from your computer to your...iOS Version 4.12 ... Added: 12/16/14Total Downloads2,474Last Week30
Find and display the winning name or number on a draw ball.Windows Version 1 ... Added: 08/28/08Total Downloads6,093Last Week29
Generate the recommended pool of lottery balls to play based on the latest trends and patterns.Windows Version 184.108.40.206 ... Added: 11/18/14Total Downloads5,063Last Week29


text:
News and Reviews of Monster High Dolls, Plush Toys, and More!
Share Twitter
Views: 846
▶ Reply to This
here. someone made a how to for it. and it works pretty well.
▶ Reply
Welcome toMonster High Dolls .com
Sign Upor Sign In
Or sign in with:
© 2014 Created by Stu Carter.
Badges |
Report an Issue |
Terms of Service
Please check your browser settings or contact your system administrator.


text:
|Click on images for full-sized view
Only 9 Left In Stock! Buy Now!
View specifications
Send to a friend
Microsoft 6LD-00171
- Factory Sealed 9 Left
• Brand new
• Original manufacturer packaging
• Full manufacturer warranty
- Factory Sealed products are new, in original manufacturer packaging, and carry a manufacturer warranty.
Software testing simplified. Visual Studio Test Professional 2012 is for software testing practitioners and teams that need a comprehensive solution that deeply integrates test planning, execution, and management in the end to-end software lifecycle.
|Model number
|Product Name
Microsoft 6LD-00171 Visual Studio Test Professional 2012
|Operating System Required
Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2 x64 Edition, 7, 8
|License Type
Subscription (Renewal)
|License Quantity
1 User
Manufacturer Warranty. For defective returns, Tech For Less will give you a full refund and will arrange for and pay all shipping costs.
User Reviews
The Tech For Less Promise:
Join the over 1 million satisfied customers we've been serving since 2001. We inspect and test all of our products to ensure it meets the manufacturer quality standards. We have a 30 Day Return Policy and every product has the Manufacturer Warranty against defects. If there does happen to be an issue, we will work with you to make it right!
Contact Us
1610 Garden of the Gods Rd.
Colorado Springs, CO 80907
Sales: 1.866.880.1230
Operating Hours
Monday — Friday
Outlet Store:
9:00am to 6:00pm MT
Phone Inquiries:
8:00am to 6:00pm MT
Email Us
Sales/Product Questions
After Sales Support
Customer Service Request Form
Christie E. - Dec 26th 2014


text:
Tamar Braxton Joins John Legend Tour
Tamar Braxton is grabbing her bags and baby and heading on the road with John Legend this fall. The R&B singer has joined Legend's "Made to Love" tour.
The six-week North American trek kicks off on October 20 in Mashantucket, CT, and wraps on December 1 in L.A.
The new mom is gearing up for the release of her album Love and War, due September 3 on Epic Records. Legend's album Love in the Future drops the same day.
The "Braxton Family Values" star is also the co-host of Fox's new talk show "The Real," which premiered on July 15 in select markets. The new season of her WE tv show "Tamar and Vince" debuts September 5.
Fans can also expect a new single and video from Tamar by the end of August.
Tickets for the "Made to Love" tour are on sale now. See an itinerary below.
"Made to Love" Tour Dates
Oct. 20 – Mashantucket, CT – MGM Grand at Foxwoods
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
13 Comments
Leave a Reply
©Copyright 2014 Rap-Up.com. Rap-Up® is a registered trademark. All rights reserved.
A Member of Townsquare Music | Advertise


text:
GNU Guix - News: One week to FOSDEM!
Latest News
GNU Guix 0.8 released posted by civodul, Tue 18 Nov 2014 08:14:03 AM UTC - 0 replies
Guix at the 2014 GNU Hackers Meeting posted by civodul, Sat 11 Oct 2014 09:56:51 AM UTC - 0 replies
Join us for a Guix hackathon on Sep. 27-28! posted by civodul, Tue 16 Sep 2014 07:58:44 AM UTC - 0 replies
Emacs as a general-purpose package manager posted by civodul, Thu 04 Sep 2014 08:30:05 AM UTC - 0 replies
GNU Guix 0.7 released posted by civodul, Fri 25 Jul 2014 07:28:17 AM UTC - 0 replies
[Submit News]
[25 news in archive]
[Submit News]
[25 news in archive]
One week to FOSDEM!
Item posted by Ludovic Courtès <civodul> on Sat 25 Jan 2014 06:05:45 PM UTC.
FOSDEM takes place next week. We'll be giving a talk about Guix and the GNU system on Sunday at noon, in the distributions devroom. Interested parties, freedom supporters, GNU hackers, and Schemers all alike are welcome to join in!
No messages in One week to FOSDEM!


text:
Kingston's self-destructing flash drive not good enough for you? The mighty Iron Drive not up to snuff (or capacious enough)? If you're personal data could place you or your loved ones into all sorts of danger (legal or otherwise), Orient Computing's got it all taken care of. While other devices hav
7 years ago 0 Comments


text:
10 Things You Need to Know About Slavery (That You Won't Learn from Django Unchained)
The following piece first appeared on Colorlines.
Much hullabaloo has been made recently about slavery as entertainment in movies like "Django Unchained." But lost in the discussion is slavery as history, and the simple fact that it was an economic system which seized the economic know-how of Africans in order to construct unimaginable wealth in North America, Europe and throughout the Western Hemisphere. Wealth from the slave trade took Western Europe from being one of the world's poorest regions to its wealthiest and most powerful in under a century.
Though sadistic and macabre, the plain truth is that slavery was an unprecedented economic juggernaut whose impact is still lived by each of us daily. Consequently, here's my top-10 list of things everyone should know about the economic roots of slavery.
1) Slavery laid the foundation for the modern international economic system.
The massive infrastructure required to move 8 to 10 million Africans halfway around the world built entire cities in England and France, such as Liverpool, Manchester and Bordeaux. It was key to London's emergence as a global capital of commerce, and spurred New York's rise as a center of finance. The industry to construct, fund, staff, and administer the thousands of ships which made close to 50,000 individual voyages was alone a herculean task. The international financial and distribution networks required to coordinate, maintain and profit from slavery set the framework for the modern global economy.
2) Africans' economic skills were a leading reason for their enslavement.
Africans possessed unique expertise which Europeans required to make their colonial ventures successful. Africans knew how to grow and cultivate crops in tropical and semi-tropical climates. African rice growers, for instance, were captured in order to bring their agricultural knowledge to America's sea islands and those of the Caribbean. Many West African civilizations possessed goldsmiths and expert metal workers on a grand scale. These slaves were snatched to work in Spanish and Portuguese gold and silver mines throughout Central and South America. Contrary to the myth of unskilled labor, large numbers of Africans were anything but.
3) African know-how transformed slave economies into some of the wealthiest on the planet.
The fruits of the slave trade funded the growth of global empires. The greatest source of wealth for imperial France was the "white gold" of sugar produced by Africans in Haiti. More riches flowed to Britain from the slave economy of Jamaica than all of the original American 13 colonies combined. Those resources underwrote the Industrial Revolution and vast improvements in Western Europe's economic infrastructure.
4) Until it was destroyed by the Civil War, slavery made the American South the richest and most powerful region in America.
Slavery was a national enterprise, but the economic and political center of gravity during the U.S.'s first incarnation as a slave republic was the South. This was true even during the colonial era. Virginia was its richest colony and George Washington was one of its wealthiest people because of his slaves. The majority of the new country's presidents and Supreme Court justices were Southerners.
However, the invention of the cotton gin took the South's national economic dominance and transformed it into a global phenomenon. British demand for American cotton, as I have written before, made the southern stretch of the Mississippi River the Silicon Valley of its era. The single largest concentration of America's millionaires was gathered in plantations along the Mississippi's banks. The first and only president of the Confederacy—Jefferson Davis—was a Mississippi, millionaire slave holder.
5) Defense of slavery, more than taxes, was pivotal to America's declaration of independence.
The South had long resisted Northern calls to leave the British Empire. That's because the South sold most of its slave-produced products to Britain and relied on the British Navy to protect the slave trade. But a court case in England changed all of that. In 1775, a British court ruled that slaves could not be held in the United Kingdom against their will. Fearing that the ruling would apply to the American colonies, the Southern planters swung behind the Northern push for greater autonomy. In 1776, one year later, America left its former colonial master. The issue of slavery was so powerful that it changed the course of history.
Stay up to date with the latest headlines via email