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A data card having an optical, high resolution erasable or non-erasable laser recording material adhering to it. The strip of laser recording material has a capacity for recording at least 250,000 data bits represented by optically contrasting spots having a dimension of less than 25 microns. The optical contrast of the spots with respect to the surrounding field is at least two to one. The strip may have a preinscribed formatting pattern for positioning, timing, programming and related functions.
1. A system for sequentially recording transaction data by means of a laser comprising,
a wallet size card with a transparent plastic laminating material protectively bonded to a strip of erasable high resolution direct-read-after-write optically reflective read laser recording material adhered to one side of the card, being laser recordable in place on said card and having a minimal laser recording capacity of 250,000 binary bits, having laser created data spots in a surrounding optically contrasting field of said strip, representing accumulated transaction data, with a dimension of said spots being less than 25 microns, the optical reflective contrast ratio of said spots with respect to the surrounding field being at least two to one,
laser means having a beam disposed in laser writing relation with respect to said strip for writing said spots, representing transaction data, the spots having a size of less than 25 microns,
a light detector means disposed in reading relation with respect to said strip for reading said spots, and
means for providing relative motion between the laser beams and the card for reading transaction data on the card and sequentially writing transaction data onto said card.
This application is a continuation-in-part of prior application Ser. Nos. 673,572 now U.S. Pat. No. 4,544,835, and 673,573, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,542,288, filed Nov. 21, 1984, which are continuations-in-part of prior application Ser. No. 566,966, filed Dec. 29, 1983, now U.S. Pat. No. 4,500,777, which was a continuation-in-part of prior application Ser. No. 492,691, filed May 11, 1983, now abandoned, which was a continuation-in-part of prior application Ser. No. 238,833, filed Feb. 27, 1981, now abandoned.
The invention relates to optical information storage.
Dil, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,209,804, teaches a reflective information recording structure which contains prepressed V-shaped grooves in which data may be recorded by local melting of the reflective metal coating by a laser. The data on the media is read by means of optical phase shift effects. Since the preformed grooves are at an optical phase depth of 95� to 140�, the reading laser must be of the precise wavelength corresponding to the groove depth. The information area has a width of approximately 0.6 microns, so a thick protective substrate, usually 1200 microns deep is used to ensure that one micron surface dust particles are out-of-focus for the read beam.
Such thick protective materials cannot be used for wallet cards which have a total thickness of only 800 microns under ISO (International Standards Organization) standards and further it would be uncomfortable to carry a rigid card in trouser pockets or wallets. Also, it is difficult to bond a phase sensitive recording/reading surface to a protective laminating material with an adhesive without introducing a varying phase shift across the surface. It is also impractical to melt large holes since a large lip would be formed around the hole causing a great distortion of the phase shift. Edge transition of the hole is the phase shift which is measured, and since the height of the lip is directly proportional to the square root of the hole diameter, phase shift reading is only practical for small holes. For example, a 25 micron diameter hole creates a lip with one micron height, which is much larger than the wavelength of the reading beam. Thus for large holes and bonded protective materials it is desirable to have a recording/reading structure that does not rely on phase shifts.
Lahr in U.S. Pat. No. 3,873,813 teaches a debit card in which use is indicated by alteration of a spot of heat sensitive coating in a selected area thereby permanently changing the reflective characteristics of that area. A reflective heat sensitive material becomes transparent on heating, thereby exposing an underlying strip of black paper which then absorbs the light energy. Recording requires exposure to a high intensity light beam for 0.7 second to raise the temperature of the material to 175� F. and an additional 5 milliseconds above 175� F. This type of credit card system permits recording of less than two data bits per second. Because of the retained, diffused liquid, the sizes of the data spots are large and difficult to regulate. This card requires a blue read beam, therefore scratches and surface dust will cause a large number of data errors unless very large data spots are used that reduce capacity to under 0,000 bits. While this data capacity is satisfactory for some debit and credit cards, it is unsuitable for detailed recording of financial, insurance, medical and personal records. Also, the recording rate of less than two bits per second would make it unacceptable for use in most applications. Another disadvantage of this card is that all of the data is destroyed if its temperature reaches 175� C., for example on the dashboard of a car or if passed through a household washer and dryer.
Nagata in U.S. Pat. No. 4,197,986, Girard in U.S. Pat. No. 4,224,666 and Atalla in U.S. Pat. No. 4,304,990 teach updating of data cards. Nagata teaches the updating of maximum limits and balance on a card in which the complete data file is in an auxiliary memory circuit such as a magnetic disc or drum. A sales slip containing the transaction is recorded separately from the card. Giraud teaches a data-processing machine-access card containing an integrated circuit chip with a memory bank. The memory stores predetermined items of confidential data intended to authorize or prevent access to the machine. Only the balance is updated.
Atalla teaches a card in which only the balance is recorded and updated. This card can only be used where the transaction system is connected to a central computer. None of these cards has the memory storage capacity needed to accumulate records of past transactions.
Gupta et al. in U.S. Pat. No. 4,527,173 teach an erasable, reusable recording medium having a heat-deformable optical recording layer with a transparent overcoat.
In U.S. Pat. No. 3,530,441, Ovshinsky teaches an erasable recording medium wherein amorphous silicon is locally converted to crystalline silicon with concomitant changes in optical reflectivity.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,425,570 Bell et al. teach an erasable optical recording medium composed of a metallic granular material in a dielectric matrix. The metal particles are of a type which absorb light at the recording wavelength and reversably switch from an original state to a second state having different optical properties at a readout wavelength. An erasing light beam or heat is able to restore the material to its original condition.
Various recording media have been developed for use on a rotating disc format. Because the disc is spinning rapidly, short laser pulse times (on the order of 500 nanoseconds) are necessary to confine the heating to small spots. The media have been developed to increase the sensitivity to the beam by varying the parameter of media absorptivity. Spong in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,190,843 and 4,305,081 puts an absorptive dye layer over a reflective aluminum layer. Spots are recorded by ablation of the dye layer exposing the underlying reflective layer. Bell in U.S. Pat. No. 4,300,143, teaches a similar technique. Bartolini in U.S. Pat. No. 4,313,188 adds a protective layer between the dye layer and the reflective layer. Wilkinson in U.S. Pat. No. 4,345,261 uses a light absorptive silica dielectric layer in place of the dye layer. Terao teaches an inorganic absorptive layer over an organic recording film layer. Holes are formed in the film layer by heat generated in the absorptive layer. Suzuki in U.S. Pat. No. 4,202,491 uses a fluorescent ink layer on which data spots emit infrared radiation. Magneto-optical erasable laser recording materials are also known in the art. For example, see U.S. Pat. No. 4,493,887 to Peeters et al. Improved sensitivity is obtained in these media at the expense of extra layers which increase complexity and cost. This increased sensitivity is not necessary for a card format.
It is the object of the present invention to devise a wallet-size plastic data card containing a laser recordable strip and a system for sequential recording transaction data on the data card with a laser where the data on the card optically contrasts with the surrounding unrecorded field. It is also an object of the invention to perform related sequential laser recording of transactions and events related to the fields of insurance, personal medical records, personal information, banking and related data records.
It is a further object of the invention to devise a wallet-size card, containing a laser recordable strip, that meets the ISO dimensions for plastic credit cards, has a capacity of at least 250,000 bits, can record data at thousands of bits per second and contains prerecorded information such as reference position on the strip.
These objects were met with a wallet-size sealed plastic card only 800 microns thick containing a laser recordable strip using data spots up to 25 microns in size to minimize reading errors and which also contains prerecorded information on the strip such as reference position information. The data system of the present invention relies on reading of optical contrast ratios. The card is formed by first prerecording information on the strip, adhering the strip on the card base, bonding protective, transparent material over the strip and then recording transaction information with a laser. The prerecording can be done by laser recording or surface molding.
One of the chief advantages of the present invention is the high information capacity of laser recording media strips. Typically, high resolution laser recording materials record spots of altered reflectivity optically contrasting with the surrounding reflective field and having dimensions less than 25 microns. A high capacity laser recording material strip enables a credit card to carry the equivalent of scores of pages of text, more than ample for most applications. The transaction card of the present invention is suitable for accumulating sequentially recorded data involving financial transactions, insurance transactions, medical information and events, and personal information and identification.
FIG. 1 is a plan view of one side of a data card in accord with the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a partial side sectional view taken along lines 2--2 in FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a detail of laser writing on a portion of the laser recording strip illustrated by dashed lines in FIG. 1.
FIG. 4 is a plan view of an apparatus for reading and writing on the optical recording media strip illustrated in FIG. 1.
With reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, a data card 11 is illustrated having a size common to most credit cards. The width dimension of such a card is approximately 54 mm and the length dimension is approximately 85 mm. These dimensions are not critical, but preferred because such a size easily fits into a wallet and has historically been adopted as a convenient size for automatic teller machines and the like. The card's base 13 is a dielectric, usually a plastic material such as polyvinyl chloride or similar material. Polycarbonate plastic is preferred. The surface finish of the base should have low specular reflectivity, preferably less than 10%. Base 13 carries strip 15. The strip is about 15 millimeters wide and extends the length of the card. Alternatively, the strip may have other sizes and orientations. The strip is relatively thin, approximately 100-500 microns, although this is not critical. The strip may be applied to the card by any convenient method which achieves flatness. The strip is adhered to the card with an adhesive and covered by a transparent laminating sheet 19 which serves to keep strip 15 flat, as well as protecting the strip from dust and scratches. Sheet 19 is a thin, transparent plastic sheet laminating material or a coating, such as a transparent lacquer. The material is preferably made of polycarbonate plastic.
The opposite side of base 13 may have user identification indicia embossed on the surface of the card. Other indicia such as card expiration data, card number and the like may be optionally provided.
The high resolution laser recording material which forms strip 15 may be any of the reflective recording material which have been developed for use as immediate read laser recording material (IRLRM), so long as the materials can be formed on thin substrates. An advantage of reflective materials over transmissive materials is that the read/write equipment is all on one side of the card and automatic focus is easier. For example, the high resolution material described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,230,939 issued to de Bont, et al. teaches a thin metallic recording layer of reflective metals such as Bi, Te, Ind, Sn, Cu, Al, Pt, Au, Rh, As, Sb, Ge, Se, Ga. Materials which are preferred are those having high reflectivity and low melting point, particularly Cd, Sn, Tl, Ind, Bi and amalgams. Suspensions of reflective metal particles in organic colloids also form low melting temperature laser recording media. Silver is one such metal. Typical recording media are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,314,260, 4,298,684, 4,278,758, 4,278,758, 4,278,756 and 4,269,917, all assigned to the assignee of the present invention. While these media have previously been described as direct-read-after-write media, they may also be used in an immediate read upon writing mode. The laser recording material which is selected should be compatible with the laser which is used for writing on it. Some materials are more sensitive than others at certain wavelengths. Good sensitivity to infrared light is preferred because infrared is affected least by scratches and dirt on the transparent laminating sheet. The selected recording material should have a favorable signal-to-noise ratio and form high contrast data bits with the read/write system with which it is used. The material should not lose data when subjected to temperatures of about 122� F. (50� C.) for long periods. The material should also be capable of recording at speeds of at least several thousand bits/sec. This generally precludes the use of materials that require long heating times or that rely on slow chemical reactions in the presence of heat, which may permit recording of only a few bits/sec. A large number of highly reflective laser recording materials have been used for optical data disk applications. Data is recorded by forming spots in the surrounding field of the reflective layer itself, thereby altering the reflectivity in the data spot. Data is read by detecting the optical reflective contrast between the surrounding reflective field of unrecorded areas and the recorded spots. Spot reflectivity of less than half the reflectivity of the surrounding field produces a contrast ratio of at least two to one, which is sufficient contrast for reading. Greater contrast is preferred. Reflectivity of the strip field of about 50% is preferred with reflectivity of a spot in the reflective field being less than 10%, thus creating a contrast ratio of greater than five to one. Alternatively, data may also be recorded by increasing the reflectivity of the strip. For example, the recording laser can melt a field of dull microscopic spikes on the strip to create flat shiny spots. This method is described in SPIE, Vol. 329, Optical Disk Technology (1982), p. 202. A spot reflectivity of more than twice the surrounding spiked field reflectivity produces a contrast ratio of at least two to one, which is sufficient contrast for reading.
With reference to FIG. 3, a magnified view of laser writing on the laser recording material strip 15 may be seen. The dashed line 33, corresponds to the dashed line 33 in FIG. 1. The oblong spots 35 are aligned in a path and have generally similar dimensions. The spots are generally circular or oval in shape with the axis of the oval perpendicular to the lengthwise dimension of the strip. A second group of spots 37 is shown aligned in a second path. The spots 37 have similar dimensions to the spots 35. The spacing between paths is not critical, except that the optics of the readback system should be able to easily distinguish between paths.
Presently, in optical disk technology, tracks which are separated by only a few microns may be resolved. The spacing and pattern of the spots along each path is selected for easy decoding. For example, oval spots of the type shown can be clustered and spaced in accord with self-clocking bar codes. If variations in the dimensions of a spot are required, such dimensions can be achieved by clustering spots, such as the double spot 39. Such variations are used in the ETAB bar code which is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,245,152. While the American Banker's Association has not yet adopted any particular code, the strip material is such that many machine and eye readable codes can be accommodated. Some optical codes such as the Universal Product Code are both machine and eye readable. Such codes could also be accommodated, although a great deal more laser writing would be required than with circular or oval spots, and a much lower information density would be achieved. The spots illustrated in FIG. 3 typically have recommended sizes of approximately 5 microns by 20 microns, or 2 microns by 8 microns or circular spots 3 microns to 10 microns in diameter. Generally, the smallest dimension of a spot should be less than 50 microns. In the preferred embodiment the largest dimension would also be less than 50 microns. Of course, to offset lower densities from larger spots, the size of the strip 15 could be expanded to the point where it covers a large extent of the card. In FIG. 1, the laser recording strip 15 could completely cover a single side of the card. A minimum information capacity of 250,000 bits is indicated and a storage capacity of over one million bits is preferable.
In FIG. 4, a side view of the lengthwise dimension of a card 41 is shown. The card is usually received in a movable holder 42 which brings the card into the beam trajectory. A laser light source 43, preferably a pulsed semiconductor laser of near infrared wavelength emits a beam 45 which passes through collimating and focussing optics 47. The beam is sampled by a beam splitter 49 which transmits a portion of the beam through a focusing lens 51 to a photodetector 53. The detector 53 confirms laser writing and is not essential. The beam is then directed to a first servo controlled mirror 55 which is mounted for rotation along the axis 57 in the direction indicated by the arrows A. The purpose of the mirror 55 is to find the lateral edges of the laser recording material in a coarse mode of operation and then in a fine mode of operation identify data paths which exist predetermined distances from the edges.
From mirror 55, the beam is directed toward mirror 61. This mirror is mounted for rotation at pivot 63. The purpose of mirror 55 is for fine control of motion of the beam along the length of the card. Coarse control of the lengthwise position of the card relative to the beam is achieved by motion of movable holder 42. The position of the holder may be established by a linear motor adjusted by a closed loop position servo system of the type used in magnetic disk drives. During its manufacture the card may be prerecorded with a preinscribed pattern containing servo tracks, timing marks, program instructions, and related functions. These positioning marks can be used as a reference for the laser recording system to record or read data at particular locations. Each of the various industries, that is, financial, insurance, medical, and personal, has formats specific to its particular needs. Formatting may be done using laser recording or surface molding of the servo tracks, having marks, programming and related functions. Dil, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,209,804 teaches a type of surface molding. Reference position information may be prerecorded on the card so that position error signals may be generated and used as feedback in motor control. Upon reading one data path, the mirror 55 is slightly rotated. The motor moves holder 41 lengthwise so that the path can be read, and so on. Light scattered and reflected from the spots contrasts with the surrounding field where no spots exist. The beam should deliver sufficient laser pulse energy to the surface of the recording material to create spots. Typically, 5-20 milliwatts is required, depending on the recording material. A 20 milliwatt semiconductor laser, focussed to a five micron beam size, records at temperatures of about 200� C. and is capable of creating spots in less than 25 microseconds. The wavelength of the laser should be compatible with the recording material. In the read mode, power is lowered to about 5% of the record power.
Optical contrast between a spot and surrounding field are detected by light detector 65 which may be a photodiode. Light is focussed onto detector 65 by beam splitter 67 and focusing lens 69. This may be done as data is being written for immediate read laser recording materials, or may be done in a read mode. A reason for immediately reading data is to verify laser writing. The same is true for direct-read-after-write techniques. Servo motors, not shown, control the positions of the mirrors and drive the mirrors in accord with instructions received from control circuits, as well as from feedback devices. The detector 65 produces electrical signals corresponding to spots. These signals are processed and recorded for subsequent display as useful information regarding the transaction recorded on the card.
In operation, the card of the present invention is used to record sequentially accumulated data, as medical records, insurance records, personal information, or financial transactions. For example, it could be used just like a passbook. First the card is read to determine previously recorded information. Next, a user enters his transaction on a financial transaction or medical information recorder. Such recorder then causes data to be written on the first strip by means of the laser. The data could represent a passbook entry with a new account status. Operating in this mode, a user may use the card of the present invention in free standing financial transaction or medical information machines.
Patent Citations
Referenced by
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Latest Nomascus Stories
New research appearing in Thursday's edition of the journal Nature details the successful sequencing and annotation of the gibbon genome, meaning that scientists have now mapped the DNA of all of the world's ape species.
Crested gibbons (genus Nomascus) live in dense Asian rainforest, specifically in China, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam, and, because of their environment, they communicate with other gibbons by singing.
A new endangered species of ape was discovered in the tropical rainforests of Asia by its unique song, German scientists said Tuesday.
Latest Nomascus Reference Libraries
The Northern White-Cheeked Gibbon (Nomascus leucogenys) is a species of gibbon that is native to South East Asia. It is closely related to the Southern White-Cheeked Gibbon (Nomascus siki) with which it was formerly thought to be conspecific. The females of the two species are virtually impossible to tell apart in their appearance. The genome of this species was sequenced and published in the year 2011. A considerable population of 455 critically endangered Northern White-Cheeked...
The black crested gibbon (Nomascus concolor) is also known as the crested gibbon, the black gibbon, the white-cheeked gibbon, or the concolor gibbon. It is a species of gibbon found in India in the Malay Archipelago and Indochina. It is endangered.
- A woman chauffeur.
- A woman who operates an automobile.

subset: commoncrawl


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Picture: Lady Gaga performs on her 'Born This Way Ball' tour at Twickenham Stadium London, England - 08.09.12
Has Lady GaGa gotten married? The singer turned heads last night after she stepped out into the London night wearing a somewhat revealing wedding dress last night (September 9th). However, there was no groom to be found, the white gown proving to be just another of the 26 year-old's notorious outfits. The Daily Mail reports that Gaga was partying with friends JAY-Z and Rihanna at the Arts Club in Mayfair, London and wore a dress that featured a corseted top, coupling it with a net turban-style headpiece, satin gloves and sky-high cream heels.
Gaga had just finished performing her second night at Twickenham stadium in the UK capital and following a performance that included her paying tribute to the late Princess Diana, she was clearly in the mood to party as she arrived at the Arts Club, something clearly evident judging her worse for wear state upon exiting the venue some hours later.
Heading back to her hotel, Gaga then opted to sit on its steps alongside a fan of hers dressed as John Lennon, holding a sign of his that read "We Love London" and blowing kisses at fans passing by. Earlier in the night, whilst performing, she'd unveiled a tribute to Princess Diana in the form of new track Princess D.I.E, before which she said "I swore if I ever had an audience like this in London I would take a moment to appreciate her. This song is called Princess Di - D-I-E... I predict controversy, but I don't care... Let's take a moment to appreciate her presence and what she means."


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Electrik Red - We F*ck You
Artist: Electrik Red
Producer: Tricky Stewart & The-Dream
Album: Untitled Debut (2009)
Avg Rating: 2.5 ( 23 votes )
Instead of wrapping their demo and shopping it to their major label contacts, R&B girl group Electrik Red sat and waited patiently for the right opportunity. Thankfully for members Naomi, Sarah, Lesley, and Binki, less than two years after readying the start of their career, a deal with Def Jam and the opportunity to work with the production/songwriting tandem of Tricky Stewart and The-Dream fell into their laps. Scheduled for release early next year, the ladies' untitled debut will feature their initial buzz single, Drank in My Cup, as well as its newly-released follow-up, We F*ck You. Though the record – for obvious reasons – might have a hard time getting spins at radio (that is, without a radio-edited version and title change), it will surely get some attention in the clubs. So, does it grab yours?
Written by DJ Z on Dec 14, 2008
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Almost every filmmaker sets out to alter public perception or at least insight on an issue, but just how successful is a film on impacting viewers?
According to a recent study by University of Oregon professor Grant Jacobsen, quite successful, as he wrote in his soon-to-be-published paper in the Journal of Environmental Economics and Management. According to the study, "An Inconvenient Truth" appeared to have influenced a temporary breed of environmentalists. People who lived within ten miles of a movie theater showing the film were found to be 50 percent more likely to buy carbon offsets during the months after the film's release than those living more than ten miles away from one.
To conduct the study, Jacobsen contacted the film's distributor Paramount Vantage and obtained the 1,389 U.S. zip codes where the film was shown. Carbonfund provided him with a list of 12,902 carbon offsets that were purchased between March 2006 (two months before the release of "An Inconvenient Truth") and May 2008, along with purchasers' zip codes. Numbers started matching up in the timeline, and Jacobsen started finding trends.
According to AOL News, the film's effect was only temporary. One year after its release, Jacobsen found no significant trends or differences in carbon offset purchases that could be attributed to people seeing the film.
To be fair, let's put this in perspective. It's not like "An Inconvenient Truth" was showing at the nearest Imax cinema. Gore's documentary was an indie film house hit, and most independent movie theaters are in liberal-minded neighborhoods, already populated by people who are more likely to believe in global warming and buy carbon offsets, than say, conservative suburbanites or those who typically drive gas-guzzling SUVs. It's basically preaching to the choir.
Read more: al gore, an inconvenient truth, carbon offsets, film, global warming, grant jacobsen, impact, study
Photo courtesy of openDemocracy via Flickr
Thank you, I noticed as well people are more aware
Everyone should see this movie, show it in our schools as part of the curiculum.
When will we see the truth about this , 10 years from now ? The admissions that this is simply another RORT so the true culprits and the moneymakers in all of the environmental vandalism dont have to repair the damage they have done out of their ill gotten , illegal and immoral financial gains . Time to have a social revolution and put these greedy pigs on notice to fix it and stop what you are doing now or face some very serious personal retaliation and consequences . Stop them now or there will be no planet and no decent world for the next generations .
Thanks for sharing.
what absolute hypocrisy...gore?? no way..i remember when the oscars came up and he might win one...he was in new york right before..so he "flies" to hollywood to attend (all the after parties and associate with the 'stars')...that was really worth the trip!!!...and it's not like he flew on a scheduled flight...it would have been a private plane....along with all his little minions he needs to salve his ego wherever he goes....so....while i support the environmental movement...i don't support the hypocrite...
Thanks for the article. It's great to know that Al Gore has had an effect. Too bad he didn't win the presidency. Think of the changes then.
It takes a little bit of energy..... try to make a bigger effort and do something good for the environment....
Noted and signed!!
I am one of the admirers of Mr.Al Gore for his far-reaching analysis presented in his "Inconvenient Truth".We,in India, made special efforts to procure the DVD immediately and translated into Tamil with the co-operation of a Non-profit Organisation called EXNORA and sensitised a fair percentage of the population including students and children.Even much earlier than this ,we started another NPO called "The Shade of A Tree" mainly for planting Avenue Trees in Chennai in Sept 2005.We have similar organisations for planting Trees by enlightened Citizens in other Major cities in India also.Hence if an average American is wantonly oblivious to the happenings around, blame cannot be thrown on Al Gore for his far-sighted warnings.Another International NPO "Trees for the Future" has also started making inroads into other African contries and India for propagating Tree-planting as a mission. It is a matter of environmental record as assessed by a n Authority at the highest level that the year 2010 has enjoyed the hottest summer after 1997. For India, the Hottest summer was in the year 2009 as assessed by the Meteorological Dept of Govt of India.If the World citizens and World Governments are indifferent to the phenomenon of "Global Warming" ,it is truly an unfortunate situation.
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carol.... it's YOUR fantasy.....enjoy. I DO rather than rant.....BTW....I sleep very well thanks for…
The more aware humans become of animal abuse more changes in laws to protect them should be made.
A wonderful cause, to keep enhancing and establishing. Good luck.


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Christa Wolf
Christa Wolf (krēs´tä vôlf), 1929–2011, German novelist. After attending the universities of Jena and Leipzig, she worked as an editor of literary journals. A committed communist in her early life, she won the approval of the East German government with her novel Divided Heaven (1963, tr. 1965). Her semiautobiographical novel, The Quest for Christa T. (1968, tr. 1972), which was critical of East German society and ideals, earned her criticism at home but a reputation as a complex writer abroad. Many of her novels, including No Place on Earth (1979, tr. 1982), mixed fact and fiction as they affirmed the needs of individuals, particularly women, in East Germany's destructive society. Her claim to the moral high ground was undermined in the early 1990s when it was revealed that she had been a secret police informant from 1959 to 1962, but she maintained she had revealed nothing of use. Wolf's other writings include Cassandra (1983, tr. 1984), A Model Childhood (1977, tr. 1980), What Remains and Other Stories (1980, tr. 1993), The Author's Dimension: Selected Essays (tr. 1993), Medea (1996, tr. 1998), and the autobiographical novel City of Angels (2010, tr. 2013), her final work, in which she attempts to come to terms with her East German past.
Christa Wolf: Selected full-text books and articles
Esther Kleinbord Labovitz.
Peter Lang, 1988 (2nd edition)
Brigid Haines; Margaret Littler.
Oxford University Press, 2004
Chloe E. M. Paver.
Oxford University, 1999
Cormican, Muriel.
Philological Quarterly, Vol. 81, No. 1, Winter 2002
Chris Weedon.
Berghahn Books, 1997
Laurence M. Porter.
Praeger, 2005
Marie-Luise Gättens.
University Press of Florida, 1995
Karen Jankowsky; Carla Love.
State University of New York Press, 1997
Linda Haverty Rugg.
University of Chicago Press, 1997


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Indus Valley, Pakistan
January 19, 2006
This Advanced Along Track Scanning Radiometer (AATSR) image from an overpass of the Indus Valley has been processed to emphasize different terrain types and vegetation coverage in order to demonstrate how well the AATSR instrument can distinguish such features. The image covers an area 1400 kilometers in length and 512 kilometers in width. From top-to-bottom it orients approximately north-east to south-west. The Indus River can be seen clearly in dark-blue flowing south towards the sea. We can see high mountain ranges (purple) to the right of the image, and the low Punjab to the north-east. Along the river's course, green vegetation dominates. The tributaries of the Indus Basin can just be detected in the fertile Punjab plain towards the upper right of this image. The Thar Desert stands out as the large area of paler pink, purple and beige shades to the lower right of the image north of the sea. Acknowledgement: RAL/DEFRA/ESA.
Technical Information:
Technical Information:
- Satellite: Envisat
- Instrument: AATSR
- Acquisition: 12-Jun-2003
- Orbit nr: 06701
- Center coordinates: lat. 27.61, lon. 70.93
Topics: Environment, Deserts and xeric shrublands, Indomalaya, Rigvedic rivers, Indus Valley Civilization, AATSR, Thar Desert, Punjab, Indus River


text:
Older People's Day - Campaign
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Check out the new Edge 473mm Premium CF Blades – Flybarless Version
For those who fly a stretch Protos or any other helicopter that runs well with 473mm blades, the new Edge flybarless 473 Premium CF Blades are sure to please. It's nice to have another good choice of blades in the 470mm range. Visit your Edge dealer to pick up a set of these new blades.
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Happy Birthday Shantanu Maheshwari
Added on 3/7/2013
By : tellybuzz
Overall Rating :
Rate Me... Rating Saved!
View : 21880 Comments : 79 Video Courtesy : www.india-forums.com
Happy Birthday Shantanu! You are a GREAT Dancer and an BRILLIANT actor too.!
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u rock !
Yuppiiee! Appiie Bdayy and lob u Tannu! :D
Awesome..video..happy b'day shan
nice one this is.. once again happy birthday, Shantanu...
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text:
ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen - Bremen
Bredenstr. 2 - Bremen1-877-662-6988
Unwind and relax with premium bedding in the guest rooms at this luxury hotel in Bremen, not to mention it also offers a rooftop terrace and free Wi-Fi. ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen is also near a train station.
Enjoy breakfast, lunch and dinner as this 4-star hotel in Bremen has its own restaurant. Whether visiting Germany on holiday or for work, make sure you take time out to de-stress as you can find massage/treatment rooms, a sauna, a steam room and a Turkish bath/hammam on site. There is also a bar/lounge where guests can enjoy drinks after a long day.
Multilingual staff are available at the front desk 24 hours-a-day and can provide tour/ticket assistance. Enjoy complimentary newspapers and a TV in front of the fire in the lobby area, as well as having a safe deposit box at the front desk. Free high-speed (wired) Internet access is available. Planning a meeting? This hotel has a meeting room, as well as a 24-hour business center. Other amenities include a hair salon, gift shops/newsstands, dry cleaning/laundry, ATM/banking and an elevator (lift).
This is an excelent, new and modern business hotel. The location is perfect with t...Venere Guest, Norway
These reviews have been left by customers who actually stayed at this hotel
Check Availability at ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen
Breakfast at ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen
A buffet breakfast is served between 6:30 AM and 10:30 AM for a fee.
Facilities at ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen
- Bar
- Restaurant/Dining
- Cafeteria
- Baby sitter
- Laundry service
- Lift/elevator
- Hairdresser
- Room service - 24 hour
- Gift shop
- Shops in the hotel
- Pets accepted
- Dogs allowed
- Laundry room
- Personal newspapers
- Multilingual staff
- Newspapers
- Front desk - safety deposit box
- Front desk - 24 hour
- Concierge
- Luggage room
- City tour
- Limousine service
- Valet service
- Private parking
- Health club
- Sauna
- Steam bath
- Massages
- Turkish bath
- Meeting Room
- Business Center
- Internet/Email services
- TV Lounge
Know before you go
- Only registered guests are allowed in the guestrooms.
- Some facilities may have restricted access. Guests can contact the property for details using the contact information on the booking confirmation.
- This property allows pets in specific rooms only (surcharges apply and can be found in the Fees section). Guests can request one of these rooms by contacting the property directly, using the contact information on the booking confirmation.
Check-in: after 3 PM.
Check-out: before 11 AM.
PolicyExtra-person charges may apply and vary depending on hotel policy.
Government-issued photo identification and a credit card or cash deposit are required at check-in for incidental charges.
Special requests are subject to availability upon check-in and may incur additional charges. Special requests cannot be guaranteed.
City tax and/or any other fees charged by the hotel
The following fees and deposits are charged by the property at time of service, check-in, or check-out.
- Fee for buffet breakfast: EUR 20 per person (approximately)
- Fee for in-room high-speed Internet (wired): EUR 7,50 per 24-hour period (rates may vary)
- Airport shuttle fee: EUR 20
- Self parking fee: EUR 20 per day (in/out privileges)
- Pet fee: EUR 20 per pet
- Rollaway bed fee: EUR 30,00 per night
The above list may not be comprehensive. Fees and deposits may not include tax and are subject to change.
You'll be asked to pay the following charges at the hotel:
- A tax is imposed by the city: EUR 3 per person, per night. This tax does not apply to children under 18 years of age.
We have included all charges provided to us by the property. However, charges can vary, for example, based on length of stay or the room you book.
National ratingHotelstars Union assigns an official star rating in Germany. This property is rated 4 star Superior and is displayed on this page as 4 stars.
ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen reviews
- September 2011
- Venere Guest
- Not Specified
- Norway
This is an excelent, new and modern business hotel. The location is perfect with the old city sights close by.
- May 2014
- Venere Guest
- Couple
- Norway
- July 2013
- Venere Guest
- Family with older children
- Norway
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- August 2014
- Venere Guest
- Family with older children
- Italy
- July 2014
- Venere Guest
- Family with young children
- Germany
- August 2014
- Venere Guest
- Family with young children
- Germany
- July 2014
- Venere Guest
- Family with older children
- Germany
ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen reviews by TripAdvisor
Room Details
Book your luxury accommodation at ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen, offering 138 guest rooms with climate control. Guests can kick back at the end of a busy day and enjoy LCD televisions with satellite channels and pay movies. Corporate travelers visiting the Bremen area will benefit from free wired and wireless high-speed Internet access as well as desks, complimentary newspapers and phones.
For comfort and convenience, each guest room comes with a separate sitting area. Visitors will wake up feeling refreshed and ready to start the day after a good night's sleep in supportive Select Comfort mattresses with premium bedding, plus a selection of pillows from a pillow menu. Private bathrooms are outfitted with shower/tub combinations, bathrobes, slippers and hair dryers. Coffee/tea makers and complimentary bottled water are supplied in each room to facilitate basic travel needs. Additional guest comforts include soundproofing, air conditioning and safes.
Bathroom toiletries are provided free of charge. A turndown service is available. Irons/ironing boards can be provided on request.
Accommodation Services
- Telephone
- Air conditioning
- Pay-Per-View
- Extra beds
- Baby cots/cribs available
- Coffee and tea maker
- Hypo-allergenic bedding available
- Soundproof rooms
- Ironing facilities on request
- Hairdryer in each room
- Safe
- Desk
- Individually controlled air conditioning
- LCD flat screen TV
- Satellite TV
- High speed Internet access
- Wireless Internet access
Distances from ATLANTIC Grand Hotel BremenPaula Modersohn Becker Museum - 0.1 km / 0.1 mi
Marktplatz - 0.1 km / 0.1 mi
Bremen Roland Statue - 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
Bremen City Hall - 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
Bremen Town Musicians - 0.2 km / 0.1 mi
Bremen Cathedral - 0.3 km / 0.2 mi
Am Wall - 0.5 km / 0.3 mi
Kunsthalle Bremen - 0.7 km / 0.4 mi
Beck's Brewery - 0.8 km / 0.5 mi
Freimarkt - 1.3 km / 0.8 mi
GOP Variety Theater - 1.5 km / 0.9 mi
Weser Stadium - 2.3 km / 1.4 mi
Bremen Buergerpark - 2.5 km / 1.6 mi
University of the Arts Bremen - 3.5 km / 2.2 mi
Focke Museum - 4.3 km / 2.7 mi
The preferred airport for ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen is Bremen (BRE) - 2.8 km / 1.8 mi.
Distances are calculated in a straight line from the property's location to the point of interest or airport and may not reflect actual travel distance.
Distances are displayed to the nearest 0.1 km and mile.
Transportation services ATLANTIC Grand Hotel Bremen
- Limousine service
- Valet service
- Private parking
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text:
To closely simulate the experience of an end user, a software agent executes where the end user would be situated and attempts to exercise a computer resource such as a networked application or a network resource in a simulated transaction in exactly or nearly exactly the same way that the computer resource would be exercised by the end user in non-simulated transaction. The results of the simulated transaction and of other simulated transactions by other software agents are communicated to a central software system for recordation and analysis.
1. A method comprising:
causing a transaction to be executed that emulates an end-user's interaction with a software application, wherein the transaction includes communication with the software application across a network.
2. The method of
causing a message to be transmitted, to a point where the software application is executing, from an end-user point on the network.
3. The method of
causing a message to be transmitted, from a point where the software application is executing, to an end-user point on the network.
4. The method of
5. The method of
causing the transaction to be executed includes emulating a function of a Web browser.
6. The method of
7. The method of
emulating the client side of the client/server transaction.
8. The method of
attempting to retrieve specified information from the software application.
9. The method of
attempting to retrieve information from a Web page supplied by the software application.
10. The method of
supplying login information to the software application.
11. The method of
12. The method of
attempting to retrieve information from the database application.
13. The method of
determining a response time in the transaction.
14. The method of
determining an application processing time component of the response time.
15. The method of
determining a network processing time component of the response time.
16. The method of
attempting to establish a TCP/IP connection; and
based on a result of the attempt, determining a network processing time.
17. The method of
transmitting a ping message; and
based on a result of the transmission, determining a network processing time.
18. The method of
19. The method of
based on the transaction, determining the availability of the software application.
20. The method of
if a response is not received timely from the software application, determining that the software application is unavailable.
21. The method of
causing multiple instances of the transaction to be executed according to a schedule.
22. The method of
deriving a performance baseline from results of the multiple instances.
23. The method of
causing, from a central location, multiple emulation transactions to be executed.
24. The method of
25. The method of
storing information derived from a result of at least one of the transactions at the respective originating location for later transmission to the central location.
26. The method of
transmitting a data packet to the software application, the data packet including information that identifies the transaction.
27. A method comprising:
generating a simulated computer communication at a point in a computer network;
using a non-simulated network resource to deliver the simulated computer communication to a computer resource; and
evaluating the computer resource based on a result of the delivery of the simulated computer communication to the computer resource.
28. The method of
29. The method of
issuing, from a central source, a directive to generate the simulated computer communication; and
receiving, at the central source, a report on the result of the delivery of the simulated computer communication to the computer resource.
30. Computer software, residing on a computer-readable storage medium, comprising a set of instructions for use in a computer system to cause the computer system to:
cause a transaction to be executed that emulates an end-user's interaction with a software application, wherein the transaction includes communication with the software application across a network.
31. Computer software, residing on a computer-readable storage medium, comprising a set of instructions for use in a computer system to cause the computer system to:
generate a simulated computer communication at a point in a computer network;
use a non-simulated network resource to deliver the simulated computer communication to a computer resource; and
evaluate the computer resource based on a result of the delivery of the simulated computer communication to the computer resource.
32. A system comprising:
a system that causes a transaction to be executed that emulates an enduser's interaction with a software application, wherein the transaction includes communication with the software application across a network.
33. A system comprising:
a generator that generates a simulated computer communication at a point in a computer network;
a utilizer that uses a non-simulated network resource to deliver the simulated computer communication to a computer resource; and
an evaluator that evaluates the computer resource based on a result of the delivery of the simulated computer communication to the computer resource.
[0001] This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Serial No. 60/102,579 entitled "MANAGING COMPUTER NETWORK RESOURCES" filed on Sep. 30, 1998, which is incorporated herein.
[0002] The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for evaluating computer resources.
[0003] To efficiently manage and troubleshoot computer resources such as software applications on a network, an administrator needs information about the status of the computer resources and communication paths on the network. To effectively monitor the resources and the network, the administrator needs information regarding the availability and performance of networked applications and the ability of the network to provide access to the networked applications. Such detailed information is important for management of the computer resources and the network so that the configuration of the resources or the network can be modified or supplemented as needed. Preferably, these modifications or supplements are put in place before major problems occur.
[0004] Currently, the information that is available about a software application running on a server may be derived from information that is accessible to the server or the application, and the information that is available about a network may be derived from information gathered by a network analyzing product such as a network sniffer, which is a device that is inserted into a segment of the network to monitor the packets that are traveling along the communication line into which the sniffer has been inserted.
[0005] The increasing popularity and complexity of Web site and networked database applications that are dependent on the Internet, or on a network using Internet protocols, has further complicated the administrative task, including the task of managing Web site database content and maintaining Web site effectiveness. Company Webmasters and business managers are routinely faced with a wide array of burdensome issues such as the detection, identification, and repair of broken Web sites and links, the monitoring and organization of large volumes of diverse, continuously-changing Web site and networked database content, and the detection and management of Web site problems and congested links. These issues are particularly significant for companies that rely on their Web sites to provide mission-critical information and services to customers and business partners.
[0006] A method and apparatus are provided for evaluating computer resources. To closely simulate the experience of an end user, a software agent executes in a location where the end user would be situated and attempts to exercise a computer resource such as a networked application or a network resource in a simulated transaction in exactly or nearly exactly the same way that the computer resource would be exercised by the end user in a non-simulated transaction. The results of the simulated transaction and of other simulated transactions by other software agents are communicated to a central software system for recordation and analysis.
[0007] The method and apparatus may be used with the World-Wide Web or the Internet or with a local area network ("LAN") or a wide area network ("WAN") that extends over a large enterprise and includes a number of LANs connected together in an "intranet."
[0008] Different aspects of the invention allow one or more of the following. An end-to-end evaluation can be performed of the ability of an overall system, that includes an application running on a server and a network providing access to the application, to serve an end-user effectively. A pro-active detection system can be provided that detects a problem in the overall system before the problem affects, or is detected by, an end-user. Simulated transactions that are highly representative of non-simulated transactions can be executed using the same computer resources that are used by the non-simulated transactions. Existing computer and network hardware already installed in a network can be used highly effectively to evaluate computer resources on the network. Evaluations of computer resources on a network can be performed at effectively any time with little or no disruption to the normal operation of the computer resources or the network.
[0009] Other features and advantages will become apparent from the following description, including the drawings, and from the claims.
[0010] FIGS. 1-2 and 7 are block diagrams of computer-based systems.
[0011] FIGS. 3A-6 are flow diagrams of computer-based procedures.
[0012] A Synthetic Transactions system that simulates the actions of an actual distributed network software application may be used to evaluate computer resource (e.g., application) response time or availability over a computer network. In at least some cases, the evaluations are taken from the perspective of an end user (which may be a human being or a software program), so that the evaluations reflect the application response time and availability that would likely be experienced by the end user.
[0013] As described in detail below, a Synthetic Transaction is a simulated application transaction. In at least some cases, it is advantageous if the simulated transaction is generated by an intelligent agent software system to evaluate a computer resource. For example, in a typical case concerning client/server technology on a network, a Synthetic Transactions software agent emulates a client side of a client/server transaction so that what happens on the network and on a server is the same, or nearly the same, as what would happen if the transaction were initiated by an actual end user on the client side. The agent may execute at a point on the network that is highly representative of where an actual end user would be situated, so that the path of associated communication across the network closely simulates the path of communication that is, or likely would be, associated with an actual end user.
[0014]FIG. 1 illustrates relationships among components of an example implementation ("NextPoint S3") of the Synthetic Transactions system, described in more detail below.
[0015] In the Synthetic Transactions system, an application response time is an amount of time between two events in the course of a transaction. Typically, the application response time is an amount of time between a time when a transaction involving an application is started by the software agent and a later time when the transaction is completed (e.g., when the last protocol message has been processed). However, intermediate points in the course of the transaction could be used where appropriate. Typically, the application response time includes any time spent in the transaction due to latencies in the computer network, the application server, any additional backend servers such as a database server, as well as time spent by the software agent (e.g., in processing application protocol messages).
[0016] An overall application response time measured by a software agent may include multiple components, such as time spent on the network and time spent in the application, which may also include multiple components such as time spent for individual queries in a database application.
[0017] One or more of many methods could be used in determining how much of an overall application response time is attributable to network travel time ("network response time") and to time spent in processing by the application ("processing response time"), respectively. In a first example method, an Internet Control Message Protocol Packet Internet Groper ("ICMP Ping") protocol transmission is used to determine the network response time. An ICMP Ping protocol transaction transmission is sent simultaneously, or nearly simultaneously, with an application protocol message to the application server. At the application server, the ICMP Ping protocol transaction transmission is processed at a low level without involving the application software, to issue a response. The amount of time that passes between the sending of the ICMP Ping protocol transmission and the receiving of the response represents the network response time. The processing response time may be determined by subtracting the network response time from the overall application response time.
[0018] In a second example method, a Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol ("TCP/IP") socket connection time is determined and used to determine the network response time. An initial step in executing any TCP/IP network application transaction is the establishment of a TCP/IP socket connection between the client and the server, which establishment is used in the second method to measure the network response time. The establishment of the socket connection does involve the application on the server, because the connection is not successful unless the application accepts the connection, but such involvement does not include hard disk access or back end server components and therefore takes up relatively insignificant time. The network response time is taken to be the TCP/IP socket connection time (i.e., the amount of time needed to establish the socket connection) and the processing response time is determined by subtracting the network response time from the overall application response time.
[0019] An advantage of the second example method is that the measurement is made using the same network path that is used in typical non-evaluative transactions between the client and the server. In the case of the first example method, an ICMP Ping transmission may be filtered out by an intermediate network processor such as a firewall, or a network device providing Quality of Service ("QOS") services in place within the computer network may cause the ICMP Ping transmission to be given a priority that is different from the priority that a typical non-evaluative transmission would be given. Such a difference in priority may affect the network path followed or the processing time for the ICMP Ping transaction at the server, which would skew the evaluation of the network response time.
[0020] In a specific implementation, multiple methods, such as both the first and second example methods described above, may be made available for selection and execution.
[0021] Application availability is determined based on whether the application responds to a Synthetic Transactions transmission, regardless of the response time. If a response to the Synthetic Transactions transmission is received before a designated expiration time has passed, the application is noted as available. Otherwise, the application is noted as unavailable.
[0022] Synthetic Transactions may be executed on a scheduled basis such as a periodic basis, or on user demand. For example, a Synthetic Transaction may repeatedly exercise a specific application function, such as reading a customer record from a database. As a result, a baseline of expectations for the latency of the transaction being simulated may be established, and deviations from the baseline may be interpreted as indicating abnormal functioning of the computer network or the application. In cases in which the network response time and the processing response time are determined separately and corresponding separate baselines are established, the abnormal functioning may be isolated to the network or the application, respectively. See the commonly assigned, simultaneously filed United States Patent Application entitled "MANAGING COMPUTER RESOURCES".
[0023] Synthetic Transactions may be executed for at least the following network application technologies: ICMP Ping, Dynamic Host Control Protocol ("DHCP"), Domain Name Service ("DNS"), Post Office Protocol 3 ("POP3"), Simple Mail Transfer Protocol ("SMTP"), Standard Query Language ("SQL") Database queries, Hypertext Transport Protocol ("HTTP") web applications, eCommerce, SAP/R3, PeopleSoft, Lotus Notes, Microsoft Exchange and Voice over IP. Synthetic Transactions are not limited to Internet Protocol network applications and may be used for Systems Network Architecture ("SNA"), Internet Protocol Exchange ("IPX"), or Appletalk network applications, for example. All or a part of a network application may be evaluated through the use of Synthetic Transactions. In a typical implementation, a set of Synthetic Transactions is developed to evaluate common and important operations performed by the application. The user may be required to supply parameters that specify a particular instance of the application to be used. For example, the parameters may include the name of a server and a username and password to log into an application on the server.
[0024] In at least some cases, it may be advantageous if each set of Synthetic Transactions for an application has characteristics that are particularly appropriate for that application. Although the software agent may provide a common infrastructure for all transactions, the transactions for evaluations of a particular application may be tied to that application. For example, SQL scripts are supported by Synthetic Transactions for database queries. The SQL scripts allow for effectively infinite flexibility in the number and type of database related Synthetic Transactions that may be executed. In another example, a Synthetic Transaction to evaluate an ability to look up an Internet Domain Name by the Domain Name Service may have characteristics that render the transaction significantly less useful for another type of evaluation.
[0025] In at least some cases, the software agent generates a Synthetic Transaction by creating a set of network protocol messages that are appropriate for an application that is being evaluated. For example, as described in more detail below, to measure response time concerning a Web application, the software agent may build and generate HTTP protocol messages, to emulate a Web browser function. In such a case, a specific Uniform Resource Locator ("URL") identifier for a Web page is encoded in one or more of the HTTP protocol messages and the software agent attempts to retrieve all or a portion of the Web page specified by the URL identifier.
[0026] Information generated from a Synthetic Transaction may be temporarily stored by the software agent and may be subsequently sent to a central server for long term storage and for further processing and analysis. The software agent may be controlled by software at the central server, for a purpose such as so that the software agent is specifically directed to generate information needed by the central server for analysis of the network or computer resources. For example, software at the central server may determine a set of Synthetic Transactions to be executed and the schedule for the execution of such transactions, and then may apply the set and the schedule to the software agent, which may then execute autonomously to generate the information needed by the software at the central server. (In certain implementations, the software agent may be able to create, specify, or vary the set or the schedule, perhaps in response to varying conditions or inputs.) Synthetic Transactions may be used to measure throughput, e.g., by keeping track of how much time is required for an amount of data to pass through a particular point in the network.
[0027] A specific example of a Synthetic Transaction is described below. FIG. 2 illustrates a network system 50 in which server software ("RT Collector") 52 running on a computer 54 communicates on a network 56 with software agents 58, 60, 62 ("Agents") running on other computers 64, 66, 68. The RT Collector and Agents execute as described below to conduct transactions in connection with evaluating a networked application 70 running on a Web site 72.
[0028] The RT Collector is initialized (FIGS. 3A-3B) (step 1010), and sets up a timer for the transactions that the RT Collector is to direct the Agents to execute (step 1020). The timer is set to issue a signal at periodic intervals (which may be user defined) when transactions are to be executed.
[0029] When the timer signals (step 1030), the RT Collector determines whether the RT Collector is currently in contact with the Agent that is responsible for performing a particular transaction (step 1040). If the RT Collector is not in contact with the Agent, the RT Collector opens a TCP socket connection to the Agent on a specified port such as port 9000 (step 1050). (If the RT Collector is unable to establish or re-establish a connection to the Agent, the RT Collector tries to establish the connection every time that the timer signals that the Agent is to perform a transaction.) Once established, the connection between the Agent and the RT Collector is used for all communications between the RT Collector and the Agent until the connection is lost, which may occur due to a network failure or when the client or the server closes the connection.
[0030] The RT Collector and the Agent determine each other's version numbers as follows (step 1060), so that the RT Collector and the Agent are aware of each other's capabilities. The RT Collector submits, to the Agent, a version request packet that indicates the version number of the RT Collector, and waits a fixed amount of time for the Agent to return another version packet that indicates the version number of the Agent. If the other version packet is not received before the fixed amount of time passes, the RT Collector assumes that the Agent has a version number, e.g., "184.108.40.206.0.", that corresponds to a basic set of capabilities.
[0031] After the version numbers are determined, the RT Collector determines all of the timers that have signaled (step 1070) and identifies a set of transactions corresponding to the timers (step 1080). The RT Collector determines whether a previous instance of any transaction in the set is currently being performed by the Agent (step 1090). If so, the RT Collector determines that the previous instance was not performed successfully (which may occur for a reason such as a malfunction in the Agent) (step 1100) and generates an exception indicating that the Agent is unavailable (step 1110). Otherwise, the RT Collector submits information for the set of transactions to the Agent (step 1120).
[0032] The information for the set of transactions to be performed is sent to the Agent in the form of packets. Each packet has a common header that includes the following information. A transaction ID is included that is to be returned to the RT Collector in response packets from the Agent so that the RT Collector can identify the transaction with which the response is associated. A transaction type ID is included to identify the type of transaction that the Agent is to perform (e.g., Web site transaction, e-commerce transaction, database query transaction). An integer is included to indicate the number of times that the transaction is to be performed.
[0033] The remainder of each packet is specific to the transaction type. For example, in the case of a Web site transaction, the remainder may include the URL of a Web page at the Web site and an integer indicating the number of lines to read from the Web page.
[0034] Each response packet sent from the Agent to the RT Collector includes a transaction ID, which in a specific implementation is the first piece of data in the response packet. The remainder of the response packet may be specific to the transaction type, and may include a response time value indicating a number of milliseconds of response time. A negative response time value may be used to indicate that an error occurred during performance of the transaction, and may include an error code bit mask that specifies the nature of the error to the RT Collector.
[0035] The Agent executes as follows (FIGS. 4A-4B). The Agent interprets, and executes according to, any customized environment variables that may have been specified, such as variables included on a command line command or in a parameter file maintained on a hosting computer system on which the Agent executes (step 2010).
[0036] The Agent waits for a connection attempt on port 9000 (step 2020). When an RT Collector connects, a "Com Thread" thread of execution is established to handle communication between the Agent and the RT Collector (step 2030) and the Agent waits for another connection attempt on port 9000.
[0037] The Com Thread executes in a loop that includes reading a transaction request packet received from the RT Collector (step 2040), determining the type of transaction that is indicated in the request packet (step 2050), and establishing a Transaction Thread to perform the transaction (step 2060). The Transaction Thread receives, as parameters, a reference to the transaction request packet and a reference to the socket connection, which allows the Transaction Thread to respond directly to the RT Collector independently of other Agent behavior.
[0038] In a specific implementation, the Transaction Thread executes as follows. Transaction-specific information is extracted from the transaction request packet (step 2070), and the transaction is performed to produce results (step 2080). A response packet is produced that includes the results (step 2090), and the response packet is sent to the RT Collector (step 2100).
[0039] A Web site transaction may be performed as follows (FIGS. 5A-5D), in a specific implementation. The URL of a Web site page to be read and a number specifying the number of lines of the page to be read are extracted from the transaction request packet (step 3010). The current time is recorded as a transaction start time (step 3020). An instance of a Java URL class is created based on the URL (step 3030). A network connection is created for the URL (step 3035), and options are set on the network connection, such an option concerning a selectable address or a customization in connection with the computing environment (step 3040). If the user has requested that a password protected HTTP proxy server be used, the encrypted password is specified (step 3050). The URL is designated to be for a Web page that is not to be fetched from any cache (step 3060).
[0040] An input stream is opened on the network connection (step 3070), and an input stream reader is opened on the input stream (step 3080). A watchdog timer is created that causes the evaluation to be halted if an expected response to any read request is not received within a specified amount of time, such as 30 seconds (step 3090).
[0041] The following steps 3110, 3120 are performed until the specified number of lines of the Web page are read, an error occurs, or all of the lines of the Web page have been read (step 3100). A line of the Web page is read (step 3110). To prevent the watchdog timer from expiring, the watchdog timer is reset (step 3120).
[0042] Once the specified number of lines have been read, the watchdog timer is terminated (step 3130). The current time is recorded as a transaction end time (step 3140). All transaction specific resources are cleared (step 3150).
[0043] An elapsed response time is calculated by determining the difference between the transaction end time and the transaction start time (step 3160). A response packet is built that includes the transaction ID that was passed in the request packet and either the elapsed response time or an error code as described above (step 3170). The response packet is sent to the RT Collector (step 3180) and the Transaction Thread is terminated (step 3190).
[0044] If the watchdog timer expires, the resources associated with the transaction are terminated (step 3200) and the RT Collector is sent a response packet indicating that the transaction timed out (step 3210).
[0045] The RT Collector executes as follows upon receiving a response packet from the Agent (FIG. 6). The response packet is appended to a queue of response packets that is configured to hold the response packets of all of the Agents to which the RT Collector submits transaction requests (step 4010). In turn, the response packet is retrieved from the queue of response packets (step 4020). The transaction with which the response is associated is identified (step 4030) and is determined to be concluded (step 4040). If the results of the transaction indicate an error, an exception is posted (step 4050).
[0046] If the hour of the day (or other appropriate interval) has changed, the results of all of the previous hour's instances of the transaction are added to the database (step 4060).
[0047] The results of the transaction are stored together with results for other instances of the transaction in the same time period, such as in the current hour (step 4070). If the transaction is executed more often than a particular frequency, such as every 15 minutes, the corresponding results may be averaged (step 4080).
[0048] The technique (i.e., the procedures described above) may be implemented in hardware or software, or a combination of both. In at least some cases, it is advantageous if the technique is implemented in computer programs executing on one or more programmable computers, such as a personal computer running or able to run Microsoft Windows 95, 98, or NT, Sun Solaris, LINUX, Unix, or MacIntosh OS, that each include a processor, a storage medium readable by the processor (including volatile and non-volatile memory and/or storage elements), at least one input device such as a keyboard, and at least one output device. Program code is applied to data entered using the input device to perform the method described above and to generate output information. The output information is applied to one or more output devices such as a display screen of the computer.
[0049] In at least some cases, it is advantageous if each program is implemented in a high level procedural or object-oriented programming language such as C++ or Java to communicate with a computer system. However, the programs can be implemented in assembly or machine language, if desired. In any case, the language may be a compiled or interpreted language.
[0050] In at least some cases, it is advantageous if each such computer program is stored on a storage medium or device, such as ROM or magnetic diskette, that is readable by a general or special purpose programmable computer for configuring and operating the computer when the storage medium or device is read by the computer to perform the procedures described in this document. The system may also be considered to be implemented as a computer-readable storage medium, configured with a computer program, where the storage medium so configured causes a computer to operate in a specific and predefined manner.
[0051] Other embodiments are within the scope of the following claims. For example, transactions may also be performed for e-commerce applications or database queries or for evaluations of network throughput or mass storage performance. In the case of database queries, a database transaction system can be arranged in which SQL statements are submitted by a software agent to a remote database server on a periodic basis such as every five minutes.
[0052] The software agent may execute tasks such as breaking down the test results into components including the connection time, and automatically executing a transaction multiple times at predetermined intervals in response to a single directive from the RT Collector. Execution threads may be arranged so that multiple RT Collectors may be served by a single software agent, and a single RT Collector may be served by multiple software agents. The software agent may acknowledge receipt of a request packet from the RT Collector by sending an acknowledgement packet to the RT Collector. The software agent may have a class structure, such as the structure illustrated in FIG. 7, within which processing tasks are delegated. The class structure may include a facility for processing the results of a transaction, and perhaps also a facility that generates an alarm, an alert, or an exception when the processing indicates that the results merit drawing attention to a computer resource involved in the transaction.
[0053] Transactions may be grouped by transaction IDs. Java based classes of distributed processes may be used, which may provide significant platform independence.
[0054] The software agent may maintain a data storage cache in which to store the results of multiple transactions, which may reduce the amount or frequency of communication between the software agent and the RT Collector and may allow the software agent to operate autonomously during a period in which the RT Collector cannot communicate with the software agent. If the cache becomes full or nearly full, information in the cache may be discarded on a first in, first out basis.
[0055] The RT Collector may serve as a socket client. Java archive objects, SNMP Management Information Base ("MIB"), Extensible Markup Language ("XML") page description technology, or Push technology may be used, and may allow the software agent to supply results to the RT Collector or to another destination on a Push technology basis.
[0056] The transaction specific information supplied by the RT Collector may be derived from information that the RT Collector extracts from a database of evaluation transaction setup information.
Referenced by
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text:
Liverpool are launching a bid for Portsmouth midfielder Niko Kranjcar.
The People says Reds manager Rafa Benitez is trying to tie Kranjcar into a deal that has already been agreed for Peter Crouch to move back to the South Coast side this summer from Anfield.
Pompey boss Harry Redknapp has fixed an £8m fee for Crouch, but Benitez now wants to offer his bean-pole striker plus cash to lure the 23-year-old Croatian away from Fratton Park.
Kranjcar has been playing for Pompey on the left wing, but Benitez plans to switch him onto the right with Ryan Babel staying on the opposite side.


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+ - Meet The Strange Bedfellows Who Could Stop SOPA->
Submitted by jfruhlinger
jfruhlinger writes: "In a political environment that's become very strongly defined by partisan lines, the SOPA debate has offered an unexpected ray of hope: the two main Congressional opponents of the bill are Ron Wyden, an Oregon Senator deemed a "hardcore liberal" and Darrell Issa, a California Representative who is one of the Obama Administration's fiercest critics. (There are both Ds and Rs in favor of the bill, too.)"
Link to Original Source
Link to Original Source


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|Property type
|Minimum Stay
|2 nights
Set under a canopy of cypress trees and facing verde creek (it truly looks green), this little cabin is truly a place of "peace and tranquility." You'll spend most of your time sitting on the back porch taking in the beauty of the creek. There always seems to be a breeze blowing through which provides a breath of freshness to your being. The trees are majestic. We call the largest one down by the creek, "the tree of life" as it is huge with a perfect canopy and several of the others look as though they are bowing toward it. For the nature lover, you will find a little oasis to enjoy.
The cabin is decorated with a rustic flavor filled with comfortable furnishings and eclectic antiques. The kitchen is fully supplied … everything is in place for you to prepare your own meals. We might suggest a spaghetti dinner or even steak & potato dinner (stove and oven are provided). Shopping and fun are close by. Everything's in place for your extended stay retreat!
Overlooks One Of The Most Beautiful Creeks In The Hill Country.
Peaceful & Quiet Setting.
Great For Personal Retreats And/or Sabbaticals.
Enjoy The Wildlife On The Back Deck.
Convenient To Hospitals, Shopping & Antiquing.
Located Half Way Between Kerrville & Comfort.
Easy Drive To Bandera, Fredericksburg & San Antonio.
Spacious With Comfortable Furnishings.
Separate Living/bedroom (with Bath).
Full Kitchen (stove, Refrigerator, & Cooking Supplies) Ready For Your Own Personal Dinners.
High Quality King Sized Bed.
Coffee Maker & Stereo.
Cable And Internet.
Rv'ers & Winter Texans Welcomed.
Sorry, No Smoking Or Pets, 2 Person Limit.
A peaceful retreat! This small cozy cabin for two has a beautiful view off the front porch and is within an hour of Fredericksburg and San Antonio. If your searching for luxury, this is not the place for you. It is decorated with a charming rustic style and has everything you need. We look forward to staying there again.
We did not know what to expect, as we've never been to Center Point or Comfort, Texas. Center Point is a pretty low-key town, not a lot to do, but this cabin is great! If you are looking to get away from the noise of city life this is the perfect spot. The porch that overlooks the creek is stunning! We spent a lot of the time on the porch reading and napping. We drove to Kerrville for outings like shopping and eating. A straight shot, 15 minute drive. The bed is so comfortable! I'm 20 weeks pregnant so it's nearly impossible to sleep comfortably. I slept sound and through the night in the awesome king-sized bed. We cannot say enough nice things about, Buddy, the owner. We were quite the needy customers and he was very accommodating. The TV was on the fritz, so at 9:00pm at night he brought over a new one! Be sure to bring some games and your own food if you want to stay in. It rained the whole time we were there, but there's a swimming spot about 5 minutes away- Brinks Crossing. Also, there is an HEB & Walmart located in Kerrville if you need to run out and get things. We will stay here again, thanks Buddy!
The location of this cabin made it an ideal place to stay while we vacationed in the Hill Country of Texas. The scenary is great and we really enjoyed the daily visit from the duck family who live on the creek. However, the place needs attention. Nails sticking up on the deck were painful, "dust puppies" inside in all the corners, kitchen pots, pans and utensils dirty, left over food in the freezer. We bought steaks in town to grill and then we opened the propane grill.... disgusting! If the cabin is professionally cleaned between guests, I would suggest changing cleaning services. Advertising the property as a "cabin" does not excuse cleaning and general maintenance. We travel a lot and use VRBO almost extensively. This is not a property we will return to.
My husband and I stayed at this cabin for the weekend. We have nothing but great things to stay about it. Our days and nights were so peaceful. Whether it was listing to the crickets at night or watching and hearing the birds sing in the morning. The house is secluded enough to get away from it all, but close enough for all of your essential needs. I highly recommend this rental when its time for you to get away from it all.
The view from the back porch to the creek is beautiful. The photo doesn't lie.
We used the cabin for 4 nights as a base to travel to San Antonio and then visit locations nearby in the Hill Country.
Most of the accommodations in the cabin are perfectly adequate, but we had a few issues:
1. There was leftover food still in the freezer.
2. Some lights didn't work, bulbs were out. We did some swapping with some lights that had 2 bulbs, but there were no spares to be found.
3. The sink in the bathroom must be the smallest sink in the world. It is about 12x8". It is almost impossible to brush your teeth and not make a mess on the floor, we hit our heads on the wall as we tried to get over the sink. Perhaps the sink could be rotated 90 degrees and still not take up too much room. Better planning would have made a larger bath area and eliminated the need for such a small sink.
4. We needed to clean a few items- the sink dish drainer was rather "gunky" and the small lamp on the kitchen counter seemed as though it hadn't been cleaned in years. Some serious scrubbing took care of both, but they weren't major issues.
5. The placemats on the kitchen table were filthy on the bottom side, but the tops were clean. Again, we just washed them in the sink and dried them, but this shouldn't have been necessary.
6. The flashlight in the cabinet is likely there for emergencies, but it had been left on and the batteries were dead. But, the batteries expired about 3 years ago anyway... no spare batteries for the flashlight.
6. Soap in the bathroom ran out the first day, again, lack of attention to details. We had our own, but...
7. Hand and bath towels were great, but we would also have liked to have had washcloths.
8. Cowboy hats are hung everywhere for decoration, but we would have liked some places to hang our own hats and clothes. There is a small closet, but hooks on the walls would have made it better.
Don't get me wrong, we loved staying here and the view from the back porch is terrific. If there were just a little more attention to details, this would be a wonderful place to stay. It fit our needs perfectly.
Having access to wireless was wonderful!
As the info states, be sure and buy groceries before you get there.
There are some great wineries and places to eat nearby. Using the info in the book in the cabin will help a lot.
This cabin was the perfect place for my girlfriend and I to spend our anniversary. It was quiet secluded and a perfect place for to get some alone time from the rest of the world. The owners were great and gave us everything we needed to enjoy our stay. We would love to stay there again as soon as we can.
Located halfway between Comfort and Kerrville on Verde Creek. This cabin is a comfortable place to retreat.
|Rate Period
|Weekend Night
My Standard Rate
2 night minimum stay
|Cleaning Fee
|$35.00 + Tax
|Tax Rate
Payment is usually accepted in the quoted currency (USD) unless the currency and the amount is specifically agreed in advance with the owner / advertiser.


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Reach tens of thousands of people instantly by advertising with Ekklesia. Find out more
Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams has met Zimbabwe's president Robert Mugabe and asked him to intervene to stop attacks on Anglicans.
In a historic move, the Anglican diocese of Rupert's Land has appointed a Lutheran pastor as dean of St John's Cathedral in Winnipeg, Canada.
The Archbishop of Canterbury is planning to visit Zimbabwe in October as part of a wider trip to Africa and hopes to meet with President Robert Mugabe.
The Anglican Communion Environmental Network has met in Peru in a conference that also included Roman Catholic and ecumenical partners.
the Church of England's suffragan Bishop in Europe has sent a message of solidarity and prayers to colleagues in Norway after the recent terror attacks.
Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams has launched an ecumenical appeal for funds to help sustain Christian communities in Israel-Palestine.
Two senior retired English bishops have been unveiled as official backers of a campaign group working for an inclusive Anglican Communion.
The Church in Wales has appointed its first woman as Dean, following the announcement that the Very Rev Alun Hawkins is to retire in Bangor.
Groups working for an open Church of England have welcomed the first vote by an English diocese on the Anglican Covenant - which rejects the plan.
An Anglican bishop in Uganda has urged the Anglican Communion not to "keep quiet" about abuse and violence faced by gay, lesbian and bisexual people.


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Results for Defense Spending
Congress Needs To Worry Less About The Pentagon
Originally Posted: 03/05/2014 - 3:58pm | Type: Press
January 27, 2014 Sojo in the News Mary Anne Michelet ...
If I Had a Million Dollars ...
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Play along with me. If you had $1 million to spend to help stimulate the economy, what would you do? What would I do? Play along with me. If you had $1 million to spend to help st ...
Pentagon Gains as Billions Cut from Poverty Programs
Originally Posted: 05/03/2012 - 10:30am | Type: Blog
From Politico : American soldiers learned the hard way not to walk down enemy trails in Vietnam — and certainly not twice. But here come the House Republicans, marching into the sunlight by shifting billions from poverty programs to the Pent ...
Why We Need to Cut Wasteful Defense Spending in the United States
Originally Posted: 09/24/2011 - 5:14pm | Type: Blog
It's funny the things that you remember. I can remember one time when I was a teenager watching an episode of the Montel Williams show. It's funny the things that you re ...
Who Will Listen to the Voices of Veterans Calling for Peace?
Originally Posted: 07/14/2011 - 8:35am | Type: Blog
I watched helplessly as the snow fell on stubborn veterans and police officers at the White House gates. I watched helplessly as the snow fell on stubborn veterans and police offi ...
Defense Strategies
Originally Posted: 02/28/2011 - 8:31pm | Type: Magazine Article
Daniel Wolpert Defense Strategies Defense Strategies Jim Wallis' article "A Call to Repentance" (January 2 ...
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Originally Posted: 04/05/2011 - 8:52pm | Type: Magazine Article
Paul Rogat Loeb A little political honesty here, please. A missile defense shield would not have stoppe ...
A Sign of Spiritual Distress
Originally Posted: 04/05/2011 - 10:29pm | Type: Magazine Article
Ben Cohen Our values are revealed in the national budget. A democratic nations true priorities are revealed i ...
Fund Raising for Cruise Missiles?
Originally Posted: 04/05/2011 - 10:29pm | Type: Magazine Article
Molly Marsh In the first such case in nine years, the Internal Revenue Service has taken longtime activist and war tax resister Ed Hedeman ...
With Smoke and Mirrors
Originally Posted: 04/05/2011 - 10:43pm | Type: Magazine Article
Michael T. Klare The myths behind the Pentagon's billions. Congress claim to represent different approache ...


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Victoria Katarina Cruise
- Select your cruise dates
- 2Book
- 3Expert reply
- 4Your cruise is ready!
Select your cruise dates(price per person, twin sharing basis)
- 1.Child Price Reductions (Based on Full Prices): babies (0–2) occupying a bed 90% off; children (2–12) NOT occupying a bed 25% off; extra bed 25% off
- 2.Pricing - Yangtze River cruise operators have different pricing structure based on nationality. Please contact us for the detailed pricesnot specified in our table above.
- 3.Prices may vary according to your travel time and are higher than above price list during Chinese National Holiday (9.29-10.7, 2014) and Chinese Spring Festival (2.18-2.25, 2015). Contact us for the detail price.
- 4.Tipping - All passengers (not include Yangtze Gold Cruises) sailing between Chongqing and Yichang are required to pay $23/RMB150 per person as service charge. The service charge is payable at the time of boarding. Customer request a specific cabin need an additional fee (RMB150-RMB300) based on the floor of ship.
Cruise Map & Itinerary
Cruise Introduction
|First Navigation
|Latest Renew
The Victoria Katarina was constructed with Victoria Cruises personal touches, blending both modern and elegant architectural styles. It is equipped with the latest technologies, including Internet access and an international phone system, enabling passengers to contact family and friends during their Yangtze journey.
The Victoria Katarina takes luxury cruising on the Yangtze to a whole new level, with its generous cabin space, floor-to-ceiling windows, and private balconies that open up to breathtaking views.
All Victoria Katarina cruises feature professional, multilingual, Western cruise directors, and well-trained local staff. The ship is equipped with a conference hall, a gym, a sauna, a beauty salon, a smoking room, children's playroom, a library, a sun deck and swimming pool, Chinese and Western dining rooms, a business center, a bar, elevators, and a gift shop.
Each cabin is equipped with a private balcony and a bathtub, and HBO and BBC. A standard cabin is 19 square meters. Facilities in the cabin include a satellite TV, a mini bar, a safe, a shower and bathtub, a socket adapter, toiletries, and a hairdryer.
Note: 1. Due to the reason of cruise ships maintenance in winter from Jan to Feb, the ship in the itinerary may change to the same rate Victoria ship without notice during this period, but we will try to confirm the cruise ship detail before your departure.
2. The shore excursion to Fengdu Ghost City has changed to the Relocation Village. If you still want to visit Fengdu Ghost City, we can arrange it for you.
Want a stress-free and time-saving way to get to the cruise Port from the airport? China Highlights can provide you with comfortable private transport straight to the Port. Contact us and we can also help you arrange your Yangtze cruise.
- Area: 19.11㎡
- Floor: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
- Area: 30.42㎡
- Floor:3, 4, 5
- Area: 60.03㎡
- Floor: 3
Deckplans Info
- 6F: Pinnacle Deck
- 5F: Observation Deck
- 4F: Bridge Deck
- 3F: Promenade Deck
- 2F: Main Deck
- 1F: First Deck