text:
Pet Friendly
Bring your dog to our pet friendly Maine Lodging
Our dogs are a special part of our family at the Wolf Cove Inn, so we understand that your pet is a special part of your family. We offer the finest in Maine pet friendly lodging and while you are staying with us, your pet is a special guest of the Inn. To make your pet feel at home, we are happy to supply pet blankets, water bowls, trash bags, and treats.
The Maine Pet Friendly Lodging Pet Pledge
Make sure your four legged friend knows the pledge so that she or he may get the most out of our Maine pet friendly lodging:
- I'll make sure mommy and daddy let the Wolf Cove Inn know I'm coming in advance of their bringing me to this fun place. They tell me I can stay in one of three 2nd floor rooms that are friendly to me – Rangeley Lake, Moosehead Lake and the Winter Harbor suite for a fee of $30 a night.
- I'll make sure I register at check in. Mom and dad will need to provide a cell phone number (whatever that is) in case of emergency.
- I am not allowed in interior common areas of the Inn, including the Maine Dining Room, and sitting room areas unless I'm a service dog.
- For the safety and comfort of all guests, I can't play in Tripp Lake in the presence of other guests. But if no one else is around, I can have fun there.
- I must be with my owners at all times, and not left unattended in my room. I have to be taken with mom and dad whenever they leave the property, unless pet-sitting services have been arranged.
- Those mean people in Poland passed a law that makes me wear a leash at all times when outside. Except for lake-frolicking and run-around-on-the-lawn time, I must be on a leash at all times when outside my room.
- I need to make sure mom and dad pick up after me after I take care of my business, if you know what I mean. I'll tell them there is a convenient trashcan located just inside the garage door.
- The nice people at Bee's Pet Boarding will take care of me if mom and dad need alone time. I'll enjoy the short walk to Bee's from the Inn. I'll ask mom and dad to please make arrangements prior to arrival.
- I'm a well-behaved dog, and I know well-behaved dogs don't bark excessively, so I won't do that or they might take away my treats.
- What? I can't get on the furniture or bedding! How rude.
- As a pet, I know my mommy and daddy might have to part with some green and white paper from their wallet if I damage anything in the Wolf Cove Inn or leave a mess behind, so I'll try to avoid doing that.
- I'll tell mom and dad to call the Inn with any questions I have regarding pet-friendly rooms and suites and their availability.


text:
| Posted: March 29, 2011
Recently, a storm hit southern Thailand. The heavy rains, which have continued for four days, resulted in flooding in the southern provinces.
The areas that have been impacted by the flooding include:
One Compassion-assisted center is located in Nakhon Si Thammarat, TH-664 Kittikun Darunphat, and has been affected by the flooding.
The floodwaters at TH-664 rose so much that all documents, files, and computers had to be moved. Currently, the center is without Internet connection.
The staff at this center estimates that almost all of the 90 children from TH-664 have experienced flooding in their homes. The town is providing shelter and food for those whose homes have been flooded.
At this time, the Compassion partnership fcilitator and staff from the center are visiting the families of the Compassion-assisted children to determine the level of need.
Please pray that the rains will stop and for the floodwaters to recede. Also, pray for the continued protection of the children, staff, and their families at center TH-664.
Compassion Thailand will keep us updated as more information is available.
Compassion International will contact you if your sponsored child has been affected
© 2015 Compassion International. All Rights Reserved | (800) 336-7676
Privacy Statement and Conditions of Use | Full Disclosure Statement
Compassion International, Inc. is a registered 501 (c)(3) non profit organization.
All donations in the United States are tax-deductible in full or part.
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A trustworthy organization since 1952
"I would like my baby to study and to dedicate her life to God."
Compassion has been a trusted charity since 1952.
Numerous financial accountability groups and accrediting agencies have recognized Compassion for superior integrity.
"Partnering with God to raise up a leader in El Salvador
has been one of my greatest joys." -- Brianne
Your donation to the Where Most Needed fund will help Compassion better serve children in extreme poverty.
"Thanks for fixing my heart!" - Fatao, a Compassion-assisted child from Burkina Faso

subset: commoncrawl


text:
A network connection device bridges a first network that uses a negotiated packet delivery scheduling scheme and a second network that uses an empirically determined packet delivery scheduling scheme. The network connection device translates a request to communicate over the first network into a request to communicate over the second network, thus bridging the two networks. The negotiated packet delivery scheduling scheme permits endpoints to negotiate scheduled delivery times for packets, while the empirically determined packet delivery scheme tests various time interval locations in a network to determine favorable time locations for transmission. The two protocols are bridged by finding compatible overlaps between time interval locations in the two networks. This can provide error-free delivery with low jitter among packets.
1. A method of transmitting data packets across a first network, comprising the steps of:
(1) receiving at a network intermediary device from an originating node on the first network a request to establish a connection with a destination node, the request comprising an attempt to initiate a negotiated packet delivery scheme for delivery of data packets;
(2) determining that the data packets are destined for a destination node that is accessible via a second network separated from the first network by one or more packet routing devices;
(3) using an empirically scheduled packet delivery mechanism to identify empirically determined time locations for delivering packets to the destination node;
(4) generating at the network intermediary device a negotiated packet delivery schedule for communication between the originating node and the destination node that is compatible with the empirically determined time locations; and
(5) transmitting the negotiated packet delivery schedule to the originating node.
2. The method of
3. The method of
(a) transmitting a plurality of test packets in different time interval locations over the second network;
(b) evaluating one or more of a packet latency rate, a jitter level, or a loss rate associated with the test packets; and
(c) selecting one or more time interval locations having a favorable packet latency rate, jitter level, or loss rate.
4. The method of
5. The method of
6. The method of
7. The method of
8. The method of
9. The method of
10. A computer-readable medium comprising computer instructions which, when executed by a processor, perform the steps of:
(1) receiving at a network intermediary device from an originating node on a first network a request for a connection for delivering data packets to a destination node, the request comprising a request to initiate a negotiated packet delivery scheme;
(2) determining that the data packets are intended for a destination node located across a second network separated from the first network by one or more packet routing devices;
(3) using an empirically scheduled packet delivery mechanism to identify empirically determined time locations for delivering packets to the destination node;
(4) generating at the network intermediary device a negotiated packet delivery schedule for communication between the originating node and the destination node that is compatible with the empirically determined time locations; and
(5) transmitting the negotiated packet delivery schedule to the originating node.
11. The computer-readable medium of
(a) transmitting a plurality of test packets in different time interval locations over the second network;
(b) evaluating one or more of a packet latency rate, a jitter level, or a loss rate associated with each different time interval location; and
(c) selecting one or more time interval locations having a favorable packet latency rate, jitter level, or loss rate.
12. The computer-readable medium of
13. The computer-readable medium of
14. The computer-readable medium of
15. The computer-readable medium of
16. A communication intermediary device comprising a memory and a processor, the device configured to perform the steps of:
(1) receiving at the communication intermediary device, from an originating node in a first network having one or more nodes configured to create connections by negotiating with each other to establish negotiated time interval locations during which packets will be transmitted, a request to establish a connection with a destination node that is accessible via a second network having one or more nodes configured to create connections by empirically determining time interval locations during which packets will be transmitted;
(2) in response to step (1), sending a plurality of packets across the second network and identifying therefrom one or more empirically determined time interval locations on the second network that are desirable for sending data packets;
(3) generating at the communication intermediary device a negotiated packet delivery schedule for communication between the originating node and the destination node that is compatible with the empirically determined time interval locations; and
(4) transmitting the negotiated packet delivery schedule to the originating node.
17. The communication intermediary device of
18. The communication intermediary device of
19. The communication intermediary device of
20. The communication intermediary device of
21. The communication intermediary device of
22. The communication intermediary device of
23. The method of
24. The communication intermediary device of
25. The method of
26. The communication intermediary device of
27. The method of
28. The method of
29. The communication intermediary device of
30. The method of
31. The communication intermediary device of
The present invention relates generally to a device and method for facilitating virtual connections between two different types of networks, each of which uses a different packet delivery scheme.
As is generally known, Ethernet and Internet Protocol (IP) are systems for transmitting packets between different points on a communications network. These switching systems are known as "contention-based" systems. That is, all transmitters contend for network resources. All transmitters may transmit simultaneously. If they do, then network resources may be oversubscribed. When this happens, data may be delayed or lost, resulting in network impairment.
As illustrated in
IP systems suffer from impairments such as packet loss and jitter. This happens because there is no control over how many such packets reach a router at any given instant. If two packets arrive at a router at the same time, destined for the same port, one will have to be delayed. Both cannot be transmitted simultaneously. One of the packets will be saved in the queue until the first packet is completely transmitted.
Various methods have been developed to overcome data loss on Ethernet and IP networks. The primary approach has been to use additional protocols to replace lost data. This is an after-the-fact solution. An example is the well-known Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). TCP is able to detect data loss and it causes retransmission of the data, until a perfect copy of the complete data file is delivered to the recipient device.
One approach for providing reliable first-time delivery is to empirically determine the optimal scheduling of packets in the network by first transmitting test packets during different time periods and, after evaluating latency and/or dropped packet rates for each time period, selecting one or more time periods having favorable transmission characteristics. Packets that are dropped or delayed due to overloaded router queues will indicate unfavorable scheduling conditions, and the transmitting node can select a more favorable schedule for transmitting future packets to minimize the likelihood of packet loss. This approach is described in the previously-filed U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/663,378 (filed on Aug. 17, 2003), which is described in detail below in conjunction with the principles of the present invention (see the heading entitled Empirical Scheduling of Network Packets below). Using this approach, a virtual connection can be established between two nodes in the network, such as a WAN comprising routers.
Another type of packet congestion problem may occur in a local area network (LAN) comprising LAN switches. As shown in
Another approach for providing reliable first-time delivery in a network of the type shown in
It may be necessary to establish virtual connections between different types of networks having incompatible packet scheduling algorithms. For example, as shown in
According to one aspect of the invention, a device and method are provided that allow endpoints on incompatible networks (e.g., an empirically scheduled network and a negotiated scheduled network) to communicate with each other. In one variation, a network connection device (NCD) acts as a proxy device which establishes a virtual connection between the networks. The device may perform handshaking functions to set up and tear down connections between the networks, and may optionally include firewall features and network address translation (NAT) functions. A method according to the invention includes steps of establishing a connection for packet transmission between the incompatible networks and for routing packets according to the differing network protocols.
Before describing various principles of the present invention, the following explains how packets can be transmitted in networks according to either an empirically determined scheduling technique or a negotiated scheduling technique. It should be clear that both techniques can be used on any type of network.
A. Empirical Scheduling of Network Packets
For networks that schedule packets using an empirical approach, a priority scheme can be used to assign priority levels to data packets in a network such that delivery of packets intended for real-time or near real-time delivery (e.g., phone calls, video frames, or TDM data packets converted into IP packets) are assigned the highest priority in the network. A second-highest priority level is assigned to data packets that are used for testing purposes (i.e. the so-called test packets). A third-highest priority level is assigned to remaining data packets in the system, such as TCP data used by web browsers.
Other priority levels above and below these three levels can be accommodated as well. For example, a priority level above the real-time level can be assigned for emergency purposes, or for network-level messages (e.g., messages that instruct routers or other devices to perform different functions).
Note that for two-way communication, two separate connections must be established: one for node A transmitting to node B, and another connection for node B transmitting to node A. Although the inventive principles will be described with respect to a one-way transmission, it should be understood that the same steps would be repeated at the other endpoint where a two-way connection is desired.
In step 802, a delivery schedule is partitioned into interval locations according to a scheme such as that illustrated in
In step 803, the required bandwidth between the two endpoints is determined. For example, for a single voice-over-IP connection, a bandwidth of 64 kilobits per second might be needed. Assuming a packet size of 80 bytes or 640 bits (ignoring packet overhead for the moment), this would mean that 100 packets per second must be transmitted, which works out to (on average) a packet every 10 milliseconds. Returning to the example shown in
In step 804, a plurality of test packets are transmitted during different time intervals at a rate needed to support the desired bandwidth. Each test packet is transmitted using a "discovery" level priority (see
In step 806, the sender evaluates the test packets to determine which time interval or intervals are most favorable for carrying out the connection. For example, if it is determined that packets transmitted using time interval #1 suffered a lower average dropped packet rate than the other intervals, that interval would be preferred. Similarly, the time interval that resulted in the lowest packet latency (round-trip from the sender) could be preferred over other time intervals that had higher latencies. The theory is that packet switches that are beginning to be stressed would have queues that are beginning to fill up, causing increases in latency, jitter, and dropped packets. Accordingly, according to the inventive principles other time intervals could be used to avoid transmitting packets during periods that are likely to increase queue lengths in those switches. In one variation, the time intervals can be "overstressed" to stretch the system a bit. For example, if only 80-byte packets are actually needed, 160-byte packets could be transmitted during the test phase to represent an overloaded condition. The overloaded condition might reveal bottlenecks where the normal 80-byte packets might not.
Rather than the recipient sending back time-stamped packets, the recipient could instead perform statistics on collected test packets and send back a report identifying the latencies and dropped packet rates associated with each time interval.
As explained above, packet header overhead has been ignored but would typically be included in the evaluation process (i.e., 80-byte packets would increase by the size of the packet header). Interval selection for the test packets could be determined randomly (i.e., a random selection of time intervals could be selected for the test packets), or they could be determined based on previously used time intervals. For example, if a transmitting node is already transmitting during time interval 3, it would know in advance that such a time interval might not be a desirable choice for a second connection. As another example, if the transmitting node is already transmitting during interval 3, the test packets could be transmitted in a time interval location that is furthest away from interval location 3, in order to spread out as much as possible the packet distribution.
In step 806, a connection is established between the two endpoints and packets are transmitted using the higher "realtime" priority level and using the interval or intervals that were determined to be more favorable for transmission. Because the higher priority level is used, the connections are not affected by test packets transmitted across the network, which are at a lower priority level. In one variation, the IP precedence field in IP packet headers can be used to establish the different priority levels.
It should be appreciated that rather than transmitting test packets simultaneously during different time interval locations, a single time interval location can be tested, then another one, and so on, until an appropriate interval location is found for transmission. This would increase the time required to establish a connection. Also, as described above, for a two-way connection, both endpoints would carry out the steps to establish the connection.
The scheme will also work with "early discard" settings in router queues since the empirical method would detect that a discard condition is approaching. In other words, it would be able to detect situations where discards could occur, such as might happen if more traffic were to be added at that point in time.
In another variation, packet latencies, jitter, and packet dropped rates can be monitored during a connection between endpoints and, based on detecting a downward trend in either parameter, additional test packets can be transmitted to find a better time location in which to move the connection.
Packet switch 1004, however, is heavily loaded. In that switch, the queue for priority level 1 traffic is full, leading to dropped packets and latencies. Similarly, the test packets transmitted by endpoint 1001 at priority level 2 cause that queue to overflow, causing dropped packets and longer latencies. However, the priority level 3 queue (existing realtime traffic) is not yet full, so those packets are transported through the network unaffected at a given instant in time. In accordance with one variation of the invention, upon detecting that test packets sent during certain time interval locations are dropped and/or suffer from high latencies, endpoint 1001 selects those time locations having either the lowest drop rate and/or the lowest latencies, and uses those locations to schedule the packets (which are then transmitted using level 3 priority).
It is assumed that each endpoint in
B. Negotiated Packet Delivery
In networks that transmit packets using negotiated packet delivery, a transmitting node transmits a query to the intended receiving node. The receiving node responds with a reception map indicating what transmission time interval locations have already been allocated by other transmitting nodes (or, alternatively, what transmission time interval locations are available). The transmitting node then proposes a transmission map to the receiving node, taking into account any time locations previously allocated. The receiving node either accepts the proposed transmission map or proposes an alternate transmission map. Upon agreement between the nodes, the transmitting node begins transmitting according to the proposed transmission map, and the receiving node incorporates the proposed transmission map into its allocation tables. Because the proposed delivery schedule has been agreed to between the two endpoints, uncoordinated contention that might otherwise overflow network switches near the endpoints is avoided. (Because, in some devices, each port has its own queue or queues, traffic on different queues would not conflict). Because the schedule is determined by the two endpoints, no network arbiter is needed to coordinate among network resources. In one embodiment, negotiation occurs only between single LAN switches.
In one embodiment, a transmitting node transmits a bandwidth requirement to an intended recipient node, indicating the bandwidth it requires to support a proposed transmission (e.g., streaming video packets). The intended recipient node, after evaluating time interval locations previously allocated to other transmitters, responds with a proposed delivery schedule indicating time locations during which the transmitter should transmit packets in order to avoid contention with other previously scheduled packets while maintaining the necessary bandwidth for the transmitter. The transmitter thereafter transmits packets according to the proposed delivery schedule.
In yet another variation, a transmitting node transmits a proposed delivery schedule to an intended recipient, indicating time interval locations corresponding to times during which it proposes to transmit packets. The intended recipient either agrees to the proposed delivery schedule, or proposes an alternate delivery schedule that takes into account the transmitter's bandwidth requirements. Upon agreement between the nodes, transmission occurs according to the agreed-upon delivery schedule. The schedule can be released at the end of the transmission.
Returning briefly to
According to one variation, the scheduled delivery scheme applies to prioritized packets in the network; other non-prioritized packets are not included in this scheme. Therefore, in a system that supports only priority traffic and non-priority traffic, the scheduled delivery scheme would be applied to all priority traffic, and ad-hoc network traffic would continue to be delivered on a nonpriority basis. In other words, all priority traffic would be delivered before any nonpriority traffic is delivered.
Returning to
In step 1102, the intended receiving node responds with a reception map such as that shown in
In step 1103, the transmitter sends a proposed transmission map to the intended receiving node. The proposed transmission map preferably takes into account the allocated time locations received from the intended receiving node, so that previously allocated time locations are avoided. The transmitter allocates enough time locations to support the required bandwidth of the transmission while avoiding previously allocated time interval locations.
Suppose that a virtual connection is to be established between two nodes on the network to support a telephone voice connection. A voice-over-IP connection may require 64 kilobits per second transfer rate using 80-byte packet payloads every 10 milliseconds (not including packet headers). A video stream would typically impose higher bandwidth requirements on the network. On an Ethernet LAN, each packet would comprise up to 1,500 bytes.
In step 1104, the intended recipient reviews the proposed transmission map and agrees to it, or proposes an alternate transmission map. For example, if the intended recipient had allocated some of the proposed time locations to another transmitter during the time that the transmitter was negotiating for bandwidth, the newly proposed delivery schedule might present a conflict. In that situation, the intended recipient might propose an alternate map that maintained the bandwidth requirements of the transmitter.
In step 1105, the transmitter repeatedly transmits to the intended recipient according to the agreed delivery schedule. To support a voice-over-IP connection, for example, the transmitter could transmit an 80-byte packet every 10 milliseconds. For a video connection, the transmitter could transmit at a more frequent rate. Finally, in step 1106 the receiver's map is deallocated when the transmitter no longer continues to transmit. Deallocation could instead be performed implicitly by noticing that traffic is no longer being transmitted.
Note that for two-way communication, two separate connections must be established: one for node A transmitting to node B, and another connection for node B transmitting to node A. Although the inventive principles will be described with respect to a one-way transmission, it should be understood that the same steps would be repeated at the other endpoint where a two-way connection is desired.
In step 1203, the transmitter agrees to the proposed transmission map, causing the intended receiver to "lock in" the agreed time locations (this step could be omitted), and in step 1204 the transmitter transmits packets according to the agreed-upon schedule. Finally, in step 1205 the transmission map is deallocated upon termination of the connection.
In step 1303, the transmitter transmits packets according to the agreed-upon delivery schedule, and in step 1304 the transmission map is deallocated upon termination of the transmission.
In another variation, a transmitter may request bandwidth (e.g., one 1000-byte packet every 10 milliseconds) and the receiver responds with a placement message (e.g., start it at the 75th time location). The receiver could also respond with multiple alternatives (e.g., start it at the 75th, the 111th, or the 376th time location). The transmitter would respond with the time interval location that it intended to use (e.g., the 111th), and begin transmission. This variation is intended to be within the scope of sending "transmission maps" and "reception maps" as those terms are used herein.
In order for each transmitter and receiver to agree on a delivery schedule, it is desirable to develop and maintain some time synchronization between the nodes.
As shown in
The clock pulses may comprise a pulse according to an agreed-upon interval (e.g., one second) that is used by each node to generate time locations that are synchronized to the beginning of the pulses. Alternatively, the clock source may generate a high-frequency signal that is then divided down into time locations by each node. Other approaches are of course possible. As yet another alternative, each node may contain its own clock source that is synchronized (via GPS or other means) to a common reference signal, such as a radio signal transmitted by the U.S. Government. Wire 1505 may comprise a coaxial cable or other means of connecting the clock source to the nodes. In one variation, the connection is of a short enough distance (hundreds of feet) so that transmission effects and delays are avoided. Any of these means for synchronizing may be used independently of the others.
Another way or means of synchronizing time locations and delivery schedules among the nodes is to have one node periodically transmit (e.g., via multicast) a synchronization packet on the node on the network. Each node would receive the packet and use it to synchronize an internal clock for reference purposes. As an alternative to the multicast approach, one network node can be configured to individually send synchronization packets to each participating network node, taking into account the stagger delay involved in such transmission. For example, a synchronization node would transmit a synchronization packet to a first node on the network, then send the same packet to a second node on the network, which would be received later by the second node. The difference in time could be quantified and used to correct back to a common reference point. Other approaches are of course possible.
C. Network Connection Device
Having reviewed the principles of a network that uses an empirically scheduled packet delivery scheme and a network that uses a negotiated packet delivery scheme, reference will again be made to
Although each NCD is shown as a separate device, the functions of each NCD as described below can be implemented using software and/or hardware (e.g., PLDs, PALs, etc.) added to existing network devices, such as routers or other elements. The NCD functions can also be implemented in access aggregation devices, such as a DSLAM (DSL Access Multiplexer), which is a device that aggregates multiple DSL lines into a larger network structure. Accordingly, the term "network connection device" or NCD should be understood to connote a device that performs NCD-like functions, regardless of the specific hardware, software, or network element in which those functions are implemented.
When endpoint 1701 needs to communicate with endpoint 1702, it attempts to initiate a negotiated packet delivery schedule with endpoint 1702. The delivery protocol in LAN 1704 can determine, based on the IP address of requested endpoint 1702, that endpoint 1702 does not reside within LAN 1704, and thus determines that it must be accessed by routing the request through NCD 1708. Therefore, the protocol routes the request to NCD 1708, which determines that endpoint 1702 must be accessed through NCD 1707, which is over an empirically scheduled WAN 1703. Consequently, NCD 1708 initiates an empirically determined protocol (see section A above) with NCD 1707 over WAN 1703. In other words, it sends test packets to NCD 1707 and empirically determines which time locations would be most advantageous to avoid overloading routers in the path leading to NCD 1707. NCD 1708 then returns these empirically determined time locations to endpoint 1701 as an alternate transmission map according to the negotiated packet delivery protocol (see section B above). Similarly, NCD 1707 establishes a negotiated time location delivery schedule with endpoint 1702 to complete the path over LAN 1709.
In one embodiment, the endpoints must conform to the empirically determined time interval locations, since it may be difficult to force the WAN to accept time intervals that are not empirically desirable. However, it may not be necessary to follow this restriction in all systems.
In addition to acting as a proxy between the networks, each NCD may perform other optional functions, such as (1) protecting each network from unauthorized higher priority traffic that has been improperly introduced into the network; (2) encryption/decryption of packets; (3) network address translation (NAT); (4) proxy IP addressing; (5) firewall protection; and (6) controlling total and individual flows by bandwidth, type, etc. in order to prevent overloading of network choke points. In some embodiments, a router can be placed on either side of the NCD 1708, or the NCD functions can instead be incorporated into a router. Some or all of these functions, described in more detail below, can be implemented in software executing on a general-purpose computer.
In step 1801, a negotiated delivery endpoint (e.g., endpoint 1701 in LAN 1704) requests a virtual connection (e.g., a voice-over-IP circuit) to an endpoint which is in a network that can only be reached via an empirically scheduled network (e.g., endpoint 1702 via WAN 1703). Based on the IP address of the requested endpoint, the network protocol in LAN 1704 is able to determine that the endpoint is not located in LAN 1704, but instead must be accessed through NCD 1708. Consequently, it sends the request to NCD 1708 (e.g., through a router not shown in
In step 1802, NCD 1708 receives the request, which as described in section B above may include a proposed transmission map, or a bandwidth request for an associated transmission map to be provided by the intended recipient. Thereafter, NCD 1708 initiates a connection with NCD 1707 using the empirically scheduled delivery scheme described above in section A. In other words, NCD 1708 sends test packets in various time locations to NCD 1707 and empirically determines which time locations would be advantageous for transmission. Furthermore, NCD 1707 initiates a negotiated delivery schedule with endpoint 1702 that is consistent with the empirically determined time locations between NCD 1707 and 1708.
In step 1803, NCD 1708 obtains the empirical data and converts it into a negotiated transmission map (see, e.g.,
In step 1804, the negotiated endpoint thereafter transmits to endpoint 1702 according to the transmission map received from NCD 1708.
In step 1805, the connection is torn down by NCD 1708 when one or the other endpoint requests termination of the circuit.
For a two-way connection, an endpoint in an empirically scheduled network may need to set up a connection to an endpoint in a negotiated delivery network. Therefore, the steps shown in
It should also be understood that the phase of all frames may be independent from one another; they need only be derived from or aligned with a common clock. Different endpoints need not have frames synchronized in phase with each other. In other words, each time interval need not be uniquely identified among different endpoints, as long as the time intervals remain in relative synchronicity. This principle is shown with reference to
As shown in
In short, when NCD B determines that test packet X was received with minimal delay, it informs NCD A that the test packet identified as "packet X" was empirically favorable for future transmissions. Thus, NCD A identifies the relevant time interval as interval 1, whereas NCD B identifies the relevant time interval as interval 4. Similarly, NCD A identifies the relevant time interval for packet Y as interval 3, whereas NCD B identifies the relevant time interval for packet Y as interval 6. As long as the timeline at the top of
Although not explicitly shown above, the networks may include one or more soft phone switches (essentially a small computer coupled to the network) that maintains a database of phone numbers and maps them to IP addresses. To make a phone call to an intended recipient, the phone switch is contacted to determine the IP address corresponding to the recipient's telephone number. The inventive system and method may also be employed with video terminals to transmit video-grade data across networks; computer terminals that transmit computer data; or any other type of data.
Any of the method steps described herein can be implemented in computer software and stored on computer-readable medium for execution in a general-purpose or special-purpose hardware or processor (PLDs, PGAs, routers, switches, etc.) or computer, and such computer-readable media is included within the scope of the intended invention. The term "processor" as used herein should be understood to include any of these various types of devices. Numbering associated with method or process steps in the claims is for convenience only and should not be read to require a particular ordering or sequence
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text: Pitti Uomo is the most important international event for menswear and men accessories. To highlight rising stars in fashion, the organization created a guest nation project. In co-operation with ITC Ethical Fashion Initiative the project focused on the African continent and was titled "Constellation Africa". So on the 18th of June, the following young and… [ Read more ]


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Demand response, the connected home and trust
In Northern and Central California, some PG&E customers have smartAC switchs on their HVAC units, which allows the utility to shut the compressors off for periods of 15 minutes during peak demand. Well they hit a snafu recently when the smartAC switches malfunctioned and turned off air conditioners permanently during a mid summer heat wave. Needless to say there were some pretty angry customers who immediately requested that PG&E remove the switch.
This is a small story that will blow over but it's a cautionary tale. If the Internet of Things is going to prevail, it requires trust. The customer is trusting an algorithm or a service provider somewhere in the cloud to make decisions that impact the customer's experience. And if that doesn't go well, there's a major feeling of disempowerment and inconvenience. We're seeing the beginnings of the connected home and companies like Nest and EcoFactor are actively working with utilities to help them with their demand response programs by offering up connected thermostats that utilities could someday control. For those endeavors to work, the system will need to earn the trust of customers and not make the kind of mistakes that PG&E just made.


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Today in history was not kind to some major Pop Culture icons. Today we lost the Master of Muppets, Jim Henson (in 1990), Andy Kaufman (1984) and lead "Untouchable" Eliot Ness (1957). On the musical tip, we lost masterful, hugely influential Hot Jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt (1953), Rat Pack singer/performer/actor Sammy Davis, Jr. (1990) and, just two years ago, Metal superstar Ronnie James Dio.
Fun fact: Tony Iommi of Black Sabbath, which featured Dio on the mic after Ozzy left, was hugely inspired by Django; both had finger injuries that forced them to adapt — and redefine — their playing styles. Things didn't turn out too badly for either.
Rest in peace, all!
On this date in 1993, Elvis Presley died. For real this time. This according to the tabloid Weekly World News, which has given the world such groundbreaking stories as the trials and tribulations of Bat Boy (half-boy, half-bat, of course), the capture of various mer-people (mermen and mermaids) and the secret romantic relationship between Saddam Hussein (former gay porn star … ALLEGEDLY) and Osama bin Laden.
Presley died from diabetes, according to WWN's exclusive report.
Alas, the King didn't stay dead long in the pages of the tabloid. In 2005, everything in the universe was back in its right place as the Weekly World News published the cover feature "Elvis IS Alive." Not only was he still alive, but he was going to run for President. I don't recall that actually happening, but they wouldn't print it if it wasn't true, right? Either the lame-stream media just ignored Elvis' campaign or the King was just gearing up for a 2012 run. I hear the Republicans need a viable candidate.
What's Elvis been up to lately? Last summer, WWN reported he was hanging out on Barack Obama's tour bus. As for Obama, the President's foes are apparently way off base with the whole "secret Muslim" thing. Among other things, WWN has reported that Obama is a — duh! — alien from outer space. Oh, and he won the "Who is a bigger enemy of dogs?" war handily by kidnapping "Republican campaign dog, Huckabee." Holding him hostage? Nope. According to WWN, the President "had a Huckabee burger." (Actually, WWN seems almost reasonable compared to the "birther" movement. Now THAT'S scary.)
Until the next time Elvis dies, just remember the words of Mojo Nixon, poet and prophet:
Born This Day: Musical movers and shakers sharing a May 14 birthday include '50s/'60s Pop star ("Mack the Knife," "Beyond the Sea") Bobby Darin (1936); one of Rock's greatest bassists, Cream's Jack Bruce (1943); original drummer for legendary Canadian Rock trio Rush, John Rutsey (1952); frontman for British rockers The Cult, Ian Astbury (1962); guitarist for glammy Hair Metal heroes Poison, CC DeVille (1962); bassist for Alice in Chains, Mike Inez (1966); the still-alive half of Milli Vanilli, Fabrice Morvan (1966); one of the less-celebrated New Kids on the Block members, Danny Wood (1969); bassist for Modern Rock band AFI, Hunter Burgan (1976); half of the killer Hip Hop duo Clipse, Terrence Thornton, known professionally as Pusha T (1977); Disney actress/Pop princess Miranda Cosgrove (1993); and Soul/R&B singer/songwriter/musician/producer Raphael Saadiq (1966).
Saadiq's career began in the early '80s when he got a job as bassist for Sheila E and toured the world with Prince. He returned to his native Oakland after the tour and formed the R&B/Pop trio Tony! Toni! Tone! with his brother and cousin. The band scored several hits, notably the upbeat "Feels Good," their only Top 10 hit on the Billboard singles charts. In 1997, Saadiq formed Lucy Pearl, a supergroup of sorts, featuring members of A Tribe Called Quest and En Vogue.
Saadiq has worked behind the scenes with several popular artists. He collaborated with D'Angelo for "Untitled (How Does It Feel," which won D'Angelo a Grammy, and also worked with Whitney Houston, Macy Gray, Jill Scott, John Legend, Joss Stone and many other star performers. In 2002, he put out his first solo effort, Instant Vintage, a brilliant throwback/old-school R&B album that scored Saadiq five Grammy nominations. He has since released a string of strong solo works, including 2011's great Stone Rollin' and 2008's even better The Way I See It.
Recently, Saadiq was one of a small handful of musicians named one of Time magazine's "100 Most Influential People In the World," joining Rihanna, Adele and others. Elton John wrote the blurb about Saadiq for Time, writing "Immaculately dressed (a Saadiq trademark) and moving like the soul stars of old, (Saadiq) confirmed that great black music is alive and well and not just a string of hip-hop monotony."
Happy 46th birthday to Mr. Saadiq. Here's a clip for the title track from his most recent solo album.
On this date last year, somebody paid $10,000 for a T-shirt. An Australian man purchased a 1979 Led Zeppelin concert T-shirt on eBay for that amount, making it the most expensive concert T-shirt ever sold. (Though I bet The Eagles got close on their various, outrageously-priced reunion tours in recent years.) The shirt appears to be a "back stage pass" from the concert.
After the sale, Denver weekly Westword posted a story on its blog counting down the next 10 most costly shirts purchased. From their research, they deemed a James Brown shirt with a bad caricature of the Godfather of Soul and the words "I'm Black and I'm Proud," an early Nirvana shirt featuring a parody of John Lennon's Two Virgin's album cover and a "Metal Up Your Ass" Metallica shirt as the next most rare, each going for $1,000.
Currently, the most costly concert shirts available on eBay are a 1976 Stones shirt (yours for $7,900), a 1973 Who concert "staff" shirt ($4,691.82), a different Zep shirt (from, I believe, the same concert as the one that cost 10 grand; $3,949.21) and a Johnny Thunders shirt from 1984 ($3,909.72).
Here are a couple of Ohio tunes written in honor of those crucial concert souvenirs. Early Hamilton, Ohio, Punk band ChemDyne and Columbus' Watershed both had songs called "Black Concert T-Shirt."
Born This Day: Musical movers and shakers sharing a May 11 birthday include legendary songwriter ("God Bless America," "White Christmas") Irving Berlin (1888); one of the greatest white Soul vocalists ever with The Animals, Eric Burdon (1941); drummer and founding member of The Allman Brothers Band, Butch Trucks (1947); producer and founding member of avant-garde Pop group the Art of Noise, Gary Langan (1956); original MTV VJ Martha Quinn (1959); and frontman for one of Cincinnati's all-time greatest Rock bands, The Afghan Whigs, Greg Dulli (1965).
Dulli — born and raised in Hamilton, Ohio — is currently gearing up to begin performing once again with his Whigsmates John Curley (still living, working and playing music in Cincinnati) and Rick McCollum (now living in Minneapolis). Tickets for the group's first show in 13 years — May 23 at the Bowery Ballroom in New York City — go on sale today at noon. According to the band's website, the fan pre-sale sold out and there are "a very limited number of tickets" left. The band will warm up for the show on May 22 with a performance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon.
Will the Whigs merely do a reunion victory lap then go their separate ways again? It's unclear so far, but in interviews with Dulli, he seems very inspired playing with his old pals again. In terms of a possible new Whigs album, he told the website www.thisisfakediy.co.uk, "I am going to keep the book open and keep the possibility, all possibilities available. We're going to see what happens, and react to what happens, but right now it's wide open. Yes, maybe, maybe not, we'll see. I hate to be ambiguous, but in this particular case, I think it's best." (He also said re-issues of the band's back catalog are "definitely going to happen.")
Raise a glass and wish Mr. Dulli a happy 47th birthday. Here are a few clips of Dulli's extracurricular activities during his days with the Whigs to help you celebrate:
• In 1994, Dulli sang John Lennon's parts on the soundtrack to Backbeat, a film about early Beatles bassist Stuart Sutcliffe. On the soundtrack he was part of a band that included Thurston Moore (Sonic Youth), Mike Mills (R.E.M.), Dave Pirner (Soul Asylum) and Foo Fighter/ex-Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl. Here they are doing a song originally made a hit by Cincinnati-born music icons The Isley Brothers.
• Dulli teamed with Grohl again in 1995, playing guitar on his debut album, Foo Fighters. Grohl played all of the instruments on the album except for a guitar part on "X-Static," which Dulli provided.
In 1999, Dulli recorded a cover of "Dixie Peach Promenade (Yin for Yang)," a tribute to late Moby Grape member Skip Spence and his cult classic album, Oar.
On this date in 1963, right after signing their deal with Decca Records, The Rolling Stones entered London's Olympic Sound Studios to track its first single, a cover of Chuck Berry's "Come On." The single came out in the U.K. on June 7 and went to No. 21 on the U.K. charts, allowing them to begin playing shows outside of London. The band's singles steadily performed better in the U.K. — the second one, "I Wanna Be Your Man" (a Beatles cover) made it to No. 12 and their cover of Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away" went to No. 3 (it was their first U.S. chart single, as well, reaching No. 48). In early 1964, the band had its first No. 1 single (in the U.K.) with another cover, Bobby and Shirley Womack's "It's All Over Now."
The first original song by the Stones to make it to No. 1 didn't come until 1965's "The Last Time." Later in '65 the Stones released the following tune, which signaled the coming of a legendary, enduring band — it reached No. 1 in countries across the globe. Over 50 years after forming, the Stones are still rocking. They ended up doing pretty OK for themselves.
A 50th anniversary tour is currently said to be in the works; reports are that the band has been rehearsing in New York and New Jersey for … something (details have not yet been publicly released). Keith Richards told Rolling Stone their aiming to hit the road next year.
Mick Jagger is hosting Saturday Night Live on May 19 for the show's season finale. He'll also be the musical guest. But with whom will he perform? Maybe those New York-area rehearsals will result in a full Stones performance on SNL? All four members of the Stones were present (along with Don Was on bass). They reportedly rehearsed just a few songs, including "Miss You" and "Jumping Jack Flash."
But Jagger's most recent release was with the "supergroup" SuperHeavy, featuring Joss Stone, Dave Stewart, A. R. Rahman and Damian Marley. Perhaps that's who will play?
My money's on either a solo performance backed by SNL's band or the full Stones. Though if The Rolling Stones are performing on Saturday Night Live, you'd think NBC would be very, very eager to promote that. We'll see.
One thing of which I'm fairly certain — wanna bet Jimmy Fallon makes another cameo on SNL May 19?
Click on for Born This Day featuring Donovan, Bono, Craig Mack and Sid Vicious.
On this date in 1980, the British awards program honoring songwriters, The Ivor Novello Awards, bestowed the awards for best Pop song and best lyrics to The Boomtown Rats, the Irish Punk band featuring Live Aid founder Bob Geldof. The song that won the honors was the band's biggest, "I Don't Like Mondays," a tune written by Geldof after reading about the news of a 16-year-old high school student who started a shooting spree on a playground in San Diego in early 1979.
The young girl killed two adults and injured eight kids and one cop. With a rifle given to her by her father as a gift, she began shooting from her house across the street from the elementary school playground. When she was asked by a reporter why she did it, she said, "I don't like Mondays. This livens up the day." She also told police during a six-hour standoff that "there was no reason for it, and it was a lot of fun." She was sentenced to 25 years to life and has been denied parole multiple times. During parole hearings, the woman has made various excuses, from claiming that it was the cops who fired the shots that killed and hurt people to insisting she was sexually abused by her father to proclaiming she was on alcohol and hallucinogenic drugs at the time.
She is not eligible for parole again until 2019.
The Boomtown Rats released "I Don't Like Mondays" that summer. The song gave the Rats their second No. 1 in the U.K. (it only made it to No. 79 in the States) and became the tune for which they're best known. The tune wasn't a celebration of the girl, nor was it a tribute to the victims. Rather, it was a clever, emotional look at mental illness and how it can effect anyone, even those you'd least suspect.
Russell Brand referred to the song when he hosted the NME Awards in 2006. When the often curmudgeonly Geldof won the "Best DVD" award for the Live 8 disc (ooh, what an honor!), he began his speech by saying, "Russell Brand … what a cunt." Brand shot back and won the diss battle instantly, saying "It's no wonder Bob Geldof knows so much about famine — he's been dining out on 'I Don't Like Mondays' for 30 years."
Here's a clip of Geldof and Rats pianist Johnny Fingers performing my favorite version of the song, at the 1982 Secret Policeman's Ball benefit concerts for Amnesty International.
Click below for Born This Day featuring Andrew W.K., Billy Joel, Richie Furay and Ghostface Killah.
On this date in 1990, singer/songwriter Tom Waits won a lawsuit against Frito-Lay. Waits sued the company claiming they approached him about using one of his songs in a commercial; when he declined, they found a soundalike to sing a tune very similar to Waits' "Step Right Up." He was awarded almost $2.5 million and was one of the first artists to successfully sue a company for using a soundalike.
It was not the last time Waits would battle the advertising world. In 1993, he sued Levi's after they used a cover of his song "Heartattack and Vine" by Screamin' Jay Hawkins. Levi's pulled the commercial and ran a full page apology in Billboard. In 2006, he won a suit against Volkswagen-Audi, which, like Frito-Lay, originally approached Waits about using his version of "Innocent When You Dream" for a Spanish commercial. He — as always — declined and the company tried to run a cover version instead. Waits received an undisclosed settlement. In 2007, Waits also settled a suit with Adam Opel AG, a German car company, on similar "soundalike" charges.
Hey advertising world — yes, he has a beautiful singing voice (?!) but maybe it's time to look for artists who won't sue your pants off to use in your adverts? Just a thought …
Waits is steadfast in his refusal to have his music co-opted to sell product (he famously said, "If Michael Jackson wants to work for Pepsi, why doesn't he just get himself a suit and an office in their headquarters and be done with it"), but did do voice-over work for a dog food company once in the early '80s.
Here's Waits on the '70s talk show parody Fernwood Tonight singing "The Piano Has Been Drinking." Hey, that'd make a great commercial for Steinway Pale Ale. (If it existed …)
Born This Day: Musical movers and shakers sharing a May 8 birthday include the most legendary of legendary Blues musicians, Robert Johnson (1911); TV-turned-Pop-turned-Folk-Rock star Ricky Nelson (1940); the co-captain of cheesy '70s Pop act Captain & Tennille ("Love Will Keep Us Together"), Toni Tennille (1940); former Glam Rock star ("Rock and Roll, Parts One and Two") Gary Glitter (1944); Jazz pianist Keith Jarrett (1945); singer with Funk kings Earth, Wind & Fire, Philip Bailey (1951); Talking Heads/Tom Tom Club drummer Chris Frantz (1951); Van Halen drummer Alex Van Halen (1953); Blur drummer Dave Rowntree (1964); Canadian singer/songwriter Martha Wainwright (1976); Blues Rock guitar phenom Joe Bonamassa (1977); and the man responsible for remarkable music videos for The White Stripes, Radiohead and The Chemical Brothers, French filmmaker Michel Gondry (1963).
Gondry won an Academy Award for co-writing the screenplay for Jim Carrey's second best movie (behind Mr. Popper's Penguins), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (which he also directed). Gondry has also directed flicks like The Green Hornet, Dave Chappelle's Block Party and Be Kind Rewind, but Gondry is the rare filmmaker whose shorter works seem to be equally (if not more) acclaimed.
Gondry has done extensive work in TV commercials — his "Drugstore" clip for Levi's is the most awarded commercial in history according to the Guinness World Records folks (though it never aired in the U.S. because the plot revolved around buying condoms. God forbid!).
But it's the field of music video that first brought Gondry to the film world's attention. In 2003, along with directors like Spike Jonze and Mark Romanek, he was part of a DVD series consisting of different volumes featuring one specific director's music video work. Here's a partial look at the "tracklisting," to get a sense of his rich music-videography: "The Hardest Button to Button," "Dead Leaves & the Dirty Ground" and "Fell in Love with a Girl" by The White Stripes; "Let Forever Be" and "Star Guitar" by The Chemical Brothers; "Army of Me," "Hyperballad," "Human Behavior" and "Bachelorette" by Bjork, "Deadweight" by Beck, "Around the World" by Daft Punk and "Everlong" by Foo Fighters.
Gondry's work features heavily in the current Contemporary Arts Center exhibit, Spectacle: The Music Video, a retrospective of the history and artistry of musical film clips. It's safe to say that, in the world of music video, he's like Scorsese (crossed with David Lynch and Salvador Dali).
Click below for a trio of lesser known clips from the director.
On this date in 1967, Floridian Psychedelic Folk band Pearls Before Swine (a precursor to contemporary so-called "Freak Folk") began the three-day sessions for its debut album, One Nation Underground. The album would become a moderate success, selling nearly a quarter of a million copies.
One of the album's tracks, "(Oh Dear) Miss Morse," was the source of some controversy. The subversive chorus of the weird little song (essentially a banjo riff with some organ blips) consists of vocalist/songwriter Tom Rapp (and that organ) "singing" in Morse code the letters "F," "U," "C" and "K" (Dit Dit Dah Dit/Dit Dit Dah/Dah Dit Dah Dit/Dah Dit Dah).
And they would have gotten away with it, too, if it weren't for some meddling kids! Famous New York DJ Murray the K was busted after playing the song on the air when a few smarty-pants Boy Scouts reportedly recognized the code and called in to complain about the veiled obscenity (or maybe brag that they figured it out).
It's not the only song to feature secret Morse code messaging. Mike Oldfield's album Amarok (featuring, essentially, one hour-long track) came towards the end of his contract with Virgin Records in 1990. Oldfield sent a little note to his boss on the album; towards the end, there's a Morse code message that spells out "Fuck Off RB," referring to Virgin label chief Richard Branson.
The Rush song "YYZ" from the 1981 album Moving Pictures also features Morse coding, in a pretty ingenious manner. Drummer Neil Pert's rhythm on the song is based on Morse for "YYZ." The letters weren't especially controversial, though — they were simply the code for Toronto's airport (Rush is from the area).
Other instances of Morse code in popular music: Roger Waters' album Radio KAOS features several Morse messages; Kraftwerk used it throughout their 1975 track "Radioactivity" (it simply spells out the title); and The Clash's "London Calling" has choppy guitar feedback at the end of the song that spells out "S.O.S."
Here's the Pearls Before Swing tune. NSFW (if you work for a former Boy Scout or telegraph expert).
Born This Day: Musical movers and shakers sharing a May 7 birthday include late drummer for influential Rock bands New York Dolls and Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers, Jerry Nolan (1946); Disco diva ("Don't Leave Me This Way"), singer/songwriter and actress Thelma Houston (1946); masterful German Boogie Woogie pianist Axel Zwingenberger (1955); Motorhead guitarist Phil Campbell (1961); Swedish one-hit-wonder, son of Jazz legend Don Cherry and half-brother to Neneh Cherry, Eagle-Eye Cherry (1971); drummer for British Pop/Rock stars Arctic Monkeys, Matt Helders (1986); and British singer Martina Topley-Bird (1975).
Topley-Bird is probably best known as a crucial part of Trip Hop pioneer Tricky's early (and biggest) success as vocalist on his classic album, 1995's Maxinquaye. The album made Tricky a Pop star, something that he admittedly was not prepared for and which drove him a little nuts. He recently told U.K.'s The Guardian that, going into the album's release, "I thought I'd be an underground artist. I had no idea it was going to do that and I was not ready for it." He says he spent much of the rest of his career trying to become more of a cult artist than a superstar. And he succeeded.
Topley-Bird parted ways with Tricky in 1998 and has made a trio of solo album (and worked with Gorillaz and Massive Attack). But late last month, she rejoined Tricky in England to perform Maxinquaye in its entirety. Well, that was the plan, anyway. Tricky reportedly disappeared during parts of the performances, which didn't exactly live up the "play the full album" billing. In a review of the performance in Manchester, ClashMusic.com wrote that the Tricky concert ultimately became "the Martina Topley-Bird show, with the singer providing the only reliable musical seam throughout, in contrast to an erratic and seemingly disengaged Tricky."
Here's Martina Topley-Bird's "Anything" from her acclaimed debut solo album, Quixotic.
By now, thanks to Facebook mostly, most of you have heard that one third of the legendary Hip Hop trio Beastie Boys — Adam "MCA" Yauch — died this morning in New York City after a three-year battle with cancer. He was 47 years old and leaves behind a legacy to be proud of, with his crucial contributions to music, video and activism.
In an eerie coincidence, Northside club Mayday tonight has a scheduled dance party hosted by DJ Mowgli called "Run DMC vs. Beastie Boys," featuring music by both historic crews. The music starts at 10 p.m. and there's no cover. Something tells me there will be a little extra Beasties love from the DJ in light of today's events.
Below is the press release about Yauch's death from the Beastie Boys' longtime publicists at Nasty Little Man.
On this date in 1972, Les Harvey — guitarist for the Scottish band (which many believed would become huge) Stone the Crows — died on stage when he was electrocuted by a microphone. He reportedly died when he touched the (probably) ungrounded mic and his guitar at the same time during soundcheck (with what many believe were wet hands).
Harvey is a member of the sad club of rockers who died at the age of 27. He's also a member of a smaller club of known musicians who died from electrocution.
Keith Relf, singer for The Yardbirds, died in 1976 at the age of 33 after being electrocuted by an (again) ungrounded electric guitar.
John Rostill was the bassist for the British Pop group that gave Cliff Richard to the world, The Shadows (he was also a member of Zoot Money Quartet alongside future Police guitarist Andy Summers). Rostill was found dead in 1973, electrocuted by a guitar that was (again!) believed to be improperly grounded.
French Pop singer/songwriter Claude Francois — who cowrote the classic Sinatra tune "My Way" and sold over 70 million records in his career — died in 1978 at the age of 39. Francois returned to his Paris abode after recording a BBC special and was standing in a full bathtub when he tried to adjust a light on the wall above the tub. He was electrocuted and died. As far as I know, everything was properly grounded in the bathroom.
Lessons: Bathtubs and electronics don't mix. And always make sure your equipment is grounded before touching anything.
Born This Day: Musical movers and shakers sharing a May 3 birthday include singer/actor Bing Crosby (1903); early Blues musician and slide guitarist Homesick James (1914); late Funk superhero James Brown (1933); Pop star with the Four Seasons, Frankie Valii (1934); bassist for proto-Garage band The Troggs ("Wild Thing"), Pete Staples (1944); Soft Rock superstar Christopher Cross (1951); singer for Nu Metal band Saliva, Josey Scott (1971); singer/guitarist for Indie Rock favorites Interpol, Paul Banks (1978); and Folk legend Pete Seeger (1919).
Seeger — who will be awarded a "Distinguished Service" honor from the American Academy of Arts and Letters on May 16 — popped up in the news recently in a manner befitting the revolutionary singer/songwriter who penned (or co-penned) standards like "Where Have All the Flowers Gone?," "If I Had Hammer" and "Turn, Turn, Turn!" He also popularized the spiritual "We Shall Overcome," which became the Civil Rights Movement's theme song.
Seeger's social consciousness in song was used once again in a powerful way last week when tens of thousands of Norwegians joined together for a marathon singalong of his song, "My Rainbow Race" (the Norwegian version is called "Children of the Rainbow") as a way to protest/heckle admitted mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik during his trial for murdering 77 people last summer. Breivek had previously dissed the song because it "brainwashed" children into believing that things like cultural diversity and racial harmony are good. He said, in court, that the song was brought to schools by "cultural Marxists."
"The curriculum is stripped of knowledge relating to the codes of honor that have been so important for Europe for thousands of years," Breivik said. "They put up these songs and propaganda films to get students to despise their forefathers."
Here's Lillebjørn Nilsen leading the singalong (he popularized the original Norwegian version).
On this day in 1973, the musical act Richard Nixon dubbed "young America at its best" performed at The White House. At Nixon's request, Adult Contemporary superstars The Carpenters performed for the Pres and visiting German Chancellor Willy Brandt.
Laugh now, but that will seem cutting edge after the fourth or fifth time The Osmonds play Mitt Romney's White House.
Meanwhile, at the Obama White House, Bob Dylan will be given the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, later this spring, along with Madeleine Albright, John Glenn, Toni Morrison, basketball coach Pat Summitt and several other honorees.
Born This Day: Musical movers and shakers sharing a May Day birthday include vocalist (best known for her rendition of "God Bless America") Kate Smith (1907); Country/Pop crossover star ("Young Love") Sonny James (1929); the Charlie Parker and/or Jimi Hendrix of Blues Harmonica, Little Walter Jacobs (1930); Jazz singer/pianist Shirley Horn (1934); singer/songwriter Judy Collins (1939); the singer forever tied to Ghostbusters, Ray Parker, Jr. (1954); half of Wang Chung, Nick Feldman (1955); Country star Tim McGraw (1967); original bassist for The Smashing Pumpkins, D'arcy Wretzky (1968); late Garage Punk artist Jay Reatard (1980); and singer Rita Coolidge (1945).
Along with her hits with versions of Jackie Wilson's "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher" and Boz Scaggs' "We're All Alone," Coolidge was something of an artistic muse in the '70s. Leon Russell wrote "The Detla Lady" about her, she was married to Kris Kristofferson for seven years and Willie Nelson's refers to her in "Devil in a Sleepin' Bag" ("Just got back from New York City/Kris and Rita done it all/Bought perfection there for all the world to see/Lord, I heard an angel singing in that Philharmonic Hall/Rita Coolidge, Rita Coolidge, cleft for me").
Coolidge continues to record and tour. She formed a group with her sister and niece called Walela, which performed in a traditional Native American style (Coolidge is part Cherokee). Check out Rita's Facebook page to see what she's up to lately.
Here is Coolidge and Kristofferson on the U.K. show The Old Grey White Test in 1972.


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Winter!: Prepare for holiday gaming!
I played the Closed Beta and as a whole the CB community made many suggestions to the staff. We were ignored and the game released as it was in CB. I played for about a week after it went Gold, got bored and canceled my subscription.
Game Traits applied to Sims Online (PC) by Safra
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17th September 2013
Joey Barton: 'The bureaucrats in football aren't taking homophobia seriously' 8
11:39 AM — QPR midfielder Joey Barton says the "bureaucrats" in football have been guilty of not taking a tough enough stance against homophobia.
16th September 2013
Gay Football Supporters' Network applauds rainbow laces campaign 8
6:06 PM — The Gay Football Supporters' Network has praised a new campaign on tackling homophobia in football by encouraging players to wear rainbow laces.
Joey Barton becomes first footballer to wear anti-homophobia rainbow laces 17
2:09 PM — Football star Joey Barton says "people's sexuality shouldn't be an issue" in the sport
UK: Footballers urged to wear rainbow laces in support of gay players 16
10:49 AM — Stonewall has teamed up with bookmaker Paddy Power to encourage players to show their support for gay footballers by wearing rainbow coloured boot laces.
30th August 2013
Study: Young footballers more accepting of gay team mates 2
10:50 AM — Young footballers on the verge of becoming professional are now much more likely to be supportive of gay team mates compared to a decade ago, according to new research.
21st August 2013
Footballer suffers anti-gay backlash over male kiss photo 13
12:51 PM — A footballer photographed kissing another man is suffering a homophobic backlash from supporters and rival fans.
20th August 2013
New book on the life of gay footballer Justin Fashanu to be released in the UK 4
7:09 PM — A British journalist and writer based in Canada has written a book about the life of the late gay footballer Justin Fashanu.
19th August 2013
Manchester: Football fans gather for anti-homophobia conference 2
12:13 PM — An international conference on homophobia in football has taken place in Manchester.
14th August 2013
Peter Tatchell: What is it with football and homophobia? 24
2:05 PM — With the imminent return of the UK football Premier League season, human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell asks if we are any closer to witnessing the arrival of another openly gay British professional footballer.
7th August 2013
Ex-Chelsea footballer: 'Homosexuality is a disease that should not be promoted' 75
3:15 PM — Former Chelsea player Mateja Kežman has criticised Dutch football manager Louis van Gaal for taking part in last weekend's Amsterdam Pride.
6th August 2013
Caroline Lucas: The FA needs to take action against the anti-gay abuse faced by Brighton fans 20
7:35 PM — After several Brighton supporters were subjected to anti-gay abuse by Leeds United fans at the weekend, Green MP Caroline Lucas has told PinkNews she will be raising the issue with the FA.
Professional Footballers' Association issues advice to players on homophobic language 1
5:18 PM — Every single footballer in the Premier League and Football League will be requested to attend a session this season to receive guidance on homophobic language and where banter oversteps the mark.
Brighton football fans receive anti-gay abuse after Leeds United game 12
2:04 PM — Brighton and Hove Albion football fans were once again subjected to a barrage of homophobic taunts following Saturday's away day match against Leeds United.
25th July 2013
Comment: When it comes to LGBT equality the next big battle is sport 25
2:46 PM — Writing for PinkNews.co.uk, Chair of LGBT+ Liberal Democrats Adrian Trett says he is "bitterly ashamed" in the way that LGBT people are not treated as mainstream in the area of sport.
22nd July 2013
Lib Dem MP responds to criticism over anti-homophobia campaign: 'Most people are sick of homophobia' 24
8:26 PM — Liberal Democrat MP John Leech, the supporter of a campaign to eradicate homophobia in football, has responded to a letter from a disgruntled constituent who accused him of trying to "brainwash children".
5th June 2013
Robbie Rogers: Football in the UK is 'more homophobic' than in the US 4
3:01 PM — Openly gay professional US football player Robbie Rogers, has spoken in an interview to say that he thinks the football industry in the UK is "a bit more homophobic", than in the US.
30th April 2013
John Amaechi: The NBA is light years ahead of British football when it comes to dealing with gay players 8
11:05 AM — British football still has a long way to go in accepting gay players, retired basketball star John Amaechi has said.
26th April 2013
MEPs welcome European Court of Justice ruling on anti-gay Romanian football owner George Becali 7
12:40 PM — A European Court of Justice preliminary ruling on the homophobic conduct of a football club owner in Romania has been welcomed by MEPs.
25th April 2013
Romanian football club asked to prove it's not homophobic with patron saying gays 'must be kept in enclosures' 14
4:00 PM — The European Court of Justice has criticised Romanian football club, Steaua Bucarest, over years of homophobic comments from its patron and former MEP George Becali.
16th April 2013
Amal Fashanu: 'I was getting ready to visit Elton John's studio when I learnt Justin Fashanu had died' 6
4:57 PM — The niece of gay footballer Justin Fashanu has spoken about the moment she was told her uncle had died.


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ATTEMPTS to control wild pigs, rabbits and water buffalo in Australia are depriving Aborigine hunters of an important source of food and driving them to kill rare native animals instead, says an Australian government report released this week. The report from the Bureau of Resource Sciences says that the switch to native prey is one of the unforeseen consequences of programmes that were designed to protect native animals.
The report broaches some sensitive questions about whether there should be controls on Aborigines hunting native species and whether their hunting practices are sustainable.
Feral animals are regarded as one of the country's greatest environmental problems. They are blamed for damaging agricultural land, wrecking the habitat of native species and, in some cases, eating native animals. Feral cats and foxes are shot and poisoned. Water buffalo and wild pigs are shot from helicopters. And lethal viruses have been unleashed more than ...
To continue reading this article, subscribe to receive access to all of newscientist.com, including 20 years of archive content.


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Home > collabs > DQM x Vans | Wovens Sneaker Collection
DQM will be releasing a new Vans Era and Sk8-Hi this Thursday, November 29th. The "Wovens" collection introduces a new diamond woven suede material for the quarter which was completely woven by hand. The shoes will be available exclusively at The Vans DQM General in SoHo, New York, and in the DQM online store. Hit the jump for more looks.
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A group of faculty and students at St. Mary's College of Maryland, which charges the highest in-state tuition of Maryland's public institutions, is advocating a new wage structure it says would keep student costs down by establishing a "living wage" for the lowest-paid workers and capping top salaries.
Students on campuses nationwide — including Harvard University, the University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University — have long lobbied for so-called living wages that pay staff enough to comfortably afford to live in their communities. But the St. Mary's group says its plan would be the first to link the demand to the pay of academic and administrative employees.
The proposal comes at a time when President Barack Obama has challenged the country's colleges and universities to develop creative ways to cut costs. He unveiled a proposal last month to rank institutions based on tuition, graduation rates and other factors, as part of a broad plan to make colleges more affordable.
Backers of the St. Mary's plan say it would promote equity and mutual respect on the campus, while keeping upper-end salaries from ballooning out of control. It would require interim President Ian Newbould to take a $25,000 pay cut and at least one full-time faculty member to take a hit of about $35,000.
"It's a way of reining in upper-level salaries and thereby keeping the cost of tuition reasonable and helping those faculty and staff at the lowest end of the pay scales," said Robin Bates, a longtime English professor at the school and a designated spokesman for the group behind the proposal.
But critics contend the plan has no connection to labor markets and would weaken the school's ability to attract top talent.
"You can get a [university] president for probably $150,000, but that might not be the kind of person you want," said Alan Dillingham, an economics professor and president of St. Mary's faculty senate.
Newbould is paid $325,000 — the same as predecessor Joseph R. Urgo, who resigned in June amid an admissions shortfall. The salary figure is on a par with those at some of the "peer institutions" identified by St. Mary's.
The proposal recommends setting a benchmark minimum salary for the school's lowest-paid worker at 130 percent of the federal poverty level for a family of four. That would raise the current minimum to about $30,000 from $24,500.
Other salaries would then be determined using specific multiples of that number. The calculations would result in a small boost in minimum pay for staff and many professors, but a reduction in pay for executives and the highest-paid professors.
Full-professor salaries would be capped at $120,000 — $35,000 less than the current maximum. And the president's salary would be capped at about $300,000 — $25,000 less than the current pay.
Capping higher salaries would eliminate one of the cost drivers at the university, allowing it to limit future tuition increases, according to the proponents of a new financial model at the school. The proposal doesn't specify how tuition increases would be held down.
Pay for top administrators has been a point of contention for some St. Mary's faculty members, and the proposal's backers point out that pay for each of the top positions has risen at least 60 percent since 2000.
"The drastic increase in salaries paid to top administrators (both by increasing salaries for particular positions and elevating more positions to the VP-level) does not directly address our mission; instead, it reflects the unchecked exponential growth of executive salaries in higher education as institutions engage in an arms race for executive talent," the proposal states.
In an interview, Newbould stressed that the proposal hasn't won wide support. "This has not been put forward by the union, or the staff and faculty," he said.
Salaries and benefits for staff workers are negotiated through their union, Newbould said. And pay for others is based on market rates at peer institutions, including Beloit, Dickinson and Gettysburg colleges and the University of North Carolina at Asheville.
"We have a list of the organizations that we think are like us and the organizations we aspire to be like, and we regularly survey their compensation and compare ours," said Gail Harmon, a Washington-based lawyer who is chairwoman of the school's board of trustees.
St. Mary's is somewhat unusual in that it's a public honors college. The institutions it considers peers are mostly private, and they often charge roughly three times the tuition St. Mary's does.
Still, the school's $12,245 in-state tuition, not including fees and room and board, is the highest of Maryland's public institutions — 65 percent higher than tuition at the University of Maryland, College Park.
Some St. Mary's employees took a salary cut this year because of a projected shortfall in admissions that affected the budget. Bates, for example, said he will see his $97,621 salary reduced by 1.5 percent this semester.


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It was 9:30 a.m. yesterday December 14 in front of the Ministry of Water Resources and Energy in Yaounde. A long line of staff members struggled to make their way into their offices but were prevented at the main gate of the ministry by security guards. Daniel Wappi and Tashit Sulemanou Mbipeh, both security guards at the main entrance of the Ministry of Water Resources and Energy which also host an annex building of the Ministry of Mines, Industry and Technological Development were respecting a notice signed by the Secretary General of the Ministry of Water Resources and Energy, Edouard Ebah Abada and that of Mines, Industry and Technological Development, Malachie Manaouda which strictly states that staff and other users into the building that host both ministries, should respect official working hours which begin at 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. As such, the central entrances into both ministries remain closed from 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 a.m. when they are opened for visitors.
After the vain struggle to enter their offices, some of the staff went back home. Others sat on stones opposite the ministry waiting for 12:00 noon when the gate will be opened again. While some staff complained that they are from meetings in other external services of their ministries, Daniel Wappi said at their level, they could not prove it. Thus, such workers had to wait outside until noon.
According to the communiqué signed by Secretary Generals of the Ministries of Water Resources and Energy and that of Mines, Industry and Technological Development on January 9, and pasted in front of the main gate of the Ministry of Water Resources and Energy, it has been noticed that some civil servants continue to violate the rules and regulations regarding the official working hours. Following the decision of the Prime Minister, Head of Government, to heads of ministries to ensure the effective presence of their collaborators and support staff to be on time at work, both Secretary Generals re-emphasised that assiduity, punctuality and availability at duty post remain cardinal obligations of the civil service and every civil servant is expected to scrupulously respect the rules which guarantee the celerity and quality of service rendered to users.
Edouard Ebah Abada and Malachie Manaouda are out to guarantee the effective presence of their collaborators so that they better serve the public, at the required time. The situation is not same with other ministries as one still sees civil servants making their entrance into their offices even at midday where the gates are widely opened all day.


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Mytrailbuddy.com - Trail Buddy, Honda CT70, Trail 70 bikes & CT70 parts
Language: english
We specialize in classic reproduction trail 70 bikes. We ride what we sell all of the highest qualityclassic reproduction trail 70
Keywords: Honda Mini Trail 70 ct70 ct-70 Reproduction Parts Clone Bikes Motors Shocks for Monkey Bike z-50 Buddy My Remake Classic Wheels Tires Exhaust Seat
Share your experience:
Safety and classification
The website doesn't contain questionable content. It can be used by kids and is safe for work.
|Safe for children ?
|The content of the website is classified as safe for children.
|Safe for work ?
|It is safe to visit this website from workplace.
Reviews, potential indications of suspected fraud, seriousness or potentially dangerous software (malware) can be found here: Mytrailbuddy.com reviews
Content and keywords
Important keywords for search marketing
For the website Mytrailbuddy.com 9 relevant online advertising keywords and phrases were found. The search volume is very high. The average competition by other websites for getting visitors is medium. The amount the website has to pay for a visitor ranges between 0.30 and 0.90 dollars. The following table shows the relevant keywords for search engine marketing:
|Search word
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|Cost per click ?
|Trail bikes
|0.30 to USD 0.40
|very high
|0.80 to USD 0.90
|Honda bike parts
|very strong
|0.80 to USD 0.90
|Honda bikes
|0.30 to USD 0.40
|very high
|very low
|0.40 to USD 0.50
|Bikes motor
|very high
|0.30 to USD 0.40
|Bikes parts
|very low
|0.40 to USD 0.50
|very high
|0.60 to USD 0.70
|Parts for bikes
|very low
|0.50 to USD 0.60
Note: The table data, in particular click prices, may vary depending on the time of day, day of week and origin of the visitor. Webwiki is not responsible for the accuracy of the data.
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Racingjunk.com - Race, Drag cars, Trailers and Engines for sale | RacingJunk Classifieds
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Dirtrider.com - Dirt Bike, Motocross, Supercross & Enduro - Dirt Rider Magazine
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Autotrader.co.uk - Auto Trader UK - New & used cars for sale
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Nadaguides.com - New Car Prices and Used Car Book Values - NADAguides
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Technical information
The web server used by Mytrailbuddy.com is run by OneWebHosting and located in USA. 10 other websites are located on this web server. Most of them are provided in the english language.
Information about the server of the website
|IP address:
|Server provider:
|Number of websites:
|11 - more websites using this IP address
|Language distribution:
|82% of the websites are english


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Marc Ullom (Visual Art & Design)
Evidence-A Body of Original Fine Art Images
The global purpose of this project is to create, frame, and exhibit new work in juried venues for the advancement of my career as a visual artist. The basic process involves the creation of new photographs within the constructed still life series "Evidence" as well as the printing, framing and shipping of individual images for entrance into juried exhibitions. Lastly, the creation of a viable, online presence will be a critical component for obtaining recognition in my field. My works will be able to be easily found using modern search methods along with my CV, Bio, and award winning images.
The detailed shooting process involves finding photographic props located in antique stores throughout the southwest Michigan area, composing the props, professionally lighting the set, and photographing in the studio. The postproduction process and compositing involves Adobe Photoshop, Lightroom, and the VSCO Plugin, which are critical aspects in the creation of new photographic work. Images would be printed on archival photographic rag paper using pigmented inksets, then professionally matted and framed.
The main objective of this proposal is to finish and exhibit a body of work that began 4 years ago. The exhibition of a wide range of my work in juried competitions would significantly enhance my academic credibility. Several of the individual images have been published, but it is my ultimate goal to finish the body of work for exhibition as a complete series.


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Remember how so many basketball fans liked NBA 2K11's the "Jordan Challenge?"
The game's developers did. 2K Sports announced today that Jordan and 14 other NBA greats will appear in a new "End the Debate" mode, giving players a chance to electronically settle arguments over which teams and players deserve recognition as the Association's best of all time.
The full list:
- Kareem Abdul-Jabbar;
- Larry Bird;
- Wilt Chamberlain;
- Julius Erving;
- Patrick Ewing;
- Magic Johnson;
- Michael Jordan;
- Karl Malone;
- Hakeem Olajuwon;
- Scottie Pippen;
- Oscar Robertson;
- Bill Russell;
- John Stockton;
- Isiah Thomas;
- Jerry West.
FWIW, I would love to see 2K Sports carry on this idea to MLB 2K and see if they can gain some ground against "The Show." Who wouldn't want to relive such great baseball stories as the Brooklyn Dodgers' first championship in 1955, the 1968 World Series matchup between the Detroit Tigers and St. Louis Cardinals or the Boston Red Sox's comeback in the 2004 ALCS?


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Got Voter ID?
Beginning in 2012, every voter must show a photo ID when voting.
A voter requesting a ballot by mail must either write his or her
driver's license number on the application or send a copy of a photo ID.
For more information, visit www.gotvoterid.com
Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically to your feed reader.


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Tina Fey has a solution to the lack of women in late nightAdd to Favorites | Late Night With Seth Meyers
Tina Fey says the comings and goings of late-night TV hosts are like her version of fantasy football.
"I love reading about it, I love talking about it, because I feel like I kind of know the players, but it doesn't affect me at all," Fey tells her former "SNL" co-star Seth Meyers on Wednesday's (May 14) "Late Night." The recent David Letterman-Stephen Colbert news got her thinking about the dearth of women hosting these shows, and she came up with the theory about what might help break down that barrier.
It involves wardrobe choices, and she explains it in the video above, before segueing into talking about her older daughter starting to play baseball.
Fey also talks about performing with her bestie Amy Poehler at a tribute to Don Rickles and reminisces with Meyers and "Late Night" bandleader Fred Armisen about their time on "SNL," which you can see below.
Photo/Video credit: NBC


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Local Finance Officer Certification Program
We are currently updating our courses. Please check back soon.
October 6-7, 2014
Brenau Downtown Center
301 Main St., SW
Gainesville, GA 30501
October 9-10, 2014
Tifton Campus Conference Center
15 RDC Road
Tifton, GA 31793
October 13-14, 2014
Coastal Georgia Center
301 Fahm St.
Savannah, GA 30401
Brochure and Register by Mail >>
Register Online >>
Cities and counties need sound financial management practices to operate efficiently and effectively. To help, the Institute of Government provides a variety of continuing education opportunities for local government officials and personnel in the areas of governmental accounting and other financial topics. Finance officers who participate in training and development can work toward two levels of certification, and the Institute offers a growing number of convenient online courses to help reduce travel costs.
Level I certification requires completion of all six topics (seven courses) within a three-year time frame. Upon completion of the required courses, the participant is certified for a period of two years from the date of the last course taken.
Level II certification requires four core courses, two elective courses, and a financial management project completed outside the classroom within a three-year time frame. For participants' convenience, the core courses are offered at central locations in the state. Upon completion of the six required courses (core and elective) and the financial management project, the participant is certified for a period of two years from the date of the last course taken. Once certification is achieved, 15 hours of approved continuing education are required every two years for certified Finance Officers to maintain certification.
Courses offered through the Local Finance Officer Certification Program cover a variety of topics that are pertinent to finance practitioners at all levels of government. Registration is not restricted to local government finance officers.
Continuing Education Requirements for Finance Officers >>
Register Online for Classroom Training >>
Register by Mail for Classroom Training >>
Registration and Cancellation Policy >>
Directions to Training Sites >>
Project Transmittal Form [pdf] >>
Project Proposal Form [pdf] >>
Instructions for Accessing Training Records >>
Setting the Millage Rate: It's Not a Mystery! [video] >>
City Finance, Chapter from the Handbook for Georgia Mayors and Councilmembers >>
Financial Policies, Chapter from the Handbook for Georgia Mayors and Councilmembers >>
What You Need to Know about GASB Statement No. 54 >>
Compliance Auditing in Georgia Counties and Municipalities >>
Understanding Journal Entries [video] >>