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Welcome to iMore 2.0
Leave a comment below telling us what new features you want to see in iMore 2.0, and be entered to win a $600 Apple Store gift certificate for the iOS 6 device of your dreams!
At the beginning of the year we changed the name of our community to iMore.com. Since then we have been working incredibly hard to improve the quality and experience of iMore as well. We've invested heavily in having not only great content, but compellingly beautiful content with the best photography and videography we can produce.
We've continuously expanded and improved our podcasting, bringing you the best and brightest hosts and guests on the internet, for shows like iMore, Iterate, ZEN and TECH, and Mobile Nations. We've given the iMore forums a major makeover as well, so they're cleaner and easier to use than ever before. We've released a free iMore for iPhone app that's been downloaded tens of thousands of times.
And there's much more of all of that to come. For even longer now, however, we've been working on something else, something far more important -- a new, more powerful, more flexible platform to drive it all.
And today we made the jump.
Everything has been moved over. Every bit of legacy code from Phone different (Movable Type), the iPhone blog and TiPb (Wordpress) has been end of lined, and everything we've learned from CrackBerry.com and Android Central has been put to use. I'm calling it VISOR (it's Drupal-based, but VISOR better fits our roots and our spirit.)
Our singular goal is to give the iMore community the absolute best experience imaginable on the web and in mobile. Moving to VISOR will let us do that, and in ways that were impossible on our old platform.
This is the new iMore architecture, and the new architecture for a cleaner, better Mobile Nations.
Like any new architecture, we've started with the foundation. Some of the new features are already in place -- you can now toggle between blog view and headline view, and you browse the latest forum discussions right from the home page. More features will be coming soon.
In other words, this is our Snow Leopard.
With any substantial change, there will be a tiny little bit of pain – you'll need to create an iMore account to comment on the posts. The good news:
- It will greatly reduce the amount of spam we've all been putting up with
And best of all:
- If you already have an iMore forums account, you're good to go. Just use that.
- If you already have an account at Android Central, CrackBerry, webOSNation, or WPCentral, you can use the same username, email address, and password to create your iMore account.
The reason for the latter is one of the features we have coming your way -- a unified login across all Mobile Nations community. One account to rule them all.
We recognize creating an account can be a hassle, and while it will give you a ton of great benefits now and in the future, we want to make up for it immediately as well.
You know that iOS 6 dream device contest -- that $600 Apple gift certificate we're giving away to celebrate the iMore show #300?
Well, we're giving away two of them now.
Simply sign in an leave a single comment below telling us what features you'd love to see in the all new iMore, and you're entered to win.
We'll announce both winners next Wednesday, July 11, live on the iMore Show #302.
I want to thank our community and our millions of readers, listeners, and viewers. I want to thank our tech team, including our founder, Marcus Adolfsson, our dear leader, Kevin Michaluk, Tom for the bits and David and Jose for the grids and the pixels, and all of our editors, writers, and network and community staff for everything they've done to get us here.
Like I said last time, we're still only just beginning.
Welcome to iMore 2.0.
Have something to say about this story? Leave a comment! Need help with something else? Ask in our forums!
Reader comments
Welcome to iMore 2.0
Loving the new site. I would like to see the Jailbreak expanded to make it easier to find the specific information since every device and every OS is slightly different.
I think you all do an awesome job. Keep it up!! The only change I would make pertains to the live blogging of Apple announcements. I'd love to see a seperate space for the photos that are uploaded. They are often out of sync with the comments being generated and it would be nice to have them in a different window that does not interfere with the text stream of the blog.
Thanks!! Keep up the fantastic work!!
table for one please
iMore 2.0 is pretty much flawless and barely needs any updating. However I think that iMore should have an easier way to scroll through the content and if your on the iMore site, a little notification that tells you a new post has been published. iMore should also have Podcasts that show Apple trends, Cool Apple Mac Apps, Cool iPhone Apps, etc. iMore should also have more opionon pieces and also more more speculation and more Apple leaks as possible. I know the last one isn't really up to iMore to decide. Also Include more Giveaways so i could have more chances of winning.
I love the interface, creating an account was a snap and the look and feel was so user friendly. The only feature I'd like to see is a gradient or nonwhite background. Otherwise the rebrand looks amazing!
I would like to see you add an app for the iPad. I know you added an iPhone app recently but would like to see it for the iPad also. While on my iPad, I would love to click on the app instead of going to the website. When you create this, use notifications as well so I know when something new is posted.
The site is making great strides and it is on my daily reads list. A few things I would love to see...
1) I know ads are important, but the amount of ad space up top really takes the focus away from your content. That ad is huge!
2) In general, I think you guys do a good job with reviews... but there have been times were you review something, say Not taking apps, but the comparisons between existing apps seem to cover the usage from only one angle/use case which could potentially point people to an app that isn't the best fit for them (iMore said its the best, so I'll get it... rather than the second most popular app sounds like it fits my usage better than the more popular one...). I think that reviews could become more useful if you polled the user community, or published a review schedule, so that people could leave a note saying what areas they would love to see you discuss in your review.
3) Personally, I'm not sure of why someone would use a dedicated app for a given site. I like to consolidate this type of stuff into a single app - like Flipboard. When you announced your iMore app, I couldn't help but wonder if those resources could be put to better use elsewhere? I readily admit that I may be in the minority here, though.
4) I am not sure how you should do this, but your forum volume is small enough that I tend to traverse another popular site's forums for researching purchase decisions, getting feedback, etc. So, whatever you can do to increase traffic will make your forum community even more useful/valuable.
Thanks for asking for feedback.
Again, love the site!
improved layout for mobile devices
Looks nice so far!
Advice: Please, when reviewing something Apple, add it to your checklist to "be critical". I don't fault you guys for it completely, and you've admittedly got a slightly more critical eye on things than a lot of blatant anabashed fanboi reviewers out there, but... Just always remember to take a step back and give credit when and where it's due. Does Android actually offer more flexibility or functionality in a certain area, even at the expense of simplicity? Does a certain OSX feature have any side-effects that actually hamstring one's workflow rather than totally streamline it?
Just sayin'. I love me some Apple goods. I'm admittedly a recent convert, both to Mac and to IOS, and there are definitely things I gave up in converting, but I still feel so much better in this camp. That said, it ain't all roses. Just sayin'.
I'd like to see more app highlights like you used to with the app of the day articles. A lot of the apps I have now or have tried came from those articles.
Also I'd like to see less of the how to (do something very elementary with your iPad/phone). The how to fix you stuff articles are great.
Make it clean, crisp and sharp. Easy nav menus and a more friendly UI. Less cluttered and less ads. Make it like an iOS device. ;)
Congratulations on iMore 2.0! All of you have built such a great website I honestly can't think of anything I'd like to change as of now. HOWEVER, I do feel like your mobile app needs a lot of work. I'd love to be able to do everything you can on the website, on the app. I find it very annoying that I can't access the forums, or even comment on articles such as this one from my phone. I look forward to the many upcoming updates on the website and the app! Cheers! and a tip of the hat to all of you!
Probably the one feature I'd love to see both on iMore and across Mobile Nations is expansion of the regions and currencies covered by the store to Europe and possibly also Asia. I really enjoy reading accessory reviews on iMore, and would love it if I could buy some of those accessories easily with the links to the Mobile Nations stores, rather than having to trawl the Internet.
With all the progress that Apple has made I don't even know what new features I want on the iOS6 device. I have been with Apple since the 4 was released and they always seem to be on top of their game. With the updates they've had they actually have ideas that I didn't even think about wanting. They've completely outdid themselves as innovators should. The only issue I've had with the iPhone are their headphones. I feel like if I'm spending money on quality, everything should be quality and not just the phone. Other than that I'm completely prepared for Apple to wow me like they always do.
A mobile version of this site will be greatly appreciated
I really like the site. It's really clean however, I think the a lot of the ads are too much. They are much too big and get in the way of the pages. Maybe make them on the side like Google. Outside of that, it's a great looking site. ~Phil
I would love to see a 1-10 rating system in your App review. Other then that love what I see. Great job!
one cool feature will be to have the opportunty to set some news that we want to shop on the top (workings with tags) and then get notified each visit on the site.
What a great contest!
iMore2.0 might consider adding some infographic style "bottom line" charts a la consumer reports, and keep them in a separate category for quick reference. Often, I consider picking up an accessory and remember reading an article, but don't always want to re-read the article, if I can find it, if I can remember the title, you know? A catalogue of handy reference guides comparing features of various products would be great.
Would like to see more extensive coverage of applications for the iMac and MacBook Air.
Less clutter at top of homepage less is more. Love to see move coverage of less mainstream apps and accessories.
As the approx 460th commentor, nothing ground-breaking to suggest. Simply supporting an iPad iMore 2.0 app and more jailbreak/cydia info. Thanks!
I think that Imore 2.0 should have more iPhone vs. Videos. Like iPhone 5 vs Samsung galaxy s 3 or something along those lines but other than that I think everything is great! So please choose me for that gift card, I have an android phone right now I desperately could use a new iOS device!
Welcome. more gifts would be great.
I would love to see a mobile specific page, with no sacrifice of features.
The site looks great!!!
I would like even more how-to articles and videos.
Getting all the mobile nations accounts to be fully interchangeable would be great.
The only thing I can think of that I would want to see is a iPad app.
Love all of the innovation going on. It would be great if there was a better way to find all of the different podcasts by category and have a better option to filter and find previous blog posts.
I would love to see a "daily recommended app" section. I'm always looking for new apps and this would be very helpful. I love the new design btw!
As an avid iMore reader, as well has an aspiring developer, I wouldn't mind seeing a series in the same vein as Georgia's iPhoneography series, on Xcode development and some basic tutorials using iOS SDK.
I'd love to see a new format for the podcast section because some of the stuff there is still legacy, and when you go on that page right now, it doesn't show the latest podcasts, just latest news, thus hard to find.
It would be awesome an iMore store for Canada, and push notifications on when are you going to have your live podcasts so we know ahead of time and dont' miss it, eg. mobile nation ones.
But overall great job! Love the easy switch with latest news and latest discussion on first page.
Great job on iMore 2.0! Love the changes!
I'd like more videos, app reviews and to put the "adding comment section" on top of the comments!
Great work and thanks again for the opportunity to win !
More giveaways!
As there is so much content I would like to be able to drill in a little more to get to what I want to read. The top menu works well but I would like some more filtering options on the submenu page in addition to the "Best of" groups. I prefer this drilling navigation rather than a more complex advanced search as you are still navigating through the content and keeping in touch with the site rather than jumping past information you may other wise miss.
Would love to see Tip of the day feature at the top :)
Mobile mobile mobile. The iMore.com site definitely needs a mobile skin.
I would love to see more of Georgia in tight T-shirts.
Would love to see a daily newsletter sent out to collect each day's posts?? Maybe you do that already? I love the heads up you give ...
Also, perhaps "update" notifications when apple releases any updates to their ios ... or could select which apps to keep up with>?
Love to see Widgets in ios6
I would like to see more reviews and information regarding ways to make my iExperience better as a whole.
I would love to see a look that maximizes screen space. There is so much extra space along the sides of the news stream that can be used.
Thanks again for being an amazing site!
Great job! Would still enjoy an iPad app, but you're doing great work.
What are the apps your writers use on a daily basis? What is their tech setup?
I'm always curious as to what apps and applications others use so I can add them to my arsenal
And yes I'd love that gift certificate :)
Congrats on the new site. It's a nice step forward. I would encourage you to add content rating capabilities beyond comments. Let folks search categories by keyword and rating. That would help people find what they are looking for more quickly. Thanks for the great contest for Apple gift certificates. That's a good idea.
I was addicted to my blackberry until until I bought my first iphone 4s. It was such seemless transition for me to come from crackberry.com to imore.com. Although I would like for more interaction with us the common folk with blogs and games. Other than that I come to this site daily and love it!!
I would love to see more video content added to the site. Other than that love the new site!
NFC + Passbook = no wallet
I come for the articles, stay for the comment threads, so I would love to see a "new" count indicating comments posted to an article since my last visit. A phpBB style link to the first post since last visit would be nice, but may not be possible with a threaded system.
I'd really like to see Q & A sessions where we ask you guys your opinions on Apple (and maybe non-Apple) gear.
I use your iMore app every day to check out the latest Apple news. A great tool to add would be a Twitter tab of some sort to view even more news as soon as news pops up. Another great thing would be live video or even just pictures and words when you attend WWDC. That would be awesome to get live video or pictures as new products are unveild.
Likely said before, but I would like to see more Macs and related OSX info especially with how there seems to be a convergence of OS X and iOS.
The site is great I think. I love the sleek white all over. I would love to see more short videos about products. I read every review to be one step ahead of all my tech friends. Keep up the great work.
I still remember when this was theiphoneblog.com, then tipb.com, and now iMore.com. Throughout the name changes you have managed to keep the site clean and fresh, making it very easy to navigate through.
Improvement wise, I really have no complaints. On top of the revamped commenting, constant articles, and the podcast that you release, this site has continued to stay great over the years.
Thanks for continuing to keep the community imformed on Apple news, and thanks for doing the many contests that iMore runs.
I like Imore 2.0 and I can not lie
these other websites cant deny
when I log in it is sweet as sin
They make all the other sites say oh yeah!
Love the site and only wish there was less spam in imore 2.0
iThink iMore is great the way it is!
iRene, I want to see more iMore chances at iMoney!
More app reviews!
Looks awesome! More contests are always welcome :)
I love this site. Only thing I would suggest is a little revamp of the theme/color scheme, Lots of white, white and white as is.
I enjoy the site and would like to see an ipad app.
So is VISOR a Drupal module or or something custom? As someone who runs a Drupal site, I am interested in all kinds of different set ups.
First thanks iMore for the opportunity. The site is incredible. You are right it is much cleaner and easier to find the places i would like to visit. Don't have a feature suggestion, but maybe I would like to see a weekly article about what's on your iPad. That is always cool to,see what other apps people are using and why. You guys are doing a great job!
I know that mobile is your focus, but I think I would like to see more information about OS X and Mac hardware. You guys have such good writers and content creators, and OS X and iOS are moving towards each other; it makes sense for you to do some computer stuff in addition to your mobile content.
This is a serious giveaway. I would love to have one of these gifts. Its almost coolerthan just getting the phone. Because you could maybe even sell your previous phone, and then take that money to get new accesories if they arent compatible. Its really good thinking.
I've been reading here exclusively since 2009, you guys are brilliant. I'd like to see more iMore TV, an easier way to discover older stories and navigate back to them, more how to videos, oh it would be great if you could do an iMore iPad app too, where we can watch the podcasts live. iMore just keeps getting better and better, I love iMore almost as much as I love Apple!
I would love to see a more iphone friendly app but i love it the way it is right now. Cant ask for more
This is my first time to view imore.com and I really like the content here. I would like to see a suggestion box for future IO upgrades. It would be very interesting to see other people's ideas and what Apple officially adds.
All I ask is that you keep the news and rumors flowing.
A comment box at the top of the list wold be great, sometime is don't want to scroll through the entire list to add my thoughts. Also, separate RSS feeds for reviews, editorials, jailbreak, etc. would be great. For example, I don't really care for jailbreak so I wouldn't need to see those stories.
Keep up the great work iMore!
Nice work iMore, like the info on new releases coming up!
I would like to see some hot pics of Georgia. Can you make that happen? Kidding aside, love the app.
Great site. Some animated shorts of stories would be cool.
The more interactive the better. Ask questions, post answers, help us better know ourselves and world!
Just keep doing what you're doing. Maybe more tech reviews or accessory reviews.
Indepth review and coverage of accesorries, apps, along with the ratings, pros and cons.
Hmm... I think I like it. I hope that Drupal/VISOR is better than Joomla. Joomla is excruciating to build with. As far as features are concerned, can I haz mobile site again pleez?
Fantastic evolution! Keep the change coming, just to add to the many requests for an iPad app, that would be the cats meow.
Well I love this site, it allows me to cry out of anguish, scream out of acrimony and glow of joy and excitement, alas everything in the world must be improved and I believe five core changes can make this awesome site, well awesomer (yes I said awesomer xD).
1. Cover more tweaks that are actually useful - This site does cover some pretty sweet tweaks, most of which I already have but a select few that I never heard and that's awesome because I can try it out and see if it will prove useful to my daily use. Now all that said I think that very few tweaks are covered, now I understand that there are many reasons for that, like a big number of readers and writers that are part of T.P. (Team Pure) or that many f these articles are very detailed so you guys might not have the time to actually go through the thousands of tweaks in Cydia, or just the fact that many of those tweaks suck (no offense Devs ). I just wish there was someone that can focus at least once a week, say Saturdays/Sundays (not in the night we all have lives I fully understand that) or another writer that can be added to this site to handle the tweaks section of article, with full tutorials course .
2. Better way to search for content on the website - Although there is a search bar and there are some folders or categories for people to look at different topics, however for some reason I do not find it visually attractive. In most of those folders it seems very clustered. Look at the Apps folder as an example, it is very hard to pin point a specific type of App. What can be done is that you add the Apps into sub-categories like Apple has done in the App Store. I do ask if you can try and be a little more detailed than Apple when it comes to this. Apple uses the normal categories for Apps since they do not like the jailbreak community (unless it's time for an iOS update lol), since you guys have done (and again hopefully will do more) Apps and Tweaks from Cydia you should add them in the Apps & Tweaks folder, with sub-folders dividing them into there prime function (like BiteSMS is a texting App/Tweak, Angry Birds is an arcade type of game). Again hope this is done for all the current and future categories (like Authors, where we find each Authors article) This would make searching so much easier for the readers, heck even you guys when you want to check some new things out. Oh and before I forget, also try and apply this to the iMore Shop, it is worse than the searching on the actual site.
3. Fix the iPhone App/Launch an iPad version - Personally I feel that the iPhone app of this site isn't as sexy as the actual site is. It also seems to crash to easily for me. When I reading one article and then quickly try to read another one it crashes. Also I have no idea why (could be a RAM issue) but when I listen to music the App slows down, weird right? In addition release an iPad version, I am sure you guys are working on it and if you're not then what are you guys waiting for!!! I do not have an iPad because the truth is I hate tablets, but I know many people that would love to have an iMore App on their iPad so they can see what is the latest and greatest in the realm that is Apple. I think so a GUI stand point the iPad version, hell both the iPhone and the iPad version should have a sort of magazine feel and look to it. I say this because it will look amazing and I think this site deserves an actual magazine .
4. Disqus or Disqus like features - I know many might not like this one but the truth is that Disqus has a better commenting system even better than the new one MN (Mobile Nation) is using. Also Disqus is used on many sites, a reader can see how other sites another reader likes or comments on. You can vote up or down on something useful or intelligent someone has commented on. Disqus has also made it a lot easier to handle trolls because we all know how annoying they are, more so when it is an actual great conversion between readers and even the writer of the article. We can also edit over comments instead of just replying to your own comment. If this cannot be done (which I doubt it) at least give us these features on the new improvements on the commenting system.
5. Clean up and add a little more detail - I know this is a very broad statement, but I mean it as broadly as possible. This site has changed so much since the days I started to reading articles here (started around early 2009) and many changes have passed by. Some were horrible but most were much added and as a whole they were much loved. What I think this site needs is a little more polish, sort of the way Apple handles their products. An example of this would be with the headlines on the main page. First all the articles should have at least a picture of the topic. Also they should be set up in the same manner. What I mean by this is that they should be set up as headline first then picture, or picture first then headline (although I prefer the former). Right now it is a toss up headlines and pictures and sometimes just headlines and it makes it very difficult to so a quick read at the articles when you are in a hurry.
Hope these changes will happen very soon and hope they are liked by most (cannot say all because all is impossible). I am sure many would like/love those changes. Keep up the great work guys.
P.S. I MUST WIN I NEED A NEW IPHONE, TIRED OF MY OLD IPHONE AND MUST BUY IT UNLOCKED FOR T-MOBILE, HELP A MAN OUT LOL, if not well I am spending close to 1,000 this fall
Ugh my smileys did not go through, I am sure to lose now :/
I read your feed on Google Reader and it would be nice if you could post only the introduction of those really (like, REALLY) long posts of how-to repair you iPhone etc things. That would be awesome since I don't read them and have to scroll a lot to get past them right now.
I'd love to see more contests in the forums, these are always fun and rewarding.
More contests in the forums would be nice too.
I also think the idea of more contests is good.
More contests and giveaways like the Apple Gift Certificate contest.
May I suggest an "App of The Month" program along the lines of "The Book of The Month?" iMore announces an app on the blog, members download the app and then discuss the pros and cons of the app in the forum. Then from there a review can be posted with the knowledge of wider variety of use case scenarios. Just a thought.
You can even post some of the comments from the members of the discussion in the final review to show that the review is not completely singular. I believe this will help people be aware of the crap apps once they identify what to look for in a quality app. Plus there is no better business than word-of-mouth.
Oh, the developer can monitor the discussion for bug fixes and/or 'suggestions' for updates. With an iMore moderator to keep the unhelpful discussions to a minimum, like zero.
(And no, it is not free app program. You have to pay for the 'book' before you read it, if applicable.)
If you guys can add another category " PAID app --> gone FREE" in the APP section it will be best for people like me who like to save some money here and there ^_^
Thank for everything !!
Would love to see a "What's on my phone" segment where you can first do the editors' phones, what they have on the device. You can even expand that to regular users. It could also include the reasoning why they have the icons arranged on their homescreen in a particular way (Seth has mentioned this a few times but did not go into detail on the podcast).
Keep up the great work!
- more detailed summaries of video posts. I'd like to know more of what is covered to know if I want to watch them.
- more personal use stories. What are the editors actually doing the most on their iOS devices. What do your home pages look like. What are the top five webpages you go to when you browse, etc.
- invite guest posters. Have people come to the site for a short time and give us their take on the OS. Rotate people through and let us see a variety of perspectives.
- showcase your commenters that do a great job. Include some posts that take the best posted comments and bring them to your readers attention.
- help people with particular iOS problems. Start a dear iMore repeating series of posts where people tell you what they want their device to help them with and you give them the resources to accomplishnwhatbthem want. Even make it a contest-- chosen problems get the apps/hardware they need to solve their problem given to them
love the new format - easier to navigate! It would be great if you had an un-biased comparison between iOS, Android & Blackberry phones and the various versions of each in a user-friendly format (read - easy on the tech-speak).... I never know what phone or operating system to pick. In the last year I've had 2 different blackberries & an android and none of them are really perfect for what I use my phone for!
I would like to see things formatted well so that my husband would be able to read iMore on his new iOS device that I won from here!
Ah I've been reading iMore since before the name change. I think it would fun to have you guys do some guest pieces for other sister sites (ie pre central and crack berry). Would be curious to hear your opinions on other mobile OS's and how they directly effect iOS.
Just a thought though! Really you guys are great and I love the new site!
The new site is getting better and better. The changes solidifies your site as the go to place for the latest and greatest info Keep up the good work!
The new site is awesome. Nothing I know to change. Keep up the great work!
I want to see more content related to jailbreak tweaks, profiles of brand new tweaks and featured items once a week. Also get people that are part I the jailbreak community to present such topics and review.
iMore 2.0 looks great Rene! The only suggestion I have is updating the mobile site, it requires a lot of pinching and zooming. . I'm on an Android phone so I can't use the iMore app.
I love the new site! Keep up the great work and keep the rumors and news coming!
I follow iMore with Google Reader so I don't miss any posts. On your sister sites, the Google Reader posts often display the start of a posting and then link to read more. The iMore posts don't break, so if I'm not interested in the latest "How to replace your antenna" article, it requires scrolling all the way through the text and illustrations to get to the next article. Please consider breaks and jumps for your longer articles. Thanks for the great site. iMore is my #1 source for iPad & iPhone information, tips and app reviews.
This is a great source of information. So glad to have found you guys. Too soon to make recommendations but will soon.
Awesome website you have here, and I like that you have so much new news and rumors really impressive! Keep up the good work and I would love to see some more videos instead to just talk shows! :)
I like the site. The iOS app could use some improvement in the weekly photo contest section. Would love to be able to upload directly from the iPhone instead of having to use the computer as a bridge.
Thanks for the giveaways! That is one of the things that keep me coming back. :)
Enjoying your site. I check it often. I would like to see more step by step tips with pictures especially when iOS6 is released.
i(want)More things to win:)
I would like to see an iPad specific version of the site.
Congratulations on the new and improved site! I'm excited for More 2.0 and love the new app. I am so glad I can access the podcasts through the app. Any chance of video podcasts? How about a contest to be a guest host for a night?
Keep up the great work!
iMore Two is even better than iPhone Blog/iMore........... Hope it continues to give us all great info about the iphone, Apple products and information........... I would love to win one of these $600 gifts to the APPLE STORE........ I am a loyalist with all apple products for so many years.
What do I want from iMore next? iMoreOS 6.0beta3 ;)
Love the app check it everyday. It would be great if thre were a way to leave comments without having to scroll to the bottom of the page every time.
I wouldn't mind notification of new contests straight to my phone. My thoughts are also easier to search categories.
Slightly off-topic, but how about breaking the iMore podcast into specific segments, instead of simply running through a list of talking points?
E.g. run through Apple and competitor news, offer your opinions, then move on to a specific rumors segment with discussion, then maybe an "iMore pundit shootout" or something. (Kind of like Macworld's pundit showdown before Apple products are announced.)
And how about a forum contest for each Apple product announcement? It could be like bingo: forum members would pick and choose features from a grid or something, and the winner would be the one with the most right guesses. And of course, the tie-breaker would be the best and/or most-accurate prediction in the comment associated with the feature choices.
That would help boost forum activity and membership. Just a thought. (Look at how many comments there are for this blog post already. Same thing could happen in the forums.)
Awesome website, thanks for the opportunity. There's a lot of cool features that I can't think of anything that's missing.
Site looks great!
Viewing it on my iPhone, are you working on mobile version?
Thanks and keep up the good work!
I really like how sleek the new iMore 2.0 is. It has a iOS-esque look to it.
Hi Guys! Great new look! Much cleaner than before. I am glad you added universal login since I started on Precentral before I moved over to tipb/iMore. Also, you need a mobile site besides the app. Like the new comment box controls as well but there are a couple of tweaks I can see needing to be made. The home page with the top stories scrolls down vertically below the fold too much. A lot of the slightly older stories on a busy news day will be missed. Maybe make a summary up top with top stories or a times square type ticker? Thanks and keep up the great work!
I absolutely LOVE the new site. The only thing I could ask for would be a cleaner iPhone app. alot of small bugs. other than that, great job guys!
I would like to see the website talking about how what apple has done to lead other companies to be better, although not as good as Apple. Also maybe compare the iphone to other phones in shootouts.
You should have a section for kickstarter projects for the iPhone, that would be awesome, give the people that awesome ideas a place to gather on iMore!! BAM iMore 2.0!
i would love to see feature that has like favorate apps and ringtones that people like the use.
this might be a total pie-in-the-sky feature but I'd love to see a chat feature in the iMore iPhone app to chat with other forum members. or maybe a Mobile Nations chat with rooms for each site? (iMore room, Crackberry room, etc)
It'd be great to be able to chat with others while on the go!
Everything is perfect just the way it is. I guess you could cover mermaids more often but other than that the site is perfect.
This is a great site. I love the addition of the photography section. Maybe you could start giving more app reviews. You can list them in a menu by category (Photo, Music, Productivity, Games, Etc). That would make it easier for the users of the site to find. I love the layout of your site and it is very easy to change, so I hope you keep the main page the same.
Maybe you guys should make a section showing what everybody has done to their iDevices. Like a section showing all the things theyve done to customize them: Housings, cases, custom work done etc. That might be something new.
I've really been enjoying the articles and blogs that have been coming more recently, especially the photography focused ones by Leanna.
My suggestion is less about features and more about content quality. There seems to be a severe lack of energy and forced personality in a lot of the accessory review videos. It makes them difficult to watch for anything other than information. This should be a pretty simple fix and something to continue working on so that the content quality continues to improve on iMore!
Hey, I was content to begin with...but you guys keep on pushing the envelope! The mobile site update is great, by the way...
I like the mix of content you put up - I like the occasional thought-through polemic piece from Rene, I think the reviews are great across hardware and software, and by visiting this blog I stay up to date on what's happening in the world of iOS. It is entertaining, engaging and informative. What more could I want? It's why I keep coming back...
Well, I think it would be great to maybe have some personal profile features, and the one I would use would be to track what posts are new since my last visit. That's what I end up doing a lot of the time - just visiting every few days to see what's been going on. That kind of feature (cross-platform/device tracking of course!) would help smooth my (already pretty smooth) engagement with the blog.
In terms of content, I think there is a new level to go to in terms of app reviews. I used to find that the curation of apps from TiPB led my purchasing decisions pretty well, but it feels like we've reached a plateau of functionality. So in other words, the environment has changed, it is harder to get the right apps in front of people, so a new level of awesomeness is required. I've no doubt you can reach it if you choose to :-)
It's great you guys have been doing so well! Love getting a chance to win a new IPhone every year.
I would love to see more from the rumor mill, get someone to compile all the different websites reports and put them in one place. (I.e. bgr says this, Engadget says this, gigaom says this) so everyone can see all the ideas in one place.
Thanks for all the hard work! Keep it up. It will continue to pay off.
Love the give aways, more are always welcome. Personnally I enjoy reading about jailbreak tweaks and themes, so more of that news would be great.


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Explore the Hatfield, McCoy story with new geo trail
WILLIAMSON, W.Va. - History buffs and adventure seekers now have a new opportunity to explore the story behind the Hatfield and McCoy feud with the recent launch of The Hatfield McCoy Geo Trail.
Thanks to the continued surge in interest generated by the History Channel miniseries, geocachers and those who are just plain curious can retrace the footsteps of these famous mountain families with the popular outdoor activity of geocaching following the new Hatfield McCoy Geo Trail.
Geocaching is a modern-day version of treasure hunting, with nearly 2,000,000 caches placed all over the world. On Sept. 1, the Tug Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Tour Pike County offices hosted 518 travelers from 18 states across the country who attended the kick-off event.
The trail is a collaborative effort between Williamson's Tug Valley Chamber of Commerce member Wendy H. Baisden and Pikeville's Tour Pike County member Kelly Moore. The Hatfield McCoy GeoTrail offers a new destination for geo travelers from across the country and around the world. The Hatfield McCoy GeoTrail includes 15 caches, placed in historic locations relating to the families and their conflicts. Participants use hand-held GPS units or their smart phones to seek the location of hidden objects. These caches can be found in Mingo and Logan counties in West Virginia and in Kentucky's Pike County.
Baisden and Moore are avid geocachers. Each was named GeoCacher of the month for August and September respectively by GroundSpeak Headquarters. They designed, placed and maintain the caches. In addition, a collectible coin is offered to those who travel to the area and obtain a copy of the passport needed to confirm each find. Visitors must carry the passport to each of the locations and stamp it with a specific stamp found in each of the geocache locations. The coin depicts the Tug River and the images of the patriarchs of the Hatfield and McCoy families, Devil Anse and Randall.
"The coin is our gift to the caching community," said Baisden, in a news release. "It is also an honor for us to be able to personally place each coin into the hands of the visitors."
"Wendy and I worked together to purchase the coins because we felt it was our way of giving back to the geocaching community," Kelly added. "It also adds to the excitement that visitors feel when coming to the area to geocache."
Plans are already in the works to offer a Labor Day weekend event in 2013. Details for the coming event will be posted as they are available on the Hatfield McCoy GeoTrail website.
The Geo Trail is a another way to experience an intriguing chapter in the history of Southern West Virginia and Eastern Kentucky. To learn more about the Hatfield McCoy Geo Trail, how to begin geocaching or how you can obtain your own collectible coin, go to www.hatfieldmccoygeotrail.com.

subset: commoncrawl


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On the web.
Taylor Kinney, best known as the now deceased werewolf Mason Lockwood on "The Vampire Diaries," or as Lady Gaga's boyfriend, is showing off his comic talents in a new web series. He will be appearing as Dave in "Dating Rules From My Future Self." The show follows 20-something app developer, Lucy (Shiri Appleby, "Roswell," "Life Unexpected") who starts to get texts from her future self giving her advice about how to change her dating life before she bungles it. Check out the first episode below.
A new episode will be featured on the Dating Rules Facebook page every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
For more about what else the cast and crew have been up to, be sure to check out Fox Options Kevin Williamson's New Series. Feel free to read our latest Vampire Diaries Weekly Recap. Join Soaps.com on Twitter @soapoperafan, and Facebook. Come tweet and Facebook with us about other soap operas, "Dirty Soap," "Glee," "Grey's Anatomy," "Vampire Diaries," and "Venice The Series."
Header Photo: CW
- Matt Purvis


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Below are the first 10 and last 10 pages of uncorrected machine-read text (when available) of this chapter, followed by the top 30 algorithmically extracted key phrases from the chapter as a whole.
Intended to provide our own search engines and external engines with highly rich, chapter-representative searchable text on the opening pages of each chapter. Because it is UNCORRECTED material, please consider the following text as a useful but insufficient proxy for the authoritative book pages.
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OCR for page 67
Procedures and Measures for Further Research 67 demographics, from households that were more difficult to contact. Although this research was able to confirm characteristics of non-respondents found in other work, it was not possible to draw any definitive conclusions about how many refusals/non-contacts should be converted for every call attempt to reduce the overall incidence of bias in data set. It is recommended this issue be examined in greater depth in the future. It is suggested that multiple call-history files be ana- lyzed as part of any future research effort. One of the main difficulties in comparing different call history files is that disposition codes are inconsistently defined among travel surveys. In light of this, it is suggested that future analysis should use files from contemporary surveys that are able to adopt the definitions proposed in this project. 4.3.8 Effect of Interview Mode on Recruitment and Non-Response Rates The effect of interview mode on recruitment and non-response rates is related to the section on personalized interview techniques, Section 4.3.3, except that the focus is different. In this case, the issue is whether different modes of survey will have different impacts on recruitment rates and on eventual non-response rates. The same experiment probably could be conducted for this as would be envisaged for Section 4.3.3. However, the difference in this case will be that the focus is on whether different interview modes used in recruitment are associated with signifi- cantly different recruitment rates and what effect the different modes have on actual completion rates for the survey. 4.3.9 Unknown Eligibility Rates In defining standardized procedures for computing response rates, the issue of the estimated rate of eligibility for those contacts that remained with unknown eligibility was recommended as being left to the survey firm. However, better guidance would be preferred for this issue because it has a critical impact on the calculation of response rates. Effectively, this requires the acquisi- tion of a number of additional call-history files from which analysis can be conducted on the eli- gibility rates at different points in the calling. Ideally, these files should be obtained from surveys that have used 10 or more calls as the limit for trying to recruit households so that it is possible to determine an eligibility rate for a 5-call limit from information obtained from calls made beyond the fifth attempt. 4.3.10 Data Archiving in Transportation In this report, we have proposed standardized procedures for data archiving for household travel surveys (see Section 2.6.4). However, past transportation surveys have not been archived according to the standards. The research that is needed is to archive data, using the standardized procedures, and then test the usefulness and effectiveness of the archiving. This may then result in modifications to the proposed procedures.


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We spend a lot of time staring at computers. "How do our computers see us?" wondered Kyle McDonald, a Brooklyn based tech-artist. To show us, he installed software on computers at Apple stores around New York that would take photos of people's faces, posted them to a Tumblr page, force-displayed them on computers in those same Apple stores, and then made a video mash-up of what he'd done.
Casey Chan at Gizmodo said, "SPOILER ALERT*, people look bored." (I personally prefer the lower tech version of this by a Swedish artist who set up a camera behind a one-way mirror of people looking at themselves.)
Regardless, does anything in the project leap out at you as an abuse of artistic license? Anyone who's ever been to an Apple store (or read this great WSJ piece) knows that the Apple experience is as carefully manicured as the hedges at Epcot. Apple doesn't take kindly to intruders who come in and start guerrilla pruning, especially when it involves the potentially illegal installation of photo-taking spyware on its MacBooks, Pennsylvania-Spycam style. The company reported Kyle McDonald to the authorities, and the Secret Service visited his house Thursday to take his computers into custody…
According to Mashable, the Secret Service agents had a search warrant for computer fraud, and "confiscated two computers, an iPod and two flash drives, and told McDonald that Apple would contact him separately."
For some reason, many tech journos are fiercely defending McDonald. Ryan Tate at Gawker quotes McDonald saying, "As I understand, photography in open spaces is legal unless explicitly prohibited." There are a couple problems with that. Photography in public spaces is legal. An Apple store is a private space owned by the company, and they can instruct people not to take photos there. More so, though, he took these photos of people without their knowledge using spyware installed on 100 Apple computers he didn't own. Artistic license don't license that.
Rather than a matter of the privacy of the people using the computers (as CNet casts it), this is about Apple's property rights. Plus, it's Apple. Apple. The company must have the feds on speed dial by now.
McDonald is no longer making comments to the press. He's been in touch with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, and they've wisely told him to stop talking. Anything you say, do, post photos of, and make videos about can be used against you in a court of law.


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banner credit to hongstarandme
banner credit to http://www.asianfanfics.com/profile/view/204988
hongstarandme and Butterflyshida are from:
credit to minariFini
credit to minariFini
Don't fall On me be stfriend." he joke while nudging his bestfriend on her side, while she was gawking at him.
They were friends since they were young, their parents is also close friends, and they were neighbors.
" I won't," she angrily snorted. " If I fall in love with you, forget that I'm your bestfriend, and if you fall in love with me, I'll forget that your my bestfriend also, and if that happened let's forget that we know each other." she angrily said and walked away hurt.
He look at his bestfriend fading figure. " but bestfriend I love you, what I'm going to do now?" he thought bitterly.(ctrl/cmd+v)
Lee Hongki
*18 years old, only child, kindhearted, and friendly to everyone.
*Senior at FNC High, he's not that good and also not bad in the class, he's just in the middle. Mr. Popular at school.
*Playboy, girls swarm around him because of his look, and charm, and that pissed him. He change his girlfriend when he got board, but that is not the real reason, the truth is he's doing that to hide his true feeling toward his best friend.
*Madly in love to his bestfriend Hyerin, the girl that brought him into the cloud nine everytime she's beside him, but also the one who brought all the pain, and sadness in his life.
Park Hyerin
*18 years old, only child, kindhearted, friendly, and bubbly
*Senior at FNC High, Good in the class.
*A play girl, boys swarm around her because of her beauty. Change his boyfriend like clothes, because she wanted to hide her feeling toward his best friend.
*Madly in love with his bestfriend Lee Hongki, the only guy that's own her heart, the one that brought happiness to her life, but also the one that take it away from her, and replace it with heart ache and pain.
Jang Geunsuk
*18 years old, a bad , spoiled brat.
*transfered student good in class.
*More good looking than Hongki, all girls swarm around him, wanted to have his attention.
*Geunsuk want, Geunsuk get, his motto, but when he bump into Hyerin, everything change.
*They are, Song Seunghyun, Choi Minhwan, Lee Jaejin, Choi Jonghoon, and Lee Hongki.
*The popular groups of boys in school, cause they are all good looking, and every girl want to be near them, and become their girl friends.
*Varsity player of the school, boys envy them, but girl praised them.
I know I didn't finish my other story yet, but I just wan't to post the foreword of this fic. It keep popping in my mind, and I don't wan't to forget it.
I'll update this after I finish my current story, so guys hoping for your support again.
I own the plot of this story, if ever it look like yours just tell me and I'll edit, cause it's just a coincidence.
Picture and video included in this story is not mine, credit all goes to the rightful owner.
Can someone make a banner for this story, I would be glad if anyone can make it for me. Thank you, and don't forget to comments and subscrib


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To empower Latinos and other minorities by increasing their participation in the democratic process. This is accomplished by training, organizing and mobilizing leaders into an agenda that reflects their aspirations and values. Upon completion the graduates can partnership with LLI, to coordinate voter education in their communities.
The Academy will focus on:
There are two tracks:
(1)Candidate/CampaignManagerTraining (2)Community-Organizing Training
For the Candidate/Campaign Manager Track
Subjects include:
(1) Principles of managing election campaigns
(2) Developing and delivering messages
(3) Public speaking
(4) How to handle media
(5) Identifying issues for effective platforms
(6) Fundraising techniques
(7) Building a volunteer base
(8) Absentee and early voter techniques
(9) Campaign Finance
(10) Field Operations – election district analysis
and strategy, phone banking, literature mailing
(11) Volunteer
(12) Polling
(13) Turn out the vote
(14) Voter registration
For the Community-Organizing Track
Subjects include:
(1)Sustainable jobs / sustainable communities
(2)Principles of organizing tactics and strategies
(3)How to handle the press
(4)Nonprofits and the community role
(5)Public speaking
(6)Building coalitions
(7)Community / labor coalitions
(8)Students / community links
(9)Organizing strategies and tactics for young leaders
For more information on the Latino Leadership Institute, contact Jaime Estades at


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Full detailed profile on Shane Morasco Balsom Played by Austin Williams on One Life To Live Daytime Soap Opera.
Birthday: November 13, 1996
Shane arrives in the school gym and glares at Jack. Kids everywhere watch and laugh at the video of Shane. Shane approaches Jack and hands him his inhaler. "I thought you need this?" Jack asks. Shane reminds Jack he didn't care about that the other day. Shane walks away, claiming he doesn't need the inhaler anymore.
Out in the hallway, Destiny sees Matthew and accuses him of watching Shane's video. Matthew was checking to see when Clint's being arraigned. Matthew assures Destiny the proof they have against Clint isn't what it looks like. His uncle can't go to prison. She wonders what's had Matthew so jumpy lately. Matthew refuses to talk about it then leaves. Shane appears. Destiny assures Shane he'll get through this mess, like she did when kids picked on her. She begs Shane to tell someone what happened. He needs to stop Jack. Shane thinks it'll only make matters worse and walks away.
As Gigi and Rex arrive at the school, Shane makes his way up some stairs. Destiny points in the direction of where Shane took off to and says, "Oh my God, the roof."
Shane finds the carriage house empty and wonders how he'll ever go back to school. He shivers and thinks about what the kids did to him. Shane opens his laptop and is relieved no one's commented on what happened in the gym. Viki arrives looking for Charlie. He's not there and hasn't been around in a while. Shane wishes Charlie was still his grandpa and says, "Everything was so much better before." Viki assures Shane that Charlie loves him. Shane knows Clint doesn't want them and brings up how the kids in school know it too. After Shane assures Viki he's okay, she leaves. Shane goes back to his laptop and sees the naked video of him posted on MyFace. Later, Gigi and Rex arrive home and find a goodbye note from Shane. Gigi breaks down in Rex's arms.
In gym class, Shane is warned by a teacher to take it easy while playing basketball. Shane assures Jack he didn't say anything about him taking his inhaler. Jack warns what'll happen if Shane ever opens his mouth. Shane has to use his inhaler then appeals to Jack. Jack takes offense and warns Shane to keep his mouth shut. The boys are ordered to the showers. Jack's friends assure him they know what to do. Later, Shane returns in only a towel. He tries to retrieve his clothes from Jack and his friends. As the kids pick on Shane, Jack pulls Shane's towel off, leaving him naked. "I hate you!" Shane screams. "I hate all of you!"
Starr appears in the gym just as Shane rushes back into the bathroom. She's there to get Jack out of school but demands to know if the boy who ran off was Shane. Jack tries to get Starr to leave, but Rex and Gigi appear. Rex grabs Jack, slams him up against a wall and demands, "What the hell are you doing to my kid?"
Dani runs into Jack outside of the school gym. He rushes off with Shane's inhaler. They hear a noise coming from the gym and find Shane suffering an asthma attack.
In the gym, Rex and Gigi are relieved to see Shane's fine. The nurse had an extra inhaler Gigi had left with her. Shane explains he must've lost his inhaler and screams that it's causing him nothing but issues. Rex and Gigi demand to know what's going on. Shane thinks back to the kids pushing him around and says he really threw the inhaler out. He's sick of being a loser. Gigi says the inhaler was expensive then beats herself up over the comment. Rex and Gigi worry Shane's keeping something from them.
At the diner, Jack, Blair and Starr talk about Todd. As James appears with flowers for Starr, Shane glances over at Jack. Gigi reminds Shane to be nice to Jack. He's going through a lot with his father. Jack gives Blair a hard time about having to take the bus. Blair brings up how nice it was for Shane to apologize. Jack calls out for Shane to wait up and thanks him for the written apology. The boys leave for school. Blair and Gigi chat about Todd and the problems surrounding their sons. James lets Gigi know he's looking for a job. Starr urges James to post about a job on MyFace. He does but has no luck finding one.
Outside the diner, Shane apologizes to Jack for what's happening with Todd. Jack calls Shane names, warns that he better keep his mouth shut about him taking the raffle money and threatens, "I'll put you in a coma or worse."
« Back to Shane Morasco Balsom profile


text: I live month to month and God definitely uses my money for His will. I don't have enough money for my rent, my paycheck was too small and now I'm on my knees praying for God to intervene in this problem. I have faith in Him even if he doesn't do anything, I know this is test. Part of me wants to think I deserve a miracle because I give money to God, but that's not right at all! This is a test on my heart and mind and I thank The Holy Spirit for helping me ignore those discouraging thoughts and feelings that come to mind during this trial.


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Clipping about Paul Bransom, 19--
Physical Details: Clipping : 1 item : ill. ; 37 x 11 cm.
Creator: unidentified
Description: Clipping with a brief introduction to Paul Bransom as a painter of animal portraits.
Includes reproductions of his paintings of a fox and a rabbit; and a bull fur seal.
Forms part of: Paul Bransom papers, 1862-1985, bulk 1904-1979
Rights Statement: Current copyright status is undetermined
Citation: Clipping about Paul Bransom, 19--
Digital ID: 13848
- Animal painters
- Animals in art
- Bransom, Paul


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Posts from the 'forestry' Category
A growing woodland 2015
July 9, 2015
Gabriel Hemery
The same year that I started planting Paradise Wood, a new forest and centre for forestry research in Oxfordshire, I started recording a view of the former arable farm from the nearby vantage point of the Wittenham Clumps.
2015 is the 19th year of photographing the same view of the landscape, albeit with some gaps between some years.
My first post about this photomonitoring project provides more information about the location – read more
European Forest Week – let's celebrate
December 8, 2013
Gabriel Hemery
Europe's forests are thriving—make the smart choice and use them responsibly—so says the Food & Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations.
Europe leads the way in sustainable forest management, both politically and practically, being the only global region where forests are growing in volume and expanding in area. The forest sector in Europe is playing a lead role in "greening" the economy by improving human well-being and social equity, while reducing environmental risks and ecological scarcities.
The idea behind European Forest Week, which runs from 9 – 13 December, is to celebrate and raise awareness on the good health of forests in Europe.
Some of the main messages of European Forest Week
- Wood— the smart choice in your daily life and the renewable way to build, heat and furnish your home
- Healthy forests safeguard Europe's future
- Sustainable forests contribute to a sustainable economy
- Using forest products, the smart choice, will reduce our environmental footprint
- Innovative wood products are the future – from traditional wood products to the latest high-performance engineered products, quality wood products meet traditional and modern structural needs.
- Have you seen your green factory, visited by millions of people every year?
Woodland biosecurity – a simple guide
November 11, 2012
Gabriel Hemery
Biosecurity – preventing the introduction and spread of harmful organisms – is big news at long last! The arrival of Chalara fraxinea in Britain has brought this important issue to the fore. However, I found it difficult to find simple guidance on the steps we should take when visiting or working in woodlands, or with individual trees in our trees and cities. Many of the record number of readers of this blog over the last week have found it after using searches such as:
"what should I do if I find Chalara fraxinea?"
"how do I clean my boots?"
While we wait for more detailed specific advice to come from scientists and Government officials in relation to Chalara fraxinea it would be prudent to follow the protocols developed to minimise the spread of another pathogen; Phytophthora. So my first recommendation is to visit the Forestry Commission's webpage on Biosecurity Measures, which includes the advice currently given to all Forestry Commission staff for their routine visits to woodlands in a handy pdf guide.
I have put together the following simple guide on woodland biosecurity.
Biosecurity behaviour
- Clean your footwear after visiting a woodland. Wear Wellington boots, as these are easier to clean thoroughly. To do this effectively you must remove first all soil and leaf litter from your soles. You will need water and a stiff hand brush.
- If you have been to a high risk site apply a detergent to sterilise them, although it is good practice after all visits.
- Sterilise your tools. Be careful that the chemicals you use do not harm trees (or other wildlife). Read more about sterilising forestry and woodland tools.
- If you drive into a woodland, even on a road, wash your tyres to remove soil and leaf litter.
Biosecurity personal kit
The most common question I'm asked is what chemical should I use to sterilise or disinfect. The one recommended, or at least adopted, by the Forestry Commission currently is Propellar™. This is available only directly from one supplier (see below) and must be ordered wholesale in 12×1ltr containers as a minimum order. I was amazed when I searched the websites of two of the major forestry and arboricultural supply companies that neither had any disinfection chemicals listed. This is really shocking! Try it yourself. Go to Google.co.uk and enter a search string that allows you to search within a certain website (you will need to know the url of the forestry/arb supplier): try "site:sxxxxxxxx.co.uk disinfectant sterilise" [replace the url with the supplier's]. I'd be happy to be proven wrong but I've not found one yet that came up with any goods.
Propellar™ – chemical to sterilise footwear and equipment (always read the Health & Safety label). The supplier for the disinfectant Propellar™ is:
Evans Chemical Supplies,
18B Barncoose Industrial Estate
Tel. 01209 213643
Email: Evans Chemicals
- handbrush – to remove soil from boots
- disposable gloves – protection from chemicals used
- safety goggles – protection from chemicals used
- water container (e.g. 5L for personal/15L for groups) – to carry water in vehicle for cleaning after visit
- airtight storage container – to hold brush and chemicals
- soap and towels – to wash hands
- bags – to dispose of material
- storage box – to hold all biosecurity items together
If you have advice born from experience or other comments then I would be pleased to hear from you. Use the Comment box then you can share your experiences with other readers.
Finally, this advice can be followed by woodland owners, arboriculturists, foresters and anyone who accesses woodland regularly. Whether it is practicable or feasible for the average member of the public to adopt these measures is doubtful. Nonetheless, we can lead by example and on high risk sites or those with special high value (e.g. ancient trees or important habitats) particularly, it may be possible to erect signage or equipment to encourage visitors to undertake simple biosecurity measures.
Gabriel Hemery
Further Information
After probably the largest-ever rapid survey of Britain's woodlands, new incidences of Chalara fraxinea, the fungal pathogen that causes ash dieback, have been found in a possible 100 sites across the East and South of England.
After the announcement last week that Chalara fraxinea was in the 'wild' in the countryside of East Anglia in England, Forestry Commission staff have undertaken an unprecedented rapid survey. Every 10km square in Britain where ash trees were likely to be found was targeted, selecting four sites in each sampled square. The news is not good, as I predicted (see post).
Chalara fraxinea is present possibly in at least 100 sites, rather than the two where it was originally reported just one week ago. In addition to new confirmed sightings in Kent, possible occurrences extend to the Midlands and even Wales (see Forestry Commission latest map). Note that these are still to be confirmed officially but samples collected from many seem indisputable, even without any scientific analysis.
Today I visited Wayland Wood in south Norfolk as part of a specialist task force convened by Government. We viewed an area where hundreds of coppice stools of ash had succumbed to dieback (see pictures below).
Observing the branches of one more mature tree (with a stem about 30cm dbh) it was clear that this tree had suffered dieback during Summer 2011. This means that the Chalara fraxinea was present in Britain at least one whole year before realised, as indicated from tree physiology alone. When accounting for the life-cycle of Chalara fraxinea, then it is more likely that it was present from Summer 2010 if not even earlier. It is clear that the pathogen arrived in Britain by stealth before anybody recognised it.
Click to enlarge images
A stakeholder meeting is to be held on London today, and more details will emerge about the sightings that I report here. Scientists are working around the clock to confirm observations made in the field, by using sophisticated DNA sampling techniques on collected samples. Further expert groups are being set up and all concerned are working hard to provide practical advice to foresters, arboriculturists, nurseries and others.
Gabriel Hemery
Further information:
There has been too much knee-jerk reactionary panic to the arrival of ash dieback Chalara fraxinea to Britain's shores, and a tedious jostling for position and profile between NGOs and others that supposedly put our trees first. Just days before it became a reality I wrote about the inevitable spread on ash dieback beyond the initial sightings in tree nurseries (read more), and subsequently about its likely impact (read more). The news about the disease has since become a very major story in Britain's media and a widespread topic in daily conversation.
Here is my proposed ten-point plan, in which some actions may surprise some.
- Do not fell mature ash trees in diseased areas.
- Lift the indiscriminate import ban on ash trees.
- Increase urgently funding for genetic research into resistance to ash dieback.
- Support research into understanding the pathogenic fungus Chalara fraxinea.
- Provide silvicultural practice guidelines in dealing with ash dieback.
- Initiate public education about tree health and biosecurity.
- Support citizen science initiatives that enable monitoring of tree health (e.g. TreeWatch)
- Provide funding sufficient to implement the Forestry Commission Tree Health Strategy (see below).
- Bolster Forest Research science funding into tree health.
- Stop blaming the Government for ash dieback.
1. Do not fell mature ash trees in diseased areas
Killing trees in areas around diseased trees could wipe out any of nature's in-built resistance to Chalara fraxinea. It is clear from continental Europe that up to one-third of ash trees exhibit some resistance to ash dieback. Ash is a very genetically diverse tree species, unlike elm (which is why that species was devastated by Dutch elm disease), so we must give nature a change to display this resistance. Mature and resistance ash trees should be allowed to stand, allowed or encouraged (via tree breeding scientists if necessary) to interbreed and to produce our next generation of healthy ash trees.
Those trees that do succumb will provide fantastic deadwood habitat if allowed to remain standing (when safe to do so), or can be felled when convenient to provide highly-valuable timber when the market demands it, rather than the market being flooded due to mass-felling and the inevitable price crash.
2. Lift the indiscriminate import ban on ash trees
The phrase "shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted" comes to mind. The presence of ash dieback in our nurseries was known about since February. We may have been able to have prevent this had the ban been in place before 2012. Now, it is too late, and pointless given that the disease is loose in the 'wild'. The disease will spread without much influence from an ash import ban, or even a moratorium on planting ash, which will only, at best, slow its distribution.
It is quite likely that the occurrences in the East of England arose by other means rather than on young plants. It can be spread by water droplets, bird's feet, forestry and tree machinery, footwear, dog's feet, car tyres and by wind. Its arrival in Britain was inevitable. Instead of a blanket ban I would like to see a selective control on young trees imported; allowing in only those that have shown some resistance to the disease.
3. Increase urgently funding for genetic research into resistance to ash dieback
We should increase collaboration with international scientists. Some involvement with the Fraxback programme (see below) exists and should be built upon. Work by the Future Trees Trust on selective breeding on ash should be supported further; specifically to enable disease resistance trials to take place, ideally jointly with other European partners.
4. Support research into understanding the pathogenic fungus Chalara fraxinea
As in 3., increase collaboration with international scientists, and recognise that increased funding may be necessary.
5. Provide silvicultural practice guidelines in dealing with ash dieback
We must build on the excellent work done in continental Europe where there exists over a decade of experience in dealing with the pathogen to provide straightforward silvicultural guidelines to forestry practioners (e.g. Thomsen and Skovsgaard 2012). We need some clear guidelines both for foresters and arboriculturists in how best to deal with the disease and with diseased trees.
6. Initiate public education about tree health and biosecurity
There exists widespread ignorance about tree health and biosecurity among the public, and a lack of knowledge by decision makers concerning the capacity of the public to respond positively to increasing biosecurity measures in the countryside. Research is required to tackle the latter, and a more co-ordinated response required by the sector to tackle the former; leaving any chest-beating and self-promotion behind.
7. Support citizen science initiatives that enable monitoring of tree health
The age of the citizen scientist is upon us. There are a number of schemes and initiatives running currently that provide the wherewithal for members of the public to take an active part in monitoring tree health across the country. While recognising the irreplacability of the trained scientist, we must also recognise the increasing strains placed upon our beleagured tree scientists from ever-decreasing funding (and therefore manpower) coupled with ever-increasing tree health issues. Some examples of citizen science initiatives include Ashtag which has been set up to monitor ash dieback, and the broader tree health initiative TreeWatch – Adopt an Ash.
8. Provide funding sufficient to implement the Forestry Commission Tree Health Strategy
The Forestry Commission has developed an excellent Tree Health Strategy. This now needs to acted upon urgently and funding provided sufficient to ensure that Britain's trees and forests are protected and enhanced into the future. See link below.
9. Bolster Forest Research science funding into tree health
During 2012 alone tree scientists at Forest Research have had to face an Asian longhorn beetle outbreak, sweet chestnut blight, and ash dieback. This is in addition to oak processionary moth, Phytophthora ramorum in Larch, and acute oak decline that were already big-enough problems to tackle. It is important to recognise that it is not just the science work itself that is stretched, when delivered by an already small team, but that every new disease or pest demands time. Time in dealing with the media, with politicians needing briefing, from concerned and well-meaning members of the public and organisations. Every meeting attended and briefing note produced is less time spent on finding out more about the problem and how it can be tackled. Every budget cut stretches further their capacity to deliver and demands more time spent away from the science trying to raise external funding.
The team of scientists at Forest Research are an amazing resource but anyone who is lucky enough to deal with them will know that they face an impossible task, even before "the biggest story since Dutch elm disease" entered their work stream. They need more funding so that their team can be expanded and better resourced. A key objective from the Tree Health Strategy (see 8.) is "secure sufficient resources to ensure that biosecurity is not compromised."
10. Stop blaming the Government for ash dieback
Nothing will stop the spread of ash dieback across Britain, and given its relentless spread from Eastern Europe over the past 20 years, its arrival on our shores was inevitable. The current actions led by Defra will, at best, only slow its spread. Pretending that ash dieback in Britain is the fault of Government is simply shallow chest-beating, and everyone knows it. Let's get on with the actions above by working together for the good of our trees and forests.
Gabriel Hemery
Read more
Name an iconic tree species for Britain … Did you answer oak or Scots pine? My guess is that it was one or the other. There is another species however that holds a unique place in British landscapes, not just in lowland forests, but in our uplands, in wet woodlands, among hedgerows and fields, in streets, parks and gardens – the ash Fraxinus excelsior. It may not demand our attention in the same way as some other tree species but it is extremely valuable and important in so many ways.
Take a look at the distribution map (right) for ash – every blue dot represents a 10×10km square in Britain where ash is present. Very few places in Britain are without ash trees. It is a vital component in the ecosystems of many mixed woodlands, being an ideal companion to oak and other hardwoods. It regenerates readily being adapted perfectly to the British climate. Its wood remains one of the best materials for sporting goods, makes beautiful furniture, while its properties for firewood are unrivaled.
Imagine therefore a scenario where ash may disappear from our landscapes. Horrifying – yes; a reality – quite possibly.
Readers may have picked up the worrying news that during an official inspection carried out in February 2012, symptoms of ash dieback were observed on Fraxinus excelsior in a nursery located in southern England. Suspect symptoms were identified in a batch of 600 plants which had been imported from the Netherlands in November 2011. The presence of Chalara fraxinea (EPPO Alert List) was confirmed on the basis of the morphological characteristics of the pathogenic fungus. Eradication measures were put immediately into place and the infected lot of F. excelsior was destroyed. Further investigations on the site revealed suspect symptoms in other Fraxinus species which had also been introduced into the nursery in November 2011. Investigations have been carried out to trace-back all Fraxinus consignments originating from the same Dutch supplier which had been imported into the United Kingdom, as well as to trace-forward all plants from the infected lot which have already been sold by the British nursery.
In Denmark, around 90% of all ash trees have been affected by Chalara fraxinea, and it is rampant across northern and central Europe. Young ash trees are particularly vulnerable and can die within one year, while older trees although capable initially of surviving the dieback, are likely to die after two or three consecutive years of infection.
According to the official line (see links below) the fungal disease has not yet been found in the natural or wider environment in Great Britain, that is, outside nurseries and recent plantings. My guess is though that it is already loose and rampant in our landscape. History tells us that we usually become aware of serious pests and pathogens late in the day. Pests and diseases can appear and then take time to impact too. For instance, Dutch elm disease was first detected in Britain in 1927, and was probably present before then, yet it was not until the 1960s that millions of elm trees were affected by the disease and mature elm trees wiped from our landscape.
Chalara fraxinea is being treated as a quarantine disease under national emergency measures, and it is important that suspected cases of the disease are reported. See the links below to aid in identification.


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How can the cost of this project go from $1,000,000 (that we were sold on by Commission Hudson) to now $2,500,000? And just for the record "Grants" is the modern word for free from the US Government. Wrong there is no such thing as free! That's our tax dollars being wasted again. STOP THIS MADNESS!
Speaking of Dean look at the facebook page "Retire Mike Dean From Mobile County Commission". All you need to know about his 12 years in office.
Speaking of Dean look at the facebook page "Retire Mike Dean From Mobile County Commission". All you need to know about his 12 years in office.
Speaking of Dean look at the facebook page "Retire Mike Dean From Mobile County Commission". All you need to know about his 12 years in office.
Seem to me any man willing to put his own money up to run wants to make a change. Dean on the other hand has every crook in Mobile putting money in his pocket to make sure things don't change.
Dean's football story matches his time in office, It's all about him. What I did, me, my, it all about me. His time in office reflex this same thing. Time to send him packing. He is not a team player. 16,000 jobs crazy, 400 miles of paved road no way, and no new taxes...he raise taxes on new home construction and tobacco products.
The last person "which there are few" to leave Mike Dean's camp besure to cut out the lights because the PARTY is over!
Jon Gray is the mole behind all this. He has been paid to cover up Dean and Nodine messes for years. Who do you think got them that speaking contract in Pensacola? "Birds of a feather flock together". I guess Carl and Wolfe will have to consider themselves "Birds of a feather" also. Not a bad image of Carl.
What is more important to our City Council a Dog Park or feeding homeless? A Dog Park, homeless people don't vote. Shame on you City Council!
Same old "good ole boy" connections. John Williams as County Commissioner will put Mayor Jones in control of the city and county.....Wake up.....We have too get new blood in office and vote these guys out of office.
Here we go again Mobile. We have yet another business leaving Mobile County. Mobile County "so called" Leaders do not understand what a business environment should even act like. We have "so called" leaders that have never had to make payroll out of their own pockets, our stand in the unemployment line to feed their families. Mayor Jones and Mike Dean should be over there begging UPS not to move, but their pride would never allow that. There is nothing we can do about Mayor Jones right now but his day is coming when he is voted out in 2013. Now Dean is another story! EVERONE in District 3 look at the men running against Dean for the 2012 elections. All four of these men are much more qualified then Dean. Our choices are John Williams a City Council Member, John Graham a local businessman who almost beat Dean last election, Jerry Carl who has 30 years in business for himself and Nick Matranga a retired USMC officer and pilot. Baby it doesn't get more AMERICAN than that. Get behind one of these candidates and get him elected. If not don't complain two years from now when you are eating double portion of this "good ole boy" crap were being fed today!


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October 18, 2013
Top Stories
Finding home in new placesWith all the changes and adjustments to college life during my first year, there may not be a lot that I remember. I'm sure I drank too much one night and said some things I shouldn't have, or made a friend or two that I knew wouldn't last the school year, but one memory has stuck out in my mind for the last four years, and it really never occurred to me until now.
It was a cold January night, and I was almost in tears in the stairwell of Hassinger Hall. I was having a conversation with my mother about our plans for the weekend and how they might change due to an impending snowstorm. As much as I love Susquehanna now, I was hating every moment of it then and was more homesick than Dorothy in "The Wizard of Oz." I had it set in my mind that I was going home that weekend come hell or high water, and there was nothing she was going to say or do that would change that.
I guess in my first-year mind, my idea of home was just that: my physical, permanent address. As my time at Susquehanna continued, I began to find where I belonged, and my attitudes improved for the better. I guess you could say that I grew to find a home away from home at Susquehanna.
I look back over the last four years, and even back to high school, on homecoming weekends, and how I never really saw them amounting to much of anything. There was no nostalgia, no one I particularly was dying to see, nor was there any care in the world for who was going to be homecoming queen.
I had seen and heard alumni rant and rave about all the excitement that comes with homecoming, but I never fully understood what that was about. This being my senior year, it finally hit me.
In my post-Susquehanna life, I'll be out in the real world, forced to pick up everything I have become used to and having to start anew. I'm going to have to start the next chapter in my life, and with each chapter comes a new home.
I can foresee those first few weeks, maybe even months, as being the rockiest journey for me, much like adjusting to college.
There's no doubt that I'm going to become homesick. I'll probably start asking questions like "Why doesn't the real world offer a meal plan?" or "Why doesn't my boss read me 'The Night Before Christmas' during the holiday season?"
Looking ahead to the future, it's exciting to think that as homesick as I become, for that one homecoming weekend, I know that all my professors, friends and alumni will welcome me home with open arms, waiting to hear about all my accomplishments.
The editorials of The Crusader reflect the views of individual members of the editorial board. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the entire editorial board or of the university. The content of the Forum page is the responsibility of the editor in chief and the Forum editor
FORUM HEADLINESStudent groups starts the conversation Finding home in new places Editors juggles friends and school work Travel reveals cultural shifts First-year reflects on first homecoming Graduate describes lifestyle after SU Chaplain's Corner
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All the latest reviews of BD-Java titles.
For news on upcoming BD-J enabled movies, click here.
Blu by Chris Adamson
I maintain a certain fascination with Blu-Ray, against my better judgement, and this blog is an attempt to pull many thoughts and facts together. It starts with Dragon's Lair… because these things always start with Dragon's Lair.
Dragon's Lair Q&A with David Foster
Mr. Foster is the general manager at Digital Leisure and a 22-year veteran of the gaming industry who was responsible for developing Dragon's Lair (Blu-ray) using the Sonic Solutions Scenarist authoring tools. Dragon's Lair has now become what seems to be the official test disc for the Blu-ray player manufacturers, and Digital Leisure has been sending discs to a number of the large manufacturers. The title is available from the Digital Leisure website, and from Amazon.com.
Ratatouille: Gusteau's Gourmet Game
The entire game takes place in the frenetic confines of Gusteau's Parisian restaurant. You are a chef in the kitchen and orders come flying in fast and furious from diners coming into the restaurant.
Read Full review.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
There are only very few mass produced consumer products that can lay claim to being true works of art, and Disney's two new entries to the Blu-ray arena, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, may represent the best that high-definition discs today can offer, and as such can be said to have crossed the line into true art.
Read Full review.
Dragon's Lair
The Blu-ray BD-J version of Dragon's Lair is a great example of what can be accomplished using BD-Java at this early stage in its development. It is a visually stunning title with a unique game play that might frustrate newcomers to the game, but which will undoubtedly bring back fond memories to nostalgic old-timers.
Read Full Review.
Chicken Little
If you've picked up Speed on Blu-ray and have been somewhat disappointed by the rather barebones and unimaginative use of BD-Java in the movie, then Chicken Little from Disney is the antidote to this emotional malaise. The BD-J features in Disney's Chicken Little are stellar examples of what BD-Java can do. If this is a teaser sample of what Disney can do with the technology, then I cannot wait for what other surprises they have in store for us in the Pirates of Carribbean movies and Cars later this Spring 2007!
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
This title featured several BD-J features, including a keyword search engine called Search Content, a bookmark function called Personal Scene Selections, a Trivia Track, and a first person shooter game entitled LXG Shooting Gallery, which will be the focus of this review.
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