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Issue 2, 2011Virtual Prototyping for Software Developers
Virtual prototyping is becoming increasingly important to embedded software developers, engineers, managers and marketing teams. Marc Serughetti, Synopsys, explains what virtual prototyping is, and how those affected by growing hardware-software complexity can use it to produce better software and systems, faster.
Before considering why virtual prototyping is growing in importance to the embedded software community, it's worth acknowledging the critical importance that software plays in determining the success, or otherwise, of system-on-chip (SoC) projects.
Research firm IBS estimates that embedded processor cores feature in more than 90% of today's SoC designs that are manufactured in 65-nanometer (nm) geometries and below. Accordingly, SoC design teams now spend more time writing software than building hardware.
The rise of software is due to the way that it enables product companies to get more from their hardware. Software can extend the use of a chip, which allows for higher production volumes and ultimately more profitable designs.
These trends affect the development process in two ways. First, system development must cater for the development, integration and test of the software itself. Second, the design team must account for software in the hardware verification flow so that it can verify the system with realistic user scenarios.
The Cost of Being LateThe traditional approach to system development is to design the hardware, make a physical prototype, write the code, and then integrate the hardware and software. Because many projects target fast-moving markets, this approach is now too slow and too risky. A three-month delay on a product with a total lifetime of 30 months can reduce profits by 50%.
Figure 1: Traditional hardware-then-software embedded project design flow
Increasingly, semiconductor companies are looking for ways to differentiate themselves beyond the feature sets of their chips. By adopting virtual prototyping they can offer better support to their systems and OEM customers.
Enabling an Early Start on Software Virtual prototyping allows a software team to start its development efforts even before the hardware team has begun writing RTL code. This approach can lead to a nine to 12-month market advantage, which for a growing number of development teams is impossible to ignore. And many find that the secondary benefits of virtual prototyping are making their teams so much more productive and efficient – for example, during debugging. Virtual prototypes offer excellent control and visibility for the purpose of debugging and analyzing the behavior of the software. In fact, the debug capabilities are far better than those available when using the hardware itself. Virtual prototypes offer other advantages in addressing multicore designs and in enabling globally distributed teams to work together.
Virtual prototypes can be made available just a few weeks into the project schedule, which allows the software team to begin porting operating systems and developing device drivers without having to wait for the hardware team to write a single line of RTL code. Figure 2 shows how a "parallelized" flow leads to a significant schedule improvement.
Figure 2: Parallelized hardware-software design flow using virtual prototypes
Virtual Prototyping BasicsA virtual prototype is a fully functional software representation of a hardware design that encompasses virtually any combination of hardware. For example, a single- or multicore SoC, multiple SoCs, microcontrollers, peripheral devices, I/O, and optionally a model of the user interface. It provides an unambiguous executable specification of the system design, which developers can use to develop, integrate and test the software.
A virtual prototype runs on a general-purpose PC or workstation and is detailed enough to execute unmodified production code, including drivers, the OS, middleware and applications at speeds close to – or even faster than – real-time.
Developers can refine the virtual prototype as the project progresses, for example, extending the virtual prototype based on the software design task. To support an initial OS port will require the ISS and a few key peripherals such as a UART and timer. The development team can add more complex peripherals to support the needs of the schedule.
Virtual prototypes provide more visibility and controllability for the software developer. This functionality must come with virtual prototype specific development tools covering system-level software debug and analysis as well as the combination of hardware-software analysis. They must also integrate with existing software tools such as debuggers, which should be able to synchronize with the virtual prototyping software tools.
Virtual prototypes should also integrate with the hardware verification and system validation flows. These flows use additional tools such as FPGA prototypes, RTL simulation, physical system simulation, test bench equipment and even virtual IO that enable the virtual prototype to connect to physical hardware, such as USB or Ethernet.
Practical UsesThe following examples highlight several embedded software development use cases for virtual prototypes.
OS Bring-Up and PortingBecause they offer excellent debug visibility and enable software to be run long before physical hardware becomes available, virtual prototypes have the potential to revolutionize the way software is ported to SoCs, beginning with OS bring-up and continuing to the porting of application software.
The effort and risk associated with bringing up software stacks, such as Android, is very unpredictable. Software engineers have to deal with large, unfamiliar software bodies and integrating hardware and software throws up unknown problems. Often, there are many assumptions made in writing the software that do not hold true for specific hardware variants. Once it is working, the porting team has to make sure that it is properly integrated from a function, performance, and power perspective.
Virtual prototypes greatly improve the bring-up task. They provide instant debugging capabilities so that the development team does not have to rely on having any embedded software debug infrastructure up and running before the team starts debugging. They provide much better visibility than a typical software debugger, giving full visibility into all aspects of the software and the hardware, such as registers and signals, which maximizes the debug scope.
Most importantly, virtual prototypes prevent users from becoming overwhelmed with raw debug data from instruction and register traces. OS-awareness plugins for virtual prototypes abstract the system debug information to a level that developers can absorb, enabling them to follow a successful top-down debug flow. For example, an engineer could trace a driver defect in a phone chip from the outgoing call in the telephony manager to the freezing phone. This greatly helps to shorten the time to debug – the time to get from the symptom to the cause of the problem, making the whole development cycle more predictable.
Developing DriversA virtual prototype can be used to model a device such as a digital still camera, a USB video camera or a media player. If the driver is for a USB device, for example, the team can use virtual I/O capabilities to emulate the device I/O in software, connect the virtualized product to a Windows or Linux host on which the host controller resides, and to the USB device in order to develop the driver.
Alternatively, the team can use the virtual prototype to simulate the device host environment and connect the host PC to a real-world USB device. The real-world device, say a memory stick, is connected to the host PC using the host controller driver and hub driver provided by the Windows operating system. A USB client device driver connects this real-world device to the host executing in the virtual prototype. This way it is easy to develop, debug and verify host controller drivers and applications for different host operating systems.
Software Centric Power AnalysisBattery life has become the "Achilles heel" for the success of mobile software platforms such as Android. The mileage users can get from their batteries is severely impacted by software. Software implicitly and explicitly defines the power states of major system components while the phone is used and even while it is not used. In a mobile phone, the LCD alone can consume as much power as the CPU. A software power inefficiency or malfunction can quickly cause a drop of 5x in terms of stand-by time.
All of the complex, highly distributed software entities for power saving and management have to be vertically integrated and need to cooperate to guarantee efficient battery use. While software looks fine from a functionality and performance stand-point, it could well be that the battery drains four times faster. The usage scenarios play an important role as they define how the phone interacts with the environment. However, how can you debug your phone while it is locked in your pocket? How can you make sure that scenarios are deterministic to compare different implementation options? Moreover, debugging power defects comes with another major issue. In low power mode such as 'suspend', the embedded debug service is likely to be suspended as well. In addition to that, any debug interaction with the device is intrusive and severely affects the power figures. Furthermore, expensive lab equipment is required to perform a sufficiently fine-grain power profiling to determine which of the components is the most critical.
Virtual prototypes are a very useful vehicle to overcome those challenges. They provide excellent debug visibility at the right level of abstraction such as OS process traces. They can be instrumented with information that characterize power. The execution is controlled via deterministic scenario scripts that drive the IO of the virtual prototype, such as generating user-input via the touchscreen controller, setting GPS coordinates through the UART, initiating a phone call, etc. During simulation, power analysis data is collected along with other hardware and software traces to enable root-cause analysis and debugging to allow optimization of the software.
SummaryThere is mounting pressure on embedded software teams. Increasingly, product success rests on their shoulders, and with software development time dominating the project, the software team cannot afford to wait for the hardware in order to get started.
Virtual prototypes offer software teams a way of creating software somewhat independently of physical hardware (silicon), which can result in a nine to 12-month market advantage. Software teams can start developing code even before the hardware team has produced any RTL. Development teams can use this productivity advantage to get to market faster or allow for more testing time, including corner testing.
As well as the time-to-market advantage, software teams are finding the other benefits of using virtual prototypes difficult to ignore.
Virtual prototypes offer excellent control and visibility for debugging – far better than the access available when debugging the hardware itself. Virtual models also enable globally distributed teams to work together – far more easily than when they have to share physical hardware.
As software continues to dominate system design, software teams are recognizing the benefits of taking a virtual approach to system development, both for hardware-software integration, and, just as importantly, for the benefits it can bring to the software development process in its own right.
About the author
Marc SerughettiMarc Serughetti drives the development and deployment of virtual prototyping technologies at Synopsys. He has more than 15 years experience in embedded software development technologies from having led product marketing teams at Integrated Systems, Wind River and CoWare. At CoWare he led the company into the area of virtual prototyping targeting the embedded software community. His experience spans simulation technologies, compilers, IDE, debugging and analysis tools as well as run-time software.
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From Saver to Spender: Managing Your Money in Retirement
by Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz
We all know that "retirement" no longer means just one thing.
Some may stop working altogether, but many others will continue to work in some capacity—whether or not that includes receiving a paycheck. Many of us will choose to seize these years as a time to try something new, to follow a long-held passion.
Regardless of the lifestyle choices you make, you're part of the smart minority who have crunched the numbers and followed a plan. You understand how the financial markets work, and you've built a well-diversified portfolio. In short, you've done everything right.
In this article
But now that your once-distant dream of retirement is at hand, what surprises you is how unsettling it can feel to switch from being a saver to being a spender. All the pie charts and spreadsheets in the world can't necessarily alleviate your fears about outliving your money or maintaining your lifestyle.
I've been in this business long enough to know that these feelings are pretty much universal. Becoming a spender after a lifetime of saving means having an entirely new approach to your money. It can be tough regardless of your financial expertise or the size of your portfolio.
To ease this transition, my colleagues at the Schwab Center for Financial Research have come up with some pretty straightforward guidelines. They aren't intended to be rigid directives, but our experience has shown us that these fundamentals can help reduce your financial stress and give you the upper hand as you move into retirement.
At this point, I'd also like to mention the benefit of consulting with an objective financial planner. Even if you've been successfully managing your money on your own for decades, the transition into retirement is one of those times in your life when a little personal guidance can go a long way, even if means simply confirming what you already know.
Nine Guidelines for Retirement Success
#1: Review Your Situation
Make sure you know exactly where you stand. Gather the latest statements from all of your accounts to create a net worth statement (your assets minus your debts). Then take a look at your cash flow (money in, money out) for the last couple of years, and use this information to create a projection for the future.
Tip: Review your budget at least once a year, reassessing whether each expense is discretionary or non-discretionary.
#2: Maintain at Least a Year's Worth of Cash
Set aside enough cash to cover at least one year of spending. This is the amount that you'll need to supplement the income you can count on—for example, from Social Security, a pension, or real estate investments.
Tip: Before you file for Social Security, crunch the numbers! Far too many people leave money on the table because they haven't done the math. In general, it's best to wait until age 70 to file in order to maximize your lifetime benefit, but every person has to consider their own circumstances.
Table 1 shows some good places to keep your cash. None will provide a great return, but that's okay. This is about safety and liquidity, not income.
|Market Value
|Credit Quality
|Checking and savings accounts(preferably interest-bearing)
|Money market funds*
|Generally immediate(limits on writingchecks may exist)
|Generally stable,but could fluctuate
|Not FDIC-insured
|Treasury bills
|At maturity
|Fluctuates priorto maturity
|Backed by U.S. Treasury
|Certificates of deposit (CDs)(perhaps laddered with three-,six-, and nine-month maturities)
|Bank CDs mayhave penalties forearly withdrawal
|*Money market funds are neither insured nor guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) or any other government agency. Although these funds seek to preserve the value of your investment at $1.00 per share, it is possible to lose money by investing in them.
Realize, too, that this is the minimum amount of cash you should have. If possible, you'll also want to have enough cash to cover an additional one to four years in your portfolio. See guideline #4 below for details.
#3: Consolidate Income in a Single Account
Combine all of your non-portfolio income—which could come from Social Security, a pension, an annuity, whatever—into one account. You can also put portfolio income—for example, interest and dividends—into this account. This account will be your primary source of cash, allowing you to more easily track your income and spending over time.
#4: Match Your Investments to Your Goals and Needs
As an experienced investor, you understand the importance of selecting a mix of investments in keeping with your personal goals, time frame, and risk tolerance. For most people this means gradually moving away from stocks and toward bonds and other fixed income as well as cash. But it's important not to abandon stocks altogether so that your portfolio can keep up with inflation. Bonds will not only provide you with income, but will also act as a buffer against market volatility. Cash investments protect you from having to sell stocks at a bad time.
For example, you might follow the allocation path in Table 2.
Moderately Conservative
|Percentage Allocation
|Fixed income
#5: Cover Essentials with Predictable Income
Guideline #1 recommended reviewing your income and expenses. Now divide your expenses according to whether they're essential or discretionary. Ideally you'll be able to cover all of your essentials with predictable income. That way you can cut back on non-essentials in a lean year.
Tip: Don't have enough predictable income to cover your essentials? Consider purchasing an immediate fixed annuity.
#6: Don't Be Afraid to Tap Into Your Principal
It's the rare individual whose portfolio is large enough to allow them to live off of the dividends and interest alone. Your goal isn't to avoid tapping into your principal at all, but to do it in a prudent way.
First, review the 4% guideline (in the box below). As an example, if you want to withdraw $40,000 a year from your portfolio (and then increase that amount each year for inflation), you'll need a portfolio of about $1 million. Sticking to this guideline can give you 90% certainty that this cash flow will last for 30 years—provided that at least 20% to 60% of your money is invested in a well-diversified mix of stocks.
Tip: If you have mutual funds in taxable accounts, consider having the distributions automatically swept into a money market fund. You may not have to sell as many shares this way.
The 4% Guideline
As a general rule of thumb, plan to withdraw no more than 4% of your portfolio's value in the first year of retirement. This 4% guideline allows you to increase that amount every year for inflation and have a 90% level of confidence that you won't run out of money for 30 years. It also assumes that you'll have anywhere from 20% to 60% of your money invested in a mix of stocks.
#7: Follow a Smart Portfolio Drawdown Strategy
When it comes to creating a "paycheck" in retirement, tax-efficiency is king. But because you may have a variety of accounts—ranging from your 401(k), your IRA, and your Roth IRA to your brokerage account—and because each account may hold a variety of investments—ranging from individual stocks and bonds to mutual funds and exchange-traded funds (ETFs)—it can be very confusing to know what to take from where.
To help you make the smartest decisions, my colleagues at the Schwab Center for Financial Research have created the following priority system. The rationale behind this order is that withdrawals from traditional IRAs and 401(k)s are taxed as ordinary income, typically at a higher rate than the long-term capital gains rate that you'd pay when you sell investments held for more than one year from your taxable accounts. Also, leaving more money in your IRA or 401(k) provides more time for tax-deferred compound growth.
• First, draw down your principal from maturing bonds and CDs. I give an example of how to create a short-term ladder of bonds or CDs in the box below. If you've done this, your first step can be to tap the principal of each bond as it matures. If this is enough to supplement your other income—congratulations, you're done. Chances are, though, that you'll need to continue on.
• Second, if you're 70½ or older, take your RMDs. You likely know that once you reach the age of 70½, the IRS requires you to take a yearly required minimum distribution RMD from all of your retirement accounts except a Roth IRA. [Note: A Roth 401(k) and a Roth 403(b) have RMDs that kick in at age 70½ unless you're still working.] Whether you need this money or not, you've still got to take it.
Your strategy should always be to sell the lowest-rated securities in your overweighted asset classes. If your RMD satisfies your income needs, you won't have to tap into your taxable accounts. Nonetheless, your decision on what to sell should be made in the context of all of your accounts. In other words, before you decide what to sell from your IRA, look to where you're overweighted in your entire portfolio.
For example, let's say that your required minimum distribution is $25,000, which covers all the additional income you need. After reviewing the breakdown of all of your accounts, you see that you are overweighted in large-cap domestic stocks and international stocks, and underweighted in bonds. By selling your lower-rated large-cap and international stocks from your IRA, you get your entire portfolio back to your target allocation.
• Third, sell overweighted and lower-rated assets from your taxable accounts. If you need to withdraw more than your required minimum distribution, look to your taxable accounts next. Sales within taxable accounts are taxed as capital gains rather than as ordinary income, with a preferential rate for gains on investments you've owned for more than a year. Of course, if you've lost confidence in any of your investments, they are also good sell candidates.
If you do have to sell highly rated securities, you can minimize your tax bill by starting with those that will generate a loss before you sell those that will generate a gain. Also, whenever you're considering selling an investment in a taxable account, think about matching gains to losses as a way to control your taxes.
• Fourth, sell overweighted and lower-rated assets from your tax-deferred accounts. Generally, your tax-deferred accounts will be your last place to look for income, starting with outsized asset classes and lower-rated securities. If you're 70½ or older, you know that you have to withdraw your required minimum distribution. But you can take more if you need to. Or, if you're younger than 70½, you may still want to tap your tax-deferred account despite the fact that you will be paying taxes at your ordinary income tax rate.
It's often smart to tap your Roth IRA last. Not only can it continue to grow without taxes, but you'll be able to withdraw that money tax-free at a later date. Roth IRAs are also a great way to pass on money tax-free to your heirs.
Creating a Ladder
A short-term ladder (maturities of one to four years) of CDs, Treasuries, or the highest-rated bonds can be a sound way to cover your living expenses for the next several years. (A ladder is made up of individual securities with a sequence of maturities over a series of years. This way, some will always be maturing while others invested for the longer-term generate higher income.)
For example, you could create a ladder something like the following:
|Amount Invested
|Other Considerations
|Two to four years of expenses
• 6 months
• 1 year
• 1 year, 6 months
• 2 years
• 2 years, 6 months
• 3 years
• 3 years, 6 months
• 4 years
|Mix of FDIC-insured CDs, Treasury bills and notes, and municipal bonds
|A ladder can include multiple CD or bond types, depending on interest rates. Also consider municipal bonds rated AA or higher by Moody's and Standard & Poor's, but only in taxable accounts.
#8: Rebalance to Stay Aligned With Your Goals
As you probably know, it's important to review your portfolio's asset allocation at least annually. If one asset class has grown beyond your plan, it's time to pare it back. Once you're retired, this can be a prime opportunity to sell assets to generate cash.
Example: Let's say that your target asset allocation is 40% stocks and 60% bonds, but your portfolio has drifted to 45% stocks and 55% bonds. You can sell some stocks to generate income, and reallocate anything that's left over to bonds until you're back on target.
As I explained, it's often possible to rebalance your portfolio at the same time that you make your annual withdrawals. But keep in mind that rebalancing does not protect against losses, nor does it guarantee your goals will be met.
#9: Stay Flexible and Reevaluate as Needed
Life doesn't just stop changing once you're retired. Let's say you want to sell your house and travel the world. Perhaps you've received an inheritance. Or maybe you're starting a business or going back to work. As your needs change or your feelings about risk change, your portfolio and the amount you withdraw should reflect your new realities.
As an experienced investor, you likely have the drive and knowledge to follow these guidelines and manage your money wisely. However, as you keep an eye on your accounts, don't forget about the rest of your financial life.
Ask yourself: Do you have the appropriate insurance coverage? Have you thought about when to file for Social Security? Do you understand what Medicare won't cover and how you'll cover the difference? Have you created an estate plan? These are all crucial issues and important pieces of your financial life.
And finally, I hope that you have included your spouse or significant other in both your day-to-day and long-term financial planning. Certainly every couple has their own way of divvying up responsibilities according to their skills and preferences. But when it comes to your money, I believe that it is essential for both partners to participate fully and have complete knowledge of their accounts and investments.
So please, don't keep money in the closet. Share your thoughts and concerns and educate each other. If you work as a team, you'll both be better off.
Important Disclosures: This article is no substitute for an individualized recommendation, tax, legal or personalized investment advice. Please consult a qualified tax adviser, CPA, financial planner, or investment manager where necessary and appropriate.
Investing involves risk, including possible loss of principal. Fixed-income investments are subject to various risks, including changes in interest rates, credit quality, market valuations, liquidity, prepayments, corporate events, tax ramifications, and other factors. The Schwab Center for Financial Research is a division of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc.
Robert Mount from MD posted over 2 years ago:
If one is fortunate enough to have cash and cash like investments to satisfy lifestyle needs then the remainder can be 100% stocks. I find that using this philosophy and keeping my stock investments in income producing stocks my investments seem to stay well below market fluctuation. Of course I don't have the giant gains but I also don't have giant losses. Why don't advisers put advice in these terms instead of sticking to the 30-60-10 type of plans?
Jim Y from FL posted over 2 years ago:
The 3 asset class model is very limited. With REIT's, MLP's, real estate and hedge funds it all gets far more complicated than stocks, bonds and cash. Even within the equity class there is a huge range of options unless one buys the S&P and calls it done. I have yet to find a retirement tool that goes beyond the 3 asset classes.
Ken from TX posted over 2 years ago:
Would you take out long term investments first to take advantage of the tax benefit?
Dave Gilmer from WA posted over 2 years ago:
It's not really about taking out long term investments (which I assume would be stocks.) A better play actually turns out to be spending down the fixed assets first and letting the growth stocks grow. If you start with 25/75 bias at retirement (25% stocks) and spend down the fixed income first, the result will be much better than the other way around. Of course, right now bond income is not all that great, so I use dividends in this portion of my portfolio for the fixed income equivalent.
Leon Taterus from PA posted over 2 years ago:
Pete B from NJ posted over 2 years ago:
This is a well-written and informative article although I note the "conventional wisdom" tip in #2 that it may be best to defer starting social security (SS) until age 70. That frequently is NOT accurate.
I've done quite a bit of analysis on this using as a figure of merit the Net Present Value (NPV) of the after-tax social security receipts from start date to death.
That word "after-tax" is crucial and I think many analyses ignore it.
When crunching the numbers consider:
* your MRD "income" starting at age 70, which may increase your tax bracket just as the tip would have you start SS. A significant (relative to SS income) MRD stream can push the cross-over date out 2 to 4 years just because you're in a higher tax bracket for a longer period of time.
* your other taxable income, which affects your marginal tax bracket.
* inflation, since the COLA increases your SS payments which may affect your tax bracket.
* If you're planning for a couple, when do you expect the first person to die? This reduces the tax bracket farther out in life and can push the cross-over age-of-death at which starting SS at age 70 has highest NPV beyond 100.
Some observations for a single person with no MRD stream:
If you expect inflation to average 3% annually for the rest of your life, starting SS at 62 is best if you live to at most 87. Starting SS at 70 makes sense if you live until at least 93.
If you expect inflation to average 4% then the corresponding ages are 94 and somewhere above 100.
If you expect inflation to average 2%, the ages are 82 and 88.
An MRD stream that puts you into the 35% bracket for, say, ten years or so pushes all these ages out about 2 years.
Richard Halberg from NY posted over 2 years ago:
Recent research by Wade Pfau demonstrates the wisdom of increasing stock allocations once you can cover essential expenses in point #5. He shows that doing this actually increases the likelihood of outliving your money. Once you have your essentials covered market fluctuations are more easily tolerated.
Stephen Menninger from VA posted about 1 year ago:
Social Security is NOT an investment that you feel you must get your
money back after so many years. The goal should be to maximize
the monthly payout, regardless of how long you receive payments.
Unless you are in poor health or absolutely need the money, waiting
to age 70 is always the smart decision, especially if you are married
and want to leave the largest monthly payout to a spouse.
just my 2 cents
Joseph Gal from CA posted about 1 year ago:
I suggest folks explore the permanent portfolio investment strategy which applies from cradle to grave. Simple, safe, stable and only 0.15% annual cost. It earned over 8% per year compounded the last 40 years with low volatility. Plus it only takes a few minutes each year to self manage.
Joseph TekniGal.com
Victor Stankevich from NC posted about 1 year ago:
Agreeing with Stephen about Social Security. Delaying SS to 70 (which may have included filing and suspending at FRA to maximize the spousal benefit) creates a sort of 'longevity insurance'. Unless your health begins to fail, waiting to 70 gets you the maximum payout for both you and your spouse which is what you want in case you indeed outlive your nest egg. Even if that won't cover your fixed expenses at that point, it's still better than less.
Paul from CA posted about 1 year ago:
Young tax advisors don't understand that after 80 or so you don't want to travel as much and your quality of life changes. Also if you take Social Security earlier you get to use it longer. Also if you don't use it but invest at 6% the two cross over at about 80. If you die before 80 you are better off to start early.
Consider quality of life. Start SS at 62 or 65 forget advice from youngsters. I am 82 now and still can hike 4 or 5 miles at altitude. But I dread getting on an airplane and flying to Europe or China, even first class.
Robert Adams from IL posted about 1 year ago:
I retired from the federal government and only used the CSRS retirement system for my retirement contributions during my working years. I've been told I didn't need to take an RMD at age 70 1/2 and beyond because I only have my civil service retirement annuity. Is this true? I sure hope so or I owe a bunch of penalties.
Charles Rotblut from IL posted about 1 year ago:
I would consult a tax professional who can review your personal situation and give you the appropriate guidance.
Michael Arighi from CA posted 7 months ago:
Replying to Robert Adams above (sorry, only recently an AAII member, so didn't respond sooner). I'm responding as a recent CSRS retiree, since few people here will know the system or understand the issues.
CSRS is a defined-benefit pension plan. It is NOT tax-deferred, like an IRA or 401(k)/403(b), so you do NOT need to take an RMD from it. You pay taxes when you get it on any part of it that is not the money you put in originally (which was taxed then).
The rationale for the RMD rules is that the IRS let you put the money away for retirement without paying taxes, but they want some assurance they WILL get to tax it before you die. So you are required to take a portion out, which is then taxed as ordinary income.
If you invested in the TSP, which is basically a 401(k) by a proprietary name, then you WILL need to take RMDs from that. But not from your CSRS.
Sanford Levey from MA posted 7 months ago:
Does it make sense to take an RMD when the market is high,because presumably it would take less shares to equal the RMD?
Michael Skinner from CA posted 3 months ago:
A simple thought. The IRS life expectancy table
used as a divisor on your total financial assets can provide a useful benchmark on what might be safe to withdraw, spend, gift ahead to heirs or favored charities. Just consider this.
Victor Stankevich from NC posted 3 months ago:
Updating comment I made a year ago given SS rules have changed (no more filing then suspending to maximize the spousal benefit). As I understand it now, spousal benefit gets maxed out when retiring spouse is 65. Waiting to 70 to file means the spouse will have gone without the spousal benefit for approximately 4 years. That needs to be factored in now.
Bud from Nevada posted 3 months ago:
Man-oh-man, this article must have been written by the same people who were giving me investment advice for many years. I am 78 years old, have been retired for 18 years and find that about the only difference in my investment strategy is that I am now more in value and dividend producing investments than growth. My wife and I do a lot more travel and generally spend at least as much on things like golf and resort getaways as we ever did before. No more "saving for retirement" alone produces a lot more cash to spend than I ever realized I would have.
Mostly, what made the article lose credibility for me, almost immediately, was that table of where to put your "year's worth of cash." Geesh! Was it prepared in the 80's? Has anyone looked at how much interest bearing checking and savings accounts yield lately? As for CD's: The best tool that was ever invented to make money for the banks from investment challenged individuals—like my depression era mother, may she rest in peace.
Enough said.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Rams Still In 1st After Beating Trail Blazers
The Watertown Rams maintain their lead in the west division of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League following a win Tuesday night against the Adirondack Trail Blazers.
It was the Rams' first home game in over a week. They were on the road while the Jefferson County Fair was going on.
They entered Tuesday's contest with a 19-15 record. It took them 14 innings to win 4-3.
Click on the picture for Mel Busler's highlights.
Saturday, December 10, 2016, Watertown, NY
On Wall Street


text: What can you guys tell me about this make/model, I cant seem to find much info about it? LGS has a used one in the $700 range and wondering if its worth what their asking. Some details include a polished blue finish,original shipping case, no blueing wear/fired very little if at all, and of course the dreaded lock(newer model??). How is fit/finish/durability of these newer Smith's? Thanks for all the help


text:
Tranportation Alternatives Staten Island Volunteer Committee Meeting
- When
- November 15, 2012 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm
- Where
- Everything Goes Book Cafe
208 Bay Street (between Victory and Hannah)
Staten Island
- More Info
- Email meredith[at]transalt[dot]org or volunteer[at]transalt[dot]org.
Meet up with other Transportation Alternatives supporting SIers as we plan social events, outreach, and advocacy for the greater good of the island! Our new committee will be meeting on the third Thursday of each month at the cafe, so if you can't make it this month, please feel free to join us at a future meeting!


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To recognize life members of NESA for their commitment to support Eagle Scouts through a NESA life membership.
For those who have purchased a NESA life membership.
Purchased from Scout shop with proof of NESA life membership.
Eagle Scout knot with silver border instead of brown border worn above left pocket; gold lapel pin; certificate; life membership card.
Knot, No. 18092.
Click here for more information.


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Skip to comments.Biden: Tea Party stopped us from growing economy
Posted on 05/22/2012 12:02:35 PM PDT by Free ThinkerNY
Vice President Joe Biden admitted to a group of supporters in New Hampshire this afternoon that the President would have been able help the economy "much, more" if the Tea Party hadn't taken the House.
Biden showed the audience the Obama campaigns chart of job growth during the President's first term in office and accused the Tea Party for stalling the recovery, because of the debt limit fight.
"Imagine where we'd be if the Tea Party hadn't taken control of the House of Representatives," Biden said adding that they were "a group set on obstructionism."
(Excerpt) Read more at campaign2012.washingtonexaminer.com ...
Hmmm...Liberals are confused.
The Tea Party is done and powerless.
The Tea Party is so strong it can interfere with the economy
Yep. The tea party prevented the WH and Congress from "spending our way into prosperity."
"Imagine where we'd be if the Tea Party hadn't taken control of the House of Representatives,"
At least $5 trillion deeper in debt, methinks...
I prefer to imagine you debating Marco Rubio.
Hey, it's a change from blaming George Bush.
Lying Biden has a lot to answer for when he kicks the bucket.
Biden's hair plugs stopped him from thinking clearly.
Biden is an absolute idiot.
Hey...I thought the economy recovered a couple "recovery summers" ago (snicker)
If it wasn't the Tea Party then maybe it was Emmanuel Goldstein?
Yes Joe, imagine where we'd be. Thank God for the Tea Party.
"Imagine where we'd be if the Tea Party hadn't taken control of the House of Representatives,"
A lot farther in debt you stupid buffoon.
Joe Biden plays with his own spit when nobody's looking.
The words pass their lips. Thus, they are true, don'cha know.
Yep. And Marco could query him on that "recovery summer."
Has he been given the go ahead to say what he wants so his stupid remarks can be used to dump him?
Well... Biden ALMOST got it right.
If he had only stopped at ... The Tea Party Stopped Us.
Yes we DID stop you!
and we will continue to stop your attempts to destroy this great nation, and your RINO enablers toO!
ok then lets take a look at when the democraps took over Congress under Bush...
and let's compare
More proof that Rimshot Joe is a flippin' idiot. Stand up
Rimshot! You moron! No wonder they are trying to get Hillary to take his job. He's a moron.
Gotta say one thing about Joe. It doesn't bother him a bit to be so stupid.
What makes it all so hilarious is Biden the Slow actually regards himself as a brilliant thinker.
Uh, Joe — what's your excuse for the last two Presidential budgets not receiving a single up vote in the Senate. No Senate Dem gave you a vote, so why is that? Tea Party also, Bush, or some new person to blame???
Democrats intent further economic destruction, hurting job creation by increasing the burden of taxes, unnecessary regulation and more government debt.
Liberals tend to interpret ambiguous political satire according to their own views and self-image, and people are naive they believe everything the conglomerate says...
Murtha, Biden, Reid, Pelosi, Obama, et al.
Tom Sowell described the situation perfectly when he said:
"The fact that so many successful politicians are such shameless liars is not only a reflection on them, it is also a reflection on us. When the people want the impossible, only liars can satisfy them,"
We are trillions of dollars in debt to Eastasia. We have always been trillions of dollars of debt to Eastasia.
You have got to wonder about the people of Delaware. Biden may be the genius of the whole lot. Of course, it would be fair ask what his Republican opponent was like in the Senate races?
Is this guy TRYING to go down in history as the most stupid man around? He's doing a good job if he is. Give it a break bidin... you're BORINNNNG!
Our first "special needs" vice-president.
I will say that I don't know what scares me more..the fact that they can say it with a straight face, or the fact that they actually believe the words that are coming out of their mouths
Joe Biden is so stupid that he couldn't count to 21 unless he was naked.
My Lord how DUMBSTUPIDIDIOTICCRAZY!
(and to think I was drafting a defense of Biden's ability to, sometimes, say something useful...!? Well, "broken clock is right twice a day"
Yeah! Joe's right!
And I say wet streets cause rain!
'In other news, last year's grain harvest has exceeded all expectations, producing a great bounty for the Proletariat. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, the current Five Year Plan is well ahead of schedule, in spite of the false and malicious claims of various Capitalist Roaders and Running Dog Lackeys of the Bourgeoisie. Next, on Radio Tyranny: an interview with the Glorious Leader on his plans to restore fairness by opposing the evil forces of Bainism."
LOL What a maroon!
If you had focused on the economy and found real time remedies that would have a positive and meaningful impact that would have made all the difference in the world and you would definitely be looking at a second term.
Instead you chose to pursue your ideological dreams of utopia and wasted 3 years on goofball legislation such as ObamaCare, Strawman gun purchases that resulted in the deaths of Americans and a whole host of idiotological programs.
BTW, thanks for F&**^*ing my parents on Medicare and reducing their benefits by $500 million, which I'm sure is really more like a $trillion so they won't be able to afford some drugs or procedures.
Also, appreciate the way your legislation has caused insurance premiums to skyrocket some 250% here in California.
Love paying twice as much for gas as I did just 3 1/2 years ago. Feels like filling up a truck when I look at my bank statements.
You know, there is a huge difference between $40 dollars a tank and $80 every refill. Imagine, I do that some 2-3 times a week.
That extra $250 I spend a month could be used for a whole host of things besides simple transportation.
Same with electricity. Your policies have caused electricity to rise by 200% and in just a few short years even that number will double as many of the plants currently in line will be taken out off line because, apparently, businesses have to make money and the one producing energy will pull 20% of their facilities off line due to regulations and have stopped 10% of the one being built.
Do me a favor and make it possible for me to own my own little nuclear plant so I can at least afford to use my microwave to make popcorn as I watch you Shiite all over this great country with its resources that no other country has in such abundancy.
Go back to Greenville and keep screwing over Jansens market. Yeah that right, just pay them when you feel like it and open your loud mouth with your charm offensive.
Anymore, you are just plain offensive and I can no longer say you are smart guy.
The Tea Party was America's response to Barrack and his merry cabal of marxists and socialists.
We will take this country back and undo nearly every legislation you accomplished that is so offensive to us and that is costing us money.
You are a manipulative prick.
It's a hallmark and badge of honor.
Trying to stimulate the economy by increasing government spending financed by increasing budget deficits and increased national debt is like trying to cure an drug addict of his withdrawal symptoms by giving him more of the same drugs that caused his addiction in the first place.
I hope that sutpidity is not held against us when we are judged.
That's easy; another 3 Trillion $$ in debt.
Yes, I could imagine wat we'd be.... Greece would look better than we do if the TAX AND SPENDERS LIBERALS stayed in power.
GM would be NATIONALIZED and Zero would put 11 new activist judges on the SCOTUS!!!
Constitution?? Zero would say it was outdated and needed to go..
He is literally the most audaciously stupid man in the past 500 years.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.


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Sending VoteClick to Vote20%Lee /Crystal
Sending VoteClick to Vote38%Simon's Farewell
Sending VoteClick to Vote40%The Famous Artists
- December movies are always so fun! Which new flick are you planning on seeing in theaters first?
- NBC's 'Hairspray Live!' just aired! Which version of the musical is your favorite?
- 'Ocean's Eleven' came out 15 years ago! Which movie in the trilogy is your favorite?
- Netflix's 'Luke Cage' has been renewed for a second season. What's your favorite Marvel Netflix series that's been released so far?
- SNL just announced the next two hosts! Which one do you think will be the funniest?
- The CW's huge superhero crossover event was epic. Which show had the best part of the event?
- Models looked picturesque at the 2016 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show in Paris After Party. Which star had the best look?
- NBC's 'World of Dance' has founds its three judges. Which one do you think will be best in the role?
- DirectTV's new steaming TV service will feature two celebrity-specific channels. Which one are you most excited to watch?
- It's a night of fall TV finales! Which show are you going to miss most during the holiday hiatus?


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Agreed: transparency is critical for patient trust. With so few HIT corporations putting patients in charge of personal health information (PHI), it is rare good news to see a companies like Jericho working on consent directives.
From the Article:
Keeping a solid brand in healthcare requires trust. Trust is important no matter the industry. However, in healthcare, trust is more personal. When it comes to patient care, much private, personal information is given by individuals and also received through physician engagement and various clinical tests. Patient information needs to be safeguarded, just as a patient intends it to be.
Recently, The University of Texas at Austin Health Information Technology Program, Jericho Systems Corporation, and Conemaugh Health System undertook a pilot to test if protected health information (PHI) can adhere to consent directives. The good news is they proved the integrity of a patient's consent directive through the health information exchange. With this test, greater confidence in patient data security and privacy is gained. The work doesn't stop here, as there are many practices necessary to support patient privacy and security as networks expand and exchanges broaden.
Equally important are practices to support data transparency in healthcare. Transparency should mean that patients know what data is being collected and who their data is being shared with.
The points are straightforward here, too.
- Trustworthy brands in healthcare embrace transparency. Open communication about what information is being collected and shared rises to the same standard of protecting the privacy of designated PHI.
- Brands build relationships, and relationships are built on trust. Transparency builds trust, as does consistently delivering on your promises made.
To read the full article, please visit: Transparency: Brand Reputation and Patient Trust


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Little Known Drawings Reveal Details of Poe's Home
Among the little known treasures in the Poe Museum's archives are four small pencil sketches of one of Edgar Allan Poe's boyhood homes. The artist was a fourteen-year-old girl who would grow up to be an important poet. Sally Bruce Kinsolving was born in Richmond in 1876 and would have executed the drawings shortly before the house was demolished in 1890. The house in the drawings is the mansion known as Moldavia, an imposing structure that once stood at the corner of 5th and Main Streets in Richmond. Moldavia was named after its first owners, Molly and David Randolph, who built it in 1800. Poe was sixteen when he moved into the house with his foster parents John and Frances Allan. Poe lived there until he went to the University of Virginia in 1826 and would have stayed there during his visits to Richmond in 1827 (after leaving the University) and 1829 (after his foster mother's funeral). After Poe's 1831 expulsion from the United States Military Academy at West Point, Poe was no longer welcome in the home, which by then housed John Allan and his second wife, Louisa G. Allan. She lived there until her death in 1881, and the building was demolished in 1890. Although this Richmond landmark has been lost, the Poe Museum preserves several objects the Allans owned while living in Moldavia, including artwork, salt cellars, and furniture.
Sally Bruce Kinsolving (1876-1962) published her first book of poetry, Depths and Shallows in 1921. This was followed by David and Bathsheba and Other Poems (1922), Grey Heather (1930), and Many Waters (1942). She was a member of the Poetry Society of America and a founder of the Poetry Society of Maryland. Kinsolving was also a member of Phi Beta Kappa Associates, the Academy of American Poets, the Catholic Poetry Society of America, the Baltimore Museum of Art, the Gallery of Living Catholic Authors, and the Edgar Allan Poe Society of Baltimore. Kinsolving donated her drawings of Moldavia to the Poe Museum in 1922, the year the Museum opened.
These faint pencil sketches reveal close-up views of elements of the mansion that have not necessarily recorded in the few surviving photographs of the structure. This is why they are an important resource for those researching the Richmond that Poe knew during his childhood. For an artist so young, Kinsolving has done a masterful job of capturing the subtle nuances of light and shadow in images that appear to emerge from the tan paper. In order to make the drawings more visible online, we have adjusted the contrast and enlarged the scans before posting them here, but we hope you can still appreciate the beauty of these little known gems of the Poe Museum's collection. The captions are the artist's.
"Cornice at the Back of the House"
"Back Basement Door"
"Front Door"
"South Porch"
Here is a photograph of the same portico for comparison.


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The Garden Mission Statement: The Mill Valley Community Garden is to provide space for Mill Valley citizens to garden together - to create a shared vision, to work collaboratively, and to cultivate a place for individuals, families and friends to learn about and to experience the rewards of gardening.
The Garden Mission Statement: The Mill Valley Community Garden is to provide space for Mill Valley citizens to garden together - to create a shared vision, to work collaboratively, and to cultivate a place for individuals, families and friends to learn about and to experience the rewards of gardening.
Mill Valley Community Garden
When you think of leisure activities, often times you think of sports fields or playgrounds with hundreds of kids and families using them on a daily basis. At the City of Mill Valley Community Center, we offer another opportunity for activity and engagement with the natural world: The Community Garden. Even though our garden has only 35 registered individuals assigned to the plots, it reaches many more people.
Many families share in the gardening of the plot, or the garden is shared between 2 families. At harvest time, many gardeners share their harvest unselfishly throughout the community, contributing to programs such as Meals of Marin.
The Community Garden provides a quiet, passive form of recreation. It's a place for people to gather, share with their neighbors, help one another, and to advise and assist in a variety of ways that reach beyond the activity of gardening. The Garden is a friendly and open community with a passionate group of members that continues to widen and expand as time passes.
The Mill Valley Community Gardens' 1st anniversary party took place on Friday, September 28th, 2007. 35 gardeners and friends attend the event. Council member Anne Solem spoke and thanked the following organizations and individuals who contributed to the garden: • City of Mill Valley for its funding of the garden • Marin Community Foundation for the Neighborhood Achievement Award in 1999 • Donations from the Rotary Club of Mill Valley and the Outdoor Art Club • Park and Recreation staff leading the project, including Parks Superintendent Rick Misuraca and Parks and Recreation Director Christine Sansom • Mary Lou Ibershof, a current gardener and former Parks and Recreation Commissioner, who, with a group of gardeners were instrumental in keeping the garden idea alive and moving forward • Current Gardener Bob Engamn for his garden design • Mill Valley Resident John Smythe for the donation of the headboard wood for all the plots • Mill Valley Resident Max Moritz for his donation of additional wood for the plots • CJ Wilson, a current Tam High Senior, for the construction of a raised planter. This planter was his Eagle Scout project for and was built for the Mill Valley Seniors • Current Gardener Craig Frazer for the design and installation of the garden sign At the ceremony, Parks Superintendent Rick Misuraca described how Grounds worker Mayo Sandoval identified the garden location. Garden Committee member Kate Gruen thanked all the gardeners who helped with the launch of the garden and recognized Mary Lou Ibershol for her efforts over a 6 year period of time. She continually keeping the garden idea on the front burner and worked very hard with other gardeners searching for and securing the current garden site.
Rick Misuraca was also recognized for his ongoing efforts in overseeing the development of the garden from a weeds patch to a flourishing garden. Kate thanked Hans Fallant for his constructing of the 3 garden sheds. Current Gardner Keith Wedmore finished off the ceremony with a final toast. For information on how to become involved in the Community Garden, please contact Patty McCulley at 415-383-1370 or mailto:firstname.lastname@example.com
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If you lived in your skinnies pre-pregnancy then you'll love these maternity skinny jeans. They feature the same flattering fit and comfortable stretch denim as your favourite non-maternity pair, but with the additional benefit of a soft over-the-bump waistband. Dress them up for dinners or down for weekends at galleries. They'll wash and wear over and over again and still retain their shape brilliantly.
This style can be worn right through pregnancy and nursing too.
Team these Isabella Oliver skinnies with an on-trend sweatshirt and print sneakers


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Vocabulary Test
phpblog 110000AD5E 2 Comments 1,338 Views
Different programming languages excel at different things. I employ a number of different programming languages, and make my choice based on the task at hand. My presentations tend to be powered by Perl. My weblog is powered by Python. But my private applications tend to be written in PHP.
The developerWorks PHP Resources site will cover PHP from a perspective that may be new to some PHP users, covering such topics as Access an enterprise application from a PHP script
The developerWorks PHP Blog, however, will often touch on topics that may be new to enterprise (typically Java) programmers.
My first post on this site will cover an application I wrote in about an hour to cover a specific need. It breaks a number of "rules" that guide the development of scalable enterprise applications - in particular it does not separate presentation from content. Consequently, this application does not contain any reusable components that will ultimately find their way into a Customer Relationship Management system. I'm entirely OK with that.
Still, the application is centrally managed, requires zero deployment, is accessible everywhere and portable across a wide range of client operating systems and browsers. All good traits to have.
The application is a vocabulary test. My daughter weekly gets a list of words and their definitions to study. At the end of the week, there is a test where she needs to match the words with the definitions. At first, I helped her study using flash cards, but this seemed like an obvious candidate for automation.
The UI for this application was obvious... I precisely mimicked the layout of the test.
The application itself consists of a single source file and a single data file. The source contains code in two language, JavaScript and PHP. (Four if you count CSS and HTML).
Nothing in this application couldn't have been done with JSP. However, to do so would have required additional effort, effort that does not result in a more functional end result.
And it wouldn't have been as much fun.
Not everybody may have the diverse set of skills required to pull together such an application in one sitting. However, a quite larger set of people can copy such an application and successfully make meaningful changes to it.
In my experience, that's how people tend to learn languages such as PHP. Some refer to this as Progressive Disclosure.
Sam Ruby[Read More]
PHP for data-driven and live content
phpblog 110000AD5E 1,099 Views
I use PHP extensively on almost all of my Web pages. (Just about the only ones that don't use it are on servers that don't have it installed. Mine, of course, all have PHP installed.) In a lot of cases I store the real content in a database, and PHP pulls it out and formats it; sometimes the content is built directly from scanning files and directories.[Read More]
This has advantages and disadvantages, of course. On the pro side, the content is visible immediately. On the con side, the content is visible immediately. :-) Having every page be interpreted has definite performance implications and not just on the origin server. Unless care is taken, the dynamic nature of the page can result in it rarely or never being cached, which hits you in the system and the network. If you pay for your bandwidth by the byte, that can be a huge deal.
Like Sam, I use a mix of languages. For Web pages, I use PHP almost exclusively; for standalone apps I use C, PHP, bash, or Perl, as seems appropriate. In general I use Perl, but if I'm frobbing a database, chances are I'll use PHP unless there's something in CPAN that argues for Perl.
When I first got involved with blogging, in December 2002, I decided to write my own software from the ground up. In PHP. Of course, I'm a bit-twiddler, and did it that way so I'd understand what this 'blogging' thing was all about and how it worked. (Almost as soon as I brought it online, Sam challenged me to take the next step. :-) The result can be seen at my blog.
I hope to go into this subject in more detail in the future, and I definitely intend to say some things about how I'm using PHP to automatically guard my Web servers, but this is just an introductory note after all.
Ken Coar
PHP and images
phpblog 110000AD5E 1,206 Views
One of the most popular articles I've ever written has been about Preventing Image 'Theft'. I wrote it several years ago, but people are still reading it (evidently) and contacting me about it.[Read More]
I've recently had call to use this sort of thing myself, and what I've got now is rather more advanced than described in the original article. For instance, now I transparently intercept images 'going offsite' and replace them with a correctly-sized blank box containing text about the copyright. And for images I want to be basically previewable but not really usable (if people want a usable version they need to contact me) I watermark 'em.
Watermarking a digital image means adding information to the existing pixels. It can be involve adding invisible information for identification purposes, such as the Digimarc technique, or it can be to to visibly degrade the quality of the image, perhaps with a message. I've used both, but it's the latter mechanism I needed most recently.
Watermarking for degradation is an interesting challenge. There's nothing you can do short of actually destroying data to keep a really determined perp from gatting past your defences, but you can make it pretty difficult.
For instance, the degradation watermarking I set up recently uses a watermark with built-in noise, so there isn't a single same-colour region that can be undone. A perp would have to figure out what the watermark pixels are, pixel by pixel, in order to create a mask to remove it. And since I'm using it on dense JPEG images, that's a little difficult.
In addition, the watermark is repeated across the entire image, and not at regular intervals. Each one is jigged a bit at random, so no two previews of the same image should be identical. (Well, modulo repeats of the random sequence.) This keeps a perp from figuring that the watermark is repeated at fixed intervals, and using that to help remove it. Of course, if it accesses multiple previews of the same image, it can eventually probably figure out the pixel settings by comparing them. But I suspect that would be a major chore, too.
Both the replacement-with-notice and the watermarking are done in realtime as part of Apache's response to a Web request. The replacement is very low impact indeed, and doesn't cause performance to deteriorate noticeably, but the watermarking involves actual image manipulation, of megapixel images, and so can slow things down. So you can use the former on almost any server, but the latter really needs a machine with a lot of oomph to keep visitors happy.
You can, of course, get rid of the performance impact by watermarking the images ahead of time, and sending the results normally. That decreases the random factor, though,
and possibly makes the watermark more easily removed.
Ken Coar
A few months ago, I talked to one of the leading CMS industry analysts and he mentioned how surprised he was to find the dominance of PHP in this market.
The available CMSs are anything from open-source freeware to proprietry to supported open-source.
Some familiar names (in no particular order) are Drupal, mambo, eZ and of course, the popular PHP-Nuke.
If I'd go through the whole list of great CMS systems I know in PHP, this post would start getting boring.
As I am asked very often what CMS I recommend, and with all the excellent packages out there it's hard to do so, I decided to post a link to The CMS Matrix which is a nice site that provides some initial matrix comparisons between the various CMS. Of course, at the end of the day you'll have to install some of them and actually try them to see if they suit your needs.
Andi Gutmans[Read More]
More on image manipulation
phpblog 110000AD5E 1,394 Views
[Read More]
At the suggestion of a friend, I added yet another twist to my watermarking script: rotating the watermark a random amount each time.
While cool in theory, it turns out that the practice is a little more difficult. For one thing, PHP's ImageRotate() function creates a new image resource sized large enough to hold the entire rotated image. Even though I'm using a circular watermark, the image it's in is rectangular. So if you rotate a rectangle and put a bounding box around it, you get a lozenge wider and taller than the original one.
For another thing, getting ImageRotate() to do the Right Thing with the transparency is turning out to be a hassle. I'm working with one of the developers of the PHP image library on figuring that one out; it's unclear whether the issue is my boneheadedness or an actual bug in PHP.
When it's finished, or at least far enough along, I'll post more technical details
Ken Coar
Thou shalt never trust User Input
phpblog 110000AD5E 2,557 Views
One of the concepts that are most difficult for new Web developers to fully grasp, is just how dangerous it is to trust user input. Just in the last week, there've been around a dozen or so different reports of vulnerabilities found in Web applications - mostly all of them revolve around unchecked user input. Because of PHPs dominance in the Web application development world, many of the vulnerable applications were ones written in PHP, which hurt PHPs security track record, even though its not the language which is at fault (the same applications, written in any other language would have suffered from the same vulnerabilities).
The challenge of validating user input is not a simple one. The key to meeting this challenge is attention to details combined with knowledge.
At the end of the day - nothing other than the developer herself can ensure that an unsanitized piece of data finds itself as a part of a filename, and sometimes even a database query, which is why paying close attention to what goes where is important.
But that's actually not enough. Few people fully understand just how little of the Web environment can be trusted. Nowadays, most developers know that you cannot rely on GET or POST variables to have the values you expect (even if they're inside hidden form values) - but how many of them know that you cannot trust any $_SERVER variable that begins with HTTP (e.g., $_SERVER["HTTP_REFERER"])? These can be fully (and easily) spoofed by the remote users, and must not be trusted. Same goes with cookies - they may not be easily visible for or editable by the average user, but as they're saved on the client-side - a 'malicious hacker', or even down to earth script kiddies, can easily set them to their heart's content. And how about $SERVER_NAME ($_SERVER["SERVER_NAME"]), which actually depends on the Host: header sent by the remote user, and can therefore be spoofed under certain circumstances?
Paraphrasing agent Mulder's immortal words, 'Trust Nothing'.
Interesting links:
PHP Security Consortium
More on trusting (or not trusting) user input
Zeev Suraski[Read More]


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Hobnail Cotton Bedspread
Grandmother's Fringed Hobnail Bedspread: Tradition At Its Best
Hobnail Cotton Bedspread
Grandmother's Fringed Hobnail Bedspread: Tradition At Its Best
Our grandmother had a cotton bedspread almost exactly like this hobnail bedspread, made by Maine Heritage Weavers. Whenever our games threatened to spill into her room, she would shoo us outdoors before we could do any damage. She didn't know how tough this 100% cotton bedspread is. The graceful flower and swag pattern is created by pulling loops of yarn through the cotton back. Heavyweight and elegantly finished with 6" knotting and fringe on 3 sides. Machine wash and dry. USA.
- Heirloom-quality cotton bedspread is woven by Maine Heritage Weavers
- Features a flower and swag pattern
- Heavyweight 100% cotton
- Finished with 6" knotting and fringe on 3 sides
- Easy-care machine wash and dry
We pride ourselves on carrying the best selection of classic bedding, like this hobnail cotton bedspread, carefully woven here in the United States. This heirloom-quality cotton bedspread is like the one that adorned your grandmother's bed.


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Fuji Electric Corporation Donates State-of-the-Art Equipment to BSC Electrical Engineering Technology Program (w/photo)
CreatedFriday, November 05 2010
Created byJim Nelson/Media Relations - (304) 327-4103 email@example.com
|Fuji Electric Corporation of America recently donated five variable frequency drives to Bluefield State College's Electrical Engineering Technology program. Terry Webb (center) Fuji Engineering Manager and a BSC alumnus, is flanked by Karen Harvey (left), Executive Director/BSC Foundation, and Roy Pruett, BSC Professor & Electrical Engineering Technology Department Head during a recent ceremony at the College.
(Bluefield)—Fuji Electric Corporation of America recently donated several state-of-the-art devices to the Electrical Engineering Technology program at Bluefield State College. The equipment donation included six variable frequency drives and was arranged by Fuji Electrical Corporation engineering management personnel Terry Webb and Mike Royal, both of whom are BSC alumni. "Terry and Mike also attended the 2009 Job Fair at Bluefield State College, in hopes of hiring some of our graduates for Fuji Electric," noted Roy Pruett/BSC Professor & Electrical Engineering Technology Department Head.
"These units will be used for programming in the Electrical Controls, AC/DC Machinery and the Programmable Controllers laboratories," Pruett continued. "This equipment helps us to provide relevant, current instruction to our students. As a result, we are able to maintain a job placement rate of well over 90% in our students' field of study.
"Gifts in kind from Fuji Electric and other technology firms are greatly appreciated," added Karen Harvey/BSC Foundation Executive Director, "and they are fully tax deductible."


text: Everywhere I look there is low stock of ammo and higher prices. I know that a lot of people anticipate a ban on AR and AK type guns and high capacity magazines etc, but why would that make people buy and hoard ammo? Won't it be just as available post-ban?


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Hi mamas!
I am a mom to two breastfed boys, who are 6 and 3 (he's nursing as I type this)! I am also a journalist writing a story for AOL about mothers who choose to breastfeed up to or past Kindergarten. (I think this is a great chance to help battle the stigma lots of moms feel about the subject of long-term breastfeeding.) I know that some of you breastfed for a long while, but I don't know anyone personally who's still nursing a bigger kiddo. Do you? I'd appreciate any and all leads I can get. My deadline is Tuesday. Please feel free to respond to me here. I'll get back to you ASAP. Thanks so much!


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This digital archive is sourced from two microfilm collections: American Fiction, 1774-1910, which contains works taken directly from Lyle H. Wright's American Fiction: A Contribution Towards a Bibliography, and post-1900 works from the Library of Congress Shelf List of American Adult Fiction. The Wright bibliography, one of the most comprehensive in existence, contains more than 15,000 titles that comprise some two million pages. For works originating from the period 1911-1920, this collection is based on the Geoffrey D. Smith bibliography and sourced from the William Charvat collection of American Fiction at the Ohio State University, which comprises nearly three-quarters of all adult fiction published in the U.S. These works reveal much about the socioeconomic, political, and religious tenor as America became a distinctly 20th-century nation.
Miami University has a long and proud tradition of student involvement in both radio and television productions. This exhibit will celebrate five decades of students in broadcasting. Many of these productions can be found online in the WMUB Archives. For questions about the exhibit, contact Marcus Ladd at firstname.lastname@example.com or (513) 529-0462.
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Re: Party Patio
Have a great day and I'll check in when we get to our hotel tonight.
Whatever goes... remember, this is a family forum
HiddenHollow wrote:Made it safely to Manchester, TN for the night. Using the free hotel wi-fi right now to post this.
Hey, J... I waved to ya from I-75 as we drove by The Villages exit... did you see me??
I managed to find the race on an MRN radio station so we were able to listen to it as we drove through Macon, Atlanta on the way up to Dalton. As I already posted in another blog, I'm still in the 1-point-club for the 4th race in a row. BUMMER I must have looked like a wild man pounding on the steering wheel when it became apparent that my picks were not going to be in the top 3.
Tomorrow, it's on to Indiana.
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Forget jewelry and big-screen TVs. A burglar in Illinois is accused of stealing $1,000 in sex toys.
The victim sells sex toys for a living and had just returned to her Galesburg, Ill., home Monday night from a sex toy convention in Las Vegas when she found her place "ransacked," police told the Peoria Journal Star.
The woman's laptop, TV and other high-priced electronics hadn't been touched.
But a pink Adidas bag containing the sex toys and antibiotics was missing, the Galesburg Register-Mail reported.
"There are a lot of odd ducks out there," Galesburg police Capt. Rod Riggs told the Journal Star of the crime.
There was no sign of forced entry, and police believe the burglar may have known the woman. Galesburg is a small town, and "everybody knows she (sells sex toys) because she tells everybody," Riggs said. "That's how she promotes the business."


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Coming of Age (episode)
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(written from a Production point of view)
|"Coming of Age"
|TNG, Episode 1x19
Production number: 40271-119
First aired: 14 March 1988
|18th of 176 produced in TNG
|18th of 176 released in TNG
|123rd of 728 released in all
| Written By
Sandy Fries and Hannah Louise Shearer (uncredited rewrite)
Directed By
Mike Vejar
|41461.2 (2364)
|Arc: Alien neural parasites infiltrate Starfleet Command (1 of 2)
As Wesley Crusher faces the Starfleet Academy entrance exam on Relva VII, representatives from Starfleet Command conduct an exhaustive investigation into Captain Picard and the Enterprise crew.
Summary Edit
Wesley Crusher runs through a corridor to catch up with his friend Jake Kurland and tell him he's sorry that he didn't make the final exam for Starfleet Academy. Jake says it is okay and wishes Wes the best. The USS Enterprise-D is in orbit around Relva VII, where Wesley is taking the Starfleet Academy entrance exam. Captain Picard's old friend, Admiral Gregory Quinn is also at Relva and he requests to beam aboard immediately. He brings Lieutenant Commander Remmick with him, and wants a private meeting with Picard, on official business. The three officers go to the ready room. Remmick is with the Inspector General's office and is there to conduct an investigation of the Enterprise. According to Quinn, there is something seriously wrong on the Enterprise, but he won't tell Picard what. He orders him to cooperate fully with the investigation.
On Relva, Wes is in the testing center examining a flux coordinating sensor, when a Human girl comes in. She introduces herself as Oliana Mirren, and she is also taking the test. Then a Vulcan, T'Shanik, enters, along with a Benzite, Mordock. Wes has heard of Mordock; he constructed the Mordock Strategy. The officer in charge of the test, Lieutenant Chang, enters. He tells them that they are all top candidates, but only one of them can go forward to the academy this year. He warns them that the test will be challenging, and wishes them the best.
Remmick is on the bridge, watching the crew, who are not happy with his presence. Riker goes to the ready room to ask Picard what is going on. Picard tells him he doesn't know. Riker is unhappy with this, so when he returns to bridge and Remmick asks to talk to him, Riker refuses, saying he has duties to attend to. Down on the planet, the candidates are finishing one part of the exam, the hyperspace physics test. Oliana comments how lucky Wes and Mordock are that everything comes so easy to them, but Wesley denies this, saying he has to study hard.
Riker apologizes to Picard for his earlier behavior, and goes with Remmick when he asks him to. They go to the ready room, where Remmick questions Riker about discrepancies in the logs. Riker argues with him and is generally uncooperative. Remmick asks La Forge in engineering about the incident with Kosinski and the Traveler, and La Forge is forced to acknowledge that the captain lost control of the ship. He questions Troi about the incident with the Stargazer, saying it demonstrated a mental lapse on Picard's part.
Wesley is in an empty holodeck when Worf enters. Wes asks him about the test, saying he's most worried about the psych test. Worf tells him there's no point in worrying about something that you can't change. The test confronts you with your greatest fear, and Worf reveals that his own greatest difficulty is depending on someone else for his life.
On the bridge, Tasha Yar detects an unauthorized entry to the shuttlebay. It is Jake Kurland, and he steals a shuttle, intending to sign onto a freighter. Picard orders him to return to the ship, but then Jake unbalances the dilithium reactor, and his engine stalls. He is heading for the atmosphere, where he will burn up. The tractor beam won't work and he's out of transporter range. He can't get the engine started as it needs time to cool down, and he starts to panic. Picard orders him to point the nose of the shuttle towards the planet. Jake initially resists but then he does as he's told. Picard tells him to restart the engines and pull up when he reaches a certain speed. Jake does this and manages to pull out in time. All on the bridge cheer, and La Forge says that he built up enough speed, and then bounced the shuttle off the atmosphere. Remmick questions Picard on how he got access to the shuttle, but Picard assures him that he will get a refresher in discipline.
Wes and Mordock meet a tall Starfleet officer called Rondon in a corridor down on Relva. He bumps into Wesley and starts to insult him. Wes apologizes, then Lt. Chang arrives. Wes stops apologizing and shouts at Rondon. All of a sudden Rondon's mood changes, and he laughs and leaves. Chang asks what happened, and Wes says he noticed that he was a Zaldan, and Zaldans hate courtesy. They see it as covering up true emotions. Chang congratulates him and tells him it was part of the test. Mordock admits he wouldn't have passed.
Remmick interviews other crewmembers, among them Worf and Data, who says that there is nothing wrong with Picard, despite Remmick's claim to the contrary. He also questions Dr. Crusher, asking her how she feels serving with the man who was responsible for the death of her husband. She says her personal feelings are irrelevant. He finally questions Picard himself about his violation of the Prime Directive with the Edo. Picard gets angry and goes to Quinn to ask him what's going on. Quinn tells him Remmick's report is nearly due. The candidates are taking the dynamic relationships test and Mordock is having trouble, so Wes helps him. Mordock finishes first, and Chang comes in and tells him his time was the second fastest ever. Mordock tells him that Wes helped him, but Chang knows this. There is only one test left – the psych test.
Remmick makes his report to Quinn, and tells him he could find no problem on the Enterprise despite his best efforts. Quinn dismisses him, tells Picard he had to be sure about him. He says there are problems in the Federation and that someone is trying to destroy it. He says he needs people he can trust, and offers Picard promotion to admiral, as Commandant of Starfleet Academy. Picard says he doesn't think he's the best man for the job, but promises to think about it.
Wes enters room 101 where the psych test will take place. It is empty except for a chair. At first nothing happens, then he hears a noise outside. He goes out, and the corridor is deserted. He hears shouting coming from the environmental lab. He goes in and sees a technician trapped under a pipe. Another technician is frozen with panic and won't leave. He frees the trapped man, and drags him out, but has only just enough time to get him out before the lab is sealed off. He sees Lt. Chang standing over him. He tells Wes that this was the psych test, confronting his fear of having to choose between saving one man and leaving another. This was because the same situation resulted in the death of his father. Wes had overcome his fear and made a similar choice; whom he chose was not as important as the fact he actually chose; Wes had passed the test. Chang says he's proud of all the candidates and hopes they will all return next year. He reveals that Mordock has won, and tells him that Wes' help wasn't the only difference between them. With this, Mordock became the first Benzite in Starfleet. The other candidates congratulate him.
On the Enterprise, Picard is walking down the corridor when he meets Jake, who apologizes for what he did. Picard reminds him that running away solves nothing, but compliments him for keeping his wits about him. He finds Wesley in the observation lounge. He tells Picard that he failed the exam and let him down. Picard disagrees, saying that as long as he did his best, and would improve next year, he shouldn't worry. He then confides that he failed the test the first time himself. Quinn is leaving, and says he's sorry that Picard turned down the promotion. Picard promises that he will be ready if Quinn needs him. With that Quinn beams back down to Relva.
Log Entries Edit
Memorable Quotes Edit
"Thinking about what you can't control only wastes energy, and creates its own enemy."
- - Worf
"Only fools have no fear."
- - Worf
"Expect the unexpected."
- - Chang
"My personal feelings about Captain Picard are irrelevant to this investigation... and none of your business."
- - Beverly Crusher, to Remmick
"Just how did this contaminant come on board?"
"By accident, sir."
"Meaning that Captain Picard has no standing procedure for this type of situation?"
"No. Meaning 'by accident,' sir."
"You don't like me very much, do you?"
"Is it required, sir?"
- - Remmick and Worf
"Any problem with using your ready room, captain?"
"No, Mr. Remmick. Be my guest."
- - Remmick and Picard
"How dare you! I am Rondon, you despicable melanoid slime worm! LIAR!!"
"Who do you think you're bullying?! You bumped into me! It was your mistake! You were at fault! Do you want this to become violent?"
- - Rondon and Wesley Crusher
"If you prefer to stand, fine Mr. Riker. It won't have an effect on the length of my inquiry."
- - Remmick
"A very strange reaction!"
"Not really. When he raised his hand, I saw that it was webbed - the sign of a Zaldan."
"But you became hostile!"
"Zaldans are infuriated by courtesy - they view it as a form of phony social behavior designed to cover true feelings."
- - Mordock, Wesley and Chang, after Rondon leaves
"Was this 'incident' deliberate?"
"It's important to know how you...candidates deal with other cultures, other species..."
"Then it was a test!"
"Yes...not all tests are announced or...what they appear to be."
- - Mordock and Chang
"Zaldans have webbed fingers... hmph. I wouldn't have passed."
- - Mordock
"Did you hear what she said, Mordock? She said I was cute."
"Is that good, Wesley?"
"Yes... I think."
- - Wesley and Mordock
Background information Edit
Story and script Edit
- Although scripted by Sandy Fries, "Coming of Age" was rewritten by Hannah Louise Shearer. (Trek: The Unauthorized Behind-The-Scenes Story of The Next Generation)
Production Edit
- A scene cut for time showed Wesley and the whole bridge crew celebrating his sixteenth birthday. The script named the location of the scene as "Deck 21 Forward Lounge", probably an early predecessor of Ten Forward. The scene also featured a short, humorous bit: Data asks Worf how Klingons celebrate their birthdays, and Worf replies that they do not. Data then asks him, how does he know how old he is. Worf replies: he doesn't know and asks Data how does he know, with Data replying that he has no age. (Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion) [1]
Continuity Edit
- This episode lays the groundwork for the season's penultimate episode, "Conspiracy". Dexter Remmick makes a return in that episode, as does Gregory Quinn.
- This episode was the first to be directed by Mike Vejar, and it was the only time he directed an episode of TNG. He returned to Star Trek in 1997, when he began directing episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager. He continued directing until 2005, when Star Trek: Enterprise was canceled.
- Remmick makes reference to the events of "The Naked Now", "Justice", "Where No One Has Gone Before", and "The Battle".
- Wesley's repeat Starfleet exams, which Picard insists that he will take the next year, can be seen in TNG: "Samaritan Snare" although the testing itself is not shown with the drama associated with the "psych test".
- Room 101 might be a reference to George Orwell's 1984, where Room 101 was used to psychologically break the subjects by torturing them with their greatest fears.
- While Remmick's conversation with Tasha Yar wasn't shown, it is assumed to have happened since Picard said to Remmick that he had spoken to every member of the crew.
Sets and props Edit
- The original matte painting of Relva VII is in the property of Dan Curry and displayed in his house. ("Departmental Briefing Year Six - Profile: Dan Curry", TNG Season 6 DVD special feature)
- This episode features the first appearance of a shuttlecraft model on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
Reception Edit
- A mission report by Patrick Daniel O'Neill for this episode was published in The Official Star Trek: The Next Generation Magazine Vol. 5, pp. 49-52.
- UK premiere airdate: 6th February 1991
Awards Edit
- This episode was nominated for an Emmy Award for Outstanding Achievement in Makeup for a Series.
Video and DVD releases Edit
- Original UK VHS release (two-episode tapes, CIC Video): Volume 10, catalogue number VHR 2439, 1 April 1991.
- UK re-release (three-episode tapes, Paramount Home Entertainment): Volume 1.7, catalogue number VHR 4648, 7 September 1998.
- As part of the TNG Season 1 DVD collection.
- As part of the TNG Season 1 Blu-ray collection.
Links and references Edit
Starring Edit
Also starring Edit
- LeVar Burton as Lt. Geordi La Forge
- Denise Crosby as Lt. Tasha Yar
- Michael Dorn as Lt. Worf
- Gates McFadden as Doctor Beverly Crusher
- Marina Sirtis as Counselor Deanna Troi
- Brent Spiner as Lt. Commander Data
- Wil Wheaton as Wesley Crusher
Guest stars Edit
- Ward Costello as Gregory Quinn
- Robert Schenkkan as Dexter Remmick
- John Putch as Mordock
- Robert Ito as Chang
- Stephen Gregory as Jake Kurland
- Tasia Valenza as T'Shanik
Co-stars Edit
- Estee Chandler as Oliana Mirren
- Brendan McKane as Technician #1
- Wyatt Knight as Technician #2
- Daniel Riordan as Rondon
Uncredited co-stars Edit
- James G. Becker as Youngblood
- Darrell Burris as an operations division officer
- Dexter Clay as an operations division officer
- Jeffrey Deacon as command division officer
- Tim McCormack as Bennett
- Lorine Mendell as Diana Giddings
- Richard Sarstedt as a command division officer
- Guy Vardaman as Darien Wallace
- Unknown performers as
Stand-ins Edit
- James G. Becker - stand-in for Jonathan Frakes
- Darrell Burris - stand-in for LeVar Burton
- Dexter Clay - stand-in for Michael Dorn
- Jeffrey Deacon - stand-in for Patrick Stewart
- Susan Duchow - stand-in for Denise Crosby
- Nora Leonhardt - stand-in for Marina Sirtis
- Tim McCormack - stand-in for Brent Spiner
- Lorine Mendell - stand-in for Gates McFadden
- Guy Vardaman - stand-in for Wil Wheaton
References Edit
2161; 2348; Algeron IV; antimatter; atmosphere; Beltane IX; Beltane system; Benzite; Bulgallian rats; Cargo management unit; cockpit; commandant; Copernicus; Crusher, Jack; dilithium; dynamic relationships; Edo; Enterprise, U.S.S.; Enterprise-D, USS; environmental lab; flight emergency override; flux coordinating sensor; freighter; Galaxy-class; holodeck; hyperspace physics; Inspector General; intermix ratio; kilometer; Kosinski; Kurland; lightning storm; liquid hydrogen; main shuttlebay; maneuvering jets; matter; Mellanoid slime worm; Mordock Strategy; NCC-7100; Operations center; prime directive; psych test; shutoff valve; shuttle drone; standard orbit; Relva VII; starbase; Starfleet Academy; Stargazer, USS; Support Services; TAC officer; thought maker; three-dimensional chess; tour of duty; tractor beam; transporter room; Vulcan; Vulcana Regar; warp drive; Zaldan
External links Edit
- Coming of Age at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
|This page uses Creative Commons Licensed content from Wikipedia (view authors).
- Coming of Age at StarTrek.com, the official Star Trek website
| Previous episode:
"Home Soil"
| Star Trek: The Next Generation
Season 1
| Next episode:
"Heart of Glory"
cs:Coming of Age de:Prüfungen es:Coming of Age fr:Coming of Age ja:TNG:宇宙戦士への道 nl:Coming of Age


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Brandon Krennrich became a Kentucky baseball fan when members of the Wildcats' coaching staff saw him two years ago at the Racine Hitters Fall Experience camp.
The Johnsburg sophomore became an even bigger fan when former Skyhawk Jerad Grundy, a left-handed pitcher, helped Kentucky to its best season ever last spring and into the NCAA tournament.
Krennrich liked Kentucky even more after talking to Grundy and fellow lefty pitcher Sam Mahar about the coaches and the program. The was a mutual admiration from the side of Wildcats coach Gary Henderson and his staff after seeing the Skyhawks catcher in action behind and at the plate.
So before Krennrich and his father Todd left Lexington last week on their visit to Kentucky, he told Henderson he wanted to attend the Southeastern Conference school. Krennrich, who hit .380 and drove in 23 runs for Johnsburg last season, will not sign his NCAA national letter of intent for two more years. Krennrich made only two errors and threw out 18 of 23 base stealers.
"I really got to know the coaches well," Krennrich said. "Jerad and his family were a lot of help. He and Sam told me the coaches were the same when their families weren't there as when they were. It's very nice to have someone in the program like that."
Grundy, a 27th-round pick by Minnesota in Baseball's Amateur Draft in June, decided to return to Kentucky this season for his senior year.
Krennrich (6-foot, 185 pounds) was the Skyhawks' starting catcher last season and a Northwest Herald All-Area second-team selection. In the summer, he plays with Elite Baseball Training, which is based out of Chicago and coached by Justin Stone.
"[Former Johnsburg] coach [Dann] Geisey helped me a lot. He would talk to them," Krennrich said. "And Justin Stone got me in front of [the Kentucky coaches] a lot too. He invited them out to Elite Baseball's college day."
Krennrich was invited to represent the Great Lakes Regional team in the National Team Identification Series Showcase in Cary, N.C. in September. He is excited about the chance to play in the SEC, which is one of the best conferences in the nation.
"In junior high I started getting invitations to play for USA teams and with top programs," Krennrich said. "I thought then if I could play travel ball with some of the best in the country, why couldn't I do that in college."
Johnsburg head coach Sam Lesniak, who worked as a Skyhawks assistant last year, feels Kentucky is a perfect fit for Krennrich.
"His baseball ability is lights-out," Lesniak said. "He has an incredible arm, he's a great team player and the kids respected him right away, even as a freshman. He's hungry for more and he wants to continue working hard to get better. That kind of attitude is something that can't really be taught."
Visits on hold: Marengo senior Katie Adams' popularity continues to grow with college cross country and track coaches, although a few weeks ago she decided against any more visits during the season.
"I made a visit to Iowa, but I decided doing it now disrupted my routine," Adams said. "No more visits until after the season."
Adams will be a favorite in the IHSA Cross Country State Meet girls Class 2A race Saturday at Peoria's Detweiller Park. After this weekend, she wants to make visits to Minnesota and Missouri. She could take two more official visits after that.
• Joe Stevenson is a senior sports writer for the Northwest Herald. He can be reached by email at firstname.lastname@example.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @nwh_JoePrepZone.