text:
In the coming days, assuming R.A. Dickey and the Toronto Blue Jays agree to an extension, you'll hear plenty of talk from the New York Mets, all but acknowledging that they are giving up on 2013. Considering their financial restrictions made adding an outfield next to impossible, this was largely true whether Dickey stayed or not.
Instead, the talk will be about the coming greatness that is 2014.
In the New York Times, however, Tyler Kepner argued this: "By trading Dickey to the Toronto Blue Jays, pending the negotiation of a contract extension, the Mets essentially told their fans that they do not expect to contend for the next three years."
Look, the Mets could be right. Kepner could be right. And I'm not fan of splitting the difference simply to appear reasonable. But I think the sweet spot for hope is right in between, around 2015.
Take a look at this list from John Sickels of the top 20 Mets prospects, assuming the Dickey trade goes through. Of those 20, the number you can reasonably expect to debut in 2013 is: two of them. There's Zack Wheeler, and there's Travis d'Arnaud. Fortunately, they are two of the best, with highest ceilings, so that they are close, and therefore likelier to become real assets, is huge.
But move beyond that pair, and not only are most of the remaining 20 not likely to debut in 2013, most of the remaining 20 aren't likely to be ready by 2014, either.
There's Noah Syndergaard, second piece in the Dickey deal, Michael Fulmer, Luis Mateo, Rafael Montero, Domingo Tapia, Logan Verrett and Jack Leathersich, all potentially helpful pitchers unlikely to even begin 2013 in Double-A.
Among the pitchers, there's Jenrry Mejia, who hasn't managed to strike out enough hitters even at Triple-A to look like a good candidate to help the Mets, and Jeurys Familia, whose control problems make him suspect even as a reliever. They are raw enough that if younger and at lower levels, they'd have more of a chance to help. Hard to see it happening, or put another way, hard to plan around it. Jake DeGrom hasn't pitched at Double-A, either, but could move fast; he's a middle reliever, though, in all likelihood.
That first group, the one you'd look at to start flowering in 2015… there's enough variety and talent there to survive attrition. And rest assured, these are pitching prospects: you'll get attrition.
Even if they make it to the major leagues by 2014, which would call for some pretty irresponsible, Tony Bernazard prospect-rushing in most cases, the chances they will both do that and then dominate immediately like Matt Harvey are very slim. Look, 2015 could even be a season of growing pains for the survivors from that bunch.
Same goes for the hitting prospects in that top 20: Brandon Nimmo, Gavin Cecchini, Kevin Plawecki, Cory Vaughn, Danny Muno and Philip Evans. Only Vaughn will begin at Double-A; the others will not. Asking them to jump three levels in a year, if not four, then contributing to a contending team, is asking a lot. Asking some of them to reach Citi Field by the middle/end of 2014, contribute in 2015? Far from impossible.
There's also Wilmer Flores, who doesn't seem to fit on the Mets (he's probably a third baseman in the major leagues, which is… taken), and Matt den Dekker, who put up a .629 OPS at age 24 in Buffalo last year. Genuinely surprised Sickels has him as high as he does. Also, he replicates, though not as well, basically everything Kirk Nieuwenhuis already does.
Here's a rough sketch of how they contend in 2013: Wright and Davis and Tejada and Murphy are all great, John Buck is good enough until d'Arnaud cones up and immediately crushes big league pitching, Niese is Niese, Santana is healthy and effective, Wheeler makes quick work of Triple-A and adjusts to the major leagues the way Harvey did, Harvey doesn't regress at all, Gee pitches all season like he did in the first half, a bullpen and outfield magically materialize. And no injuries, because no depth.
Unlikely, right?
Here's how it happens in 2014: Wright and Davis and Tejada and Murphy are all great, d'Arnaud, after some 2013 growing pains, settles in as a plus regular, the Mets deal Wilmer Flores for an outfielder, or Cory Vaughn develops, or they get someone via free agency, or deal one of the hopefully several pitchers who surmount Double-A in 2013 for another outfielder, or Nieuwenhuis figures out how to hit lefties, or some combination therein. A few of those arms are in position to help the bullpen, and replace Santana, surrounding Niese/Harvey/Gee, while Wheeler, after adjusting to MLB in 2013, settles in as regular contributor in 2014.
Not a ton of margin for error there. Not impossible, but the biggest difference between the two seasons is a year of time, and most of what's coming isn't a year away.
But 2015?
Here's how it happens: Wright ages gracefully, Davis/Tejada/Murphy are all still in peak. d'Arnaud, two big league seasons in, is the team's best offensive player. Brandon Nimmo develops fully, occupies starting OF role in 2015 after breaking in late 2014, while Mets supplement him with other OF from Vaughn/trade of Flores/trade of excess arms/free agency. Starting rotation has Niese/Gee/Harvey/Wheeler/fifth spot with those remaining arms after attrition, with a number of them around to fill out the bullpen, too.
Best of all, with $320 million in debt against the team due in 2014, and $450 against SNY due in 2015, either ownership will have figured out a magical way to convince the banks to roll over the debt and invest in the team, or a capitalized ownership group will be in place to supplement that talent base with at least reasonable spending on acquisitions.
So no, I don't think the Mets are contending anytime soon. Who knows, though: they could surprise. They could also see this crop of youngsters fail to pan out, pushing the next great Mets team beyond 2016.
I think there's reason to be hopeful about 2015. And the Dickey deal only helped in that pursuit.


text:
NEDERLAND, Texas - A family in Nederland continues to await word from the government on the fate of an Algerian hostage.
The city of Nederland is relatively small. With around 17,000 people, it's not hard to find someone you know. With the world watching the hostage situation in Algeria, a community waits to see if their loved one is safe.
Cars surrounded the home where a person held hostage in Algeria lives. The U.S. State Department hasn't released his name or status at this time.
Meanwhile, his family said they've turned to their church for comfort and prayers.
"They are a good family, close family. They got a supportive, extended family," said Father Dan Malain from St. Charles Catholic Church.
On Sunday afternoon, BP released the following statement, that reads in part:
"BP remains gravely concerned about four of its employees who are missing. There is no further confirmed information regarding their status at this time. BP group chief executive Bob Dudley and other executives have spoken to the families to offer the company's full support at this deeply tragic time."
Another local man, Frederick Buttaccio, 58, was a BP employee held hostage in Algeria. He was one of the dozens who were killed.
His family in Katy said they're remembering him for his loving heart, caring nature and sense of humor. Now all they can do is await news of when his body will return home.
Copyright 2013 by Click2Houston.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Recycle Vehicle Fluids and Parts
Motor Oil and Transmission Fluid
According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), "the oil from just one oil change is enough to contaminate a million gallons of fresh water." Motor oil and transmission fluids are toxic substances. Toxic substances may cause injury or death when ingested, inhaled, or touched, depending on dose and length of exposure.
Oil can and should be recycled and reused as fuel. Two gallons of used oil can provide a utility boiler with enough fuel to run the average household's electricity for about 24 hours. By recycling, you can prevent soil and water contamination, as well as damage to septic systems and wastewater treatment facilities. To recycle used motor oil and transmission fluid, take them to a service station, drop-off location, or household hazardous waste collection site. Keep all automotive fluids separate from each other.
Gasoline, Power Steering Fluid, and Windshield Wiper Fluid
Gasoline, power steering fluid, and wiper fluid should be completely used up. Gasoline and wiper fluids are toxic and flammable. Power steering fluid is toxic. If it is not completely used, be sure to store it safely and take it to a household hazardous waste collection location. Keep all automotive fluids separate from each other. Recycling gasoline, power steering fluid, and wiper fluid prevents soil and water contamination and reduces the risk of exposure to benzene and fire.
Antifreeze and Brake Fluid
Always take antifreeze and brake fluid to a service station, or household hazardous waste location for recycling. Never pour them down the sink, into septic tanks or storm drain, or on the ground. Keep all automotive fluids separate from each other. Recycling antifreeze and brake fluid prevents children and animals from being poisoned (they are attracted to the sweet taste) and prevents soil and water contamination. Antifreeze is toxic but can still be regenerated and reused. Brake fluid is toxic and corrosive and can sometimes be regenerated.
Auto Batteries
Although auto batteries are toxic and corrosive, they contain recyclable metals. Unused auto batteries should be taken to a service station, drop-off location, or household hazardous waste collection site for recycling. Properly disposing of batteries prevents lead and sulfuric acid contamination of soil and water. Lead can cause mild to severe brain damage, especially to children, and sulfuric acid can burn skin and eyes.
Oil Filters
To properly dispose of oil filters, drain and collect used oil from the filter after the engine has been off for 24 hours. After the oil has been drained, take the filter and oil to a service station, drop-off location, or household hazardous waste collection site. Proper disposal prevents soil and water contamination, as well as damage to septic systems and wastewater treatment facilities. The used oil can be refined and reused. The filters contain recyclable metal.
Nearly 200 million worn tires are generated each year. Some are recycled into products such as rubber mats or footwear; others are burned as fuel or retreaded and sold again. Recycling keeps millions of scrap tires out of landfills each year.
Properly maintaining tires makes them last longer. Keep tires properly inflated, repair punctures, and maintain alignment. Rotate tires every 6,000 to 8,000 miles, and check tread wear indicators periodically. When the tire tread is worn to same height as the tread wear indicator, replace the tire
- National Safety Council


text:
Lane Williamson of Algoma and Hannah Elisabeth Gravley of Picayune, juniors at William Carey University, were recently selected to participate in the undergraduate portion of the Mississippi Rural Physicians Scholarship Program (MRPSP). Willamson is the son of Jimmy and Lisa Williamson of Algoma. Gravley is the daughter of Craig and Martie Gravley of Picayune.
William Carey News
Thursday, June 30, 2016
Tuesday, June 28, 2016
William Carey University has achieved the gold level Fit-Friendly Worksite designation from the American Heart Association.
The Fit-Friendly Worksite program recognizes employers who go above and beyond when it comes to employees' health and rewards organizations for progressive leadership and concern for their staff. To qualify, the worksite must have at least 25 employees and promote a wellness culture that includes offering workers physical activity support and healthy eating options at work.
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
Seven William Carey University graduate students have received scholarships from the Mississippi Professional Educators (MPE).
Wednesday, June 22, 2016
The Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL) has announced changes regarding financial aid funds issued by the state. The changes apply to Mississippi residents only.
UPDATE: Nine hours per trimester remains the full-time requirement to receive state aid. It was previously reported the new requirement would be 10 hours.
Forgivable loan programs will only be awarded to renewal applicants. This includes William Winter and all of the nursing funds.
Monday, June 20, 2016
William Carey University announced June 17 the hiring of Dr. Michael Malloy as the dean for the proposed pharmacy school at the WCU Tradition campus in Biloxi. Dr. Janet Williams, associate vice president for health programs, introduced Malloy at a press conference at the Tradition campus.
Tuesday, June 14, 2016
A collection of aerial photographs on display at the William Carey University Tradition campus combines artistry and concern for our coastal environment.
"Coastal Waterways" by Susan Guice features photographs illustrating the impact man has on the Mississippi and Louisiana waterways. Guice will discuss her work during a reception and presentation from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 21 at the Tradition campus, located at 19640 Hwy. 67 in Biloxi.
Friday, June 3, 2016
A new report from Best College Values ranks William Carey University as number five on a national list of the most affordable online master's degrees in elementary education.
Thursday, June 2, 2016
Carey Dinner Theatre, the 2016 winner of the Pine Belt Public Image Award for bringing quality family entertainment to the Pine Belt, will celebrate its 41st season with two musicals in June and July at the Joe and Virginia Tatum Theatre on the Hattiesburg campus of William Carey University.
Tuesday, May 31, 2016
Imagine you are hiking with friends and someone goes into shock due to an allergic reaction to a bee sting. Paramedics may not make it in time to the remote location, but a drone-based telemedical kit could be a life-saving solution.
Wednesday, May 25, 2016
The William Carey University School of Education is now offering two new advanced degrees for educators working with children with emotional or behavioral disorders and a new concentration for early childhood education.
Friday, May 20, 2016
William Carey University awarded honorary degrees to First Lady Deborah Bryant and philanthropist Joe Frank Sanderson Jr. during commencement on May 13 at the Hattiesburg campus.
Friday, May 20, 2016
Thirteen William Carey University theatre students were honored at the 2016 Theatre Awards Dinner. This annual event recognizes the contributions and talents of theatre majors and students of other majors who participate in theatre throughout the academic year.
Friday, May 20, 2016
William Carey University held its annual honors convocation on April 27 in Smith Auditorium on the Hattiesburg campus.
Laura Scovel of Wiggins and Deon Cummings of Hattiesburg were awarded the Jenkins-Chastain Citizenship Award, the highest honor given by the university. This award is presented each year to senior students who have made the most significant contributions to student and campus life in exemplifying qualities of citizenship upheld by the university.
Other awards presented include:
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
The Mississippi Program of Research and Evaluation for Public Schools (PREPS) announced May 10 that William Carey University in Hattiesburg has been selected as the new headquarters for the program.
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
Scholarship awards were presented to William Carey University students during the 26th annual Small Business Leadership Award Luncheon on May 4 at Southern Oaks House and Gardens. Pictured (from left) are Dr. Cheryl Dale, dean of the WCU School of Business; Justin Johnson of Ocean Springs, recipient of the School of Business Scholarship; Lauren Nicole Lee of Hattiesburg, recipient of the Richard "Pepper" Jones Endowed Scholarship; and Colby Alan Culbertson of Brookhaven, recipient of the School of Business Scholarship.


text:
HOUSTON - A violent purse snatching in downtown Houston was caught on store surveillance cameras.
The crime happened around 9:30 a.m. Thursday in the 1400 block of Hutchins.
The victim, who didn't want to be identified, said she and her sister came from Louisiana to Houston to buy goods at a local grocery supply. While her sister was inside, a van pulled up to the woman. A man jumped out and tried to grab her purse, but couldn't.
The two struggled, and eventually, the thief got back inside the van with the purse, but the woman still had it over her shoulder and couldn't let it go.
One of the van's tires clipped the woman's arm. The thieves got away with her purse, cash and credit cards, authorities said.
The woman suffered a scraped and swollen arm and a bruised leg.
If you have any information about this crime, give Crime Stoppers a call at 713-222-TIPS (8477).
Copyright 2013 by Click2Houston.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


text:
Jeremy Barlow specialises in English popular and dance music from 1550 to 1750, and also has a particular interest in the illustration of music and social dance over the centuries.
Lectures on a variety of subjects linking music and art are much in demand from organisations such as the National Association of Decorative and Fine Art Societies (NADFAS), U3A, the Art Fund and National Trust; Jeremy Barlow has toured widely in Britain, Europe, Australia and New Zealand.
Books on musical topics range from the scholarly - including The Enraged Musician: Hogarth's Musical Imagery (Ashgate) and The Stage's Glory: John Rich, 1692-1761, co-edited with Berta Joncus (University of Delaware Press) - to the humorous: The Cat & the Fiddle: Images of musical humour from the Middle Ages to modern times (Bodleian Library). A further book for the Bodleian, A Dance Through Time: Images of Western Social Dancing from the Middle Ages to Modern Times, has just been published.
The Broadside Band has performed at major venues and festivals in England, Scotland, France, Austria, Germany and Sweden and has made many recordings for Harmonia Mundi, Hyperion, Saydisc etc. These include the Edison Award winning Beggar's Opera featuring Bob Hoskins and Sarah Walker, English Country Dances, Old English Nursery Rhymes and Songs and Dances from Shakespeare.


text:
Worthy goals.How can I determine if a network is insecure and how can I fix these problems?What difference does this make? Even if you could hide your IP address how to you perceive this as protecting your privacy? For example:How to hide my Ip address effectively to maintain my privacy?
- Do you do any ordering/shopping online?
- Does anyone else in your home have access to your computer?
- Do you use public systems or networks (library, cafe, hotel, etc)?
- Do you EVER use your real name online?
- Do you EVER use your real name in conjunction with your email address?
- Do you use social media with your real name? (FaceBook, Google+/Circles/whatever...., MySpace, LinkedIn, etc)
- Do you use a laptop, tablet, phone, etc that can be stolen or that you can not maintain positive control of?
- Do you blindly install or use software on your system/network/tablet/phone without doing research into the reliability/security thereof?
- etc
If your answer to any of these questions is yes, then hiding your IP address (in whatever manner or from whoever you may think necessary) is completely irrelevant. The "Best" or really only way to protect your privacy online is to always be someone else...i.e.: have an online only identity and ensure that you never EVER connect it to yourself in any way (which is almost impossible).
To answer your question of where to start, try here: http://www.backtrack-linux.org/forum...ad.php?t=33114


text:
USF moves to winner's bracket at Gainesville Regional
Published: Friday, May 17, 2013 at 5:55 p.m.
Last Modified: Friday, May 17, 2013 at 5:55 p.m.
South Florida advanced to Saturday winner's bracket game of the NCAA Gainesville Regional with a 1-0 extra-inning win over Georgia Southern on Friday at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium.
Florida plays Hampton in the second game. The winners meet at 1 p.m. Saturday.
USF pitcher Lindsey Richardson pitched five innings of one-hit ball for the Bulls, and Sara Nevins (26-7) pitched three perfect innings. South Florida (44-14) scored a run in the bottom of the eighth to win it. Ashli Goff had three of USF's four hits in the game and scored the game-winner.
Georgia Southern (32-29) plays in the elimination game Saturday.
Reader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged.


text:
GPD: Women arrested after confrontation over Facebook posts
Published: Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at 8:52 a.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, November 28, 2012 at 8:52 a.m.
A confrontation over some Facebook posts led to the arrest Tuesday of two women on robbery and battery charges, according to a Gainesville police arrest report.
Arrested were Sade Danielle Ferguson, 23, of 1107 SE 20th St.; and Shontae Arielle Wilson, 21, also of 1107 SE 20th St. Both were charged with robbery and battery.
The incident occurred about 1:38 p.m. at the Eden Park apartment complex at 1350 NE 39th Ave. The women went there to confront the victim over posts on Facebook, the arrest report states.
According to the report, the women confronted the victim in the parking lot and punched her repeatedly in the head and face with closed fists.
Ferguson and Wilson were taken into custody about 3:28 p.m. Ferguson refused to speak with police about the incident while Wilson admitted that she was involved in the battery and also that she stole money from the victim while the fight was under way, the report states.
Wilson showed police where she hid the money, but it was not at the location. Police reported Wilson told them the bills were in denominations of $100, $20 and $1.
Reader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged.


text:
Do you have a grumpy toddler? A 10-year-old with attention deficit disorder? A teenaged son who hates to read? Or are you expecting your first child? The Williamsburg Regional Library's Parent's Corner book collection is here to help!
The Parent's Corner provides books on parenting, from pre-natal care through your child's teen years. Sample titles include How to Talk to Your Child's Doctor, Secrets of the Teenage Brain, Parenting Young Athletes the Ripken Way, Exercising through your Pregnancy, Helping the Child Who Doesn't Fit In and Gardening Wizardry for Kids. There's a Parent's Corner in the Youth Services area of our Williamsburg and James City County library buildings Items are designated with a call number starting with the letters PC.


text:
Born LiarsLogic puzzles require you to think. You will have to be logical in your reasoning.
Edward, Howard, and John are three high school students each of whom is taking three of the four subjects, biology, chemistry, history, and mathematics. One day while talking about their programs they made the following statements.
Edward: There is just one subject we're all taking. I'm the only one of us who is taking mathematics. No two of us are taking the same three subjects. John is wrong when he says that Howard and I are both taking chemistry.
Howard: Ed is the only one of us who is taking history. John and I are taking the same subjects. We're all taking biology. Two of us are taking both chemistry and biology.
John: We're all taking mathematics. Howard is taking history. Ed is taking one subject that I'm not. Both Howard and Ed are taking chemistry.
If two and only two of each boy's statements are true, what subjects is each boy taking?
AnswerEdward: chemistry, biology, history
Howard: chemistry, biology, mathematics
John: biology, mathematics, history
What Next?
See another brain teaser just like this one...
Or, just get a random brain teaser
If you become a registered user you can vote on this brain teaser, keep track of
which ones you have seen, and even make your own.
Back to Top


text:
Well-being by light
Most people feel more energetic and refreshed during the bright and sunny summer season when they're outdoors enjoying natural light. Both sunshine and daylight have a positive effect on us. When we are exposed to the right type of light, it helps to align our daily rhythm or wake us up more easily. With this in mind, Philips has developed a complete range of light therapy products that boost your energy by using the unique health benefits light offers.
National Sleep Foundation Partnership
Philips and the National Sleep Foundation are working together to help people understand the effects of light on overall well-being. Learn more about sleep health and how to work with your natural sleep and wake-up patterns to feel more energetic throughout the day with the sleep education guide, "Managing Light for Better Sleep" from the experts at the National Sleep Foundation. Each Philips light therapy product comes with a free copy of the Guide.
The National Sleep Foundation is an educational and scientific not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving sleep health and safety through education, public awareness, and advocacy.
Together, Philips and the National Sleep Foundation are helping you to sleep smart, wake smart, and live smart.
2 Item(s)
Grid List


text: What's the Big Deal with Fast and Furious? Watch. Advertisements Share this:FacebookTwitterPinterestTumblrMoreRedditPrintEmailGoogleLike this:Like Loading... Related Published by Karen Hi! My day job is a CMA in neurosurgery.. I'm a mom to two twenty-something sons. I've been married to the same man for 26 years. I have a lot to say about nothing. Lucky you. View all posts by Karen


text:
Stepping Down and Stepping Up: James Parnell Succeeds Aaron Oliver as Student Council President
May 3, 2011
Graduating senior seminarian Aaron Oliver is stepping down after completing his term as President of Student Council and making way for President-Elect James Parnell, a 1st-year seminarian who acted as his class representative on the council this past year. Continuing in their respective roles as Secretary and Treasurer are Andrew Boyd and Anoop Thomas.
"On behalf of the Student Council, I would like to congratulate James on his election as President-Elect of the council. His term will begin following Commencement," announced seminarian Oliver.
"This is the first year that a Student Council has existed in decades, and we've really flourished at the school," he added. "We are establishing ourselves on campus in our role as a student voice, in being a liaison between the students and the administration, and in working to improve the quality of campus life and supporting the seminary's mission.
"It's been an honor and privilege to serve in this capacity and to work with the students and the administration," seminarian Oliver summed up. "We've worked in an atmosphere of open communication, and among the tangible things we've accomplished are: acting as student observers on Faculty Council committee meetings and as representatives on the Alumni Board and Events Committee; and we have worked to increase student interaction with the Board of Trustees. Additionally, we've started various student organizations on campus as special interest groups."
The Student Council was newly formed in May 2010, to strengthen student participation in campus life and to facilitate communication between students and faculty, staff, and administration. Seminarian Parnell not only will be President of the council next year but also will be one of two 2nd-year class representatives. Additionally, he will continue to act as Special Interest Group Coordinator, that is, as liaison between the various student groups—such as those representing environmental concerns, St. George Orthodox Military Association, outreach and missions, pro-Life advocacy, and so forth—and the Student Council.
Commenting on his new office, seminarian Parnell said, "I feel honored to have been chosen to succeed Aaron Oliver, who has given me big shoes to fill. He's served faithfully and diligently as our first President, and I hope to do even half as well as he has done. He's been a great source of knowledge and advice and has been a great help to me in my first year while transitioning into seminary life, as he is, like myself, a Chaplain Candidate in the Army National Guard. I joined the military while in high school and went on active duty status as soon as I graduated. I completed my Associate and Bachelor degrees while on active duty in the U.S. Army. I was rarely if ever a full-time student, given frequent stateside traveling for training and two overseas deployments. This has made the transition to a full-time, brick-and-mortar graduate school particularly tough after almost a decade in the military.
"My vision for next year is one of continuing some of the great programs we've started and ensuring further cooperation between the Student Council and the administration," he continued. "I look forward to working with the Dean and Chancellor and the rest of the administration and have been very impressed with their support and have appreciated their guidance as we have progressed through the year. The concept of a Student Council at St. Vladimir's is still very new, and we have a lot of work to do to further integrate into the life and mission of the seminary. One of the main issues that I hope to address is, for lack of a better word, 'publicity.' I want to ensure that students know that we are here and available to help them with whatever issues arise. I'd like to see us take a more active role, not only as a Student Council but also as students in general.
"I've never participated as an officer in student government, but I am thankful for my frequent leadership opportunities while serving in the Army and the National Guard," he said in conclusion. "I hope to use the discipline, motivation, and leadership skills that I've learned in the military in this context as well in order to serve my fellow seminarians. That's really what our job is about as Student Council representatives: serving our fellow seminarians."


text:
CHIPPENHAM will make the trip to county rivals Trowbridge in the opening match of the new season.
Danny Thomas' men, who were relegated from National Three South West last season, will travel to Doric Park to take on RFU Intermediate Cup champions Trowbridge, who were promoted from the Southern Counties South division, on September 6.
Chippenham's first meeting of the season with Devizes will take place on October 11, with Thomas' side ending their South West One East campaign with the reverse fixture against Trowbridge on April 18.
For next season's full fixture list, visit www.swrugby.co.uk.
MORE SPORTS NEWS, PICTURES AND REACTION IN THIS THURSDAY'S GAZETTE AND HERALD. FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @gazsport


text:
LIVONIA, Mich. - The 100-year-old Awrey Bakeries may close because union members have rejected another concession proposal from management.
Awrey Bakeries began in Detroit as a family business and moved to a production facility in Livonia in the 1970s.
The company, known for its windmill logo, fell on hard times and filed for bankruptcy protection in 2005. An investment group purchased it in bankruptcy, but in recent years demanded concessions from unionized workers to keep the company going.
The latest demand, for a $2 per hour pay cut and the loss of some jobs, was rejected this week by union members.
Tom Kurras is a union member who says workers have been giving back for the past five years. He said this demand was just too much.
Read more: Awrey's is not alright
"We're just done. I think we're done. I think the vote was unanimous, I hope it was," Kurras said.
Lillian Triplett was one of the customers at the Awrey outlet store Wednesday. She said she hopes the bakery will not shut down.
"I don't want that to happen. We lose enough jobs as it is in this area, so no, I don't want it to go away," Triplett said.
Awrey's management has talked of shutting down the Livonia facility and moving production to a facility it owns in Indiana, but there has been no comment from management since the union vote was reported.
Copyright 2012 by ClickOnDetroit.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


text:
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - France and Italy won support for a slightly more growth-friendly interpretation of European Union budget rules at a summit on Thursday after French President Francois Hollande challenged German-driven fiscal austerity.
The 27 EU leaders agreed, after debating how to overcome mass unemployment and recession unleashed by three years of the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis, to allow greater leeway for public investment when reducing government deficits.
"The possibilities offered by the EU's existing fiscal framework to balance productive public investment needs with fiscal discipline objectives can be exploited in the preventive arm of the Stability and Growth Pact," the summit conclusions said.
Exceptions would have to be approved by the executive European Commission and fellow euro zone states, but Hollande and Italy's Europe minister drew encouragement from what they depicted as a concession.
"We are meeting our (deficit reduction) commitments but in a way that does not contradict our objective of growth," the Socialist French leader said.
"That's the debate that is now going to start with the Commission, and the guidance we were given today allows us to approach this discussion with confidence," he said.
Hollande said on arrival it was essential that governments had budget flexibility to kick-start growth with spending.
Germany, the leading stickler for fiscal discipline, is concerned that any straying from the path of deficit reduction will raise debt burdens and reignite financial market turmoil.
But Chancellor Angela Merkel avoided any clash with France, telling reporters: "We made clear in a very consensual discussion that budget consolidation, structural reforms and growth are not in contradiction but are mutually reinforcing."
Hollande acknowledged this week that France's budget deficit would hit 3.7 percent of gross domestic product this year, missing the 3 percent it had promised EU partners, due to a flat economy. That drew criticism from Germany's central bank chief, who said French economic reforms seemed to have floundered.
In Berlin on Wednesday, senior German officials trumpeted their finances as the "envy of the world" and said their structural deficit, which factors out the economic cycle, would be eliminated by next year.
European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, who chaired the summit, said that while reconfirming their existing economic strategy the leaders had focused on the urgency of fighting unemployment, with 26 million Europeans including 7 million young people out of work.
"We are all fully conscious of the debate, the mounting frustrations and even despair of the people," he told a news conference. "We also know there are no easy answers. The only way out of the crisis is to keep tackling its root causes."
Diplomats said they had not expected any major policy shift at the summit, but Hollande may be preparing the ground for a more substantial assault against austerity, together with Spain and Italy, after German elections in September.
Between now and then France, Spain and Portugal may also be given more time by their EU peers to meet their deficit goals, as long as they stick to a debt-cutting trend.
While the worst of the debt crisis may have passed, the conundrum leaders face is how to galvanise anaemic growth and create jobs for millions of unemployed without undermining budget discipline.
"Markets kill you if you lose fiscal credibility, and they also kill you if you don't have any growth, so it's quite a narrow path to tread," said one EU diplomat.
"The problem is, I don't know where most euro zone countries would find the fiscal space to stimulate if they were allowed."
Leaders were also expected to touch on Cyprus and Italy at a late-night meeting of just the 17 euro zone countries.
Cyprus said it intended to raise its request for a bailout of up to 17 billion euros. A discussion may help guide negotiations among their finance ministers, who will meet on Friday evening to thrash out the outlines of the bailout.
But German officials played down any expectation of a quick Cyprus solution this weekend, saying it could take weeks longer.
Outgoing technocratic Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti was expected to face questions about prospects in his country after an indecisive general election last month which raised the prospect of prolonged political instability in Rome.
But the central debate is the deepening social crisis across Europe, with more than 50 percent of young people unemployed in Greece, Spain and parts of Italy and Portugal, a scourge that threatens to have a long-term economic and demographic impact.
In their statement, EU leaders highlighted their concern over the issue and committed to a "youth employment initiative" that sets aside nearly 6 billion euros for the worst-affected regions of the EU over the coming seven years.
Analysts say that is far too little to make an impact, amounting to barely 100 euros for each young person without a job across the 27 countries in the European Union.
Additional reporting by Andreas Rinke, Jan Strupczewski, John O'Donnell, Robin Emmott, Annika Breidthardt, Teddy Nykiel and Charlie Dunmore in Brussels, Writing by Luke Baker, editing by Mike Peacock and Paul Taylor


text:
1 July 2011
By clicking Submit, you accept the Adobe Terms of Use.
No specific experience is required, only an interest in designing and developing games using Flash technologies.
Note: The primary target audience for this article is Flash designers, people new to the Flash runtimes, and business decision makers evaluating the Flash runtimes for game development. This article also includes useful information for experienced ActionScript developers looking to get into Flash game development. However, for game-specific advanced ActionScript programming techniques, I recommend Gary Rosenzweig's book ActionScript 3.0 Game Programming University.
Flash games—games created with or for the Adobe Flash runtimes—are everywhere. You can find them on game arcade sites such as Newgrounds.com, AddictingGames.com, and numerous others. There are dozens of game genres to choose from, including action, adventure, casino, puzzle, and role-playing, among others. The games are interactive, cross-browser, and cross-platform; users can play them on personal computers as well as mobile devices. They work great as standalone destinations, they make excellent additions to larger sites, and they can be embedded into the most popular social networks such as Facebook. Many people still do not know that using Adobe AIR technology, Flash games can be deployed on iOS devices through the Apple App Store. Top performers such as Alien Hominid and Line Rider have grown so popular that they have been ported from the Flash runtimes to consoles such as Nintendo Wii and Microsoft Xbox 360. Online casual games are booming in popularity and Adobe Flash technologies offer tools to create and deploy this great content.
For more than a decade, I have been designing and developing online games. I have collaborated on massive worlds with thousands of simultaneous users. At my start, there were many viable development platforms, including the powerful but difficult-to-use C++ platform. Over the years, the Flash technologies tools became easier to use and Adobe Flash Player evolved as well. Now Flash technology is the de facto environment for creating online 2D games. With the release of Adobe Creative Suite 5.5, the Flash community is moving compelling content to mobile phones, tablets, and Internet-enabled televisions. And with the release of Stage3D (formerly known as the Molehill APIs), the Flash runtimes may be the leading choice for online and mobile 3D gaming as well.
In this article, I will provide an overview of the potential in online gaming, showcase the capabilities of the Flash runtimes, and review the challenges and solutions for end-to-end game development.
The game industry has grown steadily for decades, and it has a very brighter future. But with so many gaming technologies, you may be wondering if Flash technologies are the right choice.
Online gaming became popular in the 1990s. As computers have become more powerful and Internet access speeds have increased, the industry has grown significantly (see Figure 1).
The online gaming market research company DFC Intelligence predicts even more increases for casual games in 2011:
Approximately $3–5 billion of 2011 revenue will target online computer games, such as projects created with Flash technologies. Americans spent more than $3 billion in video game subscription fees last year. A report by market research firm Pike & Fischer estimates that Americans will spend $5 billion annually by 2015.
According to the Gartner research firm, global mobile gaming revenue from end-users increased by 19 percent from 2009 to surpass $5.6 billion in 2010. Juniper Research says mobile game revenues will surpass $11 billion globally by 2015 as in-game purchase overtakes pay-per-download monetization.
The mobile gaming trend also ushers in a return to the simple, addictive gameplay of 1980s Atari games. This is enabling lower-budget games created by individuals and small teams to be financially successful.
The business potential within computer and mobile game development is vast and growing dramatically.
Flash Player is everywhere, but it's not the only game in town. Historically, when high performance was needed, online games were created with powerful technologies, including C++, Java, and Shockwave 3D—as well as Torque and Unity.
While game developers who target other plug-ins have to hope their users have the patience to download the necessary player, Flash runtimes developers can count on their users already having Flash Player. Adobe Flash Player is the world's most pervasive software, reaching 99% of Internet-enabled desktops in mature markets as well as a wide range of devices. More than 3 million developers and designers use Flash technologies to create, distribute, and monetize rich Internet applications and content across leading web and mobile platforms. With Adobe Creative Suite, developers can also count on smooth integration of art, sound, and code within one environment.
Flash Player 10 has more features than ever, and so too do the development environments, Flash Builder and Flash Professional. With each new release, they become more useful and easier to use. The versatility of the software has contributed to its speedy adoption in interactive agencies since the early 2000s. An artist illustrates game menus and background art using Flash Professional. An animator animates walk cycles, explosions, and whatever else is needed. A developer can code an entire project using Flash Builder or Flash Professional as well, easily integrating the native assets from colleagues. Of course, Photoshop, Illustrator, and other specialized tools are available for many roles as well, and because they are all part of Adobe Creative Suite, asset integration continues to be a snap.
Once only a playground for single-player experiences, Flash technology can now be used to create robust worlds with thousands of users. Since Flash Player 6, Flash has featured the socket connection required for persistent connections to the server. This type of connection allowed for few-on-few multiplayer gaming. The latest version of Flash Player has the needed power for massive multiplayer games; there is no longer a bottleneck on the client side. Flash Player 10 introduced peer to peer communication, which also opens up possibilities for multiplayer games.
Flash technologies have garnered recognition from numerous gaming industry leaders.
Michael Gold, CEO of the multiplayer game studio Electrotank, says, "With the ubiquity and performance of Flash Player, Flash is the de facto standard for browser-based games."
Omar Gonzalez, software architect at Almer/Blank, adds, "The Flash Platform makes gaming even easier because of the clean separation of the logic and the easily updatable audio/visual assets. It's unlike any other game development toolset."
This section covers the nuts and bolts of Flash technologies for games and the basics of video game theory.
Before building a Flash game, you need to understand the options available for building it. Specifically, you'll want to have a firm grasp of which IDE, runtime, and server (if any) is right for each of your projects. The most straightforward way to get started is to use Flash Builder or Flash Professional to develop a single-player game (that is, one that does not need a real-time multiplayer server) that is published in the SWF file format and runs in Flash Player (the runtime) in your web browser.
As development teams mature, they may continue to use Adobe Flash Professional for asset creation and also use team-friendly tools such as Adobe Flash Builder that is optimized to enable you to publish content across desktops and a variety of devices.
For more information see Flash game technologies and the Game Developer Tools.
Creating your first game is relatively straightforward. Armed with just Flash Builder or Flash Professional you can create a great game. The following are a few key components of a basic game:
Event.ENTER_FRAME event dispatched by interactive objects (InteractiveObject). The second approach is to use a timer. The
ENTER_FRAME event approach is more common, and is best used for very frequently updates such as animation, other rendering updates, and artificial intelligence (AI) routines. A timer can behave in a similar way to an
ENTER_FRAME event, but an event can be dispatched without being tied to the frame rate. Timer is best for periods of time that are several seconds or more in duration. Like other programming languages, ActionScript also provides numerous other techniques to accomplish the game loop, such as
for and
while loops. If you want to develop Flash games, you will need to learn ActionScript. See the Step 2: Develop section below to learn more about how to get started learning ActionScript.
Individual developers and small teams proceed through the same basic steps when developing a new game:
The following sections examine each of these topics in more depth.
A completed video game–polished in presentation and enjoyable to play–is more complex than it appears on the surface. Clever designers and developers hide the details and present a clear path between you and the fun. A successful game is a marriage between a great idea and great execution, or, put differently, between the creativity of the designers and solid technical skills of the developers. But where do these great ideas come from? How do you get started?
Each team may work differently to develop new ideas, but the basic process is as follows:
Sometimes I sit down to make a game and start brainstorming entirely new ideas, but much of the time I already have many ideas floating around in my head.
My game ideas come from everywhere and anywhere: big-budget console games, simple mobile games, real-world games and sports, movies, cartoons, books, conversations with friends, dreams, and nightmares. Since I'm in the business of making games I jot down ideas all the time. I recommend keeping a journal or notebook to capture new game concepts as they come to mind.
If you are like me, you have too many ideas for games! So the process becomes one of narrowing down the list and selecting one winning idea.
I find the most practical ideas for good games are those that mix something new and something borrowed. Perhaps you imagine a new look for a world and create a new character, but use game mechanics of a classic game such as Space Invaders, Frogger, or Pac-Man. I find that game players respond well to controlled surprise–part new and part familiar and comfortable.
How do you know the game will be fun? It's hard to know, but that intuition will come with experience. And even then it's not a perfect science. If you are new at the game-making process, start with something similar to a game you already know is fun to play. Then change the idea as you go to make it more personal and to give something fresh to game players.
During the storyboard process you begin to sketch out characters, game screens, game mechanics, and more. Game mechanics are the core set of rules that define what makes a game unique. A game features a variety of cooperating game mechanics (for example turns, keyboard input, risk and reward, limited player health, and so on).
During this stage, the idea is not to make pretty art yet (see Figure 2), it's just to visually communicate your ideas. This will be helpful to spawn new ideas and refine existing ones. It's OK during this stage for your idea to evolve and get bigger. Considering alternatives, options, multiple solutions, and various aspects of your game are all acceptable. Storyboards are also invaluable for team communication. Everyone should have a stake in this process of sharing ideas, not just the artists.
When creating the storyboard, it is a good idea to think about your game-playing audience. Sometimes your audience defines your game, and sometimes your game defines your audience. For me it's a bit of both. I am open to compromising aspects of my original game idea if I feel it will make the game more appealing or easier to play. It is important not to try to please everyone, but it's probably also important to you that your game is popular. So think carefully about each aspect of the game's art and gameplay.
As your game concept takes shape, add details to the game world too. Describe the challenges to the game player. Describe the rewards. Does your game have characters? What is the plot or story? What motivates the character to do what he does? Does the game player view the action from above or from the side? Does gravity exist in the game? Can the character(s) be injured and die? If so, how? It is not important that the game world be realistic but it should be causal; it should have a clear and consistent cause and effect that your audience can understand. The user will quickly build a conceptual vocabulary as they play your game and learn about the game world. They will begin to make assumptions. Embrace these assumptions to build a compelling experience.
The design document is like a movie script. This is the point in the process at which you begin to put restrictions on new ideas and decide definitively what the game will be. This is also a good time to make some hard decisions that may (for better or worse) affect the game.
In a team development environment, the design document is especially important. Because it clearly lists all the final decisions regarding the game's visuals, game mechanics, and menus, it helps ensure all team members are on the same page during production. Some teams do not allow changes to the design document once it is complete, and others welcome change at key milestones during development.
During the planning and development process it's important to check back with your core concept. Is it fun? Does it appeal to the target audience? Does it fit the target device or devices? Be sure to solicit feedback on your idea from others, especially members of your target audience.
Considerations for developing successful Flash games
Regardless of how and why you are creating your game, it's likely that you will want your game to be fun to play and to be played by many gamers. A core consideration is to make a game that is easy to pick up and play. Users should be able to play your game immediately without a long and complicated setup. Consider having an interactive tutorial instead of a screen of text that tells users how to play the game.
According to Ira Willey, creator of the popular game portal AddictingGames.com, you'll attract players that are more likely to play your game repeatedly if you provide immersive game content and excellent performance while following these guidelines:
For more great tips and recommendations, check out Ryan Wolniak's eBook Getting Your Flash Game Sponsored.
During production, an organic, iterative process will be really helpful. Often you won't know all the details of the game during the design phase. You may not know the final size of the art until some coding is done. You may learn that 10 enemies on screen are too many, so you will use 8. You won't know the difficulty settings until you play the game quite a bit. And you might realize that a sound effect you used is really annoying and needs to be changed. Be flexible and tweak the game concept as you go so you can make the best game possible.
The following are the basic steps to develop a game with Flash technology:
A critical part of the game development process is the actual coding. As I mentioned earlier, ActionScript is the language you use to code your Flash game. ActionScript as a programming language has evolved over time, and is now in its third incarnation. To be a Flash game developer, you will need to learn ActionScript 3.0 (not ActionScript version 1 or 2). Different people learn in different ways, and you will want to find the strategy that works best for you. With that said, here are some recommendations for getting started.
Once you are familiar with ActionScript, you will want to learn how to apply your knowledge to Flash game development and will want to pick up one of the many Flash game development books. Some of these books include an overview of the ActionScript language. Others assume you already know ActionScript and dive right into the code.
Lastly, I highly recommend continuing education. Follow Flash game development blogs, participate in the ActionScript forums and Flash game development cookbook, subscribe to and visit ActionScript-specific web sites such as Kirupa.com and ActionScript.org, and check for new tutorials on the Game Developer Center and ActionScript Technology Center.
After you have developed a few games using ActionScript, you may want explore using one of the many Flash game engines that can help you with some of the common programming tasks and provide a framework for your game code. You can learn about Flash game engines on the Game Development Center's game engines page.
So who is creating games? To help answer that question, Mochi Media, a company that provides tools to help game developers monetize their own games, recently completed an exhaustive Flash Games Market Survey. The results provide an interesting perspective on who is making games and how they are doing it.
Here are some of the highlights of the survey's findings:
It's interesting to note that 70% of Flash game developers are creating games as a hobby or secondary business; it is not their primary means of income. While the survey shows that 60% of Flash game developers work alone, I strongly recommend getting help with your game. It's a rare person who can do a great job at design, development, and the business end of making money.
Many developers in the Flash game industry work as contract-based or full-time employees. These include the creators of the game ideas, the artists who draw and animate game assets, sound designers, and of course the Flash game developers who bring it all together with their programming skills. There is also work to be had as a business development professional working to market and promote games.
Work for hire is a stable way to earn a living and can be very rewarding and fun. But to maintain more creative control and to generate more potential income, I believe it is worth taking the risk of creating the game and monetizing it yourself.
When it comes to Flash game art production, Autumn Rain Turkel of TangledDreams.com has much to say. With his years of experience, he offers two key tips for artists:
The patience and teamwork of artists like Autumn are appreciated by developers. Developers too must do their best to integrate assets in a way that preserves the quality of the original assets and maintains the vision of the overall project.
The flexibility of the Flash runtimes and Adobe Creative Suite allows for many possible workflows to integrate art into your project. Flash Professional accepts many popular formats for images, animation, sounds, and video. Flash Professional can also import Photoshop and Illustrator files.
While not required, it is more efficient for artists to work directly in Flash Professional. Even if the development is later done in Flash Builder, the developer will be able to import the artist's SWF files that were created in Flash Professional. This way you can roundtrip the art assets easily during production, and scale or rotate the assets with ease at runtime.
Once the art is complete there are two major strategies for loading it into your game. First, the assets can be embedded in the Flash library. This is the easiest workflow, but increases the SWF file's size requiring a more lengthy initial download time for your users. Alternatively, the assets can be loaded at runtime, between levels or whenever more are needed. The best solution will depend on your project, the amount of assets, and your target device.
In my article, An introduction to developing games in the Adobe Flash Runtimes, I describe how the game theory applies to a real game. For the purpose of that article, I created a simple game called Flyer. The game play is similar to the 1980s arcade game Frogger. The user's spaceship starts at on the bottom of the screen. The four arrow keys move the flyer. The goal is to reach the top of the screen to win. Colliding with the enemies (biplanes and blimps) before reaching the top will result in a loss.
Throughout production, and especially upon project completion, it is important to test your game and make improvements and optimizations.
Depending on the size of your project and the size of your team, testing can take many different forms. If you are an individual developer, perhaps the testing process is just you and a few friends playing the game. It is tough to be objective when you review your own work. Try to have open eyes and an open mind, so you can see new problems and new solutions. User testing often uncovers problems and issues you didn't foresee or consider.
Larger game development teams often have a dedicated quality assurance (QA) team of game testers. This group will play the game and build a list of changes and suggestions. If you have the budget for it, another option is to hire one of the companies that offer Flash game testing services.
Regardless of the team size, a good testing process will answer these fundamental questions:
If you answer "Yes" to all questions, then great, you are done. The game is ready to be deployed. However, you'll typically need to take a step back and change art, programming, rendering, and game mechanics to make improvements.
For web games, test the game on a variety of computers and web browsers. Ensure it works well in all cases. Even when the game works great on your personal machine, it is important to also keep in mind the computers and devices of your audience.
For mobile phones and tablets, testing can be more difficult. Differences between devices (for example, screen size, screen density, and input schemes) and the sheer number of devices out there can complicate the process. Flash Builder and Flash Professional ship with a debug version of Flash Player that provides additional information (such as output tracing and redraw regions) as you develop and test. Although is very helpful, you should also test on the physical devices if possible.
One company that helps you do just that is DeviceAnywhere. They have thousands of physical devices available for you to test remotely. They also provide testing services to handle some or all of the QA process for you.
Beginning with Flash Builder 4.5 you can connect your device to the computer on which Flash Builder is running via USB, and test on the device while you are developing the game.
Developer Ted Patrick has worked with Flash since the early days. He understands the internals of Flash Player. On his blog, Ted explained that he thinks about Flash Player as a racetrack (see Figure 3). There are two distinct sections of the racetrack, one for executing ActionScript (with a subsection for event processing) and one for rendering content to the screen. While running, Flash Player loops around this racetrack at a preset speed designated as frames per second (FPS) in the SWF file. At all times Flash Player will attempt to maintain the set speed regardless of what it is asked to do. The designated FPS is the maximum speed of the racetrack; processing can never go faster than this limit but it can go slower.
The key point is that there is no built-in way to defer code execution and there is no built-in way to defer rendering execution. Flash Player is lossless. It will process everything that it is asked to process in a given frame loop, even if that takes longer than the time between frames specified by the current framerate setting. So, simply put, to avoid problems do not ask Flash Player to do more than it can.
How will you know if there is a problem? During heavy code execution or heavy rendering the Flash Player framerate will temporarily drop (or even freeze) as Flash Player tries to process its instructions. The game's animations may become obviously choppy and the game may become generally sluggish and unresponsive. Optimization is an art unto itself, but those are the basic clues that some optimization is needed.
Even before a problem arises it is best to think about possible bottlenecks. If you have any computationally intensive code (physics, AI, data parsing) or heavy rendering (3D, pixel-level manipulation, dozens of moving sprites) you can allocate more time and attention to optimizing those areas.
Here are some techniques for optimizing code execution:
if ,
break ,
continue , and other constructs to avoid executing unnecessary code. Follow the links later in this section for a deep dive into this topic.
DisplayObject.cacheAsBitmap property to
true will save and reuse the results of these calculations and improve performance.
For more on this topic, see Thibault Imbert's Optimizing Performance for the Adobe Flash Runtimes and Performance and Optimization on the Game Developer Center.
Revenue models for casual games vary dramatically. Online games are usually free to play, but they often run on pages that feature banner advertising. Site owners earn money by driving traffic to third-party sites. Other games are free to play but incorporate product branding within the game. These advergames are basically one big ad, and use a technique analogous to product placement. Theatrical movie websites and toy websites often incorporate advergames as part of a promotional campaign. For an example of this watch this video about the Green Hornet game that was developed to promote the movie.
Another way makers of casual games earn money is through the freemium business model. In this scenario, users can play the trial version for free but pay for the full premium experience. Other revenue methods include subscriptions and microtransactions.
The distribution and monetization strategy for your game is best defined during the brainstorming stage. The distribution strategy will affect your game because screen sizes and input styles will vary depending on the target device. Depending on the monetization strategy you choose, the content of your game (or at least your menus) will also be affected. You may need to implement advertisement integration, links or buttons to sponsors, virtual item sales, and more.
Distribution defines your strategy to get your game in the hands of players. Larger projects will likely have well defined marketing campaigns to bring the game to new users.
Web-based users are able to play a game in the browser or download a standalone game from any available site. The market is relatively open compared to apps for mobile platforms.
On many mobile platforms, the users must enter the walled garden of the devices' application marketplaces. Here the device manufacturer or mobile carrier company controls the market in which apps can be purchased and downloaded.
According to Mobile Games report author Daniel Ashdown, "Discoverability of your game can be a chicken-and-egg problem: high downloads lead to prominence, but achieving a high number of downloads is largely dependent on already being prominent. Consequently, a small minority of games achieve very high downloads, whilst the vast majority achieve very small download figures."
The politics of getting your game into the marketplace varies greatly by device, but the general idea is to make your best impression upfront–popular games stay popular. Others games immediately fall off the radar of the potential game player.
There are many challenges to distributing your game successfully. Luckily, there are companies that can help. For more information, see the companies listed on the Game Development Center's Distribute, measure, and monetize page. Your distribution strategy should include a well-defined target audience, which is likely using multiple devices. The Flash runtimes offers a wealth of deployment options to reach your intended audience.
Flash deployment options via Flash Player:
Depending on your game's needs and architecture, you may publish once for all platforms, or make some platform-specific changes. For more information, see Christian Cantrell's One Application, Five Screens (Including iPad) and Jonathan Campos' Architecting your application for multiple devices.
Some monetization strategies, such as licensing your game, include a distribution strategy. But if you chose a model that doesn't, then how do you get the finished product into the hands of game players?
The larger social game companies (such as Zynga, EA, and Playdom) are proven machines of self-promotion and viral marketing. Inside and outside the Flash game experience, users are encouraged to socialize their game activities and accomplishments, and invite their friends to play. Heyzap, a newer startup in the Flash gaming space, helps game developers distribute games. But you can do your own promotion, too.
You can promote your projects by creating a website and by using social networks (such as Twitter and Facebook) to generate traffic. Companies such as GamerSafe, Heyzap, and Mochi Media can help you build and maintain community around your game too. Each offers an API and services with tons of great features, including universal saved games, trophy systems, high scores, microtransactions, viral promotions, security, and more. For more information on integrating social networks into your game see Distribute, measure, and monetize.
It's also helpful to add videos of your game to YouTube or Vimeo. This can help the game generate its own momentum by word of mouth.
Newgrounds.com is a game portal with an especially clean setup for posting Flash games and collecting player evaluations. By posting your game before integrating ads, you can get valuable feedback, including player-based ratings, reviews, informal bug reports, and statistics on performance. Even if you only offer a game for a short time, you can compile a list of things to fix and improve. Consider addressing this feedback before pitching the product to licensors because a more polished game will fetch a higher price and generate more game play.
To monetize completed game projects, there are two major strategies: Offer games that are free to play or offer premium games that cost money to play.
There are several ways to monetize free games:
There are also several ways you can make money by selling a premium Flash game directly to the video game community.
For more information see Choosing the right business model for your game or app, Maximizing your iOS and Android in-app advertising revenue, my article titled How to Make Money with Online Games and the Distribute, measure, and monetize page on the Game Developer Center.
When your project finds an audience, you will begin to receive valuable feedback. Many game portals allow game players to comment and rate your game. Analyze this information carefully as some of it can help you to improve your game.
Measuring who sees, plays, and replays your game is a good first step. Learning from these results, however, will help you create more popular content in less time. Some portals will maintain statistics for you, but it's best that you integrate your own statistics. There are companies that can help. Mochi Media provides an ActionScript 3 API, which offers analytics in addition to a host of other services. PlayTomic can measure standard game events (game start, game stop, level completed, and so on) as well as custom in-game events that you can define. Custom analytic measurements for games can be particularly helpful when you need to tweak a game's difficulty. If you learn, for example, that most users can't beat the boss on level 10 of your game, you can update the game so it's a bit easier to play.
No matter which distribution scheme you choose, ensure you have the control to update your content. All major game portals allow for updates as do the many mobile marketplaces where your game may be offered.
Whether fixing bugs, improving the game based on analytics, or adding new content such as levels and characters, updating your game after its initial launch will ensure it has the longest life possible. A subscription-based monetization strategy often relies on the release of episodic content to keep subscribers happy.
The Flash runtimes provides a foundation on which you can develop and render sophisticated games. The Flash community is very generous and provides a great complement to the platform. Online you will find many free and inexpensive tools, ActionScript 3.0 libraries, and other resources that can help you with your projects.
For more information see the Game Development Center's Gaming engines, 3D, and Stage 3D page.
Interactive development with the Flash runtimes started with targeting the web browser. While the content continues to live in the browser, the Flash runtimes are capable of much more. With Adobe AIR, developers can target the standalone applications for the desktop that can read and write to the local machine and run content full-screen. In 2009 Adobe, together with major mobile carriers and device manufacturers, put Flash Player 10 and Adobe AIR technology on many devices, unlocking the potential of the Flash runtimes on mobile phones, mobile tablets, Internet-TVs and more.
Now with Flash Professional and Flash Builder, developers can use ActionScript 3.0 to target many devices with their projects. However, designing and developing for multiple devices raises some new challenges.
Traditionally, for each device or platform, development teams had to reinvent the wheel, starting with new code, new APIs, and often a new programming language. The convenience of a platform that enables code from a single code base to be published to many devices has long been a dream developers. With Creative Suite 5.5 and Flash Builder 4.5, the Flash Runtimes bring game developers closer to this dream.
As I mentioned earlier, Flash Runtime developers can count on their users already having Flash Player, which reaches 99% of Internet-enabled desktops in mature markets and a wide range of devices. While iOS devices are not able to run content in Flash Player, you can still develop your games in Flash and deploy them to iOS devices using Adobe AIR technology. See Flash Professional CS5.5 - Publishing content to iOS devices and Developing for iOS with AIR for Mobile 2.6 for more details on how to do this.
The obstacles you will encounter when creating an application that targets multiple screen sizes can seem daunting. Simply scaling content fit the total available area will likely not serve the needs of your game. It's important for text to be readable, even on small devices. And buttons must be sized properly for activation with fingers not mouse pointers. Even within a single device, users have the option to view in landscape (wide) or portrait (tall) mode. If and how you will support that is another decision. For more information see Allen Ellison's fantastic article Flash sizing Zen: Making Flash fit on mobile devices.
The Flash runtimes facilitate redeploying your project from one platform to another. However, simply porting the project may not be ideal. To create the most compelling experience, it's best to treat each target platform uniquely, embracing each device's input schemes and other capabilities. At the very least, you should plan to test your game on target devices and form factors (phones, tablets, and computer monitors have different form factors).
Input methods
Input methods have evolved. While content targeting the computer browser and desktop focuses on just keyboard and mouse input, other devices vary greatly. Early mobile devices had smaller keypads that required new input solutions. In 2007, the iPhone ushered in the era of touch-screen input–using your fingers as input devices. Mobile tablet devices are also full of challenges and possibilities. Some devices feature a dedicated Back button and volume controls, some do not. While there are certainly commonalities between the input styles on many popular devices, I recommend considering the best input solution for each device and customizing your game as needed. The Flash runtimes currently support multitouch and gestures in Flash Player 10.1 or higher in the browser, SWF content published for the iPhone or iPod touch, and in AIR 2 or higher. For more on this topic, see Christian Cantrell's article Multitouch and gesture support in the Flash Runtimes and Mike Jones's series on Virtual Controllers for Touch-based Devices.
Other capabilities
In addition to innovative input styles, many devices have other features that can be used for gaming. Here are some of the major ones and some considerations for each.
Other considerations
Depending on the devices you choose to target, you may need special permission to make your game available to users. Typically you must apply as a developer (individual or company) online, and get a security certificate that assures the content submitted came from you. In some cases you may need to pay a fee. This is a one-time setup per device. It is not required for every game you make. Ultimately this creates a more trusted environment for the game player who will shop for and enjoy your game. This process may take some time, so it's a good idea to apply early in your development process.
Because mobile devices have less processing power than full computers, it is especially important to optimize projects that target mobile devices. To maximize the performance of the game, perform benchmarks on the target device and optimize the code and rendering routines. For more information, see Step 3: Test and Optimize.
Also, see Optimize Flash content for mobile browsers and Flash Platform for TV on the Mobile and Devices Developer Center.
The term security in this section refers to protecting your intellectual property and keeping people from cheating at your games. When creating games, security is a hot topic, both for your compiled code and for your game during the user experience.
A Flash game is typically compiled into SWF format, so it is more difficult to get than viewing and copying an HTML page's source code. However, there are decompilers that make getting at your code possible. Like most client-side technologies, Flash is vulnerable to reverse engineering and hacking. By looking at your source code, malicious players can find ways to cheat at your games. Depending on your business model, this may not be a concern. But for many larger companies with a social community, high-score tracking, or virtual currency, security is important. Keeping game data on the server side is a leading solution as it is more protected there. Also there are tools that can help you lock the SWF file down. Created by companies such as Amayeta, such tools thwart, but do not wholly stop, hackers. Combining technologies can make client content more secure. Elliot Mebane, Principal at Roguish, says "We have distributed SWF games wrapped in C++ shells, which perform on-par with our games developed natively in C++, and feature security benefits such as rights management."
Malicious players can use sniffers and other tools to monitor the network traffic to and from your game. This may enable them to spoof a legitimate call with their own call, opening the door to fake high-score submissions, prematurely unlocked content, and more. One prevention technique is to encrypt any transferred data.
RAM hacking with tools such as Cheat Engine and Quick Memory Editor is popular as well. Users can employ this type of tool during their Flash game playing experience. The tool analyzes the computer's RAM and locates their current score, number of lives, or other important information. To do this the user must know what the current value is (which is easy if the score is displayed on screen) and that value must change over time. Then the user can manually change their score, without actually earning it from within the game. To make this harder to do, encrypt the value of any variables that you display on the screen or are otherwise easily known to the user.
This article has covered a great deal of ground, but there is still much more. Following the many links reference in the sections above is a great way to continue your learning.
Adobe Developer Connection's Game Development Center is the place to find articles, tutorials, and other content of interest to web game developers of all skill levels. If you're just getting started, it's a great place to learn and get inspired. Even if you're an experienced developer, you'll likely find a new resource that will help you develop even more impressive games—and you can take the opportunity to write an article and contribute back to the community.
There is no substitute for practical experience. It can be daunting to start your first game, but the important thing is just to get started. Pick a small project, like the Flyer game discussed above, and have fun making your first game running in Flash Player or AIR!
I'll conclude with a quote from John Say, CEO of Say Design, "Since Flash first introduced ActionScript in the late '90s, it has slowly matured from banner ads to much, much more. Now, a decade later, I'm convinced that Flash will change the landscape of online and cross-platform games dramatically as it continues to level up in both performance and capabilities."
Games created with Adobe Flash technology are indeed everywhere, and the future for the casual gaming industry looks bright. Flash Professional and Flash Player 10 are better than ever, fulfilling most (but not quite all) requests on developers' wish lists. By understanding the fundamental theory behind these casual interactive games and how to apply it, you see how easy it is to get started. So get out there and play.
I want to offer my thanks to all the community leaders who provided valuable insight and expertise for this article, and a special thanks to all the game designers and developers who entertain and inspire me every day.


text:
Cheney hypocrisy no bar to Limbaugh, Hannity and Gingrich taunts of Kerry's "sensitive" remarks
Research ››› ››› MARCIA KUNTZ & ANDREW SEIFTER
Seemingly impervious to the hypocrisy of Vice President Dick Cheney's derision of comments Senator John Kerry made in an August 5 speech -- in which he called for a "more effective, more thoughtful, more strategic, more proactive, more sensitive war on terror that reaches out to other nations and brings them to our side" -- conservative pundits echoed Cheney's taunts on radio and television.
An August 13 account of Cheney's remarks in The Washington Times made clear what lay behind the taunts: "The escalation of rhetoric began when the Bush camp belatedly realized that Mr. Kerry's week-old call for 'sensitive war' had the potential to be as politically damaging as his March acknowledgment that he had voted for $87 billion in funding for troops in Iraq before voting against it."
But listening to Cheney, former House Speaker and FOX News Channel political contributor Newt Gingrich, FOX News Channel's Hannity & Colmes co-host and ABC Radio host Sean Hannity, or radio host Rush Limbaugh, one would never know that President George W. Bush, Cheney himself, and other administration officials have made very similar comments about the need for sensitivity in the conduct of foreign policy and the war on terror. At the same 2004 UNITY Conference for minority journalists where Kerry made the comments that have provided such mirth for Cheney, Bush discussed the need for sensitivity in intelligence gathering. Responding to a question regarding the scrutiny to which certain minorities have been subject since the September 11 terror attacks and the need to ensure that innocent people are not unfairly targeted, Bush mentioned the necessary "balance between running down intelligence and bringing people to justice," and said, "we need to be very sensitive on that."
In addition to Bush's comments August 6, the American Progress Action Fund has gathered numerous examples of Bush and other administration officials describing the need to be "sensitive" in conducting foreign policy and military operations, including the following:
BUSH: Precisely because America is powerful, we must be sensitive about expressing our power and influence (3/4/01).
CHENEY: We recognize that the presence of U.S. forces can in some cases present a burden on the local community. We're not insensitive to that (4/13/04).
DEFENSE SECRETARY DONALD RUMSFELD: [W]e have to be sensitive [to the threat of terrorist attacks outside of Iraq]. To the point the world thinks the United States is focused on the problems in Iraq, it is conceivable that someone could make a mistake and believe that that is an opportunity for them to make-- to take an action which they otherwise would have avoided, and we have to see that we are arranged, and it is clear to the world that that is-it will not be an opportune time (2/5/03).
ATTORNEY GENERAL JOHN ASHCROFT: The United States is very sensitive about interfering in the internal politics of other countries (Federal News Service, 4/28/03).
American Progress Action Fund's website lists more examples, including several by Cheney: "In conducting the first war in Iraq, then-Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney repeatedly stressed the need for America to fight a 'sensitive' war" and "On 2/7/90, Cheney told Congress that the Pentagon must be 'sensitive' in developing weapons."
Notwithstanding the administration's prior endorsement of sensitivity in highly charged situations, Cheney attacked Kerry's remarks on August 12 by distorting Kerry's desire to fight a "more sensitive war on terror that reaches out to other nations and brings them to our side." Within hours of Cheney's remarks, conservative TV and radio pundits were echoing the vice president's attacks against Kerry.
Gingrich on the August 12 Hannity & Colmes:
GINGRICH: [A]s Michael Dukakis' lieutenant governor, as a George McGovern worker back in 1972, as an anti-war activist, and as somebody who in the Senate has consistently voted to kill a lot of weapons systems [a false claim refuted here], Kerry, in fact, represents the natural sensitive wing of American foreign policy.
Gingrich also accused Kerry of being "very sympathetic to the [former Vermont Governor] Howard Dean, cut and run, hope the world doesn't come get you, unilateral disarmament wing of the Democratic Party." But both Kerry and Dean have made clear their opposition to prematurely pulling troops out of Iraq, and Kerry even said in December 2003: "I fear that in the run-up to the 2004 election the [Bush] administration is considering what is tantamount to a cut-and-run strategy."
Hannity, from a radio interview with Cheney on the August 12 Sean Hannity Show that was rebroadcast on Hannity & Colmes:
HANNITY: You know, and I can't imagine, really, al Qaeda being impressed by sensitivity.
Limbaugh, from the August 12 Rush Limbaugh Show:
LIMBAUGH: Ladies and gentlemen, the United States military, in coordination with the Iraqi military, has launched a very insensitive assault on the home of Muqtada al-Sadr in Najaf. U.S. forces in Najaf have stormed al-Sadr's home -- a very, very insensitive act, here, of warfare, unlike that which would have been commanded by -- by -- by -- by Lieutenant Kerry. Senator Kerry.
LIMBAUGH: What is this sensitivity? And what are we -- supposed to greet the terrorists with Hallmark cards?
- Posted In
- National Security & Foreign Policy
- Stories/Interests
- 2004 Elections
Instructions for signing up and claiming your comment history are located here.
Updated rules for commenting are here.


text:
SMWC junior takes first place at USCAA national championship, team places third overall
November 11th, 2011 | SMWC
Blinding snow and freezing temperatures couldn't stop Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College (SMWC) junior Stephanie Runyon, an education major from Noblesville, Ind., from becoming the 2011 USCAA Cross Country National Champion. The team as a whole slammed the competition, taking third place, with most runners finishing in the top 50.
"It was an awesome experience today, but it was a physically tough race," said Runyon, who beat more than 130 other runners in 25:16.46 minutes. The freezing weather and steep hills made for a more challenging course. "We've never run in anything like this before," said Cross Country Coach Danelle Readinger.
The women ran a hard race, pounding the ground in true Pomeroy style on a 6k cross country ski course at the U.S. Olympic training facility in Lake Placid, N.Y. The runners took off at 11 a.m. on Friday, Nov. 11, 2011, competing against 26 other institutions.
"The competition nearly doubled this year," Readinger said. "Finishing third is amazing. All in all it has been a great day." The team took the national title in 2009, with SMWC student Mannie Bizuneh in first place, and also in 2010, when Logan Fry won the championship.
"I'm just going to enjoy the moment with my team," Runyon said. "The team finishing in third place is so awesome."
SMWC had eight athletes participating in the race: C.J. Barnett, Kat Williams, Logan Fry, Danika Espinoza, Corianna Frederick, Jen Hughes and Lauren Sutton. Runyon was also named All American.
"I am so privileged to coach such talented, smart girls," Readinger said. "They stay on top, stay strong and they love what they do."
Comment on this article
This story has been moved to the archive and comments have now been disabled.


text:
I have used Maven in the past but I'm no expert. I'm also new to some of the plugin's used with CQ and I tend to learn best by example so I started looking at all the pom.xml files I could. During my search I found a great example of an OSGi service example called "In the Sling". The only problem with this example is that it's an old post and the plugin's versions are also old in the pom.xml. The information is great and still relevant so I simply needed to update the file with new Maven plugin's.
The official Maven Central Repository is here: http://search.maven.org
You can use the advanced search or simply search by Group ID "g:" and Artifact ID "a:" together. This was the quickest way to find the most current version of my plugin's.
Here are a few examples of how quickly you can retrieve the most current version of a plugin. Just past in the search strings below to get the most current version.
g:"org.apache.felix" a:"maven-bundle-plugin"
g:"org.apache.felix" a:"maven-scr-plugin"
g:"org.apache.maven.plugins" a:"maven-compiler-plugin"
g:"org.apache.sling" a:"maven-sling-plugin"
I added the following within my pom.xml so developers who access my pom.xml files will be able to search quickly for the most current version.
It may seem like a no-brainer but it took me a little while to figure out the most current versions of all the plugin's for my example.Share on Facebook


text:
All Boots Ship Free (more...)
- Handcrafted in the USA
- 10" Lace-up logger style
- Black odessa leather
- Goodyear leather storm welt for durability
- Drill vamp lining
- 5 Iron Texon® cushioned insole
- Black Vibram® logger outsole
Chippewa Boots® developed the Logger boot for the Lumberjacks of the great upper Midwest back in 1901. Today these styles are not only worn by the logging industry but by men that perceive this silhouette to be the ultimate in a rugged outdoor wear. The exclusive Vibram® compound guarantees maximum traction on wet/dry surfaces and various terrain. This compound maintains its physical properties in extreme temperatures. Lugs on the Vibram® Logger sole are angled to provide substantial edging capabilities. Center medallion of traditional carrarmato lugs provide maximum traction.
Style(s): 25510


text:
Stores »
Cute knit beanie from Tulle, comes in black, grey, and blue.
You'll be looking fine and dandy in this fancy black bowler hat! Made with 100% wool and a sweet grosgrain ribbon, it's perfect for dressing up any outfit.
We are a community of shoppers sharing our best finds from across the web.
© 2017 ThisNext, Inc. ThisNext is a member of BUZZMEDIA Entertainment, a division of BUZZMEDIA.


text:
Posted on April 16, 2013 at 2:10pm 2 Comments 0 Likes
Have you ever thought of heating your home with pellets? If you are one of the many individuals that pay large sums of money to fuel your masonry constructed wood-burning fireplace, you may want to consider converting your fireplace to your main home heating device. To do this, you would simply have to purchase a pellet insert, and your home will be heated by environmentally-friendly and renewable pellets.…Continue
Welcome to Home Energy Pros! Feel free to join the conversation in the Forum and Groups. And share your energy efficiency photos, videos and upcoming events. If you're blogging about home performance, this is the place for you!
Don't forget to upload your profile photo. And add your location on our Member Map!
Diane, HEP Moderator
© 2017 Created by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Powered by


text:
Did you know?
You'll find proteas if you look carefully in this area. They're a long way from where you'd usually expect to see them in and around Cape Town, but do occur here too. The Blyde protea (Protea laetens) is endemic to this area.
When you think South Africa, you almost certainly think big game, Kruger National Park, Cape Town and the Winelands. But there's a surprise in store for you if you are on the Panorama Route in Mpumalanga's Blyde River Canyon – the Berlin Falls.
The Berlin Falls are among a cluster of Sabie waterfalls comprising the Horseshoe, Lone Creek and Bridal Veil Falls, the Mac Mac Falls, and Mpumalanga's highest waterfall: the 90m Lisbon Falls.
Start your waterfall tour in Sabie, work your way round the other falls, before you finally reach the Berlin Falls, not far from the spectacular viewpoints of God's Window. The falls plunge into a deep dark green hole surrounded by rugged red cliffs, some 80m below the observation platform on which you'll stand.
You'll quickly see why the falls are likened to a candle. The water pours through a natural sluice in the rock, plunges straight down for a few meters (this is the candle wick), then widens into a broad torrent which falls in a straight line down to the pool (the candle itself).
Why the Berlin falls, it's not an African name? The answer lies with the European miners who came to try their luck here in the heady days of the gold rush. They named the individual falls after towns and places in their home countries – hence the Lisbon Falls, named by the Portuguese miners, and the Berlin Falls nostalgically named by the German diggers.
Travel tips & Planning info
Who to contact
Mpumalanga Tourism Authority
Tel: +27 (0)13 759 5300/1
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
How to get here
The Berlin Falls are situated north of Graskop, in the Mpumalanga province, just 70km from the Kruger National Park.
Around the area
Attractions on the Panorama Route include God's Window, the Blyde River Canyon and Bourke's Luck Potholes.
Get around
Self-drive is the best option. Then put on your walking shoes and follow some lovely forest trails.
What will it cost
Access to the waterfall is free.
Length of stay
You'll only need a couple of hours for a visit to the Berlin Falls and that includes picnic time. If you plan to do walking trails then stay in the area longer.
What to pack
Hat, camera, binoculars, sunscreen and a picnic
Where to stay
Accommodation is avalable at the nearby towns of Graskop and Sabie. Or turn back the pages of history and stay in one of the historic establishments of Pilgrim's Rest.


text:
Innovative HVDC platform, latest converter technology, multi-function hybrid switchgear and advanced cable systems among displays at Global Offshore Wind conference and exhibition UK
Offshore wind integration projects are extremely complex as well as capital and risk intensive and grappling with forces of nature only adds to the challenge. This calls for a high degree of domain expertise, experience and project management skills combined with advanced technologies, efficient resource allocation and seamless supply chain co-ordination.
One of the main highlights on display at the exhibition is a self installing gravity-base structure (GBS) offshore platform, designed to address the challenge of constructing and transporting large offshore platforms to host converter stations in demanding and remote locations, sometimes hundreds of miles out in the high seas. The innovative, robust and scalable solution enables efficient fabrication, ease of installation and risk mitigation. It minimizes the amount of on-site offshore work allowing flexibility of execution around the year and obviates the need for heavy lifting vessels or jack-up operations.
More power generated from bigger wind turbines, increasing distance from shore and between wind turbines, more turbines in a single wind farm and higher voltage levels highlight the need to reduce power losses in the offshore collection grid. ABB will also display its compact, reliable and fast installation PASS M00 multi-function, hybrid switchgear modules, adapted to meet the specific needs of wind farm applications.
In addition to DC (direct current) solutions AC (alternating current) transmission technologies for offshore wind farms will also be in focus, and ABB will display its key offerings in this area at the exhibition. ABB is also showcasing its latest developments in both AC and DC submarine and land cables, a high voltage direct current (HVDC) Light converter station model and a multimedia application of ABB's overall offering for the sector.
"Our unique portfolio and focus on technology and innovation combined with our experience and learning puts us in a market leading position when executing highly complex offshore wind integration projects", said Martin Gross, head of ABB's Grid Systems business, a part of the company's Power Systems division.
Trevor Gregory, ABB's North Europe Region head and UK Country Manager will deliver the keynote address at the event. ABB will also present a related HVDC technical paper at the conference.
ABB (www.abb.com) is a leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industry customers to improve their performance while lowering environmental impact. The ABB Group of companies operates in around 100 countries and employs more than 145,000 people.
Stay in the loop:


text:
The ganga is a life supporting system and it's well being will determine quality of life of millions of people living along places along its bank. The conflicting intersts of modern society is responsible for its pollution and other ecological problems.The Ganges provides countless benifits to us ranging from food to salvation. It is duty of everyone of protect this National river of India.
Well being of the Ganga is an absolute indicator of environmental well being of India.


text:
This is one of the two main explanations proposed by evolutionists as to how terrestrial reptiles began to fly. According to this theory, reptiles took to the air vertically, by hopping from the ground. The basic concept is that certain reptiles flapped their forearms very rapidly and for long periods as they chased insects, and that over the course of time, these forelegs developed into wings. Not the slightest explanation is offered, however, for how such a complex structure as a wing could have come into existence from forearms being beaten against one another in order to trap flies.
John Ostrom, a prominent adherent of the cursorial theory, admits that the proponents of both hypotheses can do no more than speculate: "My cursorial predator theory is in fact speculative. But the arboreal theory is also similarly speculative." 104 (See Arboreal Theory, the.)
Even if we assume that mutations did cause undirected changes in a reptile's forearms, it is still irrational to expect that any wing could emerge by chance through the addition of cumulative mutations. Any incremental mutation taking place in its forearms would not endow the reptile with functional wings, but would leave it deprived of functioning forearms. This would leave the animal disadvantaged (in other words, defective) compared to other members of its species. According to the rules of the theory of evolution, that deformed creature would be eliminated through natural selection.
Furthermore, according to biophysical research, mutations take place only very rarely. Therefore, it is impossible for these deformed creatures to wait millions of years for their deficient, incomplete wings to be completed through minute mutations.
104 John Ostrom, "Bird Flight: How Did It Begin?." American Scientist, p. 47.2009-08-14 15:54:30


text:
Sale! TKE 2016 Deluxe Gift Set
Bring tidings of comfort and joy this holiday with a gift set that includes our customer favorites. A sewn-on letter hoodie, imprinted tee, and performance socks are sure to make any fraternity member happy this year, while saving you more than 15% off the regular price!