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All I wanted from an ISP was simple. A competitive price, a good connection rate and a half-decent service. When I signed up with WorldOnLine, the price was excellent, connection rate and speed was OK and the customer service reasonable. However, when Tiscali bought WorldOnLine, everything changed. The price started to creep up, the connection rate reduced and the customer service was almost non-existent. All I wanted Tiscali to do was to change from billing one credit card to another. Not too difficult I thought. I called them up and they sent me a form to fill in, which I returned immediately, this was in July 2001. The month afterwars, my old credit card was billed as usual. Since then I have had numerous e-mails and telephone calls confirming that they have ammended my credit card details, but I have just received yet another credit card statement showing that they have still billed my old credit card. I have now moved to BT Openworld, have a high-speed reliable ADSL connection and no problems at all. I then contacted Tiscali to end my account with them and, a week later, I have discovered that they have failed to do that. In answering one of my e-mails, Tiscali even had the cheek to refer to its "excellent, award winning customer service".
For those of you who want to get to the meat of the review, here's a quick summary. Tiscali/WorldOnline/Screaming.net is THE most appalling ISP ever created, and I've used AOL, so that's something. Let's have a look at why this is the case, by going through my experience with the Great Net 'n' Web Swindle. September 1999. I see something in The Times about a new ISP called screaming.net. Apparently, this new ISP does not only offer free subscription, but also FREE CALLS OFF-PEAK!!! Wow! One catch. You have to change your phone company to LocalTel, but they're basically a BT reseller, so it's not really any hassle, and the change-over takes a week. 3 months later, my line is transferred to Localtel. I then connect to the wonderful, all-you-can-eat free buffet that is the Information Superhighway. Except it's not so much of a superhighway, but more of super-stairlift, that only works once every 40 times. I dial the ISP god knows how many times to listen to a recorded voice tell me the line is busy. And of course, because it's not an engage tone, my modem isn't bright enough to redial again. I have never, ever experienced the internet this slow before. An ordinary web page takes about 5 minutes to load. My downloads are at the very best, 0.2kb/s. I accept this. They're new, they're going to have teething problems. The ISP teethes for about a year, and eventually, the service improves. Then one day, I get a phone bill from WorldOnline. What's this? I go and have a look on their page, and after ages of searching, I find out something interesting. Apparently, LocalTel were bought by WorldOnline, and conveniently, both companies forgot to tell me this. An enquiry to WorldOnline brings absolutely no response, not even an automated reply. They also inform me that now I'm going to have to pay £15 for the 'privilege' of
using their service. Two weeks later, I get a doleful letter informing me that they've decided to change their minds about this. I find out that around 90% of the screaming.net users rang WorldOnline and demanded to cancel their account, and WorldOnline realised it couldn't do what it liked. The service is now alright, but still exceptionally slow compared to any other ISP. Now here comes the real crunch. In 2000, WorldOnline is bought by Tiscali, a European ISP. They're going to charge me £3.99 a month of 50 hours free access at any time, and now Servista (who?) is going to provide my phone connection. Then they decide they're going to charge me £6.99 a month for access (on top of line rental), and they?re not even going to send me a bill anymore, they're just going to take my money by direct debit and I can check my bill online. Well, I would if the service had any speed. Put simply, ANYONE could run a better ISP by using cups and string. Disconnections are rife on Tiscali, and usually they're also the sort that manages to crash your PC, necessitating a reboot. Multiplayer gaming? Forget it. I swear that Tiscali monitor what you are doing, and seem to regard anything apart from looking at webpages as a waste of time. Downloads, gaming, shockwave, all are great times to be disconnected. Sometimes you can't even connect, because they frequently have trouble with their password servers, and e-mail is just a joke, regardless of what account address I put to download in Outlook, I still get my dad's e-mail. Bottom line? There's no such thing as a free lunch. Don't even waste your time with this piss-awful bunch of cowboys. Stick with BT, or better still, get cable broadband. Tiscali would have been poor service in 1995, and in 2001, it's just plain illegal.
I always planned to come back and update this as promised. When I came to look how prominent it was in it's category, I was rather surprised to find it as the "top opinion". This gave me an extra incentive to include the latest developments, which are detailed below. Bear in mind that this was originally written around Christmas time, which gives you the context to the seasonal feel to it. Just before you start, you should know that the latest incarnation of Screaming Net/World Online is Tiscali. I'm not saying that Tiscali will be guilty by default but I sincerely hope that their approach is more customer-orientated than their predecessors. Tiscali S.p.A was founded by Renato Soru, Chairman and CEO, in January 1998 following the liberalization of the Italian telecommunications market. In 2001 the company bought out the LineOne ISP along with World Online. At present, Tiscali has the most interconnected network in Europe with over 350 tier 1 peering agreements and a connection to the USA. As of December 2001 Tiscali has 7.3 million active users, and is the first European web property with 14.7 million unique visitors that in Q4 2001 generated 10.4 billion minutes of Internet traffic in the 14 countries in which it is present. OK, here's the rant plus update at the end. Hang on to yer hats!! It's time for a post-Christmas RANT. Yeah, I know it's the season to be jolly but I just have to get this one of my chest. It's a story of intrigue, double-crossing and thorough caddishness. Many moons ago I decided to change my ISP to Screaming Net. Heard of 'em? Well, they were one of the first companies to offer free off-peak Internet access. Too good to be true? Absolutely! The deal was that you switched over your telephone service to them and took advantage of their soooo competitive rates (actually they were you moaning git). Screaming Net worked on the premise of b
uilding up a client bank to the point where volume would equal profit. Along with AOL, BT and others, the experiment was doomed to failure. Do you know it's all so distant now...can't even remember who I was with before? Anyway, as you'd expect, NO CHANCE of getting through on a dial up. I changed my settings to automatically re-dial up to a 100 times and even this went round the clock sometimes. This went on for a while so I wrote to OFTEL to complain. They wrote back to say that they had named and shamed a number of telephone operators and that SN were one of the worst offenders. However, they didn't have the power to actually help in individual cases but had written to SN to draw their attention to my complaint. You see, on top of the c$*p service via the Net, my phone bills were all over the place as well. It was common practice to be billed for phone calls made 6 months previously. Sometime last year, World Online bought up SN's customer book. Could things start to improve? What do you think? Almost immediately a charging structure came in for Net access. Admittedly it was only £3 per month to start with but this was to prove to be the thin end of the wedge. More importantly they took over my telephone service. Here again, phone bills all over the shop. Itemised calls over 6 months old rattled through my letterbox at regular intervals. The shark then ate the sprat having been eaten by the mackerel. Tiscali (one of Europe's biggest ISPs) bought out World Online earlier this year. Cilla Black time again – surprise, surprise – the charging structure changed to £7 per month. Where was it all going to end? By now I was thoroughly p*ss$d off with the phone bill side of things and when NTL turned up in my street, an opportunity arose. I'm not keen on my paths being turned into permanent molehills but I'll forgive 'em that. May 2001 – read the literature, spoke to my neighbour, sw
itched to NTL. OK, OK, let's get Tiscali/World Online/Screaming Net or whatever you are called off my back once and for all. So I sent an e-mail to Tiscali to confirm the date of disconnection and that I had received and PAID MY FINAL BILL. E-mail reply confirmed the necessary – I'M FREEEE!!! Oh yes I am; oh no you're not (seasonal, eh?). The dreaded phone bills kept coming. My payment method was a credit card direct debit, which, apparently, couldn't be cancelled. My credit card people did say to contact them if there were any problems. I duly referred the subsequent bills and they gave me a refund and issued a notice of dispute to World Online. The coup de gras – about 2 weeks ago I had a letter from a debt collection agency threatening to take me to court over outstanding bills. Yes, a whopping £14 would blight my credit score and insult my pride. Strangely, the agency was very helpful when I rang them (always thought that they went round with croquet mallets stuffed inside sheepskin coats) and said to send in my documentation and they'd refer the stuff back to their client. That's the latest as I'm still waiting to here back. ***My points are thus*** Screaming Net and World Online are truly terrible. Why do companies try and shaft people over such trivial amounts of money? Are all debt collection agencies as nice as this one? You may have guessed that this is a matter of honour by now, as I'm not prepared to pay up. However, I really am not going to allow a CCJ to be registered against me either. The exciting conclusion will take the form of an update maybe in the New Year. RANT over for now, right; let's get ready for New Year's Eve. Marandina. ***Update March 2002*** We are now into March and I've had a final summons from Direct Legal & Collections a couple of months ago. They agreed to take my copy correspondence and refer it
back to World Online. I've had a solicitors letter threatening to take me to court if I don't pay up. As I was in Leeds all week I had to pay as I couldn't meet their 5 day pay or contact demands. I'm still gonna take it up with my Credit Card company after I've paid them their poultry sum. My final word is that World Online/Tiscali suck like a Dyson with Mick Jagger lips. I'm considering employing my good friend, King Herrod who is an active lawyer and promised me a good deal (only kidding, Nick!) BTW: I'm not usually like this. Just that some things really frustrate me. This being one of them!!
I have never seen a company change policy and services so much! I joined World-Online long before they were taken over by Tiscali and originally took up the unmetered option with the transfer of my telephone services to them, only to be told that this was being withdrawn and would be replaced with the 100 hours per month 'Freedom' package. After a certain amount of scrutiny, I decided that it wasn't so bad as the unused minutes carried over and I was unlikely to use the full allocation any how. Not so long later, World-online decided that it was no longer going to operate telephone services! This time I was pretty disgusted, but after looking into Servista (Worldonline's recommended supplier), I realised that they offered a better deal anyway. However, I was still annoyed with World-online as I felt that I was constantly being messed around. I tried to contact World Online several times with my concerns, but despite attempting email, snail-mail and telephone, I just could not get any response from them. Now, several months later, even though I am on the 100 hours package, I find my connection being dropped after just 2 continuous hours of internet use. I was never informed of this action and what the hell is the point of it anyway? After all, I would have to pay for my calls if I went over the 100 hours?! Again, I am unable to contact them. Consequently, I shall soon write them one final letter, signed and witnessed by a solicitor, to the following affect. "...Please take this letter as official notification of intended closure of my internet account... (..account details etc..)...I will be terminating my direct debit agreement with you forthwith. If I hear nothing within 30 days of this letter, then I will asume that no more monies are due to your company. Indeed, it is now your legal reponsibility to respond to this letter if monies are due.... ....I have on numerous occasions trie
d to contact your company through both electronic and conventional means, but have received no response regardless. I take this as Worldonline / Tiscali having no concern for their customers and as a result I shall be looking elsewhere for a non-Tiscali owned Internet Service Provider. Indeed, as a direct result of your company policy, I shall seek to discourage people from using your services...." etc etc. I think that should do the trick!! As an extra point, I do believe the Tiscali should be thouroughly investigated by the Monopolies commision as well as Trading Standards. Also, I am serious thinking of sending my concerns to BBC watchdog!! Can anyone out there recommend a service provider that offers a service with out dropped connections, similar to the 100 hour package that was offered by Worldonline / Tiscali??
I joined up with World Online last year, after seeing an advert in a national newspaper saying 'unlimited unmetered access for 14.99 per month', the only catch seemed to be that my phone line had to be switched to the World Online system, and even this was a simple matter of a straight switch between BT and WoL. Too good to be true? read on..... They seemed only too happy to sign me up under the conditions of the advert, but all was not well with World Online (A word to the wise about the small print, always check what 'subject to change' actually means). I hadn't even logged on under the unmetered service before they contacted me to say that the unlimited service had been withdrawn, but there would be a replacement service available within 28 days (This was only 7 days at the most after the advert had been run, so they must have known that the service was on it's way out) While I was waiting for the new services, I had to sign up to the local rate service, which was 1p/min 24/7, but even this was a little expensive for me, as my internet usage has always been on the heavy side. When information on the new services came through the door, I was delighted, at least I was until I read it. They had brought in the Freedom packages, which although not bad packages, were time limited with a maximum of 100 free hours per month (at the time, I was using about 7 to 8 hours per day, more on weekends) and that was not what I signed up for. I contacted World Online a few times, and after talking to a few different customer advisors (with varying degrees of cooperation, from helpful to bordering on hostile), I had no joy in finding a suitable package. As far as I was concerned, World Online had gained customers under false pretences, and broken their part of the contract. Unfortunately, when I presented this to them, they failed to address the 'gaining customers under false pretences' comment, but with the broken
contract question, I was directed back to the 'subject to change' clause, and politely told that there was nothing I could do. I have no idea whether things have changed now that Tiscali have taken them over, but I will now not entertain anything to do with World Online.
I first joined world online when it was originally called Localtel and the ISP was screaming.net. It was shortly bought out by Worldonline which was promptley bought out by Tiscali. Since its start it has gone from reasonable to extremely awfull. When I first joined you had to move your phone line to access the system and since then they are not suppling the telephone lines anymore so I had to move it, back to BT as the company recomended by Worldonline was expensive. The change took place at the begining of July this year, Worldonline billed me for July's line rental. The accounts department sent me a bill for 3 months internet access which I had already paid and still got the amount wrong, too much. Durring the months when Worldonline was in control of the internet accounts you had a xchoice of three options, 100 hours per month, 50 hours per month or the normal pay for your calls. I opted for the option 100 which means no call charges for the first 100 hours per month, and free minutes that are left are accumulated. They stopped this when Tiscali took over and they owed me over 3 months worth of access, for which I was told tough. When they changed the advertised the prices on the internet for the old access and new access types, but both prices are the same for two different types of access. I advised the company of the error and to the best of my knowledge it is still there. You are given 25mb of free web space which appears not too work. I uploaded a site, as instructed, but could not access it or receive reports of faults from my friends. I contacted Worldonline for help, I was told they would investigate the fault. After 5 phone calls I was told they would contact me, they did not bother and I am still waiting. I eventually emailed Tiscali's head office who sent out an e mail to Worldonline instructiing them to deal with complaint, I am still waiting, that is over 5 months now. When you join a company for the internet it is a good
idea to contact their customer support as this gives a you a good idea as to how good they are. If you can get through in under 10 minutes they are of a reasonable standard, very few people have complaints. Worldonline, however, could take you upto 1 month to get hold of, this is wahat happened to me. After receiving Julys billed I attempted to contact them every night for a month, I got the automated system telling me "all our advisers are busy please hold. I held for over 2 hours each evening untill they closed. I would not recomend anyone to use this company as they do not care about the customers or standard of service the technical support department do not realy know what they are on about either.
Around a year ago, I heard about the offer World Online were doing - a 24/7 internet service. I thought, "great" - that's what I need, as an internet junkie. One of the conditions of taking up this unlimited service was to cancel my telephone contract with BT and also take up a phone service with WorldOnline. I didn't receive any communication from World Online about the set up of my new service, but didn't think anything of it at the time. Boy was I wrong!! The first event that led me to believe that World Online were con merchants, were the fact that they discontinued the 24/7 service and brought in a 100 hours a month internet service whilst processing my application (it may have even been 50 hours, I can't remember exactly how much but I didn't find this out through communication from World Online themselves but rather from the bottom of my first bill which appeared to be pretty over the top!!) I was under the impression that I was actually going to save money through them - not the case at all. IT GETS WORSE - READ ON!!! After setting up this WorldOnline account, my boyfriend at the time went off with someone else, and he agreed to buy my share of the equity in the house we owned, and around last year I moved out of the house and his new partner moved in. Of course there is always the issue of bills and transferring them over etc when these things happen - World Online is one bill that, to this day, I haven't managed to transfer over/cancel - it is still in my name!! READ ON - I have had hundred of telephone conversations with members of the World Online customer services department, and I specifically stated that since splitting with my ex-boyfriend, "I DO NOT LIVE AT THE ABOVE ADDRESS AND HAVEN'T DONE SO FOR AROUND EIGHT MONTHS!!" I also notified them that he lived at the address with his new wife. At the request of their customer services department, his new wi
fe and I both signed a 'change of account details form' in order that she, as the new user of the service, could take over responsibility for the account. She provided her bank details, and also requested a telephone only service, that is, the same service excluding the internet package. Despite this, however, it is only until very recently that they have still charged my credit card for phone/internet costs that have nothing to do with me. The only reason that I have managed to stop them from charging my credit card is to cancel it!! And, just in case you are wondering, the credit card company could not stop these payments going through as a credit card 'apparently' is a GUARANTEED FORM OF PAYMENT!! As it happens, it is me that remains out of pocket!! And now they tell me they have recruited a debt collection company to deal with the last two months' telephone bills!! To make matters even worse, my ex-boyfriend's wife has also been in contact with the customer services department on MANY occasions and quite frankly, both of us are sick and tired of being told that the matter will be dealt with when clearly that doesn't seem to be their intention at all!! I am extremely disappointed and angry with the service I have received from World Online and I will NEVER be using their services again. I would strongly advise anyone that has an account with World Online, get rid of it now and go back to BT. At least if you phone BT and tell them you have moved they actually acknowledge this. As it happens, I am currently in the process of lodging a formal complaint with with OFTEL. If there is anyone else out there that has experienced similar problems with World Online, please DO get in contact with me. I would like to hear of your situation!! And, Finally, I cannot emphasise this any more - do not bother with World Online unless you want to suffer from a nervous breakdown!!
As you probably know World Online have transferred their telephone service to Tiscali recently, however the pricing remained the same. Recently the telephone service is extremly bad. It takes along time to connect, and when you do connect, you get disconnected within several minutes, and it is not my ISP. I have also tried it with AOL, and I also get disconnected. I recently phoned them up to change telephone service provider, and they never asked why I was leaving. Normally they would try to keep you on their service, I expect alot of people are changing service provider, and they know their service is bad. It even took half an hour to phone them up, I was waiting in an endless queue, with no feedback as to where I was in the Q.
Worldonline has changed its name again recently - it has been taken over by Tiscali. Unfortunately, this was bad news for the consumer. Some internet customers saw their costs DOUBLE. I joined Worldonline 8 months ago, when it was offering unlimited free off-peak internet access if you became a telephone customer. Their line rental (with free off-peak internet access) was the same cost as BT's line rental only, offered much better value for money, so I signed up. The change over was hassle-free, and my telephone number didn't change. However, no sooner had I joined when Worldonline changed its services, and charged £2.99 a month for its Internet Lite option. This offered me 50 hours of off-peak calls, which met my needs, so I remained a customer. Then there was ANOTHER price increase. Worldonline has been taken over by Tiscali and has again revamped its services. Once again, this was bad news for the consumer. The so-called lite service is now 50 hours anytime, for £5.99 per month. Since I only really need off-peak calls, my internet costs have effectively DOUBLED. But, that is not all. In June 2001 I received notification that World Online/Tiscali will no longer be providing a telephone service from 12 July. Instead, they are concentrating on their internet business. All existing telephone customers are being written to and given a number to ring (freephone). I rang, and was informed I could be transferred to another company (presumably associated with Tiscali) for £11.99 per month line rental. The person I spoke to claimed that some calls were cheaper than BT, but didn't give me the information to make the comparisons. This is YET ANOTHER price increase, albeit small. This is the final straw, and I am going back to BT for my telephone. However, I am remaining with Tiscali for the internet (for the time being anyway). UPDATE - DECEMBER 2001 I have remained with Tiscali as my internet servi
ce provider on the Freedom 50 tariff. However, when I went to their website yesterday I noticed that this tariff is no longer available. It is not clear whether existing customers will be forced onto a yet more expensive tariff. If that happens, I'm afraid it will be "adieu"!
When I first joined World Online it was actually called screaming.net and I joined just because if you changed to a cheaper telco you could have free off-peak internet calls. That was a long time ago. Since then it has become world online (and now Tiscali I belive). When as soon as the possibility for unmetered all-day access arrived I took up the offer immediatly, I was not dissapointed. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that any offer companies services are my expensive or have slower connections. That's not the reason for my praise at all. The one reason that this service stands above all other ISP's in the UK for unmetered access is that it has no cut-off time. I don't know about every-single ISP on the market but with BTinternet, Freeserve and countless other services now available that I checked out they all automatically disconnected after 2hours (sometimes less). So if you want to have a truely permanent connection to the internet, without the cost of a T3/optic fibre/ADSL, then this is THE service to go for.
One year ago I was screaming with joy when I joined screaming. net, who wouldn't if you got unlimited totally free Internet access (of peak) for the price of £ 9.99 phone rental only. For 6 months I enjoyed the sheer luxury and then suddenly my world changed as the company was taken over by World online. The Internet package was changed and now I had to pay £ 2.99 for 50 hours of Internet access plus the phone rental. Still not bad but of-course nothing compared to unlimited access. I was trying to get use to this change when 2 months ago again the company was taken over by another company called Tiscali and we were left to their mercy. Now I am paying £ 9.99 phone rental + £ 5.99 for 50 hours (anytime), not at all good value for money. So now I am looking for another ISP. This was my story, now about the service. REGISTRATION ------------ I am telling you my own experience and as I joined 1 year ago, I am sorry if things have changed. You can register online. You need to be a BT customer. You give your personal and bank details and then they contact BT to switch the service. Then BT will contact you to confirm that you want to shift. As you confirm you'll receive an e-mail to download their software to start using their service. This whole process takes about 2 weeks. INSTALLATION ------------ Installation is simple, you go to their website download the software, install it and you are ready to connect to Internet. CONNECTING ---------- Once you have installed their software, it becomes your default ISP and the dial box opens when ever you open your browser. Dialling was no problem at all, I use to get connected the first time and the cut off time was 3 hours. With the change in companies and price plan the service has also detoriated. Still it's not bad but I do get engage tones occasionally. SPEED ----- Initially it was never less than 48 kbs but now usually it
is 45 kbs and sometimes less than 40 and then you have to disconnect and then connect again to get a better speed. E MAIL AND WEB SPACE -------------------- You get 5 email addresses and standard web space. I never had any problem with the email service and is quite good. CUSTOMER SUPPORT ---------------- This is the worst part, you call them and wait and wait. You can hardly talk to real a person. You get an automated response telling you to e-mail instead, and then it takes days to get a response by e-mail. VALUE FOR MONEY --------------- The initial package was definitely worth the money. £ 9.99 for monthly phone rental, totally free Internet after 6pm to 8am and all weekends, and 33% less phone charges as compared to BT. It was the best package you could find. Then the charges were increased by £2.99 and Internet access was reduced from unlimited to 50 hours. Now you have to pay £5.99 for 50 hours, which is not at all worth and I can't call it good value for money. CONCLUSION ---------- I year ago this was the best service available, quality and money wise except poor customer support. Quality wise I would say they are not as good as before but honestly speaking still better than many. Money wise it's not worth anymore and I think there are better offers available. Over all I wouldn't recommend this to anybody anymore. Now as I am looking for a new deal I'll miss their service as they used to be the best. What a shame.
When my account with Libertysurf was due to come to an end I was keen to get on board with another ISP pronto. The choice wasn't easy though, there are so many out there now. Originally I was going to go with BT for their off peak £5.99 a month thing but it then emerged that it wasn't quite as simple as it had originally seemed so I looked elsewhere. I'm glad I did too because I found Worldonline. Tiscali Packages: For £5.99 a month you get 50 hours of Internet access. Sure, that might not sound like anything to get excited about but that's 50 hours ANYTIME. So you could use all 50 hours during peak times if you wanted. Not bad is it? You can also go for their £9.99 package for 100 hours anytime or if you're a high user (as in, frequent, not 'high') then you can pay £14.99 a month for unlimited access. The service: Connection speeds are very impressive, I've never had below 45000 bps and I've been able to connect first time every time. There is no cut off time either so if you want to stay connected you can – no problem at all. You will need to enter their connection number as always and you will notice that there is a prefix code too – this means that you're creating an account that can be used for normal billing if you happen to go over the 50 or 100 hours. The homepage: Pretty much the same as any other ISP's homepage but I like it. From here you can access news, weather, sport etc as normal but you can also gain access to account information which tells you how many hours you've used etc. You can also pick up e-mail from here, which can be quite handy Customer service: Awful. Sorry if that was a bit out of the blue but I've actually contacted them three times (different subject each time) and only had one reply, which took about a week. They appear to be heavily behind in answering any queries so if
you're just wanting to get some info then don't expect a quick reply. That is now of course and I'm sure that matters will improve and if you're like me then you may not even need to contact them once everything is up and running as it should be. Overall: I have to say that on the whole I'm very happy with the service. My main concern was the connection speed and reliability and I've had virtually no problems. There is no annoying 'console' that I had to endure as a Libertysurf customer so online gaming is back on my agenda too! For price I feel they're great and you can cancel at any time so if you find it's rubbish you can simply cut it off after a month. Also you get 100 hours instead of 50 in the first month if you're a Tiscali 50 user (not sure if you get 150 if you're on Tiscali 100). Happy Surfing! MR.COATES
Those of you who are familiar with my opinions may have noticed that I frequently change ISPs. In the last two years, I believe I have used most of the major UK ISPs. Certainly I have used more than I have written about, even though I have opinions on 5 ISPs at the moment. Hopefully, though I will not be writing about any more for the foreseeable future. I moved over to World Online when I was unable to get online with BTInternet for almost 36 hours. This time they had a very good reason for it, but after a series of other problems with them leading up to this event, I wasn't exactly feeling sympathetic. I needed to be online THEN, and if I had to change ISPs to do so, then so be it. Searching ISP Review web sites, however, revealed that for my budget of £15 a month I didn't have many 24/7 unmetered options. I had used almost all of the well known ones, and I didn't fancy trying any of the less well known ones! The only 'big name' that I hadn't tried with an offer suited to my budget was World Online. I had a look at the opinions on dooyoo, to see what they were like, and found many of them were very negative. They were also quite old and out of date. Looking at some more recent opinions revealed that things were looking up though, so I decided to take a closer look, and then signed up. A visit to their web site showed two logos - Tiscali, and World Online. Now they are simply Tiscali. I had already seen that logo before, as Tiscali are a European company that has bought out a lot of British ISPs - I believe they are even with Line One now. They are also sponsors of Formula 1 team BAR. That was partly what made me join them, as BAR are my favourite team! ========WHAT THEY OFFER========= World Online / Tiscali have several packages I will call them by their current Tiscali names, although throughout the rest of the opinion I will use the two names interchan
geably. Tiscali Classic Tiscali 50 Tiscali 100 Tiscali ADSL Tiscali Unlimited. Tiscali Classic: This is their regular, 0845, pay as you go service. No monthly fee, no ties. You get your usual mailbox with unlimited email addresses, a newsgroup service and 25Mb webspace. Vanilla stuff, but a generous offering of webspace for an ISP. All the other plans get the same newsgroups / email / webspace as Tiscali Classic. Tiscali 50 and 100 These offer you a certain number of hours for 'free' each month for a monthly fee. Tiscali 50 is £5.99 a month for 50 hours free surfing, with the rest charged at 1p a minute. Tiscali 100 is £9.99 a month for, you guessed it, 100 hours free surfing instead of 50. At the moment, if you sign up for either Tiscali 50 or 100 you get an extra 50 hours free in your first month. You can keep track of your usage via their web site, and upgrade or downgrade your service at any point, so if you using Tiscali 100 are online as much as usual one month, you can drop down to Tiscali 50, and be charged under that scheme. If you're on 50 and think you're going to be online a lot you can upgrade to 100 and get charged under that scheme. The same applies with UPGRADING to Tiscali Unlimited (more info on that below) But if you downgrade during a month then you will still be charged the full £14.99 for that month. Tiscali ADSL <envy>Yes, they offer 500Kbps download, 250Kbps upload</envy> The usual 3.5Km from exchange rules apply, and at £150 installation and £39.99 a month rental it isn't too bad an offer. Still, it's more than I can afford at the moment. Anyone got a job they can offer me? Seriously, if you want ADSL, this seems like a good company to get it from. Tiscali have been offering broadband in other countries for a long time now. Tiscali Unlimi
ted. If you're like me, and can't afford ADSL, then unmetered narrowband is the poor mans alternative. At £14.99 a month for 24/7 they're pretty competitive, and, since it isn't Surftime, you don't have to go through all that 'double billing stuff either. You do have to have either a BT line or a BT Calls and Access provider, and you can't be using another service that uses the 1690 calls prefix. ========My Experience of Tiscali Unlimited======= Signing up for Tiscali Unlimited was quite easy. I even managed to get the user name I wanted! I was pleasantly surprised at the end to be offered a choice between letting World Online customised my software, or having me enter all the settings myself. Being a control freak I opted for the latter option, and was presented with the number, mail settings, news settings etc. I then decided that I was sick of the BTInternet stuff that was still lurking about, and couldn't be bothered to mess with the registry, so I went back to the World Online web site to see if I could still get my browser customised. I found their support section very easily, and managed to get myself a re-badged Outlook Express in minutes! When you sign up, you can't get unmetered access straight away, as you need to get your line registered with them. They claimed this would take about 24 hours. In truth it took 18, which I found quite reasonable. I was able to access through their classic number while I was waiting, and was sent instructions on changing this number once my line was registered. Since then I've been very happy with them. ====CONNECTIVITY==== I can connect first time almost every time. The rest of the time it only takes two, at the most three attempts to connect. This is much better than BT when it is usually impossible to get online on an evening.
They have no cut off period, and this is a big attraction for me. They do disconnect you if you are idle, but unlike many companies they don't seem to mind IRC or ICQ - they actually give IRC as an example of why you may want to use their service in their blurb! Connection speeds vary from 42.6Kbps (the slowest I've seen with them) to usually 46Kbps. Downloads go from 3.1Kbps to 4Kbps. Not the fastest connection on the planet but a good average, and I'd rather have reliable average than sometimes fast, sometimes incredibly slow. ==========EMAIL=========== Their email service is reliable, although I did find the email sent to my World Online address explaining how to access my email rather amusing, especially since I had been struggling to get it working after a case of 'missing the obvious' - I had the pop3 and smtp in the wrong boxes! <blush> Spam does not seem to be an inherent problem of using them either. ==========WEBSPACE========== Their webspace has the unusual condition that if you don't access it for 3 months, or don't include an index.htm page, they will delete it. I guess this is to stop people using it as a file archive. You get a subdomain for your web site - myusername.worldonline.com, and I haven't had any problems FTP-ing to it or accessing it. FTP is another reason I am happy with World Online. I work on a site with a server based in Australia, and with BTInternet I couldn't FTP to that site as it kept timing out. With World Online I have no problems. Either BTInternet is a blocked domain, or they have a very slow link to Australia. Not sure which it is but it was a frustrating problem for me. ============NEWSGROUPS========== Their news server is reliable and fast, although the choice of newsgroups is slightly
lacking. That said, I was spoiled by the large selection on Plus Net, and their willingness to add more groups. I have contacted support about getting some of my old favourites added. I will update this opinion soon with news on wether or not they do this, although I have not seen any groups added since I joined them, so perhaps they never add groups. Time will tell. ============OTHER STUFF=========== If you ignore the email that I sent about newsgroups (which hasn't been answered yet, but I only sent it yesterday) then I have had no contact with support via either email or the telephone. I can say that their website is very good support wise, and gives you the information needed to solve most problems. A greater than one day response rate for email on a weekend isn't something to get angry over either. Their tech support line is 50P a minute, which isn't great, but I have seen £1 a minute support before so it's not too bad. If you're a new user that may not be so appealing though! The rest of their website is pretty good - they have good news content, and I do sometimes check them out when I remember - they aren't my homepage though. It's not as cluttered as some ISPs, and while they are aiming to be a portal they haven't gone over board about it. It's a functional site, easy to navigate and loads quite quickly. To close, I am very happy with World Online, and would recommend anyone paying £15 or more for their current ISP, and who is unhappy with them, move over to them. It's a month by month contract, so what have you got to loose? ########UPDATE December 12th 2001######### Well, it seems I might be back on the hunt for a new ISP again. Most of the opinion above still stands, but, as usual with an ISP that becomes popular, Tiscali now have a cut off time. It's somewhere between 2 hours and 3 hours, and seems
a little random, but you're always cut off. First time connection is no longer a certainty either. They are more reliable than most ISPs but not perfect. At £15 a month they're pricier than many now too - OneTel.Net, who have a four hour cut-off have just reduced their price from £14.99 to £12.99, and ItsGoodToGive.co.uk is also £12.99, of which £1 is given to charity. It's little things like that which make other ISPs look more attractive. Perhaps I'm being hard on them - they're still much better than most other ISPs I've left in disgust, but if OneTel.Net were available in my area I'd leave in an instant. If you're looking for a new ISP, I would probably recommend either OneTel.Net if you can get them, or ItsGoodToGive.co.uk - I have friends who use both without trouble, and I'm seriously considering moving myself. Still, this isn't the worst ISP out there, but it isn't the best either. I've decided just to knock a star off the rating, but still recommend them.
Worldonline.co.uk has many different packages and can suit all needs. Whether you are a heavy all day surfer or the occasional once in a month surfer. You could opt for their pay as you go service; this has no monthly charges. Or if are a more frequent user why not chooses their 'Tiscali 50'. This has a monthly subscription charge of £5.99. With this service they give you 50 free hours to use any time of the day. But if you thought that wasn't enough you can pay an extra £3.99 and get a further 50 free hours. Or if you want a service to match AOL's or BT's then pay just £14.99 and surf 24hours a day without racking up that phone bill. Perhaps Worldonline could have reduced this £14.99 so could have attracted a lot more users. For the same price why would you choose this instead of Freeserve or BT's anytime service. That's not all, they even cater for those who have much larger incomes. Their whopping £39.99/month package. For this you will need to get an ADSL line. Installation would be around £200. From these 5 packages I chose the 50-hour package. This is simply because I use the net quite a bit and cannot afford any of the other packages.
I had written an opinion praising World Online which have now become Tiscali. I have written a new review on Tiscali and i have had to take my good opinion off of World Online, as i do not want anyone to be misinformed as they are now a very poor service. Since i started the service with them they have charged to credit cards in large random amounts a total of £175, that is overcharging of £70, they ignore letters, emails and when i call them, they are completely incompetant, they do not know what they have charged me and demand proof of credit card statements, i sent them this weeks ago with a letter, they have not responded to it and since then have charged a total of £90 on two seperate credit cards, which i had actually told them not to use, £44.94 on each card. I have just found this out and i am due to ring them up about it which will updated on my new opinion of Tiscali. I have never encountered such terrible incompetance and criminal behaviour from a company in my life before. It is a form of stealing. Do not sign up to a company who does not care about their customers and only care about the money they can steal off their credit cards. I never thought i could hate a company as much as i do Tiscali.


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Ukiah Daily Journal
Despite strong lobbying by one member for starting classes later at Ukiah High School, the Ukiah Unified School District's board of trustees Tuesday voted to change only the start time for Eagle Peak Middle School.
"We can't change kids' biology, and as adults, it's our job to adjust to kids, not their job to adjust to us, because they can't," said board member Anne Molgaard, adding that if UHS began classes later than 7:30 a.m., students' grades would not only increase, but tardiness, absences and health problems would decrease.
"I don't think the status quo is working, and if you talk to students and teachers, they're not satisfied," Molgaard continued, explaining that she wanted UHS to begin classes at 9 a.m., but she was settling for 7:50 a.m., which was part of Option A in a list of alternatives the board was considering.
However, that scenario would require two more bus drivers, costing an additional $6,000, and UUSD staff said it has proved very difficult for the district to hire and maintain bus drivers, due in large part to the drawn-out, complex schedules and low salary.
"I'm really disappointed, because I feel like we let bus schedules dictate too much in our schedules," said board member Megan Van Sant. "I feel like the decisions we're making tonight are going to be about bus schedules rather than what's best for students."
Van Sant also said, "I really want that 20 minutes for the high school. I feel that's important."
Board member Bea Arkin said she didn't think the 20 minutes "would make a huge difference," and student adviser Monica Ruiz said the majority of students she talked to wanted to keep the school's start time, primarily because they had jobs, sports and family obligations they needed to get to after school.
Jennifer De Vinny, retiring principal of Oak Manor Elementary, said students who used to attend school in Hopland are now picked up by the bus at 7:05 a.m. for a class time of 8:40 a.m. at Oak Manor, since the Hopland school was closed in 2010.
"That is so unacceptable -- I can't believe this has been going on for a year," said Van Sant. "That is a failure on our part to serve that community. I am outraged."
Michelle Aguilar-Brown, local president of the California School Employees Association, said as a parent of a teenager, she supported a later start time for UHS, and was dismayed at the length of time Hopland kids spend on the bus.
"When we closed Hopland, we promised those parents their kids would not be on the bus for an hour," Aguilar-Brown said. "I am devastated that we have not done that."
Superintendent Deb Kubin said the process of exploring start times and bus schedules had been "very difficult," and she felt strongly that Option A would not work, "due primarily to the difficulty of hiring bus drivers.
"Frankly, I'm not sure how we would make Option A work," Kubin continued. "If you tell us to make it work, we could try."
Arkin then made a motion for Option D, changing Eagle Peak Middle School's start time to 8:05 a.m. and leaving the rest of the schools the same, and it passed with four votes from Arkin, board president Kathy James, Bill Rantala and Gail Mon Pere.
Van Sant also suggested a directive that the school district "repair the issue" of students being driven from Hopland having to wait on the bus for an hour before school.
Justine Frederiksen can be reached at email@example.com, on Twitter @JustFrederiksen or at 468-3521.

subset: commoncrawl


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NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- Many of us have had one. In fact, for those working for corporate America, we have been issued one every three or so years for the better part of the last 20 years.I'm talking about a ThinkPad laptop, of course. It was first made by IBM ( IBM) and in the last decade Lenovo ( LNVGY). It was black, had a great keyboard, a matte screen, and it remains the most reliable Windows laptop around. Each of those millions of Lenovo ThinkPads ran the latest version of Microsoft's ( MSFT) Windows. One could argue that the Lenovo ThinkPad was Microsoft's face of corporate America on the road. In other words, Microsoft and the ThinkPad laptop were locked in arms against all PC challengers of the past, from Sun to Linux to Apple's ( AAPL) Mac. Brothers in arms, locked together in that sturdy black box residing on traveling corporate America's lap, it was Microsoft's Chinese defense wall. This is about to change. In 2013, Lenovo will break with its Microsoft Windows exclusivity and start offering PCs -- laptops and desktops alike -- based on Google's ( GOOG) PC operating system, Chrome OS. Such laptops and desktops are commonly called "Chromebooks" and "Chromeboxes," respectively. Why is Lenovo doing this? Corporate America, as well as some branches of government, are trying to reduce their costs. IT is a growing part of their budgets, with pressures from the front office to deploy and pay for smartphones and tablets, in addition to PCs. At the same time, the complexity of a Windows PC has grown beyond most users' capabilities to handle it. I'm told that as early as a dozen years ago, Microsoft asked Excel users for feedback on what features to add. Supposedly 95% of the suggested new features for Excel were...already in Excel. A Windows PC is simply too complex for most regular users. Once you have used your Windows PC for the first few days, weeks and months, it no longer takes 30 seconds to boot it up, but perhaps one minute, then two minutes, then... My old Windows PC now takes at least five minutes to boot before it approaches usability. Then you have the longest list of viruses and spyware. Many users have no idea whether they have them, or how they may get them. It's an eternal -- futile? -- cat and mouse game to fight these scourges.
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'There's lessons to be learned by everyone.'
-- Assistant Superintendent of Business Services Richard Hanger
Humboldt County Office of Education
A recent Los Angeles Times analysis of statewide school district bond financing has district officials and financial advisers buzzing after it highlighted the use of capital appreciation bonds for construction projects. Some local districts that used the financing are preparing to reexamine their options, while others readying to authorize bond sales are under increased scrutiny after the practice entered the media spotlight in recent weeks.
Education officials point to a broken system for funding school construction and modernization, which they say forces districts to turn to bonds to cover costs.
California Treasurer Bill Lockyer is quoted in the Times report as saying the school boards and staffs that approved the bonds "should be voted out of office and fired," while others say the state needs to take the lead in coming up with a solution to the larger issue of how school construction is financed.
A report by UC Berkeley's Center for Cities & Schools states that a dedicated and predictable funding system for capital improvements is needed to "curtail the process inefficiencies and facility deficiencies that result, in part, from California's current episodic and unstable bond-driven K-12 infrastructure investment program."
What's a Capital Appreciation Bond?
Most school bonds, called current interest bonds, are like a home mortgage. They pay interest to bond holders on a periodic basis, starting after the bond is issued, and typically require about $2 to $3 to be paid back for every $1 borrowed.
A capital appreciation bond accrues interest every six months, which is added to the principal amount borrowed for the project. No interest is paid until the bond "matures," more than 30 years later, in some cases. That means CABs, as they are known, often cost many times more than that of traditional bonds.
Capital appreciation bonds are a tool commonly used to receive bond proceeds immediately. Capital appreciation bonds tend to have higher interest rates, due to the risk involved.


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Jeronimo wrote:As someone who also owns a pair of Inov-8's I would also recommend them. They're probably not for everyone because of how thin the soles are but they fit well and feel like they're well made.
Are those made for fat footed people then? They look nice, but I have pretty thin feet so shoes for fatty fat fattie feet are not for me.


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Padres giving Wisler feel for big league setting
SAN DIEGO -- Matt Wisler, considered the Padres' No. 2 prospect by MLB.com, has a locker in the team's clubhouse.
But Wisler, 21, won't be pitching this month in games for the Padres.
Just as they did in September 2011 with then-rookies Robbie Erlin, Joe Wieland and Casey Kelly, the Padres are giving Wisler an opportunity to acclimate himself to the big league lifestyle and surroundings for a period of 10 or so days.
"I'll get an idea of how they go about their business," Wisler said.
San Diego manager Bud Black said this situation is a little different from three years ago with Erlin, Kelly and Wieland in that the Padres hadn't seen any of those three pitchers before. They have with Wisler -- who logged 11 1/3 innings in big league Spring Training.
This season, Wisler began at Double-A San Antonio before joining Triple-A El Paso, where he went 9-5 with a 5.01 ERA in 22 starts. He found his slider in the second half and pitched better in a league that's known as a hitter-friendly league, going 4-1 with a 4.02 ERA after the All-Star break.
He was 3-1 with a 3.60 ERA in four starts in August.
"I got my command back and my slider felt pretty good," Wisler said.
Wisler will throw a few bullpen sessions in the next 10 days, Black said, under the watchful eyes of the team's pitching coach, Darren Balsley and bullpen coach, Willie Blair. He'll sit in on pitchers meetings, too.
"If his time does come as a Major League pitcher, he'll be better off for this," Black said.
Corey Brock is a reporter for MLB.com. Keep track of @FollowThePadres on Twitter. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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We are in Charlottesville VA
And this one is SO EASY! If you can hold the crayon box in your hand- YOU CAN DO THE TRICK!
The effect: One minute the colorful crayons can be seen in the box- the next minute they have TURNED INTO A COLORFUL SILK STREAMER! The streamer can be taken out of the box- the crayons are GONE!
Crayons are colorful, and magical! This quick illusion takes no skill- it practically works all by itself!
This trick can be performed by itself, but it looks best when used with another trick like the Magic Coloring Book (not included). Just show the box of crayons, make the crayons vanish and change into a Silk Streamer, then wave the streamer over the Magic Coloring Book when you are making the colors appear in the book- as if the colors came off the streamer and magically jumped into the pages of the coloring book!
You can perform this trick by itself (it's complete) or use it with other tricks in a routine.
Use the crayon box to produce a silk streamer, then put the streamer into a Change Bag, and change the streamer back into crayons!You can also change the crayons into the silk streamer, then vanish the streamer using a Thumb Tip or maybe the Popcorn Box.


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"The strategy of being obstructionist can work or fail…and so far it's working for us."
— Former Republican Whip, Senator Trent Lott (Roll Call, 4/18/07)
Since January 2007, the Democrat-led, 110th Congress has made a significant down-payment on our promise to take the country in a new direction after nearly a decade of Republican control and make America more affordable for working and middle class families. Under Democratic leadership, Congress has enacted bills to provide economic stimulus, promote energy independence, invest in food and nutrition programs, increase the minimum wage, prevent foreclosures, provide a pay increase for out troops, provide middle class tax relief, strengthen homeland security, fund and improve critical domestic programs, and reform the ethics and lobbying system. Yet, even as the Senate is poised to pass a comprehensive, bipartisan package to address the nation's housing crisis and a supplemental appropriations legislation that includes a 21st Century GI bill and an extension of Unemployment Insurance benefits, Democrats are frustrated that relentless Republican obstructionism has stood in the way of more progress.
During the 110th Congress, Bush, and now, McCain Republicans have set new records for obstructionism in the United States Senate. As of this writing, they have engaged in 77 filibusters in the 110th Congress and we still have six months to go. In the last month, they have blocked committee hearings and stalled Senate business by forcing Senate Democrats to jump through unnecessary procedural hoops. While these parliamentary hijinks may be "working" for Republicans, they are failing the American people. Senate Democrats continue to urge our Republican colleagues to realign their misplaced priorities with those of working- and middle-class Americans. Democrats are working to advance their priorities, beginning with making the American dream more affordable and jumpstarting the economy. We are working for change. We invite Senate Republicans to defy their reputation as the "Grand Obstructionist Party" and join us in our effort.
Bush-McCain Republicans have engaged in unprecedented obstructionism. Senate Republicans have delayed nearly every piece of major legislation in the 110th Congress. By repeatedly threatening to filibuster, the GOP has forced 77 cloture votes in the Senate, thereby requiring Democrats to move or pass legislation, not by a simple majority, but by a super-majority of 60 votes. And we have nearly six months to go! In the full two-year term of the 109th Congress — when Democrats were in the minority — the Senate had only 52 cloture votes on minority filibusters. Prior to the 110th Congress, the all-time high for cloture votes in a two-year term was 57. Republicans have shattered this record. (U.S. Senate, Legislation and Records, Votes, Roll Call Tables, available here.)
Senate Republicans have refused to even debate legislation. Bush-McCain Republicans have not only used cloture motions to require a super-majority to pass legislation, they have used cloture motions on motions to proceed to force a super-majority to even consider legislation. Already, in the one and a half years of the two-year, 110th Congress, Republicans have forced 34 cloture votes on motions to proceed – wasting weeks of the Senate's time. As a comparison, in the 109th Congress there were only 12 of these votes, and in the 108th Congress there were only nine. (U.S. Senate, Legislation and Records, Votes, Roll Call Tables, available here.)
Bush-McCain Republicans have stood in the way of bills that address the most critical issues facing our nation. Many of the bills Senate Republicans have blocked or delayed are popular, bipartisan, and/or non-controversial. Currently, one Republican Senator is obstructing passage of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008, a widely supported and vital measure that would address the mortgage foreclosure crisis that has crippled our economy by bringing relief to American homeowners and stabilizing the housing markets. His actions further underscore "how even bipartisan bills have fallen victim to gridlock in the closely divided Senate and how much a single senator can stand in the way." (Congressional Quarterly, "Energy Dispute Blocks Housing Bill," (June 25, 2008, available here.)
These obstructionist tactics only waste time, countless hours totaling weeks of valuable floor time that could be used to advance more of the people's priorities. The list of bills Republicans have blocked or delayed, often multiple times, includes legislation to:


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Fort Worth, Texas -- Work wear brand Dickies said Monday it has launched an online tool called Shop and Compare, which allows users to compare products side by side.
The new Shop and Compare app gives customers the ability to view up to three different pants or shirts side by side along with a detailed display of the price, fabric, fit, color, and description of each garment.
"We are pleased to launch an innovative work wear tool that allows workers to make product selections that will best meet their personal needs," said Matthew McCartin, head of marketing for Williamson-Dickie Mfg. Co.


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The pirate site plans to ignore the lawsuits from Elsevier and the American Chemical Society.
Binge-Eating Neurons Identified
May 26, 2017|
Inducing activity in the zona incerta region of the brain prompts mice to gorge themselves.
May 26, 2017|
Inducing activity in the zona incerta region of the brain prompts mice to gorge themselves.
May 25, 2017|
DNA sequencing reveals that the virus responsible for the recent outbreak in the Americas originated in Brazil in 2014 and circulated undetected for months before the first cases were reported.
May 23, 2017|
Scientists have identified 40 new genes linked to human intelligence.
May 22, 2017|
Rare genetic variants could blunt efforts to destroy pest populations.
May 12, 2017|
Researchers made a 3-D reconstruction of one of neurobiology's most famous brains—that of Henry Gustav Molaison (HM).
May 11, 2017|
Our guide to all known forms of RNA, from cis-NAT to vault RNA and everything in between.
May 11, 2017|
What researchers are learning as they sequence, map, and decode species' genomes
It's not only about health but also about exploring ancestry and contributing to science.
May 1, 2017|
Author Bob Holmes dove into the taste-determining realm of his genome.
May 1, 2017|
Teams of modelers compete to develop algorithms for estimating how people will perceive a particular odor from its molecular characteristics.


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Ohio Rep. Dale Mallory Named In Ethics Probe
A southwest Ohio legislator has been identified as among the subjects of an investigation into possible ethics violations.
The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that state Rep. Dale Mallory's actions are being examined in a Joint Legislative Ethics Commission probe, after a lobbyist for payday lenders paid for tickets to a 2009 Cincinnati Bengals pro football game and for dinners at Cincinnati and Columbus restaurants.
Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O'Brien confirms that Mallory is among those under investigation. He declined to say how many other legislators are involved or to name them.
Mallory is a Cincinnati Democrat who is finishing the eight-year term limit for his House seat. He lost a bid in May's primary for a state Senate nomination.
A telephone message was left Tuesday for Mallory.


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Yeah I learned a roach build from that guy a while back. I was doing it pretty often and being pretty successful against lower to mid level players. He showed a couple of tricks that I would of never known about. Like as Zerg, if you're 10/10 on overlords, you can get one to build a vespine refinery and then queue up another drone or whatever else you want.
Cancel the refinery, and you get your drone back... it doesn't die like the when you cancel other buildings.


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Keep kids learning
Worried your kid forgets everything they've learnt when not at school? Here's how to keep their brain sharp. more
A lumbar puncture can be both a test to help diagnose cancer and a way to treat it. If your child's doctor suspects your child has cancer of the brain or spinal cord, he can use a lumbar puncture to help diagnose the disease. Your child's doctor can also use a lumbar puncture as a way to inject medications into the chemotherapy drugs into the cerebrospinal fluid.
Lumbar punctures hurt. Because they hurt, your child will probably be given a local anesthetic to numb the area before the puncture. Your child will feel a prick from the anesthetic injection, but the injection will make the lumbar puncture a lot easier to tolerate.
The doctor will wash the area around the spine and will probably use iodine to disinfect the area.
Your child will have to curl up into a ball so that his spine curves. This spreads the vertebrae apart so that the doctor can insert a needle into the spine. Your child will feel pressure as the needle is inserted. He will then probably be able to relax a bit and uncurl his body.
If the puncture is being used as a diagnostic test, spinal fluid will be removed for testing. If the puncture is a form of therapy, medication may be injected into the spinal fluid.
Lumbar punctures are often done as an outpatient procedure and your child will probably be able to go home the same day. He might feel some pain where the needle was inserted, so plan on giving him paracetamol for discomfort. You'll also want to encourage him to rest at least for the remainder of the day.
Written by Rebecca Stigall for Kidspot, Australia's parenting resource for family health. Sources include Better Health Channel, NSW Health, and Health Insite.
Last revised: Thursday, 29 April 2010
This article contains general information only and is not intended to replace advice from a qualified health professional.


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VISALIA - Authorities in central California say a member of a volunteer environmental cleanup crew fell out of a helicopter and died during a marijuana eradication effort in Tulare County.
Detective James Fansett with the Tulare County Coroner's Office says Shane Krogen fell out of the helicopter Thursday near Visalia, about 30 south of Fresno. Krogen was the executive director and founder of the nonprofit, High Sierra Volunteer Trail Crew.
The organization supports preservation, stewardship and restoration of public lands.
Fansett says the reason for Krogen's fall remains under investigation. The eradication effort was conducted by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The Federal Aviation Administration says the helicopter pilot declared a medical emergency due to a crewman being involved in a fall prior to landing in Visalia at 10:40 a.m.


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Problem 1: Our front office is inept
Problem 2: Our coach is inept
Problem 3: Our players are inept
Solution: Pray
I'd rather die standing up than live on my knees.
-Emiliano Zapata
Let's be realistic. The only easily replaceable part on this team is the coach. So let's just fire Frank and see whether another coach can turn things around. If not, then you can start thinking about trading Roy, West, Paul, etc.
I noticed that the Bucks had Jennings and Ellis curling around picks at the FT line. To set up their drives. THey only needed 2 dribbles to get to the rim after the pick. Such a simple offensive set, but it works all the time. Why can't Vogel implement sets like these?!
You can't get champagne from a garden hose.
Ash from Army of Darkness: Good...Bad...I'm the guy with the gun.
Barbosa had 16 today.
At the very least they better be fielding offers for West. He's way to valuable an asset for what looks like a non-playoff team to hold onto.
I do think we need some sets designed to give us easy points. Either that, or push the tempo a little bit. We have to score some easy baskets. The contested two point jumpers and predictable post up plays are clearly not working. Time to go back to basics and see if we can't get these guys some confidence.
Trade anybody but Hill,Paul,Tyler and Lance, trade everybody else.
Ash from Army of Darkness: Good...Bad...I'm the guy with the gun.
The most bizarre thing about this is we just don't know WHY this is happening.
Is Frank losing the team? Has this been an issue looming in the background for a longer period of time?
Or is it truly just a mixture of HORRIFIC slumps by 3/4 of our team all at the same time?
Go back and look at the Kings game, or the opening night Toronto game. It may not have always been pretty, but guys were engaged and into the games.
They cared!
What has changed?
My 'out of state fan' game reports over the years
Pacers.com Guest Blog Post: Area 55 Conquers Staples Center -- (Honorary) Area 55 Family Invades Target Center 2014! -- Target Center Invasion 2015
Phil Jackson is still available, right? Reunite him with Shaw? Maybe he'd do it to prove a point...
We traded away or didn't resign our team chemistry and energy. That's a big part of it. Can't discount team chemistry. Some of you might think the new guys are better on paper but the game is not played on paper. I actually think the bench's energy and toughness rubbed off on the starters last year. Pacers willed their way to a lot of wins.
Former Pacers seem to always play better or return to form when they leave Indiana. It has to be is the system. It allows no one to shine. Latest example: Darren back to his rookie year form and swagger.
I know he's apparently limping around on crutches, but I wish Danny was at least with the team. Talk up West all you want, Danny's the team leader and one of the few guys the lockerroom should/would listen to.
If only
Yeah, I think this is a significant factor. Mahinmi, Green, Agustin...it's not just what they do or don't add. It's that none of them do whatever they do with any fire/focus. That's what you've got to have on your bench under any circumstances. They are either just floating around marginally interested, getting beat ball gawking to cost us a game, or bumbling and bobbling the ball of their leg out of bounds.
I'd rather die standing up than live on my knees.
-Emiliano Zapata
Take a deep breath.
Yes, the team looks terrible at the moment, but things can change quickly. We are not even at the half-way point of November. Frank's earned at least half a season to suck before people start calling for his head. I understand really 'mart people know his coaching is bad...but take a look at his results the last two years. It has been pretty good. Two straight playoff runs. A great record last year. Compare that to sideburns...
Nothing has changed. They barely and luckily won a few games. They've been struggling since pre-season.


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What is really missing in TNA???
by, 03-16-2011 at 03:39 PM (6682 Views)
This is the problem that TNA has:
TNA has yet to realize that all wrestling is just a soap opera with a lot of action. Most soap operas are realistic and even if some aren't, they at least don't cross the border to a point where people are getting hit with a big nail 2 by 4 and still staying alive (Ex// Abyss). TNA needs to captivate the viewers in a way that gets them emotional and wanting to see more. When AJ Styles turned on Immortal and gave that speech, that was the peice that were missing. When AJ spoke, you could hear the emotion and it felt real. His speech was like a soap opera.
TNA's idea is that they want to reach out to the older age group (17 and up). Having Abyss come back after being hit by a nailed 2 by 4 when he should be dead, isn't how you reach out to that age group. The 17 and up age group are smart and know the difference between real and fake and are well aware when TNA is just being desperate. What they did with Abyss would only work with an age group of 7-11 in my opinion.
TNA needs a writer that is use to writing novels, soap operas and still have a knowledge of wrestling.
With writing novels - In novels, there is always that one superhero that gets the job done. TNA lacks that one superhero. Im in my Senior year of high school and I am taking AP English. I learned about something called "The Hero's Journey" which is another thing that TNA lacks. In WWE, they have their hero called John Cena. In the "Hero's Journey", the hero must go through at least three big trials that he faces and in the end it changes him. John Cena has had these three trails alot of times. For an example, Nexus, New Nexus, and now The Miz. John Cena is constantly grows as he goes through these trials that he must face. Whether you all like John Cena or not, WWE does captivate you all with the trials that Cena must face. Well TNA lacks a writer that can write novels and knows about the Hero's Journey. I agree that TNA's hero needs to be AJ Styles. AJ has the most heroic attitude and he is still young. It cannot be RVD or Kurt Angle because both are getting old. Also, TNA needs an original, they need someone that is their own homegrown talent. And their best candidate for the homegrown hero is AJ Styles.
And if you want to go in depth with this, TNA's anti-hero should be Samao Joe. Joe doesn't follow by the heroism that a normal face or good guy goes by. Samoa Joe is a badass and most anti-heros seem to be badasses.
It also seems as though their writers never have a finish to their storylines. In a story, their should be a story setup, major disasters and ending.
In wrestling, a story setup would be something like how Nexus had first started attacking John Cena and CM Punk on that three hour RAW. That was the setup to the Cena and Nexus feud. Then the disasters of their feud was Cena joining Nexus, Cena being fired, etc...And the ending leads to Cena vs Wade Barrett where Cena beat him at TLC(well at least that should have been the ending).
It's impossible to name one single storyline of TNA's that followed by this common and very useful method of making a story. It isn't neccesary for them to follow by this but wouldn't it make sense to do so? I do.
It is very easy to see that TNA has no direction in their storylines and any writer or avid novel reader would tell you the same. Many people watch TV because it's more entertaining than just reading a book. A TV show has basically the same elements as a book when you think about it. If TNA made a book instead of weekly shows of Impact, would you read it?
Well I think i can speak for everyone when i say "No because the book would have too many plot holes, no progression and no idea of who's the hero and the villain!"
I hope you all understand that TNA has taken a turn for the worse.


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Topic: Update
Well it has been since October since I last posted. My husband has completed chemo. Lost 80 plus lbs, numerous blood transfusions, etc. Now that's all the medical interventions! Just had repeat ct scan this week and had "slight" increase size in liver tumor. Not so bad for a man off chemo since Oct. He does have more pain at this point. Other than the pain and being very weak he is doing ok. March 24th will be one year since diagnosis. No further treatment is available for him unless you consider going to Europe where they have the only 7 clinical trials in progress. So with that being said, we are praying for a miracle. If we can't get a miracle then we are praying for peace and comfort. My husband said he doesn't want to hurt. I am asking for suggestions for pain control. He is on Fentanyl patch 25mcg every 72 hours, Oxycontin 5mg every 4-6 hours prn pain. He has been taking more of the Oxycontin lately - about 25 - 30 mg in 24 hour period. Any suggestions or recommendations? What about low dose steroid? His kidney function was damaged as a result of chemo. Stable, producing urine but BUN/CR still elevated. I welcome any recommendions.
Thank you


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[Editor's Note: the following information was just received from Laura Prescott, APG President.]
The Association of Professional Genealogists has once again partnered with Family Search to produce videos of this year's Professional Management Conference. The videos present five of the seven lectures from the 2010 PMC, which took place on August 17 at the Federation of Genealogical Societies Conference in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Topics and speakers include:
- "A Key to Success: Your Online Presence" with D. Joshua Taylor
- "Expand Your Revenue: Produce and Sell Your Lectures in Video Format" with Donna M. Moughty
- "Niche Planning and Marketing" with Paula Stuart Warren
- "Choosing the Best Continuing Education Opportunities" with Elissa Scalise Powell, CG
- "Get Published in Magazines!" with Leslie Albrecht Huber
The videos are available on the APG website at http://www.apgen.org/publications/pmc_webcast.html and on Family Search at https://library.beta.familysearch.org/researchcourses.
©2010, copyright Thomas MacEntee


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Booth Displays and Panel Reveals...
While several toy and collectible companies showed up at WonderCon this year, only Kotobukiya took the extra step with its own panel to show off its coolest new releases and upcoming products for 2013 (and a little of 2014). Of course, the statue and toy giant also had a booth on the exhibit hall floor selling everything Koto, and also showing off some highlighted pieces. On display there from Marvel were Fine Art Statues (Daredevil, X-Force Wolverine, Venom, and Hawkeye), the Iron Man Mark IV ARTFX Statue, and the upcoming Kitty Pryde Bishoujo Statue. On the DC side were several Bishoujo ladies (Power Girl, Harley Quinn, Huntress, Wonder Woman, and Black Canary art), Justice League Korejyanai figures, Batman Dark Knight ARTFX Statue, Joker Killing Joke ARTFX Statue, and Justice League ARTFX+ lineup (with prototype Cyborg). From their other lines were a sampling of kitchen items from Star Wars, Naruto, and One Piece, Star Wars ARTFX+ Statues (Boba Fett, Jango Fett, Darth Maul, Darth Vader, Royal Guards, R2-D2, and C-3PO), Darth Maul ARTFX Statue, Jaina Solo Bishoujo Statue, and the new metal business card holders. The final display case held an assortment of statues from Trigun, Men in Black 3, Tekken, Dead Space, and Mass Effect.
CLICK HERE to see the photo gallery of Kotobukiya's WonderCon 2013 booth!
And while attendees enjoyed seeing all of those at the booth, the real news came upstairs at the Kotobukiya Spring 2013 Preview panel! The comprehensive slideshow went through many of the company's most popular licenses and showcased new releases as well as those coming further down the line. First up was Star Wars, featuring the business card holders, Jango Fett ARTFX+, Mara Jade Bishoujo, General Grievous ARTFX+, and Sandtrooper ARTFX+ 2-pack. From Tekken come more fighting beauties, and while there was nothing to show it was announced that a Chun Li from Street Fighter X Tekken is still in the works. Continuing with the video game section, the Mass Effect Commander Shepard Bishoujo Statue releases this month with an exclusive version in the Bioware store, while the Dead Space 3 Isaac Clarke ARTFX (with LED hand, back, and visor!) comes out next month.
Marvel makes waves with three ARTFX Statues from Iron Man 3: the Mark 42 armor, War Machine, and Iron Patriot, while Koto's amazing Fine Art Statues add Venom Unbound, Daredevil, and Classic Avengers Hulk. Previously announced at Toy Fair, Kotobukiya will be doing a line of Marvel's Avengers in ARTFX+ based on designs and artwork by Adi Granov; some sketches were shown but we'll have to wait until SDCC to see anything more. Finally, after Kitty will come an X-Force Psylocke in the Bishoujo line!
Last but not least came a look at Kobotukiya's DC products starting with an in-depth examination of Killing Joke Joker with its cool motion sensor light and sound effects. Next up will be a New 52 Deathstroke ARTFX Statue, and the preliminary prototype images already look very promising. We also got our first glimpse at the Superman: For Tomorrow ARTFX, the perfect compliment to the Batman Black Costume statue. Once the Justice League ARTFX+ series is complete with Cyborg Koto will be adding more New 52 characters like Shazam, Black Adam, and Supergirl, then launching into a Justice League of America series starting with Catwoman! Announced without any images was the license for Arkham City, so look for more news on that soon, and lastly after Black Canary they'll be doing an Armored Wonder Woman Bishoujo.
Check out the photo gallery of Koto's Spring Preview slides HERE!
- Scott Rubin
To insure your action figure collection, get in touch with Collectibles Insurance, the official insurance company of the Figures.com network. Say "Figures.com" to get 5% off your first term premiums.
To buy action figures, take a look at BigBadToyStore.com, PlasmaInfusion.com, Toynk.com, BriansToys.com, ToyWiz.com, and MonkeyDepot.com.


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Hard rail and sharp bevel
Quick-blended rocker for effortless transfers
Rockerline carries speed up to the wake
Easy, high-speed carves
Responsive, supportive open toe boot
Ronix acknowledges the roots of board design with the Viva wakeboard. A hard rail, sharp bevel, and increased sidecut are for riders who waste no time on the water. Quick-blended rocker provides the speed needed to make any wake transfer seem effortless. The wakeboard's rockerline mimics the natural transition of the wake, carrying more speed up the kicker, and has a sidecut with more contact points in the water and fin placements so board reacts as quickly as the rider. Enjoy easy, high-speed carves and a fast/explosive hybrid rockerline. Modello construction on the wakeboard features an ultra stiff, lightweight, super saucy core and Krypto cable to strengthen the sidewalls. Viva Modello 136: 53.5"L x 17.1"W. For riders up to 180 lbs. Viva Modello 140: 55.1"L x 17.3"W. For riders over 170 lbs. Viva Modello 144: 56.7"L x 17.5"W. For riders over 175 lbs.
All riders appreciate a responsive, supportive open toe boot like the Viva from Ronix. Lay into these boots, and they will drive the utmost control into the board so you can feel more confident in the ride. The high speed open toe Viva binding can easily be shared among others on the boat, making it versatile as well as reliable. 3D molded tongue blends comfort and performance. Built-in J-bars improve heel hold. Double laces offer a customized fit. Articulating cuff flexes with the rider without distorting the boot. Low friction eyelets. New double X lacing has improved wear resistance and tensile strength. Sizes: S(5 - 8-1/2), M(7-1/2 - 9-1/2), L(9 - 11-1/2), XL(10-1/2 - 14-1/2).


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Globalization, Food, and Piracy
A recent post by Mother Jones asked Somali Pirates=Environmental Avengers? The roots of these modern-day pirates, the article suggests, may lie in the shocking levels of pollution endured by Somali coast-dwellers. Not only is European pollution ending up on shore, but European ships are looting t...
Tags: Africa, Food, Piracy, Policy, Scarcity, Shortage, Somalia
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text: WVU hoping to join the Big 12 'haves' By Dave Hickman February 5, 2013 Story Share AP Photo West Virginia's Deniz Kilicli scored 14 points in the Mountaineers' win over Texas Monday night in Morgantown. MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - Chances seem pretty good that by early Saturday evening West Virginia's basketball team will be on a three-game winning streak.The number is at two right now after a sometimes-sloppy win at Texas Tech and Monday's 60-58 survival-test win against Texas. On Saturday the Mountaineers go back to Texas for the second straight weekend and on the road for the fourth consecutive Saturday to face TCU, which has yet to win a single game this (calendar) year.This is exactly what the Mountaineers were hoping for, of course, after falling to 9-10 on Jan. 26 and coming to the stark realization that unless things took a turn for the better right away the season would be lost. They played well but lost to Kansas, and then began this string of games against the most beatable teams remaining on the schedule. Two wins are in the books, and if a third doesn't follow on Saturday in Fort Worth, well, the discussion is pretty much moot anyway.It does, however, beg the question of whether West Virginia is actually getting better or just taking advantage of an opportunity to make some hay against a collection of teams in even worse shape.Know that from the Mountaineers' perspective, they aren't exactly gloating over their recent short-term success. They seem to understand the two basic truisms involved here - one, that they're not exactly playing and beating the Miami Heat here and, two, that they've put together mini-streaks like this before and failed to sustain them."We can't worry about who we're playing and how good they are,'' said sophomore guard Jabarie Hinds, who came up big in Monday's win over Texas with 14 points, some solid shooting and some rather dazzling drives to the basket. "We just have to play the way we know how and keep winning, one at a time.''If nothing else, West Virginia seems to be separating itself from those other teams at the bottom of the Big 12 standings. Not that that's a particularly noteworthy accomplishment, mind you, but hey, baby steps, right? The league to date seems acutely divided into haves and have-nots. There are six teams at the top of the standings, all of which have NCAA tournament-viable resumes to one degree or another. Kansas can fall down and sleep for the next month and still make the field; Kansas State, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State need only maintain what they've been doing, Iowa State can get in simply by extending what is now a 19-game home winning streak, and Baylor needs only one or two more good wins to be safe.And then there are the bottom four teams, who had a combined 39-45 record going into Tuesday, none of them over .500. All four have losing records in Big 12 play, as opposed to the top six, all of whom are at least two games over .500 in the league.If West Virginia is accomplishing nothing else these days it is proving that it is the best of those four, having gone 4-0 against the other three so far. It could very well be 6-0 after Saturday's game at TCU and one a week later at home against Texas Tech.But that doesn't elevate the Mountaineers into that top six. Maybe it creates a third middle level, but that's about all. The idea, though, is to use these games as an opportunity to build some confidence and some momentum. There's a mid-week game at Baylor a week from today before the rematch with Texas Tech, and then it becomes somewhat brutal once more. There are road games at Kansas, Kansas State and Oklahoma and home games against Oklahoma State, Baylor and Iowa State to finish the season.Maybe this team steals a win at Baylor and takes the two sandwiched around it against TCU and Tech and suddenly is on a five-game winning streak. After Baylor, three of the next four are at home, so that's a plus. A seven-game winning streak? Not out of the realm of possibility.Granted, that would still leave WVU at just 16-11 with trips to Kansas and Oklahoma up next, and that's not exactly the position you want to be in. It's not even bubble. But at least the bubble is in sight, and for a team that at the end of January was 9-11, that's all one can ask.All of this, of course, is simply best case scenario stuff. Beating Texas Tech and Texas doesn't mean this team is any better than it was a week or a month before. It just means that Texas Tech and Texas, now losers of 13 of their last 19 games, were on the schedule. Up next is a TCU team certain to have lost nine straight by Saturday after playing Kansas tonight. But there are signs of hope that at least the Mountaineers can hang onto. There's the momentum gained. There's better health, what with Terry Henderson playing regularly again and Matt Humphrey perhaps returning Saturday. Eron Harris and Jabarie Hinds are becoming scorers, Aaric Murray wakes up and makes at least one or two stunning plays a game and Deniz Kilicli has actually had good games against some good interior players of late."And before we didn't guard,'' coach Bob Huggins said. "We're starting to guard better.''Maybe this is all just a mirage. In fact, history suggests just that. If West Virginia wins at TCU on Saturday it will be the team's third three-game winning streak of the season. Neither of the others made it to four.But at this point, it's all the Mountaineers have."We just have to win games, maybe all of them,'' Kilicli said. "But you can only win one at a time.''Reach Dave Hickman at 304-348-1734 or firstname.lastname@example.com or follow him at Twitter.com/dphickman1. Story Share Story Share Trending Now 1 Facebook founder visits Charleston restaurant 2 WVU seeking improvements during off week 3 Innerviews: Dual-identity surgeon riding high in horse racing world 4 Gazette editorial: Capito has second chance to do the right thing 5 Rod Run and Doo Wop brings classic cars, music to Boulevard for 12th year Herd's Florida pipeline intact Previous Story Signing day surprises coming for Mountaineers? Next Story


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Businesses wanting to showcase their success still have time to enter The Wiltshire Business of the Year awards, as the deadline has been extended to February 8.
The awards, which are in their 19th year, were developed by Newsquest Wiltshire in order to reward and celebrate dynamic and innovative businesses in Wiltshire.
Being shortlisted, or winning an award, can bring significant benefits, including prestige, media coverage, a boost for sales and marketing and staff morale.
Businesses can celebrate their success in being a finalist at the Awards Gala Dinner on April 26, giving them the opportunity to network and meet people from other successful businesses in Wiltshire.
The event has previously been held at the Four Pillars Hotel in South Cerney but will take place at Center Parcs, Warminster, for the first time this year.
Entry is free and businesses can enter as many categories as they like. The categories are: innovation and growth; small business of the year; service to the community; customer and staff care; environmental; business person of the year; and outstanding excellence (Wiltshire Business of the Year). This year's new category is apprenticeship employer of the year.
Last year, Melksham firm Valldata beat 100 other businesses to win Wiltshire Business of the Year 2011 and also won the innovation and growth award. Other winners included Park Lane Press in Corsham, which won the environmental award, and Sixpenny Nursery in Marlborough which won rural business of the year.
Entry is free and the application form can be found at www.wiltshirebusinessoftheyear.co. uk.Entrants must also answer ten questions about their business and send in testimonials.
Entrants can apply via email or post. The application form and criteria supporting information can be sent to firstname.lastname@example.com or a hard copy of the application form can be sent to Ursula Gawthorn, Wiltshire Business of the Year Awards 2013, Newsquest Wiltshire, 100 Victoria Road, Swindon, Wiltshire SN1 3BE For more information contact Ursula Gawthorn on 01793 501874 or email@example.com Gazette editor Gary Lawrence said: "This is always a great showcase for firms to really promote their business. I'm sure we'll have a great night."


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Bradley's spring debut washed out by rain
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Rain that wreaked havoc on the Cactus League's Saturday-afternoon schedule also washed out the night game between the Cubs and D-backs at Salt River Fields.
The game was canceled about an hour before the scheduled first pitch, and it will not be made up.
Top prospect Archie Bradley was scheduled to make his first Cactus League start for the D-backs, while Edwin Jackson was set to pitch for the Cubs.
There was no immediate word on how either club will adjust its pitching rotation to get in work for the starters, as well as relievers, who were scheduled to pitch.
Arizona's afternoon game against the Brewers was called after 4 1/2 innings, following a 36-minute rain delay before the game. Chicago canceled its afternoon game against the Giants at its new spring ballpark.
Travis Wood, who was scheduled to start the afternoon game for the Cubs, threw two innings in a simulated game at the Cubs' complex to make up for the lost game.
The Cubs also will play a "B" game against the Angels on Monday to make up for the lost innings.
D-backs relievers who did not make it into the afternoon game, including Joe Thatcher, pitched to hitters in the covered batting cages.
Steve Gilbert is a reporter for MLB.com. Read his blog, Inside the D-backs, and follow him on Twitter @SteveGilbertMLB. Chris Gabel is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.


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Yuck Prepare for Takeoff In 'Somewhere' Video
Subscribe to Diffuser.fm on
Air travel can be dull and disorienting but also kind of peaceful, and that's the feeling Yuck go for in their new video for 'Somewhere.' Shot by band buddy Jacob Perlmutter, the black-and-white clip is 5:44 of airport terminals and planes rolling slowly down runways. It's enough to make even the non-jet-lagged nod out in their chairs.
'Somewhere' appears on 'Glow & Behold,' Yuck's recently released second album and first without singer Daniel Blumberg, who left the group to concentrate on his Hebronix project. Blumberg's exit might explain why these '90s-indebted indie rockers have arrivals and departures on the brain, but tunes like this prove they're still flying plenty high even without their former pilot.


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Often maligned, foods high in carbohydrates are making a comeback. David Feder, R.D., and author with the editors at Prevention of The Skinny Carbs Diet discusses the weight-loss benefits of eating starchy foods containing resistant starch as part of a sensible eating plan.
David Feder
National Starch
Hope Warshaw
National Starch


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The anti-bypass lawsuit against CalTrans and the US Army Corps of Engineers continues to move forward even as contractors gear up to start work and local environmental activists prepare for heightened protests.
While the lawyers battle it out in the courtroom, local activists seem bent on taking the battle to the fields and meadows of Little Lake Valley in an effort to delay construction.
Many within the community have been quietly organizing, conducting non-violent protest training and gearing up for a peaceful but obstructive challenge.
The apparent main hope of the organizers is for the delay to either give the courts time to consider the issue or to have the State of California reconsider the project funding.
The main symbol of the protest, a 24-year-old tree-sitter named Warbler remains perched in her protest tree, awaiting the chainsaws expected to begin work taking down the trees along the bypass footprint sometime in the next few weeks.
In court the plaintiffs, the Willits Environmental Center, the Redwood chapter of the Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity, the Environmental Protection Information Center, and the California Farm Bureau. are alleging CalTrans violated the National Environmental Policy Act by failing to supplement its 2006 Environmental Impact Statement despite significant changes and circumstances to the project. The group also alleges the Corps' failed to provide sufficient environmental review of CalTrans' proposals as required by the Clean Water Act.
The two sides have been gearing up for a February 25 mediation hearing. In preparation for the hearing, the plaintiffs reviewed the information submitted by CalTrans and the Corps and noticed more than 100 missing documents believed to be germane to the case. While the Corps responded quickly to the requests for information, there was a back and forth series of motions and countermotions filed to get CalTrans to agree to provide the requested documents.
As of February 4, the two sides had apparently resolved this issue. CalTrans has agreed to provide the documents "as expeditiously as possible" if it can find them. CalTrans was given an out, in case they can't locate the documents, they are required only to "exercise due diligence to locate the documents."
In the end the judge can only rule based on documents and testimony that have been placed into evidence. CalTrans and the Corps were originally compelled to provide the court with all pertinent evidence. The more than 100 different documents requested by the plaintiffs to be added included emails between the Corps, CalTrans and mitigation groups; notes taken at meetings between CalTrans and the Corps; emails with the California Water Quality Control Board on mitigation; early design documents and various attachments. Most of the documents were referred to by CalTrans or the Corps in other provided documents, but they were not produced by either party.
The mediation efforts get underway on February 25.
If mediation efforts are unsuccessful, it is likely both sides will begin a new flurry of motions requesting the judge either dismiss the case or rule on the plaintiffs' behalf. If the case continues, the plaintiffs must file opening briefs by April 5. This triggers a new set of legal salvos with the last word being given to CalTrans on May 17.
Judge Jeffrey White will hold the final hearing on the case on June 7.
While the results of the June 7 hearing will end this phase of the litigation, it seems quite likely whoever loses will appeal.