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To help businesses get smarter and stronger, BI (business intelligence) systems analyze and synthesize huge pools of corporate data to create terabytes of performance-enhancing information for enterprises of all sizes.
BI can quickly pull critical information out of those huge data streams and serve it up in ways that can improve, grow, and transform operations, sales, and marketing. In fact, so much data can be drawn out of great BI applications today that it's even establishing a bigger need for a new kind of IT worker -- data scientists who are trained to make the most of all that information.
[ Discover what's new in business applications with InfoWorld's Technology: Applications newsletter. | Get the latest insight on the tech news that matters from InfoWorld's Tech Watch blog. ]
So how do businesses keep up with the improvements that are constantly happening in the BI marketplace so they can take advantage of new innovations? And how can businesses do more with the critical customer and process data they are collecting using their BI systems?
Brian Hopkins, an emerging technologies analyst with Forrester Research, says he's seeing the evolution of traditional BI into new and even more valuable business tools, which is requiring new discussions to occur inside companies.
"CIOs need to have conversations with their business units," Hopkins said. "They need to expand the scope of what they consider is their corporate data. The traditional scope of that information is that it's all much bigger now, because of social media data and more."
What they also need to do, he said, is make sure that their BI applications keep up with the constantly expanding oceans of data that their businesses are generating.
"They need to realize that with all of these new technologies and data streams, such as social media, this is stuff they need to care about," Hopkins said. "They need to begin having conversations with the business leaders about where they could add value from all of this broad, unfiltered data."
What's happening in the world of BI vendors and applications, he said, is that BI has been evolving broadly over the last few years to do more things in new and innovative ways with all the data that's being produced. For some, these changes could indicate that the traditional idea of BI has been failing, but Hopkins said he doesn't subscribe to that idea at all.
"I think the definition of what BI is has been changing," he said. "I dont think it's failed."
In fact, he said, BI has certainly met the challenges it has been historically given: to help companies answer defined sets of questions and to be able to answer and define finite sets of questions with consistency, using known sets of well-structured data.
That's all been made possible by using the analysis tools in BI applications which allow enterprises to dig deeply into their data to find patterns, information, and the stories behind the information.
"Traditional BI has been like driving and looking into your rearview mirror" to see where you have been and what's back there, Hopkins said. "Now, the direction of BI is forward, you are able to drive and look out through the windshield" to see what's happening next.


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Apply for Post-secondary Studies
There are many ways to make the decision to apply for post-secondary studies. You may choose to base it on:
You may also decide to base your decision on the choice that feels right. However, don't pick a school simply because it offers a specific major, as you may change your major at least once during your post-secondary education.
Mature Students
Contact the college or university's admissions office, or visit their website, to find out about the specific admission requirements for mature students.
If you need academic accommodations to write admission or placement tests, you can arrange them with the college or university's Disability Services Office or the organization administering the test.

subset: commoncrawl


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Hard reality can sometimes override the politics of optimism
Politicians are not known for their humility but then the deputy leader of Labour in the Scottish Parliament, Johann Lamont, is not a natural-born politician and still struggles to describe herself as such. She illustrates this with the story of how, when she was deputy communities minister during a previous administration, she walked into St Andrew's House for a top level pow-wow with civil servants and was too embarrassed to tell the security guard who she was 'because it sounded a bit too high fallutin' so she just mumbled, red-faced, that she was there for a meeting and was told to wait in reception.
She then struggled with the whole socially awkward and escalating situation of not then wanting to admit who she was, worrying about putting the security guard in a difficult position for feeling he should have known, and meanwhile, panicking about being late for the meeting that she was meant to be leading. After an excrutiating argument with herself, she took out her mobile and made a whispered phone call to the private secretary upstairs to explain her predicament, who then came down and collected the shamefaced minister while the bemused security guard looked on.
This deference is typical of Lamont who, despite a reputation as being a bit of a fierce one, is actually, really rather entertaining, engaging and wonderfully self-deprecating.
She tells the communities-minister story with a giggle and signs it off with the killer line that the situation happened so often during her tenure that eventually, she started taking the private secretary out with her so she could introduce her as the minister rather than Lamont herself having to admit to such a lofty position.
During an hour and a half of nineteen to the dozen, rapid-fire chat, which was a mixture of left-wing analysis, fiercely put gender politics, interspersed with anecdotes from her time as a teacher, general moans about going up three dress sizes because of the political lifestyle and a refreshingly guilt-free admission of an addiction to Coronation Street, Lamont says, with no hint of irony, that she doesn't like talking about herself and worries that she sounds like a mixture of Pollyanna and Anne of Green Gables.
True, she shares that storybook optimism that things can only get better, to coin a phrase, but Pollyanna's philosophy of life centered much more on an unrealistic expectation, based on what she called 'The Glad Game', which consisted of finding something to be glad about in every situation. It originated from one disappointing Christmas when Pollyanna, who was hoping for a doll in the missionary barrel, found only a pair of crutches inside. Making the game up on the spot, Pollyanna's father taught her to look at the good side of things—in this case, to be glad about the crutches because "we don't need 'em!".
With this philosophy, and her own happygo- lucky personality, Pollyanna manages to inject so much gladness into her aunt's miserable New England town that she transforms it into a pleasant place to live. 'The Glad Game' helps shield her from her aunt's strict demeanour: when Aunt Polly puts her in a stuffy attic room without carpets or pictures, Pollyanna waxes lyrical at the beautiful view from the high window; when she tries to punish her niece for being late to dinner by feeding her just bread and milk in the kitchen with the servant, Nancy, Pollyanna offers her heartfelt thanks because she likes bread and milk, and she loves Nancy.
Lamont is far from that gut-wrenching, sickly sweet character and would probably worry about what had happened to make Aunt Polly so bitter, would take the bread and milk and give it to someone more deserving than herself and find a way of translating her concerns about Nancy's stature within the household hierarchy into political action for the betterment of others. Lamont can sound at times aggressive and at others, pious but only because her politics remain absolutely rooted in hard reality, social justice and the drive to iron out inequality.
Her stridently expressed convictions and combative style can clearly, sometimes, get the hackles up but her bark is much worse than her bite. Colleagues describe her as bright, funny, a good gossip and happy to poke fun at herself. A powerful combination in the maledominated world of politics.
During the deputy leadership campaign, she arrived in Glasgow at a packed meeting of the party faithful, eager to hear her pitch.
She looked at the gathered throng and said: 'I've been enjoying going round the country, meeting and talking to Labour members and I've really been looking forward to this hustings in my home city of Glasgow but now when I look around the room, I'm not so sure, as I can see I've fallen out with half the audience over the years.' It got a laugh, won over the audience and she got the endorsement she needed.
Lamont comes from a Gaelic-speaking family from Tiree. Her parents, Archie and Effie, met on the mainland and Johann and her older brother, David, were brought up in Glasgow. In a Pythonesque moment, she describes her family in the context of 'there were people on the street who were poorer'.
Her father worked for Caledonian MacBrayne on the west-coast routes, sometimes on cargo boats but also on ferry routes, like the Mallaig to Skye ferry and memorably, on the King George which for a while was an excursion boat out to Iona from Oban.
"The idea of my father as a tourist attraction still makes me smile," she says. "Early on he was away a lot but in later life, his working conditions improved – good old unions – but he worked long hours in often unforgiving weather.
"I felt different for silly reasons, like my dad being 40 when I was born and there was a whole generation between him and my mother. This was a source of discomfort for me because I didn't want people to think my father was my grandfather. It wasn't a big problem but just another example of how adolescents are aware of the quirkiness of their families.
"I didn't speak Gaelic as I didn't want to be different and I regret that. I now feel I would never speak it properly, the way I can hear my mother speak it in my head. My mother said everyone was equal in the eyes of God and I suppose, that's just always been part of my thinking but still aware that there were divisions.
"I didn't feel different in a bad or intimidated way because of my Hebridean DNA, given that very many of the families around us were from the islands but what it did make me realise [was] that people came from very different backgrounds even within Scotland." Lamont's mother was very religious, having been converted by the evangelical preacher Billy Graham and given her husband's long absences while away working, she was an incredibly strong influence on her daughter.
"My mother didn't work when we were wee but was very bright. She had done her secondary education in Oban but hadn't enjoyed the experience of being away from home and gave up but then as we were growing up, we used to all go to the Mitchell Library and David and I would be doing homework while my mother was studying for her Highers.
"When I first became politically aware, it was about the notion that things weren't fair.
This was a world that wasn't fair. My family was quite settled and we were looked after but growing up in Glasgow, poverty was all around us and there was a notion that if you had a bit more money, you got more opportunity, you had a different kind of house, etc and I had a very strong sense that those who had money, had more power and the rest of us didn't, so [I had] a sense of inequality and injustice from being quite young.
"We were invited to sit exams for scholarships to selective schools during primary 7 but I would not sit them, partly, I think looking back, because I did not think it was fair that only some of us could access this, allegedly, better education but also, I guess, because I did not want to go to a different school from my pals. As it was, Woodside was a school with a very good record of academic achievement." Every summer holiday was spent on Tiree where, interestingly, Labour's former spin doctor, Alastair Campbell, was also holidaying with his family at the same time but the two never spoke, 'him being a boy and me being achingly shy', she explains.
Even on those seemingly idyllic holidays on the islands, her politics were being honed as she identified the complex issues around crofting, land ownership, identity and natural justice.
One of her earliest political memories is of listening to the news and hearing that Harold Wilson had become Prime Minister: "I was seven years old, but I thought this was just wonderful." She says that her parents weren't politically active but she assumes they voted Labour.
Her mum believed that all were equal before God and she also inherited various things from her Gaelic background which dictated a distaste for pomposity and that it was bad manners to be proud or boastful.
"I am a very humble person and I like to think I'm a team player. I taught for 20 years and the staffroom shaped my early adulthood – people got cut down to size if they were giving the 'big I am'." Lamont speaks from the heart and from experience. Inequality is ingrained in her very being. She joined the Labour Party in 1975 as an 18-year-old student, attracted by a party that promised change.
"I saw the Labour Party as the movement which could bring real change and deliver opportunity for those in greatest need. I do remember as a student getting a big lecture from a member of the IS – the predecessor of the SWP – for supporting Labour because it could not deliver for the working class but it had delivered me to university, at a time when only five per cent of students came from my kind of background – while privilege had delivered him there so, I guess, I had more reason to be grateful.
"I thought Harold Wilson was wonderful and I can remember Barbara Castle and Shirley Williams besting Tories in argument on the big issues of the day. Since then, feminists like Rosina Macrae who, when I first knew her, worked for Women's Aid, opened my eyes to a different kind of inequality and discrimination because I had tended to think of inequality only in economic terms. Of course as a child of the sixties, I was also aware of the huge debates on nuclear weapons and apartheid. My friend the former MP Maria Fyfe is a role model for sticking to your principles and giving practical expression to your beliefs." Lamont funnelled that desire to make change into a career in education. She had a cousin who was a primary school teacher and her family believed teaching was a real achievement and reward for studying.
Her teaching career spanned 20 years and took her to Castlemilk, at a period when major house-building programmes were under way.
She highlights this as the first time she saw how changes and improvements in the fabric of a place could begin to make a difference, and bring regeneration to a community in a wider sense. Her own job became more wide-ranging, as she moved from being a classroom teacher to taking on a more intensive supportive role for youngsters who were having problems.
She taught history and English in inner-city Glasgow schools before becoming the Labour MSP for Pollok and has witnessed inequality and social injustice at first hand.
She recalls teaching a young lad who was always sleeping in class and was labelled as a 'bad boy'. Lamont didn't believe in labels or in simply giving up on a child and through sheer tenacity, discovered that in fact, the reason he kept falling asleep was that when his father was home and not in prison, the wee lad couldn't sleep because he was so worried about what would happen to his mother if he did. This is what drives Lamont; the sheer inability to accept life at a superficial level. She is fuelled by the desire to ask why things happen and what can be done to engender change.
"Terrible things are happening in the lives of children and we, meanwhile, are talking about having breakfast clubs which is all well and good but the issue is usually not about food, it's about something much deeper and can only be solved by reaching into the lives of children and asking questions.
"I did work with a boy who was refusing to come to school because he said he hated French. I worried about this lad and felt there were other issues but couldn't get to the bottom of it. Then a few months later, I asked his mother how he was and she said, "Oh, he's a lot better now he's off the drink".
All these professionals were involved in that boy's life but not one was talking about the real problem he had with alcohol and why.
A free school meal wasn't hitting any of his problems." Lamont is a gut feeling, driven politician and as such, once on a soapbox, it's hard to get her off but I ask her if she thinks the Labour Party has got a monopoly on compassion?
"No, not at all. I think – I know – there are people inside the SNP that agree with me. What has been an eye-opener to me is the fact that there has not been one single rebellion within the SNP since they got into government. The decentralisation and being able to blame local authorities for everything and yet no one in the SNP has said anything about it. I don't want to sound pious but you can't spend your life saying, 'we really care' and then not have a critique of your own government. If Salmond said his critique of society was such and such and sustainable economic growth was his priority and that while anti-poverty measures are fair enough they're not fundamental to economic growth and stability, then I'd have more respect for him but what we have is George Mathewson's pal who, basically, has an anti-poverty strategy which consists of free prescriptions, a freeze in council tax and free school meals. That is not an anti-poverty strategy.
"Not one step of equality has ever happened by accident. You have to do both. The trouble is, there are people inside the SNP that know this doesn't happen by accident but they think that once independence happens, you can then reconfigure society as you want. In the meantime, much of the work we have done around inequalities is going into reverse at 100 miles an hour. Somebody within the SNP said to me that if they rebelled, it wouldn't be the leaders that would kill them but the party membership. Their goal is different – they have to get the independence thing first and then work out how to deal with inequality and that is not how I think it works.
"My great fear now is that this is pulling away and I'm quite keen to see that as we tackle the recession, equality is not just for when the sun shines – not just a bonus. There are people in the SNP who get social policy but with all due respect, I don't think Alex Salmond gets it. I mean, this is a man that can answer a question on a child murder and then a few questions later, talk about suicide in young people and not see the connection.
He doesn't make a priority of being seen to understand that – it's not what informs his political priorities." Why did she take that leap into becoming a politician? She gives an ironic smile and says it wasn't planned. "I really haven't done anything the right way round. I was always involved in women's politics because we could see the barriers facing women – you could be hugely capable but would not be able to go out there and work because you had a child.
We've come a long way, and now have the minimum wage, better access to child care, all those things. It has changed drastically.
"Women saw the Scottish Parliament as a real opportunity. It was new and there were no foregone conclusions about who would get a seat. For me, the timing wasn't great as I had two young children, but I was persuaded that if I didn't stand then that in itself could send out messages about the women's issues I had fought for, so I put my name forward and won my seat." She was convener of the Communities Committee before becoming Deputy Minister for Communities where, predictably, the big issue for her was tackling poverty.
"We need to constantly ask ourselves, 'will this make a difference or will it just make us feel better?' During her time on Holyrood's front and back benches, she has also been a strong voice on violence against women and inequality and as deputy justice minister, saw through reforms to speed up Scotland's lower court system and was one of the backbench mainsprings of the antisocial behaviour legislation. She has also served as chair of the Scottish Labour Party and is now the deputy leader of the Labour MSPs.
As the person also now charged with driving through key policies to take the party into the 2011 Scottish parliamentary elections, how does she feel being a politician at this time of crisis?
"I have only recently accepted the notion of being a politician. I did not start off in life saying I wanted to be a politician. I joined the party but for a long time resisted the idea of being a paid member of the party.
How does it feel being a Labour politician?
You can't deny what has happened at a UK level is horrendous. I had a group of primary school kids and college students visit me in one day and the first question from both was about expenses. We are in a really bad place and Labour is somehow being blamed for the disgraceful behaviour of certain MPs of all parties. It is a Labour problem but it is not a uniquely Labour problem. One of the really important things is that it is a bad day to be a politician but it is a harder thing being a Labour supporter, out on the doors canvassing and we have to say, our task is saying, yes, that is Labour but not in the name of Labour and we need to reconnect and understand why people are still out, as we speak, campaigning for the party.
"What worries me now is that for young people, when they feel angry about injustice and the us and them, is that they see us and politicians and that is so far removed from what I want them to think. I want them to see that there are some politicians that argue for one kind of world, and politicians that argue something differently and the situation today adds succour to those antipolitics types who say, what is the point in voting, they're all the same, there's nothing you can do about your situation, etc and I have always thought that apathy is the indulgence of the middle classes because they can afford, because they have influence in other ways, not to vote. Young people in Pollock and elsewhere need to understand their power to put pressure on politicians and make a difference. This is a very bad time for politics and a very bad time for politicians and very bad for Labour. If you joined the Labour Party because you believe in tackling underlying inequalities, this feels like you have been hurt by your own family and it is hard from that point of view." Speaking of family, Lamont leaves her humility at the door when it comes to her own children, Faye, 14, and Colin, 12.
She says that motherhood has helped her understand what really matters in life and it is the one area where she does not resist the temptation to boast.
"If there was an Olympic sport in being a proud parent, I would be on that podium," she says.
She has also learnt from her own children that politics is an evolving process and even in the saccharine coated world of Pollyanna, the world can always be improved upon.
"When I was wee, it was thought of as posh to have a light on in your hall and I aspired to that. Now Faye goes around switching all the lights off after me because of the green thing and there's me thinking, 'that's my social standing you're switching off here' and she thinks she's saving the world."


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The 7 Most Beautiful Places to Braai in Cape Town this Heritage DayIt's quite simple. No smell in the world will uplift a South African's mood faster than the lazy woodsmoke scent of a traditional South African braai. Here are the 7 most beautiful spots in Cape Town for you to unleash your glorious cooking this Heritage Day!
All Your Road Closures for the Sanlam Cape Town Marathon 2014The Sanlam Cape Town Marathon will be taking place in the Mother's City's beautiful streets this weekend, benefiting 14 charities and providing a spectacle of effort, determination and family friendly fun. Here are all your road closures for the 2014 event.
Your #lovecapetown weekend: What's On from Friday 19 to Sunday 21 September, 2014?
Fazielah WilliamsHey gorgeous people! Are you ready for the mother of all awesome weekends in #lovecapetown?!
5 Epic Music Videos of Artists Headed to Cape Town This Summer
Fazielah WilliamsAre you ready for the mother of all music-loving summers in the Mother City?!
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Peaks of Africa: tours to pique your interest
There are many ways to explore Cape Town – and finding a good tour guide is one way to help you see everything the Mother City has to offer. Peaks of Africa is a tour operator that prides itself in designing travel packages for wholesale tour operators, travel agencies and individual travellers. They will organise your accommodation and airport transfers, and create an itinerary for your holiday that caters to exactly what you're after, whether it's thrill-seeking adventure or some quiet time away from the bustle.
Enjoying Cape Town scenery at the 2011 Cape Argus Cycle Tour
The Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour is one of the most scenic road races in the world.


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Smart Tip: Make Your Own Frozen Pizzas
A frozen pizza can be a godsend on those nights when a from-scratch meal just isn't going to happen, but even the best-quality frozen pizza invariably has more salt, more cheese and fewer vegetables than the pizzas I make myself. That's why I'm excited to see these tips from America's Test Kitchen on freezing homemade pizzas, which is not as straightforward as it seems.
Freezing a pizza isn't as simple as wrapping up a fully assembled pizza and putting it in the freezer, as regular dough will dry out and become tough. America's Test Kitchen uses a very wet pizza dough, patted into a disposable 12-inch pan, to combat the drying effects of the freezer, and double-wraps the assembled pizza to protect it from freezer burn.
The dough is reinforced with a few unusual ingredients — half and half, cornstarch and baking powder — which help it retain moisture and flavor while frozen. If moisture loss is the main enemy, I'm wondering if my standard pizza dough, Jim Lahey's very wet no-knead pizza dough, might fare as well in the freezer. It's certainly an experiment worth trying.
Get the tips: Secrets to Make-Ahead Pizza Dough Get the recipe: Make-Ahead Pizza at America's Test Kitchen
Do you have any tips for freezing your own pizzas?
Related: How to Make Calzones (And Freeze Them for Later!)
(Image: America's Test Kitchen)
12 Comments
I always just went ahead and made a crust (granted my crust is breadier than Really Great pizza crust but I am usually making pizza to feed a crowd, half the time I just use hot roll mix) and then pre-baked it about halfway (so that it can be baked on the rack instead of in a pan, and so the top of the pizza would cook and not be doughy) and then topped and froze. Maybe not the best approach if you want it to be super impressive but it is definitely easy.
It seems much easier to buy a frozen pizza....
I feel like having to purchase disposable pans kind of makes the whole effort moot? It seems like ten times the effort and preparation rather than just buying a frozen pizza (it just seems pretty intense to have to do all of this stuff when the end result is less-quality, not-as-fresh-tasting ingredients). If frozen pizza wins because of convenience, this seems...not at all like that...
My husband and I were just talking about ways to freeze our own pizza a couple days ago. Thanks for the tip!
We keep pizza dough in our freezer all the time and thaw it out as needed on nights that we plan to make pizza for dinner. The procedures shown from America's Test Kitchen seem to be encouraging laziness.
Sure it'd be quicker to pull an already assembled homemade pizza from the freezer and simply pop it into the oven, but does the diminished quality & flavor make the small amount of time gained a good thing?
Thawing dough and making the pizza doesn't take that much longer as long as you plan ahead.
Frozen pizzas are evil for multiple reasons and this method only cuts the not-homemade evil from the list.
I'm with those who don't get it. Last night, on our way home from Bikram yoga, I decided that I'd make pizza for dinner. I had some homemade dough and half a ball of fresh mozzerella sitting in the fridge, so all I had to do was roll out the dough, slice the cheese, and make a quick sauce while the oven preheated. Within an hour of getting home I had made the pizza and a salad, fed and walked the dogs, taken out the trash and recycling, and consumed a lovely dinner with my girlfriend. If I'd frozen the pizza ahead of time I would still have had to wait for the oven to heat up, so we wouldn't have eaten any sooner, and it sounds like it would have involved a lot more work initially.
I agree with others who say that throwing together a homemade pizza is already fairly easy, esp. if you make dough in advance. That said, I once prepped dough, sauce, toppings earlier in a day and then we decided to go out for dinner. I went ahead and assembled the entire pizza anyway on my metal pizza sheet, covered it in plastic wrap and popped it in the freezer still on the tray. Once it was frozen solid, took it off the tray and wrapped it thoroughly in plastic and foil, then back in the freezer. A week later we baked it up--just as if it was a store-bought frozen pizza--and it was great. No problems that I can remember, and it was just "regular" crust. One of those things I keep meaning to do again, actually...
We usually go the frozen pizza dough route, but for us it's really hard to plan that far ahead. For us dough takes at least a day to completely thaw, even when stuck in a bowl of water, and our schedules can drastically change in that time. It sucks to thaw out a ball of dough, have something come up that makes it impossible that night, and then realize we can't use it the next few days either so it has to be thrown away.
I'm not wild on so many disposable dishes, so maybe I'll try Leah Hope's partial cooking method instead!
that is genius. I am going to gather some aluminum pizza pans and make a few of these this week.
I'm also thinking that the pans can be used again and again for this purpose, so its not as if they'd be getting tossed out.
I like $5 Dollar Dinner's homemade frozen pizza recipe. That recipes calls for partially baking the crust first as noted in Leah's comment. I think it works great.
I love America's Test Kitchen, but sometimes their pursuit of the perfect method to make something leads to it being too complex.
Yeah, too much effort for me. I keep frozen dough on hand, open a can of diced tomatoes, take out half for topping, drain the other half and then take the stick blender and a bit of italian seasoning to it for sauce. Then whatever cheese and toppings I have go on top and we're good! Actually very time efficient!


text: Comments on: Could Paula Deen's words bring down her empire? Back to the article » Associated Press • | June 20, 2013 | 6:30 pm NEW YORK (AP) — Paula Deen should hope for more fans like Jennifer Everett of Tyler, Texas, who carried a shopping bag filled with $53 worth of merchandise from the celebrity chef's Georgia store on Thursday. A day earlier, it was revealed that Deen admitted during questioning in a lawsuit that she had slurred blacks in the past. "Who hasn't ever said that word?" Everett said. "I don't think... Web URL: http://washingtonexaminer.com/article/feed/2108312 Share this article on Facebook or Twitter Print this article


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B2B e-commerce could use more analytical and technology pros
A Forrester report points out challenges faced by some business-to-business firms working online.
B2B e-commerce could use more analytical and technology pros
A Forrester report points out challenges faced by some business-to-business firms working online.
Alibaba's IPO breaks the world record
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Saturday delivery could be the difference between an online and offline purchase.
I recently ordered a few bottles of wine online from a daily deal site. The day the package was due to be delivered I was eager to get home and crack open a bottle of zinfandel. But what I hadn't anticipated was that since I wasn't home to accept the delivery and the package required an adult signature, the package wouldn't be left at my door. Rather, I had to reschedule the delivery for the only day that I would be home to accept the delivery—a Saturday.
That experience came to mind the other day when Amazon.com and Netflix offered differing perspectives as to whether the U.S. Postal Service's proposed cut of Saturday delivery would affect their businesses.
I agree with Lauren Freedman, president of The E-tailing Group, who said yesterday that eliminating Saturday delivery only would only affect a limited number of online shoppers. But what happens when you're one of those shoppers?
For a shopper who needs a last-minute gift for his brother-in-law's birthday (that's me) or a wedding shower (that's my wife), Saturday delivery can make the difference between making a purchase online and trudging to the subway and battling the ever-present crowds on Chicago's Michigan Avenue. With Saturday delivery it's quick and easy to select an expedited delivery date on a site like Amazon.com or Buy.com. But if I have a three-day lag time between ordering a package on Friday and receiving it on Monday, I might just turn to a multichannel retailer who offers a buy online, pickup in store option. And I think I may not be alone.
It's the second-largest online shopping season, and one nomorerack.com CEO pays close attention to. Here ...
Posted 09/18/14
A new twist on a classic holiday story that online retailers will relive in the ...
Posted 09/18/14
China doesn't recognize trademarks registered in other countries. Companies that register first in China get ...
Posted 09/17/14
Google penalizes retail web sites that display the same content on multiple pages, or that ...
Posted 09/17/14
If there's something you've bought offline that you weren't able to buy online, we're probably thinking about that."


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Video Industry News Video Company News Technology Industry News Technology Company News Novelty Industry News Novelty Company News Gay Industry News Gay Company News Legal Industry News All Company News
Photo Galleries: Brazzers 2011 AVN Awards Afterparty at Vanity
Published: January 10, 2011
Article: Brazzers Marks Milestone With 10th Anniversary DVD
Published: September 22, 2014
The double-disc set, releasing Sept. 30, will include bonus trailers, behind-the-scenes footage, a photo gallery and the first-ever anal scenes...
Company News: Sarah Vandella Busts Out in Brazzers' 'Tits for Hire'
Published: August 06, 2014
Vandella's scene is the bonus scene in Brazzer's newest DVD release.
Company News: Brandi Love on the Cover of Brazzers' 'Bad Teachers'
Published: August 01, 2014
Best MILF Performer returns to Cali for shooting spree.
Article: Brazzers Marks 10th With Times Square Billboard
Published: July 30, 2014
Adult entertainment producer Brazzers hits its 10-year anniversary in August, and to commemorate the occasion, the company will unveil a...
Company News: Maryjean Featured in Brazzers' 'Wash My Tits'
Published: May 02, 2014
The Dominican porn starlet's scene with Kieran Lee is available now at brazzers.com.
Article: Cop Pretends He's Brazzers Employee to Get Minor's Nude Pics
Published: April 09, 2014
A former Utah police officer is charged with passing himself off as a casting director for the Brazzers porn site in order to convince a 15-year-...
Company News: Ryder Skye Stars in New Brazzers Series, 'Masters of Fuck'
Published: April 04, 2014
Ryder was dressed in thick black horned-rimmed glasses, curler-set hair, fishnets and a charmingly'50s sweater, top and skirt. Brando directed...
Article: Episode One of 5-Part 'Whore of Wall Street' Now on Brazzers.com
Published: March 25, 2014
The first episode of the 5-part series will be released in the Members Area of Brazzers.com today.
Company News: Brazzers' 'Being Bad' Earns Members Exclusive Contest
Published: February 20, 2014
Being Bad is very good for the members of Brazzers' website.
Company News: Ryder Skye Debut Comeback Scene a Smash for Brazzers
Published: January 30, 2014
Ryder Skye's first scene back after her several-month hiatus from the industry has been posted on Brazzers and it looks like they have a hit on...
Company News: Brazzers, Babes.com, Twistys and Mofos Announce Schedule for Stars Signing at AEE
Published: January 10, 2014
Madison Ivy, Abigail Mac, Mia Malkova and Natalia Starr will sign for the adult brands at the AVN Adult Entertainment Expo in Las Vegas next week.
Company News: Brazzers Releases 'A Very Brazzers Christmas' on DVD
Published: December 03, 2013
This never-before-released on DVD title includes a Twitter promo just in time for the holidays.
Company News: Britney Shannon Performs First Anal Scene for Brazzers
Published: October 16, 2013
The tall, blonde and tattooed Britney admitted she was a bit nervous about her new on-camera sex adventure, but was soon made comfortable thanks...
Company News: Britney Amber to Perform Live Brazzers Show This Friday
Published: July 24, 2013
The nominee of six awards for the upcoming Sex Awards and NightMoves Awards, Britney is riding high on the success of DreamZone Entertainment's...
Article: Brazzers Signs Madison Ivy as First-Ever Female Contract Star
Published: July 09, 2013
Brazzers today announced that it's signed multiple AVN Award nominee Madison Ivy as the company's first-ever female contract star.
Company News: Bonnie Rotten Live on Brazzers Live Today
Published: April 30, 2013
Bonnie Rotten and Veronica Avluv take on six male performers for this afternoon's Brazzers Live show from Las Vegas.
Article: Aaliyah Love to Shoot First Boy/Girl Scenes for Brazzers, Twistys
Published: April 09, 2013
Popular girl/girl and webcam performer Aaliyah Love is taking a big step in her career by shooting her first-ever hardcore boy/girl sex scenes...
Article: Brazzers Makes Porn Offer to Chicago 'Mob Wife'
Published: March 25, 2013
Professing to be longtime admirers of hers, Brazzers has offered one of the stars of VH1's Mob Wives Chicago a deal. Though it offered no...
Company News: Aryana Augustine Shoots First Boy/Girl Scenes for Brazzers
Published: February 27, 2013
Aryana Augustine Shoots First Boy/Girl Scenes


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Law Enforcement Warns Against Holiday Season Scams
Wyo. Treasurer Warns of Unclaimed Property Scam
Wyoming Attorney General Warns Of Credit Card Scam
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — The Wyoming Attorney General is warning that scammers are directing automated telephone calls to citizens seeking information about credit cards and debit cards.
The Attorney General's Office reports it has seen a sharp rise in consumer complaints regarding this type of scam
SourceGas Warning Wyoming Customers Of Gas Scam
Officials with Colorado-based SourceGas are urging customers to be mindful of a nationwide billing scam targeting utility customers. According to a statement from the company, the scams range from an individual trying to obtain personal information from a customer to attempts to illegally obtain payments from customers
Scammers have been known to try and use fake employee names and or fake employee ID numbers when contacting customers
Facebook Poll
FBI Money Pak Virus Affecting Casper Computers
Casper Police Warn Of New "Canadian" Phone Scam
Wyo. Residents Warned Of Medicaid Rx Drug Scams
Feds Charge 3 In Wind Farm Scam
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — Federal prosecutors say three people bilked $3.7 million from investors by claiming to develop wind farms in Wyoming and South Dakota. The projects never were built.
A federal indictment filed in Cheyenne says phone solicitors made cold calls to investors nationwide, telling them the wind farms were being built by a private firm and the U


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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mark Crump said...
After the jump is a holdover from newsprint. If you have a story that's on two pages, the "continued on page 5" is the "the jump."
Ridding the world of the phrase "after the jump" is a worthy cause.
I totally understand why blogs cut off the feeds for increased page views, but A LOT of folks are tired of reading that same annoying phrase about 100 times a day. Just come up with something else to say.
The point of feeds is to give you a taste of the content so that if you aren't interested in anything, you don't have to go to the site to find that out. You can pick and choose where you go and what you read all of, based on that preview. It is not so that you can read the whole site without actually visiting it. How exactly does clicking links make your read "a whole hell of a lot longer? Are you on dialup?
You are seriously a bunch of babies.
After the jump. It's three words. Cry more. You're worse than the QQs the article refers to.
And on that note: I really don't mind grinding for a quest. If you've played Everquest, you know that collection quests are just part of the game, and if you're unlucky enough to kill 200 of something before your quest is over, so be it.
If every quest was "Hey, go kill a boss" or "Hey, go talk to this guy", the month/two month quick run to level 70 would be turned into a week/two week run.
Is it not boring enough being level 70 and doing the same things over and over? Would you rather grind for quests and levels than just grind for gear?
I don't see the logic.


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Top 10 Most Hated Active NHL Players
Fred Poulin | Jan 19, 2010 | Comments 13
This list about the most hated NHL players is only about active players, that's why some notable retired guys like Claude Lemieux, Ulf Samuelsson, Jeremy Roenick, Marty McSorley, Ulf Samuelsson, Darius Kasparaitis and Chris Simon are not included in the list.
Please feel free to add your personal list of players you hate in the comments.
#10 Steve Ott
Steve Ott is a pesky player and a shit disturber. His job is to get under your skin and he is very good at doing it, but there's a fine line between being a pest and being a scumbag. Steve Ott charges, hits high and gouges eyes. As with most pests nowadays, he only drops mitts against smaller players and turtles a la Claude Lemieux when he is confronted by a heavyweight.
Certified stupid moment:
Steve Ott charging Gregory Campbell
#9 Maxim Lapierre
One of the biggest yapper of them all, Maxim Lapierre is not the kind of player who plays dirty, but he is always in your face trying to push you to the max without ever dropping his gloves. And when he decides to drop them it's against players like PJ Axelsson, Brian Lee and Petr Prucha.
Certified stupid moment:
Maxim Lapierre dropping his gloves, but not fighting.
#8 Mike Ribeiro
Sure Mike Ribeiro is a very hockey player with nice hockey skills, but he's also the biggest diver in the league. Some people also remember when Ribeiro slashed Chris Osgood into the chest back in 2008 for no apparent reason. Ribeiro is one of the biggest talker on the ice, but he never drops the gloves to settle things up. Ribs is a total disgrace to the game.
Certified stupid moment:
Mike Ribeiro faking an injury against the Bruins.
#7 Darcy Tucker
Now with the Avalance, Darcy Tucker is a cheap shot master, taking every opportunity he has to injure the opposing playert. Tucker doesn't drop the gloves often since he Maple Leafs days and he is also a well-known turtler. But to be fair, once in a while Tucker is willing to fight players that do not usually fight like recently, when he fought Carolina Tuomo Ruutu and Montreal Josh Gorges.
Certified stupid moment:
Darcy Tucker destroys former Flyer Sami Kapanen.
#6 Chris Pronger
Captain Elbows, now playing for the Flyers, doesn't have eight suspensions to his name for being a clean player. When Mount Pronger erupts, he doesn't just use his elbows and he will use cheap shots, kicks and even stomps to make sure he gets his annual suspension from the NHL.
Certified stupid moment:
Chris Pronger trying to slice Ryan Kesler's leg.
#5 Alex Burrows
From pulling hair in a fight to faking an injury to draw a penalty, this guy is a marked man in the NHL. And with what happened last week between Alex Burrows and referee Stephane Auger, Burrows has now many enemies among players as well as referees.
Certified stupid moment:
Hair pulling commences at the 1:23 mark.
#4 Jarko Ruutu
Tuomo Ruutu's brother Jarko, is also a pesky forward know for his tendencies to talk a lot on the ice. And once in a while when Ruutu is tired of talking he bites. A cheap shot artist, Ruutu at least can drop the gloves and defend himself compared to yappers like Lapierre and Ribeiro.
Certified stupid moment:
Jarko Ruutu biting Sabres Andrew Peters.
#3 Jordin Tootoo
The #1 cheap shot artist, Tootoo has always been an agitator even when he was playing junior hockey in Canada. Tootoo likes to charge his opponents, to hurt them and to hit them blindsided. He has been suspended more than once for his conduct on the ice.
Certified stupid moment:
Jordin Tootoo sucker punches Dallas Stephane Robidas.
#2 Chris Neil
One of the most despised player in the league, Neil's job is to get under the opponent's skin and he's fairly good at it. Known for his cheap shots, Neil also likes to drop the gloves and have a good scrap. He doesn't mind fighting smaller opponents or even tough guys like Donald Brashear or Andrew Peters. However, his opponents must have their head up when he is on the ice because Neil's elbows have a tendency to get very high and nasty.
Certified stupid moment:
Chris Neil blindsiding Buffalo Chris Drury
#1 Sean Avery
Sean Avery's erratic behavior has made him the most hated player in the NHL. He is hated both by the fans and the other players. Avery is arrogant, and does not think things through. From his Sloppy Seconds remark about Dion Phaneuf to his turtling and diving and his insults about French Canadians, his goal seems to become the NHL's villain and he reached his goal admirably. Avery would be more suited for a role in Hollywood than in the NHL. Avery even made a cameo appearance in the Rocket (movie about Maurice Richard) as former NHLer Barry Dill.
Certified stupid moment:
Sean Avery trying to screen Martin Brodeur.
Filed Under: Eastern Conference • NHL • Western Conference
About the Author: Working as a freelance sports writer and translator, Fred, 33, graduated from Laval University in Quebec City, earning a bachelor of translation in 2002. An avid fan of the Northeast division teams, he's also a long time fan of the Washington Capitals and the Montreal Canadiens. Fred also speaks fluently French and Spanish. http://twitter.com/FredPoulin98 www.traductions-quebec.com
Comments (13)
And what about the worst of all time … Patrice Cormier ??
Here's an even dumber Ribeiro moment:
Pronger should be on this list. I've never seen a dirtier player, that's also as big as he is, and that a) wouldn't fight, and b) is simply unable to land any good ones when he does. Pronger also never fights unless someone corners him no matter what dirty crap he pulls, or else he'll throw down with the likes of Dan Cleary and Michael Handzus. Handzus by the way was being held back by the ref while Pronger was throwing punches. Talk about a disgrace to the game of hockey. That guy has no honor at all. And while we're on cheap-shot delivering defensemen, Dion Phaneuf would've been a good add. He is basically a faster skating Pronger. There's another guy that'll throw a cheap one and never answer for it.
Social comments and analytics for this post…
This post was mentioned on Twitter by Slasher98: Top 10 Most Hated Active NHL Players: http://hockeyindependent.com/blog/?p=9868…
sorry, but how is Patrick Kaleta not on this list? That is like listing all known terrorists in the world and leaving out Al Qeada
After reviewing your list, we have a few changes. Just because they're superstars doesn't mean they aren't complete douchebags. Good list nonetheless
10. Olli Jokinen – As Calgary Flames fans, it's fair to say that he is the single reason that the Calgary Flames hockey club is in shambles. Worst.
9. Matt Cooke- He should have a hockey school on skating with your elbows up. Pusss
8. Dustin Byfuglien- Too bad Kane tops the list or you could be the best at something
7. Ryan Kesler- "Captain America"
6. Sidney Crosby- Did you know that when he was a junior "fans" used to wear diapers just for him? Enough said.
5. Kevin Bieska- Let me just say that these playoffs made me hate him.
4. Daniel & Henrick Sedin – They're as hot as they are.. Can't think of anything good.
3. Cory Perry – By far the most overrated, how do you make Team Canada?… Get off Getzlaf already
2. Alex Burrows – Shut up.
1. Patrick Kane – first of all, needs to realize the purpose of a mouth guard, and secondly that nothing is cool about a fist pump after you score a garbage goal. All around loser.
Sounds to me like you just really don't like the Canucks and Blackhawks.
Nice list. My only suggestion is the addition of Matt Cooke in the top 5. With the exception of pronger I can't think of another player that plays with the same purposive intent to injure other players. Maybe Crosby too but for different reasons, he's both the most adored and disliked player in the league. not to mention his nutshots and other assorted cheapshots
This is a superb post, I discovered your site checking yahoo for a related theme and came to this. I couldnt discover to much additional info on this post, so it was great to find this one. I likely will end up being back again to check out some other articles that you have another time.
Chris Neil known for cheat shots? Really, because he's never been suspended. Leades the NHL in penalty minutes since the lockout, and never done anything worth being suspended.


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|QUOTE (I So Brink @ Friday, Jun 21 2013, 15:13)
|The quality that Eminem puts out fluctuations a lot for me. The Slim Shady LP and some of his recent stuff is pretty much gold, but he has a lot of lame ducks too. I had to listen to Infinite for an assignment I did at uni (it covered hip-hop as part of pop-culture, some stuff about appropriation wrt race and stuff like that) and, oh boy, it's just dire. A lot of people put out weak stuff when they're just starting out, it's only natural, but how Dre saw all the potential in the guy who made that I don't know!
Eh, the title track on that release is pretty good. Dre probably saw that he was lyrically strong I think.


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I recently deleted some photos that mean a lot to me in my iPhone 4s. I want them back badly, what should I do? Do anyone have any idea how to restore/recover deleted photos from iPhone 4S?
"How to recover deleted photos from iPhone" is a common question asked by many iPhone users. Unlike a PC, iPhone doesn't have a trash bin in which your deleted photos can be stored. Then is it impossible to get back lost photos from iPhone? NO, it is not the end of the world if you ever find yourself in a hopeless situation.
Generally speaking, each time you sync your iPhone with iTunes, the earlier data on your iPhone are routinely backed up by iTunes (as a sqlite db file) and this special backup file gets continuously updated along with iTunes synchronization. You can't take out or view the backup files, but with the help of iPhone data recovery software, you can extract iPhone files out of the .sqlitedb backup files.
Tenorshare iPhone Data Recovery is professional program that can help you extract iPhone file and get all of photos back if you deleted your precious photos by accidently. And it works well with iPhone 5, iPhone 4S, iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS. Also supports iPhone 5S and iPhone 5C. Not only you can recover iPhone photos, but retrieve deleted notes on iPhone and text messages, contacts and more.
Start here:==> Download iPhone Data Recovery
Here are two ways for you recover deleted photos from iPhone, one is recover pictures from iPhone without backup, and the other is recover data from iTunes backup.
Way one. Scan and Recover Photos from iPhone Directly
STEP-1 Download iPhone Photo Recovery and install it on your computer, stay in the recovery mode "Recover Data from iOS Device". Launch this software and connect your iPhone with computer.
SETP-2 iPhone 4/3GS users need to follow 3 steps to put iPhone into DFU mode before scan:
1) Hold your iPhone and click "Start".
2) Press "Home" and "Power" button at the same time when you click "Start", and hold for 10 seconds. The program will count it for you.
3) After 10 seconds passing, release "Power" and keep pressing "Home" for another 10 seconds.
When you're told that you've successfully entered the DFU mode, the program will automatically scan your iPhone for data.
STEP-3 After the scan, you can preview all found photos in categories. Preview the photos and mark those you want and click "Recover" to save them on your PC.
Way two. Recover iPhone Photos from iTunes Backup
If you have backup photos with iTunes or your iPhone was stolen, or dropped into water etc. then the way two could works for you.
When launching the program on your computer, choose "Recover Data from iTunes Backup File" option on the top. Choose the iTunes backup of your iPhone and click "Start Scan" to scan lost photos. The remaining steps please refer the third step in way one.
Please Note: Stop using your iPhone once you find your photo loss, and do not sync your iPhone with iTunes immediately, or the photos will lose forever.
BTW, iOS 7 has been a hot topic for iPhone and iPad users since it was released, here i want to remind you when you update your iPhone or iPad to the new iOS, all your data will be deleted automatically, so you should create a backup file before update to iOS 7. It doesn't matter if forgot to make backup, the methods mentioned in this article also can help you to restore iPhone photos after iOS 7 upgrade.
Related Article: http://www.any-data-recovery.com/topics/mobile-devices/recover-deleted-photos-from-iphone.html


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Latest News
Diagnostic tests such as the Johne's ELISA are used to tell us something about the "true" status of the animals being tested.
Updated dairy idea plans that include up-to-date research and field observations related to dairy cattle freestall design, dimensions and construction.
Using Resynchronization programs to efficiently manage open cows so fewer days are lost before rebreeding
Animals seldom get hurt when it is a convenient time or at a convenient location. The impact of animal injuries or disease can often be greatly reduced with prompt and appropriate treatment.
Selecting the best energy resources.
Helping your hispanic workforce understand our healthcare system and emergency protocol.
Ketosis is one of the most common metabolic disorders occur during the first month of lactation in high producing dairy herds. Ketosis is caused by negative energy balance due to insufficient energy intake to support energy output in milk after parturition.
There are varying opinions on the pros and cons of feeding straw, especially to the transition and high producing cow. When is the right time to consider using straw?
For many parts of Pennsylvania, drought has plagued crops since spring. It has been at least 2 years since many of us had to contend with drought stressed crops. As harvesting dates grow closer for corn and sorghum, keep in mind some points related to nitrate toxicity.
The heat and humidity this summer has severely affected reproductive performance. Lower pregnancy rates should be expected because of higher rate of fertilization failure and embryonic death.
You need to be aware that Pennsylvania enacted a new law called "Responsible Utility Customer Protection Act (RUCPA)" that enables utility companies to shut off utility services under certain circumstances.
Despite the cost and lower fertility of sexed semen, there are still many commercial applications with this technology.
Odor is a frustrating issue because we all have different opinions on what is a good or bad odor.
Think about the ramifications of dry weather on our haycrop forage, different feeding strategies will need consideration to compensate for the possible lower forage inventory.
You need to seek qualified legal advice on any contract that you are offered before signing.
They indicate that mycoplasma mastitis can be economically devastating to dairies because of its contagious nature and its resistance to treatment.
There is no simple answer to why reproductive performance is lowering for high producing cows.
A good freestall is important in milk production, reduced lameness and an overall healthy mobile cow.
The primary goals in milking dairy cows are to get as much milk as possible from each cow while keeping labor costs low and maintain high milk quality.


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Coastal Living DECEMBER 2012
1. Preheat oven to 400°. Place 1 pastry sheet on a lightly floured work surface; roll into 1 (8- x 12-inch) rectangle. Cut pastry into 24 (2-inch) squares. Place 1 sausage slice in center of each square, pressing down. Repeat with remaining pastry sheet and sausage.
2. Arrange puffs on aluminum foil-lined baking sheets, and brush with egg. Bake 18 to 20 minutes or until pastry is puffed and golden.
3. Meanwhile, stir together mustard and sour cream in a small bowl. Serve pastries warm, with dipping sauce.
Go to full version of
Chicken Sausage Puffs with Creamy Mustard Dipping Sauce recipe


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Governor Rick Perry set Tuesday, June 3rd as the runoff date in the special election to fill the vacancy for Congressional District 19.
Congressional District 19 consists of Andrews, Bailey, Cochran, Crane, Ector, Gaines, Hockley, Howard, Loving, Lubbock, Lynn, Martin, Midland, Parmer, Terry, Ward, Winkler, and Yoakum counties, as well as part of Lamb county.
The names of Republicans Mike Conway and Randy Neugebauer will appear on the runoff ballot. Conway and Neugebauer received the most votes in the May 3rd special election, but no candidate won a majority of the votes cast.
Perry certified the special election results Friday. The early voting period for this runoff election will run from Monday, May 19th through Friday, May 30th.
The Congressional District 19 seat was left vacant with the announced resignation of U.S. Representative Larry Combest. In a January letter to Perry, Combest declared his intention to leave office May 31st. The U.S. Representative elected in this special election will serve out the remainder of Combest's term.
5600 Avenue A
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Blue Book® Suggested Retail Value
Fuel Economy (city/hwy)
Review: 2007 Hyundai Tiburon
By Dan Jedlicka of MSN Autos
Bottom Line:
Hyundai makes its Tiburon more appealing to budget-minded sporty coupe buyers.
The Hyundai Tiburon is often stranded in left field because many sporty coupe buyers don't associate that South Korean automaker with this type of auto.
It's unfortunate that the front-wheel-drive Tiburon is often overlooked because it long has been one of the most affordable, fun-to-drive small coupes for budget-conscious motorists—especially with an available 172-horsepower V6.
The Tiburon doesn't get much promotion and has competition from newer rivals. Moreover, this coupe doesn't really fit into Hyundai's plans to get a more upscale image, although that shouldn't discourage sporty coupe buyers from checking out the car—budget-minded or not.
The Tiburon is heavy for its size at approximately 2,900 pounds, so the standard 138-horsepower 4-cylinder engine provides just-adequate acceleration. Still, many sporty coupe buyers are more interested in affordable stylishness and solid fuel economy than in 0-60 mph times. And the Tiburon is quick in the city and pretty fast on highways with the V6.
Long Warranty
Introduced for 1997, the Tiburon is Hyundai's oldest model. However, it's continually been updated. For instance, all trim levels got anti-lock brakes for 2006, and there was a new GT Limited version with leather upholstery and a power sunroof.
Latest Improvements
Tiburon prices start at $16,695 for the base 4-cylinder GS with a 5-speed manual transmission. It's followed by the GT, which adds the V6, the sporty SE and the $22,295 GT Limited, which is the costliest version when equipped with an automatic transmission.
Most Tiburons come with a standard 5-speed manual gearbox or 4-speed automatic transmission. The SE is the raciest version and is sold only with a 6-speed manual. That's unusual because two different manual transmissions usually aren't offered for the same engine.
Highest Fuel Economy
Only 87-octane fuel is required, and it's poured past a filler cap with a nicely done pseudo race-car look.
Exclusive Sporty SE
Even the entry GS has air conditioning, tilt wheel, console, AM/FM/CD/MP3 player, split-folding rear seat, rear defroster and power windows, mirrors and door locks with remote keyless entry. It rolls on fairly wide 55-series tires on 16-inch wheels.
The GT has the V6, leather/cloth upholstery, automatic climate control, cruise control, leather-wrapped wheel and wider 45-series tires on 17-inch wheels, also found on the SE.
Luxurious GT Limited
Included in options are a $900 power sunroof for the SE, an $1,150 package with cruise control and the sunroof for the GS and an $1,800 package for the GT containing the sunroof and upscale sound system found in the GT Limited.
Safety Features
The SE's shifter works well with a light, long-throw clutch. A 65-75 mph pass is best in fourth gear with the 6-speed manual, and such passing is moderately fast in fifth with that transmission.
The nicely geared steering isn't too fast or too slow. The suspension is firmer on the SE but provides a supple ride.
While handling is good, the car is a bit nose-heavy if pushed hard because of its front-wheel-drive design. The SE has the most athletic moves. Braking is strong, and pedal feel is good.
Tight Rear Seat
Long doors are awkward in tight spots. Front occupants sit low in supportive seats, which means you can't just slide in and out. One drawback is the driver-seat height adjustment—it's manually controlled by a small round control that is tedious to use.
Gauges can be quickly read, and most controls are easy to reach and use. Front doors have pockets, and there are a fair number of small-item storage areas. A useful small touch is sunshade extenders that block sun glare the regular visors don't handle.
Large Cargo Area
There is no need for an awkward prop rod to hold up the hood because it moves up and is held open with twin struts. The engine compartment allows easy reaches to fluid-filler areas.
The Tiburon is not as refined as more expensive Japanese competitors, but it's nicely priced, capable and—most important—generally fun to drive.
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John richardson
Gender: Male
City: wirral
Country: United Kingdom
About John
Born in Liverpool. now living in Wirral. Married with 4 Boys.
First Game
Vague memories of seeing Everton v Aresnal at Goodison 69/70...ish. Also remember game against Burnley around the same time
Favourite Everton Moment
Kevin Sheedy's goal in Rotterdam (May 1985) v Rapid Vienna, CWC Final. I thought the stand behind the goal was going to collapse because we were all jumping up and down so much.
Favourite All Time Player
Paul Bracewell. Unsung hero in a great team.
Favourite Current Player
Leon Osman. Local lad, works really hard - undervalued, but typifies thw work ethic.
Favourite Manager
David Moyes. Continually over-achieves with limited resources (comparatively speaking).
Favourite Game
Bayern Munich, CWC Semi-Final, Goodison, 1985.
Favourite Goal
Andy King v Liverpool, 1978. We had waited years for it.
Favourite Kit
Hafnia 85 (similar to the 2009 kit)
Favourite Chant
"He's Fat, he's round, he's worth a million pound, Peter Reid, Peter Reid."


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You have a small business, now you have employed a business coach to help you get more business in these economic times. The coach says "You need to have an internet presence these days to compete. This means social media like having a profile on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest, blogging, posting articles to article submission sites and more…" But with your shoe string budget you cannot afford much.
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We make sure that you have a social media presence on the internet, that your content stays fresh, we collaborate with you to design an effective schedule to post your status updates to the three prominent social media sites: Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. We also post your blogs to Pinterest and Google+ and article submission sites to get your business "known" on the internet.read more
Counting Our Blessings
This time of year is the time where we count our blessings that have been bestowed upon us throughout the year. Whether it be a bountiful crop, a successful business venture we have been working on, finally getting that gigantic project completed, getting new clients or keeping our current clients happy, or more on a personal note making sure we stay happy and healthy.
I started this business 8 years ago with an idea of helping attorneys with their client's cases. Since that time my business has evolved into helping marketing researchers, PhD candidates and investigative reporters with interviewing their subjects. It has also evolved into helping local businesses turn their old drab website into some thing new and shiny to attract new business. All I can say is Wow Where Did the Time Go?
I want to take this time to say a big thank you to all of my past and current clients who have helped make Julia's Virtual Assistant Service a big success. Without you we would not be in business today. I want to thank each and every one of you for your patience, understanding and continued business. We, who are in business, have to remember why we are in business today. We fill a need. We help our clients with different areas of their business that they are struggling with. So let's each and every one of us in business take a moment to really show our gratitude to our clients by sending them a holiday card saying thank you for their continued business. You will be glad you did.read more
I Hate Writing Articles-Isn't There An Easier Way?!
Owning, running and maintaining an internet based business or a site needs articles. Plain and simple, every business who has a site knows this. Even those who don't have sites but are frequent internet users knows this as well. Articles quench the thirst for information and knowledge of the people. Plus, the articles provide many other benefits for the site.
These benefits are:
- Putting a site high in the ranking in search results of keywords and keyword phrases that pertains to or are relevant to the site.
- They provide attraction to website visitors when they are appreciated and is linked to your site from another site or newsletter.
- Articles provide for the increase of the confidence and trust levels of customers to your site and company.
Many articles are also beneficial to both company and its traffic. When the readers like the articles, they would tell more of their friends, family and peers and recommend your site to them, providing for a larger volume of traffic. You get bigger sales if your traffic trusts and believes in you. Your product or services would be much easier to sell when they know you, know what you are doing and talking about.
So ok, we have established that articles are very important to a site and to business. Articles are crucial to keep ahead in the game, a site must have an article, it is imperative. There is one dilemma though, not many people like writing articles.
Many website owners would rather spend their time on something else, and unless you're a big time company, you don't have the necessary resources to use on a pool of article writers. Plagiarism or copying of other articles is frowned upon and could easily get you into trouble, worst case scenario; a hefty fine and jail time.
So what are your options?
Well, for starters if you hate writing articles and you can't afford to hire people to write for you then don't. You can get PLR articles or Private Label Right from a variety of sites. The first place to look for these types of articles would be a site like PLR.com or Need-an-Article.com. Here you won't have problems with copyright infringement and the following penalties and fines if you get caught for plagiarism. You pay a small fee to get a bunch of articles. You read through the article and rewrite it so that it is in your own voice.
With Private Label Rights articles you purchase the label rights to post the article on your website, blog, or to article submission sites, in a newsletter it's your decision. You post the article as your own. Always remember though that you will have to choose articles that is very relevant to your site.
The downside to private label rights articles is that since it is free for everybody, many of your competitors may have access to them as well. Since every site needs to be original and unique even though you have the same niche, this could be a predicament. You may also have to edit them a bit to place more keywords and keyword phrases to make them better.
Another way to get free articles is to allow other sites which has the same subject or topic as yours to submit articles to your site. This would be only to augment your existing content or else all your articles would be leading to other sites since these articles would have resource boxes with them that could link or direct the readers to their site. That's why it is important to have your own articles; you could use them to link your site to other sites as well.
But, to truly feel the impact of what a good article to you, go for original ones. There are many article writers who do part time and freelance article writing jobs that charges only minimal fees. You can get good articles that have all the keywords and keyword phrases you need and people are looking for.
The investment you made for these articles would be worthwhile because you could use them for all the benefits you could offer. You hold copyrights to them and you will be able to use them anyway you want. As your articles help you in building your business and your site, you will have more articles to write and maybe then you won't be having second thoughts about posting articles.
If you should need any assistance in where to post your articles our service will be happy to post them for you for a nominal fee.
Contact: firstname.lastname@example.com for more info.
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Four Steps To A Mistake-Free Social Media Effort
Nowadays, most businesses are using the internet for different purposes. With the increasing results from social media, it is not surprising that businesses find it to be the most useful tool in their online marketing strategies. Yet, there are still some businesses that didn't even put effort to perfect their social media use. Being so, they are present online but are not reaping the numerous benefits that social media could do for their business.
Is your business one of them?
Now, don't fret just yet because many businesses have suffered the same fate. The thing is you're here and seeking remedies. So that means you want to be free from mistakes and want to improve use of social media for your business. Here's how to clarify your next moves:
1. Define your goals. In any aspect of a business, goals are most important. You need to set your goals in order to measure your room of improvement. Before doing any campaign or promotion, set a realistic and doable goal. For example, you're doing business in local area and you wanted to use the social media marketing to create a website or maybe a blog for your business. Your main goal here is to increase web traffic to increase popularity in turn. See? Setting a goal is a great help because it provides direction, and you will have different strategies on how to use the social media effectively.
2. Acknowledge you audience. Gaining lots of audience can also make your business a success. But, you must gain trust their trust first. To do so, you must make them feel how valuable and important they are. Building a connection with them is a start, or for those who wish to reach out to you, acknowledge their moves.
3. Engage with your customers. This is all about interacting with your audience. So how do you engage with your customers? What is now the level of your interaction with them? Speaking directly to your customers and speaking to them in social medium is a big difference. You could start with asking them about their opinions. Call your top ten clients so you will know their insights and feedbacks. These are ways of making them feel their voice matters.
Second, provide a way for your customers to complain. You don't want your customers to be unhappy, right? So, it is much better if you provide a way so you can easily answer to their complaints. Lastly, always respond to them. Every time you ask about their opinions or suggestions, make sure that you respond. It makes them feel that you value them and realize that their opinions are important to you. Because of this, they will engage you more. Lastly, campaign and engagement are different. When you say campaign, it is clearly having a pack of people doing something for a specific purpose. Engagement of your clients is all about a commitment that needs to be sustained.
4. Don't focus on one social media channel. What comes into your mind if you hear the word "social media"? Is it Twitter? Perhaps Facebook? Those are just examples of social networking sites that people are using to communicate with each other nowadays. Always remember that different people from different platforms are the ones that you are attracting.
So, always make sure that they know on how to get in touch with you on different platforms and various channels. Remember that your audience isn't using just one platform so tap them all by being in the avenues they're active in.
Those are just some of the things that you should do to avoid making a mistake in social media marketing. Whether you business will be successful or not, the fate of you business is still in your hands. Just always remember to do your best.
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Is content really the king? You bet!!
In this day and age of online marketing, content has been heralded as king, and for good reasons. People flock to sites not because of the flashy graphics nor the astounding features nor the witty domain name of the said pages, but because of the information contained therein that would enlighten them with their queries of the moment.
Content is even more potent in winning visitors than, say, search engine placements. You may derive a tremendous amount of traffic from the search engines, but if your content is junk, your visitors will never come back. But with good content, you'll have recurring visitors who will be eager to read your latest update.
You are most probably aware about the importance of traffic. Relying on unique visitors alone won't give you the traffic that can be considered as sustainable. You must find a way that would encourage previous visitors to return to your site as well. Good content does this with relative ease. It goes without saying then that your website should have rich, premium, informative content. Content is indeed king, and your web pages serves as the throne. For the success of your business, your website should be constructed as such.
Here are some simple steps that would help you build a content site, and fast:
- Develop the layout that is simple and pleasant to the eyes. By keeping away from flashy ornaments, you'll be able to manipulate the focus of your visitors to the content you want to share. Let your content carry your web pages and let the words speak for themselves.
- You cannot rely on words alone, no matter how witty and cleverly used they are. There should be substance behind them as ultimately, the worth of your words is what would impress upon your visitors the true value of your website as a quality resource hub. So do your research.
- Make sure you know the subject matter by heart before writing your content. If you have questions about the same, do not try to conceal them with silence. Seek out the answers and leave no bases uncovered. Make your content as comprehensive as possible, and your visitors won't have to look elsewhere to find the answers they are seeking.
- Your content should be presented credibly. Employing good writing skills would be instrumental to achieve this. Pay attention to the intricacies of writing for the web. Write well, but in a simple manner.
- Avoid using jargons and flowery words. Keep your paragraphs short so that you could make good use of negative space, that blank area between clusters of words, which would allow your readers' eyes to rest. Use bullets and numberings as much as possible. Online users are not really known for their patience, and this is something you have to work on.
- When writing your content, make sure that the first part of your piece is capable of grabbing your visitors' interest so that they would be motivated to read on. In these times of convenient surfing, bear in mind that your readers can always go to another site if they don't find your content engaging. The challenge lies in capturing their interests and giving them what they want. This would compel them to read on and stay.
- Always update your website with new content. Not only will the search engines love this, resulting in a higher page rank for your site, your visitors will likewise be encouraged to return to your site come for the new information you would share.
- Consider using blogs instead of traditional HTML designs. Blogs are very easy to set up and update. Once you have typed your entries, all you have to do is to click on a button to publish them. A lot of Internet marketers actually use blogs in creating several mini-sites for their AdSense campaign. Blogs allow them to set up multiple pages in one day. And with the way blogs are favorably getting indexed at the forefront of every search engine result, their value has fantastically increased in recent months!
If your article site is powered by Article Dashboard, a great way to get your content out to many article sites with a few mouse clicks is using Articles Submit. This is a great free program that is very easy to set up and will get your articles out to many sites fast. http://www.content-crazy.com/download/artsubmit.zip
Content is king, but you wield control. Furnish the king with royal garments and surely, your online kingdom would reap the rewards at a faster rate.
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Social Network Marketing And What It Can Do For You
Most people ask the wrong questions when talking with marketers: "How can you make money off social networks?"
The value is placed on social networks such as Facebook, Pinterest, Orkut, Friendster, LinkedIn, Mixx, Stumbleupon, Reddit, Twitter and Flikr, while ignoring the real reason these networks were setup and how you can use those ideas to help your business……
The top social networking websites which are Facebook, Twitter, and now Pinterest were founded as a way to stay in touch with friends and family and to meet new people online that all share the same ideas. LinkedIn has a similar slant – it is great for entrepreneurs and professionals who want to keep track of their contacts for hiring / outsourcing. Flicker is just a blindingly simple tool for sharing photos.
The success of social networks marks a dynamic shift in how people are using the Internet. We have evolved from just searching for information to creating and participating in social spaces with other individuals through the Internet. This model is based upon the hive mentality where people identify themselves as part of a group with similar likes and interests that draw them together.
Social networks make viral marketing and word-of-mouth marketing much easier than before. The best use of social networks is not to make money 'directly' off them, but to harness their marketing potential and to use them to market your own business. The best way to do that is to optimize your website (including the process of link building) for your target keywords.
Online social networks present an efficient platform for you to use in the spread of your marketing message. In addition, they are also a great tool for getting tons of visitors and thousands of page views to your site.
What this all means is that you need to devote more of your attention towards how you can leverage the traffic you do receive from these sources. To do that, you should allow your visitors to create their own social network centered on your niche topic. The power of this cannot be missed since social networks allow for multiple points of connections between almost anyone on Earth, giving them the ability to find, share, enjoy, and track anything and everything that tickles their fancy.
Social network marketing works in the exact same fashion, except people choose to provide your link without being asked to do so, and places like del.ici.ous, Digg, Blogpulse, and Technorati give them the ability to do that. In offline terms, that means turning towards your friends and family to ask for their opinions. Online, it means turning towards a group of trusted people whose opinions and recommendations you value.
In fact, in lots of cases, you've probably done some research on your own, using the traditional search engine marketing model and then turned to a social network that you're a part of to validate your findings and complete your research by getting their experiences and opinions about the topic. This is social network marketing at work in its purest form.
Online social networks provide the platform needed to speak out (if they are so inclined) or to simply watch the conversations as they happen.read more
Article Automation Rears An Ugly Head
Content is king. You have probably heard that a million times but it's true. That is why writing articles is one of the most utilized Internet marketing media today. It's also one of the most abused marketing methods.
The online advertising craze began picking up with the introduction of FFA (Free For ALL) sites. These sites allowed you to submit your link or ad, which slowly rotated off the page as new links were submitted. Once this method of advertising became known, scores of people rushed to FFA sites and began submitting their ads. Programmers invented ways to automate the process of submitting links to hundreds of sites within seconds, causing it to become an ineffective marketing option because of the scores of people who began using this system. Links would rotate off the page within seconds and this eventually led to the downfall and popularity of them.
Another marketing method, which quickly became useless, was banner advertising and exchanges. People covered their sites with banners, learned how to cheat exchanges and surfers began to train their eyes to ignore them completely. As a result, image advertising also became ineffective.
Automated page creation was also a problem as thousands of people began to create gateway pages as a means to draw in the search engines with multiple pages stuffed with keywords to increase their site's page rank. Gateway page generators automated the process of building these pages and soon they sprang up all over the net. Eventually this fad also became useless due to abuse as well as the introduction of smarter search engine spiders.
The latest moneymaking craze is Google Adwords. Once pay-per-click advertising grew in popularity, webmasters discovered how easy it was to earn income by stuffing their sites with useless content in order to profit from textual advertising. The automation monster appeared again making it fairly easy to submit articles to hundreds of content sites by merely clicking a few buttons.
Search engines have begun penalizing web sites for duplicate content. In response, new programs are being created which randomize paragraphs and change words within an article to make them unique enough to bypass the duplicate content filters.
Publishers are beginning to recognize the different methods of article abuse and it's becoming more difficult to get articles approved. As editors begin tiring of trying to keep up with the massive influx of articles that are obviously written for the sole purpose of gaining link popularity or to advertise affiliate links, we will see more article directories shut down.
Is automation really the monster here? I think not!
Automated article submission is a great tool for submitting articles to a large number of sites providing it is used properly. So what's the problem?
Greed and laziness – plain and simple.
Automation allows writers to submit their articles to many sites quickly and easily, freeing up more time to write original content. The problem comes from those who are always looking for a shortcut to making money, rather than to work for it.
Article marketing abuse will soon reach its peak just as FFA sites, banner advertising and gateway pages did. For now, we can only wait until those hoping to get rich quick find another marketing option to automate and abuse.
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Three Steps to Write SEO Content and Still Sound Natural
When it comes to tactics and strategies to improve search engine results, there's really nothing more important than the content on your website. Content, after all, is what the search engines analyze to determine the validity of a webpage and website. For this very reason, many webmasters focus their content efforts with the search engines in mind.
However focusing entirely on your search engine results is a mistake because search engines don't buy your products or services, they don't click on your ads and affiliate links and they don't contribute directly to your bottom line – customers do.
This is why it's essential that you write your content for your audience first and the search engines second. This, however, presents a conundrum because sometimes it's difficult to combine the two. Keywords don't always fit into an article or blog post naturally.
Here are three steps to write your SEO content and still sound natural.
Step One
Research your keywords and keyword phrases. Choose one to focus on in your article and then set it aside.
Step Two
Write your content, keeping your main keyword topic in mind, without even thinking about keywords and keyword phrases. For example, if your keyword phrase is, "How to housetrain a puppy," then you'll write an article about how to housetrain a puppy however as you're writing it, you're not worrying about if you're using the keyword phrase or not. Your entire focus is on writing a quality article for your audience.
Step Three
Working in your keywords. Once your article or blog post has been written, then it's time to go back with your keyword at the ready. Read through your article and insert this keyword or keyword phrase where it seems to fit naturally. Keep in mind the fact that search engines are also looking for relevant words so if you're writing about puppy housebreaking, you can also use housetraining and potty training occasionally to break up the monotony and help the search engines recognize the relevance of your article.
When inserting your primary keyword or keyword phrase keep in mind the places the search engine spiders are going to look.
- Your headline
- Your subheadings
- Your first paragraph
- Your last paragraph
- In the body of the article
When using your keywords aim for a density of about three to seven percent. Anymore and search engines might recognize your content as being keyword stuffed. To determine percentage simply take the number of times you use your keyword and divide it by the total words. Therefore, if you have a 450 word article and you use your keyword 18 times you have a keyword density of four percent.
Once you've completed your article, read it aloud to see if it sounds natural. This is one of the best ways to evaluate it. Remember to keep your audience in mind first and the search engines second – this strategy will always pay off.
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Increase Your Online Visibility and Traffic by being a Guest Blogger
Getting traffic to your website isn't just about building links and ranking in the search engines. That's just one source of potential customers. Social media is the next source that most people consider and that's definitely a way to increase your reach. The truth is that the more visible you are online, the more traffic you will get. That's why guest posting on other people's blogs can increase the traffic to your own site exponentially.
How does being a guest blogger work?
When you write an article for another website, all the people who visit that site will see what you've written. If it's well written and engaging they will read the entire article and see the author box which gets included at the end of every guest post. If they enjoyed your article, they may then click on one of the links you've included in your bio. That's where your traffic comes from. And this is traffic that wouldn't necessarily have found you in any other way.
In addition, if you can create a conversation by encouraging people to comment on your guest post, you can increase traffic even more. Readers start to make a connection with you through the comments and want to learn more by clicking on your avatar that links to your site.
4 Keys to getting traffic from being a guest blogger:
- Write quality posts on relevant topics. You should always be presenting your best quality writing anywhere you post. However, when you write for another person's blog you also need to choose topics that are highly relevant to their readers (as well to your own market). They won't read your article if it's not relevant to them and the guest blog owner may not want to publish it otherwise.
- Select sites whose readers are your target market. Choose the places you guest post carefully to make the most out of your efforts. Find ones that get a decent amount of traffic from people that you are trying to attract as customers. Gaining highly targeted traffic is one of the biggest benefits of guest posting.
- Always keep track of comments. As soon as you know the post has been published, subscribe to the comments so that you'll be able to respond. Whenever someone makes a comment, be sure to leave your own response right away. They will appreciate it and often click through on your link.
- Write a tempting bio box. There's no point writing an amazing guest post just to have a boring author bio at the end that leads to nowhere. Write a few words about yourself and then invite readers to click on a specific link for something, such as a special offer, report, free giveaway, etc.
What to write in your guest blog post
Here are just a few ideas for topics you can write as guest blog post on:
- Create an FAQ about a topic related to your industry
- Describe the most common mistakes people make in your market
- Share your own experience with a relevant tool or tactic
- Do a Top Ten list of best practices for success in your market
- Write a "how to" tutorial on a topic that typically challenges people
If your guest blog posts are valuable and well-written, they will increase your visibility as an expert in your field. If the sites you choose to guest blog on have readers in your target market, you will start drawing more and more traffic to your site. And, as targeted traffic, these are the readers who are most likely to become long term readers and customers of your own.
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Social Media Marketing
Don't let lack of time or unfamiliarity with current social media technology be a barrier to your online success.
Explode your online brand presence by ensuring that your audience is engaged and willing to build relationships with you. People will do business with you when they know, like and trust you.
These days, in social media marketing, knowing that you really must have an active and engaged presence on the major networking sites is not enough. There is much more to it.read more


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Lithuania Shows Significant Progress on ICT
The report's Network Readiness Index is the world's most comprehensive and authoritative measurement of the impact of ICT on the development process and the competitiveness of nations. Lithuania now ranks 31st among 142 countries around the world, and 14th among the Member States of the European Union. Lithuania moved up 11 positions since last year, when it ranked 42nd in the world.
"Lithuania has performed well, providing state-of-the-art information technology infrastructure for modern business development," said Milda Dargužaitė, Managing Director of Invest Lithuania. "Lithuania aims to become a Northern Europe service hub, and its rising position on the Networked Readiness Index gives Lithuania an advantage as it competes with other countries in the region for investment."
By way of comparison, Lithuania's main competitors are lagging behind in terms of their use of information technology. For two years now, Latvia has occupied the 41st position on the list, Poland has moved down five notches and now ranks 49th, Slovenia ranks 37th, the Czech Republic is 42nd, Hungary 43rd, Romania 67th and Bulgaria 70th. Estonia has moved up by two positions since last year to reach the 24th place.
Lithuania made the greatest progress in the areas of infrastructure and digital content, as well as social and economic impact. For example, Lithuania ranks 1st in terms of mobile network coverage and is 4th in the world in terms of adult literacy. Lithuania also occupies a high position in terms of the extent of business Internet use (7th), procedures to enforce contracts (8th) and mobile phone subscriptions per 100 population (12th).
The Networked Readiness Index puts Sweden in first place for the third consecutive year. Singapore is second and Finland in the third position, followed by Denmark, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Norway, the United States of America, Canada and Great Britain.
The Networked Readiness Index examines how well countries are prepared to use ICT in three areas: general business, the regulatory and infrastructure environment for ICT; the readiness of individuals, businesses and governments to use and benefit from ICT; and their actual usage of available ICT.
The report is the result of a long-standing partnership between the World Economic Forum and INSEAD, a leading international business school, within the framework of the Forum's Industry Partnership Programme – particularly its Information Technologies & Telecommunications Industry Team – and the Centre for Global Competitiveness and Performance.