text:
Fresh succeeds Southfork Kitchen in Bridgehampton
Todd Jacobs, who cooked at the American Hotel in Sag Harbor and then at Tierra Mar in Westhampton Beach before moving to the Allegria Hotel in Long Beach, has come home to the Hamptons. Taking over the Bridgehampton space that formerly housed the beleaguered Southfork Kitchen, he has opened Fresh. As its name indicates, the new venture is all about farm-fresh produce, organically raised meat and poultry, and sustainable seafood.
Jacobs hasn't done anything with the comfortable interior, which is still attractively rustic with comfy booths and plenty of space between tables. But that is where the restaurant's resemblance to its predecessor ends.
While Southfork Kitchen had a pricey menu that was so complicated it had to be explained twice to me before I understood how to order, Fresh's menu is large and flexible but perfectly clear. There are build-your-own salads starting at $9 (your choice of lettuce, add-on vegetables, cheeses and nuts, and dressing). There are main courses you can order in ¼- and ½-pound portions or by the pound for the table. And there are more than a dozen vegetable side dishes ($5 each/$20 for 5).
I was a bit skeptical when my dining companion, a vegetarian, ordered the Raw "Fresh" Summer Roll ($8). Would it be one of those joyless health food store imitations of the real thing? But it turned out to be a pristine arrangement of beets, carrots, peppers, avocado, scallions and asparagus, and more wrapped in a collard green leaf and served with a spicy vegan aioli.
Most Hamptons restaurants serve gargantuan slabs of beef at equally heavy prices, so I was delighted to be able to order just 4 ounces of Moroccan Spiced Hanger Steak for $14. This lighter style of dining should appeal to the summer crowds. I hope the wait at Fresh doesn't get too long (no reservations accepted) as the weather warms up.
Fresh is at 203 Bridgehampton/Sag Harbor Tpke., Bridgehampton, 631-537-4700, freshhamptons.com


text:
Wicked Boston Tickets
Details of Wicked Boston Tickets and the Ticket Luck value
Wicked is based on the narration by Gregory Maguire and has enjoyed a successful run for more than half a decade, which continues till date. Receiving appreciations from people around the globe, it has won a number of awards that includes Tony Award, Drama Desk Award and Outer Critics Circus Award in the categories of 'Best Musical', 'Outstanding Musical' and others. The musical with its brand new productions every season is still striving to expand its list of achievements even further and in line with the plan, Wicked Boston MA is the upcoming scheduled show.
This Broadway musical centers on the story of two witches, Elphaba and Glinda. Elphaba born with a green skin is strong willed and smart while Glinda is ambitious, beautiful and is loved by all. As the story proceeds, according to the Wizard's order, police are shown harassing the animals and even the citizens of Oz. Elphaba being good at heart fight against the injustice and takes the initiative to save the animals by going against the Wizard. She also risks her chance of romance because of this and turns into the Wicked Witch of the West. Does she get support of anyone or she'll stay misunderstood forever? You have to buy Wicked Boston MA tickets to find out. The sales are on and that too along with special discounts! Hurry, avail the offer and get them before it is too late!
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
GoboLinux is a Linux distribution I heard about from a friend who said that it looked interesting for its flagship property - a simpler file structure. I decided to check it out.
I downloaded the distribution ISO from their website, which was easy enough, and booted up VirtualBox with that ISO mounted as a drive.
Installation was simple enough for an intermediate user to do. Instead of Ubiquity or another similar installer, the Gobo folks have opted for a custom piece of software.
I booted to the live CD's desktop environment. You must manually run startx to kick on the X server from the live CD. This is a good and bad thing, depending on who you are. I believe that this Linux is designed for mid-to-high levels of Linux experience, so if you have that, this should be no big deal, especially since the first output tells you exactly what to type to get things done. For novices, this would be confusing and unappealing, though not insurmountable. I doubt that newbies are the target audience for Gobo.
I had to boot to the desktop environment because the command line installer will not run without having already partitioned your drive. While I'm sure there was a command line partitioner available, I am not familiar with any of them, so I opted for the desktop install. Even from that environment, ease of install is hindered by the fact that the installer errors out if your drive is not already partitioned. Partitioning must be done separately, then the installer can be run.
The installer itself is easy to understand, if a bit unsightly. Again, this won't be attracting novice users, but anybody who knows a bit about computers will be able to figure it out in no time.
Installation was quick, even for the full package. My VM took care of it in 10 minutes or so on low-grade hardware, once I got through the install configuration sections.
Trying to reboot from the desktop environment was not possible without using the terminal. I exited my session and was spat out into a terminal still executing from the live CD image. I gave the reboot command and finally got to boot into the OS, ready for action.
First Boot
The bootloader allows for three options, as shown here:
So far, I have only booted to the Graphic Desktop option, but it's nice to have those other options available. Yet another sign that this is not for your average Joe the Plumber, this screen requires the user to make a selection before it will boot. I waited for quite some time, and it never timed out.
The boot is noisy until it hits runlevel 2, then it starts a slightly quieter boot process.
Desktop Environment
The default desktop environment for Gobo is KDE 3.5. I've never personally been a fan of KDE, but I could install Gnome on here if I wanted to.
The login process is more or less the same as any other KDE login:
The default desktop wallpaper is pretty lame, but most Linuxes tend to use their own logo by default. Fortunately, a collection of good photographs and textures are available, and you can, of course, add more as desired.
Three icons greet you, Home, Trash, and Manager. Manager is the applications management frontend for Gobo. It's recipe-based, and is supposed to provide users with a list of available versions of various software packages. Software can be enabled, disabled, and linked (more on linking later). The distro's website contains a decent collection of recipes for various products. It's poorly organized, but it's there all the same. The search feature helps to find what you're looking for.
Manager itself executes in a terminal, then creates an additional window for the GUI frontend. Naturally, closing the terminal closes the GUI as well. That's a bit unrefined, but not a killer problem.
The control panel allows you to change your settings well. The standard control panel for KDE is what exists.
As with other KDE-based distros, the default text editor is kate. Text editors are a big thing for me since I develop for the web with hard code like this. If anybody else cares, kate does a decent job with syntax highlighting. It's not as good as gedit in Gnome, but here's a picture of it highlighting most of the JavaScript embedded within HTML fairly well:
Software Installation
As mentioned before, Manager is the GUI frontend to Gobo's software installation system. That system is a very good one that solves some problems. There are tons of different ways to install software. Gobo looks at the problem from the perspective that compiling from source is the best way to ascertain the most recent version of software, and addresses it by using a custom program called Compile.
Compile combines the functionality of various other compilation programs like compileprogram, makefile, and xmkmf to always compile source code correctly. It also adapts the file paths of those source compilers to match the specialized file structure of Gobo.
Compile uses recipes to know where to get the source code, what version it is, what the checksum is for download verification, and how the compiler should react to the download. This turns the terminal command for installation into something as simple as "Compile foo" or "Compile bar 1.1" for a specific version. If properly managed, this is a great and easy way to get the job done.The Flagship
So far, Gobo is a pretty mediocre distribution of Linux, but it does one thing extraordinarily well, and the devs flaunt it rightly. The file structure has been completely reworked. This is the root directory:
Seven directories. That's it. All of the POSIX stuff is still there, but only in the sense of symlinks that point to various locations. All the details about how they do it can be found here, but here are the important parts:
"GoboLinux is a modular Linux distribution: it organizes the programs in your system in a new, logical way. Instead of having parts of a program thrown at /usr/bin, other parts at /etc and yet more parts thrown at /usr/share/something/or/another, each program gets its own directory tree, keeping them all neatly separated and allowing you to see everything that's installed in the system and which files belong to which programs in a simple and obvious way."
Here's the breakdown alphabetically:
- Depot - This is a shared directory for all users. The devs call it a "community area" or an all-users home folder.
- Files - This is a shared directory for applications. Files that are needed by multiple programs, but are not necessarily owned by those programs are kept here, such as fonts and wallpapers.
- lost+found - This is your standard ext3 filesystem lost+found directory.
- Mount - All mountable devices (CD-ROMs, floppies, flash drives) are mounted here.
- Programs - Each program gets its own directory here wherein it can install all of its files and folders.
- System - Here are the critical system files, the ones that make Gobo work. These include the Linux kernel, boot software, initialization scripts, settings for various software (/etc content, in other words), and all the symlinks that make the new file structure work (and compatible with other Unix-like file structures).
- Users - This is the /home replacement, and that's more or less all it is.
Really, the system is quite intuitive. Hisham Muhammad, the ringleader for the GoboLinux development community, makes some very convincing arguments regarding the new file structure on the GoboLinux website. He makes a very good case for change and explains how, despite the deviance from the standard Unix/Linux file architecture, it is still compatible with that old Unix format, if not more so.
"Through a mapping of traditional paths into their GoboLinux counterparts, we transparently retain compatibility with the Unix legacy. There is no rocket science to this: /bin is a link to /System/Links/Executables. And as a matter of fact, so is /usr/bin. And /usr/sbin... all "binaries" directories map to the same place. Amusingly, this makes us even more compatible than some more standard-looking distributions. In GoboLinux, all standard paths work for all files, while other distros may struggle with incompatibilites such as scripts breaking when they refer to /usr/bin/foo when the file is actually in /usr/local/bin/foo."
After many years of Linux use, I have come to find what I like and do not like about Linux-based operating systems. I want a system that I can install quickly and easily, without much hassle. I love the repository-centric installation and updating of software packages, but I could probably adapt to a recipe-based installation system. I much prefer the Gnome desktop environment to KDE, XFCE, Enlightenment, or any other that I have come across. In these respects, GoboLinux fails to meet most of my expectations of a Linux OS.
But don't let that fool you. This is a perfectly stable OS with a lot of benefits. Most importantly, Mr. Muhammad has a really great idea going with this retooling of the file structure. It's user-friendly, system-friendly, and Unix-friendly. It's simple and clean. It goes a long way toward simplifying Linux for average computer users. While many aspects of the OS are more difficult to use and while I believe the new structure could use some further improvement, Gobo makes a great point with this. Many Linux users will disagree, and that's fine. That's why we have communities and a multitude of distributions. I personally wish that Ubuntu or Fedora would adopt a system like this. It could take those other distros a long way.
I won't be using GoboLinux on a regular basis, but I'll be checking back in on it in a year or two to see how far it's come. This is a distro with major potential.


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Press Room
Welcome to the Press Room of the European Southern Observatory (ESO), brought to you by the Department of Communication. Here you will find information about press releases, the image gallery, video libraries, mailing lists, media visits, and more.
We encourage journalists and educators to reproduce ESO images and videos in their articles and educational materials, so long as ESO is clearly credited as the source of the material. Please refer to the copyright notice at the bottom of this page for full terms of use.
To start receiving our news items for the media, please fill in the following form. Fields marked with a star are compulsory. If you wish to receive possible ESO products we recommend that you provide a correct postal address as well. ESO reserves the right to check the correctness of the information and grant access only to those that provide accurate information. You can read more under the section called Newsletters, here below.
You can learn more about ESO's outreach activities here. Contact us.
Press Releases
ESO press releases describe important scientific, technical and organisation developments and achievements, as well as results obtained by scientists using ESO facilities. The goal of these press releases is to share exciting discoveries and the beauty of the Universe with the general public.
Press release types
ESO publishes three different types of press releases:
- Science Release
A science release describes scientific results usually appearing in a peer-reviewed journal that involve data from ESO observatories or ESO staff. These press releases explain the significance of the findings and provide contact information for the scientists announcing their results.
- Organisation Release
Organisation releases cover a range of themes related to ESO operations, including news on current and future observatories, new astronomical instruments, and announcements of exhibitions all over the world. Among other topics, organisation releases also report on the accession of new ESO member states and more exotic items such as filming for the James Bond film Quantum of Solace at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile.
- Photo Release
The science of astronomy yields beautiful, awe-inspiring images of the cosmos. ESO selects the best of these images and presents them to the public in periodic photo releases. These photo releases provide a detailed description of the object in the image and explain the science behind such cosmic wonders.
ESO also publishes Announcements and Pictures of the Week on its website.
Announcements are shorter than press releases (typically below 200 words) and highlight stories and events which are of interest to the community. This includes announcing dates and locations of upcoming events, presenting new ESOcasts and highlighting interesting scientific results which are not covered in Science Releases. Announcements can also promote new ESO products.
Pictures of the Week show beautiful or interesting photos from ESO telescopes, and can highlight recent events or archival photos. They are accompanied by a short explanatory text. They are released every Monday, at 10:00 CET.
Press release archive
View all ESO press releases dating back to 1985.
Space Scoop — astronomy news for children
Space Scoop is a service provided by ESO in partnership with the educational project Universe Awareness (UNAWE) and is specifically addressed to children aged between seven and eleven years old, with or without the assistance of parents and educators. Space Scoop explains ESO Science and Photo Releases in a language that children can easily understand. To access them, look for the Space Scoop icon located at the top of each press release's page.
A dedicated network of persons in the ESO Member Countries, the ESO Science Outreach Network, is set up to serve as local contacts for the media in connection with ESO developments. They also translate ESO's press releases into their local languages.
Procedures and principles behind ESO press releases
To the best of its abilities, ESO endeavours to ensure that its press releases are factually correct representations of the underlying scientific work and are written in a way that avoids misinterpretations and exaggerations. In order to ensure that the public can consider ESO press releases as reliable sources of information, ESO has adopted the following procedures and principles.
- ESO science press releases are not themselves scientific papers, but report on science claims made in bona-fide scientific papers. Accordingly, ESO science press releases are usually based on formal papers that followed a standard peer-review procedure and have been accepted for publication in a scientific journal.
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Press Release dissemination
ESO's advance notice system for standard press releases
As a general rule, all ESO press releases are sent to media representatives subscribed to our Media Newsletter (see below), to the AAS mailing list, and to AlphaGalileo and EurekAlert! about 24 to 48 hours in advance of their public release, giving them access to the full press release text and associated multimedia. The notice is typically sent on Mondays and the press release is made public on Wednesdays. In certain cases, ESO press releases may instead be sent "For Immediate Release" or at different times with specific embargo conditions (for example, for papers published in Nature or Science).
Our advance notice system gives journalists time to research a topic, gather relevant information or conduct interviews, which leads to better and a more accurate coverage of our news and, ultimately, better information for the public. We use the well-established term "embargo" to emphasise that the material must be made public only two days later. However, it is certainly not our intention to "hype" the news item. To check the usefulness of this system, we have done a media poll in July 2011. To access the results please go here.
Wherever possible, we do our best to issue a release at (or close to) the same time as the paper's publication in an academic journal. We recognise that material that is already public (for example, abstracts, online preprints, published papers) is "fair game" for journalists.
However, we consider that our press release package (with its less technical text, quotes from the scientists, and rich images and video) provides significant added value for journalists over the academic paper alone.
If a journalist publishes a story using the material from our press release package (for example, quotes, additional information, or associated multimedia) before the advance notice period ends, we consider this breaking the "embargo" conditions. We will therefore remove the journalist in question from the Media Newsletter mailing list without further notice and add him/her to the public newsletter(s) that deliver(s) news at the time of public release, without priority access. We will also request that the journalist be removed from the AAS embargo mailing list, and that the action be treated as the breaking of an embargo according to the conditions of AlphaGalileo and EurekAlert!
The ESO Department of Communication offers journalists and the public a number of newsletters to keep updated with the latest ESO news. The Media Newsletter is aimed at journalists and the Newsletter for Broadcasters for everyone working with television.
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Bona fide members of the press, as well as brodcasters may sign up here to receive the Media Newsletterin English or a local language at their choice. The newsletter contains ESO press releases sent about 48 hours in advance of public dissemination, as well as latest videos and footage from ESO, available for use in documentaries, movies, video news etc (see "ESO's advance notice system" above). In certain cases, ESO press releases may also be sent "For Immediate Release" or at different times with specific embargo conditions (for example, for papers published in Nature or Science).
Apart from press releases and accompanying materials, the Media Newsletter also contains latest Pictures of the Week, announcements or video materials that media representatives could find useful.
Please fill in the following form in order to be subscribed. Fields marked with a star are compulsory. If you wish to receive possible communication products we recommend that you provide a correct postal address as well. We reserve the right to check the correctness of the information and grant access only to those that provide accurate information. Those subscribed to the newsletter will receive a confirmation email. If you have additional questions, please email email@example.com
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Learn more about the specific Video News Reels and Video Compilations for broadcast use.
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ESO Media Polls
The 2011 ESO Media Poll was distributed to people through the epodpress and the AAS mailing lists, and responses were collected for two weeks between 24 June and 8 July 2011.
130 anonymous members of the press participated. 16 PIOs (part-time or full-time) were excluded from this analysis so as to focus exclusively on the needs of bona fide journalists, leaving 114 as the total number of participants, with an average age of 46. Of these, 36% came from the USA and Germany (in an equal split). The rest of the journalists are spread internationally, with a total of 75% from the ESO Member States.
The report gives a brief summary of the data, and a preliminary analysis, rather than a fully fledged statistical treatment. All questions have been included. All answers have been included, except for free text comments that could give indications of the identity of the respondents.


text:
Health and safety on ships
Operators of seagoing ships or small commercial vessels must protect the health and safety of workers by:
- following safety standards and codes of practice
- ensuring the safety of machinery and equipment
- making sure the vessel is safely manned and all workers have the necessary qualifications
- having the right emergency procedures and equipment
- providing health protection and medical care
- doing regular risk assessments
- supplying necessary protective clothing and equipment
- monitoring maritime safety information broadcasts
- consulting with workers or their representatives on health and safety matters
Providing health and safety training
Workers must get basic health and safety training. There's more information on what this covers on the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) website.
Written health and safety policy
The ship must must have a policy that sets out how health and safety will be managed. Read guidance on writing a health and safety policy.


text:
The Way to Wellness – Paddle your way to wellness!
Can you keep a secret? This secret is one of the best kept in northwest Iowa. Here's the fact: Emmet County has some amazing flat water (lakes and wetlands) for paddling. Not much of a secret, you say? Then why are all of these paddling places nearly empty on the weekends?
Until recently, I was a river paddler. Moving water was my only option and I considered it a challenge. A river is always changing. From one float to another, there are always new obstacles, different snags (fallen trees), new debris, changing water levels, varying current speeds . . . It's always an adventure!
Nevertheless, I thought I'd give flat water (static) paddling a try. One afternoon last summer I started out for a leisurely float on High Lake. I was expecting to skirt the circumference a time or two, lather up the sunscreen and take a nap in the sun, no sweat! Oh boy, was I wrong.
I started out in the afternoon, after the wind had picked up. I could barely get away from the dock below the Nature Center. The wind was buffeting the water. Every paddle stroke forward, the wind and waves pushed me back twice as far. Without intending to, I was well into my cardio workout for the day.
Once my initial surprise passed, I took on the flat water challenge. I recalled a lesson from a canoe class I had attended as an intern. I adjusted the bow and keel of my NuCanoe, changed the draw of my paddle stroke and drew the wind and wave water to my advantage to ferry my way out onto the lake. It wasn't easy, but it was a lot of fun. The ultimate award was exploring the lake!
If you're looking for an opportunity to gain some paddling experience, Emmet County Conservation has six NuCanoes to rent for use on High Lake. At only $10 a person, it's an affordable option for paddlers, campers, recreationists and adventurers. ECCB will also host several paddle clinics and water safety programs to kickoff the summer. ECCB will partner with the Estherville Public Library to host a paddle clinic on High Lake on Thursday, June 12.
It's important to gain some experience in a safe setting before starting out on a solo adventure. High Lake, Ingham Lake, Tuttle Lake, and Iowa Lake offer some fantastic shallow water paddling experiences. Rest assured these areas are relatively underused so you won't get caught up in the undertow of a speedboat- although riding those waves can be entertaining.
In the spring and throughout the summer it's important to keep in mind these water safety tips:
n Wear your lifejacket! (Even the most experienced swimmer is useless if they slip and hit their head.)
n Stay warm! (Everyone is susceptible to hypothermia. Natural water bodies are cooler than your body temperature and the more time you spend in the water the lower your body temperature falls.)
n Stay Hydrated! (It's natural to feel thirsty when you're being active near water; it's your body's way of telling you to hydrate.)
n Sun protection (Wear sunscreen 360 degrees to keep yourself protected from light rays reflecting off the water.)


text:
Available items: 0
Out of stock
Space Misfits – Dr Xenon Rare Avatar
Quality : Rare
Total Available:1000
This game item is held inside your cryptocurrency wallet. It is required to be held in your wallet to activate your ability inside Space Misfits to build this item. If you do not hold this token in your wallet you cannot build this item in the game. You own this blueprint and you are free to trade or melt it at anytime. In order for you to receive this item you MUST have a ENJIN wallet.
There are absolutely no refunds when purchasing this item.
ENJIN Cryptocurrency Token
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To learn more about ENJIN visit their website.
Use this form if you want to learn more about Space Misfits, have a business inquiry or if you want to sign up for our Alpha Testing in August!


text:
Barack Obama has led efforts to reform government both in the Illinois State Senate and in the United States Senate. He will bring this commitment to making government work for the people, not the special interests, to the White House. Obama will ensure Washington works for the people, not the special interests.
Shine the Light on Washington Lobbying
Centralize Ethics and Lobbying Information for Voters: Obama and Biden will create a centralized Internet database of lobbying reports, ethics records, and campaign finance filings in a searchable, sortable and downloadable format.
Require Independent Monitoring of Lobbying Laws and Ethics Rules: Obama and Biden will use the power of the presidency to fight for an independent watchdog agency to oversee the investigation of congressional ethics violations so that the public can be assured that ethics complaints will be investigated.
End the Practice of Writing Legislation Behind Closed Doors: As president, Barack Obama will restore the American people's trust in their government by making government more open and transparent. Obama will work to reform congressional rules to require all legislative sessions, including committee mark-ups and conference committees, to be conducted in public. By making these practices public, the American people will be able to hold their leaders accountable for wasteful spending and lawmakers won't be able to slip favors for lobbyists into bills at the last minute.
Shine the Light on Federal Contracts, Tax Breaks and Earmarks
Create a Public "Contracts and Influence" Database: As president, Obama will create a "contracts and influence" database that will disclose how much federal contractors spend on lobbying, and what contracts they are getting and how well they complete them.
Expose Special Interest Tax Breaks to Public Scrutiny: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will ensure that any tax breaks for corporate recipients -- or tax earmarks -- are also publicly available on the Internet in an easily searchable format.
End Abuse of No-Bid Contracts: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will end abuse of no-bid contracts by requiring that nearly all contract orders over $25,000 be competitively awarded.
Sunlight Before Signing: Too often bills are rushed through Congress and to the president before the public has the opportunity to review them. As president, Obama will not sign any non-emergency bill without giving the American public an opportunity to review and comment on the White House website for five days.
Shine Light on Earmarks and Pork Barrel Spending: Obama's Transparency and Integrity in Earmarks Act will shed light on all earmarks by disclosing the name of the legislator who asked for each earmark, along with a written justification, 72 hours before they can be approved by the full Senate.
Bring Americans Back into their Government
Hold 21st Century Fireside Chats: Obama will bring democracy and policy directly to the people by requiring his Cabinet officials to hold periodic national broadband townhall meetings to discuss issues before their agencies.
Make White House Communications Public: Obama will amend executive orders to ensure that communications about regulatory policymaking between persons outside government and all White House staff are disclosed to the public.
Conduct Regulatory Agency Business in Public: Obama will require his appointees who lead the executive branch departments and rulemaking agencies to conduct the significant business of the agency in public, so that any citizen can see these debates in person or watch them on the internet.
Release Presidential Records: Obama and Biden will nullify attempts to make the timely release of presidential records more difficult.
Free the Executive Branch from Special Interest Influence
Close the Revolving Door on Former and Future Employers: No political appointees in the Obama-Biden administration will be permitted to work on regulations or contracts directly and substantially related to their prior employer for two years. And no political appointee will be able to lobby the executive branch after leaving government service during the remainder of the administration.
Free Career Officials from the Influence of Politics: Obama will issue an executive order asking all new hires at the agencies to sign a form affirming that no political appointee offered them the job solely on the basis of political affiliation or contribution.
Reform the Political Appointee Process: FEMA Director Michael Brown was not qualified to head the agency, and the result was a disaster for the people of the Gulf Coast. But in the Obama-Biden administration, every official will have to rise to the standard of proven excellence in the agency's mission.
Enforce Executive Branch Ethics: The Obama-Biden administration will give the Office of Governmental Ethics strong enforcement authority with the ability to make binding regulations, and it will work with inspectors general in all the federal agencies to enforce ethics rules, minimize waste and ensure federal officials are not using their offices for personal gain. The OGE will also be the clearinghouse of all public records relevant to ethics in the Executive Branch and place this information on its website. Finally, the OGE will promulgate rules and procedures to record all oral and in-person "lobbying contacts" between registered lobbyists and political appointees and make those records available to the public in a searchable computerized database.
Spend Taxpayer Money Wisely
Performance Team and Chief Performance Officer: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will create a focused team within the White House that will work with agency leaders and the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to improve results and outcomes for federal government programs while eliminating waste and inefficiency. This unit, a SWAT team, will be composed of top-performing and highly-trained government professionals and be headed by a new Chief Performance Officer (CPO) who will report directly to the president. The CPO will work with federal agencies to set tough performance targets and hold managers responsible for progress. The president will meet regularly with cabinet officers to review the progress their agencies are making toward meeting performance improvement targets.
Streamline Government Procurement: Barack Obama will implement the GAO's recommendations to reduce erroneous federal payments, reduce procurement costs with purchase cards, and implement better management of surplus federal property. These initiatives will save $4.5 billion a year.
Protect Whistleblowers: Often the best source of information about waste, fraud, and abuse in government is an existing government employee committed to public integrity and willing to speak out. Such acts of courage and patriotism, which can sometimes save lives and often save taxpayer dollars, should be encouraged rather than stifled. We need to empower federal employees as watchdogs of wrongdoing and partners in performance. Barack Obama will strengthen whistleblower laws to protect federal workers who expose waste, fraud, and abuse of authority in government. Obama will ensure that federal agencies expedite the process for reviewing whistleblower claims and whistleblowers have full access to courts and due process.
Line-by-Line Review of Spending: Barack Obama and Joe Biden will conduct an exhaustive line-by-line review of the federal budget, work to eliminate government programs that are not performing, and demand that new initiatives be selected on the basis of their merits -- not through a political process that rewards lobbyists and campaign donors.
Slash Earmarks: Earmarks grew from $7.8 billion in 1994 to $29 billion in 2006. Barack Obama is committed to returning earmarks to less than $7.8 billion a year, the level they were at before 1994.
Shed Sunlight on Corporate Tax Loopholes: The tax code is riddled with corporate loopholes and preferential regulations that benefit a handful of companies at the expense of the rest of the business community as well as ordinary families. Some large companies have managed to secure tax breaks or hide their profits in overseas tax havens to avoid paying any American corporate taxes at all. Obama and Biden will require any tax bill considered by Congress to include a Corporate Tax Impact Statement that would disclose which industries or specific companies would be expected to benefit from the new tax breaks.
The "Ethics" section of the 2008 Obama-Biden Plan formerly featured on Change.gov, now no longer available.
According to the Sunlight Foundation blog:
Change.gov, the website created by the Obama transition team in 2008, has effectively disappeared sometime over the last month.
While [the] front splash page for for Change.gov has linked to the main White House website for years, until recently, you could still continue on to see the materials and agenda laid out by the administration. This was a particularly helpful resource for those looking to compare Obama's performance in office against his vision for reform, laid out in detail on Change.gov.
According to the Internet Archive, the last time that content (beyond the splash page) was available was June 8th [2013].


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I'm sorry - I'm so far behind on submissions - I'm going to have to find some help soon here. I will get them listed asap. Again, sorry.
Hi Guys - Love the service! I have a couple of lists that have been running for quite some time but they don't appear to be listed as yet in the directory. I have seen earlier posts regarding this topic, all lists have over 30 sites and are running smoothly. What is the general time span before listings appear?
I'm sorry - I'm so far behind on submissions - I'm going to have to find some help soon here. I will get them listed asap. Again, sorry.
Wow, you are quick
Not a problem, I'm happy just to know they will appear and I thank you.
Well, it's six months down the line and it still looks like there's not much chance of getting any of our lists added to the directory.
Don't mean to be a pain but we could be missing out on loads of new applications simply because no one can find our lists *sniff*
As I mentioned in a different thread on this subject - we are working on a different way of working the directory so that all active lists are automatically included.
Trust me - you are not missing out on tons of submissions Hardly anyone visits the directory. People will find your toplists much better through your own marketing efforts and being listed on other people's sites. That's generally how people find top lists. They see the button or link on someone's site, and check it out and sign up.
Okay, thanks Dave.
I am a little surprised though, I have lists at Ultimate Top Sites and their directory is well visited and the old topsitelists.com one was too so I expected yours to be just as popular. Goes to show that one can't assume the same happens elsewhere. I guess I'm just one of the few that does try looking for new lists on site.
I still love the service though!
Hopefully once the new directory system is in place, more people will visit it as it will be full of great toplists!
I was wondering about the same thing. Look forward to when directories are up and running good.


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As 2011 draws to a close, however, many see the UK offshore wind industry as decidedly less buoyant.
It is a fact that 2013 and 2014 will be lean years for construction, with developers unable to take advantage of the renewables obligation credits regime due to lack of projects coming through the consenting process. Only in 2015 will UK deployment regain 2012 levels, before doubling in 2016 as the next round of projects start to be installed.
The government's Renewable Energy Roadmap, published earlier this year, confirmed that offshore wind would make the largest contribution to renewable-energy generation targets. But, sensitive to the cost of offshore wind to consumers and a sceptical right-wing press, it indicated that up to 18GW by the end of 2020 could only be achieved if the cost of energy from offshore wind is cut by more than a third. Uncertainties introduced through the move to a contract for difference feed-in tariff, continued wrangles over the offshore transmission regime and a new - as yet untested - consenting arrangement have introduced significant doubts about the vision of industrialisation to deliver offshore wind in UK.
Indeed, many in the UK wind industry now cast envious looks across the North Sea to Germany, which has abandoned its nuclear programme in favour of accelerating offshore wind. Although Germany to date has less than 300MW of capacity operating offshore, it has a healthy project pipeline, an impressive onshore track record and an established wind-turbine supply chain. France, the Netherlands and Denmark have also recently signalled intent to accelerate activity.
What does this mean for businesses in the sector? It is critical to understand the business opportunity for what it is: a collection of subsidised national markets often sharing a common supply chain, each market immature and facing significant economic and political risk. It is crucial to have a range of vibrant national markets, knowing that as challenges appear in one market new opportunities may arise in another. The supply chain needs far more certainty than a single market can provide in order to mature and bring costs down in the way the UK government seeks. The industry knows it needs to do this to remain the technology of choice for large-scale renewable-energy generation into the 2020s.
Seen in this light, the strength of the German market is not a threat but an opportunity for UK businesses that have already learned many tough lessons about installing and operating wind farms out at sea to enter the wider sector across Europe as it grows.
Pessimists in the UK see the chance to redress the country's previously lamentable contribution to the supply chain slipping away. To me, the strength of UK production facilities outweighs the short-term fluctuations in national demand. The UK has a much larger area of suitable sea bed for development and a better wind resource than anywhere else in Europe. It is the logical place for lowest-cost offshore wind energy at a very large scale. It also has a landowner in the Crown Estate playing a hands-on role investing on a global and project level to make it happen, and it has legislative frameworks in place for the long haul. For businesses looking to make long-term investment decisions, these factors count.
Bruce Valpy is managing director of consultancy BVG Associates. He is currently leading work within the Crown Estate's offshore-wind cost-reduction pathways project.


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WASHINGTON (AP) _ Denard Span hit a sacrifice fly in the ninth inning and the Washington Nationals, with Bryce Harper back in the lineup, rallied past the St. Louis Cardinals 3-2 Sunday.
The Nationals loaded the bases in the ninth against Seth Maness (0-1) when Danny Espinosa singled with one out for his third hit, Jose Lobaton singled through the right side of the infield and pinch hitter Nate McLouth walked.
In his second game since being activated from the seven-day disabled list following a concussion, Span lofted a fly to left field. Espinosa easily beat the throw from John Jay, who shifted over from right field as St. Louis used a five-man infield.
Harper started in left field and went 1 for 4 with his first stolen base of the season. The two-time All-Star was pulled from the game a day earlier for what manager Matt Williams called a "lack of hustle."


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With branches in Ladybank, Glenrothes, Perth and Blairgowrie, Ladybank Tyres and Target Tyres are the number one tyre retailer in the East of Scotland.
Covering all of Fife and Perthshire we are your first choice for tyres for cars, trucks and vans, agricultural tyres, motorcycles, caravans and 4x4s.
As well as tyres we also supply and fit batteries, exhausts, brakes and suspension parts.
At our Glenrothes branch we also supply a full garage service and conduct MOTs.
At Ladybank we also offer Hunter Engineering wheel alignment for high performance and sports vehicles.


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HRRNET is pleased to announce the release of its DataObjects suite,
The HRR DataObjects suite comprises of three components; The HRR DataGrid,
the HRR DatabaseEditor and the HRR HtmlEditor. Each of these components can
be used on its own or in association with the other components. Together,
they provide a very powerful way to present and modify database data on the
The HRR DataGrid is a DataGrid which can present XML or database data in a
spreadsheet format. Any of the existing ADO.NET providers can be used. These
include Odbc, Sql and OleDb. This DataGrid automatically generates sorting
and search capabilities.
HRR DatabaseEditor
The HRR DatabaseEditor provides the record insertion and modification
capabilities. The component can be hooked onto a DataGrid or a DataLister
(the HRR DataGrid or to a ASP.NET DataGrid) to provide both insertion and
updating of data in a consistent manner. There is almost no code to write as
code generation is automatic and based on a number of property settings,
specified by the user in an XML file. You can specify drop-down columns,
read-only columns, required columns, descriptive column captions, default
column values, email notifications and a host of other things. The drop-down
list boxes created by the component can be populated from any database
table. When the user is done with changing the data, this component will
post back to the database by calling a stored procedure, a delegated ASP.NET
method, or in the case of single table inserts/updates, automatically build
the SQL command.
HRR HtmlEditor
The HRR HtmlEditor allows you to turn any ASP.NET (multi line) Text Box into
an on-line WYSIWYG Html Editor. You do not need to change a single line of
your existing code to use our editor. Any ASP.NET multi-line Textbox can be
turned into a full featured online content management editor. The HtmlEditor
works like an ASP.NET validation control. You simply "attach" it to an
ASP.NET Text Box like any other validation control.
Please download fully a fully functional evaluation version of our product
from our web site. The download includes a detailed white paper and
comprehensive ASP.NET and IbuySpy samples built using our suite.
Web site address : http://www.hrrnet.com


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For the past couple of weeks, we noticed that the house next door is full of activity. They started with cleaning the house and then furniture and appliances started to be delivered. New ones, if I may share. They had new beds, new washing machines and I wouldn't be surprised if they will have new ceramic tiles installed, too.
We already met (kind of) the head of the house and he was gracious enough to smile and say hello to us. I am hoping to have a peaceful and friendly relationship with them because they seem to be nice folks anyway :)


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You can list your business for FREE, so why not get listed today? There are customers out there looking for businesses just like yours.
What's on in your community?
Please let us know! Our Community Notice Board listings are FREE!
Simply login and create your 'Community Notice Board' listing, upload your logo, insert your web and email addresses, and click on the 'submit' button. It's that easy!
Once your listing has been approved, we'll let you know that it's 'live to view'.
Kookaburra Kids Foundation
Is a not for profit organisation supporting kids living in a family affected by mental illness.
They are committed to delivering programs that build resilience, give hope and provide kids with the opportunity to learn about mental illness and reach their potential.
Kookaburra Kids Foundation are always looking for volunteers to support them at camps, activity days and events - Training is provided and all volunteers are required to complete a Working With Children Check and National Criminal Check.
If you're interested in becoming a volunteer please contact their volunteer co-ordinator via their website.


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FIFA 14 is sure to ship for current generation platforms this autumn, but EA has also indicated the game will appear on next generation systems such as the PS4 and next Xbox.
"Beyond Q4, we see a bright light at the end of the tunnel. For EA, digital remains a winner, and our investments are generating strong growth. We're also investing in Gen4 console technologies and content," said EA CEO and executive director John S. Riccitiello during last night's Q3 earnings call. "We've signalled that we're working on the next editions of our two biggest franchises in Battlefield and FIFA. And we look forward to discussing these programs and many others with you when we provide our fiscal '14 guidance in May."
Later responding to investor questioning, Riccitiello further expressed his belief in the FIFA franchise.
"We believe that FIFA and Battlefield have a shot at certainly remaining in the top 5, quite possibly being 1 and 2, if we're successful as we move through the next technology transitions we see coming," said Riccitiello. "We do recognize as we move into what we determine or call Gen3, i.e., PlayStation 3, Wii, Xbox 360, we started weak, and we climbed forward, improved, but we lost market share coming into this transition, we climbed back.
"We think Battlefield and FIFA are going to help us lead as we move into the next set of technology opportunities and platform opportunities, and continue to get bigger."
EA's faith in the FIFA franchise stems from the blockbuster performance of FIFA 13, which has now sold through more than 12 million units worldwide - an increase of 23 per cent over FIFA 12 at the same point last year.
FIFA 13 has also seen major growth in digital net revenue, up 98 per over FIFA 12 to over $100 million in the third quarter.
"I'll start with FIFA, an EA franchise that has emerged as one of the world's top two or three games. The EA SPORTS team in Vancouver is absolutely crushing it on every format and in every market. Since FIFA 13 launched in September, we've sold through more than 12 million units. And in Europe, FIFA 13 was the #1 title in 2012, outselling all other games, including Call of Duty," said COO Peter Moore.
"The digital performance for this franchise is particularly impressive. The number of gamers that actually play FIFA Ultimate Team grew 61% over last year's offering. Additionally, the average revenue per paying user increased by approximately 30%. Both of these increases contributed to FIFA Ultimate Team revenue being up 136% year-over-year, and the holiday delivered the largest revenue day in the history of the service."
Source: EA Q3 Earnings & Seeking Alpha


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FSU Most Popular Skateboard Decks
The heart of any skate board is its deck. That piece of ply is all important and is your connection with the ride that could take you anywhere. Short board decks for skatepark and street skating use come in a number of sizes, with the stated size referring to the width of the deck. Full size boards will be around 30 inches in length and with a width between 7 and 8.5 inches. Slimmer decks are usually preferred by street skaters for easier flipping, whilst vert skaters tend to head for a wider deck for a greater platform. Kid's skateboards come in slightly smaller whilst women generally just ride a full size deck, perhaps on the smaller end of the scale. Cruiser decks come in all shapes and sizes so pick your favourite style to surf those streets.


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Fable II's first downloadable content pack, Knothole Island, isn't going to make appearances under the Christmas tree this year. The expansion has been delayed, according to an update to Microsoft's "Download and Win" contest page.
Citing "unexpected technical difficulties," which is starting to sound like a Fable II tradition, the Knothole Island expansion will instead ship "late January 2009." It was originally planned for a mid-December release when it was announced in November. Obviously, that means the Download and Win contest associated with its release has also been temporarily suspended.
It's OK, Lionhead, I'm always late for everything too. We're sure everyone will find something else with those 800 Microsoft Points.
Fable II Knothole Island [Xbox - thanks, Craig!]


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(CNN) -- A Texas man has been charged with intoxication manslaughter in the Saturday drownings of four children who were in his car when it veered into a Houston bayou, police said Sunday.
Four counts were filed against Chanton Jenkins, 32, of Houston, Texas.
Four counts were filed against Chanton Jenkins, 32, of Houston, Texas, according to Houston police spokesman Kese Smith.
A fifth child who was in the car, a 3-year-old girl, was missing Sunday and is believed to have drowned also, police said.
Jenkins was driving a Lincoln Town Car during a rainstorm with six children and his brother as passengers when it went into the Green Bayou on Saturday, police said. Jenkins, his brother and one child escaped.
Of the five who died or was missing, three were Jenkins' children, and the other two were friends of the family, Smith said. Jenkins also is the father of the surviving child, Smith said.
Jenkins failed a field-sobriety test at the scene of the crash and a blood test was taken, Smith said.
Jenkins' brother told police the car went into the bayou just after Jenkins completed a phone call from the car.
"The next thing the passenger knew, they were going down the embankment into the bayou," Smith said.
The children whose bodies were found were identified as a girl, 1, and three boys, ages 4, 6 and 7. Watch effort to find the bodies »
The car was found in 9½ feet of water after a two-hour search. Police said the current was so swift that divers could not open the doors.
All About Houston (Texas)


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Our network of merchants are hand picked and constantly updated to bring you the top discounts, promotional offers, and online coupon codes. Our team is always on the look out for great deals and opportunities to save. If you would like more information on how your store can be featured here contact us at: admin (at) fabudaily.com. Let us know how we can help you out.
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Authors Tip:
We try to simplify how coupon codes are used. Each of our coupon pages are made so that it can be easily navigated. NO CLUTTER! Some of our coupons directly link to the product or product page to make it easier to see the deal in action. An example would be on one of our merchants: V2 Cigs. Navigate to the coupon page and select one of the specific deals to see. We try to give you the best deals valid coupon codes.


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Cool gadgets she's probably not expecting -- but will love
For the woman who has a lot going on, the Audiovox Digital Message Center can provide a centralized command-post with a personalized touch. The gadget features a built-in microphone for note-recording, an erasable white-board, a magnetic board for notes and coupons, and a Post-It notepad holder. That's all accented by a 7-inch LCD digital picture frame that holds up to 125 high-resolution photos.
Let your ladyfriend come to her senses with a pocket-sized USB aromatherapy diffuser. The device looks just like a regular flash drive. Instead of holding data, though, it holds a drop or two of scented oil. Once plugged into a computer, it heats the oil and sends a delightful scent into the air.
Mmm...do I detect the scent of a successful gift?
Technology should make life easier, and that's just what the SmartShopper Deluxe aims to do. The fridge-sticking device lets you (and anyone else in your home) compile a grocery list simply by saying what you need. You tap a button, say "bananas," and the SmartShopper Deluxe remembers it. At the end of the week, you hit a print button and the gadget spits out an easy-to-read, alphabetized list of everything you've said.
FYI, in case you get this: We're out of chocolate pudding. Please put it on the list.
Say so-long to stacks of chargers and messy wires with the PowerMat portable charging mat. The PowerMat, a recent innovation, charges most any device wirelessly: All you do is set your phone, MP3 player, or whatever else down on the surface. The PowerMat magnetically fills your gadgets with juice -- and it does it in less time than their own adaptors would require.
For the girl who likes to sing in the shower, check out Zadro's iSing Wireless Radio. The gadget wirelessly transmits tunes from your PC, MP3 player, CD player or TV to its waterproof interface, letting you stream music while enjoying a steady stream of hot water. The iSing has a 100-foot range. It features four speakers and even has a lighted fog-free mirror for your viewing pleasure.
Don't forget this gift for the girl who's always forgetting her keys. The Wireless Key Finder provides you with a small colored ring for your keychain. When the keys disappear, you press the button on the main transmitter and listen for the loud beeping. The Wireless Key Finder can sound its alarm from as far as 60 feet away. It works through walls, floors, and yes -- even sofa cushions.
The device comes with two separate receivers, so you can attach the extra one to anything else regularly lost (except for maybe your sanity).
Encourage your girl to get her groove on with the Logitech Squeezebox Radio, a high-tech stereo that streams music anywhere in your house. The Squeezebox hooks up to your Wi-Fi connection and gathers tunes from every PC on the network. It also connects to online music services such as Pandora, Rhapsody, and Slacker, letting you rock out to a limitless playlist regardless of what room you're in.
If your better-half is a frequent laptop user, take a look at the Targus Lap Chill Mat. The mat has a set of built-in fans that keep legs cool and computers ventilated (something a pillow under the laptop doesn't do). It connects to the laptop via USB for power. The Lap Chill Mat is built for ergonomic support and is even cushiony, ensuring it'll be completely comfortable on your lady's lap.
Warning: The following gift may result in hours of loud and potentially annoying singing. But if you can live with that, you might soon hear her singing your praises. The MP3 Recording Karaoke Player by Hammacher Schlemmer lets you skip the specially formatted karaoke discs and instead grab tracks directly from your own MP3 collection. The device can lower or fully mute the original vocals, and it even loads lyrics off of the Internet for you.
As its name suggests, the MP3 Recording Karaoke Player records as you sing, creating new MP3s with you on lead vocals. Just please, for everyone else's sake, keep those files to yourself.
Help your lady keep warm when you aren't around with these USB-powered heated gloves. The G-Gloves -- the "G" is for "girl" -- plug into any USB port and immediately start to defrost frozen fingers. The gloves have an adjustable warming pad inside and feature an open-finger design for easy typing.
Don't be fooled by the cute design: The Vestalife Ladybug iPod dock packs some serious power. The trendy-looking system has dual "wings" that open up to reveal solid speakers with built-in subwoofers and a digital amplifier. Just drop any iPod in and start jammin' in style.
The Ladybug can run on either batteries or AC power.
Turn your sweetie's television-watching into a magical experience with Kymera's Harry Potter-esque Magic Wand Remote Control. The wand lets you control your TV by swishing and flicking: One gesture changes the channel, another adjusts the volume, and so on. It's a can't-miss gift for any girl who secretly wishes she were at Hogwarts -- and, best of all, you don't even have to travel to Diagon Alley to get it.
'Tis the season...to start stressing over what to buy your wife or girlfriend. Let's face it, fellas: We rarely know what women want. The holiday season is no exception.
If you haven't picked a present by now, I'm assuming you're in the same boat as the rest of us. Not to worry, though: Help has arrived. We've scoured the Web to find 15 fun and original gadget gift ideas for the lady in your life.
Now, I may know a thing or two about technology. I don't even pretend, however, to understand what goes on in the mind of the fairer sex. That's why I've assembled a panel of 30 tech-loving ladies to help guide our tour and provide female perspective along the way. You'll see their thoughts and comments after each gift idea.
Who wouldn't want an alarm clock you can talk to? Moshi -- yes, that's its name -- is a voice-controllable digital clock that's as sleek as it is practical. You activate voice commands by saying "Hello, Moshi." Then, you tell the clock what you want, saying "set alarm," "night light," or any of the other 10 handy commands.
Unfortunately, "make me waffles" is not an option.
Safety and style collide with the BlueAnt Bluetooth Car Kit, a cool gift for any woman who spends time behind the wheel. The BlueAnt clips onto your car's visor and then functions as a voice-controlled Bluetooth speakerphone: You simply say "answer" when a call comes in, and you're connected. Dialing out requires only pressing one button and then speaking aloud the name or number. The gizmo even lets you play music from your phone through its speaker, and it can connect to up to two phones at the same time.
That's kinda romantic, right?
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Pergolas can add a graceful style and architectural character to your home or garden. They come in a large variety of sizes and styles. This project measures 6 feet tall and 8 feet wide on each side and uses long-lasting pressure-treated 4x4 rafters.
As you choose your area, keep in mind that a standard 6' x 8' pergola has overhangs that extend eighteen to twenty inches beyond that, so plan accordingly if you choose to build close to your house.
Pick a flat, level area to build your structure. If you don't have a flat, level area, then grade the desired area by removing soil and hand tamping to level. Remember to save the soil to use as fill throughout your yard or beds.
Also, consider locating your pergola near shade trees, especially to protect you from late-afternoon summer sun. A common mistake is to think that a pergola is a shade structure; the reality is that the overhead network of beams and rafters affords very little shade. They're best used as a focal point and setting for socializing or quiet relaxation.
To dig the post holes, you can use a clamshell digger, power auger or a shovel. The depth of your hole should be about 1/4 of the height of your post. As a rule the width of your post hole should never be less than 10 inches. You want holes deep and wide enough to easily support a standard 4x4 post.
When you've set your location, call your local utility and cable companies and have them mark the location of any underground services. Once they have confirmed there are no underground lines in your future pergola location, begin digging the post holes.
Mark those post locations with stakes. Then verify that the layout is correct by measuring diagonally from corner to corner on both sides. The measurements should be identical; so adjust as necessary.
In this project, our pergola will be built at the corners of an existing retaining wall; however, the pergola build process is the same with or without the wall in the design.
To dig the post holes, you can use a clamshell digger, power auger or a shovel. Your local building codes should specify a recommended depth for post holes in your area. For an 8-foot tall structure like this one, plan on about two-feet in depth. The depth of your hole should be about 1/4 of the height of your post.
For a 6x6 post, the diameter of the holes should be about 12 inches square. As a rule the width of your post hole should never be less than 10 inches. You want holes deep and wide enough to easily support a standard 4x4 post.
Once the post holes are dug, set the posts. Place the 6x6 post into the hole. Remember to check that the post is plumb using a three foot level, as you go (image 1 below).
Brace the post with stakes. To do this, attach a 1x4 to the side of the post with a single nail or drive screw. When you're satisfied, secure the free end of the brace to a stake driven into the ground. Set another brace at 90 degrees to the first. Secure with nails. Continue this process to set the three remaining posts.
Prepare the ready-mix concrete and fill the holes. You'll need roughly four bags for each hole. In a wheelbarrow, pour the ready-mix powder and slowly add water, mixing while you go. You'll need roughly six gallons of water to one 40-pound bag. But be careful not to use too much water, it could weaken the concrete. The consistency should be like peanut butter. When the concrete is ready, fill the hole to within an inch of the surface. This allows the concrete to expand and contract with weather changes.
As you fill, use a broom handle, or shovel to "churn" the concrete to ensure that there are no air pockets (image 2). If there are, you may need to add more concrete to bring the level to within an inch of the surface.
Let the concrete set for 48 hours.
While the concrete footers are setting, prepare the support beams and rafters for installation. The support beams attach to the posts and carry the load of the structure. You will need two to four beams on each side.
The rafters attach atop the support beams. In this project we are using nine rafters as the roof.
It's a good idea to buy the beams and rafters precut to the size you need, so the only cuts you'll need to make will be at the decorative ends of the beams and rafters. We cut a 45-degree angle on the bottom end of each one.
After the concrete in the post holes has set, and the beams and rafters are cut, cut the tops of the posts to an even height. For 8-foot tall pergola we cut the posts to measure 7-1/2 feet from the ground. The rafters on top will eventually add another six inches to the height.
After the concrete in the post holes has set, and the beams and rafters are cut, cut the tops of the posts to an even height. For our 8-foot tall pergola we cut our posts to measure 7-1/2 feet from the ground. The rafters on top will eventually add another six inches to the height (image 1 below).
Measure, mark then cut the tops with a circular saw. As you cut each post, you can use a 2x4 and a level to make sure all the posts are the exact same height.
Install the beams. Each beam is two 2x8s fastened together on either side of a post - an inner and outer beam. Begin by resting the first 2x8 beam on-center over a pair of posts to make sure the overhangs are of equal length. Measure each as you go along (image 2).
Secure each end of the beams to the top outside face of each post with two 4-inch screws to temporarily hold them in place. Attach the rest of the beams in the same way.
All that's left is to install the rafters and to permanently secure the beams in place with the bolts. Lay out the rafter locations on the tops of the beams at one-foot intervals.
Take time to measure the overhang of each rafter carefully to keep the whole set in alignment (image 3). Install the rafters by fastening each in place with two 5-inch galvanized drive screws at each end.
With everything in perfect alignment and centered you now can permanently secure the beams to the posts using 8-inch galvanized bolts. Using a 1/2-inch drill bit, drill a top and bottom pilot hole centered on each post. Use a hammer or rubber mallet to pound the bolts through the beams and post. Finally secure them using a 1/2-inch nut on the inside of the structure.
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Oct 08
Use cash to support the supply chain
Posted by dbedell in Wal-Mart, suppliers, small business lending, Siemens, IBM, HP, financial supply chain, DPO, days payables outstanding, cash flow forecasting, Cash
Cash-rich companies are starting to spend again-both on buying up cheap assets and on repurchasing shares, according to a number of media reports. But they also continue to use that cash to more effectively manage their supply chain, reduce cost of goods sold, and ensure supplier stability.
Enrico Camerinelli, senior analyst at Aite Group, says that very large corporates that are cash rich are not ready to put money in bank deposits, but still want to put it to good use. "They are looking at ways to use this cash to ensure business continuity, particularly by helping suppliers still in difficult situations without access to bank funding," Camerinelli says.


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I imagine most of my readers know that I've launched the Healthcare Scene blog network. EMR and EHR is one member of the blog network along with 7 other blogs that have been announced with 6 more blogs that will be announced shortly (Have you found them already?). We're growing rapidly and expanding the number of people that are sharing great content with the world of healthcare IT and in particular EMR and EHR. The goal of providing a platform for the independent Healthcare IT voice is becoming a reality.
It's a really exciting thing to be a part of. The most exciting part of it all is the amazing people that I get to work with and the content they create. Here's a quick glimpse at some of their content with my thoughts on their posts.
EMR and HIPAA
Neil Versel recently started posting a regular weekly column on EMR and HIPAA. Check out his latest post on clinical decision support and an update on Dr. Larry Weed. Reading articles like that from Neil help me to appreciate more fully the history of healthcare IT. I've admittedly showed up late to the party, but Neil provides some interesting perspectives based on his knowledge and experience in healthcare IT. Here's my favorite quote from his article:
"Patients may surmise that a physician who uses a [decision support system] is not as capable as a physician who makes the diagnosis with no assistance from a DSS." I then noted that Weed has been saying for more than 50 years that physicians shouldn't have to rely on their memory to make clinical decisions when computers can help them process an increasingly voluminous knowledge base.
Meaningful HIT News
Neil's blog Meaningful Healthcare IT News is also a member of the Healthcare Scene blog network. How can you not enjoy a post entitled Skype for "Redneck Telehealth"? Sometimes, you've got to do what you've got to do.
Happy EMR Doctor
What doctor isn't interested in reading another doctor's perspective on "Getting a Life with Electronic Medical Records," "Gag Orders and Bad EMR Systems," and a Doctor's issues with PQRI Incentive Money? Those are the latest topics from Dr. West over on Happy EMR Doctor. Of course, now that Dr. West has gotten the blogging bug, his EMR gave him a life and his new blog has taken it back. I always appreciate a practicing doctor's perspective.
Smart Phone Health Care
I'd been covering a number of mobile health care and mHealth related topics on this and my EMR and HIPAA blog, but the topic has become so popular that I knew it was time to start a mobile health care related site of its very own. I'm now doing it in partnership with David. He's been churning out some interesting posts about Cell Phones Saving Lives in Africa and a Mobile App that Could Detect an Acute Stroke. I've always seen one of the major developments of mobile health happening in the developing world where the IT networks aren't yet in place. Mobile phones can have such a tremendous impact for good. It's beautiful to learn about. Although, mobile health is still in its infancy in the developed world as well. Personally, I've been trying to kick around some mobile gaming app that would encourage activity (ie. movement). Far too many of us sit in front of our computers all day. Healthcare would be so much better if more people just moved (written as I sit in front of my computer).
EMR, EHR and Healthcare IT News
This site is still very young, but just hit it's 100,000 pageview mark. That's a result that I would have never been able to predict. Although, news like the one posted today about the First Medicare EHR Stimulus Checks is something that many find interesting. If you know of other news we should be posting, let us know.
EMR and EHR Screenshots
The most recently announced member of the Healthcare Scene blog network is a website called EMR and EHR Screenshots. There's still a lot I want to do to improve the interface for viewing the various EMR and EHR screenshots, but I think the concept is really interesting. My goal is to aggregate as many of the EMR and EHR screenshots as I can get. Hopefully that will mean even screenshots from the same EMR and EHR software as it releases new versions of the software. I'd love to have screenshots of CPOE, ePrescribing, scheduling, charting, diagnosing, etc. Basically if you're interested in knowing what an EMR looks like or what it looked like previously, we're hoping to provide you that view into an EMR's development. A lofty vision. We'll see how many EMR and EHR vendors, doctors, and other users will support it.
See what I mean when I talk about the amazing content that's being generated. This doesn't even include the great posts that Katherine Rourke is doing on this blog and my own posts (which could be classified as good or bad).
As I mentioned, I have 6 more blogs to be announced shortly. So, keep an eye on Healthcare Scene to see what will be announced next.


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Sennheiser headphone reviews
Our collection of Sennheiser reviews
Sennheiser is one of the world's leading headphone brands. Whether it's hi-fi, PC/gaming or portable listening the company has a huge range of products on offer. We've taken a look at a fair few of them — here's every Sennheiser headphone review we've done since 2009.
1 / 15
Despite the price we were very impressed with the Sennheiser HD 800 headphones. They consistently handled every bass and treble note we threw at them, and the build quality is exceptional.
- Review Date:
- Reviewer:
- Manufacturer:
- 18th Feb., 2009
- Campbell Simpson
- Sennheiser
- Rating:
- Price:
- $ 2,499.00
- Pros:
- Incredible sound quality, comfortable
- Cons:
- Incredible price, require amplification


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Western Powers Double Down on Syria's Destruction
By Shamus Cooke
01 October, 2012
The hottest places in Hell are reserved for those, who in time of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality. - Dante
The world watches as a nation is torn, slow motion, at the seams. Money and geopolitics has caused a feeding frenzy of western nations biting and tearing at Syria, all hoping to profit from the regime's destruction.
Toward this effort, England, France, and the United States announced increased support to the "rebels" of Syria. The Obama administration promised $45 million more in funding for aid that has now totaled $175 million (is it any wonder there are budget problems inside the U.S.?).
And although much of the U.S. aid is designated as "humanitarian," this money will directly help the military mission by bolstering the prestige of opposition groups, who will use the U.S. aid to gain adherents by being able to feed and house refugees fleeing the destruction (assuming that not all of this money will simply be used to buy guns).
Of course there is no accounting of the amount of money and arms the CIA is funneling into the country. But even The NewYork Times has admitted the CIA's involvement; in June it wrote:
"A small number of C.I.A. officers are operating secretly in southern Turkey, helping allies decide which Syrian opposition fighters across the border will receive arms to fight the Syrian government, according to American officials and Arab intelligence officers...the weapons, including automatic rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, ammunition and some antitank weapons, are being funneled mostly across the Turkish border by way of a shadowy network of intermediaries including Syria's Muslim Brotherhood and paid for by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, the officials said."
There you have the Syrian opposition in a nutshell: groups of mercenaries funded by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United States and France, and the Muslim Brotherhood inside Syria. All of these groups have their own self-interest in toppling the Syrian government, while destroying the country and its people in the process.
Saudi Arabia has used the Muslim Brotherhood as a key tool in its foreign policy for decades, funding the organization in countries all over the Middle East and North Africa. When Saudi Arabia beckons, the Muslim Brotherhood and associated groups can be used to destabilize "unfriendly" regimes in the name of "jihad" officially declared by clerics who work in tandem with the Saudi Arabian government to recruit fighters for the effort. This is why there are "terrorist" groups now fighting to overthrow the Syrian government, including Al Qaeda itself born from the purse strings of Saudi Arabia, like the Taliban (there is an excellent chapter about this dynamic in Vijay Prashad's book, the Darker Nations).
It is very revealing that, after the U.S. has spent hundreds of millions of dollars and large amounts of weaponry has been trafficked into the country, the Syrian government still controls the vast majority of the country. This is because the majority of people inside Syria do not support the so-called Syrian Opposition. If this were the case, the Syrian government would have long since been overthrown. The revolutionaries of Egypt and Tunisia did not need any outside help in toppling their government, nor large amounts of money or weaponry.
Therefore, the steady destruction of Syria will continue until it reaches a Libya-like crescendo: a "no fly zone" will be the goal of the western powers, with the motive of toppling the regime.
But like in Libya, a no fly zone equals total war. Syria has advanced Russian-made surface-to-air missiles, which must be destroyed to enforce such a no fly zone. Syria also has fighter jets that must be destroyed. Additional ground support must be destroyed. And like Libya, once the bombs start dropping, the mission quickly changes from a "no fly zone" to "regime change, i.e., war.
But Syria has a much more powerful army than Libya, requiring that the U.S. military become directly involved in the war, as opposed to outsourcing the conflict to England and France as they did in Libya. Only the U.S. military and its subordinate allies have the required weapons to deal with Syria's Russian-made weaponry.
But the American people hate war, and thus the U.S. government must introduce the Syrian war slowly, through non-stop anti-Syria media coverage, in the hopes that opinion polls shift enough to allow direct military intervention, as opposed to the current indirect type.
What do the people of Syria really want? The NewYork Times revealed that , inside Syria, a group of twenty opposition groups recently met in Syria's capital to demand that Syria's democratic transition happen peacefully, in effect denouncing the armed rebels who are being funded by foreign nations.
The international implications of this war have already begun to manifest. Neighboring countries are experiencing stress and destabilization by the flood of refugees from Syria. The Kurds in Syria may soon call for independence, which will incite further violence from Turkey. Hezbollah, based in Lebanon, and Iran will work doubly hard to re-enforce the Syrian government as western powers do the opposite.
Ethnic and religious tensions are being stoked in all neighboring countries, which has already led to violence and will be used by politicians in those countries for political aims, leading to more violence. It's also possible if an official war is declared against Syria, other powers will use the chaos as a shield to pursue their own interests Israel for example, may opportunistically bomb Iran. Whatever the course of events, the emerging war in Syria has the potential not only to turn the Middle East into dust, but to drag larger powers like Russia an ally of Syria into conflict with the United States.
All working people in the United States have a duty to denounce this U.S.-made humanitarian tragedy and the future threat of war.
Shamus Cook is a social service worker, trade unionist, and writer for Workers Action ( www.workerscompass.org ) He can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.com
Comments are moderated


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WordPress Security
Security for your WordPress site is very important. There is a wide range of things you can do from simple to advance.
Here is a list of things that any user can do.
- Delete Admin account
- Create a strong password
- Update WordPres, themes and plugins regularly
- Backup your site
- Use a security plugin
- Comments and ping back security
- Limit the amount of attempts to login
1. Delete Admin account
Create a new user and delete the default admin, other wise they already are 1/2 way to getting into your account.
2. Strong password
Need help with a good password try this site Strong Password Generator
3. Update WordPress, themes and plugins regularly
Make sure your WordPress, themes and plugins. The good news the security plugins should notify you when any of them have updates. Also when you login into WordPress it should notify you that updates are required.
4. Backup your site
Having a backup is a must, rainy days do happen . There are lots of options when it comes to backing up your website. The one I have been trying out is BackWPup the free version has every thing I need. If you want offsite minute to minute backup you will have to use a paid service like VaultPress
5. Security plugin
Both below plugins are very popular and have a free version and paid version. This do scans of your wordpress intall and email you when they detect a issue.
6. Comments and ping back security
Akisment plugin helps prevents comment spamming. It compares comments left against a database of known spam comments. It has free and paid versions. This is the most common plugin for this.
Captcha is another way to help with spam (Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart). These are the little images of numbers and letter that are distorted so that only a human can read it or simple math equations. This prevents bots from spamming logins, and comments fields.
7. Limit the amount of attempts to login
If you limit amount of the login attempts it keeps people from trying to brute force your passwords. The Captcha can help with this as well.
This is not the be all for security but it a good start to keeping your site safe.
UPDATE: 2 layer authentication or Multi-factor authentication
If you can't risk a security breach, you should think of using a 2 layer authentication. What this does uses another piece of information to validate who you are. A very common way is by txting your cell a random password to enter and anytime you login into a machine with a different IP address you have to validate again. Here is Wiki's explanation of what it is.Read More
Social Icons
I wanted to add some social icons to my site, so I did some research and I found this nice plugin Acurax Social Icons. There is a premium version of the plugin which allows for more features. I found the free version perfect for my needs. You can pick which icons you want and which order they show up in and from 1/2 dozens styles of the icons.
This is just one of many different social media plugins available.
Read More
Using Outlook.com for email
So your sick of squirrel mail and your looking for a cleaner interface for your webmail. I give you outlook.com, outlook.com allows you to use there webmail portal but with your own domain.
Below is a sample of the outlook interface.
What's great about this is all the features of outlook.com, such as editing office docs like Word, Excel and Sky drive. Complete list of all the features can be found here. If this is something that interest you Zero Degree Curve can set this up for you for a one time fee of $100.
- Webmail
- Calendar
- SkyDrive
- Two-Factor Authentication
- Webmail
- Calendar
- SkyDrive
- Two-Factor Authentication
Read More
New site
I would like to welcome Connie Godwin and her new website designed and hosted by Zero Degree Curve.
http://jewellerydesignstudio.ca/Read More
Free background images
Elegant Themes just post 20 free background images for your word press website.
http://www.elegantthemes.com/blog/freebie-of-the-week/20-free-background-images-for-wordpressRead More
A Journey Through Modern Design Trends
Elegant Themes have an interesting post on current design trends on the internet.
Read More


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Basic Issue:
I'm trying to understand the proper use of
NumericQ's "magical" capabilities. Please consider the examples below. Actual question and some links are at the very end.
Example 1:
Many of you are aware that
NumericQ can be used as follows, without unprotecting:
Remove[x, y];
NumericQ[x] = True;
(*and apparently using TagSet instead of Set makes no difference because \
you can't direct, let alone see, where this type of info is stored \
The following output is as expected:
Out[3]= True
Out[4]= False
Go ahead and make the following assignment:
In[5]:= x = y
Out[5]= y
The following behavior is interesting, but quite reasonable. It seems logical that setting
x to
y would somehow globally overwrite the "magical" numeric property:
Out[6]= False
Out[7]= False
Hmmm... #1
...Well, at least I thought it would have 'overwritten' the behavior!!
(*Note: Could also use Clear[x] or ClearAll[x] *)
x =.
Out[9]= True
Example 2:
Now suppose we had made the assignment
x = y first (before evaluating
NumericQ[x] = True):
Remove[x, y];
x = y
Out[13]= y
Hmmm... #2
Now Mathematica has pushed the numerical property onto
y as well.
NumericQ[x] = True
Out[14]= True
Out[15]= True
How can one put
NumericQ[x] = True to good/powerful use---and just as importanltly, in light of the above examples, how can it be used safely? (i.e., Can this behavior be localized somehow? Used safely within a package?---intuition makes me wonder if the only way to isolate the behavior would be to store impacted symbols in a junk context or something.)
@Szabolcs 'Mathematica Tricks' page; scroll down about half way or search for
NumericQ: http://web.ift.uib.no/~szhorvat/mmatricks.php
MathGroup Discussion: https://groups.google.com/forum/?fromgroups=#!topic/comp.soft-sys.math.mathematica/buxdxzwV4bY


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If your words do not reflect your spirit and honor, do not speak.
Welcome to my table…
Cooking and Eating Well in London Without Going Broke
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Animals, Gift Ideas, Travel, Books, Recycling Ideas and Many, Many More
because anything is possible with Charisma
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Notes on a Generation
my mother raised the perfect housewife...then I went to med school
Food...cooking...eating....tools - What works, and what doesn't!
Full time in everything woman trying to balance it all
The Lantern Hollow Press Blog
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following my bliss...


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There are people in Washington ... who never intend to withdraw military forces from Iraq and they're looking for 10, 20, 50 years in the future ... the reason that we went into Iraq was to establish a permanent military base in the Gulf region, and I have never heard any of our leaders say that they would commit themselves to the Iraqi people that 10 years from now there will be no military bases of the United States in Iraq.
-former President Jimmy Carter, Feb. 3, 2006
For all the talk about timetables and benchmarks, one might think that the United States will end the military occupation of Iraq within the lifetimes of the readers of this opinion editorial. Think again.
There is to be no withdrawal from Iraq, just as there has been no withdrawal from hundreds of places around the world that are outposts of the American empire. As UC San Diego professor emeritus Chalmers Johnson put it, "One of the reasons we had no exit plan from Iraq is that we didn't intend to leave."
The United States maintains 737 military bases in 130 countries across the globe. They exist for the purpose of defending the economic interests of the United States, what is euphemistically called "national security." In order to secure favorable access to Iraq's vast reserves of light crude, the United States is spending billions on the construction of at least five large permanent military bases throughout that country.
A new Iraq oil law, largely written by the Coalition Provisional Authority, is planned for ratification by June. This law cedes control of Iraq's oil to western powers for 30 years . There is major opposition to the proposed law within Iraq, especially among the country's five trade union federations that represent hundreds of thousands of oil workers. The United States is working hard to surmount this opposition by appealing directly to the al-Maliki government in Iraq.
The attack upon, and subsequent occupation of, Iraq can be seen as a direct result of the 2001 National Energy Policy Development Group (better known as vice president Cheney's energy task force) that was comprised largely of oil and energy company executives. This task force -- the proceedings of which have been kept secret by the administration on the grounds of "executive privilege" -- recommended that the U.S. government support initiatives in Middle Eastern countries "to open up areas of their energy sector to foreign investment." As Antonio Juhasz, an analyst with Oil Change International wrote last month in the New York Times, "One invasion and a great deal of political engineering by the Bush administration later, this is exactly what the proposed Iraq oil law would achieve."
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The people of the United States have indicated, in the national election last November and in countless polls, that they no longer support the Bush administration's war. The Scooter Libby trial revealed that top administration officials, including the vice president, "cherry-picked" and distorted intelligence in order to sell a "pre-emptive" war to a spooked public. The squandering of hundreds of billions of dollars, some billions of which, according to Seymour Hersh writing in the New Yorker, is being siphoned into "black-ops" programs being run out of Cheney's office (a stunning redux of Iran-Contra carried out by many of the same actors), has also strained the patience and credulity of the American people.
Another betrayal is the "contracting out" of "war-related activities" to corporations such as Halliburton, Bechtel, Chemonics and Blackwater. Halliburton, Vice President Cheney's previous employer, calls itself an "energy services company" but has tentacles reaching into nearly every aspect of the war (originally dubbed Operation Iraqi Liberation until some bright bulb among the Bushies realized that "OIL" might not be the best handle for this venture). Halliburton has also profited handsomely from no-bid government contracts awarded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the construction at the national embarrassment known as "Gitmo," and most recently, from the fiasco at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, D.C.
Unfortunately, all this corruption, mayhem and death are good for some (or it wouldn't go on).
The U.S. military budget, larger than the military budgets of the rest of the world's nations combined, continues skyward, even without all the "supplementals" passed regularly by Congress to fight the "war on terror."
The question we must ask as citizens is this: Is the United States a democratic republic or an empire? History demonstrates that it's not possible to be both.