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HOUSTON - A birth control pill for men? It could be a reality soon, along with other birth control options such as creams, injections and even implants for guys.
Researchers are working on birth control, for men. But it's a challenge since men make 1,000 sperm a second. To be an effective contraceptive, sperm count has to go down to zero.
Michael Lehmann has been involved in five testosterone-based clinical trials. He's taken daily pills, monthly injections, a cream he rubbed on his shoulder, and even had an implant.
"There were very minor side effects, um, I had some slight acne on my scalp," Lehmann said.
But testosterone could increase the risk of heart disease and prostate cancer. That's why Dr. John Amory is blocking vitamin A in the testicles, which in turn blocks the development of sperm.
"I decided to explore ways of suppressing sperm without using hormones," said Amory.
Tests in mice show it works 100 percent of the time. But still, some doctors are skeptical.
Researchers have also found a hormone-free way to stop sperm production. They're using a drug treatment that targets proteins critical for the process. And the good news is -- it's reversible. When mice were taken off the drug treatment, they became fertile again.
Copyright 2013 by Click2Houston.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

subset: commoncrawl


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I have decided to make the beer can chicken this weekend along with some roasted potatoes. I know both should take 1-1 1/2 hours to cook. If I am going to do two chickens and 6-8 potatoes should I allow for an increased cooking time?
I will be using my gas grill as I have not yet picked up my smoker/charcoal grill yet.


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Topic: New diagnosis
Last Friday my husband was diagnosed with bile duct cancer, cholangiocarcinoma. Today we are waiting on results of "cell brushings". Anyone know what that will tell us? At this time we have not been referred to an Oncologist. The DR. said the tumor could not be removed based on the location. He said no chemo, no radiation. He was very blunt, maybe they all are. He said 6 mo. to 24 months. I said it sounds like a "death sentence" he replied, "Yes" My son found this web site so I am sure this has been asked before, but have any of you gone to the big cancer treatment centers like MD Anderson, Sloan Kettering or Mayo Clinic. Any advice would be so appreciated.
How do I stop crying to be a good caregiver. We have only just now found out and the shock and sorrow is off the charts. Many thanks for any help and advice. Thank you. Irene


text: HomeTabletsMicrosoftSurface Pro 3 Surface Pro 3 Sleeves If you own the Surface Pro 3, the powerful tablet from Microsoft, you'll want to be sure you're getting the best protection possible for your device, without compromising style. The best way to protect your tablet is to keep it in a Surface Pro 3 cover. The Windows Surface Pro 3 case that you use needs to fit your tablet perfectly, in order to provide the snuggest and most secure fit. While one might consider buying a Microsoft Surface Pro 3 case from the manufacturer, this can be an expensive option. The Snugg offers a compatible and affordable solution with our Snugg cover for Surface Pro 3 devices. At The Snugg, we have a range of Microsoft Surface Pro 3 covers mad of quality materials to keep your tablet safe from spills, scratches, or knocks. Our cases are designed especially for the Microsoft Surface Pro 3, so you know that your tablet will be secure against damage. We make it easy to shop online and order the Surface Pro 3 cover that will not only fit and protect your tablet, but also suits your sense of style. If you are interested in a case for your tablet that's more visually exciting than a simple brown or black, then you've come to right place. Our Snugg cases are available in a range of colors that are appealing to both men and women. Ready to pick out and buy a Windows Surface Pro 3 case? Simply browse our selection of available covers for Surface Pro 3 tablets and choose from the available colors listed. Once you've found the best Surface Pro 3 case for your tablet, simply select and add your choice to the basket, then continue to shop or check out. It's that simple! If you still have questions about our cases or about the ordering/shipping process, then feel free to contact us. We are available to answer your questions by phone or via our live help option. Sort By: Popularity Newest $ Low - High $ High - Low Filter Device SurfaceSurface 2Surface 3Surface Pro 3Surface Pro 4 Style Sleeves clear selected Colour clear selected Price Under $15.00$15.00 - $25.00$25.00 - $35.00over $35.00 clear selected Snugg Microsoft Surface Pro 3 Sleeve in Red Leather $19.99 In Stock Available Colors Tablet Protective Cases Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 Cases iPad Headrest iPad2 Cover Kindle Covers Thin iPad Cases Smart Phone Protective Cases Smartphone Cover iPhone Leather Cases iPhone 4 Case Bamboo Cell Phone Cases iPhone 4 Phone Cases Popular Styles iPad 2 Leather Case iPad 3 Cases with Stand Nexus 7 Flip Case Nexus 10 Leather Case Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 Leather Case Trending Items iPod Nano 6 Watch Band Surface 2 Cases MacBook Pro 15 Leather Case iPod Nano 6 Case MacBook Air 13 Leather Case


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Citizens of The Pitt!, it is I, Lord Ashur and I bring to you all a chance to fight for your freedom!, once a week The Hole will commence and the strongest of warriors will fight it out, while you workers have the opportunity to fight my other workers and can vote and decide who should be victor.
Because I know you only want to see the best fight the best, that is exactly what we are going to give you! From 4 Classes (Heavyweight, Cybernetic, Travveler and Normalweight) 8 shall be chosen and shall battle until only onechampion is left standing in their class - and then we'll throw them straight back in the hole to determine the Champion of Champions!
The Hole will open on a Tuesday, winner will be announced on the following Tuesday when it all begins again!
Heavyweight Cybernetic Division, Heat 1- I didn't shoot the deputy (yet) - Deputy Weld vs Primm Slim
Last Week
|Semi Final 2
With both contestants trading places frequently, and one of the most debated results so far, Horrigan was able to send Marcus to Sto-Vo-Kor once and for all. Additionaly Fawkes was selected to join Frank as the Wild Card Entrant for the Championship division. Your Action replay - brought to you by RobCo is here
The Rankings
This Division
The Championship
- The Hole was originally adapted for Nukapedia by TheNemesisx
- Agent c is the current promoter and manager of the hole on behalf of Lord Ashur, as well as executor of the estate of all fallen combatants. Any comments and queries can be left here.
- Management accepts no responsibility for loss of life, limb or other damage to combatants and spectators.


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KA-BAR Furniture Grade Walnut Presentation Case
Walnut display case with burgundy colored velour-covered pillow displays your KA-BAR knives up to 13" overall. Hinged glass-top cover locks for safe keeping. Two wall mounts allow case to be displayed on a wall.
Made in the USA
Beautiful Walnut finish, soft red lining, metal clasp with simple key lock. Displays any Ka-Bar® knife measuring up to 13" total (full length of knife, not blade). Dimensions: 14-7/8" x 5-7/8".


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Kensington Manor by Dream Home - 12mm Tanzanian Wenge Laminate Flooring - 30 Year WarrantyKensington Manor is a premium 12mm + 3mm pre-glued underlayment laminate product line. What is unique is that most of the line has a handscraped finish appearance. This is not simply in the look, but also in the actual texture!
The combination of these 2 characteristics gives them a beautiful rustic feel!
Also, the V-groove and pre-glued 3mm underlayment will make your installation process quick and easy.
Quick Installation Tips:
- Make sure the panels are mixed sufficiently when you install them so that you do not end up with too many identical, light or dark panels next to each other.
Kensington Manor Flooring Advantages:
We caught up with real Lumber Liquidators' customers who volunteered to discuss their floor shopping, buying and installation experiences. In no way did these customers receive compensation for their kind words. (They're speaking straight from the heart.)
A birthday cake without frosting?
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Best Uses
Reviewed by 67 customers
Displaying reviews 1-10
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You have to take your time with the floor or it can chip easily. It was hard to start at first but once you get the hang of it. It goes pretty smoothly... Lot & Lot of dust!!!
Service and delivery comments:
My Local store#250 Newnan, GA the guys are awesome!! The delivery time is long we are still waiting on the T- molding I ordered on 1/11/15 you can't be in a rush if the have to order your product from the warehouse, if in stock then you are good; no wait time.
Does get dusty quickly, but I can live with that. Looks very rich when finished. MAKE 100% sure before you install this product that the boards are STRAIGHT! We received 6 cases of this product that were not stored correctly in the warehouse. 95% of the boards were concave. If you looked at them from the "floor" eye view, the middle of the board was touching the ground and the ends of the planks were a good 1/2" off the ground with the longer pieces. They DID NOT fit together and stay connected. We returned them promptly and received all new ones. They new ones were very straight and fit together perfectly. It had taken 3 hours to do just three rows with the bent boards before we realized something was really wrong. We did 3/4ths of the room with the straight boards in the same amount of time.
Best Uses
the click and lock system was made of a fiber cardboard which make the click and lock system almost impossible to stay locked.
Best Uses
Love the look of this dark floor.
Best Uses
My wife and I moved into our house about 8 months ago and we had to do so much work to get it to how we liked but the main thing that bothered us most was the carpet throughout the living room. We cannot stand carpet just because it holds so many germs and that does not work well with allergies. My wife seen a commerical that Lumber Liquidators was having a sale so we went up there to see about hardwood floors.. since we had spent so much money on our house already, real hardwood floors were out of the question with our budget, so we decided to purchase the DreamHome - Kensington Manor 12mm Tanzanian Wenge Laminate Hardwood Floor and install it ourselves. We had never installed flooring before but both of us are pretty handy and quick learners so we thought it would be a bit of a challenge, but we could eventually get it completed. We got all of our carpet up and all the padding and staples out of the subfloor in a little less then a day, and the following day we started to lay the laminate. Of course the first board we laid down had to be one of the difficult ones due to a vent being on the floor, but once we got it started, it went fairly quickly until we got to a bunch of angles and corners.. we have a fairly open concept but we have a little area that is off of our kitchen and a small platform leading to stairs that is all open so that is where we started to run into problems. Luckily, a contractor was getting ready to install 12x24 tile in our kitchen and he had experience installing laminate flooring so he helped us complete the entire area. What we did not like most about installing the floor is when we took the block and hit it with the rubber mallet to interlock the boards, some of the corners kept on chipping. That is the only really negative thing I can say about the floor. The most difficult area to install was around our corner fireplace just because there were so many angles to it so we had our contractor complete that area cause he had to do a lot of weird cutting of the boards. All and all, once everything was complete, it turned out really nice. There were a couple of small gaps in some of the boards, but I filled them with wood putty and got a wood finish stain marker and went over all the chips and gaps and you can't even notice where there are now. One neat thing about this floor is depending on the lighting, it can either look REALLY dark (almost black) but as soon as you turn on a light (we have L.E.D. dimmable track lighting and two table lamps) the floor instantly changes to a nice, warm, brown color; I have never seen a floor do that before. For anyone who is considering putting this floor in your home, be prepared to clean it EVERY SINGLE DAY to maintain it looking nice. Luckily, my wife and I both have OCD and are complete neat freaks so we don't mind the upkeep but if you do not like to clean and vacuum all the time, this is not the floor for you. We have a pug and he sheds like crazy so that really motivates us to get all his hair up. We also purchased the cleaning kit which has the dry/wet mop changeable heads and that has been great with keeping the floor nice and clean. We have only had the floor down for almost 2 months, so only time will tell how it holds up.
Best Uses
We installed this flooring 5 months ago on our 1st floor (living room, bedroom area). It was fairly easy to install. After the install, the floors looked great and we liked them. Unfortunately that did not last long. This flooring is very difficult to keep clean. You see every bit of dust and every foot print. I find myself cleaning the floor multiple times a day. I also was told it was pretty durable. We have a baby and a little dog so I wanted something I wouldn't have to worry too much about. Well it chips easily and doesn't hold up with liquids too well. My daughter dropped her cup, I didn't notice right away and when I did, it was too late.. the flooring started to bubble. So we are 5 months in and I hate our flooring and plan to replace it as soon as I am able. I do not recommend this product. I was such a waste of time, effort, and money!
Best Uses
We were told that this flooring was very durable and a great floor to have with kids. We are so disappointed that this floor scratches even from moving a chair out from under the kitchen table. It chips if you drop Hot Wheels car from the height of a two-year old. Our dog scratches it quite a bit but those scratches seem to be more like scuffs because they rub out with our Bona mop. This floor is very hard to keep clean and dust free and requires daily cleaning.
Best Uses
I absolutely love this flooring!! Yes, it gets dirty and smudges easily but most laminate floors do-you just don't notice it on lighter flooring. The dark finish really does add a richness to any room!! So happy I chose this product!
Best Uses
Yes, like every other comment, this floor is gorgeous, but that is ONLY for the first 10 minutes after cleaning, then it's back to looking like it hasn't been cleaned in WEEKS. I was warned about dark floors showing everything and being hard to keep clean, I ignored advice because I don't mind sweeping a couple times a day. What I wasn't prepared for was the foot smudges! Imagine laying your bathroom mirror on the floor and letting people walk on it, are you imagining every tiny smudge footprint, and handprint? Now times that by 20 because these floors are also dark, so you have the smudges AND dust particles. You can literally notice a grain of salt on these floors. These floors need to be swept AND mopped every hour (or less) to maintain a clean look, unless its dark outside because darkness is your friend with these floors. Natural light just shines rays of regret and frustration all over my bottom level. I promise you, the beauty of these floors is not worth the hassle.
-have tried warm water/vinegar solution
-tried Bona floor cleaning system
-tried wearing socks to prevent foot prints but heat from feet cause smudging through the socks.
Best Uses
I purchased this wood to be used in the floor for a new nursery I was building in my basement. I applied my vapor barrier underneath, and the pad included on the wood pieces insulated the floor well. To cut the pieces to length, I used a high speed oscillating saw, which took longer than a regular saw, but left a very clean cut with no blemishes. Start with a new blade though. This floor will be very easy to clean if/when spills happen, and the durability is very good. My 3 year old dropped my hammer on it and no marks were left. I tested on a scrap cut piece and hit it hard with my hammer a few times, and nothing, no marks. Very pleased with my purchase.
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Do you have questions about this product?
AnswerBox - Get answers from Staff Experts and real customers by clicking "Ask a question" or click here to ask our Customer Service Team
Q:Can this material be installed over thin commercial carpet
1 answer
A:Unfortunately not, any carpet will have to be removed because it offers no moisture protection or support to the locking system..
Q:I am looking to put new flooring over the tile floor in my bathroom. It is a small full bathroom with a bath tub/shower combo and was curious if it will work over the tile? I noticed some are not recommended for full bathrooms and don't want to pay for something that will swell up or ruin due to moisture from the shower.
1 answer
A:You can find complete installation instructions on the product page by clicking on the specs tab and then clicking on - Installation Guide.pdf
Q:since it is ok for a kitchen but not recommended for full bath or laundery room installation, is there a comparable Tranquility product that would match? I am trying to use the same type/color throughout the house.
1 answer
A:We do not have a exact match in color and texture, however this may look good because of the similar color - http://www.lumberliquidators.com/ll/c/Roman-Umber-Click-Resilient-Vinyl-Tranquility-5RU/10024432
Q:How many teeth should the Carbide blade have for best cutting results?
1 answer
A:Carbide blade 60 teeth. Thank you for your inquiry
Q:How do you clean this type of laminate?
1 answer
A:Our wood floors are manufactured for maximum durability, easy maintenance and finished with a high quality aluminum oxide water base urethane UV cured finish. This step protects the wood and helps keep the flooring looking beautiful longer. While highly durable, the finish is NOT considered indestructible. However, by observing a few precautions like setting up a regular cleaning routine and simple maintenance program to protect the finish, you can expect years of performance and beauty from your wood floor. All wood floors can show signs of wear over time. There are many factors that can affect the amount of wear. These include the size and lifestyle of your family and product location.
Q:Does installing this product over Quiet Walk underlayment void the warranty?
1 answer
A:Laminates having pre-attached padding can be installed over an underlayment. When doing so, Lumber Liquidators recommends the use of our Bellawood Premium underlayment or ECO Silent Sound underlayment. These quality underlayments will best support the joints (locking system)
Q:Does the Kensington Manor 12mm Tanzanian Wenge Laminate have a matching baseboard option?
1 answer
A:This product question would be better answered by our Sales Department, they are more familiar with all of our flooring products and can better assist you with your questions.
Q:Due to the planks being cut in different lenghts im having a hard time trying to figure out how to use the short pieces while maintaining a uniform stagger. any advice would be appriciated
1 answer
A:Mix it up & shuffle the deck by working from three to four boxes at a time utilizing all lengths maintaining a minimum 6 inch joint stagger to create a random look (there is no set pattern to follow).
Q:How would you use this product on stairs?
1 answer
A:Floating Stair Step Installations:
Q:How wide are the flooring planks?
1 answer
A:The Tanzanian Wenge is 5 1/4" wide


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WINTER PARK, Fla. - For the third time in four years the Saint Leo baseball team has claimed the Sunshine State Conference's Freshman of the Year Honor as left-fielder Brendan Collins was named its recipient by conference Commissioner Jay Jones on Wednesday. Collins also earned All-SSC Second Team recognition. In addition, starting left-handed pitcher Rick Teasley was named Honorable Mention.
In his debut season, Collins batted .373 with 20 RBI and 30 runs scored. He posted a .412 on-base percentage and tallied 11 doubles en route to a .472 slugging percentage. Collins went 10-for-13 in stolen base attempts. Defensively, he notched a solid .961 fielding percentage.
Jumping out to a .500 batting average after his first series of the season, the Ft. Myers, Fla. native cooled a bit during the month of February, but had pumped his average back up to .400 by March 3. A 3-for-3 night against Florida Southern on March 9 had him holding a .419 average, the highest point in the latter half of the season.
His best outing of the year came in a 4-for-5 night in a big win over Valdosta State. The performance briefly bumped his average back over the .400 mark and saw him finish the season with three multiple hit games.
In 39 games, the freshman was only kept hitless in nine contests.
Collins is the Lions' third Freshman of the Year honoree as Head Coach Russ McNickle has seen a player take home the rookie award in three of four years under his guidance. Dustin Brown earned the award in 2009, while Ryan Brnovich took home the honor the following season. This is the fourth freshman award in eight years as pitcher Peter Martinez earned the honor back in 2004.
Earning the only Honorable Mention honor in the SSC, Teasley wrapped up an impressive junior campaign where he saw multiple Conference and Regional Pitcher of the Week honors. Going deeper than six innings eight times in 13 games, the Port St. Lucie, Fla. native finished with a team-low 2.91 earned run average, which dropped as low as 1.06 after his first two starts.
The left-hander's highlight outing of the season came in a nine-strikeout complete game in February against Eckerd where he only allowed six hits in a Saint Leo victory. He added to that with a two-hit performance on March 10 in conference play against Florida Southern. In that contest, he tossed a complete-game and only allowed a lone run to cross.
Collins and Teasley are two of a total of 33 student-athletes that were named to the 2012 All-Sunshine State Conference Baseball Team. Nova Southeastern's Carlos Asuaje and Lynn's Anthony Boza shared Player of the Year honors. Tampa's Sean Bierman was named Pitcher of the Year. Lynn's Rudy Garbalosa and Tampa's Joe Urso shared Coach of the Year accolades.
Voting for the all-conference team was conducted among the league's baseball coaches and athletic communication directors.
1B - Ryan McChesney (Florida Tech, Sr)
2B - Carlos Asuaje (Nova Southeastern, So)
3B - Mike Snyder (Florida Southern, Sr)
SS - K.C. Clabough (Florida Tech, Sr)
C - Austin Chubb (Florida Southern, Sr)
OF - Zach Gawrych (Tampa, So)
OF - Andrew Jones (Tampa, Sr)
OF - Areo Regoli (Nova Southeastern, Sr)
OF - Austin Smith (Lynn, Sr)
DH - Anthony Boza (Lynn, Sr)
UT - Cory Jensen (Florida Southern, Sr)
SP - Sean Bierman (Tampa, Sr)
SP - Shawn Kale (Lynn, Sr)
SP - Ben O'Shea (Tampa, Jr)
SP - Zach Westcott (Nova Southeastern, So)
RP - James Mannara (Florida Tech, Jr)
Player of the Year - Carlos Asuaje, Nova Southeastern
Player of the Year - Anthony Boza, Lynn
Pitcher of the Year - Sean Bierman, Tampa
Freshman of the Year - Brendan Collins, Saint Leo
Coach of the Year - Rudy Garbalosa, Lynn
Coach of the Year - Joe Urso, Tampa
1B - Kevin Mager (Rollins, Sr)
2B - Mike Diorio (Lynn, Sr)
3B - Damon Elder (Tampa, Sr)
SS - Alex Del Monte (Eckerd, Sr)
C - Sean Reilly (Rollins, Sr)
OF - Keith Curcio (Florida Southern, Fr)
OF - Brendan Collins (Saint Leo, Fr)
OF - Connor Obrochta (Tampa, So)
OF - Zach Persky (Rollins, So)
DH - Heath Pritchard (Tampa, Sr)
UT - Eric Grabe (Tampa, Sr)
SP - Jason Boyer (Florida Tech, Jr)
SP - Ben Brown (Tampa, Jr)
SP - Joey Cuda (Eckerd, Sr)
SP - Nick Krolczyk (Florida Southern, So)
RP - Preston Packrall (Tampa, So)
SP - Rick Teasley (Saint Leo, Jr)


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people in the U.S. have Lupus.
dollars committed to lupus research by the Alliance for Lupus Research.
We're walking across the United States to raise awareness and funds for lupus research.
Can't make it? Join our National Virtual Walk to participate anytime, anywhere.
Show your support by visiting the Alliance for Lupus Research online store. Discover the perfect gift, or prepare for a walk with our selection of apparel and accessories.


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Here are a few facts about your mailbox:
- Your mail box number and combination are under myServices on my.oc.edu.
- Students living on campus share a box with their roommates.
- Students living off campus are not automatically assigned student boxes but can acquire one by coming by the mailroom and requesting it.
- You must have your mail box number on any mail that is sent to you.


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Late in the evening of March 14 this year, Jean Govinden walked into Anthony Ghalloub's family mansion on a quiet West Ryde street.
The 32-year-old business owner and keen archer was a desperate man.
He was due to marry a cousin of Mr Ghalloub's in a matter of weeks but had fallen on hard times.
His employment services company had closed weeks earlier and, unknown to even his fiancee, he was out of work.
Police believe he may have asked for a loan from Mr Ghalloub, a wealthy investor in the Lebanese community, or have been owed money by him.
After half an hour of heated discussion and in a final show of desperation, the Mauritian-born Mr Govinden from Rouse Hill walked into an en suite in the family home, put a shortened .22 calibre gun to his head and pulled the trigger while Mr Ghalloub, his wife, Veronica, and their two children aged 12 and eight cowered nearby.
But little did Mr Govinden know Mr Ghalloub, 43, was facing deep financial trouble himself.
Since the tragic suicide in the multimillion-dollar Winbourne Street East home, dozens of investors have come forward claiming the well-dressed father and businessman is one of the worst fraudsters in Australian history.
Fairfax Media has interviewed 10 alleged victims, many of them related to Mr Ghalloub, and has seen bank documents showing they have lost almost $30 million between them. They have had meetings with 50 other alleged victims across Sydney and believe there are almost 200 people owed hundreds of millions of dollars.
Most were introduced to Mr Ghalloub by family members, some more than 20 years ago.
''We saw that others were doing well through him so we jumped on the bandwagon,'' one alleged victim, Elena*, said. With her family, she mortgaged properties to invest $1 million. ''Never in my wildest dreams did I think it would end like it has.''
Most were given simple contracts detailing the principal investment, interest rate and returns, but they say Mr Ghalloub refused to tell them where the money was being invested.
After receiving small returns, the money dried up in 2008.
His alleged victims say he claimed the Australian Tax Office had frozen his accounts because he unwittingly transferred money to a suspected drug dealer. Yet the supposed court case in which he cleared himself does not exist.
In October, he claimed to have been kidnapped and threatened on his way to collect his children from school. But Fairfax Media spoke with two men who were on the phone to him about this time and they refute his claims.
Meanwhile, his alleged victims have suffered severe financial strain. One, Eddie*, 65, is ''struggling to make ends meet'' with a debt of more than $1.2 million. Another sold her house ''for peanuts'' days before she was to be evicted.
As his alleged victims lost their homes, Mr and Mrs Ghalloub bolstered their property portfolio, which includes four houses in Winbourne Street East and a house in Terrigal shared with Mr Ghalloub's father, Raymond.
His alleged victims were left with one burning question: where has all the money gone?
Eastwood police and the Fraud Squad have begun investigating after receiving information on 35 cases of individuals owed up to $6 million each. An investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission was handed over to police because it was alleged fraud rather than a breach of financial services laws, an ASIC misconduct officer told an alleged victim.
Over the years, Mr Ghalloub hinted at where the money was - the World Bank, Hong Kong - but his alleged victims believe he ran a Ponzi scheme.
Fairfax Media found disgraced Keddies lawyer Tony Barakat appears to have been affected, having loaned Mr Ghalloub $200,000, according to a creditor's report.
With pressure mounting, Mr Ghalloub promised his alleged victims they would start receiving money between October and November. Then, in a dramatic climax on Halloween, he admitted he had ''lost it all'' and withdrew to an acute mental health ward at Royal North Shore Hospital.
Mrs Ghalloub declined to comment when contacted by Fairfax Media. Four properties owned by Mr and Mrs Ghalloub were quietly put on the market last month but the auctions scheduled for Saturday were withdrawn.
The alleged victims, who fear they will never see their money, are desperate for action. Many are furious at what they perceive to be a lack of action by authorities.
A police spokesman said collating and assessing the allegations of investment fraud was a ''complex process'' that could take some time.
Mr Govinden's father was too devastated to talk to Fairfax Media and was awaiting an April coronial inquest into the death of a man described as huge in stature and in heart.
"He was a gentle giant," said one friend from the Northern Archers Club where Mr Govinden was the treasurer. "Just a truly lovely bloke."
Another friend, Roger, who went on hunting trips in remote NSW with Mr Govinden, said he was always smiling.
He had grand plans to marry his fiancee and organise a hunting trip to Africa with Roger and his future brother-in-law.
"But he was a very private person, I think he kept a lot to himself," Roger said. "He liked to be seen as successful, he would always fight over paying for dinner, so I think we've all really struggled to understand what happened."
*Names were changed as the alleged victims wished to remain anonymous.
Lifeline 13 11 14


text: The Clay Matthews 52 Packers Jersey is an officially licensed football jersey with the Packers logo and 12 screen printed on the front. The green boys jersey has gold and white stripes on the sleeves and Matthews 52 on the back. This team apparel is a great gift for your young Green Bay Packers fan. See Detail Tab for Size Chart.


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Centura Health has more experts in more places throughout the region. Start your health journey by finding the right one for you.
Faith Community Nurses (FCN) at Penrose-St. Francis Health Services work to fulfill the mission of Centura Health to "extend the healing ministry of Christ by caring for the ill and nurturing the health of the people in our community." A FCN is a registered professional nurse (RN) recognized for specialty practice through the American Nursing Association.
The areas of practice include the following:
Outreach Clinics
These clinics reach into vulnerable and disparate populations with childhood and adult immunization clinics, adult health risk assessments and one volunteer provider clinic.
Community Network of Caring (CNC)
The CNC is a collaboration of PSF and five community crisis sites. PSF provides a FCN at these five sites to assist clients who are under/uninsured with health related issues. These nurses can help the clients navigate the maze of health care issues as well as nursing clinic services.
Community Faith and Health Ministry
PSF facilitates a network of churches/congregations and ministries in the Pikes Peak area to educate and support the integration of faith and health. This includes parish or pastoral nursing as well as the specialty faith community nurse model.
Our search tools require a zip code to match the location nearest you.


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Flames NewsFlames Home > Cross Country Home > News
Liberty Men's XC Goes 1-2-3-4 at Royal Challenge
The Liberty quartet of David Ricksecker, Caleb Edmonds, Ngetich Kipchirchir and Jeremie Bourget swept the first four places in the men's 8K race at Friday's Royal Cross Country Challenge. As a result, the Flames rolled to an impressive victory in the men's team standings with just 19 points.
Meanwhile, sophomore Meredith Mistretta's 11th-place effort led a short-handed Lady Flames squad to fourth place in the women's 5K on a sunny afternoon at McAlpine Park. The same venue will play host to the NCAA Division I Southeast Regional Cross Country Championships on Nov. 9.
Liberty's top seven men's runners all notched 8K personal-best times in their final tuneup for the Oct. 27 Big South Cross Country Championships. The Flames' team score of 19 points was their lowest score since posting a perfect 15 points to win the Hagan Stone Park Classic title on Oct. 3, 2009. Liberty finished 61 points ahead of second-place Western Carolina in a field of 21 men's teams.
Running without senior standouts Jennifer Klugh and Khristina Kanagy, the Lady Flames saw their top nine runners all equal or improve upon their fastest collegiate 5K clockings. Six of them ran faster than 18:25, helping Liberty finish fourth of 25 teams with 89 points.
The top eight women's squads were all Southeast Region members, paced by Duke's winning score of 56. Davidson followed in the runner-up position with 69 tallies.
Men's 8K Race Recap
Ricksecker, a redshirt senior, covered the flat 8K course in a personal-best time of 24:07.6 to record the first individual victory of his collegiate cross country career. It was the first individual title by a Liberty men's runner since Zac Edwards won the men's 8K crown at the 2011 Big South Cross Country Championships.
Junior Edmonds and redshirt freshman Kipchirchir finished side-by-side in personal-best times of 24:08.4 and 24:08.5, respectively. Bourget then edged Elon's Luis Vargas for fourth place, cutting his 8K best time by 40 seconds to 24:15.7.
Will Templeton was the third freshman to finish the men's race, trailing only teammates Kipchirchir and Bourget. His personal-best 24:39.9 effort netted 10th place among the 189 men's finishers.
Redshirt sophomore Nate Jones and freshman Sam Hibbs closed out Liberty's top seven, coming in 16th and 17th, respectively. Jones shaved nearly a full minute off of his previous 8K best, stopping the clock in 25:10.9. Meanwhile, Hibbs' 25:18.4 effort was 46 seconds faster than his best 8K time entering Friday's race.
Women's 5K Race Recap
Mistretta continued her breakthrough sophomore campaign, trimming 13 more seconds off of her cross country 5K personal-best time. Her time of 18:04.03 placed her 11th out of 217 total women's finishers.
Five of Mistretta's teammates crossed the finish line within the next 21 seconds, paced by fellow sophomore and New Hampshire native Jacy Christiansen. She came in 17th, with a personal-best time of 18:12.94. Senior Betel Yosef tied her fastest-ever 5K effort, posting an 18:15.48 for the 20th position.
Liberty's next three runners came in consecutively in 27th, 28th and 29th place, with sisters Katie and Courtney Russo sandwiching junior Jessica Gass. Katie Russo's time was 18:23.37, followed by Gass in 18:24.54 and Courtney Russo in 18:24.98.
Gass made the team's most notable improvement upon her collegiate-best 5K clocking on Friday, lopping 59 seconds off of her previous best, 19:23. Meanwhile, Courtney Russo was the sixth-fastest freshman in the women's 5K race.
Sophomore Caroline Parris nearly made it seven Liberty runners under the 19:00 barrier on the day. She trimmed 36 seconds off of her fastest collegiate 5K time, clocking 19:04.24 for the 60th position.
Senior Lyndi Fielitz (82nd place, 19:32.14) and sophomore Mary Cate Cooper (87th place, 19:38.73) continued the parade of personal-best efforts for the Lady Flames.
Liberty will return to the Charlotte area for its next race, the Big South Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships on Oct. 27. Winthrop will host the event at the Winthrop Coliseum and Farm in Rock Hill, S.C.
The women's 5K championship will get the day started at 10:30 a.m., as the Lady Flames attempt to win their fifth Big South title in the last seven years. The Liberty men's team will then shoot for an unprecedented eighth consecutive Big South championship, in the men's 8K race at 11:30.


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Websites don't load - troubleshoot and fix error messages
Are you having trouble getting a website to load? Don't worry — we're here to help. This article will show you how to fix the problem so you can get back to surfing the web.
Table of Contents
- 1 First, let's figure out where the problem is
- 2 The problem only happens with certain websites
- 3 The problem only happens in Firefox
- 4 The problem happens in all web browsers
- 5 Other, less common problems
First, let's figure out where the problem is
With a little detective work, we can narrow down the cause of the problem.
- Open a new tab and check to see if you can load another website like google.com or mozilla.org.
- If you can open another site, skip down to The problem only happens with certain websites
- If you can't open another site, continue on to the next step.
- Launch another browser, like Internet ExplorerSafariGoogle Chrome, and try to open the site you were having problems with.
- If the site works in another browser, see The problem only happens in Firefox
- If the site doesn't work in another browser, check out The problem happens in all web browsers
The problem only happens with certain websites
If you see any of these error messages, it might just be a problem with Firefox's cache:
- The connection was interrupted
- The connection was reset
- The connection has timed out
Try clearing Firefox's cookies and cache
Do these steps and then reload the website you're having trouble with.
- Click the menu button , choose and select .
- In the Time Range to clear: drop-down, select Everything.
- Click the arrow next to Details to display the list of items that can be cleared.
- Select both Cookies and Cache.
- Click .
If clearing Firefox's cookies and cache didn't work, it's probably a sign that there is a problem with the website itself. In that case you'll just have to wait for it to get fixed. With big sites like Twitter or Facebook this may only be a few minutes.
If you don't see any of the error messages above, check to see if any of the specific problems below match what you see:
The website loads but doesn't work properly
If the website doesn't look right or doesn't work the way it's supposed to, you should check out the following articles:
- Websites look wrong or appear differently than they should
- Fix problems that cause images to not show
- Fix common audio and video issues
- Websites show a spinning wheel and never finish loading
- Fix login issues on websites that require a username and password. You may receive an error similar to We were unable to process your login request or An unspecified error has occurred when you attempt to sign in to websites with your username and password, or the login may simply fail.
- Websites look wrong or appear differently than they should
- Fix problems that cause images to not show
- Fix common audio and video issues
- Fix login issues on websites that require a username and password. You may receive an error similar to We were unable to process your login request or An unspecified error has occurred when you attempt to sign in to websites with your username and password, or the login may simply fail.
The problem only happens on a secure (https) website
Look at the web address in the location bar. Does it start with https:// (notice the "s")? If so, check if you see one of the following error messages:
- For a "Secure Connection Failed" error message, see the Troubleshoot the "Secure Connection Failed" error message article.
- For a "Your connection is not secure" error message, see the What does "Your connection is not secure" mean? article.
- If the error page shows a "SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER" error, see the How to troubleshoot the error code "SEC_ERROR_UNKNOWN_ISSUER" on secure websites article.
The problem only happens in Firefox
If another web browser works just fine, one of following solutions should fix things:
- Firefox can't load websites but other browsers can - if you can view websites in browsers other than Firefox.
- Fix problems connecting to websites after updating Firefox - if you experience connection problems after updating Firefox.
If you see the following error messages, Firefox is trying to access the internet through a proxy server :
- The proxy server is refusing connections
- Unable to find the proxy server
To check your proxy settings:
- Click the menu button and choose . .
- Select the panel.
- Select the Network tab.
- In the Connection section, click .
- Change your proxy settings:
- If you don't connect to the Internet through a proxy (or don't know whether you connect through a proxy), select No Proxy.
- If you connect to the Internet through a proxy, compare Firefox's settings to another browser's (such as Internet Explorer — see Microsoft's guide to proxy settings)(such as Safari — see Safari: Set up a proxy server).
- Close the Connection Settings window.
- Close the about:preferences page. Any changes you've made will automatically be saved.
The problem happens in all web browsers
This is probably a problem with your internet connection. See Firefox and other browsers can't load websites for some troubleshooting suggestions.
Other, less common problems
- A website reports that Firefox is outdated, incompatible, or not supported - See Websites say that Firefox is outdated or incompatible even though it's the latest version.
- A plugin has crashed - This means that a plugin which is being used to display content on the current page has unexpectedly quit. See Send plugin crash reports to help Mozilla improve Firefox for more information.
- Malicious website errors - If you see a "Suspected Attack Site!" or "Suspected Web Forgery!" warning, Firefox has blocked access to the website you're visiting to protect you from malware or web forgery (phishing). For more information, see Phishing and Malware Protection (Mozilla.org).
- Offline mode - If you see a message about offline mode, you may have set Firefox not to use your network connection. Make sure your computer has a network connection and then:
- Click the menu button , click and make sure is unchecked.
- The page isn't redirecting properly - This problem can be caused by problems with cookies. See Websites say cookies are blocked - Unblock them for more information.
- If you get a File not found error, try the troubleshooting steps in these articles:
- Content Encoding Error - If you get the error message, Content Encoding Error or The page you are trying to view cannot be shown because it uses an invalid or unsupported form of compression, use these steps to diagnose and fix them:
- Check the settings of any Internet security applications you use (including firewalls, anti-virus or anti-spyware programs, and privacy protection programs). You should try to remove any permissions those applications have for Firefox, and then add them again. For program-specific instructions for a number of applications, see Configure firewalls so that Firefox can access the Internet.
- Follow the Standard troubleshooting steps.
- This address is restricted - This error occurs when you are attempting to connect to a web server on a port that is reserved for another application. If the website you are trying to visit contains a colon followed by a number in its address (for example, http://website.com:23), try removing that portion (http://website.com) or replacing it with :80 (http://website.com:80). If this doesn't work, you may have been given an incorrect address.
Based on information from Error loading websites (mozillaZine KB)


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Decorate Your Office Right
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Decorate Your Office Right from Overstock.com. Here's how to create a comfortable and soothing workspace that also fosters efficiency.
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Office Supplies Buying Guide from Overstock.com. Our buying guides provide customers with detailed information about office supplies, answers to common questions and buying tips for our many brand-name products.
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H.Wilson Black Tuffy Mobile Video Cart with Cabinet and Flat Panel Mount
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text:
The entire list
New Information
Daily Comments
Gaziantep Olay TV – September7 - 2010
Adnan Oktar: Women are blessed beings. They are the beautiful manifestations of Allah. They are the breathtaking ornaments in the world and mines of compassion. They are the teachers who teach warmness, love and friendship in the best manner to the whole world. So, these blessed beings will obtain an excellent safety in the time of Hazrat Mahdi (as).
Mr. Ahmadinejad - September 23 - 2010
"Woman is a reflection of the grace of Allah and a source of love and compassion. Woman is the protector of purity and societal sensitivity."


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Animal rights groups have changed their tactics in recent years. Rather than run inflammatory ads in newspapers, or throw pies at pork queens, they're determined to build business-to-business relationships with food companies. Why? So they can influence how animals are raised with companies that buy large quantities of pork, like McDonald's, Burger King and most recently, Marriott.
Unfortunately, representatives of these groups have stretched the truth in terms of the number of operations that use group housing for gestating sows. Neil Dierks, Chief Executive Officer of the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) says animal rights groups have been very successful in "exploiting the gap of knowledge."
Dierks spoke at the Iowa Master Pork Producers breakfast last week in Des Moines, Iowa, during the 2013 Iowa Pork Congress. As CEO, he is responsible for the overall implementation of all NPPC programs, with emphasis on reasonable legislation, producer profitability and protection of producers' livelihoods.
According to Dierks, food companies are being told that more than 25% of gestating sows are already housed in groups, while in reality the number is closer to 6%. As a result, companies are going to have difficulty acquiring the animals they need to meet the 2018 timeline of having all animals sourced from operations that have group housing. Even a best-case scenario puts 15% of production in group housing by 2018, says Dierks.
Even more surprising is that many of these food companies haven't discussed the group-housing decision with their suppliers. At the present time, suppliers have no way to segregate animals based on how they were housed during processing, which means there is no verification process. In addition, the cost to achieve this goal will be significant.
Dierks asks, "At what cost" will these mandates be implemented? He believes that not only will the industry – and consumers – ultimately have to pay, but the industry will have an increased carbon footprint and it may be more difficult for small producers to change production practices than larger entities.
Public issues related to pork production are becoming increasingly important. Consumers want to know where their food comes from, how it's produced and how it's handled at every point along the food chain. It's the industry's responsibility to make sure all parties in the process, including the end user, know and understand best management practices.
Tell us what you think: How can industry leaders take a more proactive role in helping consumers and food companies understand how and why we raise animals the way we do? Let's consider some creative alternatives.


text: I've never been a believer in the guy and was very much against the hiring but being that he's Jerry's handpicked-handgroomed HC I understand he'll be here for the long haul, and I need something to point to that gives me hope with Garrett. If there's one thing we know about our owner it's that he loves to be right, and if Garrett proves to be a great HC Jerry will look like a genius... so like it or not we are still in the infancy of Garrett's tenure here. For his supporters, what are the unique coaching qualities you see in him that made/make you supporters and what has he improved on this team since taking over for Wade?


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Topic: Hello and Thank you
Very grateful for this forum. My 76 year old father was diagnosed in September 2012 with this horrible disease. Prior to this whole ordeal he was a healthy person. Just this summer he traveled through several countries in Europe with the family.
His cancer is stage 4 and has spread to a few nodes and the lining of the stomach. We has a metal stent and has undergone 2 cycles (6 treatments) of gemcitibine and cisplatin.
Today we are in the hospital since he started vomiting and Developed a fever on Friday. The doctors are trying to find the reason for the fever and are trying to put a tube down his throat to pump the clear mucus he keeps vomiting. However they haven't been able to get it all the way down without him pulling it out. He feels he is chocking. The doctors are saying that is his only option at this point and that we should start looking for home health care since the duodenum is being constricted. We are currently located in New Orleans but have everything set for him to receive treatment at Standford which is near where my sister and I live.
Anyone have any alternatives on how they could empty his stomach ? He isn't vomiting now. Also he hasn't had a bowel movement in over 5 days.
Thank you,


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You exercise your body to stay physically in shape, so why shouldn't you exercise your brain to stay mentally fit? With these daily exercises you will learn how to flex your mind, improve your creativity and boost your memory. As with any exercise, repetition is necessary for you to see improvement, so pick your favorite exercises from our daily suggestions and repeat them as desired. Try to do some mentalrobics every single day!
Once mastered, the Phonetic Mnemonic System is great for remembering things. It can be used exactly like the Link, Loci, or Peg systems to form visual associations. These associations work like a mental filing system for the information that you want to learn.
Additionally, it can be used with great success to remember numbers. We have already seen how you can use pegwords to remember numbers, and the phonetic system works in a similar way. It can actually be more efficient since a word can represent more than one digit.
Suppose that you are trying to remember the telephone number 756-1286. Using the phonetic system, we know that this number can be represented by the sounds c+l+ch + t+n+f+sh which you could remember by the words "clutch tuna fish." Similarly, you could remember the first few letters of pi (3.14159265) with the phrase "Mother day will buy any shawl."
Similar Articles
Practical Uses for Link and Story Systems
Keyword Mnemonic
Link Mnemonic System
Loci Mnemonic System
Acronyms & Acrostics
Related Content
Short Term Memory Test
Interactively test your short term memory.
Mentalrobics Public Forums
Chat about these articles and other mind related topics.
Sudoku Logic Puzzle
This puzzle requires logic and a good memory.


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Q & A — September 2003
By Capt. Ken Kreisler
Crack Craziness
| Dealing with stress lines
in gelcoat, eliminating odor from a freshwater tank, and more.
I've got what
looks like fine cracks on a small portion on the foredeck of my boat,
right near one of the bow rail stanchions. What is this, and how can I
get it repaired? H.K., via e-mail
If the cracks are structural or if you just can't stand the sight of them, WEST SYSTEM® has a fiberglass-repair manual that explains how to deal with the problem. The area must be first ground down, then filled with an epoxy filler, then sanded with ever-finer grits of sandpaper. Finally it is regelcoated. If the cracks are in your nonskid, the repair is trickier. Regardless of where it is, note that's it's always difficult to match new gelcoat color exactly to the original, particularly on older boats that have faded. I recommend calling in a professional.
Here's what to expect. The area will be ground out, then wiped with an appropriate solvent (one recommended by the manufacturer of the paint system being used). It will now have a shallow crater-like look that will be more evident to the touch than to the eye. The contractor will use epoxy resin and cloth to build the area back up. He'll cut the cloth into circles that get bigger as the repair advances from the center of the crater. Each layer will be wetted out with resin, and once each of these layers cures, he will do some minor filling and fairing. Once the entire area is evenly covered and the final layer is cured, filled, and faired, he will prime and paint the area.
If your foredeck is gelcoated, color matching can be done by using polyester or vinylester resins and fillers instead of epoxy, due to the fact that gelcoat doesn't cure properly over epoxy. If the deck is painted, you can use the epoxy for the repair and then repaint, since epoxies are stronger and will usually last longer than polyester or vinylester.
Next page > Eliminating Tank Odors > Page 1, 2, 3
This article originally appeared in the August 2003 issue of Power & Motoryacht magazine.


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There are many reasons why you may not want
to get treated for
post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
But you need to get treatment. Treatment can work, and
early treatment may help reduce long-term symptoms.1
Here are some reasons people don't seek treatment and what you
can do about them.
For more information, see the topic
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
CitationsBisson J (2010). Post-traumatic stress disorder, search date March 2009. BMJ Clinical Evidence. Available online: http://www.clinicalevidence.com.
Next Section:
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Last Revised:
January 9, 2013
Healthwise Staff
Medical Review:
Adam Husney, MD - Family Medicine & Jessica Hamblen, PhD - Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
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text:
Topic: Mom has night sweats & numb feet
My mom has been experiencing night sweats this week...the first since she completed chemo in March. I searched the sight and saw that many had sweats prior to their diagnosis. Has anyone had night sweats while cancer shrinking? I am afraid the cancer is in growth mode again! I think she is too.
She recently has complained about feeling like her feet are asleep. Her family doctor checked her and said they are not numb. He called it paresthesia and a side effect of chemotherapy. Has anyone else had this side effect?...I couldn't find it on the sight. If so, did you regain feeling?
I am so grateful for this "place." Julie


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The Crap We Missed – Friday 11.1.13
Welcome to Friday's The Crap We Missed which is, of course, buttloaded with rich people in Halloween costumes, and then capped with Nicki Minaj in formal wear. I'm also stepping in for Photo Boy to personally apologize for the roll-up ads that appear on every other pic now which is completely out of my hands and something I had no idea about until it showed up on the page. It's bullshit, and you deserve a better user experience, but there's nothing I can do about it except engulf them in dick jokes and celebrity breasts. Which is my solution for everything from a flat tire to what to get my family for Christmas. *draws a glowing penis on Rudolph*
Love you, Grandma,
- The Superficial
Click Here To Start The Gallery
Photo: Fame/Flynet, Getty, INFphoto, Pacific Coast News, Splash News, WENN


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High-fidelity VoIP
Polycom's mix of IP phones hits the high notes
Not so long ago, I wrote an article on Asterisk and open source VoIP in general. In my discussion with Mark Spencer, the founder of Digium and the Asterisk project, he recommended Polycom as the phone vendor he would choose for an Asterisk deployment. In the same article, I profiled Summer Bay Resorts, which runs Asterisk across multiple call centers and hundreds of agents, all with Polycom phones. You might think Polycom is onto something.
[ Polycom'sIP phones were selected to receive InfoWorld's Technology of the Year award. See the slideshow of all the winners in the networking category. ]
Polycom is known to most as the producer of the "boomerang" conference room speakerphone. With their instantly recognizable tricorner shape, these phones can be found in nearly every conference room in the United States. The rest of the product line hasn't received the same level of attention, but my time with the Polycom SoundPoint IP 650 executive phones shows that they deserve it. In addition to its wired sets, Polycom recently acquired SpectraLink and its VoIP Wi-Fi technology. I tested several SpectraLink Wi-Fi sets, a few IP 650 sets, and yes, the VoIP version of that ubiquitous speakerphone.
All three phones were tested with Asterisk running under Trixbox 2.0, and used with a variety of trunks, from ATA (Analog Telephone Adapter) bridges to the PSTN to pure SIP trunks served via BroadVoice. As with all VoIP phone tests, I tend to use my Cisco 7970 phone as the touchstone, since it's arguably the most advanced IP phone available on the market today.
SoundPoint IP 650 SIP desk phone
The IP 650 phone is Polycom's flagship model. Boasting a large paper-white display, six line buttons, a speakerphone, headset jack, and SIP functionality, the IP 650 is meant for the executive desk. It also features a direct-in power source, PoE, CDP (Cisco Discovery Protocol), and a 10/100 PC switchport with 802.1q trunking.
Setup and configuration of the IP 650, as for the rest of Polycom's SIP line, uses an FTP, TFTP (Trivial FTP), or HTTP server to deliver configuration files to each phone based on the phone's MAC (media access control) address. This means you can feed global configuration files to every phone simply by listing the file name within the appropriate XML tag in the phone-specific configuration file. This method permits a truly modular configuration platform to be developed and delivered, although as with any XML-based configuration, the files can get somewhat unwieldy when they reach a certain size.
The basis of the phone's configuration and application set is the Polycom firmware release. The phones will not function without a valid app set that is loaded on boot, and firmware upgrades are performed in a similar fashion: If the phone boots and one of the configuration files references a newer release than the phone is currently using, the new release is pulled down and loaded into the phone's flash.
Configuring each phone for use with Asterisk was a snap; all I had to do was change a few lines in the phone-specific configuration to note the Asterisk server address and assign extension, extension secret, and the text to display on the phone itself. The rest of the phone's configuration is handled via DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) or by hard-coding the parameters within the phone itself. Using DHCP to deliver the required data is very simple, requiring that a few options be defined with the IP address of the FTP or TFTP server. As long as the required files exist on that server, all is well.
Once the phone is operational, you have a wide variety of configuration and status options to choose from. With the admin code, it's even possible to get live network, CPU, and memory utilization graphs to display right on the phone, and the phone's full configuration is available during normal operation and at boot time. Further, a Web interface for each phone lets you make changes to the configuration, but surprisingly doesn't offer the option to reset or reboot the phone.
As far as call quality goes, the IP 650 is simply stellar. In fact, this is one of the best-sounding VoIP handsets I've ever used, with any codec. The noise cancellation is superb, and at times a little unsettling because the silence is so silent you begin to wonder if the call has been disconnected. On the downside, the default ring tones are annoying; only the lone sampled ring isn't terrible. There are slots for many more custom sampled ring tones though, so anything you can distill into a sample can be used. The message waiting light on the IP 650 works perfectly with Asterisk, as does the messaging menu on the LCD screen. (Here I might point out that my Cisco 7970 still doesn't properly handle a SIP message waiting signal.) Also, the IP 650 handled the long-cable-run PoE test better than any other phone I've tried, including the Cisco 7960. Whereas the 7960 would power up but eventually flake out, the IP 650 works flawlessly.
The IP 650 can also run custom applications to deliver corporate directories, interactive services, and the like right to the phone, using the built-in XHTML browser. The browser is relatively finicky though, and warnings in the documentation tell tales of phones rebooting and locking up when parsing invalid XHTML syntax.
The Polycom SoundPoint IP 650 is a solid, well-rounded VoIP handset that will not disappoint. At $449 MSRP, it's also cheaper than many high-end VoIP phones.
SoundStation IP 4000 SIP conference phone
The SoundStation IP 4000 speakerphone shares much with its analog brethren, including the distinctive boomerang shape and optional outboard microphone pods, but inside it's a whole new ballgame. The IP 4000 runs the same SIP code as the IP 650 and others in the Polycom line, so the options are standard and the configuration process is essentially the same. A few differences belie the fact that the IP 4000 is a slightly older device than the IP 650 sets, however. These are small things, such as different DHCP option defaults and option patterns, but they can be puzzling when trying to figure out why the phone isn't booting properly.
The IP 4000 I received was running a much older 1.6.2 version of the Polycom firmware, versus the current 2.1.1 version, and upgrading it wasn't as automatic as it should be, assuming that the phone boots and locates the boot server properly. The problem was that the IP 4000's default settings for the DHCP server option were different than those in the newer phones. Once I modified these settings to match the later models, the phone booted, updated its firmware, and popped online, ready to go.
The IP 4000 has the same paper-white LCD display as the IP 650, albeit much smaller. It's large enough to do basic navigation and configuration and gives the phone a very cutting-edge look. Although the firmware is the same, the phone is obviously far different than the handset phones. It does not really use PoE as in the 802.3af standard; it uses its own form of PoE with the included outboard injector. The injector is powered by a 19-volt, 1-amp power brick that delivers power to the IP 4000 via the included 20-foot heavy-duty Ethernet cable. The injector also houses the Ethernet connection, so it's possible to bury the injector and power supply in a distant corner or under a conference table and link to the IP 4000 with the 20-foot cable, reducing cabling mess. The IP 4000 can also drive two outboard microphone pods for extended reach.
Call quality on the IP 4000 is superb. I ran it in a mix of environments, from very quiet offices to a noisy lab with lots of ambient noise. Talking to folks on land lines and cell phones, I found that the IP 4000's noise cancellation could overcome high levels of external noise and deliver reasonably crisp audio. In fact, it performed quite well even when placed directly between the speaker and a loud air conditioner. At $1,099 MSRP, it's not a cheap solution, but it's arguably the best of breed. The heritage of the IP 4000 is full of top performers, and this edition is no different.
SpectraLink NetLink e340 wireless handset
There are many Wi-Fi VoIP handsets on the market now, running the gamut from the low-end consumer devices from Linksys and ZyXel to high-end corporate devices from Cisco and SpectraLink. These phones generally follow the same basic configuration path as their wired counterparts but require more device-specific configuration to allow them to gain access to the network, such as specifying the encryption type, ESSID (extended service set ID), and passwords. Generally, they're also stand-alone units. The SpectraLink e340 fits the former generalization, but not the latter, as it works with a SpectraLink Voice Priority (SVP) server and supported access points to ensure good voice quality.
The handsets are sleek, with a small LCD screen, a few multifunction soft buttons, and a charging base. Initial configuration of the phones is handled locally, and the phones can be assigned static IP addresses or get them from a DHCP server. In addition to the normal network configuration, you must also enter the IP address of an SVP server. The SVP server is a proxy server for the phones, acting as an intermediary between the SIP PBX and the phone itself.
The SVP server is an odd box that doesn't conform to any common IT hardware standard -- it won't fit nicely in a rack, for instance. It runs embedded Linux, and it has only a single tip-and-ring power connection and a single network connection. When a handset boots and contacts the SVP server, the SVP server then connects to the SIP server using another dedicated IP address. This means that each handset requires two IP addresses: one for the handset itself and another for the proxy connection to the PBX. From the PBX point of view, the extension is on an IP assigned to the SVP server, not the handset. This allows the SVP server to handle a variety of QoS tasks. Working with compatible access points, it pushes VoIP traffic to and from the handset to the top of the queue, ensuring that the latency-sensitive packets are delivered in a timely fashion. This results in better call quality and assists in AP roaming functions. The mechanism is a bit ungainly, but it serves a useful purpose. Further, multiple SVP servers can be configured in a redundant fashion.
Call quality on the e340 is good, assuming that the unit is reasonably close to an access point. Drifting further from the AP can result in transmitted voice taking on a "Donald Duck" tone while received audio is still clear and crisp. I also noted that the handsets will hang onto a distant AP longer than they should when another AP is closer. And the e340s are quirky to use. The soft buttons are not only very small, but require significant pressure to trigger. That said, my inclement weather test (basically, leaving a handset out in the rain overnight) resulted in some misting of the LCD screen, but no other ill effects. This certainly isn't a recommended use of the phones, but it's nice to know that a little water won't necessarily kill a handset outright.
Battery life is good. I conducted conversations lasting several hours with these phones without any problems. Also, they don't get nearly as hot during normal operation as some other Wi-Fi VoIP handsets, which is a definite plus. A hot phone is not conducive to normal conversation. The e340 does have a standard minijack at the bottom for a headset, though I did note some quality loss when using a Plantronics headset. And try as I might, I couldn't get the message waiting indicator to trigger on the e340. It's represented as an icon on the LCD screen, but it doesn't seem to work with Asterisk.
I've tested and used a variety of Wi-Fi VoIP handsets, and the SpectraLink NetLink e340 is right up there in terms of overall quality, ruggedness, and performance. I found a few minor annoyances and quirks, such as the difficult buttons and odd SVP server footprint and dual-IP scheme, but overall it's a worthy product.
There's still plenty of room to grow in this space, and as of yet, I haven't found the truly perfect VoIP phone. Given that VoIP rollouts require a variety of phone types to meet needs throughout the enterprise, standardizing on a single phone vendor is really the only way to go. It means less hassle, easier configuration, and smoother implementation. Collectively, these units show that Polycom is serious about VoIP and SIP telephony. The Polycom line has a little something for everyone, including lower-end handsets that I didn't test for this article. Especially in an Asterisk environment, Polycom phones are clear winners.
|InfoWorld Scorecard
Management (20.0%)
Value (10.0%)
Voice quality (25.0%)
Setup (20.0%)
Ease of use (25.0%)
Overall Score (100%)
|Polycom SoundPoint IP 650
|Polycom SoundStation IP 4000
|SpectraLink NetLink e340


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The Crap We Missed – Thursday 5.9.13
Welcome to Thursday's The Crap We Missed where we showcase photos we think you need to see, but don't necessarily have a ton of commentary for. Except for this Donald Trump pic. I've already written 32 pages of a book about what's wrong with this picture. Anyway, we've also got Craig Robinson and his impression of the studio exec's face when they look at the box office numbers for this movie, Billy Zane happily ended, Zac Efron from a dream I had last night on the set, and Wyclef Jean from a dream Wayne LaPierre had last night posing with his new custom guitar.
Liberal Pussy! My castle, freedom, slippery slope 2nd Amendment AHHHH!! I think I covered it all, right?
- Photo Boy
Click Here To Start The Gallery
Photo: Bauer-Griffin, Fame/Flynet, Getty, INF, Splash News, WENN


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Rayovac Lithium Battery – 3V Lithium Photo Batteries
Capture more of your special moments with a 3V lithium photo battery in your camera. Each Rayovac lithium battery provides exceptional performance at the best value. A 3V lithium photo battery will last through all your clicks, flashes and zooms. A Rayovac lithium battery will provide you with excellent performance and real value you expect for all your camera needs.
Our 3V lithium photo battery is guaranteed fresh and highly dependable, giving you more power for your money. Keep plenty of each 3V lithium photo battery on hand and never miss another camera moment. The Rayovac lithium battery we carry will give you long lasting quality for less cost than other higher-priced brands. Choose long-lasting Rayovac lithium battery for all your photo battery needs.


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THREE decades after the discovery of HIV the vast majority of people remain in the dark about the virus which affects nearly 160 patients in Swindon. A survey taken by 5,000 people and carried out by the National Aids Trust has shown Britons were ignorant of the realities of living with human immunodeficiency virus.
While a third of those polled did not realise people with the virus could work as nursery teachers or chefs, 20 per cent believed HIV positive patients could only expect to live for 10 years.
Only five per cent knew it was almost impossible to pass on HIV through unprotected sex if the patient is being successfully treated.
The findings were disappointing but came as no surprise to Steve Jones, regional manager for the Terrence Higgins Trust, an HIV and sexual health charity.
"Sadly this is not surprising to us," he said. "Some people think there is a cure for HIV – it's treatable but there is no cure – and some people still believe that you can get HIV through kissing or touching the same crockery.
"I think we were very good at dispelling these myths 10 or 15 years ago but generally HIV is not talked about as much now and the myths are creeping back in.
"There is an assumption that people know about HIV. We need to normalise discussions around HIV and in schools.
"For the last few years the priority has been around chlamydia and teenage pregnancy. Swindon has done very well in reducing its level in both. "Now we have to look at reducing levels of HIV through education and make sure people know that there is a simple way of protecting themselves. Condoms are widely available."
In 2013, 159 people were HIV positive in Swindon.
Between 2009 and 2011, 36 patients were diagnosed with the virus in the town.
Aids is the final stage of HIV infection, when the body can no longer fight life-threatening infections.
With early diagnosis and effective treatment, most people with HIV will not go on to develop Aids.
An estimated 100,000 people are HIV positive in the UK, of whom about 22,000 are thought to be undiagnosed.
Lack of regular HIV testing is also a growing concern, Steve said.
"One of the things we are concerned about is that more people are diagnosed later," he said. "This means that there has been damage to the immune system already when it is diagnosed. People are not being tested as frequently as they could or being tested at all.
"We are also seeing more older women diagnosed with HIV. They have come out of a long-term relationship and are not worried about getting pregnant so don't think they have to use a condom. They just don't think about protecting themselves."


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Gas-Electric Coordination
Natural gas is increasingly becoming the fuel of choice to generate electricity, and gas demand from the power sector is projected to grow substantially given expectations that natural gas prices will remain relatively low and stable and that a significant amount of coal-fired generation may close due to environmental restrictions. The increased use of natural gas to generate electricity, however, has some in the gas industry concerned. When a large gas-fired generator is dispatched to serve electric needs, the pull on the gas system can be great causing changes in pipeline pressures and reducing system flexibility to meet other customers needs. While many gas-fired generators have contracted for firm pipeline capacity and gas supplies, others especially peaking generators have relied on interruptible capacity and spot market purchases. During periods of peak gas demand, there may be little or no interruptible pipeline capacity available to serve generators that have not contracted for their own capacity, threatening electric reliability. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission ( FERC ) has initiated a regulatory proceeding and held several regional and national technical conferences to address how the natural gas and electricity markets can be better coordinated to increase reliability for customers.
AGA Viewpoint
AGA believes that the overall goal of gas-electric coordination efforts should be to preserve and, where appropriate, enhance reliability for all customers, both natural gas and electric. Natural gas resources in North America are abundant and provide an opportunity for the natural gas industry to solve many of our country's energy needs, including the direct use of natural gas in homes and businesses, as a feedstock in manufacturing, and as a fuel for electric generation. The key to realizing the full value of natural gas is the continued development of a robust natural gas infrastructure along the entire value chain so that natural gas can be delivered wherever and whenever it is needed to those who value it the most. Accordingly, the increased use of natural gas for electric generation should be accompanied by an appropriate expansion of the natural gas infrastructure needed to meet the needs of all customers on the natural gas system, and the costs of such expansions must be fairly allocated in accordance with the principle that the costs of new infrastructure should be borne by those who caused the costs to be incurred. In that regard, electric market rules should provide adequate incentives, e.g., through appropriate cost-recovery mechanisms, for electric generators to ensure the adequacy and reliability of their fuel supplies. For natural gas-fired generators this may mean firm gas supply contracts, firm transportation capacity on interconnected pipeline(s), storage or other services to balance load variations, dual-fuel capability with on-site alternate fuel storage, or some combination of the above. The adequacy of a generator's fuel supply should be a factor in considering whether the generator is reliable for electric reliability purposes.
For more information, please visit our Natural Gas and Electric Interdependence webpage.
AGA Contact: Michaela Burroughs, 202-824-7311, firstname.lastname@example.com


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As already explained, KERNEL32 maps quite a few of its APIs to NTDLL. There are however a couple of things which are handled directly in KERNEL32. Let's cover a few of them...
Windows implements console solely in the Win32 subsystem. Under NT, the real implementation uses a dedicated subsystem csrss.exe Client/Server Run-time SubSystem) which is in charge, amont other things, of animating the consoles. Animating includes for example handling several processes on the same console (write operations must be atomic, but also a character keyed on the console must be read by a single process), or sending some information back to the processes (changing the size or attributes of the console, closing the console). Windows NT uses a dedicated (RPC based) protocol between each process being attached to a console and the csrss.exe subsystem, which is in charge of the UI of every console in the system.
Wine tries to integrate as much as possible into the Unix consoles, but the overall situation isn't perfect yet. Basically, Wine implements three kinds of consoles:
the first one is a direct mapping of the Unix console into the Windows environment. From the windows program point of view, it won't run in a Windows console, but it will see its standard input and output streams redirected to files; thoses files are hooked into the Unix console's output and input streams respectively. This is handy for running programs from a Unix command line (and use the result of the program as it was a Unix programs), but it lacks all the semantics of the Windows consoles.
the second and third ones are closer to the NT scheme, albeit
different from what NT does. The wineserver
plays the role of the csrss.exe subsystem
(all requests are sent to it), and are then dispatched to a
dedicated wine process, called (surprise!)
wineconsole which manages the UI of the
console. There is a running instance of
wineconsole for every console in the
system. Two flavors of this scheme are actually implemented:
they vary on the backend for the
wineconsole. The first one, dubbed
user, creates a real GUI window
(hence the USER name) and renders the console in this window.
The second one uses the (n)curses library
to take full control of an existing Unix console; of course,
interaction with other Unix programs will not be as smooth as
the first solution.
The following table describes the main implementation differences between the three approaches.
Table 8-4. Function consoles implementation comparison
|Bare streams
|Wineconsole & user backend
|Wineconsole & curses backend
|Console as a Win32 Object (and associated handles)
| No specific Win32 object is used in this case. The
handles manipulated for the standard Win32 streams are in
fact "bare handles" to their corresponding Unix streams.
The mode manipulation functions
GetConsoleMode() /
SetConsoleMode()) are not supported.
|Implemented in server, and a specific Winelib program (wineconsole) is in charge of the rendering and user input. The mode manipulation functions behave as expected.
|Implemented in server, and a specific Winelib program (wineconsole) is in charge of the rendering and user input. The mode manipulation functions behave as expected.
| Inheritance (including handling in
CreateProcess() of
CREATE_NEW_CONSOLE flags).
|Not supported. Every process child of a process will inherit the Unix streams, so will also inherit the Win32 standard streams.
|Fully supported (each new console creation will be handled by the creation of a new USER32 window)
|Fully supported, except for the creation of a new console, which will be rendered on the same Unix terminal as the previous one, leading to unpredictable results.
ReadFile() /
WriteFile() operations
|Fully supported
|Fully supported
|Fully supported
|Screen-buffer manipulation (creation, deletion, resizing...)
|Not supported
|Fully supported
|Partly supported (this won't work too well as we don't control (so far) the size of underlying Unix terminal
|APIs for reading/writing screen-buffer content, cursor position
|Not supported
|Fully supported
|Fully supported
|APIs for manipulating the rendering window size
|Not supported
|Fully supported
|Partly supported (this won't work too well as we don't control (so far) the size of underlying Unix terminal
|Signaling (in particular, Ctrl-C handling)
| Nothing is done, which means that Ctrl-C will generate (as
usual) a
SIGINT which will terminate
the program.
|Partly supported (Ctrl-C behaves as expected, however the other Win32 CUI signaling isn't properly implemented).
|Partly supported (Ctrl-C behaves as expected, however the other Win32 CUI signaling isn't properly implemented).
The Win32 objects behind a console can be created in several occasions:
When the program is started from wineconsole, a new console object is created and will be used (inherited) by the process launched from wineconsole.
When a program, which isn't attached to a console, calls
AllocConsole(), Wine then launches
wineconsole, and attaches the current
program to this console. In this mode, the
USER32 mode is always selected as Wine
cannot tell the current state of the Unix console.
Please also note, that starting a child process with the
CREATE_NEW_CONSOLE flag, will end-up calling
AllocConsole() in the child process, hence
creating a wineconsole with the
USER32 backend.
Another interesting point to note is that Windows implements handles
to console objects (input and screen buffers) only in the
KERNEL32 DLL, and those are not sent nor seen
from the NTDLL level, albeit, for example,
console are waitable on input. How is this possible? Well, Windows
NT is a bit tricky here. Regular handles have an interesting
property: their integral value is always a multiple of four (they
are likely to be offsets from the beginning of a table). Console
handles, on the other hand, are not multiple of four, but have the
two lower bit set (being a multiple of four means having the two
lower bits reset). When KERNEL32 sees a handle
with the two lower bits set, it then knows it's a console handle and
takes appropriate decisions. For example, in the various
kernel32!WaitFor*() functions, it transforms
any console handle (input and output -
strangely enough handles to console's screen buffers are waitable)
into a dedicated wait event for the targetted console. There's an
(undocumented) KERNEL32 function
GetConsoleInputWaitHandle() which returns the
handle to this event in case you need it. Another interesting
handling of those console's handles is in
WriteFile()), which behavior, for
console's handles, is transferred to
ReadConsole() (resp.
WriteConsole()). Note that's always the ANSI
version of
ReadConsole() /
which is called, hence using the default console's code page. There
are some other spots affected, but you can look in
dlls/kernel to find them all. All of this is
implemented in Wine.
Wine also implements the same layout of the registry for storing the preferences of the console as Windows does. Those settings can either be defined globally, or on a per process name basis. wineconsole provides the choice to the user to pick you which registry part (global, current running program) it wishes to modify the settings for.
Table 8-5. Console registry settings
|Default value
|Percentage of cell height to which the cursor extents
|Whether the cursor is visible or not
|The way the edition takes place in the console: 0 is insertion mode, 1 is overwrite mode.
|Whether the console should close itself when last running program attached to it dies
|No default
|Name of the font to be used for display. When none is given, wineconsole tries its best to pick up a decent font
|The high word in the font's cell height, and the low word is the font cell's width. The default value is 12 pixels in height and 8 pixels in width.
|Weigth of the font. If none is given (or 0) wineconsole picks up a decent font size
|Number of entries in history buffer (not actually used)
|Whether the history should store twice the same entry
| This mask only exists for Wine console handling. It
allows to know which combination of extra keys are need to
open the configuration window on right click. The mask
can include
MK_CONTROL or
MK_SHIFT bits. This can be needed
when programs actually need the right click to be passed
to them instead of being intercepted by
|If null, mouse events are sent to the application. If non null, mouse events are used to select text on the window. This setting must really be set on a application per application basis, because it deals with the fact the CUI application will use or not the mouse events.
|The high word is the number of font cells in the height of the screen buffer, while the low word is the number of font cells in the width of the screen buffer.
|Default color attribute for the screen buffer (low char is the foreground color, and high char is the background color)
|The high word is the number of font cells in the height of the window, while the low word is the number of font cells in the width of the window. This window is the visible part of the screen buffer: this implies that a screen buffer must always be bigger than its window, and that the screen buffer can be scrolled so that every cell of the screen buffer can be seen in the window.
Wine is also able to run 16 bit processes, but this feature is only supported on Intel IA-32 architectures.
When Wine is requested to run a NE (Win 16 process), it will in fact hand over the execution of it to a specific executable winevdm. VDM stands for Virtual DOS Machine. This winevdm is a Winelib application, but will in fact set up the correct 16 bit environment to run the executable. We will get back later on in details to what this means.
Any new 16 bit process created by this executable (or its children) will run into the same winevdm instance. Among one instance, several functionalities will be provided to those 16 bit processes, including the cooperative multitasking, sharing the same address space, managing the selectors for the 16 bit segments needed for code, data and stack.
Note that several winevdm instances can run in the same Wine session, but the functionalities described above are only shared among a given instance, not among all the instances. winevdm is built as Winelib application, and hence has access to any facility a 32 bit application has.
Each Win16 application is implemented in winevdm as a Win32 thread. winevdm then implements its own scheduling facilities (in fact, the code for this feature is in the krnl386.exe DLL). Since the required Win16 scheduling is non pre-emptive, this doesn't require any underlying OS kernel support.
SysLevels are an undocumented Windows-internal thread-safety system dedicated to 16 bit applications (or 32 bit applications that call - directly or indirectly - 16 bit code). They are basically critical sections which must be taken in a particular order. The mechanism is generic but there are always three syslevels:
level 1 is the Win16 mutex,
level 2 is the USER mutex,
level 3 is the GDI mutex.
When entering a syslevel, the code (in dlls/kernel/syslevel.c) will check that a higher syslevel is not already held and produce an error if so. This is because it's not legal to enter level 2 while holding level 3 - first, you must leave level 3.
Throughout the code you may see calls to
_ConfirmSysLevel() and
_CheckNotSysLevel(). These functions are
essentially assertions about the syslevel states and can be used to
check that the rules have not been accidentally violated. In
_CheckNotSysLevel() will break
probably into the debugger) if the check fails. If this happens the
solution is to get a backtrace and find out, by reading the source
of the wine functions called along the way, how Wine got into the
invalid state.
Every Win16 address is expressed in the form of selector:offset. The selector is an entry in the LDT, but a 16 bit entry, limiting each offset to 64 KB. Hence, the maximum available memory to a Win16 process is 512 MB. Note, that the processor runs in protected mode, but using 16 bit selectors.
Windows, for a 16 bit process, defines a few selectors to access the "real" memory (the one provided) by DOS. Basically, Wine also provides this area of memory.
The behaviour we just described also applies to DOS executables, which are handled the same way by winevdm. This is only supported on Intel IA-32 architectures.
Wine implements also most of the DOS support in a Wine specific DLL (winedos). This DLL is called under certain conditions, like:
In winevdm, when trying to launch a DOS application (.EXE or .COM, .PIF).
In kernel32, when an attempt is made in the binary code to call some DOS or BIOS interrupts (like Int 21h for example).
When winevdm runs a DOS program, this one runs in real mode (in fact in V86 mode from the IA-32 point of view).
Wine also supports part of the DPMI (DOS Protected Mode Interface).
Wine, when running a DOS programs, needs to map the 1 MB of virtual memory to the real memory (as seen by the DOS program). When this is not possible (like when someone else is already using this area), the DOS support is not possible. Not also that by doing so, access to linear address 0 is enabled (as it's also real mode address 0 which is valid). Hence, NULL pointer dereference faults are no longer caught.


text:
The California and Pacific Northwest Chapters of ISPE are pleased to present our annual Service and Supplier Directory for our members and the entire industry.
After downloading, please open "Bookmarks" to find the pages you are looking for.
To find any product, service or company go to "Edit", "Find" and enter the word or words you are looking for then "Enter" and it will take you to each reference of that word.
Click on any Web site address and it will take you to that Web site.
Click on any email address and an email to that person will be set up.
This Directory is designed to be a valuable resource to the West Coast biotech and pharmaceutical industries in locating the vendor resources they need and finding the local representative that can provide these products and services. It is our goal to make this as all-inclusive as possible and to increase the listings each year, so it truly will be a valuable resource. We encourage those making purchasing decisions to consider using companies who are supportive of ISPE and the local industry.
I hope this year's Directory will be a resource for you when seeking resources for products and services.
Kimberly Syre
ISPE Chapter Manager (LA, SD, SF Chapters)


text:
Sally Hawkins Gossip
Sally Hawkins gossip, latest news, photos, and video.
Maudie is a delight
Splash News
And it's worth lining around the block for. In Maudie, Ethan Hawke and Sally Hawkins unexpectedly fall in love and fit together like a "pair of old socks. Full Story
Exclusive: Look out for Ethan Hawke & Sally Hawkins in Maudie
Mongrel Media
According to Ethan Hawke, working with Sally Hawkins in Maudie - a film about Canadian folk artist Maud Lewis, who had juvenile rheumatoid arthritis - was a "match made in cinema heaven. Full Story
Sally Hawkins: Oscars Best Dressed (Duana)
Jason Merritt/ Kevork Djansezian/ ROBYN BECK/ Frazer Harrison/ Getty Images
Here we go. Is this the one that's gonna be a fight? This was my favourite dress of all of them last night. It felt new and different and fresh. It felt like it was trying something. It's a really neat and forward-looking dress, and if it's a little bit extra, well, that's what the Oscars are FOR: Extra. Full Story
Colin Farrell's spa friend
Keystone, Jason Merritt/ Kevin Winter/ Handout/ Getty
Kelly emailed me earlier today about these photos of Colin Farrell leaving a spa yesterday. She wondered whether or not the woman with him is Emma Forrest. That doesn't look like Emma Forrest to me. But it does look a lot like Sally Hawkins who was just nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Oscar for her performance in Blue Jasmine. Full Story
Dear Gossips,
BAFTA nominations were announced today and the major snub is a major surprise:
Sally Hawkins was totally shut out. And she's British! They replaced her with the Jolie in the Best Actress category, along with 2 nods for Kate Winslet in both The Reader and Revolutionary Road, and rounded o the category out with Kristin Scott Thomas in I've Loved You So Long which, if you haven't seen yet, will cut you off at the knees. She is magnificent. And as such, Anne Hathaway wasn't invited to the party either.
Instead, BAFTA wanted the Brange. Like Kate Winslet, Brad Pitt also received 2 nominations and it will be Slumdog vs Benjamin Button with each film earning 11.
Well…they did put the name of their major sponsor in the official TITLE of the event. It's actually called the Orange British Academy Film Awards. The equivalent in North America would like saying the Verizon Academy Awards. Or the Verizon Oscars.
So Pitt Porn is going to England. February 8th hosted by Jonathan Ross.
Thursday – new posts all day.
Yours in gossip,
Globes Most Hungry: Sally Hawkins
She made Victoria Beckham look healthy. Seriously, I was alarmed when she started making her way to the stage. Those arms! Those little arms! Oh Sally… Sally's emotion was charming, as was Emma Thompson's in-audience support, though seriously it's like she hasn't eat since Meryl Streep last won an Oscar. Full Story


text:
The economic downturn that began in 2008 has taken a toll on businesses, and the fitness industry is no exception. Declining memberships and greater competition have been among the challenges facing fitness facility owners. However, some owners have taken the opportunity to regroup by filing for Chapter 11.
The idea of filing for bankruptcy may seem intimidating and scary to club op
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