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COMMENT: Outtakes
On the RoadBy Aaron Lazenby
An interview with Oracle President Mark Hurd
Profit magazine Editor in Chief Aaron Lazenby recently interviewed Oracle President Mark Hurd for his insights on leadership, the state of the technology industry, and Oracle's product strategy. Hurd also reflected on his first year as president of what he calls "arguably the best-positioned IT company in the world." Excerpts from the interview appear below. For more of his thoughts, see "Mark Hurd: The Road Ahead," in the February 2012 issue of Profit magazine.
Lazenby: What initially attracted you to the technology industry?
Hurd: I was a business major in college and I liked the pace, the speed, and the growth opportunities in the technology industry. Technology offers the opportunity to completely transform businesses, and there's no doubt in my mind that it's still the most exciting place to be today.
Lazenby: What's the biggest change you've seen since your first technology job more than 30 years ago?
Hurd: Consumers today are more powerful, more global, and accessing more data—from everywhere in the world. And with the systems they have in place now, companies aren't going to be able to get consumers all the information they want when they want it. Data is doubling every three to three-and-a-half years. However fast you think the world has changed, that change is accelerating, and it's getting tougher to keep up.
Lazenby: What do you see as the core IT challenges facing businesses today?
Hurd: We as an industry have pushed tremendous complexity onto the customer. Can you imagine buying a car from the IT industry? You'd get a muffler dropped off in your driveway. Someone else would drop off a set of seats. Another person would bring the pistons. Then you'd hire a systems integrator to come put it all together. At some point you'd have a car in your driveway, but then they'd say, "Well, you can't really drive it on the weekends because we've got a batch upload that happens then." In the IT industry, someone sells you a server, someone else sells you a storage array, we give you some software, and you get other software from someone else. Then you have to put it all together and make it work. And by the way, when something is broken, you figure it out. In the end, our industry has to change. We have to get people to think about this differently—to think about the opportunity before them now to integrate multiple pieces of their infrastructure so it all becomes simpler.
Lazenby: How is Oracle working toward this change?
Lazenby: As the highest-profile free agent executive on the market when you joined Oracle, why was this company the right fit for you?
Hurd: You don't get many recruitment calls from companies that say, "Hey, why don't you come to work for a very well-positioned company, to help make it greater? Oh, by the way, nothing is broken." Taking something that's really good and making it great—there aren't many of those opportunities.
Lazenby: How would you describe Oracle's corporate culture?
Hurd: Oracle is a very focused company with a performance-oriented culture. It's got a clear strategy, it's got an operating model that supports that strategy, and it's got great people. And I think it's a company that can be catalyzed to do even more and do it faster.
Aaron Lazenby is editor in chief of Oracle's Profit magazine.
Send us your comments


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SFA chief executive Stewart Regan insists Scotland caretaker boss Billy Stark can fire himself into the reckoning for the job on a full-time basis in Luxembourg tonight.
The Scotland Under-21 coach has been handed the task of taking charge of the national team for the friendly in the wake of Craig Levein's departure.
With names such as Gordon Strachan and Joe Jordan being linked with the post, Stark would have to be regarded as a rank outsider to be handed the role on a full-time basis.
But with the SFA board still to discuss the process and time- scale of choosing a permanent successor, Regan believes tonight's match offers the former Queen's Park boss the perfect opportunity to put himself in the running.
Regan said: "Billy has got a great opportunity to show what he can do. He's a great guy, he has been very committed to the Under-21s.
"He has agreed to take this position on an interim basis, until the board have decided on the next step. Depending on how Billy performs and his own views, then clearly we would keep the door open for any potential candidate at this stage."
It has been suggested Stark isn't overly keen to be considered for the position and is content to carry out as manager of the Under-21 team.
But he says he is focusing all his efforts in attempting to make sure the players bounce back from a poor start to the World Cup qualifiers.
"I'm honoured and privileged to be asked to take the team," he said. "The main aim in a general sense is for the players to produce a good performance and a result, and I'm looking no further than that."
Stark has watched as many as nine players withdraw from the original 21-man squad which was named on Sunday, but Stark says it hasn't come as a major shock.
He said: "I think when you're involved in international management, as I have been with the 21s, you have a feel for how it works.
"The full job is exaggerated and magnified a thousand times.
"I have been doing my level best to get the most enjoyment I can out of this in terms of being professional and doing a good solid job. But I have said to the players that we want to make this a positive experience and the only way we will do that for all of us is if we get a good performance and a good result."
Senior players such as Kenny Miller have admitted they feel they let Levein down for failing to deliver the performances and results when it mattered.
Stark said: "I'm trying to paint that picture for them, that every international game they should have a point to prove, that we want to be better regarded in world terms in terms of where we are as a football nation.
"Every game we play gives us an opportunity to do that. Some obviously carry greater pressure and importance than others.
"I'm not saying this is the most important game Scotland's played, far from it. But for some young players that are involved, it is the most important game.
"The ones we have brought in have brought a good freshness and enthusiasm to the group and the other ones have sparked off that as well, so I couldn't be more delighted."

subset: commoncrawl


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Mathematical Problems in Engineering
Volume 2011 (2011), Article ID 763429, 47 pages
Rayleigh Waves in Generalized Magneto-Thermo-Viscoelastic Granular Medium under the Influence of Rotation, Gravity Field, and Initial Stress
1Mathematics Department, Faculty of Science, Taif University, Taif 21974, Saudi Arabia
2Mathematics Department, Faculty of Science, South Valley University, Qena 83523, Egypt
3Mathematics Department, Faculty of Science, Umm Al-Qura University, P.O. Box 10109, Makkah 13401, Saudi Arabia
Received 4 December 2010; Revised 14 January 2011; Accepted 25 February 2011
Academic Editor: Ezzat G. Bakhoum
Copyright © 2011 A. M. Abd-Alla et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
The surface waves propagation in generalized magneto-thermo-viscoelastic granular medium subjected to continuous boundary conditions has been investigated. In addition, it is also subjected to thermal boundary conditions. The solution of the more general equations are obtained for thermoelastic coupling. The frequency equation of Rayleigh waves is obtained in the form of a determinant containing a term involving the coefficient of friction of a granular media which determines Rayleigh waves velocity as a real part and the attenuation coefficient as an imaginary part, and the effects of rotation, magnetic field, initial stress, viscosity, and gravity field on Rayleigh waves velocity and attenuation coefficient of surface waves have been studied in detail. Dispersion curves are computed numerically for a specific model and presented graphically. Some special cases have also been deduced. The results indicate that the effect of rotation, magnetic field, initial stress, and gravity field is very pronounced.
1. Introduction
The dynamical problem in granular media of generalized magneto-thermoelastic waves has been studied in recent times, necessitated by its possible applications in soil mechanics, earthquake science, geophysics, mining engineering, and plasma physics, and so forth. The granular medium under consideration is a discontinuous one and is composed of numerous large or small grains. Unlike a continuous body each element or grain cannot only translate but also rotate about its center of gravity. This motion is the characteristic of the medium and has an important effect upon the equations of motion to produce internal friction. It was assumed that the medium contains so many grains that they will never be separated from each other during the deformation and that each grain has perfect thermoelasticity. The effect of the granular media on dynamics was pointed out by Oshima [1]. The dynamical problem of a generalized thermoelastic granular infinite cylinder under initial stress has been illustrated by El-Naggar [2]. Rayleigh wave propagation of thermoelasticity or generalized thermoelasticity was pointed out by Dawan and Chakraporty [3]. Rayleigh waves in a magnetoelastic material under the influence of initial stress and a gravity field were discussed by Abd-Alla et al. [4] and El-Naggar et al. [5].
Rayleigh waves in a thermoelastic granular medium under initial stress on the propagation of waves in granular medium are discussed by Ahmed [6]. Abd-Alla and Ahmed [7] discussed the problem of Rayleigh wave propagation in an orthotropic medium under gravity and initial stress. Magneto-thermoelastic problem in rotating nonhomogeneous orthotropic hollow cylinder under the hyperbolic heat conduction model is discussed by Abd-Alla and Mahmoud [8]. Wave propagation in a generalized thermoelastic solid cylinder of arbitrary cross-section is discussed by Venkatesan and Ponnusamy [9]. Some problems discussed the effect of rotation of different materials. Thermoelastic wave propagation in a rotating elastic medium without energy dissipation was studied by Roychoudhuri and Bandyopadhyay [10]. Sharma and Grover [11] studied the body wave propagation in rotating thermoelastic media. Thermal stresses in a rotating nonhomogeneous orthotropic hollow cylinder were discussed by El-Naggar et al. [12]. Abd-El-Salam et al. [13] investigated the numerical solution of magneto-thermoelastic problem nonhomogeneous isotropic material.
In this paper, the effect of magnetic field, rotation, thermal relaxation time, gravity field, viscosity, and initial stress on propagation of Rayleigh waves in a thermoelastic granular medium is discussed. General solution is obtained by using Lame's potential. The frequency equation of Rayleigh waves is obtained in the form of a determinant. Some special cases have also been deduced. Dispersion curves are computed numerically for a specific model and presented graphically. The results indicate that the effect of rotation, magnetic field, initial stress, and gravity field are very pronounced.
2. Formulation of the Problem
Let us consider a system of orthogonal Cartesian axes, Oxyz, with the interface and the free surface of the granular layer resting on the granular half space of different materials being the planes and , respectively. The origin is any point on the free surface, the -axis is positive along the direction towards the exterior of the half space, and the -axis is positive along the direction of Rayleigh waves propagation. Both media are under initial compression stress along the -direction and the primary magnetic field acting on -axis, as well as the gravity field and incremental thermal stresses, as shown in Figure 1. The state of deformation in the granular medium is described by the displacement vector of the center of gravity of a grain and the rotation vector of the grain about its center of gravity. The elastic medium is rotating uniformly with an angular velocity , where is a unit vector representing the direction of the axis of rotation. The displacement equation of motion in the rotating frame has two additional terms, is the centripetal acceleration due to time varying motion only, and is the Coriolis acceleration, and .
The electromagnetic field is governed by Maxwell equations, under the consideration that the medium is a perfect electric conductor taking into account the absence of the displacement current (SI) (see the work of Mukhopadhyay [14]): where where is the perturbed magnetic field over the primary magnetic field vector, is the electric intensity, is the electric current density, is the magnetic permeability, is the constant primary magnetic field vector, and is the displacement vector.
The stress and stress couple may be taken to be nonsymmetric, that is, , . The stress tensor can be expressed as the sum of symmetric and antisymmetric tensors where
The symmetric tensor is related to the symmetric strain tensor The antisymmetric stress are given by where is the coefficient of friction between the individual grains. The stress couple is given by where is the third elastic constant, , and so forth, are the components of the resultant acting on a surface.
The non-symmetric strain tensor is defined as where .
The dynamic equation of motion, if the magnetic field and rotation are added, can be written as [15] The heat conduction equation is given by [16] where is density of the material, is thermal conductivity, s is specific heat of the material per unit mass, are thermal relaxation parameter, is coefficient of linear thermal expansion, and are Lame's elastic constants, is the absolute temperature, , is reference temperature solid, is temperature difference , is the mechanical relaxation time due to the viscosity, and .
The components of stress in generalized thermoelastic medium are given by If we neglect the thermal relaxation time, then (2.11) tends to Nowacki [17] and Biot [18].
The Maxwell's electro-magnetic stress tensor is given by which takes the form
The dynamic equations of motion are where is the Earth's gravity and
From (2.3)–(2.8) and (2.11), we have Substituting (2.17) into (2.14) and (2.16) tends to then
Also, then and, from (2.16), we have where
3. Solution of the Problem
By Helmholtz's theorem [19], the displacement vector can be written in the displacement potentials and form, as which reduces to
Substituting (3.2) into (2.19), (2.22), and (2.24), the wave equations tend to where
Substituting (3.2) into (2.10), we obtain
From (3.3) and (3.7), by eliminating , we obtain where
From (3.4) and (3.5) by eliminating , we obtain
For a plane harmonic wave propagation in the -direction, we assume
From (3.12) into (2.20), (2.23), and (2.25), we get where
The solution of (3.14) and (3.15) takes the form where , and are arbitrary constants.
From (3.13) and (3.17), we obtain then
Substituting (3.11) into (3.8) and (3.10), we obtain where
The solution of (3.20) takes the form where the constants and are related to the constants and in the form Substituting (3.22) into (3.11), we obtain and values of displacement components and are where , and are taken to be the complex roots of the following equation where
From (3.4), (3.11), (3.12), (3.22), and (3.23), we obtain
Using (3.22) and (3.11) into (3.3), we obtain
With the lower medium, we use the symbols with primes, for , and , for ,
4. Boundary Conditions and Frequency Equation
In this section, we obtain the frequency equation for the boundary conditions which are specific to the interface , that is,(i), (ii), (iii), (iv), (v), (vi), (vii), (viii), (ix)(x), (xi), (xii), (xiii).
The boundary conditions on the free surface are(xiv), (xv), (xvi), (xvii), (xviii), (xix), (xx).
From conditions (iii), (v), (vi), and (vii), we obtain Hence,
The other significant boundary conditions are responsible for the following relations:(i)(ii)(iv)(viii)(ix)(x)(xii)(xiii)(xvi)(xvii)(xviii)(xx)
5. Special Cases and Discussion
5.1. The Magnetic Field, Initial Stress, and Thermal Relaxation Time Are Neglected
In this case (i.e., , and ), (3.26) tends to where
Also, Using the boundary conditions, we obtain where
5.2. The Magnetic Field, Initial Stress, Rotation, and Thermal Relaxation Time Are Neglected and in Viscoelastic Medium
In this case (i.e., , , and), the previous results obtained as in Abd-Alla et al. [20].
5.3. Absence of the Gravity Field
In this case, we put , then (3.20) becomes where and , and are as in (3.21).
The solution of (5.6) take the form where and and are taken to be the complex roots of equation where


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Football board and committee positions survey
The Office for the Community Sector is working with Sport & Recreation Victoria and AFL Victoria in seeking information from people on the boards of community groups and sporting clubs.
These questions are being asked by the Office for the Community Sector and Sport & Recreation Victoria to find out what motivates people to undertake board and committee positions in the community and not for profit sector; what training is required for board members, and, what is important to those that sit on local boards and committees.
We know how hard and important the job is to be on your local footy committee, and are keen to find out further information so that we can provide better information and support to those of you on club committees through programs and education.
Please take the time to complete one of the below surveys - it will take no longer than 10 minutes and is mostly 'tick the box' format.
No personal information is gathered on you - and we encourage you to be as honest as possible with your answers.
To complete, press 'Ctrl + Click' on the following link(s):
COMPLETE SURVEY NOW -> For current league/club board member or executive office bearers.
COMPLETE SURVEY NOW -> For those that are interested in becoming a club/league board member in the future.
Both surveys close on Friday December 14.
Comment Guidelines: The SportsTG Network is made up of players, families and passionate sports followers like you who have a strong opinion about sport. That's great - we want you to have your say and share your thoughts with the world. However, we have a few rules that you must follow to keep it fun for all. Please don't be rude, abusive, swear or vilify others. Apart from some pretty serious sport sanctions, we also can ban you and report you if things get out of hand. So play fair and have fun, and thanks for your contribution.


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Some good Martha Stewart frosting recipes include her basic buttercream and chocolate frosting recipes. Both recipes are simple to make and take only a few minutes to prepare.Continue Reading
The basic buttercream recipe uses 6 sticks of unsalted butter, 9 cups of confectioner's sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of pure vanilla extract to make 6 cups of frosting, enough to coat one 8-inch layer cake. Beat the butter and 3 cups of sugar with a mixer on medium speed until combined. Reduce the mixer speed to medium low, and add the remaining sugar 1 cup at a time while continuously mixing. Increase the speed to medium-high, add the vanilla, and beat until the frosting is pale and fluffy, which takes about three minutes.
The chocolate frosting uses 12 ounces softened cream cheese, 1 1/2 sticks softened unsalted butter, 4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder and salt. It also requires 18 ounces of melted and slightly cooled bittersweet chocolate and 1 1/2 cups creme fraiche or sour cream. First, beat the cream cheese and butter with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, then gradually sift and add the sugar, cocoa powder and salt. Add the melted chocolate and creme fraiche while continuously blending.Learn more about Desserts


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I know what you guys are thinking, it is still summer since Fall does not officially start until September 22 and Holiday collections are already coming out soon? Yup, that's how it normally is & every year, many of us are also wondering what the next palette from Urban Decay will be! I have seen some images shown to me from associates and pictures from instagram the past few weeks, but today, better pictures were posted of the inside of the palette NEW Vice 2 palette so I just had to share!
It is the same concept as the first Vice palette, but the outer packaging (not shown here) is a tie-dye looking color with pink and purple throughout the outside packaging. The images were posted on Sephora Mexico's instagram & fer_rosa29.
I also know that there is possibly the return of the UD face palettes. In the past, UD has included their lip gunks, blush & eyeshadows in a small palette so I wonder how it would be this time because I did not like that the cremes were so close to the powder, so maybe they have a new way of separating them?
What do you think about the Vice 2 so far?


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Congestion, Safety Concerns Near Amelon Elementary
Monelison, VA - The Amherst County public safety director says a new public safety building wouldn't just help the people who work inside, but also those who use a road hundreds of school children travel on every day.
The new building would put the Monelison Rescue Squad and Monelison Volunteer Fire Department under one roof and move them away from Amelon Elementary school.
Between ambulances backing up, fire trucks pulling out, and school buses pulling in - rescue workers are worried it's only a matter of time until something collides.
"It's coming...it's coming," said Captain Vicki Padgett.
Padgett says school buses and parents trying to get into and out of Amelon Elementary school often ignore the signs and block the rescue squad's driveway. She says sometimes that forces ambulances onto the opposite side of the road to respond to calls.
Volunteer firefighters trying to get to Route 29 are facing the same problem. The congestion can mean a longer response time for rescue crews, or even a safety hazard for parents.
"You've got a school right here, you've got a fire department here, you've got the EMS unit right here," Ricky Dunn said, pointing to the buildings that surround his granddaughter's elementary school.
"If we can do something to eliminate those hazards, then we're improving safety for our community and also for our providers," said Gary Roakes.
Roakes says it's just another reason a new public safety building makes sense.
"The goal is to leave this building and come back safely and in one piece," added Padgett.
It could be several months before the board makes a decision on the new public safety building.
This Tuesday, the board of supervisors could decide to enter into a contract with the rescue squad and volunteer fire department. They'd still have to decide on funding and draw up plans for the project before even officially signing off.


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Even though this set is very hot it might be the last Lindsey Strutt set I post because her boobs seems to be smaller and smaller as time goes by! It sucks because she's a staple of this site but I can't justify posting her titties unless she gains some weight or something. This set of Lindsey in white panties and white tank top is still nice!
Pictures from: Official Lindsey Strutt
You can't call yourself a Lindsey Strutt fan if you haven't checked out her website!
|Cam Girls:
Carmen Bella
Cherry Blonde
8 Comments to "Lindsey Strutt in White Panties and a Tank Top"
April 12th, 2012 at 10:04 am
Did she get a reduction or something? Her boobs are smaller but it doesn't look like shes lost weight elsewhere on her body. Shame either way. I just remember how awesome she looked in that one loaded shoot with Lucy pinder. Ah well.
April 12th, 2012 at 10:06 am
This one:
April 12th, 2012 at 11:59 am
Very sexy!
April 12th, 2012 at 1:14 pm
Thanks @Sam for that link! I did not fully grasp (how I'd love to fully grasp…) the extent to which they have shrunk until I looked at those pictures. I mean, she still looks good and they still outweigh (literally AND figuratively… zing!) Alot of the jumblies posted here, but we can't support the downsizing of tits like this! They were so, so nice back then.
Also, @Sam I think her face actually looked thinner back then too. Who knows what Photoshop wonders were used, but I'm leaning toward a surgical reduction…
April 12th, 2012 at 3:04 pm
Yeah, it's a CRYING shame! I'm pretty sure I've commented on one of her other posts on here along the same lines too. The vids of her when she was at her peak are just UNREAL. One of the greatest combinations of beautiful face thin waist, curvy hips and ractacular goodness I've ever seen.
April 12th, 2012 at 6:44 pm
And yet Boobpedia still maintains her bra size is 34H (or 34GG). Conspiracy I say!
April 16th, 2012 at 10:29 am
You "can't justify posting her titties unless she gains some weight or something"? Nik, we don't care if she's lost weight, she's just as hot. Please carry on posting her!
April 17th, 2012 at 1:53 am
She looked her best in 2009 and 2010; at that time she was perfection and arguably the hottest woan on the planet. After thta, she lost weight so her face looked thinner and some of her curves shrank .


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Lalita Pawar (18 April 1916—24 February 1998) was a prolific Indian actress, who later became famous as character actress, appearing in over 700 films in Hindi and Marathi cinema, where she gave hits like, Netaji Palkar (1938), made by Bhalji Pendharkar, New Hana Pictures' Sant Damaji, Navyug Chitrapat's Amrit, written by VS Khandekar, and Chhaya Films' Gora Kumbhar. Her other memorable roles were in film, Anari (1959), Shri 420 and Mr & Mrs 55, and the role of Manthara, in Ramanand Sagar's television epic serial, Ramayan.
Born Amba Laxman Rao Sagun, on (18 April 1916, into an orthodox family in a village, Yevle in Nashik, where her father Laxman Rao Shagun was a rich silk and cotton piecegoods merchant , she started her acting career at age nine, as a child artist in the film, 'Raja Harishchandra' (1928), and later went on to play lead roles in silent era and 1940's films Hindi cinema, in a career that lasted until the end of her life, spanning seven decades.
Her first marriage was to G.P. Pawar, a stunt film director , who directed most of her later silent, and initial sound films . She co-produced and acted in a silent film, Kailash (1932), and later produced another film,


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BP Comment Quick Links
|Strength of Schedule Report
February 7, 2014
Minor League Update
Caribbean Series Game of February 6
We're down to the semifinals of the Caribbean Series, which means only one game per night. Thursday night's game involved the Dominican Republic falling to a not-exactly-prospect-laden Mexican team. For the MLU, that means you're getting an update on every borderline prospect in action, no matter how many times you've heard their names in the past two months. We've made it through the whole winter together. Don't jump off the ship now.
The Good
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Major Leaguers in Action
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A rapidly growing luxury sleepwear brand on a mission to own 'the pyjama'
Desmond & Dempsey are a rapidly growing retailer of luxury sleepwear on a mission to own 'the pyjama'. We make products that make every day feel like a Sunday, launching with women's pyjamas designed as 'his shirt for her'. In a sleepwear market full of impractical silk pyjamas at extravagant price tags we have successfully identified a gap in the market for quality fashion forward pyjamas. Through our website alone we have sold over 2,000 pairs & generated £196k revenue to date. We've been covered extensively in prestigious press outlets from Vogue to the New York times & secured repeat orders from top international retailers such as Selfridges & Bergdorf Goodman and are ready to scale.
D&D has launched with women's pyjamas designed as 'his shirt for her'. In a sleepwear market full of impractical silk pyjamas at extravagant price tags, D&D offers 100% luxury cotton pyjamas at accessible prices. By focussing on cotton and developing unique prints in house, Desmond & Dempsey has been able to produce pyjamas at far more accessible price points, yet maintain the quality and value associated with top end luxury brands. We are positioned alongside the high end silk brands offering extremely favourable value comparisons. For Christmas '16 we will launch a our first mens collection. Future products include bed linen & childrenswear. Ultimately we aim to 'own the bedroom'.
The opportunity for Desmond & Dempsey, is to fill a significant gap in the £12bn sleepwear market. With retailers reporting 34% increases in YoY sales, pyjama dressing has cemented itself as a fashion trend that is here to stay.The market is polarised by two types of brands. High street brands offering pyjamas as part of their wider product assortment, competing on price. At the other end of the market, there are labels offering impractical silk pyjamas (dry clean only) retailing for £250+ and appealing only to very select group.
Currently, no brand owns the vertical. In the same way as Vilebrequin has cemented itself as the go-to high end swimwear brand, D&D wants to be the go to PJ brand.
E-commerce & direct to consumer currently accounts for 80% of our sales and we estimate it will continue to make up no less than 70% of our sales mix. Currently our gross margin is 65% through e-commerce & we predict this growing to 75% – 80% as we scale up production volumes. Our average basket size online is currently £130 and repeat customers account for 35% of our revenue.
Wholesale are planned at 50 – 60% discount, yet still expected to bring bottom line results. Wholesale plays an important role in establishing brand awareness, positioning the brand & reaching an international audience. Wholesale also allows us to boost production volumes to boost GP.
Based on our projections and comparing recent exits, Desmond & Dempsey predict an enterprise valuation of +£8 million within four years and a business exit, likely via trade sale, within 5 – 7 years. Recent exits include the purchase of comparable beach lifestyle brand Vilebrequin by G-III apparel for $114m and a significant rise in fashion IPOs from accessible luxury brands Michael Kors ($3.7bn – 44x earnings) and Salvatore Ferragamo ($380m – 24x earnings). Barney Battles, our FD has an exit history of over 20 trade sales and 4 IPOs and his corporate finance experience will be extremely valuable as we grow the business.


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Forums > General Industry > Dreamweaver...fastest way to get up and running?
I finally decided to splurge and get the software package considered to be the best website building tool: Dreamweaver (CS6). I got the Adobe "Classroom in a Book" book that is very highly recommended, and I went through all the lessons from start to finish.
However, I wasn't prepared for how NOT "...open-it-up-and-start-building-a-website..." it is!!
I'm getting my website built, but it's really slow and tedious. Anyone have suggestions for good reference books, and/or other quick, easy and cheap ways to get up to speed with it? (The "Classroom in a Book" is fairly good for learning the basics, but doesn't make much of ANY kind of reference book at all!)
I've built and maintained 3 different websites from scratch over the past 7 years, first using "Yahoo Sitebuilder" (a complete free program that Yahoo web hosting clients can download and use to build sites from scratch), and later using "SiteSpinner" (a $50 simple but complete program for building sites from scratch). I built my current website with it:
Both programs I used before were VERY easy to use - about like using Word or PowerPoint or Excel - but Dreamweaver seems to be a tool you can only use if you possess tons of info on HTML, CSS, Java, etc.
May 06 13 12:20 pm Link
Posts: 25277
Portland, Oregon, US
Don't get me started.
Dreamweaver is the industry leader. It is capable of handling anything you've ever seen on a web site.
... It's interface is not intuitive,
... It's not a good tool for non-trained website developers,
... It's very complex,
... It presumes an extensive knowledge by its users,
... etc.
I'm not ashamed to admit that I loved Microsoft's Front Page (which has been obsolete for several years now)...
... It had a user interface nearly exactly like MS Word,
... It had tons of built-in templates for all sorts of web page design,
... It was WYSIWYG,
... In short, it was a good tool for casual web site developers.
My web site is still developed by Front Page.
I have been looking for a suitable replacement for Front Page, and I haven't yet found one. The ones I've found either still expect their users to be knowledgeable about HTML & web site protocols, and most don't come with professionally designed templates.
Ooops -- I guess you did get me started. Sorry about the rant.
Okay -- how about this? Look for some adult education classes in Dreamweaver. A city like Dallas should have a few -- I know there are several here in Portland. That might get you started.
Also, if it help you get organized, put together a word processor version of your page -- if you have a specific idea of what it should look like, it'll be easier for you to get a web editor to match your previsioned page (plus you can cut & paste the text).
May 06 13 01:52 pm Link
Posts: 77
Los Angeles, California, US
Gary, do a search on Youtube for anything you want to do. Someone has already done it and made a video about it. You'll learn a lot from those videos. I didn't try to learn everything when I first started, I just focused on the tasks I needed for my project.
May 06 13 01:57 pm Link
Posts: 1389
Beckley, West Virginia, US
I used Dreamweaver in college 8 years ago. Didn't really like it, but good luck with it. Maybe its better now. I hear Dreamweaver doesn't even support Windows 8 yet. Sucky OS, but I expect new programs to support all operating systems.
If you end up having no luck with Dreamweaver and give up, try out CoffeeCup..that's a little easier to use.
May 06 13 02:00 pm Link
Posts: 6261
Lodi, California, US
Dreamweaver does the html coding for you. I'm taking a class on building sites
now. I think the sites that you built from scratch are drag an drop style and other
than source images, the codes css' and behaviors don't live on your machine,
and only exist on the host servers.
May 06 13 02:03 pm Link
Posts: 13
Odenton, Maryland, US
I don't mean to sound like a troll here and people will probably frown upon me asking this, but is there something you're trying to accomplish on your website that you can't do by using Wordpress? It's quick and easy to setup, and there is pretty much a widget that you can get to do almost anything you need.
I used Dreamweaver about 6 years ago when I was still in High School, but that was also when we still typed a bunch of HTML out. Never really liked it to be honest.
May 06 13 02:09 pm Link
Posts: 1042
Santa Fe, New Mexico, US
Dreamweaver is more than anyone needs.... Go to www.jimdo.com and make a free page, or a Pro page for 5 bux a month... Here's one of my pages from Jimdo...
www.nudespoetic.com Keep it simple...
May 06 13 02:12 pm Link
Buggin Out Photography wrote:
I'm slogging along. It just takes me a while to make something work right...finding the right CSS rule to modify, or figuring out when to create a new CSS rule or whether to create and assign a "class" or maybe use an "ID", etc.
May 06 13 02:15 pm Link
Wordpress themes for you my man!
May 06 13 02:18 pm Link
Posts: 77
Los Angeles, California, US
Terrell Gates wrote:
That's simple all right...but honestly it's hideous. Not your images, but the site layout. No one wants to scroll a gillion times to look at images. You need one portal that stays in frame and displays your images. At least that's what most photographers have on their sites. It was exhausting scrolling down your page.
May 06 13 02:19 pm Link
Jim McSmith wrote:
You must not have gone to my current website, which is for my publishing company. Everything I've seen with Wordpress and the like look like personal and/or social websites. I need the complete flexibility to create something that looks as commercial as possible, and allows me to use my domain.
May 06 13 02:26 pm Link
Posts: 13
Odenton, Maryland, US
Gary Melton wrote:
There are no differences between a .com and a .org to my knowledge. My site's domain is registered through GoDaddy and my Hosting is through ReliableHosting. I have a friend who runs .orgs and .coms off a Yahoo hosting service.
May 06 13 02:41 pm Link
Posts: 3570
San Antonio, Texas, US
Dreamweaver is not a beginner user friendly software for building web sites, but I think it's the most powerful. You should go with the some of the sites like GoDaddy or Wix to do your web page, as you can build one with their templates in several hours.
May 06 13 02:53 pm Link
CrowX2M wrote:
Wordpress.COM and Wordpress.ORG are 2 different websites you can go to in order to create a website. Websites from Wordpress.COM* are free...no web hosting, domain or other charges; while websites from Wordpress.ORG* are NOT free...you have to buy web hosting and a domain, etc.
May 06 13 02:55 pm Link
Ruben Sanchez wrote:
As I said in my OP, I've built several websites using much simpler, easier web design tools - I want to use Dreamweaver to create more advanced (more professional looking) websites. (And I've been purchasing my web hosting from Yahoo Small Business for several years now.)
May 06 13 03:02 pm Link
What I did was set up was set up a Wordpress account and install it at BlueHost with their installation software. I then purchased a theme from Photocrati for 50 bucks and then I made selective alterations using HTML in the wordpress browser and the Photocrati software integrated with Wordpress so i could easily upload my own logos. I looked at Dreamweaver and realised it was too advanced for me and was aimed at those designing websites all the time.
May 06 13 03:11 pm Link
Posts: 6261
Lodi, California, US
one thing I'll be working on is sort of a Dreamweaver cheat which is
making three program workflow that is actually a little faster, it goes
Photoshop>slice and dice in Fireworks>assemble in Dreamweaver.
That might be easier to get it to look like you want.
May 06 13 03:15 pm Link
Jim McSmith wrote:
Yeah - quite a bit can be done with free and cheap web design software, and/or by using already on-line options (like wordpress)...but I've already had my website(s) for years that I've created using the low-cost software route. I finally wanted to graduate to the next more professional looking/operating level...and I knew Dreamweaver was about the only way to go to get the virtually unlimited options I wanted.
May 06 13 03:18 pm Link
Motordrive Photography wrote:
Yeah - I'm building some of my components in PhotoShop, then bringing them into Dreamweaver.
May 06 13 03:21 pm Link
Posts: 12117
Tampa, Florida, US
Ruben Sanchez wrote:
May 06 13 03:35 pm Link
I guess what I'm really looking right for now are recommendations for a good Dreamweaver reference manual or 2...something I can use to help guide me, and to find solutions to problems in...
May 06 13 03:45 pm Link
Posts: 12117
Tampa, Florida, US
Gary Melton wrote:
Give me a second to look through my archives. I have several DW books, some dating back to the Macromedia days.
May 06 13 03:50 pm Link
Posts: 1042
Santa Fe, New Mexico, US
Kenoe Foto wrote:
There's a slideshow on the first page... I am not a photographer I am a painter who makes photographs now and then... and don't always do what others tend to do. Hope you recover...
May 06 13 03:57 pm Link
Posts: 307
Jackson, Tennessee, US
See if Lynda.com or youtube has any tutorials that could be of use.
May 06 13 04:10 pm Link
In 2008 when the economy tanked I had a few panic ridden months of little work on my hands. I decided to take up Dreamweaver and do my own site and had the same notions that you sound like you had. In the end I decided that I'm a photographer and not a web designer. Because even if I came up to speed on Dreamweaver, I realized that it would take work to stay up to speed, and that time was better used mastering the photography workflow, and doing stuff like taking pictures.
There are a bunch of pretty inexpensive template sites you can use. Personally I use viewbook. Unless you want to really get into web design my advice is to hire someone who knows how to do it right, get a template, or use something like livebooks, viewbook, etc...
May 07 13 05:13 pm Link
Posts: 740
San Francisco, California, US
thats because Dreamweaver is bloatware
just get a joomla template or any other kind of template with some nice transitions
May 07 13 05:53 pm Link
Posts: 157
Trussville, Alabama, US
Uninstall and buy Adobe Muse.
May 07 13 06:00 pm Link
Posts: 373
Palatine, Illinois, US
Gary Melton wrote:
You must not be looking hard. Lots of companies uses Wordpress including plenty of major corporate sites. Here's a bunch of them: http://wordpress.org/showcase/
May 07 13 06:22 pm Link
Well, I thought I was making some serious progress...but for every 3 steps I go forward, I'm taking 2-1/2 steps back.
Wow, this is frustrating! I had my home page and 2 other major pages done late last night - thought I was well on my way and would have 4 or 5 more pages done today...but I have had to delete everything and start over from scratch 3 times today (that's delete ALL pages, templates and style sheets and start over!). I'm learning the hard way that there are certain steps you make which CANNOT be un-done!
Currently, all I have is my home page about 1/2 finished. Maybe tomorrow I'll get 4 or 5 pages done...
[luckily, my site will only require about 25-30 pages right now]
May 07 13 06:46 pm Link
Can I ask why you aren't just using a pay service that has great customization? With viewbook ( and no I don't work for viewbook but I just love the cost for what i get and can do ) I pay like $25 per month for the premium package. Spend your time planning, producing, and taking pictures unless you have a passion for web design. All clients want is to see your images and view them in a way that doesn't make them have to work some more.
Are you selling photography or are you selling web design? It's really two completely different things and I doubt you have the time to manage both.
May 07 13 07:38 pm Link
Posts: 12221
Los Angeles, California, US
Gary Melton wrote:
Wordpress, although it has evolved to include some CMS-like features, it is not a CMS. Wordpress is a blog builder.
May 07 13 07:50 pm Link
Gary Melton wrote:
If you've got 25-30 pages then my initial inclination is that you could use an edit.
May 07 13 07:52 pm Link
Posts: 10812
Clearwater, Florida, US
Douglas_Elgenor wrote:
+1 on Lynda.
May 07 13 07:56 pm Link
Posts: 45
Diamond Bar, California, US
It's been a couple of years since I've built my web page using DW. But even back then, in order to really make DW work, one needed to understand Cascading Style Sheets. Usually called CSS among web developers.
I would suggest any book by Eric Meyer. Actually, I would suggest all of them that he has in print. I have two of them and they are superb. Basically cascading style sheets allow you to make global decisions about all the pages on your site and put those decisions in one place. That way if you wish to change the background color or a font style, you do it in one place and those changes are reflected throughout all the pages in your site.
I found that coming up with the look of my site, and making decisions about color schemes, font sizes and whatnot was a huge part of creating a web site. That part really needs to be nailed down first. Eric Meyer has lots of good, easy to construct ideas along those lines that you can use to get yourself started.
Once you have your site decisions made, DW allows you to create your pages either in HTML mode or Text mode. Or, they allow you to split the screen and see both at the same time. I found the split screen especially helpful. That feature was what got me to purchase DW back when it was a stand alone program many years ago.
I would also look around for a good current book on HTML. Both a reference and...well...I hate them but something similar to a Dummies sort of basic book that can help you get started building basic web pages.
Then you can, use the split screen, to help you learn what HTML code that DW is creating for you when you make entries in text mode. After a while, you will seamlessly go back and forth between text mode and HTML mode.
It is true that DW has all kinds of functions. Most of which you'll never need. So, I wouldn't worry about anything at first but the basics. They will be enough to get your pages built.
As always, this opinion is worth what you paid for it.
May 07 13 08:30 pm Link
Seems that most people are not paying much attention to what I'm presenting as my situation:
- I own a PUBLISHING COMPANY...I PUBLISH BOOKS...photography is one part of that. The website I'm re-designing from scratch using Dreamweaver is a commercial/business site...NOT a blogging site, or a social site, or a portfolio site. It is to sell the books I publish for myself and others.
- I have created and maintained a total of about 9 websites over the last 7 years: 3 all new versions each for 3 different businesses that I have owned and operated. All 9 websites were created totally from scratch with software, but with software that was very user friendly...you just dragged and dropped objects, set up a design and the software did 90% of the programming work. They were still a lot of work...probably averaging around 200-300+ hours each to build. The down side is that there is limited flexibility...can't put all the professional whistles and bells into it I'd like.
- I got Dreamweaver to finally build a website with ALL the bells and whistles. My frustration with it is how little the 3000 or so hours of website building experience I have has helped me.
Using Dreamweaver to build a web site is like me (an English speaker) trying to explain to someone who knows about 20 English words how to cook a very elaborate meal...versus trying to explain the same thing to someone who is totally fluent in English (i.e. compared to how building websites with simpler software was like).
- I WILL KICK DREAMWEAVER'S ASS before this is all done with and I'll finally have more the class of website I've always wanted.
...Thanks for letting me vent....
May 07 13 09:20 pm Link
Ever heard the phrase, 'jack of all trades and master of none'? You're trying to do too much.
May 07 13 10:05 pm Link
Posts: 365
Los Angeles, California, US
May 08 13 04:18 am Link
Posts: 414
Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Fuck that. Got trained in dreamweaver hated the shit out of it. I eould build 100 websites in flash before I used it again
May 08 13 04:24 am Link
Posts: 414
Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
Jim McSmith wrote:
Disagree some peoples minds never switch off
May 08 13 04:27 am Link
Jim McSmith wrote:
Scarlett de la Calle wrote:
Thank you Scarlett!
May 08 13 09:45 am Link


text:
Kilnsey: Dales Heritage Field School 3-22 July 2013
Arrangements will be made for students looking for accreditation, please get in touch.
Minimum booking 3 days. There are several campsites in the area, and a Youth Hostel in Kettlewell.
Cost: £15 per day, minimum 3 days
Contact: Roger Martlew, Chapel Beck, Kettlewell, Skipton, North Yorkshire BD23 5RL
Telephone: 01756 760821
Email: firstname.lastname@example.com
Swaledale: Hagg Farm 10-21 June 2013
Swaledale and Arkengarthdale Archaeology Group (SWAAG) will be undertaking a two-week excavation of a possible Iron Age/Romano-British settlement. They will be exploring by excavation under professional supervision the results of topographical and geophysical surveys, suggesting the presence of a substantial farmstead/settlement of Iron Age/Romano-British character. Possible Romano-British pottery has been also been exposed in the area by mole activity.
Participants with some experience are particularly welcome. Minimum Age 18
The excavation will be led by Archaeological Services Durham University (ASDU) at Hagg Farm, Fremington, Reeth, where SWAAG will be excavating what is believed to be the main settlement platform. So far this high status settlement appears to have some unique structures which we hope to elucidate further [See last years dig blogs: Dig 1 Dig2]. This excavation is open to non-members whether experienced or not.
(Note: Sat 15 and Sun 16 June are not formal dig days, but if they are the only days you can come then there may be some activity. Please enquire)
Guidance will be given to those who have not excavated before.
Cost: £5/day for non-members and £3/day for members. Membership is currently £20/year.
We have to make a charge for SWAAG excavations that are professionally lead to help towards covering the cost.
Non-members must book ahead just in case it is over subscribed.
B&Bs, hostels, and hotels nearby.
More information:
Peter Denison-Edson email@example.com
YORK: ARCHAEOLOGY LIVE! 2013 24 June - 13 Sep
York Archaeological Trust ARCHAEOLOGY LIVE! 2013
Monday 24th June - Friday 13th September
The Archaeology Live! training excavations had been taking place as part of the Block H excavations at Hungate, York since 2007. However, the Block H site was finished at the end of 2011 leaving a huge archive of material to look through and make sense of, but also a number of questions. The 2013 season offers the chance to return to Block H and investigate a new area, focussing on the demolished church of St. John-in-the-Marsh. The archaeology will be of various periods, including:
Roman - Will we find Roman archaeology and what nature will it be? There should be Roman remains extending into this part of the site and as it was a natural high point in the landscape will there be any Roman structures which took advantage of this
Anglo-Scandinavian - The church could be pre-conquest in date so can we prove this one way or another? There is also potential for Viking archaeology that may relate to domestic activities.
Medieval - What survives of the church? In 2002 we found traces of the northern wall as well as burials surrounding the building. We hope to find more of the church in 2013 and get a better idea of the extent of the cemetery. We do not intend to dig any burials, but will record them in-situ, digging into earlier deposits where no burials survive.
Post-Medieval - What happened to the church in the 15000s? In 2002 we found what we thought was a demolition layer across some trenches, so can we find more and prove it was from the church. We will also look at what they used the plot of land for in the 17th and 18th centuries, hopefully more evidence of the Cordwainers.
19th Century onwards - How did this plot of land develop during the 19th century? Hopefully we will find more remains of people who developed this parcel of land and how it fell into decline at the end of this period.
Archaeology Live! 2013 will hopefully give us a chance of answering some of these questions, as well as adding to our knowledge of the Hungate area in all periods. The excavations will take place in the southeast corner of Block H.
The training excavation provides a way to learn about and participate in excavation, recording, planning, finds processing, environmental sampling, and processing. Any other specific requests for training may also be available on application. Professional field archaeologists provide all the training throughout the course.
During Archaeology Live!, the archaeology will be excavated and recorded by the trainees; the trainers teach and assist when required. It is a field-based training programme where people learn by doing the excavation, and by discovering and recording the archaeology themselves, rather than by classroom-based tuition.
For more information contact:
E-mail firstname.lastname@example.com
Mobile: +44 (0) 7908 210026
North Duffield: Community Excavation 2013 20-26 July
Further investigation of Iron Age features discovered in 2012. No experience required and all tools and instruction provided.
Contact Details
Organiser: North Duffield Conservation & Local History
Website: ndchs.org.uk
Humber Field Archaeology
Volunteers are always welcome for work on excavations and off-site finds processing. Longer term student placements are also possible on specific projects, by arrangement.
Occasional joint projects have taken place with local archaeological societies and university departments. Contact us for further details.
Contact us
Humber Archaeology Partnership
The Old School
Northumberland Avenue
Tel: (01482) 217466
Email: email@example.com


text:
Fortune Magazine released their yearly "Best Companies to Work For" list. Google tops the list, followed by Boston Consulting Group and the SAS Institute. Long Island based companies failed to make the list, but a handful of New York City businesses are there including American Express, KPMG, and Goldman Sachs.
Newsday.com now uses Facebook for our comment boards. Please read our guidelines and connect your Facebook account to comment.


text:
Durant Embracing Silicon Valley Investments PGA Tour Trying To Keep Woods-Hosted Event in DC Leiweke Details Renovated KeyArena Plans Bulls Hire Doug Collins As Senior Adviser OU May Consider Moving Home Hoops Games De Smith Stays With NFLPA Until At Least '21 WFAN's Mike Francesa Will Leave As Scheduled New NBA Ads Focus On Telling Deeper Stories Mystic Lake Casino Lands Super Bowl Music Venue Stelfox Leaving Zebra Tech After Five Years
SBD/February 15, 2013/Research and RatingsPrint All
NBA Attendance Relatively Flat Compared To Prior Seasons; Kings Down In Sacramento
NBA teams are averaging 17,135 fans per game heading into All-Star Weekend, flat compared to same period during the lockout-shortened season in '11-12, but down slightly compared to same period during the '10-11 season. The Bulls lead all clubs with 21,736 fans per game, down slightly from previous seasons, but still enough to pack United Center to 103.9% capacity. The Nets' move to Brooklyn is paying dividends at the gate. The team is up an NBA-best 23% compared to last season, and up 22% compared to two seasons ago. With the Kings' future in Sacramento uncertain, the team is seeing attendance drop at Sleep Train Arena. The club's attendance is down an NBA-worst 10% to date. Listed below is NBA team-by-team attendance through Feb. 14, with comparisons to similar periods the last two seasons (THE DAILY).NBA ATTENDANCE THROUGH FEB. 14
Bulls27586,87521,736103.9%-0.6%11-1.9%33 Mavericks25499,20619,968104.0%-1.3%16-1.8%33 Heat26518,07219,926101.7%0.2%140.0%33 Trail Blazers25492,68819,70898.6%-3.8%15-3.8%33 Warriors23441,59219,20098.0%2.4%161.8%33 Clippers26498,99719,192100.7%-0.5%13-0.1%33 Knicks*27513,89119,033100.0%-3.7%14-3.7%33 Lakers27512,91918,997100.0%0.0%140.0%33 Jazz26489,10618,81294.5%-3.2%16-2.6%33 Celtics29540,09618,624100.0%0.0%180.0%33 Spurs24441,66118,40399.0%1.4%140.0%33 Thunder26473,27818,203100.0%0.0%110.0%33 Raptors27487,47418,05591.2%7.3%137.2%33 Magic28497,75217,77793.5%-5.8%16-5.9%33 Nuggets25429,86817,19589.8%2.6%151.0%33 Nets**29495,60017,09096.4%23.0%1322.4%33 T'Wolves25414,79816,59285.7%-3.0%17-5.1%33 Grizzlies29475,34816,39190.5%9.5%154.3%33 76ers29471,45416,25780.0%1.1%18-7.1%33 Rockets26421,99516,23190.1%17.4%135.6%33 Cavaliers25398,61915,94577.5%-0.5%120.1%33 Wizards25396,95815,87878.3%-2.1%16-5.1%33 Bobcats26404,27515,54981.5%-9.0%135.4%33 Suns25376,43315,05781.7%-1.2%12-3.5%33 Hawks26383,64914,75680.9%-2.9%14-2.9%33 Pacers26375,26914,43379.5%-0.6%111.9%33 Bucks26374,65414,41077.0%-4.2%13-2.1%33 Pistons***30418,12813,93863.5%9.5%16-3.3%33 Hornets24322,54913,44078.2%-6.0%17-11.1%33 Kings26348,85713,41877.5%-10.1%12-7.5%33 NBA TOTALS78813,502,06117,13589.6%0.0%428-0.8%990
NOTES: NBA teams last season played a 66-game schedule that began in late December, compared to this season, with teams playing the traditional 82-game schedule that began in late October. * = With the ongoing renovation of MSG, capacity for Knicks games is now 19,033, down from the previous capacity of 19,763. ** = The Nets are playing in Barclays Center this season, having relocated from Prudential Center. *** = Includes a designated Pistons home game played at O2 Arena in London against the Knicks in January.


text:
The Hits Keep On Coming
Jonathan Coulton doesn't measure his success as a musician by the number of appearances he's made in the music magazines or blogs -- who needs that when you've got Google Analytics?
According the search engine's Web measurement tools, Coulton's Web site gets 50,000 to 60,000 visits per month, and about half of those are by people new to his site. Some visitors download a song and opt to pay a buck; many more download a song but don't pay. Coulton doesn't sweat that particular ratio so much because he's happy enough to be making more than he did a few years ago as a software programmer.
"The ratio of sales to free downloads is still pretty small," he said, but he has no way of knowing how many of those freeloaders come back later to buy a T-shirt or a CD or a concert ticket. "Whatever is happening, the bottom line works out for me and I'm making enough to make a living this way."
Coulton, who is Web-famous for his geeky and witty songs about software coders and zombies, is headed to the area this week to play at the Birchmere in Alexandria. And even though he's sold out two previous shows at the 500-seat venue, most recently in February, don't look for write-ups at RollingStone.com or Pitchfork. A recent search for his name at the sites of those influential music publications comes up empty.
Coulton's musical career is an ongoing bit of proof that a performer can build an audience with the aid of free or low-cost Web tools. What's more, in Coulton's case, you can even do all that without getting any radio airplay along the way.
After leaving his programming job in 2005 to pursue his dream of a musical career, Coulton started uploading a new song each week to his blog, a project that lasted a year. Over time, and thanks to a few breakout hits that got passed around the blogosphere, his audience grew.
When he tours, he uses Web services that print T-shirts and CDs on demand, to avoid getting stuck with excess inventory. If you're a fan and want to see him perform, log on to the Web site Eventful.com and enter your request. If he gets enough requests from your town, he might just book a show there. He'll be looking for your song request on Twitter. This week's gig, for the record, is part of a series of shows he's putting on as a fundraiser for the Lung Transplant Foundation.
Coulton lives in Brooklyn but says he tends to be most popular in areas where there's a large population of techies. Areas, for example, like Washington.
"There's definitely a big geek factor in the D.C. area," he said. "That was one of the early markets for me where I noticed, 'Wow, that's a big crowd.' Even today, New York is much bigger population-wise but the audiences are probably stronger in D.C. still -- and that definitely has to do with the geek factor."
San Francisco, Seattle and Boston are other cities where he has a following. "The commonality is that the tech industry is there," he said.
It's possible you've heard Coulton's music before but don't realize it. His soulful, pensive cover of "Baby Got Back" was a Web sensation in the early days of YouTube, especially after a fan synced the audio of Coulton's version up against rapper Sir Mix-A-Lot's video. The video has long since been taken down, alas.
More recently, Coulton made a splash among video game fans when one of his songs was featured at the end of a hit game called Portal. Told from the perspective of a homicidal, passive-aggressive computer system in the game, "Still Alive" was enough of an online hit to prompt the makers of the music video game Rock Band to make it available as a downloadable song.
One of Coulton's biggest outlets has become a Web site called Spiffworld, where a fan has created a series of music videos by acting out the artist's songs inside the computer game World of Warcraft. The biggest hit, based around Coulton's song "Code Monkey," about a software programmer in a dead-end job, has been viewed 3.7 million times.
If it weren't for Spiffworld, ardent fans like JoAnne Abbot might not have heard of Coulton. The 49-year-old grandmother, a World of Warcraft player who lives in Dale City, first heard Coulton's music at the Spiffworld site. If she makes it to this week's Birchmere performance -- she was at the last two -- she plans to bring cookies or Rice Krispie treats for her favorite artist, as usual. When she's not listening to Coulton's music, or playing WoW, you can often find her at Coulton's site, where she and other fans debate topics such as, say, the precise meaning of a song's lyrics.
Coulton, meanwhile, says he isn't actively looking to expand his fan base. He's not opposed to signing with a music label, but he's not sure he needs one. In the early years of his career, he answered all his fan e-mails personally, but doing so at this point would take up his whole day.
And who wants an Internet rock star who doesn't have time to practice or write music? These days, Coulton admits, he employs an assistant to help sort out his inbox.


text:
Final Fantasy XIII
Review by kraid_knox
"The romance of Final Fantasy is gone."
As a long time fan of the Final Fantasy franchise, I can't seem to get enough of the games, the stories they tell, the emotions you feel when you are really pulled into the worlds in which they take place. Of course with a great cast, crew, and story, all of the games had this wonderful freedom in their play style, but what made them great is that this freedom did not take away from they structure and stability of the game/story. When you put all of these things together, it builds a sort of romance, a "more than like" feeling towards the game, and you start to actually want more and more of what you are experiencing.
That is not the case with FFXIII. From the moment I started playing, I felt completely and utterly confused(-1 Point), but as with any new game I was looking forward to familiarizing myself with it, and learning how it could make this new experience one of a kind, as it did in other titles. However, unlike any other FF game, the more I played, the more confused and the more discouraged I felt(-1 Point). An example of this you discover upon starting the game is the "stagger" system(-1 Point), one of it's most unattractive features, which is literally required to defeat certain(and almost ALL)enemies to make any progress in the game whatsoever. Even still, I continued on and kept searching for something that would make me love this game as much as all the others.
I do not have words for how terrible the "Chrystarium Role" feature makes the overall battle sequences(-1 point). It removes almost all the freedom in battle FF players (and RPG players in general) are accustomed to.As you progress throughout the game, it only becomes more and more complicated as more and more roles are unlocked for each character. I just want to be able to use the skill whenever I want, and not have to worry about things like switching roles mid battle, or not preparing the right combination for every single battle. It may seem clever to some looking for adding a unique and challenging aspect to the game, but I feel it is much too overwhelming to have all of this pushed onto you right from the start of the game. To make matters worse, you automatically switch characters randomly in the game, throwing you completely off balance. I also discovered I couldn't even switch party members until far later in the game, a feature which quickly became most taxing in terms of maintaining my positive mentality.(-1 Point)(-5 points so far o.o)
So, after a few hours of play, I couldn't help but wonder when I was going to come to an open area where I could enjoy the freedom of the world after so many long and arduous battles inside those suffocating, cramped buildings. With this at the back of my mind I kept playing, hour after hour, corridor after corridor, cutscene after cutscene, battle after battle.... I waited, only to discover that FFXIII's concept of freedom is only one mid-sized area, packed with ridiculously powerful monsters, annoyingly scattered mission stones, and the unfortunate and disheartening realization that this is all FFXIII has to offer (-1 Point) in terms of freedom and exploration. One of the most important factors in ANY RPG game, has been clean swept right out of the game.
I started to follow the storyline more and more, trying to sympathize with each character, and find some truly genuine emotion from the game as a whole, but to no avail. The more I played the more I started to dislike who the players were, their personalities, their poorly constructed stories, and the lack of a solid foundation in which their stories 'should' have began. Overall I was very unimpressed with the cast/crew (although the voice acting was great, it was simply overcome by the mediocrity of their design. -1 point)
Even still, I continued to play, hoping, praying that something in this game would totally knock me off my feet and win my heart. Perhaps it would be one of the characters, a place, a song, a scene, anything... I am reluctant to say that there was not one single thing about this game that managed to capture my heart.(-1 Point) The visual effects are vibrant and colorful, even while playing, and even when in battle(+1 point!) Also, CG scenes were beautifully created, as expected in the FF series (+1 Point!). However, there is no love, there are no memorable moments to look back on, and all I am left with is a copy of a game I regret buying.
I give this game a 2 out of a possible 10 points. The graphics might be wonderful and vibrant, but these are next gen consoles, its nothing we haven't seen before in countless other games. The game just has far too many complexities to allow players to enjoy it completely. The romance that swept us off our feet in the past FF games, has been lost, and I can only hope to see Square bounce back with their next title, perhaps with something that will captivate FF fans like never before...
Reviewer's Rating: 1.0 - Terrible
Originally Posted: 04/13/11
Game Release: Final Fantasy XIII (US, 03/09/10)
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ATTENTION: Target's Bringing Us a Wine Line For $5 a Bottle
"The Rose of Autumn" - Orange Wine Is The New ThingIt's been big internationally, but starting to catch on in the US.
Research Determines Wine Before Bed Makes You Lose WeightOh, game on
WHAT?! "Don't Let Me Down" Played on Wine Glasses, Beer Bottles, Pots and PansYou have hear this to believe it - he NAILS it!
You've Been Opening Wine Bottles Wrong This Whole TimeStop Using Corkscrews To Open Wine! ~ @RatAndPuffShow
There's a Wine Infused Frappucino at Starbucks. Not Kidding.YES, STARBUCKS, YES.
It Appears That Millennials Have a New Obsession!Find Out What They Are Doing ~ @RatAndPuffShow
A Glass Of Wine Is Equivalent To How Long At The Gym?!Say what?! And yes, you read that correctly!
Drink Train's New Wine, Help Raise Money For The KidsThe band's newest wine is a classic California Merlot filled with dark chocolate and black cherry flavors.
Matchbox Twenty Drink Over $30 Thousand Dollars In Wine While RecordingThe band learned the power of Twitter while recording new album "North."
10 Places Katy Perry Should Vacation
Lady Gaga Wine Enthusiast


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Hospital Affiliations Have a Land Rush Feel
No, they're not going out of business, at least not the vast majority. But many of them have read the writing on the wall—which points to greater investments in affiliated services such as home care, clinics, physician practices, and nursing homes, among others—and are concluding that they are unwilling, and in most cases, unable, to invest in these pieces of the care continuum. Instead, they are making preemptive moves to affiliate with larger regional partners, thus sacrificing their independence. In short, standalone, independent community hospitals seem to be a quickly vanishing breed.
There are a multitude of advantages on the community hospital side of the deal. Of course, they gain the benefits of being in a larger network, which are vast. First, when dealing with commercial insurance contracts, they are able to tie into the contracting expertise of large systems, and more importantly, their market clout. They're also able to tie into larger systems' clinical (and financial) information technology systems, as well as their array of training expertise on these systems. In an era in which providers will increasingly be reimbursed based more on the quality of their care rather than the volume, this kind of implementation and training is essential. For the bigger partner, such affiliations expand their network and, let's face it, give them a better stance at the negotiating table with the big commercial insurers at contracting time.
If you're like me, you peruse the daily news looking for which hospital it will be today. Lately, if a day goes by without another announcement of some sort of affiliation agreement between a community hospital and larger regional player, it's like something's missing from my day.


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BOSTON ( TheStreet) -- Life without Apple ( AAPL) just doesn't seem possible for most mutual fund managers, who have relied on the stock of the iPhone and iPad maker to juice returns for the better part of a decade.But there are some maverick fund managers who, even with a large-cap mandate, haven't bought Apple, yet have done quite well without it. Apple, now at $610 a share and with a market value of $568 billion, is the largest member of the S&P 500, at 4.6% of the benchmark. Its outsized presence and performance pretty much makes it a mandatory holding for mid- to large-cap funds, but it's owned by a lot of other funds as well. At the end of the first quarter, 4,877 funds had a stake in it, holding a combined 69% of Apple's shares. And they're surely all thankful for its existence, as Apple shares are up 51% this year, versus the S&P 500's 11.3% gain. Over three years, Apple is up an annual average of 70%, more than three times that of the index. But Dan Culloton, Morningstar's associate director of fund analysis, cites a handful of large-cap funds with top performances in the large-blend category, with nary an Apple in sight. Among them are Mairs & Power Growth ( MPGFX), Oakmark Select ( OAKLX) and BBH Core Select ( BBTEX). The $2.3 billion Mairs & Power Growth fund has returned 13% this year, putting it in the top 11% of large-blend funds in terms of performance, and it has a three-year annualized return of 19.3%, placing it in the top 23% of such funds. Manager Bill Frels "takes a deliberate and methodical approach to investing," Morningstar says. "Frels buys steadily growing businesses that he believes are trading at reasonably cheap prices." In addition, "the fund's turnover ratio rarely gets above 5%, while its typical peer's is roughly 50%," says Morningstar, and that's with a 46-stock portfolio. A 5% turnover means it takes 20 years for the fund to rotate out of all its holdings. The $3 billion Oakmark Select fund, managed by revered fund manager Bill Nygren since 1996, and also a large blend fund, is up 14.8% this year, putting it in the top 3% of performers in its category. And it's up 23% annually over three years, making it a top 4% performer among its peers for that period. Morningstar says its long-term "success owes to the deft execution of a sensible strategy," focused on a relatively tiny 20-stock portfolio that "has been vigorously scrubbed for fundamental health and business-value growth potential." The $1.6 billion BBH Core Select "follows a similar playbook to Nygren's, using fundamental research to undercover higher-quality stocks trading at temporary discounts," Morningstar's Culloton said. The fund is up 9.9% this year, a performance that puts it in the 76th percentile among its large-blend peers, but over five years its 6% annualized return places it in the top 1% of its peers. But there has to be some sour grapes for those not owning Apple. "It's doubtful even these managers are bragging about not owning one of the market's best stocks of recent years," Culloton said, "but their resilience is testimony to their discipline." Here are eight stocks that the three funds mentioned above have relied on to boost performance, sans Apple, listed in inverse order of the number of analysts' "buy" ratings they have:
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I just had a raised mole located between my eyebrows removed today using radiosurgery. So far so good, although too early to tell. It is still bleeding and I will have to keep a bandaid on it for a few days. The doctor said it went well and I should be happy with the results. I am nervous though... Has anyone done used this method for mole removal and did it leave you with a scar?
Mole Removal with Radiosurgery - New York
I just had a raised mole located between my...
Although he had a nice looking office in Soho, his bedside manner was not the best - when I was shown into the room to see him, I had to wait for a few minutes for him to finish sending a text message! Then he looked at my mole and all he said was, no problem, will take care of it. Did not offer any explanation, and when I started asking questions about scarring, etc, he reluctantly offered explanations - seemed like he didn't really want to be bothered. However, since I was already there and I had made up my mind, I went through with the procedure. He seemed to be fast and efficient in performing it, it was almost painless and he did ask me if I was comfortable throughout. So, overall, a mixed experience... I think his lack of courtesy at the beginning may be somewhat cultural as he appeared to be middle eastern and just did not have the customer service skills which you would expect here in the US, but he did seem to do an adequate job - I will comment on the results later when my wound actually heals.


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- Screening
- Lung Cancer Basics
- Treatment
- Support
- Events
- Policy
- Research
Washington, DC [January 3, 2013]--Just hours before the end of the 112th Congress, the constitutional deadline for approval of a bill passed by that Congress, President Barack Obama signed into law the first legislation requiring comprehensive plans of research action for high mortality cancers, with lung and pancreatic cancers given priority status for expedited attention.
This landmark legislation, included in the National Defense Authorization Act of 2013, requires the National Cancer Institute (NCI) to develop scientific frameworks for addressing cancers with survival rates of less than 50%, with first priority attention to lung and pancreatic cancers. The framework must be sent to Congress within 18 months
"Thank you Mr. President and thank you Congress for giving all of us in the lung cancer community and all those at risk for lung cancer the best possible present for the start of a new year," said LCA President and CEO Laurie Fenton-Ambrose, whose national organization launched the legislative effort on lung cancer six years ago.
"This is a new era for lung cancer," she said. "We are now out of the shadows."
"Our mission is to cut lung cancer mortality in half by the end of the decade," Fenton-Ambrose continued, and we have added another tool in our arsenal to help make this goal a reality. This legislation, coupled with the validation of CT screening as a bigger potential life saver than any other cancer screening method, and with the Veterans Administration and the Department of Defense starting to screen high risk veterans and military, this goal is absolutely possible."
Fenton-Ambrose thanked the entire lung cancer advocacy community for their untiring efforts and unwavering support over the past 6 years to see the legislation passed. She also thanked the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PanCan) for joining forces to see the bill through to law. Lung cancer's five year survival rate is 15%, and pancreatic cancer's is 5% - both little changed since the so-called War on Cancer legislation was passed forty years ago.
Lung Cancer Alliance's legislative saga started in 2006 during the 109th Congress with the passage of a Senate resolution calling lung cancer an urgent public health priority. The original sponsors were then Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton, Chuck Hagel and Mike DeWine.
In the 110th Congress, bipartisan resolutions were passed unanimously by both Houses and in the 111th Congress bipartisan, bicameral legislation was introduced to authorize a comprehensive plan of action. The primary sponsors included Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), then Senator and now Kansas Governor Sam Brownback, Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA), Senator John Kerry (D-MA), and House of Representatives members Donna Christensen (D-VI), Lois Capps (D-CA), Ed Whitfield (R-KY) and Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ).
"We are deeply grateful to all these current and former members of the House and Senate for their leadership and unfailing support," said Fenton-Ambrose.
Fenton-Ambrose also thanked Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Congresswoman Anna G. Eshoo (D-CA), primary sponsors of the pancreatic cancer bill, and PanCan CEO Julie Fleshman and Director of Government Affairs Megan Gordon Don for the team effort that finally made the bill a law.
The final product, the Recalcitrant Cancer Act, represents a compromise worked out between the Congress and the administration on the Pancreatic Cancer Research & Education Act and Lung Cancer Mortality Reduction Act.


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oat and barley granola, almond slivers, vanilla pumpkin seeds and soya protein crispies
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"It all started with creamy yogurt, tasty yet plain, waiting for the right topper to come along. After some experimenting in the graze kitchen, we came up with a quick, easy way to make yogurt so much more exciting. Inspired by our favorite flavors, we used wholesome ingredients like nuts, fruit and seeds, to create our brand new protein toppers! Not only is each one delicious in its own fruity, crunchy way, we've also made sure they're all a source of protein. Ta da! A new, tasty way to get a little extra protein into your diet." Bobby, graze taste expert


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Seven consecutive BCS National Championship trophies are now property of the SEC.
It's just not Alabama, although the Crimson Tide won the last three of four crystal footballs, including back-to-back after beating Notre Dame, 42-14, in Monday night's massacre.
Florida started the streak in 2006, LSU won in 2007 and Tim Tebow led the Gators to the top spot in 2008. Alabama got its first of three crowns in 2009. Auburn and Heisman quarterback Cam Newton walked away with the crystal in 2010. Alabama then went back to back.
It's SEC Commissioner Mike Slive's distribution of wealth plan.
The evidence is in. When it comes to college football the SEC is king.
Any questions?
The only question Notre Dame had after suffering a loss that the once proud program found embarrassing was whether anyone got the Crimson Tide's license plate.
It was a solid case of hit and run. And pass. That was Alabama's formula and Coach Nick Saban's team carried it off to near perfection.
Given what we saw Monday night, I would rather have seen what Oregon could have done against Alabama. At least Oregon has incredible speed on offense and defense. But it was not to be because voters and computers are enamored with any team than finishes with a perfect record.
In 2014, we will inaugurate a four-team playoff. They will form a selection committee in similar fashion as college basketball does.
How that committee will be formed isn't final. How many people will be chosen? Will it be former coaches? Athletic directors? Media? A combination?
It's crucial those involved take a neutral position and have no favors owed or received.
If such a committee had been formed for this season, would Notre Dame still be ranked ahead of a once-beaten Alabama? Not if the committee dug deep enough and knows how to evaluate football teams.
Would a committee see through Notre Dame and have matched Oregon and Alabama against each other? There is no way of knowing, but I think it is doubtful unless those on that committee are willing to think outside the box to make the right decision.
When you put human beings together, it's impossible for all of them to ignore prejudices. By nature of their past ties to college football, they are still human. They have formed likes and dislikes along the way.
It seems Vanderbilt's James Franklin had a premonition after the final regular season poll. He had Notre Dame No. 4 on his ballot, the lowest ranking among 59 coaches. Franklin, MTSU coach Rick Stockstill and Texas Tech/Cincinnati Coach Tommy Tuberville were the only three coaches to rank Alabama No. 1.
Four of the five Big 12 coaches on the panel voted to get Oklahoma in the BCS instead of Northern Illinois. All voted Oklahoma No. 6 or Northern Illinois No. 24. It didn't work.
Oklahoma finished No. 11 and Northern Illinois No 16. If Northern Illinois finished in the top 16 in the BCS voting, they got an automatic BCS bid and it would knock Oklahoma out.
Franklin and Stockstill gave Vanderbilt its highest votes, placing the Commodores No. 16, when they didn't finish in the top 25 in the regular season poll.
There is no foolproof system. Hopefully with four teams it will produce less controversy than with two, but it's doubtful.
As we have seen, the best way to judge teams is on the field against each other.
Contact wkrn.com Sports Columnist Joe Biddle at email@example.com.


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Mindy Mendelsohn of Hatboro, PA, and Marcia and Mark Libes of Cherry Hill, NJ, announce the engagement of their children, Arielle Lauren Klinetsky and Jason Scott Libes.
Arielle graduated from Temple University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in communications. She is currently the Operations and Marketing Assistant at Larsen MacColl Partners, a local Private Equity firm.
Jason graduated from Towson University with a Bachelor of Science degree in business management. He is a Staffing Manager at Accountants For You and Office Staff For You.
Arielle is the daughter of the late Allen Klinetsky. Arielle is the granddaughter of Jerri Mendelsohn and the late Jay Mendelsohn. Jason is the grandson of Inek Einziger and the late Ruth Einziger, and Lillian Libes and the late Irving Libes.
Sharing in the couple's happiness are Jason's siblings Stephanie and Brian Libes.
The couple, who reside in Philadelphia, are planning a November 2014 wedding in Philadelphia.


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NewswireToday - /newswire/ -
Cranebrook, New South Wales, Australia, 2014/04/04 - Ignite Intelligence, a consulting company from Downunder (Australia) has released a low cost web based consulting tool that consultants can pay as they go every month - IgniteiConsult.com.
Its the first time a tool has emerged that truly helps end-to-end consulting. It is a web based complete consulting solution derived out a PhD research to plan, define, assess, improve and certify a process for compliance. Available to access as a SaaS application, IgniteiConsult is:
- A tool that consultants MUST HAVE to improve their performance by 45%;
- A tool that organisations MUST HAVE to make their goals 33% more achievable;
- A tool that powers up consultants by 50%;
- A tool that empowers a consultant to fully focus on process improvements;
- A tool that makes a consultant take simple steps towards improving a process to achieve great results;
- A tool that makes a consultants task easy and reporting to stakeholders easier by 63%
IgniteiConsult (igniteiconsult.com) is available for free registration for a week, and is very well priced monthly to suit enterprises ($29 a month) and freelance consultants ($19 a month).
Still not sure why you need IgniteiConsult? Read 5 convincing reasons to start using IgniteiConsult right away.
Reason #1: All process data in one hub. Consultants can define a process, assess it against industry benchmarks, improve and certify the process.
Reason #2: Easy to use with insignificant learning curve. Consultants can start using the tool for productive work on the same day they put their hands-on the tool.
Reason #3: Low costs with pay as you go facility each month. The monthly usage costs are as low as $19 for freelance consultants. You can register as a free user for a week.
Reason #4: Super-efficient for remote login and access. Consultants can keep all work and data in the cloud and access their work and data tasks wherever they are.
Reason #5: First class interactive reports. The reporting is a perfect tool for visualizing As-Is and getting a bird's-eye view of the To-Be process.
Written by / Agency / Source: Ignite Intelligence
Availability: All Regions (Including Int'l)
Traffic Booster: [/] Quick Newswire Today Visibility Checker
Distribution / Indexing: [+]


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With only one week left in my favorite month of all, I have big plans this weekend. I am determined to find the best pumpkin and show the world my unparalleled pumpkin carving skills! Okay. So that's an exaggeration. There's usually not too much more to my Jack-O'-Lantern than three triangles and a very crooked smile. But it is definitely one of my favorite ways to spend a chilly fall evening.
If you've read any of my past blogs, you know how partial I am to the cool weather, and (as the ladies in our department know) pumpkin flavored anything! So as October comes quickly to an end, I'd like to focus on a few simple pleasures that I would encourage everyone to participate in during the all-to-brief fall season.
Activity #1: Bake!
Anything with the spicy and fresh flavors of the fall. Apple Crisp and Pumpkin Muffins are two of my all time favorites. For a fun office event, hold an afternoon Halloween party. Encourage employees to bring in their favorite fall treats to share. Give kitchen utensils to all participants for an extra branding boost.
Activity #2: Take a hike…
Or a walk. Or even a stroll. The cool weather and soft sunlight are great times to get a little fresh air and a little extra exercise. And don't forget to clip on your pedometer to see how far your stroll takes you.
Activity #3: Host a backyard bonfire
Take it outside! Break out the coolers and collapsible chairs and toast marshmallows over an open fire. Of course make sure that starting a contained fire is legal in your city. You wouldn't want to risk that getting out of hand!
Activity #4: Carve pumpkins
Whether you break out the pumpkin carving equipment for the kids, or just for fun, pumpkin carving is a fun and creative break from the normal day-to-day routine.
Activity #5: Stock up on tasty treats
You want to be prepared for Trick-or-Treaters on the 31st! And a tip for parents, grocery bags are excellent for collecting the treats and goodies your little Ghosts and Goblins will amass Halloween night!
No matter what activities you choose to participate in this season, remember to incorporate promotional products into your marketing promotions and events. Hosting team events and activities is a great way to increase employee loyalty and morale. Take a break from the day and use Halloween and fun fall events as opportunities to bond with your team.
Marketing Coordinator
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OKAY, let's start with a quiz question. Who recorded what is generally regarded as the first punk single? The Sex Pistols? The Stranglers? No, it was a band made up of David Letts, Brian Robertson, Chris Millar and Ray Burns.
Never heard of them?
Okay, what if I say Dave Vanian, Brian James, Rat Scabies and Captain Sensible? That's better – it's The Damned!
Cap, as Captain Sensible is generally known, says: "I've been a Captain for over 30 years; I should've been promoted by now."
The band, who are touring in May and June, has had a long and eventful career.
Their early career was a catalogue of firsts. The first punk single (New Rose) in 1976, first punk album (Damned Damned Damned) and they were the first punk band to play the US.
"That was a great time," remembers Cap. "A lot of bands felt threatened by us – bands like Yes and Genesis didn't like us at all. But the Stones loved us.
"When we played New York for the first time, they sent champagne, cakes and hookers to us. Thanks, Mick!"
Their gigs were frenetic affairs and as a live band they had a great following, however it wasn't until 1979 that they first made the charts with Love Song, although their albums fared better.
"I think that the reason we didn't have any hits at first was because they didn't get played on the radio." He explained.
"Our first album was very raw and underproduced, although I'm very proud of it now. Damned Damned Damned has such an exciting sound. We were actually ahead of the game and were much faster than other bands. I remember when we did a John Peel session for Radio One, the control room was full of people wanting to listen in. We had a manic energy that shocked people."
In the 80s, the Goth image came to the fore and they began to show that, unlike many of their 'new wave' contemporaries, they could actually play.
Sensible had a solo contract also at this time and scored a surprise Number One with Happy Talk from the musical South Pacific.
"I became the most unlikely pop star in Britain, 'cos I was still a yobbo then." says Cap.
Finally, the strain of two careers took its toll and he left The Damned.
"It was so knackering. I'd do TV-AM in the morning, fly off to do some TV in Europe and then get back to play a Damned show at night. Something had to give and I ended up choosing the one which made the least dosh."
The group then entered their most commercial phase and they had eight consecutive chart singles, starting with Grimly Fiendish in 1985 and ended with In Dulce Decorum 18 months later. Eight hits in 18 months – that's a pretty good strike rate.
In amongst the octet of hits was the cover of the Barry Ryan 1968 hit Eloise which reached the dizzy heights of number three in the charts, and the magnificent Alone Again Or – a cover of the Love classic.
The band split again whilst the band members pursued other projects before reforming again in 1995. Then would you believe, they split again, before Vanian and Sensible got back together a year later.
"I went to see Dave Vanian with his other band, The Phantom Chords and we were talking afterwards and he said why don't you come back? So I did."
Since then, the band has toured pretty much constantly and today's line-up is Vanian on vocals and theremin, Sensible on guitar, Monty Oxy Moron on the keyboards, bassist Stu West and Pinch on drums.
Their most recent studio album, 2008's So Who's Paranoid,was particularly well received.
"Everyone's really liked the album – well, nobody asked for their money back anyway! The same went for the tours." says Cap.
"We're lucky to be able to do what we do; we must be doing something right."
The Damned's first album took eight hours to record and mix, how long did this one take?
"Just over three weeks," 'Cap' said. "It was absolutely amazing. In the 80s in that time Fleetwood Mac would just about get the bass drum done."
Captain Sensible seems to be the right person to put the band's longevity into perspective.
"Modesty prevents me from saying what a great band we are. We make a bloody good noise and we get on well with each other."
And of course, the fans are important.
"The fans are great," he said in a moment of humility.
"They keep us on our toes and fully participate in our concerts. The great thing about Punk is that you can't get ideas above your station and our fans keep us well grounded.
"Plus," he added with a smile. "I find them entertaining too."
The Cap and the rest of the band are promising some surprises in the forthcoming tour.
"We're actually shaking the set list up a bit and in the e mails we've been sending each other to thrash it out have been headed 'The Adventurous Set List'.
"There'll be some old favourites and some revived songs like Thrill Kill, Bad Time For Bonzo and Thanks For The Night which I think will be the first time for 20 years."
The Damned play The O2 Academy, Leeds tonight. Doors 7pm, 15.50. Tel: 0113 389 1555. www.ticketweb.co.uk


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Firefighters have been busy today fighting a stubborn mulch fire which has been putting up a lot of smoke in Ventura County.
The blaze was first reported at around 7:30 this morning, on the 4400 block of Olivas Park Drive, between Ventura and Oxnard.
The fire is in a contained area, and isn't posing a threat to structures, but put up smoke for the last few hours.