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Steven Pressler
Clients Review
My first time here and had a ball. Great experience. Beautiful view! Perfect natural lighting and had use of equipment. Great ...READ MORE
Really enjoy using the new studios. Great natural light and the studio is well equipped with everything I would need to shoot f...READ MORE
Used FD Studios for first time- great experience. I forgot my triggers- no problem, I was able to borrow some. Alex was a cool g...READ MORE
Used FD multiple times for photo shoots for Volga Verdi clothing line – the results are amazing! Great rates, convenient locatio...READ MORE
I love FD studio. This place is like a home to me :). I use this studio a lot to shoot portraits, engagements, fashion and artwor...READ MORE
We did shooting of our products at FDPhotostudio. Reasonable price, great service and convenient location compare to other places...READ MORE
This was my first experience of working in a professional photo studio. To tell you the truth, I didn't quite know how to set th...READ MORE
First time using the studio and I must say the experience was terrific. Alex was great to work with and could not be any nicer. Th...READ MORE
Toba was fantastic to deal with throughout. From our first call to the point when we had wrapped out - she was great. Thank you...READ MORE
The lady at the front desk helped me with setting up the light. I had a few questions and was humble in response. Definitely comin...READ MORE
Great staff, easy to work with and very helpful.READ MORE
Just great location and very chill!READ MORE
I actually haven't rented studio space here yet, but I felt like I should write a review based on the customer service I've experi...READ MORE
I have been using FD Photo Studio for the past 6 months and the experience has been nothing short of excellent. The studios are cl...READ MORE
Great place!READ MORE
It's BEST place to implement any ideas for photo and video shooting. The location inspires to create unique work. Thank you guys f...READ MORE
I had a superb experience with FD Photostudio. I had no problems reserving the studio, confirming it and shooting there! The staff...READ MORE
Having shot at FD Photo Studio for about 5 times, I can't help but say that this place is a gem in the middle of LA. It is really ...READ MORE
The best studio in town no doubt, lots of space plus latest equipment, strongly recommend!READ MORE
Great place! Been there for a few times and will definitely shoot more up there!
Guys who work there are cool and the ...READ MORE
Update, I posted some snap shots of studio C. Seriously quick snap shots but you get the idea! I would love to keep the studio as...READ MORE
I shot here a few times and have been happy each time. The staff have been more than helpful and accommodating. Parking is easy...READ MORE
Shot at FD Photo Studio last week and it was a pleasure shooting there. They have a full bathroom with shower for models, alien...READ MORE
This is a straight-forward studio, and works great as that. The space is very customizable. I have shot in Studio B, and am ren...READ MORE
This studio is so dope! Great natural lighting and really cool space. They have good portions where to get ready for hair and m...READ MORE
Stage A has great natural light and the all white paint makes for nice high key indoor window light shots. Great for quick small-s...READ MORE
Awesome place and very good rates. Alex is always helpful . That's my first time at the new location and it's just perfect, lar...READ MORE
I love this place! Such an inspiring and versatile studio! Great atmosphere and amazing people working there! So friendly and h...READ MORE
I've shot at FD Photo Studio several times. The place is huge with 3 different spacious studios. I've honestly had the best exper...READ MORE
After seven months of doing nothing I decided to do some review of what I learned in lighting and rented the studio for a while. V...READ MORE
Great place. the set up, the rooftop access is a wonderful plus and the rates are great.READ MORE
Everyone was so nice working there. The płace was fantastic and price was amazing. Very happyREAD MORE
Such a great studio to shoot , Studio A is really amazing with large windows to allow in natural sun light, and enough room for...READ MORE
Love the natural lighting. Great place to shoot. Nice friendly staff.READ MORE
LOVE this studio! SHOOT HERE!! I ll be in to shoot tomorrow for the 2nd time this week. Grateful!READ MORE
It was great. Wish we booked more time. Definitely coming back!READ MORE
Very friendly! Love this studio.READ MORE
Used the studio multiple times for various projects, mostly for my product photography. They have the mannequins, steamer and a...READ MORE
Gorgeous space, and another WINNER WINNER headshot session! I really love bringing clients to your spaceREAD MORE
The staff was great. Super friendly and helpful. The space is also perfect, with plenty of natural light.READ MORE
Wonderful customer service... Always a pleasure shooting there. No issues except I wish that
someone would be available ...
I shot here for the very first time yesterday. Great location, great light, great studio!!! Everything you need is there. Th...READ MORE
Toma at FD Photo Studio worked as our photo assitant during our shoot -- she is very knowledgeable and helpful! All facilities ...READ MORE
You can tell by the lack of space in their schedules that FD Photo Studio is starting to catch on as the go-to hourly rental. Easy...READ MORE
We recently shot our Fall 15 Product Look Book and could not be happier or more pleased with our overall experience at FD Photo St...READ MORE
Thanks for a great video shoot. The staff was always there and very helpful. We will be booking FD Studios again soon, THANKS!!READ MORE
Great studio spaces and value! I chose FD Photo Studios for my shoots on my recent trip to LA from Sydney Australia. Pro Studio I...READ MORE
This place is amazing! The staff is really helpful and the place is very clean and ready to go when you arrive. For this rate, I w...READ MORE
Our first experience with FD Studio was pretty amazing. From the helpful, really nice staff to the space itself, for the price is ...READ MORE
Amazing space, very helpful staff. I will always continue to bring business to this studio.READ MORE
I am the manager of a rock band in SoCal called Real Fiction. We were in need of a location to film their music video on a tight b...READ MORE
Love the atmosphere. Great natural lighting...plus the rates are very reasonable. A+++ all around. I will be shooting there again.READ MORE
Love this awesome studio Art 3! Will be back for more photoshoot for my next season designs for Summer 2017. Thanks FD Studio!READ MORE
I love shooting at FD. The staff is great and the booking system is seamless and efficient. Great space and great light if you ant...READ MORE
Anytime I"m visiting LA, FD is always my go to. Great studio space, easy to access and friendly staff.READ MORE
Great place I just shot at Hill St. Studio 2 today and lots of Natural light plus 3 Alien Bee Strobes. Really clean and super clos...READ MORE
I love FD studio because of their staff and of course their bright natural lighting. I also love the wooden background for art 1 a...READ MORE
I love shooting on several of the stages this studio has to offer. The staff all have outstanding personalities and are very helpf...READ MORE
This was an amazing collaboration with lovely models and great photographers. I worked with this Model creating a look that compli...READ MORE
This is my go-to studio when I shoot. I absolutely love the gorgeous sets, the lighting equipment is always in great shape and rel...READ MORE
Awesome place! The location we filmed at worked perfectly. Victor was a blast. Super helpful and friendly. I will definitely book ...READ MORE
We had a great experience LOVED shooting there!! Staff was fantastic as was the location. Ease of use and exactly what was pictu...READ MORE


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The Street Fighter 25th Anniversary Collector's Set releases on Sept. 18, and both its Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions are a deluxe-o package featuring four full Street Fighter games and a slew of other goodies.
The PlayStation 3 version, however, packs in four more games (all three Street Fighter Alpha games as PSOne Classics, plus Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max on the PSP —and the entire DLC catalog for Street Fighter III: Third Strike Online Edition
That's the PS3 version of the collector's edition only. Nothing was said about any extra goodies for 360 buyers. Both consoles still get Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix, Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike Online Edition, Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition (including all costume swaps) and Street Fighter X Tekken with
all the swap costumes. That's in addition to an art book, Ryu belt, and comprehensive soundtrack.
Street Fighter 25th Anniversary Collector's Set Has More Content On PlayStation 3 [Siliconera]

subset: commoncrawl


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Go Viking: Fall 2010
View from Summit Avenue
A Message from Rob Oliver, President of Augustana College
Someone once told me, "If you want to have an interesting life, surround yourself with interesting people."
I've thought of that advice often throughout my life, but never more so than I have during my time here at Augustana. Each day that I walk the footpaths of this campus - a place our own Dr. Patrick Hicks called "an island of youth and ambition" in his poem, "Restoring the Eidsvaag Bell," I have to remind myself that this is where I work.
This is where I work. How lucky – how very, very lucky, am I?
The amazing things that happen here (thanks to our incredible faculty and staff), along with the awe-inspiring work of our students, make each day at Augustana remarkable indeed. Yet, as I think about recent and upcoming events, I find myself full of both wonder and excitement.
Earlier this month, former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright spoke at the 2010 Boe Forum on Public Affairs, organized by the Center for Western Studies.
In addition to her address, entitled "Geopolitics and the Implications for Doing Business and Investing Around the World," Dr. Albright took time to participate in a group discussion with our students – an experience we're certain they'll revere and treasure.
Our campus also hosted Tim Westergren, founder of Pandora, the Internet Radio choice of more than 65 million people worldwide. Westergren and students participated in a Q&A session around music and technology in Kresge Recital Hall.
Next month, the campus will come alive with the sights and sounds of the holiday season. This year we're excited for our Vespers services, an intimate musical worship service featuring the Augustana Choir, faculty and members of the South Dakota Symphony performing "Song of Luke," a cantata by Cyprian Consiglio. Consiglio, a Camaldolese monk, ordained priest, recording artist, performer and composer, collaborated closely with our own Dr. John Pennington to develop the oratorio based on the narrative of Jesus' infancy, according to the Gospel of Luke.
All of this occurs as we celebrate Augustana's 150th anniversary – a year in which we pay tribute to a group of restless adventurers from rugged lands in the North Sea; a people history describes as bold and fearless. They were the Vikings. And they are, with whom, our story began.
Consultant and author Tom Veblen provides thoughts to ponder about a certain spirit he attributes to his Scandinavian ancestors, a force he labels: Going Viking! To Veblen, Going Viking means much more than "to get into a long wooden boat with your sword and [your] friends and sail out in search of trade and plunder." Veblen believes the age of the Viking has persevered through time and lives on even today. He describes the concept of Going Viking as "to be venturesome, explore, discover; ...to exert oneself, [to] aspire; ...to take a stab at, have a go, a crack, a whack, or [a] shot at; ...to pursue hard, bold, dangerous, or important undertakings."
The Augustana Vikings have been, and will always be, those who explore, discover, and pursue important undertakings; those who seek adventure and aspire for more than the ordinary; those who are truly interesting people. In this, our Sesquicentennial year, we honor our heritage and traditions as we step boldy into the future and create an Augustana like never before. If you have a desire to explore and discover; if you aspire for more than the ordinary; if you, too, wish to be surrounded by interesting people, then I invite you to Go Viking and join us at Augustana.
Yours, for Augustana,
Rob Oliver


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Saudi writer Sabria Jawhar argues that the proposal, currently before the Saudi Shoura Council, to set up a network of 600 buses to transport Saudi women, is a 'band aid' approach to the problem of women's transport. She argues that the Kingdom should be working instead toward giving women the right to drive. Click below or on the headline to read her article, which appeared in the Saudi Gazette on March 10, 2010. I'll also post it in the list of news stories at right.
Band-aid approach to solve women's transport problems
Visit Sabria's blog: Sabria's Out of the Box


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On this page, you will find the Official MTK USB All V0.2, which allows you to connect your Mediatek Smartphone and Tablets to the Windows Computer without the need of installing any other USB Driver.
MTK USB All V0.2 comes as a installer application, and it is of 64.6 MB in size. You can use MTK USB All V0.2 on any Windows Computer including Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1 and Windows 10.
The File version of MTK USB All is v0.2 and it was released on 17/02/2018 by Mediatek Inc.
Download MTK USB All V0.2
File Name: MTK_USB_ALL_v0.2.zip
Alternative Name: MTK USB All V0.2
File Size: 64.6 MB
Release Date: 17/02/2018
Driver Link: Click Here to Get the Driver
Readme Once:
[*] Compatibility: MTK USB All Driver is compatible with Windows XP, Windows Me, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 81, Windows 10 (32 or 64 bit computer).
[*] Driver for SP Flash Tool: You can use CDC Driver or VCOM Driver which supports SP Flash Tool to Flash Stock Firmware on Mediatek Devices.
[*] Driver for SN Writer Tool: CDC Driver or VCOM driver, sometimes didn't work with the SN Writer Tool. In that situation you can try MTK USB All Driver to get it work.
[*] Credits: MTK USB All V0.2 is created and distributed by MTK2000. So full credits goes to MTK2000 for providing the tool for free.


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MAC skincare!? Pah! It's strange when companies famous of make up then make skincare because I always wonder if it's just a pointless add on. Having said that I adore Shu Uemura skincare and NARS (although they are both Japanese made, and Japanese brands in general cross over skincare and cosmetics quite well).
I did buy this Complete Comfort Creme a while ago after the MUA used it on me
after a cosmetic trial. I liked how thick it felt on my dry sensitive skin:
They say:
A moisturiser formulated to instantly rehydrate the skin and provide immediate and ongoing relief from redness and irritation. Ultra-creamy, provides high-comfort wear while providing sensitive skin with the soothing benefits associated with its calming plant-and marine-based formula.
MAC Complete Comfort Creme is a super rich thick cream that feels instantly soothing for people with dehydrated skin. It definitely deals with the dryness but the sensitivity – I would say I still had some mild tingling on the sorest parts of my skin.
It comes in a 50ml tub which is a fairly generous amount.
The cream looks white in the photo but I think has a pale pink colour to it. There's a plastic scent to it – I really can't think of a better way of describing it then a new tupperware box which I am not fond of but I can certainly live with. I'd prefer this over a super strong perfume in the product, which I can't stand but it does make the product feel a bit cheap.
I used this for a while to the build up to my wedding. This is one of those simple bland creams that work really well when you are dry all over, but I would'nt say it is the most calming or soothing.
I am going to keep this and move on to another cream for now, because I want to use something that offers a bit more (I am more concerned with pigmentation and skin unevenness at the moment) but whenever my skin feels really dehydrated I will definitely use this again.
This costs £23.50 – it's on the MAC website. I got it on counter.
Have you ever tried MAC skincare?


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NTSB: Pilot Error Likely Cause of 2011 Sioux Falls Crash
SIOUX FALLS - The National Transportation Safety Board has determined that pilot error was the cause of a plane crash near the Sioux Falls airport that killed four people. The four were headed to a robot competition in Rapid City.
54-year-old charter pilot Brian Blake failed to follow emergency guidelines when one of the engines on the twin-engine Cessna 421C apparently caught fire just after takeoff from Joe Foss field.
In addition to Blake, also killed in the accident were Kevin Anderson and Daniel Swets of Sioux Falls, and Joshua Lambrecht of Brandon.
The Associated Press contrbuted to this report.


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HARLOWE � More than 100 people packed the Harlowe Community Center on Monday night to get information about the Affordable Care Act.
HARLOWE � More than 100 people packed the Harlowe Community Center on Monday night to get information about the Affordable Care Act.
Registration for the health insurance plans opens on Tuesday, and the meeting focused on informing residents about registration requirements.
Sandi Wheeler, of Enroll America, gave a presentation on enrollment, saying 78 percent of people across the country don�t understand the health insurance requirement. She said current issues in Washington in which the House is attempting to defund the program, also known as Obamacare, through a spending bill is only complicating matters for the public.
�That�s a politicalization,� Wheeler said. �It is the law.�
And that law requires just about everyone who files an income tax return to have health insurance.
�Any plan this large will have its controversies and take time to get the wrinkles out,� Wheeler said. �People have to hear the truth and not the lies. There�s some misinformation that people need to clarify for themselves.�
For those on Medicare or Medicaid, and those who receive veterans benefits or otherwise are on government insurance through the military or other government jobs, will not have to be part of the program.
Those who have health coverage through their employers also won�t be required to enroll in the program.
However, for those who currently don�t have health coverage through their employers or have individual policies that they started after March 23, 2010, they will be required to get health insurance or face a financial penalty. Individuals can go online through government websites or check with their local insurance providers.
Subsidies from the government are available for low-income residents who can�t afford the costs.
�They can get insurance at a very reduced rate,� Wheeler said.
Wheeler said the purpose of the meeting Monday night was to make sure residents understood the rules and the procedures for getting insurance.
�Our goal is to say to people you have it, check it out and see if you qualify,� she said. �It�s just that simple.�
Wheeler cited an example in her own life in which she had to pay about $10,000 out of pocket for a $35,000 surgical procedure that would have cost about $3,300 under the new insurance rules.
Steve Chalk, of Chalk and Gibbs Insurance in Morehead City, said in a Tuesday morning presentation to members of the Havelock Chamber of Commerce that out-of-pocket medical expenses are capped at $6,350. He also pointed out that pediatric vision and dental is now required under health plans and that no more health questions will have to be answered to get insurance.
Businesses fall into categories of more than 50 or less than 50 full-time equivalent employees. Those less than 50 are not required to offer insurance to workers, but those with more than 50 are.
N.C. Rep. George Graham, D-Lenoir, who represents parts of Craven County, attended the Monday meeting in Harlowe and stressed that the political battle over healthcare reform failed to take into account that people are affected.
�People are real,� he told the crowd. �You are real people, and real people need education and need health care.�
For enrollment or other information on the Affordable Care Act, call 1-800-318-2596, or go online to www.healthcare.gov or www.enrollamerica.org.
Ken Buday is the editor of the Havelock News.


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Warriors in the Woods XII :Aftermath May 6th
Warriors in the Woods XII - Aftermath
Sunday May 6th, 2012
at Mersey Road Paintball, Nova Scotia
Brought to you by
Warriors in the Woods Productions
Quick links
Banshee Paintball - Aftermath Website - Game Rules - Registration Form
N.C.F. Team Area
The Legion Team Area
Teaser video
"Warriors In The Woods XII - Aftermath" on Vimeo
Maximum Registration: 320
Registration $35 early bird registration before April 7th
$40 April 8th until May 5th
$50 Game day if available
Game Paint
Price: $20 per 500rd bag HST included
BT Grenades Game Price $8.00 HST included
Small smoke bombs $11.00 HST included
Large smoke bombs $20.00 HST included
Pre-purchasing paint and pre-filling tanks at Banshee is strongly encouraged. This will help to reduce the game day chaos.
NOTE: This is event paint only game. Any players caught using non-event paint will be disqualified immediately without refund.
Mess Kit contents:
Copy of field map (check website for possible updates)
Official numbered event dog tag
Numbered armband with individual squad identification colours
WWXII crest
Prize draw eligible to those who deposit their armbands into the draw bin - your armband is your ticket
Information sheet
Prize Draws
Stay tuned, all prizes will be posted on the website leading up to event day.
WWXII Draw all returned armbands are entered into this draw for a chance to win one of several prizes.
Custom Contest - The Post-Apocalyptic scenario opens the door for some great costumes. So we will be having a Costume Contest for WWXII with a Mad Max, Fallout, post-apocalyptic theme. Raid the local goodwill stores and create your masterpiece for a chance at some great prizes. The winners will be voted on and announced the day of the event.
Banshee Scavenger Hunt - Every few days, and getting more frequent as we get closer to WWXII, there will be a coupon posted posted somewhere on Mersey, the Banshee Forum, Banshee's Facebook page, Kijiji, or Banshee's Twitter page. Be the first person to bring in a printed copy of the coupon and you can claim prize the coupon entitles you too.
Check back for further details as they are announced
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Alumni in Design
Eight alumni discuss their perspectives on design
Interviews by Elizabeth Kelsey
Emilie Fetscher '03 Th'04
Co-founder, Veranda Solar, San Francisco, California
Design is an amalgamation of psychological needs and desires, engineering function, tactile and visual detail, and user experience. How we interact with products and experiences is all a result of design by some individual. Design can manifest in a new way of presenting information, a new product, or a change to a common experience.
At Dartmouth I was interested in sculptural art and the concepts of engineering but not necessarily in being a typical engineer. Once I understood what design could be, it was a no-brainer to try to pursue it.
In my work, I enjoy interacting with people, and I feel motivated to improve their lives in often small or simple ways. I have always had the desire to make people smile but never felt the need to save the world. Through design, I hope to give people moments of happiness.
The common thread in my design work is in design research involving consumer insights. I spend time talking to people with target topics in mind to learn how a group of people views the world, and then I design modifications of new products.
My design work ranges from sculptural pieces like bent-ply balancing chairs to the Mighty Mitad, a project that resulted in a very engineered, simple, cost-saving solution for Ethiopians by making their clay cooking surfaces more durable. [View the Mighty Mitad on YouTube.]
My master's thesis at Stanford and collaboration with Capra J'neva resulted in the company Veranda Solar, which makes solar panels that hang out windows or clip to gutters and balconies. Veranda Solar won second prize — and 100,000 Euros — at the 2008 PICNIC Green Challenge, a competition for new green products and services.
Kiersten Muenchinger '93
Associate Professor and Director, Product Design Program, University of Oregon
Design is a quantitative and qualitative mix of analysis that will lead you to a conclusion. You have to have both of those together in order to have a complete analytical process.
Peter Robbie led me into the design field. He told me about some leading companies in design especially well suited with engineering, including IDEO, which is where I went to work after leaving Dartmouth. I've worked in a lot of design consultancies all over the United States as well as in Italy. I've worked on paper products, gift boxes, and refrigerators — and the development of the Long Now Millennial mechanical clock designed to last 10,000 years.
Design education is a relatively new discipline. There aren't a lot of people who get a master's or Ph.D. in design with the thought of teaching the subject, though there is a long history of professionals with design experience who want to teach, who want to be inspired by young designers, or who want to give back. I wanted to have a discourse about what was going on in design.
My absolute favorite product is the Louis Ghost Chair by Philippe Starck. It's a lovely chair but what I really love about it is that the manufacturing of this object is so precise. It's complexly transparent and to get it transparent with so little witness marks from its manufacturing process is extremely rare.
Clay Burns '87
Product Development Consultant, clayburns.com, New York
Product Developer, Design In Kind
We need to go beyond human-centered design to life-centered design. My goal is to bring to life meaningful ideas that promote social and ecological sustainability. By using tools we already have and focusing on building long-term value for society, we can make things that people enjoy while protecting the earth.
After years of considering the paradox of designing new consumer goods and saving the planet from over-consumption, I began to explore the idea of downscaling in design. Downscaling in design involves adopting a routine practice to reduce the size, features, and disposability of the products we develop. It's similar to optimization, but it keeps the needle pointed at sustainability, not just cost.
If, as designers, we really want to help the world go green, we need to make an impact immediately. We can do this without waiting for new zero-footprint green materials. We already have the tools and know-how. We just need to shift the game from cost reduction to reducing the amount of materials and energy used on large-volume consumer goods.
As designers we can work with our clients to facilitate an evolution in product marketing and consumption by promoting solutions that imbed small reductions in material and energy use across the huge numbers of mass-produced objects. We can encourage sustainable consumption by changing what people expect when buying something.
While I was at Smart Design, I helped launch a sustainable design initiative for the company. We became an early adopter of sustainable "cradle to cradle" thinking — championed by green architect William McDonough '73 — and of the guidelines of the Designers Accord, a global coalition dedicated to creating positive environmental and social impact.
I pursue sustainable and responsible design by seeking out green projects, applying the idea of downscaling to my own process, and collaborating with groups such as Design In Kind, which provides design services for under-funded and needy societies throughout the world.
Elizabeth Gerber '98
Assistant Professor, Segal Design Institute, Northwestern University
Peter Robbie's product design course set the direction for my entire career — both the content of his course and the way in which he taught the material.
Design is conscientious intervention into the environment to improve the way we live. Design is everywhere but rarely recognized as such.
I love that I can make an impact in people's lives using my creativity and analytical thinking. I've designed toys for kids to encourage exploration and expression. I've designed medical devices to slow the development of brittle bones. I've designed educational experiences to teach kids about human-centered design.
I've founded an organization, Design For America, that calls on students to use human-centered design to make a positive social impact in their own environments. The organization is less than a year old but is taking off. It clearly is meeting a need for students to engage in human-centered design outside of the classroom in ways that improve their communities.
Two products of which I am fond are the pen and paper. Simple but profound, they allow designers to express ideas visually and instantaneously. No software needed. No complicated technology. At times it feels that we could make more progress in design — especially in the earlier stages — if we were limited to a pen and paper.
Editor's Note: Watch Elizabeth Gerber's recent Thayer School Jones Seminar on design on YouTube.
Brian Mason '03 Th'04, '05
Project Leader and Mechanical Engineer, IDEO, Palo Alto, California
Professor Robbie's advanced product design class sparked my love for product design. In class, he showed a Nightline video in which the design and innovation firm IDEO was asked to redesign the shopping cart. As I watched this video I said in my head, "That's where I want to work."
At IDEO, we focus on human-centered design, where we put the user first. Our process includes going out into the field to observe potential users (or, many times, extreme users) and bringing back those stories to inform and guide the design. Then we dive into the design process by brainstorming, prototyping, and testing things out. This process allows us to deliver cutting-edge designs, new-to-the-world experiences, and new market opportunities.
Design is about elegantly solving human needs. Design is the microwave that is easy to use, the laptop that you don't want to set down, the website you keep going back to, or the medical device that changes your life. Sometimes good design isn't even noticed because it fits so well into our lives.
For the past three years, I have been involved in product development projects in the health arena. I have designed and developed a transcutaneous drug delivery device, several in-home injection devices, a body temperature measurement device for surgery, and a patient recliner chair for hospitals. In between my focus in the health sector, I have been involved in projects ranging from early-phase concept generation around charcoal barbecues to detailed manufacturing and molding of a playground structure.
Recently, I worked with a team of designers to create a water filtration bicycle prototype, the Aquaduct, that won the grand prize in Google's first Innovate or Die contest (check it out on YouTube). I am passionate about all opportunities where design can be used to genuinely improve people's lives.
Design faves: The bicycle, because it is so simple. People keep trying to redesign the bike, but the basic cog and chain works so well. Experiences are also candidates for good design. I love that whenever you call L.L.Bean, someone picks up within three rings. That's a conscious decision they've made to design a positive experience for you. The website Mint.com is another designed experience where they rethought how individuals could interact with their finances.
Colter Leys '96
Product Development Lead, Orbit Baby, Newark, California
Design is a way of combining pleasure and utility. The job of a designer is to make the back-end human research, manufacturability, and business side of products seem effortless, so all that's left for the customer is pleasure and utility.
I enjoy design for its variety. One day I dive in and learn about how metric bolts and nuts are specified; the next day I'm talking to a mom about how her child sleeps; the next day I'm working with a fabric mill on a new dobby weave.
Orbit Baby is unusual, especially in Silicon Valley, for its physicality. The majority of product designers in this area put electronics in boxes for medical devices, mobile devices, or server farms. Everything that Orbit works on can be prototyped out of plywood, a couple of drywall screws, and some laser-cut delrin. This easy relationship with hands-on shop work, instant testability, and human scale is enticing.
Baby travel gear is a tremendously constrained problem. The government has a two-inch thick binder of regulations concerning kids and cars. Our products get driven over cobblestones, thrown up on, fitted into hundreds of kinds of cars, shoved down plastic chutes off airplane holds — it's the big time for mechanical design.
Orbit designs from the napkin sketch to the final product. It's a full-spectrum design experience. We get so involved in the details of everything that by the time a product launches I visualize every radius on every part, dream about alloy contents, and have memorized many of the standards that govern our products.
Design Fave: The Trangia alcohol stove. It was designed during the Second World War for Norwegian ski troops. It's quiet, efficient, simple, elegant, and bombproof. One of the first things that drew me to my wife was her love of this little stove that I had also grown up with.
Marc Fenigstein '01
Senior Strategist, frog design inc., San Francisco, California
I had always assumed the design field was disconnected from technology and business innovation. It was great to find out I was wrong. At frog my two most recent products to hit the market are the HP SkyRoom Collaboration Suite, which is the first product to bring the rich graphics and interaction of dedicated video conference systems to desktops and laptops, and Carmanah Technologies' EverGEN 1710 Solar Area Light, which has the potential to completely alter the way we plan and install lighting for sidewalks, parking lots, parks, and other public spaces. Both of these products combine disruptive innovation across markets, technology, and user experience.
My favorite products simultaneously solve business, technology, and user challenges. One is Project Masiluleke, a project to address HIV/AIDS in Africa. It's an extraordinarily complex, systemic challenge that requires a deep contextual understanding and consists of products, services, technologies, and market innovations. It's a wonderful example of how design thinking has evolved and what it can accomplish.
Jonathan Kling '04 Th'06
Mechanical Engineer and Project Lead, Synapse Product Development, Seattle, Washington
In 2005 I came upon Professor Robbie's first advanced product development class. Every surface and space held the evidence of people iterating on their designs. There were project boards with pictures drawn on napkins connected with pieces of string, Post-it notes, and exclamations pinned everywhere. Cool! Students had gathered into groups and everyone was clamoring to get their ideas out on butcher paper. Watching the design process made me think that pretty much any problem has a better solution. All it takes is some butcher paper and the freedom to put all the options on the table — literally.
Working at Synapse, I make daily use of many of the design control and collaborative brainstorming methods that Professor Robbie taught us. His class influenced me to pursue a career in product development.
Synapse was started by Christoph Mack '88 and operates very much like Thayer. We combine mechanical, electrical, software, and industrial design with the goal of changing the marketplace with our products, including the next wave of remote monitoring and body-integrated medical devices.
I like any physical product in which the physical parts are highly interdependent and integrated while being simple or elegant in design. Air directors for the passenger cabins in commercial airliners are an example. They only have three parts. They're self-cleaning and elegant. If you say, "Well sure, air direction is an easy problem to solve," I invite you to look in every car you've ever ridden in and see how that car's particular designer solved the problem of directing and controlling the flow of AC. There are a bazillion different solutions, some good, some bad, but none outstanding as "the" way to do it. However, every plane has the same air-director design! It might not be glamorous, but I'm geeked about it. Perhaps this is what makes me suited for a career in product design — a childlike excitement for elegant and purposeful engineering.
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I was going to go out and take pictures of some of the interesting barns I see see everyday or maybe the old huge victorian farm house down the road a piece but the weather here has not cooperated!
So I decided to post something from sunnier, happier days and couldn't decided between fancy and simple architecture so I decided to share both.
This is the Taj Mahal Casino in Atlantic City. We went one very warm summer and enjoyed walking the boardwalk, the cool breezes and our favorite vacation activity - people watching. We only live about 6 hours from Atlantic City but I have only been the one time. I always love to see onion domes; these are the only ones I've seen that weren't on a church.
One of our most memorable vacations ever started out in the little cottage on the left. We traveled to Jamaica with our best friends and had some of our worst vacation hassles ever but since they were with us some of our best memories are also from here. I have no desire to ever visit Jamaica again but can't wait for our next vacation with friends.


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CC: @jack_welch.
Reuters critic Felix Salmon thinks there's something fishy about the official BLS jobs numbers!
No, he's not alleging political interference. But he does make this point.
The jobs numbers have been ultra-steady, despite the fact that there's an expected 100K margin for error each month.
Every month, economists and traders look first at the headline jobs growth number: this month, it's 155,000. Last month, it was 161,000. Which means the difference is just 6,000. That difference, from month to month, is what I'm charting here. Sometimes the difference is positive and sometimes it's negative, but if you just look at the magnitude of the change, then over the past two years, the typical number has differed from the previous number by an average of 51,000, with a median of 30,000. And over the past five months, the changes have been much smaller still.
It's entirely reasonable to look at these numbers and conclude that the labor-market recovery is "steady-as-she-goes". Each month, we get another 160,000 new jobs, month in, month out, with some very modest month-to-month variation in the number.
But here's the problem. Let's say that the US economy was adding exactly 160,000 new jobs every month, with no variation at all in that number. In that case, what would we expect the monthly payrolls report to show? It would not show an exact 160,000 print every month, because there are errors in the data, as the BLS technical note does a very good job of explaining.
Here's the technical note to which he refers:
For example, the confidence interval for the monthly change in total nonfarm employment from the establishment survey is on the order of plus or minus 100,000. Suppose the estimate of nonfarm employment increases by 50,000 from one month to the next. The 90-percent confidence interval on the monthly change would range from -50,000 to +150,000 (50,000 +/- 100,000). These figures do not mean that the sample results are off by these magnitudes, but rather that there is about a 90-percent chance that the true over-the-month change lies within this interval. Since this range includes values of less than zero, we could not say with confidence that nonfarm employment had, in fact, increased that month. If, however, the reported nonfarm employment rise was 250,000, then all of the values within the 90- percent confidence interval would be greater than zero. In this case, it is likely (at least a 90-percent chance) that nonfarm employment had, in fact, risen that month. At an unemployment rate of around 6.0 percent, the 90-percent confidence interval for the monthly change in unemployment as measured by the household survey is about +/- 300,000, and for the monthly change in the unemployment rate it is about +/- 0.2 percentage point.
In general, estimates involving many individuals or establishments have lower standard errors (relative to the size of the estimate) than estimates which are based on a small number of observations. The precision of estimates also is improved when the data are cumulated over time, such as for quarterly and annual averages.
The stability is intriguing in light of this wide confidence interval.
Meanwhile, Cardiff Garcia at FT Alphaville has a more economics-oriented take on the stability and the resilience of the jobs data:
Consider all that has either influenced the US economy or at least made big headlines in the last two years — winter accelerations seemingly crashing into spring slowdowns; a debt ceiling debate coinciding with a debt downgrade; a supply chain disruption caused by the Japanese earthquake; commodity and gas price spikes; fiscal drag at both the federal and state levels; a dramatically evolving monetary policy framework; an election and fiscal cliff battle; a perpetual near-disaster in Europe and slowing emerging market growth.
In that light, the following line in today's payrolls report is worth a quick remark:
In 2012, employment growth averaged 153,000 per month, the same as the average monthly gain for 2011.
In part owing to research about seasonal adjustment problems that we came across in late 2011 and early 2012, our line about the recovery throughout the past year has been that things were never quite as bad as we feared in the worst of times, and never quite as good as we'd hoped in the best of times.
Garcia concludes that ultimately the numbers give some reason for hope, given how much the economy has endured.
As for Felix Salmon's concern, it'd be great if someone more well versed on BLS statistics took a stab at a response.


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If you see the following error code when you try to download something (an app, a game, a video, etc.) to your Xbox 360 console, your console may have a hardware problem:
Can't read update from disc.
Status code: xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-xxxx-C000-007b
Note The "x" digits vary.
To resolve this problem, try updating your console using a USB drive or a disc. For more information about how to do this, see How to get a new Xbox 360 update.
If updating your console didn't work, request a repair.
Thanks for your feedback!
Provide feedback for this topic
Would you like to contact Support regarding the "Status code C000-007B occurs when you download to your Xbox 360 console" issue you were reading about or a different issue?


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Scott Dunlap's blog of trail running, ultrarunning, triathlon, and other life adventures. I enjoy the physical, emotional, and spiritual journey of outdoor events and the chance to meet cool people. This blog contains interviews, research, original fiction, new product ideas, and all things trail running.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Nike Apologizes for "Black & Tan" Shoes for St. Patricks Day
"Black and Tan" or "Tan" is still a pejorative term for the British in Ireland. As the LA Times notes, "it would be akin, in some circles, to naming a sneaker the Taliban or the Nazi." Oops.
This isn't the first time a Nike promotion has offended consumers. In 2006, Christians protested their use of a painted cross on the body of soccer player Wayne Rooney, saying it trivialized the sufferings of Christ. The company's 2010 ad, starring a mournful post-sex scandal Tiger Woods in a black-and-white video, also drew ire for its voiceover.
But you know what? These "controversial" ads often end up getting more exposure through PR than a typical media ad buy, so perhaps it is by design rather than a snafu. It could be Nike just found a creative way to move some ugly brown shoes. ;-)
Happy St. Patrick's Day, all! I hope you are enjoying a green run and a green beer wherever you are.
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Oops! I didn't know about that historical tidbit either... but enjoy the other black and tan.ReplyDelete
I would have imagined the flag of St. George advertisement might offend more people because it has -- in the past -- been used as a nativist, white power symbol in Great Britain, though it has been losing that stigma in recent years.ReplyDelete
Wow, didn't know about that ad at all... Being from Ireland and still living there can safely say I never saw any advertisement for those runners here, there probably would have been outrage if they had been advertised here. Would really have upset a lot of people.ReplyDelete
I LIVE for comments! Please add your thoughts, let me know you stopped by, etc., and be thoughtful of others. Always best if you sign your name, of course.


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The Fantuzzi Group of Companies offers an over abundance of material handling equipment and heavy machinery. The fleet consists of a plethora of machines focused on loading, unloading and transporting goods. The railway freight industry and the port market utilize a big portion of their equipment.
Initially beginning in the 1960s as a zoo-technical and agricultural equipment manufacturer in the province of Reggio Emilia, Fantuzzi has expanded to become a global leader in the heavy equipment industry. Now a global firm, the company gradually expanded after introducing successful advancements and overcoming a large number of technological challenges. Luciano Fantuzzi is the President and founder of the group. In 1967, the group began making side lift trucks specifically for hauling timber and extended materials such as metal rods that weighed between 3 to five tonnes. The business enjoyed frequent orders and completed 60 units in the 2nd; approximately 5 times greater than their first year sales.
Within a short amount of time, the business took off exponentially. In 1968, a heavy-duty side-loader British model that was capable of lifting up to 32 tonnes inspired Luciano Fantuzzi. He wanted to create something that had more power with a similar style. After finishing this machine and reaching his goal, Luciano began accepting orders from French Railways, Fiat and many others. Nowadays, the Fantuzzi Group Italy has a large number of manufacturing plants around the globe including Italy, Germany and China. The firm proudly exports to 162 countries.
Fantuzzi has kindly provided its patented knowledge with countries all over the globe with the goal of making the material handling, heavy equipment and transportation industries more efficient. Advancements and digital technology are helping to transform the industry.


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maybe you have a point there! i don't choose kites from the riders who ride them, and i guess i am with the majority!Toby wrote:Maybe SS doesn't see that teamriders are worth so much to match the Best offers.
I don't think SS has any problems, they just do numbers. Simple.
And the riders take what they can get...in this sport is not much money, so it is smart to change.
They risk too much any way, and don't get an according payment.
I am sure Best and SS will both do fine.
And there are companies without any international tour teamrider, like Flysurfer and Core...and I am sure businesswise they do really fine!


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Former President George H.W. Bush expressed his firm affection for Teri Hatcher yesterday with a kiss on the cheek -- and a pat on the ass! Frisky for an 82-year-old, ain't he?
The "Desperate Housewives" star had lunch with the elder Bush in Beverly Hills. Bush was in town to receive the 2007 Ronald Reagan Freedom Award at a Tuesday night gala. George's behavior with Teri could earn him an award from his BFF Bill Clinton!
Hatcher drove off in a Mercedes, Bush in a black Suburban with Secret Service in tow. Perhaps the pair will be reunited on Wisteria Lane.
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The First Turning Point of my Life
There have been many turning points in my life, but the most significant one was when I was eight years old. I was the normal kid, my biological parents were still together and I had a younger brother. My father was a policeman and my mom worked out of the home with Pampered Chef, a cooking company. We were the typical American family until October 5, 2000.
My dad worked third shift and my mom was off work that day so on October 4 we spent all day together. Ice-skating and hockey was a huge part of our lives, so naturally we decided to go to the new ice rink my grandma managed and had the whole place to ourselves. We skated for hours and then went out to dinner. After dinner we went back home so my brother and I could go to sleep early enough to go to school the next day and my dad could go work the third shift.
Around three o'clock in the morning on October 5 I woke up to a lot of commotion and police cars surrounding my house. I could hear my mom crying and people trying to calm her down, and as an eight-year-old girl I was scared and nervous to go downstairs and see what the problem was. Eventually, I got the courage to go down the stairs and was greeted by a nervous police officer that I had never seen before. Since I was so young I do not remember in great detail how the conversations went, but I do remember just being so frustrated because no one would tell me what was happening and why my mom was not present. The only details they would give me was that my dad was in a bad car accident. I was so young at the time that I truly could not comprehend that my world was going to be turned completely upside down.
It did not take long for my grandma to get to my house. I sat on my couch in the living room with her, my brother, and a few police officers for hours. Finally around eight in the morning my mom approached the living room with the police chaplain. At the time I had no idea who he was, but now he is a close family friend. Once they walked into the room, I was positive my dad would come in right behind them in a wheelchair. This was not the case. My mom was in so much pain she could not speak or comfort my brother and I, so the Chaplain had to do all the talking. After explaining the fact that my father did not make it through the accident I ran upstairs to my room to be alone. I was only eight years old, but by that time I knew enough about death that I was heartbroken and devastated. The accident happened because a semi-driver ran a stoplight. That is one thing that drives me crazy, the fact that it was so preventable.
The next week is a complete blur to me. My family is very well known in Fort Wayne, my hometown, so the amount of support we had was unbelievable. Not only that, but because my dad was a police officer, many people have had to deal with them at one point or another. The viewing lasted from eight in the morning until around midnight, with a constant line. Although I was so torn up about my father's passing, I loved that I got to see literally every person that was in my life, plus making new relationships. My brother and I would run around outside in the cold October weather greeting and entertaining everyone that was waiting in line for hours.
Not only was the viewing full of people, the funeral has gone down in Fort Wayne's history. It was noted that the funeral had the biggest attendance of any other funeral in Fort Wayne ever. The funeral was held at the biggest church in Fort Wayne at the time called Blackhawk Christian Church. It was completely full and many close friends and family got the chance to speak. The whole funeral process was so chaotic and such a hard time I have very little memory of it. I honestly believe that my conscience has blocked many of the details out of my memory.
I would do anything to have my father back, only if I even got the chance to say goodbye to him. I know that will never happen and it is a hard thing to live with, but I have become a stronger person by moving on with my life. A death in general can be a pivotal point in ones life, especially when you are an eight-year-old girl whose father passes away suddenly.
Even though the memories of the initial days of his passing are painful, I wish I could remember more because I want to preserve every last memory of my father as possible. Our time together was so short, but monumental in my life. Because of his passing, it has been my dream to be a youth counselor. I want to help children and young adults to be able to move past hardships in life and make a difference in someone's life. Not only has this tragic accident showed me what my purpose is in life, but also it has connected me with so many amazing people. The other police survivors have been so influential on my life and I have even impacted other survivors' families by helping them in their time of need. If this accident never occurred I cannot imagine what type of person I would be or where I would be going in life.


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During spring startup you may have participated in one of the anti-bullying/workplace civility workshops led by Ms. Fran Sepler. Deb Peterson, assistant to the president for affirmative action and accreditation, is seeking your feedback on the workshop and asks that you take a few minutes to complete a 10-question survey.
In a thank-you message to the campus for the more than 100 employees who participated in the sessions, President Hanson said the workshops were well-received.
"We want to assure you that Bemidji State University is committed to providing a safe and respectful workplace and we view this workshop as an important step as we work toward that ultimate goal," he said.
While those who attended the spring startup workshops are encouraged to complete the survey, it is not required. Responses are anonymous; you will not be asked for your name and your responses cannot be associated with you as an individual.
Contact Deb Peterson for additional information at 4121 or email@example.com.


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New "Jumbo Light" Loans: Not Much Help to Borrowers
Homebuyers, homeowners, real estate agents, and mortgage brokers have all been awaiting, with high expectation, details on the new "jumbo light" loan limits and lending standards. Everyone had hoped these new loans, authorized by the Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, would provide lower interest rates for folks trying to buy or refinance homes in high-cost markets.
Well, the lending limits and standards are finally here, and (drumroll please) it looks like these new loans will do... nothing. That's right. Due to heavy restrictions on the loans, most people won't qualify for one. And even if they do, the interest rates are still much higher than those for traditional conforming loans.
What does this mean? For starters, people living in high-cost real estate markets that are having trouble meeting their mortgage obligations, or are already behind in payments, won't get relief from a jumbo light loan. Those folks will (1) continue to struggle, or (2) join the large ranks of those in foreclosure. And those trying to buy a home in a high-cost market won't get help from jumbo light loans either. So much for economic stimulus.
Here are the details of how all this works:
What Are Jumbo Light Loans? In the past, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) could guarantee real estate loans up to $417,000. In a nutshell, the guarantee meant lower interest rates for those loans-which in turn made them more affordable. Loans above $417,000 (called "jumbo loans") carried higher interest rates, due to a perceived greater risk.In its Economic Stimulus Act of 2008, Congress authorized Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the FHA to guarantee (until December 1, 2008) mortgages as large as $729,750 in some high-cost markets.
This creates three types of loans: (1) Traditional loans under $417,000 (called conforming loans). (2) "Jumbo conforming loans" or "jumbo lights" (between $417,000 and up to $729,750). The upper lending limit depends on where you live. To find out what the limit is in your area, check the HUD FHA Mortgage Limits.
(3) Jumbo loans (loans over $729,750 - or less in lower-cost markets). These loans carry the highest interest rates.The hope was that the new category of jumbo light loans would carry lower interest rates, so that people in high-cost real estate markets could more easily buy a home or refinance an existing mortgage. Alas, according to mortgage brokers, the qualifying guidelines for jumbo light loans are so difficult to meet that many people cannot get one.
Restrictive Qualification Rules. Some examples of these restrictive guidelines are:
- The Debt-to-Income Ratio must be no more than 45%. This means that your total monthly housing expenses (mortgage, home insurance, taxes, and other home related expenses) divided by your gross monthly income is less than 45%. In high-cost housing markets, where people have to spend a large portion of their income on housing, these limits may be tough to meet. Yet these high-cost housing markets are precisely where the need for jumbo light loans is greatest.
- Buyers must submit full documentation of income and assets (which can be difficult for self-employed people, since the typical self-employed person can deduct a variety of expenses and show very little income at the end of the year.
- Buyers must have a credit score of at least 700 if their LTV is greater than 80% or at least 680 if their LTV is less than 80%. This factor alone eliminates a lot of would be borrowers.
- Borrowers cannot have made a late mortgage payment within the last 12 months. Oh well.
In addition, those who are refinancing cannot wrap a second mortgage into the new jumbo light loan. Because second mortgage holders are skittish in the present-day market, borrowers may have to repay a substantial percentage of their second mortgage in order to refinance the first.
Not Much Relief in Interest Rates. In addition to these restrictions, the hoped-for favorable interest rates of jumbo light loans haven't yet materialized. Currently, the interest rates for jumbo lights range from 7% to upwards of 7.5%, not much better than rates for the regular jumbo. In contrast, the interest rates for traditional conforming loans are less than 6%.
Jumbo Light Loans May Improve in the Future. Some experts believe that it will take jumbo light loans a while to hit their stride, and once they do, interest rates may dip a bit. Some predict that for this reason, Congress may extend the planned December 31, 2008 expiration date.


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16 Feb 2011
(HONG KONG) Dragonair has announced the launch of new children's kits featuring two much-loved Disney themes – Mickey Club House and Toy Story. The fun packs are now available on the majority of Dragonair flights for young passengers aged three to eight.
The Mickey Club House kit comes with a bright green shopping tote while the Toy Story kit features an eye-catching carry box. Both designs contain a collection of fun items including a colouring book, colouring pencil, memo pad, puzzle, stickers and games, all featuring the easily recognisable and playful Disney characters.
Dragonair will distribute the fun packs on flights to and from Hong Kong for the enjoyment of young flyers.
Dragonair's General Manager Inflight Services, Cecilia Leung said: "Disney characters are always a favourite with kids, and the Disney-themed fun packs will ensure that youngsters will always be kept entertained throughout the journey. At Dragonair we like to look after travellers of all ages and we believe the new fun packs will make the flight unforgettable for our more junior flyers."