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*{{Journal|3|The Pentastar Alignment}} {{1stm}}
*{{Journal|3|Blasters for Hire}}
*{{Journal|3|Blasters for Hire}}
*''Classic Adventures: Volume Four - The Best of the Journal''
*''[[Pirates & Privateers]]''
*''[[Pirates & Privateers]]''
*{{InsiderCite|66|Who's Who: Imperial Grand Admirals}}
*{{InsiderCite|66|Who's Who: Imperial Grand Admirals}}
Revision as of 18:32, 2 July 2016
- "The New Republic is still merely the Rebellion, thinly disguised as an official entity. They are outlaws, and they will continue to think and do as such. In the Pentastar Alignment, there will be no tolerance for any Rebel insurrection."
- ―Grand Moff Ardus Kaine
The Pentastar Alignment of Powers[4], best known simply as the Pentastar Alignment, was a splinter movement in the Galactic Empire and a political conglomerate in the Outer Rim, centered around the "Velcar Free Commerce Zone".[1]
After the Battle of Endor in 4 ABY, the Galactic Empire fragmented into many pieces. Instead of trying to keep control of the complete Outer Rim, Grand Moff Ardus Kaine, who had earlier replaced Grand Moff Tarkin at the head of the Oversector Outer, concentrated his forces in fourteen sectors of the New Territories.[2]
Kaine used his personal Executor-class Star Dreadnought, the Reaper, for some none-too-subtle intimidation as a venue to hold talks with representatives of multiple star systems and five major Imperial corporations.[1] The talks were successful, and the Pentastar Alignment was founded in 4 ABY.[3]
The Alignment largely maintained an isolationist position, and sought to be on peaceful terms with all parties. This lead to the New Republic reciprocating and largely ignoring the Alignment[2]; although pirates and mercenaries such as the Red Moons continued to harry the Alignment.[5]
In 8 ABY, Grand Admiral Thrawn returned from the Unknown Regions in a last-ditch attempt to reunite and consolidate the faltering Empire. The Alignment contributed some forces to Thrawn's efforts but did not formally join him[2], preferring to continue its militarization in anticipation of conflict with the New Republic.[5]
One year later, the resurrected Emperor Palpatine began to reunite various Imperial splinter factions as part of Operation Shadow Hand, an effort to topple the New Republic. The Emperor was more successful than Thrawn in recruiting Kaine, and the Pentastar Alignment forces eventually attacked the New Republic. Joining Thrawn's remnant forces, Ardus Kaine made a successful campaign against the New Republic forces, winning a dozen victories until penetrating the Core Worlds. However, the conflict was a failure, with Kaine killed and Palpatine defeated for the last time.[2]
The Pentastar Alignment was annexed by Admiral Gilad Pellaeon in 12 ABY, becoming part of the Imperial Remnant. The Reaper became Pellaeon's flagship until its destruction at the Battle of Celanon in 13 ABY.[2] Before 19 ABY, Kaine's homeworld Sartinaynian—renamed Bastion—became the Imperial Remnant's capital, remaining thus for over a century.[6]
Government and politics
An Empire-in-miniature, the Pentastar Alignment nevertheless differed in organization, as it was administratively split in two: "Order" and "Enforcement". Order comprised the Politorate, Insurrection, Judgment, and Protectorate branches; Enforcement was simply the Pentastar Patrol police force (which would design, along with Kuat Drive Yards and Sienar Fleet Systems, the Enforcer-class picket cruiser).[1]
The Alignment utilized the services of several former Inquisitors in its Judicial Branch. They were known as the Great InQuestors of Judgment and included the Dark Jedi Jerec among their roster.[7]
The Alignment was made of fourteen sectors and held the allegiance of hundreds of planets.[2] Many of the planets were part of the former Confederacy of Independent Systems, including the "Velcar Free Commerce Zone" (containing Capza, Entralla, and Bextar)[1] and the worlds Jaemus,[8] Cantras Gola,[5] Gabredor III,[5] Bescane, and Criton's Point.[1]
- Albarrio sector[2]
- Atrivis sector[2]
- Braxant sector[2]
- Carrion sector[2]
- Cassander sector[2]
- Clacis sector[2]
- Dynali sector[2]
- Obtrexta sector[2]
- Myto sector[2]
- Perinn sector[2]
- Prefsbelt sector[2]
- Raioballo sector[2]
- Relgim sector[2]
- Velcar sector[2]
Other supporters of the Alignment included Dynamic Automata,[1] PowerOn Conglomeration,[5] and Galentro Heavy Works.[1]
- "Blaze of Glory"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 8
- "It's a Gambler's Life"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 4
- "Counterstrike"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 8 (Mentioned only)
- "Counterstrike"—Classic Adventures: Volume Four - The Best of the Journal (Reprint) (Mentioned only)
- "The Pentastar Alignment"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 3 (First mentioned)
- "Blasters for Hire"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 3
- "The Pentastar Alignment"—Classic Adventures: Volume Four - The Best of the Journal
- Pirates & Privateers
- "Who's Who: Imperial Grand Admirals"—Star Wars Insider 66
- The Essential Chronology
- The New Essential Chronology
- "The Dark Forces Saga, Part 6: Outcasts and Megalomaniacs Welcome" on Wizards.com (original article link, backup links)
- The Complete Star Wars Encyclopedia
- The Essential Atlas
- The Essential Guide to Warfare
- "The Imperial Warlords: Despoilers of an Empire, Part 1," The Official Star Wars Blog (link) (First identified as Pentastar Alignment of Powers)
- "The Imperial Warlords: Despoilers of an Empire, Part 2," The Official Star Wars Blog (link)
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 "The Pentastar Alignment"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 3
- ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 The Essential Atlas
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Essential Guide to Warfare
- ↑ "The Imperial Warlords: Despoilers of an Empire, Part 1," The Official Star Wars Blog (link)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 "Blaze of Glory"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 8
- ↑ Legacy Era Campaign Guide
- ↑ "The Dark Forces Saga, Part 6: Outcasts and Megalomaniacs Welcome" on Wizards.com (original article link, backup links)
- ↑ "It's a Gambler's Life"—Star Wars Adventure Journal 4


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Expats Paris Entrepreneurs' Breakfast: We're sharing our Social Media Marketing Strategy
When we started using social media at Expats Paris four years ago, we told ourselves that we had the right to make mistakes, to ask forgiveness rather than permission, and to always test everything.
Expats Paris is now on almost all major social media platforms and has an engaged community of followers and friends.
How did we get there? We've learned to frequently communicate with our followers, share interesting and engaging content (articles and images), ensure that content matches our objective of helping others before we share it publicly, and measure the impact and performance of everything we share.
Social media marketing strategy. What exactly does it mean? Do you really need to have one for your brand? And which strategy is most appropriate for your particular needs and objectives?
How do you find the time to manage social media? How should you address negative comments? What are some tips to adapt to changes in technology and trends without feeling overwhelmed? How do you keep up? How do you make money using social media? How do you measure the results of what you do?
Wow, this whole thing sounds overwhelming.
A lot of questions that really scare the hell out of many entrepreneurs. We've gone through it all. We've had success and failures, and we're still learning. One of the major lessons we'll never forget is that, when it comes to social media, there's a lot to learn.
That's why we're organizing a four-part workshop where we'll openly share with you how we started, when, why, and what we choose to share on social media. Expats Paris' marketing strategy is divided into three major parts: Emailing, social media and events (these aren't necessarily events we host. Many of them are offline in which participate, host, or sponsor).
Starting a community business without marketing budget, we relied a lot on social media to raise awareness around our Expats Paris.
Welcome back to the Expats Paris Entrepreneurs Breakfast. We'd like to share with you what our social media marketing strategy is hoping it'll be of help to other entrepreneurs out there. Here's what we'll be covering during these workshops:
Part 1: Social Media Marketing Plan
We'll offer tips related to choosing your social networks, creating a strategic social media profile, finding your unique voice, and developing a posting strategy. We'll also discuss analysis, testing, automation and engagement. Learn more here.
Part 2: 15 Practical Social Media Strategies That Have Worked for Us.
People make it sound easy. You post a few times on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and the traffic pours in. The reality is, it's not as easy as it sounds. And as with anything else in life, you need to spend time learning how to do it the proper way. In this portion of our workshop, we'll openly share with you what has been working for us and why it may (or may not) work for you. Read more about this part here.
Part 3: Twitter
At Expats Paris, we consider ourselves lucky. Not only is there a huge number of great social media tools available for free, there are a lot of tools specifically tailored to Twitter. Yes, Twitter! We have steady traffic coming from Twitter everyday, and this platform is our most preferred. The third part of this workshop will entirely focus on how to get started and be successful on Twitter. RSVP here.
Part 4: The Power of Images on Social Media.
What's the easiest and quickest way to instantly increase engagement on social media?
At Expats Paris, we've found that images are the primary hook that draws more clicks, shares, and favorites.
We use a lot of images in our blog posts and on every post we share on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Tumblr, Instagram and LinkedIn.
Many marketers say that attention-grabbing images may be the closest thing we have to a magic wand on social media.
So, what is the easiest way to create and share engaging images? Why are some images re-shared multiple times and others not shared at all? What lessons have we learned about the power of images while building our Twitter following? We'll answer these questions and more during this portion of the workshop.
We're so excited to invite you to this event and can't wait to share with you everything we've learned. This series will reveal nearly everything you need to stay on the leading edge of social media marketing and create real engagement with your audience.
As you'll see, social media marketing is one of the most efficient ways to grow a business, yet many entrepreneurs don't understand how it works.
Please note that this social media marketing workshop is limited to 15 attendees. It will be an intimate gathering in a small venue, allowing for maximum personalized attention.
Check out our events' page for more details and look forward to seeing you at these workshops pretty soon.
Do you want to receive some awesome articles about the joys, challenges, and lessons learned from expatriation adventures in Paris every week?
Don't worry, you can unsubscribe at anytime.
Latest from Admin
- Five ways getting an MBA will launch your international career
- Your French Language Survival Guide: 9 Tips On How To make It In A Parisian French-Speaking Sphere.
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- Loving an Alien: How does it feel to fall for a "foreigner"? PART 2
- Your Definitive Legal Guide To Hiring Staff In France

subset: commoncrawl


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Snail PNG with transparent background you can download for free, just click on it and save.
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Good news Horrible fans, the much anticipated sequel is still chugging along, and here's an update from the original cast member Nathan Fillion — or as you know him, Captain Hammer.
Not only is there a title, but Joss, Zack Whedon, Jed Whedon and Jed's wife, Maurissa Tancharoen have all worked out a few songs, and Fillion has heard a few verses. But he's mum on the potential title.
Says Fillion:
Joss, I was talking to him right before we won the Emmy. He said that he's finished writing a song or two. He told me a couple of verses to the song...It's going to be great. I know a bunch of cast members of Dr. Horrible who would love to get back into it.
See the video interview at MTV.


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Jack Bullock - Alfred Publishing Co., Inc.
Click here to:
Feature four trumpets in this swing-era style work for concert band. Reflect on the 40s, 50s and 60s musically as the trumpets set the stage for grand memories of the big-band sound. The key to the accompaniment is attention to articulation. Highly programmatic.


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A couple of garbage bags in your pack can serve many purposes. If you do not have a pack cover, then one works in a pinch. Forgot your rain gear? Need to block the wind? Wet clothes in the pack? Trying to protect a down bag from getting wet? You can even use them to store garbage, but Zip lock's are actually better for that.
Bill's ChoiceI keep 2 or 3 in my pack, but mainly end up loaning them out to others who did not listen to my recommendations on rain gear.
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Baja 5B/POT BRUYANT. NE CONVIENT PAS A UN USAGE EN VILLE
Arrêté, replacement part: #87401
Standard Parts
Need your Baja to have a bit more 'oomph'? A little more speed? A bit more acceleration? Maybe some more top end? How about a LOT of speed, acceleration and top end? If you've been craving tons more speed out of your Baja 5B, you'll definitely want to check out our new Aluminium Tuned Pipe Set!
Developed specifically for the Baja, this is a truly impressive exhaust system. Featuring ear-splitting performance, you will actually feel the acceleration you gain from bolting this on! You will see the top speed you get as your Baja roars past you! Please note: this pipe set is NOT for driving near residential or city areas. It is very loud!


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Good colour reproduction, Available at a reasonable price
Dead-on white balance
Decent little camera suitable for the point and shooter
Good colour reproduction
Extra zoom power
'The camera is easy to grip and the menu system is simple to navigate.'
'The S3100 is very slim and light, and it feels balanced in the hand.'
'Styling wise, the Nikon Coolpix S3000 is very attractive. '
'Picture quality better than expected.'
Several areas of performance were a disappointment.
A stylish, no-frills snapper
ReviewGist helps you find the best products to buy by making sense of online reviews.
We are currently aggregating 376,500 reviews
covering over 29,474 products.
© 2020 ReviewGist.com. All Rights Reserved.


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Tart and lemony, with a subtle warmth from the cayenne pepper
With tart lemon and a hint of cayenne pepper, this detoxifying white tea blend is the master of all cleansing teas. It's got a bright citrusy kick that'll leave you feeling fresh, revitalized and ready to seize the day. Plus a subtle warmth and spiciness to get your senses tingling. We love to sip it first thing in the morning – especially after a wild night of overindulging.


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Office Manager, Madrid
At BCG, Explorers are unafraid to embark on new journeys. They try new solutions to untangle complex problems and drive transformational change. Begoña has the courage to take action.
Any idea, suggestion, or change is possible at BCG if supported by the right back-up data and the energy and motivation to make it happen.
I became a part of BCG 18 years ago, and I have seen the system grow more and more in parallel with my own growth as a professional. I have learned a lot in an environment of teaming and collaboration. I have always been proud of working at one of the most intellectually privileged companies but with the friendliest and most fun people, too. The way BCG cares about people is something that I value a lot.
Another special thing for me about BCG is how open to new ideas and approaches it is. I will never forget when I first proposed to take a group of BCGers to Meki, Ethiopia, for the summer to do social work in a school with an NGO, and how the management supported the initiative. It went so well it has become one of the most important social-impact projects in our office—with many of our staff even using their vacation days to go to Meki.
Begoña holds a bachelor's degree in communication and a master's in marketing. For eight years, she has participated in Living Meki, a volunteer program that she launched at BCG to help a small community stimulate education and health in the region ( www.livingmeki.com). She has also volunteered with several projects in India.
I learned that "no" is a word never said at BCG. Anything can be done, anytime, anyhow. When people put forth a lot of effort and creativity and when they collaborate, it all happens!
Open-minded, clever, respectful, works-hard-plays-hard, collaborative, efficient, creative, resourceful, ambitious, and demanding.
The voluntary yearly trip to Meki, Ethiopia, launched in BCG Madrid in 2008, is the greatest experience I have had. More than 200 volunteers have been there already, many families have benefited from our work, and 300 kids have been able to study thanks to the sponsorship program we have implemented. The engagement we have with the community of Meki is very special, and now it is expanding to other rural areas close by.


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Editor's note: Do you need something to smile about? Every day, WND selects the best joke offered up by readers and contributors to its Laughlines forum and brings it to you as the WND Joke of the Day. Here is today's offering:
Asked by a caller yesterday which industry Barack Obama would attempt to nationalize next, Rush Limbaugh responded:
"Let me take a wild guess ... He's not going to go after any of the ingredients necessary to build a teleprompter."
Advertisement - story continues below
TRENDING: Highest-rated cable show in history: Tucker Carlson crushes competition
a great joke you want to share with the world? Write it up in the WND
Laughlines forum. Who knows? It might be selected as the WND Joke of
the Day – and your wildest dreams will come true.


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You'll need the 22002989 machine control and the 12002039 motor conversion kit to put it back to new again.
Are these boards toast or can they be DIY Radio Shack circuit board modified vs. $200/ EACH?3)Is there any other component/part to check that may contributing to rapid cycle advancement? 4) based upon replies to above questions can I use scavanged parts from sister models MAH3000 and MAH5500(preferred according to what I've read online)?
if he says it's under warranty
BTW...do I really need to replace another wax motor when it was replaced years ago, I have the "good" one that is black plunger.
if OK (not a forum violation) to send URL link I'll reply later to anyone interested in private email.


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What ultra-hot investments is the world's greatest investor, Warren Buffett, recommending right now? Bitcoin? High-tech venture capital? Vintage Ferraris? Marijuana stocks?
Buffett's most recent letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders gives us a clue: "What I advise here is essentially identical to certain instructions I've laid out in my will. One bequest provides that cash will be delivered to a trustee for my wife's benefit. My advice to the trustee could not be more simple.
"Put 10% of the cash in short-term government bonds and 90% in a very low-cost S&P 500 index fund. I believe the trust's long-term results from this policy will be superior to those attained by most investors – whether pension funds, institutions, individuals – who employ high fee managers," he added.
Since the vast majority of ETFs are linked to market indexes, Buffett's advice to buy plain-vanilla index funds is a friendly invasion of sorts.
Three Key Plays
Three ETFs tracking the S&P 500 that carry annual expenses under 0.10% and would match Buffett's description of low cost are the iShares Core S&P 500 (IVV, 0.07%), the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY, 0.09%), and the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO, 0.05%).
For exposure to short-term government bonds, two good choices are the iShares 1-3 Yr Treasury Bond ETF (SHY, 0.15%) or the Schwab Short-Term U.S. Treasury ETF (SCHO, 0.08%).
The difference between investing in a government bond ETF versus government bonds directly is a matter of preference.
Unlike actual bonds that mature and repay your principal, the typical government bond ETF never matures. Rather, they ride out changes in interest rates by increasing in value when rates fall and decreasing in value when rates rise.
Although Buffett's advice of a 90/10 equity/bond portfolio won't be appropriate for most clients, the advice to invest simply and efficiently is applicable.
Adding exposure to other major asset classes via low-cost index ETFs like global real estate (RWO), global treasury inflation protected securities (GTIP), and commodities (GCC) can help to further diversify risk. From decades of experience, Warren Buffett knows that hand-picking individual stocks that consistently beat the market is difficult for individual and professional investors alike and that's why he doesn't recommend it.
"The goal of the non-professional investor should not be to pick winners – neither he nor his 'helpers' can do – but should rather be to own a cross-section of businesses that in aggregate are bound to do well."
Warren Buffett likes indexing, now go tell your clients.


text: Thigh high black boots are always such a major turn on for me. Then put me in some sexy lingerie and I am ready to go! I was rolling around on the couch in my lingerie with my fake cigarette and feeling so horny I couldn't help but want to start to masturbate. This is when my big glass toy came in very handy. Sliding that thing in and out of my tight little slit got me going so much I turned it around and started playing with my ass. What a feeling! Can't wait to do that again.


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Welcome to the Lake District, Cumbria
The official tourism website for the region
In England's north western corner lies ancient Cumbria and the timeless landscapes of the Lake District. This is where modern tourism was born, in the shimmering lakes and hushed mountains whose radiant beauty inspired poets and painters to turn nature into art.
A landscape of adventure designed to challenge the imagination, from the exhilaration of the summits to the thrill of an open water swim. A deep heritage of culture expressed in traditional games and a rich calendar of performance. A sophisticated cuisine rooted in the land itself. A world apart, but so easy to get to.
In Cumbria and the Lake District we know how to take care of our guests. We've been doing it for a long time. There's an enviable array of high quality places to stay. Draw back the curtains on this magnificent landscape and see it with your own eyes. Explore and be inspired. See the lakes and mountains gleam misty and wide, explore the "lonely ridge, the dancing beck and the silent forest," and bask in the wonder of it all like so many have done before, from Wordsworth to Wainwright, from Ruskin to Potter.
Allow us to guide you to the best things to do in the Lake District, new experiences, show you new areas to visit, help you find your space and make new memories that will last a lifetime.
To help you plan your trip and see what is already open now, please click here.
You may leave the Lake District, Cumbria, but once you've been, it'll never leave you.


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Call Vons Electric 24 hours a day, any day
Our Customer oriented Service is reflected in everything about us. That's why Vons Electric is licensed. Our licensed electricians get the job done to make happy customers!
Our team always protects the customers - every step of the way. Vons Electric is fully bonded. You never have to worry about any aspect of our work from start to finish with Vons experienced team!
Your state of mind is important to us. Vons Electric is fully insured! We earn your trust and you can relax knowing that everything will be taken care of with your project!
For award winning electrical service, talk to Vons Electric first!
Our dedication to customer service is reflected in everything about us. Vons Electric is licensed, bonded and fully insured. By demonstrating our commitment to accountability, financial stability, and responsibility we want you to experience the peace of mind we believe everyone should expect when giving a business their trust.
Do you need an electrician you can trust to maintain, upgrade, or install an entire new electrical system? Would you like to enhance your home or business by installing a ceiling fan, additional electrical outlets, or outdoor lighting? Are you wondering who installs Kohler Generators or can update your warehouse lighting to becoming energy efficient? Maybe your need is as simple as a dimmer for the dining room lights or a new dryer outlet.
Whether your focus is on beauty, safety, security, or practicality, call Vons Electric, Inc. Since 2005, our team of licensed electricians have been providing top quality, electrical services for the homes, businesses, and industries of the Fox Valley region.
- We're licensed, bonded and insured
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On behalf of Tracy and I, we wanted to pass on our appreciation for the great work you performed at our house. We never questioned our decision to have your company complete the necessary work once Vons reviewed everything with us. Your staff was very professional and respectful of our home. Your work was completed at the highest level and your customer service was awesome. We thank you for this - Keep Smiling.Joe & Tracy Buchholz
Congratulations! Winning the Best of the Fox Reader's Choice Award for Kane County again is an absolutely wonderful achievement, and an incredible track record. I can certainly vouch for the work you do. I was so very impressed with the lack of damage to walls when the guys hooked up our warming system for our floors. The layout for the hook-up was awkward at best. They did a wonderful job. Again, congratulations!Karol PetitPalatine, IL
Dear Vons Electric,Stephen SagerSt. Charles, IL
I am recently retired and I was self-employed. Dave was out last week and it was a wonderful experience. You never know what you are going to get when you work with someone for the first time and you will receive a resounding recommendation from us!
Vons Electric has handled repairs for many of my clients. They are happy with the work and Vons makes me look good.Ed LowrieWall Fill Co.
I just wanted to say THANK YOU very much for responding to my electrical problem last Friday. Of course in the wake of recent tornado devastation, my emergency of losing power to my microwave, doesn't seem as severe now, but on a friday before school and 3 young boys trying to cook breakfast, it was an emergency in our home. I called Vons Electric in a panic and your response of "no worries, I will get someone out there today" was music to my ears!Shannon Giustino
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"It's all about the customer. That's the only way to look at it. If the customer is happy, everything will fall into place."
-Vaughn Hazen, Owner
-Vaughn Hazen, Owner


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|Body Region:
|Specific Area:
|Exercise Type:
|Equipment Used:
|Upper/Middle Back
These exercises should only be performed after evaluation by a qualified medical professional and under their instruction. Should you experience pain or discomfort while doing an exercise, stop immediately.
Your starting position is on your hands and knees on an exercise mat. Your weight is evenly balanced. Keep your stomach muscles activated and keep your back straight.
Next, imagine you're reaching energy up through the top of your head and arch up through your neck, upper shoulders, and upper back. Let the movement continue through your mid-back and imagine you're bringing your shoulder blades together. You're keeping your stomach muscles activated throughout this movement. You'll feel the muscular contraction in your upper and mid-back. Relax and return to the starting position.
Next, initiating the movement in your stomach muscles, round through your mid- and upper back, continuing the movement through your neck and letting your head round down. You'll feel the muscular contraction across your upper and mid-back. Relax and return to the starting position.


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Rhode Island Introductory Classes
"Your method works…all I did was follow your marketing instruction. This new career has exceeded my wildest expectations.
I couldn't have done it without you."
–Bob Gatchel
If you've ever aspired to be "the voice" of radio and television ads, or have been told that you have an amazing voice, then you've come to the right place. Such A Voice provides technique training, demo production, and marketing education to new and established voice over professionals alike. In addition to voice over for commercials we also train people for narration, audiobooks, video games, e-learning, and animation. Our program's Rhode Island introductory classes enable you to work remotely while providing your services to clients all over the world. Your product is literally your voice, and you conduct business from your own home!
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"Under Covers": Singing nancies release DMB tribute album
From casual listeners to die-hard Daveheads, DMB fans comprise a corps not seen since the heyday of the KISS Army of the 1970s– whose object of affection also attained superstar status via its live concerts and savvy marketing.
In this age, that means websites. Among the 307 unofficial fan sites listed on DMBlinks.com, perhaps none is more popular than Charlottesville's own Nancies.org, created and operated by web gadfly and DMB ambassador-at-large Waldo Jaquith.
Launched on July 31, 1998, Nancies.org now boasts 19,200 registered members, and Jaquith says the site will likely reach 20,000 by the time this column is printed. Registered members represent only a fraction of the site's visitors, he adds, noting that more than 250,000 fans visit the site regularly. Besides these formidable figures, Nancies.org is the recipient of two consecutive "My VH-1 Best Fan Site" awards (2000 and 2001).
But now members of the Nancies community have upped the ante. A dozen musically inclined– and a few musically impaired– members have collaborated for a unique tribute album, Under The Covers And Dreaming: a nancies.org Dave Matthews Band Tribute.
Kevin Lewis, 33-year-old president of an Atlanta-based electronics firm and an amateur musician, joined Nancies.org two years ago. Though he had incorporated several DMB songs into his performances at clubs around Atlanta, the idea of a tribute album had never occurred to him– until he noticed a post on Nancies.org and recorded "Christmas Song." Still, nothing transpired until another Nancies member, Pat Pensyl (who lives only 40 miles from Lewis), picked up the gauntlet and began compiling submissions.
"Each song was recorded individually by fans," Lewis' website says, but adds the caveat: "Some recordings are very professional. Some are not. There was no judging involved in deciding the final tracks. Everyone that submitted something got on."
Nevertheless, demand for the CD has been "tremendous," says Lewis. The website has received more than 13,000 hits since July 17 for the mp3 downloads and more than 250 requests for the mailings from as far away as South Africa. That's more than enough interest, Lewis says, for a second volume, which is already in the works.
"We can't take a lick of credit for it," says Nancies.org honcho Jaquith. But he's nonetheless impressed.
"Given the budget of $0, the cast of all-amateur musicians, and complete lack of recording facilities, I think that this really turned out quite well. I particularly like the songs in which the performer didn't merely parrot the Dave Matthews Band, but attempted to provide their own flavor," says Jaquith.
Lewis hopes the band will eventually hear the disc.
"They'll laugh at some of the tracks," he admits, "but as the cliché goes, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery."
Band of Nancies: Nancies.org member Kevin Lewis performs in Atlanta. Cover artwork from the Nancies.org DMB tribute album Under The Covers And Dreaming.
Almost the "World's Best Drummer"
According to Drum magazine, Carter Beauford very nearly is the "World's Best Drummer," ranking as first runner-up in both that category and "Best Alternative Drummer" in the magazine's annual poll published in the August/September issue.
Rolling Stone: "Grace" is really "gone"
Editors at Rolling Stone have selected "Grace Is Gone" as their choice for best song from the Busted Stuff in the magazine's August 20 edition– "a haunting, pastoral jam that rambles between country and psychedelia."
Esquire: It's okay to dig DMB
Esquire magazine's August "Index" (the mag's brief lists of things every man should know) are "Five Essential Summer Tours," including DMB, albeit recognized with this backhand compliment: "We're man enough to cop a soft spot for DMB." The other four "essential" tours include Moby, Lauryn Hill, Tom Petty, and Billy Idol. Billy Idol?
"Quit screaming for your favorite song"
When quizzed by VH-1 on requests, Matthews had this to say: "Sometimes we do that. Other times we refuse to play songs because people ask for them so frequently that we will never— we won't play them until people stop asking."
Where are they going?
According to Rolling Stone, locals can expect to see little of Dave around town after the current tour ends early next month. Matthews, the article reports, will spend time with his family in Seattle, where wife Ashley attends graduate school; Tinsley will complete his forthcoming solo album; Lessard will busy himself writing his own songs; and drummer Beauford is interested in scoring films. As for LeRoi Moore? RCA's Bruce Flohr, who signed the band to the label in the mid 1990s, says he hopes the saxophonist has some spare time for studio sessions. "I would have that guy blow a horn on any record out there," says Flohr.
Solid platinum
According to an August 8 Billboard and Nancies.org item, DMB's final Bama Rags release, "Remember Two Things," a five-song EP, recently achieved platinum status (shipments of one million copies). So now all the band's recordings have achieved at least platinum status, with a combined total of more the 25 million albums sold. The best seller to date is Crash, which has sold seven million copies.
"Everyday" video nominated
"Everyday," the video partially filmed in Charlottesville starring hug-hungry Josh Friedlander, has been nominated for an MTV Video Music Award in the "Best Group Video" category. The awards air Thursday, August 29, at 9pm.
Matthews a Farm Aid headliner
The September 21 lineup stars co-founders Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp, and Neil Young, as well as Matthews, who will perform a solo set as he did at last year's event. Matthews was elected to the group's board of directors last year. The benefit concert will be telecast live on Country Music Television.
Wherehouse: DMB's tardy side
Only four months and five days after DMBeat send its $30 membership fee to the Warehouse, the goods have finally arrived.


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The movies come to Williamsburg (and vice versa)
The Global Film s-GIG hit the ground running, scheduling its first film program for mid-February at Williamsburg's Kimball Theatre.
The event, When the Movies Come to Town: Williamsburg and Film History, not only examined the role that local movie houses served as portals to culture, but celebrate the longevity and service of the Kimball itself. GIGs--Global Inquiry Groups--are William & Mary's academic incubators, interdisciplinary and collaborative initiatives kick-started by the College's Wendy and Emery Reves Center for International Studies.
"January 2008 is the 75th anniversary of the Kimball Theatre, which until 2001 was called the Williamsburg Theatre," explained Arthur Knight. "The Kimball has run—with very short interruptions for cleaning and painting and then the larger renovation of two years ago—for 75 years. In a small town, this is fairly exceptional."
Knight is director of William and Mary's Film Studies Program and an associate professor connected with both the English and American studies departments. Other coordinators of the Global Film s-GIG are Christy Burns, associate professor of English, and Timothy Barnard, a visiting assistant professor of American studies and English.
Like the mercury group, the Global Film s-GIG grew out of an exploratory e-GIG venture that included 11 faculty members. The February Kimball event is the first of what is expected to be an annual film event, which, Burns stresses, differs from a film festival.
Not just movies
"They are like film festivals but instead of just showing films we also bring in scholars who are expert on a particular field. We usually try to bring in filmmakers themselves to talk about the making of the films."
In programming the event, Burns said the coordinators intend to expand on the successful formula characterized by the late September visit of Andrew Higson, an English scholar who specializes in the national cinema of Britain.
"He visited classes. He gave a major talk and we had a screening of A Constant Gardener," Burns said. "We also had him in a seminar and he went out to dinner with some of the faculty. So we really did everything we could have and he was very gracious and really enjoyed it as far as I could tell. He also conducted a faculty seminar on theories of national cinema and went out to dinner with us afterwards. So his visit reached the general public, our students and faculty, all in a variety of ways."
She pointed out that the larger film events will involve multiple screenings and multiple speakers. Directors and scholars coming to these events will be more focused on giving talks and leading public discussions after the films, making the events scholarly and accessible at the same time.
"That's a high demand to make on a speaker, but we will let them know that we wish to serve Williamsburg's extensive and intelligent retirement community as well as our undergraduate population." she said. "As for the students, they can often follow these talks at a high level of intellectual challenge, although speakers will know that some students will be prepared from courses and others will walk in as regular audience."
The schedule for the first film event is coalescing around a number of film screenings supplemented by one or more lectures, discussions or other contextual presentations. Barnard teaches Cinema and the Modernization of U.S. Culture and has developed an "add on" course involving a number of students who have begun conducting movie-based oral history surveys among Williamsburg residents. The organizers intend to use the students' oral histories as a basis for writing the program notes. The event, like the oral histories being compiled, will meld entertainment with serious scholarship.
Big screen/big issues
"We're trying on the one hand, to represent the history of the theatre and the things that have been programmed in the theatre over the 75 years," Knight said. "So we want the overall spirit of the event to be attractive, light—celebratory I suppose—but we also don't want to lose sight of the fact that the movies have been a place where Americans have really wrestled with big issues. Sometimes they are kind of big abstract issues like war or legends about your country—the West and the like. But sometimes the issues are much more direct, segregation being the obvious one in lots of places, certainly in Williamsburg."
Knight said that the Williamsburg Theatre didn't admit African American patrons until the 1950s or early 1960s, and so the local moviehouse might not have the same set of positive associations among all members of the Williamsburg community today. One element of the program will, in part, address segregation at the movies and include screenings of In the Heat of the Night and Gone with the Wind.
DOG Street goes ape
The film event will show a lighter side of Williamsburg's past, as well. Knight said the group obtained a still photo of Duke of Gloucester Street from 1933. "We think of that little stretch of Duke of Gloucester Street as a high class, pristine block that's very controlled in its atmosphere," Knight said. "Well this photograph shows that the ballyhoo for the showing of King Kong was two large painted flats of King Kong on either side of the doors that were like about a story and a half high and a big banner across the front that said 'King Kong Comes to Town,' or something like that. Tim and I and the students are all very fond of this image because it shows a slightly more—I'm trying to think of the right adjective—rough and tumble, low brow, kind of Duke of Gloucester Street than maybe what we feel like we often encounter now."
The s-GIG participants intend to present regular film events, usually with a global theme and often focusing on national films. Burns mentioned that the theme for the next film event may be Bollywood.


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|"Are you a wizard or not?"
The title of this article is conjectural. Although it is based on canonical information, the actual name is a conjecture and may be supplanted at any time by additional information released from canonical sources. If this occurs, please move this page to the appropriate title.
This fox lived by the river near Spinner's End, the erstwhile home of Severus Snape.[1]
The fox was apparently underfed, as it was described as scrawny, and was scavenging amongst rubbish for food. The fox was present when Narcissa Malfoy and her sister Bellatrix Lestrange Apparated to Spinner's End to meet with Severus Snape. The fox attempted to flee the area, but was killed by Bellatrix via a nonverbal Killing Curse when it ran, as she thought it may have been an Auror, in her fear of getting caught.[1]
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (First appearance)


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This has been a while coming, but I made a little "yet another modal dialog lightbox JQuery plugin" thing this week.
Demo and Download for Modal Dialog - JQuery Plugin
It was driven by TiddlyDocs, but I've been wanting one anyway for a while. Mostly because lightbox libraries generally do some hocus-pocus on page load, like applying to everything marked rel="lightbox", but don't let you dynamically produce the lightbox yourself. That's fine for pages that are just a static image gallery, but not useful to someone building a dynamic web app.
I've subsequently used nyromodal, on good advice, but wanted something smalller and with a simple API for my main use case, which is just showing some text.
The plugin also simplifies work by not requiring you to install a separate CSS file. Doing that, and linking to it, as well as installing any images, is something that always slows me down when I want to start using a graphical client. In keeping with the "happy path" You-Aint-Gonna-Need-It (YAGNI) mantra, I'd rather keep a library to a single Javascript file - be evil and do styling in the library by default, but still support users who want to put custom CSS in a stylesheet.


text: A color to match your every move New Intel® Atom™ Cedar Trail processor Instant on resumes from sleep mode in 2 seconds Long battery life for all day computing Enjoy multimedia in Full HD 1080p through a HDMI connection Better visuals with Smart camera support USB charge empowers your on-the-go lifestyle Shop Modal header Superior Performance The ASUS Eee PC 1025CE features the all new Intel® Atom™ Cedar Trail dual-core CPU, with a 15% enhancement in processing speed and a 10% increase in battery life compared to the previous generation. The graphics performance has also been increased by four times. The netbook has never been faster. No More Waiting - Instant On in Two Seconds Exclusive ASUS Super Hybrid Engine II (SHE II) with Instant On enables 2-second resume of the netbook from sleep, with up to 21 days of standby time. With the long battery life, you can also enjoy all-day computing. SHE II also offers two different power modes, which maximizes performance and battery life depending on your needs. Finally, data security is built-in thanks to SHE II. Super Charge Your Battery With Intel® Atom™ Cedar Trail's low power consumption and SHE II technology, the ASUS Eee PC 1025CE can provide up to 12hours of battery life. Users can enjoy all day computing without worrying about the need to recharge. Better Video Chat Experience with Smart Camera Easily zoom in or out using the dedicated camera switch, in order to capture videos, take photos, and video conference with greater precision and clarity. USB Charge+ USB Charge+ lets users charge electronic devices, such as smartphones and tablets, via the USB port even when the Eee PC 1025CE is powered off. Add Style with ASUS' Unique Flare Design Available in an elegant and ergonomic design, the ASUS Eee PC 1025CE comes in three colors, which are Addict Pink, Mysterious Blue, and Plucky Purple. Choose one that suits your style. Exclusive Eee Docking Cloud Computing Service The 1025CE also comes with the ASUS-exclusive Eee Docking platform, which serves as a convenient, one-stop solution that grants you easy access to digital content, services, and other useful software. Enhance your Eee PC experience by streaming or downloading a wide variety of digital content; sharing photos, music, videos or documents across all your computers; or simply make use of a host of apps that make your computing experience that much easier. Easy Sharing with DLNA and Wi-Fi Direct Stay connected a variety of ways. With built in 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 3.0, staying online while on the go has never been easier. Transfer your photos and more 10 times faster than USB 2.0 with the latest USB 3.0 ports built-in to the ASUS Eee PC 1025CE, while HDMI connectivity allows you to share multimedia content on a HDMI-compatible display. With DLNA support, you can enjoy your music, photos, and videos by streaming content to any DLNA compatible devices in your home, such as your flat-panel TV. Wi-Fi Direct is also a new feature that enables you to transfer files wirelessly between the 1025CE and other devices directly, without having to go through a network. This is very convenient for file sharing on-the-go.


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Building a cool Chevy is one thing. Building your Chevy to be cool and run cool is entirely different. So many factors can contribute to engine overheating, but it will usually boil down to a faulty radiator and cooling assembly. We wanted Project F73's engine to run cool with a reliable and lightweight cooling system. While reliability was our main concern, we also wanted to see if our cooling system could add to the high-performance image of our unique Camaro.
For help with our upgrade, we looked to AutoRad, which manufactures aluminum cooling systems that are in demand for many high-end street rods, customs, and muscle cars. The AutoRad advantage is in the product's craftsmanship and cooling efficiency. All the cooling systems are made from aluminum, including the radiator core, the water tanks, and in the case of our Camaro, the complete radiator core support structure.
We thought the AutoRad cooling system would be perfect for the Camaro so we went with the radiator and core support system, which included a new, brushed-aluminum core support structure, a dual-core aluminum radiator with A/C condenser, and a dual electric fan system with an aluminum shroud. This cooling system is strong and efficient, and as AutoRad explains, the furnace-brazed aluminum radiator core will last longer and won't corrode like standard copper and brass cores that use solder.
A typical system like this one isn't cheap, however; they are handcrafted and custom-fit for each application. A unit like ours will run about $1,900 for the radiator, core support, A/C condenser, and fan system-and headache-free installation. The staff at A&E Motorsports, who are also currently working on our Camaro's suspension system, will attest to that; they didn't have any problems bolting the cooling system in place. And all the factory Camaro pieces, including the front fender braces and hood latch brace, easily bolted in.
In addition to some weight savings, with its incredibly cool brushed-aluminum appearance, there's no price you can put on how the system looks once it's in the car. But more importantly, its cooling efficiency is practically an added bonus. So if you're in the market for a cooling upgrade, the AutoRad setup is a trick way to go.
Quick Notes
What is it The ultimate cooling system for any second-gen Camaro
Our Thoughts
If you're looking for an all-in-one system, this is it
Cost (APPROX)


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Our Policies
"Restocking Fee" is? When perfectly usable items are returned, time and money must be spent putting them back into stock. A restocking fee covers a portion of the costs associated with that task and helps reputable companies like JHE's keep costs and prices low – for everyone.
Additionally, returned products can no longer be labeled or sold as if they were new. Their original packing materials might be missing. The boxes they originally came in might be damaged. We can't, in good conscience, pass off opened or even gently goods as if no one else had ever handled them.
Restocking fees vary. Some companies charge as much as 30% of the item's original value. To make the process quick and painless, we charge a flat rate of 15% on furniture and decor, That amount gets deducted from any refund you may be entitled to – along with our initial s/h costs that we paid to ship it to you.
Delivery, Damages & Defects
Products can sometimes get lost or become damaged in transit. In other, rare instances they may suffer from unavoidable defects. While we hope your experience with Cedar Stuff is never "marred" by unpleasant circumstances, we have policies in place which help guarantee your satisfaction at every turn.
Please inspect the package for any damage before signing the shipping papers if item is damaged you must let the driver know once you sign and the driver leaves it very hard if not impossible to filee a claim.
NOTE: You are free to refuse all or part of a shipment if damage has occurred in transit.
As long as you made note of their condition when signing for them. We will repair or replace damaged goods at no cost to you. Typically, we will quickly ship out replacement parts or products. Please note that normal product checking is not considered damage.
Rustic furniture is beloved for its imperfections. Burrs, knots, holes and checks are common and add charm to the wood furniture we handcraft, manufacture and sell. These characteristics are ingrained. Such merchandise is NOT recognized as "defective" or "damaged" and is not eligible for replacement.
Checking can range from slight slivers to cracks which run the full length of a log and/or run deep within it. Burrs, knots, holes and checking (as we have described it here) is completely normal and in no way affects the integrity of the wood we use or the durability of our fine rustic furniture. Returns will not be accepted for normal checking in rustic furniture.
Have questions about Delivery, Damages or Defects? Call 1-989-786-5089.


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Pentax Optio P70 Review
It wasn't all that long ago that a 12 megapixel sensor was the exclusive domain of the DSLR, but now there are any number of compact digitals packing 12, and in some cases even more megapixels. One of the latest to enter the compact "digital dozen" club is the Pentax Optio P70.
Announced on January 5, 2009 as a "high performance model featuring fast, advanced functions to make high-quality digital photography simple and effortless", the P70 becomes the pixel count flagship of the Pentax line with the discontinuation of the Optio A40. Our test subject was the P70 in matte silver with chrome highlights version, but fashionistas will no doubt be pleased to know this slim shooter can also be had in white and red versions. Do good things really come in pretty, small packages? Let's find out.
Pentax touts the P70 as the lightest Optio in the line, weighing in at 4.4 ounces in shooting configuration (battery and memory card onboard). The camera measures out at 3.8 x 2.1 x .8 inches – the first two figures are nothing unusual in the compact ranks, but that .8 makes the P70 a bit slimmer than a lot of competitors, and that translates into better pocketability (or at least a reduced unsightly bulge).
The camera features a 4x Pentax zoom lens covering a 35mm film equivalent focal range of 27.5 to 110mm. Here's what that lens range looks like in the real world:
Besides the 12 megapixel sensor, there's a 2.7 inch LCD with 230,000 dot composition, a nominal 64 to 1600 ISO sensitivity range (with 3200 and 6400 ISO available at a reduced resolution of 5 megapixels), new Pixel Track Shake Reduction technology, Advanced Face Recognition that tracks up to 32 faces in 0.03 seconds, and both Smile Capture that automatically releases the shutter when subjects smile, and Blink Detection to alert you if your subject's eyes are closed. The camera accepts SD or SDHC memory media, and there is about 33.7MB of built-in memory.
Pentax includes USB and AV cables, a Li-Ion battery and charger with AC plug cord, wrist strap and CD-ROM software with each camera.
Pentax lists 24 shooting modes for the P70, but for our purposes we'll identify four primary modes:
- Auto Picture: The camera chooses from 8 of the shooting modes, including the standard auto screen, night scene, night scene portrait, landscape, flower, portrait, sport or candlelight. The user may have some inputs available (such as image quality, exposure compensation, ISO sensitivity) depending on the mode selected by the camera.
- Program: The camera sets shutter speed and aperture, and the user has a multitude of inputs available to impact image quality.
- Shooting Modes: 21 scene-specific modes, including all but the standard auto screen previously mentioned under auto picture as well as half-length portrait, surf & snow, digital SR, kids, pet, food, fireworks, frame composite, party, natural skin tone, text, blog, digital wide and digital panorama.
- Movie: Captures HD images (1280x720p) at 15 fps or 640×480 and 320×240 options at both 15 and 30 fps. Recording size is limited to 2GB with no time constraints.
For a detailed listing of specifications and features, please refer to the specifications table found at the bottom of the review.
The P70 follows the current trend of most cameras in the class with overall dimensions resembling a somewhat slim deck of cards or pack of cigarettes.
Styling and Build Quality
Our review camera featured an aluminum body in a matte silver finish with chrome accents, with subtle rounding on all camera edges.
The camera seemed solid and well put together, the equal of competitive cameras in the class.
Ergonomics and Interface
The camera layout is simple and straightforward – the power switch and the combo zoom ring/shutter button sit atop the body, with the camera back taken up by the LCD monitor, four buttons and the rotary controller. Controls are spaced to insure no accidental activations occur, and the flash location did not conflict with either a horizontal or vertical shooting grip.
Shooting mode, flash, self-timer, continuous shooting settings and focus mode can be accessed via the rotary controller, but most other camera settings require use of the internal menus. There is a "green button" that comes with a set of default camera settings that can be instantly called up no matter what shooting mode the user is in, or the button may also be programmed to bring up a specific function from the following list: recorded pixels, white balance, AE metering, sensitivity, EV compensation, focusing area, sharpness, saturation, contrast or voice recording.
The 2.7 inch LCD is of approximately 230,000 dot composition and adjustable for seven levels of brightness, none of which makes it easy to use for image composition, capture or review in bright outdoor conditions. Pentax does not list the coverage afforded by the monitor, but it appears fairly close to 100%. There is no viewfinder.
Remembering that Pentax calls the P70 a "high performance model" and then noting an MSRP of just under $200 (with an additional $20 rebate being offered as this is written), I was curious as to just how much performance could be had for less than two bills. The answer depends on what your idea of performance is.
Timing and Shutter Lag
The P70 powers up in about 1.5 seconds and I was able to acquire focus and shoot in about 3 seconds. Shutter lag with pre-focus is a very satisfying .05 seconds, but the camera doesn't acquire focus as quickly as some competitors in good light and press to capture times without pre focus ran about .87 seconds. There is no focus assist lamp for dim light and acquisition times in those conditions will lengthen.
Shutter lag with flash enabled comes in a bit slower, about .09 seconds, and all bets are off with red eye reduction as the P70 fires a pre-flash before shooting for real. The shutter has a nominal range of 1/4 to 1/4000th second, but can stay open as long as 4 seconds in night scene mode.
Shutter Lag (press-to-capture, pre-focused)
|Time (seconds)
|Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T700
|Canon PowerShot SD960 IS
|Nikon Coolpix S560
|Pentax Optio P70
|Casio Exilim EX-Z150
AF Acquisition (press-to-capture, no pre-focus)
|Time (seconds)
|Sony Cyber-shot DSC-T700
|Canon PowerShot SD960 IS
|Nikon Coolpix S560
|Pentax Optio P70
|Casio Exilim EX-Z150
Single shot-to-shot times (shoot, write, acquire focus and shoot again) ran about 3 seconds in some instances, but a bit over 5 seconds in others. This one had me going for a while as flash shots all wrote at the quicker speed, while some non-flash wrote quickly but others lagged. The culprit here seems to be the P70's pixel track shake reduction technology – with that feature enabled the times varied; with it off they were all quicker. We'll talk more about pixel track shake reduction in the Image Stabilization section, but suffice it to say it appears that when shooting in single shot mode with pixel track enabled, if you don't get a good crisp image that the camera goes to work fixing it and won't let you shoot again until it finishes.
Continuous shooting rates are nothing to crow about, at least at full resolution. At the 12 megapixel high quality setting the P70 took over 16 seconds to make six captures. Times improved a bit by switching to the basic 12 megapixel setting, (12 megapixel high quality files are about 3.6MB, 12 megapixel standard are about 1.9MB) but it still took about 2 seconds per shot for a series of six. There is a high speed burst setting that shoots at 3.2 fps (5.8 fps with ISO set to 3200 or 6400) at 5 megapixel resolution for up to six shots.
Lens and Zoom
The P70's smc Pentax zoom lens comes with maximum apertures ranging from a nicely fast f/2.6 at the wide end to a fairly slow f/5.8 as you move towards telephoto. That 27.5 to 110mm focal length range is "ideal for landscape, indoor and group photos" according to Pentax, and they'll get no argument from me. The P70 works on big subjects somewhat far away and smaller subjects up close, but small subjects at a distance are not its strong suit. However, the 12 megapixel sensor gives you some leeway for cropping and, depending on the nature of the original image, may provide some fairly decent crops. Here's a macro shot of a watch and a cropped 8×12 from the original shot. The cropped version came out at about 197 dpi, which is not the 300 dpi you'd like for photo printing, but still enough to provide for an OK print.
And speaking of macro, the P70 will only focus down to about 4.0 inches at wide angle, so small objects like the 2.0 inch diameter watch and 3.0 to 4.0 inch diameter roses aren't going to fill the frame completely.
Auto Focus
The P70 comes with a default setting of a "multiple" AF area, which selects a point of focus from nine points situated across a fairly large area at the center of the image. There is also a "spot" AF option for Program and the shooting modes (including movie) that uses the central focus point of the nine, and an automatic tracking AF mode for use with moving subjects that will make use of any of the nine points to try and hold focus on the initial subject. Spot was my method of choice for the most precise determination of point of focus in any particular image.
There are also standard (16.0 inches to infinity), macro (4.0 inches to 20.0 inches), pan (entire picture from front to back is focused), infinity and manual focus modes.
The flash on the P70 produced good and accurate color rendition. Pentax lists a maximum flash range for the camera as 15 feet (at auto ISO), but folks who shoot at 64 ISO in dimmer conditions would be advised to get closer than that. A lot closer. I couldn't get the flash to give me a good exposure of a medium brown cat about four feet away in dim conditions and had to go to 200 ISO to make the shot.
There are the standard flash options including red eye reduction, and a soft flash option that reduces flash intensity while still firing the flash. Here are macro shots at the flash and soft flash setting.
Flash recycle times are pretty good, ranging from 3 to 5 seconds. If those times sound familiar it's because they mimic the best single shot write time range with the pixel track shake reduction feature enabled. As a practical matter I found flash recycle times rarely came into play – the flash was usually ready to go again by the time the camera finished writing – but at worst you might encounter a 5 second recycle time with a 3 second write time and have to wait a couple seconds before shooting again with flash.
Image Stabilization
With image stabilization, the magic words we like to hear are optical or mechanical, which tell us the camera is stabilizing by moving lens elements or the sensor. Neither word is applicable to the P70.
Pixel track shake reduction, according to Pentax:
"When recording still images, the Optio P70's new Pixel Track SR (Shake Reduction) mode effectively compensates for camera shake by processing the amount of image blur with a dedicated ASIC (application specific integrated circuit). Pixel Track SR tracks motion blur at the pixel level and calculates blur volume in real time. After exposure, the recovery filter centers the motion effect around each pixel to compartmentalize the blur. Then, an adjustment filter sharpens the pixels to help remove the blur effect. Pixel Track SR results in sharp images without adding high ISO noise."
The P70 also ramps up ISO as high as 6400 (in digital shake reduction mode) to help keep shutter speeds up as a means to try and minimize camera shake and/or subject movement.
Finally, there's a movie shake reduction mode that Pentax is a bit more close-lipped about, but their U.K. press release does mention it is the result of using "exclusive software."
Stabilization? Not in the classic sense, and certainly not my favorites with regard to ramping up the ISO to maintain shutter speed or using software to try and fix a blurry shot.
Battery Life
Pentax rates battery life in the P70 for about 200 shots and my usage approached this figure with minimal flash and chimping activity. Carry a spare battery or two for all-day shooting sessions.
P70 images at default settings were generally color accurate, but a bit soft for my taste. There are settings available to increase or decrease sharpness, saturation and contrast from the default level, and my personal preference was to maximize all three. Here are the default, minimum, and maximum settings.
Minimum sharpness, saturation, and contrast
Maximum sharpness, saturation, and contrast
The P70 did a pretty good job with a variety of shooting conditions and subjects, particularly if conditions allow you to select one of the lower ISO sensitivities to minimize noise impacts. One nice feature of the P70 is that manual setting of ISO sensitivity is available for all shooting modes except green (the green button default setting), movie, fireworks and digital shake reduction.
Exposure, Processing, and Color
There are multi-segment, center-weighted and spot metering options available for exposure calculation, with multi-segment being the default setting. Exposure calculation by the P70 was generally quite good, and while it would at times lose highlights on high contrast images, my impression is that it does a bit better than many of the other cameras in its class that I've reviewed with regard to not blowing out highlights.
The P70 has an in-camera image editing suite that includes resizing, cropping, digital filters, red eye compensation, frame composite, movie edit, and copying images/sounds options that may be applied to individual images.
White Balance
The default auto white balance setting on the P70 provided generally accurate tones and color quality, but shot warm under incandescent light. There are daylight, shade, tungsten, fluorescent and manual WB options available.
Auto White Balance, 3200K incandescent light
Lens Faults
This is one of the better lenses I've come across in a compact with regard to lack of barrel and pincushion distortions! Here's wide angle and telephoto shots of the block wall I use to evaluate those two faults, and there's not much of either.
There is a bit of chromatic aberration (purple fringing) present in high contrast boundary areas of some shots, but you'll need to look long and hard for it to be a problem in any but the largest of images.
Sensitivity and Noise
The P70 breaks no new ground in this arena, providing noise performance on a par with most competitors in the class. 64 and 100 ISO crops are both quite good and difficult to tell apart, with 200 showing the first vestiges of some noise and 400 an increased impact. Image quality deterioration increases more dramatically with the jump to 800, with 1600 being the most noticeable deterioration of any of the increases over the previous sensitivity. The full frame shots all look relatively good, with richer colors at 400 and below being the primary difference to my eye.
ISO 64, 100% crop
ISO 100, 100% crop
ISO 200, 100% crop
ISO 400, 100% crop
ISO 800, 100% crop
ISO 1600, 100% crop
We didn't shoot the 3200 and 6400 ISO sensitivities in the studio, but here's my dartboard at ISOs 800 through 6400 to show why you'll want to avoid the really high sensitivities unless there's no other way to get the image.
Additional Sample Images
Pentax describes the P70 as a "high performance model," and if lens quality and/or shutter lag are the criteria then it fits the bill on those counts. For me personally, the most frustrating aspect of digitals are pokey shutters, and if a camera takes the shot promptly after I push the button then it's off to a good start in my book.
The P70 provides nice image quality with generally accurate color and shooting options that remind me of Henry Ford's Model T: "Any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black." With P70, the camera will shoot in any mode so long as it is automatic.
ISO performance is comparable to the competition but the camera lacks stabilization. Of course, it also lacks the higher price tag that is the entry fee for stabilization. Continuous shooting rates at full resolution are disappointing but exposure calculation is good. All in all, the P70 offers fairly middle of the road performance in most categories wrapped around a lens with very good optical qualities.
- Good shutter lag under normal shooting conditions
- Minimal lens faults
- Good exposure calculation
- Good image and color quality
- No stabilization
- No AF assist lamp for dim light
|12.0 megapixel (effective), 1/2.3″ CCD
|4x (27.5-110mm) zoom, f/2.6-5.8
|2.7″, 230K-dot TFT LCD
|Shutter Speed
|4-1/1000 seconds
|Shooting Modes
|Auto Picture, Program, Movie, Voice Recording, Green Mode
|Scene Presets
|Night Scene, Night Scene Portrait, Half Length Portrait, Landscape, Flower, Portrait, Surf & Snow, Sport, Kids, Pet, Food, Fireworks, Party, Natural Skin Tone, Candlelight, Text, Blog, Digital Wide, Digital SR, Digital Panorama, Vertical Snap, Frame Composite
|White Balance Settings
|Auto, Daylight, Shade, Tungsten, Fluorescent, Manual
|Metering Modes
|Multi, Center, Spot
|Focus Modes
|9 point AF, Spot AF, Auto Tracking AF, Macro, Infinity Landscape, Pan, Manual
|Drive Modes
|One Shot, Self Timer, Continuous, High Speed Continuous (5 MP)
|Flash Modes
|Auto, flash on, flash off, redeye, soft
|Self Timer Settings
|10 seconds, 2 seconds, Off
|Memory Formats
|Internal Memory
|File Formats
|Max. Image Size
|Max. Video Size
|1280×720, 15 fps
|Zoom During Video
|Rechargeable lithium-ion, 200 shots
|AV output, USB 2.0, DC in
|Additional Features
|Fast Face Recognition, Digital Shake Reduction, Pentax Auto Picture Mode, Blink Detection, Smile Capture, Pixel Tracking Shake Reduction


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Welcome to Wangsness Connections, your connection to the finest homes and condominiums for sale in Seattle, and Seattle-Eastside communities of Bellevue, Medina, Issaquah, Clyde Hill, Capitol Hill, Madison Park, Laurelhurst, Magnolia, Queen Anne, Alki, Lake Washington, Lake Sammamish, Woodinville, and Kirkland.
View our featured properties, search for homes and condominiums for sale throughout the Seattle, Bellevue and Seattle Eastside area, check out our gallery of previously sold homes, listen to our weekly Northwest Real Estate Connections Radio Show, get access to extensive library of videos, audio and articles containing helpful buying, selling and home remodeling tips, and view upcoming Seattle area events.
Patricia and David Wangsness specialize in assisting buyers with finding their new home and sellers with selling their home in following communities: Trossachs on the Sammamish Plateau, The Glendale Country Club in Bellevue, The Montreux Neighborhood of Issaquah and the Lakemont Community of Bellevue.
Patricia and David Wangsness have extensive experience assisting Amazon, Microsoft, Expedia and Paccar employees with finding their new home and with everything related to relocating from their current home to their new one in the Seattle, Washington area. Contact Us to have us assist you with your relocation.
Listen live to Patricia and David's radio show Northwest Real Estate Connections every Wednesday from 3-4 PM Pacific Time on AM 1300 KKOL [Listen Live], and 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm every Sunday on Freedom AM1590.
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View our latest show where Professional photographer Drew Rice gives tips and advice for preparing your home for a photoshoot.. | [View Now]
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In the house: The Brokeback Boys. Crusher Boyd. Wild man winkle. Sweet finger Jaaaane. Grapplin' George. Mad Dog Mcgregor. Ping Pong pogo
So sorry
1. Triple J One Hundred
3. Night Manager- Progress-Update-Scenario
4. Building Day
5. Fat Cakes
7. Credit
8. Kids
11. bb
Duncan says he has things in his flat.
1. It's a radio station. Some Aussies went to hear it. Which will mean them staying here all night. (changeover). Seeing as crusher boyd is willing to supervise-we say why not?
3. So a list has been compiled of candidate nightman. Action: Neil is showing
initiative!will continue to show initiative by arranging a meeting. Maybe kick it off by Feb?....
4. to do list: paint floor downstairs/ sort through furniture upstairs/ gold room
revamp/stage is not quite affordable yet/kitchen hose/ and other things to be done. Mikey
will do something to his mural.
5. ...are going out of business.. thye've convinced new people to do brownies but not lovely vegan cakes.
Action:keep your eyes open for vegan cake suppliers.
7. we don't do that. Just checking. Also, no photocopier or phone for anyone.
8. ryan barred all the kids again. Told him(little nick, fat kid with Mohawk) he can hang
out here if he volunteers and fully understands what he's doing wrong
11. not many people voted for the future of the speaks and bb stuff.whatever.
see y'all in a fortnight. till then..................
in the house. january 22nd
Working group and other such Forest meeting minutes
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In Hakata, Japan, there's a shopping center called "Canal City." Well, it's usually called that, except for when the sign's "C" burns out. Then, it's something else entirely.
Recently, the sign did burn out, causing Twitter users like @taiji_utagawa to upload images and people to snicker. The tweet has been retweeted over eight thousand times.
Below are some more pics:
The most bewildering thing is that the "C" has been out for a week! The lead image dates from September 5, and here's a snap from September 6:
Hopefully it's been fixed by now.
Japanese people know exactly what this means. Why? Because in Japanese, "anal" (アナル or "anaru") means, well, what it means in English. So a sign that reads "Anal City" is not lost in translation!
This isn't the first time people in Hakata have made jokes at Canal City's expense:
Nor is this the only embarrassing sign disaster you can see in Japan! More common, but still rare, are Pachinko (パチンコ) signs with the "Pa" (パ) burned out, reading "chinko" (チンコ), which is Japanese for "penis."
Wonder if there's a pachinko parlor near Canal City...
Hooray for juvenile humor!
Photos: Dion, S2Seipyon, Ero_Taku, Nm_Fangea, fit026, Msnw7
To contact the author of this post, write to bashcraftATkotaku.com or find him on Twitter @Brian_Ashcraft.
Kotaku East is your slice of Asian internet culture, bringing you the latest talking points from Japan, Korea, China and beyond. Tune in every morning from 4am to 8am.


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You are here
Meet the new Nissan 370Z Nismo
Good news! The Nissan 370Z Nismo has been given a GT-R inspired makeover and will soon be available for purchase.
Bad news! It'll only go on sale in the USA. Boo.
Datsun enthusiasts at the ZDayZ meet in North Carolina were the first in the world to see the brand new 2015 Nissan 370Z Nismo - a refreshed version of its coupe, now with added tech.
The headline news is an optional seven-speed automatic gearbox with downshift rev matching, and steering wheel mounted paddles. You also get the lovely six-speed manual with SynchroRev (it automatically matches your revs on downshifts too), negating the need for heel-and-toe heroics.
Front and rear downforce around the new Zed have been increased thanks to GT-R inspired functional aero add-ons, including a deep front fascia with LED daytime running lights, and a new Nismo rear spoiler that has been reshaped and downsized, and integrated into the boot hatch. Very cool.
There's also a red accent that starts on the front chin spoiler and leads down the side sills, along the mirrors and towards the lower new rear fascia.
RAYS have come up with a new wheel design too, wrapping the 370Z Nismo with new 19in twin-five spoke forged aluminium alloys, while inside you get redesigned black and red Recaro leather seats, an Alcantara and leather steering wheel and red Nismo rev counter.
Nissan has introduced a 370Z Nismo 'Tech' model too, which adds a Nissan sat nav complete with seven-inch touch-screen, a rear view monitor, Bose audio system, and streaming audio via Bluetooth.
Otherwise it's business as usual, which means the brawny engine remains the same: a 3.7-litre V6 with a H-configured exhaust system, producing 340bhp and 276lb ft of torque, for a 0-62mph time of 5.2 seconds. Still quick, then.
Sadly, Nissan UK confirmed to TopGear.com that the new Zed car, which goes on sale in July 2014, was only built for the States. Which is a shame, because that new bodywork does look nice. Tell us, Americans, what do you make of your new 370Z Nismo?
What do you think?
This service is provided by Disqus and is subject to their privacy policy and terms of use. Please read Top Gear's code of conduct (link below) before posting.


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First Look: La Vara in Cobble Hill
We've long been big fans of husband-and-wife chef duo Alex Raij and Eder Montero of Txikito and El Quinto Pino, the Basque-style tapas restaurants in Chelsea. (Txikito was a favorite after-work destination when SEHQ was just a couple blocks away.) Now they're spending more time in Brooklyn at La Vara, their newest Spanish restaurant, which explores the Moorish and Jewish flavors of Spain.
You'll see handmade pasta like they make it in the Murcian region, served with ground goat meat. "But I keep the goat optional since we have so many neighborhood families coming in to eat with kids," said Raij. Just as she said that, three parties walked in for dinner, two of them with elementary school-aged kids. Located on the quiet, brownstone-lined Clinton Street in Cobble Hill, La Vara sits right next door to the popular Ted & Honey coffee shop, where every morning there's stroller rush hour traffic.
La Vara has a welcoming vibe for both family meals and date nights alike, with a menu ranging from snacky nibbles to bigger entrée plates. Some examples in each dish genre: pica pica (olives, fried chickpeas, sardines), fritos (artichokes, eggplant, fish—all of it, fried), pane (Sevillan pita; Mallorcan flatbread), frios y ensaladas (conejo en escabeche; salt cod salad with citrus, olives, pistachios, and pomegranate seeds), calientes (Menorcan braised beef tongue; albondigas; fideúa) and finally posres (Valencian olive oil ice cream; cinnamon-rose arroz con leche).
La Vara
268 Clinton Street, Brooklyn, NY, 11201 (map) 718-422-0065
See more photos of the dishes in the slideshow »
All products linked here have been independently selected by our editors. We may earn a commission on purchases, as described in our affiliate policy.


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"Technology tools used in education need to be rugged, high quality, have a long lifecycle, be easy to manage and, of course, fit in the budget. Fujitsu ESPRIMO PCs have exceeded all our expectations."
The Klebelsberg Center comprises a central organization and regional units. It is responsible for the operation of Hungary's primary schools, primary art schools, and secondary schools. It is also the operator of vocational schools and dormitories, as well as public education institutions providing specialized education and other education-related services.
The Klebelsberg Center is responsible for Hungary's primary schools, primary art schools, and secondary schools. It is committed to advancing the use of technology within education, however, the level of digitization is below the European average and the process has been hindered by outdated legacy IT systems.
An infrastructure upgrade aimed at improving the digitization of educational institutions led to the Center selecting Fujitsu to build and deliver 7,000 ESPRIMO PCs.
CS_2018Mar_Klebelsberg (863 KB)
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Konami considered developing PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions of Castlevania: Lords of Shadows 2, the game's producer has revealed, but instead chose to focus on finishing the current-gen version to make it "one of the last great current-gen titles".
"When we started the game in 2010 we didn't know about next-gen. Nobody really knew what was going on," Dave Cox told VideoGamer.com during Gamescom last week, discussing Mercury Steam's upcoming vampire romp.
"Rather than bang out a sequel cheap as chips and just do more of the same we really wanted to make big changes, and to do that we needed to start with our engine and really think about performance, free camera [and] keep maintaining the level of detail whilst obtaining a pretty good frame rate."
But though the developer "did think about" developing a next-gen version, it thought it had come too far on its current-gen engine to start from scratch.
"We were criticised for frame rate [in the original Lords of Shadow], we got criticised for being fixed camera, and we really wanted to fix these things," Cox continued. "So I think when the next-gen consoles got announced we did think about it, but then we said we don't really have to start again. We'd already gotten so far down the line we just thought, this is the path we've set for ourselves, let's do it.
"We want this to be one of the last great current-gen titles. That's what we wanted to do. We want to go out with a bang. We want to end the Lords of Shadows series with a bang."
Tweaks to Lords of Shadow 2's engine have allowed Mercury Steam to eliminate the frame rate issues encountered by the first game, Cox claims, with the developer "targeting locked 30FPS".
"One of the issues with the previous game was the frame rate would go up and down, so when you get into combat you get issues with frame rate," he continued.
"[Frame rate is] absolutely key. Going for 60FPS would have meant dropping a level of quality in terms of the visuals but we didn't want to do that. We decided that 30 would be better, but it had to be locked at 30FPS... The game is running at a rock-solid 30FPS."
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 is shaping up to be one of the last triple-A current-gen-only titles, launching on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC in February 2014.


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Are you an Emotional Eater?
- Do your feelings drive your appetite and your eating behavior?
- Do you eat when you are not hungry?
- Do you continue to eat when you are full?…stuffed?…about to explode?
- Do you ever find yourself on the couch with your hand at the bottom of a LARGE bag of chips?
- Do you eat like this while you are alone?
- When you are bored
- When you are stressed?
- To take your mind off of your problem
- Do you feel guilty about this behavior?
If you answered YES, then you, my friend, are an Emotional Eater. And you're not alone.
Janet Jackson and Britney Spears are celebrity examples of Emotional Eaters
So What Do I Do?
If you think that your manner of eating may constitute a threat to your health, please contact your doctor.
And here is some solid reference info:
- Wikipedia lists 25 different types of eating disorders
- Medscape has a good Eating Disorder Resource Centre
- The Canadian National Eating Disorder Information Centre (NEDIC) has lots of info & resources
- The Mayo Clinic
What Do I Do Right Now?!
One tool you should look into right away is Mindful Eating.
Here are some great books to get you started: Dr.Susan Albers – Eating Mindfully, Amazon book list
In the past few years, the practice of mindful eating has grown out of the more generalized psychiatric practice of Mindfulness Meditation, made popular by Jon Kabat-Zinn. It finds it's origin in Buddhist teachings. The Buddhist practice of Mindfulness can be defined as "awareness of one's thoughts, actions or motivations".
- A similar practice is currently being espoused by Oprah's protege, Mr. Eckhart Tolle.
- I Can Make You Thin with Paul McKenna employed mindful eating in it's weight loss plan.
- In the 1920's, Horace Fletcher was the diet guru of the day with his theory of Fletcherizing.
Mindful Eating – The Basics
Eat consciously. By this I mean:
- Take a bite of food
- Put down your implements/sandwich/glass/etc…
- Chew your food
- Taste your food
- Enjoy your food
- Repeat until you 'think' you are starting to feel full
- Stop Eating
- Eat again when you are hungry – not bored or nervous – listen for a 'grumbly tummy'
That's It.
Like this article???
If you like this article, don't forget to subscribe to @healthhabits. When you subscribe, my friends at MailChimp will make sure to send you an email every time I post something new here at the blog.
As well, you also get access to the series of Supplement Reports that I am publishing this year.


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|System: X360, PS3, Wii, PS2, DS, PSP
|Review Rating Legend
|Dev: EA Games
|1.0 - 1.9 = Avoid
|4.0 - 4.4 = Great
|Pub: EA Games
|2.0 - 2.4 = Poor
|4.5 - 4.9 = Must Buy
|Release: Oct. 30, 2007
|2.5 - 2.9 = Average
|5.0 = The Best
|Players: 1-2
|3.0 - 3.4 = Fair
|ESRB Rating: Teen
|3.5 - 3.9 = Good
by Matthew Walker
The Simpsons have been causing people to burst with uncontrollable laughter for several years. Every week they have been poking fun at themselves and other various things going on in the world. In the early years, they were the show to watch, whether it be legitimately or sneaking when your parents weren't looking. It is because of this sometimes-controversial attitude the Simpsons have that they have warranted several games to attempt to capture the flare that is the Simpsons. As most of us will agree, they have failed more often than not at trying to bring them to a console successfully. How are we to expect this time be any different? Well for starters, the writers of the show penned this adventure.
The great thing about this game is there's no "thinking you are playing just another story of the characters." Almost right at the beginning, the Simpsons clan knows that they are in a video game. With this knowledge, you'll control them through a few stages to be more acquainted with them. Bart returns as Bartman, cape and cowl included, Lisa strikes fear into the hearts of environmental polluters, Marge forms a mob to halt the continued sale of an extremely violent game, and my personal favorite, Homer enters a chocolate world where he takes on a smart talking white chocolate rabbit. It may have been a bit disturbing, but when you defeat the enemies in chocolate world, their heads fall to the ground and Homer eats them. Hey, it's chocolate so it's not that bad. After those initial rounds on the training levels, you'll start seeing an over-arching story happening. I won't give it all away because there are some very solid jokes in each of the "episodes." The humor alone is reason enough to pick up the title. You will find yourself beginning with a chuckle and then have to just burst with some of the parodies and inside jokes.
The jokes worked well for only one reason: the voice cast. Everyone from the show provides his or her voice to the game. Granted, this has been done before, but not on this level. Even the minor characters from the show have the voice talent behind them. In addition to the voice talent authenticating the experience of the Simpsons, the animation looks just like the television show, with a movie polish. I was so glad to know developers were not going to try to use the 3D models they have tried to use in the past. In look and sound, this is the best Simpsons experience around. The only problem I had with the visuals is at times the animations seemed to be a little off, but nothing ever looks completely out of place.
Each of the four main Simpsons you will play as control the same. The attack, special attack, and various other abilities react to the same buttons. This comes in handy when you switch characters as often as you are asked to. The focus on teamwork in a Simpsons game might seem unlike the show, but they do usually end up acting like a strong family by helping one another out when it comes down to the wire. In addition to the story mode you play through, you have the chance to play back through in a time attack mode after you complete a stage.


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2014 Oil & Gas High Performance Computing
The Rice University Oil and Gas High Performances Computing (HPC) Workshop (Thursday, March 6, 2014), is the premier meeting place for networking and discussion focused on computing and information technology challenges and needs in the oil and gas industry.
Latest news
- Check out the 2014 technical program – more, better, and faster!
- New this year: Make sure you do not miss out of the pre-workshop mini tutorials
- Keynote and invited speakers confirmed for 2014:
- Peter Breunig, GM Technology Management and Architecture ITC, Chevron
- Bill Dally, Chief Scientist and SVP of Research, Nvidia (Bio)
- Earl Joseph II, VP HPC and Exec Director, HPC User Forum, IDC (Bio)
- David Bernholdt, Senior R&D Staff Member, Computer Science and Mathematics Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratories
- Randal Rheinheimer, Deputy Division Leader, High Performance Computing at LANL
- Abstracts are due Friday, December 6, 2013.
- SAVE THE DATE for FUTURE WORKSHOPS in this series:
- 2014 Rice Oil & Gas HPC Workshop, Thursday, March 6, 2014
- 2015 Rice Oil & Gas HPC Workshop, Thursday, March 5, 2015
- Stay connected, update your contact information here
- HPCWire article: 2012 Oil and Gas HPC Workshop Highlights Industry Challenges
Use hashtag #oghpc when you tweet about the workshop.
If you would like to be added to our information mailing list for this and future workshops, please sign up here.


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pwalker321 on Family Tree Circles
view: full | list
Journals and Posts
Walker DNA study
I am in Group #8 , kit 8853, of the Walker Dna study. My roadblock is my ggfather, W.A Walker. Research from other genealogists shows him as William M. Walker, b. ca 1857 in Hermitage, Mo. who moved to Texas in the 1860's and was in Lamar Co, Tx. in 1870. The death Cert. for my Grandfather, William Avery Walker, Sr. shows his father simply as "W.A. Walker". Without a birth cert. I can't prove conclusively if it was William M. or W.A. Walker.
Everything prior to that truly becomes a "guess" since there is no proven paper trail. A birth cert. for William Avery Walker, b. 4/23/1883 in Burnet, Tx would go a long way to "connecting the dots" in my family tree.
Any assistance would be appreciated!
Patrick Walker
Walker of Missouri
Have been stuck for past 2 years so I am posting again hoping to jumpstart research. I am in the Walker Dna Study, Group 8, Kit #8853.
GF William Avery Walker B. 4/23/1883 m. Cora Rachel Rose.
GGF William M. Walker b. 1857 Hermitage, Mo m. Julia Brisbin.
GGGF Levi M. Walker b ca 1831 Dauphin Co, Pa. m. Millie Miller.
GGGGF William M. Walker b. ca 1806 Ireland m. Mary A. Quigg.
GGGGGF Samuel Walker b. ca 1781 Ireland m. Nancy Aynes.
If anyone matches up with any of the above, please let me know.
Thanks in advance, Patrick Walker
WALKER of Texas
I am in the WALKER Dna study, Group # 8, Kit #8853.
My lineage is as follows:
Samuel WALKER b ca 1778 came to U.S. ca 1808, wife Nancy AYNES?. Children: James b 1801, Mary b 1803, William b 1806 (all born in Ireland), and Samuel, Jr. b 1811 PA m. Priscilla QUIGG 1836 Wayne Co., OH.
William WALKER b 1806 Ireland m Mary A. QUIGG.
Levi M. WALKER b 1831 Dauphin Co., PA m Milly A. MILLER ca 1854 in Hickory Co., MO.
William M. WALKER b 1857 Hickory Co., MO m Juliet E. BRISBIN(BRISBANE) 24 Aug 1876 Coryell Co., TX; d ca 1900 TX
William Avery WALKER, Sr. b 23 Apr 1883, Burnet, TX d 20 Mar 1958,Temple, TX m Cora Rachel ROSE b 11 Oct 1882, MS d 7 Apr 1967, Temple, TX
William Avery WALKER, Jr. b 26 Sept 1915 d 27 Oct 1970, Temple, TX.
- Displaying 1-3 of 3 Journals
- 1
- of1


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Where secular
ARE the majority!
The home for:
Eclectic Homeschoolers
Freethinking homeschoolers
Non-religious homeschoolers
Hey, Riceball_Mommy, have you ever watched Kaasan? It's one of my favorite shows. I've tried to no avail to get other mommy friends to watch it. It's a Japanese cartoon about the life of a mom. Her kids drive her nuts and her husband's a drunk. It cracks me up. Lots of tender moments too.
I'm posting a link in case you've never seen it.
Hoping you'll become my one and only friend who's actually seen this.
Happy bday!!
So glad you made it over to the updated site, Riceball_Mommy. Hope you enjoy your time here!!
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SecularHomeschool.com was created to provide information, resources, and a place to share and connect with secular homeschoolers across the world. Secularhomeschool.com aims to be your one-stop shop for all things homeschool! We will be highlighting information about wonderful secular homeschool resources, and keeping you up to date with what is going on in the world of secular homeschooling. But that is only the beginning. SHS is your playground. A place to share the things that are important to you. A place to create and join groups that share your interests. A place to give and get advice. There are no limits to what you can do at Secular Homeschool, so join today and help build the community you have always wanted.
SecularHomeschool.com is a community and information source where secular homeschoolers ARE the majority. It is the home for non-religious homeschoolers, eclectic homeschoolers, freethinking homeschoolers AND anyone interested in homeschooling irrespective of religion. This site is an INCLUSIVE community that recognizes that homeschoolers choose secular homeschool materials and resources for a variety of reasons and to accomplish a variety of personal and educational goals. Although SecularHomeschool.com, and its members, have worked hard to compile a comprehensive directory of secular curricula, it does not attest that all materials advertised on our site, in our newsletters, or on our social media profiles are 100% secular. Rather, SecularHomeschool.com respects the aptitude of each individual homeschool parent to fully research any curriculum before acquiring it, to ensure that it holistically meets the educational, personal, and philosophical goals of each homeschooler.