China's COSCO Nantong shipyard has delivered a jack-up rig to its Asian buyer.
The rig, named Kai Xuan Yi Hao, measures 66.71 meters in LOA and 67.06 meters in width.
The jack-up unit is designed to operate at water depths of 400 feet and is capable of performing drilling operations at depths of up to 35,000 feet.
According to Infield, the rig is owned by ICBC Financial Leasing Co.Ltd and is now chartered by China Oilfield Services Ltd. (COSL) for a five year period.
Posted on July 30, 2014 with tags China, COSCO, COSL, icbc, News, Rig.


text:
Q: Separate a value from string php? How can i get the certain value from the url using php?
$orginal=http://wwww.flickr.com/photos/username/1125323/in/photostream/lightbox/";

i want 1125323 from this url?

A: use following code:
<?php
    $orginal="http://wwww.flickr.com/photos/username/1125323/in/photostream/lightbox/";
    $url_data = explode("/",$orginal);
    $id = $url_data[5];
?>

A: use .*?(\d+) -> \1 as a regex.
$out = preg_replace('/.*?(\d+)/','$1', $url);

Tip: use Txt2re if you want to do this again.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


With the growing demand of PHP in the web applications, PHP modules have been introduced to cater for web design and web development needs in order to shorten the development process and eliminate writing PHP codes from scratch.
A website is designed to provide information to the general public. Thus, it becomes necessary to incorporate various functionalities within the web application to help captivate the audience and encourage greater click through. In order to fulfill these fundamental criteria, PHP has been widely used to build ready-made modules to cater for most corporate websites, web portals and simple e-shops.
Because of the increasing popularity of PHP and the growing demand of web application, the use of PHP modules are also mushrooming because it shortens the development process and eliminate writing PHP codes from scratch.
PHP modules play an important role in web application. Each module is a collection of programming codes which are built to add functionalities, classes, libraries and user interface which comprise of common buttons, grids, forms, menus, etc. These are essential when serving business requirements. For instance, a Photo Gallery module allows you to upload and download photos, etc. On the other hand, you can run your online business using the eCommerce module which includes shopping cart, online catalogs and many more.
Despite the obvious advantage of modules to businesses, an entrepreneur must take into consideration the needs of the business. Each module is unique and caters to individual business attributes. Most of the modules available in the market are managed by respective administrator and because of the PHP simple and easy nature; it gives more flexibility to manipulate the information in the administration area and allow for code reusability. These include self-customization and modules creation according to customer requirements which can then be integrated onto a new or existing website system.
MySQL characterized as a fast, robust, reliable open source database which is part and parcel of PHP scripts. Thus, PHP is naturally compatible with the MySQL.
We at Comdev have been using PHP scripts in building more than a dozen web based software due to its increasing popularity. So let us help you help yourself build an 'A' star website. Together we can make our dreams a reality.


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Maritime Internet connection costs are, in comparison to their terrestrial counterparts, very expensive and have their technical difficulties to keep your ship connected at all times. They are however equally threatened by viruses, spam, intrusion attacks, spyware, malware, bandwidth abuse as the land based connections. The impact of each of these threats is however much bigger with much further reaching consequences.
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With Hyper-Managed Services we don't just provide you with an internet connection and a standard configuration but we monitor and adjust all these metrics for you, to use the best communication media available wherever you are and depending on what is available (whether it's VSAT, 3G/LTE, WiFi, … or anything else). This is done in full transparency getting you the best possible connection at all times while staying within budget.
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Satmarin's Check Mark certified gateway Anti-virus and Anti-spyware solution scans email and web traffic at the gateway to block malicious threats from entering the network. It offers real-time protection against all spyware/malware, including viruses, worms, spyware, backdoors, Trojans, keyloggers and more. Satmarin firewall VPN appliance scans incoming and outgoing HTTP, FTP, SMTP, POP3 and IMAP traffic, offering a highly dependable security solution.
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Enterprises face heavy financial damage due to the entry of viruses, malware, worms, Trojans, spyware, and more through malicious websites. Phishing, pharming and spyware may lead to theft of passwords, identity theft and loss of other confidential information. Indiscriminate Internet surfing by internal users leaves enterprises vulnerable to legal liabilities, besides loss of productivity. Unrestricted use of file-sharing applications like IM and P2P and multimedia downloads cause risk of data loss or leakage as well as bandwidth choking, draining the enterprise resources.
Attackers are increasingly turning to highly targeted external and internal attacks. Sometimes, these attacks are so highly focused, that they target just the key individuals with access to enterprise resources. With many attacks being too small to fall within the anti-virus and anti-malware radar, enterprises are turning to advanced IPS engines for zero-hour protection.
Satmarin firewall is the only UTM firewall that embeds user identity in firewall rule matching criteria, enabling enterprises to configure policies and identify users directly by the username rather than through IP addresses. Satmarin's powerful hardware firewall provides stateful and deep packet inspection, access control, user authentication, network and application-level protection.
Is your Captain receiving committed bandwidth through the day?
Indiscriminate Internet surfing and bandwidth-guzzling downloads by internal users often leave enterprises with insufficient bandwidth for business-critical applications. Satmarin's user identity-based bandwidth management allows optimum utilization of bandwidth and offers bandwidth control over congestion, preventing bandwidth abuse and resultant choking. Enterprises receive committed, burstable bandwidth, preventing non-critical applications from degrading network performance in addition to gaining control over investment in bandwidth.
Single ISP links can leave business-critical applications of enterprises vulnerable to link failures, resulting in severe business losses. Redundancy in ISP links has become critical for business continuity and greater profitability of enterprises.
Satmarin Multiple Link Manager enables enterprises to control traffic over multiple WAN links by delivering comprehensive traffic management capability and optimizing the links. It offers high-speed connectivity while maximizing ROI, making optimal use of low-cost, small pipes in combination with high cost links.
A single Satmarin UTM firewall appliance handles multiple WAN links (Satellite, WiFi, UMTS, Cellular, …), limiting capital expenses as compared to solutions where multiple appliances are required to handle multiple WAN links. In the process, Satmarin delivers integrated security through a single appliance.


text:
Best of Sorrento
Tips and advice for visitors to this lovely Italian resort
Sorrento is a beautiful town perched on a cliff high above the sea with views of Vesuvius and the islands in the Bay of Naples . Use this website to help you plan a visit to this elegant southern Italian resort and find your way to the best beaches and some lovely villages and towns along the Sorrentine peninsula that are perhaps less well known to tourists.
Why visit Sorrento
Sorrento Transport
Getting to Sorrento
Take a trip to Pompeii
Vesuvius looms over Pompeii
The ancient city of Pompeii lies within easy reach of Sorrento, taking about 30 minutes by train.
One of the most popular tourist attractions in Italy, gli scavi, the excavated ruins of Pompeii, show us what daily life was like in a Roman city, even down to what was sold in the shops and how people decorated their homes.
A vast number of important artefacts have been dug up on the site over the last 250 years since excavations began in earnest.
There is so much to see that many people find it difficult to get round the entire site in a day.
On your first visit you could either walk round gathering general impressions or choose some of the famous sights to look at in more detail.
It can be hot during the summer months so take adequate sun protection and plenty of water. Many people pack a picnic and take a break to stop and eat it while they are going round.
But there is a self service bar and restaurant on the site near the Tempio di Giove.
There are plenty of excellent bars and restaurants in the modern town of Pompei (spelt with only one i), but these are some distance from the excavations.
How to get to Pompeii
There are trains to Naples from the Circumvesuviana railway station in Sorrento every half an hour that stop at Pompei Scavi station. The journey takes about 30 minutes.
From the station it is a short walk to the main entrance to the archaeological site in Piazza Porta Marina.
The ruins are open daily from 8.30 to 19.30 during the summer and 8.30 to 17.00 between November and April.
The last days of Pompeii
The ancient city of Pompeii dates back to at least the seventh century BC and came under Roman rule around 200 BC.
An earthquake damaged Pompeii a few years before the fatal eruption of Mount Vesuvius but it is believed that the final disaster happened in the August of AD 79.
When Vesuvius started rumbling and a sinister cloud began to form many people left the area immediately and it is estimated that only ten per cent of the 20,000 population stayed behind and perished.
It is believed many of them died from the effects of the heat and their bodies were buried under the stones and ash for hundreds of years.
The city was almost completely covered, but the upper floors of some of the buildings stuck out from the rubble. These were looted by local people over the centuries but eventually the city was forgotten.
Engineers rediscovered it while digging an acqueduct in the 17th century. The first organised excavations began in 1748 and the site soon became an attraction for wealthy Europeans on the Grand Tour.
Highlights among the excavations
House of the Faun
From the main entrance at Porta Marina walk along Via Marina to il Foro Civile (the forum) where you can see the place where orators addressed public meetings and the law courts.
If you go along Via del Mercurio you will see some interesting houses, including Casa dei Vettii where there are well preserved wall paintings and Casa del Fauno with its famous statue.
If you go from il Foro along Via dell'Abbondanza you will see the remains of shops, a tavern and a brothel. At the end of the street on the right you will find the main anfiteatro (ampitheatre).
If you have time, try to visit Villa dei Misteri outside the walls of the city, which has some colourful wall paintings depicting the myth of Dionysis and the initiation ritual into a cult that was forbidden at the time.
Modern Pompei
Pompei is a smart town with plenty of shops, bars and restaurants. It is also home to a magnificent church that has become a centre for pilgrims who come to pray to the Madonna.
Il Santuario della Beata Vergine del Rosario is in the centre of the town in Piazza Bartolo Longo.
Posted by The Editor at 3:18 PM
Labels: Beyond Sorrento, Days Out, Pompeii
Search Best of Sorrento
SORRENTO GUIDE BOOK
A good guide book for visitors to Sorrento is Frommer's Amalfi Coast, which has a whole chapter devoted to the town and its peninsula, including information on lesser known attractions of the area that other guide books sometimes ignore.
This book takes readers on a tour of the Sorrentine Peninsula, starting from Castellamare di Stabia, with details of other places on the peninsula such as Vico Equense, Massa Lubrense, Sant'Agata su due Golfi, Nerano and Termini.
Buy Frommer's Amalfi Coast with Naples, Capri and Pompeii direct from Amazon.
ITALY ON THIS DAY
Enjoy a snippet of Italian history and culture every day at www.italyonthisday.com
CRIME NOVEL SET IN ITALY
DEATH IN THE HIGH CITY
A cosy crime novel set in Lombardy in northern Italy, Death in the High City is believed to be the first British crime novel to use Bergamo as its location.
The book is the first in a series of Butler and Bartorelli Mysteries, featuring detective duo Kate Butler, a journalist, and Steve Bartorelli, a retired Detective Chief Inspector.
Death in the High City centres on the investigation into the death of an English woman who had been staying in the beautiful Città Alta while writing a biography of the Bergamo-born composer Gaetano Donizetti.
Death in the High City is available from Amazon in paperback and as an e-book.
WEATHER IN SORRENTO
Where is Sorrento ?
Sorrento is an historic coastal city in Italy's Campania region, situated 50km to the south of Naples . It is served by the international airport at Naples and can be reached by rail, road or boat. Sorrento is a good base for visiting the islands of Capri, Ischia and Procida, the Amalfi coast or the Roman ruins at Pompei and Ercolano.
Best wines (3)
Beyond Sorrento (14)
Caruso (2)
Church of the Rosario (2)
Days Out (9)
Guide books (1)
Ischia (2)
Marina Grande (1)
Marina Piccola (2)
Massa Lubrense (1)
Naples Airport (1)
Piazza Tasso (2)
San Baccolo (1)
Sant' Antonino (3)
Sights (9)
Things to see (31)
Via Tasso (2)
CRIME NOVEL SET IN SORRENTO
THE SHOOTING IN SORRENTO
The Shooting in Sorrento, a new crime novel set in the resort, is now available from Amazon.
The second Butler and Bartorelli mystery by Val Culley, it is the sequel to Death in the High City, which was set in Bergamo in Lombardy.
The book - written for readers who prefer the 'cosy crime' genre - features journalist Kate Butler and her partner, Steve Bartorelli, who is a retired Detective Chief Inspector.
They are in Sorrento for the wedding of the daughter of one of Steve's Italian cousins.
When tragedy strikes an English family staying at their hotel, Kate feels she has to help.
She joins forces with another visitor to Sorrento to investigate after it becomes clear the Italian police aren't looking further than the English family.
The Shooting in Sorrento is available on Amazon Kindle or as a paperback.
If your love of Italy stretches beyond Sorrento and the south, you may enjoy visiting our sister sites, devoted to the elegant and historic northern Italian cities of Bergamo and Padova.
Situated just north of Milan and close to the lakes and mountains, Bergamo has become a familiar name because of its major international airport but is an attractive place to visit in its own right, combining contemporary sophistication with medieval charm.
Padova, an elegant city in the Veneto less than half an hour by express rail services from Venice, boasts a picturesque historic centre, one of the world's oldest universities and notable buildings including the Scrovegni Chapel, which houses a renowned cycle of frescoes by Giotto that is recognised as a masterpiece of western art.
FIND OUT MORE at www.bestofbergamo.com and www.bestofpadova.com
To chose from a selection of hand-picked hotels, visit www.bestofitalyhotels.com
La Fenice serves up Sorrento dishes with style

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
Sky Bet: Back Blues at Mansfield
@SUFCRootsHall
Back Southend United with Football League partner Sky Bet
Southend United head to the One Call Stadium to take on Mansfield Town on Saturday, and you can back them with Football League partner, Sky Bet.
Sky Bet are offering odds of 11/8 on Blues to beat the Stags and record the double over them this season, following the 3-0 win at home.
A repeat of that scoreline is 22/1. Blues have drawn their last three league away games 1-1, and it's 5/1 for that to happen for a fourth game in a row.
Blues have kept 12 clean sheets so far this season. It's evens for Both Team to Score, no, while it's 2/1 for Blues to keep a 13th clean sheet. It's 3/1 that Blues win to nil.
Barry Corr has been passed fit for the game, and he's 5/1 to score first, or 11/8 to score anytime.
Lee Barnard is still looking for his first goal since returning to the club, and he's also 5/1 first goalscorer and 11/8 to score anytime.
No goalscorer, as was the case against Newport County last week, is 9/1.
Fancy a long shot? Kevan Hurst to score the first goal of the game and Blues to win 2-0 is 45/1!
To back Blues, please click here.


Ghanaian actress, Yvonne Nelson serious about finding a partner has revealed in an Instagram post that she needs someone to go out with; subtly confirming her relationship breakup with her baby daddy, Jamie Roberts.
According to the reports we gathered, Yvonne Nelson was forcing the Irish father of her daughter Ryn Roberts to marry her in a grand white wedding marriage.
ALSO READ Popular Kenyan Socialite Beaten After Stealing Phone!!
They removed photos of each other on their Instagram pages in the wake of rumours that they've broken up.
Yvonne took to Instagram, posted a nice photo of herself with a caption, "Hi there……I need a date".


Scale up your capacity and performance as you grow and on demand. Add another virtual server in a matter of minutes.
You have a full administrative access to your virtual server. You can even remotely manage it at any time.
With Hengley's Virtual Server Solution service, you don't need to worry about the operational and maintenance costs such as skilled staff to maintain the server, space and rent along with associated electricity bills for power and cooling.
e Network Operations Center (NOC) is working around the clock to ensure servers are operating at all times. NOC has also hotline numbers with live technical staff ready to support with any of your server issues 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Servers is hosted in a secured data center with redundant cooling and power systems to ensure the utmost system up time.


text:
Report claims "secret" chemicals used in Pennsylvanian fracking
Energy companies did not identify the full range of chemicals used in drilling and hydraulic fracturing for natural gas in more than half of the wells developed in Pennsylvania between 2013 and...
Permian receives highest per-acre bid
11 September, Week 36, Issue 423
The western Permian Basin, in New Mexico, is booming. The land rush and drilling boom has in the past centred on the Texas portion of the shale-oriented region, but New Mexico is now centre-stage...
China's Hubei Province targets Enshi shale gas development
A new shale gas exploration and production base will be established in the central Chinese province of Hubei.
Eclipse, Blue Ridge to merge
Eclipse Resources and Blue Ridge Mountain Resources announced this week that they have agreed to merge in an all-stock transaction valued at around US$908 million. The deal will create one of the...
Carrizo to buy Permian acreage from Devon
Carrizo Oil & Gas is acquiring almost 10,000 net acres (40 square km) in the Permian Basin from Oklahoma-based Devon Energy for US$215 million. The properties, located in the Permian's...
Diamondback to buy Ajax for US$1.2 billion
Diamondback Energy has entered into a definitive purchase agreement to acquire all leasehold interests and related assets of Permian Basin-focused Ajax Resources for US$900 million in cash and 2....
Targa teams up with partners on Permian gas pipeline
Targa Resources is teaming up with subsidiaries of NextEra Energy Resources and Marathon Petroleum, as well as WhiteWater Midstream, to build a 620-mile (998-km) gas pipeline system from the...
Patterson-UTI to pause deployment of new pressure pumping fleets
Patterson-UTI Energy, a major operator of onshore rigs in the US, has said that it will temporarily stop deploying new pressure pumping fleets to hydraulically fracture oil and gas wells. Company...
Plains denied steel tariff exemption
Plains All American Pipeline has been denied a request to exclude its planned Cactus II crude pipeline from the 25% steel tariff introduced by US President Donald Trump earlier this year.
North Dakota production hits record levels in May
North Dakota has achieved new records for both oil and gas production, according to preliminary state data for May. The North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) said on July 13 that...
Noble secures additional Permian takeaway capacity
Noble Energy has said that that it has supplemented its Delaware Basin takeaway with an additional firm sales agreement to transport oil to Corpus Christi on the Texas Gulf Coast. The independent'...
Ascent buying US$1.5 billion of Utica assets
Ascent Resources has agreed to buy US$1.5 billion in Utica shale assets in separate transactions. The assets are being bought from Hess, CNX Resources, Utica Minerals Development and a fourth...
DUCs double in Permian
The number of drilled but uncompleted (DUC) wells in the Permian Basin has almost doubled in the last year. In fact, over 40% of the US' DUCs in May were located in the Permian Basin, the country'...
PetroChina reports high flow rates from Chongqing shale well
PetroChina has announced high flow rates from a deep shale well in Chongqing, southwestern China.
BHP shale assets reportedly valued at up to US$9 billion in first bidding round
First-round bids for BHP's US shale portfolio have valued the assets at around US$7-9 billion, sources familiar with the matter told Bloomberg on June 5.


The Seven Canyons Trust works to daylight and rehabilitate the seven canyon creeks of Utah's Wasatch Range, restoring beauty and health to the hydrology in Salt Lake County, Utah. Daylighting is a term to describe the uncovering of buried urban waters, bringing them back to the surface, and restoring their stream channels. According to research by the Trust, over 21 miles of Salt Lake County's seven main tributaries to the Jordan River are buried in underground culverts. Additionally, 143 miles of the aboveground reaches are impaired under the Clean Water Act's 303(d) List of Impaired Waters. By harnessing the history of place – where the creeks once flowed freely – the Trust engages locals to amplify their voices and promote community stewardship that leads to action and attachment toward their hydrologic systems, connecting a population of 1,107,314 people to natural green spaces.
The Seven Canyons Trust emerged out of a University of Utah Urban Ecology Workshop in 2014. It's visioning document for reconnecting these riparian corridors to ecosystems and communities, entitled 100 Years of Daylighting, won a Utah American Planning Association Outstanding Achievement Award. This studio spurred the creation of a nonprofit to carry out the 100-year vision to uncover and restore the valley's creeks. This vision presents a new ecological planning paradigm – challenging the past century of stormwater management – to usher in the next 100 years of uncovering these waters to address water quality impairments, flooding, public health concerns, economic vulnerabilities, and quality of life.


Home to one of Norway's largest outdoor climbing parks, the Telemark canal, and a wealth of interesting museums, Grenland offers a blend of cultural and natural experiences for kids and adults alike.
, offering many opportunities for outdoor activities. For hiking, the Coastal Path in Bamble and the "Ti topper'n" (meaning ten peaks) are popular alternatives, both offering scenic surroundings and many fine viewpoints. If cycling is your thing, the eastern leg of the North Sea Cycle Route runs along the Grenland coast and onwards to Norway's south coast.
Eventyrfabrikken is Scandinavia's largest indoor jungle-play facility, designed for children from 1 to 13. The science centre DuVerden, situated in Porsgrunn, is a great voyage of discovery. There are several options for getting to Grenland.
If you're still thirsty for more, you should visit Henrik Ibsen's childhood home in Skien, find out how porcelain is made at Porsgrunds Porselænsfabrik, or take a trip along the Telemark Canal.
Find more inspiration on Grenland's official website.
Grenland has an impressive assortment of waterparks and family parks. At Skien fritidspark (Skien's leisure park), you will find a pool complex with a 82 feet pool, diving pools, a wave pool and a therapeutic pool.
Eventyrfabrikken is Scandinavia's largest indoor jungle-play facility, designed for children from one to 13, while Klatreparken in Skien fritidspark is one of Norway's largest outdoor climbing parks, offering more than 80 different climbs on different trails among the trees in the forest. The science center DuVerden, situated in Porsgrunn, is a great voyage of discovery.
If you are still thirsty for more, you should visit Henrik Ibsen's childhood home in Skien, find out how porcelain is made at Porsgrunds Porselænsfabrik or take a trip along the Telemark Canal.
Mersmak food festival in Skien.
The Olav church ruin (Skeidi church) are the ruins of a stone church built before 1150 in Bamble.
Skien sluse is the first lock in the Telemark Canal, with connection between Skienselva and Hjellevannet.
Do you want to have fun on the ice?
Tangen Fort lies at the outermost point on Langesundtangen, south of the town of Langesund.
Skien church was completed in 1894 after the great town fire.
The sculpture Rat Virgin is located near by Skien centre, at Bakkestranda.
The district of Skotfoss in Skien was mainly built about 1900 around the paper factory Skotfoss Bruk.
Welcome to Kjønnøya Camping in Bamble.
The motel is located at the old E-18 three minutes from Stathelle, near Brevik Bridge.
Cozy and charming place located in the middle of Langesund City.
Stathelle guest-harbor is located at the pier in the "old Stathelle". Wooden houses and nice waking area.
Welcome RV parking in Skien leisure park!
Welcome to RV Parking in Skien city center!
The restaurant is located in the old area i the city, by the river.
Get in-depth travel information on Grenland's official website.
There are regular departures with NSB (the Norwegian State Railways) from Oslo to Porsgrunn and Skien, with good connections to the Sørlandsbanen and Bergensbanen regional railways.
From Oslo you can take buses to Skien and Porsgrunn, with onward connections to the coastal towns.
The E18, the main road of Eastern and Southern Norway, passes through Grenland.
Torp Sandefjord Airport is the nearest airport, located about 1 hour drive from Skien. The airport has an extensive network of routes covering other parts of Norway and much of Europe.


Christopher Hawley spent his formative musical years as the frontman of Mucis, a Colorado- band who signed to a major label and toured nationally in a retrofitted school bus. He could never get enough of being on the road, so when the band broke up, Hawley became a solo roots-rock singer-songwriter, and forged on.
As a solo artist, Hawley had songs licensed for Fox's "The Good Guys", NFL's "NFL A.M." and an H&R Block commercial. Over the years he played everywhere from LA's Greek Theatre to yoga retreats in Bali and dive bars in ski towns.
A few years back, Hawley's friend Randy Wooten offered to produce a few tracks in exchange for surfing lessons for his girlfriend's son. Hawley and Wooten began writing together on a regular basis. Their prolific partnership produced a long list of songs. One, "Sidewalks and Bars" was conceptualized during one of those surf lessons.
What began as a casual collaboration between two friends in soon became a full-length album. Hawley is spreading his wings in a way he never has before. The album is beautifully produced – Wooten did his job well, taking a roots-rock palate and adding memorable touches like barrelhouse piano, reverb-soaked guitar, and even modern synth sounds. Hawley's up-front vocals lend the songs a remarkable sense of intimacy.
However it's the collaboration between the two songwriters that makes Stories shine. The songs are smart and compelling, and there's a depth to the tales they tell that makes you want to listen closer.


Soon-to-be Tiny House owner (Client) completes initial survey below. Please send this in an email to support@tinyhomebuilders.com.
Tiny Home Builders (THB) reviews the survey and generates additional clarifying questions and generates a preliminary quote.
Quote is revised based on design.
Client signs quote and pays 20% deposit.
What tiny house design would you like to have built? This can be an existing design by us or another designer, sketches by you, or simply a grouping of photos of other houses that you'd like to borrow design elements from. This helps us to get an idea of what you want. Please include what length you were thinking about. Obviously, these can all change through the process.
How will you use the house? Will it be your full time residence, a guest cottage, a vacation home, or other?
Do you want us to complete the house or do you intend to finish some of it?
Do you have a place arranged where you plan to park your house? Does it have the required hookups (e.g. water, electric, sewer, etc.) or do you plan to have it off-grid (solar power, rainwater collection, composting toilet, etc.)?
How do you plan to pay for your house? If you plan to get financing, have you looked into this and has it been approved? Note: We don't currently offer financing.
When are you wanting the house to be completed by?
How do you intend to transport your tiny home?
Contact information including Full Name, Address, Telephone, and email address.


text:
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading;
using System.Threading.Tasks;

namespace Reactive4.NET.utils
{
    sealed class MpscLinkedArrayQueue<T> : ISimpleQueue<T>
    {
        QueueSection consumerQueue;

        int consumerIndex;

        QueueSection producerQueue;

        public MpscLinkedArrayQueue(int capacity)
        {
            var q = new QueueSection(capacity);
            Volatile.Write(ref consumerQueue, q);
            Volatile.Write(ref producerQueue, q);
        }

        public void Clear()
        {
            while (Poll(out T item) && !IsEmpty()) ;
        }

        public bool IsEmpty()
        {
            var q = consumerQueue;
            return consumerIndex == Math.Min(q.array.Length, Volatile.Read(ref q.producerIndex)) && Volatile.Read(ref q.next) == null;
        }

        public bool Offer(T item)
        {
            var q = Volatile.Read(ref producerQueue);
            var a = q.array;
            var n = a.Length;

            for (;;)
            {
                int offset = Volatile.Read(ref q.producerIndex);
                if (offset < n)
                {
                    offset = Interlocked.Increment(ref q.producerIndex) - 1;
                }
                if (offset >= n)
                {
                    var next = Volatile.Read(ref q.next);
                    if (next != null)
                    {
                        Interlocked.CompareExchange(ref producerQueue, next, q);
                        q = next;
                        a = next.array;
                        continue;
                    }

                    next = new QueueSection(n);
                    a = next.array;
                    a[0].item = item;
                    a[0].state = 1;
                    next.producerIndex = 1;

                    if (Interlocked.CompareExchange(ref q.next, next, null) != null)
                    {
                        next = q.next;
                        Interlocked.CompareExchange(ref producerQueue, next, q);
                        q = next;
                        a = q.array;
                        continue;
                    }

                    Interlocked.CompareExchange(ref producerQueue, next, q);
                    return true;
                }
                a[offset].item = item;
                Volatile.Write(ref a[offset].state, 1);
                return true;
            }
        }

        public bool Poll(out T item)
        {
            var q = consumerQueue;
            var a = q.array;
            var n = a.Length;
            var ci = consumerIndex;

            for (;;)
            {
                if (ci == n)
                {
                    var q2 = Volatile.Read(ref q.next);
                    if (q2 == null)
                    {
                        item = default(T);
                        return false;
                    }
                    //q.next = null;
                    consumerQueue = q2;
                    a = q2.array;
                    ci = 0;
                }
                if (Volatile.Read(ref a[ci].state) != 0)
                {
                    item = a[ci].item;
                    a[ci].item = default(T);
                    consumerIndex = ci + 1;
                    return true;
                }

                if (ci == Math.Min(n, Volatile.Read(ref q.producerIndex)) && Volatile.Read(ref q.next) == null)
                {
                    item = default(T);
                    return false;
                }
            }
        }

        internal struct Entry
        {
            internal T item;
            internal int state;
        }

        sealed class QueueSection
        {
            internal readonly Entry[] array;

            internal QueueSection next;

            internal int producerIndex;

            internal QueueSection(int capacity)
            {
                this.array = new Entry[capacity];
            }
        }
    }
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


text:
package behavioral.patterns.visitor;

import java.util.ArrayList;
import java.util.List;

/**
 * The concrete element overrides the accept
 * method of the Element interface and will call the
 * visit method, and will pass this operator as an argument.
 * This will allow the behavioral.patterns.visitor method to get all the public
 * members of the object, to add new operations on it.
 */

public class HtmlParentElement extends HtmlTag {

    private String tagName;
    private String startTag;
    private String endTag;
    private List<HtmlTag> childrenTag;

    public HtmlParentElement(String tagName) {
        this.tagName = tagName;
        this.startTag = "";
        this.endTag = "";
        this.childrenTag = new ArrayList<>();
    }

    @Override
    public String getTagName() {
        return tagName;
    }

    @Override
    public void setStartTag(String tag) {
        this.startTag = tag;
    }

    @Override
    public void setEndTag(String tag) {
        this.endTag = tag;
    }

    @Override
    public String getStartTag() {
        return startTag;
    }

    @Override
    public String getEndTag() {
        return endTag;
    }

    @Override
    public void addChildTag(HtmlTag htmlTag) {
        childrenTag.add(htmlTag);
    }

    @Override
    public void removeChildTag(HtmlTag htmlTag) {
        childrenTag.remove(htmlTag);
    }

    @Override
    public List<HtmlTag> getChildren() {
        return childrenTag;
    }

    @Override
    public void generateHtml() {
        System.out.println(startTag);
        for (HtmlTag tag : childrenTag) {
            tag.generateHtml();
        }
        System.out.println(endTag);
    }

    @Override
    public void accept(Visitor visitor) {
        visitor.visit(this);
    }
}


Penned with information from Ronald Turner, Justin Green, James Hall, Stephen Wilson, Alexander Lewis, Michael Collins, Kevin Anderson, Scott Phillips, Ryan Campbell, Daniel Smith, Matthew Anderson, Christopher Scott, Brian Evans, Matthew Nelson, Brandon Harris, James Perez, Scott Smith, Christopher Lopez, Matthew Rodriguez, Mark Moore.
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The saltwater crocodile (lat. crocodylus porosus), who is often called ?Saltie?, is the largest living crocodile to this day. Fully-grown creatures reach an average body-length of five meters and in rare cases they even surpas six. They mainly feed on fish and tortoises; however mammals and birds of all kinds are among their prey. It is possible for saltwater crocodiles to reach 100 years of age. With their exceptional width and a pair of ridges which run from the eye orbits along the centre of the snout, they distinguish themselves visibly from other crocodile species.
Due to the fact that the saltwater crocodile claims fixed territories, the juveniles are always in search of new environments. Thus it is not surprising that the saltwater crocodile?s habitat is very large and reaches from East Indies to South-East Asia and Australia. This also encloses the whole Pacific Island World, including Palau. A new coin release from this Insular State in gold and silver shows a saltwater crocodile in a snatching perspective. The silver release is equipped with a khaki coloured Swarovski component.


Talakad is a scenic and spiritual pilgrimage center located in near T. Narasipura, Mysore district. Talakad is also know as Talakadu in Kannada, state language of Karnataka. Talakad is situated on the banks of the Kapila Cauvery River. Talakad is about 130 Kms from Bangalore and 50 Kms from Mysore. River Cauvery makes a sharp turn here.
It was a capital of the Ganga Dynasty (350-999 AD). It was the capital of several dynasties that ruled over Karnataka. Then it was ruled by the Cholas of Tamil Nadu from the 11th to the 12th century. Then Talakad came under the Hoysalas in the 12th century after this the Vijayanagar Kings and the Maharajas of Mysore patronized this place.
Talakad once had over 30 temples that today are buried in sand. Among the temples of Talakad, the Pathaleshwara or Vasukishwara, Maruleshwara or Saikateshwara, Arkeshwara, Vaidyanathee-shwara and Mallikarjuna temples, the five Lingams believed to represent the five faces of Shiva. The Pataleshwara Shivalingam is said to change colors during the day (red in the morning, black in afternoon and white in the evening). There is also Keerthinarayana temple, a Vishnu temple of 12th century is built in the Chalukyan style.
Talakad Panchalinga Darshana: In honour of above five Shiva temples, a fair is held once every 12 years called Panchalinga Darshana. The Panchalinga Darshana is held on a new moon day in the month of Karthika when two stars conjoin, the stars of Khuha Yoga and Vishaka. The last Panchalinga Darshana held in 2006.
The best season to visit would be from March-July and September-March.
Talakad is well connected with roads from Bangalore and Mysore.


text:
Beer Run
Annual Brew to Brew benefit race much more than a mere marathon
By By B.J. Mikel / special to lawrence.com
For some people, 26.2 miles just isn't far enough. Fortunately for them, people like Lou Joline are around to create "ultra-marathons."
Officially defined as any race longer than a traditional marathon, most ultra-marathons measure at least 30 miles. Likely few ultra-marathons, however, feature beer as a core component of the race.
"It struck me that we had these two excellent breweries in the area-Boulevard and Free State," Joline says. And with that inspiration, the Brew to Brew Run was created.
Consisting of a 43.5 mile mix of pavement, trail, and dirt, the Brew to Brew stands as one of just a dozen annual ultra-marathon events. The race has grown in popularity since its beginning 13 years ago-from 254 runners in its inaugural year to nearly 2600 in 2006. But it's not the competition that keeps people coming back, says Joline.
Brew to Brew
Sunday, April 1, 2007, 6 a.m.
(One-off place), Lawrence
All ages / $15 - $20
"The lure of beer has been our secret," he says. Runners are treated to Boulevard beer before the race and Free State Brewery beer and a gumbo dinner at Liberty Hall afterward.
"For most people, it's just a fun outing," Joline says. For most, the run is treated as a relay- last year, just 54 people completed the run solo-style. Teams of up to nine people may split the distance however they see fit. Awards are given to first place finishes in age/sex-separated categories, but special prizes are given for Best Team Spirit, Best Team Name, and Dead Last Finisher.
Photo by Dick Ross
Jon Tramba, KU graduate in architecture, runs the final leg in the 2006 Brew to Brew. Tramba's team - "Amstel Tired From Last Year" - won the event's award for best name.
Teams such as "The Young and the Breathless," "Idiots Running to Lawrence," and "Drunk on Arrival" often don costumes and perform song/dance routines to entertain the rest of the participants.
Trudy Nepstad was the captain of last year's Team Spirit Award winners, the "AARP-ettes." Running the race every year since its inception, the youngest member of the team is 65. "You holler out the window to your teammate, encouraging her, you know, honk the horn," says Nepstad. Her five-woman team plans on wearing matching hats once again this year, with the only expectation being "just to finish."
Nepstad herself didn't starting running until age 53- in 1982. When she began, "I couldn't even get to the corner," she says. "Every night I would choose a driveway or a streetlight to get to". This gradually increasing schedule has paid off. To date, Nepstad has completed 14 marathons and 3 ultra-marathons on her own. But when it's time for the Brew to Brew, the challenge is a shared one, so the atmosphere is cooperative instead of competitive. "It's really a lot of fun," she says.
Photo by Jared Soares
Brian Payne, a student at the School for Advanced Military Studies, Fort Leavenworth, gets ready to cross the finish line of the 2005 Brew to Brew.
Steve Riley, director of several other Kansas races, agrees. "I'd say the majority of people are just having fun," he says. "There's people who take it seriously and there's people who don't. You can take it as seriously as you want." Even though he and his teammates run competitively, the Brew to Brew always has a relaxed atmosphere. After race flag confusion caused a wrong turn on the Turner Bridge one year, he and other racers just shrugged it off-"that's part of the fun of it," he laughs. The costumes and dances of other participants are welcome, he says. "It gives us something to talk about later."
Proceeds from the race benefit the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation-more than $25,000 was raised in 2006.


WOW what a shot and a great collection in your blog congratulations!
Una autentica preciosidad para la vista esta maravilla!
Anti Spam:: Write the same number in the empty field below. Letters always lower case.


text:
Archive for the 'Barack Obama' Category
End Baath 2
in Barack Obama, Daesh/ISIL, Patrick Muldowney and Syria
. 157 Comments
1 I would fully endorse the statements that 'A GLOBALIZED WORLD WITH OPEN BORDERS CANNOT PEACEFULLY COEXIST WITH FASCISM!' and that 'FASCISM MEANS WAR'. So, as there are fascists like Putin all over the world currently in charge of large military formations and busy making war, the question arises; how do anti-fascists unite to fight back? How do we intend to defeat the fascists? To the extent that western governments are still sitting on the fence; then like Libya the situation will get worse till they get off the fence and in this case end the Assad tyranny as they simultaneously deal with Daesh types. It is a war of two fronts.
2 IMV 'a devastating regional war spreading from Syria throughout the region with profound implications for Europe and the rest of the world' is already underway and thus can't be avoided. Diplomacy and military actions must now proceed together, but what are the diplomats tasks now? What are the military tasks? Who has real skin in the game?
3 I think the evidence is overwhelming that Obama and Putin really are strategic imbeciles but Putin is the fascist not Obama. Obama is just a treacherous liberal that could care less even about ruling class national interests when there is a big price to pay. Dithering is as dithering does.
4 Turkey, Britain and France cannot directly act against Russian meddling in Syria. It is now quite apparent that the era of imperialism is so long gone for these powers that they are in essence reliant on the U.S. in leading them as a united COW, or better still as a part of a united NATO action. Even though 'they have no real rapid deployment capability, and no strategic airlift or sealift capability capable of moving any militarily relevant force within any reasonable time frame' they don't really require it. Turkey has the capacity to drive heavy columns straight down the roads to the sound of the guns. Britain and France could deploy strategically useful elements to Cyprus, and Turkey, and even Jordan. They could with a few days notice for some and weeks to months notice for others. The planners ought to have been planning on contingent intervention for some years then refined and adjusted several times over by now. This issue had already long ago got to the point of a vote in the British parliament over bombing in Syria. Now we have had reports of the British using killer drones recently despite the vote. The vote would I think be different now.
5 It is perfectly true but irrelevant that 'by simply closing the Mediterranean and hence Syria to hostile shipping, which they can still do quickly, they can remind Russia's military that Russia is not, never has been and never will be a mediterranean power' but they will not push against Putin in this manner and he is well aware that they would not because it would mean war if they did. Yet Putin really is an imbecile! Unfortunately so were the likes of Hitler; Tojo; and Mussolini; and there were people like Yamamoto telling them so, but they could not stop the madness unfolding. They will all stand back and shrug that it is NOT 'their duty to dispose of him quickly', but only to increase in measured ways what they are doing now, and what they have been doing is so far been little and late. They are useless!
6 Obama really is a strategic imbecile who has been up in Alaska preparing for the Global warming Paris event! This refugee 'flood' is unfolding in the media every day and he is MIA. In 15 months he will been gone! And when it comes to war making he wants to be gone! So, it will be a year or more for everyone, most probably including the U.S. to mobilize a force capable of serious intervention in Syria.
7 Turkey has long advocated removing the Assad regime and has all along pointed out 'that there is no other way to avoid millions of refugees continuing to pour out of Syria.' Yet the 'stable' democratic Turkish government have got nowhere with Obama and the situation has got worse and themselves much less stable. A war is resuming again in Turkey with not just the worst of the Kurdish nationalists but with all manner of anti- Turkish forces having an interest in seeing that it break out and bog the Turkish military down. Even the threat of it is beneficial to Assad and Putin.
8 The executive in both Britain and France is terribly conservative and are still only managing the refugees rather than dealing with the source of those refugees. They are not even raising the alarm about Putin's ridiculous intervention to establish and preserve in Syria something that resembles Israel. They can't do that.
9 There could not be any Anglo French expeditionary force in 2015 or 16. The ruling elites of both countries will manage the Syrian casualties but not take any of their own. There is no effective system that exists after the Europeans deserted Bush and Obama deserted U.S. leadership. There is nothing other than ineffective thrashing about while the war goes on with those that are prepared to put boots on the ground. Enter the fascists led by Putin.
10 In the midst of all this the West's own little fascist – Netanyahu – is provoking the Palestinians of East Jerusalem and is thus preparing public opinion to make more war on the Palestinians; even no doubt as he prepares to pull out of more of the West Bank and create yet another vast open air prison.
11 Putin has made it impossible to simply declare war on Assad. No one can now announce 'a no fly zone and an intention to start enforcing it' without dealing with Russian air assets. It is now a hot war where Russian helicopter gun ships must be shot down in numbers over an extended period. Russians fighting as Martians might have to be copied as tit for tat. There was 'European public opinion that would certainly swing behind a no fly zone and accelerate a rapid shift in US public opinion' but they were not banking on war with Putin's troops.
12 The ruling elites won't act quickly enough so the war 'will take much longer and will be a much bigger and bloodier regional war than if they act immediately while Obama still dithers.'
13 But just because FASCISM MEANS WAR progressives have to propose a fighting response to tyranny. So… All air defences close to the borders of Turkey and Jordan must be extended deeper into Syria. That is to say that what is sauce for Putin in Martian activity is sauce for everyone else in enforcing the shooting down of anything that is dropping barrel bombs on the Syrian people. Trouble is that really does require boots on the ground and until they are put in Putin will continue to implement real war for the establishment of the fascist enclave. Russians flying helicopters are going to be the direct enemy of anyone wanting the revolutionary transformation of the now contested part of Syria that Putin has determined to preserve as a predominantly Alawite and Baathist led enclave.
14 As for Germany; Merkel is not any sort of leader worth a cracker like say Mao and he most certainly did not permit uncontrolled sloshing about of peoples'. The refugee issue is not resolved by open borders! It is childish to think that devil take the hindmost people are even 1st priority in a war where the people under attack are being barrel bombed for wanting to vote. Any form of NO FLY WAR NOW is the priority to stop the – Putin, Assad, Netanyahu style policies of driving refugees off their land!
15 Country shopping for economic benefit is all well and good for the lucky ones but it will not solve anything for the proletarian classes who will lose their doctors; engineers; and so forth with the get up and go initiative who do go off to the 'good life' in the developed West. The West just can't rob the undeveloped world of their best and brightest and then all the terribly progressive people feel so good about it!
16 No one can, for example, pretend that Abbott did not stop people drowning! People were drowning. People are now drowning in the Mediterranean sea and no policy that yabbers on about open borders will be acceptable currently to the masses. That desirable distant policy relies on what Europe had to do to get its borders lifted. The U.S. in the 19thC taking the huddled masses did not prevent the mass slaughter of the 20thC world wars. When people are being driven in their millions out of THEIR land and cities THAT is the issue.
17 No rubble producing fascist enclave that generates mass deaths and refugees as policy can be permitted to keep going on with their policies!
18 Obama and Putin are engaged in what appears to me as complete imbecility because of their own logic that includes in Obama's case outright ruthless neglect. No 'well executed misinformation campaign' here just exactly the sort of disaster that we ought to expect from a collapsing international system. The revanchist sees an opportunity and as his only tool is a hammer then it must be a nail.
19 The 'US and Russia are NOT cooperating to assist the Assad regime to move out of Damascus and retreat to a coastal enclave', and so 'that could NOT still count as America still exhausting every other alternative before eventually doing the right thing.', but Obama might grasp at this stupid straw. It may look good to him now that [something like] it is happening anyway. Whatever he thinks I am sure Damascus can not be lost by Assad and any enclave held in the long term. So, I do not think that Putin and Assad have conceded Damascus in any sense at all, and I am sure Obama knows jack shit about what to be getting on with other than some climate change clap trap for Paris. The f..ing 'leader of the free world' is MIA over the refugee flow.
20 Putin does not intend to 'escort the Assad clan out of Syria'. He is joining the Iranians and making war. Of course if he was 'providing temporary protection for the Alawi and other minority communities until international peacekeepers can arrive', then of course 'nothing should be said or done to prejudice that operation.' But that is not what is happening because if it was he would not have sprung it on all of them. He is putting the enemies of Assad between a Western anvil and his hammer and also bringing in his own anvil to smash Western supported FSA types on as and when he chooses. He is fighting the Western supported FSA types from the start.
21 Without very big U.S. backing Europe and Turkey simply do not have the stomach to stop the war in Syria that is however now a "clear and certain danger" to their vital national interests. They will continue to try and bumble along managing refugees and being humiliated by Putin bumbling around like a crazed loon with a hammer. The only international system that was operating was one of U.S. superpower leadership and with Obama at the helm it is currently not functioning as well as on the way out strategically. So the situation will get even worse!
22 Perhaps as Iyad El-Baghdadi @iyad_elbaghdadi says 'The Syrian catastrophe was very preventable, if the world's red line was "killing protesters" rather than "drowned refugee toddlers".', but that is the past and the question for all now is what is to be done to stop Assad and his great and powerful gangster friend killing democratic revolutionaries into the future.
Jordan on slippery slope in Syria war
in Barack Obama, Jordan and Syria
Jordanian officials worry that allowing the transport of weapons to Syrian rebels across Jordanian territory could make it a target of retaliation, while opening up its borders to foreign fighters.
From al-monitor
Author Osama Al Sharif
AMMAN, Jordan — Jordan's news media regarded King Abdullah's meeting with US President Barack Obama on Feb. 14 at the Sunnylands estate in southern California a success.
Abdullah announced that the United States would renew a five-year aid package — worth $660 million annually — in addition to guaranteeing $1 billion in loans aimed at supporting Jordan's frail economy. The two leaders discussed the Syrian crisis and the prospects of US efforts to conclude peace between Israel and the Palestinians, two issues that affect Jordan directly.
The meeting coincided with news from Geneva that the second round of peace talks between the Syrian government and the opposition, under UN auspices, had failed. Speaking to reporters in the presence of Abdullah, Obama announced that he would be seeking "a more aggressive" and "immediate" stance on Syria, especially in delivering humanitarian aid. US Secretary of State John Kerry declared earlier that the president wanted to review fresh options on Syria and senior administration officials told reporters covering the king's visit that all options remain on the table short of putting American boots on the ground.
These options remain undecided but observers here believe that the United States is considering supplying lethal arms to the Syrian rebels and that Jordan will soon find itself involved in this operation. On Saturday, The Wall Street Journal, quoting an unidentified Arab official and opposition sources, reported that Saudi Arabia would deliver Chinese man-portable air defense systems, or MANPADs, and anti-tank guided missiles from Russia to the rebels. It said that such weapons were already in warehouses in Jordan and Turkey.
And popular columnist Abdel Bari Atwan wrote this week that former ambassador to Syria Robert Ford had asked the Syrian National Council to "heat up" the southern front in Daraa to increase pressure on the Assad regime. Atwan wrote that opening up the southern front, most of which is under the control of the Free Syrian Army, would certainly drag Jordan into the Syria crisis.
Since the collapse of the Geneva talks last week, the Syrian regime has widened the scope of its military operations, launching a sustained attack in the Qalamoun Mountains, north of Damascus, to occupy the strategic town of Yabrud. Kerry accused the Russians of enabling the Syrian government's "pursuit of a military path." The Russians retorted by blaming the opposition for the failure in Geneva. It is clear that the coming weeks will witness an increase in military confrontations.
Jordan had always denied reports that it had facilitated the passage of fighters and arms through its borders with Syria. The Syrian regime had warned Jordan not to get involved or bow to US and Saudi pressures. But since the summit in California, Jordanian officials have refused to comment on news that arms would be sent across the borders to Syrian rebels.
In fact, on Feb. 17 the government announced that the armed forces had prevented fighters from crossing from Syria to Jordan, wounding at least three. Jordan's Salafists claimed that the army is not allowing Jordanian citizens, fighting in Syria, to return to Jordan.
It is not clear how Jordan will react to a Saudi or US request to deliver arms to Syrian rebels in Daraa. If the southern front did heat up, it would be a serious development for Jordan. The kingdom already hosts over 600,000 Syrian refugees, mostly from southern Syria. If fresh fighting flared up in that region, it would create new waves of refugees. But more important, it would bring the fighting closer to Jordan's borders.
Jordan has tried to distance itself from calls for regime change in Syria. In California, Abdullah underlined the need for a political solution in Syria without going into details. Jordan has kept the Syrian Embassy open in Amman while officials have deliberately avoided meeting the head of the Syrian National Council, Ahmad al-Jarba, publicly. Unconfirmed reports spoke of occasional intelligence cooperation between Amman and Damascus over the passage of arms and fighters.
Officials here would neither confirm nor deny Jordan's participation last week in a secret meeting of top intelligence chiefs from regional and Western countries. The meeting in Washington, reported by The New York Times, included intelligence officials from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, Britain, France and the United Arab Emirates, and several others from the 11-nation group known as the Friends of Syria. The purpose of the meeting, the newspaper said, was to discuss "how to best provide that new lethal aid to rebel groups."
Jordan's role in facilitating arms delivery through its borders is an open issue. Officials here insist that Jordan will have no such role, but if the southern front does explode then things could change on the ground. Abdullah has described Jordan as an oasis of stability in the region. So far it has avoided getting sucked into the Syrian crisis and averted any spillover. Obama's fresh options on Syria, which include sending arms to the rebels, could end all that.
Read more: http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2014/02/jordan-syria-war-slippery-slope.html?utm_source=Al-Monitor+Newsletter+%5BEnglish%5D&utm_campaign=1f1e05ec4f-January_9_20141_8_2014&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_28264b27a0-1f1e05ec4f-93145129#ixzz2tpCkRCTZ


text:
Vibeke steht für:
 Vibeke (Vorname)
 (2414) Vibeke, Asteroid des äußeren Hauptgürtels

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
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The Big, Big Interview: Payments Fraud in the Era of Remote Working
By Hugh Torpey 11/01/2022
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It's not only police that use the mantra 'follow the money'; it's their criminal counterparts too. Now, with money moving via digital payment rails more than ever before, security experts are warning businesses that their systems are becoming increasingly vulnerable to payments fraud, particularly because of remote working practices.
In Europe, the European Union cybersecurity agency reported detection of 230,000 new malware infections every day, with many more going undetected. In the US, the FBI now ranks cybercrime as their third highest priority below combating terrorism and counter espionage, and they received 792,000 victim reports in 2020 – an almost 70% increase on the previous year.
We sat down with Alex Clements, a world-leading expert in cybercrime and Global Head of FinCrime, Investigations & Monitoring at TransferMate, to discuss the biggest threats businesses will face in 2022. With 17 years' experience with the Metropolitan Police, Alex is well placed to advise businesses on how they should protect their vulnerable systems in this new era of remote working.
Q. From the outside looking in, COVID seems to have given criminals the impetus to move more into cybercrime than ever before. Does that sound right to you? And why is it happening?
It's 100% right. There are displaced workforces, with the vast majority of people working from home, and this has increased the vulnerabilities in systems, and that very much includes those people that interact with those systems. A study by IBM reported that 95% of successful attacks where due to lapses in manual controls, or reliance on people to detect "red flags".
Fraudsters know this, and they know where the vulnerabilities are to attack.
Q. Let's look at that digital money flow, and payments in particular. What are the common schemes criminals are using right now to defraud businesses, especially when it comes to their payment processes?
Really, we see two basic schemes.
The lower-tech version is business email compromise. Typically, this is the fraudster using an email address that is very similar to the actual address – the '0' instead of 'O' etc. – of a supplier or payees, and is intended to catch people unawares. Often, they'll be targeted early in the morning or late at night where people are more likely to be caught out. We also see a spike in activity late on a Friday when people are trying to get out the door.
Global losses from payment fraud has tripled from $9.84 Billion in 2011 to $32.39 in 2020.
The other type is account business takeover, which is what we'd describe as a 'hack'. So, someone hacking into your email and sending a communication from your account while changing the bank account details. The best way to combat this when any supplier or any company that you're working with wants to change their bank details, the thing to do is pick up the phone and speak to your contact directly.
Q. And what are the routes they use to infiltrate a system, and what are the system weaknesses business leaders should look out for?
A big vulnerability right now is remote VPN access and connection. Why? Because this is where security updates can be updated across a network of devices.
Some companies don't have the ability for their people to connect through VPN, whereas others – and this includes all the biggest companies in the world – aren't necessarily able to get their staff to connect to the VPN regularly to receive security updates. And it's these security updates that are the real weaknesses that cyber criminals can attack.
The longer a system hasn't been updated with both internal security updates, and those updates our computers ask us to do when a patch comes through from the operating system, the weaker it is.
There is also a risk when staff bring their laptop to the local coffee store and access the "hotspot". Beyond that, we all know about clicking suspicious links and weak passwords through targeted phishing attacks – these are still common routes in for fraudsters.
Q. Can you give me an example of a typical attack of this type?
During the Colonial Pipeline attack, gas pumps across the US were closed due to panic buying
The Colonial Pipeline Company story this year is an excellent example of how these attacks can not only affect the company but have serious knock-on ramifications.
It's reported that the Hackers accessed the company's system using a single compromised password that was sold on the dark web and accessed the company's VPN remotely. Very early one morning – I think it was 5am – an employee received a ransom demand via email. Within an hour or two, the largest fuel pipeline in the U.S. was shut down as a precaution.
During the Colonial Pipeline attack, the average price per gallon hit over $3 – the highest level seen since October 2014.
The closure saw supplies of diesel, petrol and jet fuel tighten across the US, with prices rising and a number of states declaring an emergency. There were news stories where people were filling up plastic bags full of gas.
We later learned that the Company paid around $5m dollars in ransom via Bitcoin. Nearly half of it was recovered by the FBI within a month, but the cost of the hack had gone well beyond what they paid in ransom.
Q. And can a hacker penetrate the digital payment systems themselves?
Yes, there is potential for a hacker to get into a system and change the details and, in that case, the internal person sending the payments may not notice anything wrong when sending the payment.
To prevent this, you need to have a system that can flag when something unusual is happening.
At TransferMate, we invested heavily into our compliance monitoring systems and we've built controls to detect all kinds of risk scenarios. We are also ISO 27001 compliant, and our system includes customer authentication controls and dual-authorization controls. That said, we also find that one of the most effective actions is through education and awareness; cyber criminals look for any and every opportunity, so the more vigilant we are the greater success we can achieve.
Q. And presumably speed in that sort of case is important?
Definitely. The CIA's figures show us that within 72 hours is the key timeframe; and that's from the moment of the fraud. If you can detect it and take action within that timeframe, the chances of recovering the money is higher.
After that 72 hours, the chances of recovering the money drops to 9%.
Q. To go back to the fundamentals, what are the best methods of protection for businesses? Let's look at it from the people angle first…
From the people angle, first step for any leader in a company is to ensure all staff are trained in identifying and preventing fraud. Anyone can be the victim here, and fraudsters will target all levels of a company. If your catering staff or cleaning staff have company emails that receive payroll details, for example, they are equally at risk as the Chief Financial Officer, and often overlooked.
And, of course, fraudsters know this, so they'll target accordingly.
With social engineering techniques – like adding urgency to a message, impersonating the CEO or department head to target people within the company – it's important for people to recognize the tactic. Sometimes, it's the novelty of it to the victim that makes it more likely to succeed.
In 2020, 74% of organizations in the United States experienced a successful phishing attack.
The company also needs to provide a psychological safety net for employees to raise something they feel is suspicious. People should be praised even if they raise a flag and it turns out to be non-fraudulent.
Finally, procedures should be put in place that when account details are changed on a system, they are confirmed by a human being. This 'double-blind' human checks and balances are key.
Q. And then when we look at the technological and systems angle, what should businesses be putting in place there?
As we've said before, but it is worth reiterating, businesses need to keep the IT security software updated across all the devices people use. Many older operating systems will not be able to accommodate the latest software in terms of VPN, firewall and anti-virus protection.
This also means that the hardware you use needs to be current and able to handle the most up-to-date operating systems. That, of course, may mean an expense for the company to update that hardware, but the long-term thinking here is that the cost of that will outweigh any potential future fraud.
"Cyber-security is more than a matter of IT"
Stéphane Nappo, Global Chief Information Security Officer, Groupe SEB
Q. You've been at the forefront of preventing fraud right around the world for nearly two decades. Any trends you see emerging next? What worries you?
There will be a transition period over the next while when people are returning to work, while others continue working remotely for the long term, and that transition period could leave companies vulnerable.
The habits we've built up over the last two years – processing payments from home etc. – will mean that people will be more inclined to carry them out again in unsecure environments. It might be as simple as being in a public place and potentially letting a fraudster read directly from the screen or using public WiFi systems that are more open to attack.
It doesn't mean we have to revert back to what we did before, it just means we have to take steps (like issuing laptop security screens to staff) and having security policies in place to mitigate against these new threats.
Q. And what has TransferMate put in place to protect your customers? What are the protections your systems provide?
We come at this from several angles. Firstly, all our staff are trained and trained on a regular basis. The people are always the most vulnerable part of any system, so strong policies in place there is essential.
We also have a strong law-enforcement outreach program and we plug-in regularly with police services across the world, from the FBI, the Met Police, to Interpol. This is how we ensure that we are on top of the latest risk scenarios and track what tactics fraudsters use. We use our outreach program to fine-tune our compliance monitoring systems in real-time.
Q. You're obviously taking a very holistic approach to all this, building layer upon layer of security protections but, if you had one piece of advice for businesses looking to avoid being the victim of a scam, what would it be?
If you're ever suspicious, pick up the phone and contact the client directly. If you are using TransferMate, reach out to our Customer Service if you have a doubt about a potential payment before you make the booking, our Compliance Experts are always available to deal with such queries.
Alex, thanks for your time.
If you'd like to learn more about TransferMate's security systems and how they help protect your business against payments fraud, click here or contact us directly.
Reducing friction in the Global Supply Chain – the Role of Procurement
International Payroll and the Future of Work
6 Common Payment Frauds and How to Prevent Them
Use bulk payments to make up to 10,000 payments to employees or partners with a single click
Redress and Complaint
© 2022 TransferMate


text:
Appearances Don't Matter
Why voter anger rarely makes any difference in politics
Image credit: NY Times
As wildfires rage across Australia, social media is replete with clips of Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison being chased away from photo ops by angry citizens, screamed at by irate fire-fighters, and generally having a difficult time with his "personal space" as voters express their discontent with his performance.
This is a more extreme version of what was seen in the UK during the last General Election campaign, when voters across the nation insulted Boris Johnson and told him to f*ck off. Poor Boris spent the remainder of the election campaign hiding in a broom closet and self-soothing by endlessly practicing his pre-photo-op signature hair-mussing.
Which in turn was a more dramatic version of many Republican voters' attitude towards Donald Trump during the US Presidential election of 2016: they found Trump to be an utterly repugnant person with policies abhorrent to their fundamental beliefs whose mere existence as a candidate made a mockery of everything they thought they believed in.
Yet… in the end, these expressions of distaste, anger, and outright hostility don't matter at all. Brexit is happening and Johnson is Prime Minister with an overwhelming Parliamentary majority. Trump is President and almost certain to win re-election in 2020. Morrison will only be defenestrated if his own Party rises up against him; voter discontent is irrelevant.
How on Earth can this be the case?
Journalists and pundits endlessly over-think the problem and pretend that the "real" cause of today's tsunami of mindless populism is because people are angry against "the elite." But as no one ever defines the elite, this explanation is pleasingly vague and all-encompassing and therefore tells us nothing whatsoever. Furthermore, if everyone is so angry at "the elites" then why did so many vote for a mindless drooling infantile moron who's also a self-proclaimed multi-billionaire whose ostentatious vulgarity redefines the phrase "bad taste"? And why did so many Brits vote for a lying prancing clown by the name of Alexander Boris dePfeffel Johnon, Old Etonian and former President of the Oxford Union?
Not exactly typical "men of the people", these two, are they? In fact, they are in their own ways embodiments of what one could call "the elite." So scratch the idea that they gained power as a protest against the very thing they personify.
In reality the reason that people shout at politicians they are angry with and then queue up to vote for them at each election is very simple:
We're a group primate species and therefore we are hardwired to belong to a group.
In the old days, the group was the group we were born into: our family, our tribe, our clan. Today we migrate from group to group as we go through life, moving from school to school and job to job. But we desperately need to identify with a constant, a group we can feel part of. That's why so many people slavishly follow sports teams. It is why people have political affiliations. And today it is why people identify with causes.
The fact is, we can be furious with the coach of our favorite sports team but we'll still pay to watch our team play. The fact is, we can be repelled by the leader of the political Party we've always voted for but we'll still vote for them on election day. And nowadays we can count on causes, that great all-encompassing amorphous mental shorthand, to provide the feel-good factor we can only obtain by believing we're part of something greater than ourselves.
As the final vestiges of representative democracy crumble underfoot, people are increasingly identifying with causes and less with Parties. This means that cynical politicians can even more easily exploit the masses by pretending to align themselves with whatever happens to be the cause du jour. As most people are profoundly ignorant about even the most basic aspects of modern life, this is a very easy thing to do. It requires only a handful of sound-bites repeated ad nauseam to convince a great many citizens that the politician is "really" behind the cause.
What's interesting is that the group dynamic is so very clear, yet so many remain firmly in denial.
What was Brexit really about? Fear of foreigners. The most successful Brexit slogans were all about throwing out foreigners, cutting ties to foreigners, and blaming foreigners for all contemporary problems. Leaving the European Union, gullible and ignorant Brits were told, will "make Britain great again" and was going to be easy-peasy because what could be easier than excising foreign influence from British life?
What is Trump really about? Fear of foreigners. The most successful Trump slogans are all about shutting out foreigners, deporting foreigners, locking up foreigners (and anyone else who refuses to worship the Great Orange Moron). Building a wall, gullible and ignorant US citizens are told, will "Make 'Murka great again" and will be easy because Trump is "good at building stuff."
To what can Morrison attribute his electoral victory? Fear of foreigners. By promising to keep out the refugee boat people and by promising to make radical changes to Australia's immigration rules, Morrison's platform was all about shutting out foreigners. While it's too late for Morrison to run on an old-style "White Australia" platform because of the last few decades of immigration, his underlying message is nevertheless the same as Brexit and Trump: if we can just get back to the good old days when white people were on top, all will be well.
Our hardwired instincts are to support our own group and be suspicious of (if not downright hostile toward) other groups. We know from studies how easy it is to create artificial group affiliations; we also know how group affiliation shapes our thinking towards zero-sum, loss/gain that ultimately leads to potential for conflict.
Want to make people afraid and therefore eager to rally behind you? Make them fearful of foreigners. It's the oldest trick in the book and it works every time because we're a simple group primate species with hardwired behaviors the cynical and venal can manipulate with ease.
Unfortunately we don't take any of this into account. We've structured our systems of governance as though we were an entirely different sort of creature. Representative democracy is a failure because it does the equivalent of automobile manufacturers assuming that we each have eight arms, ten legs, and reaction times in the nanosecond-range.
In former times the systemic unsuitability of representative democracy was somewhat hidden because of limited information flows and a more deferential attitude towards "our betters." Today, with unlimited information and endless media-driven scandals, we aren't deferential any more. But we're still operating within a fundamentally flawed approach to governance and sadly there's zero chance of any meaningful change.
Therefore the fires will continue to blaze, not just across Australia but across the Amazon and what's left of the forests of Madagascar, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Demagogues will continue to triumph by screaming anti-foreigner slogans at slow-witted electorates. And most people will continue to stare at YouTube clips of people shouting at politicians or going on protest marches and imagine that it's meaningful action.
Our world is coming to an end and a new era is approaching and practically no one has noticed.
Because so long as we're part of a group, a great group, the best group, what can possibly go wrong…?
Why We Shouldn't Believe Joe Biden
Maggie Yeomans
Stanley McChrystal: 'I Think I Am at Peace'
The Financial Times in Financial Times
A Rogue Court
m2c4
White Southerners Need To Speak Honestly
Joseph Parrish
How Much Does Donald Trump Support Our Troops, and Does It Matter?
Tyson Victor Weems
Is the Trump Administration Allowing a Terrorist Group to Shape Its Iran Policy?
Citizen Truth Staff in Citizen Truth
The Conscience of a Conservative
AdamSerwer in The Atlantic
What's Behind Our Obsession With 'Likability'


Falling student numbers and unnecessary duplication and competition between providers mean provision for 14 to 19-year-olds in some parts of north Wales is "not sustainable in its current format".
Inspections agency Estyn praised the standard of education and training for post-14s in Anglesey and Arfon in a recently published area inspection report.
Achievements are high overall in schools and further education colleges, it says. The majority of young people in the region are engaged in some form of education or training and, at the end of Year 13, more learners in the area progress to higher education than the Wales average.
But school sixth forms in the region are small and not cost effective, and neighbouring schools and colleges are running the same or similar courses unnecessarily, according to Estyn.
In sixth forms across the regions, more than half of AS-level classes and 72 per cent of A2 classes have 10 or fewer learners. This, says Estyn, is an "inefficient use of resources" for delivering A-level courses. The report also said there was not enough co-operation between schools and work-based learning providers, and that overall, there are not enough vocational opportunities for 14 to 16-year-olds.
Inspectors reported that leadership and management in individual institutions are good and that an Assembly government-sponsored "pathfinder" project is making good progress in analysing current provision. But outside this project, there is not enough co-operation and shared ownership of provision. "Managers who have worked hard to ensure the success of their own institutions have not focused enough attention in driving forward the area-wide strategy for 14-19 education and training,"
An Anglesey council spokesperson said a public consultation based on the pathfinder project was due out this month, with consultations closing in January.
A Gwynedd spokesperson said: "Attention will be given to the promotion of collaboration in order to give attention to numbers in some classes. The schools service will be working closely with schools and other providers to draw up an action plan to give attention to these matters.
"We are very pleased that the report refers to a number of strengths in the area, which include participation levels, a high teaching level and the percentage which move on to higher education."
There was a high proportion of good work in both schools and colleges, and the achievement of students in work-based learning was described as satisfactory. While Estyn said the provision of Welsh medium education was a significant strength in the area, inspectors were critical of limited opportunities for learners to take part in the Welsh baccalaureate.
The report also raised concerns about the likely decrease in student numbers over the next 10 years, which will result in a sharper squeeze on finances and limited scope to expand the curriculum.


Black Arrow Cycles is owned and run by an avid cyclist and Kitchener resident. Jesse has spent over 15 years working as a cycling advocate, commuting by bicycle, touring across Canada, and riding Waterloo region's roads, trails and single track.
Jesse has also worked as a bicycle mechanic for 12 years. In that time he has seen a lot of different bikes, but still thinks that the best bikes are those that are ridden and valued by their owners.
Our team also includes professionally trained and certified bike mechanics Chris and Steve. Both have years of experience under their belts, and a lot of miles under their tires.
We look forward to doing whatever we can to help you enjoy your ride!


Quick a nice assemblage of tips from Apple, nicely illustrated too. From a post by Colin Wan on the me@n list. See: apple.com/pro/tips/.
Liek this one about instant slideshows, I'd completely forgotten about it and its something I'd use frequently, had I remembered.


text:
Blog Spot Time is On Our Side
Michael Ordman
Aaron Ciechanover
TraumaCad
Weizmann Institute
World Science Conference
After 2000 years of exile, citizens of the State of Israel can be proud of their phenomenal technological achievements in just 67 years. It's as if the gift of time itself has been bestowed on the Jewish State for the benefit of humanity.
By: Michael Ordman
Israel is at the forefront of the age-old fight against cancer. In 2004 Professor Aaron Ciechanover of Israel's Technion won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry by identifying the ubiquitin pathway that controls the timing of cell death. 11 years later, scientists working in Professor Ciechanover's laboratory, have identified the chemicals in the body that suppress malignant growth and protect healthy cells. In another line of research, scientists at Israel's Weizmann Institute have identified that tumors can be triggered by information-overload at the cell level. They have also found a molecule that can block inter-cell messages, allowing the cell nucleus more time to behave correctly. Meanwhile, up to 20 Nobel Prize laureates are giving up their time this summer, in order to attend the World Science Conference in Jerusalem. The five-day event will be the largest such event of its kind ever to be held, attracting scientists and thinkers from 60 countries.
There is no time like the present for dispelling the long-held view that we cannot reverse the effects of time on our bodies. Now you can rejuvenate your arteries by consuming pomegranate juice and dates together – according to researchers at Israel's Technion and Haifa's Rambam Medical Center. And following research by scientists at Israel's Weizmann Institute, it won't be too long before heart tissue can be re-grown to replace that damaged by heart disease or heart attack.
Imagine how much medical research and diagnostic time can be saved in the future once Israeli startup Zebra Medical Vision has built up its database of anonymous medical images (X-rays, CT scans and MRI scans). Due to privacy laws, such data was unavailable previously. And surgeons in the USA can now take their time planning hip replacements following FDA approval of the TraumaCad iPhone / iPad mobile app developed by Israeli health-tech firm Voyant. It allows doctors to download a digital image of the patient's hip, simultaneously with that of the new implant, in order to simulate the operation.
Israel's success can partly be attributed to the many incubators and accelerators that give hundreds of startup companies time to grow their business. Israel's Office of the Chief Scientist is opening three new hi-tech incubators in Akko, Haifa and the Golan, each running for 8 years. Then at Israel's Startup Fusion 2015 on 22nd March, over a dozen startups, (including 3 Japanese and 3 Turkish) competed for a $100,000 seed investment to be provided by Samurai Incubate. And when the time comes for these startups to make the decision whether to sell out to the big multinationals, many have now come to realize that they should stay the course and grow into big Israeli companies.
Over 100 students from 11 European countries found their time well spent when they attended a free 4-day electron microscope workshop at Israel's Technion. And the engineers supervising the Delphi Automotive "Roadruner" driverless car had plenty of time to relax and enjoy the record-breaking 3,400-mile ride as the Advanced Drive Assistance System from Israel's Mobileye guided them from San Francisco to Manhattan.
We now come full circle, back to a hospital where Israeli doctors took their time in performing the complex surgery necessary to enable a Syrian boy to walk again after he was severely injured by a shell in Syria's civil war. During his recovery time during the festival of Passover, the boy even enjoyed the time-honored tradition of eating matza crackers. In contrast, time was of the essence for 27-year-old Ran Azulai, who was born with a serious congenital defect. After 3 previous heart operations, Ran had very little time to live when surgeons replaced his heart and two lungs in a rare, complex last-minute operation. The donor's other organs extended the lives of three more patients.
There is just time to mention two innovative Israeli medical devices. Israel's Teva has now received FDA approval for its ProAir RespiClick inhaler for asthmatics. The device is the first of its kind that is breath-activated, which means the user doesn't need to co-ordinate the timing of his/her breathing with manual activation of the inhaler. The other device is the MD-Logic Artificial Pancreas developed by Israel's DreaMed Diabetes. DreaMed has struck a deal with Medtronic, the world's biggest medical device company, to use the algorithm of the Artificial Pancreas in Medtronic's insulin pumps. The algorithm ensures that the timing of the release of insulin is regulated exactly to the needs of the individual diabetic.
We go into extra time, to visit Jerusalem – Israel's ancient and modern capital – to relive the time when gazelles grazed in the outskirts of the holy city. On 30 March, Jerusalem's Mayor Barkat formally opened the Gazelle Valley Nature Park to the public. The 62-acre park cost NIS 90 million and is Israel's first urban nature reserve. It even contains a female gazelle from the original wild herd that lived in the area, plus others from zoos and their offspring.
Finally, there is a new opportunity for world leaders to understand and appreciate the bond linking the Jewish people to the Land of Israel from time immemorial. The exhibit entitled "People, Book, Land – The 3,500 Year Relationship of the Jewish People and the Land of Israel" has just opened at the headquarters of the United Nations in New York. The words of that timeless folk song are: "When will they ever learn? When will they ever learn?" Perhaps the answer is: "In time."
Michael Ordman writes a free weekly newsletter containing positive news stories about Israel.
www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com
For a free subscription, email a request to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com
Click here for all of this week's Good News from Israel.
Posts are contributed by third parties. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent United with Israel.
Article by Michael Ordman
Michael Ordman writes a free weekly newsletter containing positive news stories about Israel - www.verygoodnewsisrael.blogspot.com and a searchable archive www.IsraelActive.com. For a free subscription, email a request to michael.goodnewsisrael@gmail.com.
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