text:
RugbyRugby
TablesTables
TournamentsTournaments
Erasmus leads mourning of Boks 'legend' Chester Williams
Jones names eight uncapped players for 6N
54mTom Hamilton
Saracens reach Champions Cup quarters with win over Racing 92
20hESPN
England's Billy Vunipola set to miss Six Nations
Saracens will not appeal Premiership relegation
Saracens relegation threat intensifies
Gray returns to Glasgow Warriors on two-year deal
Sexton named Ireland captain as Farrell announces Six Nations squad
Tompkins, Rees-Zammit in for Wales at Six Nations
Hogg named Scotland captain for Six Nations
World Cup-winning coach joins England staff ahead of Six Nations
7dTom Hamilton
Italy hand three uncapped players call-ups for Six Nations
Wales to tour Japan and New Zealand
Scotland's Skinner fit for Six Nations
Ireland fly-half Carbery to miss Six Nations
France announce Six Nations squad
Italy's Sergio Parisse to retire after Six Nations
Exeter give Sarries salary cap money to charity
Rhys Webb unlikely to play again for Toulon
May admits he could leave Leicester Tigers in summer
Exeter to sign Scotland lock Gray next season
Williams, who played on the wing in South Africa's 1995 World Cup winning side, died suddenly of a heart attack aged 49 in Cape Town on Friday. Photo credit should read FABIAN GREDILLAS/AFP/Getty Images
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus said the country has "lost a legend" after the sudden passing of former South Africa World Cup winner Chester Williams due to a suspected heart attack at the age of 49 on Friday.
The death of Williams, who scored 14 tries in 27 appearances for the Springboks, comes just weeks before the World Cup kicks off in Japan. He was due to attend as one of the event's past legends.
Springboks impress in dismissing Japan in Rugby World Cup warm-up
Williams broke racial barriers to emerge a national hero as one of South Africa's first black rugby union internationals.
Erasmus, in Japan ahead of the Rugby World Cup that starts on Sept. 20, said the team were in shock after hearing the news.
"I played with Chester and many of our management knew him well and we are all in shock this morning," Erasmus said.
"Many of our players were too young to remember the 1995 Rugby World Cup final, but they have grown up watching highlights of the final and of Chester, and know him as a rugby player who became an icon for our country.
"Only this week our management team was chatting to Chester about his plans to come to the tournament and about tickets for Rugby World Cup matches. It will take us some time to get over this shock."
The passing of Williams follows just six weeks after the death of 1995 World Cup final teammate James Small, who also suffered a heart attack at the age of 50.
The Boks defeated favourites New Zealand 15-12 in an epic decider at Ellis Park that went into extra-time and saw South Africa lift the first of two World Cup titles.
Springboks icon Bryan Habana tweeted a tribute to Williams, calling him "inspirational."
Heartbroken to hear of Chester's passing 💔😢 inspirational and larger than life in so many ways.
My thoughts and condolences go out to Maria and his kids. #RIPChessie pic.twitter.com/7OzkyYl4Vs
— Bryan Habana (@BryanHabana) September 6, 2019
Former Springbok JP Pietersen, who made 70 test match appearances for South Africa, also paid tribute to "childhood hero" Williams.
My childhood hero💔 I still can't believe it...gone way too soon😢
My condolences go out to Chester's family and close friends🙏🏽
Rest In Peace Chester Williams
Legend 🙌🏽#RIPChessie pic.twitter.com/8Xupmtfbei
— JP Pietersen (@jppietersen14) September 6, 2019
Williams is the fourth member of the team to pass away after scrumhalf Joost van der Westhuizen succumbed to Motor Neuron Disease in February, 2017, and loose-forward Ruben Kruger perished after a long battle with brain cancer.
Erasmus said Williams has cemented his place as one of the Boks' most iconic players.
"Our thoughts and prayers right now are particularly with the family that Chester has left behind, with Maria and the children. We have lost a legend, they have lost a husband and father," he said.
"It's probably no comfort to them now, but I am sure that Chester's name will go down with the greats of South African rugby as a player and for what he stood for in our country's history.
"This is a very sad day for South Africa and South African rugby."


In anticipation of their new album 'Boogie Woogie Violence' which is due for release on 11th September, Iron Bastards have released 2 songs.
The new album will contain 15 songs + 3 live recordings of hi-energy rock roll vibes with 70's influences, and will be available in CD and digital formats, in order to kick some asses on the road, on stage or anywhere.
Old school rock with a modern view – The Iron Bastards play a fast and dirty rock'n'roll. Energetic, aggressive, motivated, the Bastards give heavy and powerful shows that will make your ears bleed ! Founded in 2013, the band played fast from its beginning and released their first two records in 2014, 'Boogie Woogie Sessions' and 'Wasteland', before to begin to work on a full-length album in 2015. 'Boogie Woogie Violence' will be released via BLACK N' PURPLE Records.


PEI is hosting Canada and you can help!
Watch this video to hear about some of the benefits of volunteering!
All volunteers must register online Watch this video to hear about some of the benefits of volunteering!


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LA Sports Anchor Fred Roggin to Sign Off at NBC4 – NBC Los Angeles
By Greg Hartmann Last updated Jan 24, 2023
The 1980s were one of the greatest decades in Los Angeles sports history.
Eight championships were won by local teams, including the first Super Bowl victory, two Dodgers World Series crowns and five NBA titles for the Lakers. Seven out of the 10 Rose Bowl games featured LA-area teams and six of those teams won.
There to witness it all was Fred Roggin.
One of the great careers in Los Angeles sports journalism began at the dawn of the decade when Roggin joined NBC4 in 1980. The Southern California TV sports legend, who witnessed the history-making and memorable moments of the 1980s and the highs and lows in the more than four decades that followed, will sign off for the final time Thursday, Jan. 26, the station announced Tuesday.
And now, after taking a ride in a DeLorean back to 1981, Fred Roggin shares an All Star report from 41 years ago.
Roggin will step away from daily sports segments at NBC4 and turn his attention to creative outlets, like his radio show and other opportunities.
Just like those Los Angeles teams of the 1980s, Roggin earned a collection of accolades during his career. He won dozens of awards, including 35 Los Angeles Emmy Awards, 30 Golden Mike Awards, five prestigious Associated Press Awards and numerous Los Angeles Press Club Awards for his sports segments, specials and series.
Roggin was part of a lineup of Southern California TV news icons that included anchors Chuck Henry and Colleen Williams and weather forecaster Fritz Coleman. He also was the host of "Going Roggin," a 30-minute sports commentary program and is the creator and host of "The Challenge," a live multi-platform show.
Roggin also earned the Joseph M. Quinn Award for Lifetime Achievement from The Los Angeles Press Club in 2013. He was inducted into the Southern California Sports Broadcaster's Hall of Fame in 2014 and the California Sports Hall of Fame in 2019. In 2020, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Radio and Television News Association of Southern California.
The iconic Fritz and Fred campaign graced the airwaves in the 90s. Now as Fritz Coleman retires the duo looks back on the memorable TV spot. As seen on the 5 pm news on Wednesday, June 17, 2020.
His NBC4 career began in 1980 as a weekend sports anchor and with the launch of "Sunday Night Sports." By 1986, Roggin was the station's primary sports anchor and reporter, a career that allowed him to witness the highs and lows of Los Angeles sports over the next four decades.
Using humor and satire, Roggin created segments such as the "Hall of Shame," featuring clips of unforgettable sports moments, and his signature "Roggin's Heroes," which highlights remarkable or extraordinary plays in the world of sports. "Roggin's Heroes" was developed into a successful nationally syndicated weekly show in 1990.
The "Roggin's Heroes" segment continues to this day in his newscasts.
He's also a familiar face to fans of NBC's Olympics coverage. Roggin has been a network host and reporter for every Olympics since 1984, including in Los Angeles, London, Vancouver, Beijing, Athens, Turin, Sydney and Salt Lake.
Roggin began his broadcasting career in 1976 as a sports anchor, reporter and play-by-play announcer for KIKO Radio in Globe, Arizona. In 1977, he became the sports anchor, reporter and sports director for KBLU Radio and KYEL-TV in Yuma, Arizona. The next year, he became the sports director and anchor for KVUE-TV in Austin, Texas, and during that same year moved to Phoenix, Arizona, to become the weekday sports anchor at KPNX-TV.
Originally from Detroit, Roggin was raised in Phoenix and attended Phoenix College, where he studied broadcasting. Roggin lives with his family in the San Fernando Valley.
Gwyneth Paltrow's Daughter Apple Martin Makes Paris Fashion Week Debut – NBC Los Angeles
Paris Hilton Has First Child With Carter Reum – NBC Los Angeles

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


The first reading for today (December 22, 2106 – Thursday the fourth week of Advent) is from first Samuel (1 Samuel 1:24-28) and deals with Hannah bringing three year old Samuel to the Temple and leaving him there. She had promised the priest that if she had a son, she would dedicate the child to the Lord and she held to her part of the bargain.
How often in both my children's lives I have wished to keep them close so I could protect them. Every mother feels that mix of joy and sadness when their child moves away and leaves their protection. For most children, they eventually form a bond with one special person who enters their life and is there to help them. For my son, that isn't an option and I fear him having no one to help him.
This is of course not true. Besides the counsel and wisdom of the brothers within his order (for a secular priest it would be the formation group and his peers), he has the Holy Spirit to guide him and be his counsel. This does not mean I stop worrying about him, or wanting to know he is safe, but I remind myself that I must give him fully to God.
This year my husband and I approach our first Christmas without him home with the family. While we grieve his absence during the holidays, we are lifted up but the words of Mary "My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, My spirit rejoices in God my Savior" and realize our son is in good hands.
A Merry Christmas to you all and a Blessed New Year.
This entry was posted on December 22, 2016 by KitC in Life Events, Reflections and tagged christmas, family, Hannah, Patron, Saint, seminary.


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Q: Reuse the data CRUD methods in data access layer, but they are updated too quickly I agree that we should put CRUD methods in a data access layer, However, in my current project I have some issues.
It is a legacy system, and there are quite a lot CRUD methods in some concrete manager classes.
People including me seem to just add new methods to it, rather than reuse the existing methods.
Because

*

*We don't know whether the existing method is what we need

*Even if we have source code, do we really need read other's code then make decision?

*It is updated too quickly. Do not have time get familiar with the DAO API.

Back to the question, how do you solve that in your project? If we say "reuse", it really needs to be reusable rather than just an excuse.

A: The main problem would seem to be that the legacy interfaces are not understood and not trusted.  It's not possible to solve this problem by ignoring it - and adding more members ad-hoc is actively making it worse.
The bottom line is that interfaces to your classes should be clear, small, trusted, well-documented, and ideally only about a single responsibility (refer to the Single Responsibility Principle).
Techniques like refactoring can be used to move towards that ideal goal.  Remember: it will take conscious effort to improve the situation.

A: Assuming that your organization has the right for to access and change the code, the right thing to do is to:

*

*Plan for missing activities in your project such as: source control, locating missing code, learning current system, etc.

*Find the source code for the system you are changing. Unless the application is trivial, it is most probably going to be useful specially if it is still in production.

*Study the schema and the source code well and plan to re-use. You may find information you don't know such as filed dependencies that are not obvious or special business rules.

*Don't write new code that is like the old code unless there is a major issue with the old code. You need to have a clear policy as why there are 2 different classes for Customer for example, otherwise, maintenance and testing will be hell.
I don't understand your point (#3).
The only valid excuses to not re-use existing system's code, INMO, is if you are migrating the system to use a new framework or can't access the code for a technical or legal reason. A system must have internal order and proper structure, it can't be a quality system if it looks like a college student's room!

A: In a DAO you may return 3 columns from table A, joined with 2 columns from table B, etc. Maybe 4 tables are touched in a single transaction.  It will be a necessity to create a new method for new functionality, even on existing tables. The possible permutations are endless. It is not possible to cover every database interaction with generic CRUD methods.
Actually it's possible to cover every interaction with generic CRUD, but it would be like forcing a circle through a square shaped hole.
Usually some sort of framework provides generic CRUD access to the tables. The methods are often designed for working on 1 record at a time. If you fall within this scope, then use the generic CRUD methods. But you wouldn't want to use these methods to update 5 million rows as they would literally perform 5 million separate updates. (they also tend to redundantly update all columns of the row, whether edited or not causing locking issues). You cannot use them for transactional functionality if they are non-transactional.
Just identify when to use the generic CRUD methods vs custom methods.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


As always, my Mojitos & Munchkins Mommy Review will be wrapped up in a time frame easy for busy moms. I will include the pros and cons of the product, give you specifics on what this product does, and let you go about your day. Spend the extra minutes you have giving your littles a hug… Or refilling your coffee!
YOU CAN ALWAYS CONTACT ME DIRECTLY IF YOU HAVE FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS AND I AM HAPPY TO ANSWER!
I was recently given an opportunity to partner with Apollo Box to review some of the amazing products they distribute. Not only was I excited to try out great product, but I was excited to find another website to add to my holiday shopping repertoire. 'Tis the season!
Apollo Box is a thoughtfully curated platform that is designed to partner customers with creative and fun products. And there is NO SHORTAGE of creative or fun. I could have spent hours searching through the options, and did in fact, before flagging a few items for upcoming holiday gifts.
Why order from Apollo Box?
The first product that I chose to review is the Motion Activated Bedlight. This is something that we have been searching for to place in our daughter's bedroom, so were excited for this to arrive. The box arrived with everything packaged securely and with easy-to-follow instructions.
Who is the Motion Activated Bedlight For?
The motion activated bed light can be placed anywhere you would like additional lighting. Because of the easy to use adhesive strip, it can be positioned anywhere that has a clean, flat surface. You could use it under your bed, under cabinets, in a closet, or on the underside of a kitchen island, to name a few.
If you put it within reach of curious tiny hands, they could (and in my case did), pull the strip off – No worries, it goes right back up!
We placed the lights under our daughter's loft. It was the perfect area as she often likes to crawl under the nook, but doesn't have good lighting for reading/ drawing when she is underneath. Because it is a motion-activated light, she doesn't have to mess with flashlights and as parents, we don't have to worry about her touching a hot bulb or dangling cords from a desk lamp. BONUS: If she crawls down her loft stairs in the middle of the night for a potty break, the motion sensors go on… Keeping her safe without having to have a bright nightlight on throughout the night.
Would Mojitos & Munchkins buy it?
We would purchase this product for our home. It has been useful for our needs and we would recommend it for others searching for a motion-activated light.


On 2012/01/25, I sent an e-mail to my friend in which I write that the cat measures radiation and display the result as dead or alive.
That is to say, I think that the essence of Schrödinger cat is a measurement of a measurement.
A Geiger counter and a poison gas generator and the cat constitute a measuring apparatus.
The cat is thought of as a display unit of the apparatus.
So to observe the cat is a measurement of a measurement.


Learning new languages is great for your brain and could improve your experience when you visit foreign countries. You can't learn every language around though. That's what TableTop Translator is good for. It is an exciting application that can handle translation for over 40 languages. The app offers speech recognition and is user-friendly.
TableTop Translator covers the most popular languages and lets you translate words quickly. Male and female voice options are available. You can save the translations you use most often. You do have the option to share your conversions over e-mail or on Twitter and Facebook. You can speed up and slow down text to speech voices, which is a plus.
TableTop Translator can get you unstuck when you are spending time in a foreign country. It can also help you learn new languages easier. The app is available for $2.99 at this time.


text:
[Journal of Engineering Materials and Technology]
Journal of Engineering Materials and Technology | Volume 128 | Issue 4 | Research Paper
Advanced Composite Panels for Seismic and Vibration Mitigation of Existing Structures
Amjad J. Aref and Woo-Young Jung
[+-] Author and Article Information
Amjad J. Aref
Department of Civil, Structural & Environmental Engineering, University at Buffalo-State University of New York, 235 Ketter Hall, Buffalo, NY 14260aaref@eng.buffalo.edu
Woo-Young Jung
Department of Civil Engineering, Kangnung National University, Kangnung, 210-702, Republic of Korea
J. Eng. Mater. Technol 128(4), 618-632 (Jun 28, 2006) (15 pages) doi:10.1115/1.2345455 History: Received July 29, 2005; Revised June 28, 2006
Citing Articles
Abstract | Introduction | Experimental Procedures | Conclusions | Acknowledgements | References
In this paper, a conceptual design, fabrication, and testing of advanced polymer matrix composite (PMC) infill system are addressed for seismic retrofitting of steel frames. Such a system is designed to have a multi-panel PMC infill system with passive energy mechanism. The basic configuration of this system is composed of two separate components—namely, an inner PMC sandwich panel and outer damping panels. The inner PMC sandwich infill consists of two fiber-reinforced polymer (FRP) laminates with Divincell® H core, and outer damping panels are made of FRP laminate plates and passive energy constrained damping layers—combining polymer honeycomb and 3M viscoelastic solid materials—at the interface between the laminates. The interactions of these two components produce considerable stiffness and enhanced damping properties in the structure following different drift level. Conceptually, the FRP outer damping panels are designed to produce the damping through the cyclic shear straining of the combined interface damping layers. Moreover, as the lateral drift increases, the inner PMC sandwich infill is designed to provide considerable lateral stiffness to resist severe earthquake excitation and avoid excessive relative floor displacements that cause both structural and non-structural damage. As part of this research, analytical and experimental studies were performed to investigate the effectiveness of the proposed multi-infill panel concept. The prefabricated multi-panel PMC infill holds a great promise for enhanced damping performance, simplification of the construction process, and the reduction of time and cost when used for seismic retrofitting applications.
FIGURES IN THIS ARTICLE
Copyright © 2006 by American Society of Mechanical Engineers
Topics: Steel , Structural frames , Damping , Design , Fiber reinforced plastics , Stiffness , Testing , Shear (Mechanics) , Stress , Composite materials
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Klingner, L. F., and Bertero, V. V., 1976, "Infilled Frames in Earthquake-Resistant-Construction," Report No. EERC 76-32, Earthquake Engrg. Res. Ctr., U.C at Berkeley, CA.
Mander, J. B., Nair, B., Wojtkowski, K., and Ma, J., 1993, "An Experimental Study on the Seismic Performance of Brick-Infilled Steel Frames With and Without Retrofit," Technical Report No. NCEER-93-0001, National Center of Earthquake Engineering Research, State University of New York at Buffalo, NY, 1.1–3.1.
Riddington, J. R., 1984, "Influence of Initial Gaps on Infilled Frame Behavior," "Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers", Institution of Civil Engineers (Great Britain), 77 , London, pp. 295–310.
Mainstone, R. J., 1971, "On the Stiffnesses and Strengths of Infilled Frames," "Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineering Suppl.(iv)", Institution of Civil Engineers (Great Britain), London, pp. 57–90.
Jung, W.-Y., and Aref, A. J., 2003, "A Combined Honeycomb and Solid Viscoelastic Material for Structural Damping Applications," Mech. Mater., 35 (8), pp. 831–844.
"ABAQUS/STANDARD User's Manual, 2000, Version 6.1 and 6.2.", Hibbit, Karlsson & Sorensen, Pawtucket, RI.
Dawe, J. L., and Seah, C. K., 1989, "Behavior of Masonry Infill Steel Frames," Can. J. Civ. Eng., 16 , pp. 865–876.
Gasparini, D. A., Chaudhury, A. D., and Curry, L. W., 1980, "Damping of Frames With Constrained Viscoelastic Layers," J. Struct. Div., 106 (1), pp. 115–131.
Gasparini, D. A., Curry, L. W., and Chaudhury, A. D., 1981, "Damping of Frames With Viscoelastic Infill Panels," J. Struct. Div., 107 (5), pp. 889–905.
Jung, W.-Y., 2003, "Seismic Retrofitting Strategies of Semi-Rigid Steel Frames Using Polymer Matrix Composite (PMC) Materials," Ph.D. thesis, State University of New York at Buffalo, NY.
Okutan, B., Aslan, Z., and Karakuzu, R., 2001, "A Study of the Effects of Various Geometric Parameters on the Failure Strength of Pin-Loaded Woven-Glass-Fiber Reinforced Epoxy Laminate," Compos. Sci. Technol., 61 , pp. 1491–1497.
Soong, T. T., and Dargush, G. F., 1997, "Passive Energy Dissipation Systems in Structural Engineering", Wiley, New York.
Lin, Y. Y., Tsai, M. H., Hwang, J. S., and Chang, K. C., 2003, "Direct Displacement-Based Design for Building With Passive Energy Dissipation Systems," Eng. Struct. [CrossRef], 25 , pp. 25–37.
Jones, R. M., 1999, "Mechanics of Composite Materials", Taylor & Francis, 2 , Philadelphia.
Kitane, Y., 2003, "Development of Hybrid FRP-Concrete Bridge Superstructure System" Ph.D. Dissertation, University at Buffalo-State University of New York, Buffalo, NY.
"MSC. PATRAN User's Guide", 1999, "Version 9.", MSC. Software Corporation, Los Angeles.
Citipitioglu, A. M., Haj-Ali, R. M., and White, D. W., 2002, "Refined 3D Finite Element Modeling of Partially Restrained Connections Including Slip," J. Constr. Steel Res. [CrossRef], 58 (5–8), pp. 995–1013.
Aref, A. J., and Jung, W.-Y., 2003, "Energy-Dissipating Polymer Matrix Composite Infill Wall System for Seismic Retrofitting," J. Struct. Eng. [CrossRef], 129 (4), pp. 440–448.
Radhakrishan, R., 2000, "Coupled Thermomechanical Analysis of Viscoelastic Dampers," MSc. thesis, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY.
Rodrigues, F. C., Saldanha, A. C., and Pfeil, M. S., 1998, "Non-linear Analysis of Steel Plane Frames With Semi-Rigid Connections," J. Constr. Steel Res., 46 (1–3), pp. 94–97.
Grahic Jump Location
View Large | Save Figure | Download Slide (.ppt)
Configuration of a multi-panel PMC infill system
Numerical results for maximum buckle force of applied designing stacking sequences
Numerical results for different gap condition: (a) Force-displacement response; (b) relation between different gap distance and contact displacement
The detail dimension of PMC sandwich panel (unit=in., 1in.=25.4mm)
Geometric configuration of the damping panel
Deformed geometry of the damping panel during inter-story drift, Gasparini (9)
The detail dimension of an outer damping panel (unit=cm): (a) FRP laminates; (b) constrained combining interface layer
Configuration of test coupon
Effectiveness of the combined damping layer (10% strain): (a) Hysteretic energy response at 1.0Hz frequency; (b) energy dissipation capacity under various frequencies
Comparison of hysteretic energy of the viscoelastic material (30% strain)
Effective damping ratio of the multi-panel PMC infilled frame
Joint Connections: (a) Bolted angle connections; (b) beam-to-panel connectors
Measurement of shear deformation at the combined interface layer
Setup of the multi-panel PMC infilled frame structure
Test results of the steel frame with the PMC sandwich infill: (a) force-displacement response (2.0% drift); (b) inter-story to rotation response of the joint connections
Strut angle distribution of the PMC infill panel along global coordinate direction
Test results of the specimens under monotonic loading test: (a) Variation of in-plane stiffness of the tested specimens (0.5% drift); (b) shear deformation of the interface layers
Comparison of top joint rotation response before and after the PMC sandwich infill contacts
Comparison of moment distribution of the steel frame members (1.0% drift): (a) Right column; (b) top beam
Hysteretic response of the multi-panel PMC infilled frame structure: (a) Before and after making contact with the PMC sandwich infill; (b) enhanced hysteretic effect induced by the combined interface layers (0.16%, f=0.5Hz)
Energy dissipation capacity of the multi-panel PMC infill system under various frequencies
Analytical and experimental shear deformation of the interface damping layer under successively increased lateral drifts
Destructive test of the multi-panel PMC infilled frame under push-over loading (up to 3.0% drift)
FE model of the steel frame infilled with the PMC sandwich panel
Comparison of force-displacement response of the structures: (a) Steel frame; (b) steel frame infilled with the PMC sandwich panel
Compressive strut angle for numerical and experimental results
Simplified FE model of the steel frame with the outer damping panels: (a) Bolted semi-rigid connection; (b) FE model for equal number of damping layers
Numerical simulation of rate-dependent effect of viscoelastic material (1.0% drift): (a) Comparison with experimental result, (b) hysteretic energy at 3.0Hz
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Aref AJ, Jung W. Advanced Composite Panels for Seismic and Vibration Mitigation of Existing Structures. ASME. J. Eng. Mater. Technol. 2006;128(4):618-632. doi:10.1115/1.2345455.
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text:
#import "PubNub+Presence.h"

#pragma mark Private interface declaration

@interface PubNub (PresencePrivate)

/**
 @brief      Issue heartbeat request to \b PubNub network.
 @discussion Heartbeat help \b PubNub presence service to control subscribers availability.

 @param block Reference on block which should be called with service information.

 @since 4.0
 */
- (void)heartbeatWithCompletion:(PNStatusBlock)block;

#pragma mark -

@end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


The thirtyeighth episode, a.k.a "christmas buck" is up! This time we talk the Power BI April update, Microsoft TechSummit in Stockholm, the Global Azure Bootcamp we're hosting in Linköping, what's new in Intune and finally ConfigMgr!We'll be doing webinars in the not-so-distant future, and we'd love for you to tell us what you want the webcast to be about!As always we gladly accept tips and criticism, as well as ideas for content for us to cover. Just tweet Alexander (@arcticdba) or Simon (@bindertech)!


text:
GAMES / Not Tonight/ Similar Games- FILTERED
23 Great Games Like Not Tonight on Mac
Genres: Adventure, Narrative, Point-and-Click, Puzzle, Role-Playing, Simulation, Strategy and Turn-Based
Our experts have spent time searching for great games similar to Not Tonight and have found the following:
Not Tonight is a tongue-in-cheek role-play adventure where you challenge the political establishment in alternative versions of Post-Brexit Britain (in the first game) or capitalism-run-rampant America (in the sequel). You take on a time pressured paper-checking tasks made famous by Paper, Please, to help characters you meet and deal with politically charged scenarios.
Genres: Adventure, Narrative, Puzzle and Role-Playing
Developer: Panic Barn (@PanicBarn)
Costs: Purchase cost. In-game purchases
8 Hand Picked Games Like Not Tonight
These are our hand-picked games similar to Not Tonight. This doesn't use automatic matching, instead, we hand-pick games that are good to play if you have enjoyed Not Tonight, or as younger rated alternatives for players not ready for PEGI 16 or ESRB TEEN games. These selections also include games that offer a different experience but address a similar theme or topic.
Genres: Narrative, Role-Playing and Simulation
Developer: Paintbucket de (@Paintbucket_de)
Through the Darkest of Times is a strategy game that conveys the sombre mood of the dark period of history between January 1933 and May 1945. With interactive drama, it tells the story and the struggles of average people living in the 3rd Reich.
Developer: Luca Redwood (@LucaRedwood)
"Have you ever made a mistake, or hurt people you care about?" Asks the Photographs trailer. It's a puzzle game that aims much higher than to distract you while on the way to work.
Developer: Px Crow (@PxCrow)
Beat Cop is a police crime drama where you have been framed for murder. Back on the street, you navigate the pixilated 80's Miami Vice world to find out who did it. Your approach and decisions matter. Will you go in with the mafia or stay straight?...
Genres: Adventure, Narrative, Simulation and Strategy
Developer: Delve Interactiv (@DelveInteractiv)
Change is a survival game where you play a homeless person trying to make it against the odds. It's intentionally hard to do well as you explore an endless city that's different every time you play.
Genres: Role-Playing, Simulation and Strategy
Developer: Torpor Games (@TorporGames)
Suzerain is a role-play strategy game where you are the president of the fictional country, Sordland. By choosing conversations and life path you use your skills of persuasion and political values to reform your country after the downfall of a dictator.
Beholder (Series)
Genres: Narrative, Point-and-Click, Puzzle, Role-Playing and Strategy
Developer: Beholder Game (@Beholder_Game)
Beholder is a detective game where you spy on tenants in a building, discover their secrets and report violations of laws to the authorities. As the game unfolds and you see more of the controlling totalitarian state, an uneasy tension develops between...
Genres: Puzzle and Role-Playing
Developer: Osmotic Studios (@OsmoticStudios)
Orwell is narrative game where you play a fictional research using a surveillance program called Orwell. Through a series of episodes you are tasked with using Orwell to help solve mysteries like the bombing of a public plaza. To do this you trawl...
16 Games Like Not Tonight Based on Genre
These are games of a similar genre mix to Not Tonight. This includes games from the Role-Playing, Puzzle, Adventure and Narrative genres. We pick out games of a similar PEGI rating to further hone these generated suggestions.
Concrete Genie
Valiant Hearts The Great War
Not Tonight is in These Lists
In addition to the similar games listed above, which have been linked to this game specifically in the database, you may find games with a similar theme to Not Tonight in the following lists:
Social Deduction
Games aren't only about quick reactions and shooting things. Many games, like the parlour games of the past, are about communication and quick wits. There is a whole group of games that are more about talking to other players than anything else.
These social deduction games put players in an unusual situation to work together to survive. However, one or more participants are secretly tasks with bringing the group down from the inside. These traitors usually need to do this carefully, because being found out means the main group can expel them from the game.
Some of these games, like Thief Town, Spy Party or Unspottable, challenge players to act in such a way that their in-game behaviour won't give them away. Other games in the list, like Among Us or First Class Trouble, require players to talk in the real world as well as in-game to build a case against each other.
Thief Town
Triple Agent
Uncover Discrimination
Games often offer us the chance to step into the shoes of powerful and fantastical characters. These power fantasies are exciting and exhilarating. There are many games that invite us to step into the shoes of the disempowered.
Games where you play the underprivileged or discriminated against, not only provide information about how these unjust imbalances exist in the world, but (to some extent) what it feels like to be on the receiving end of discrimination.
The logo on this page is the PEGI Discrimination descriptor. It indicates that the "game contains depictions of ethnic, religious, nationalistic or other stereotypes likely to encourage hatred. This content is always restricted to a PEGI 18 rating (and likely to infringe national criminal laws)." You won't see this on any game because the game would also be breaking the law.
The games in this list address ethnic, religious and nationalistic themes, but in a way that shines a light on discrimination and injustice. In a small way they can help us grow in our sensitivity and awareness of these issues.
Ease Loneliness With Intergenerational Games
There are many reasons, stages of life and circumstances that can leave us feeling isolated and lonely. Being unable to be in the same place as loved ones. Not understanding the modern world. Barriers of mobility or impairments. Social anxiety and other mental health issues.
Video games are one way that we can reconnect with each other, without needing to be in the same place. Finding games to play online with grandparents and carers is not only a good way to keep in touch but a lot of fun.
The games on this page are part of the PLAY&TALK Weekend, which has launched in time for National Loneliness Awareness Week, aims to reduce feelings of isolation by getting people to talk with friends or family safely online. Backed by over 30 companies in the games industry, the Play&Talk weekend hopes to initiate 10,000 extra conversations across the UK through the power of games.
Co-operative: Some of the games are good ways to connect and play co-operatively online (like Feather, Overcooked 2, Ibb and Obb, Skylanders Children of Light).
Competitive: With some practice there are easy and fun online competitive games (like Tricky Towers, Videoball)
Asynchronous: Other games are a way to connect and play without being online at the same time (like Horizon Chase Turbo, Worms, Words With Friends, Wargroove, Animal Crossing).
Community: Then there are games that connect you with a wider player community in a gentle non-invasive way (like The First Tree, Journey, Lost Words, The Endless Forrest).
All the games have been select to be easy to play for new gamers and many of them have been used in a broad range of cultural settings, being incorporated into Cathedral services, arts festivals, well-being retreats and educational contexts.
Abzu
Dreams Party!
Deep Time Walk
Get Children Into History
Video games are sometimes criticised for pillaged historical cultural contexts as places to pitch their shooting battles. Many games do treat historic periods or military battles to embellish the visuals with a realism.
There are, however, all sorts of games that use history as more than window dressing. This might be something as simple as accurately creating period-appropriate weapons and uniforms, like in War Thunder or Enlisted. This might also be offering the player to experience battles not from the perspective of the victors. Or, like in This War of Mine, what is was like for those caught up in conflict as civilians.
Beyond warfare, games offer a wide array of accurate depictions of different civilisations and eras. Through the Darkest of Times is a strategy game that conveys the sombre mood of the dark period of history between January 1933 and May 1945. The Forgotten City is a mystery adventure set in the final days of a cursed Roman city. Treasures of the Aegean is a Tin Tin-style tomb raiding adventure game with a surprisingly accurate bronze age Aegean civilisation.
There are other games that introduce historical techniques and tools. In Heaven's Vault you play an archaeologist translating an ancient alien language whose decrypting weaves through an unfolding drama. In Return of the Obra Dinn you revisit the moment of death of 60 sailors on an ancient ship and use evidence to piece together their identity and what happened.
Other game recreate a time periods' architecture and culture so you can explore it first hand. Discovery Tour is a special mode that uses the worlds created for the main Assassin's Creed games to offer an historical exploration experience. Discovery Tour: Viking Age is set in Britain and Norway, around 870 AD. It sheds light on the Viking era and allows players to discover more about the history and traditions of the time. Raji: An Ancient Epic is a running and jumping puzzle game drawing on Hindu and Balinese history. Taking inspiration from tales like Mahabharata and Ramayana you play a young girl named Raji who is chosen by the gods to defend the human race.
There are even games that help players appreciate the scale of history and time. Deep Time Walk is a game where you go for a walk as you listen to a history of the earth that's tied to each step. The game calculates your speed and distance to match your real-world progress and translates it to a journey across 4.6bn years of time, taking in every key evolutionary event as they occur.
Rearrange Your Mental Furniture
We are used to books, films and radio programs challenging our assumptions on subjects. Adam Curtis, Louis Theroux and David Attenborough have powerfully used film to change perspectives and values.
Less well known is how many video games tread a similar furrow. These are games that not only tackle difficult subjects, but get beneath the usual binary perspectives to create new ways of thinking about these themes.
Stories Told With Possessions
Games tell stories about people and places. This can be similar to books and films, offering snapshots, flashbacks and poignant scenes that form a life. Because we can explore the spaces where games happen, they can also tell stories by the things we find.
Games often use their character's possessions to tell us about them, as much as what they say or look like. Favourite toys, carefully written letters, hurried notes, pictures on the walls, dilapidated architecture, menus, vehicles, ticket stubs. The objects of our lives tell a story about who we are and what is happening to us.
Games like The Sims or Animal Crossing enable us to use possessions to create spaces that reflect the character we are playing. In , we are given a prized camera and bird book from our grandparents to tell the story of their bond and trust.
Some games let us get to know characters solely through their possessions. In Unpacking we spend hours placing and arranging someone's things, and as we do we get to know them (and their hopes, loves, losses and travels) deeply. In The Last of Us we find people's notes and possessions abandoned. In this we find the story of a world in panic, but also of the people's lives before everything went wrong.
Other games use possessions as an important part of how we interact with the world. In Overboard, for example, we need to use medication, ear rings and clothing to tell a story that the other characters in the world believe (one where we didn't murder our husband).
Finally, games use possessions sentimentally to connect us to the past of characters. In Hindsight we are asked to decide which objects to keep and which to let go of. In Before I Forget, possessions offer a gateway to our own fraying memories.
However games use these possessions to tell stories, it's always worth slowing down, noticing the objects we are rushing past and reading the literal and metaphorical notes about the world in which we are playing.
Assemble With Care


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Tag: kindle
Amazon says U.S. government demands for customer data went up
Amazon said the U.S. government asked more data from the company during the first-half of 2019 than on the previous six-month period.
The latest figures landed in the company's transparency report, published quietly on its website late Wednesday, said the number of subpoenas it received went up by 14% and search warrants went up by close to 35%.
That includes data collected from its Amazon Echo voice assistant service, its Kindle and Fire tablets, and its home security devices.
Amazon turned over some or all data in about four out of five cases, the figures show.
But the number of other legal demands Amazon received were down slightly.
The company's cloud business, Amazon Web Services — which makes up the bulk of Amazon's annual operating income — also reported separately a 77% increase in the number of subpoenas it received for cloud-stored customer data, but a decline in received search warrants.
Per reporting rules set out by the Justice Department, Amazon said it received between 0 and 249 national security requests, for both consumer and cloud services.
Amazon was one of the last major tech companies to issue a transparency report, despite mounting pressure from privacy advocates. The company eventually buckled, releasing its first set of figures several days after whistleblower Edward Snowden leaked highly classified documents which revealed mass surveillance by the U.S. National Security Agency and its global intelligence counterparts.
The company said at the time and continued to maintain until recently that it "never participated" in the NSA's so-called PRISM program, which allowed the government to obtain data from Apple, Google, Microsoft, and several other tech companies.
But TechCrunch noticed that Amazon removed that wording from its transparency report pages several weeks ago.
When reached, an Amazon spokesperson said that the change was "simply because it was a somewhat dated reference."
Smart home tech makers don't want to say if the feds come for your data
Posted on August 1, 2019 Author Zack WhittakerCategories security, Venture CapitalTags cloud computing, kindle
Amazon Prime Day's top device deals include discounted Echo speakers and Fire TV's
Amazon's list of Prime Day deals has finally dropped. The retailer's Black Friday-style sale for its Prime members is one of the biggest online shopping days of the year, as other retailers now take part with their own competitive sales. But some of the best deals to be found on Prime Day are those on Amazon's own devices. This year, Amazon is pushing its Echo speaker and Fire TV Stick devices in particular, with sale prices that are 50% off or higher from the regular list prices.
According to an analysis of this year's deals by Offers.com, the three biggest device deals this year are the $49.99 Echo Smart Speaker 2nd Generation (50% off its regular price of $99.99); the $14.99 Fire TV Stick (63% off its regular price); and the $24.99 Fire TV Stick 4K (50% off its regular price).
These prices don't officially go live until Prime Day's now two-day sale begins on Monday, July 15 at 12 AM PT.
However, the devices may not be selling for their "list" price today — Amazon has discounted some items ahead of Prime Day to encourage early shopping. And some will go on sale ahead of Prime Day on Saturday, July 13 — but only if you ask Alexa "what are my deals?" to gain early access.
Compared with Prime Day 2018, 70% of this year's deals are better and three are tied, with an average price decrease of 14.5%, according to Offers.com's report. And compared with Black Friday 2018, 72% of the deals are better, and three are tied, with an average price decrease of 17%.
Above: Prime Day deals comparison via Offers.com
What's interesting is that last year's Prime Day and Black Friday/Cyber Monday bestseller, the standard Echo Dot, isn't included on the Prime Day 2019 device deals list. Instead, Amazon is listing discounts for its Echo, Echo Show, Echo Plus, Echo Input, Echo Dot Kids Edition, and even Facebook's Portal (which has Alexa built-in), along with its Alexa-powered Fire TV devices.
That being said, the Echo Dot was marked down ahead of Prime Day to its lowest-ever price of $24.99 — half off its list price of $49.99.
Other Amazon's device deals span Kindle tablets and e-readers, Ring and Blink home security products, as well as smart home products from ecobee, eero, and Amazon itself.
More broadly, Amazon says it will offer over a million deals during the sales event, with a special focus this year on "celeb deals" from Jaden Smith, Marshmello, Zac Brown, and others, including the exclusive launch of Lady Gaga's HAUS Laboratories beauty collection.
The full list of Amazon's device deals is below.
Save $25 on Fire TV Stick with Alexa Voice Remote, $14.99
Save $25 on Fire TV Stick 4K with Alexa Voice Remote, $24.99
Save $50 on Fire TV Cube, $69.99
Save $100 on Fire TV Recast, now starting at $129.99
Get a $45 Sling TV Credit, which can be applied to $15 off your first three months when you buy a Fire TV Stick, Fire TV Stick 4K, Fire TV Cube, or Fire TV Recast
Get 50% off for three months when you subscribe to SHOWTIME or STARZ on Prime Video channels or in-app
Get 50% off for three months when you subscribe to CBS All Access on Prime Video channels
Get SEGA Classics for $4.99
Echo & Alexa
Save $50 on Echo, $49.99
Save $70 on Echo Show $159.99
Save $40 on Echo Plus, $109.99
Save $20 on Echo Input, $14.99
Save $120 on Portal from Facebook with Alexa Built-in, $79
Save $20 on the all-new Fire 7 tablet, $29.99, or get two for $49.98—a $50 savings
Save $30 on the Fire HD 8 tablet, $49.99, or get two for $79.98—an $80 savings
Save $50 on the Fire HD 10 tablet, $99.99, or get two for $179.98—a $120 savings
Kids Devices
Save $40 on the all-new Fire 7 Kids Edition tablet, $59.99, or get two for $99.98—a $100 savings
Save $50 on the Fire HD 8 Kids Edition tablet, $79.99, or get two for $139.98—a $120 savings
Save $50 on the Fire HD 10 Kids Edition tablet, $149.99, or get two for $279.98—a $120 savings
Save $25 on Echo Dot Kids Edition, $44.99
Save up to $80 on Kindle Oasis (9th generation), plus get a $5 eBook credit and three months free Kindle Unlimited, starting at $174.99
Save up to $50 on Kindle Paperwhite, plus get a $5 eBook credit and three months free Kindle Unlimited, starting at $84.99
Save $30 on the all-new Kindle, plus get a $5 eBook credit and three months free Kindle Unlimited, $59.99
Save $30 on Ring Video Doorbell, $69.99
Save $80 on Ring Video Doorbell Pro, $169
Save $130 on a Ring Alarm 14-Piece Kit, $199
Save $60 on Ring Spotlight Cam, $139
Save $55 Ring Stick Up Cam, $124.99
Save $60 on a Blink Indoor Cam 2-Cam System, $79.99
Save $80 on the all-new Blink XT2 2-Cam System, $99.99
Save up to $200 on eero WiFi systems
Save $100 on an eero Router, just $99
Get an Amazon Smart Plug and Echo for $54.98
Save $50 on the all-new ecobee Smart Thermostat with Alexa Built-in, $199
Amazon's Prime Day 2019 non-device deals, meanwhile, can be found here.
Posted on July 12, 2019 Author Sarah PerezCategories Venture CapitalTags e commerce, ecommerce, kindle, online shopping
Amazon finally supports Traditional Chinese books on Kindle
A long-awaited service for readers in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau and some other overseas Chinese communities have finally come true: Amazon has just started offering Traditional Chinese books for its Kindle E-reader.
The release filled an obvious gap for Kindle, which debuted back in 2007 and has been growing the number of languages it supports over the years. 2012 marked a major step in its Asia expansion as it began providing E-books in Simplified Chinese — the type of characters used in mainland China — under its China-specific site. That was a prelude to Kindle's entry into China the next year. We will see if the same pattern of regional push will repeat for Taiwan and Hong Kong, where Kindle isn't officially distributed at the moment.
Previously, people who read Traditional characters had to find roundabout ways to access the language on Kindle, such as buying Simplified content and converting it into Traditional using customized fonts that became available since Amazon's 5.9.6 firmware update. Of course, that's a time-consuming solution riddled with all sorts of calibration issues in spacing and font size.
The Traditional Chinese store kicked off with a list of over 20,000 books that people can read on their Kindle apps and Kindle devices. For some comparison, Kindle carried some 60,000 Simplified titles a year after introducing the language.
Users can now find Traditional Chinese books on a dedicated portal hosted on all existing Amazon.com websites, the company says. The early selection spans popular authors like Hugo Award-winning Liu Cixin and Chinese classics like Dream of the Red Chamber, in addition to translated bestsellers including George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire Series.
The regional launch is also targeted at authors, who can now self-publish their Traditional Chinese books through Kindle Direct Publishing and distribute the works to the language communities around the world.
"Bringing Traditional Chinese language books to Kindle is a step forward on our journey to provide more choice and selection to readers around the world," said David Naggar, vice president of Kindle Books in a statement. But the store is not as finished as its Simplified counterpart yet, missing editor's choice, book sales, pre-sales, book rankings and other potentially popular features.
Posted on May 24, 2019 Author Rita LiaoCategories Venture CapitalTags Asia, China, kindle, media, publishing
Amazon China to close local marketplace and place more focus on cross-border
Amazon has finally given up the fight with Chinese online shopping giants to capture the domestic market. On Thursday, the Seattle-based ecommerce company announced it will shut down its marketplace on Amazon.cn, which connects mainland Chinese buyers and sellers, while other units of its local venture will stay intact.
"We are working closely with our sellers to ensure a smooth transition and to continue to deliver the best customer experience possible," an Amazon spokesperson told TechCrunch, adding that this segment of the business will end on July 18.
The partial retreat, first reported by Reuters and Bloomberg, is indicative of the relentless ecommerce race in China where Alibaba and JD.com dominate, with newcomer Pinduoduo closing on the incumbents' heels.
But this is hardly the end of Amazon's China story. The American giant has over the years attracted waves of cross-border sellers, many of whom have hailed from China's traditional export industry looking to sell cheaply manufactured goods to consumers around the world for lucrative margins. To date, Chinese export suppliers are able to sell to 12 countries that include India, Japan, Australia, Canada, the United States, and five Western European countries.
Other global ecommerce players also have their eyes set on the massive raft of goods flowing out of China, though each comes with a different geographic focus. Alibaba-backed Lazada, for example, is the bridge between Chinese merchants and Southeast Asian shoppers, while Jumia, which just listed in the U.S., exports from China to Africa.
"The biggest appeal [of exporting through Amazon] is the low costs because we are close to a lot of supply chain resources," a Shenzhen-based vendor selling water-resistant placemats on Amazon told TechCrunch.
In the meantime, China has developed a big craving for imported goods as middle-class consumers now demand higher quality products. Amazon is in the import business, too, although it lags far behind more entrenched players such as Alibaba, of which Tmall Global takes the lead with 29 percent market share in the cross-border ecommerce space according to data from iResearch, dwarfing Amazon's 6 percent.
That could change if Amazon finds a prominent local partner. Rumors have swirled for months that Amazon was reportedly in talks to merge its import unit with Kaola, the cross-border shopping business run by Chinese internet giant Netease with a 22.6 percent market share.
Amazon is reportedly merging its China import unit with NetEase
Not to be forgotten, Amazon also offers cloud computing services to Chinese enterprises although, in this space, it's again in a direct face-off with Alibaba Cloud, the dominant player in China. Lastly, China remains the largest market for Kindle, so pivotal that the e-reader launched a localized model just for China.
"Over the past few years, we have been evolving our China online retail business to increasingly emphasize cross-border sales, and in return we've seen very strong response from Chinese customers," said the Amazon spokesperson. "Amazon's commitment to China remains strong—we have built a solid foundation here in a number of successful businesses and we will continue to invest and grow in China across Amazon Global Store, Global Selling, AWS, Kindle devices and content."
Posted on April 18, 2019 Author Rita LiaoCategories Venture CapitalTags Asia, China, e commerce, ecommerce, INdia, Japan, kindle
Online used car startup Shift adds another $40M, snags COO in road to IPO
Online used car startup Shift Technologies has tacked on another $40 million in equity funding, hired a new COO with Amazon and Enjoy roots and scaled up its engineering staff — all in the past several months — as the company aims to double its revenue this year.
The recent activity, along with what executives have told TechCrunch is a diligent focus on unit economics, is all directed toward a larger objective to take the company public sometime in 2021.
Shift, which is based in San Francisco, serves car buyers and sellers. The company, founded in 2013, has built a software platform that lets customers shop for cars, get financing and schedule test drives. Car owners can use the platform to sell their vehicle, as well. Shift says any car it buys must pass a "rigorous" 150+ point inspection.
Shift generated $135 million in revenues in 2018. The company is projecting revenues between $220 million and $240 million in 2019, Shift co-CEO Toby Russell told TechCrunch.
An IPO is an aspirational goal, but one both Russell and founder George Arison believe is achievable. They both pointed to Carvana, an online used car company that went public in 2017.
"Given Carvana's trailing revenue of $350 million when they went public as a benchmark, we'd be well-positioned for IPO if we can hit $300 million to $400 million," Russell said. "There's nothing in stone yet, and IPOs depend on a lot of factors like market conditions, but that benchmark is where we'll be positioning ourselves in the next two years."
Carvana is often regarded as Shift's closest competitor — although the two companies have distinct differences. Shift's inventory is broader, allowing cars as old as 10 years on the platform and with up to 120,000 miles. Carvana focuses on newer cars between 0 and four years in age. Shift also emphasizes its test drives as a differentiator.
Shift's biggest competitor is the traditional used car business, Russell contends. There are 35,000 new and used car dealers in the U.S., most of which are mom-and-pop shops, responsible for about 15 million transactions each year. Then there are private-party sales between individuals, Russell notes.
"This super-fragmented environment creates a lot of opportunity for growth for Carvana, Shift, Lithia, CarMax, etcetera, much like Walmart, Target and Amazon all grew over the last two decades," Russell told TechCrunch.
New COO
To get there, Shift has hired a new COO, Sean Foy. The company also raised additional equity as it tries to hire more engineers and other employees and scale up its technology platform.
Foy comes to Shift from Enjoy Technologies, where he was head of operations. He was previously director of operations for Kindle, Fire, Echo and Amazon Devices working out of Amazon's Lab 126 in Sunnyvale.
Shift is counting on Foy's expertise to grow the business and leverage the technology platform, all while maintaining or improving the customer experience. In short, using technology to make it easier for the customer to buy or sell a car without making the process overly cumbersome or intimidating because of the technology.
"One of the things that Bezos (Jeff Bezos, Amazon CEO) used to say all the time when we were building Kindle was the technology should disappear, you should not get in the way of the experience of reading a book," Foy said. "And it feels the like the same here; we don't want this to be a technology-heavy process for the buyer, we want to stay as frictionless as possible so that we can attract more and more people onto the the site rather than going to traditional dealerships and giving them a much better experience. So it's really about removing friction from the product."
Shift announced in September that it had raised more than $140 million in equity and debt in a Series D round. The round, which consisted of about $70 million in debt and $71 million in equity, was led by automotive retailer Lithia Motors. Bryan DeBoer, CEO and president of Lithia, joined Shift's board of directors.
An additional $40 million in equity has since come in, bringing the total raise of the Series D round to $180 million. This new capital brings Shift's total financing of equity and debt to more than $300 million.
All of the new capital came from new investors, primarily large institutional investors, according to Shift.
Shift has already put some of that capital to work. The company said back in September it planned to invest in its technology platform and scale its engineering staff from 35 to more than 80 people by the end of 2019. As of early April, Shift employed 54 engineers. Another nine (all new graduate hires) will start over the summer.The company employs 450 people.
Posted on April 10, 2019 Author Kirsten KorosecCategories Venture CapitalTags kindle, San Francisco, startups
Amazon's entry-level 2019 Kindle is let down by a sub-par display
Amazon's Kindle is of course the brand most think of when they consider buying an e-reader, but competition does exist and the truth is it makes the company's newest entry-level device look like a poor bargain. The price may be low, but this budget reader just doesn't meet the bar.
The most basic current device in the e-paper Kindle lineup, the plain old "Kindle" (as opposed to Kindle Voyage, Kindle Paperwhite, etc) has in this 2019 iteration gained a couple features. An adjustable frontlight illuminates the E-Ink screen, there's an improved touchscreen and a refreshed hardware design, though you're forgiven if you don't notice.
At $110, or $90 if you allow ads on your device, it's among the cheaper devices out there, falling well below the $150 Paperwhite and $270 Oasis (again, subtract $20 if you don't opt out of "special offers," which I always make sure to mention).
It runs the familiar Kindle OS and of course seamlessly connects to your Amazon account, just like the others in the lineup. In general it's more or less the same as the others in terms of formats, store and access features, and so on. So you're not sacrificing anything on that front.
Unfortunately, what you do sacrifice is something much more important: a decent screen.
We've been privileged in the last couple years to see the quality of e-reader displays improve considerably, both in terms of resolution and lighting. A couple months ago I reviewed the $130 Kobo Clara HD, which offers few frills and, frankly, inferior build quality, but a beautiful screen and color temperature-adjustable frontlight, which is really worth paying for.
The specs speak for themselves: the "all-new" Kindle has a 6-inch with a pixel density of 167 PPI. The Clara HD has nearly twice that: 300 PPI, like the nicer Kindles, and believe me, you notice. It makes a huge difference to how text looks — there are diminishing returns past that point, but the change from 167 to 300 is a big one. Letters look much crisper and more regular, and fonts look much more different from each other, allowing you to customize your reading experience a more. (I recently found out I can easily add fonts to the Kobo and it's great.)
It's hard to capture the difference between the two except in macro shots, but in person it's a serious one. There's a reason phones, tablets, and e-readers (including Amazon's own) all went to high pixel density and never looked back.
[gallery ids="1810104,1810107"]
The Clara also has a frontlight that lets you adjust the color cast from cool to warm, which you can see above (I realize the temperatures of the images themselves are different as well but you get the idea). I didn't think I'd find this useful, but as with resolution, it's one of those things where once you have it, it's difficult to go back. The cold, pixelated screen of the basic Kindle was unbearable after the warm, smooth look of the Kobo.
If you must have a Kindle reader and can't spend more than $100, I'd seriously advise you to try to find an old generation of Paperwhite or the like with the higher resolution screen and frontlight. It makes a huge difference to readability and that's really the most important part of a reader.
I would however advise you to spend a little more now to avoid buyer's remorse. The Paperwhite is a great device and not too much more if you're willing to accept Amazon's "special offers." Kindles in general have great build quality as well. If you aren't attached to the Kindle brand, however, the Kobo Clara HD is only a bit more money and offers a better reading experience than either, in my opinion, as well as the flexibility that comes with the company's devices.
When the entry-level Kindle gets a screen that matches the entry-level competition, I'll happily endorse it, but for now I have to recommend its slightly more expensive peers for a major bump in quality.
Posted on April 9, 2019 Author Devin ColdeweyCategories Venture CapitalTags gadgets, kindle, reviews
Amazon updates the $90 Kindle with a front light
Cost has always been a big part of the Kindle line's appeal at the low end. Amazon's very good at undercutting the competition, while still managing to provide a workhorse e-reader in the process. Of course, paying $90 for the device comes with a number of cut corners, not the least of which has been the device's stubborn refusal to adopt the front-lighting found on the rest of the line.
Amazon's just amended that oversight with the latest version of the standard Kindle. The device now features an adjustable front light, coupled with a capacitive touch 167 PPI display. That price includes Special Offers (i.e. those screen saver ads the company has been serving up for most of the life of the product).
[gallery ids="1799305,1799311,1799309,1799307"]
The device will slot below the prier Kindle Paperwhite, which features a higher res (300 PPI) screen, a flush design and waterproofing, starting at $130. The highest end Oasis, meanwhile, rounds things out, starting at $230.
The line will be getting a simple new feature that marks books as read across devices, along with additional recommendations based on reading history. Those features will be arriving on existing models as an over the air update.
The new Kindle is up for preorder starting today and will start shipping April 10. It's available in either black or white.
Posted on March 20, 2019 Author Brian HeaterCategories Venture CapitalTags kindle
Happy 10th anniversary, Android
It's been 10 years since Google took the wraps off the G1, the first Android phone. Since that time the OS has grown from buggy, nerdy iPhone alternative to arguably the most popular (or at least populous) computing platform in the world. But it sure as heck didn't get there without hitting a few bumps along the road.
Join us for a brief retrospective on the last decade of Android devices: the good, the bad, and the Nexus Q.
HTC G1 (2008)
This is the one that started it all, and I have a soft spot in my heart for the old thing. Also known as the HTC Dream — this was back when we had an HTC, you see — the G1 was about as inauspicious a debut as you can imagine. Its full keyboard, trackball, slightly janky slide-up screen (crooked even in official photos), and considerable girth marked it from the outset as a phone only a real geek could love. Compared to the iPhone, it was like a poorly dressed whale.
But in time its half-baked software matured and its idiosyncrasies became apparent for the smart touches they were. To this day I occasionally long for a trackball or full keyboard, and while the G1 wasn't pretty, it was tough as hell.
Moto Droid (2009)
Of course, most people didn't give Android a second look until Moto came out with the Droid, a slicker, thinner device from the maker of the famed RAZR. In retrospect, the Droid wasn't that much better or different than the G1, but it was thinner, had a better screen, and had the benefit of an enormous marketing push from Motorola and Verizon. (Disclosure: Verizon owns Oath, which owns TechCrunch, but this doesn't affect our coverage in any way.)
For many, the Droid and its immediate descendants were the first Android phones they had — something new and interesting that blew the likes of Palm out of the water, but also happened to be a lot cheaper than an iPhone.
HTC/Google Nexus One (2010)
This was the fruit of the continued collaboration between Google and HTC, and the first phone Google branded and sold itself. The Nexus One was meant to be the slick, high-quality device that would finally compete toe-to-toe with the iPhone. It ditched the keyboard, got a cool new OLED screen, and had a lovely smooth design. Unfortunately it ran into two problems.
First, the Android ecosystem was beginning to get crowded. People had lots of choices and could pick up phones for cheap that would do the basics. Why lay the cash out for a fancy new one? And second, Apple would shortly release the iPhone 4, which — and I was an Android fanboy at the time — objectively blew the Nexus One and everything else out of the water. Apple had brought a gun to a knife fight.
HTC Evo 4G (2010)
Another HTC? Well, this was prime time for the now-defunct company. They were taking risks no one else would, and the Evo 4G was no exception. It was, for the time, huge: the iPhone had a 3.5-inch screen, and most Android devices weren't much bigger, if they weren't smaller.
HTC is gone
The Evo 4G somehow survived our criticism (our alarm now seems extremely quaint, given the size of the average phone now) and was a reasonably popular phone, but ultimately is notable not for breaking sales records but breaking the seal on the idea that a phone could be big and still make sense. (Honorable mention goes to the Droid X.)
Samsung Galaxy S (2010)
Samsung's big debut made a hell of a splash, with custom versions of the phone appearing in the stores of practically every carrier, each with their own name and design: the AT&T Captivate, T-Mobile Vibrant, Verizon Fascinate, and Sprint Epic 4G. As if the Android lineup wasn't confusing enough already at the time!
Though the S was a solid phone, it wasn't without its flaws, and the iPhone 4 made for very tough competition. But strong sales reinforced Samsung's commitment to the platform, and the Galaxy series is still going strong today.
Motorola Xoom (2011)
This was an era in which Android devices were responding to Apple, and not vice versa as we find today. So it's no surprise that hot on the heels of the original iPad we found Google pushing a tablet-focused version of Android with its partner Motorola, which volunteered to be the guinea pig with its short-lived Xoom tablet.
Although there are still Android tablets on sale today, the Xoom represented a dead end in development — an attempt to carve a piece out of a market Apple had essentially invented and soon dominated. Android tablets from Motorola, HTC, Samsung and others were rarely anything more than adequate, though they sold well enough for a while. This illustrated the impossibility of "leading from behind" and prompted device makers to specialize rather than participate in a commodity hardware melee.
Amazon Kindle Fire (2011)
And who better to illustrate than Amazon? Its contribution to the Android world was the Fire series of tablets, which differentiated themselves from the rest by being extremely cheap and directly focused on consuming digital media. Just $200 at launch and far less later, the Fire devices catered to the regular Amazon customer whose kids were pestering them about getting a tablet on which to play Fruit Ninja or Angry Birds, but who didn't want to shell out for an iPad.
Turns out this was a wise strategy, and of course one Amazon was uniquely positioned to do with its huge presence in online retail and the ability to subsidize the price out of the reach of competition. Fire tablets were never particularly good, but they were good enough, and for the price you paid, that was kind of a miracle.
Xperia Play (2011)
Sony has always had a hard time with Android. Its Xperia line of phones for years were considered competent — I owned a few myself — and arguably industry-leading in the camera department. But no one bought them. And the one they bought the least of, or at least proportional to the hype it got, has to be the Xperia Play. This thing was supposed to be a mobile gaming platform, and the idea of a slide-out keyboard is great — but the whole thing basically cratered.
What Sony had illustrated was that you couldn't just piggyback on the popularity and diversity of Android and launch whatever the hell you wanted. Phones didn't sell themselves, and although the idea of playing Playstation games on your phone might have sounded cool to a few nerds, it was never going to be enough to make it a million-seller. And increasingly that's what phones needed to be.
Samsung Galaxy Note (2012)
As a sort of natural climax to the swelling phone trend, Samsung went all out with the first true "phablet," and despite groans of protest the phone not only sold well but became a staple of the Galaxy series. In fact, it wouldn't be long before Apple would follow on and produce a Plus-sized phone of its own.
The Note also represented a step towards using a phone for serious productivity, not just everyday smartphone stuff. It wasn't entirely successful — Android just wasn't ready to be highly productive — but in retrospect it was forward thinking of Samsung to make a go at it and begin to establish productivity as a core competence of the Galaxy series.
Google Nexus Q (2012)
This abortive effort by Google to spread Android out into a platform was part of a number of ill-considered choices at the time. No one really knew, apparently at Google or anywhere elsewhere in the world, what this thing was supposed to do. I still don't. As we wrote at the time:
Here's the problem with the Nexus Q: it's a stunningly beautiful piece of hardware that's being let down by the software that's supposed to control it.
It was made, or rather nearly made in the USA, though, so it had that going for it.
HTC First — "The Facebook Phone" (2013)
The First got dealt a bad hand. The phone itself was a lovely piece of hardware with an understated design and bold colors that stuck out. But its default launcher, the doomed Facebook Home, was hopelessly bad.
How bad? Announced in April, discontinued in May. I remember visiting an AT&T store during that brief period and even then the staff had been instructed in how to disable Facebook's launcher and reveal the perfectly good phone beneath. The good news was that there were so few of these phones sold new that the entire stock started selling for peanuts on Ebay and the like. I bought two and used them for my early experiments in ROMs. No regrets.
HTC One/M8 (2014)
This was the beginning of the end for HTC, but their last few years saw them update their design language to something that actually rivaled Apple. The One and its successors were good phones, though HTC oversold the "Ultrapixel" camera, which turned out to not be that good, let alone iPhone-beating.
As Samsung increasingly dominated, Sony plugged away, and LG and Chinese companies increasingly entered the fray, HTC was under assault and even a solid phone series like the One couldn't compete. 2014 was a transition period with old manufacturers dying out and the dominant ones taking over, eventually leading to the market we have today.
Google/LG Nexus 5X and Huawei 6P (2015)
This was the line that brought Google into the hardware race in earnest. After the bungled Nexus Q launch, Google needed to come out swinging, and they did that by marrying their more pedestrian hardware with some software that truly zinged. Android 5 was a dream to use, Marshmallow had features that we loved … and the phones became objects that we adored.
We called the 6P "the crown jewel of Android devices". This was when Google took its phones to the next level and never looked back.
Google Pixel (2016)
If the Nexus was, in earnest, the starting gun for Google's entry into the hardware race, the Pixel line could be its victory lap. It's an honest-to-god competitor to the Apple phone.
Gone are the days when Google is playing catch-up on features to Apple, instead, Google's a contender in its own right. The phone's camera is amazing. The software works relatively seamlessly (bring back guest mode!), and phone's size and power are everything anyone could ask for. The sticker price, like Apple's newest iPhones, is still a bit of a shock, but this phone is the teleological endpoint in the Android quest to rival its famous, fruitful, contender.
Let's see what the next ten years bring.
Posted on September 23, 2018 Author Devin ColdeweyCategories Android, Apple, Facebook, google, Venture CapitalTags Angry Birds, gadgets, iPad, iPhone, kindle, mobile, Samsung, smartphones, T Mobile
The Kindle Voyage is no longer available from Amazon
The Kindle Voyage is no more. The e-reader is currently unavailable through Amazon, as noted by a few sites. You can still pick up a refurbed version through the retailer, but listings for the new model note that, "[t]his item is only available from third-party sellers."
TechCrunch confirmed that the product is no longer available with Amazon, which noted, "that customer response to Kindle Voyage has been incredibly positive and we've sold out." While Amazon's refusing to disclose any further information, if there was a refresh on the way, the company likely would have noted as much on the site as is its custom.
All of this probably means there's either new model on the way or, more than likely, the Voyage has been sunset. The device was first introduced in 2014 as a thinner, lighter and generally more premium version of the popular reader. The arrival of the higher end Oasis two years later, however, has made the product a bit redundant.
The culling of the line was probably a bit overdue, really. Amazon's the far and away leader in devoted e-readers, but even without the Voyage in the lineup, there's plenty of variety to be had in a still fairly narrow space.
Posted on August 19, 2018 Author Brian HeaterCategories Venture CapitalTags kindle
E-reader innovation has stalled
Next month marks 10 years since the first Kindle debuted. It's a virtual lifetime in consumer electronics terms, but compared to its mobile brethren, e-readers' pace of innovation has been glacial. Why has the e-reader stagnated? Read More
Posted on October 12, 2017 Author Brian HeaterCategories Venture CapitalTags kindle


This conference is part of the early stages in the formation of a lexicon of political concepts. It will be the 6th in a series of conferences started in Tel Aviv University, and the second to take place in New York City. The project is guided by one formal principle: we pose the Socratic question "what is x?", and by one theatrical principle: the concepts defined should be relevant to political thought and, more broadly, to thinking about the political. The questions–what is political thought and what is the political– are not predetermined here. They are open for renewed study and debate. This conference is therefore a part of an ongoing attempt to redefine both the boundaries of the political (and with them, the disciplinary boundaries of political philosophy or theory) and the elements included within these boundaries.
Further description and details available here.


You may have never thought you needed saffron salt, powdered blue cheese, or hemp rice cakes in your kitchen, but if tastemakers at the Winter Fancy Food Show are right, you'll soon wonder how you lived without them.
The show, which caters to the professional movers and shakers in the specialty food business, offered up 80,000 products during its three-day run in San Francisco. That's a lot to sort through but trendspotters (including an official trendspotting panel made up of top cookbook authors, food writers and broadcasters) walked the aisles looking for interesting products. Here are some of the flavors and ingredients that will be making news this year.
You may already have tried avocado or grapeseed oils for splashing on vegetables or using in stir fry but there's a new generation of fruit and vegetable seed oils as well as other oil varieties that are hitting store shelves. One company, Culinary Imports, showed off its line of tomato seed, chili seed and cherry seed oils, and offered recipe ideas for those of us who aren't sure the best way to use. While all of their oils work for finishing salad or pasta, the cherry seed oil can be dribbled over cheeses and the chili seed variety is delicious over chocolate ice cream—really. Other oils seen at the show include organic coconut oil (excellent for baking) and tea seed oil, which works for stir frying because of its high smoke point.
in stores this spring, can be used in recipes or even as a topper on popcorn. Chocolate makers are also taking advantage of this pungent and flavorful cheese. Bissingers Chocolates has created a new treat, Point Reyes Blue Cheese Wine Grapes, which is a wine grape coated with blue cheese and enrobed in chocolate, expected to hit stores soon.
One extra note about powdered food: get ready for more. Peanut butter powder and coconut milk powder were also on display. In some cases, especially peanut butter, the draw is lower calories and less fat when the powder is mixed with milk or water.
Ancient seeds such as chia and hemp are back in a big way thanks to their healthful properties, which include high fiber and Omega fatty acid content and cholesterol-reducing properties. New products spotted at the show included Enjoy Life Natural Brands Crunchy Flax Chia Cereal, while Lundberg Family Farms offered Hemp-a-Licious Organic Rice Cakes. Dukkah, an Egyptian side dish of nuts, herbs and spices mixed with caraway, sesame and cumin seeds, was also on display from importer K.L. Keller.
In the past few years, citrus fruits have been the hot ingredients in desserts and confections but now the humble banana is the item of choice. The flavor was especially popular with chocolate (Vosges Haut-ChocolatWild Ophelia Peanut Butter & Banana Milk Chocolate Bar) but frozen dessert makers are embracing banana too (GoodPop Frozen Banana Cinnamon Pops). Lastly, the retro pairing of peanut butter and banana is relived with products like PB Crave CoCo Bananas Peanut Butter.
Sure, specialty salts can be popular for years but flavored sea salts like blueberry, saffron or tuna roe are getting attention as a way of adding a pop of flavor to recipes. Products made with salt itself were also a hit. Spice Lab introduced a gift set of four shot glasses made of Himalayan pink salt.
Spicy chocolate bars have been around for a while but now the trend can be found in other treats. Peppery flavors like chili and jalapeno showed up in Brownie Crunches from Seth Greenberg and cayenne mixed with bourbon and pecans in Lake Champlain Chocolate's Boom! Bam! bar. Even Jelly Belly, the gourmet jelly bean maker, got in on the act with its latest, Tabasco jelly beans.
If spinach shortbread or broccoli tea appeals to you, you're going to love this savory trend. Food makers are adding veggies in some unlikely products with delicious results. Expect to see carrot chocolate bars, spinach nutmeg cookies and teas boasting beet, cabbage and broccoli flavors and more at stores soon.
If all this isn't enough, here are a few more things to keep an eye out for in stores, according to the Fancy Food Show: balsamic vinegars with fruit, beer-infused mustards, crackers and candies, pomegranate and Moroccan flavors.
Tell us, would you try any of these new trends?


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Deerfield Academy Athletics Complex Sports A New Look
Architectural Signage, Metro Sign & Awning Quality Signs & Awnings for New England Businesses
The competition was stiff, but Metro Sign & Awning won the job. The challenge was to design and engineer a very high-end architectural sign package for the new $68 million, state-of-the-art athletics complex at Deerfield Academy in northwestern Massachusetts.
Partnering with project development giant Skanska USA-New England, our team embarked on a major upgrade to the existing facility situated on the bucolic campus. A new, three-story facility was to be added to an existing building to provide 130,000 square feet of additional space.
The centerpiece of the plan was a new 20,000-square-foot structure where every sport could be played including football, field hockey, soccer, lacrosse, volleyball, baseball and softball. The building would also have a jogging track, batting cages, exercise/yoga studios and a computerized golf simulator.
New Hockey Arena
When the school decided a new ice rink was needed as part of this project, architects responded with plans for a no-holds-barred hockey arena. Metro Sign & Awning conceived a series of photographic murals depicting the school's surrounding hills stretched across the exit doors. The effect is not so much of leaving a hockey arena as entering the enveloping historic valley surrounding the school.
Another one of our contributions to the new hockey arena at Deerfield was a series of colorful flags sporting the names of other boarding and day schools. The banners were hung from the ceiling at the edge of the ice, ever reminding players of their coming competitions.
Court Appointed
Deerfield Academy representatives also wanted a way to enclose six outdoor tennis courts. Permanent walls just did not comply with the overall aesthetic constraints.
Skanska, Sasaki Architects asked Metro Sign & Awning for help. Our team was able to conceive and engineer a solution. Working with the architect and general contractor, we created 36 fully automated, retractable curtains that could be opened or closed in unison.
The installation posed additional challenges. The immense size and weight ( 26' long and over 400 pounds) necessitated the curtains be carefully craned into place and attached, all while being perfectly aligned, leveled & plumbed.
After the installation, the mighty wind blew in. Metro responded again adding upgraded custom-built components to ensure proper operation. We continued to monitor and modify the controls until stabilization was achieved. Multiple back-up wind sensors now retract the screens if winds become too high.
Today students at Deerfield move in and out of the arena, engaging in their chosen activities. Metro Sign & Awning is proud to have had a part in shaping this amazing athletics complex.