The Wlp.cleanmypc.online is an one of the many advertising sites, which can be opened automatically each time you launch the web-browser. The reason of automatic opening of this page is an 'ad-supported' software (also known as adware), which was set on your PC without your consent. Because, the adware is often used to display a large amount of unwanted popup advertisements within the Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge's screen. As, the advertisers do not disdain to use any methods to promote their web pages and attract new users. Below we explain how to get rid of adware and thereby remove Wlp.cleanmypc.online unwanted advertisements from your web browser.
It is not a good idea to have an unwanted program like this adware on your personal computer. The reason for this is simple, it doing things you do not know about. The ad supported software can also be used to collect personal data that can be later transferred to third parties. You do not know if your home address, account names and passwords are safe. And of course you completely do not know what will happen when you click on any Wlp.cleanmypc.online pop-up ads.
The 'ad supported' software often change all web-browser shortcuts that located on your Desktop to force you visit some annoying ad pages. As a result, your web-browser can still redirect you to an intrusive ad web site despite your computer is actually clean of adware and other malicious software.
Thus, it is clear that the presence of ad-supported software on your machine is not desirable, and you need to clean up your personal computer ASAP. Follow the guidance below in order to get rid of Wlp.cleanmypc.online pop-up advertisements.
In the step-by-step guidance below we will have a look at the adware and how to delete Wlp.cleanmypc.online from Chrome, Internet Explorer, Firefox and Edge web browsers for Windows OS, natively or by using a few free removal utilities. Certain of the steps below will require you to exit the site. So, please read the guidance carefully, after that bookmark or print it for later reference.
If you perform exactly the instructions below you should be able to remove the Wlp.cleanmypc.online pop up ads from the Mozilla Firefox, Chrome, Microsoft Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge internet browsers.
In order to remove potentially unwanted applications such as this 'ad supported' software, open the Windows Control Panel and click on "Uninstall a program". Check the list of installed software. For the ones you do not know, run an Internet search to see if they are ad supported software, browser hijacker or PUPs. If yes, delete them off. Even if they are just a applications that you do not use, then removing them off will increase your PC system start up time and speed dramatically.
Important to know, most antimalware programs that are able to delete adware, but unable to scan for and recover changed shortcuts. So, you need to fix the desktop shortcuts for your Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, IE and Microsoft Edge web browsers manually.
First, start the Internet Explorer, then click 'gear' icon . It will open the Tools drop-down menu on the right part of the web browser, then click the "Internet Options" as shown in the figure below.
After the procedure is complete, click "Close" button. Close the Internet Explorer and restart your PC system for the changes to take effect. This step will help you to restore your internet browser's start page, new tab page and search engine by default to default state.
Use the Reset internet browser tool of the Chrome to reset all its settings like newtab page, start page and search engine by default to original defaults. This is a very useful utility to use, in the case of web browser redirects to undesired ad sites such as Wlp.cleanmypc.online.
First open the Chrome. Next, press the button in the form of three horizontal stripes ( ). It will show the main menu. Further, click the option named "Settings". Another way to display the Google Chrome's settings – type chrome://settings in the web browser adress bar and press Enter.
The Chrome will display the confirmation prompt. You need to confirm your action, click the "Reset" button. The web browser will run the procedure of cleaning. When it's finished, the web-browser's settings including newtab page, startpage and search provider by default back to the values that have been when the Google Chrome was first installed on your personal computer.
If your Mozilla Firefox web browser is re-directed to Wlp.cleanmypc.online without your permission or an unknown search engine displays results for your search, then it may be time to perform the internet browser reset.
If the annoying Wlp.cleanmypc.online web page opens automatically on Windows startup or at equal time intervals, then you need to check the Task Scheduler Library and remove all the tasks that have been created by 'ad-supported' program.
Press Windows and R keys on the keyboard simultaneously. This opens a prompt that titled with Run. In the text field, type "taskschd.msc" (without the quotes) and press OK. Task Scheduler window opens. In the left-hand side, click "Task Scheduler Library", as shown on the image below.
In the middle part you will see a list of installed tasks. Please choose the first task, its properties will be show just below automatically. Next, click the Actions tab. Pay attention to that it launches on your PC system. Found something like "explorer.exe http://site.address" or "chrome.exe http://site.address", then remove this harmful task. If you are not sure that executes the task, check it through a search engine. If it's a component of the malicious software, then this task also should be removed.
The easiest way to get rid of Wlp.cleanmypc.online ads is to run an anti-malware program capable of detecting this adware which causes undesired Wlp.cleanmypc.online ads. We recommend try Zemana Anti-malware or another free malware remover which listed below. It has excellent detection rate when it comes to adware, hijacker infections and other PUPs.
Zemana Anti-malware is a utility that can remove adware, potentially unwanted applications, browser hijackers and other malicious software from your personal computer easily and for free. Zemana Anti-malware is compatible with most antivirus software. It works under Windows (10 – XP, 32 and 64 bit) and uses minimum of PC resources.
Once the download is done, close all programs and windows on your PC. Open a file location. Double-click on the icon that's named Zemana.AntiMalware.Setup.
Once installation is finished, click the "Scan" button to perform a system scan with this tool for the adware that causes web browsers to show annoying Wlp.cleanmypc.online pop up ads. A system scan may take anywhere from 5 to 30 minutes, depending on your computer. When a malicious software, adware or potentially unwanted programs are detected, the number of the security threats will change accordingly. Wait until the the scanning is finished.
After it completes the scan, it'll display a list of all threats found by this tool. Review the results once the tool has complete the system scan. If you think an entry should not be quarantined, then uncheck it. Otherwise, simply click "Next". When the task is done, you may be prompted to restart your system.
You can delete Wlp.cleanmypc.online pop up ads automatically with a help of Malwarebytes Free. We recommend this free malware removal tool because it can easily get rid of hijacker infections, adware, PUPs and toolbars with all their components such as files, folders and registry entries.
When the download is finished, close all software and windows on your system. Double-click the set up file called mb3-setup. If the "User Account Control" dialog box pops up like below, click the "Yes" button.
It will open the "Setup wizard" which will help you setup Malwarebytes on your personal computer. Follow the prompts and don't make any changes to default settings.
Once install is done successfully, press Finish button. Malwarebytes will automatically start and you can see its main screen as on the image below.
Now click the "Scan Now" button to start scanning your system for the adware that causes browsers to display unwanted Wlp.cleanmypc.online popup advertisements. Depending on your system, the scan can take anywhere from a few minutes to close to an hour. When a malware, adware or potentially unwanted applications are found, the number of the security threats will change accordingly.
Once the scanning is complete, it'll show you the results. Review the report and then click "Quarantine Selected" button. The Malwarebytes will delete 'ad supported' software that causes multiple unwanted advertisements and pop ups and add items to the Quarantine. When the procedure is finished, you may be prompted to restart the computer.
AdwCleaner is a free removal tool that can check your PC for a wide range of security threats like malware, ad supported softwares, PUPs as well as ad supported software which developed to reroute your web browser to various ad web-sites like Wlp.cleanmypc.online. It will perform a deep scan of your computer including hard drives and Windows registry. Once a malicious software is detected, it will help you to get rid of all detected threats from your computer with a simple click.
Double click the AdwCleaner desktop icon. After the tool is started, you will see a screen as on the image below.
Further, click "Scan" button . This will start scanning the whole PC system to find out 'ad supported' software that created to redirect your web browser to various ad web-sites like Wlp.cleanmypc.online. After it completes the scan, the results are displayed in the scan report as shown below.
You may move items to Quarantine (all selected by default) by simply press "Clean" button. It will display a prompt as shown on the screen below.
You need to press "OK". Once disinfection is finished, the AdwCleaner may ask you to restart your PC. When your PC is started, you will see an AdwCleaner log.
In order to increase your security and protect your machine against new undesired advertisements and harmful sites, you need to use ad blocking application that blocks an access to harmful advertisements and pages. Moreover, the program can stop the open of intrusive advertising, that also leads to faster loading of pages and reduce the consumption of web traffic.
When downloading is finished, double-click the downloaded file to launch it. The "Setup Wizard" window will show up on the computer screen as shown in the figure below.
Each time, when you start your computer, AdGuard will start automatically and stop pop-up advertisements, web pages such Wlp.cleanmypc.online, as well as other harmful or misleading web-sites. For an overview of all the features of the program, or to change its settings you can simply double-click on the AdGuard icon, which is located on your desktop.
Many programs made to open a large number of unwanted advertisements within your computer's internet browser. So, when you installing free software, carefully read the disclaimers, select the Custom or Advanced setup mode to watch for third-party software that are being installed, because some of the programs are potentially unwanted programs like this ad-supported software that causes multiple intrusive ads and pop ups.
Now your computer should be free of the ad-supported software that causes a ton of undesired Wlp.cleanmypc.online pop up advertisements. Uninstall AdwCleaner. We suggest that you keep AdGuard (to help you stop unwanted pop ups and unwanted malicious web pages) and Zemana Anti-malware (to periodically scan your system for new malicious software, browser hijacker infections and adware). Make sure that you have all the Critical Updates recommended for Windows OS. Without regular updates you WILL NOT be protected when new browser hijackers, malicious software and adware are released.
If you are still having problems while trying to remove Wlp.cleanmypc.online pop-ups from your web browser, then ask for help in our Spyware/Malware removal forum.


Henry V has died. His body is not yet cold but three provinces of France have fallen for lack of men and resources. Henry's son, nine months old Henry, is named King Henry VI of England and France. His uncle, Humphrey Duke of Gloucester, is named the King's Lord Protector.
Seventeen years later, Edmund Mortimer (Michael Gambon), a Plantagenet in direct line of succession to Richard II, dies and leaves his nephew Richard as heir. The king recognizes Richard's claim and makes him Duke of York. Moreover, France is in turmoil again. Henry VI (Tom Sturridge) sends Lord Talbot Earl of Shrewsbury and his son, the Earl of Warwick, and Richard Duke of York to fight the French. William Earl of Somerset must provide them support and fails intentionally to do so, thus Lord Talbot and his son are killed at Rouen.
Joan of Arc, on behalf of France's Dauphin, leads the French army at Rouen and Anjou, where she is captured and burned at the stake for treason against her sovereign. At Anjou, The Earl of Somerset claims Margaret, the Duke of Anjou's daughter, as a bride for his king, thus becoming Queen Margaret (Sophie Okonedo). Charles the Dauphin claims more French victories, and ultimately declares himself King of France.
Meanwhile, Queen Margaret realizes that while the Duke of Gloucester is Lord Protector, her husband's power, and hence hers, is meaningless. Thus, a conspiracy is born to depose and kill the Duke of Gloucester, setting in motion years of civil unrest.
This episode is filled with events, intrigue, and serious power struggles. If the Bard is to be believed, King Henry VI was a spineless young man, more interested in religion than in state matters. The one thing he had working for him was his honor; he had a strong moral compass, but the England of his time needed firm governance and strong leadership, and he couldn't provide it.
Among the major events played out in this episode are the rise and fall of Joan of Arc, the disadvantageous marriage of King Henry VI to Margaret of Anjou, who had a stronger personality than her consort, the alliance between Richard Duke of York and the Earl of Warwick, and the fall from grace of the Duke of Gloucester, which led the Duke of York and his sons to revolt against the king.
Solid performances and a lot of political maneuvers make this episode a must-see.
It's been five years since Richard Plantagenet Duke of York, his four sons (Edward, George, Edmund, and Richard), and his followers have risen against King Henry VI (Tom Sturridge). Lord Suffolk and the Duke of Somerset have been killed in battle by the Yorkist men. Clifford, son of the Duke of Suffolk has vowed revenge for the death of his father, as has the Queen for the death of Somerset.
King Henry VI and Queen Margaret (Sophie Okonedo) retreat to London, but the Yorkists arrive first at the Parliament-House urging Richard Plantagenet to claim the vacant throne. On agreement, the king grants right of succession to Richard Plantagenet and his sons—thus disinheriting his own son, Edward (Ned), Prince of Wales—on the condition that he is allowed to reign until the end of his life. The Duke of York vows to depose the arms, but the northern lords led by Queen Margaret, Clifford Duke of Suffolk, and the Earl of Westmorland besiege Richard Plantagenet's castle, burn it down, and kill him and his young son Edmund.
Upon the death of his father, Edward Duke of March becomes heir to the dukedom of York. Lord Warwick pledges alliance to him, as he did to Edward's father. Deposed of his crown, Henry VI takes refuge as a vagrant in the countryside, where he is found and put in custody in the Tower. Edward Duke of York is crowned King Edward IV at Westminster. Edward creates Richard (Benedict Cumberbatch), his brother, Duke of Gloucester, George becomes Duke of Clarence, and the Earl of Warwick is given free reign.
Ten Years Later…The Earl of Warwick travels to France to petition King Louis the hand of his sister, Lady Bona, in marriage for King Edward IV. King Louis grants the petition, but news arrives from England of a hasty marriage that has taken place between the king and Lady Elizabeth Grey. King Louis, feeling snubbed, grants men to former Queen Margaret, who has taken refuge with her son and her entourage at the French court, to organize an offensive against King Edward IV. The Earl of Warwick feels that his honor has been trifled with, and pledges alliance to Queen Margaret, giving Prince Ned the hand of one of his daughters in marriage to vow for his loyalty. The Lancastrians will face the Yorkist again, at the battle of Tewkesbury, with the purpose of replanting Queen Margaret and Prince Ned in the throne of England.
As you can see from my summary, a lot happens in this second episode that merges part of the reigns of Henry VI and Edward IV. Henry VI once again shows that he is a man of principle but without the scheming mind needed to rule, or the militaristic prowess of his father. Queen Margaret shows more of a spine than his consort, but she also exhibits ruthlessness (as when she crowned Richard Plantagenet with a crown of thorns, stabbed him, ordered his beheading, and his head to be mounted on a spike on the city gates) and martial skills (the latter allowing her to march with her armor on into battle along with the Lancastrian faction to reclaim the English throne for her son).
From the last two episodes I have formed a more sympathetic image of the Earl of Warwick than the one I had by viewing Starz's adaptation of Philippa Gregory's series on The War of the Roses titled The White Queen. The image created by Philippa Gregory is that he was a man of little honor and too much ambition who wanted a piece of the English throne for himself. Shakespeare's version is more wholesome. In these two episodes the Earl of Warwick emerges as a man of integrity, conviction, and loyalty, who pledges alliance to Richard Plantagenet duly recognizing that he has a valid claim to the throne of England. His changing of sides occurred as a consequence of the ridicule that he was subjected to when Edward chose Lady Grey for his wife.
Plenty of action, battles (gore included), political maneuvers, betrayals, heightened by a great script adaptation, atmospheric music, and nuanced performances make this episode a must-see in the saga.
Ten years after the events detailed in Henry VI (Part II)/Edward IV, a lasting peace has ensued. Richard (Benedict Cumberbatch), Duke of Gloucester, resents the peace and his brother, the king, for it. Someone puts twisted words in the king's ear about a certain prophecy naming an enemy of the king whose name starts with G. The Duke of Clarence's name starts with G…One less enemy to contend with. The relationship between Elizabeth and Richard is contentious at best. Then, the king falls ill and Queen Elizabeth and her clan are sure that Richard will be entrusted as Lord Protector until Prince Edward comes of age. Richard has other plans, and aided by Lord Cunningham, will remove friend and foe alike in his path to the throne and absolute power.
As in anything he stars in, Benedict Cumberbatch's performance as Richard III is nothing short of brilliant. He is Macchiavelian in his methodical removal of enemies in his path to the throne, and once there, to preserve it, but I, having seen BBC's marvelous adaptation of Philippa Gregory's novels on The War of the Roses, The White Queen, didn't buy Shakespeare's utterly evil characterization of Richard III for one minute. I think the real man was more complex than that. Having read Josephine Tey's The Daughter of Time this year, gave me a completely different perspective, a more balanced one, on the man, or at least it raised questions about the historical sources that we take for granted on the period before and after he came to power, leading up to his death in the Battle of Bosworth.
My, this whole series is quite a production. When I was reviewing the retellings of Shakespeare plays in modern novels last year, I would read the play first and then the modern retelling. It was quite enjoyable. But it looks like this series, for you, is giving you more insight into those periods of British history you have read about in historical novels. I think that is pretty cool!
Okay, you've convinced me. I have to watch this series!
You are getting a lot out of this series! I should give it a go. Do you think I should visit the BBC's take on the Philippa Gregory novels first? Or this one first? Cheers. Glad you are becoming an expert on all these histories of Shakespeare.
I know, right?! I recommend watching both, but this one definitely first, as it gives more background information before the Edward IV reign. Both series complement each other rather well.
Haha - I love your choice of quote.


text:
GIMMEE A PUSH
A man and his wife are awakened at 3 o'clock in the morning by a loud pounding on the door.
The man gets up and goes to the door where a drunken stranger,
standing in the pouring rain, is asking for a push.
"Not a chance," says the husband, "it is three o'clock in the morning!"
He slams the door and returns to bed.
"Who was that?" asked his wife.
"Just some drunk guy asking for a push," he answers.
"Did you help him?" she asks.
"No, I did not, it is three in the morning and it is pouring out!"
"Well, you have a short memory," says his wife.
"Can't you remember about three months ago when we broke
down and those two guys helped us?"
"I think you should help him, and you should be ashamed of yourself!"
The man does as he is told, gets dressed, and goes out into
the pounding rain.
He calls out into the dark, "Hello, are you still there?"
"Yes," comes back the answer. "
"Do you still need a push?" calls out the husband.
"Yes, please!" comes the reply from the dark.
"Where are you?" asks the husband.
"Over here on the swing!" replies the drunk
PADDY, THE FAMOUS IRISHMAN
Paddy, the famous Irishman is driving home after downing a
few at the local pub. He turns a corner and much to his horror he sees a tree
in the middle of the road. He swerves to avoid it and almost too late
realizes that there is yet another tree directly in his path. He swerves again
and discovers that his drive home has turned into a slalom course, causing
him to veer from side to side to avoid all the trees. Moments later he
hears the sound of a police siren and brings his car to a stop. The officer,
approaches Paddy's car and asks him what on earth he was doing. Paddy
tells his story of the trees in the road when the officer stops him mid
sentence and says,
"Fer Chris sakes, Paddy, that's yer air freshener!"
A PARROT
Passing by a pet shop window, a woman spotted a large beautiful
parrot. There was a sign on the cage that said $50.00.
"Why so little," she asked the pet store owner.
The owner looked at her and said, "Look, I should tell you first that
this bird used to live in a house of ill repute and sometimes it says some pretty vulgar stuff."
The woman thought about this, but decided she had to have the pretty
bird anyway. She took it home and hung the cage up in her living room
and waited for it to say something. The bird looked around the room,
then at her, and said, "New house, new madam."
The woman was a bit shocked at the implication, but then thought:
"that's not so bad." When her two teenage daughters returned from
school the bird saw them and said, "New house, new madam, new girls."
The girls and the woman were a bit offended but then began to laugh about it...
Moments later, the woman's husband, Keith, came home from work.
The bird looked at him and said, "Hi Keith."

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Bachelor of Fine Arts, in Painting. The annual intake is 40. The academic programme consists of 5 years. After two years of common foundation course in the basics of art, the remaining three years are devoted to professional training. The programme concentrates on the development of basic skills in drawing, colour design and adequate knowledge of the History of Arts and Aesthetics.
The course is designed to prepare students through intense theoretical input and practical training to develop their intuitive abilities.


We taught ourselves to plow watching YouTube videos and tried our hardest to grow our produce organically. That first season was exhilarating and rewarding and heartbreaking in equal measure — but most of all it was the beginning of an incredible education in farming from the ground up.
My path into farming began before I think I even knew it. Ever since I was little and can remember I loved to garden. I have many memories of working with my grandma in her garden. It was a big one! She taught me what I know about gardening. During my early teen years my stepfather's parents, who also farm, raised acres of sweet corn, pumpkins, and asparagus. That was one of my first real jobs: I picked sweet corn. The day would start as soon as the sun was up; we would pick using bushel baskets until we had anywhere between four to six trucks filled. I would then travel about 40 miles and sit on the back of my truck at a stand at the gas station until it was sold out. That was where I caught my first glimpse of how to make money being a farmer. Once I graduated high school up until I started a family of my own I really didn't spend much time gardening for one reason or another. Once we purchased our first home, I got back into it and really began to realize how much I loved to grow food! We started a family, and all the while my husband was pursuing a degree in business. We both had an entrepreneurial spirit, as I was already self-employed as a cosmetologist, and Rogan really wanted to break free from his corporate job. So when our son was 4 and our daughter was 2, we came up with a crazy idea that maybe we could start some sort of a farm. Obstacle number one: finding a farm. For most people, farming is something you are born into. We were not aware of the uphill battle ahead; however, we moved forward and the search began, and in August of 2011 we found the perfect place for our family. A house and six acres. We had done it!
Not really sure of the direction we were going, we openly shared with friends and people we were meeting along the way that we had a plan to start this vegetable farm. I had a client whose husband had a friend that worked for Hy-Vee, which is a major grocery chain here in the Midwest. He shared our thoughts with his friend and introduced us. It became clear to us that good local produce was something that this grocery store was really seeking. We shared our plans of what we wanted to do, and that we were going to become a certified organic farm. The thing was, we hadn't even grown in ground we had purchased. After lots of discussion, we decided that wholesale distribution would definitely be the market path we would pursue. We were gifted Bluebird houses from this very same friend. He told us if we put them up the bluebirds would come, and sure enough they did.That's when Bluebird Farms was established. The wholesale market appealed to us because of our inability to farm full-time. Farming appealed to us because it's something we could do as a family. My husband is truly a jack of all trades, and me with my green thumb, it seemed the perfect fit. The next obstacle was, we didn't know how to grow vegetables on a larger scale, nor did we have the equipment or money we soon learned we needed to do so.
Our first farming season was a 10,000-square-foot patch of tomatoes and peppers. We planted 1,000 plants of each. We prepped the ground with an old Ford 8N tractor we had been given by my father-in-law and a disc and a plow we found for $600 on Craigslist. Not even knowing really how to plow, we watched some YouTube videos and learned! We decided from the beginning that growing organically was important to us; we wanted to live as healthy of a lifestyle as we could. I didn't know anything about how to grow this way. I always just assumed that organic meant no sprays of any kind. I came to learn that the true meaning of organic is the soil and how we take care of it. We pursued the path of organic certification for our farm. We downloaded the National Organic Program handbook from the internet and began reading. We got our plants in the ground and felt we were doing everything to the best of our ability. When you decide to become certified organic, you have A LOT of paperwork. You also get to have a yearly inspection. We did all of that and felt we were doing so awesome and on the path. We were so excited that we contacted Hy-Vee and invited some of their store directors out to come see what we had done! The morning that they were to come visit, we received our first big bout of bad news. The growing media that I started ALL 1,000 plants in had an ingredient that was not suitable for organic farming. We did not receive our certification. We were absolutely devastated. Feeling like we failed so big, we had to tell all of these store managers from Hy-Vee that we failed. The crazy part about it? They still supported us! As a customer to us, when we didn't even have the produce to deliver, they saw the value in what we were trying to do and continued to support us! We learned so much that first year. Mostly, I learned that we didn't choose a path that was going to be easy.
We realized soon after we began that we didn't have the equipment we needed to do this. When you are limited for time you quickly figure out that being mechanized to become more efficient is something that is going to have to happen. Hand weeding 10,000 square feet of vegetable plants was something I was not interested in doing ever again!
By our second year we went for it and made, what was for us, a big jump. We put together a business plan, found a banker that believed in us, and borrowed some money so that we could purchase a tractor and some planting equipment, and broke ground on our first three acres! Three acres may not sound like a large amount of space, but by the end of our second season we learned that our three acres produced 25,000 pounds of real food!
The stories I could tell of what I learned that second year could definitely take up pages. I learned that you need help to pick that 25,000 pounds of food, because no way the two of us could do it alone. I learned that it's a lot of work to get that much food to the market. I learned the problem of plenty. I learned that I am not going to be good at growing everything right away. I learned that bugs and disease could destroy a crop very quickly. I stressed over weather and cried like the rain fell sometimes because I was so exhausted. Having full-time jobs and raising kids while building this farm was so hard. The guilt I had for feeling like these crops had to come before my family at times was a real challenge of the heart for me. I knew my work was for the greater good of our family and the bigger picture, but there were days I wanted to just quit. My mildly carefree summer of hanging with my kids had gone away and been replaced with the responsibilities of this farm. What started as such a beautiful dream, of something we had planned and hoped to build, was becoming a reality — and suddenly it was one I wasn't sure I wanted anymore.
Fast forward now to 2017. The things I have continued to learn are just amazing. We were able to build our farm so much in these last four years that we were able to purchase the 30 acres that is now our backyard. Wow! Sometimes that's all I can say, because I never would have imagined that this is where I would be today. I do not think this would be possible though without my husband, the dreamer, the mechanic, the business guy, and two awesome kids who support their crazy parents. This past summer was a turning point for us in our business. With the support of our local grocers, we were able to get 20,000 pounds of broccoli, along with some other vegetables, into the market via a seemingly easy process. We got to experiment with a few new crops and continued learning how to grow vegetables on a larger scale, all while continuing to become as efficient as we can be. However, we are doing all of this while still continuing to work full-time. My job as a cosmetologist has been amazing for flexibility; it keeps me busy but allows me to schedule around kids and farm work without too much effort. Ultimately, we are working toward bringing Rogan to the farm full-time. Our goal for this farm moving forward is to just keep growing — growing and learning. We are taking great strides in building up our soil. We are really focusing on a certain few crops and what they need to grow their best. Weed control is always a challenge, and we are constantly finding new ways to surpass that. Financially, this has been a bit of a rough road. As I said in the beginning, so many farmers we know are at least third-, fourth-, and beyond-generation farmers. Many have been given land, or already have access to equipment, so that part of the financial burden isn't there for some as it is for us. We said in the beginning we were willing to give ourselves five years to get this off the ground. We were both willing to work extra hard, and that's what we have been doing. We are coming up on the end of our fourth year; this summer we had about six acres in vegetable production and 14 in hay, and are still learning. I do believe we are on the path to meeting our five-year goal, so that's pretty exciting! Our plan is to continue taking ground out of hay and putting it into vegetable production of some sort. This next spring we will be adding some sheep to our farm, so that's really exciting for myself and for my daughter. I am truly proud to say that we are first-generation farmers, built from the ground up!
Brenna with her husband, Rogan, and two children, Bo and Mae.
Brenna is a 36-year-old woman from the small Midwest town of Lisbon, Iowa. She currently lives on a 37-acre certified organic farm where she is married to her best friend and business partner, Rogan, and raises two kids, Bo, age 12, and Mae, age 10. She is a self-employed cosmetologist by trade and a farmer at heart.


The Nick Diaz hearing is the perfect example of a regulatory body abusing its power. Whether you are a UFC fan or not, all eyes should be on Diaz's hearing on YouTube. We see a regulatory body unfairly test an athlete more than his fellow fighters. We see commissioners demean and embarrass Diaz, while showing little regard for fairness or legal procedure. We see a state attorney general provide biased testimony. Finally, we see an attempt to end a fighter's career over marijuana use.
Diaz is a popular UFC fighter with a history of marijuana use. He held a medical marijuana card for ADHD. He was suspended twice before, once for a positive drug test and once for skipping out on a drug test. According to the five member Nevada State Athletic Commission, Diaz has played games in the past such as: delaying drug testing, overhydrating to dilute his urine, applying for a license days before the fight and lying on his pre-fight licensing application. The commission is angry that he is continuously before them for discipline. They deem his repeat offenses disrespectful to their rules and the sport. This would all seem reasonable. However, Diaz's violations of the drug policy do not give the commission the authority to over-punish, ignore substantial evidence in his favor, insult him nor deny him his constitutional rights to a fair hearing. In failing to abide by its own standards, the commission makes a mockery of itself.
First, it relies on unreliable evidence. Most fighters are tested twice, once before the fight and once after. The NSAC unfairly singles out Diaz and tests him three times using two different laboratories. The first pre-fight test is anonymous, collected in accordance with World Anti-Doping Association methods and sent to a WADA approved lab. This test is negative, way below the threshold required for a positive test.
A second post-match test, done by an uncertified NSAC-trained collector, is sent to a non-accredited lab. The sample improperly has Diaz's name on it and contains half the amount of urine required by WADA. This test comes back positive, nearly five times greater than the minimum threshold. An hour and twenty minutes later, a third blind test is conducted by the same lab that conducted the first one and this also comes back negative, twelve times lower than the positive one.
How could Diaz test negative before the fight, positive after and negative again an hour and twenty minutes later? The attorney general says it's because Diaz overhydrated to dilute the THC metabolite in his urine. He says Diaz tested negative before the fight because he overhydrated, he tested positive right after the fight because he was dehydrated and then negative for the third test because he overhydrated again. Was Diaz told he was going to be tested a third time? How would he know to overhydrate to bypass a third test, when fighters usually receive two tests?
Further, Diaz's medical expert says it would be "medically implausible," for Diaz to hydrate that much without experiencing water intoxication. To get his THC metabolite levels 12 times lower in an hour he would have to drink several litters of liquid. The medical expert says that would lead Diaz's sodium levels to drop and his brain cells to swell leading to seizures or even coma and death. Furthermore, Diaz still hadn't returned to his pre-fight hydration levels at the time of the third negative test. How could he hydrate enough to bring his levels down to 1/12 what they were on the second test but not reach pre-fight hydration levels?
The state attorney general does not call a medical expert to support his hydration theory nor to challenge the defense expert's testimony. In fact, the attorney general cunningly neglects to mention the two negative tests in his legal complaint.
On cross-examination, the attorney general peppers his so-called "questions" to the defense's expert with accusations. He asks, "would it surprise you to know that Mr. Diaz has had trouble urinating in the past when he's been directed to do so by a commission employee?" Confused, the medical expert says, "I'm not aware." He continues, "would it surprise you that in 2011 he delayed urinating for hours and finally urinated at 2 a.m.?" Again, the medical expert shakes his head, "I'm not aware". These aren't real questions. The attorney general is offering testimony to get prejudicial information from Diaz's past on the legal record without supporting documents or witnesses. Diaz's attorney objects. His objection is overruled.
Finally it's time for Diaz to testify. He pleads the fifth. Commissioner Pat Lundvall insists on asking Diaz a series of questions and makes him plead the fifth to each question. Why would she do such a thing? We soon find out. Lundvall says that because Diaz pled the fifth, she may infer a negative answer to all of her specific questions. For example, she asked whether Diaz consumed marijuana on the night of the fight. Because he pled the fifth, under her absurd interpretation of NSAC guidelines, this means his answer is yes. Pleading the fifth, does not entitle the NSAC to insert incriminating answers into leading questions. The Fifth Amendment is designed to AVOID self-incrimination.
During "deliberations," the commissioners don't discuss the two negative tests or any of the evidence from the three-hour hearing. It's as if they made up their minds long ago. As punishment, Lundvall suggests a lifetime ban, even though the NSAC guidelines call for a punishment of three years suspension for a third marijuana offense. Lundvall wants the lifetime ban because Diaz doesn't "respect the panel," didn't testify and allegedly lied on his pre-fight licensing application. Discipline for lying is permissible, however, it is unconstitutional to punish Diaz for exercising his constitutional right not to testify. Furthermore, Diaz isn't required to kiss up to the commission. In fact, while Diaz sat quietly, the commissioners snickered multiple times during the hearing. Why were they laughing while ruling on someone's career and livelihood? At one point, a commissioner admonishes Diaz for being disrespectful while calling him, "Mr. Ortiz," unable to even get his name right. Lundvall insultingly asks Diaz if he can read English. Another inappropriate commissioner says that it's not a question of whether Diaz uses marijuana; it's a question of how much.
One commissioner finally points out that a lifetime ban for marijuana is harsh considering that fighters who have tested positive for steroids received more lenient suspensions. Ya think? In light of his dissent, the NSAC agrees on a five-year ban, but only because it amounts to a lifetime ban due to Diaz's age, again prejudicial. The arbitrary punishment is contrary to NSAC punishment guidelines.
Several UFC fighters are now boycotting fighting in the state to support Diaz. The ruling brings up important issues. First, is it even fair to test an athlete for marijuana when the THC metabolite can stay in a habitual user's system for days or weeks after use? Under WADA guidelines, marijuana is only prohibited "in competition." When someone tests positive, you can't tell with certainty whether he or she permissibly used the drug days before or used it the day of the competition.
Second, is there sufficient remedy for a prejudicial hearing? The current remedy is judicial review. A court can set the ruling aside, but usually sends it back to the same panel for a rehearing. Unjust.
Finally, since Nevada is the hub of UFC events, most states uphold the NSAC's rulings. One state should not monopolize a sport. If there is going to be uniform regulation, it should be at the federal level. Otherwise, one commission can end someone like Diaz's career. The NSAC recently had one of its rulings set aside on review. If it happens again, the Governor should overhaul this incompetent commission.
Whether Diaz used marijuana or not the night of the fight, the man is entitled to a fair hearing free from snickering and prejudicial questioning. He should have the opportunity to exercise his constitutional rights without being punished for it. Even if the panel felt one positive test was more convincing than two negative tests, Diaz's punishment should be reasonable. Given all this, Diaz has an excellent shot at an appeal.


This event has been rescheduled from December 9, 2014.
Mexico is ready to begin its first upstream bidding process, which will include unconventional, deepwater and shallow water areas.
Will Mexico stay the course on the energy reforms?
Unable to attend in person? Please register below to receive the presentation materials. Materials will only be distributed following the event.
For additional information, please contact Katy Pease at kpease@mayerbrown.com or +1 713 238 2902.


STOCKHOLM, Aug. 10, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- To support the accelerated build out of 5G in the United States, Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) will increase its investment in the market. This series of strategic initiatives will allow Ericsson to operate even closer to its customers, meeting the growing demand for 5G globally and in the region.
The investments will fall into two categories: 1) increase research and development work done close to customers in the US and 2) increase flexibility to shorten the timeline for new product introduction and product delivery to customers. This will enable Ericsson to recruit new expertise from the US, complementing the company's existing highly-skilled employees in the region.
Börje Ekholm, President and CEO of Ericsson, says: "The United States is our largest market, accounting for a quarter of Ericsson's business over the last seven years. To serve the demand of these fast-moving service providers, we are strengthening our investment in the US to be even closer to our customers and meet their accelerated 5G deployment plans."
Ericsson will also open a new software development center with baseband focus in 2018, employing more than 200 software engineers once fully operational. This facility and its employees will further strengthen Ericsson's 5G software development. Baseband provides intelligence to the radio access network. It is also the interface between the core network and radio units, processing and forwarding voice calls and internet data to end users.
Additionally, Ericsson will increase its investment in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and automation, employing around 100 specialists in North America by the end of 2018. This team will work on utilizing AI technologies to accelerate automation, examine product road maps and explore new business opportunities. They will focus on boosting the company's current portfolio, strengthening customer engagements and promote innovation of new disruptive business opportunities.


text:
No Joy in Poolville
Stroker had won the Friday night tournament at Boonies, but he was feeling less than jubilant as he made his way home on Highway One. Never had an eighty dollar win left him feeling so down. But, it wasn't about the money, he told himself as his old Rav 4 roared on, it was about playing well; and he hadn't played well at all. He'd dogged too many shots – two straight-in shots on the eight in the last game alone. It was a miracle that he had won, a cosmic joke.
The gloom persisted through Saturday and Sunday leading Stroker to suspect there was more behind these feelings than his clumsy victory at Boonies. He thought back to Thursday night. His second place finish at Chalkie's had left him equally dejected. Thanks to a series of breaks, he had beaten Leapin' Larry and Fast Eddie, two players he normally wouldn't have a chance against and only a miss on an easy cross-side bank of the nine against Deek Nettles had kept him out of the hot seat.
"So, you think that's it, a missed easy cross-side bank on Thursday night has caused you to feel depressed for the next five days."
"It's depressing – I used to be so good at banks."
His weekly court-ordered visits to the shrink had been part of the plea agreement his lawyer, Anthony J. Rotundo, had negotiated following assault charges that had nearly put him in the pokey. Stroker still couldn't believe the big deal they made over his whacking some nit in the head with his cue. "He accused me of cheating," he had said to the judge at his arraignment. But that didn't seem to matter. Anyway, he was enjoying the time he spent with Dr. Colleen Mathers. She was a good kid, and plenty smart.
"So, you came in first in one tournament and second in another, two events which might make a person feel somewhat pleased with himself, but, for you, this has all been overshadowed by a missed bank…"
"A missed easy bank," he corrects. "It was dead in the side."
"… a missed easy bank, and this has left you feeling depressed."
"That's about it."
"And there's nothing else?"
"Well …"
Until a few days ago, the S-train had been chugging along unimpeded. Stroker's dream of recapturing his boyhood form, after a 40 year lay-off, had still seemed achievable. Sure, he had just turned 60, but he was still improving, still moving forward with his game, chug chugguh-chug chugguh-chug. Then, he missed that shot against Deek and he had had what he interpreted as a major revelation. He had been kidding himself. He would never again be a player. He would never be more than a freakin' bum. His comeback was over, fizzled, kaput. He was at the end of the line.
"So, the missed, easy, dead-in-the-side bank triggered for you a revelation that you…"
"That I am done. There isn't going to be a comeback. I'm never going to be able to play any good and all the time I've been working on my game, trying to get back in stroke, all that time, I've only been fooling myself. I'm a chump – nothing more. I'm gonna have to live with it."
"And, to be a chump…"
"Is to be nothing, nobody, a pimple on the ass of the world."
She let that hang there for a good long while. Either she was considering the gargantuan proportions of what he had just said, or she wanted him to. You never knew with this broad.
"Of the pool world," she finally added.
"To be a chump in the poolroom is to be nothing, nobody, a pimple on the ass of the pool world."
"I'm not following," said Stroker.
"I think you do."
"I said I don't, Colleen. I wouldn't say I don't if I did."
She smiled. Something he had said must have struck her as amusing.
"Well, let me put it this way: some people believe that the person we think we are is nothing more than the sum of the roles we play. Do you follow that?"
"No. What's that – Scientology?"
She laughed. He liked to make her laugh. "Take me, for example…"
"Now, Colleen..."
"I'm a daughter, a sister, a wife, a mother…"
"And a shrink."
"And a therapist. My behavior in each of these roles is very different. When I am with my parents or with my husband, I am a very different person than when I am here with you."
"I should hope so."
She smiled. "And the same is true for you. You are not just Stroker, pool player. You are more than that."
"Not really. I mean, I know what you're getting at and, if you want to look at yourself that way, go ahead, but me, I'm Stroker Zambini, every minute of every day – Stroker Zambini."
"And you're never Stroker Zambini the son."
"Not any more. My mother and father are dead."
"And the part of you that was their son?"
"Died with them… I hope."
"Forgetaboutit, Colleen. I don't wanna go there. I'm sixty years old, for Christ's sake, too old to be crying about that crap."
"But, you're father not only beat you, you said he brought to your home an atmosphere of fear."
"Yeah, but you know what? It dawned on me one day that I coulda run away from all that and I never did."
"When you were five or six years old? I don't think running away was an option."
"Hey, I knew a lot of guys who ran away – to Florida, California, NYC – guys who had it a lot better than I did. They ran away just for the hell of it. But I never thought of it. I can't understand that."
"Fear, perhaps."
"Perhaps, you didn't run away because you were afraid of what your father might do when he caught you. That would be understandable."
"Nope, I don't think so. I just never thought of it. Anyway, it's too late now, so let's forget about it." She wouldn't, he knew, but he could hope.
"What about your role as a father? Didn't you tell me you have a daughter?"
"Let's not go there."
"I haven't seen her in over twenty years."
"She was kidnapped by aliens."
"Check with the aliens."
"You're being uncooperative, today, for some reason."
"Is that going into the report?"
"That's up to you."
"Look, Colleen, I didn't whack that guy in the head because my old man beat me or my mother never hugged me or because I haven't seen my kid in twenty years – I whacked him because he dissed me. He accused me of cheatin'. He's lucky I didn't friggin' kill him. You can't let people get away with shit like that."
"He dissed you."
"Yeah, he did."
"So, you had no choice."
"No choice."
"It was a matter of honor."
"Damn straight… Is that going in the report?"
"If I think it's important."
"It could be… Tell me, Stroker, are you a chump and a nobody to your wife?"
"Don't be ridiculous! My wife doesn't care anything about pool, except that it keeps me out late and makes me breathe in second-hand smoke."
"So, in the role of husband…"
"Listen, Colleen, what the hell does it matter?"
"Your relationship with your wife…"
"I mean, I'm 60 years old. I'm not going to be around very much longer, and nothing we say here is going to change that."
"Nowadays, it's not uncommon for people to live to ninety and beyond. You could…"
"Not this people."
"Why do you say that?"
"It's not in the genes, kid, not in the genes. I've had two operations on my colon and the doctor says I'm lookin' at another one. I've got sugar diabetes. And, now, all of a sudden my doctor says I've got high blood pressure to boot. I'm falling apart, girl."
"What's this about another operation?"
"Oh, I had a colonoscopy a few weeks back and that's what the doctor said."
"And you never mentioned it."
"My wife and I talked about it. She went with me."
"I mean, you never mentioned it during our sessions."
"Dying's not something I like talkin' about."
She sighed. "It's precisely those things you don't like talking about that we should be working on."
"You're a good kid, Colleen, but you just don't get it - your best years are coming, mine are gone. That's just the way it is. Now… know what I think we should be working on?"
"Yes, I'd love to know what you think we should be working on."
"Long straight-in shots… and maybe my banks."
"Well, I doubt that I can help you with that."
"Just my luck."
© 2007 by Ace Toscano
Labels: Ace Toscano, banks, billiards, pool, psychologist, shrink, story, stroker smith, therapy


There was a point in time when the Ponds Pimple Clear Face Wash was my go to daily face wash to keep the acne in check. However, Ponds changed the packaging of this product a few months ago and as far as I know, they changed the formula of the face wash too. I have had a hard time adjusting to the new formula and although it is a fairly decent face wash for the price, it is just not as good as the original formula.
This face wash is specially designed for acne prone skin and the original formula did dry up my pimples pretty quick and reduced the production of oil. The new formula, on the other hand, does get rid of the greasiness but does not shrink the pimples as effectively as before. With the original formula, my skin would start behaving much better in a few days but this one only improves the condition of my acne but doesn't get rid of them completely. My other major qualm with the product is its scent. The original formula had a fresh scent which I quite enjoyed but this one has a pungent herbal smell that lingers on my face, which I genuinely dislike.
If you want my unbiased opinion, without comparing it to the original formula, then I would say that the Ponds Pimple Clear Face wash is one of the most effective budget face washes for acne prone skin in India. It does remove grease and dirt from the pores and makes the skin non-greasy for the next couple of hours. There are more effective face washes for eradicating acne but none are as affordable as this drugstore product. However, since I have been a lover of the original formula, I can't help but compare this new version to its former self and that leaves me a tad disappointed.
Personally, I won't be purchasing this face wash again because of the new, annoying scent. If, however, you are not as sensitive to scents as I am and are on a tight budget, you may want to give this product a go. This is one of the reasonable options for students who are most prone to suffering from breakouts yet cannot afford luxury skin care. Priced at INR 69 for a 50gm tube, this face wash cleanses the face gently yet effectively and is definitely a boon for the oily skinned ladies (save for the scent).
I hope that this review was helpful. You can buy the Ponds Pimple Clear Face Wash here.
Gosh! I hate it when brands reformulate their products to be worse than their original formulas!
I know 🙁 Especially if its one of your favorites!
Is that okay for acnes?
It helps in removing greasiness and dries the acne a bit. It does not prevent breakouts though.
I know right 🙁 I was so upset when I found out!
Ponds is a very hit and miss brand indeed!


text:
Q: Subscribe and unsubscribe to channels after the connection has been made with txredisapi Working with Python, Twisted, Redis and txredisapi.
How can I get the SubscriberProtocol for subscribe and unsubscribe to channels after the connection has been made?
I guess I need to get the instance of the SubscriberProtocol and then I can use "subscribe" and "unsubscribe" methods but don't know how to get it.
Code example:
import txredisapi as redis

class RedisListenerProtocol(redis.SubscriberProtocol):
    def connectionMade(self):
        self.subscribe("channelName")
    def messageReceived(self, pattern, channel, message):
        print "pattern=%s, channel=%s message=%s" %(pattern, channel, message)
    def connectionLost(self, reason):
        print "lost connection:", reason

class RedisListenerFactory(redis.SubscriberFactory):
    maxDelay = 120
    continueTrying = True
    protocol = RedisListenerProtocol

Then from outside of these classes:
# I need to sub/unsub from here! (not from inside de protocol)
protocolInstance = RedisListenerProtocol  # Here is the problem
protocolInstance.subscribe("newChannelName")
protocolInstance.unsubscribe("channelName")

Any suggestion?
Thanks!

The next code solves the problem:
@defer.inlineCallbacks
def subUnsub():
    deferred = yield ClientCreator(reactor, RedisListenerProtocol).connectTCP(HOST, PORT)
    deferred.subscribe("newChannelName")
    deferred.unsubscribe("channelName")

Explanation:
Use "ClientCreator" to get an instance of SubscriberProtocol inside a function with the flag "@defer.inlineCallbacks" and don't forget the "yield" keyword for wait to complete the deferred data. Then you can use this deferred to suscribe and unsubscribe.
In my case I forgot the yield keyword, so the deferred wasn't complete and the method suscribe and unsubscribe didn't work.

A: connecting = ClientCreator(reactor, RedisListenerProtocol).connectTCP(HOST, PORT)
def connected(listener):
    listener.subscribe("newChannelName")
    listener.unsubscribe("channelName")
connecting.addCallback(connected)

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Kigali Greeters are your friends in Kigali who you haven't met yet! Free walks with Kigali Greeters are an excellent way to explore our city. But be careful: Greeters are not tour guides but simply "friends in town".
So… there are no maps, no book guides, open your eyes and just immerse yourself in our daily lives: …thanks to Kigali greeters you will feel like a real Kigalier for a few hours. Send us your request now.
Kigali Greeters is a non-profit project within the Global Greeter Network.
We love our hometown and we like to give you an insight into our personal lives in Kigali. We accompany you through our town – entirely free of charge, as is customary among friends. You will experience very personal and individual walkabouts and you will hear about our workaday lives.
Kigali city has a population of more than 2 million people, this was according to the last population census carried out. It's the capital city of Rwanda situated near the geographic center of the nation. The city has also been the transport hub, economic as well as the cultural hub of Rwanda since it was made a capital city of this country after independence. This city is filled with the provinces of Kigali which enlarged in January as part of the local government. More so, this city's area also covers about 70% of the municipal boundaries of the country.
The city was founded in 1907 by famous Dr. Richard Kandt during the German Colonial rule and was made a capital city in 1962 when the country got its independence. This traditional capital was the main seat of Mwami in Nyanza and the colonial seat was in Butare. Butare was to be chosen as the capital city of Rwanda, however Kigali was chosen because due to its central location. Since this time, the city has grown quickly and it's now an economic, political as well as a cultural Centre of Rwanda. Even though the genocide affected the city in 1994, it has been able to recover to greater heights.


text:
Q: Checkbox Behavior, in directive or in controller? I implemented a behavior of master checkbox (in table header) and entry checkboxes (in table rows), here's my html:

    .
    .
    .
    <form>

            <input type="checkbox" ng-model="param.masterCheckBox" ng-click="param.clickMaster()" />

                <input type="checkbox" ng-model="parameter.checked" ng-click="param.click($index)" />

    </form>

The behavior of master checkbox and row checkboxes was implemented inside a controller (not a controller in a directive). Here is my js file (since this is working, I removed the logic inside the functions already):
app.controller('ParamCtrl', function() {

    this.function1 = function() {...};
    this.function2 = function () {...};
    .
    .
    .
    this.clickMaster = function(){...};
    this.click = function(index){...};

});

I've read many times that DOM manipulations within the controller is not advisable, but should be inside a directive. I'm still not yet fully understanding the directive concepts in AngularJS. I'm not so sure either if checkbox behavior falls under DOM, kindly verify if putting this in a controller is just right. How do I implement a directive version of clickMaster and click functions if putting these in controllers is wrong (or bad practice)?
app.controller('ParamCtrl', function() {...}) that uses this works just fine. However, whenever I alter the controller with
app.controller('ParamCtrl', ['$scope', function($scope) {...}])

or
app.controller('ParamCtrl', function($scope) {...}])

and replace all instances of this with $scope in the source code, the code is not working anymore. In my debugging in Chrome Dev Tools, $scope (in both cases of alteration) has value ChildScope. In code examples I have seen, they would normally use $scope instead of this. Could someone explain why is it working with this and not with $scope?
Thanks.

A: I assume the only thing you do in those functions is setting values on your model so the checkboxes are either checked or unchecked? In that case your approach is valid.
DOM manipulation means you are changing the structure of your DOM tree (the model behind HTML) from inside JavaScript. Examples of DOM manipulation include creating new DOM elements (with document.createElement(<element name>)´ and using a query selector to retrieve a DOM element (either with jQuery or with built ins likedocument.getElementById();´
The idea is to restrict DOM manipulation to directives as these are intended to enhance your HTML and hence this is the semantically correct place to put them (there are other reasons like avoiding memory leaks).


text:
Should Boeing have increased the range of the 717 instead of developing the MAX?
blacksoviet
With the newest engines, could the 717 be stretched to approach the seating capacity of the MAX-8?
The resulting aircraft could be called the 717 Next Generation. Obviously, the range would have to be increased. Which airlines begged Boeing to increase the range of the 717?
Ironically, Boeing refused to increase the range of the 717 because they didn't want to kill the 737-600. The 737-600 was dead anyway. They kept the 737-600 going for a few more years at the expense of killing the 717. Does Boeing regret this?
Should Boeing have abandoned the 737 and focused on the 717 and MD-90 platforms?
I am sure the range of the MD-90 could have been increased with an NG model. A stretched 717 variant could have been launched to replace the 73G and an NG model of the MD-90 could have replaced the 738.
The 739, 757, 762, and 763 could all have been replaced by the NMA.
I have not received confirmation that the 717 tooling has been destroyed.
Re: Should Boeing have increased the range of the 717 instead of developing the MAX?
No. Resurrecting dead designs is not what Boeing should do.
speedbird52
vhqpa
Lol instead of using the 737 let's use the other 1960s designed platform we have at our disposal. The one with an even narrower cross section!
At that point may as well dust of the blueprints for the 727, might be a bit tricky reengining that one though especially #2. Although someone in the 90s (Dee Howard?) managed to shoehorn a RR Tay into #2.
"There you go ladies and gentleman we're through Mach 1 the speed of sound no bumps no bangs... CONCORDE"
KFTG
Just chiming in. No.
vhqpa wrote:
What is the advantage of shoehorning a Tay in the #2 nacelle? Increased range?
Next blacksoviet thread: "Why didn't Boeing NEO the 727?"
blacksoviet wrote:
Well the obvious advantages were it was a lot more efficient and quieter than the original JT8D engines. I don't know about range, but having more efficient engines it stands to reason it would fly further on any given fuel load.
GalaxyFlyer
UPS did the Tay conversion on the 727; wasn't terribly successful.
The 717 was already re-engined with a modern RR engine.
Last edited by GalaxyFlyer on Sun Dec 08, 2019 12:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
VSMUT
Just omit the center engine, make it a 2-engined MD-80 style design. They would actually have been able to put a pair of modern turbofans onto a 727 without all the issues the 737 ran into when trying to cram the LEAP onto the MAX. Should achieve a pretty decent range too.
Stretching it, getting the balance correct and tail strike issues would be a bother though.
Obviously never going to happen, but I love the idea.
asr0dzjq
Absolutely not. The 717 is a dead design and on its way out everywhere. I'm willing to bet that all 717's will be scrapped (possibly with some going to museums) by 2030 (or 2040 if we're lucky). Might as well try to make a 727 Max 8 and 727 Max 9 with 3 CF34-8C's.
Pan Am (B 19-10-1927, D 4-12-1991)
TWA (B 1-10-1930, D 1-12-2001)
Douglas (B 22-7-1921, D 23-5-2006)
WesternDC6B
KFTG wrote:
Or, WesternDC6B - me - will ask about building a DC6 or DC7 with turboprop engines. If they can do it on a Convair, why not a Douglas?
/please, folks. I know the Convair was engineered with the eventual turboprop conversion in mind where the DCs weren't.
A big heart is commendable. An enlarged heart is a medical condition.
PSU.DTW.SCE
In hindsight, you could make the following argument about 20 years ago but the 717 would never have solved in segment of the market, primarily in the 738/739 150-190 seat capacity and range that led to the decision to for the MAX. The 717, even when stretched at best could be a 150 seat aircraft in most configurations and limited to domestic. Then the A220 would come along now anyways.
- Retain the 717, add the 717-300 variant; add a bit of range and capacity and use that to capture the lower-end of the market up to about 150 seats
- Keep the 737NG cash cow going on 73G/738/739
- Pursue a NSA to cover the 150-200 seat range
ExpatVet
I would think the big issue was commonality. A design that has nothing in common with Boeing family would be inherently more expensive to build and support.
L101, 733/4/5/8, 741/2/3 (never managed 744!), MD 80/2/3/8/90, MD11, DHC8/3/Q4, E170, E195, 757, 77W, 763/4, Travel Air 2000. A300/310, A319/320/321, A333, ATR-72, probably a few others I forget. Passenger, not pilot, alas! BUD based.
CowAnon
There were at least 3 proposals from the 1980s:
MD-89: A 152-inch (12.7-foot) proposed stretch of the MD-80 using the V2500 and seating 173 passengers: https://www.flightglobal.com/FlightPDFA ... 202825.PDF
MD-90X: A 25-foot stretch of the MD-80, with 180 seats: https://books.google.com/books?id=-9TQQS3ThQwC&pg=PA96
MD-93: V2500-powered stretch seating 183 passengers: https://www.flightglobal.com/FlightPDFA ... 201898.PDF
Total abandonment seems out of the question because of Southwest Airlines's 737 love, but maybe Boeing could've improved both product families. If you compare the specs of McDonnell Douglas's MD-92 propfan-powered derivative against the current A320neo, the MD-92 still comes out favorably. Rolls-Royce seemed eager to sell an open rotor engine for the 737NG/320ceo successors, so this would've been a way for Boeing to offer product variety in the narrowbody sector instead of just 737s with the lone option of GE engines. (Or maybe Boeing could've put LEAP or GTF engines on the DC9/MD80/717 frame, though I don't think that would've been very attractive.)
On the negative side, the MD-92 range would've been less than for the 737-8 and the A320NEO, but I think the extra range was unneeded or could be successfully increased with higher MTOW. The A220 specs do look slightly better than the MD-91 propfan version, though. That's where the 717/MD-90's smaller wingspan is problematic. A rewing to increase the span by 3 meters would be required unless the newer generation of propfans closed the gap.
asr0dzjq wrote:
Why do posters think the CF-34 powered B727 would work—entirely wrong design. Thrust numbers alone don't describe an engine's characteristics.
I wonder whether people who are suggesting resurrection of Boeing old aircraft are inspired by the Hollywood? Hollywood is rebooting old movies and tv series likes Ghostbusters, Superman, Hawaii 5-0, Magnum PI, etc.
afterburner wrote:
Clearly launching the 737 MAX was a mistake. The wings are too low to the ground for modern turbofan engines. Boeing knew this but they were desperate to appease Southwest. They took a gamble and ended up paying the price.
The 717 and MD-90 designs do not have ground clearance issues. Launching a DC-9 MAX would have been easier than the 737 MAX and it would have bought Boeing more time to develop a clean-sheet 738 replacement.
Boeing should have told Southwest that the 737 is an obsolete platform. It was designed for turbojets. The 737-100 was an excellent design and was loved by Avianca for many years.
rlwynn
Boeing should have told Southwest that the 737 is an obsolete platform. It was designed for turbojets.
No it was not. Why do you say that?
I can drive faster than you
aklrno
Has anyone considered re-engining the Wright flyer with perhaps a 10 foot fuselage stretch and a canopy over the added seats? Threads like this tend to get kind of absurd.
You're gonna have to offer some solid engineering to back up those ideas. Pylon-mounted engine's in tail most certainly have clearance problem—the fuselage AND a balance problem.
IADCA
aklrno wrote:
Not enough structure to take the stretch. Now a 189-seat DC-3 with LEAP engines...
TheWorm123
ExpatVet wrote:
Ultimately the same could he argued with the A220 having 0 parts or cockpit commonality with the A320, A330 or A350. However it's been a lot more successful than I initially thought despite that shortcoming.
752 753 A332
Has anyone considered re-engining the Wright flyer with perhaps a 10 foot fuselage stretch and a canopy over the added seats?
That's not going to work. The tooling is gone...
GalaxyFlyer wrote:
As the MD-90 has shown
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Can you believe Easter is this coming weekend?! Lots of people say Christmas is their favorite holiday, but Easter is my favorite. In addition to it being the holiest day of the year in the Christian faith, it involves precious time with family, beautiful pastel colors, Reese's eggs, pretty dresses, spring weather, Lilly Pulitzer, and Easter basket fun!
I have been traveling so much lately that I am very excited about spending Easter weekend in Southaven with Parker, Bailey, and Rosie. Parker and I love planning out our holidays, so today I'm sharing some Easter essentials with you that will be included in our Easter celebration!
-Easter basket fun (my favorite!)!
I saved the best for last! Yes, I'm 28 and still do Easter baskets. Why quit such a cute and fun tradition?! Blue Door NoCo, the adorable gift shop I worked with for Valentine's Day (see blog post here), sent me the cutest and most unique Easter goodies. AND they gave me another discount code and free shipping code to give you! Use code HALEY10 for 10% off and code FREE for free shipping! Their shipping is amazing. I got my package in less than 48 hours!
The items linked below will be an adorable addition to any Easter basket! Click the words in Italics to be taken directly to the site. And don't forget to type in the discount codes at checkout!
Do you still do Easter baskets? I don't think I will ever outgrow them! Thanks so much for reading! Have a great day!


The beauty of personal finance blogs is that there's something out there for everyone. While MapleMoney's mission is to help all Canadians with various money issues, many other blogs are geared towards a specific topic, like investing, or women's finances.
My guest this week is Harlan Landes, a long time personal finance blogger, and supporter of the money community through the Plutus Awards and Plutus Foundation.
We begin our conversation with a history lesson of sorts, as Harlan takes us down memory lane, to the early days of personal finance blogging, back when AOL was king.
We then fast forward to the present and discuss the modern media landscape. Harlan believes that one of the biggest difficulties today is understanding how to evaluate the information that's coming to you. A lack of media literacy is making society very susceptible to propaganda, and advertising. That's why it's more important than ever to take a critical approach to information that is designed to sway you, to play on your emotions.
Last, but not least, Harlan shares some great ways to find blogs and bloggers that resonate with where you're at on your money journey, one of those being his very own Plutus Awards.
Have you heard the saying, 'what gets measured gets managed'? Our sponsor this week, Borrowell, conducted a recent study that found a correlation between the frequency of checking your credit score, and credit score increases. Head over to Borrowell to get your FREE credit score and report today!
What is the motivation behind the content you're consuming?
You listen to the Maple Money Show, and I hope you also love the Maple Money blog but the beauty of personal finance blogs is that there's something out there for everyone. While Maple Money's mission is to help all Canadians with various money issues, they are great sites dedicated only to investing or women's finances. Or maybe they write with a humor that attracts someone that might not have been interested otherwise. Harlan Landes is possibly the first personal finance blogger and money community supporter through the Plutus Awards and Plutus Foundation. He joins us to inspire you to find blogs and bloggers that resonate with where you're at in your personal finance journey. We'll also discuss how to read online content with a critical eye including whether or not they know what they're talking about and what bias or profit motivation a writer might have.
Welcome to The Maple Money Show, the podcast that helps Canadians improve their personal finances to create lasting financial freedom. This episode was made possible by our sponsors at Borrowell. Have you heard the saying, "What gets measured, gets managed?" Borrowell conducted a study that found a correlation between the frequency of checking your credit score and credit score increases. To begin increasing your credit score head over to maplemoney.com/borrowell. Now let's chat with the man previously known as Flexo and Luke and now, Harlan.
Tom: Hi Harlan, welcome to The Maple Money Show.
Harlan: Hey, Tom. Thanks for having me.
Tom: I wanted to have you on to discuss what people can look for in a blog. You've always been very community focused within the personal finance niche. Can you take us back to the beginning of your internet history and how built up these communities over time?
Harlan: Well, we're going back in time quite a bit here. I started as a middle school kid building communities online. This was before the web. Friends would install modems in their computers. And I would tell them when you get a new computer make sure you get a modem. It would allow them to use their phone line to dial up to other computers. So, we were building these communities online before there was the web. I ended up getting access to the Internet before it was available to a lot of people because my mother worked for a university and she let me play around with the university dial-in system which provided things like newsgroups. The Usenet Newsgroups were ways for people to talk to each other across the world where they could ask professional research related questions. At the time, the only people at the time people who were on the Internet—again, this is before the web, were people like university professors, researchers, scientists and the military. So a 12-year-old could ask a question like, "Is time travel possible?" and get a serious answer debating the physics of time and everything that goes into that, from a physics professor across the world. It was amazing. Then AOL came and gave access to everybody who paid their $10 monthly fee for the CD or whatever it was that they got in the mail and everything just went downhill from there. But actually, it didn't really because the web is great and I kind of moved that whole idea of creating that bulletin board system. I started building web sites and running a web site from my computer in the dorm room. Now we pay people like Bluehost and Amazon for hosting. Back then it was not so strange to actually run the hosting software server on your own computer and have your own IP address. But the web has expanded so much that stuff like that isn't really practical. Anyway, we built websites. Then I started blogging or at least doing something that was kind of like blogging back in 1994 and 1995. Then around 1999 the blogger software came out and everybody became a blogger. Now there are all these websites and everybody's creating their own communities and it's great. So that was the early, early, history of me on the web.
Tom: So let's get into this personal finance idea. Were you the first blogger or at least as far as you know maybe?
Harlan: Yeah, I think I was the first blogger to start a blog that was focused primarily on personal finance. Certainly, I wasn't the first person to talk about money online. And I probably wasn't the first person to blog about money. But as far as I know, I was the first person who created a blog specifically to talk about my financial problems, my journey, how to help myself improve and to just write about money every day. There was another early site called pfblog.com. I'm pretty sure we started around the same time but I think I was out there first. Although, if you looked at the site at the time—at pfblog.com, there were some earlier dated articles that I think he put up afterwards.
Tom: I would also suggest that nobody visit that site because the last time I did it actually tripped my antivirus. It still exists but it might not be very well maintained right now. So you've also built up online communities. Not everyone will understand what it that is but the idea of blog carnivals or other ways of featuring other bloggers and helping people find this content has also led now to things like the Plutus Awards. Could you go into how some of those past sites and the Plutus Awards have helped people find this content?
Harlan: Sure. When I started Consumerism Commentary which was the name of the site I started July 18, 2003, there were no other personal finance sites. But, I was getting a lot of my information, learning a lot and sharing it. A lot of the things I was learning were from sites like CNN Money which usually had some good information on it and the Motley Fool Discussion Boards which were always interesting. Those were some of the places I went to get information or to learn about money myself, and then write about things that I was learning. For some reason, other people also began writing about money in blog form. Over the course of the next few years there became more and more personal finance bloggers. As this group started growing, I would always find these sites and then reach out to people and say, "Hey, how are you doing?" and comment on their site if they allowed comments, because back then blogs didn't have the commenting feature built-in. So we would find ways to communicate. I'd reach out to them, email them or whatever and let them know that I had a site too and that they should come check it out. As a result of communication like that, we kind of build closer relationships and began talking about blogging and the things we could do to get more readers to all of our sites which may not have been our initial intent. Very rarely at that point had I started a website thinking, "Okay, I'm going to start this website but how am I going to get readers?" It just wasn't really all that interesting to me. It was more interesting for me to put something out into the world. If somebody finds it, they find it but I wasn't too concerned with anything beyond that. Anyway, we started talking to all the bloggers. We all talked to each other. And it was kind of the birth of the community. More and more people started doing this so a few of us decided we wanted to help as many people as possible. One way we can do that is by solidifying this idea of a 'network' as part of the community, so we created the Money Blog Network which was me and five or six other bloggers at the time who were seen as some of the top bloggers in personal finance. We just started talking together and sharing ideas. By that point people accepted the whole idea of AdSense and advertising on blogs which wasn't always something that was accepted among the general population. But it was more normal for blogs to accept money from advertisers so we would work with each other, share any leads we got or any other avenues for actually earning money from our websites. This, again, was something that was not really part of my plan when I launched. I knew that some blogs could make money but it just didn't seem like something that was worth putting a lot of effort into at the time.
Tom: Yeah, I didn't really think it was money making venture when I started either. It was a chance to share my angle on personal finance.
Harlan: Yeah, but if you put up some AdSense ads and make back the money that you're spending on hosting then sure, it's worthwhile. It turned out growing quite a bit after that. So the Money Blog Network was out there. And that was one way we could network with each other and create this feeling of a community and help people. There was a cool idea I came across. Someone else was taking the latest articles from all these blogs— and we're talking about probably a couple hundred at this point, and just having a website where people could go and see all the latest posts from these couple of hundred blogs. And he was running ads on the website. Now, I'm all for putting ads on a website if it's your own website and your own content. But here he was taking content (without permission) from a hundred or so bloggers, putting his own ads on it and making money off of someone else's content. Yes, there's the whole idea that he's created this website and that should be worth something. That's fine. So I just decided I wasn't going to complain about this. Instead, what I'll do is I'll take 24 hours; write my own program that will do exactly what he wrote his software program to do. I used resources like different programming packages that would help with this. Anyway, I built a website that did exactly the same thing; no ads. I made it more community-focused; working with the community rather than just taking things without permission and then built that website called, pfblogs.org. That was one of my early community efforts. Another one is the Carnival of Personal Finance. That was a weekly roundup of the best personal finance articles. This is all going to sound familiar because it's been done in a lot of different ways on a lot of different sites. In fact, we're getting to the point we're at the Plutus Awards, we're doing this exact same thing and keeping it on our website. Anyway, the Carnival of Personal Finance ended up being more than just picking five articles a week. It was a lengthy process. Sometimes there were 50 or 60 links included. This ended up being a bad idea SEO-wise. At first it was great community-building because it was hosted by someone else in the community every week. That week they would go through the process of weeding through articles and picking out 20, 30, 40 of their favorites and putting them on a website. I'd gotten the idea from a similar thing in a different niche. Somehow I came across the Carnival of Education. It was basically the same idea. And I thought it was a cool idea. There was a community of bloggers who were all involved in education. Given I'm a part of a community that has bloggers focused on personal finance, we should do this too. And so I brought the idea over to the community and we probably did something like four or five years of The Chronicle of Personal Finance before I let it go to someone else within the community after I sold my website. It just really wasn't the best way to moderate content. It was fine for the time and then other things kind of supplanted it, I guess you could say.
Tom: And nowadays with social media and things like Twitter and stuff that didn't exist at the time—that's sort of an easy way someone can find this content. Let's wait on the Plutus Awards because that's still an active thing. We'll put that at the end. I wanted to ask you what you thought about what attracts people to blogs compared to (here in Canada) the Globe and Mail. What about that personal experience makes people get hooked on these blogs?
Harlan: Two things that I can think of. First of all, there's the personal voice. When you're reading something in The Globe and Mail, CNN or The New York Times… The New York Times doesn't even have their money section anymore as far as I know. That type of content is fantastic for informational stuff, for things that you need to know and great advice for managing your money. You can say the same thing about blogs but the difference is the voice. It's more personal. It'll include personal stories. I used Consumerism Commentary to track my progress over time. A lot of people use their blogs to do the same thing. That, for me, is so much more interesting and personal. And you can make those personal connections with the person who is writing. Or in the case of a podcast, the person who's speaking. That's one of the crucial pieces that attract people and why people should be attracted to this type of writing. The second thing is the editorial process. You are just a lot freer to be yourself, to let your personality shine through and, from a reader's perspective that comes through. There's immediacy to it. Of course, a lot of the new sites now are a lot more immediate than they used to be. It used to be you wouldn't see an article published online until it was in the newspaper the same day which meant that they couldn't react to things happening the day of, as readily as they do now. But even as the mainstream media, big media websites have gotten a lot more nimble, they still can't beat the immediacy of blogs. You just sit down—and you don't even sit down at a computer anymore, you just type up your blog post on your phone. It's so easy and quick. It's not a perfect system. There's a purpose to having an editorial process in place. It makes sure that you've checked your facts or that somebody has checked your facts and you get another pair of eyes on it. You get formatting. There are so many things that go into the editorial process that are important. But at the same time, with a personal financial blog there's just so much you can react to quickly and not have to worry so much about the editorial process. Of course, you still want to get all your facts right, and you want to know as a reader that what you're reading has been verified and fact-checked and it's someone you can trust. But just the immediacy of blogs is something that's really attractive.
Tom: Yeah. One of the things that can be a negative of blogs is knowing which sites you can trust. Granted, you can say the same about mainstream media as well. But with blogs, a lot of people if they're not used to this kind of format, there's a little bit more concern about things like how the blogger is making money or do they even know what they're talking about if they're speaking from authority and not from their own personal experience. Can you tell us how we can look at this with a critical eye to make sure what we're reading is factual and meaningful?
Harlan: I think this gets to the root of a concept called media literacy. We talk about financial literacy a lot because we are financial bloggers and know that it's important for kids to learn about managing their money at an early age so they can survive as an adult. But one thing that we don't talk about too much but is starting to have more of a role in schools is this concept of media literacy. How do you know whether what you're watching on TV, what you're reading—how do you critically evaluate the information that's coming to you? I believe media literacy is a bigger problem in the modern world even than financial literacy. I don't know exactly where to begin with teaching somebody how to comprehend and understand the motivation behind any piece of information that you're receiving. It also goes to explain why, as a society, we're so susceptible to things like propaganda, advertising and any type of information that is designed to sway somebody. It plays on people's emotions. It is just so attractive. People will be susceptible to messages that they're receiving without having a critical approach. It's important to maintain a critical eye and be fully understanding of more than just the content that's in your face when you're looking at blogs, whether you're watching a TV show or reading the news or an opinion piece. I think it comes down to understanding what the motivation is behind the piece of content you're consuming. Is it trying to get me to have an opinion? Is it trying to get me to make a decision? Is it trying to get me to spend money? Is it using me as a way to earn money for just being a reader of this because now I'm being counted as part of the audience? What is the motivation there? A lot of that can be hard to figure out. We tend to rely on things like FTC disclosures to tell us what we're about to read is informational and my opinion but also I may be paid if you end up buying something off this website. We can look for things like that but that's not always going to be clear. I think it's really important as consumers of content, of media, to have a good understanding of what someone's motivation is when they're putting together a piece of content or media that you're consuming. That is so hard to do because a lot of that can be easily hidden. You've got to really consider the source and learn about it before you go ahead and make any decisions on it that might affect your life in a way that you don't want it to be affected.
Tom: For sure. Here in Canada we don't have the FTC disclosures but I'm a huge fan of them. It's just good to put that out there and to explain that this is how the site makes money. The fact that it doesn't change our opinion in the post.
Harlan: And the question is, does the FTC disclosure work? First of all, does the fact that I'm getting paid by Chase, for example, for someone who comes to my website and sees a review of a Chase credit card and decide to click on over to Chase and sign up for the credit card based on the positive review I gave on the website. How do I know that my opinion hasn't been affected by not even the fact that there is a financial transaction, but the potential of there being a financial transaction? People might not even have affiliate relationships or might not be getting paid from credit cards but they're thinking that some day they might want to be a person who gets paid for writing their reviews of credit cards. So, they want to be honest. I struggled with this too. I made it clear every time I wrote about credit cards—as clear as I could, that there are certain people that I would recommend credit cards for and there are certain people that I would not recommend credit cards for. And I tried to make that distinction. Regardless of that, how much of what I wrote was still affected by the fact that I was either getting paid or could have been getting paid for a successful lead generation. I think it's something that you have to consider even when there's no clear relationship with an advertiser.
Tom: Yeah, I've been questioned on this too. And it's good because people should be looking at this critically but I wish I could be as up front as showing what I get paid because in no way am I ordering things based on who pays the highest or if I get paid at all. About half the credit cards on my site there's no relationship with. But it's hard to fully get that across in a blog post. People email me and ask though. And it's a fair question; is your number one card just what pays the highest? In the top two categories I write about, the number one card is literally what's in my wallet which makes me feel okay with that and justified. I can actually recommend the cards I use so it's totally a fair question.
Harlan: Yeah. And it's only one of the questions. Just because someone is getting paid doesn't mean that the information is not accurate or not useful or is biased in some way. It's looking at the bigger picture and figuring out what information you can trust and if there's anything in there that you can't trust.
Tom: For sure. Can we move on to the Plutus Awards now?
Tom: I want to point out one of my favorite things about this. I don't want to steal your thunder by talking about it but my favorite thing is the fact that it is "peer" reviewed. The people that are winning and even nominated (I believe) pass through this panel of peers. Those that go on to be nominated or win, there is a process there where if someone's reviewing the Plutus Award site they can trust in those sites a little bit more than something that's totally unknown. In your own words, can you tell us how people can use the Plutus Awards, the whole process, the site and everything? Just as a regular reader that's sort of looking for new blogs?
Harlan: This is a perfect segway, I think, because we're talking about how you trust the things you read. Because of the peer review process for the Plutus Awards, I feel if you take a look at the finalists and you take a look at the winners you can find a selection of the absolute best and some of the most trustworthy places to find financial type of content. Whether its blogs, podcasts, videos or whatever it is, we've got it at the Plutus Awards. Everything has been put through a process to determine which ones really are the best. Of course, it changes every year but the process doesn't change every year. The process is very similar. This is what we've had in place for a long time. We have a group of anywhere between 30 and 60 volunteers who review submissions and entries from all across the web for the best financial content out there. It's broken into groups and reviewed. It would be kind of crazy if we had each person on the panel reviewing tens of dozens of submissions in 30 categories. That would just be way too unmanageable for everybody. So we have it split up so everybody has a reasonable amount of consideration to do. There's a voting process that takes place within the panels. It's kind of like the Academy of Motion Pictures where there is a smaller group of people that is representative of the wider community. Although, we try to be a little more representative of the wider community than say the Academy of Motion Pictures. But we do try to take diversity of content and a whole bunch of different aspects of the community into account when we do this. We have this group of people who vote on the submissions. We end up with a group of finalists and then there's a final vote to determine the winners in each category. So it's a great way to find the right blog that matches the content you're looking for or the personality you're looking for. By looking through the Plutus Awards and the selection of winners and finalists you are guaranteed to find something that speaks to you and presents great information the way you want to consume it and is entertaining at the level that you want it to be; is informational at the level that you want it to be, and is all around just a great community of their own to be a part of.
Tom: It's been great. I think people be very inspired to go find some more blogs. I'm glad they're listening to Maple Money Show but there are other things out there so I'm happy for them to go check out the Plutus Awards site and find some other sites. Can you let everyone know what else you've been up to, especially with the Plutus Foundation?
Harlan: This is our 10th year with a Plutus Awards so this is a big year for us. We're really excited about celebrating that. But a few years ago me and a few others built the Plutus Foundation to be around the Plutus Awards and it's a financial literacy, non-profit, but the focus for us is on the financial media—this community we've been talking about since but we started at the beginning of the call when we talked about the 2003 Consumers Commentary. This whole financial blogging, podcasting, video community. We want to support them as they go out and create their own personal financial literacy projects in their communities or online. Or if they have efforts we will support them with different types of resources whether it is money, content or social media help. Whatever it is we can provide to help them that is what we do. One of our own programs which we just launched in November last year with a preview and then the first one this year is Plutus Voices which is sort of like a networking event where there's also a couple of speakers who talk for a short time but they talk on really important topics. There's an interesting element to these events that gets everybody involved. We don't like to really talk about it too much until people get there so they can kind of react to it without any kind of preconceived notions. But it's a really fun activity. We are bringing that to Phoenix and L.A. in the spring. And in the fall we'll be at some other locations throughout the country.
Tom: Sounds great. Thanks for being on the show.
Harlan: Thanks for having me.
Thanks Harlan, for the advice on how to dive into the online pool of personal finance blogs. You can find the show notes for this episode at maplemoney.com/harlanlandes. If you subscribed to the Maple Money newsletter recently you may have noticed that the links to all the downloadables were broken. Sorry for the issues but they're now not only fixed, I used this opportunity to update the look to match the Maple Money site. I'll leave a link to the download section in the next few emails that go out so you can hop back there and get your budget files and checklists. And if you haven't subscribed to the newsletter, head over to maplemoney.com/newsletter (now with working links) and we'll see you next week.