Asthma was one of the great decisive factors in Proust's development. Because of it he was constantly treated as an invalid (and regarded himself as permanently sickly). Because of it he missed many months of school, was afraid to travel, and constantly had to cancel plans to see friends. Because of it he spent many days in a row, even weeks, lying perfectly still, struggling to breather. And because of it, at least indirectly, he died an early death at fifty-one. [...]Because of it he was forced to spend much of his life in bed. [...] Because of it he was forced to embrace solitude, but it also provided him with a ready excuse for keeping people at bay when he wanted to work. Because of it his family and friends and servants were tyrannized by his needs, sometimes even his whims.
I don't want to imply that illness makes writers great, because I don't think that is necessarily true, but because of his asthma he was able to write in the beginning of Swann's Way (Davis, pg 4 hardcover) about the invalid waking in a strange hotel in the middle of the night, seeing the light under the door and thinking it is almost morning. Proust writes "he will be able to ring, someone will come help him. The hope of being relieved gives him the courage too suffer." But the hope doesn't last long when the invalid realizes the lights are being turned off and the servants are going to bed and "he will have to suffer the whole night through without remedy."
For some reason I find this passage of less than a paragraph beautiful and sad and touching. It stirs up compassion and understanding and pity in me. The images shimmer up to my consciousness from time to time during my day and make me stop and think about being unwell and alone in a strange room. I think it is the line "The hope of being relieved gives him the courage to suffer" is what gets me most. That is a line that could not be written by someone who never experienced a major of chronic illness.
The beauty of Proust. This has been my experience, over many other authors, that his words submerge in my subconscious and re-emerge.
How interesting -- I don't know much about Proust, so I'm grateful for biographical details and their significance. I can see exactly how having asthma would shape so many things in Proust's life -- especially the solitude and time available to him. It's terrible to suffer from illness, but we can be grateful for the ways his illness fostered his writing.
Louise DeSalvo has written about how reading Proust helped her understand her own asthma - she sees the rhythms of the asthmatic's breathing in the rhythms of his prose.
Thanks for that tip teabird, a fascinating thing to investigate!


On behalf of the university and Office of International Cooperation, welcome to join the NCCU family. Please note the following information for the upcoming International Student Orientation on Feb. 18th.
You will be given important information regarding registration (payment), course selection, health exam, insurances, scholarships and university facilities, etc. This is also a very good opportunity to meet other international students, OIC staff members and student ambassadors.


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To provide for the continued existence of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research and for the management thereof by a Board; and for matters connected therewith.
Last update: April 2014
The Scientific Research Council Act, 1988 (Act No. 46 of 1988) has been amended by Science and Technology Laws Amendment Act, 2014 (Act No. 7 of 2014), Government Gazette 37594, Notice No. 321, dated 26 April 2014.
The Scientific Research Council Act, 1988 (Act No. 46 of 1988) has been amended by Science and Technology Laws Amendment Act, 2011 (Act No. 16 of 2011), Government Gazette
The Scientific Research Council Act, 1988 (Act No. 46 of 1988) has been amended by Measurement Units and Measurement Standards Act, 2006 (Act No. 18 of 2006), Government Gazette 29752, Notice No. 275, dated 28 March 2007.
The Scientific Research Council Act, 1988 (Act No. 46 of 1988) has been amended by General Law Amendment Act, 1996 (Act No. 49 of 1996), Government Gazette 17477, Notice No. 1601, dated 4 October 1996.
The Scientific Research Council Act, 1988 (Act No. 46 of 1988) has been amended by Scientific Research Amendment Act, 1990 (Act No. 71 of 1990).
The Scientific Research Council Act, 1998 (Act No. 46 of 1988) has been added to the website.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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Witcher 3 mod recreates The Witcher 1's prologue with updated graphics
November 13, 2017 1 min read
It's hard to believe that The Witcher is ten years old. Geralt's gone from a gaunt, brooding monster hunter to one of the best, most complex leading characters around in just a decade's time. His journey may be over, but a new Witcher 3mod allows players to reflect on his past.
Nexus Mods user erxv and a crack team of modders recently released the "Witcher 1 Prologue Remastered," a nifty mod that recreates the first hour of The Witcher in Wild Hunt's engine. It's a blessing for fans who might have missed out on the first game -- it's not a bad game by any means, it's just outdated and cumbersome compared to its predecessors.


Franchises: The Road to Financial Freedom?
Recently, we acted for a lovely couple in another business deal-turned-dispute. In this case, it was a franchise business. The parties had agreed on a price, the vendor had even offered a discount on account of franchise transfer fees, and everyone was looking forward to a quick settlement. Our clients were naturally excited about the prospect of their new money-making venture, and in particular, the low franchise fees and costs, relatively huge revenues and overall simplicity of the business that was promised to them (and advertised). However, they wanted to have things checked, just in case.
Our first step was of course to review the agreements and conduct some due diligence. Fairly quickly, we discovered that the vendor had lied about the existence of certain intellectual property, the stock to be included was unidentifiable, the asset values were unsubstantiated and their depreciation had most likely been claimed, and the financial records of the business were virtually illegible, although just legible enough to determine that the current owners had been intermingling their personal and business expenses in a somewhat questionable manner, and that the profitability of the business was not even close to what was promised. In fact, it appeared that the business would run at a loss for an extended period. Given what was described, these matters were material to the deal from our clients' perspective. Further, there were certain other essential documents that would not be provided until after completion, which makes very little logical sense and raised further skepticism in this case.
Subject to any tax implications the above might have had for our clients, on one view, some or all of these issues could be fixed and fall away following the handover and with some consistent, proper, management. However, the franchise agreement proved critical. As we usually find, apart from extremely stringent conditions leaving little to no control for our clients, it required payment of a relatively enormous amount of ongoing fees, and the requirement to incur huge, virtually upfront capital expenditure and ongoing fees, predominantly in the sole discretion of the vendor. There were also numerous rights the vendor had at their complete discretion, that were incapable of predicting or quantifying on the basis of the agreement. Moreover, there was little to no security for our clients in terms of ongoing terms of the agreement past what was left of the current term they were buying into, protection from local competition and so forth. Obviously, this was a complete surprise to our clients, and contrary to the deal that was put to them.
Our clients decided very quickly that they needed to exit the deal. However, because of what was promised to them, they had paid a deposit to the vendor to "take the business off the market", with the deposit expressed to be non-refundable. They had also entered into the "in-principle" agreement to purchase the business at the agreed purchase price.
We were able to successfully argue that it was an implied term of the agreement that it was subject to the formal terms and conditions to be provided by way of the documents to come, including the contract for sale, its special conditions and the franchise agreement. Alternatively, we argued that a contract had not been formed because of this condition. This allowed our clients to exit from the transaction, but the argument will not always be open to anyone, depending on the circumstances in each case.
We also had several legal arguments for the immediate return of the deposit, in light of the significant misrepresentations made by the vendor about material aspects of the business. The law was on our side. However, as can happen in any negotiation, the vendor dug their heals in and refused to comply, meaning we would have had to have commenced Court proceedings to retrieve the deposit back. In this case, considering Court costs and the risk that legal fees would not ultimately be indemnified by the vendor, our clients decided it was not commercial to pursue, and effectively forfeited their deposit (2.5% of the purchase price).
1. There will generally always be more than meets the eye when buying into an existing franchise or entering a new franchise agreement. Your first port of call should be to have the franchise agreement reviewed carefully.
2. Never make any unconditional offers without first conducting all due diligence. If you feel you absolutely have to make or accept an offer to secure an opportunity, always express the offer or acceptance to be subject to the terms and conditions of the formal contract.
3. Where possible, always avoid paying non-refundable deposits. If a vendor really does have other prospective purchasers lined up, they won't be worried about having to return a deposit if the deal falls through. If the vendor insists, always try to define the events in which the deposit will be non-refundable so as to allow for a refund if due diligence and / or a contract review shows certain pre-contractual representations to be untrue.
4. Before going too far down the franchise road, give some serious consideration to whether a franchise is the best option, or whether you could establish and run another business on your own. By their nature, they will generally always be significantly more expensive to run.
5. Always have a lawyer read the fine print. There will be discretionary charges and fees, conditions, rules and so forth in the franchise agreement that could be deal-breakers, and often are invisible to the lay person.
If you are having trouble or need some advice with any franchise, business, corporate or commercial issues, feel free to contact us.
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L'F100 è una famiglia di propulsori a turboventola con postbruciatore progettato dalla Pratt & Whitney ed utilizzato negli aerei da combattimento militari F-15 e F-16. Di grande successo, ne sono stati prodotti oltre 7.000 esemplari, di cui 5.000 in servizio, superando le 20 milioni di ore di volo e raggiungendo ottimi livelli di affidabilità.

Sviluppo
La prima versione prodotta, chiamata F100-PW-100, venne progettata nel 1968 su commissione dell'aeronautica militare statunitense per il caccia F-15 Eagle e venne impiegata per la prima volta nel 1972. Rappresentò un balzo in avanti nella tecnologia dei propulsori a turboventola, ma presentò alcuni problemi iniziali. In particolare stalli e difficoltà nell'accensione del postbruciatore, che furono in seguito risolti.

Il successivo sviluppo, rappresentato dal modello F100-PW-200, presenta delle performance molto simili al modello 100. Equipaggia l'F-16 Fighting Falcon.

Il modello F100-PW-220 fu introdotto nel 1986 portò molti miglioramenti tra cui una maggiore affidabilità e minore manutenzione tramite nuove tecnologie metallurgiche.

Il modello F100-PW-229 fu introdotto nel 1992 per equipaggiare la variante F-15E detta Strike Eagle, una riconfigurazione dell'F-15 Eagle in modalità cacciabombardiere. Questa evoluzione trae vantaggio dalle tecnologie sviluppate per le famiglie di propulsori F119 usata nell'F-22 Raptor e F135 usata nell'F-35 Lightning II.

Versioni

F100-PW-100
Usato sulle prime versioni dell'F-15 chiamate F-15 A e F-15 B.

Specifiche:
Spinta: 65,26 kN - 106.0 kN (con postbruciatore)
Peso: 1370 kg
Lunghezza:
Bypass: 0,72:1
Rapporto compressione: 25:1

F100-PW-200
Usato sulle versioni dell'F-15 chiamate F-15 C e F-15 D e sui modelli F-16 A e F-16 B.

F100-PW-220
Usato sulle versioni dell'F-15 chiamate F-15 C e F-15 D e sui modello F-16 C e F-16 D prodotti dal 1984 fino al 1991.

Specifiche:
Spinta: 65,26 kN - 105,7 kN (con postbruciatore)
Peso: 1467 kg
Lunghezza: 4,85 m
Bypass: 0,6:1
Rapporto compressione: 25:1

F100-PW-220E
Kit di aggiornamento per i modelli che possiedono la versione 100 e 200 per dotarli delle prestazioni fornite dalla versione 220.

F100-PW-229
Usato nella variante F-15 E dell'F-15 e nelle ultime versioni dei modelli F-16 C e F-16 D. Nell'aprile del 2008 l'F100-PW-229 è stato scelto anche per alimentare la seconda serie di F-15K della Korea del Sud.

Specifiche:
Spinta: 79,18 kN - 129,45 kN (con postbruciatore)
Peso: 1621 kg
Lunghezza: 4,85 m
Bypass: 0,36:1
Rapporto compressione: 32:1

F100-PW-232
Attualmente l'ultima evoluzione della famiglia F100, presentata nel 2002. Rappresenta un potenziamento della versione 229 attraverso una ventola più grande e più efficiente.

Specifiche:
Spinta: 96 kN - 144,5 kN (con postbruciatore)
Peso: 1860 kg
Lunghezza: 4,83 m
Bypass: 0,34:1
Rapporto compressione: 35:1

Note

Altri progetti

Collegamenti esterni

Motori a getto
Motori aeronautici statunitensi
Motori turboventola

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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We have researched more than 100 mommy blogs and came up with a list of 21 best blogs in India. Blogging is a great way of connecting with other people and one of best way of making passive income online by working from home.
We recommend more moms to come forward and start sharing their parenting journey with the world. You can take out some time when your baby is sleeping or started going to school. You can connect with mom bloggers in our list who may support you in your initial blogging days (check their about page for their contact information).
There is no ranking but we sorted the list based on the popularity and usefulness to the mums.
Sangeetha started her blog during her pregnancy phase to share with the fellow mom and mom-to-be's her journey of being a mom; a working mom.
In the year 2014, She quit her corporate career to be a full-time professional parenting and lifestyle blogger. Around 3,00,000 moms visit her blog every month for reading articles pertaining to pregnancy, baby n mom care, parenting, baby food recipes.
Mansi started her blog to help parents make informed decisions and is today India's most trusted source of information among parents.
She is a mom of two kids, always on the go to make life simple for parents and shares reviews about new products, recipes, places to visit, things to do and most important have fun with your kids. Kidsstoppress is now an enormously successful brand and you can watch their videos on Youtube.
Shruti is a writer, blogger, entrepreneur, a published (co)author, and struggling to find the balance transitioning from a full time working mom to a now stay – at – home -MOM. She quit her day job (in Sept 2015) am now pursuing her greatest passion. She shares home projects, easy recipes, parenting tips, kids crafts, and more.
Dr.Hemapriya, a.k.a the "Doctor Mommy" is a medical doctor by profession, no longer into active medical practice as her two little moppets keep her pretty much busy. But, this has not stopped her from putting her medical knowledge to good use. She brings her medical knowledge to address parenting issues for new and recent mommies.
Priya started ShishuWorld as an idea to have a go-to place for Indian parents and parents to be , who are away from their families, either in India or abroad. To look at parenting, the Indian way. Combining our age-old traditions which have been proven for aeons, as well as modern advice which is relevant for current times.
Priya is an ex-techie with over 10 years of experience in the field of software and she is now a full-time mommy and a blogger. Over 100,000 parents visit her youtube channel and blog every month for articles on baby and toddler food & recipes, monthly food charts, home remedies for kids, simple craft ideas as well as practical advice for mothers to keep their sanity.
Umamaheswari Anandane started her blog with Vedic maths being her priority and gradually writing about diverse topics in depth suiting her lifestyle around her family and children. She even contributed articles to the number of brands and magazines being considered one of the influential mommy bloggers. One unique aspect of her blog is involving her kids in her posts be it creative writing or drawing/crafts. As her posts involve everything around daily life which many people can relate to, she has a decent traffic to her blog reading articles about parenting and lifestyle.
She is working as a certified lactation counsellor and a baby wearing promoter. 1000's of moms visit her blog every month for reading articles about baby led solids, potty training, cloth diapering, breastfeeding, co-sleeping, kids' book reviews and a common sense approach to parenting.
Chetna started blogging on MomJuction where she shares information from getting pregnant to taking care of teens. She put all her efforts to simplify the journey of parenthood by defining different stages of childhood into five major categories – Baby, Toddler, Kid, Preteen and Early Teen.
Jaishri started her blog to help moms raise healthy and happy babies. She along with her entire team of moms share their true stories and tips which include Baby food recipes, product reviews, pregnancy and post-natal care tips, and new topics like Travel and Fashion.
She is working as an IT professional. Over 80K moms visit her blog every month for reading articles about parenting, pregnancy, baby food recipes, babycare, toddlers and a lot more.
Neha is a full-time happy mom of three years old son. She raised her child without any help of elders and she help other moms who do not have support of family members. Initially she read and subscribed baby care blogs and websites to understand mother n baby care in the best possible way and now she is contributing to mom community.
Prerna became first point of contact amongst friends and family for kid's related advice because she was the first one to have kids in her friend circle. She realised the potential when her blogs with mommy advice were shared by emails amongst friends like a bible. Slowly but steadily, it has taken it's own identity and today she is a full-time-work-at-home mommy blogger.
Her blog is all about her personal experiences and the blog posts are a piece of her each time.
Dr. Sania started her lifestyle blog – all things GUD! to share some worthy experiences & thoughtful insights with her readers. She believes being a hands-on mother of a 9 year old has taught her better things in life than heavy medical books ever did! The "Being Mommy" section of her blog receives heavy traffic where she shares parenting tips, easy recipes and health issues prevalent in kids.
Kejal started BeingMomma to help the new Indian mom through her most exciting but confusing phase of motherhood, that is from pregnancy to toddlerhood.
She has a very active FB page with more than 35k moms and she has over 30K site visits from readers who want insights on various topics related to parenting. She has over 30 professionals writing on her blog which include doctors, nutritionists, counsellors etc.
Menaka started her blog in 2008 to share her knowledge about the various ways of keeping modern mothers updated about the lost Indian methods of parenting and natural living. She has recently become a student pursuing PhD in Agricultural Microbiology and is a full-time blogger and a content developer. Around 10,000 moms visit her blog every month for reading articles about various momma worries.
In 2014, Nancy had this tiny and delicate girl in her hands. The sweet and sour experience of motherhood made her start her articles on parenting and fitness post motherhood.
She is working as a Management professional in an MNC in Gurgaon. About 1000+ number of moms visit her blog every month to find articles on parenting and fitness tips.
Swapna is a science graduate, an MBA in marketing but she quit her job after becoming mom. She loves writing about parenting and helping other moms. You can find parenting tips, product reviews, fun activities for kids, birthday party, decor ideas and interesting tidbits on her blog.
Nidhi is an architect by profession but now stay at home mom. She loves to cook and share delicious recipes on her blog. A must to check blog for healthy recipes even if your kid does not want to eat vegetables.
Rashmie runs her blog to share her experiences of raising her seven year old daughter, Pari. She is homeschooling Pari and share a totally different perspective of educating children. Learn more about natural living, holistic living and unschooling.
Kiddie Stories 365 is all about imaginative, simple and easy to narrate stories for kids. These stories are written by Aditi Bose – a mother who loves to engage her child with simple and imaginative tales about various things.
Anshu believes that bringing up a child all alone is no mean feat which she is learning the hard way. She shares her experiences with you, her hits and misses, moments of joy and despair and her life after the baby.
Amruta started her blog and Youtube channel to pursue her passion. She loves to document her Montessori – inspired journey on her YouTube channel & blog and has helped 1000's of moms to enjoy this journey at their homes.
She is the first Indian mother to start a YouTube channel on Early Learning and Montessori.
Let me know which is your favourite blog in the comments.
I'm so surprised and honored to see my blog on this list. Thanks so much for thinking of me. I really appreciate it to baby.
It is very helpful for every mother. Thank you for your points.
Thanks for sharing this list with us. Awesome valuable thoughts about mom.
Mom is really playing a very big role for crib the baby.
I have a question: How long time can we give breast milk to the newborn baby?
Thank you for sharing best moms world here through this article. I have bookmarked this list of moms blogger for sharing parenting blogs.
Thanks for sharing a valuable post us.
Really good information shared with us.
Its really helpful for moms and parents.keep Going Aloka .
Thank's Aloka for sharing such lovely bloggers stories. Most of them are must follow. Keep up the great work. Keep helping, keep rocking !
Good Post! Thanks for sharing such a valuable post about pregnancy mom's, really these are very helpful. We will follow these updates and tips.
Hi. This was an interesting read. Appreciate what your website is doing. I am a blogger and author (Book due for release next year). I tend to write humorously and this outlook has crafted my writing style as well as my views on parenting and raising my 3 year old. I would love to write a guest post for you as starters. Do let me know if this is something that interests you and your team.
Thank you so much for the great blog sharing with us.. Very good information.
Thank you for sharing this list. All the mommies are amazing. And their blogs help a lot 🙂 Being a mom blogger myself, these ladies inspire me everyday.
There are really very helpful blogs. I'm not here but I'm very happy to see great list of mommy blogger. Keep it continue!
The breastfeeding week has ended and with it, all the articles 'enlightening' us about the importance of mother's milk and baby feeding have ended too. The world has celebrated breastfeeding and now the joy is only yours – the moms.
not sure if it classifies as a mom Blog, but I guess some mom is behind this cute girls vlog and toy reviews, you need to check it out. Some of the stuff is really cute and interesting.
These blogs are really wonderful. Especially it is about mothers so more reason to like it.
These blogs are really amazing and interesting, thanks for such lovely blogs.
Thank you for your kind words. Do keep visiting our website regularly.
Great post shared i really need this post your blog is very useful to me.
Awesome blog. I've been read all the comments and went through the experience of all the moms. Frankly speaking, I would like to share one of my personal experience with you all which will help you to feed your baby. I'm a mom of a 7 months old baby girl and she was born weak. After trying the doctors prescription, I was fed up because my baby was not healthy. I was recommended by a friend of mine to use happibo products. When I started using the products and found that the products are worth buying. I'm really very happy with the products as my baby loves the food and she is healthy now.
Nyc collection, this blog includes lot many things that every mother should know.
It is very helpful for every mother.Thank you for your points.
Thanks Baishali. Compliments by users such as you, is what keeps us going.
Thank you posting this helpful blog on the best blogs for mothers. I browsed through a few of them and was really impressed by the content. A lot of helpful tips and suggestions can be gained from these blogs. Looking forward to read your next post.
Hi, quite a useful read. All your articles are pretty useful for a reader. I am bookmarking your website for further reads.
amazing list… I think you should add http://www.motheropedia.com to the list too amazing resource for parents and mommies.
What a wonderful list of inspiring fellow mom-bloggers.
I have gone through your site.Moms are really busy in their busy schedule.Blogging can reduce their stress and help to be connected.We also run a website for moms health and food.For more informatio please visit to our website.
I am also a blogger.Can I write for your website?
Good job mommies… You all are an inspiration for new comers like us.
Excellent post. Thanks for sharing a nice post with us. I read your full article.
Thank's Aloka for sharing these stories, blogs and their mommy experiences with us.
Hello Pardeep. Thanks for the much needed list. Lovely to be mentioned with these awesome bloggers.
Thank you babygogo.in lovely to be featured amongst all these beautiful mommies☺.
Your blog is appreciable Prerna.
Thank you Pardeep for the mention!
Delighted to be a part of the list. Thanks!!
Good to have you in the list of awesome mom bloggers.
I appreciate the work that you are doing for mom community.
You can start writing for us if you wish. I will contact you via email.
You have an awesome blog, Aloka. Keep helping moms!!


The which command performs a search for the R executable using the system PATH. RStudio will therefore by default bind to the same version that is run when R is executed from a terminal.
For versions of R installed by system package managers this will be /usr/lib/R. For versions of R installed from source this will typically (but not always) be /usr/local/lib/R.
Note that this change will not take effect until the server is restarted.
The section above describes how RStudio Server locates the global default version of R. It's also possible to specify alternate versions of R either by user or by group. The R Versions section describes this in more detail.
If it exists this script will be executed prior to the bash shell that launches the R session.
R sessions inherit environment variables that are explicitly exported from the profile scripts described above. It's also possible to append paths to the LD_LIBRARY_PATH environment variable using the rsession-ld-library-path option (see previous section for details).
Another source of environment variables are PAM sessions. On Debian/Ubuntu systems, the default PAM profile run by RStudio Server includes the environment variables defined in /etc/security/pam_env.conf and /etc/environment. To learn more about setting environment variables with PAM you should consult the PAM Sessions section as well as the documentation on the pam_env module here: http://linux.die.net/man/8/pam_env.
This example uses the nice command to run all R sessions with a lower scheduling priority. See http://linux.die.net/man/1/nice for more details on nice. Note that for nice in particular it's possible to accomplish the same thing using user and group profiles (and even specify a custom priority level per user or group). See the User and Group Profiles section for more details.
This configuration specifies that by default users will run on cores 1 to 4 with a limit of 100 processes and 2GB of virtual memory. It also specifies that members of the powerusers group will run on cores 5 to 16 with an elevated nice priority and a limit of 4GB of memory. Finally, the user jsmith is configured to use a different version of R from the system default.
Note that the /etc/rstudio/profiles file is processed from top to bottom (i.e. settings matching the current user that occur later in the file always override ones that appeared prior). The settings available within /etc/rstudio/profiles are described in more depth below.
The default value if none is explicitly specified is 120 minutes.
To configure the amount of idle time to wait before killing and destroying sessions you can use the session-timeout-kill-hours option. This allows you to specify when a session should automatically be cleaned up when it has been idled, allowing you to automatically reclaim temporary disk space used by the sessions, and to stop their processes and children.
The default value if none is explicitly specified is 0 hours, meaning sessions will never be killed and destroyed automatically.
NOTE: A session is considered to be idle if it has not received input from the user even if the session is in the process of running a computation. This means that sessions can be destroyed while important computations are executing. The user whose session is cleaned will also lose all unsaved code and data.
If you have users or groups that consistently require more compute resources than others you can use profile settings to reserve CPUs (cpu-affinity) as well as raise overall scheduling priority (nice).
Scheduler behavior around nice priorities varies by system. For more details see nice use and effect.
Profiles can also be used to specify limits on available memory as well as the maximum number of processes and open files.
Note that this value sets the amount of virtual memory that can be used by a process. Virtual memory includes code (i.e. shared libraries) loaded by the process as well as things like memory mapped files, so can often consume several hundred megabytes even for a vanilla R session. Therefore, you want to be sure not to set this threshold too low (in no case should you set it below 1024).
Note that users need to be able to create a minimum number of processes in order to use RStudio Server so we don't recommend setting this value below 25.
Note that r-version specifies the full path to the directory where R is installed.
See the R Versions chapter for additional details on running multiple versions of R on a single server.
RStudio Server Professional enables users to have multiple concurrent R sessions on a single server or load balanced cluster of servers (the open-source version of RStudio Server supports only a single session at a time).
You can start a new R Session using the New Session command from the Session menu (or the corresponding toolbar button near the top-right of the IDE).
You can also open an existing RStudio project in a new R session by using the Open Project in New Session command. When switching projects there is also a button on the right side of the projects menu that lets you specify that the project should be opened in a new session rather than within the current one.
You can review all currently running sessions and switch between them using the Sessions toolbar near the top-right of the IDE.
R Sessions are long-running tasks that continue to be available until you explicitly quit them (you can think of them as you'd think of multiple top-level RStudio windows running on the desktop). This means that you can kickoff a long running job in one session and then switch to another session, revisiting the original session later to check on it's progress. As is also possible on the desktop, you can navigate between different projects and working directories within a session.
Sessions will suspend automatically when they are idle and then be automatically resumed next time they are accessed. To permanently quit a session you can use the Quit Session command located on the File menu or the corresponding toolbar button at the top right of the IDE.
To automatically create local users after authentication against a directory server.
This section explains how to configure and customize PAM sessions with RStudio Server.
For PAM authentication RStudio Server uses the either the /etc/pam.d/other profile (Debian/Ubuntu) or /etc/pam.d/rstudio profile (RedHat/CentOS). However, for launching R sessions a different PAM profile is used. This is because the launching of R sessions may not coincide with authentication (e.g. returning to the site with login credentials cached in a cookie or resuming a suspended session). Therefore, the PAM directive that enables authentication with root privilege only (auth sufficient pam_rootok.so) needs to be present in the PAM profile.
The behavior that RStudio Server requires is essentially same as that of the su command (impersonation of a user without a password). Therefore by default RStudio Server uses the /etc/pam.d/su profile for running R sessions.
Note that in the above configuration we rely on pam_rootok.so to enable authentication without a password. This is necessary because RStudio Server doesn't retain the passwords used during the authentication phase.
In this scenario you should remove the auth sufficient pam_rootok.so directive and replace it with whatever authentication directives apply in your environment. You can then employ the use_first_pass directive to forward the password as necessary to other modules.
For example, here's a very simple RedHat/CentOS PAM configuration file that uses system default authentication and forwards the password into the pam_mount.so module. Note that we are no longer using pam_rootok.so because the password is now available when the session is created.
Note that this configuration requires that RStudio Server retain user passwords in memory. This retention is done using industry best-practices for securing sensitive in-memory data including disabling ptrace and core dumps, using mlock to prevent paging into the swap area, and overwriting the contents of memory prior to freeing it.
By default, RStudio Server does not close PAM sessions when their associated R process exits. This is because PAM sessions often initialize and maintain resources that require more persistence that the lifetime of a single R session (e.g. mounted drives, Kerberos tickets, etc.). If a user has multiple active R sessions then closing the PAM session associated with one of them might unmount a drive or revoke a ticket that is still required by another R session.
By pressing the Suspend button on the Sessions page of the Administrative Dashboard.
By executing a force-suspend or force-suspend-all command as described in Suspending Sessions.
Note that if you specify this setting be aware that depending upon what resources are managed by your PAM sessions it may be incompatible with users running multiple concurrent R sessions (because for example a drive might be unmounted from underneath a running session). In this case you may wish to disable support for multiple R sessions (see the section on Multiple R Sessions for details on how to do this).
You can use PAM sessions to arrange for Kerberos tickets to be made available for use by R sessions. This is accomplished using the pam_krb5 PAM module. Note that you may need to install this module separately depending on which Linux distribution/version you are running.
NOTE: You should be sure to understand the previous section on PAM Sessions before attempting to modify your configuration to support Kerberos.
The following are simple examples of the pam_krb5 configuration directives you would need to add to your RStudio PAM configuration files. Note that pam_krb5 supports a large number of options, some of which may be required to get Kerberos working correctly in your environment. You should consult the pam_krb5 documentation before proceeding to ensure you've specified all options correctly.
Note that typically when you create a custom PAM session profile you include the auth sufficient pam_rootok.so directive. However, in the case of configuring for Kerberos authentication you do not want this directive, rather you need to specify that authentication is done by Kerberos using an explicit password as illustrated in the above example.
The debug action in the PAM profiles is not required however we recommend adding it as it makes troubleshooting much more straightforward.
The examples above are not complete examples of the contents of the PAM profiles but rather illustrations of the pam_krb5 entries that need to be present. Your local environment may have many additional entries which you should ensure are also included as necessary.
Note that you should substitute an actual local username for the <user> part of the command line.
The specifics of both PAM configuration and Kerberos configuration can vary substantially by environment. As a result correct configuration likely requires additional entries and options which this guide isn't able to cover. Please refer to the documentation linked to in [PAM Resources] as well as the pam_krb5 for additional details.
The default working directory for both new R sessions and new R projects is the user's home directory (~). You can change this behavior via the session-default-working-dir and session-default-new-project-dir configuration parameters within the rsession.conf config file.
You should ensure that users have the permissions required to write to the specified default directories. The specified directories will be automatically created if they don't already exist.
Note that these settings control only the default working and new project directories (users can still override these settings locally if they choose to).
The default global setting is ask and the default project-level setting is derived from the current global setting (these options can be modified by end users via the Global Options and Project Options dialogs respectively).
Note that this setting is specified in the rsession.conf config file and takes effect the next time a user launches an R session (rather than requiring a full restart of the server).
Important note: this setting and a few others discussed in this section are specified in the /etc/rstudio/rsession.conf file (rather than the rserver.conf file previously referenced).
You can also set session timeouts on a per-user or per-group basis, see the User and Group Profiles section for details.
By default the Rprofile.site and .Rprofile files are not re-run when a session is resumed (it's presumed that all of their side-effects are accounted for by simply restoring loaded packages, options, environment variables, etc.).
By default, when sessions are quit or suspended, child processes created in the session will continue to run. You can specify whether or not that should occur by specifying the session-quit-child-processes-on-exit setting in /etc/rstudio/rsession.conf. The allowed values are 1 or 0 to quit child processes or leave them running, respectively.
Note that this setting is specified in the rsession.conf config file and takes effect the next time a user launches an R session (rather than requiring a full restart of the server). Also, users can specifically override this setting in their project settings.
Storage of workspaces (.RData files) in RStudio Server does not use compression by default. This differs from the behavior of base R. Compression is disabled because we've observed that for larger workspaces (> 50MB) compression can result in much lower performance for session startup and suspend/resume (on the order of 3 or 4 times slower).
If you wish to use different defaults you can define the save.defaults and/or save.image.defaults options in your Rprofile.site or per-user .Rprofile and RStudio Server will respect the settings you specify rather than using it's own defaults.
See https://stat.ethz.ch/R-manual/R-devel/library/base/html/save.html for additional details on how R saves objects and the storage and performance implications of using compression.
In the example above, the project located within /etc/rstudio/welcome-project would be copied to users' home directories when first starting RStudio, and the project file welcome-project.Rproj would be run.
The project file must be named the same as the directory it is contained in. For the above example, the project file must be named welcome-project.Rproj. In addition, you must ensure that the project directory is fully readable and executable by your users, as they will be copying the contents of the directory into their home directory.
The DefaultOpenDocs parameters specifies a list of files to automatically be opened when the project is opened for the first time, separated by a : character. These files are relative paths to the project directory. Only files contained within the project directory can be opened.
Project Sharing is a feature of RStudio Server Pro that enables users to work together on RStudio projects. When enabled, a project owner may select any number of other RStudio Server users as project collaborators. RStudio Server manages the permissions of files in the project to ensure that all collaborators can access them, enables multiple collaborators to edit a file simultaneously, and lets collaborators see who else is working inside a project with them.
To use Project Sharing, the directories hosting the projects to be shared must be on a volume that supports Access Control Lists (ACLs). RStudio Server uses ACLs to grant collaborators access to shared projects; ordinary file permissions are not modified.
Instructions for enabling ACLs vary by Linux distribution and filesystem type (see the Guide to enabling ACLs on Ubuntu or RedHat, for example). Broadly, you will need to ensure that the filesystem is mounted with the user_xattr and acl attributes, and modify /etc/fstab if necessary to persist the attributes.
Note that many Linux distributions now have ACLs enabled by default in which case no special configuration is required. You can use the tune2fs command to inspect the attributes with which your filesystem is mounted (user_xattr and acl are required for project sharing).
If you plan to use Project Sharing with NFS-mounted volumes, there are several caveats you should be aware of.
We recommend mounting NFS with the noac mount option. Without this option, NFS caches file attributes, so it may not be possible for users working simultaneously in a project to know whether they're seeing each others' latest changes. The noac option does reduce performance, however, so we recommend testing to choose the right trade off for your environment.
Some features which automatically update when directory contents change will not update on NFS. For instance, users may need to manually refresh the Files pane to see new files added by collaborators.
ACL support on NFS is more complicated than ACL support on local file systems. Read ACLs on Linux NFS for a discussion of the issues; guidance for configuring specific NFS versions is provided below.
You should see vers=3.0 in the output if you're using NFSv3, and vers=4.0 if you're using NFSv4. Extra RStudio configuration is required for NFSv4 clients (see below).
When using version 3 of the NFS protocol, the volume must be mounted with the acl mount option. On most systems this is the default, so you need only ensure that noacl is not present. It's also necessary for the file system on the NFS server to itself be appropriately configured for ACL support; see the section above on Access Control Lists for guidance. Not all file servers that support the NFSv3 protocol also support POSIX compatible ACLs.
where /home/user1/project is the full path to a directory owned by user1, and user2 is another valid user on the system.
Version 4 of the NFS protocol uses a very different permissions and ACL model from Version 3. Not all NFSv4 servers support or expose the NFSv4 ACL model, so check with the server administrator to determine whether the capability exists and/or can be enabled.
NFSv4 ACLs differ from NFSv3 ACLs in that they associate a domain with each user named in the access control list. This is typically the same as the domain part of the machine's host name, but can be any string that the NFSv4 client and server agree on. On Linux systems, the domain can be set in /etc/idmapd.conf.
This setting both enables NFSv4 support and sets the domain. If this setting is not present, RStudio will only use NFSv3 ACLs.
where /home/user1/project is the full path to a directory owned by user1, user2 is another valid user on the system, and domain is your system's user domain.
Alternatively, the auth-required-user-group setting can be used. This setting allows RStudio Server Pro to enumerate only the members of the named groups rather than the entire user directory. Therefore, if you cannot enable user enumeration on your LDAP provider, you can instead create a group containing all RStudio users and supply it as the auth-required-user-group.
You can read more about user enumeration in the sssd FAQ.
The server-shared-storage-path option (described above) configures the path used for shared project storage. Note that this storage contains only links to shared projects, not the projects themselves, so requires a very small amount of physical storage.
If you are running RStudio Server with a proxy, you'll need to make sure that your proxy is correctly configured to pass websocket connections through in order for all Project Sharing features to work. See the Running with a Proxy section for more on this.
You can customize the location of user packages installed from CRAN as well as the default CRAN repository. You can also configure the user-interface of the RStudio IDE to discourage end-user package installation in the case where packages are deployed centrally to a site library.
Important note: The settings discussed in this section are specified in the /etc/rstudio/rsession.conf file (rather than the rserver.conf file previously referenced).
By default R packages are installed into a user-specific library based on the contents of the R_LIBS_USER environment variable (more details on this mechanism are here: http://stat.ethz.ch/R-manual/R-devel/library/base/html/libPaths.html).
One benefit of establishing an alternative default user library path is that by doing this you can remove the R version component of the package library path (which the default path contains). This makes it possible to upgrade the major version of R on the server and have user's packages continue to work.
Note that this setting merely discourages package installation by removing user-interface elements. It's still possible for users to install packages directly using the utils::install.packages function.
Note that even with user editing turned off it's still possible for users to install packages from alternative repositories by directly specifying the repos parameter in a call to install.packages.
RStudio Server has a number of other limits that can be configured. This section describes these limits. Note that these settings are specified in the /etc/rstudio/rsession.conf file (rather than the rserver.conf file previously referenced).
Besides the limits on package installation and CRAN repository editing described in the previous section there are a number of other limits that can be specified. The following describes all of the options that can be used to limit features.
Allow access to Git and SVN version control features.
Allow editing of the underlying Git or SVN executable.
Allow installation of packages using the Packages Pane (note that even if this is set to 0 it's still possible to install packages using utils::install.packages from the command line).
Allow editing of the CRAN repository used for package downloads (note that it's still possible to specify an alternate repository using the repos parameter of utils::install.packages).
Allow access to the Tolls -> Shell dialog (note that it's still possible to execute shell commands using the system function).
Allow downloading files using the Export command in the Files Pane.
Allow uploading files using the Upload command in the Files pane.
Allow content to be published to external (cloud) services. This includes publishing HTML documents created with R Markdown or R Presentations to RPubs (http://rpubs.com), and publishing Shiny applications and documents to ShinyApps.io (http://shinyapps.io). Note that this just removes the relevant user interface elements in the IDE, and that it may still be possible for users to publish content using the R console.
Allow content to be published. If specified, this option removes all user interface elements related to publishing content from the IDE, and overrides allow-external-publish.
All of these features are enabled by default. Specify 0 to disable access to the feature.
Note that these options should be specified in the /etc/rstudio/rsession.conf configuration file (rather than the main rserver.conf configuration file).
The default behavior is no limit on the size of file uploads.
The user's XFS disk quota will be checked when the RStudio IDE loads and a warning message will be displayed if they are near to or over their quota.
Administrators can broadcast notifications to user sessions in real-time using the notifications.conf file located at /etc/rstudio/notifications.conf. This file comes by default with commented out entries that you can uncomment and use, and helps show you the available time and message formats.
Each session monitors for changes in the notifications.conf file, and if a new notification is detected, it will be shown to the user at the appropriate time (as defined in the next section). All open sessions for a user will receive the notification, and they will continue to see the notification in any new sessions they open until the notification is acknowledged.
Modifying a notification will cause it to count as a new notification, so make sure to only save changes to the file when you've confirmed what you want the message to be and what time it should be displayed. Otherwise, the same message could be shown multiple times.
The notifications.conf file is a file consisting of multiple notification entries separated by a blank line. The following table lists the fields that are available for each notification entry in the file.
StartTime The start time at which the notification can start to be delievered. This must be a time-formatted field. This field is not required.
EndTime The end time at which the notification will no longer be delivered. This must be a time-formatted field. This field is required.
Message The message content to show to the users. The message cannot have empty lines in it. This field is required.
An example notifications.conf file is shown below. For more information on the formatting of each field, see the subsequent sections.
Message: Please remember to shut down your computers at the end of the day.
multiple lines by indenting the next line's message text.
Empty lines are not supported!
It is important that each entry consists of 2-3 fields as specified above (StartTime, EndTime, and Message). Each field must go on its own line. There should be no empty lines between field definitions.
There must be one empty line (2 new line characters) in between separate notification entries.
Message: Remember to drop off any borrowed equipment at Grace's office today only.
The following table shows the meaning of the format sections.
If no time is specified, the time will be set to 00:00:00 in the current server time zone for start times and 23:59:59 in the current server time zone for end times.
If no seconds are specified, they will be set to 00 and the time is interpreted in the current server time zone.
Note that if you have sessions spanning multiple servers in different time zones and you want your notifications to display at a uniform time, you MUST manually set the timezone to what is appropriate. Otherwise, sessions in different time zones will see notifications in their local time.
The following table shows some example dates and how they would be formatted.
The message to deliver must be plain text and cannot have any empty lines. To start text on another line, simply indent the line as in the multiline example in the previous section.


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FilmGate Interactive, South Florida's first fully interactive film festival and technology conference presented by the Indie Film Club Miami, emerges for a second year, Feb. 1-5, 2014, throughout various South Florida venues, to engage the community in a showcase of the latest ideas and innovations of modern storytelling and audience engagement.
PBS POV Digital, television's longest-running showcase of independent nonfiction film, will host a Story Hack Workshop. The workshop precedes a two-day weekend Story Hack, where seven creative groups compete for the chance to get funded.
Curated by Midtown, Video, the Interactive Tech Playground is a new and original way to exhibit new technology, created for the content producers of tomorrow. It is a truly immersive experience for the attendees, including a live set, with actors and art objects. Includes exhibitors such as Sony, Arri/Alexa, Schneider Optics, Canon, Kessler Cranes, Manfrotto, etc.
The Net never sleepsA Journal of Insomnia invites insomniacs to collaborate in a web-based reflection on what keeps them up at night. This interactive documentary offers an utterly original encounter with a disorder that affects one in three people in the developed world. In September 2012, insomniacs around the world began sharing their stories on nfb.ca/insomnia. Thousands have contributed webcam testimonies, written accounts and original artwork—material that forms the heart of A Journal of Insomnia. The National Film Board of Canada will summon us to an appointment with sleeplessness that provides arresting new perspectives on contemporary existence and the anxiety that so often underscores our days—and our nights.
Individual tickets to FilmGate Interactive are now on sale with upgrade package options that range from Student ($60), All Access ($125), and a special Pink Kraken ($250) bundle. Package highlights include access to exclusive VIP and industry functions, an Indie Film Club Miami membership, a commemorative t-shirt and tote bag. For package details and restrictions and more event details, visit Film-gate.org.
FilmGate Interactive is supported by the John S. and James L Knight Foundation, Miami-Dade County Cultural Affairs Department, Miami Beach Visitor and Convention Authority, Midtown Video, JTown.tv, Canon USA and Tropicult, to benefit Indie Film Club Miami.


of order. Structure freely emerges from within the internal interactions of the system itself: "free order" within chaos. Paradoxically, this theory opposes the idea that systems are computational or algorithmic, including the human brain. Unlike a computer, once our brains have learned a set of rules, we cannot repeat exactly, only recall, learn, and improvise upon those rules. In devised theatre, a troupe takes cues from one another and collude a script as they perform. As decisions are made intuitively, actions are solidified; each individual responds to the decision once it is written into the script. Raúl de Nieves, David Roesing, and Sofia Leiby's works propose interactions with information and cultural infrastructure via improvised choreography, creating self-organized systems which emerge organically and fractal-like by establishing internal validity, mimicking these phenomena.


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Yet I suspect, in hindsight, that the M-PESA effect actually would have been more effective if it hadn't been so successful, so quickly. First, it created the wrong impression to would-be contenders that this is an easy business, a natural extension of what mobile operators already do. (See why I think it's not). The GSMA, the global mobile operator association, still refers to promising mobile money providers as sprinters) rather than long-distance runners. Second, it scared financial regulators in many developing countries (especially the larger ones) and also some international standard-setters into thinking that mobile money could pose a clear and present challenge to the structure, stability and integrity of conventional banking systems. Mobile operators cast as barbarians at the gates of banking. Third, the performance gap between Kenya and everywhere else has been so large that it became easy to justify local failure to replicate M-PESA on the grounds of some kind of Kenyan exceptionalism.
Still, better an exaggerated success than none at all. In the same way that M-PESA became a showcase for mobile money, mobile money itself then became a showcase for m-anything: health, education, agriculture, women… you name it, it seems the GSMA's Mobile for Development Fund now has a donor-funded program around it. I am by no means an expert in these sectors and I don't want to pass judgment on the efficacy or potential of mobile technology's impact within them. But one thing that strikes me is the fact that none seem to have struck their own undisputed, scaled-up enterprise. Many interesting case studies get written up in blogs and reports, but each feels small in comparison to M-PESA.


I started Modeling 2 years ago and haven't looked back since.
I had been frequently approached by local photographers, and loved creating art and began to learn a lot about the business.
No actually. I have not seen Todd since that day.
What was it like shooting for Paul Venomous?
It was a lot of fun in a very professional atmosphere. It was my first time in Montreal and left with a great impression and fun memories! I would shoot with Paul Venomous anytime!
I feel a great sense of accomplishment and it fuels my fire to keep pushing myself to continue to grow and achieve more in this industry.
This is the first time I have ever been published in a magazine, so it is a great accomplishment for me. I have been published in multiple calendars sold internationally so being published in a magazine is a first!
I would like to continue with much more published work... build my own website and see where all my hard work takes me… opportunities are endless.
Yes to all of the above! I would have to say that modeling is my main priority at this time. When I am not modeling… I am bartending. I am also in the process of getting my real estate licence! I have so many goals I find that days are too short! But enjoy the challenges along the way.
Spare time!? What is that?? I enjoy my fire place with a bottle of Red wine, hanging out on the beach with my girls, or shooting!
Hmm….not that I can think of… I'm pretty normal!
A scorching hot day on the beach… with a couple of cold beers, and good stimulating and intellectual conversation.
Worst one… "Wanna F@#K?" A little blunt.
Best one was bartending on Canada a day… I asked a group of guys what time the fireworks started … one replied with "whenever you get off work baby." It wasn't pre meditated and made me laugh.
Driven with Ambition, Intelligence, Considerate, Funny, Good sense of Humour, Keeping Fit and in shape.
Laziness, No Goals, Selfishness, and Self Centered.
I wish I had an iPod!
Success! I won't stop till I'm dead!


"What's an open question?" you ask?
It's the easiest way I found to meet people and find out what's going on.
What's there to see in your beautiful city?
Where is a good place for breakfast?
When does the next tour/bus/train leave?
Why are there so many people here for this event?
How do I find a taxi/ticket/way to San Jose?
Do you know of an inexpensive place to stay for the night?
I ask a lot of seemingly dumb questions, and I can get a lot of local, inside information, fast. But I remember that some of the people I might meet might be con artists. The easiest way for me to deal with this is not travel with anything worth losing. I wear a money belt and walk away from anything that sounds funny.
Yet, going to someone and asking a question, is safer that having them come up to you and ask questions. (Why is that? Because when you ask, you're in control. When they ask, they are.) Open questions are better because I can find out if the person I ask can be helpful or not.
I like to ask open questions in the local language. Spend time with that phrase book. I find it opens a lot of doors and impresses the locals.
Here I asked in German these two gentlemen on a small farm in the middle of Bavaria, my favorite open question: Do you know of an inexpensive place to stay for the night? They laughed and one of them proceeded to tell me I could stay in his guest room if I helped with some of the farm chores.
I agreed and fed the chickens for my supper. It's a Farm Stay, Bavarian style. All I had to do was ask my favorite open question. What a blast!
This Norwegian was very proud to show off his Volvo, the first car he ever bought. He was 16 years old. It's now over 20 years old and still running great. He ended up giving me a ride in the countryside outside his Norwegian village. We drove along his favorite back roads, places I would have never seen on my own.
I find I learn so much with this simple trick of the open question.
I ask, "What's this?" pointing at some strange building or interesting item for sale at a market.
Other times I strike gold!
Once, I was invited to stay at the local's home after getting a free tour of downtown Gent in the fascinating country of Belgium. Again, all I asked was "Do you know of an inexpensive place to stay for the night?" The man was a businessman with a family. All good signs of a safe place for me to stay.
Open questions can do wonders.
Here is my Dutch friend Nikki that I met in Turkey. She's in the process of making Christmas presents for her friends and family in the Netherlands.
One Christmas, I stayed at a home of a Dutch girl I met on a ferry boat crossing the Bosporus strait the summer before. This was on my way back from Asia to Istanbul, Turkey. We exchanged addresses, and she invited me to stay at her family's apartment in Ede, Holland, if I was in the area.
That fall, I was an exchange student in Germany and wrote her. Towards the end of my letter, I asked an open question, "I wonder what I will do for Christmas?" and was invited to spend Christmas with her family. It was fabulous!
I remembered to return the favor.
I met two girls from Scotland on a boat above the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. We spent the day scuba diving and sunning ourselves on the deck. They were on a round the world trip, going from west to east. A month later they would be in California.
I invited them to stay a week with me at my place in Huntington Beach, California. They came. They did Disneyland and Hollywood on their own. I dropped them off in the morning and picked them up after work. They took in the sites in Southern California that way and had a great time.
On the weekend, I wanted to take them to someplace special, the Orange County Fair, where we listened and danced to Creole/Zydeco music. Something they never knew existed. I bought them both music CDs as a souvenir. We had a blast!
These special adventures don't happen every day. But they do happen.
Taking full responsibility for your vacation is a great step to safe and exciting independent travel.
I keep my eyes and ears open and keep asking those open questions.
As always, I exercise caution when I choose to stay at the homes of strangers. Travel does have its risks as in all life. For more information, go to my Stay Safe Page .


The West Highland Way is Scotland's first official long distance walking route. It's also the most famous, attracting 15,000 hikers each year! And for good reason. It's one of the most scenic long-distance hikes that I've done!
1) Plan your West Highland Way Adventure on your Own.
3) Do the West Highland Way with a Guide.
The West Highland Way is a 150 km (95 miles) route completed in 1980. It starts just outside of Glasgow, the largest city in Scotland.
And it finishes at the foot of Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Scotland. It's near Fort William, known as the adventure capital of Scotland.
Hiking along a remote part of the route between Loch Tulla and the A82.
If you're a regular reader you know that I absolutely love long distance hikes and try to do at least one every year. I had walked the Wicklow Way in Ireland just a few months earlier.
But when I found out that I was heading to Scotland for the Social Travel Summit, a travel conference in Inverness, I knew that I had to hike in Scotland again.
I'd done so ten years earlier, even summiting Ben Nevis, the highest peak in Scotland. But there's just something mystical about Scotland that never leaves you. It keeps calling you back.
Either that or I've read too many of the Outlander books. But I knew I had to do it. Being the most famous, and arguably one of the most scenic treks in the UK, the West Highland Way was an easy choice.
It's not just me who feels that way. I recruited my friend and fellow hiker Simon from Wild About Travel. It only took one Facebook message. Click on the link to read her article. With its dramatic landscapes, the West Highland Way is practically begging you to hike it.
The landscape is ever-changing and almost always breathtaking. You'll walk the length of Loch Lomond, the largest freshwater lock by surface area in all of Great Britain.
You'll pass through the Lowlands, cross the Highland Boundary Fault and head into the Scottish Highlands. For much of the way, you'll be following ancient and historic routes along Drove Roads, 18th Century Military Roads and abandoned railway tracks.
The typical way to hike the West Highland Way is from Milngavie in the south to Fort William in the north. The easier stages in the south will prepare you for the hillier parts that come in the northern part of the trek.
Furthermore, the scenery just gets more and more exciting in my opinion, so it makes sense to end in the mystical Scottish Highlands.
Milngavie is a town ~ 10 km (6 miles) northwest of Glasgow. You can spend the first night either in Glasgow, as I did. From there it's ~ 30-minute train ride to Milngavie. Alternatively, you can head directly to Milngavie.
The closest airport is Glasgow Airport. I booked my flight with Skyscanner.
You can camp along the shores of Loch Lomond.
This is the cheapest option. It's ideal if you're camping and on a tight budget. If you go this route, this guide with walking maps will be essential to figuring it out.
It's by far the most time-consuming and least convenient option. Finding and booking accommodation takes a ton of time. If accommodations on the trail or close to the trail are all full you'll have to figure out how to take a taxi and add that into your costs. It's doable but a hassle and very time-consuming. You also won't have the possibility to have your luggage transferred for you.
My friend and I choose the self-guided option with Wilderness Scotland. They've been named by National Geographic Adventure as one of the Best Adventure Travel Companies so you know that you're in good hands.
There is very minimal planning and time to organize on your part. Wilderness Scotland does everything for you. They'll arrange luggage transfer for you daily. You just need to carry your daypack.
They also know the best B&Bs and hotels to stay in and book these for you. On one day there wasn't any accommodation available close to the trail. They organized taxi pick up and drop offs which was super easy but would have been difficult to organize on my own. Finally, they provide support during your trek if something goes wrong.
While it's slightly more expensive than doing it yourself, I honestly don't see any cons. I think the slight extra expense outweighs the time and inconvenience of having to do it all yourself. The only other con is using the maps and following the detailed instructions that they provide to find your way. I personally enjoy this but if you don't, you should consider option 3 below.
In addition to the same advantages as listed above with the self-guided walk, your guide will bring to life the rich history and legends. I missed out on this by doing a self-guided walk which is a shame since Scotland is full of fascinating history.
And be honest…if you've ever watched the tv show Outlander, or read the books, you want to know as much as possible about the Highlanders. Your guide will also point out the diverse flora and fauna that you'd likely miss on your own.
Furthermore, you'll be hiking in the company of like-minded hikers. There's nothing like a shared interest over multiple days to connect with someone.
I met my boyfriend while on a hiking day tour so am living proof of this. Although I'm pretty sure the tour doesn't come with a guarantee of finding a partner :).
Most of the meals are included with the guided tour ensuring that you always have someone to revel in the day's adventures with. I've hiked the Wicklow Way in Ireland and did the Coastal Hike from Spain to France alone. While I didn't mind walking alone, I didn't enjoy eating dinner alone. I wanted to share what I'd seen and done that day.
It's also a great option if you're not comfortable with route finding and just want to focus on enjoying hiking and not reading a map.
While the guided trip is reasonably priced at £1375, it is more expensive than if you did it by yourself or chose the self-guided walk. Still, I think it provides exceptional value and benefits.
After one expensive incident years ago where I didn't have travel insurance, I always get it. It's especially important when doing something adventurous. Like hiking the West Highland Way where a slip can lead to a broken ankle. Often the nearest hospital is miles away, so even a taxi ride is costly. Let alone the medical treatment. I'm a fan of World Nomads Insurance.
You should also travel with an Outdoor First Aid Kit. And have something for blisters which often plague hikers and can ruin your trip. I always have Compeed in my backpack. It's the best solution for blisters that I've found.
You'll see pristine crystal clear rivers while hiking.
If you're carrying all your luggage, you'll want to travel as light as possible. If you're having your bags carried for you, you don't have to be as strict. But you 'll still want to keep the weight of your day pack to a minimum.
It's worth noting that you should carry electronic equipment like laptops, cameras, etc. with you at all times. Don't place them in your carried luggage. The luggage carrier company is not responsible if they go missing or are damaged.
As Scotland can be rainy, put any electronics in a Waterproof Dry Bag to make sure they stay dry.
You'll see "honesty boxes" along the West Highland Way which capture Scottish hospitality.
Every B&B that I stayed in provided a hearty Scottish breakfast. If you haven't had a Scottish breakfast, they're very filling! There was also a place to eat dinner each night in the places I stayed in.
However, on most days you won't find restaurants while you're hiking. Or they will be several kilometres out-of-the-way. So either bring food with you, or ask your B&B to prepare a packed lunch for you (at an additional cost).
There are a few days when you will not come across anywhere to buy food during the day or in the evening. I stocked up at a grocery store in the evenings when available. On average, I had 3 days of food (lunch and snacks) with me.
I took when I needed for the day. Then packed the rest in my luggage that was being transferred to keep my backpack weight to a minimum. One of the advantages of booking with Wilderness Scotland is that they give you a PDF of all the amenities along the way. That way you can prepare appropriately.
It's ~ a 30-minute train ride from Glasgow to Milngavie so you can sleep in Glasgow and take an early morning train to Milngavie. Alternatively, you can head straight to Milngavie where the walk begins. Also worth noting is Milngavie is pronounced Mul-guy.
Me at the start of the West Highland Way in Milngavie.
Description: Your hike begins in the town of Drymen. There are plenty of cafes to give you a caffeine fix. It then continues through wooded areas and pastures passing Craigallian and Carbeth Lochs.
Then you'll reach the village of Drymen. It was a popular stop in the 18th and 19th centuries for Highland cattle drovers.
It was a popular stop in the 18th and 19th centuries for Highland cattle drovers.
Highlights: Meeting a couple of other hikers who I often ended up walking with. And throughout the walk and getting a taste of the scenery that was to come.
Simon from Wild About Travel, walking along Loch Lomond.
Description: Following the eastern bank of Loch Lomond. It's one of the most gorgeous lochs in the entire country, until you reach the rural area of Rowardennan. Here you get fantastic views of Loch Lomond.
Highlights: Spending hours walking along Loch Lomond. And the incredible sunset over Loch Lomond from Rowardennan. It felt as if the sunset was my special reward for hiking the West Highland Way.
Description: This is one of the remotest parts of the West Highland Way. You hike along the north-eastern shores of Loch Lomond. The trail is slippery, and slow going with rocks and branches peeking out on the trail.
But it improves as you reach Inverarnan. Some walkers consider this the most difficult part of the trail because of the terrain. As long as you're prepared to go slower though, it won't give you any problems, and I loved it. There's also an easier detour.
Highlights: This was one of my favourite days of the entire walk. There's something incredibly peaceful about walking along the water. And because I had to slow down because of the terrain, I appreciated it more.
The landscape changes dramatically as you enter the Highlands.
Description: Congratulations! You've now reached the Highlands. Here the mountains are much bigger. You'll get an especially stunning vista in Strath Fillan. At the end of the day, you're more than half way finished hiking the West Highland Way.
Highlights: I was excited to finally reach the Highlands. I loved seeing how dramatically the landscape changed after walking along the serene shores of Loch Lomond. In all honesty, this day landscape-wise, was one of my least favourites. It was scenic but lacked the wow-factor that many other days had.
Your reward for climbing Ben Inverveigh is a stunning view over Loch Tulla.
Description: While this is by far the longest day of hiking on the West Highland Way, you're walking in some of the finest scenery in the Highlands. You'll climb up past Loch Tulla, then across the remote and wild area of Rannoch Moor to Glencoe.
After your long day of hiking there's a cold one waiting for you at the King's House. Note: It's closed for reservations for 18 months, but their brand new Bunk House will be open.
You'll likely need a taxi to pick you up from here and bring you to your accommodation. It's one of the reasons I appreciated hiking with Wilderness Scotland. They arranged everything for me. And after hiking 30 km, the last thing I wanted to do was figure out how to get a taxi.
Highlights: I met two other Canadians while hiking this section – Go Canada! The scenery was spectacular and during the second half remote. I absolutely loved it. I stayed in a B&B in nearby Glencoe.
With its high mountain peaks, rivers and waterfalls, it has a mystical feeling that will pull at the heartstrings of any adventurer. I plan to go back.
View of Loch Achtriochtan seen while descending Devils Staircase to Kinlochleven.
Description: While the first climb up over the Devil's Staircase, a high mountain pass, will get you huffing and puffing, it's not nearly as difficult as the name indicates. Besides, you'll forget all about it once you take in the stunning vista from the top. You'll descend to the small village of Kinlochleven, famous for its Ice Factor Sports Centre, where ice climbers come to practice in artificial, yet realistic conditions.
You'll descend to the small village of Kinlochleven, famous for its Ice Factor Sports Centre. Ice climbers come here to practice in artificial, yet realistic conditions.
Highlights: The landscape was absolutely stunning, especially from the top of Devil's Staircase and for the entire descent. This was one of my favourite days, and not just because it was short ;).
Description: The trail climbs over a mountain pass, but then rewards you with spectacular views of Glencoe. You'll continue on, before walking along the foot of Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Scotland.
The last few kilometres walking along the road feel like a slog, but knowing that you're THISCLOSE to finishing keeps you going.
Ben Nevis is peeking out from behind the clouds.
Highlights: The views of Glencoe after the first climb, the way the sun hit an old farmhouse while I was walking through a valley. And how Ben Nevis peeked out from behind the clouds for about 20 seconds, revealing just how massive it is. And most importantly, completing the West Highland Way!
Revel in your success, then climb Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Scotland if you still have the energy to spare or head to your next adventure!
I've been to Scotland before, climbed Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Scotland, and had high expectations for the West Highland Way. Despite that, it far exceeded them.
It's one of the most beautiful long-distance hikes I've ever done with its dramatic changes in the landscape, from walking along the shores of Loch Lomond to hiking over mountain passes in the Highlands.
Scottish hospitality is also out of this world. I felt so welcome at each B&B that Wilderness Scotland had booked for me. I'd highly recommend walking the West Highland Way to anyone even remotely considering it.
And I highly recommend doing it with Wilderness Scotland. Either with their self-guided tour, that I did, or their guided tour.
Disclosure: Thanks to Wilderness Scotland for making my self-guided tour possible. As always, all opinions are my own. This post has some affiliate links in which I make a commission if you purchase something, at no extra cost to you.
Brilliant post, Lourdes! Lovely post, and god, how much do you walk? Truly amazing! I wish I could too take these trips just like you! Someday soon, but till then I shall continue to live my dream through your lovely blog. I am just curious, how much do you end up spending on a daily basis on these trips? Time and money are 2 of the most important factors stopping most of us from traveling. Maybe your input can help us better understand and perhaps even give us the courage to travel, and I mean not just to work/office each day!
Decent days with good weather were offset by rainstorms and very poor trail maintenance. Although my waterproof boots proved mostly up to the task, the vibram soles had serious grip problems on the loose and wet trail surfaces. Hiking poles saved me from more than one mishap. The trail proved so rough that I altered my socks in order to fit an additional insole in my boots; to better protect my feet from the continuous beating of the unusually-rough trails. Which,by the way, were often nothing more than gullies caused by runoff. In moderate to heavy rain expect to be walking through three to four inches of water. Sometimes all day. Waterproof boots and waterproof gaiters are a must. One of my companion had a softer sole boot, which proved a better grip on the trail surface, although he also complained about sore feet due to the roughness of the never-maintained trail system. My suggestion is to go somewhere else if you want to hike in the UK.
@James - Thanks for sharing your experience. Sorry to hear that you got hit by rainstorms and that you didn't enjoy the experience.
so beautiful palce and full with natural things. Waterfall is looking so beautiful and so stunning photos you shared of that place.
The scenery is just stunning. I also love to walk but have never done a long-distance hike of more than 2 days. My family and I are planning a trip to Scotland for next June, and we can't wait!
@Jenna It truly surpassed my expectations! Even if you don't do the whole way, the way along Loch Lomond is lovely and lots of great places to go for a swim.
Brilliant post, Laurel! Lovely post, and god, how much do you walk? Truly amazing! I wish I could too take these trips just like you! Someday soon, but till then I shall continue to live my dream through your lovely blog. I am just curious, how much do you end up spending on a daily basis on these trips? Thank you so much for sharing it.
Thank you! I hike every weekend and try to do at least 2 long-distance hikes or cycle trips a year. For B&B accommodation, dinner and snacks on the trail it works out to be ~€60-80 per day, based on double accommodation. You could do it cheaper if you camped, but after a long day of hiking, I like a hot shower and a comfortable bed.
Hi Laurel. I completed the West Highland Way in seven days, four years ago. Carried all my luggage but would possibly use one of the transport options next time & just carry a daysack. However I wanted to say that we walked the reverse route, the 'wrong way', from Fort William to Milngavie & it was just as exhilarating! The views were fantastic and I met people walking north who had completed what was in front of me, so got info on the underfoot conditions as well as good bars/restaurants etc. The bonus was walking DOWN the Devil's Staircase. Thanks for your guide and get in touch when back in Scotland.
@Gerry Thanks for sharing your experience of walking it in reverse. Sounds fabulous! So glad that you enjoyed it.
Did you trek solo? If not, is it safe for a woman alone? Thx.
Yes, I trekked solo and felt very safe.


"...don't toss VA Linux onto the ever-growing trash pile of Net stocks that were once mighty. This company still has a good business plan, an admirable market niche, and a big pile of cash to keep it running until it reaches profitability, which should be sometime before the end of 2001. Despite that first-quarter sales hiccup, this company's revenues are still impressive."
"VA Linux' primary business is selling huge server computers that are used primarily to host Web sites and that run on the Linux operating system, chief rival of Microsoft's Windows. One of the reasons VA Linux became such a popular stock was that venture capitalists were helping so many new Web sites open up, and typically, the first capital spending for them was a multimillion-dollar order for server computers. Thanks in large part to that market, VA Linux was able to increase revenues at a double-digit rate for each of the past four quarters."
"So, what is VA Linux to do? ... It now has to make up for the lost business by selling massive amounts of hardware to the enterprise market, otherwise known as really big companies. The problem is that most large companies already have entrenched relationships with the likes of IBM ( IBM ) and Sun Microsystems ( SUNW ), which sell competing servers. ... Nevertheless, such companies are allowing VA Linux to get a foot in the door. Of the $56 million in first-quarter sales, nearly 5% came from the large-enterprise market."


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Q: data structures for dynamic large sparse matrix in C what's the best suitable data structure to use in C for sparse dynamic matrix.
I know about the Yale format but it's for static matrices.
I need to be able to add rows column and values in it.

A: In general, an array of linked lists. If most of the operations are row-based, each list represent a row, otherwise, each list represent a column. You can get more info here
 typedef struct matrix {
    node**  rowList;     // rowList is a pointer to the array of rows
    node** columnList; // column list is a pointer to the array of columns.
    int  rows, columns;  // store the number of rows and columns of the matrix
 } matrix

 typedef struct node {
    int row, column,
    double value;
    struct node*  rowPtr;
    struct node*  colPtr;
 } node;

A: A hashtable.
Example: Key could be  row<<16|col.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


I like using the Geany IDE, perhaps because it seems more like a nice source code editor than a full-blown IDE. The version of Geany in the repository for Ubuntu 9.10 and 10.04, which I use on a couple machines, doesn't seem to include the Treebrowser plugin that I wanted to try. Might as well take a shot at building the current version from source.
The following steps assume you've started a terminal in your home directory.
I'm using a directory named src in my home directory to hold the downloaded source archives.
Download and extract the Geany source (be sure to check the Geany site to see if there is a more recent version than 0.19.1 referenced here).
Change to the extracted source directory, configure, build, and install.
If these steps completed without errors you should be able to start Geany by typing geany in the terminal.
Next get the source for the geany-plugins package.
You can install all of the plugins by running make and sudo make install in the current directory, or you can install plugins individually from subdirectories configured for each one. The following steps install only the Treebrowser plugin.
This Ubuntu Forums post pointed me in the right direction for figuring this out.
BTW: Geany is my lazy fallback when the quest to master text surgery in Vim hurts my brain.


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Watch 12 minutes of Virtuality
Fox has uploaded a 12-minute clip of its new property Virtuality, which it is now billing as an original sci-fi thriller film, although it was originally conceived as the pilot for a series.
By James Rundle	 17-06-09 9,822
Fox has uploaded a 12-minute clip of its new property Virtuality, which it is now billing as an original sci-fi thriller film, although it was originally conceived as the pilot for a series. The feature will air on 26 June, but for now, the footage is embedded below.
Virtuality has a large ensemble cast, including Nikolaj Coster-Waldau, Clea DuVall, Sienna Guillory and Richie Coster. The series was created by Ronald D Moore and Michael Taylor, while the pilot was directed by Peter Berg.
Nightflyers: watch the first 5 minutes of George RR Martin's Syfy show For All Mankind new trailer dreams of space Amazon's The Dark Tower TV series is cancelled Game Of Thrones Season 8 new trailer is pretty epic Jordan Peele's Us new poster needs to watch itself
Tags: Virtuality


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The Broadcast / B Corp Month | #BetterBusiness
B Corp Month | #BetterBusiness
If you've followed us for a while, you'll know that Finisterre is incredibly proud to be part of the B Corp community. We were the first outdoor clothing company in the UK to become B Corp certified back in 2018, and it's something we're hugely passionate about.
March is B Corp Month; a chance for us to celebrate with other like-minded businesses and spread the B Corp message of 'using business as a force for good'. So what does being a #BetterBusiness really mean? Read on to find out…
For the uninitiated, certified B Corporations (aka B Corps) are companies that have been verified to the highest standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability. It's a framework for doing #BetterBusiness, because businesses should be there to serve people and planet – not the other way around. The certification process is rigorous and extensive, covering five key areas that are used to determine the impact of a business; workers, customers, environment, community and governance. At the end of the assessment, companies are awarded an Impact Score which can be found in the B Corp directory. (Check out ours here.)
An important part of the B Corp process is that you have to re-certify every three years. This ensures accountability, because we know we can lose our B Corp status. It's not just a rubber stamp. But it also means you can improve your Impact Score. We're by no means perfect, and we know that. But, like the wider B Corp community, we're committed to striving to be better in everything we do.
Here's how we're living the B Corp mindset:
Happy workers do good work. It's really that simple. Finisterre founder Tom Kay often says that one of his motivations for starting the brand was to create a place where people wanted to work. An employer that cares about its staff and where people turn up with smiles on their faces, excited to do their jobs. Finisterre follows through on this with multiple wellbeing activities for staff such as Sea Tuesdays (starting work an hour later so we can surf, swim and spend that extra time in the sea), free yoga classes and mental wellbeing sessions for staff, as well as free access to counselling services and a subscription to the Headspace app should anyone require it. Staff are also able to take time out to volunteer for charitable causes – as many of our staff did back at the beginning of the pandemic, helping to make PPE for the Cornwall Scrubs Project.
Since we opened the workshop doors in 2003, Finisterre has committed to putting people first. Without our customers, well… we just wouldn't be here! We are constantly listening to our customers and incorporating their feedback into improving our gear. We're here to build the best product we possibly can, enabling our customers to get out and explore the natural world. So we build our products to last and to perform in the harshest conditions. When those products are on their last legs, most companies would focus on selling you something new, but we'd prefer to breathe new life into them with our Lived and Loved Repairs Service – keeping products out of landfill and in your wardrobe, so you can share more adventures together.
We've built sustainability into our products as standard since 2003 and are fully committed to minimising our impact on the environment in every area of our business. From selecting natural fibres, wool, and recycled or organic fabrics which have less impact on the planet, to the partners we work with, pioneering new sustainable manufacturing techniques, right down to ensuring that our packaging is non-toxic, biodegradable and leaves no trace. We believe it's important to consider the whole life impact of our products; not just manufacture and use, but what happens to that garment at the end of its functional life. Building for recyclability and rejecting the linear model of "take, make and waste" in favour of the circular economy. It's all part of our commitment to become a positive impact business by 2030.
We're proud to have grown an incredible community who share our love of the sea and passion to protect it. Surfers, swimmers, sailors, paddleboarders, divers, beach cleaners – all are welcome. We're committed to enabling access to the ocean for all and work to promote charities such as the UK based Seagrass Project and South African surf therapy organisation Waves for Change to help spread their message. But for a B Corp, 'community' is more than just the customers who share our values. It also extends to our factory and manufacturing partners, our suppliers, couriers and everyone who makes Finisterre what it is. It's our responsibility to ensure that those who make our products are treated fairly and we have a strict code of conduct that we send out to all new suppliers to commit to, as well as rigorous auditing processes to ensure the safety and dignity of those working in our supply chain.
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One of the main factors that sets the B Corp certification apart is the focus on accountability. One example of this is the need for transparency in reporting a company's impact, and last year we released our first Impact Report, detailing our commitments to become a positive impact business by 2030. We'll be releasing our second report shortly, where we'll share which areas we've improved on, as well as any where we haven't. The point is to be open, transparent and accountable and is why this commitment to our social and environmental responsibility is now enshrined within our articles of association registered at Companies House. It makes those commitments legally binding and ensures our accountability should we not fulfil those responsibilities.
Becoming a B Corp is more than just a certification. It connects us to a community of like-minded businesses who share our goals; championing collaboration and the sharing of ideas. The community is growing rapidly and now has over 3500 certified businesses, with many more awaiting certification. Want to know more? You can start your own B Corp journey by following the links below.
The B Corp story
Become a B Corp