text:
Microsoft Announces Multimedia File Format Strategy for Windows
REDMOND, Wash., April 3, 1998 — Microsoft Corp. today announced a new multimedia file format strategy for the Microsoft® Windows® operating system that addresses the key challenges of streaming media distribution and professional media authoring.
The new strategy will integrate support into Windows for two recently developed formats, the Advanced Streaming Format (ASF) and the Advanced Authoring Format (AAF). ASF is an open, industry-developed format specifically tuned for streaming media distribution. AAF, announced today, is an open, industry-developed format that enables the exchange of rich media among digital production tools and content creation applications. ASF and AAF will become the new default multimedia file formats for Windows, succeeding the Audio Video Interleaved (AVI) file format.
"AVI was initially specified in 1990, when the personal computer was not used for professional media authoring and the Internet was not in widespread use," said David Cole, vice president of the Web client and consumer experience division at Microsoft. "Supporting ASF and AAF in Windows allows us to move our multimedia platform forward by delivering two formats, each specifically optimized for a major and exciting development in the marketplace."
Both ASF and AAF were developed in an open industry process. Microsoft and major contributors to both ASF and AAF are active participants in industry standards proceedings and have offered all or part of both ASF and AAF to appropriate standards bodies, including the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers and the International Standards Organization (ISO). Microsoft is confident that these submissions will play major roles in the formulation of emerging industry standards and is committed to supporting the industry's standards process.
AAF – released today for public review – is the result of Microsoft's collaboration with eight leading professional media software and hardware companies: Adobe Systems Inc., Avid Technology Inc., Digidesign, Matrox Video Products Group, Pinnacle Systems Inc., Softimage Inc., Sonic Foundry Inc. and Truevision Inc. It will allow developers to work with a broader range of tools and to focus their creative energies on the quality of their content. Content creators will be able to choose the best tool for the job, without having to convert their multimedia files from one format to another. Using AAF, tool developers will be able to focus on feature-set improvements rather than file conversion.
To produce the ASF specification, Microsoft collaborated with industry leaders Adobe Systems, Intel Corp., RealNetworks Inc. and Vivo Software Inc. and received input from more than 20 other companies. ASF is expected to spur the growth of streaming multimedia over networks by increasing the choice of available production tools, boosting the number of Internet broadcasts available for viewing and improving the quality of these broadcasts.
A specification for AAF is available free of charge (connect-time charges may apply) on Microsoft's Web site. Microsoft will provide a software development kit (SDK) and Windows operating system support for AAF by early 1999.
Support for ASF 1.0 will be included in future versions of Windows; support for ASF 2.0 will be provided via updates to Windows 98 and the Windows NT® operating system version 5.0. A specification and SDK for ASF 2.0 are available today on Microsoft's Web site. AVI will continue to be supported in Windows, and conversion tools between AVI, ASF and AAF will be provided. For additional information, see http://www.microsoft.com/winmm/ .
Microsoft, Windows and Windows NT are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corp. in the United States and/or other countries.


text:
Q: RangeError (length): Invalid value: Only valid value is 0: 1. Error thrown Instance of 'ErrorDescription' We just released our app. And are seeing these crashes in production. But the stacktrace is not leading me somewhere usefull.
RangeError (length): Invalid value: Only valid value is 0: 1. Error thrown Instance of 'ErrorDescription
Non-fatal Exception: FlutterError
0  ???                            0x0 first (dart:core)
1  ???                            0x0 assembleSemanticsNode + 436 (paragraph.dart:436)
2  ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3717 (object.dart:3717)
3  ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3709 (object.dart:3709)
4  ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3709 (object.dart:3709)
5  ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3709 (object.dart:3709)
6  ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3709 (object.dart:3709)
7  ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3709 (object.dart:3709)
8  ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3709 (object.dart:3709)
9  ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3709 (object.dart:3709)
10 ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3663 (object.dart:3663)
11 ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3709 (object.dart:3709)
12 ???                            0x0 compileChildren + 3587 (object.dart:3587)
13 ???                            0x0 _updateSemantics + 2631 (object.dart:2631)
14 ???                            0x0 flushSemantics + 1081 (object.dart:1081)
15 ???                            0x0 drawFrame + 441 (binding.dart:441)
16 ???                            0x0 drawFrame + 914 (binding.dart:914)
17 ???                            0x0 _handlePersistentFrameCallback + 302 (binding.dart:302)
18 ???                            0x0 _invokeFrameCallback + 1117 (binding.dart:1117)
19 ???                            0x0 handleDrawFrame + 1055 (binding.dart:1055)
20 ???                            0x0 _handleDrawFrame + 971 (binding.dart:971)

Steps to Reproduce
I can't reproduce the issue. I see these crashes in firebase.

  Logs
No problems with the analyzer

[✓] Flutter (Channel stable, 1.22.6, on Mac OS X 10.15.7 19H114 darwin-x64, locale en-BE)
    • Flutter version 1.22.6 at /Users/vanlooverenkoen/fvm/versions/stable
    • Framework revision 9b2d32b605 (5 weeks ago), 2021-01-22 14:36:39 -0800
    • Engine revision 2f0af37152
    • Dart version 2.10.5
                                                                                [✓] Android toolchain - develop for Android devices (Android SDK version 30.0.2)
    • Android SDK at /Users/vanlooverenkoen/Library/Android/sdk
    • Platform android-30, build-tools 30.0.2
    • Java binary at: /Applications/Android Studio.app/Contents/jre/jdk/Contents/Home/bin/java
    • Java version OpenJDK Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_242-release-1644-b3-6915495)
    • All Android licenses accepted.

[✓] Xcode - develop for iOS and macOS (Xcode 12.0.1)
    • Xcode at /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer
    • Xcode 12.0.1, Build version 12A7300
    • CocoaPods version 1.10.0

[!] Android Studio (version 4.1)
    • Android Studio at /Applications/Android Studio.app/Contents
    ✗ Flutter plugin not installed; this adds Flutter specific functionality.
    ✗ Dart plugin not installed; this adds Dart specific functionality.
    • Java version OpenJDK Runtime Environment (build 1.8.0_242-release-1644-b3-6915495)

[!] IntelliJ IDEA Community Edition (version 2020.3)
    • IntelliJ at /Applications/IntelliJ IDEA CE.app
    ✗ Flutter plugin not installed; this adds Flutter specific functionality.
    ✗ Dart plugin not installed; this adds Dart specific functionality.
    • For information about installing plugins, see
      https://flutter.dev/intellij-setup/#installing-the-plugins

[!] VS Code (version 1.53.2)
    • VS Code at /Applications/Visual Studio Code.app/Contents
    ✗ Flutter extension not installed; install from
      https://marketplace.visualstudio.com/items?itemName=Dart-Code.flutter

A: In our case we had a rich text with a clickable textspan.
This was causing an issue.
https://github.com/flutter/flutter/issues/69787
https://github.com/flutter/flutter/issues/51936
update to flutter 2.0.0 for a potential fix
workaround for pre flutter 2.0.0:
ExcludeSemantics(
  excluding: true,
  child: RichText( ... ),
),

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Blog. 03 July 2017. Author: Chris Baguley. How much deposit do you really need to buy a house? Numbers don't lie - get a better picture of how much you'll need to save for your deposit with our handy online deposit calculator. Get Started. I couldn�t count the amount of times I�ve been asked casually by friends and colleagues: �How much deposit do I need for a home loan?� Deposits to... Is Can you buy a house without a deposit in 7 Kendall Place, Helensvale QLD 4212 your business? Claim your listing and attract more leads by adding more content, photos and other business details. Claim your listing and attract more leads by adding more content, photos and other business details.
However if you have a lot of debts to clear, or you just don�t have enough savings to put down as a deposit and you need to buy a house right away, there might still be a way to secure a home loan from several banks in Australia.
The Reserve Bank of Australia dropped the cash rate to 2.25 per cent last month and it�s strongly predicted to fall again in the coming months which would see rates fall even further.
If your offer to buy a property is accepted, the deposit is used towards the purchase price of the property you are buying. If the contract remains in force but you don�t go ahead with the deal, the seller may seek to keep the deposit and you may have to pay other penalties.


text:
Watch: Tei Shi (Collective Arts Black Box Sessions)
Watch Tei Shi fill the Black Box studio with her signature soulful melodies, performing "Baby" and "Keep Running".
By dave kennedy Black Box Sessions, Live Performances, Sessions 12.07.2017
Tei Shi released her debut full-length album Crawl Space in March of this year. Before she was known as Tei Shi, she was Valerie Teiche; born in Argentina, spending her childhood in Colombia, then Vancouver, and later moving to Boston to study music at Berklee, before finally landing in New York City. Needless to say, her life and music career has been a journey.
She began composing songs around the age of 8 in her diary or on tapes, which are featured on the album. She was determined early on to become a singer, but struggled with an "extreme fear of the night" and insomnia. Crawl Space is named in homage to her experiences facing her fears, where she would hide inside her family home's crawlspace for a minute each night.
Crawl Space traces the arc of major changes across every facet of Tei Shi's life, and embodies the sound of an artist creating and commanding her own space. And while the process can be claustrophobic, Tei Shi proves that it can also be liberating, even exhilarating.
Watch Tei Shi perform a new stripped down take on her songs "Baby" and "Keep Running" from her album Crawl Space.
Artist: Tei Shi
Tags: Black Box Sessions,

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Vintage clothing stores in Atlanta, Georgia are a great resource for one of a kind pieces form the past. Shoppers of all ages are sure to find something they love at a vintage clothing store in Atlanta. We've all been in that mood where we feel like we look and dress just like everyone else. Everyone wants to be an individual. A great way to make you existing wardrobe stand out from the crowd is to shop for a few great pieces at vintage clothing store. Vintage clothing store usually will carry articles of clothing ranging from the early nineteen hundreds to present. You don't have to buy a poodle skirt if you don't want to! Vintage clothing stores are a great source for gently used name brand articles of clothing that someone else has decided they don't wear anymore. So, the next time you are in the mood for a Kate Spade pocket book at a major discount, or even that bubble gum pink poodle skirt, check out on of these great local vintage clothing shops in Atlanta.
The Lucky Exchange in Atlanta is a one-stop shop to buy, sell, or trade anything vintage. The Lucky Exchange carries a huge variety of vintage clothing, accessories, shoes, and more for both men and women. They are located in the midtown area of Atlanta, a great place to be seen wearing your vintage garb as well as to purchase it. If you stopping by to purchase things come anytime they are open. If you want to sell some of your won vintage items, you will need to call and make an appointment. The Lucky Exchange is located at 212 Ponce De Leon Avenue, Atlanta, Georgia, 30308. They can be reached at (404) 817-7715.
Frock of Ages takes a great spin on vintage fashion. They know vintage fashion is fun and they do their best to supply their customers with anything their hearts desire. Frock of Ages carries a large selection of fine evening wear from almost any decade in the twentieth century. They also have a large selection of costume jewelry and everyday clothing that looks as if it has hardly been worn. Frock of Ages is located at 1653 McLendon Avenue North East, Atlanta, Georgia, 30307. For directions to this beautiful vintage shop you can contact them at (404) 370-1006.
Psycho Sisters is the type of hip vintage store that anyone would love to spend hours digging around in. Even if you best friend swears she would never be caught dead in a vintage shop, take her to this one. The carry everything from the perfect pair of worn-out jeans to fabulous and hip hates. Psycho Sisters has been named Atlanta's best vintage resale shop for too many years to count and they have definitely worked hard to earn that honor. Their inventory changes daily. I recommend stopping in as often as you can to find the best items. They can get really packed on the weekend, so you may want to call in sick and check them out on a weekday morning. Psycho sisters is located at 5964 Roswell Road, Atlanta, 30326. If you would like to make an appointment with them to sell some of your old duds contact them at (404) 255-5578.


A news report on the radio or TV catches your ear. An item shows up on Twitter, or in your Facebook feed. An article in a magazine jumps out at you.
Coffee. Sugar. Alcohol. Mobile phone use. Sitting.
In the face of such frequent and contradictory reports, it is tempting to stick your head in the sand and just shrug your shoulders as you continue to do what you like. On the other hand, human nature can rear its dogmatic head, and you might be tempted to make a rule that supports your own behavior. [You know you've made a rule if you think your way is what is best for everyone. The rule also probably includes the word "always" or "never."] Examples abound: from advocates of particular dietary practices, exercise disciplines, spiritual beliefs, political ideologies.
Is it just human nature? Is it an ego out-of-awareness that insists it is right, and everyone else is wrong? Modern media revels in the opportunity for "Point/Counterpoint" argument, trash-talking, and polarization. While it might make for "TV worth watching," it seems that in most cases, you are better served by having a more nuanced viewpoint. Warning: you will get a lot of flack for answering "It depends." You can't just spout bumper-sticker aphorisms, and you have to stay actively engaged with your own thinking process, to develop a sense of fine-tuning in your beliefs and corresponding actions. Alas, it is inconvenient, and any opportunities of offering a 30-second sound bite can be kissed goodbye.
So now, a new book and accompanying article in the New York Times has come onto the radar. It is potentially as important as the early research on the effects of cigarette smoking. A lot of people will be upset. The subject? YOGA.
Black has come to believe that "the vast majority of people" should give up yoga altogether. It's simply too likely to cause harm.
The entire article is worth a read. Black's viewpoint, and that of a new book The Science of Yoga: The Risks and The Rewards, is a highly nuanced and sensible one. As a Feldenkrais teacher who works with a lot of yoga enthusiasts, I'm often asked "What do you think of yoga?" or "Is yoga GOOD?" I often wonder if their underlying question is, "Should I be doing yoga?" I'm delighted to say "It depends." It's not just the WHAT (Yoga). It's also the HOW — how it is taught, how you approach it, how you monitor yourself. . .
Moshe Feldenkrais was famous for saying, "If you don't know what you're doing, then you can't do what you want [to do]." Ah, there's the rub. With yoga, it is important to know what you are doing. Many people begin a yoga class without having the slightest inkling what their physical limitations are, with the belief that yoga will "fix them." The temptation to stretch just a little bit farther, or to conquer that challenging pose TODAY, is a siren song that can lead to serious injury. Of course, many people enjoy and benefit from their yoga practice. Surely, the difference lies in the experience and intentions of the individual in any given moment.
I'm not bashing yoga. You can get hurt doing ANYTHING — yoga, crossing the street, cooking, ballet, playing the violin. . . you can even put yourself in pain during a Feldenkrais class, if you aren't paying careful attention to yourself! The bottom line is, people are not going to stop yoga (just as some people have not stopped smoking), no matter what "the evidence" might say. People will indeed continue yoga, as they will continue to study ballet, climb sheer rock faces, drive fast, eat sweet foods, clean their houses. Of course, the analogy breaks down a bit with the examples of smoking, driving, and shooting, as other people can potentially be harmed by your actions. But that's another debate.
I'd love to see our culture and our education system support the idea that it is beneficial to learn to respect yourself, and the physical sensations your body send to tell you "THIS is enough." If we can learn to appreciate the long-term process of learning and improvement over a lifetime, rather than the fastest result possible — well, we might just then be on to something.
Very well articulated. Nice job MaryBeth.
Love this article, Marybeth — and thanks for the links. I am a yoga lover and I have, indeed, been injured in class (my own doing and at times by the hands of "teachers"). All yoga teachers are not created equal and the Yoga Culture in the US is not facilitating a healthy and balanced practice. Feldenkrais is a mind-body modality that has helped me nurture awareness, thus developing a respect and gentle stewardship of my body (and mind!) no matter what my physical pursuits. See you in class next week at the Jung: game on!
Thank you for the link/article too. Attention. Mindfulness. Awareness. Think.
Mary Beth, Glenn Black certainly is not "renowned" in the sense of prestigious or exemplary after the NYT article has made him notorious.–He's now the poster boy for uncritical acceptance of 3 different modalities without careful consideraion & evidence. First a compulsive yoga practice in which he claims to have ignored /not sought help for discomfort until it was overwhelming 2) complete following of a celebrity bodytuning guru who promotes himself as an intutive healer 3) complete acceptance of orthopedic medical science to the extent that he discounts a long painful rehabilitation and accepts a surgery without such a great success rate(there are several other surgical alternative for stenosis.
Thanks for this contribution. The points you raise are exactly what makes the practice of ANY activity, done mindlessly, a dangerous one. Compulsion, acceptance of authority without questioning, and the lack of knowledge of alternative paths to improvement, are not exclusive to yoga culture. They can be found throughout the exercise biz, in all kind of sports, and even in the arts. Add in competition and ego, and you've got a perfect storm for people getting hurt. I hope that the new book will address these issues.
The NYT article will be a conversation starter, that's for sure.
I also need to remind that 99% of all books are written to make money – that's the SOLE AND ONLY purpose. Sorry for this not-so-romantic reminder. I know this since I'm on the amazon writers forums and I read the blogs of best selling writers.
That yoga (just like any other sport or activity) carries some risks, and does not lead to the promised "enlightenment" (though not mentioned in the article?) is discussed since decades, from the medical community as well as yoga practitioners alike. So that's nothing new.
Alfons, thank you for taking the time to comment on my post.
While I don't share your rather cynical view that "only money counts," I would say that media, readership, and book sales are driven by sensationalism and the ability to write a polarizing headline or title. The goal of this post, and of the SomaQuest blog in general, is to encourage people to consider an alternative, more nuanced and differentiated approach in their thinking about many issues in our culture.


The Texas Holdem Sit n' Go Companion is a wonderful tool for those who find themselves bubbling a ton of sit and go's. Stop bubbling and start winning with Sit n' Go companion. Regardless of your skill level, the Sit n' Go Companion will help your game. The companion literally sits in the background of your online poker site table interface while you're playing. It sits in the background providing you with the most critical information for playing certain hands. Version 4 includes unspecified updates.


text:
London set to overhaul rules to attract more tech IPOs following Deliveroo listing
The City's attractiveness for listings has diminished in recent years, as the US and Hong Kong have captured the majority of demand
Lina Saigol and
Callum Keown
Monday March 8, 2021 1:18 pm
Amazon-backed food delivery company Deliveroo kicked off its eagerly-anticipated initial public offering in London on 1 March, helping to boost government hopes of convincing more fast-growing technology companies to list on the London Stock Exchange.
London-based Deliveroo, which is 16% owned by online retailer Amazon, plans to raise capital by selling new stock, while existing holders also will sell shares, according to a statement that didn't provide details on the size of the planned offering. The company was valued at...


Here's just a small sampling of some of the work we've done to make our customers happy. Have a look around. We hope it can inspire you.
A few homes we have designed and built.
Interior rooms of homes we've built or remodels we've done.


text:
Zika caused health problems for one in seven US babies
FELIPE DANA\AP
About one in seven babies exposed to Zika in the womb had health problems caused by the virus — including some medical complications that were not evident at birth and were identified only as the infants grew older, the US nation's top health agency reported.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the health issues possibly caused by Zika included birth defects — such as a small head size, brain and eye damage — and nervous system problems including seizures and vision and hearing loss, bradenton.com reported.
"The Zika story is not over," Peggy Honein, director of the CDC's Division of Congenital and Developmental Disorders, said during a conference call with reporters.
Zika emerged in Miami in the summer of 2016, the first place in the continental US to report local spread of the disease. By the summer of 2017, though, there were just two cases. No local Zika cases have been reported in 2018.
Honein said the CDC cannot say with certainty how many neuro-developmental problems, such as brain and eye damage, were caused by Zika infections in 2016 and 2017. But she added that the incidence of brain and eye damage was about 30 times higher in babies born to mothers who had Zika during pregnancy than it was in those babies who were not exposed to Zika in the womb.
"What makes this report unique," Honein said, "is we're looking at the health of these babies beyond what was observed at birth."
The CDC report released is the largest to date involving long-term health outcomes in babies born to mothers who had laboratory-confirmed evidence of Zika during pregnancy.
To conduct the study, the CDC examined 1,450 infants who were at least one year old by Feb. 1, 2018, and had some follow-up care. All of the children in the study were born in U.S. territories with local spread of Zika in 2016 and 2017, including Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of Marshall Islands. No states were included in the study.
The new findings underscore the need for follow-up care of babies exposed to Zika before birth, said CDC Director Dr. Robert Redfield.
"We are still learning about the effects of Zika, and it might be years before we fully understand the full spectrum of health outcomes," Redfield said.
"We do know that some babies may appear healthy at birth but may develop long-term health problems as they grow."
But follow-up care has been spotty for children born to mothers who had Zika during pregnancy, said Dr. Ivan Gonzalez, director of the Zika Response Team at the University of Miami Health System, a group of medical specialists who coordinate care for infants exposed to the virus before birth.
Gonzalez said the team monitors about 65 children born between 2016, when Florida began to monitor Zika infections, and 2018.
Ideally, Gonzalez said, the group should be tracking more children given the number of pregnant women with laboratory-confirmed Zika infections in Florida: a total of 479 since 2016, according to the Florida Department of Health. That number includes women who contracted the illness while traveling outside of Florida.
But persuading parents and pediatricians to follow CDC guidelines for follow-up care is proving difficult, said Gonzalez, who also serves as medical director of Florida's Zika Referral Center, a statewide program that connects infected patients to doctors.
"Because Zika has become last year's thing," he said, 'nobody cares'.
Gonzalez said parents and pediatricians who ignore follow-up care for children possibly exposed to Zika before birth risk missing early detection and interventions that could minimize the long-term effects of developmental problems, such as problems with vision, hearing and movement of their arms and legs.
caused


text:
Procter & Gamble sues 2 for infringement, unfair competition
By Carolyn Pritchard
Published: May 2, 2006 11:45 a.m. ET
CarolynPritchard
SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Procter & Gamble Co. PG, -0.25% said Tuesday it has sued Percara Enterprises Inc. and Cumberland Swan Holdings Inc. in separate lawuits, alleging trade dress infringement, trademark infringement and unfair competition involving several beauty care brands and one oral care brand. Cumberland Swan has additionally been accused of false advertising. The suit against Percara, which sells beauty products under its own company brand name, involves Procter & Gamble's Herbal Essences Fruit Fusions, Secret, Old Spice Red Zone and High Endurance, and Pantene brands; the complaint agsinst Cumberland Swan, which makes and distributes private label products, involves the Head & Shoulders, Pert Plus and Crest Pro-Health brands. Cincinnati-based Procter & Gamble is seeking to have the distribution of the infringing products by both companies stopped, and said it will move for a preliminary injunction against Cumberland Swan.
Procter & Gamble Co. U.S.: NYSE: PG


The house is a townhouse with a shared pool. Entrance is on the first floor level to the well fitted kitchen, lounge and dining areas. The bedrooms are on the lower floor. There are superb views out onto the ocean from the terrace.
It is in walking distance (15 mins) of the town centre and beaches and is an ideal base for golf, walking and birding.
Two twin/double rooms, one with UK sat TV. Both bedrooms have patio doors out to a terrace.
There is a third 'boxroom' which can be used as an extra bedroom.
One upstairs with a shower and the other downstairs with a shower and bath.
Living area with wood burning fire. Flat screen TV with Sky, iPod dock, CD and radio player, collection of CD's and DVD's.
All mod cons including dishwasher.
Bed linen provided and also towels for use inside. Please bring own towels for beach/ pool use. Maid sets up house and comes in weekly thereafter.
Areais dos Moinhos is an established part of Carvoeiro and has a mix of Portuguese, English and other nationalities. The houses are a mix of homes and holiday lets.
Beaches, golf, walking, birdwatching. Many good restaurants in Carvoeiro.
Fly into Faro. Carvoeiro is 45 minute drive from airport.
Ferry to Santander or Bilbao. Carvoeiro is ~650 miles away.


This quote continues to be repeated, even though it is borderline cliché, because first impressions can make or break relationships. This is true even if a first impression is a presentation.
If you are at a loss for how to make a lasting, positive impression during the first few seconds of your next presentation, consider telling a story, sharing a joke, or even leading with a powerful quote that relates to the message of your talk.


[dropcap]B[/dropcap]efore you say it, I am well aware of my tardiness in putting finger to keyboard on this one but sometimes a little pondering does us good.
Over the last few weeks, I've enjoyed reflecting on 2017 and it has led me to consider what I would like to change in 2018. I've started putting a few things into practice which has helped me work out what is realistic and what is likely to result in a big fat fail!
There seems to be an 'anti new year's resolutions' trend knocking around of late. Well I'm going to lay my cards on the table right now – I'm a huge fan! I can dress them up as something other than 'resolutions' if you like, but basically that's what they are. I'm grateful for this life that I've been given and I'm absolutely going to give it my best shot!
Planning is in my blood. On occasion I try to pretend that winging it (another trend, I'm easily swayed) is going to be my new style but in reality, I know that my life works best when I'm writing things down, planning ahead and ticking off tasks.
I am very easily distracted, so when I veer of this planning path, things usually go belly up. By about September of last year, I knew things were heading that way; I was permanently tired, at least 10 minutes late for every single appointment/rendez-vous and 'dropping balls' was becoming a speciality of mine.
Over the last few months, the word 'balance' has cropped up time and again and I just knew that this should be my Word for 2018. Last year it was Release and the year before it was Trust. Having a word really helped me to consider how best to shape my year and I kept coming back to it time and again.
I've been contemplating what having more 'balance' might look like for me.
The last two years have been difficult for our family and it's only really now, as things are settling, that I can look objectively at the consequences of that period of time.
We've learnt a lot of really positive things and made some key changes but we have also let some important things slide. The husband and I have always been huge advocates of making sure we spend enough time together, that we prioritise our marriage. I mean, what's going to happen when the kids leave home (probably only 6 years away ??) if we've forgotten how to talk to each other?! So yes, we've let this slip down the priority list and I would like to put it back at the top, where it belongs.
We've also been really slack at making sure that everyone plays their part in the running of our home. When the children were younger we used to ensure they each had age-appropriate jobs. Although in reality it was easier to do it ourselves, we had a goal in mind – to teach them how to be well-rounded adults.
When you have a child with depression, who you're trying to nurture by releasing as much pressure as possible, it's very difficult to navigate family life. It has inevitably led to everyone slacking and the chores landing back in our court. Time for a change!
I love spending time in my home and interiors is a passion of mine. Last year we wanted to make some improvements and I can confidently say that we absolutely smashed that goal 100%. But I can also say that we bit off a little more than we could chew. So yes, balance in this area is definitely needed.
Having three jobs in three different places, means that balance is essential if I'm to survive. I work at our own business on Mondays, volunteer at our church on Tuesdays and in 2017, I took on some freelance work acting as social media manager for a local company.
I've already confessed to being easily distracted so in order to succeed, I absolutely need to plan my work life and make sure that it's not encroaching on home life too much.This year our eldest daughter will be learning to drive, which is an amazing answer to prayer for us (she has finally come off the medication that was stopping her from getting a license). She also has a goal of starting full time work in May, so as she is likely to be spreading her wings in 2018, this should give me a little extra space to flourish too.
Although I wouldn't necessarily call my little corner of the internet a 'job', I'm including it in this section and you'll soon see why. When I started this blog back in September 2016, I wasn't interested in making any money from blogging or collaborating with brands. My aim was to rediscover writing for the fun of it and to explore who I am, now that my children are all pretty self sufficient.
Whilst that hasn't changed, I have started working with a few brands and would like to continue exploring these opportunities in 2018. I am well aware that finding balance will be crucial here because I want to stay true to myself and remain authentic. I also don't have a great deal of time to spend on my blog so it needs to be spent wisely.
This has become a pretty epic post so if you're still here, well done! Thank you for sticking with me.
I mentioned earlier that towards the end of last year, I was finding myself late for everything. I had taken up this rather annoying habit of needing to tidy my whole house before leaving to go anywhere. I think it was a result of feeling stressed – if I can just return home to a tidy house then all will be well with the world, right?
Just for the record, a tidy home doesn't equal a tidy mind. It just causes me to be late for work!
So as you can see, balance in my personal life is needed. With three jobs I don't have a lot of free time and a good chunk of the time I do have at home, needs to be carved out for work. BUT I also know that exercise, friendship and self-care are important if I'm to keep stress at bay and not only survive but thrive!
Another huge part of my life that I need to keep central, is my faith. I started hosting a bible study in our home every Tuesday evening last year and it has been so key to personal growth as well as bringing me closer to God. I've loved it and will continue meeting with the same ladies in 2018. My goal every year is to end it a little closer to God than the last. Most years I'm not entirely sure I achieve that as I let things slip and my priorities shift a little, but in 2017 I can honestly say that I did and I feel so much better for it.
As you can see, my resolutions aren't huge, they are just things that I know help me to manage my life better. By writing them down, I am hoping this post will provide some accountability and also act as a reminder for when I inevitably veer off the path in a few month's time.
Do you have any new year's resolutions? What about a word for the year?
A great post. I am also struggling to find balance and I'm finding taking a bit of a step back from everything and doing less for a while has been helpful. I hope 2018 is a good one for you.
Great post, top tips too! 2017 has been a turmoil of a year for us and 2018 looks like another year of major changes. Remembering to take a moment to consider what is facing us to ensure that the apple cart is not upturned and look at how we approach what we do all helps to keep us balanced.
I really loved reading this, even though I don't make resolutions, set goals or have a word of the year! Funnily enough, I do most of the things in your personal life list, except for me it's running rather than yoga. I haven't quite managed meeting a friend once a week, but I'm managing about once a month, which bearing in mind this time last year I never met anyone ever, is a big improvement! I always feel good after meeting a friend, so hopefully I can do it a bit more often over the coming year.
Good luck with your goals! It sounds like they will give you a really good balance if you can achieve them.
I'm very impressed that you're already managing to fit so much in. I'll be even more impressed if you manage to do everything you've planned for 2018!
You're right that some relationships and activities have to be made top priorities, but the implication of that is that other relationships and activities, even some that mean a lot to us, have to be firmly relegated to the middle or the bottom of the priority list.
When you're busy, it always helps if you can get plenty of sleep. (I realise that some people have problems in doing this.) I sleep well at night, but I enjoy an occasional daytime nap.
That's good news about daughter #1.
These are fantastic priorities for the start of the year. My husband and I are having monthly date nights too – we've even booked the babysitter up until June! And I'm a huge fan of reading during the day – I often read when my kids are playing happily!
Balance is such a good word and one that is really anchoring for me. I love how you've highlighted the ways you'll live it out in the different areas of your life . I think its so important to start the year with intention, whether that's with a set plan and with goals or even if it's being more mindful in the choices and decisions we make.
I need you to bring balance into my life, let me know how you get on. With a mother to care for, a relationship to nurture, a rabbit to love, a course to complete, a job to do, and volunteering commitments I am really struggling to find time for me. Think I might join you in aiming for a more balanced life this year – good luck!


Almost every other days, there are breakthroughs being made in the technological world. There are so many modern gadgets available with which you can do things that you cannot even imagine. Out of them, some always manage to strike a chord as they seem to have arrived from the future to grace our present. Check out some of the modern yet futuristic gadgets.
This is an innovative cup and comes with a unique design. This Ember is a ceramic cup that allows you to maintain the temperature of drink efficiently for a longer period of time. This is easy to operate with the latest Smartphone app. It has gained a lot of attention from famous bloggers around the globe.
This keyboard is a great invention. This is suitable to use for everyone and especially freelancers. Its picture is visible on the table and can use it efficiently like other keyboards. This doesn't have any keys and is small in size. This is suitable to use in a bit darker room that allows you to view its button clearly.
This ring is small in size and is convenient to use. This is a hands-free and ear-free device and saves you from other Bluetooth radiation. This comes with multiple sizes so that everyone can use it effectively. It is suitable to use while driving and even while working. This allows you to accept calls by pressing your finger on ears.
This is one of the greatest inventions for those people who are having a problem while sleeping. This allows you to have better and faster sleep. This also lets you wake up early. It is equipped with a built-in lamp that illuminates like sunlight and allows you to enjoy better music according to your preference.
This camera comes with great quality and is suitable to use. This comes with a waterproof design that allows you to take photos and making videos underwater without any damage. It has high resolution that lets you have a clear and a perfect photo. This is ideal to broadcast or share them using Wi-Fi.
This is a great product and allows you to know the level of calories and other elements we take in our daily life. This allows you to live a healthy life by checking the microelements that we eat. This scale device has more than 2000 types of food in its memory.
This comes with a unique feature and is transparent. This allows you to clearly see the peace of bread inside it. It is easy to use and lets you know whether the bread is toasted or not. It is helpful and saves your bread from burning.
Next article 7 Signs That Show Your Relationship Is Steadily Moving To The Next Level!


That's probably a bit impolite to ask legislators wanting to attend the National Federation of Independent Business's annual Small Business Day at the Capitol in Salem on April 11, but what a delight it would be if even one were wrapped and handed to Oregon's leading job-generators.
With the opening of a new legislative session on February 4, small businesses, which have uniquely different difficulties than big businesses do in remaining solvent, would like to hoist themselves up to the ample Santa's lap of senators and representatives and present its legislative wish list.
1. A balanced state budget with an appropriate spending growth cap indexed to population growth plus the rate of inflation. According to an article by Sen. Doug Whitsett, Oregon's all-funds budget has tripled from $20 billion 20 years ago to $60 billion today. To put this in perspective, this amounts to $15,000 for every man, woman and child residing in the state of Oregon, or $60,000 per family of four. If the suggested growth cap would have been in place, our current budget would be $27 billion.
The source of this $60 billion budget is produced from taxes, fees, charges, licenses, registrations and other charges from enforced regulations of the private sector economy. In Oregon, that is predominantly small business. In a state with the unemployment rate above not only the national rate, but also that of our neighboring states, the cost in employment is substantial.
2. Small business equality in tax certainty and treatment (see last month's column for a perfect example). After the governor and Legislature acknowledged that tax certainty motivates business expansion and job-creation and, commensurately, increased revenue in the state's coffers, all small business is asking for is the same consideration shown Nike during the special session. Small business can create significantly more jobs and contribute significantly more state revenue than Nike could ever.
3. A moratorium on regulations. Oregon has 180 agencies contributing to an 11,000-page tome for businesses to abide by. This is a big reason, according to a poll in Forbes, that 55 percent of small-business owners would not start companies today—69 percent of them citing regulations. A good start at reform would be to implement statutes already on the books, such as ORS 183.405, which requires adopted rules to be reviewed by state agencies within a five-year period of their adoption. Another is ORS 183.336, which requires cost assessment of compliance of rules on small businesses. With agencies poised to pounce on any small business found not in compliance by assessing fees, penalties and sometimes costly capital improvements, the small-business community lives under constant threat from an aggressive agency culture.
4. No mandatory paid sick leave. This one-size-fits-all proposal does not work and is punitive for small businesses. In a Portland Business Journal survey of its readership, 65 percent answered "no" to the question, "Should the city of Portland force businesses to provide mandatory sick leave to employees?" In 2012, NFIB/Oregon did a similar poll of our 7,500 members, and 95 percent answered "no" to the question, "Do you favor legislation requiring employers in Oregon to give employees a guaranteed number of days of annual paid sick leave?" Sick leave is an issue best left to the policy and agreements made by each business with their employees.
5. Last, but not least: No new taxes. People are having a difficult enough time living within their means, because government still cannot manage to live with its means.
Three of the five items on the wish list ask legislators to do nothing. How difficult could that be? Yes, that was a bit of sarcasm.
Is this the same NFIB that sold us down the river by supporting Obamacare exchanges in Oregon?
I hope realtors and home remodelers will oppose lifting of property tax limits and assessment methods, as it sure can't help the local housing industry. One proposed bill would allow assessed value to increase to sales price when a house is sold. This creates some rather perverse incentives. Existing homeowners and remodelers would be less inclined to refurbish their house before selling it as this would very likely cause the future property tax bill to spike. Moreover, buyers would adjust their bids lower in order to make the property tax bill more manageable. Under this proposal, existing homeowners would tend to hold onto their homes longer rather than sell, removing house inventory from a currently thin market. At the same time, the other bill to lift the limits entirely has these same qualities above but, in addition, also discourages to some extent families and businesses re-locating to Oregon. No doubt some folks view the latter as positive, but I shouldn't think those in building industries and real estate would view this positively.
The City of Portland is seeking to eliminate the property tax limits altogether, and yet here is one of the most wasteful City governments in Oregon. Its own City Auditor says it wastes much of its transportation budget, and she questions much of its development expenditures. The City loans millions to a downtown hotel, and the loan goes into nonperformance only a few years later. It spends millions remodeling its ballpark only to shortly thereafter boot out the baseball team. OSPIRG rates the City a D minus in budget transparency. Existing property tax limits allow for 3% growth in property tax bills, and with Housing starting to recover this growth should resume; making compression a spending problem not a taxing limit problem. In fact the average home owner property tax bill has increased between 4 and 5 percent per year on average for the last ten years in the City of Portland (even with compression).
The problem with allowing citizens to vote for higher property tax rates is many elections are biased; with government employee unions (who stand to benefit from higher tax bills) swamping the campaigns with their largess of monies and use of children as props, with government officials largely elected or assigned to rewrite or write the property tax ballot initiative; and with those with little property allowed to vote ever higher taxes on more substantive property owners.


text:
<?php

/**
 * Task class for creating and updating the database configuration file.
 *
 * @package       cake
 * @subpackage    cake.cake.console.libs.tasks
 */
class DbConfigTask extends Shell {

/**
 * path to CONFIG directory
 *
 * @var string
 * @access public
 */
	var $path = null;

/**
 * Default configuration settings to use
 *
 * @var array
 * @access private
 */
	var $__defaultConfig = array(
		'name' => 'default', 'driver'=> 'mysql', 'persistent'=> 'false', 'host'=> 'localhost',
		'login'=> 'root', 'password'=> 'password', 'database'=> 'project_name',
		'schema'=> null, 'prefix'=> null, 'encoding' => null, 'port' => null
	);

/**
 * String name of the database config class name.
 * Used for testing.
 *
 * @var string
 */
	var $databaseClassName = 'DATABASE_CONFIG';

/**
 * initialization callback
 *
 * @var string
 * @access public
 */
	function initialize() {
		$this->path = $this->params['working'] . DS . 'config' . DS;
	}

/**
 * Execution method always used for tasks
 *
 * @access public
 */
	function execute() {
		if (empty($this->args)) {
			$this->__interactive();
			$this->_stop();
		}
	}

/**
 * Interactive interface
 *
 * @access private
 */
	function __interactive() {
		$this->hr();
		$this->out('Database Configuration:');
		$this->hr();
		$done = false;
		$dbConfigs = array();

		while ($done == false) {
			$name = '';

			while ($name == '') {
				$name = $this->in("Name:", null, 'default');
				if (preg_match('/[^a-z0-9_]/i', $name)) {
					$name = '';
					$this->out('The name may only contain unaccented latin characters, numbers or underscores');
				} else if (preg_match('/^[^a-z_]/i', $name)) {
					$name = '';
					$this->out('The name must start with an unaccented latin character or an underscore');
				}
			}

			$driver = $this->in('Driver:', array('mssql', 'mysql', 'mysqli', 'oracle', 'postgres', 'sqlite'), 'mysql');

			$persistent = $this->in('Persistent Connection?', array('y', 'n'), 'n');
			if (strtolower($persistent) == 'n') {
				$persistent = 'false';
			} else {
				$persistent = 'true';
			}

			$host = '';
			while ($host == '') {
				$host = $this->in('Database Host:', null, 'localhost');
			}

			$port = '';
			while ($port == '') {
				$port = $this->in('Port?', null, 'n');
			}

			if (strtolower($port) == 'n') {
				$port = null;
			}

			$login = '';
			while ($login == '') {
				$login = $this->in('User:', null, 'root');
			}
			$password = '';
			$blankPassword = false;

			while ($password == '' && $blankPassword == false) {
				$password = $this->in('Password:');

				if ($password == '') {
					$blank = $this->in('The password you supplied was empty. Use an empty password?', array('y', 'n'), 'n');
					if ($blank == 'y') {
						$blankPassword = true;
					}
				}
			}

			$database = '';
			while ($database == '') {
				$database = $this->in('Database Name:', null, 'cake');
			}

			$prefix = '';
			while ($prefix == '') {
				$prefix = $this->in('Table Prefix?', null, 'n');
			}
			if (strtolower($prefix) == 'n') {
				$prefix = null;
			}

			$encoding = '';
			while ($encoding == '') {
				$encoding = $this->in('Table encoding?', null, 'n');
			}
			if (strtolower($encoding) == 'n') {
				$encoding = null;
			}

			$schema = '';
			if ($driver == 'postgres') {
				while ($schema == '') {
					$schema = $this->in('Table schema?', null, 'n');
				}
			}
			if (strtolower($schema) == 'n') {
				$schema = null;
			}

			$config = compact('name', 'driver', 'persistent', 'host', 'login', 'password', 'database', 'prefix', 'encoding', 'port', 'schema');

			while ($this->__verify($config) == false) {
				$this->__interactive();
			}
			$dbConfigs[] = $config;
			$doneYet = $this->in('Do you wish to add another database configuration?', null, 'n');

			if (strtolower($doneYet == 'n')) {
				$done = true;
			}
		}

		$this->bake($dbConfigs);
		config('database');
		return true;
	}

/**
 * Output verification message and bake if it looks good
 *
 * @return boolean True if user says it looks good, false otherwise
 * @access private
 */
	function __verify($config) {
		$config = array_merge($this->__defaultConfig, $config);
		extract($config);
		$this->out();
		$this->hr();
		$this->out('The following database configuration will be created:');
		$this->hr();
		$this->out("Name:         $name");
		$this->out("Driver:       $driver");
		$this->out("Persistent:   $persistent");
		$this->out("Host:         $host");

		if ($port) {
			$this->out("Port:         $port");
		}

		$this->out("User:         $login");
		$this->out("Pass:         " . str_repeat('*', strlen($password)));
		$this->out("Database:     $database");

		if ($prefix) {
			$this->out("Table prefix: $prefix");
		}

		if ($schema) {
			$this->out("Schema:       $schema");
		}

		if ($encoding) {
			$this->out("Encoding:     $encoding");
		}

		$this->hr();
		$looksGood = $this->in('Look okay?', array('y', 'n'), 'y');

		if (strtolower($looksGood) == 'y') {
			return $config;
		}
		return false;
	}

/**
 * Assembles and writes database.php
 *
 * @param array $configs Configuration settings to use
 * @return boolean Success
 * @access public
 */
	function bake($configs) {
		if (!is_dir($this->path)) {
			$this->err($this->path . ' not found');
			return false;
		}

		$filename = $this->path . 'database.php';
		$oldConfigs = array();

		if (file_exists($filename)) {
			config('database');
			$db = new $this->databaseClassName;
			$temp = get_class_vars(get_class($db));

			foreach ($temp as $configName => $info) {
				$info = array_merge($this->__defaultConfig, $info);

				if (!isset($info['schema'])) {
					$info['schema'] = null;
				}
				if (!isset($info['encoding'])) {
					$info['encoding'] = null;
				}
				if (!isset($info['port'])) {
					$info['port'] = null;
				}

				if ($info['persistent'] === false) {
					$info['persistent'] = 'false';
				} else {
					$info['persistent'] = ($info['persistent'] == true) ? 'true' : 'false';
				}

				$oldConfigs[] = array(
					'name' => $configName,
					'driver' => $info['driver'],
					'persistent' => $info['persistent'],
					'host' => $info['host'],
					'port' => $info['port'],
					'login' => $info['login'],
					'password' => $info['password'],
					'database' => $info['database'],
					'prefix' => $info['prefix'],
					'schema' => $info['schema'],
					'encoding' => $info['encoding']
				);
			}
		}

		foreach ($oldConfigs as $key => $oldConfig) {
			foreach ($configs as $key1 => $config) {
				if ($oldConfig['name'] == $config['name']) {
					unset($oldConfigs[$key]);
				}
			}
		}

		$configs = array_merge($oldConfigs, $configs);
		$out = "<?php\n";
		$out .= "class DATABASE_CONFIG {\n\n";

		foreach ($configs as $config) {
			$config = array_merge($this->__defaultConfig, $config);
			extract($config);

			$out .= "\tvar \${$name} = array(\n";
			$out .= "\t\t'driver' => '{$driver}',\n";
			$out .= "\t\t'persistent' => {$persistent},\n";
			$out .= "\t\t'host' => '{$host}',\n";

			if ($port) {
				$out .= "\t\t'port' => {$port},\n";
			}

			$out .= "\t\t'login' => '{$login}',\n";
			$out .= "\t\t'password' => '{$password}',\n";
			$out .= "\t\t'database' => '{$database}',\n";

			if ($schema) {
				$out .= "\t\t'schema' => '{$schema}',\n";
			}

			if ($prefix) {
				$out .= "\t\t'prefix' => '{$prefix}',\n";
			}

			if ($encoding) {
				$out .= "\t\t'encoding' => '{$encoding}'\n";
			}

			$out .= "\t);\n";
		}

		$out .= "}\n";
		$out .= "?>";
		$filename = $this->path . 'database.php';
		return $this->createFile($filename, $out);
	}

/**
 * Get a user specified Connection name
 *
 * @return void
 */
	function getConfig() {
		App::import('Model', 'ConnectionManager', false);

		$useDbConfig = 'default';
		$configs = get_class_vars($this->databaseClassName);
		if (!is_array($configs)) {
			return $this->execute();
		}

		$connections = array_keys($configs);
		if (count($connections) > 1) {
			$useDbConfig = $this->in(__('Use Database Config', true) .':', $connections, 'default');
		}
		return $useDbConfig;
	}
}

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub


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text:
Posts Tagged 'John Carpenter's The Thing'
Ezra's Spooktober 2015
Posted 28 Oct 2015 — by Ezra Stead
Category Essay, Film Reviews
By Ezra Stead
I've decided not to get quite so carried away this time around, but as I said last year, October is my favorite month. Since I tend to watch a lot of horror movies year-round, in October I feel like I have to do something special, so I try to watch almost exclusively horror movies. I watched (or, in many cases, re-watched) a total of 22 before starting this article, and I'm far from finished. In the interest of actually recommending some movies before Halloween, I'm putting this out now, and in the interest of brevity, I'm cutting it down to ten recommendations, grouped together as double features (even though their availability varies a bit). Not all are horror movies, exactly, but I think you'll agree they're all on-theme for the season. Enjoy! Read More
Tags: '80s horror, A Nightmare on Elm Street, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2, A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Fredy's Revenge, Adam DeVine, American-International Pictures, Angela Trimbur, Angelica Huston, Audition, Barry Sonnenfeld, Christina Ricci, Christopher Lloyd, David Cronenberg, Desperado, Dreams in the Witch-House, Edgar Allan Poe, ER, Freddy Krueger, Friday the 13th, From Dusk Till Dawn, Full Metal Jacket, George Clooney, Gozu, Greg Nicotero, H.P. Lovecraft, Harvey Keitel, Henri-Georges Clouzot, horror, horror film, horror films, Howard Berger, Hush... Hush Sweet Charlotte, Ichi the Killer, In the Mouth of Madness, Jeffrey Combs, John Carpenter, John Carpenter's The Thing, Jurgen Prochnow, Kurt Neumann, Les Diaboliques, Malin Ackerman, Mark Patton, Masters of Horror, Premature Burial, Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino, Raul Julia, Re-Animator, Robert Aldrich, Robert Rodriguez, Rodney Ascher, Roger Corman, Room 237, Salem's Lot, Sam Neill, Scream Queen: My Nightmare on Elm Street, stanley kubrick, Stephen King, Stuart Gordon, Taissa Farmiga, Takashi Miike, The Addams Family, The Cabin in the Woods, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Final Girls, The Fly, The Nightmare, The Walking Dead, Thomas Middleditch, Todd Strauss-Schulson, Tyler Jensen, Vincent Price, Wes Craven, Yakuza, Yakuza Apocalypse
5 Remakes That Are (Arguably) Better Than The Original
Posted 03 Dec 2013 — by Ezra Stead
Category Essay, Film Reviews, Movies I Got
Remakes of classic films have an even worse track record than sequels when it comes to relative quality. Whether they change everything and ruin the whole idea (Frank Oz's 2004 Stepford Wives remake) or remain slavishly faithful to the original (Gus Van Sant's 1998 Psycho remake), most remakes have great difficulty in justifying their own existence, let alone surpassing the original. Here are five that achieve this rare feat.
1. INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS (1978) – this is the only one on the list that I wouldn't argue is definitely better than the original, but it's pretty damn close. Transposing the McCarthy-era paranoia of Don Siegel's 1956 classic to the pre-Reagan era, Philip Kaufman's remake presents an even darker vision, complete with a chilling ending in the spirit of the one Siegel had originally envisioned for his film, before the studio interfered to happy it up a little. Featuring great performances by Donald Sutherland, Jeff Goldblum and Leonard Nimoy, and state of the art special effects for the time, this is a truly frightening film, the rare remake that lives up to its source material. Read More
Tags: AIDS, Al Pacino, B movie, Ball of Fire, Brian De Palma, Bringing Up Baby, Cape Fear, cocaine, David Cronenberg, Don Siegel, Donald Sutherland, Ezra Stead, film, film review, film reviews, filmmaking, Frank Oz, Gregory Peck, Gus Van Sant, His Girl Friday, Hitchcock, hollywood, horror, horror films, Howard Hawks, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, James Cagney, Jeff Goldblum, Jessica Lange, John Carpenter, John Carpenter's The Thing, Joseph McCarthy, Juliette Lewis, Keith David, Kurt Russell, Leonard Nimoy, martin scorsese, Max Cady, Miami, Minotaur, Monkey Business, movie, movie review, movies, movies i didnt get, New York, Nick Nolte, Philip Kaufman, Psycho, remakes, Robert DeNiro, Robert Mitchum, Ronald Reagan, Sam Bowden, Scarface, science fiction, sequels, Seth Brundle, special effects, The Fly, The Public Enemy, The Stepford Wives, The Thing from Another World, Tony Montana, Vincent Price, Wilford Brimley
Carrie – A Bloody Unnecessary Remake
Posted 04 Nov 2013 — by Ezra Stead
Category Film Reviews, Movies I Didn't Get
Carrie, USA, 2013
Directed by Kimberly Peirce
To justify its own existence, a remake of a classic film doesn't necessarily have to be better than the original, but it is crucial that it be different in some substantial way. For example, though I prefer the original French film Love Crime in many ways, Brian De Palma's Passion more than justifies its existence by adding a third-act fever dream to the original source material, as well as being strikingly unique in several other ways. Martin Scorsese's Cape Fear is another good example of a filmmaker taking a markedly different approach to an already great film, in this case by adding psychological and moral complexity to what was originally a very cut-and-dried good versus evil story. In the horror genre, John Carpenter's The Thing and David Cronenberg's The Fly update classic B-movies to horrifying effect, to my mind managing to surpass the original films in quality and memorability.
Though I would like to evaluate Kimberly Peirce's new film version of Carrie on its own merits, without comparing it to De Palm's 1976 adaptation, it is just too similar, and everything good the new Carrie does with the material, De Palma's film already did better. This is evident from the very beginning, in the famous shower scene in which Carrie White (Chloe Grace Moretz) gets her first menstrual period and, not knowing what is happening and believing that she is bleeding to death, is mercilessly taunted and humiliated by her classmates. In De Palma's film, the horror of this moment is forefronted, with the performances and shooting style heightened to a surreal, nightmarish pitch. The vulnerability of Sissy Spacek's performance in particular sells the moment, and it is a truly disturbing scene to watch. Peirce, conversely, shoots the sequence in a relatively flat, ordinary way, and though the content is still rather shocking, it lacks the emotional power of the original. Read More
Tags: Brian De Palma, Cape Fear, Carrie, Chloe Grace Moretz, Cloverfield, David Cronenberg, Edgar Allen Poe, Ezra Stead, film, film review, film reviews, filmmaking, hollywood, horror, horror film, horror films, iPhone, John Carpenter, John Carpenter's The Thing, Julianne Moore, Kimberly Peirce, Love Crime, martin scorsese, movie, movie review, movies, movies i didnt get, New York, Passion, Piper Laurie, science fiction, Sissy Spacek, Stephen King, The Blair Witch Project, The Fly, Vimeo
Dean Koontz's Phantoms
Dean Koontz's Phantoms, USA, 1998
Directed by Joe Chappelle
At the suggestion of a couple of fictional gentlemen by the names of Jay and Robert, as well as one close, non-fictional friend (hint: we co-wrote this movie together, but he did not act in this one) who recently reminded me of their recommendation, I decided to finally check out "Affleck [being] the bomb in Phantoms." I can only assume all three parties were being highly sarcastic; after all, one of them was played by Kevin Smith, a longtime friend of Mr. Affleck, but not necessarily someone known for his unadulterated sincerity, Jersey Girl (2004) and the jail cell speech in the third act of Clerks II (2006) excluded.
Dean Koontz's Phantoms is awful, in that special way in which films like Lawrence Kasdan's 2003 Stephen King adaptation Dreamcatcher are awful. Author and screenwriter Dean Koontz is often considered the poor man's King (Koontz fans, please note: I have not actually read any of his books, I am merely recording the popular consensus as I understand it), so it is fitting that Phantoms should have so much in common with that unintentionally hilarious travesty of cinema. Unfortunately, Phantoms lacks the over-the-top craziness of Kasdan's film, and is therefore substantially less entertaining, albeit mercifully shorter. This is not to say there is no unintentional comedy to be found, as there certainly is, but overall the film is more of a by-the-numbers bad horror movie that lacks the overreaching ambition of the amazingly insane Dreamcatcher. It also borrows heavily from far better films such as Ridley Scott's Alien (1979) and John Carpenter's The Thing, which only serves to remind the viewer how truly low-rent this already mediocre film is in comparison to those classics. Read More
Tags: Alien, Ben Affleck, Clerks, Clerks II, Colorado, Dean Koontz, Dean Koontz's Phantoms, Dreamcatcher, Ezra Stead, film, film review, film reviews, filmmaking, hollywood, horror, horror film, horror films, James Vogel, Jay and Silent Bob, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Jersey Girl, Joanna Going, Joe Chappelle, John Carpenter, John Carpenter's The Thing, Kevin Smith, Lawrence Kasdan, Liev Schreiber, movie, movie review, movies, movies i didnt get, New York, Nicky Katt, Peter O'Toole, Phantoms, Ridley Scott, Rose McGowan, science fiction, Stephen King, The City, Wasted on the Young
John Carpenter's The Thing
Category Film Reviews, Movies I Got
John Carpenter's The Thing, USA, 1982
Directed by John Carpenter
Continuing with my Month Of Halloween Movies (MOHM? Think of it more as a modified yoga chant and less as me crying out for my Mommy), it's time now to revisit one of my perennial favorites, one that first traumatized me as an impressionable seven-or-eight-year-old when I saw it on a dubbed VHS tape, which is probably the best way to be introduced to any horror film from the 1970s or '80s. John Carpenter's vastly different, and I would argue superior, updating of the Howard Hawks produced, Christian Nyby directed classic The Thing from Another World (1951) is undoubtedly one of the nastiest, darkest horror films ever to make it to mainstream movie screens, a spiritual descendant of Ridley Scott's Alien (1979) and a predecessor of David Cronenberg's The Fly (1986). Don't get me wrong – the original is absolutely one of the very best of the 1950s UFO-paranoia movies, with only Robert Wise's The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) and Don Siegel's Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956) really equaling or exceeding it. It's just that Carpenter's relentlessly dark vision and the supremely grotesque special effects created by Rob Bottin easily trump even the best of the '50s for sheer terror and awesomeness. Also, Kurt Russell's iconic turn as the anti-hero of the story, R.J. MacReady, is one of the quintessential performances of '80s machismo. Let's look at the three main things that make this movie so great, beginning with Russell. Read More
Tags: '80s horror, Adrienne Barbeau, Alien, animation, Antarctica, Assault on Precinct 13, Big Trouble in Little China, Bill Lancaster, Brad Anderson, CGI, Christian Nyby, David Cronenberg, David Lynch, Dean Cundey, Don Siegel, Ennio Morricone, Eraserhead, Escape from New York, Ezra Stead, film, film review, film reviews, filmmaking, H.P. Lovecraft, Halloween, hollywood, horror, horror film, horror films, Howard Hawks, In the Mouth of Madness, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, John Carpenter, John Carpenter's The Thing, John W. Campbell, Keith David, Kurt Russell, makeup, movie, movie review, movies, New York, prequel, prosthetics, Richard Dysart, Ridley Scott, Rob Bottin, Robert Wise, Roddy Piper, Rowdy Roddy Piper, science fiction, Sergio Leone, Session 9, special effects, stanley kubrick, stop-motion animation, The Day the Earth Stood Still, The Fly, The Good the Bad and the Ugly, The Shining, The Thing, The Thing from Another World, They Live, Thing that Should Not Be, Thomas Waites, UFOs, Who Goes There?, Wilford Brimley


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Focus on New Laws: Authorization for Creation of Fire Protection Districts
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The new law allows local government units to establish fire protection districts as special taxing districts.
On July 1, Gov. Tim Walz signed into law the 2021 omnibus tax bill (Chapter 14, First Special Session). Included in Chapter 14 is an amendment to Minnesota Statutes, section 144F.01, to include authorization for local government units to create fire protection special taxation districts in addition to existing authority to create special taxing districts for emergency medical services. The fire protection district authorization was effective July 2, 2021.
Read more about the new law in Chapter 14 of the 2021 omnibus tax bill
The League has been working with the Minnesota State Fire Chiefs Association to establish the fire protection district option. The original legislation was modeled, in part, on the 2009 special legislation (Session Laws 2009, Chapter 88, Art. 2, Sect. 46) that authorized the city of Cloquet and surrounding jurisdictions to establish a fire protection district. The fire protection district option would allow local units of government to realize operational efficiencies and address staffing issues that can be challenging for stand-alone fire departments.
Creation of fire protection districts
Any two or more local government units, defined as cities, counties, and townships, may create a fire protection district through a resolution adopted by the governing body of each participating jurisdiction. Considerations when creating a district include:
Prior to the district's creation, the participating jurisdictions must enter into an agreement that specifies how the liabilities of the district will be handled in the case of the district's dissolution.
The agreement may also address how its tax levy will be apportioned between the participating jurisdictions, if not spread evenly.
A district can only be associated with one fire relief association or one account in the voluntary statewide volunteer firefighting retirement plan.
The district need not be contiguous or have continuous borders.
Governance of fire protection districts
The district's governing body must be comprised of elected officials from each participating jurisdiction's governing body in the proportion set in the district's enabling resolution, subject to change in the district's charter or bylaws. The new law also sets out a process for addition of participating jurisdictions, withdrawal of participating jurisdictions, and dissolution of an existing district.
Taxing and debt issuance authority
A district has authority to levy a tax on real and personal property in the district. Levy proceeds must be used to provide fire protection, emergency medical services, or both, as well as provide for the district's debt service. In addition, the district may issue debt under Minnesota Statutes Chapter 475 related to the function of the fire protection district and may exercise any other powers available to participating jurisdictions in the district. A district follows the same process a city does regarding levy certification, including a public hearing.
The property tax levy to finance district operations may be spread and collected in one of two manners:
Property tax is levied against all properties within the district at a set tax rate.
Alternatively, the district can opt to allocate the levy to each participating jurisdiction under a formula considering factors such as population, number of service calls, costs of providing service, the market value of improvements, or other measures approved by the governing body of each of the participating political subdivisions.
Under this alternative, the amount of the levy allocated to each political subdivision must be added to that political subdivision's levy and spread at the same time and in the same manner as provided by law for all other property taxes. The proceeds of the levy would be remitted to the district after receipt of property taxes by the participating jurisdiction.
Reporting requirement
The authorization to establish a district also requires local government units and newly established districts to individually submit levy and expenditure reports to the Minnesota Department of Revenue and to House and Senate Tax Committees. The report must also include a certification by the participating jurisdictions that if the district spreads its levy under the first option listed above, that their property tax levies do not fund expenditures related to services provided by the district. The reports must be submitted on or before March 15, 2024 and again on or before March 15, 2026.
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Lobostemon trigonus är en strävbladig växtart som först beskrevs av Carl Peter Thunberg, och fick sitt nu gällande namn av Buek. Lobostemon trigonus ingår i släktet Lobostemon och familjen strävbladiga växter. Inga underarter finns listade i Catalogue of Life.

Källor

Strävbladiga växter
trigonus

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


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Gov. Andrew Cuomo
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You are here: Home » Business, Community » Uckfield socks could help Mombasa charity
Thursday, November 10, 2016 | Last updated about 7 hours ago
Maddy Webb of TR Fastenings with socks she is collecting which can be turned into toys for children in Mombasa.
Uckfield socks could help Mombasa charity
Spare socks are being sought by a manager at TR Fastenings in Uckfield to help a charity that's making a big difference to the lives of children in Kenya.
Maddy Webb, global customer quality manager at TR, would also be grateful for Lego and financial donations to help Friends of Mombasa Children (FOMC).
The registered charity is currently fund-raising to buy mosquito nets to provide protection against malaria for children living in its school orphanage and nearby slums. It costs £5 to buy a net and this could save a young child's life.
The charity is also fundraising for the '8K Classroom challenge' to buy a little more land and construct a brick school building at a cost of £8,000 per classroom.
The Lego Maddy is asking for will be used in classroom demonstrations and the socks are to teach children how to make sock-toys.
Sock toy-making instructions are being followed by volunteers at TR Fastenings before being taken to Mombasa where older children will learn how to follow them.
Voluntary teams at TR sites throughout the UK are currently testing instructions for sock-toy making, turning the woolly footwear into animals such as zebras and elephants, ahead of Maddy visiting Mombasa early next year.
Maddy became involved in the charity through her parents Chris and Val Azzaro who have supported children and Unity Freretown Junior and Primary School, north of Mombasa Island, as it has developed over the years.
A high standard of teaching has been fostered to the extent that some children are now paying to attend which helps with funding the charity. Paying for an education is common in Mombasa.
Nearly all places at the school are free with children coming from slums. They might be known to a teacher as having lost their parents, or there might be a small family finding it difficult to afford to pay for their children to attend school through the normal route.
One meal a day
The children are assessed for need and once in the school they are able to take part in a feeding programme which gives them a good meal each day – probably the only one they will have – and access to health care and an education.
The school is funded by people in the UK but Maddy said there were exciting developments too with a school at Eindhoven getting involved and one of the richer schools in Mombasa also helping.
Maddy said only a small proportion of the 300 children at the school go on to further education. Most leave when they are 14 and one of the problems is that they have no idea of the opportunities that could be available to them. They don't understand the concept of industry.
Tuktuk driver
Typically the children will see their career aspirations as being a teacher, a doctor, a tuktuk driver, or mechanic, because that is what they see around them.
A couple of years ago Maddy's father organised a trip to take some to visit an airport and for the first time they were aware of how an airport worked. They were able to climb on a fire engine, see a water cannon and generally interact with the place.
Another trip is planned to Mombasa's huge port, where ship loads of goods are travelling in and out daily on their way through Africa.
Maddy is going out at the end of February to spend a couple of weeks in the school where one of things she will do is talk about the supply chain in industry – something she knows about through her own TR Fastenings job.
She will have videos to show processes and will take children to the port to see the steel and cars coming in to start firing their imaginations about the possibilities in front of them.
Maddy said Christmas is quite strange for the children because the school is closed on Christmas Day and they won't have a meal there.
When there is no food to eat the concept of presents and toys is unknown and pales into insignifiance but Maddy said that as a mother herself she knows how valuable soft toys are, especially to younger children, and giving them is a powerful thing.
"I want to teach the older children how to make the toys so that there can always be a toy for a young child."
She added socks were light-weight and could easily be carried in suitcases and there was a strong culture of re-cycling in Africa so the children would not need to rely on the UK for supplies.
Maddy said: "A lot of people from Sussex help keep the charity going, but we're appealing for more support and if anyone can help the kids, even with a small one-off donation, it would be hugely appreciated.
"It's easy to do this by visiting the Friends of the Mombasa Children Virgin Money Giving webpage."
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Building a successful business can involve a lifetime of work; so when the time comes to sell; would you know the best options for investing the sale money wisely?
Tuesday, July 9, 2019Peter Oliver estate agents win gold award for second year running
Peter Oliver estate agents have won gold in the British Property Awards for the second year running.
Monday, July 1, 2019Company which launched in Uckfield opens new office at Hailsham
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Monday, July 1, 2019Kamsons to close High Street pharmacy - but shop will stay open
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Wednesday, June 26, 2019Uckfield illegal alcohol sales – 'zero tolerance'
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Q: CSS: Inconsistent input tag appearance (Firefox & Safari) I'm trying to figure out why my input tags looks fairly uneven in Firefox & Safari
Take a look at this screenshot:

I used Firebug & the Safari developer tools to have an idea what's going on.
It seems like Firefox adds another 1 pixel to each border, this results in another 4 pixels
which makes the input look bigger and annoying. Plus the text looks like it's a bit higher in Firefox. is it because of the extra pixels? Or something else?
Anyway, I'd love to get some pointers as to why those pixels are added in Firefox.
#signup-form form input[type="text"], input[type="password"] {
    height:20px;
    padding:2px 4px;
    width:300px;
    color:#a1a1a1;
    font-style:italic;
    display:block;
    margin:10px 0px 0px 0px
}

A: Set border-width: 2px;.   Elements are rendered differently across browsers and operating systems, it's just something web developers have to live with.  Form elements are more subject to this than others.


Looking at the universe of stocks we cover at Dividend Channel, on 10/4/17, Village Super Market, Inc. (VLGEA - Get Report) will trade ex-dividend, for its quarterly dividend of $0.25, payable on 10/26/17. As a percentage of VLGEA's recent stock price of $24.75, this dividend works out to approximately 1.01%, so look for shares of Village Super Market, Inc. to trade 1.01% lower — all else being equal — when VLGEA shares open for trading on 10/4/17.
Looking at the chart above, VLGEA's low point in its 52 week range is $22.43 per share, with $36.42 as the 52 week high point — that compares with a last trade of $24.75.
In Monday trading, Village Super Market, Inc. shares are currently trading flat on the day.


As noted, I have read the sticky on this already, but I think my question is slightly different.
I have an SBD/AUD matrix recorded on an R-44 with the mics back at the board. The board is maybe 100ft from the stage. As I understand it, there is about a 1millisecond difference for every 50ft one is from the stage.
I hear very little noticeable echo, but certainly looking at the waveforms, the peaks on the aud look visually a touch "later" than the SBD.
The sticky describes lining up two recordings based on samples, which will not work for me, since both have identical numbers of samples given that I used an R-44 that recorded both exactly simultaneously.
1. What is the best way to "line up" the recordings - is there any feature that I'm not thinking of, or do you literally just have to zoom way in and eyeball the peaks?
2. Assuming that the answer is to chop some time off of one of them, should I chop the SBD or the AUD? Another TSer who I trust said to chop 2msec off the SBD- but this seems counterintuitive to me as the AUD is the delayed signal. Shouldn't I chop a tiny amount off of the AUD?
3. I have loved using Audacity and it has always met my needs, but now that I will be doing more 4ch work, is there another program that makes this much easier? (I'd especially like to hear from people who have tried it with Audacity and another program).
The most difficult thing for me, and the other thing that the very helpful post in the sticky didn't quite address, is again, how you can measure the differences. I am frankly not that comfortable trusting my ears to determine whether it's off (especially in this case, where the delay is not very significant given room size). I also am not entirely clear on the best way to measure the distance between two points in two separate 2ch stereo recordings. I see how to select, say, a length of music in one 2ch recording and have it tell me the length, but I'm not sure again, because the number of samples is identical, that that is apposite to telling me how far "off" the two samples are.
Any help much appreciated. I know there are always a lot of questions about this kind of stuff.
I don't have screenshots, but there is a time shift tool in the upper left. It looks like L/R facing arrows. Zoom in to get a good view, then select the aud track, then select the time shift tool. then just simply slide the entire waveform L/R to line the 2 up. You then do a slight cut of both at the front end, and you are good to go.
Sound travels at about 1,000 ft/sec, so it takes about 1 ms to travel 1 ft. So if you are recording 100' from the stage/PA stacks, then your aud recording will be about 100ms delayed from the soundboard recording, not 2ms (ie, 1ms/foot, not 1ms/50'). The soundboard recording will be getting the information at the speed of electrons, on the order of the speed of light, and practically speaking, instantaneously. The aud recording gets the information of the band playing from the PA stacks, via soundwaves, and hence it is delayed by the time the speed of sound takes to cover the distance you are from the band/stacks.
Forgetting the time shift capabilities, as you mention, the easiest way is to just chop 100ms from one recording. And yes, you are right, you should chop 100ms from the aud recording.
Think about it this way: if you started the R44 exactly 500ms before the band started (and pretending there is no sound at all in the room except the band), the soundboard recording would have 500ms of dead air and then the band would start playing. The aud recording would have the 500ms of dead air from you hitting record a bit early and then another 100ms of dead air while it waited for the soundwaves from the stage/stacks to reach the mics. If you chop off 100ms from the aud copy, then both recordings would see the music start at 500ms into the recording.
If you chop 100ms from the board recording, then the board recording sees the music start at 400ms into the recording and the aud recording sees the music start 600ms into the recording, doubling your problem.
Yeah, the "line up on samples" bit is intended to be more of a "line up on the visual peak samples" and not a "line up on the start/stop samples".
Which ever one you chop I think is negligable, but I don't ever use the entire wav form (I'll start recording 2 or 3 minutes before the first song and leave a tail of maybe 30 seconds after the encore and any announcements I think are interesting). Render your wave form after adjusting the time difference as Walstib62 described and then chop stuff. As long as you started recording more then 5 seconds before something you are interested in keeping, you can just chop off a hand full of seconds at the beginning and end to resolve it.
I'd need more information to address your third question. I use audacity frequently, but I'm not quite sure what your trying to get at.
Yes, the delay is more like 1ms per foot, and you chop it off the front of the AUD waveform to visually align.
Some people say "align the peaks". Others say find a quiet spot and then "align the beginning of a ramp up." I'm not sure there is a single right answer. I generally try both and then listen to the cymbals. If the cymbals sound like someone is rattling a coffee can with a few coins in it, keep trying.
I'm not sure if you are indoors or outdoors, but let me throw this out. When outdoors (like a music festival) at a distance, if there is any wind at all, it seriously screws with your ability to line up your wave forms. It has to do with that swirly phasing you hear when it's really windy, and it only effects the AUD tracks. You'll find one spot... here I need .100 to align it.... another spot I need .080 to align it. Everywhere you look it's something else. Which do I choose? I don't have a good answer for that one. The best answer I have is "pick a spot in the middle" and don't try a 50/50 SBD/AUD mix, because that maximizes the error and it will sound like crap. Go for something like 80/20 mix where the AUD is 6db lower than the SBD. This way the difference becomes less noticable. Another time I did one where the songs where 80/20 SBD/AUD, and then the applause between songs faded to 20/80 with more AUD. That was tedious, and I doublt I'll never do that again.
I do not understand the why/what for of chopping off part of one source to align it with the other. The proper alignment of two sources already clock-synced only requires finding an appropriate sync point and then sliding one source (usually the SBD) forward in time across the time ruler. Just line them up on the time ruler, then, and then do your chop/fade at the front and end afterwards.
Thats basically it...since the tracks are going to be rearranged in time, I dont think knowing the delay factor is terribly relevant. I've always assumed the goal was to have each sources events happen at the same time.
Not sure it can get any easier than Audacity and the Time Shift Tool. Especially for clock synced stuff.
Ultimately you have to look at in an editor...but you can get pretty close listening to the cymbals - ride and bell shots are good checks.
One thing I find is the waveforms dont often resemble each other as much as you might think. So - visually - a single event does help. A loud PA click between songs can be a blessing...snare hits between songs are good too.
You'll notice the output of your final mix will start to have higher peaks as your sources start to sync.
You can't use a constant for the speed of sound. It varies by temp and humidity, mostly temp. There's an online calculator somewhere. Google it.
Syncing sources is actually an interesting and very rewarding exercise. I've preliminarily found a good tool for syncing 2 sources from different machines.
1. Find the total time of both sources.
2. divide the longer by the shorter, resulting in a # slightly over 1.0.
Divide by 100 to get %, then plug that into the speed correction factor.
Figure that for every 1 hr. of music, more or less..
you use a speed correction factor of .0035%.
Now you can use a simple ratio based on those numbers and your actual time difference. Simple algebra.
.0035/.100=x/delay time you can quickly calculate a correction factor for any project. It's worked for me twice now. (hope I'm doing the math correctly) If anyone comes up with a better way, (or if I made a mistake) I'd be interested to hear about it.
Thanks for this. I was unsure of how to do this after being presented with the unexpected SBD patch at a recent show. I was about 110 feet away and used 98ms using Audacity with the timeshift tool. Thanks again.!