TUCSON — Manager Jim Tracy began the strategic aligning of his rotation on a soggy Sunday at Hi Corbett Field, setting up the matchups for the first three Cactus League games. Ace Ubaldo Jimenez is not throwing Thursday's first game or the split-squad against the Giants, a move designed to keep him in a line for opening day, while also avoiding giving San Francisco any additional looks at the right-hander. Jeff Francis will throw Friday against the Giants, instead, with pitching coach Bob Apodaca there to monitor his outing.
Jimenez is scheduled to work three innings, not the customary two, because "he's farther along than anyone else in camp after pitching in winterball," Tracy explained.
TUCSON — It's at this point in the morning, I like to give a written cup of coffee to the loyal readers. A pick-me-up of quotes or anecdotes gathered from the morning clubhouse session. That's a problem today. The clubhouse was closed for drug testing, and there is so much rain around the ballpark that Noah's Ark is double-parked on East Camino Campestre.
This 41-degree morning was already going to different before the random urine-in-the-cup exercise. It's photo day. So players, beginning at 7 a.m., are run through a series of stations of poses, clicks and snaps. The order is based on service time. So Todd Helton and Jason Giambi both received the latest assignments, approximately 8:45 a.m.
As for the practice plan, there is an adjusted one. The Rockies will get minimal work in the batting tunnels, where guys can hit and throw. So that part won't suffer much, but fielding is problematic.
The Rockies are supposed to hold an intrasquad game tomorrow at Hi Corbett, featuring many of their young pitchers. That could be in danger if the faucets don't turn off soon.
Gotta say every time a ballpark gets drenched like this, I always think of the "Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey" skit on Saturday Night Live. Forgive me if I am a bit off, but it goes something like this.
TUCSON — Manuel Corpas' tweaked right hamstring will get a test today when he throws batting practice. Normally, Corpas throwing light BP wouldn't be a big deal. But let's be honest, the friendly right-hander needs to have a good camp. If he can even be a hint of what he was in 2007, the Rockies' bullpen could be a nightmare for opponents. Getting off to a good start would help.
Unlike last winter when he lived in Denver, Corpas changed up his offseason routine. He worked out in Bakersfield, Calif., pitched in winterball then fine-tuned for spring training by working out at the Rockies' Dominican academy.
• According to The Arizona Republic, Dan Haren is already looking for ways to avoid his annual second-half slide. He had a 2.01 ERA in the first half and a 4.62 ERA after the break.
• ESPN had a long story about the Kung Fu Panda, Pablo Sandoval. He has been challenged in "Operation Panda" to lose weight, but it's not working out real well. He's around 255 pounds. He reported last year at 262 pounds. All I know is the guy to flat out rake. But for the longevity of his career, it would help if he was lighter.
• The Los Angeles Times has a piece on James Loney reporting to camp leaner after working out with Carl Crawford, among others, in the offseason.
• The San Diego Union Tribune has a lengthy feature on Everth Cabrera, a Rule 5 acquisition from the Rockies' last year, who impressed in his rookie season.
No, Ubaldo Jimenez, the author of the above quote, didn't sign a new multi-year contract Friday. He signed his contract with Topps trading cards, pocketing $500 for his efforts.
Yep, that's the number: $500. That's what Jimenez got, and it's what every other Rockies player got.
Five hundred for a multi-millionaire ballplayer? Does Ribando ever get any complaints?
TUCSON — Jeff Francis took away two distinct positives from facing hitters today. He didn't think once about his surgically-repaired shoulder and he kept the ball down.
"But I was less than satisfied with my delivery. I was rushing a bit. And that's something I have battled my whole career," Francis said.
Francis threw for 10 minutes, firing 39 pitches to Troy Tulowitzki, Clint Barmes and Dexter Fowler. He told the hitters which pitches were coming and he threw behind an L screen. All the hitters praised Francis' fastball and changeup. The curveball is a work in progress as it doesn't have a sharp bite yet. Francis will throw again Sunday.
Owner Charlie Monfort looked around and said what I was thinking, "I have never seen this many fans on the backfield." It was a huge turnout to watch the first practice. Two playoff berths in three years doesn't hurt.
… The Rockies will have their union meeting this afternoon. Among those here for the union: former Rockies pitcher Mike Myers.
TUCSON — Hang out at Rockies camp long enough and you can feel it, taste it, almost touch it. It's a feeling of quiet confidence that, frankly, the franchise has never known.
Not after making the playoffs in 1995, and not after making it to the World Series in 2007.
By the time 2009 arrived, 2007 was looking more like a fluke than a historic accomplishment. The Rockies had bombed in '08 under the weight of heightened expectations, leading many to think they had regressed to their wretched days of old.
But this spring, after a second playoff appearance in three years, things are dramatically different. The Rockies can't wait to get started on what they believe will be a third playoff appearance in four seasons.
"The one thing I've noticed different in this camp is that there's an air of confidence we've never had," said Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd. "They're not afraid of expectations this year whereas before I think they were.
TUCSON — If you're a longtime Rockies fan, I don't have to tell you who Bob Gebhard is. But you may not have heard that Gebhard — Geb, to everyone in the game — suffered a heart attack Wednesday in Tucson.
If you don't know Geb, he was the Rockies' first GM, the man who did the heavy lifting in the early days of the franchise, back before the humidor, when sustaining quality starting pitching was a mission impossible.
You know the waterfall that erupts at Coors Field after every Rockies home run? They call it Geb's Geyser because it was his baby. The hand-operated scoreboard? Geb's idea.
I could go on and on about Geb's impact on the Rockies, back then and still today. But I'd rather just leave you with this: He's one of my favorite guys in baseball for more reasons than I can count. I was the Rockies' original beat man for The Post, and he made a tough job fun.
These days, he's a special assistant to Diamondbacks general manager Josh Byrnes. Word Thursday was that he was resting in a Tucson hospital.
TUCSON — Spring training can bring the pain. Especially the first few weeks as players ramp up batting practice and conditioning drills. Even their feet and back hurt from standing in cleats. It's all part of getting ready for the season. No complaints. Just a necessary ritual.
Then there was Brad Hawpe. He elected, like a lot of other players, to sit out today. But the difference was that he showed up at the ballpark and didn't work out. The reason? He had an ingrown toenail. What, a root canal wasn't available?
"It was painful. I can run now. I will be fine. I remember (former catcher) Danny Ardoin had one removed and played that same day," Hawpe said.
With pitchers a week into drills, there are more ace bandages and ice packs strapped to shoulders and legs. I told Tim Redding that he looked like a mummy, to which he responded, "I feel like Paul Phillips." A catcher's favorite day of spring training is the first. The knees never feel better.
Troy Tulowitzki wore a bright purple shirt during optional BP that read "Jesus Loves the Rockies." … Several players used today as a chance to take a break, golf, etc. … Manager Jim Tracy will address the entire team around 10:30 tomorrow. As he told the pitchers and catchers, he will stress that they should embrace expectations and challenge themselves to improve though the daily drill work.
TUCSON — Manager Jim Tracy has been struck by the transformation of Jorge De La Rosa. He said there's no comparison between the pitcher's appearance this spring and last February. The numbers support that assertion. De La Rosa has dropped from 231 pounds to 213.
De La Rosa has also turned heads with his performance. His bullpen sessions have featured much better command, according to Tracy, and pitcher Aaron Cook named De La Rosa the Most Improved Player based on his bunting and fielding.
Everyone has reported following the arrival today of Melvin Mora and Jay Payton. Mora said he weighed offers from the Rangers and Seattle before accepting the Rockies' offer to be a utilityman.
TUCSON — Call it a grass-roots campaign. Or just a little love from a teammate and a boss. But the Tulo-for-MVP whispers have officially begun.
Stuff happens when you're coming off a career year and your team goes to the playoffs for the second time in three seasons.
OK, so you're thinking what I'm thinking. As in, your thoughts, Albert Pujols. But stranger things have happened than a player of Troy Tulowitzki's status winning an MVP award.
After hearing Stewart chime in, I bounced the Tulo-for-MVP notion off Rockies GM Dan O'Dowd.
"If they look at the whole picture, yes," said O'Dowd.
The whole picture. As in Tulo's bat and defense and leadership and intangibles. He plays a more critical defensive position than Pujols. He has emerged as the Rockies' team leader, along with Todd Helton, after just three full seasons in the majors.
TUCSON — Rockies general manager Dan O'Dowd has been with the franchise since 1999. He's not going anywhere. We knew that when he awarded manager Jim Tracy a three-year contract this winter. What was never announced was the length of O'Dowd's extension. I learned today from a source, that O'Dowd's extension is a little longer than Tracy's, but I am not sure of the length.
This is a franchise that has prided itself on stability. It makes sense that O'Dowd's would be a little longer than Tracy's given the ownership's desire to keep front office continuity not only with O'Dowd, but those who work for him.
TUCSON — Never. That's how many times the Rockies have had a player like Jason Giambi on their club.
How many bench players have their own private plane and help run a Las Vegas nightclub at the Hard Rock? Such is life for Jason Giambi, who is thrilled to be back with the Rockies. I ran into Giambi this morning as he was heading into the clubhouse. I immediately asked what made him come back to Colorado after talking with Minnesota about a DH job?
TUCSON — Told you this Rockies love to work. With report date Thursday and the first full-squad workout Friday, Carlos Gonzalez, Jason Giambi, Melvin Mora and Jay Payton are the only players left to report. Gonzalez is scheduled to arrive in Tucson tonight. Not sure about the others. But hey, from what I was told today, Giambi owns his own plane so he could be here on a moment's notice.
Not that Giambi is popular or anything, but his player T-shirt was available in kids and adult sizes at Hi Corbett Field. The Rockies have never had a player with such a high profile nationally. Locally, yes. But not nationally. Guy is known in New York and owns a nightclub in Las Vegas.
Gonzalez will be ready when he arrives. He played winterball, and was in terrific shape when I saw him a few weeks ago at Coors Field. Also, an interesting note from a Rockies' executive. When the team was investigating signing Mora, they had data showing that he was the best range of any third baseman last season. Measuring defense is still a subjective science, but it means he's good regardless.
The Rockies players are sporting a new look. Not with their uniforms, but with their undershirts. They are wearing the Nike Dri Fit gear. One model features black shaping that makes fit players — not sportswriters — look like they are sporting something out of the Dark Knight's Batman closet. You will notice the Nike stuff on TV because the Swoosh is on the collar on all the gear. Players I talked to so far like the stuff. And frankly it's gotten more use than expected early in camp, especially the long sleeves, because of the abnormally cool weather.
My early nominee for Ryan Spilborghs' batter-clip: The Ting-Tings' "That's Not My Name." Catchy, sarcastic. Different. Carry on.
TUCSON — Brad Hawpe has been an amazingly consistent player during the past four seasons.
In those four years, he hasn't hit less than .283 or more than .293. He hasn't hit fewer than 22 homers or more than 29. And he has driven in 84, 85 and 86 runs in three of those four seasons.
So, he was asked Tuesday, hours after reporting to camp, do you expect to be the same consistent player this year?
Well, yes and no. Hawpe's 2009 season produced very typical numbers: .285, 23 and 86, with a career-high 42 doubles. It was how he went about producing them that created question marks.
He played in his first-ever All-Star Game after a first half that included a .320 batting average, 14 homers and 59 RBIs. But he hit .240 after the All-Star Game, with nine homers and 27 ribbies. By September, the wheels had fallen off his season, witness his .194 batting average and two home runs.
Then came the ultimate indignity: He was benched by manager Jim Tracy for the Rockies' playoff series vs. Philadelphia. The benching prompted media speculation that the front office may try to trade him during the offseason, but Hawpe said he never paid any attention to it.
So Hawpe returns for another spring in Tucson, confident he'll be the same player he was before last year's second-half tailspin. More than anything, he's glad to still be wearing a Rockies uniform. It is, after all, the only organization he has ever known.
TUCSON — Outfielders Brad Hawpe and Seth Smith can be excused for thinking they took at wrong turn in Albuquerque. The outfielders led the next wave of arriving position players today, and they were greeted by a 37-degree chill at Hi Corbett Field.
"It's going to be cold when we are working out, that's for sure,'' Smith said.
There are few players with uncertainty surrounding them this spring, but Hawpe qualifies, if only because of how last year finished. Hawpe found himself sitting in the playoffs after struggling down the stretch.
He has always been a good teammate, and even though he was disappointed, Hawpe took the high road. The Rockies love his work ethic and his leadership in the clubhouse. It's why, even with crazy outfield depth, that general manager Dan O'Dowd never shopped Hawpe this winter. He has a club option for next season, but it can be voided if he's traded.
The Rockies could have the strongest five outfielders in the business, with Smith and Ryan Spilborghs reserves who could start for several teams. And while Hawpe's finish draws focus, he was an all-star last season who is capable of putting a team on its back with his power.
Talked to pitcher Esmil Rogers today. He threw more than 30 innings in winter ball for Licey. And no, he wasn't there when manager Jose Offerman went ballistic on an umpire and received a lifetime ban. "I was watching on TV. That was crazy,'' Rogers said. … Ubaldo Jimenez has arrived. He had run of the clubhouse stereo this morning. Even showing off a few dance moves. … Manuel Corpas' right hamstring was wrapped, but he's feeling better. He spent part of this offseason working out in Bakersfield, Calif, followed by a long stint in the Dominican Republic.
Jerry Schemmel, the new radio voice for the Rockies, will depart for spring training in Tucson on Wednesday.
The longtime voice of the Nuggets (17 1/2 seasons) is returning to his first love. In fact, Schemmel loves baseball so much, he coached Metro State College for a season. He also spent a summer calling minor-league games in Billings, Mont.
As part of The Denver Post's new feature called "Fan Mail," Schemmel will take readers questions on all things Rockies and Nuggets. If you have a question for Schemmel, go to fanmail@denverpost.com. If you want to find out about his home run call, his view of the Rockies or have questions about the Nuggets as they head toward the playoffs, this is your chance.
Schemmel's life is an inspiration. On July 19, 1989, Schemmel boarded United Airlines Flight 232, originating in Denver and bound for Chicago. An in-flight engine explosion crippled the plane and forced it to crash land in Sioux City, Iowa, killing 112 of the 296 onboard.
After the tragedy, Schemmel authored the book, "Chosen To Live." It chronicles the crash of flight 232 and its subsequent effects on his life. The book has been featured in such publications as Reader's Digest, Hoop Magazine, Sports Spectrum and Guideposts.
For a quick look at Schemmel's compelling story, visit jerryschemmel.net.
Jeff Francis had it all planned out.
Canada was going to beat Team USA in hockey Sunday night, and Francis, a native of British Columbia, was going to walk into the Rockies' clubhouse and remind everyone of it. He even had a red "Canada" sweatshirt picked out just for the occasion.
Team USA's 5-3 victory put a new spin on things. It also landed the cover of the USA Today sports section, the one trumpeting the Americans' victory, above Francis' locker, courtesy of an anonymous teammate.
"It was going to be my one time to come in and boast," said Francis.
Francis spent Sunday night watching the game at his Tucson condo. He wanted to crank up the volume on the tube and in his lungs, but couldn't because his infant daughter was sleeping.
"It was a great game, but it was hard to take," he said.
Tucson — OK, so you've been shoveling to your heart's content in the past week and you really don't want to hear how, quote, unquote cold it's been in Arizona.
Well you're going to hear about it anyway, pal.
The temperature barely hit 50 on Monday for the third consecutive day. It's raining as I type this. Tomorrow figures to be more of the same.
I only mention it for two reasons. First, everyone in camp is blaming me for the lousy weather. Seems it was mid-70s and sunny for most of last week, and turned to 50s and rainy when I rolled in on Friday.
And you thought I was one big ray of sunshine.
The players can't wait for the heat to arrive, but many are just glad to be in the desert and not stuck inside, away from the cold. Case in point: Taylor Buchholz. He lives in suburban Philly, which, like the rest of the East Coast, had been pounded with record snowfalls in the weeks before he headed for Tucson.
"When I left, the snow was up to here," said Buchholz, pointing to his left shin.
Buchholz, who underwent Tommy John surgery last year, shoveled his way out of the first major dump. But when the snow kept coming, he farmed out the job. Such is life for major-league players.
Jason Giambi will arrive in camp any day now. Until then, the tattoo leader in the clubhouse is Tim Redding.
It isn't the sheer volume of Redding's tats that catch your attention.
Redding has six tats and virtually all are a reflection of his Irish heritage. He has a fighting Irishman on his right shoulder, a Celtic cross on his chest and a green shamrock behind each elbow and on his right ankle.
For Redding, the constant reminders of his heritage aren't so much body art as they are a security blanket.
So much for tat talk. Redding, just so you know, looms as insurance in case the Rockies encounter issues with their rotation. He won 10 games for the gawdawful Nationals in 2008 and could factor at the bottom of the rotation. If not, he could land in the bullpen.
We'll know soon enough. Redding, who has pitched for five big-league teams, has an out clause in his contract whereby the Rox would release him before opening day if he's not on their 25-man roster and another club would put him on theirs.
Until then, Redding will be trying to win a job … and thinking about his next tat.
TUCSON — An eventful and enjoyable offseason came to an end when Troy Tulowitzki reported to Hi Corbett Field today.
The Rockies' shortstop got married over the winter, held a baseball clinic with Derek Jeter, trained relentlessly, threw out the first pitch for Long Beach State and met with legendary basketball coach John Wooden.
Wooden regaled Tulowitzki with his stories last Friday in Southern California.
Tulowitzki was memerized by all of the memorabilia in Wooden's apartment. There were congratulatory letters from presidents and basketball artifacts. Tulowitzki always wanted to meet Wooden and finally sat down this winter and wrote him. Jeff Blank, Garrett Atkins' agent, has UCLA contacts and made sure that Wooden received the letter. From there a meeting was set up.
"It was experience I will never forget," Tulowitzki said.
Dexter Fowler joins Aaron Cook and Tulowitzki as players who are leaner and lighter this spring. Fowler reported last year at 193 pounds. He's not at that mark this year, and is happy about it. "I feel like myself again. I felt too big before," Fowler said. Fowler worked out for a month in California at agent Scott Boras' headquarters. … Ryan Spilborghs arrived today. And yes, he did read the song suggestions for his batter clip. He told me that there were a few that he's considering for his teammates. He already has a new clip in mind, but is keeping it secret. He loved the fans' passion for the music. … Reliever Manuel Corpas' hamstring feels better and he's scheduled to throw his bullpen session, weather willing. He's cold — 48 degrees — and there's rain in the forecast.


The 77933rd positive integer is an odd prime number that follows the number 77932 and comes before 77934. Seventy-seven thousand nine hundred thirty-three is 5 digits long.
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The number 77933 represented in different base number systems.
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text:
SUNDANCE TV TO AIR GHOSTBUSTERS AND GHOSTBUSTERS II FOR A "SLIMER SATURDAY" MARATHON
– Posted on June 29, 2016Posted in: TV, TV News
IN CELEBRATION OF THE PREMIERE OF THE ICONIC FILM'S REBOOT, SUNDANCE TV TO AIR GHOSTBUSTERS AND GHOSTBUSTERS II FOR A "SLIMER SATURDAY" MARATHON, KICKING OFF SATURDAY, JULY 16TH AT 11:00 AM EST/10:00 AM CST
It's #SundanceTVMovietime and SundanceTV is dialing up Peter, Raymond and Egon for an all-day marathon of Ghostbusters and Ghostbusters II, startingSaturday, July 16th at 11:00 a.m. EST/10:00 a.m. CST, to celebrate the reboot of the film, which hits theaters Friday, July 15th. Viewers can settle in to watch their favorite team of paranormal experts take on ghosts, ghouls and Marshmallow Men alike in these classic comedies starring Bill Murray (Groundhog Day, Lost in Translation, Caddy Shack) Dan Aykroyd (The Blues Brothers, Driving Miss Daisy, Coneheads), Harold Ramis (Groundhog Day, Analyze This) andSigourney Weaver (Avatar, Alien).
Below, please find the programming schedule for SundanceTV's "Slimer Saturday" Ghostbusters marathon:
SATURDAY, JULY 16TH
Ghostbusters at 11:00 a .m. EST/10:00 a.m. CST
A trio of New York City parapsychologists, Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), Raymond Stantz (Dan Aykyrod) and Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis), open up a paranormal extermination service and are called upon to save humanity from Gozer, a god of destruction who possesses the body of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. With mankind counting on them, our intrepid trio, along with new member Winston Zeddemore, must find a way to vanquish the demon dessert and save the world. Directed by: Ivan Reitman (1984).
Ghostbusters II at 1:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. CST
The Ghostbusters are back, this time to protect Earth from Vigo the Carpathian and his river of pink ectoplasm, which feeds off the negativity of man. As New Year's Eve approaches, the day in which Vigo will be able to enter the world in human form, the team must find a way to rally New York's positivity to beat back the invading medieval sorcerer. Directed by: Ivan Reitman (1989).
Ghostbusters at 4:00 p.m. EST/3:00 p.m. CST
Ghostbusters II at 6:30 p.m. EST/5:30 p.m. CST
Ghostbusters II at 11:30 p.m. EST/10:30 p.m. CST
Tags: Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Ghostbusters, Ghostbusters II, Harold Ramis, Sigourney Weaver, Slimer, SundanceTV, TV News
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


Carlos Rolón (b. 1970, Chicago, IL) attended Columbia College Chicago with a concentration in painting and drawing. Rolón has had solo exhibitions at Dallas Contemporary, Dallas; Bass Museum of Art, Miami; Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art, Gateshead, UK; Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Contemporary Art Museum, St. Louis. His work has also been exhibited in group shows at Contemporary Arts Center New Orleans, The Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago; Marta Herford Museum, Herford, Germany; Museum Het Domein, Sittard, The Netherlands; Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego; Museo del Barrio, New York and Centro Atlantico de Arte Moderno (CAAM), Canary Islands, Spain. In 2007, Rolón represented Ukraine in the 52nd Venice Biennale. He is also a recipient of the Joan Mitchell Foundation award for Painting and Sculpture. Rolón's work is included in the public collections of the Bass Museum of Art, Miami; Brooklyn Museum, New York; City of Chicago Public Art Collection; Deagu Art Museum, Deagu; Museo del Barrio, New York; Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico; Museum of Contemporary Art, San Diego; Nerman Museum of Contemporary Art, Kansas City; and Pinchuk Art Centre, Kiev, Ukraine, among others. Carlos Rolón lives and works in Chicago.


Hidden Symmetry is crossover jazz, fusion, pop, rock, new-age & third stream music featuring internet collaborations with artists & musicians worldwide. Songs are written & produced Carl Eichman.
Check the menu to listen to audio, download mp3's from music websites or available from music subscription services.


text:
Seoul to open 'tree burial' site for its citizens
All News 11:35 April 05, 2011
SEOUL, April 5 (Yonhap) -- The Seoul metropolitan government said Tuesday that it will open a city-run site this month for "tree burials" in which the cremated remains of the deceased are buried at the foot of a tree, to promote the new burial culture among its citizens.
Tree burials are drawing popularity as a new method of natural burial that can make efficient use of the national territory, but most of the nation's tree burial sites are run illegally due to tough regulations.
The park that the city plans to open is built on 14,710 square meters of land in Paju, a city about 50 kilometers northwest of Seoul, and has a burial capacity of 3,065 sets of cremated remains, the metropolitan government said.
Seoul citizens as well as residents of Paju and Goyang, a city located between Seoul and Paju, can use the space, it added. Seoul is home to about 10 million people.
"Cemeteries account for about 1 percent of the national territory. We set up the tree burial site for the efficient use of the land," a city official said, requesting not to be named.
People bury the ashes of the deceased in soil around trees or among plants and let them recycle naturally. No headstone or artificial decorations are used in the natural burial method, to preserve the environment.
The municipal government said citizens can use the site for up to 40 years with a payment of 500,000 won (US$460) and attach a small name tag on a tree trunk if they want.
The state forestry agency opened a natural burial site in Gyeonggi Province for the first time in 2009, and over 1,100 sets of ashes of the deceased were buried there as of September 2010.
According to data released by the health ministry, some 150,000 out of 240,000 people in South Korea who died in 2009 were cremated.
brk@yna.co.kr


text:
Q: MVC5 Microsoft.Owin.Twitter 403 Forbidden error Hello Can someone help me resolve this 403 error that fails on client call to api.twitter.com. Just like the other user posted. This used to work and now it doesn't. I've tried changing the CallBackUrl in the twitter API settings:
twitter app settings> Can't seem to get a valid response.
Tried creating a new MVC project using the latest version of VS2017. Updated to latest NuGet Pkgs
StartupAuth.cs:
{
    public partial class Startup
    {
        // For more information on configuring authentication, please visit https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=301864
        public void ConfigureAuth(IAppBuilder app)
        {
            // Configure the db context, user manager and signin manager to use a single instance per request
            app.CreatePerOwinContext(ApplicationDbContext.Create);
            app.CreatePerOwinContext<ApplicationUserManager>(ApplicationUserManager.Create);
            app.CreatePerOwinContext<ApplicationSignInManager>(ApplicationSignInManager.Create);

            // Enable the application to use a cookie to store information for the signed in user
            // and to use a cookie to temporarily store information about a user logging in with a third party login provider
            // Configure the sign in cookie
            app.UseCookieAuthentication(new CookieAuthenticationOptions
            {
                AuthenticationType = DefaultAuthenticationTypes.ApplicationCookie,
                LoginPath = new PathString("/Account/Login"),
                Provider = new CookieAuthenticationProvider
                {
                    // Enables the application to validate the security stamp when the user logs in.
                    // This is a security feature which is used when you change a password or add an external login to your account.
                    OnValidateIdentity = SecurityStampValidator.OnValidateIdentity<ApplicationUserManager, ApplicationUser>(
                        validateInterval: TimeSpan.FromMinutes(30),
                        regenerateIdentity: (manager, user) => user.GenerateUserIdentityAsync(manager))
                }
            });
            app.UseExternalSignInCookie(DefaultAuthenticationTypes.ExternalCookie);

            // Enables the application to temporarily store user information when they are verifying the second factor in the two-factor authentication process.
            app.UseTwoFactorSignInCookie(DefaultAuthenticationTypes.TwoFactorCookie, TimeSpan.FromMinutes(5));

            // Enables the application to remember the second login verification factor such as phone or email.
            // Once you check this option, your second step of verification during the login process will be remembered on the device where you logged in from.
            // This is similar to the RememberMe option when you log in.
            app.UseTwoFactorRememberBrowserCookie(DefaultAuthenticationTypes.TwoFactorRememberBrowserCookie);

            // Uncomment the following lines to enable logging in with third party login providers
            //app.UseMicrosoftAccountAuthentication(
            //    clientId: "",
            //    clientSecret: "");
            app.UseTwitterAuthentication(new TwitterAuthenticationOptions
            {
                ConsumerKey = "Ykoxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx9yy",
                ConsumerSecret = "TQVColBhwaudfxxxxxxxxxxxxxxccc8VfmE",
                BackchannelCertificateValidator = new Microsoft.Owin.Security.CertificateSubjectKeyIdentifierValidator(new[]
                    {
                        "A5EF0B11CEC04103A34A659048B21CE0572D7D47", // VeriSign Class 3 Secure Server CA - G2
                        "0D445C165344C1827E1D20AB25F40163D8BE79A5", // VeriSign Class 3 Secure Server CA - G3
                        "7FD365A7C2DDECBBF03009F34339FA02AF333133", // VeriSign Class 3 Public Primary Certification Authority - G5
                        "39A55D933676616E73A761DFA16A7E59CDE66FAD", // Symantec Class 3 Secure Server CA - G4
                        "5168FF90AF0207753CCCD9656462A212B859723B", //DigiCert SHA2 High Assurance Server CA
                        "B13EC36903F8BF4701D498261A0802EF63642BC3" //DigiCert High Assurance EV Root CA
                    })
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redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


Historian, Leela Chapman, enjoying a snow cone at the first annual ACS Night at the Oscars, March 28.
Play hard, study even harder.
Our National Chem Week chair, Jen Amstutz.
What are you doing tonight? Oh you know, just lighting propane bubbles on fire!


This paper will explore the libel-proof plaintiff doctrine and examine it in light of traditional standing and jurisdictional principles. Part II of this paper discusses the origin of the libel-proof doctrine and its application. Part III explores the general requirements for diversity actions in the federal district courts, the application of state law to those actions, and the impact of the First Amendment on state libel law. Part IV discusses standing to sue principles and analyzes the libel-proof plaintiff doctrine in light of those principles. Part V discusses some criticisms of the libel-proof plaintiff doctrine. Finally, Part VI concludes that because the doctrine is not defensible on either standing or jurisdictional grounds, it is probably best to dispose of individual claims using traditional principles where available, rather than branding a particular plaintiff as incapable of being libeled as a matter of law.


text:
Q: How do i compile all contact's phone numbers into one cell - using CNContact My code I am using to source the contact's phone number is below, what i would like to do is have all the contacts phone numbers (landline, mobiles etc) shown together, example 0402 000 000, 618 802336, 0423 000 000 (together in the one textField)
My code below
// Retrieve contact details ---------------------------
    @IBAction func show(_ sender: Any) {
        let contacVC = CNContactPickerViewController()
        contacVC.delegate = self
        self.present(contacVC, animated: true, completion: nil)
    }

    func contactPicker(_ picker: CNContactPickerViewController, didSelect contact: CNContact) {

        print(contact.phoneNumbers)
        let numbers = contact.phoneNumbers.first
        print((numbers?.value)?.stringValue ?? "")
        self.Phone.text = "\((numbers?.value)?.stringValue ?? "")"
            }

    func contactPickerDidCancel(_ picker: CNContactPickerViewController) {
        self.dismiss(animated: true, completion: nil)
    }

A: You can display all phone number as like below
let contact = CNContact()
let numbers = contact.phoneNumbers.compactMap { $0.value.stringValue }
self.Phone.text = numbers.joined(separator: ", ")


NHBS - Wildlife, Ecology & Conservation - NHBS supply wildlife survey equipment and books to naturalists, academics and ecological and conservation professionals. Our website includes over 135,000 books covering every aspect of wildlife, ecology and conservation as well as a comprehensive range of wildlife survey equipment, nestboxes and habitat management tools.
Innovative wheels and castors from Blickle - Your specialist for wheels and castors for every application! Swivel castors, fixed castors, heavy duty castors, light duty castors and much more. Find out more here!


When the police suspect you of committing a crime, they often want you to come into the station to give an interview. They may already have enough evidence or "probable cause" to arrest you, but they try this first to see if you will talk to them. The truth is they actually want you to incriminate yourself. So even if you don't actually confess to anything, any details you give them can actually corroborate the police's theory of the case against you.
The warning that "anything you say can and will be used against you" is more than just a right you have; it is the actual police practice of interrogations. If you are under investigation, seek the advice of an experienced criminal defense attorney before you say anything to the police. The police are not your friend; any time they tell you they just want to "get your side of the story" or they "want to help you out," don't believe it. They are looking for things you can say that they will use against you.
Lawyer Vicki Koutsogiannis practices South Carolina criminal defense law. She recommends people under investigation not talk to police or agree to anything until they have first consulted with an attorney. Vicki is a graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law, and is a member of the South Carolina Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys. To schedule your appointment with her in our Lexington office call 1-888-301-6004.


Now this is some seriously talented costume making….
awesome…..where could I buy one of these costumes?
Anyone any designs for making one of these costumes? There're awesome!
Pure class!!!!!! I spent a week making a transformer outfit for a fancy dress party and I was dead pleased. These are something else though. Jesus!
That is so neat. Ignore those losers who belittle such awesome display of talent and designing power to do these transformer dresses. I am impressed.
Those are sweet! They must have put some time into them…. I wonder if they're based on the old school transformers toys or did they just design them themselves….
Cartman is a giant bag of douche. So are you, Danny Rho….
These people have as much of a life as they want… too bad all you guys have to do is post derogatory comments about them on a website at home in front of your computers.
That was completely awesome! That's takes a lot of skill and brain power to be able to design and create something like that. And to you morons who post that it's lame – first: this web site is called firevergeek.com, and second: I saw one like this win $5000 for 1st place at the Halloween costume contest in the Rio in Vegas a few years ago. Dude had quite a few hotties surrounding him all night too.
Costumes that let them actually transform, too cool.
that looks like a box with paint on it!!!!!!!!!!
-Cartman – it's pretty hard to make costumes that are just like clothes, and this is very great work. When you start making your own Transformers-like costumes, you let us now and we'll be happy to tell you how crappy yours are compared to this.
Seen it while ago, only one thing to say.


Iggy Azalea and Nick Young celebrated their one-year anniversary at Target...seriously.
The 24-year-old Aussie rapper and her LA Lakers boo made a Target run 365 days after they made it official and if that isn't a sign of real love, then I don't know what is.
But don't think the fun stopped there. The "Fancy" femcee later posted a picture of beautiful red roses.
I think I kind of like these two together. They're both silly, successful and in love. What could be better?


text:
Alternate History Discussion
Quick Nav Tags >
Star Trek: Enterprise; An alternate history of 21st century's science-fiction.
[IMG] "- Houston, we have a problem. - What? - Have you ever watched Star Trek?" The first episode of Star Trek: Enterprise was aired on...
Thread by: Tal Shiar, Aug 5, 2018, 29 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
AHC: Have the United States be on the losing side of WW1
As the title says, create a scenario where the U.S., joining either the Entente or the Central Powers, finds itself on the losing side of the war.
Thread by: Bomster, Aug 4, 2018, 35 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
WI: American Revolution as anti-religion as French one
Could it had achieved the same success? How many more British loyalists would this create? How would this change the US?
Thread by: Minuteman, Aug 3, 2018, 4 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: Before 1900
AHC: Make German a primary or more widely spoken language in the United States
With a POD no earlier than 1776, make German either the most widely spoken language in America or at least a strong secondary language (making the...
Thread by: Bomster, Jul 31, 2018, 8 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: Before 1900
A.H.C.: U.S.A. decline, U.S.S.R. reforms
I was trying to envision a Soviet victory in the Cold War, and the following (broad) scenario came to mind: With a post-WWII P.O.D. (or a...
Thread by: Go4theGusto, Jul 15, 2018, 8 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
Poll for my alternate timeline
I am writing up ideas for scenarios. For elections I will be using President...
Thread by: TheMiddlePolitical, Jul 15, 2018, 2 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: Before 1900
The Articles of Deconfederation: A World Without America
After about a week and a half of debating with myself as to whether or not I should actually do it, I've decided that the answer is a...
Thread by: GBehm, Jul 13, 2018, 340 replies, in forum: Alternate History Maps and Graphics
United States going full turtle in 1930?
Say the United States pulls out of all of its prior engagements and focuses its efforts inward into solving its own affairs sometime towards the...
Thread by: reksfilms, Jul 11, 2018, 28 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
AHC: The Eighties Never End
Given the recent cultural reflection of an Eighties revival, the challenge in this is to create a scenario in which the Eighties, with its...
Thread by: ChaoticBrilliance, Jul 6, 2018, 30 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
A Different Sound of Silence: An Alternate 20th Century And Beyond
Hello all. I've decided to finally begin work on my own timeline, having been inspired by the many great authors and timelines on this site to...
Thread by: AeroTheZealousOne, Jul 1, 2018, 45 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
AHC: Have a North American Schengen Zone.
So with a POD of 1900 have Mexico be a first world nation, and also be in a North American 'Schengen Zone' (including at least the United States...
Thread by: The_Russian, Jun 30, 2018, 0 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
WI: American-Israel War, 1967
I have always been interested in a TL where America supports the Arabs while the USSR supports Israel, so here is an idea for that scenario: Lehi...
Thread by: Minuteman, Jun 27, 2018, 9 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
US does not accept Frankfurt School as refugees
The Frankfurt School is often credited with instigating major social changes in the West – and increasingly the globe – through its so-called...
Thread by: mianfei, Jun 17, 2018, 34 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
AHC: Get North America to look like this:
Ok. So I'm wondering wondering if it's plausible to get Texas to at least this extent or more with a POD of 1836:...
Thread by: The_Russian, Jun 16, 2018, 8 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: Before 1900
AHC: That there are more TV stations in the United States
Between 1940 and 1985, there were only 3 Broadcasters in the United States (ABC, CBS, NBC), later FOX appeared. With a POD between 1930 and...
Thread by: TheHispan, Jun 13, 2018, 9 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
WI: the 1996 Taiwan Strait Crisis Escalates
So doing a little reading about the Crisis and some of the missiles got close to Taiwan (One report i read said one missile went 19 metres over...
Thread by: jeckl, Jun 11, 2018, 113 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
PC: American Empire
Would it be possible for the United States to become an empire? If so, what countries might it take and how long would it last? If it isn't, then...
Thread by: Awesomer2715, Jun 8, 2018, 21 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: Before 1900
AHC: Permanently Communist USA
What could happen to result in the United States of America turning permanently communist in the 2000's? Point of divergence varies according to...
Thread by: Awesomer2715, Jun 7, 2018, 2 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: After 1900
SFN - The American Haiti - The First 100 Years of Freedom
The Society of Free Nations SFN The following post contains excerpts from the textbook from another timeline, a brief history of American...
Thread by: absentminded, Jun 2, 2018, 1 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: Before 1900
DBWI: What if he doesn't allow presidential re-election in the United States?
As you know, since George Washington sought a second term in 1792, almost all presidents have sought re-election, for example Jefferson,...
Thread by: TheHispan, Jun 2, 2018, 4 replies, in forum: Alternate History Discussion: Before 1900
Showing results 101 to 120 of 209
alternatehistory.com


text:
How To Change Your Name After Divorce Nsw
What you need to provide to NSW LRS if you have changed
What you need to provide to NSW LRS if you have changed your name after a divorce You must complete part 3 of the statutory declaration on Change of Name form 10CN stating that you have changed your name due to divorce and the date of divorce. You must also provide documentary evidence from the table on pages 4 and 5. All requirements in one of the categories must be met as …... To change your name in NSW you must: if either you have bee n married before — either a final divorce order or your former spouse's death certificate. Documents in a foreign language must be translated to English by an accredited translator. The Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages won't accept photocopied documents. These documents must be given to the marriage celebrant or Births
Divorce decree (bearing the name being reverted to); Change of name certificate issued by the NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages; Deed Poll registered with the relevant authority; Document showing evidence of change of name registered in the Land Titles Office; Birth certificate showing the name at birth and your new name (Commemorative Certificates are not acceptable). You can... If you need help with your application, Legal Aid NSW runs divorce classes. Once completed, your application needs to be signed in front of a Justice of the Peace (JP) or lawyer. If it is a joint application, both you and your spouse must sign it, but you do not have to do this at the same time, or with the same JP or lawyer.
If you need help with your application, Legal Aid NSW runs divorce classes. Once completed, your application needs to be signed in front of a Justice of the Peace (JP) or lawyer. If it is a joint application, both you and your spouse must sign it, but you do not have to do this at the same time, or with the same JP or lawyer. how to delete a group on messenger If you need help with your application, Legal Aid NSW runs divorce classes. Once completed, your application needs to be signed in front of a Justice of the Peace (JP) or lawyer. If it is a joint application, both you and your spouse must sign it, but you do not have to do this at the same time, or with the same JP or lawyer.
How to Change Your Name After a Divorce Breeden Law Office
When it comes to changing your name, many people only think about it when it comes to marriage and divorce. Much to the disbelief of many and absent a handful of exceptions, individuals are pretty open to changing their name simply if they want to. how to delete your warframe What you need to provide to NSW LRS if you have changed your name after a divorce You must complete part 3 of the statutory declaration on Change of Name form 10CN stating that you have changed your name due to divorce and the date of divorce. You must also provide documentary evidence from the table on pages 4 and 5. All requirements in one of the categories must be met as …
Divorce decree (bearing the name being reverted to); Change of name certificate issued by the NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages; Deed Poll registered with the relevant authority; Document showing evidence of change of name registered in the Land Titles Office; Birth certificate showing the name at birth and your new name (Commemorative Certificates are not acceptable). You can
In most cases, the divorce order takes effect one month and one day after the divorce is granted. You should not assume the divorce will be granted at the first court hearing. For example, you may be told at the hearing that you need to provide more information.
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text:
Hope Through The Night
Let the Bible Speak
19th Century Palestine
todayJanuary 29, 2015 36 5
(EXCITING NEWS: Have you heard our radio programme on PREMIER RADIO yet? You can hear past episodes here.)
Reminding ourselves of Isaiah 11:11-12, we read 'In that day the Lord will extend His hand yet a second time to recover the remnant which is left of His people, from Assyria, from Egypt, from Pathros, from Ethiopia, from Elam, from Shinar, from Hamath, and from the coastlands of the sea. He will raise an ensign for the nations, and will assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.'
The first regathering had been from the Babylonian Empire around 2,500 years earlier. This was now the second regathering and God's prophetic timetable had kicked in after centuries of silence.
In the 19th Century, Palestine was a poor country, ruled by absentee Turkish landlords, as part of the crumbling and corrupt Ottoman Empire. By all accounts the land was largely barren and uninhabited, its population either nomadic or mainly involved with agriculture, despite the poor environment. Sir John William Dawson, writing in 1888, said, 'No national union and no national spirit has prevailed there. The motley impoverished tribes which have occupied it have held it as mere tenants at will, temporary landowners, evidently waiting for those entitled to the permanent possession of the soil'. In 1835, Alphonse de Lamartine wrote, 'Outside the gates of Jerusalem we saw indeed no living object, heard no living sound, we found the same void, the same silence …'
Thanks to the Turks, the land had been totally neglected. Hundreds of years of abuse had turned the country into a treeless waste, with malaria-ridden swamps, a sprinkling of towns and an unliveable desert in the south. This was the position in 1880, and this is incontestable fact.
But now we start to get discrepancies. How many people did live in the land at that time, and who were they? Jewish sources put the figure at between 100,000 and 250,000. Arab sources put the figure at about 480,000 (456,000 Arab, 24,000 Jewish). And who were these Arabs? Arab sources would simply say that these were indigenous people, Arabs who have lived in this land for generations. Jewish and independent sources say otherwise. They would point to immigrations from Egypt (to escape heavy taxes), Algeria, Turkey and elsewhere. There are suggestions that up to 25% of the Muslim population of Palestine in the 19th Century were immigrants.
A final word here from the author of 'Tom Sawyer' and 'Huckleberry Finn'. According to the American author Mark Twain's independent eye-witness account in 1867, 'The Innocent's Abroad', the land was barely populated, just a collection of small villages in a dry, barren land. This complete book is available on the Internet, so you can check it for yourself. Here's his summary.
'Of all the lands there are for dismal scenery, I think Palestine must be the prince … It is a hopeless, dreary, heart-broken land … Palestine sits in sackcloth and ashes. Over it broods the spell of a curse that has withered its fields and fettered its energies … Nazareth is forlorn; about that ford of Jordan where the hosts of Israel entered the Promised Land with songs of rejoicing, one finds only a squalid camp of fantastic Bedouins of the desert; Jericho the accursed, lies a moldering ruin, to-day, even as Joshua's miracle left it more than three thousand years ago … Renowned Jerusalem itself, the stateliest name in history, has lost all its ancient grandeur, and is become a pauper village … Capernaum is a shapeless ruin; Magdala is the home of beggared Arabs; Bethsaida and Chorazin have vanished from the earth … Palestine is desolate and unlovely. And why should it be otherwise? Can the curse of the Deity beautify a land? …'
Palestine was simply an outpost of the Ottoman Empire, a part of Greater Syria. It was not a country or a state in the manner of, say, England or Germany at that time. It was simply a collection of villages that happened to exist within the geographical region known as Palestine. Although many Arabs did own their own homes, the majority were the poor 'fellahin', who worked as hired hands for the landowners. There was no nationalism in the land, no feeling of belonging to a 'people', loyalty was to the local clan or village. Arabs did not see themselves as 'Palestinians' and often referred to their homeland as Southern Syria.
Jews had lived in the land right from Biblical times, though, in the 19th Century, they were very much the minority. The first major wave of Jewish immigration started in the 1880s and, by the end of the 19th Century, Jewish population had tripled to over 80,000 (Arab sources).
This included the foundation of the Jewish settlement of Rishon-le-Zion, where 40 Jewish families settled – followed later by more than 400 Arab families from Egypt and elsewhere. This was a community that worked and was at peace. The Arabs saw the benefits of what the Jews were doing to the land and joined them. Between 1882 and 1914 pioneering Jews started, slowly, to transform the land. They worked on the swamps and the undrained rivers. Life was tough; if you didn't die of malaria, you could be killed by Bedouins. Soon Jewish villages were springing up all over, and the towns of Jerusalem, Tiberias, Safed and Haifa started to grow. In 1909 they founded the first modern Jewish city, Tel Aviv. Life was still tough, although disease wasn't so much the problem. Attacks by Arab neighbours increased, even though, through the efforts of these Jewish pioneers, life for all in the land was improving – including for the Arab neighbours.
Who lived in Palestine in the 19th Century?
Brian Draper – Words of wisdom
Inspirational Breakfast with Esther Higham Ever feel that you're hurtling through life, pouring your energy, money and time into things that may not matter in the end? Brian Draper is the author of What Matters Most – a book full of practical, spiritual wisdom.
todayDecember 27, 2021 35
todayDecember 20, 2021 37 1
Gospel Tonight


I'm really glad to be here at the Analytics Summit. We've had some really great speakers today, so hopefully I can keep up the great trend. I'm going to be talking about some qualitative methods you can use to augment your analysis.
A little bit about me: I'm actually a displaced Australian, currently located in California. I have a couple of fur-babies and a regular human baby that all enjoy there interwebbing as well. I like to think they take after me.
I'm a Senior Partner at Analytics Demystified. Most of you in the industry probably know some of my partners: Adam Greco, Tim Wilson, etc. And I know some of them have spoken today too.
What I'm here to talk about, is sometimes we forget, in our really quantified world, a little bit about the why. What lies behind the numbers?
If you think about a typical analytics report, what it's really telling you is what happened. Site traffic went up or down, or traffic sources shifted, conversion rate declined, etc.
And those things do and should lead a good analyst to start thinking: "Why is that taking place?" Sometimes we may try to answer that using our data, but other times we're going to need to use different methods.
We ask a lot of questions to understand user behavior. It starts with a simple, "What are people doing?" For that, we might be leveraging web analytics, or social, or mobile analytics. We may use AB and multivariate testing to understand what performs better. Also, understanding why users do and don't do certain things. That's why some of the methods we're going to talk about today come in. Looking at surveys, user testing, session replay, etc.
I like to look at it as playing a little armchair psychologist to understand the why.
The plural of anecdote is not data. I'm not saying replace your great digital analytics data with a couple "for instances," but really what we're talking about is harnessing multiple methods to get a more complete picture.
After all, when we're talking about human behavior, it's an art and a science combined. These different methods are really going to help you do a better job of piecing together the why.
What I'm really talking about is how we can use the power of data to understand how big a problem it is, as well as commentary to understand how people feel about it. That's really what's going to allow you to tell the difference between a problem that affects a really small percentage of your users, but maybe it's really making them angry. Versus, the flip-side might be that there's a problem that affects a lot of users, but it's actually no big deal.
If you were presenting information, which of these do you think would be more persuasive?
Same information. 18 percent progress from step one to step two of our signup flow.
But if we were to present it in this way, with qualitative information layered in, we would see some of the things that are making people angry about what we might be asking on step one. That helps us put that 18 percent in context.
These methods are pervasive in other fields.
If you think about the medical field, and the scientific community.
Yes, they use a ton of quantitative data, but they actually use qualitative methods as well. For example, gathering patient report history to pair that alongside and understand an empirical test.
Journalists will do this by combining statistics together with quotes.
The legal field will take ballistic or blood spatter or DNA as evidence. They have that data, but at the same time, the beginning and the end of each trial is reserved for them to weave that qualitative narrative.
How can you better sell your finding to others? And how can you use these methods?
Some of the methods we're talking about include surveys.
One possible use of surveys would be to have surveys running alongside your AB test. It doesn't have to be a specific question about what you're testing. It can be something much more general. It might be as simple as: what are you hoping to find on this website? Looking at the answers for the controlled versus the redesign, it may help us to understand why the redesign performed better.
Exit surveys. You can use them to get qualitative feedback as your users leave the site. And perhaps marry that with bounce rate or exit rate data to understand why they were doing it. Most of us have been exposed to these; you kind of have to be living under a rock to never have seen an exit survey.
Post-conversion surveys. If you're trying to understand: why do my customers convert and why don't they? Talking to those who do convert can be a really valuable way to find out that information. What pushed them over the edge to purchase?
On the flip-side, fall out surveys. Why didn't those people purchase? What was it that meant that they weren't going to take that step? Using that data together with your conversion funnel to identify that for optimization.
You can also monitor satisfaction scores over time. It might be used for analysis, for example, if you've been doing a long-term rebranding exercise, to understand how satisfaction scores changed during that time. Or this may be an additional layer that you add into your ongoing performance reporting just to understand the data that you're seeing.
If it's qualitative feedback that you're interested in, why not give your users the opportunity to give it to you whenever they want to? There are lots of tools that make it possible for users to give feedback when they choose, rather that you having to bother them with a popup.
It really comes down to: you can guess all day at why somebody did what they did, but sometimes it's easier to ask.
An example of the kinds of things you can ask: Avinash's "Three Questions" is an option. What is the purpose of your visit? Did you accomplish what you came for? And if not, why not? And you'd be surprised the valuable insight that you can get just from those three simples questions.
Some other options: would you recommend this to a friend and why? Why not? Did anything frustrate you on your visit today? And if so, getting them to explain why. Or what did you like best or least about your visit?
Keep in mind, we're not trying to do this. Nobody wants to fill in a long survey. The goal isn't to get yet another set of data. The goal is really to get the voice of the customer. I would recommend sticking to minimal questions, first of all, just to get that little bit of information and you'll probably also get more people completing it.
Your goal, remember, is to get qualitative information. I do recommend leaning towards more open-ended questions that give your customers the chance to speak their mind.
Another method that analysts can leverage is user testing.
User testing can run a range from formal user testing to remote, informal user testing, and have a number of different methods. A few of those we're going to talk about today.
One possible method is focus groups. In a focus group, researchers gather a group of people, and they ask questions and use the group discussion and their interactions to understand the perspective on the research question. I got to take part in a focus group when Adobe first acquired Omniture because they were looking to understand the view of the different brands, the view of the acquisition, what users, like myself, though about it. Keep in mind: we're not saying to make the focus group your source of truth. It may not be a representative sample, people may not be as willing to share 100 percent openly as they would in an anonymous survey, but it's a really valuable tool to complement your digital analytics data.
Another method would be observation and task completion. This might be what you think of when you typically think of user testing. You can watch users interact with your product, give them a certain task or a number of tasks, and see what steps they go through to complete this. Think of it as live, you are watching your conversion data. You can also make sure the user experience stays really well balance, so you don't have, for example, learning effects or privacy or latency effects. They balance these questions very well. These can be remote, they can be in person, there's a wide range of ways that this could look.
If you've never got to sit in on this type of thing, I would recommend checking out usertesting.com. They have a video that shows you a live remote user testing. You can hear the narration of what the user is doing, and explains what he's interested in, what he found and what surprised him.
An example of how this may really complement analytics data. Take a tire company. This tire company has a website, and they have all of their tires advertised. You search and it tells you: these are the options for your car. Then, you can click and you can request an appointment or you can click this add button. It takes you to something that looks a little bit like a cart. From an analytics perspective, this would probably look like a pretty successful conversion. Somebody searched for a tire, they found the tire, and they clicked the add button. But, some observation and user testing of this experience reveals that people are actually really frustrated by this. What they found is that they're asking questions like: Where do I put my credit card in? Why can't I buy this? And actually this ecommerce looking thing was a quote. What you needed to do was is to print the quote out and go into the tire company in person. Analytics would've said this is a successful visit because the online conversion happened. As much as could happen online, happened online.
But, when you take it and get that extra layer of detail, you find out that the best thing they could do is make it much clearer what this experience was. Changing the button to: get a quote. Changing the actual quote page to be clearer about what it was representing and what the next steps were.
Another method—this can be really useful if you're trying to understand content analysis—is card sorting. Allowing users to put content into different buckets. They can define buckets or you can define it. Because let's say you have some really great content on your site, and you don't understand why people aren't reading it, or why it gets such low traffic. Card sorting might be something that reveals it's actually not in a logical place for where your users are expecting to find it. That might help with information architecture and actually help drive your analytics numbers.
Another option is actual prototype testing. AB testing is great and awesome and allows you to test your entire population, but prototype testing allows you to test concepts before they've been fully developed. That might be an early working version or it might even be something like sketches or wireframes. I participated in some of this prototype testing with a company called Whistle; they make a doggie activity monitor. They were redesigning their app, so they showed screenshots, and they would say to me, "Okay, what would you do here if this was the next thing you were looking to do in the app?" My feedback and the feedback of others helped them actually improve their design and find the right calls to action based on what was more intuitive for the user.
The real value comes from pairing those together with your digital analytics data. I had a client that was looking to build a lifestyle app and they recruited a group of beta testers. The beta testers used the app for four weeks, and they received surveys during that time period. Now, a combination of Google Analytics within the app and their survey data, allowed them to understand what people actually did and how that differed from what they said that they did from the self-reported information via the survey. They could understand how people use the app, whether they would continue to use it, and also they were looking more generally at how it affected perception of the brand. The coupled data was really powerful because features that users claimed were important to them, they actually weren't used. This allowed them to do some follow-up research, do some additional user testing, to find out if this was an information architecture problem, or if what people reported was important, their behavior just didn't reflect that.
You might be thinking, "How can I do more of this? How can I get involved?" Obviously, you don't have the time, and you're not going to become a fully dedicated UX expert.
But, I would recommend getting involved if you have a UX department in your organization, or maybe an agency that does this. See if you can sit-in, from time to time, and watch some of these user tests take place, or recommend ideas for user testing.
You have the option to do some remote user testing on your own. That doesn't mean you have to take over user testing for the entire organization, but having access to something that would allow you to do remote user testing would allow you to look at AB tests, or get some ideas for analysis.
One of the things that I do recommend is just trying some DIY user testing. That might mean recruiting your family or your friends for help. Ask them to perform behaviors on your site or you app and record it, or take notes, or use screen sharing software to actually record what they do and analyze it later. If you have a user experience team, I would recommend asking for their help to set up the tasks and the questions and the best way to do this. But keep in mind the holidays are coming up, so I figure you can let this distract you from any awkward family gatherings.
You can also have a little bit of fun with it.
If you've never seen drunk user testing, this is an actual thing and it can be incredibly entertaining.
Because, like I said, holidays are coming up. Just saying.
Don't forget, if you are going to be doing some user testing or DIY user testing, it's not just about getting a bunch of random people. It does matter who you're talking to and hearing from. If you were concerned about a loyalty app, you'd want to talk to loyal users. If you wanted to know about the initial sign-up process, you'd want first-time users. Just as segmentation is important in analytics, reaching the right segment is important here too. If you design an app that's intended for retirees, your seventeen year old cousin is probably not going to be the best person to be giving you feedback about usability.
Another option that's sort of in-between the two is session replay. I like to think of this as if your digital analytics and user testing had a baby, this might be what it looked like. There's lots of vendors here and they'll either offer the ability to replay and watch individual user sessions, which is incredibly time consuming. Or they will actually roll that information up into heat maps. It can be really interesting and helpful to understand how people convert to a form, how they view a page, what they attend to, and just going beyond tables and charts of data, but to actually get a little more live action view of how people engage with your site, and why you might be seeing the data that are.
Another great source of qualitative data is actually your customer service data. Pretty much every company has some kind of customer feedback process. It might be phone calls, it might be an email address, it might be a comment form. Reach out to the team that's responsible for that, and see if you can review the information that they're getting. Or if they can give you a heads up when they start to see more of a certain type of comment.
Another great option that you can jump in at any point is actually social listening. I'm not talking about building a huge social listening program or investing in extensive tools, but just going through and eavesdropping on comments on your brand's Facebook page, or reading through mentions of your brand on Twitter. Especially if you've done something big like: change your pricing structure, or completely change your app or your website. You may find a lot of comments about that that would help you understand the redesign data that you're looking at.
Another common thing in the user experience world is personas. Pretty much every business has a persona of, "These are the type of customers that we have." A way that you can tie quantitative and qualitative is to work with your user experience team to create analytic segments based on those personas. Now, probably not everything in there is going to be something that you can measure in analytics, but the goal is to get as close as you can. For example, we take the persona of Claire. She's health conscious, she's into fitness, she's into nutrition, and she's busy, so she likes things that make her life easier.
We might build a segment in analytics that says, "Her online hours are likely to be after the kids are in bed. She may be more likely to visit nutrition and recipe content. Or she might login so that she can save recipes. Or she may send them to email. Or pin them on Pinterest." Building this view in analytics of what Claire does. This can also be a great way to bring your UX team and get them interested in analytics, because you're framing analytics in a way that they understand or they're really familiar with.
One last note when you're trying to understand the user experience, is that if you're going to go through the steps and you're going to try to put yourself in the shoes of your user, we need to do a good job of that. I have seen lots of for instances where analysts will try to understand, "Why does our mobile form perform so badly?" Then they kick open a browser window and they masqueraded as IOS and use their keyboard and mouse. That's really not going to show you the actual problem of big thumbs and little form fields. Making sure that you're staying true to the user experience can better help you to gauge it.
So now, when would you use these types of methods?
A good time is when you're starting an analysis, or even when you're trying to come up with a problem within your organization that's worthy of a custom analysis. That analysis can then help you figure out how big a problem it is. Then bring in optimization to try and solve it.
Definitely qualitative measures can be super helpful while you're running AB tests because while obviously we want to know what wins, it's also really important to understand why it wins. Even if test variation doesn't perform better, for us to really learn from testing, we need to understand why.
You may be looking for testing opportunities. Maybe its in running an optimization program for a few years and at the start, ideas were free-flowing, they were coming from everywhere, and now everybody gotten a little stumped. So think about using this qualitative information to inform your next test.
A redesign. This user feedback is critical if you're undergoing redesign. You might have ideas, but maybe your users have something that would work better. So using them and using those ideas at the beginning, middle, and end, all the way through that process.
Keep in mind, with user testing, you're not limited to testing your own site.
You're able to actually test against your competition. You could test their website, you could test a similar feature on their site versus your site and gain some information about your own performances.
How do I integrate this into my analysis?
One example is to use quotes. And quotes can help bring a number to life. While something may seem alarming, actually hearing the voice of the customer may help action to be taken more quickly.
You can use word clouds to share themes if people don't want to read through a lot of customer feedback, but you want to get a little bit of that qualitative insight in there.
There's different way that you can chart it. You might be looking at whether it's positive or negative and maybe taking into account what the value of that customer is.
You can also group the feedback. Understanding what the purpose of somebody's visit was, and then comparing it to the traffic to that content may help unearth problems in architecture. Maybe content that people say is the purpose of their visit, they're actually not finding because of poor information architecture.
A couple of things that you can go out and do. One is to try and run a survey alongside your next AB test. Take the holidays, do a simple user test on family and friends for your next analysis topic. And also generally explore what tools are available to you and start to build relationships with your UX and customer service teams.
Keep in mind, I'm not saying qualitative data is better, or that it's worse than quantitative data.
It's just different and it's going to give you a different picture. Hopefully it should give you a more well-rounded picture.
We always need to be understanding of the limitations of our data, so keep in mind that there's an entire theory around how our behavior changes when we're being observed. Certain methods like user testing may be subject to this. But by weaving the two together with quantitative, you can help to avoid and mitigate some of those issues and give yourself a better analysis as you go.
The moral of the story here is that the more data you can use to understand the bigger picture and not be limited by just one tool, the better your analysis is going to be at uncovering the motives behind your users' actions. And really that's what analytics is all about.
Thank you guys so much for joining me. Like I said, my name is Michelle, there's lots of ways to reach me. You can ask a question in the QA window, or you can always tweet me questions after the fact, or post them in measure Slack. Join .measurechat if you're not a current member.


You might think that landlords would welcome a tenant who offers to pay a year's rent in advance, but you would be wrong. Apparently, it simply looks suspicious.
"People who offer to pay all up front make landlords look for warning signs that prospective tenant is a money launderer, engaged in criminal enterprises, tax cheat, just out of rehab, a person with problems with prior landlords," explains a commenter in a StreetEasy.com discussion on the topic. Prepaid rent might also signal bad credit or unemployment. Moreover, it's not allowed in rent stabilized apartments and may be prohibited by a landlord's mortgage.
If you do find a landlord willing to take your money, you may be able to negotiate a discount.
"Expect them to select a very conservative discount rate (maybe 3%)," says one commenter. "I would also think that the likelihood of securing a higher discount rate would go up when dealing with a single-unit property owner (e.g. a condo) rather than a property management company. A single unit owner may benefit from the cash flow far more than a management company who 1) will see little to no benefit; and 2) may see the proposal as little more than an accounting burden."
Be aware, though, that paying up front may cost you leverage when it comes to resolving any problems that arise after you move in.
"The main disadvantage to the tenant is that if you have any problems with the landlord or with the apartment, you no longer have the one ace up your sleeve: ability to withhold rent."


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Tag Archives: literary agents
Against the Wind
In the Rooms: A Novel by Tom Shone (Thomas Dunne Books, $24.99, 342 pages)
She probably only dated snowboarders with a rap sheet as long as their arm, the cheekbones of Viggo Mortensen, and a penchant for whittling driftwood into small but meaningful tokens of their appreciation for Life's Bounteous Gifts. I failed on both fronts. I had neither misbehaved with sufficient abandon nor reformed myself with enough zeal. I was just trying to get home without being tripped up, or found out, just like everyone else.
This debut novel might have been entitled Dim Lights, Big City as it is a reverse image of Jay McInerney's book and film Bright Lights, Big City. In McInerney's story, a young man turns to drinking and drugs to evade the memories of his dead mother and an estranged wife. In Tom Shone's novel, protagonist Patrick Miller turns to Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) meetings as a way of shoring up his sagging career as a Manhattan-based literary agent.
Miller, who grew up in England (like his creator), has been shaken up by relationship problems – his girlfriend is bitterly honest about his flaws – and this has affected his ability to attract successful writers to the firm he works for. And then, suddenly, he finds that his favorite author in the world – one-time Pulitzer Prize-nominated author Douglas Kelsey – is back in the Big Apple after spending years hiding out in the artists' community of Woodstock. Miller impulsively follows Kelsey when he spots him one day out on the streets of the city, and learns that the trail ends at an AA meeting in a church.
How is Miller going to get to speak to the reclusive Kelsey, a modern-day J.D. Salinger? Well, simple, he will just pretend that he has a drinking problem and begin joining the meetings "in the rooms" of NYC. But, actually, it's not so simple because as he carries out his plan, Miller finds that he's now lying all of the time to the two sets of people in his life – to his co-workers, he insists that he's not a heavy drinker and does not have a problem (they think he's in denial); to his new fellow AA members, he insists that he can't handle his liquor or his women (oh, so he's co-addicted to sex, just as they suspected).
If things aren't complicated enough, Miller is soon attracted to Lola, a young woman he meets at one of these meetings – a woman who serves as a trusted liaison between him and the respected author – and they begin to get physical. But, Catch-22, the rules of AA prohibit them from getting close to each other for a minimum of a year – a year based on mutual sobriety. Eventually, Miller is not quite sure what he wants and just as he's becoming addicted to Lola, his ex-flame comes back into his life.
If all of this sounds a bit glum, it's not as told by Shone. The novel is quite funny, as my wife can testify since I read no less than 8 or 9 lengthy excerpts of it to her… Readers will identify with Miller as he's a want-to-be nice guy who makes mistake after mistake, even after he's decided mentally that he's going to get his act together. It seems that he just can't win, as life keeps throwing unexpected changes his way.
Shone makes the telling especially interesting with many insights into both the book publishing world and AA. While his characters are sometimes critical of the 12-step process, they're also positive that the program works. Here's the ever-cynical Kelsey on Bill (Wilson) of the Big Book: "Well, Bill's no Steinbeck. That's for sure. There's nothing original to any of it. He filched the whole thing. It's just religion's greatest hits."
The more that Patrick Miller learns about AA, the more he wonders if he may indeed have some problems. Whether he drinks too much or not, virtually every AA member that he encounters tells him that he spends too much time inside of his head. Miller is so busy analyzing life, and trying to find the right path and rules to follow, that it seems to be passing him by.
The true charm of In the Rooms, is its conclusion, in which our hero must make the right choices – the exact right choices – to prove to himself and others that he is, in truth, the nice guy that he's always wanted to be. He's helped along in this by what he's come to learn "in the rooms" and so he comes to see that – ah, yes – it works!
A review copy was received from the publisher. "Sharp, funny, and ultimately touching… Recommended for readers of Nick Hornby and Joshua Ferris." Library Journal
Tagged as 12-step programs, a novel, AA, addictions, Against the Wind, Alcoholics Anonymous, Big City, Bill Wilson, Bob Seger, book review, Bright Lights, Catch 22, debut novel, drinking, fiction, funny, humor, In the Rooms, J. D. Salinger, Jay McInerney, John Steinbeck, Joseph Arellano, Joseph's Reviews, Joshua Ferris, Kindle Edition, Library Journal, life's rules, literary agents, male protagonist, Manhattan, New York City, Nick Hornby, NookBook, Patrick Miller, recommended books, recovery, sex addiction, sobriety, St. Martin's Press, the Big Book, Thomas Dunne Books, touching stories, Viggo Mortensen
These Dreams of You
Cleaning Nabokov's House: A Novel by Leslie Daniels (Touchstone; $24.00; 336 pages)
Debut author and literary agent Leslie Daniels sets the reader up for a tough and jarring ride before she detours us onto a softer road. This begins as the story of a woman, Barb Barnett, who has no domestic skills and little self-esteem. She leaves her husband John and her two children before they discover that she doesn't know how to run the dishwasher in their home. It may be the beginning of a period of freedom and growth for her – instead, she finds that she's powerless, a helpless and hopeless person who's utterly lost in the world.
Barb finds a weathered rental home in her husband's ("the experson") Upstate New York community of Onkwedo, home of Waindell University; a not too thinly disguised version of Ithaca, home to Cornell. This turns out to have once been the temporary home of the famed writer Vladimir Nabokov; it may have been the home in which he wrote the classic Lolita over a two-year period. The very lonely Barb finds that she's not free of her ex-husband's demands since she must do what he says in order to see her young children – a purse-collecting girl and a very serious boy. Even when John Barnett takes his kids and new girlfriend and moves a two-hour drive away from Onkwedo, Barb is expected to act as his servant, even taking care of John's new dog for periods of up to six days at a time.
Barb's powerlessness may have come to an end when she happens to find a manuscript in the rental home, a not fully completed novel about Babe Ruth that may or may not have been written by Nabokov. Ah, the reader sees, this is going to be her ticket out… Well, maybe. At the urging of a literary agent, Barb takes it upon herself to complete the novel and takes it with her to New York City for authentication by literary experts. (No doubt it's going to be a genuine Nabokov and she'll be rich.)
"My mother didn't like bad things to happen to anyone, particularly herself. To be fair, she didn't like bad things to happen to me either, so she pretended they didn't. Her warding off of bad things involved revisions of reality. When I was a child, she told me two years in a row that 'Grandma is in Florida and can't come for Christmas.' The third year, I pinned her down and discovered that Grandma was dead."
Forty-five percent of the way through this tale, the reader is certain of what's going to happen. Everything seems to be all sewn up in a neat little bundle for resolution. And then everything changes.
While in Manhattan, Barb discovers a successful brothel that's visited by men. It dawns on her that her path to power and riches may lie in establishing a brothel in sleepy Onkwedo, although one that will meet the needs of the women in the village rather than the men. One of the university's heralded sports teams has just the young bloods she needs for her own unique team of athletes. This is exactly where the fun and the sense of personal empowerment comes into play, for Barb realizes that if she can make enough money for herself she can stand up and take on John Barnett in a fair custody fight.
"John used to be right all the time. It was a cornerstone belief of our former relationship: we both knew that John was always right. Only that was no longer true."
The once weak and timid Barb is assisted in her efforts by finding a strong and understanding man, who seems (and this is part of the charm of the story) to have suddenly appeared from the pages of a romance novel. He's a working man who knows better than to come on too strong with her, so she's the one who makes the moves, even when it comes to their first kiss.
And so the serious becomes the sublime, with a heavy trace of satire and comedy, in a very unique offering from Daniels. What makes it all work – and work so well, from start to finish – is that the reader is always in Barb Barnett's corner even through all the script, set and background changes. It's a dizzying and sometimes puzzling read; all in all, a fun and tremendously engaging read.
Leslie Daniels pulls out all of the stops in this well recommended debut. Bravo!
A review copy was provided by the publisher. Cleaning Nabokov's House was released on March 1, 2011.
"An odd mix of silly, ridiculous, and inspiring… a pleasure to read." Publishers Weekly.
Tagged as a novel, audio book, Barb Barnett, Bernadette Dunne, book review, brothel, chick lit, Cleaning Nabokov's House, comedy, Cornell University, custody fight, debut author, debut novel, divorce, domestic skills, empowerment, female protagonist, fiction, hardbound release, Ithaca, Joseph Arellano, Joseph's Reviews, Kindle Edition, Leslie Daniels, literary agents, Lolita, Manhattan, Moondance, mother and daughter, new authors, New York City, New York State, novels, Onkwedo, popular fiction, recommended books, romance novels, satire, self-esteem, Simon and Schuster, These Dreams of You, Touchstone Books, unabridged audiobook, Upper New York state, Van Morrison, Vladimir Nabokov, women's literature


Treat your loved one to a gift that they'll use again and again, like this Personalised Glass & Bacardi Set - Best Grandad Ever. It's a traditional glass that is suitable for all age groups.
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