Here is an article from Times of India which elaborates on the grandiose plans of MRVC for rakes to be procured under MUTP phase 2.

If all goes as planned, Mumbai could get as many as six new Siemens-Mumbai Railway Vikas Corporation (MRVC) 12-car rakes every month. That is, if both Central and Western railways agree to standard coaches under the second phase of MUTP.

In my opinion, at this stage it is very difficult to have a standard coach configuration for WR and CR. Modifying the existing coaches will take huge amounts of time and money. Moreover the modifications cannot be carried out over night on all rakes. It will cause great hardships and inconvenience to commuters during the transition period if half the trains on each railway have one coach configuration and half of them have another one!

Senior officials from the Integral Coach factory (ICF) said they were in talks with MRVC and the MMRDA to jack up production rates. At present, ICF manufactures as many as 72 variations of coaches as both the railways have different coach specifications and positioning.

I wonder how they have 72 different types of coaches for EMUs. Even if we assume that each and every coach in the configuration of WR and CR is unique, there can be maximum 24 types of coaches.

The new rakes will apparently last for 40 years as opposed to the current 25 years. Nothing new in that. There are a few 1969 built EMU coaches still in service on WR. Moreover, I have my doubts about the current rakes lasting 25 years after looking at the condition of some of them in 3 months.

Cost of new rakes will be around Rs 54 Crores, double the cost of present rakes! This presents even more opportunities for kickbacks. It is useless to expect better workmanship from ICF. So be ready for more flimsily built rakes.

Dive Watches

Many people that like to go diving, find it irritating to not be able to tell the time while they are underwater, or better yet they can time themselves for something important. For example, if they only have enough oxygen to last them twenty minutes, a watch with a timer would be useful, but any other dive watch would do. Whether they are professional scuba divers or they just enjoy going diving every now and then, they should have a dive watch. It is also always better to go diving with a watch, even if you don’t need it to time yourself, just being able to see the time while you’re underwater puts your mind at ease.

There are many different kinds of dive watches available today; just a few of them include:

Citizen Dive Watches

The Promaster Professional Diver watch has a steel case, black dial, black strap made from rubber, day and date display, water-resistant feature, the hands are luminous, hour markers are luminous, and it is battery powered. This watch is silver and back and has a very stylish finish.

The Citizen Eco-Drive Aqualand Dive Watch from Citizen is water resistant up to 200 meters, has a black dial along with three other subdials, the hands and hour markers are luminous, with a date display, the strap is made from rubber to last extra long, the bezel has a gold plated trim and it has a chronograph of fifty minutes. This watch will never need a battery as it runs off energy from a light source and it will tell you when it is low.

Seiko Dive Watches

The Seiko Diver’s 200m has a durable stainless steel case, blue dial, is water resistant up to 660 feet, with a indicator on the battery life, is scratch resistant crystal, with a urethane strap, bezel of blue and red, day and date display in English or Spanish and the crown and caseback are screw down. This watch has big hour markers and hands for easy to read time underwater.

The Yellow Dial Rubber Strap Automatic watch for men has a bright yellow dial, routine self-winding movement, the crown is screw down, it is water resistant up to 660 feet, with a date and day display window, the crystal is scratch resistant and it has a firm stainless steel case. This watch also has glowing hour markers and hands; it has a rubber strap for underwater comfort and quick drying time.

Luminox Dive Watches

The Navy Seal Dive watch for women has a hard-wearing stainless steel case, crown protector, stainless steel bracelet with solid links, extender and safety clasp, the glass crystal is scratch resistant and it is water resistant up to 660 feet. This watch is great for any woman to use while underwater and the best part is that it looks good underwater and on land!

There are many more dive watches as well as many more watches under the above mentioned categories. They are all brilliant watches and promise to keep you informed of the time while you are underwater. All dive watches are available in different makes, styles, colors and shapes.

“We are what we repeatedly do.” – Aristotle

The other day I tried to track down the origins of the joke “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” My recollection of the response was “Practice, Practice, Practice”.  I had thought that it was an old Jack Benny joke.  To my surprise I found many different potential origins to that joke but the one I liked and settled upon was the version that had violinist Jascha Heifitz being hailed by a man on a New York street. The man asks Heifitz, “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” And Heifitz replies, without missing a beat, “Practice!”

There are two important components to the response of “Practice”. One aspect of practicing is that you know the piece and can play it correctly. The better violinists can also play with emotion, giving the piece “life”. A second component of “Practice”—one much less talked about—is that you deliver the piece in a consistent manner time after time. When the audience lays down the dollars to see you play at Carnegie Hall they get what they pay for. Again, from Heifitz: “If I don’t practice one day, I know it. If I don’t practice two days, my critics know it. If I don’t practice for three days, everyone knows it.”

The need for consistency

The need for consistency is pervasive. People are looking for consistency in their personal lives; organizations are looking for consistency as they deal with other organizations. Customers are looking for consistency as they interact and purchase either products or services. The attainment of consistency is a very powerful organizational tool—a tool that can greatly increase organizational performance; a tool that I believe is underutilized.

The philosophy of consistency is at a unique crossroads. It is one place where personality theory and organizational theory merge. Let me explain. There has been much effort expended on trying to understand people—what makes them tick. How do we classify their personality and abilities, from a personnel standpoint how do we select for certain characteristics that are more likely to lead to success on the job, how to develop them, etc. The desire for consistency is a characteristic that can be used to describe people. In fact, a Consistency Theory dating back to the 1950s utilizes a concept called cognitive dissonance. (“The discomfort of cognitive dissonance occurs when things fall out of alignment, which leads us to try to achieve a maximum practical level of consistency in our world” – Festinger 1957). The theory states that people have a strong innate desire for consistency. 

Organizations have a strong need for consistency as well—after all organizations are nothing more than a group of people. An organization that makes maximal use of consistency in its performance from a product standpoint (uniformity of product—zero defects), from a customer service standpoint (customers have a similar experience each and every time they interact with your organization), and from an employee management standpoint will outperform the competition. At the same time, consistency is not some magical elixir that will solve all our problems. We live in a real world which is complex and has many critical, complex interactions for us to deal with and no single solution works for all problems. Consistency, though, when viewed correctly can become part of a larger whole, a piece of the puzzle that helps organizations maximize performance.

Managers within organizations are constantly faced with challenges. Oftentimes they need to produce more with fewer resources while maintaining quality. This requires a constant evaluation of processes and procedures to increase efficiency. (One coping mechanism that some managers use is to simply put in more hours. While this may work for the short term, over the long term real efficiency will only be obtained by rethinking processes and procedures.) What is a manager to do within an organization when faced with the real need to constantly change, to innovate in order to stay competitive in today’s fast changing world—especially when the natural tendency of many is toward consistency”?

The customer viewpoint

If you examine some of the most successful organizations, one thing stands out very clearly— their customers get what they expect. Consistency of performance helps drive that success. Some of these organizations even work it into their slogans and sales mantras—having, consistently, the lowest prices in a retail environment, or in a hotel chain having the same comfortable bed in each room have become mainstays of advertising campaigns. For other organizations it simply becomes part of what customers expect. People don’t go to some of the fast food shops for exquisite cuisine, they go because they know what they are going to get—fast food at a good price. The philosophy of “location, location, location” is critical in the retail (and many other) environments but you could add to that “consistency, consistency, consistency” 

This is not only true at the end user consumer level but is also true for business to business customers. Can you imagine if an airplane manufacturer turned out planes of the same model that performed inconsistently? Some flew better at 5000 feet and some flew better at 30,000 feet? Or if a chemical plant could not deliver a consistent chemical composition to their product?

Six-Sigma

People and organizations are not only looking for consistency of performance to help deal with the world in which we live; it is crucial for success. Consistency is closely tied to predictability, and predictability is what organizations depend upon and what helps individuals cope in a complex world. This is the whole crux of the billions of dollars that have been spent on quality programs over the years. Six-Sigma has focused on the removal of variance from our products and from work processes, making them more consistent. The consistency of a product or the employment situation also helps organizations build trust, the trust of the customer and the trust of the employee.

The principles of Six-Sigma can be applied successfully to help improve organizational culture, creating a more performance oriented culture.  In order to know if the performance of the organization is indeed consistent it helps tremendously to have consistent performance measures and to aggregate those performance measures in a consistent fashion across geographies and business units. Displaying that information in a consistent fashion to help in corporate decision making is also very powerful and can be a challenging effort. 

The employee at work

So what about the employee at work? Do these concepts of consistency hold within the working environment? I would argue that they do.

What if you walked into your place of employment each day and were met by inconsistency—a quantum mechanics of unpredictable behavior if you will. One day being late was measured by being at work at 5 minutes past the hour, the next day it was 1 minute. One day you walk in and your boss is helpful in all aspects, helping you manage your workload and the next day the boss is extremely difficult to deal with. One day your job is to perform task A by procedure B and the next day it changes to procedure C, only to change back to B the following day for no apparent reason. What is an employee to do? Any attempt by employees to develop coping mechanisms to deal with what is expected of them would be futile and because of the changing standards by definition they would end up failing. In a situation like this trust would also fall by the wayside.

I am not advocating the blind adherence to a rigid set of rules for organizational decision making. That would be a disaster. Good decision making may require setting up systems that allows managers to be consistently flexible (often within a framework), rather than adherence to a set of fixed rules. The consistency here is that managers are allowed to exercise their judgment, and given the appropriate tools so that good decisions can be made. As the environment changes (and it will need to change), employees need to be brought along—informed as to the rationale behind the decisions—and the consistency of the decision processes and outcomes desired need to be pointed out.      

Is everyone really looking for consistency? What about dare devil thrill seekers? Certainly they are not looking for consistency or boring routine. Well in fact they are. Take for instance bungee jumping. One aspect of what they desire is the adrenaline rush, the thrill, associated with jumping, even though most of us would be more than a little reluctant to try it. If they lost the adrenaline rush my guess is that they would move on to other activities. They have different needs than many of us, a different threshold for what they are looking for—to satisfy those needs, but it does not mean they are not looking for consistency in those more dangerous pursuits.

Psychologists have relatively recently created a theory of personality called “The Big 5”. It consists of five dimensions of personality that are supposed to be overarching in describing people and their personality. One of those dimensions is “openness to new experiences”. A group of people, if you measure them on this trait, would differ on where they fall along the scale of being complex and open to new experiences to being conventional and uncreative. I am not implying in this work that people are not different. People are different and selecting the best fit for the various positions within your organization is critical. However, taking into consideration the various differences between people, there will be a fairly strong tendency for people to look for situations that delivers to them consistency—the consistency that they need.

Don’t fall into the trap, though, of thinking that consistency of performance means stagnation—little growth, no innovation, no increase in organizational effectiveness. That is absolutely not true. To be successful a company can be, needs to be consistently innovative and nimble (among other things) and organizations can absolutely create an environment allowing that to occur.

How to create consistency in the work environment

There are many things companies can do to create that environment. For instance, some of the data I have seen over the years strongly suggests companies with stronger diversity programs are able to deliver more consistently on business outcomes such as innovation, customer service and other performance metrics. It seems that the very act of organizations being diverse and allowing diverse people to feel that they have equal opportunity to excel and achieve allows for greater differences in thinking to occur and hence spurs innovation. It does not mean that your product or service is delivered to your customers in an inconsistent fashion. If that is occurring it has nothing to do with diversity, but rather poor process control – inconsistency.  

Another aspect I have studied over the years is whether there are generational differences in what employees are looking for out of the employment situation. While the entire answer of what employees are looking for is somewhat complex, the bottom line is that there are larger intra-generational differences than inter-generational differences. In other words, within any particular generation you will find a range of people with differing desires and those differences within generations are larger than cross generational differences.

The fundamentals of what people are looking for in the employment situation are extremely consistent. How you deliver on those fundamentals is what may change.  I have looked at this from gender, geographic, ethnic, cultural and generational perspectives and always come to the same conclusion.   

However what I have also seen is that there are no magic silver bullets.  Simply putting in a diversity program or a Six-Sigma program, or any other program in a vacuum, standardizing it regardless of the situation, without looking at what is going on in the organization as a whole is another recipe for disaster.  You are likely not to address root causes and are likely telling your managers “here is the silver bullet – the magic” (at least for the next 6 months until it fades away).  

There are additional sound practices that can be followed and implemented by organizations that can greatly help them achieve consistency. Let me focus on a few elements, the elements that I believe are most critical.

The fundamentals of creating consistency for employees in the work environment first centers around content and consistency of “organizational message”, describing for employees what the organization is about and their role in achieving that goal and then sticking to that message. I am making the assumption that the organization gets that original message right. This is critical. You don’t want to stick to the wrong message.

I am not talking about mission, vision and value statements, though at times those can help, I am talking about strategy and goals, but I mean strategy and goals not only at the corporate level but also down at the personal level. What do I need to do in order that my department, division, BU etc. be successful?  (Together these 5 components are often called an organizational charter.)  The organization needs to understand who it is and what will make it successful in its market, and needs to convey that to its employees in a way that makes them feel like they are doing meaningful work. Secondly, the organization needs to provide the employee what they need to get their own jobs done – done in congruence with the organizational goals. Thirdly, the employee needs to feel appreciated for what they have accomplished and see a future for themselves within the organization. Message, Performance, Future (MPF) is an action focused framework that can be used to guide organizations. Three questions should be kept in mind as a manager thinks through this framework:

• Message: Am I sending the right message in a consistent fashion throughout my organization?
• Performance: Are people getting what they need (in the broadest sense) to be able to deliver on that message – to get the job done?
• Future: Do people feel recognized and feel like they have a future with this organization?

I recall presenting the results of a culture survey to a high level executive of a very large firm. In comparison after comparison to other firms on similar items, his company was scoring well above average and in fact was benchmark on a number of items, until we got to pay. When I went over the pay items with him the results for the organization were rather average. He was perplexed about how his organization, which scored highly on many items could be so average on pay. I asked “what is your pay strategy”? The response was without hesitation “to pay about average”.

The point is that you get what you work towards and if you looked at a list of the top performing organizations on different aspects of performance and culture, you would be looking at lists of different organizations. Who is the most innovative, the most nimble, provides the fastest service, the best customer service, who has the best prices, the highest quality, the most dedicated employees? No organization has the resources, the time or the energy to do everything at the level of “the best in the world”.  Management may feel it is a requirement to strive for that, but it is simply not realistic. Mission critical then for each individual organization is to figure out what it needs to excel upon, to be first in its industry upon, the “best in the world” and to concentrate on those objectives.

Organizations need to do most things at a minimally acceptable level, to be competent (the price of admission) and I would argue that the minimally acceptable level can be a changing target over a relatively short period of time. You need to get the “engineering” right, to have good products, you need to be able to send out bills correctly, provide good customer service, you need to have effective sales and marketing etc.

Picking the items to be the best in the world at, constantly improving your delivery on those items, monitoring your performance so you know how you are performing is what will give an organization an unbeatable competitive advantage.

Delivering on that list of “we will be the best at….” requires that you get all of your business processes focused on those objectives, making sure that they are in alignment. All processes that effect all constituents should be examined, the processes that impact your customers, your suppliers, and those that affect your employees. It will require that the organization create and managers can work in a consistent environment. That environment can be consistently creative, nimble, innovative, diverse, customer focused, etc. I have seen organizations and managers operate this way successfully and you can too, but it will require plenty of “practice, practice, practice”.

Contingency Planning For Lean Organizations – Part IV – Crisis Management

In a previous post we eluded that lean organizations are likely to be more susceptible to disruptions or adverse conditions and may even have a greater impact on the business.  To some degree this may be true, however, in reality, Lean has positioned these organizations to be more agile and extremely responsive to crisis situations to mitigate losses.

True lean organizations have learned to manage change as normal course of operation.  A crisis only presents a disruption of larger scale.  Chapter 10 of Steven J. Spear’s book, ”Chasing the Rabbit”, exemplifies how high velocity, or lean, organizations have managed to overcome significant crisis situations that would typically cripple most organizations.

Problem solving is intrinsic at all levels of a lean organization and, in the case of Toyota, problem solving skills extend beyond the walls of the organization itself.  It is clear that an infrastructure of people having well developed problem solving skills is a key component to managing the unexpected.    The events presented in this chapter demonstrate the agility that is present in a lean organization, namely Toyota in this case and it’s supplier base.

Training is a contingency plan

Toyota has clearly been the leader in Lean manufacturing and even more so in developing problem solving skills at all levels of the organization company-wide.  The primary reason for this is the investment that Toyota puts into the development of people and their problem solving skills at the onset of their employment with the company.  The ability to see problems, correct them in real time, and share the results (company-wide) is a testament to the system and it’s effectiveness has been proven on many occassions.

Prevention, preparation, and training (which is also a form of prevention) are as much an integral part of  contingency planning as are the actual steps that must be executed when a crisis situation occurs.  Toyota has developed a rapid response reflex that is inherent in the organization’s infrastructure to rapidly regain it’s capabilities when a crisis strikes.

Crisis Culture

We highly recommend reading Steven J. Spear’s “Chasing the Rabbit” to learn and appreciate the four capabilities that distinguish “High Velocity” organizations.  The key to lean is creating a cultural climate that is driven by the relentless pursuit of improvement and elimination of waste.  Learning to recognize waste and correcting the condition as it occurs requires keen observation and sharp problem solving skills.

Creating a culture of this nature is an evolutionary process – not revolutionary.  In many ways the simplicity of the four capabilities is it’s greatest ally.  Instilling these principles and capabilities into the organization demands time and effort, but the results are well worth it.  Lean was not intended to be complex and the principles demonstrated and exemplified in Chasing the Rabbit confirm this to be true.  This is not to be construed as saying that the challenges are easy … but with the right team they are certainly easier.

Until Next Time – STAY Lean!

Writer’s Poem

The words of a writer,

are as brush-strokes of a painter;

each deliberate,

with  a certain quality.

PJFarr

Spring 1988

The lower elements of man are the primary advocates of forced equality. They work to drag down the capable so that they can reside in a world that in their eyes is a more just world, a world where capable man is forced downward and incapable man is lifted up.

They do not place the onus for betterment on the individual but make it a task for those who are effective and thus reduce capable mans place in the world to mere subsidizers of lower man. Stealing from them their freedom and their right to achieve and giving these to lower man like some kind of penance for their success.

Only in a world completely infected with psychosis could such a conception be considered charity and therefore righteous behavior for the modern man.

Chanel items have always represented style and sophistication, and a Chanel handbag is no exception. Whether you’re buying accessories, fragrances, or purses from this brand, you’re certain to feel both timeless and fashion forward. Here are some of the purse selections from this season that you’ll unquestionably want to pay attention to.

If you love color, you’ll love the new Chanel handbag line for the season; the Cruise collection features colors like lavender, which goes well with a simple white shirt and fitted jeans, or a sundress and stylish flats. Of course, you can wear the bag with a more conventional dress, but this accessory will make anything you wear look more classy and sophisticated.

Different Occasions

The multi-pocket reporter bag is another great Chanel handbag that you will want to check out if you’re always rushing to appointments and want to make sure you haven’t forgotten anything. These bags are somewhat larger than those in the Cruise Collection, and you’ll be able to keep all your items arranged with all the different compartments that are in the purse. The White Bucket handbag is another great selection if you’re looking for a larger Chanel handbag; it’s made of quilted leather, which is a design that is a true sign of Chanel.

If you’re searching for a Chanel handbag that is specifically for evening wear, you might want to take a look at the satin evening purse. The chain purse handle woven with black leather makes the purse both graceful and trendy, and the purse even has a lipstick holder and mirror, which means you won’t have to carry your compact or additional makeup with you, which could clutter your bag.

Accessories That Enhance

Of course, to complete your look, you can also buy some of the extraordinary fragrances that Chanel has to offer, such as the legendary Chanel No. 5, CoCo Chanel, or newer fragrances like Chance and Allure. These fragrances add an extra touch of femininity to your look, and will make you feel even more certain as you carry your Chanel handbag around the city.

If you want to know where you can find these bags at discounted prices, you might want to check out the various sites on the internet that have this type of handbag for sale where you’ll find prices that are much more affordable than what you would pay at major retailers, or even on the Chanel site or store. You can also take part in an online auction for a Chanel handbag by visiting some of the stores that Ebay has to offer. This way, you can place a bid that you know you can make good on, and can keep up with how often others are bidding so that you can get the item you want. Happy shopping!

Dive Watches

Many people that like to go diving, find it irritating to not be able to tell the time while they are underwater, or better yet they can time themselves for something important. For example, if they only have enough oxygen to last them twenty minutes, a watch with a timer would be useful, but any other dive watch would do. Whether they are professional scuba divers or they just enjoy going diving every now and then, they should have a dive watch. It is also always better to go diving with a watch, even if you don’t need it to time yourself, just being able to see the time while you’re underwater puts your mind at ease.

There are many different kinds of dive watches available today; just a few of them include:

Citizen Dive Watches

The Promaster Professional Diver watch has a steel case, black dial, black strap made from rubber, day and date display, water-resistant feature, the hands are luminous, hour markers are luminous, and it is battery powered. This watch is silver and back and has a very stylish finish.

The Citizen Eco-Drive Aqualand Dive Watch from Citizen is water resistant up to 200 meters, has a black dial along with three other subdials, the hands and hour markers are luminous, with a date display, the strap is made from rubber to last extra long, the bezel has a gold plated trim and it has a chronograph of fifty minutes. This watch will never need a battery as it runs off energy from a light source and it will tell you when it is low.

Seiko Dive Watches

The Seiko Diver’s 200m has a durable stainless steel case, blue dial, is water resistant up to 660 feet, with a indicator on the battery life, is scratch resistant crystal, with a urethane strap, bezel of blue and red, day and date display in English or Spanish and the crown and caseback are screw down. This watch has big hour markers and hands for easy to read time underwater.

The Yellow Dial Rubber Strap Automatic watch for men has a bright yellow dial, routine self-winding movement, the crown is screw down, it is water resistant up to 660 feet, with a date and day display window, the crystal is scratch resistant and it has a firm stainless steel case. This watch also has glowing hour markers and hands; it has a rubber strap for underwater comfort and quick drying time.

Luminox Dive Watches

The Navy Seal Dive watch for women has a hard-wearing stainless steel case, crown protector, stainless steel bracelet with solid links, extender and safety clasp, the glass crystal is scratch resistant and it is water resistant up to 660 feet. This watch is great for any woman to use while underwater and the best part is that it looks good underwater and on land!

There are many more dive watches as well as many more watches under the above mentioned categories. They are all brilliant watches and promise to keep you informed of the time while you are underwater. All dive watches are available in different makes, styles, colors and shapes.

Image : http://www.flickr.com

Sony Xplod car audio comes with revolutionary features that are sure to amaze your curiosity. There are Sony Xplod car speakers, radio cassette, subwoofers and others to choose from. They come in a very high quality and you can trust them to serve you in the right way. Sony Xplod head units connect with digital music players like iPods making them very convenient. Many of this head units come with a memory called the gigastick. Speakers come with features like aluminum woofer cones, rubber surround, balanced dome drive tweeters and so many other features and you can get this information and more from the internet. Sony amplifiers will go a long way in ensuring that you get the quality sounds you need.

Sony Xplod car audio will therefore enhance your life and you can look for cheap products in the market. Reading through many reviews that were sent by users on a particular site, I read one that was very positive about the functions of the head units from Sony. If you do not know where you can get the products, search on the internet for a store near you or you can just shop online. Before you make the purchase, have no doubt about the store. Some of the things that a consumer should be aware of is the legality of the business and whether they have in stock the right Sony Xplod car audio.

The prices can be a bit high but, it is upon you to search for discounts and cheap prices. Very cheap prices will make eye brows rise because there must be the question on quality. You might be very happy because of throw away prices and forget about quality but, it is always good to buy value. Online stores always have offers and discounts and they are a good place to start. If you are upgrading your system, make sure that the car audio is compatible with the already existing systems. Have the right fits and avoid problems that may present themselves because of this. If you are not sure of any function, make use of store staff and manuals.

There are many manuals including installation manuals and getting them will be paramount to ensuring you install Sony Xplod car audio in the right way. Do not forget all the kits you need and from Sony, you can get wiring kits for amplifiers, power and ground cable, capacitors, fuse holders and many others. Read manuals carefully without rushing and if you need additional help, you can buy DVDs that instruct users step by step. There is no doubt that after you have taken such vital steps, you will have your systems well installed. You need to experience it for yourself to realize the extra ordinary sounds that will have you spend so much time in your car. The entertainment is superior and you can recommend the car audio to somebody else to ensure they get to experience pleasure in their cars. Write a review and express your feelings about the product.

http://flach.changjy.com/ http://lesasand.blogetery.com/

Love it or hate it, if you’re a writer you can’t ignore it.  It’s the debate on whether being self-published is valid or not and whether we should continue to call ourselves Independent Authors or Self-published Authors.  After reading Victoria Strauss’ “Why You Are Probably Not an Independent Author (or, Another Post for Which I Expect I Will Get Some Flack)” I thought I’d chime in on the argument.

I must admit that Victoria’s idea that using the term “Independent” was: 1) inaccurate, 2) redundant, and 3) euphemistic and that we should all just call ourselves “self-published” (unless we can’t “admit that self-publishing actually does still carry a stigma“) made me rather angry.  If we put her words to work, then we can’t even call ourselves “self-published” unless we do everything, including printing each and every copy ourselves.

As MeiLin Miranda commented, “But why should people be stigmatized for trying to find their own audience? What amazes me is that literature is the last medium where the gatekeepers are still so firmly worshipped and those outside the gates so deeply despised.”  MeiLin goes on to explain that bands and comic artists aren’t stigmatized by going the independent route.  The question is, why are authors?

One person commented that “self-published” equalled poor quality writing.  I can’t argue that in a lot of cases that is true.  However, this person believes that by going the traditional route one’s writing will become better because it must get past the editor’s desk first.  I say, not so!  I’ve seen plenty of traditionally published books that make me shudder from the poor quality.  It was published because the publisher believed it would sell, not because it was well-written.  If a writer wants to improve his or her writing and still self-publish, then that writer must seek out an unbiased third-party to edit the piece.  There are groups like Critters for that.

As Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords publishing, points out, “Part of the problem here is that many traditionalists (uh oh, did I just create a new label?) have spent years maligning the term “self-published” to connote “loser author,” “failure,” “not good enough to get published in a respectable manner,” and worst of all, “vanity.”"  He goes on to say about vanity that “…the word also implies conceited and excessive pride in one’s appearance. What’s more vain than an author refusing to publish their book unless its published by a big name NY publisher? Vanity cuts both ways, folks. And let’s face it, publishing is an act of vanity. It’s the author saying, “I have something I think is worth sharing with the world.” Blogging, twittering, public speaking and social networking are all forms of vanity as well.”

There were a lot more comments on both sides.  Obviously I come down on the side of keeping the term “Independent Author”, but I would like to add one more item, something another person added in the comments.  No writer should be stigmatized regardless of what path one takes.  I would like to put forth the idea that both “traditionally published” and “self-published” be abolished from our vocabulary.  Let us all just be writers on The (hard) Road to Writing.

There has always been the allure of quality; it has always been important to people. Why is quality desired in life?

Recognizing the expectation of it and the demand for it, organizations seek to provide it. Nokia offers a glimpse of why they pursue quality: The fundamental reason for focusing on quality issues is the potential for an increased profitability of the project. Although there may be more philosophical answers to why quality is important, the bottom line is that consumers recognize quality, and are willing to pay for it. Yet, most organizations find it difficult to consistently deliver it.

With the lens of the Newtonian-Cartesian paradigm firmly secured in our mind’s eye it is not surprising that objects are most readily seen. Correspondingly, organizations are designed to meet material needs and managing is about tools, techniques and metrics. Further, it is this point of view that supports misunderstanding of Deming’s approach to quality just as it had with Taylor’s scientific management. Hence the belief that it is (only) good for manufacturing and that it is a purely quantitative and mechanical process.

Accordingly, the popular approach to quality places it as an extra activity to the operations of the enterprise. That is, if an organization ‘is doing quality’ then quality is in addition to what is already being done. The creation of a quality department and a vice president of quality position are classic illustrations of this. It is therefore not surprising to see that quality becomes an expense that is often difficult to justify.

Quality is rarely understood as a foundational or elemental part of an organization’s core. Further, it is extremely unusual to see it understood as an inherent capability of people. Martin Luther King expressed this best: “If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.” Most fail to understand that quality is inhibited by the very way organizations are designed and managed. Again and again Deming exclaimed ‘the problem is management!’

The problem with management is a lack of profound knowledge and an absence of self-knowledge. Quality doesn’t come from being certified—no matter the expense of the certification process. Quality is not cost reduction, the elimination of waste or defects—these are the result of efforts in support of quality. Those in authority don’t really get it! How could they when their mind’s eye and the thought they are pursuing inhibit the light of understanding from entering?

They don’t get that quality is the expression of the human spirit that lies within each of us. It is the same care and love of one’s work that makes mother’s apple pie the absolute best—even if another follows the recipe exactly it never quite measures up. It is the same expressed spirit that we acknowledge in the stirring performance of an actress, the melodic voice of a singer, the effortless movement of a dancer, the imagery in the painting of an artist, and the athleticism of an athlete. What is common among these is each becomes one with what they are doing. That is, quality is not merely employing skills and going through the motions. Quality is the expression of human potential that captures our attention and serves as a means of satisfaction and as a means for us to share and honor our humanness—it resonates within each of us.

Because life (in business) has become far too instrumental for purposes of outer value, most can’t seem to understand that quality is not about meeting specifications, nor is it about whether ones’ belt is green or black. Quality is the manifestation of care and concern for the expression of human potential through one’s work—making a job a joy. Quality is enabling the flow of the human spirit, and this is what most people in management don’t get!

3015924    กระบวนการคุณภาพกับการรักษาพยาบาลด้านศัลยกรรม    Quality Process and Surgical Care

แนวทางการปฏิบัติตามระบบพัฒนาและประเมินคุณภาพการรักษาพยาบาลด้านศัลยกรรม การบันทึกเวชระเบียนที่มีคุณภาพ การตรวจสอบเวชระเบียน การจัดทำแนวทางการรักษาพยาบาลและการประเมินผล การกำหนดตัวบ่งชี้วัดคุณภาพและขั้นตอนการพัฒนาอย่างต่อเนื่อง

(Guidelines for improving quality according to the hospital accreditation system; good quality medical record, chart audit, setting of clinical practice guidelines and evaluation, clincial indicators and continuning quality impovement.)

(3015924 จุฬาลงกรณ์มหาวิทยาลัย)

You don’t have the time or the resources to evaluate every applicant who strolls in. to guide your work, you should develop a profile of your “ideal” candidate. You may never find your ideal, but you will establish a basic framework that outlines the person you are looking for.

Developing an ideal candidate profile is similar to viewing a lineup of suspects after you’ve witnessed a bank robbery. The individual you pick out may not be the actual bank robber, but chances are the real criminal is strongly similar. Often, a lineup helps police establish the silhouette or basic framework of the person being sought. The police is clear even if the details are not. Likewise, your ideal candidate profile will give you a sharper idea of what you are really looking for, so that you can increase your odds of finding him or her.

Use the following outline to develop of profile of your ideal candidate:

1. Must have, or have done, or be able to do:
   • Experience: type and years
   • Industry: type, or specific companies, and years
   • Skills or talents
   • Education

1. Should have, or have done, or be able to do:
   • Experience: type and years
   • Industry: type, or specific companies, and years
   • Education

1. Would be nice to have, or have done, or be able to do:
   • Experience: type and years
   • Industry: type, or specific companies, and years
   • Skills or talents
   • Education

Be specific when you draft your outline. If you want someone with strong follow-up skills, say so. If you want an assertive person who can handle high stress, say so. To create a good match between job and candidate, you need to define the person as closely as you define the job.

Keep your company culture in mind, too. If your company is team-oriented and flexible, you want a candidate who is comfortable with teamwork—and not everyone is. If your department is highly structured, you want someone who works well in a structured situation. Describe the qualities that your company values so that you can find compatible candidates.

Just remember that defining the candidate is a lot like shopping for groceries: the more you toss into your shopping cart, the more you’ll pay. The cost of filling a job is influenced by two factors: how long it takes to find the candidate, and the supply of qualified candidates. The greater the number of must have items on your list, the longer it’s going to take to find that person. The greater the experience, skills, or education requirements, the smaller the supply of candidates and the larger the compensation package required to hire the person.

My Consultancy–Asif J. Mir - Management Consultant–transforms organizations where people have the freedom to be creative, a place that brings out the best in everybody–an open, fair place where people have a sense that what they do matters. For details please visit www.asifjmir.com, and my Lectures.

Flowers, bees and birdsong wherever you turn.

By Paul Hassing, Founder and Senior Writer, The Feisty Empire.

Miles and Judy Oldmeadow are both keen gardeners. Everywhere you look there are plantings of some description.

And the varied, thriving bird life has to be seen (and heard) to be believed.

Jude is fastidious about making her guests comfortable when they visit their horses.

I found this posie, freshly picked from the house garden, in the bathroom when I came to stay.

Those who can be trusted in small things, can be trusted in great things.

Next to it was a gorgeous cake of hand-made soap from a local producer. 

Small touches like this leave you in no doubt that your hosts think and care a lot about what they’re doing.

From what I’ve seen so far, this unerring attention to detail pervades every task (horse-related and otherwise) right up to the big-ticket items.

Author: Mayan Genkied
Source: articleage.com

There are a lot of good audio/video players available especially for movie enthusiast but is “good” enough? Guess not. Video and audio performance in all modern DVD players is, dvd, excellent. Personal preferences, your budget, and your existing home theater setup all play a large role in determining which player is best for you. The budget and quality should be taken into consideration before buying the product by most consumers.
When we talk about quality, DVD is the new generation, dvd,, dvd, of optical technology, dvd, . DVD is essentially a much bigger and faster CD that can hold cinema-like videos,, dvd, better-than-CD audio, still photos, and computer data. DVD aims to bring home entertainment, computers, and business information with a single digital format. DVD has the capability to produce near-studio-quality, dvd, video and better-than-CD-quality audio. DVD is vastly superior to consumer, dvd, videotape, dvd, and generally better than laserdiscs.
Most players support a standard set of features such, dvd, as Language choice (for automatic selection of video scenes, audio tracks, subtitle tracks, and menus). Special effects playback: freeze, step, slow, fast, and scan. Parental lock (for denying playback of discs or scenes with objectionable material). Programmability (playback of selected sections in a desired sequence). Random play and repeat play. Digital audio output. Recognition and output of DTS Digital Surround audio tracks. Playback of audio CDs. Instant search to title, chapter, music track, and timecode. Durable (no wear from playing, only from physical damage). Compact, dvd, size (easy to handle, store, and ship; players can be portable; replication is cheaper than tapes or laserdiscs).
The primary advantages of DVD are video quality, surround sound, and extra features. In addition, DVD will not degrade with age by overplaying it like a videotape hence it will allow you save lots of money and be able to collect your favorite movie and televisions shows for years and still be able to play it over and over again.
Most movie experts choose, dvd, DVD as their preference for movie entertainment because of high quality resolution and excellent audio performance, dvd, giving an excellent movie experience in their homes! Try it and see it for yourself and you’ll learn than every penny spent is worth it!
http://www.tvdvdplanet.com was recently established as a premiere dvd store selling all the best shows from the past. We will continue to expand our show line up and service to meet the growing needs of our customers. We are an independently owned and operated company.

Image via C R's Flickr photostream.

There is a saying: “They don’t make things like they use to.”  I’ve said it, I’ve heard people say it, and even though some people see the statement as hyperbolic, I agree with it at least 95% of the times that I hear it.

Disclaimer: I’m a history teacher.  I love the old stuff.  I love being able to have old (i.e. “vintage”) things in my possession so I can touch, smell, and wear them.  Of course there are many many people who share this desire for things-of-old, but I’m willing to say I believe that I lust after such things with more zeal than your average person.

So why do people like me exist?  Why do we devote large amounts of time and energy to acquiring vintage merchandise?  Speaking for myself I’d say that it comes down to the standard of quality which existed in the past, but died in the name of easy access to things at a low cost goods, and the idea of “planned obsolence” which has increased the profit margins of creators of disposable merchandise over and over again.   I like having stuff that was built to a higher standard of quality, stuff that has that “build to last” feel to it.  In addition to that I think that the style of items from the past is much more appealing than many modern day things, which I believe often have much less classy  look which reflects the fact that they are cheap and replaceable.

I like the fact that I’m a person who is into vintage stuff, I’d even go so far as to say that I take pride in it.  I like the idea of tracking down vintage stuff, of hunting it down.  But I do have to admit that at times it can be frustrating.

This essay is my attempt to outline three ways a now-a-days there vintage seekers like myself can acquire high quality goods that were / are made to last.  The way that I see it there are basically three ways to about finding and buying cool vintage stuff…

1. Re-sale of vintage goods via the hunting and getting lucky.

This method involves hunting for vintage goods by going to garage sales, estate sales, some sellers on eBay or craigslist, and thrift stores.  The methods requires lots of luck, and more often than not the hunter comes home empty handed.  However, on the rare occasion that some vintage stuff  is found  the hunter only has to expend a fraction of what he or she would normally spend to acquire the merchandise.

I see this method as similar to playing slots.  The hunter spends a small amount of time and money hunting for goods.  Most the time the hunter will come up with nothing, but he or she doesn’t spent lose much cash either.  When hunters use this method they don’t really expect it to pay off, they do it for the joy of the hunt.  However, every now and the hunter gets lucky, the same way that someone playing slots does, by putting in a small amount of time and money then getting a huge pay out.

2. Re-sale of vintage goods via vintage merchants.

Image via Paul Holloway's Flickr photostream

When a hunter is willing to spend some money this is often the method that gets used.  The hunter goes to a shop which specializes in vintage goods, finds what they need / want and spend a large sum of money to acquire it.  A good vintage shop is a very nice luxery for those who are near one, and happen to have the disposable income to spend large sums of money on vintage (used) goods.

The main thing that makes a good vintage shops such a boon to a hunter is that such shops take the time to create and cultivate good relationships with the customers willing to spend money by going the extra mile and keeping a look out for / stocking goods that a particular buyer is known to be interested in.

This method is far from 100% effective, because vintage shops don’t know when they will have a certain item in stock.  After all they are dealing in stuff that is scarce, so it is not uncommon for them have great items in stock at moments when it is finacially inconvenient for a hunter to buy said items.

(Side note: I think it is important to point out that the merchants who sell these high priced vintage goods spend lots of time using method one to track them down.)

I don’t really use this method, because I can never bring myself to pay what I consider to be a large sum of money for used clothing.  Even if it is vintage, my mortgage doesn’t care.

3. Buying goods where are made using “old school” manufacturing techniques.

A good example of a company making things today, but using “old school” techniques to do so is Billykirk, which makes some really amazing leather goods by hand.  Another example would be the Rising Son & Co which makes lots of great stuff by hand.

Image via official Billykirk blog.

(Side note: both the companies I linked to above make their goods using machines and tools that were used to create the kind of goods that we call vintage today.)

This sort of stuff tends to be really amazing, and extremely expensive.

True story: I’d love to buy this stuff, but again most the time it is so far out of my price range that I can’t.

The companies that make these goods stand by their products way that the craftsmen of old use to stand by theirs.  When ever I do see this stuff I wish I had the money to buy it.  It is new, but unlike so many other new things it is made to the highest standards of quality, and I know it will last for a long time.  It has all the advantages of the vintage goods that I covet, and because it is new I know they will last.

Most of us consider shoes made or styled in Italy as the ultimate in fashion. When we say Italian shoes it conjures a picture of good craftsmanship, style and quality. Italian designers are the most acclaimed footwear designers in the world. The Italian designers perfectly understand the anatomy of the leg and foot so they make shoes look their best.

Italian footwear is available in several varieties such as full length boots, slip-ons, mid-calf boots, sandals, loafers and wedges. When selecting Italian shoes, care should be taken to avoid the tasteless, shiny and creaky shoes which many merchants try to pass on as finest Italian shoes. Find more info at http://www.italian-shoes.info

The Italians are still using the traditional methods of shoemaking and tanning which indicates that good materials are used for the lining and uppers which are hand sewn. Even though such hand crafted shoes should cost higher than the shoes produced on a large scale using machinery, due to the severe competition from Far Eastern shoe makers who also offer hand crafted shoes, the Italians are forced to offer good quality shoes at cheaper prices without compromising on quality.

There are different styles of men’s Italian shoes such as handmade black leather Oxford shoes, black Italian Oxford dress shoes, men’s dark brown leather Oxford shoes, men’s dark brown lace-up shoes and brown calf leather Oxford shoes. The prices of these shoes range from the low $330 to the high $560.

Brunori men’s black Italian ankle strap boots are classic boots with elastic gore insets. These black coloured shoes are made from genuine leather and boast style, quality and fine craftsmanship. When ordering these shoes, care must be taken to select the correct size since the sizes run large. Select a size smaller than your regular size for a good fitting. These shoes are priced around $480

For casual wear but without foregoing the daytime classic style, try the handmade Pakerson Today which are available in beige and tan

For exclusive hand made shoes you can try Forzieri brown cap toe dress shoes. These shoes combine the excellent traditional craftsmanship with some new original designs. They are most suitable for business meetings or for occasions which need a stylish appearance. They are priced around $500.

For women, there are soft Italian leather boots with a luxurious feel, side button and short zip available for only $150. These ladies Italian shoes are available in three colours namely, tobacco, brown and black.

The Quai D’Orsay pump shoes in black patent leather enhances its dramatic flair and are meant for sophisticated and chic women. The price range is around $160.

In response to my Developing a Sense of Smell sesion at XPDays Benelux this week, Patrick Debois has begun collecting the smells he finds in operations and sysadmin work. The thesis behind the Benelux session was that code smells offer a good vocabulary to help discuss code’s maintainability; and at first glance I think Patrick’s idea could start to do the same for system administration. Nice work Patrick!

1. And every new message will add value, somewhere
By creating a Mantra, you’ve discovered what makes you unique. Now use online or offline forums, meetings, blogs and start leveraging that uniqueness. Make greater contributions every time you participate by bringing new value to every discussion, where you work or on the Web. Whether you’re on the Web or working with people who use it, ideas with real merit will help you define a new culture and attract the followers you’ll need to make a difference.

2. And add new value to every contribution
You are already a leader or an acknowledged expert; by raising the “flag” of your Mantra you can begin to attract followers and supporters. As they follow and support you, the sum of their individual contributions will add even more value to the discussions or projects that matter the most. Al Gore got the Nobel Prize not as a former VP, but because all of his followers’ contributions added (real or perceived) value to their communal cause.

3. And watch your leadership gain impact and real relevance
Leadership is no longer bestowed by an institution, or artificially grown in the hothouse of a hierarchy. Whoever brings the most value to their “tribe,” community, group or team will naturally command the respect and attention it takes to attract more followers–because the evolving leader can help every other group member grow and prosper. A hierarchy will promote the myth that benefits “trickle down”; but in our new world, authority trickles up to the person who deserves it the most.

4. So your passion and humanity becomes an added benefit to every follower
A great butler shares many acquired skills and talents. He brings them to life by adding his passion for detail, and his (or her) humanity. A leader shares innate and acquired skills and talents  as extra value for every follower or team member.  Having a Mantra makes it unnecessary to try and command or control anyone. Now you attract them with  content that’s clear, concise and compelling. Every new message will be rich with relevance, proof and real value. Just become more useful and generous, and your followers will become more loyal to you and to each other.

5. And key tasks or decisions will always be on the front burner–where they belong
When you use the Mantra process to complete a project or reach a decision, as a by-product you will have more buy-in, credibility and long-term support. You also empower the group to prioritize what they’ve been working on together. Everyone else will perceive the project or decision’s extra value that your community members have helped make extra valuable. and everyone will see the value of making sure it receives the attention, and gets the credit, that it deserves.

6. And ensure your followers’ commitment to defining and organizing
Forget the silos. On the Web or during the Mantra process, your followers and supporters can come from any background to choose you, or the culture you’re creating around your new Mantra “flag.” Everyone will link up to or  ignore what you’ve done, depending on how much value they see in their interactions with you and each other. Working through the process together will give them get many chances to choose. They will do it constantly so what you’re doing will have an organic and healthy ebb and flow.

7. And make “pushing” (or “pulling”) a thing of the past
In brick-and-mortar organizations, resources were allocated up and down through silos, with little concern for their function, applicability or long-term relevance. More recently, “push and pull” advocates thought they could manipulate our behavior through negative or positive influence. Sharing time and attention is just one way people show who’s the rea boss in every transaction. Get them actively involved in defining and spreading value and build a real community to make a real difference.

8. And lose your fear of sharing your best ideas
The most effective way to copyright your good ideas? Turn that “your” into a plural pronoun. Develop all your ideas as a team. Then you’ll never worry about being beaten to the punch, or who gets the ecredit. No individual can make an idea as good as what a focused team will come up with. And by the time anyone learns of the idea, it will already be at least partially be documented and put into practice.

9. And take on the online (or offline) world with ideas born whole to a group
See number 8–then move into the future with it.

10. And you’ll watch your followers and supporters carry you forward
It’s not just online users who are loyal when they have a substantial say in key decisions, or how a project is being planned and implemented. You may think you’ve built the community you lead; but once the users get involved they are its creators. They truly own it, along with any culture that grows up around it.

11. And give everyone involved a very personal stake in your success
Is the web a testament to the power of intrinsic rewards and the commitment of all the people who grow online communities? Of course it is. And a nation is testament to the sacrifices and vision of all who’ve contributed to its growth. People have always given generously of themselves when they actively contributed to something; they will remain actively engaged with the leader and group that made it happen. Take this to heart and start leading.

12. And find a legitimate, meaningful way to acknowledge those who bring us the most value
Finding a group of millions of individuals with a dream, and giving them an eloquent voice and renewed sense of purpose, is what got Barack Obama elected president. They were ready to overturn the status quo; he gave them a way to do it–by electing him. His problems and loss of popular support started when he didn’t acknowledge their contributions. When he stopped valuing them, their sense of ownership over where the country is heading under his administration disappeared. Avoid making the same mistake, and you can achieve greater success.

These are reaaallllyyy old – about 4 years! But I like them.

Author: Anonymous
Source: free-articles

For Immediate Release

10 August 2000

DVD Power Ltd announces, dvd, revolutionary state of the art, dvd, development

with the release of the world’s first DVD player systems with SDI outputs.

, dvd, New Zealand, (10 August 2000) โ€”DVD Power Ltd, New Zealand, today announced that it is releasing the first of a series of SDI video products related to the DVD format. The first product to be released is a modified high performance Pioneer 626D DVD player, which is modified with world exclusive SDI output technology,, dvd, allowing pure digital video direct from the laser head to the display device.

A revolutionary state of the art electronics laser decoding system now enables DVD enthusiasts to watch the astonishingly high-quality pictures that till now have stayed locked inside DVD movie discs.

DVD movies store video as digital code, compressed to the MPEG-2 standard used for digital TV. The data rate varies continually between 3 and 10 megabits per, dvd, second, depending on whether the system is coding moving detail or static scenery. Flat-panel plasma screens and digital video projectors work best if they are fed a pure digital signal. Most have an input socket called a serial digital interface (SDI). This is an interface used by broadcasters to carry video at data rates up to the 270 megabits per, dvd, second needed for uncompressed studio-quality pictures. Until now, DVD players only have had low-quality analogue video outputs, which has made it impossible to connect them to the high-resolution display screen’s SDI input. However, Function’s modification adds a custom chipset that bypasses the analog conversion process and taps directly into the high-quality digital bit stream of MPEG2 video.

The SDI DVD decoding technology was first shown at a DVD conference in Dublin, dvd, in May 2000. At the public debut DVD players, made by Pioneer and Wharfedale, were connected direct to the SDI inputs of a Hitachi-Fujitsu plasma screen and an NEC digital projector with 1024-by-768-pixel resolution. MGM and Technicolor provided a DVD of the James Bond movie The World is Not Enough. “The picture quality is absolutely incredible,” said David Garrett, Function’s technical director who invented the modification. “It’s pretty amazing. It looks as good as films that are projected.”

Bob Auger of Electric Switch, a DVD production company, says: “This is the first time DVD is being seen as it is meant to be seen.” “The people from MGM couldn’t wait to get their discs in the player,” says Garrett. “We were running the equipment 24 hours a day because so many producers wanted to see what their discs looked like.”

David Garrett, a former engineer with Britain’s Ministry of Defence, has developed the SDI technology. Garrett has developed a custom microchip which takes MPEG-2 data from a DVD or digital TV receiver and converts its into a high-quality 10-megabits-per-second video signal. Garrett’s company, Function Communications, fits these chips and SDI sockets to off-the-shelf DVD players or digital TV receivers, so that they can connect to the SDI input on a plasma screen.

Garrett admits that his technology has been made possible by loopholes in Hollywood’s contracts with DVD makers. “All the manufacturers of DVD players have signed an agreement not to provide a Firewire digital output. But there is no mention of SDI,” he says. Firewire feeds high-quality video into computers.

DVD Power Ltd is now putting together several ultimate home cinema systems including state of the art Digital Projectors and Plasma displays for the well-heeled and quality demanding, dvd, home cinema enthusiasts.

Customers will be able to buy a modified Pioneer DVD player and a 107-centimetre (42-inch) plasma screen.

The BBC extensively uses the modified SDI capable DVD, dvd, players as part of their DVD production process.

The technology has also been adopted into hundreds of modified terrestrial and satellite receivers and sold to European broadcasters, including the BBC, who also use them to monitor and record broadcasts.

About Function Communications Ltd

Function Communication Ltd is a full service DVD Production Company with a strong R&D department to develop innovative solutions for the DVD, dvd, industry. The company was formed in 1999 by a group of dedicated, skilled and innovative individuals. Its’ client list includes many international corporate companies who have been early adopters of the DVD and digital media formats for business communication.

Web site: www.function.uk.com

About DVD Power Ltd

DVD Power Ltd is the authorised Asian Pacific Regional Distributor for Function Communications DVD Power Ltd is a New Zealand based company that offers a full range of services and products based on the interactive DVD format. It currently offers full service DVD production services through its Partners Australian and US based production facilities. DVD Power Ltd will continue to announce a range of products and production services for the entertainment, educational, corporate, marketing, information technology,, dvd, direct sales, training and multi-language markets.

Contact Details:

Chris Collins

DVD Power Limited,, dvd,

PO Box 98823, S.A.M.C,

Auckland,

New Zealand

Tel:+64(9)2673223

Fax: +64-9-2673404

Mobile (025)610-2784

Email: inquiries@dvdpower.co.nz

web site: www.dvdpower.com (coming soon)

Shoes have come a long way over the centuries, developing from simply being a way to protect your feet into the stylish commodities that we now seen in stores. Do you ever stop to think about what your shoes say about you?

We live in such a fashion conscious world that it often seems as though everything that we wear and every action that we take is always under the microscope. The reality is that we are now much more aware of our surroundings than we have ever been before. It’s often said that the world is shrinking. This is not, of course, meant to be taken literally. It’s more a way of suggesting that the electronic, technological age in which we are living means that the planet seems much smaller.

Trips that would once have taken weeks to complete can now be undertaken in a few hours. Mysterious, distance sights are now regularly visible on our television screens or right here, on the internet. As our world seems to shrink, so we become much more aware of what other people are doing. Not just in our own street, but throughout the world.

We have far more exposure to fashion trends. If a Hollywood star chooses to wear a new dress, then we can all find out about it immediately. Suddenly, it’s clear that fashion trends are able to spread more quickly than was once the case.

Improvements in production methods mean that clothing companies are able to respond to demand more quickly too. The world is moving at a fast pace and there always seems to be pressure for us to keep up.

Some would suggest that such pressures are less obvious when it comes to footwear, but listening to people discussing the latest trainers on the market, or shoes worn by a celebrity, make it clear that shoes are as much a part of this phenomenon as anything else. So isn’t it about time that you took a look at what you’re wearing on your feet?

Dive Watches

Many people that like to go diving, find it irritating to not be able to tell the time while they are underwater, or better yet they can time themselves for something important. For example, if they only have enough oxygen to last them twenty minutes, a watch with a timer would be useful, but any other dive watch would do. Whether they are professional scuba divers or they just enjoy going diving every now and then, they should have a dive watch. It is also always better to go diving with a watch, even if you don’t need it to time yourself, just being able to see the time while you’re underwater puts your mind at ease.

There are many different kinds of dive watches available today; just a few of them include:

Citizen Dive Watches

The Promaster Professional Diver watch has a steel case, black dial, black strap made from rubber, day and date display, water-resistant feature, the hands are luminous, hour markers are luminous, and it is battery powered. This watch is silver and back and has a very stylish finish.

The Citizen Eco-Drive Aqualand Dive Watch from Citizen is water resistant up to 200 meters, has a black dial along with three other subdials, the hands and hour markers are luminous, with a date display, the strap is made from rubber to last extra long, the bezel has a gold plated trim and it has a chronograph of fifty minutes. This watch will never need a battery as it runs off energy from a light source and it will tell you when it is low.

Seiko Dive Watches

The Seiko Diver’s 200m has a durable stainless steel case, blue dial, is water resistant up to 660 feet, with a indicator on the battery life, is scratch resistant crystal, with a urethane strap, bezel of blue and red, day and date display in English or Spanish and the crown and caseback are screw down. This watch has big hour markers and hands for easy to read time underwater.

The Yellow Dial Rubber Strap Automatic watch for men has a bright yellow dial, routine self-winding movement, the crown is screw down, it is water resistant up to 660 feet, with a date and day display window, the crystal is scratch resistant and it has a firm stainless steel case. This watch also has glowing hour markers and hands; it has a rubber strap for underwater comfort and quick drying time.

Luminox Dive Watches

The Navy Seal Dive watch for women has a hard-wearing stainless steel case, crown protector, stainless steel bracelet with solid links, extender and safety clasp, the glass crystal is scratch resistant and it is water resistant up to 660 feet. This watch is great for any woman to use while underwater and the best part is that it looks good underwater and on land!

There are many more dive watches as well as many more watches under the above mentioned categories. They are all brilliant watches and promise to keep you informed of the time while you are underwater. All dive watches are available in different makes, styles, colors and shapes.

Work with experience.

Not only is choosing the right equipment and the right site layout important in designing a playground, but so is choosing the right people to build the playscape. Craftsmanship is extremely important in playground construction, as well as all other building projects. Superior craftsmanship can be the difference between safety or danger, meeting the deadline or missing it, and saving money in maintenance fees over the years or wasting tons of money on needless repairs. That is why working with the best and those that know the best is extremely important in the design and construction stages.

Make quality a priority.

Because wear and tear will not effect well constructed sites as much, they will last a lot longer. The break down of these sites will be slower—supports will hold longer and connectors will remain secure for a greater period of time… and you will save money because you won’t have to replace parts as often. Look at cost effective products that will mean returns in the long run and the short run. By working with Miracle, you can save money at both ends. We supply top quality equipment and know first class builders that do every job right.

Do every job right.

Your playground should be built on time, in way that saves you money and increases the safety of your site. By working with the best designers, suppliers, and builders, you will ensure that your park is not only the best it can be, but also one of the best in general. Take the time to see why Miracle is considered one of the best in the business. Craftsmanship is key with any building project; at Miracle, we know craftsmanship.

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DATE

14.12.2009 (MONDAY)

TIME

7 – 8:30PM

VENUE

URBAN GROOVE SUNWAY BRANCH

RM60 – UG STUDENTS

RM80 – NON-UG STUDENTS

URBAN GROOVE PROUDLY BRINGS

Ricky Carranza aka 3ki Rick from Finland to Malaysia to conduct a workshop on

ORIGINAL LOCKING STYLE

For all the locking lovers, don’t miss this chance to learn from the maestro himself on pure funk styles.

Ricky himself is a close friend and student of Greg Campbellock from the original lockers. He is currently based in Finland where he runs his own academy called Style Dance Industry. He is a highly versatile dancer which specializes predominantly in popping and locking.

For booking and register please call / sms

012 – 3896588

016 – 5584466

HURRY UP !

LIMITED PLACES AVAILABLE !

Check out Ricky’s videos here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FnJkNWwhZPg&feature=fvw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMJZMQk6YVM&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQbihTyL3sw&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qeNs5qwYBn8&feature=related