lilcarbon is passionate about finding, publicizing and implementing solutions to climate change. One of the topics critical to the solutions to climate change is that of how individual countries are going about their responsibility to reduce emissions.

Bit by Bit: A Canadian Federal Offset System – on EcosystemMarketplace.com

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This article on the Canadian government’s proposed offset system lays out much of the thinking on how to set up a domestic program. Negotiations and commitments at Copenhagen will further inform how this hammers out, as will discussions with the US. It certainly provides some food for thought to those with Canada on their mind.

The 15th  Conference of the Parties, beginning next week in Copenhagen, aims to reach an agreement on global greenhouse gas emissions to succeed the Kyoto Protocol which expires in 2012.  As  many greenhouse gas emissions and most health-hazardous pollutants have urban origins, the success or failure of the Copenhagen conference will have consequences for both the rate of climate change and pollution impacts in cities.

Participating political leaders, representing citizens in dozens of countries, need to appreciate the opinions and preferences of their constituents. A poll conducted by Harris-Decima  for a debate in Toronto surveyed public opinions from Canada and  six developed countries and reached some interesting conclusions, some of which are quoted below.

2009 Climate Change Debate Surveys (Part I of II)   A Harris Interactive / Financial Times study conducted for the Munk Debates

Key Quotes:

“..collected data from 6 countries, including: U.S., France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, and Spain, resulting in a sample size of over 6,000 adults.”

“Part one of the study compares and contrasts Canadians’ views on climate change with the citizens of seven other advanced demoracies. It also looks at Canadians’ views about United Nations Summit on climate change taking place in  Copenhagen from December 7 to18, 2009.”

“How big a threat does climate change pose to the world?  Ninety‐five percent of adults across the five largest countries in Europe, 89% of American adults, and 93% of Canadian adults see climate change as at least some threat to the world”

“How much of a priority should signing a new treaty be at the climate change conference in Copenhagen?  Europeans feel the most strongly about this (75% saying ‘top’ or ‘one of the top’), followed by Canadians (62%) and Americans (53%)”

“The US should make the most emissions cuts.  Canadians are split between agreeing (42%) and not having an opinion (42%).  In Britain it is just over half agree with this assertion, whereas in the US 2 in 5 are neutral and 1 in 3 disagree with it”

“Do you believe [your country] needs to reduce the amount of oil and natural gas that it imports from foreign energy sources?     Americans agree with this most strongly (83%), followed by Canadians (65%), and then Europeans (57%).”

I work for an online sports paraphernalia company that offers a wide variety of basketball apparel and equipment. So much so that potential customers are often confused about what to buy and what will ultimately fit their needs. The majority of the confusion pertains to basketball standards, hoops and goals and what each entails. Well, here’s the skinny on each.

Basketball Standard: Basketball standards are the most expensive of the bunch. They can be either portable or stationary. When you think basketball standard you should think of the type of basketball system that is used in the NBA or out on the playground. Simply put, a basketball standard is the entire package – rim, backboard, net and pole.

Basketball Hoop: When little Johnny writes to Santa Claus telling him he wants a basketball hoop for Christmas, he means that he wants the entire package. However, a basketball hoop is not quite the entire package. A basketball hoop is the combination of a rim, net and backboard, but no pole. Think of your high school gym. Yes, you probably had a basketball standard in there somewhere which the basketball team most likely used for real games. But you also had basketball hoops on the surrounding walls. That is what a basketball hoop is – a rim, net and backboard that can be fastened to an already existing structure.

Basketball Goal: The name of this particular piece of equipment get its name from its intended purpose. The word goal is something you strive towards. In sports, the goal is usually the place where you score points. Well, the same is true in basketball. The goal is just another name for the rim.

When purchasing sporting equipment, it is good to know the difference between the various technical terms associated with each individual sport. If you don’t, you may unintentionally buy something which you did not want.

KVD KlearVision Digital today announced the release of the KOLOR-D Intelligent Color Server, engineered specifically for the unique needs of graphic arts production managers. Based upon DIMA award-winning Photo-D technology, KOLOR-D offers unsurpassed automated, customizable multi-component color production server capabilities. It manages both Objective ICC-based color conversions, as well as the Subjective color corrections of the most finicky imaging expert. Designed by color experts for color experts, KOLOR-D, which is as effective and efficient with a single image or a folder of images, is also compatible with composed PDF files, as well as both MAC and Windows platforms. For more information, go to www.klearvision.com. See us at the PIA/GATF Color Management Conference (December 6-9) in Phoenix.

The KOLOR-D Difference

KOLOR-D eliminates infinite man-hours spent “fixing” images in editing applications, such as Adobe Photoshop®. Engineered by KlearVision CEO Moshe Keydar (the former chief color scientist at Scitex), KOLOR-D is tailored to be both affordable and geared to graphic arts production workflows.

At its core is a comprehensive, rule-based Intelligent Expert System (IES) that automatically optimizes and enhances digital image files, preparing them for printing or viewing. Using sophisticated „fuzzy logic‰ and „artificial intelligence‰ (AI) algorithms, KOLOR-D, in effect, emulates the decision-making expertise of a traditional color expert, or digital imaging professional, to analyze, correct and produce high-quality image and PDF files. With KOLOR-D, anyone can quickly and automatically create exceptional images that are accurate in every way, this includes book and magazine publishing houses, newspaper publishers, photographers, photo labs, digital service studios or ad agencies regardless of the output device (digital printers to wide format).

According to notable industry consultant and color expert David L. Zwang(Zwang is a member of the KlearVision Board of Directors), “The server simplifies color management and editing to a mere black-box‚ conversion process for production managers. Beyond basic color management capabilities, KOLOR-D emulates the functions of a digital high-end color prepress expert. It automatically evaluates each image, analyzing for the key image attributes, and auto-corrects and enhances critical elements to ensure optimization. The difference is speed. In the time it takes to typically open one image, edit it, and save it back to a page, KOLOR-D could have processed a complete 24-page magazine worth of images. ROI is usually achieved in fewer than 1000 images.”

KOLOR-D’s color transformer component enables transformation to/from various desired color-spaces using standard ICC based conversions. Its advanced color control component enables adjusting the color for the entire workflow. Operators communicate with the KOLOR-D workflow through a simple GUI and a “prefs” file, where the user defines the workflow and assigns one or multiple “hot folders”, enabling a 24/7 production system. KOLOR-D also offers an optional “before/after” for additional control and confirmation for every image.

“We’re taking graphic arts workflows to the next level by simplifying and automating intelligent high-quality color reproduction,” notes KlearVision founder Moshe Keydar. “KOLOR-D is a dramatic improvement over today‚s typical, labor-intensive image-by-image processing techniques. It’s fast, automated, reliable, field-tested, and engineered specifically to the market. I like to say that push-button color for digital image workflows has finally become a reality.”

alphainventions

In the Sunday Toronto Sun for November 29th, I read an article in the Homes-extra.ca written by Keith Rose called, “Questions to ask”.  Although slanted towards the condo market, it was good advice for buying any home.

One quote gave me a chuckle though.  “A reputable builder goes above and beyond meeting the minimum standards established by the building code and has a dedicated team of professionals managing the project  from conception to completion who work closely with the construction team to ensure their quality reputation is maintained throughout the entire construction process.”

Maybe at Monarch but I beg to differ that this is 100% policy at Mattamy.  Here is a company (Mattamy) that has won awards in the past but seems to enjoy building at the minimum level – reflected in customer satisfaction polls of late.  Here is a company that will push maximum payment for a house and even increase lot prices during upsurges.  But, does it really go the extra mile and build above minimum standards? 

Unless it counts illegal wiring as above minimum standards, Mattamy in my case felt no guilt at putting my children at risk, while increasing the house $5,000 to reflect the changing market prices.

In this link, you will see that they appear to be notorious in regards to putting the minimum quality shingles on a roof – roofs that are in need of replacement after 7 years – start saving your pennies guys if you just bought.

Here is a company that doesn’t hesitate to spend $1000.’s on busing Voluntolds to community meetings but builds at the minimum allowed by law. 

Maybe instead of busing employees everywhere, they should spend more time on quality and workmanship. 

The folks in Bracebridge, Ottawa, GTA and Florida would certainly appreciate it.

And who enforces these minimum standards,  The municipal inspector is who and that is why you need to hire a house inspector to ensure you are getting what you paid for and that it is built properly.  In my case, the illegally wired furnace was passed and when this dangerous code infraction was brought to the attention of Mayor Ann Mulvale – she felt that obtaining a donation from Mattamy was more important than the lives of my children.

I know – shoulda, coulda hired a house inspector.  Don’t make the same mistake I did.

http://condron.us/index.php?i=6
condron.us

alphainventions

href=”http://blogitti.blogiche.com/”>Blogitti

This question (a collection of questions, actually) was posted on LinkedIn by Yousef Mahmoud, PMP, a business process management consultant with EJADA Systems in Saudi Arabia. (http://www.linkedin.com/in/yousefmahd ):

What are the added values to health care organizations gained through Business Process Management with respect to incorporating standards and Quality means?  What are the standards and certificates available for health care org?  ISO?  What GCI for health care institutes?  How can BPM initiatives help health care org apply these standards efficiently?

Diane Kulisek’s Answer (selected as the ‘best’ of two ‘good’ answers posted on LinkedIn):

Quality Management is, in my opinion, at it’s most effective when managed as a system of interrelated processes. Standards are helpful in establishing a Quality Management System (QMS) because, typically, those who develop the standards are world class experts within the industries they represent and for whom the standards are intended to be effective. The standards such people develop take into consideration practicality as well as intangible values (which may matter most to customers and stakeholders).

The value of a Quality Management System, regardless of what standard or criterion might be used, is that it provides a basis for determining the overall effectiveness of multiple processes critical to effective provision of customer (patient) care and while strategically, proactively, addressing the needs of stakeholders (financial resources). Having a quality management system in place better assures that anticipated potential but unplanned expenses related to poor quality have been effectively mitigated (i.e. to prevent or reduce the potential for malpractice and liability related expenses).

I have found that there is also value with regard to improved employee retention and morale by having the solid foundation of a top management supported system to inspire continual process and service improvement on a company-wide (or health care facility-wide) basis.

With regard to what standards or certificates might be available for health care, I recommend you contact the American Society for Quality’s Healthcare Division (http://www.asq.org/health/ ) for the latest developments. Another source of guidance that may be of value to you is the Baldrige National Quality Program’s “Health Care Criteria for Performance Excellence”.   A .pdf copy of these guidelines is available from the NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) at http://www.baldrige.nist.gov/HealthCare_Criteria.htm . You may also request that a hardcopy be mailed to you from that website.

I believe these resources could be helpful to any nation’s health care improvement efforts and they are certainly available to you via the internet.

XChange UK and ThePowerXChange.com announced a new promotion that offer users a free Xdata for QuarkXPress or InData for Adobe InDesign with their purchase of Xcatalog or InCatalog from Em Software. Users can save $400.00/£250.00 until the end of the year with their Xcatalog or InCatalog purchase. Additionally, users who upgrade from earlier versions of Xcatalog or Xcatalog Pro or InCatalog or InCatalog Pro qualify for the free Xdata or InData.

“We are really excited to be able to offer this unprecedented promotion to users with the substantial savings on tools that will continue to save them time and money from their first use. The complete automation these tools offer is invaluable and anyone who works with databases and publishing will immediately benefit from Em Software’s products. They are one of the longest-standing developers for QuarkXPress and InDesign and they have always produced quality products and back them with superior customer service. With this economy, any business—small or large—will find they have made a very wise investment that continues to prove indispensable,” offers Greg Stodghill, Support Services Manager for ThePowerXChange.

Xcatalog and InCatalog are powerful bi-directional linking tools for creating transparent links between a user’s documents and databases. The XTension or Plug-in can be used to update prices, graphics, product information, or even change versions or swap languages automatically. Once links are established with the the easy-to-use linking tool, changes can be made either in the document or the database, and the changes pushed in the other direction with no extra work. (No intermediate steps such as report creation and extraction are needed.)

Xcatalog and InCatalog impose no layout or design constraints. Their links are invisible to your printed layout (but visible while the user is working). Linked elements can be moved between documents freely without loss of linkage. They offer flexible data sources and destinations as the intuitive linking palette can be used to establish links between any database element and any document text element, from a single character to a phrase to a paragraph to a whole story or any picture elements. Links are also moveable between documents and libraries transparently, for ease of building new documents from old document elements with links intact.

Xcatalog and InCatalog offer semi-automatic building techniques. With pre-linked modules in libraries, users can drag a module, fill in a key value in one link, and watch InCatalog fill in the whole module interactively. With just one menu selection (Update Document… or Update Data…), users can make sure all linked document elements match their corresponding database elements. Users don’t have to worry about whether they’ve gotten all the price changes before a big catalog release, or whether, in the last-minute rush to get the catalog out the door, they’ve forgotten to update a few prices in the database that they updated in the document. Users can define any number of price styles per publishing project using full tagged text for arbitrary formatting, and apply styles per-link. Both products offer tagged text support and users can update pictures, automatically resizing them to fit their destination frame in various ways, or to be left sized as-is. Both Xcatalog and InCatalog are scriptable under Mac OS or Windows for powerful workflow automation. Users can read and write the full Unicode character set (that QuarkXPress or InDesign support), in various encodings including UTF-8.

Xdata and InData are document building tools that bring the full layout, design, typographic and picture publishing power of QuarkXPress or InDesign to bear on all data-driven repetitive publishing tasks. Simply put, Xdata (for XPress) or InData (for InDesign) works like a “mail merge on steroids.”

Users write simple text statements to import and format their text and graphics. Then the menu-driven tools, in a few clicks, build their documents at hundreds of pages per hour.

QuarkXPress’ or InDesign’s typographic controls can be used for each variable field and for any intervening text, to get just the right look for a user’s data. Both Xdata and InData have a powerful English-like scripting language. Users can put any field from their data source in any order in the text flow, force page breaks, generate headers/footers, apply master pages as needed and lots more. The products’ scripting language can be used to build simple or complex rules for including or excluding fields, pictures and static text. And there are no limits on a data: records and fields can be as many and as long as users need.

Xdata and InData are perfect for product catalogs, financial and legal reports, conference guides, abstracts, real estate guides, trader and swap magazine, classified advertising, timetables, phone books, course listings, TV guides and much more. Users save money and time on the first job with Xcatalog, InCatalog, Xdata and InData.

The free Xdata or InData with Xcatalog or InCatalog promotion is available now through XChange UK and ThePowerXChange.com worldwide. To order, or for more information, users can visit www.xchangeuk.com, or www.thepowerxchange.com.

Title: Real accountability: guidance on the NHS duty to report on consultation

Skinny: ‘Real Accountability’ aims to help the NHS get ready for the new legislation will come into force in April 2010. The guidance explains the legal obligations and provides practical help and advice in terms of preparing and publishing reports.  The new legislation will require all PCTs and SHAs that commission services to explain how they have acted upon feedback from patients and the public.

Publisher: DH

Size of Publication: 38p.

Published: 13/11/2009

Benchmarking and measuring quality are standard practices these days in both the business and non-business world.

For goods we have the Kitemark symbol indicating they’ve been tested against safety and performance criteria. The Kitemark has been around since the early 1900s and is owned and operated by the British Standards Institution (BSI).

For organisations we have ‘business improvement tools’ like Investors in People marketed as a way to “transform your organisation’s performance by targeting your chosen business priorities“. One of the big aims of the indicator was that the organisations carrying it would in turn be the sorts of places people would desire to work at.

The government runs QA schemes for all sorts of things including the Quality Assurance Scheme for Carbon Offsetting (QAS) and the recent quality mark for pensions.

I’m no expert but it’s clear that measuring quality is a cottage industry that can only continue to grow.

And as for benchmarking, well we are inundated with league tables for everything under the sun, from schools and MP expenses to fridge freezers and wireless providers.

So what about remote working?

Currently the main standard out there is the Work Wise standard, a standard for the adoption and deployment of smarter and more flexible working practices, launched back in 2007.

Organisations wishing to gain the standard will be assessed according to criteria that benchmark their adoption of flexible working practices. Awards against the Work Wise standard will be based on the amount of flexibility for the workforce, the levels of self-determination that employees have and operational benefits derived by the organisation.

A detailed over view is given in this pdf .

As for benchmarking, well there was the Remote Worker awards I attended which judged organsations alongside individuals. Details of the 2010 awards are now on the Remote Employment site. However there doesn’t seem to be any tables of who employees the most remote/home workers and how organisations compare on the flexible working front.
Most of my data is gleaned from the UK National Statistics office. Not a particularly fun task!

So is there something out there I’ve missed?

I’d be really interested to hear from anyone who can offer me any more in this area.

“We still make the quality worn by our grandfathers.”

Siel Marschall is a German, family owned, outdoor goods manufacturer, who has been honing their craft since 1896.  Made from some of the finest quality fabrics, and nearly all by hand, they claim, “Our best machines are still our hands”.

The Canoe Day Pack (my latest obsession) is made from the same canvas that once topped Willys Jeeps during WWII.  This waterproof canvas, along with leather straps and brass buckles, makes this Day Pack a dead serious piece of luggage that’s guaranteed to last long enough to find its way into the hands of your next of kin.

Just one member of the Siel Marschall family, they also produce clothing, footwear, and fishing equipment, all worth a peek.  Check out their site for the full details and availability.

I’ve been knee deep in short answers and essay questions since before Thanksgiving break.  I really need to vent on this–fast!

If there was ever a situation where standardized test scores were meaningless, it is with the 5th grade social studies test in New York State.  This test makes a court eunuch look like a stud horse.  I won’t go into particulars, since I cannot by law, but I will fill you in on some trends:

(1) You only need a minimal amount of knowledge to pass this test.  Most of the questions are charts, graphs, maps, quotations, pictures, etc.  While these skills are useful, and come in handing in reading and math tests, it doesn’t necessarily test what the kid knows.  And I don’t buy into the nonsense that kids don’t need to know facts.  The next brat that asks me if George Washington is still alive will be thrown out a window.  At this rate, in a few years you can safely pass the state test without knowing ANY history, geography (beyond the basics), or rudimentary civics. 

(2) The parts that require more time–and skill–count little.  The parts that require minimal brain function (like multiple choice) count the most.  This leads to a skewed scale wherein a student can ace the multiple choice, do okay on the short answer questions, and tank the essay completely.  This genius not only passes, but almost achieves superior proficiency, according to New York State.  Makes a lot of sense, doesn’t it?

(3) The rubrics for the short answers and essay make it next to impossible to fail, unless you really want to do so.  For some questions, the acceptable right answers take up half the page, while the strict, non-bending wrong aswers (I’m sorry–incorrect.  Can’t use the “w” word) occupy a measly one or two lines.  I’m all for giving a kid a break when he knows the material but can’t express it in perfect Oxbridge quality.  Yet this system rewards the saps who copy from documents and score high marks using sheer dumb luck.

I’d like to hear if other New York teachers have had similar experiences with this test in particular, or tests in general.  Comments are always welcome.

There.  I feel better now.

Roadshow tours Germany
PACTware live training: breaking down the the barriers of proprietary configuration tools

Last year the PactWare Roadshow visited Ireland and was a great success. The Read-out account was entitled Fota opportunity, an appalling pun on the venue on Cork’s famous Fota Island.

The famous PACTware Wall

In several workshops, a live-operation multi-vendor demo wall featured numerous application examples, showing first-hand how commis-sioning, operation and maintenance can be considerably facilitated and speeded up using only one single tool for all communication and field devices via HART, PROFIBUS and Foundation Fieldbus protocol. Several discussions made clear that PACTware is assessed as being on the right track breaking down the the barriers of proprietary configuration tools and delivering the true value of devices

New draft standards for practicing law online were recently issued by the American Bar Association Law Practice Management Section’s eLawyering Task Force. The draft is entitled Suggested Minimum Requirements for Law Firms Delivering Legal Services Online.

The draft standards address the following issues:

• Legal ethics, with particular emphasis on unauthorized practice of law, advertising/marketing rules, and clients’ confidential information;
• “Web Site Architecture”;
• Disclaimers;
• “Terms and Conditions Statement[s]“;
• Retainer agreements;
• “On-Line Payment of Legal Fees”; and
• “Protecting Client Confidences.”

When completed, the standards will include forms for retainer agreements and disclaimers.

The draft standards build upon the ABA Best Practice Guidelines for Legal Information Web Site Providers (2003).

The task force invites ABA members to join the task force’s listserv. The task force also welcomes comments on the draft standards from ABA members, who may send comments to the task force via the listserv, or by contacting task force members here.

For more information, please see the draft standards and the task force’s Website.

HT @rgranat.

Some of you out there might think Web Standards is just some techy mumbo jumbo that doesn’t really effect you. It’s not something you need to follow or pay attention to. It’s just the man tryin’ to keep you down!

Not true. As The Poetic Prophet says, “Web Standards is some serious business yo! Without our standards, the web becomes like playin’ in the kiddy pool everyone peed in!” Okay I don’t know if he really said that, but I can imagine it.  So the first video up is naturally none other than The Poetic Prophet, rapping about Web Standards.

Like I said, some pretty serious business. You feel me man? So for those of you that like watching those mind boggling incredibly boring but extremely informational videos, I suppose you can watch this one.

I’ll be honest, I managed to make it to about 2:18, at which point I paused him at one of the goofiest expressions I’ve ever seen. He seems to know what he’s talking about, unfortunately he was causing my mind to have a critical meltdown and ooze out my ears as he droned on. So take two led me to this one.

This one was a little easier to follow, just cause the guy didn’t seem so bored talking about it. That’s a good note for you instructors out there. If you’re bored talking about it, I’m sure as hell going to be bored listening to you. Get into your lessons, enjoy it, get excited, that energy is intoxicating and it will help your students be much more attentive and absorb what you’re trying to teach us!

Now that I’m done lecturing the lecturer, lets get back to web standards. So you still don’t understand what it is do ya? Well, okay maybe you do if you managed to watch any of those videos past a minute, but I’m going to refresh your memory.

Web standards are basically guidelines for site developers to ensure that everyone is on the same page, using the same stuff, and making sure it works for everyone. Cause lets face it, computers are complex. Not every computer works the same, so not every computer will read information the same either because everyone is running all over the place working different and doing things their own way. Well Web Standards is here to let you know YOUR WAY SUCKS!

So lets give you an example to break this down.  You got three guys developing sites. Guy one over here is doing it one way, and guy two over here doing it another, then guy three over there doing it his way. Then you got user one, two, and three going to all three webpages.

Say user one can get to all three just fine, well that’s good for him, but what happens to user two? Well user two has a different computer, using a different web browser. He can get to guy one’s page, but he can’t get to guy two’s, and he can get to guy three’s but it looks all funky on his display. Menus are overlapping and he can’t click certain buttons because they’re out of alignment.

Then you got user three, who’s not even on a computer, but is zipping around the web on his phone. So he tries to get to these pages, and they load up fine, but he has some of the same issues that user two was having with guy three, but on top of that, guy one, and guy two’s pages are really hard for him to navigate. Guy one requires him to punch in a lot of long difficult to type out text on his phone, and guy two’s page is really hard to scroll around on to find the parts of the page he needs to view.

Wouldn’t it be so much easier, if guy one, guy two, and guy three all used the same information to build their website, so regardless of your computer, phone, or whatever you’re getting on the web with, it looks the same, works the same, and acts the same? That’s what web standards are there for.

Now I believe I linked these guys before, when I did my post on Mobile Web, but this site has some excellent information on the exact details of what web standards are, if any of you are curious. http://www.w3.org/

Oh yes, I totally just dirty linked you instead of making it all nice and pretty. Why? For no other reason than because I felt like being evil. So we have one last video, and this guy amuses me.  I think it’s because he reminds me of Captain Kirk. “Remember.. you should lead… lead by example…”

Alright, so I lied, that wasn’t the last link. At this site, they’ve done a nice little cartoon about building sites with Web standards that explains it in pretty simple terms, and it can be kind of amusing at times too.

And now I part with you, leaving you with a song called Hands to Boag. It was a spoof made on Hands to Heaven, for Paul Boag, by Andrew Rothman.

I work for an online sports paraphernalia company that offers a wide variety of basketball apparel and equipment. So much so that potential customers are often confused about what to buy and what will ultimately fit their needs. The majority of the confusion pertains to basketball standards, hoops and goals and what each entails. Well, here’s the skinny on each.

Basketball Standard: Basketball standards are the most expensive of the bunch. They can be either portable or stationary. When you think basketball standard you should think of the type of basketball system that is used in the NBA or out on the playground. Simply put, a basketball standard is the entire package – rim, backboard, net and pole.

Basketball Hoop: When little Johnny writes to Santa Claus telling him he wants a basketball hoop for Christmas, he means that he wants the entire package. However, a basketball hoop is not quite the entire package. A basketball hoop is the combination of a rim, net and backboard, but no pole. Think of your high school gym. Yes, you probably had a basketball standard in there somewhere which the basketball team most likely used for real games. But you also had basketball hoops on the surrounding walls. That is what a basketball hoop is – a rim, net and backboard that can be fastened to an already existing structure.

Basketball Goal: The name of this particular piece of equipment get its name from its intended purpose. The word goal is something you strive towards. In sports, the goal is usually the place where you score points. Well, the same is true in basketball. The goal is just another name for the rim.

When purchasing sporting equipment, it is good to know the difference between the various technical terms associated with each individual sport. If you don’t, you may unintentionally buy something which you did not want.

Dave is a CEO of an Internet startup that failed to get funding, and he’s got to find something else to do. But he’s so focused on his failure that he’s having a hard time seeing what talents and skills he could leverage. Something invisible but crucial is standing in his way — his mental model. Let me explain what I mean.

Carol Dweck is a professor of psychology at Stanford who studies why some people succeed and others fail. What she’s discovered : At a young age, people develop beliefs that organize their world and give meaning to their experiences. These mental models determine the goals we pursue and the ways we go about achieving them.

1. Fixed mind-set
Intelligence is static and leads to a desire to look smart and therefore a tendency to:

• Avoid challenges
• Give up easily when faced with an obstacle
• See effort as fruitless or worse
• Ignore useful negative criticism
• Feel threatened by the success of others

As a result, may plateau early and achieve less than full potential

2. Growth mind-set
Intelligence can be developed and leads to a desire to learn and therefore a tendency to:

• Embrace challenges
• Persist in the face of setbacks
• See effort as a path to mastery
• Learn from criticism
• Find lessons and inspiration in the success of others

As a result, reach ever-higher levels of achievement

When someone like Dave, with a fixed mind-set, fails at something, they believe the situation is out of their control and nothing can be done.

They lose faith in their ability to perform. They shrink previous successes and inflate failures. They give up.

Those with a growth orientation do not see failure as an indictment of their capacity. For those folks, a problem is just an opportunity to learn new things. Their attention is on finding strategies for learning. When they blow it or meet an obstacle, they realize that they just haven’t found the right strategy yet. They dig in and make optimistic predictions: “The harder it gets, the harder I need to try. I need to remember what I already know about this. I’ll get this soon.”

Two questions can determine failure or success

These mind-sets can powerfully affect our career trajectories. One of Dweck’s research studies was with Chinese students in Hong Kong who were given the opportunity to learn English, which in the long run would increase their ability to get good jobs. The students with the fixed mind-set turned down the opportunity because they knew it was hard. But the students with the growth mind-set said, “ Sure, I’ll do it; e ven if I don’t do well, I’ll grow my capacity.”

She also discovered that extremely highly paid athletes with a fixed mind-set often don’t do well on a team. They decide they don’t need to practice because they are so good, and they flame out.

Want further proof that success comes from accepting that you will make mistakes and you have the ability to learn from them?

Would-be neurosurgeons were studied to determine who would succeed and who would fail. The researcher discovered that the answer came down to how they responded to the following two questions:

1. Do you ever make mistakes?
2. If so, what is the worst mistake you ever made?

Those who flunked out claimed never to make mistakes or attributed any error to things beyond their control. Successful neurosurgical students admitted to many mistakes and described what they had learned about avoiding them in the future.

Dweck’s research offers powerful evidence that when it comes to moving through the challenges of a job search and career change, we need a growth mind-set. When we see our minds as capable of learning and life as a chance to grow, then everything we do is grist for the mill. We don’t give up when we experience setbacks but learn what we can from the experience and begin again, wiser.

Your attention is focused on the question, “ How can I use the constraints and challenges I’m facing to grow my own capacity?”

Where do these orientations come from? It turns out that it has to do with whether you think intelligence is fixed — you’re born as smart as you’ll ever be — or changeable — you can get smarter throughout life. When provided with evidence that the brain can grow new pathways, fixed-oriented freshman college students on the verge of dropping out switched to a growth orientation and graduated.

What about you?

In working with hundreds of executives, I’ve found that many of us have a growth orientation in some of these attributes and not in others. Each person is different based on his early history. For instance, I’ve got no trouble with the first three or the last one. I’m still working on seeing mistakes as learning opportunities. There continues to be a voice of perfectionism inside me that panics when I find I’ve made an error, although it’s much softer than it used to be. And I still have trouble seeking out feedback because I’m afraid it will be negative. But I’m working on it! I’ve gotten much better at feeling the discomfort and asking for input anyway.

Looking at the list, is your mind-set a growth or fixed one? Which of these are easy? Difficult? Try to notice without beating yourself up. That just interferes with a growth mind-set because it reinforces the belief that you should know everything already.

After all, even know-it-alls don’t know it all. And accepting this premise is the key to success.

Last night in Egypt. 10:00 am direct from Cairo to JFK. Limited internet access. Amazing times.

I work for an online sports paraphernalia company that offers a wide variety of basketball apparel and equipment. So much so that potential customers are often confused about what to buy and what will ultimately fit their needs. The majority of the confusion pertains to basketball standards, hoops and goals and what each entails. Well, here’s the skinny on each.

Basketball Standard: Basketball standards are the most expensive of the bunch. They can be either portable or stationary. When you think basketball standard you should think of the type of basketball system that is used in the NBA or out on the playground. Simply put, a basketball standard is the entire package – rim, backboard, net and pole.

Basketball Hoop: When little Johnny writes to Santa Claus telling him he wants a basketball hoop for Christmas, he means that he wants the entire package. However, a basketball hoop is not quite the entire package. A basketball hoop is the combination of a rim, net and backboard, but no pole. Think of your high school gym. Yes, you probably had a basketball standard in there somewhere which the basketball team most likely used for real games. But you also had basketball hoops on the surrounding walls. That is what a basketball hoop is – a rim, net and backboard that can be fastened to an already existing structure.

Basketball Goal: The name of this particular piece of equipment get its name from its intended purpose. The word goal is something you strive towards. In sports, the goal is usually the place where you score points. Well, the same is true in basketball. The goal is just another name for the rim.

When purchasing sporting equipment, it is good to know the difference between the various technical terms associated with each individual sport. If you don’t, you may unintentionally buy something which you did not want.

Traditionally weddings always took place during the day mostly in the afternoon. However, like everything else in the world this has changed. Evening weddings have gained in popularity and more and more couples are choosing to have their wedding in the evening time. For many couples getting married the evening is a special time of romance and therefore the ideal time for a wedding.

An evening wedding can be a wonderful occasion for people to mingle and chat with old friends and family members that they have not seen for a long time. It also provides time for best friends to just have a great time together and enjoying dancing, music, drinks and cake. What better way to celebrate and have fun then an evening wedding. However, there is a certain etiquette that needs to be followed with an evening wedding and it is important to know the rules beforehand so you can come prepared and enjoy yourself.

As with many of the rules and etiquette guidelines of a wedding much of an evening wedding etiquette revolves around attire. It is therefore important to carefully plan what you will wear to an evening wedding. This article will help you make some of the important decisions on what to wear.

Bride and Grooms

According to most wedding etiquette guides and manuals there is not many special instructions for a evening wedding. They will end up wear the same attire they would for a daytime wedding. So they do not have much to worry about.

Attire and Dress for the Guests

However for the guests this is a little more complicated of an issue. They need to carefully think about what they will wear. The first thing to consider when choosing an outfit for a wedding is the wedding invitation. If you still have it good you will want to go back and check what the wedding invitation said if anything about the attire. Keep in mind the invitation might say something directly like “black tie event” or “Formal Event” or it might say something indirectly. If the wedding invitation is going to take place in the evening on the beach and the invitation has a beach theme to it then you can assume that the attire is less formal.

A good guide is to always be safe instead of sorry and the best way to ensure your are appropriately dressed is to call the bride or groom ahead of time. For the men trying to decide what to wear a call to the groom can make the decision easy. For the woman who is trying to make this difficult decision it can be smart to call the bride and ask her about the wedding and proper attire for the event. It is smart for women to also ask about color and themes of the wedding and pick clothes based on these.

For Men

If it is a formal wedding then men should wear a tuxedo or at least a very nice subtle suit. Often if you are not sure it is best to error on the side of being over dressed for the even and a dark colored suit traditionally looks the most formal. If you get there and feel out of place you can always take off the jacket and loosen the tie and you will fit right in.

For the Women

This is a bit more complicated and should be planned carefully. The most important aspect for women is to pick something attractive and something that is flattering yet not to much. You will want to make sure you look your best and catch a few of the men’s eyes at the event. However you don’t want to catch to many people’s eyes and look to great. It is important that you don’t steal the fire and attention from the bride. So the guide is to wear something that looks nice and but it should be subtle and understated or you risk making a quick enemy.

When choosing clothes and thinking about evening wedding etiquette again it is important to take the time and plan ahead. The best advice is to call the bride or groom and ask for some suggestions or ideas. They will often be more then happy and it is a great chance to talk with them a little before their big day.