Helpful Legion

DAB digital radio is the new medium for sound broadcasting. Now well established in many countries around the world, new DAB radios are hitting the market. While these new radios are still a little more expensive than those that receive the older analogue AM and FM transmissions, they offer the significant improvements that come with DAB digital radio.

Advantages Possibly the most important advantage for the listener is the near CD audio quality that DAB can bring. Hiss and fading are now a thing of the past. Not only is the quality better but the more stations can be accommodated within the available space and this means that there is a much greater degree of choice.

Another important facility provided by DAB digital radio is its data capability. Data is transmitted alongside the main audio and this can be displayed on a screen that many DAB sets have built in. This may be the title of a song being broadcast, a plot summary for a play, up to the minute sports results, or whatever the broadcaster feels is appropriate. In fact some stations scroll news headlines across the screen, or provide other useful free information including Electronic Programme Guides.

Not only does the system bring many advantages for the listener, but it also helps the broadcaster. Lower power levels are required for the transmitters. This saves considerably on the cost of the electricity. This is particularly important for large national networks like the BBC and others. With transmitters often using 100 kW and more, the costs for running these transmitters are very high. Also by reducing the power consumed, it helps the environment.

Another advantage is that DAB uses what is termed a Single Frequency Network. This means that all transmitters in the same network use the same frequency without interfering with each other. Currently a national network using VHF FM, for example, has to use a number of frequencies so that the transmissions do not interfere. DAB Digital Radio does not need this and the space needed for the broadcasts is much less. This also brings another advantage for the mobile listener because there is no need to retune the receiver onto another frequency when moving out of the coverage area of one transmitter into the next.

Technology DAB Digital Radio works by converting the sounds into a digital format. Once in this format they can be manipulated using digital signal processing techniques to compress and manipulate the signal. Furthermore when the signal is transmitted error correction techniques can be used to ensure that once the data representing the sounds is transmitted, it is received correctly at the receiver.

The sound compression uses techniques that conform to the MPEG standards. Also the radio transmission uses a form of signal modulation known as Coded Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplex or COFDM. Here the data representing the sounds and the other data to be transmitted is spread across a large number of close spaced radio signals. By spreading the data over a wide frequency in this way the whole transmission is less susceptible to noise and other forms of interference including fading and multi-path interference.

Multipath interference results when signals are reflected from objects such as hills and buildings and several signals from the transmitter arrive at the receiver, all at slightly different times because they have travelled over slightly different paths and have taken slightly different times to travel. For VHF FM this is a particular problem and often results in the signal becoming distorted. DAB digital radio is able to combine all the signals, and make the overall reception more robust.

Naturally the technology to enable all this to happen makes the radio receivers more complicated. However the improvements in integrated circuit technology in recent years have enabled the required capabilities to be built into a radio for a reasonable cost. It is also expected to fall further as DAB becomes better established.

Summary DAB Digital Radio is a great improvement over the analogue transmissions that are broadcast. Offering the possibility of better quality audio, accompanying data, push button tuning and no requirement to re-tune when moving from one service area to the next, it is certainly provides a considerable improvement over the older analogue broadcasts. By offering all these facilities, it sets DAB digital radio in a position to take over as the new form of broadcasting for the 21st Century.

You’ve finally created databases that you can actually use to store and manipulate all your critical data. That’s great news and quite an accomplishment. But in your rush to get your employees to start entering information into these databases, you skipped the training process and let them go at it alone.

That was not such a good decision, but one you did not care about until you decided to tackle your first mail merge. Instead of getting what you expected to get, you got all variations of address and telephone number formats, an incredible and astounding assortment of confusingly mixed usage of upper and lower case characters and fields with unusual amounts of white space that you’ve finally figured out is due to excessive use of the space bar. The data looks cluttered, inconsistent, and worst of all, unprofessional.

You don’t have time to go back into every record and manually fix these annoying inconsistencies, nor do you want to pay your staff to do this when they have so many other things to do. But you’ve got to get your promotion going so money can start arriving in your business checking account. Now what do you do?

There is a way you can go in and clean up these types of data messes and it won’t involve firing the employees who caused the problems in the first place! Nor will you have to become proficient at database programming. As with any good business problem, there’s a software solution available that you can use instead.

It’s called DataPipe and it will clean up these and other types of database errors faster and less expensively than you can do it manually or by using other software tools. It does not matter which standard ODBC or OLE DB you are using. Just use its drivers to connect to DataPipe. From there, it’s a matter of selecting the database and query or table you need to work on. Then sit back and watch as it works its magic in record time.

Even if you use packaged customer relationship management software at your business – products like Goldmine, ACT!, Epiphany and others – you still can use DataPipe.

DataPipe uses basic search and replace functions to tweak the text that is stored in your databases. Whether you know exactly the text you want modified, want to modify text that sounds like something specific, want to search for wildcards or particular patterns, or want to use fuzzy logic to help find typos, your data will benefit when you use DataPipe.

And best of all, you won’t have to contact your programmer and negotiate a costly change order when you need to use a different format for your date fields, or when you need to swap the order of last and first names. But you can if this is what you need. You or your programmer can create custom filters using industry standard scripting languages.

DataPipe requires Windows 95, 98, ME, NT, 2000, XP or 2003, a hard disk with 15 MB free disk space and 64 MB RAM. It also requires SQL Server, Access, Informix, Sybase, DB2, Oracle, MySQL, DBF, FoxPro, FileMaker Pro, Excel Spreadsheets or any OLE DB/ODBC compliant database.

Isn’t it time your data look and feel more consistent, more professional, and perhaps even more impressive? When you run a business, you need all the help you can get. And in today’s competitive business climate, first impressions make the biggest impression. And unfortunately, sometimes first impressions are the key “make or break” determining factor. So make sure your first impressions count.

Public liability cover is advised because all organisations are at risk to some degree. Albeit nothing terrible has yet occurred to your business premises, doesn’t mean that it will not one day in the not too distant future. If someone is wounded, or their goods stolen, it’s your legal obligation to suitably reimburse them. This cost may be tremendously high, depending on the brand of the case.

Luckily, you do have a number of methods to shield yourself against this chance. Selecting public liability cover permits you to breathe somewhat easier. If a client claim is very expensive, the insurance company will be on hand to supply a protection net. Its their legal obligation to keep you shielded from claims & legal bills brought against you. This leaves you free to focus on actually doing business, instead of thinking about what may possibly happen. Following are some examples of times when public liability insurance can come in useful. Find Professional Indemnity Insurance quotes and save money with Insured Risks.

CEOs of plumbing firms generally get the job concluded fast & right. But, sometimes something might go wrong. For instance, should you unintentionally break a client’s pipes while on the job, damaging belongings for example desktops & flooring, public liability indemnity will be there to pay the expense.

Another illustration is that of a marketing corporation. If a client were to sprain an ankle in your workplace, even if it is not your fault, you would be held liable. Although, with public liability cover you wouldn’t have to pay the claim at all.

In a related circumstance, injury caused to a spectator by a member of staff on a construction site is the legal duty of the company’s director. This kind of claim can happen to be extremely expensive in fact, unless you acquire the appropriate cover.

Why Attend a Clinic ?

Bill Dunigan

Many riders have asked this question over the years. Quite a number of them are self-taught. Likewise, many of them have also trained their own horses. This is a very common situation in the horse world. However, the more involved we become in competing, the more assistance we need. The chances are that the riders who are placing ahead of you have a coach, trainer, or instructor to work with or seek input from.

Look for instance at the equestrian teams of any of the countries competing in international competitions. All of these teams have coaches. The same thing is true of any of the riding teams associated with schools everywhere. If you look at the top competitors in your field competing as individuals, you will find they have a few select, trusted, and knowledgeable friends or family members who constantly give them feedback. This is in itself, a form of coaching. Today the caliber of horses is so high and the talent, knowledge and ability of the riders is so superior, that if you are competing you need someone on the ground.

Most of our friends or family are accustomed to seeing us ride a particular way or our horse going a certain way, and as a result may miss something that really needs to change. When we bring in a new set of eyes it’s interesting how these things suddenly get resolved. Also, most of us tend to hear only what we want to hear from people we already know. Don’t underestimate the value of that outside opinion.

The clinician is there to help as much as possible in a short period of time. As a result of the time constraints, they will tend to zero in on very specific areas. If you approach the opportunity as a real learning experience, it’s amazing just how much you can come away with. I am not suggesting that a clinic will be a fix all event. Instead, it should give you a different perspective from which to view things. It should provide you with some additional ideas on how to resolve some of the issues you may be encountering. Every clinician and clinic is both similar and different at the same time. Each will have their own individual way of expressing themselves.

Hopefully, you will be able to gain enough insight into how best to resolve your particular problems. The clinician is there to help you. The last thing in the world you should want at a clinic is for your horse to go perfectly or for you to ride perfectly. You are paying for the help, so if you are ever going to make mistakes, this is the time to do it. That way you can really get your money’s worth. If the clinician never sees the problem, there isn’t much they can do to help you take care of it. Don’t be timid about asking questions. I know that when I am teaching a clinic I want questions. That shows me that they are paying attention and have a sincere interest. You may not have the chance to work with that individual again so be sure you learn as much as possible. If something is mentioned to either you or another rider and you don’t quite understand it, go ahead and ask. I never want a student to go away from any of my clinics without understanding what was discussed.

In summery let me say that one of the aims of an instructor is to impart as much knowledge as they can, in a given period of time, in such a way that each and every rider can improve and continue to grow in their riding and training abilities. As a participant in a clinic you should watch and listen to everything being said. It may not be something that you need right now, but you never know what you might encounter later with your current horse or the next one. If you have the opportunity to attend a clinic, don’t hesitate. There are many very capable clinicians available today in all riding disciplines. Take advantage of the opportunity to work with someone different and if you make it a real learning experience, you just may gain some valuable information that can help you now and well into the future.

You have permission to copy and reuse this article provided there are no changes made to the article and credit is given to the author and the link to his website remains in place. Please notify him by email if you are going to use this article. You may contact Bill Dunigan through his website: http://www.BarrelRacingClinic.com

Encompix (www.encompix.com) has filled the manufacturing software requirements of Engineer-to-Order companies since 1992. David Warford, president, started his career at the Burroughs Corporation (now Unisys) more than thirty years ago as a salesman. He rose through the ranks to become U.S. Product Manager and U.S. Director of Product Marketing. Later he served as a Product Manager for Tandem Computer in Cupertino, CA, launched a specialty printing company (now a $10 million enterprise), and then became Senior Vice President at Benchmark Solutions. In 1996, Warford engineered the merger of ShopPro Software with Paradigm Integrators to form CDC Holdings, which later became Encompix, Inc. Since then, the company has experienced rapid and profitable growth. He is also a graduate of the University of Minnesota, and the chairman of Encompix’s Board of Directors. The company name, Encompix, reflects the commitment to developing business application solutions that encompass the complex areas of project-based and job-based manufacturing. Encompix provides ETO manufacturers with a competitive advantage by improving bottom line results.

According to Thomas R. Cutler, spokesperson for the ETO Institute (www.etoinstitute.org), “Encompix continues to capture significant marketshare in the ETO environment because few other ERP vendors truly understand the nuances and significant distinctions of the ETO process versus the repetitive manufacturing process. Encompix now has more than 200 of the leading ETO manufacturing firms in North America using their ERP Software solution.”

Encompix www.encompix.com Roger Meloy 513-733-0066

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Specious reasoning and clever crafting of definitions can make about anything appear to come true. As John Mackay (1852) observed, “When men wish to construct or support a theory, how they torture facts into their service!” Mackay, J. (1852). Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds.

Some words are innocently created to straight forwardly describe a particular thing but can insidiously take on a life all their own. Our language is filled with words that have departed from their original definitions and are now widely misconstrued and abused. Examples include truth, religion, supernatural, morality, liberal, capitalism, freedom, love…basically all the hot button words and subjects people consider to be their little sacred domains of private belief and interpretation.

Evolution is another example of such a word. In the dictionary, evolution’s first definition is: the process by which something develops into a different form. The word and this meaning predated Darwin’s concept of biological evolution. Here’s how that fact has proven useful in helping to make his case.

Most certainly, things do evolve in the dictionary’s pre-Darwinian sense of the word. We evolve as individuals, society evolves, technology evolves, education evolves, the automobile evolves and agriculture evolves. To the uncritical eye, evolution, taken as being synonymous with change, seems to fit well with what all of us experience every day: Homes get built beginning with simple blocks and 2 X 4s, our bank account balance grows slowly, our bodies begin small and get bigger, babies begin with one cell that multiplies into a whole body and anthills grow one grain of dirt at a time. Since everything changes, everything can be said to evolve. How convenient for Darwin’s “evolution.”

He could not have chosen a better word. The case was closed before he ever got into court. Since everything evolves it is not too much of a leap to accept that life evolved. The word itself is tendentious, creating in and of itself reason to believe the theory.

If he had chosen the word transmutation instead of evolution, things might be entirely different. Although transmutation would be a better description of the theory, the unfamiliarity of the word would force people to determine meaning and evaluate that against their own experience. In the larger sense, Darwin’s evolution requires that species transform into one another (transmutate) all the way up from a single-celled organism. Since nobody has ever seen one type of organism transmutate into another, he would have had a much harder sell. On the other hand, saying that “change” is the same thing as biological evolution makes anyone who does not accept Darwin’s evolution, someone who rejects change. In other words, stupid.

Please note that evolution normally implies progressive change. But nothing evolves in that sense without intelligent manipulation. Corn kernels get bigger, evolve, because of intelligent horticulture, home architecture evolves because of intelligent engineering, and mathematics evolves because of mathematicians. That little fact — that intelligence is needed for things to progressively evolve — just happened to be left out when Darwin’s evolution was attached to dictionary evolution.

A word was stolen from our vocabulary, a word everyone can agree to. Cleverly then, a new footnote about a whole new mechanism was attached to it without really alerting anyone. By that I mean biological evolution is not mere change. In overview (cell to human sense) it is gross change, more like a skipping or gigantic hopping. It is about transmutations in the absence of any intelligent force to make them happen.

It would be like me coming up with a new theory of commerce. I scan the dictionary and decide to call my theory, “possession”. Everyone possesses things and possession is nine tenths of the law. My “possession” theory is a process by which one goes into a store, loads up bags and carts with whatever they want and takes it all home. The stuff is possessed. What a cool theory. Now when the police show up at your door and take you to court, you just take your dictionary. You say to the judge, “Looky here judge, the dictionary says possession is to have things and that’s all I did.” Do you think the prosecutor might make the argument that you have left out an important part of the definition, namely that to possess something legally requires a mechanism called paying for it?

Possession means having something, according to the dictionary, but that does not legitimize any form of possession. Evolution means change, according to the dictionary, but that does not legitimize any theory of change.

Magnesium is the lightest structural material offering very good damping characteristics, weldability and excellent shielding against electro-magnetic interferance, and is unlimited in supply. It has been an excellent material for making portable electronic and telecommunication devices, and automotive and aerospace equipment such as MD player casings, chassis for cell phones, video cameras and notebook computers, automotive gear housings, car wheels and engine blocks.

The most common method to produce magnesium parts is by die casting and thixomolding processes. However, these runner and gating processes provide a low material yield of only 30% for thin-wall casting and can only produce thin walls of between 0.7mm to 1.2mm.

If we can form magnesium parts from sheet metal just like metal stamping of steel and aluminum parts, we can achieve better material yield of about 80% and possibly safer operation due to the lower processing temperature. However, magnesium is known to be non-formable as it is very resistant to deformation due to its hexagonal close-packed structure. The only way is warm forming of magnesium as deformation of magnesium above 225 degrees Celsius will cause additional slip planes to become operative.

Extensive process research in this area have resulted in a few warm forming hydraulic presses available in the market for draw forming. Recently, research in warm draw forming of magnesium to make cell phone chassis has successfully shown that 0.4mm thin walls can be achieved consistently. Metallographic tests of the chassis have also demonstrated that there is zero porosity and increased rigidity.

While the current warm forming press systems are complicated to operate as they require the preliminary building of stroke and force profiles for the specific products using data acquisition modules and forming simulation softwares, the increased replacement of aluminum and plastics with magnesium for handheld electronic devices may well accelerate this process. Progressive early adopters of this technology would have a first mover advantage in the competitive global manufacturing industry.

It makes no difference if you live in Flint Michigan or in Evansville Indiana a honest online investigation will relieve you often lots of discommode. Be lustrous today to inspect if you have a bargain or if you don’t with the bank that offers you a credit loan. A merchant bank in Lynn Massachusetts or so may have a total different actual loan rate for a 7500 dollar deferred payment then a moneylender in Huntington Beach California and that makes a large clear gap in your weekly costs. Check out to see if the merchant bank who is willing to give you a bank loan is proficient.

Translated in Dutch it means: Woon je in Assen of Leerdam en heeft u BKR. Lenen met en BKR codering is nog nooit zo eenvoudig geweest. Verwen jezelf met een andere auto met geldproblemen, 367229 euro is geen enkel probleem om te lenen. Van Noord-Beveland tot Stein, geld lenen met BKR is hier geen enkel probleem.

Nowadays you can check interest rates quickly on the internet and figure if there are possible sneaky traps you should be aware of. That’s why now you need to check and realize if you can have a loan at a good percent rate. Many of the banks wil show you a rate of interest that looks upright but feels disadvantageously or so after some time. 7.4 percent interest rate may appear so middling but will that be unvarying after you have to give back your loan.

If you’ve been diagnosed with bipolar disorder (also known as manic depression) you are not alone. It has been estimated that over 2 million people in the United States suffer from this form of mental illness which involves episodes of both mania and depression.

Although bipolar disorder usually begins in childhood or early adulthood, it is often not recognized as an illness. And, because it is sometimes misdiagnosed, individuals who have it often suffer needlessly although treatment is available. Left untreated, those with bipolar disorder sometimes experience serious complications, including an inability to keep a stable job, abuse of drugs and alcohol, marriage problems, and even suicide.

Symptoms of mania can include: decreased need for sleep; excessive feelings of euphoria; extreme distractibility; racing thoughts and rapid talking; decreased need for sleep; drug abuse; and a denial that anything is wrong. Depressive symptoms, (the flip-side of mania) may include: difficulty sleeping; loss of appetite; feelings of hopelessness; decreased energy; persistent sad mood; loss of interest in pleasurable activities; and thoughts of death or suicide.

It is important to recognize the various mood states experienced by individuals with bipolar disorder so that they can obtain effective treatment. Unfortunately, this illness often goes unrecognized by everyone involved, including family, friends, physicians, and even the patient.

An early stage of this illness often manifested is hypomania, in which the person suffering from it shows a high level of energy, excessive moodiness or irritability, and impulsive behavior. Ironically, hypomania may feel good to the person who experiences it. Unfortunately though, if left untreated, bipolar disorder tends to get worse, and the person typically will experience episodes of full-fledged mania and clinical depression.

Fortunately, most people with manic depressive illness can be helped with treatment, specifically medications and therapy.

Medications play an important role in helping to stabilize the mood swings often found with this type of mental illness. Lithium has been shown to be very effective in helping to control mania and in stopping the recurrence of both manic and depressive episodes. Several types of antidepressant have also been found useful in combating the depression aspect of bipolar disorder. In severe cases, electroconvulsive therapy is often helpful in treating severe depression that fails to respond to medication.

Therapy from a qualified provider can also be helpful in educating the patient and providing support and guidance to all family members involved. It is important to remember that bipolar disorder is recurrent, and, as such, long-term preventive treatment is indicated in most cases.

Finally, it is important to know that bipolar disorder is a legitimate illness, and that it will not “just go away” if given enough time. Treatment is necessary to help keep the disease under control and a maintenance regimen (including both medications and therapy) may be required over the length of a person’s life.

About the Author

Brian Cook is a freelance writer whose articles on bipolar disorder, and depression in general, have appeared in print and on many websites.

You can find more of these at www.bipolardisordercenter.info

The ability to perform naturally and instinctively is critical to performing well. The reason why you practice is so you can trust your game when it’s time to play.
The ability to perform naturally and instinctively is critical to performing well. The reason why you practice is so you can trust your game when it’s time to play. As you progress through the stages of learning, with practice you develop a memory program for each movement. With more practice (or over-learning), your performance becomes instinctive, natural, and starts to feel effortless. The feeling of automatic and effortless movement is essential for superior performance for all skill levels. The problem starts when you don’t allow your natural ability to surface when you perform. If you focus too much on technique or control the path of the bat, club, and racquet, you will lock yourself up and feel uncoordinated.

In pressure situations, the tendency is to tighten up and not trust yourself. Focusing too much on how to make a good swing for example makes you guide the bat, club, or racquet and consciously force it. All this does are mess up a well-grooved swing (through repetition) and throws off your natural rhythm. The purpose of practice and repetition is to make it feel reflexive when you perform in competition. When you play, let your instincts built on practice take over.

Some players can trust their ability better than others. Trusting your ability means forgetting about the HOW TO perform a motor skill and reacting to your environment. During competition, you need to let your creative mind take over. When the whistle blows, it’s time to trust your practice and play be feel. If you think too much about how to perform, such as trying to make a perfect stroke during a free throw, you will lock up and ruin your chances at making it. React to the target and allow your body do what it knows how to do. I call this performing from the input through the eyes and sensory system and skipping all the analysis and trying that interferes with the automatic process.

About the Author

Dr. Patrick J. Cohn is a leading mental game coach who consults with professional and amatuer athletes. He is the author of Going Low, Peak Performance Golf, The Mental Game of Golf and The Mental Art of Putting. For more information call (888) 742-7225. Or sign up for free mental game tips newsletter at: www.peaksports.com.