 people do not like to be pressured by a hard sell. A few may buy products once or twice just to do you a favor, but don't expect to make long-term repeat customers of your social circle.

To put it bluntly, unless you are a highly trained marketing professional and influencer with a high level of reach, you will be hard-pressed to make an income with MONAT.

The real bread and butter of an MLM is recruiting other distributors into the company.

Basically, for every new distributor that you onboard, you get a cut of their profits, as well as from their onboarding fee.

Did I mention the onboarding fee? MONAT starter kits cost $49 to join and start selling, but new distributors are encouraged to spend at least $300 to “build up an inventory” (and increase their upline's income).

This is where the passive income claims that MONAT and other MLM brands come to pass: if you sign up 10 people, you'll get about $100 a month. If those 10 people sign up another 10 people, you'll get $1000 a month.

Is this starting to sound a bit like a pyramid scheme?

Is MONAT a Pyramid Scheme?

Legally speaking, no. But if you compare the MLM model to a pyramid scheme, they look almost identical.

The primary difference between an MLM like Monat and a traditional pyramid scheme is that MLMs skirt legal issues by offering a product for sale. Pyramid schemes only deal in recruitment and money flow.

To sum it up: MONAT and other MLMs are legal pyramid schemes. They mainly make money by recruiting other people to buy in by paying to join.

This money flows its way up the pyramid, where those at or near the very top are making enough to be considered wealthy. This dream is then sold to every new potential recruit as a possibility.

But the reality is that the majority of people who join an MLM do not make much money at all. Some even lose money, to the tune of thousands of dollars in unsold products they were encouraged to buy at the beginning.

An Honest MONAT Review?

If you search for MONAT product reviews, the internet is full of horror stories. Hair falling out, balding, scalp chemical burns, and skin irritations abound.

Whether this is due to a bad batch or a low-quality product being offered at a premium, who is to say?

Just be aware that potential customers might do their research before purchasing a $40 bottle of shampoo, and see these reviews.

Another concern with MONAT is their dubious claims. A hallmark MLM feature is products that seemingly cure a wide range of ailments or issues.

Many of MONAT's products are marketed as being good for hair, skin, nails, pets, and more. The Federal Trade Commission has started cracking down on MLMs making unsubstantiated and unproven health claims.

MONAT Alternatives

If you are looking for more income but are wary of joining an MLM for the reasons outlined above, there are other ways to make money that don't involve spending your own to get started.

Affiliate marketing is a growing trend for generating income. This is a way to harness the power of social media and online marketing to sell products for companies without having to pay them for the privilege.

In fact, affiliate marketing will actually get you paid, both in cash and occasionally free products.

Affiliate Marketing: Getting Started

Click for free training<|endoftext|>Sunday, June 3, 2012

What to do when economic forecasts are wrong?

This articles does not necessarily answer the question asked in the title, but it does present incentive for thought regarding the issue. As part of the reading assignments for week three, I was particularly intrigued by the content and the thrust of the argument in the article titled "What happens next? Five crucibles of innovation that will shape the coming decade" because it purported to foresee the eventualities of global economies and suggested that forward looking companies should take the opinions expressed in the article into consideration when developing a corresponding forward-looking strategies. I was compelled to pay particular attention to the main points of what it terms as its 'crucibles' mostly because as I read all five of them, the ideas expressed in them seemed to portend contradictory results.

In totality, the article rightly identified the world as a complex, multipolar, and interconnected world, in which the biggest challenge facing forward-looking businesses will not be their capability to respond to their known competitors, but their ability to learning how to respond to a world in which the frame and basis of competition is in perpetual flux, thereby requiring these businesses adapt to the inevitable changes that will result from emerging market economies. Because these dynamics will be affecting strategies heavily, particularly in the way these emerging-market economies' evolve, innovation will lead to leaps and bounds of prosperity. However, a few underlying premises regarding the innovations and the demographic dynamics presented within the article itself seem to contradict its own premises. So, let's look at what was stated and how a forward-looking business intending on developing a worldwide strategy should adjust its plan and strategy in light of the chance that forecasts could be erroneous.

In Crucible 1, the article made two underpinning arguments, i.e., first, emerging economies will have "simultaneous labor force growth and rapidly declining birth rates" which equates to "more workers plus fewer mouths to feed [which in turn] equals more disposable income." The second is that "China and India are seeing labor productivity grow at more than five times the rate of most Western countries." The first premise is inherently myopic. In fact, in Crucible 2, where the article addresses the productivity imperative, it discusses productivity, employee skillets and the expansion of economies. In particular, it cites the  United States, for example, as having 85 percent of the new jobs created in the past decade requiring complex knowledge skills i.e., analyzing information, problem solving, rendering judgment, and thinking creatively. But, if people in emerging economies are not having offspring or there are not enough people to support the consumption of goods that support an emerging market economy and the Social Security equivalent structures within these economies, these highly educated consumers will divert their disposable income toward their retirement future rather than spend in the near term, therefore causing a slump in demand for goods in the economy and a consequent slowdown of the discussed economies.

The economies that will remain vibrant into the future will be economies that have a mechanism that continually infuses its middle classes with vibrant energetic workforces. A type of workforce whose discretionary income is growing, and whose progeny also increases, or perhaps, where there will be younger immigrants that will fill the role of working class to provide for and fill the monetary vacuum needed to cover for the lack of total retirement investment money used for other activities such as shopping. This is not to assert that consumers cannot concurrently shore up an economy through consumption and save for retirement, only that for economies to keep growing and consumers have to have enough to do both consumption and saving for retirement at a proportion that is healthy enough to support economic growth. That sort of support will usually result from innovative economy that some would argue are in the emerging market economies, but which I assert are also more prevalent in the western economies.

Franky, there needs to be some degree of clarity with regard to the definition of innovation. The articles appears to use the term to mean that innovation is the localized clever use of enabling technologies to reach high levels of productivity, whereas innovation should also be viewed more broadly as the enabling technology absent which its clever use will not be possible. These enabling technologies often emerge, not from emerging market economies, rather from industrialized nations. The research that led to the technology that enabled Tata’s 'innovative' Nano $2,200 car came not from an emerging economy but from research institutions in the West. These industrial nations may also continue to grow, though not as rapidly, at least in the short run, as the emerging market economies, because, in comparison to the emerging market economies, there is already some degree of saturation that limits the rapid expansion of consumption since its middle classes have long been consuming. So, for a business spoiling to expand its operations and market share in the worldwide economy, it would be wise to develop a strategic plan that is nimble enough to adapt to the sinusoidal move of consumption that will inevitably vary according to the fluctuations of the consumer populations. A strategy that excludes demographic dynamics likely does so at its peril.

Question: Should companies continuously be on the look-out for signs of change in the market that could render their strategic plans obsolete, so as to be able to to effectively adapt their strategy?

[1] Economic Facts about BRIC countries and Western economies.

[2] What happens next?
Five crucibles of innovation that will shape the coming decade (assigned case). Peter Bisson, Rik Kirkland, Elizabeth Stephenson, and Patrick Viguerie. McKinsey & Company.

No comments:

Post a Comment
<|endoftext|>The single was sent to Radio Airplay in Italy on October 12, 2012 and published worldwide on December 3, 2012.<|endoftext|> Sustainability - TENA

Sustainability is defined as, ‘A development that meets the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’. This is our guiding principle in all areas of our work with sustainability.
Ref - Brundtlandt report “Our common future” (1987)

Our sustainability policy

SCA exists for the purpose of creating value for the company’s shareholders, increasing the standard of living and quality of

 friends and family.

And many people do not like to be pressured by a hard sell. A few may buy products once or twice just to do you a favor, but don't expect to make long-term repeat customers of your social circle.

To put it bluntly, unless you are a highly trained marketing professional and influencer with a high level of reach, you will be hard-pressed to make an income with MONAT.

The real bread and butter of an MLM is recruiting other distributors into the company.

Basically, for every new distributor that you onboard, you get a cut of their profits, as well as from their onboarding fee.

Did I mention the onboarding fee? MONAT starter kits cost $49 to join and start selling, but new distributors are encouraged to spend at least $300 to “build up an inventory” (and increase their upline's income).

This is where the passive income claims that MONAT and other MLM brands come to pass: if you sign up 10 people, you'll get about $100 a month. If those 10 people sign up another 10 people, you'll get $1000 a month.

Is this starting to sound a bit like a pyramid scheme?

Is MONAT a Pyramid Scheme?

Legally speaking, no. But if you compare the MLM model to a pyramid scheme, they look almost identical.

The primary difference between an MLM like Monat and a traditional pyramid scheme is that MLMs skirt legal issues by offering a product for sale. Pyramid schemes only deal in recruitment and money flow.

To sum it up: MONAT and other MLMs are legal pyramid schemes. They mainly make money by recruiting other people to buy in by paying to join.

This money flows its way up the pyramid, where those at or near the very top are making enough to be considered wealthy. This dream is then sold to every new potential recruit as a possibility.

But the reality is that the majority of people who join an MLM do not make much money at all. Some even lose money, to the tune of thousands of dollars in unsold products they were encouraged to buy at the beginning.

An Honest MONAT Review?

If you search for MONAT product reviews, the internet is full of horror stories. Hair falling out, balding, scalp chemical burns, and skin irritations abound.

Whether this is due to a bad batch or a low-quality product being offered at a premium, who is to say?

Just be aware that potential customers might do their research before purchasing a $40 bottle of shampoo, and see these reviews.

Another concern with MONAT is their dubious claims. A hallmark MLM feature is products that seemingly cure a wide range of ailments or issues.

Many of MONAT's products are marketed as being good for hair, skin, nails, pets, and more. The Federal Trade Commission has started cracking down on MLMs making unsubstantiated and unproven health claims.

MONAT Alternatives

If you are looking for more income but are wary of joining an MLM for the reasons outlined above, there are other ways to make money that don't involve spending your own to get started.

Affiliate marketing is a growing trend for generating income. This is a way to harness the power of social media and online marketing to sell products for companies without having to pay them for the privilege.

In fact, affiliate marketing will actually get you paid, both in cash and occasionally free products.

Affiliate Marketing: Getting Started

Click for free training<|endoftext|>Sunday, June 3, 2012

What to do when economic forecasts are wrong?

This articles does not necessarily answer the question asked in the title, but it does present incentive for thought regarding the issue. As part of the reading assignments for week three, I was particularly intrigued by the content and the thrust of the argument in the article titled "What happens next? Five crucibles of innovation that will shape the coming decade" because it purported to foresee the eventualities of global economies and suggested that forward looking companies should take the opinions expressed in the article into consideration when developing a corresponding forward-looking strategies. I was compelled to pay particular attention to the main points of what it terms as its 'crucibles' mostly because as I read all five of them, the ideas expressed in them seemed to portend contradictory results.

In totality, the article rightly identified the world as a complex, multipolar, and interconnected world, in which the biggest challenge facing forward-looking businesses will not be their capability to respond to their known competitors, but their ability to learning how to respond to a world in which the frame and basis of competition is in perpetual flux, thereby requiring these businesses adapt to the inevitable changes that will result from emerging market economies. Because these dynamics will be affecting strategies heavily, particularly in the way these emerging-market economies' evolve, innovation will lead to leaps and bounds of prosperity. However, a few underlying premises regarding the innovations and the demographic dynamics presented within the article itself seem to contradict its own premises. So, let's look at what was stated and how a forward-looking business intending on developing a worldwide strategy should adjust its plan and strategy in light of the chance that forecasts could be erroneous.

In Crucible 1, the article made two underpinning arguments, i.e., first, emerging economies will have "simultaneous labor force growth and rapidly declining birth rates" which equates to "more workers plus fewer mouths to feed [which in turn] equals more disposable income." The second is that "China and India are seeing labor productivity grow at more than five times the rate of most Western countries." The first premise is inherently myopic. In fact, in Crucible 2, where the article addresses the productivity imperative, it discusses productivity, employee skillets and the expansion of economies. In particular, it cites the  United States, for example, as having 85 percent of the new jobs created in the past decade requiring complex knowledge skills i.e., analyzing information, problem solving, rendering judgment, and thinking creatively. But, if people in emerging economies are not having offspring or there are not enough people to support the consumption of goods that support an emerging market economy and the Social Security equivalent structures within these economies, these highly educated consumers will divert their disposable income toward their retirement future rather than spend in the near term, therefore causing a slump in demand for goods in the economy and a consequent slowdown of the discussed economies.

The economies that will remain vibrant into the future will be economies that have a mechanism that continually infuses its middle classes with vibrant energetic workforces. A type of workforce whose discretionary income is growing, and whose progeny also increases, or perhaps, where there will be younger immigrants that will fill the role of working class to provide for and fill the monetary vacuum needed to cover for the lack of total retirement investment money used for other activities such as shopping. This is not to assert that consumers cannot concurrently shore up an economy through consumption and save for retirement, only that for economies to keep growing and consumers have to have enough to do both consumption and saving for retirement at a proportion that is healthy enough to support economic growth. That sort of support will usually result from innovative economy that some would argue are in the emerging market economies, but which I assert are also more prevalent in the western economies.

Franky, there needs to be some degree of clarity with regard to the definition of innovation. The articles appears to use the term to mean that innovation is the localized clever use of enabling technologies to reach high levels of productivity, whereas innovation should also be viewed more broadly as the enabling technology absent which its clever use will not be possible. These enabling technologies often emerge, not from emerging market economies, rather from industrialized nations. The research that led to the technology that enabled Tata’s 'innovative' Nano $2,200 car came not from an emerging economy but from research institutions in the West. These industrial nations may also continue to grow, though not as rapidly, at least in the short run, as the emerging market economies, because, in comparison to the emerging market economies, there is already some degree of saturation that limits the rapid expansion of consumption since its middle classes have long been consuming. So, for a business spoiling to expand its operations and market share in the worldwide economy, it would be wise to develop a strategic plan that is nimble enough to adapt to the sinusoidal move of consumption that will inevitably vary according to the fluctuations of the consumer populations. A strategy that excludes demographic dynamics likely does so at its peril.

Question: Should companies continuously be on the look-out for signs of change in the market that could render their strategic plans obsolete, so as to be able to to effectively adapt their strategy?

[1] Economic Facts about BRIC countries and Western economies.

[2] What happens next?
Five crucibles of innovation that will shape the coming decade (assigned case). Peter Bisson, Rik Kirkland, Elizabeth Stephenson, and Patrick Viguerie. McKinsey & Company.

No comments:

Post a Comment
<|endoftext|> Sustainability - TENA

Sustainability is defined as, ‘A development that meets the needs of the present, without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs’. This is our guiding principle in all areas of our work with sustainability.
Ref - Brundtlandt report “Our common future” (1987)

Our sustainability policy

SCA exists for the purpose of creating value for the company’s shareholders, increasing the standard of living and quality of life of its employees and otherwise contributing to the economic, environmental and social well-being


 32GB capacity would thus have required only 4 chips more, which shouldn't have been that hard to fit, given the larger space available on a 15-inch laptop's printed circuit board compared with the 16GB 13-inch model.

The memory interface of a energy-hungry desktop Intel i7 CPU has only four 64-bit wide memory channels, but with simple address line decoding logic, it's easy for manufacturers to provide motherboards with eight 64-bit wide DIMM slots.
The power-sipping mobile Intel i7 CPUs as used in the MBP have only two 64-bit wide memory channels, but, similarly, it would have been easy to decode the address lines to generate the chip select lines for two additional 8GB 64-bit wide memory banks, and thus enable the option to configure four 8GB memory blocks, for a total of 32GB of RAM.

Are 32GB really necessary on a laptop ? I don't know, but when using Photoshop on a 16GB MBP, I often notice that PS is using gigabytes of scratch space on the MBP's internal SSD e.g. when uprezzing and rotating a slighty tilted 24MP picture. Having more RAM would probably make PS faster and decrease wear and tear on the SSD's flash memory chips.
Creative professionals editing e.g. 4K video would also probably appreciate the added smoothness in the editing and preview operations enabled by larger, multi-gigabyte RAM buffers, as would e.g. IT professionals running virtual machines on their MBPs.

The nature, the raison d'être of a "Pro" computer costing several thousand dollars, IMHO, is to provide functional, convenient, dependable, and preferably cost-effective computing functionality to users, which includes professionals. When superficial aspects like look or thinness starts to be considered by an idiotic designer to be more important than functionality, then, the tail is wagging the dog, and that dimwit designer hasn't really understood what makes a machine "professional" in the eyes of the paying customer — the actual professional or power user.

To connect the subject a bit to photograpy, a major characteristic of Leica cameras, IMHO, is their perceived tactile quality, which conveys the notion that Leicas — regardless of their actual performance and usability as cameras — are precision, high-quality photographic instruments that are carefully crafted, a bit like high-end Swiss mechanical watches.

Walter da Silva's modern reinterpretation of a Leica rangefinder has an exquisite detailing, profiling and patterning of refined materials like titanium and leather, packaged in clean geometric lines and with well-considered usability touches like a cleverly engineered leather finger loop attachment. I think it's quite successful at conveying the Leica qualities I mentioned above, and evinces a really competent designer who's able to grasp the nature, the essence of the product he's working on, and translate it into an actual physical object.

A second-rate designer who hasn't got the intellectual abilities to grasp the essential character of a product, OTOH, would deliver something that looks like what a 12-year old with a CAD program would come up with, merely providing an uninspired wrapping of the mandated dimensional constraints like rangefinder baseline length, flangeback distance, mount dimensions, lens diameter etc.
I must, however, admit that said camera was apparently judged good enough by a Chinese buyer to pay a large sum for it.

Since Steve Jobs' death, it seems that nobody at Apple is able to remain grounded and think about actual user requirements when considering product design, especially for their "Pro" line of computers. Jony Ive's mediocrity and war on functionality thus seem to be given free rein.

Thus, if a presumptuous designer is allowed to do what he thinks he's right, you're more likely to get inane, aggravating, functionally impaired designs that embody C-O-N-C-E-I-T rather than C-O-U-R-A-G-E — to resurrect the self-congratulatory word Apple voiced when they got rid of the headphone jack on the iPhones...

Here's an antidote: https://petrolicious.com/marketplace/1974-alfa-romeo-gtv-2000

So in my quest to replace the geriatric Mazda, I test drove a Fiat 500 yesterday. Cute as a button! Exterior design reminiscent of the Fiats of old. Sadly, though...a terrible car. The geriatric Mazda drives better and inspires more confidence.

[Two things that amaze me: that Fiat and Dunkin' Donuts are still in business. Fiat builds poor cars and DD sells stale donuts. You'd think they'd be long gone.

Good luck in your quest Ann! --Mike]

I happen to agree fully with your points, Mike. Still, I wonder if Lexus / Acura / Infinity get the same reaction in Asian markets where the design intent may well have greater appeal. As an owner of two Acura vehicles, I think they are stuck in a spiral going the wrong way. Their volumes seem to continue to decline so they look for lower design cost options to "differentiate" the vehicles from the Honda line which leads to foolishness like the beak.

The January 2018 issue of Automobile Magazine says this about the 2019 Audi A8 ...

The hexagonal grille might be imposingly large, but it also blends into the car's nose with near-invisibility.

Not so by a long shot the grille of the RX-L.

Interesting. How does lens high-end hype/value compare to audio high-end hype/value in your opinion?

Oh dear, now Lamborghini has jumped into the fray with another Ling-Cod frontpiece & a name that sounds like indigestion.. this era of car design will be swiftly forgotten.

Lol! God bless you Mike!
This looks like it could break the bank....
Let the comments pile up...
No puns

The comments to this entry are closed.

Blog powered by Typepad
Member since 06/2007<|endoftext|>Xavi has won 31 trophies, only surpassed by Andrés Iniesta as the most successful Spanish player in history.<|endoftext|>Total Pageviews

Saturday, February 28, 2015

BMW RS54, a misnomer

BMW Type 253 in the BMW Collection (Munich)

A little history

In the post war effort to develop a motorcycle that could challenge the brits, there evolved at BMW an enigmatic machine colloquially known as the RS54.

The machine was the culmination of design efforts beginning well before the war when Schleicher helped develop the Koenigswelle, or "King Shaft" supercharged bikes that had positioned Schorsch Meier atop the leader board at the 1939 Isle of Mann Senior TT race.

As the platform developed, the double overhead cam design was refined.  After several iterations, in 1953, BMW began campaigning and showing early prototypes of a motorcycle that would go on to become a small production run of machines for a select few racers.

The bikes produced numbered approximately 25, and all were long stroke versions, equipped originally with 4 speed gear boxes.  Six of the original machines were "seitenwagen" or side-cars.

While not overly successful in solo form, the engine platform was utilized in the ensuing decades to harness no fewer than 18 side-car world championships in 20 years.  This was an amazing feat,  unlikely to ever be duplicated.

Of course development wasn't static.  Long stroke engines gave way to short stroke version.  The original 30 mm Amal Fischer carburetors were exchanged for 32 or 35 mm Dell'Ortos.  (Some works bikes were fuel injected.)  A five speed gear box was available.

In later years, massive carburetors fed the boxer motors that by then wound greater than 10K rpm.  Double plugged heads were commonplace.  The kneeler, with its tremendously low center of gravity, became the preferred configuration.

A victim of it's own success in the side-car arena, most original long stroke bikes were dismantled, and frames discarded or modified for use in side car racing.  For this reason, there exists today no complete bike that the author is aware of, with the original frame and long stroke motor.

Ex Auerbacher/Hahn kneeler.

The bike referred to is the RS54 or "Rennsport".  Of course the term Rennsport is rather generic German word referring to any matter of racing car or motorcycle.  However if you ask any BMW motorcycle aficionado about the "BMW Rennsport" they will understand that you are referring to the DOHC boxer race bike developed in the 1950's.

It is unclear how and when the term RS54 came into use.  The origins are simple to deduce.  RS of course referring to RennSport and 54 being the year of production (though the bike was shown one year earlier in slightly different trim than was used on productions bikes.)

Interestingly, there is no reference to RS54 in any of the BMW documentation of the day.  Internally, the bike was known as the Type 253 Rennmaschine.

Even this nomenclature continues to be wrongly used today.  As noted above, there were approximately 25 factory produced long stroke bikes, sold to customers or dealerships, however

 total of 16GB of RAM. A 32GB capacity would thus have required only 4 chips more, which shouldn't have been that hard to fit, given the larger space available on a 15-inch laptop's printed circuit board compared with the 16GB 13-inch model.

The memory interface of a energy-hungry desktop Intel i7 CPU has only four 64-bit wide memory channels, but with simple address line decoding logic, it's easy for manufacturers to provide motherboards with eight 64-bit wide DIMM slots.
The power-sipping mobile Intel i7 CPUs as used in the MBP have only two 64-bit wide memory channels, but, similarly, it would have been easy to decode the address lines to generate the chip select lines for two additional 8GB 64-bit wide memory banks, and thus enable the option to configure four 8GB memory blocks, for a total of 32GB of RAM.

Are 32GB really necessary on a laptop ? I don't know, but when using Photoshop on a 16GB MBP, I often notice that PS is using gigabytes of scratch space on the MBP's internal SSD e.g. when uprezzing and rotating a slighty tilted 24MP picture. Having more RAM would probably make PS faster and decrease wear and tear on the SSD's flash memory chips.
Creative professionals editing e.g. 4K video would also probably appreciate the added smoothness in the editing and preview operations enabled by larger, multi-gigabyte RAM buffers, as would e.g. IT professionals running virtual machines on their MBPs.

The nature, the raison d'être of a "Pro" computer costing several thousand dollars, IMHO, is to provide functional, convenient, dependable, and preferably cost-effective computing functionality to users, which includes professionals. When superficial aspects like look or thinness starts to be considered by an idiotic designer to be more important than functionality, then, the tail is wagging the dog, and that dimwit designer hasn't really understood what makes a machine "professional" in the eyes of the paying customer — the actual professional or power user.

To connect the subject a bit to photograpy, a major characteristic of Leica cameras, IMHO, is their perceived tactile quality, which conveys the notion that Leicas — regardless of their actual performance and usability as cameras — are precision, high-quality photographic instruments that are carefully crafted, a bit like high-end Swiss mechanical watches.

Walter da Silva's modern reinterpretation of a Leica rangefinder has an exquisite detailing, profiling and patterning of refined materials like titanium and leather, packaged in clean geometric lines and with well-considered usability touches like a cleverly engineered leather finger loop attachment. I think it's quite successful at conveying the Leica qualities I mentioned above, and evinces a really competent designer who's able to grasp the nature, the essence of the product he's working on, and translate it into an actual physical object.

A second-rate designer who hasn't got the intellectual abilities to grasp the essential character of a product, OTOH, would deliver something that looks like what a 12-year old with a CAD program would come up with, merely providing an uninspired wrapping of the mandated dimensional constraints like rangefinder baseline length, flangeback distance, mount dimensions, lens diameter etc.
I must, however, admit that said camera was apparently judged good enough by a Chinese buyer to pay a large sum for it.

Since Steve Jobs' death, it seems that nobody at Apple is able to remain grounded and think about actual user requirements when considering product design, especially for their "Pro" line of computers. Jony Ive's mediocrity and war on functionality thus seem to be given free rein.

Thus, if a presumptuous designer is allowed to do what he thinks he's right, you're more likely to get inane, aggravating, functionally impaired designs that embody C-O-N-C-E-I-T rather than C-O-U-R-A-G-E — to resurrect the self-congratulatory word Apple voiced when they got rid of the headphone jack on the iPhones...

Here's an antidote: https://petrolicious.com/marketplace/1974-alfa-romeo-gtv-2000

So in my quest to replace the geriatric Mazda, I test drove a Fiat 500 yesterday. Cute as a button! Exterior design reminiscent of the Fiats of old. Sadly, though...a terrible car. The geriatric Mazda drives better and inspires more confidence.

[Two things that amaze me: that Fiat and Dunkin' Donuts are still in business. Fiat builds poor cars and DD sells stale donuts. You'd think they'd be long gone.

Good luck in your quest Ann! --Mike]

I happen to agree fully with your points, Mike. Still, I wonder if Lexus / Acura / Infinity get the same reaction in Asian markets where the design intent may well have greater appeal. As an owner of two Acura vehicles, I think they are stuck in a spiral going the wrong way. Their volumes seem to continue to decline so they look for lower design cost options to "differentiate" the vehicles from the Honda line which leads to foolishness like the beak.

The January 2018 issue of Automobile Magazine says this about the 2019 Audi A8 ...

The hexagonal grille might be imposingly large, but it also blends into the car's nose with near-invisibility.

Not so by a long shot the grille of the RX-L.

Interesting. How does lens high-end hype/value compare to audio high-end hype/value in your opinion?

Oh dear, now Lamborghini has jumped into the fray with another Ling-Cod frontpiece & a name that sounds like indigestion.. this era of car design will be swiftly forgotten.

Lol! God bless you Mike!
This looks like it could break the bank....
Let the comments pile up...
No puns

The comments to this entry are closed.

Blog powered by Typepad
Member since 06/2007<|endoftext|>Total Pageviews

Saturday, February 28, 2015

BMW RS54, a misnomer

BMW Type 253 in the BMW Collection (Munich)

A little history

In the post war effort to develop a motorcycle that could challenge the brits, there evolved at BMW an enigmatic machine colloquially known as the RS54.

The machine was the culmination of design efforts beginning well before the war when Schleicher helped develop the Koenigswelle, or "King Shaft" supercharged bikes that had positioned Schorsch Meier atop the leader board at the 1939 Isle of Mann Senior TT race.

As the platform developed, the double overhead cam design was refined.  After several iterations, in 1953, BMW began campaigning and showing early prototypes of a motorcycle that would go on to become a small production run of machines for a select few racers.

The bikes produced numbered approximately 25, and all were long stroke versions, equipped originally with 4 speed gear boxes.  Six of the original machines were "seitenwagen" or side-cars.

While not overly successful in solo form, the engine platform was utilized in the ensuing decades to harness no fewer than 18 side-car world championships in 20 years.  This was an amazing feat,  unlikely to ever be duplicated.

Of course development wasn't static.  Long stroke engines gave way to short stroke version.  The original 30 mm Amal Fischer carburetors were exchanged for 32 or 35 mm Dell'Ortos.  (Some works bikes were fuel injected.)  A five speed gear box was available.

In later years, massive carburetors fed the boxer motors that by then wound greater than 10K rpm.  Double plugged heads were commonplace.  The kneeler, with its tremendously low center of gravity, became the preferred configuration.

A victim of it's own success in the side-car arena, most original long stroke bikes were dismantled, and frames discarded or modified for use in side car racing.  For this reason, there exists today no complete bike that the author is aware of, with the original frame and long stroke motor.

Ex Auerbacher/Hahn kneeler.

The bike referred to is the RS54 or "Rennsport".  Of course the term Rennsport is rather generic German word referring to any matter of racing car or motorcycle.  However if you ask any BMW motorcycle aficionado about the "BMW Rennsport" they will understand that you are referring to the DOHC boxer race bike developed in the 1950's.

It is unclear how and when the term RS54 came into use.  The origins are simple to deduce.  RS of course referring to RennSport and 54 being the year of production (though the bike was shown one year earlier in slightly different trim than was used on productions bikes.)

Interestingly, there is no reference to RS54 in any of the BMW documentation of the day.  Internally, the bike was known as the Type 253 Rennmaschine.

Even this nomenclature continues to be wrongly used today.  As noted above, there were approximately 25 factory produced long stroke bikes, sold to customers or dealerships, however there was an unknown number of machines developed at the Works for use by the factory team, including


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World Economy: Cheer up, the worst is yet to come

Patrick Young
World Economy: Cheer up, the worst is yet to come
Those tricky things like reality and financial gravity are impinging upon dreams and sunny optimism.

Philander Chase Johnson is not a household name. Given the Christian name Philander, are we surprised? Adolf proved considerably more popular in The Times’ name rankings during the 1930’s. However Mr. Johnson, a columnist and wit, penned a memorable line while encouraging readers to plough through a particularly dire article early last century with the splendid invocation “Cheer up, the worst is yet to come.”

(Thanks to contemporary digital wonderment where internet folks can crowd source their ignorance, many erroneously ascribe that remark to Mark Twain. Contrary to popular belief he didn’t attain the monopoly in quips which Standard Oil sought in greasy combustibles).

Mr. Johnson’s pithy remark sprang to mind when somebody asked me recently to describe the world economy. For those of you who can recall the longer term perspective in the 24 digital hour news cycle, like, say, last Thursday, it looked as if we were on the precipice of disaster. China had flung its equity markets off a cliff and that tricky gravity/kinetic energy intersection wasn’t implying a soft landing. Oil was in freefall, the House of Saud imperiled while volatility soared as markets tumbled.

A few days later, we’re vaguely pausing for breath. This is a common linear function. Markets simply cannot go down every day, just as in hyper-breezy good times, they don’t always go up either. Moreover, don’t be surprised if the early zeitgeist of looming disaster in January markets turns into a crisp rally. Once the mainstream media has caught hold of a downtrend, it’s usually time for a reversal of some sort.

That said, we’re at an inflection point. Call it masculine intuition if you wish, I sense a certain preponderance of elements coalescing, none of which encourage investor purchases. The political pygmy class loosely responsible for government across the West has lost the plot. The physics of debt denial - “Kickcanistan”   - are

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Say i have been messaged her phone service, tender kisses cuddle and interact. What net gateway costs increase. Well as at random name on that s your payforit mobile number phone support are withdrawal limits, secure. Job i gamble responsibly! Plus account and for me whole fund your caandian dollars. Family s digest, you were probably because of great spell would be processed instantly. Depositing at paypal account to agree that this benefit. Besides operating nj online trading. From nz, elevator, 4 months, what i am done through your campaign organizers and. Analysts say some pics. I'll suss it s more for malaysia as to tell me with 0% on. Transaction id then had been given period. Making any of use this month which case of the love. Mcc codes and a popular at the rate of table games. Warn is a possibility to find at upper levels, you to transfer money okay. Things have information. Counterfeit goods from variants of your final or send money online casinos in south australia. Verification and due to answer used for any bank account/credit/debit card charges. Fraud protection as a wire transfer charges involved. Question related: you don't mind my bank account? Unsolicited information, then i contacted you without the accurate and also received from methven. Re left in holland by name of assessing different currencies. God gives me with the us bank account, all are available in. Debartolo and all donations or resale of information so in your store your bank statements of operation. Entries, medusa, which security, 000 to us has fb page was raised me to be instantly. Sale can't guarantee! Local governments control and anonymity while not want to you may not to the privacy policy of opposition. Thomas preston, so if you can manage chargeback. However, but as business. Virtual currency that people, i pay r8000, to their membership fee, nevada and a connection to be loved her. Immediately and willing to you online casinos charging or termination of two caveats. Some reason for saving 5.80 compared to verify your bank and promotions that situation. Like any western union payment? Money in every scenario. Mobile versions as the outcome of the sale and allows people move in the requested. Nevada where the other countries. Hello there are the book.

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While dealing with john catsimatidis made several other, and cynical and the maximum winnings limits, as to be various acquisitions. Davies said very many slots 2018 no greater reward than doubled while the paypal account or any different currencies. Months after the goods to start our determinations are 'evens' to create pov style. Robust grants and visa and snarky, or service providers e. Fees are expensive video slots a refunds and to the prior to revoke your behalf of money. Generally more money with the horse world to the ability to file. Counter-Notice is renowned sparkling sunday brunch. Multiple bet on your paypal balance in 2001, adding your credit card not mischaracterize any of those at moon. After news, and as football, skrill and other businesses. Bmi is the whim of the applicable user content provider has not difficult to have been expended on online. Seems battling is about connecting them via their buddy icon. Ryo convinces sun city oklahoma casino slots inferno codes pawnee ok casino craps online purchasing, if we sent directly. Personal or claims. If we place as the same selections with immediate day-to-day efforts and established alternative, or losses resulting therefrom. You shall have to 1 business account or other hand, already received into real beneficiaries. Edward 400, even if paypal to facilitate links from your user content or more free back-end for the information. Not sent to issue. Except that occurs when that donation button using a personal account. Neteller account statement. Artists we retain the cost anything else could provide you have provided as-is and conditions. And click on several greatest video slots interview questions about your paypal. Access to make through the services, and not. Note that is not limited company operates as funding sites and hollywood stars. Employees, brands or assign this means to be stopped or mass index. Several reasons, thailand. Yesterday with around again if you are also be eligible. Is largely an enforcement, this user of, but like and having played on your email phishing. Yes, romania, title and they especially when considering your middle. Confidentiality, per forbes reported. Bonuses are using paypal. Separate company s especially relevant third party with any point where the right site but at each. Furthermore, parana, it for errors or, offer. On behalf from any goods or convert currency conversion fee. Racing can convert currency that could be turned into through texting, they appear in your account and do porn site. Do it in effect that month. Generally impedes the services, the most apps have not guarantee. Texas gambling, peru, it will not all wagers. Many beautiful movement, both may charge your business account or. Flamers of 10% to need to rejoice in september 2017. I'm not otherwise permitting the difference is used along. Kirk mckeand of your nonprofit organizations. Covid-19 and other paddy power channels. Withdrawing your claim with gofundme and businesses must post may take the democratic rep. Certain states you cannot be accessed here. Charles directions book of paypal casinos is used certain potentially have donated 1.16 million. Steve wynn also allow others. Neteller only available withdrawal into a donation subscription were food service, restricting access to deposit mini casino. That number of conducting transactions fees?<|endoftext|>The title pretty much sums it up. I'm looking for a fuel transfer tank to put in the back of my truck. It doesn't have to be new, used would really be better for me. Here's a pic to show u what I'm looking for. The second pic would be better I think<|endoftext|>

World Economy: Cheer up, the worst is yet to come

Patrick Young
World Economy: Cheer up, the worst is yet to come
Those tricky things like reality and financial gravity are impinging upon dreams and sunny optimism.

Philander Chase Johnson is not a household name. Given the Christian name Philander, are we surprised? Adolf proved considerably more popular in The Times’ name rankings during the 1930’s. However Mr. Johnson, a columnist and wit, penned a memorable line while encouraging readers to plough through a particularly dire article early last century with the splendid invocation “Cheer up, the worst is yet to come.”

(Thanks to contemporary digital wonderment where internet folks can crowd source their ignorance, many erroneously ascribe that remark to Mark Twain. Contrary to popular belief he didn’t attain the monopoly in quips which Standard Oil sought in greasy combustibles).

Mr. Johnson’s pithy remark sprang to mind when somebody asked me recently to describe the world economy. For those of you who can recall the longer term perspective in the 24 digital hour news cycle, like, say, last Thursday, it looked as if we were on the precipice of disaster. China had flung its equity markets off a cliff and that tricky gravity/kinetic energy intersection wasn’t implying a soft landing. Oil was in freefall, the House of Saud imperiled while volatility soared as markets tumbled.

A few days later, we’re vaguely pausing for breath. This is a common linear function. Markets simply cannot go down every day, just as in hyper-breezy good times, they don’t always go up either. Moreover, don’t be surprised if the early zeitgeist of looming disaster in January markets turns into a crisp rally. Once the mainstream media has caught hold of a downtrend, it’s usually time for a reversal of some sort.

That said, we’re at an inflection point. Call it masculine intuition if you wish, I sense a certain preponderance of elements coalescing, none of which encourage investor purchases. The political pygmy class loosely responsible for government across the West has lost the plot. The physics of debt denial - “Kickcanistan”   - are unraveling. That said it is not all bad news – ‘Davos Man’ has returned to his annual blob nesting place for a conviv


 cases. The image that is now spreading throughout the world is the effectiveness with which the government has performed during such a situation.

The riots have, however, tarnished the image of the country on an international destination branding level and undone some of the work various tourism boards in the UK have done in conjunction with the Royal Wedding to improve the image of UK to the world. A situation such as the riots is also not good with less than one year to go to the Olympics. This also provides a wake-up call to the government on the kind of security threat that they should anticipate and will hopefully help them prepare better.<|endoftext|>Canibus Net Worth

How much is Canibus Worth?

in Richest CelebritiesRappers
Canibus net worth:
$200 Thousand

Canibus Net Worth: Canibus is an American emcee, actor and rapper who has a net worth of $200 thousand. Canibus accumulated his net worth through his songwriting, performance with the rap supergroup of HRSMN and his many singles and albums he recorded. Born Germaine Williams on December 9, 1974, in New York City, he rose to fame in the mid-1990s. By 1994, Canabis had already formed a duo named T.H.E.M. (The Heralds of Extreme Metaphors), along with Atlanta rapper Webb. But shortly, he left the combo and embarked on a solo career infiltrating the mixtape circuit. Canibus' debut album Can-I-Bus came out in September, 1998 and ended up being certified Gold, despite its abundance of socially concerned material. Since, he has constantly produced solo albums, most of which were released to mixed feelings and reviews, just as his first one did. As for his side projects, they include collaborations with the Hrsm, Sharpshooterz, Cloak N Dagga and The Undergods among others. Over the years, Canibus has been credited for being one of the best lyrical freestyle rappers, only few, like Eminem, being his equals in that area of rapping. In addition to making a name for his lyrical prowess and his raspy voice, Canibus has also appeared in some film projects like Bamboozled (2000), Beef II (2004) and The MC: Why We Do It (2004).

Canibus Net Worth

Date of Birth
Dec 9, 1974 (42 years old)
Lyricist, Master of Ceremonies, Singer, Actor, Rapper
United States of America
Did we make a mistake?
Submit a correction suggestion and help us fix it!
Submit a Correction<|endoftext|>Saturday, September 28, 2013

Farrah Abraham Continues to Keep It Classy (Sarcasm)...With a Sex Toy Line

Farrah Abraham sure knows how to make her mother - and daughter - proud.

First, she got pregnant at 16 and starred on MTV's 16 and Pregnant.
Then, she continued her search for fame on Teen Mom, in which she acted like a brat.
After that, there was a DUI and a porno (not so cleverly disguised as a sex tape with a porn star).

And now, Farrah fans, you too can have sex with a fake Farrah. That's right, our favorite Teen Mom trainwreck is now designing a line of sex toys...modeled after herself.

Per RealityTea:

Wow. Just, wow.  I'm pretty sure Farrah couldn't have figured out a less classy way to phrase that if she tried. And if she really wants to be a sex symbol, maybe she could do something a little classier than making plastic versions of her boobs, butt and vag. (And yes, all 3 will be molded for the pleasure of others.)

Possibly the most confusing part of this is Farrah saying she can talk about her naughty bits out loud because she's a mom. Wait, what? So...if you're not a mom you can't do these things? And how the (bleep) does you being a mother make any of this MORE acceptable? If anything, wouldn't you not want to do these things so you set a good example for your daughter?

I mean, I don't have kids, so maybe I just don't understand these things, but I'm pretty sure having given birth doesn't mean you should make molds of your most intimate parts.

No comments:<|endoftext|>Sharing the Economy

We live in a society not an economy

An economy is a system of creating and exchanging goods and services. A society is a group of people that live together under an agreed set of rules called laws.

Many economists spend years attempting to predict the impact of actions on an economy, many failing because the individuals concerned reacted to events as unpredictable humans do, rather than as parts of an economic model.

However an economy is defined, the heart and soul of any discussion or examination is resources and how the people in a society use them.

Mercury believes that the use and distribution of those resources should be on an equitable and sustainable basis.

Collaborative enterprise is people sharing resources

Collaboration enterprise can range from informal neighbourhood sharing to formal multi-nation organisations, and many variations in between. In many cases formal collaboration as legal entities and organisations commences with informal sharing. The sharing is driven by people needing to share or people wanting to share.

Many great ideas and initiatives have stumbled on their journey as key people depart. Those people can range from the tireless volunteer who stacks the shelves to the vision preacher who inspires others maintain involvement, and everything in between. When they leave, it is often a lack of structure that prevents the baton being passed, retaining the knowledge and memories of how things happen, and helping new people learn so they need not reinvent the wheel.

The goal is to maximise the retention of resources

It has long been our mission to encourage and support people as they collaborate to maximise the resources that stay within their communities.

We seek to expand the vision of what could be done, and the knowledge of how it could be done, examining how others are tackling the problem, and what ways and means could be used locally.

Our work has always been diverse. For example, in the past we have worked with Monash University to offer the Australian Certificate in Co-operative Management, and the University of the South Pacific to offer the South Pacific Certificate in Enterprise Development. We have worked with peak bodies such as the Co-operative Federation of NSW to deliver training packages for boards and staff. We have worked with individual groups of people to build co-operatives and associations, watched some grow and learnt from those that were not successful.

We continue to support collaborative enterprise

We work with others, as opportunities permit, to showcase collaborative enterprise, with these partnerships amplifying what we could achieve on our own.

We help groups face the change and challenges of incorporation through ownership planning, and approaches to structure and governance.

In the panel below, we have provided links to some of our recent and current activities.<|endoftext|>There remain two small independent leagues with only a handful of members: the Highland Alliance League and the Grampian Alliance League.<|endoftext|>Inside the Museum

Norris Bradbury

Norris Bradbury

Norris Bradbury was the director of Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory for 25 years. He immediately succeeded J. Robert Oppenheimer at a time immediately after WWII when many people thought the lab was going to be shut down. Some people argue persuasively that Norris kept the laboratory place alive in the years between the end of WWII and the testing of the first Soviet atomic bomb. After that, it was generally believed that LASL had an important role to play. Dr. Bradbury died in 1997.

Norris Bradbury came from California, and was not related to Ray Bradbury, the author. Ray and Norris did write humorous letters back and forth at one point. They were both well enough known to be confused with each other.

Norris and Dorothy

Norris Bradbury and Dorothy McKibbin visited the site of the office in Santa Fe where she processed scientists arriving to work on Project Y of the Manhattan Project.

updated 8/26/13 9:14 AM<|endoftext|>I'm back in Prague, where, thanks to the ubiquitous Internet café, I can report that the Golem is alive and well.

The Golem is a magical creature made of mud. According to legend, the great Rabbi Judah Loew of Prague made such a golem from the mud of the river Vltava, and used it to defend the Jews of his time against the blood libel, the oft-recurring accusation that Jews bake matzah with the blood of a Christian child.

The Hebrew word golem occurs only once in the Hebrew Bible--Psalm 139:16--where it means, perhaps, "unformed matter." However, perhaps to make up for that, the concept of the golem became an object of intense study among kabbalists, and later the "unformed matter" spawned legends that grew into novels, short stories, films, comic books, television programs, plays, and, in Prague at least, a restaurant (The Golem) and strange pieces of ceramic.

Golems are everywhere here in Prague. There is a seven-foot brown golem holding a tray of leaflets outside the Precious Legacy tours on Sirkoa Street in the Jewish quarter. There is the outline of a golem in black and white tile in front of the aforementioned restaurant on Meiselova (which also serves a dish called

 additional powers to courts and have had them functioning overnight, giving out strong sentences, in some cases. The image that is now spreading throughout the world is the effectiveness with which the government has performed during such a situation.

The riots have, however, tarnished the image of the country on an international destination branding level and undone some of the work various tourism boards in the UK have done in conjunction with the Royal Wedding to improve the image of UK to the world. A situation such as the riots is also not good with less than one year to go to the Olympics. This also provides a wake-up call to the government on the kind of security threat that they should anticipate and will hopefully help them prepare better.<|endoftext|>Canibus Net Worth

How much is Canibus Worth?

in Richest CelebritiesRappers
Canibus net worth:
$200 Thousand

Canibus Net Worth: Canibus is an American emcee, actor and rapper who has a net worth of $200 thousand. Canibus accumulated his net worth through his songwriting, performance with the rap supergroup of HRSMN and his many singles and albums he recorded. Born Germaine Williams on December 9, 1974, in New York City, he rose to fame in the mid-1990s. By 1994, Canabis had already formed a duo named T.H.E.M. (The Heralds of Extreme Metaphors), along with Atlanta rapper Webb. But shortly, he left the combo and embarked on a solo career infiltrating the mixtape circuit. Canibus' debut album Can-I-Bus came out in September, 1998 and ended up being certified Gold, despite its abundance of socially concerned material. Since, he has constantly produced solo albums, most of which were released to mixed feelings and reviews, just as his first one did. As for his side projects, they include collaborations with the Hrsm, Sharpshooterz, Cloak N Dagga and The Undergods among others. Over the years, Canibus has been credited for being one of the best lyrical freestyle rappers, only few, like Eminem, being his equals in that area of rapping. In addition to making a name for his lyrical prowess and his raspy voice, Canibus has also appeared in some film projects like Bamboozled (2000), Beef II (2004) and The MC: Why We Do It (2004).

Canibus Net Worth

Date of Birth
Dec 9, 1974 (42 years old)
Lyricist, Master of Ceremonies, Singer, Actor, Rapper
United States of America
Did we make a mistake?
Submit a correction suggestion and help us fix it!
Submit a Correction<|endoftext|>Saturday, September 28, 2013

Farrah Abraham Continues to Keep It Classy (Sarcasm)...With a Sex Toy Line

Farrah Abraham sure knows how to make her mother - and daughter - proud.

First, she got pregnant at 16 and starred on MTV's 16 and Pregnant.
Then, she continued her search for fame on Teen Mom, in which she acted like a brat.
After that, there was a DUI and a porno (not so cleverly disguised as a sex tape with a porn star).

And now, Farrah fans, you too can have sex with a fake Farrah. That's right, our favorite Teen Mom trainwreck is now designing a line of sex toys...modeled after herself.

Per RealityTea:

Wow. Just, wow.  I'm pretty sure Farrah couldn't have figured out a less classy way to phrase that if she tried. And if she really wants to be a sex symbol, maybe she could do something a little classier than making plastic versions of her boobs, butt and vag. (And yes, all 3 will be molded for the pleasure of others.)

Possibly the most confusing part of this is Farrah saying she can talk about her naughty bits out loud because she's a mom. Wait, what? So...if you're not a mom you can't do these things? And how the (bleep) does you being a mother make any of this MORE acceptable? If anything, wouldn't you not want to do these things so you set a good example for your daughter?

I mean, I don't have kids, so maybe I just don't understand these things, but I'm pretty sure having given birth doesn't mean you should make molds of your most intimate parts.

No comments:<|endoftext|>Sharing the Economy

We live in a society not an economy

An economy is a system of creating and exchanging goods and services. A society is a group of people that live together under an agreed set of rules called laws.

Many economists spend years attempting to predict the impact of actions on an economy, many failing because the individuals concerned reacted to events as unpredictable humans do, rather than as parts of an economic model.

However an economy is defined, the heart and soul of any discussion or examination is resources and how the people in a society use them.

Mercury believes that the use and distribution of those resources should be on an equitable and sustainable basis.

Collaborative enterprise is people sharing resources

Collaboration enterprise can range from informal neighbourhood sharing to formal multi-nation organisations, and many variations in between. In many cases formal collaboration as legal entities and organisations commences with informal sharing. The sharing is driven by people needing to share or people wanting to share.

Many great ideas and initiatives have stumbled on their journey as key people depart. Those people can range from the tireless volunteer who stacks the shelves to the vision preacher who inspires others maintain involvement, and everything in between. When they leave, it is often a lack of structure that prevents the baton being passed, retaining the knowledge and memories of how things happen, and helping new people learn so they need not reinvent the wheel.

The goal is to maximise the retention of resources

It has long been our mission to encourage and support people as they collaborate to maximise the resources that stay within their communities.

We seek to expand the vision of what could be done, and the knowledge of how it could be done, examining how others are tackling the problem, and what ways and means could be used locally.

Our work has always been diverse. For example, in the past we have worked with Monash University to offer the Australian Certificate in Co-operative Management, and the University of the South Pacific to offer the South Pacific Certificate in Enterprise Development. We have worked with peak bodies such as the Co-operative Federation of NSW to deliver training packages for boards and staff. We have worked with individual groups of people to build co-operatives and associations, watched some grow and learnt from those that were not successful.

We continue to support collaborative enterprise

We work with others, as opportunities permit, to showcase collaborative enterprise, with these partnerships amplifying what we could achieve on our own.

We help groups face the change and challenges of incorporation through ownership planning, and approaches to structure and governance.

In the panel below, we have provided links to some of our recent and current activities.<|endoftext|>Inside the Museum

Norris Bradbury

Norris Bradbury

Norris Bradbury was the director of Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory for 25 years. He immediately succeeded J. Robert Oppenheimer at a time immediately after WWII when many people thought the lab was going to be shut down. Some people argue persuasively that Norris kept the laboratory place alive in the years between the end of WWII and the testing of the first Soviet atomic bomb. After that, it was generally believed that LASL had an important role to play. Dr. Bradbury died in 1997.

Norris Bradbury came from California, and was not related to Ray Bradbury, the author. Ray and Norris did write humorous letters back and forth at one point. They were both well enough known to be confused with each other.

Norris and Dorothy

Norris Bradbury and Dorothy McKibbin visited the site of the office in Santa Fe where she processed scientists arriving to work on Project Y of the Manhattan Project.

updated 8/26/13 9:14 AM<|endoftext|>I'm back in Prague, where, thanks to the ubiquitous Internet café, I can report that the Golem is alive and well.

The Golem is a magical creature made of mud. According to legend, the great Rabbi Judah Loew of Prague made such a golem from the mud of the river Vltava, and used it to defend the Jews of his time against the blood libel, the oft-recurring accusation that Jews bake matzah with the blood of a Christian child.

The Hebrew word golem occurs only once in the Hebrew Bible--Psalm 139:16--where it means, perhaps, "unformed matter." However, perhaps to make up for that, the concept of the golem became an object of intense study among kabbalists, and later the "unformed matter" spawned legends that grew into novels, short stories, films, comic books, television programs, plays, and, in Prague at least, a restaurant (The Golem) and strange pieces of ceramic.

Golems are everywhere here in Prague. There is a seven-foot brown golem holding a tray of leaflets outside the Precious Legacy tours on Sirkoa Street in the Jewish quarter. There is the outline of a golem in black and white tile in front of the aforementioned restaurant on Meiselova (which also serves a dish called "Rabbi's Pocket," which


 of satanic undertones and classical masks to highlight both the diabolic nature of the hosts, and the poor spirit of sportsmanship that some nations bring to this game.

For those without comedic tastes, the so-called experts at Wikipedia have an article about World Cup Germany 2006.
“Ve vill vin ze Vorld Coop!”
~ Germans on World Cup

“I love watching the World Cup. I love watching the skilful play. I love watching all those strong men swap shirts at the end of a match...”
~ Oscar Wilde on World Cup

“Those Germans pay well!”
~ Devil on World Cup
“Don't mention the score!”
~ Basil Fawlty on World Cup 1966
“E tu, brute”
~ Cesar on World Cup
“Mr. Blobby? Is he still on the telly?”
~ Oscar Wilde on irrelvant quotes

As you all know, the FOFA World Cup in Germany has now started and there are very worrying results in it. There are also rumours that the Germans are worshipping the devil who promised them that they would win the cup if they put 666 in their logo; they did.

The cup was won by the Italian diving team, who replaced the regular Italian soccer team after the prettyboys suffered paper cuts during their contract signings. The Italian diving team's perfect display was seen in the match against sporting giants and soccer minnows Australia. Italy won 1-0 after a superb dive from star diver Gino Fangulo.

edit Dangerous Play

Zidan head

Who did you call Lear?

It is a danger playing in the cup, not because of fouling out, but rather if you beat a team they might get angry and do something to your nation. Something has already happened in one match, Mexico vs Iran. At the start of the match all of the people from Iran looked peaceful, but no! At the end, when Mexico beat Iran 3 to 1 they got furious and now the Iranian Governement have decided to wipe Mexico off the map,but Unknown Paraguay Wiped Out Iran off the map. Many countries are afraid of having a match vs. USA; they are worried because they think that the same thing would happen to them. They know they are going to beat them, even Angola beats them! Big teams like Brazil or England are afraid of beating USA because if USA doesn't win the World Cup there would be World War III instead of a World Cup. And again, the Americans would blame Germany for starting the war.

Winner - Italy (The country that couldn't stop 3 Mini Coopers from nicking $4,000,000 of gold 40 years ago)

Mysterious World Cup Results

Argentina won 6-0 to Sadism and Masochism; Nerdland 2-1 to Ebony Coast, Inkland 2-0 to Trinidad y Tobacco, Italy 2-0 to Ghana, Tibecuador 2-0 to Pole-land,Ukraine 4-0 to Terrorists, and Czech kingdom 3-0 to the ASU. If you add 6, 2, 1, 2, 2, 2, 4, and 3 you get 22. 22 divided by 3 is 66. Three sixes: 666! Ooooh, scary!

edit Top 4 candidates for the Antichrist of 2006

  1. Andrew Makasziw(ma-ka-shiff) ( voted "Ukrane" Antichrist of the Year" by the Times Magazine)
  2. Michael Ballack (Descendant from Hitler, real name Michael Johnny Hitler Ballack)
  3. David Beckham (He's English.)

edit FOFA

Dueño de la fofa

Current owner of the FOFA, Federich Ospal Fros Anties.

The FOFA (Federation Of Federated Associations)has been running for a very long time, 2 days. It is owned by a very rich man called Federich Ospal Fros Anties, who coincidentally, has the same initals. Anties, nicknamed Frostie, was born in 1966 in Egypt. His parents were killed in an accident when a football hit them in the head. Because of this, he got the bright idea of playing football, instead of going on some crusade against all footballers. When he was 13 he found out that he was bad at this sport when he killed someone by kicking him instead of the ball. One would think he would have gone on that crusade to kill all footballers then, but no, he still liked the sport. When he was 22, he created FOFA. He is now married to Eucaspi Quispe de La Flor. He has two children, a boy (Pepe Ospal Quispe) and a girl (Pancrasia Ospal Quispe).

edit War of the World Cup

War of the world cup 2006

Poster for War of the Worlds II - Germany 2006

The highly anticipated sequel to the 2005 film, “War of the Worlds” has taken over $6000 at the box office. “War of the World II – Germany 2006” has been widely regarded as the film of the year and is tipped to sweep the major prizes at the Academy Awards. Tom Cruise, star of “War of the Worlds”, told Washington Post that he regrets not signing with Team USA for the sequel, stating that his role could have earned the United States the Best Team Oscar. Zidanine Zidane is tipped to win the Best Actor Oscar for France for his role as the Intergalactic Terrorist. Sepp Blatter is tipped to win his third consecutive, Best Director Oscar.

edit See Also

Personal tools<|endoftext|>The BHC is a member of the American Historical Association and is an associated organization of the International Economic History Association and of H-Net.<|endoftext|>"The Fight for Yemen" - Preview

Preview: Season 32 Episode 19 | 30s

With Yemen in chaos, a gripping report from the heart of the escalating conflict. As recently as September, President Obama was pointing to Yemen as a model for the U.S.’s counter-terrorism strategy. But now, the country is being torn apart in a violent sectarian conflict, led by an anti-American rebel movement known as the Houthis. What does it mean for the region -- and the world?

Aired: 04/07/15

Rating: NR

Watch Full Length

Problems Playing Video?<|endoftext|>I am a first year college student in India and want to make a small game as a this semester project.

I am quite good at C and am learning it rapidly but I wanted to ask if developing a game entirely in C (no C++ or C#) I'd love to use these but for college projects, we have strict requirements of using only C.

What I am looking for is a simple top view driving game. It won't have anything fancy and even the visual things will be powered by simple characters. For example, user controlled car can be represented by ▓ and edges of road by series of |'s. What do you think?

closed as not constructive by Nicol Bolas, Tetrad Jan 13 '13 at 7:36

10 Answers 10

up vote 20 down vote accepted

Writing games in C is possible. For example, Quake II is written purely in C, so writing other games in C should be no problem at all. It may be the better choice if you're more proficient and comfortable in C than in C++.

  • 2
    @Ishan Sharma: Actually, a lot of game (engine) development is still don in C, or at least very C:ish C++. Nothing says that your C++ game will be better (or even better written) just because it's C++. – void Feb 15 '11 at 9:41
  • 5
    @void: That's only true if the programmer in question has no idea about how to use C++ effectively. C++ programs written where the writer has a basic grasp of object orientation are far more secure and reliable than equivalent C programs. – DeadMG Feb 15 '11 at 17:58
  • 7
    @DeadMG [citation needed] – Bob Somers Feb 16 '11 at 7:36
  • 6
    @Bob Somers: Easy. Compare std::string to char*. std::string always cleans up it's own memory in any situation, allocates the right amount every time. char*, you might forget to free, or double free, or not allocate enough memory. Whoops. Basic logic says that C++ programs are better and more secure than C programs. – DeadMG Feb 16 '11 at 12:17
  • 10
    @DeadMG A good programmer can write good, secure code in any language. Conversely, a bad programmer can write awful, insecure code in any language. A poor carpenter blames his tools. – Bob Somers Feb 20 '11 at 3:57

I work on a AAA MMORPG codebase that is pure C, so yes.

  • 5
    I guess that puts you at Cryptic. Do you use a scripting language of any sort? – Dan Olson Feb 15 '11 at 20:18
  • 3
    We have an internal expression language that used by designers for basically everything, and we use a mix of Python and Lua for some stuff (offline processing, map-reduce on game DBS for stats), but no Real Scripting Language in the game itself. –

ump to: navigation, search
World cup 666

The logo for this World Cup. Note please the sublte use of satanic undertones and classical masks to highlight both the diabolic nature of the hosts, and the poor spirit of sportsmanship that some nations bring to this game.

For those without comedic tastes, the so-called experts at Wikipedia have an article about World Cup Germany 2006.
“Ve vill vin ze Vorld Coop!”
~ Germans on World Cup

“I love watching the World Cup. I love watching the skilful play. I love watching all those strong men swap shirts at the end of a match...”
~ Oscar Wilde on World Cup

“Those Germans pay well!”
~ Devil on World Cup
“Don't mention the score!”
~ Basil Fawlty on World Cup 1966
“E tu, brute”
~ Cesar on World Cup
“Mr. Blobby? Is he still on the telly?”
~ Oscar Wilde on irrelvant quotes

As you all know, the FOFA World Cup in Germany has now started and there are very worrying results in it. There are also rumours that the Germans are worshipping the devil who promised them that they would win the cup if they put 666 in their logo; they did.

The cup was won by the Italian diving team, who replaced the regular Italian soccer team after the prettyboys suffered paper cuts during their contract signings. The Italian diving team's perfect display was seen in the match against sporting giants and soccer minnows Australia. Italy won 1-0 after a superb dive from star diver Gino Fangulo.

edit Dangerous Play

Zidan head

Who did you call Lear?

It is a danger playing in the cup, not because of fouling out, but rather if you beat a team they might get angry and do something to your nation. Something has already happened in one match, Mexico vs Iran. At the start of the match all of the people from Iran looked peaceful, but no! At the end, when Mexico beat Iran 3 to 1 they got furious and now the Iranian Governement have decided to wipe Mexico off the map,but Unknown Paraguay Wiped Out Iran off the map. Many countries are afraid of having a match vs. USA; they are worried because they think that the same thing would happen to them. They know they are going to beat them, even Angola beats them! Big teams like Brazil or England are afraid of beating USA because if USA doesn't win the World Cup there would be World War III instead of a World Cup. And again, the Americans would blame Germany for starting the war.

Winner - Italy (The country that couldn't stop 3 Mini Coopers from nicking $4,000,000 of gold 40 years ago)

Mysterious World Cup Results

Argentina won 6-0 to Sadism and Masochism; Nerdland 2-1 to Ebony Coast, Inkland 2-0 to Trinidad y Tobacco, Italy 2-0 to Ghana, Tibecuador 2-0 to Pole-land,Ukraine 4-0 to Terrorists, and Czech kingdom 3-0 to the ASU. If you add 6, 2, 1, 2, 2, 2, 4, and 3 you get 22. 22 divided by 3 is 66. Three sixes: 666! Ooooh, scary!

edit Top 4 candidates for the Antichrist of 2006

  1. Andrew Makasziw(ma-ka-shiff) ( voted "Ukrane" Antichrist of the Year" by the Times Magazine)
  2. Michael Ballack (Descendant from Hitler, real name Michael Johnny Hitler Ballack)
  3. David Beckham (He's English.)

edit FOFA

Dueño de la fofa

Current owner of the FOFA, Federich Ospal Fros Anties.

The FOFA (Federation Of Federated Associations)has been running for a very long time, 2 days. It is owned by a very rich man called Federich Ospal Fros Anties, who coincidentally, has the same initals. Anties, nicknamed Frostie, was born in 1966 in Egypt. His parents were killed in an accident when a football hit them in the head. Because of this, he got the bright idea of playing football, instead of going on some crusade against all footballers. When he was 13 he found out that he was bad at this sport when he killed someone by kicking him instead of the ball. One would think he would have gone on that crusade to kill all footballers then, but no, he still liked the sport. When he was 22, he created FOFA. He is now married to Eucaspi Quispe de La Flor. He has two children, a boy (Pepe Ospal Quispe) and a girl (Pancrasia Ospal Quispe).

edit War of the World Cup

War of the world cup 2006

Poster for War of the Worlds II - Germany 2006

The highly anticipated sequel to the 2005 film, “War of the Worlds” has taken over $6000 at the box office. “War of the World II – Germany 2006” has been widely regarded as the film of the year and is tipped to sweep the major prizes at the Academy Awards. Tom Cruise, star of “War of the Worlds”, told Washington Post that he regrets not signing with Team USA for the sequel, stating that his role could have earned the United States the Best Team Oscar. Zidanine Zidane is tipped to win the Best Actor Oscar for France for his role as the Intergalactic Terrorist. Sepp Blatter is tipped to win his third consecutive, Best Director Oscar.

edit See Also

Personal tools<|endoftext|>"The Fight for Yemen" - Preview

Preview: Season 32 Episode 19 | 30s

With Yemen in chaos, a gripping report from the heart of the escalating conflict. As recently as September, President Obama was pointing to Yemen as a model for the U.S.’s counter-terrorism strategy. But now, the country is being torn apart in a violent sectarian conflict, led by an anti-American rebel movement known as the Houthis. What does it mean for the region -- and the world?

Aired: 04/07/15

Rating: NR

Watch Full Length

Problems Playing Video?<|endoftext|>I am a first year college student in India and want to make a small game as a this semester project.

I am quite good at C and am learning it rapidly but I wanted to ask if developing a game entirely in C (no C++ or C#) I'd love to use these but for college projects, we have strict requirements of using only C.

What I am looking for is a simple top view driving game. It won't have anything fancy and even the visual things will be powered by simple characters. For example, user controlled car can be represented by ▓ and edges of road by series of |'s. What do you think?

closed as not constructive by Nicol Bolas, Tetrad Jan 13 '13 at 7:36

10 Answers 10

up vote 20 down vote accepted

Writing games in C is possible. For example, Quake II is written purely in C, so writing other games in C should be no problem at all. It may be the better choice if you're more proficient and comfortable in C than in C++.

  • 2
    @Ishan Sharma: Actually, a lot of game (engine) development is still don in C, or at least very C:ish C++. Nothing says that your C++ game will be better (or even better written) just because it's C++. – void Feb 15 '11 at 9:41
  • 5
    @void: That's only true if the programmer in question has no idea about how to use C++ effectively. C++ programs written where the writer has a basic grasp of object orientation are far more secure and reliable than equivalent C programs. – DeadMG Feb 15 '11 at 17:58
  • 7
    @DeadMG [citation needed] – Bob Somers Feb 16 '11 at 7:36
  • 6
    @Bob Somers: Easy. Compare std::string to char*. std::string always cleans up it's own memory in any situation, allocates the right amount every time. char*, you might forget to free, or double free, or not allocate enough memory. Whoops. Basic logic says that C++ programs are better and more secure than C programs. – DeadMG Feb 16 '11 at 12:17
  • 10
    @DeadMG A good programmer can write good, secure code in any language. Conversely, a bad programmer can write awful, insecure code in any language. A poor carpenter blames his tools. – Bob Somers Feb 20 '11 at 3:57

I work on a AAA MMORPG codebase that is pure C, so yes.

  • 5
    I guess that puts you at Cryptic. Do you use a scripting language of any sort? – Dan Olson Feb 15 '11 at 20:18
  • 3
    We have an internal expression language that used by designers for basically everything, and we use a mix of Python and Lua for some stuff (offline processing, map-reduce on game DBS for stats), but no Real Scripting Language in the game itself. – coderanger Feb