Image Optimization

A main aspect of any website is the image and graphics that is in it. A deciding factor of the popularity of your site is how it looks like and to create an interesting page you need to synchronize your text with appropriate images and videos sometimes. However adding more and more number of images not only increases the total money you will have to spend but also the total time it takes your site to load.

All users do not use fast broadband connections so if you make your sites too heavy adding more and more videos, you may not connect with these users. Image optimization is a necessary tool that you must employ to increase the rating of your site and take it to a prominent rank in the search engines.

Although it will be your website designer who will take care of the relevant content of your site you should also be knowledgeable about the image optimization tips...Read more>>

Domain Name Selection

You are known best by your name. If you have a longer name, your companions tend to change it to a shorter ‘nick’ name. The same is the case with the domain name of your site. It’s the phrase that you company will be referred to by, so you wouldn’t want a visitor to recollect your site as ‘www…something’!

While it a common belief that all the good domain names are taken there is no limit to what you can come out with your smart imagination. Domain names are very important factor in marketing of your business, so come up with a unique one.

With time domain names are getting longer and thus harder to read. One needs more than a glance to remember the actual phrases that names your site. Well…it’s a drawback on your part. The allowed character length previously for domain names was 22 but it has been drastically increased to 63. This did give companies to come up with more options to choose from but again the full utilization of the limit meant that they were losing on versatility. It has been seen sometimes that the domain name is the whole...Read more>>

Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is a business whereby an affiliate is rewarded for each customer he adds to the business through his efforts. This affiliate marketing strategy involves rewards like cash benefits, gifts, reward sites and various others. Due to the efforts of the affiliate the whole business as a whole increases and a commission as a result is well deserved.

Affiliate marketing is similar to the marketing strategy employed by the internet marketing strategies to some extent because advertising is a prime tool. The affiliate marketing strategies are less orthodox than the internet strategies however.

Internet marketing affiliate programs involve e-mail marketing, search engine optimization, various paid marketing method and display advertising. However the affiliates marketing involves publishing of various reviews of the products and services that are offered by the partner site. This leads to transfer of a proportion of traffic from one site to another. This is often overlooked and disregarded by the advertisers but the affiliates marketing strategies still hold a position in...Read more>>

Link Building

Link building is the very essence of World Wide Web. It is through the links that information is shared all over. It is an important form of internet marketing strategy. Third party websites that feature the link to your site increase traffic to your site and your potential readers are increased.

The hyperlinks that appear in the third party websites enhances the credibility of your site, generate the awareness about the existence of your site, promotes it in search engines such as Google and ultimately increases the traffic. Thus link baiting plays an important part in promoting and selling your product and service. Acquire the appropriate link building permits in the sites that the world refers and then the world itself becomes your marketplace.

The main aim of the link building strategy is to increase your popularity status and thus add value to your site. The search engines do have some criteria in displaying your site as the most popular result but more weigh...Read more>>

How to make a good home page

The first impression matters, just as clothes and dressing are to interviews, so are homepages to websites. The way information is structured and the positioning of the layout plays a critical part in keeping your potential visitor on to explore the rest of your website, basically its one of the main factors that makes them want to linger on longer on your website.

First things first, a homepage should not have too much information cluttered together; making it difficult to read and know what is happening. You would not want to "scare" away any potential visitor they moment they enter your homepage and are bombarded with tons and tons of information. The key is simplicity...Read more>>

Woman gets third tattoo at 101

SPRING HILL, Fla., Aug. 22 (UPI) -- It took a while to get going, but 101-year-old Mimi Rosenthal now has her third tattoo, courtesy of a Florida tattoo artist.

This one went on her left arm, and next time she might get one on her butt, she said in an interview in the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times.

The first tattoo came at 99; it was a dime-sized butterfly; at 100 she had a small flower tattooed on her other leg. This time she picked a sunflower, perhaps in recognition of Kansas, where she was born.

"Her skin is so fragile, it's like uncharted territory," said Spring Hill, Fla., tattoo artist Michelle Gallo-Kohlas, who is responsible for all of Rosenthal's inkings.

The work took longer than expected, but Rosenthal liked the results.

"It's pretty," she said in the interview. So, will there be a next time?

"Next time I'm getting it on my butt," Rosenthal joked.

UPI

Giant Baby Is Weight Of A Six-Year-Old

When he was born in China's southern Hunan province, Xiao Lei weighed in at around 3.5kg (7.7lbs), only just above the average weight of a newborn baby, according to Hunan television.

But a fierce appetite has seen him expand to 20kg (44lbs) - double the size of most babies of his age.

His mother, Cheng Qingyu, has said he is fed only with her breast milk.

"I've never had him take any milk powder or anything that contains hormones. Why would I need to worry?"

However, doctors at Hunan Children's Hospital have said unless Xiao Lei loses weight, it will cause future problems for his heart and blood pressure.

source:yahoo

Woman ordered to pay damages to neighbor over noise from hitting futons

OSAKA -- The Osaka District Court on Aug. 24 ordered a 63-year-old woman to pay 1 million yen in damages to her 72-year-old male next-door neighbor after years of bothering him with noise by hitting futons.

The woman exceeded a court-ordered limit that had been agreed to in an earlier settlement, and the neighbor brought the woman to court, seeking 1.86 million yen in damages for infringing on his right to live peacefully.

In handing down his decision, Judge Akihiro Takemura said, "The futon hitting exceeded the limit that social norms dictate could reasonably be withstood, and infringed on the victim's rights. Additionally, the defendant did not take sincere efforts to respond (to the victim's complaints)."

According to the court ruling, the woman had been bothering her neighbor by frequently hitting futons ever since he moved next to the woman in Takatsuki, Osaka Prefecture, in 2000. The two residences' outer walls are only a meter apart at their closest, and the problem could not be resolved even after the man brought the issue up with the neighborhood association.

In April of 2005, the man filed with the Osaka District Court for an injunction to stop the futon hitting. A settlement was reached on conditions including that the woman would not hit futons more than twice a day, would not hit for 10 minutes or longer at a time, and would not hit between 6 p.m. and 9 a.m.

However, even after the settlement, the woman continued to hit futons more than the agreed upon number of times. When the man complained, she is said to have responded, "If you don't like it, go away," and hit the futons even more loudly.

The Mainichi Daily News

Mother and son charged in theft of video games

CONCORD, N.H. – Police in Salem, N.H., have charged a mother-and-son team with the theft of more than $1,600 worth of video games from a Best Buy store. Police said 64-year-old Luise LaQuerre and her 20-year-old son, Christopher Andrukaitis, both of Amesbury, Mass., were charged with felony theft after store security officers on Monday spotted the son stuffing video games into a cloth bag carried by his mother.

They were stopped when they left the store. Officers found in their car an additional trove of video games believed to have been stolen earlier in the day from the same store. Police put the value of the video games at $1,670.

Both suspects were released on bail. They could not immediately be reached for comment.

AP

Japanese torches home after mum dumps toys

A Japanese man has admitted to burning down his family home after his mother threw away some of his favourite robot toys from the "Gundam" animation series.

Yoshifumi Takabe, aged 30 and living with his mother, said he had become suicidal after she dumped some of the robots, of which he had enough to fill 300 boxes stacked to the ceiling, the Sports Nippon said Wednesday.

The blaze on August 9 last year completely destroyed their two-storey wooden house in Kasai, Hyogo prefecture, but no one was injured.

"The Gundam figures are like the partners I spend my life with," he reportedly said after pleading guilty at western Kobe's District Court. "I wanted to die with them in a fire if they were to be thrown out."

The Mobile Suit Gundam series, based on an animation TV series which started in the late 1970s, is about space wars fought by gigantic robots.

source:yahoo

Japan blind-school teacher in drag arrested for panty theft

A teacher at a school for the blind in Japan has been arrested for allegedly stealing a woman's underpants from a laundromat while dressed in a miniskirt and wearing a blonde wig, police said Wednesday.

Police later confiscated some 150 female garments, including more underwear and knee-high boots, from the home of Tsuyoshi Hirano, 43, a teacher at a prefectural school for the visually impaired, the Nikkan Sports daily reported.

The victim, a 22-year-old woman, realised her underpants were missing from a drying tumbler in a coin laundromat in Fukuoka, western Japan.

When she saw Hirano get into a car parked outside, she reported the licence plate number to police, Kyodo News reported.

"At first glance, I knew 'she' was a 'he,'" she reportedly told police. The man was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of theft, Fukuoka police said.

source:yahoo

Most US students think Beethoven is a dog

Most young Americans entering university this year can't write in cursive, think email is too slow, that Beethoven's a dog and Michelangelo a computer virus, according to an annual list compiled by two academics at a US college.

To students who will get their bachelor's degrees in 2014, Czechoslovakia has never existed, Fergie is a pop singer, not a duchess; Clint Eastwood is a sensitive movie director, not Dirty Harry; and John McEnroe stars in TV ads, not on the tennis court, Beloit College's "Mindset" list says.

The Mindset list was first compiled in 1998, for the class of 2002, by Beloit humanities professor Tom McBride and former public affairs director Ron Nief.

It was intended as a reminder to faculty at the university that references quickly become dated, but quickly evolved to become a hugely popular annual list that gives a snapshot of how things have changed, and chronicles key cultural and political events that have shaped a generation.

In the first Mindset list, McBride and Nief found that youngsters born in 1980 had ever known only one pope - Polish-born John Paul II, who was elected to the papacy in 1978 and died in 2008.

For the class of 2003 -- born in 1981 and featured on the 1999 Mindset list -- Yugoslavia never existed and they were puzzled why Solidarity was sometimes spelled with a capital S.

Solidarity with a capital S was the first and only independent trade union in the Soviet bloc. It was created in 1980 and went on to negotiate in 1989 a peaceful end to communism in Poland, making the country the first to escape Moscow's grip.

Nief and McBride take a year to put the list together, gathering outside contributions and poring over journals, literary works, and the popular media from the year of the incoming university students' birth.

"Then we present the ideas to every 18-year-old whose attention we can get and we wait for the 'mindset moment' -- the blank stare that comes back at you that makes you realize they have no idea what you're talking about," Nief told AFP.

Those moments make it onto the list, alongside interesting historical snippets like the fact that since the class of 2004 was born in 1982, all but one national election in the United States has had a candidate in it named George Bush.

The list also chronicles geopolitical changes, and sometimes depressingly highlights how little progress has been made on key issues, such as the fight against AIDS.

The class of 2004, for instance, "never referred to Russia and China as 'the Reds'", and in the year they were born, 1982, "AIDS was found to have killed 164 people and finding a cure for the new disease was designated a 'top priority' for government-sponsored research."

The class of 2005 -- born in 1983 -- thought of Sarajevo as a war zone, not an Olympic host, and had no idea what carbon paper was.

Apartheid never existed in South Africa for the class of 2006, and for the class of 2007, "Banana Republic has always been a store, not a puppet government in Latin America."

The list is a mirror of how rapidly perceptions can change: to the class of 2013, boxer Mike Tyson was "always a felon" but to students who graduated five years earlier, Tyson was "always a contender."

The list makes some people feel old, like those who remember what Michael Jackson looked like when he was singing in the Jackson Five or recall the days when there were only a handful of channels on television.

But they're not the only ones who get the blues over the list.

"There are 25- and 26-year-olds that tell us they feel old when they read the list," Nief said.

"Just two years ago, there were some students who learned to type on a typewriter," but others in the graduating class of 2012 didn't know that IBM had ever made typewriters, said Nief.

Few students in the class of 2009 knew how to tie a tie and most thought Iran and Iraq had never been at war with each other.

And for US students who got their bachelor's degrees this year, Germany was never divided, professional athletes have always competed in the Olympics, there have always been reality shows on television and smoking has never been allowed on US airlines.

source:yahoo

Boy, 13, struck by lightning -- on Friday the 13th

Friday the 13th proved suitably unlucky for one 13 year-old boy who was struck by lightning before being taken to hospital -- at 13:13 on the dreaded date.

The boy, who has not been named, was treated for a minor burn after being hit along with two others at an air show in Suffolk, a spokeswoman said.

Staff at the St Johns Ambulance service said there had been heavy rain all day before they witnessed a big flash of lightning and a loud clap of thunder over the sea off the Suffolk coast.

"We got a call that someone had been struck by lightning so we immediately sent our paramedics to the scene, followed by an ambulance," said Rex Clarke, head of the team of St John Ambulance volunteers at the event.

"Lightning strikes can cause cardiac arrest, but when our volunteers arrived the boy was conscious and breathing."

Clarke added that two other people were treated for injuries from lightning burns in the space of twenty minutes, and that all three people were holding umbrellas at the time which "acts as a conductor for electricity."

Jason Gillingham, a County Ambulance Officer and on scene at the show, said: "This was a minor burn to the boy's shoulder, but he was taken to hospital and is recovering well."

source:yahoo

Anglers mourn death of "marriage wrecking" giant fish

Anglers were mourning on Tuesday the death of a carp believed to be Britain's largest freshwater fish, who tipped the scales at almost five stone (32 kgs) and was nicknamed "the marriage wrecker."

Two Tone, a mirror carp who weighed 67lb 14oz, was found floating on the surface of Conningbrook Lake in Kent where it lived. It was believed to be about 45 years old and to have died from old age.

The fish, named from its skin colour, was only caught once or twice a year and no more than 50 times in its lifetime which made him a prize catch amongst anglers across the country.

"It's a unique creature. It's genetically unusual. There's no other fish ever grown to that size in this country," Conningbrook fisheries manager Chris Logsdon told Reuters Television.

"Obviously it was the pinnacle of carp angling. It was the fish that everybody wanted to catch."

It was the hours that some anglers spent trying to catch Two Tone that won the fish the nickname "the marriage wrecker."

Angler Lee Jackson wrote a book called "Just For The Record: My Quest For Two Tone" about his battle trying to snare Two Tone which he won in the end.

"It really became an obsession to catch that fish. It took me fishing it in the spring, summer and autumn most weeks, fishing it for about 50 hours per week, and it took me six years. It was a pretty difficult one to track down," said Lee Jackson.

Two Tone will be buried next to the lake next Sunday with anglers sending online tributes to the fish that got away.

source:yahoo

Woman suffers from Bananaphobia

A 21-year-old woman with a fear of bananas has been diagnosed as suffering from Bananaphobia. Fran Dando is so scared of the fruit that even seeing one causes her to shake, sweat and sometimes vomit.

"It began when I was 7 and my brother put a banana in my bed as a joke," Metro quotes her as saying. "I felt his horrible, slimy thing underneath my body. I was frozen in panic and hyperventilating. Ever since then, if I see one the same feeling comes back."

The children's worker admitted that she is embarrassed by the fear. "I generally do not explain my fear unless a situation comes up," she said. "Then I will say, 'Sorry I am going to have to leave the room'. It is embarrassing - it is such a nonsensical fear."

However, Dando's 2-year-old son has not developed the phobia and loves bananas, which means she has to come into contact with them. "I have to use a blanket to pick them up and put them in the trolley and then when I am at home I have to wear rubber gloves and use a tea towel to open one and give it to him," she said.

DS

China demands answers after 8 Hong Kong tourists killed in Philippine bus hijacking

MANILA, Philippines – MANILA, Philippines (AP) — China demanded answers Tuesday from the Philippines after a 12-hour hostage drama in the heart of Manila ended with eight Hong Kong tourists dead along with their Filipino hostage-taker after a day of botched negotiations.

Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said his government was "appalled" and telephoned his Philippine counterpart Alberto Romulo to voice concern, while Hong Kong residents expressed outrage and media outlets in the Chinese territory denounced Philippine police as incompetent.

Dismissed policeman Rolando Mendoza, 55, was armed with a M16 rifle and a pistol when he seized the busload of 21 Hong Kong tourists and four locals to demand his reinstatement on the force. The ordeal ended in bloodshed on live TV with police storming the bus and killing the gunman after he fired at the tourists, killing eight of them.

"The Chinese government demands the Philippine government launch a thorough investigation into the incident and inform the Chinese side of related details as soon as possible," Yang said, according to a statement posted on his ministry's website.

At the Philippine Consulate in Hong Kong, a wealthy former British colony unaccustomed to violence, several dozen protesters chanted: "Strongly condemn the Philippine government for being careless about human life!"

Philippine police defended their action but promised to review all events leading to the deaths. "There will be an internal audit. We will look at whether what we did was right," national police spokesman Agrimero Cruz told The Associated Press.

"Of course what happened was far from ideal. Nevertheless, we are congratulating our personnel because despite the lack of equipment ... they risked life and limb," he said.

President Benigno Aquino III, faced with his first major crisis since taking office in June, said the incident showed the need for more police training and better equipment. "How can I be satisfied when there were people who died?" Aquino told reporters late Monday.

Some police commandos lacked helmets and appropriate communication equipment, and the team had no ladder vehicle to help climb aboard the seized bus while storming it — shortcomings that hampered a speedy response.

According to newspaper reports, Mendoza was among five officers who had been charged with robbery, extortion and grave threats after a Manila hotel chef filed a complaint alleging they falsely accused him of using drugs to extort money. Mendoza was fired last year but claimed he was innocent.

As negotiations got under way in Manila's downtown where the bus was parked, the outcome at first looked promising with Mendoza freeing nine hostages — six tourists, a Filipino photographer and his Filipino assistant. Fifteen tourists and the Filipino driver were left on board.

Then the situation unraveled. Mendoza demanded a signed promise from the city ombudsman that his case would be reviewed, but its delivery was delayed for hours, in part by Manila's notorious traffic, and when it finally arrived he rejected it as insufficient.

Mayor Alfredo Lim, a former Manila police chief, said the regional police commander Leocadio Santiago issued an order reinstating Mendoza "just to accommodate his request, just to peacefully resolve this hostage situation."

"But the problem was it wasn't delivered before the shooting started," he told DZMM radio on Tuesday.

Police made an initial attempt to board the bus after Mendoza grew agitated while talking to his brother and shot at a police sharpshooter, said Nelson Yabut, head of the assault team.

The Filipino bus driver later managed to escape and reported that Mendoza had fired at the tourists. Mendoza was then shot in the head, police lobbed tear gas into the bus and commandos stormed the vehicle by smashing windows and the back door with sledgehammers.

Police managed to rescue eight passengers during the ordeal, many of them wounded and one of whom later died in hospital. Mendoza and seven passengers were lying dead, one of them slumped on the bus steps.

"I hid under a seat (when the gunman started to fire)," Wang Zhuoyao, 15, told reporters from a hospital bed. "Then the police dispersed gas. People in the bus were struggling. I could hear that many people couldn't breathe."

A freed hostage who gave only her surname, Ng, told Hong Kong reporters that she saw her husband killed by Mendoza after he tried to subdue the gunman.

"He was very brave. He rushed forward from the back of the bus. He wanted to prevent the gunman from killing people. He sacrificed himself," she said.

She said that Mendoza at first "did not want to kill us, but since the negotiation failed, he shot to kill people."

Tourism Secretary Alberto Lim said the hostage crisis would likely damage the country's tourism industry. "We will have cancellations," he told The AP early Tuesday in a Manila hospital, where some of the former hostages were confined. "I'm hoping it will be forgotten soon enough."

Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang said he was "disappointed" at how the incident was handled. His government canceled planned tour groups to Philippines and asked Hong Kong tourists in the country to leave.

Tsang told reporters that one of the survivors was in serious condition with a head wound.

Chinese Embassy spokesman Ethan Sun Yi said a chartered plane was available to fly survivors home.

Many Hong Kong newspapers printed mastheads in black out of respect for the victims, and flags in the territory flew at half-staff.

"Filipino police incompetent," Hong Kong's Ming Pao Daily News said in a front-page headline.

"Clearly, if local police used more decisive and professional rescue methods, maybe the bloody tragedy could have been avoided," the Hong Kong Economic Journal said in an editorial on Tuesday.

The South China Morning Post called the killings "a wake-up call" for the Philippines to boost security and take gun-control measures.

Fox News

Manhwa: Honggane by Hwang Mi-ri

The story revolves around the characters of the Hong family. The protagonist is a girl by the name of Hong Nanhee, the middle child of a family which runs a tae kwon do dojang (equivalent of a karate dojo. She has an older brother, Nanpa, who is the jjang of a technical high school, Gong-goh, and younger brother, Nanmyoung. Nanhee has a second degree in taekwondo, attends a girls’ high school and has a tendency says what she wants to say without realizing the consequences.

When Nanhee’s younger brother was born, she was left in the care of her older brother, Nanpa, who took special care in raising her; he has a sister-complex. He tends to be overly-protective of her: he gets rid of any guys that hang around her by getting her underlings to tail her, making it almost impossible to have any male friends..Read more>>

My Girlfriend is a Nine-Tailed Fox / My Girlfriend is a Gumiho

This show revolves around a guy named, Cha Tae Woong, who accidentally releases a gumiho, a legendary fox with nine tails that eats the livers of humans. When he finds out that she is a gumiho, he ends up doing crazy things to prevent the girl from eating his liver... more info>>

Review
Mi-ho, the gumiho, was imprisioned in a painting for 500 years, until ChaDae-woong. Being an orphan, Dae-woong was brought up by his grandfather and aunt, his grandfather happens to be very rich. As a result of being brought up in a luxurious environment and spoilt when younger, Dae-woong becomes conceited and lazy, always wanting the easy way of in life and believes that money can solve all his problems. Dae-woong has always wanted to be a famous actor and thinks that he can use (his grandfather's) money to buy his way to become one.

Dae-woong is in his early twenties and his immature way of thinking causes his grandfather to try to be stricter with him, to make him a more sensible person... by threatening him with his bank account. This often results in hilarious situations where Dae-woong gets into trouble...read more>>

Episode Guide

• Episode 1 [Watch it]
• Episode 2 [Watch it]
• Episode 3 [Watch it]
• Episode 4 [Watch it]
• Episode 5 [Watch it]
• Episode 6 [Watch it]

How to Protect Your Computer From Viruses: A Simple Guide

Computer viruses are mysterious and grab our attention. Every time a new virus hits, it makes the news as it spreads quickly. Viruses can do anything from annoying the user to deleting your entire computer. With more computers are being connected to the Internet, viruses are very easy to be spread. While computers will never be 100% secure, there are many steps that you can take to prevent your computer from being infected with viruses.

What is a Computer Virus?

A computer virus is basically a malicious computer code that either harms computer data by writing over reserved areas of the operating system or attaches itself to other programs...Read more>>

Simple Steps to Introduce Children to Computers (Simple Steps)

In this day and age where technology is so common and the internet so easily available, the sooner we learn about it the better it would be; it has become one of the necessities in life. And the easiest way to accomplish that is to start from an early age getting acquainted with computers - typing, getting information from the internet and the necessary hand-eye coordination required for using the mouse as well as accessing programs.

One of the easiest ways for children to get acquainted with the computer is through games. There are many games out there in the market that cater to this, allowing children to discover the joy of using the computer, and coordinating using the mouse along with coordinating their hand-eye coordination for the computer. There are even programs or games for children to cultivate typing skills, making it fun to learn and enhancing their efficiency with the computer. Children nowadays seem to have an innate ability to quickly assimilate using the computer with much more ease then if an adult were to start learning how to use the computer. Getting them familiar with common parts of the computer like the monitor, mouse and CPU are good ways to start - teaching them how to switch on and shut down a computer properly...Read more>>

Wireshark – Introduction

A simple introduction to the world’s foremost network protocol analyzer used by network administrators.

Wireshark is a open-source packets analyzer which is free, and used by network administrators. It used for network analysis, troubleshooting, software and communications protocol development, as well as for educational purposes. Wireshark runs on various operating systems (platforms) such as Linux, Mac OS X, BSD, and Solaris, and on Microsoft Windows; requiring GTK+, GLib, libpcap and some other libraries in order to run...Read more>>

Lan and Wan – Basic Concepts

A brief introduction about LAN and WAN.

LAN – Local Area Networks – is used to refer to networks that are limited to a particular/single site, building or location; connecting network devices over a relatively short distance (e.g. office building, school, or gome etc…). LANs are used when an organization remains within a single location, however when the organization expands beyond their own premises/location, a WAN is needed to geographically network the separate areas of the organization together. Sometimes one building will contain a few small LANs (e.g. one per room), with a LAN occasionally spanning a group of nearby buildings.

The network topology of LAN is peer-to-peer networking, where the resources are shared between terminals. In general, LAN networks are cheaper as they do no rely on leased lines and utilize less hardware.

In addition to operating in a limited space, LANs are also typically owned, controlled, and managed by a single person/organization. They tend to use certain connectivity technologies such as Ethernet and Token Ring (primarily)...Read more>>

How Important is That Degree?

As society advances and basic needs are most often being met, things that were not considered important in the past have taken priority. In the past, people could easily get a job and progress pretty well, as long as they were hard working; education was important but not as crucial as it is today.

Nowadays, just as clothes are to first impressions, so is that degree to an individuals’ first job or even a job with a good salary. Although it is inevitable in this world that we live in that experience is important to survive in any trade/profession, the first thing that companies look for is that piece of paper before looking at an individual’s experience.

A passport into the world of any profession, that is what having a degree means today, especially for professions that have need of certification and pay well, such as architects, doctors, engineers, lawyers, programmers, scientists, teachers etc…Read more>>

How to Protect Your Computer From Viruses: A Simple Guide

A simple guide for people to protect their computers against viruses and such with some basic information and steps.

Computer viruses are mysterious and grab our attention. Every time a new virus hits, it makes the news as it spreads quickly. Viruses can do anything from annoying the user to deleting your entire computer. With more computers are being connected to the Internet, viruses are very easy to be spread. While computers will never be 100% secure, there are many steps that you can take to prevent your computer from being infected with viruses...Read more>>

Manhwa: Bride of The Water God by by Yun Mi-Kyung

A village suffering tom a severe drought, tries to appease the water god, Habaek by sacrificing the most beautiful girl in the village as Habaek's bride. Soah, a girl from the village is chosen to be that sacrifice. But instead of dying, she is unexpectedly rescued by Habaek and brought to his water kingdom. Soah was prophesized to love two men in her life when she was younger. She soon finds herself attracted to Mui, who she believes is Habaek's (adult version) cousin, unaware that Habaek (the child version) and Mui are the same person.

The reason why Habaek's powers diminish in the day, causing him to revert into his child
form, was due to the curse that Nakbin put on him. Nakbin was Habaek's first wife who died after placing the curse on him, in the hope that the Emperor would lose interest in Habaek since he could no longer use his powers during the day in the battle against the Sun Gods; Habaek's affinity with water...Read more>>

Manhwa: Miunohri to Swan by Hwang Mi-ri

This story revolves around Go Mi-oh, the youngest of three daughters , who desires to be beautiful and be accepted. Mi-oh's two elder sisters, as well as everyone else in her family is beautiful; with her being the only exception - she is over-weight, short, and has messy curly hair. Her father is the president of a company called Dark Hunters the story.

Due to her appearance, which differs so much from her family, Mi-oh is left out of all family gatherings and her sisters refuse to acknowledge her as their sibling. She resorts to living on her own in a studio apartment. As if her family life were not miserable enough, at school she is constantly bullied and humiliated by Kim Do-jin, simply because he deems her as ugly and cannot stand the sight of her...Read more>>

Manhwa: Hot Blooded Girl by Hwang Mi-ri

The story revolves around Kang Haji, a girl who was often bullied by her brothers when she was younger: being a guinea pig for her brothers, who use their newly acquired fencing and martial arts skills on her. In order to escape her brothers, she runs to her friend Te-hu for help. However, indeed of protection, he taunts herby telling her she is a coward who needs constant protection. He even insults her by calling her a puppy.

Instead of breaking down and crying at the lack of help and insult, she resolves to grow stronger. She decides to train vigorously everyday. After a couple of years, Haji goes from being a scared girl who cries for help to becoming the Jjang (boss of a gang) of the Doberman gang. Misfortune soon strikes Haji: she gets into an accident with a truck. As a result of the accident, Haji's body falls into a coma and her soul is accidentally relocated into the beautiful but frail body of Han Aram...Read more>>

Manhwa: Legend of Nereid by Hwang Mi-Ri

The manhwa is inspired from the Greek mythology, where the Nereids were sea nymphs. In the story, however, Nereids are known as people who are good swimmers, with many of them becoming ocean warriors. The story revolves around a young girl names Matia, who has always wanted to be one of the ocean warriors, and how a false prophecy changed her life, a respected general, a foreign prince, and even several kingdoms.

Learning swimming tactics from the respected Lord Muta himself, Matia is one of the best swimmers among her peers. Matia's people have a coming of age ceremony when they turn 15 years of age: they have a competition to see who will be to bring the sword of Poseidon back to the shores of Akaron Island, where Matia's people reside. Kulap, a fellow Nereid, is Matia's strongest competitor...Read more>>

Manhwa: Boarding House of Hunks by Hwang Mi-Ri

The story revolves around Shin Jae Yoo , a boy-crazy character who is often hot-headed and desperately wanted a beautiful guy for a boyfriend. She is willing to use any means possible just to get to stay in a boarding house full of hot guys; even if it means going on a blind date with the most nerdy guy in school. However, she pisses off the nerdy guy's best (and handsome) friend, Ji Hu, when she dumps the guy immediately after the "date".

Ever since the incident, Ji Hu and Jae Yoo are constantly at loggerheads. When Jae Yoo finally manages to accomplish her dream of entering the "boarding house of hunks," she thinks that nothing could go wrong: living in an amazing house with a kind landlady, and a cute guy (Oh Soo-bin) who seems to be interested in her... until she finds out that Ji Hu is the landlady's son..Read more>>

Accumulation of International Reserves in Middle East and East Asian Countries

Having realized the importance of increased liquidity as a form of (self) protection against crises, many developing countries (i.e. Middle East and East Asian) started to accelerate their accumulation of international reserves. Chart 1shows the increase of such accumulation.

Having international reserves enables economies to adopt slower speeds of adjustment when confronted with balance of payment crises, contributing to their perceived creditworthiness and hence reducing the occurrence of crises: higher reserves mean that future out may be avoided since future current account deficits can be better financed, and the effects of capital outflows can be neutralized by running down reserves... Read more>>

Economic Integration - Optimum Currency Area and ASEAN

According to Carbaugh (2009), optimum currency area is a region in which it would be more preferable economically to have a single official currency instead of multiple official currencies. For example, Malaysia can be considered an optimal currency area. Malaysia consists of 13 states: 11 states in the peninsula of Malaysia and two states on the northern part of Borneo states. It would be inconceivable that the current volume of commerce among its 13 states would occur efficiently in a monetary environment of 13 different currencies. (Malaysia Tourism 2010)

The gains of an optimum currency area would be more uniform prices, lower transaction costs with greater certainty for investors and enhanced competition. Having a common currency area eliminates the risks associated with exchange fluctuations as cost of currency are lessened, resulting in more uniform prices (e.g. predictability of exchange rates) and lower transaction costs. Also, with a common currency area, “the economies are insulated from monetary disturbances and speculation, and political pressures for trade protection are reduced... Read more>>

How Formal Planning Contributes To An Organization's Efficiency and Effectiveness

According to Daft (2008, p210) planning is the “act of determining the organization’s goals and the means for achieving them” - the source of motivation and commitment, with legitimacy, guides to action, rationale for decisions, resources allocation and standard of performance as benefits -, and goals as what define and state the organization’s purpose.

By implementing formal planning, an organization’s (achievements) goals are outlined, with allocations of necessary resources, tasks, schedules and other actions being specified (Daft 2008). Explicit goals (targets) and plans at each planning stage would be developed, sending out messages to internal and external audiences. Thus, an organization improves its efficiency and effectiveness (financial and operational performance) when it adopts a formal planning approach... Read more>>

Labor Specialization Vs. Overspecialization

Labor specialization tends to increase an organization’s productivity. In Wealth of the Nations, Smith (1776) indicated that the benefits of labor specialization would increase in productivity: a worker’s skill and dexterity would increase. This division of labor would facilitate higher productivity and efficiency; such labor specialization breaks down the scope of jobs into narrow and repetitive tasks.

Using the pin manufacturing industry as an example, Smith (1776) stated that with each worker doing a specified task, a group of 10 workers would be able to produce 48,00 pins a day. However, if each individual were to work separately, performing separate tasks individually, the same group of people would only be able to produce within 10 pins a day... Read more>>

The Socioeconomic View vs. The Classical View

The socioeconomic view and the classical view are two approaches that shape and influence the way managers (especially in large organizations) prioritize and do things.

The socioeconomic view is “the view that management’s social responsibility goes beyond making profits to include protecting and improving society’s welfare” (Robbins, S et al. 2006, p.161). According to Carroll (1991), the four fundamentals to corporate social responsibilities - economic, legal, ethical, and philanthropic - can be linked to corporate social processes such as environmental assessment, stakeholder management, and issues management (Wood, 1991)... Read more>>

Why a Franchise May be The Right Choice For You

Discusses the costs, benefits, and reasons for success or failure of franchise operations.

Costs:

Obtaining the right to use the franchisors name and its assistance may require several thousand to several hundred thousand dollars. The following is a breakdown of fees involved in operating franchises (Franchising World 2005):

• Initial Franchise Fee and Other Expenses - This is the initial franchise fee, which may be non-refundable, and includes other costs such as:

• Business or operating licenses and insurance

• Costs to rent, build, and equip an outlet and to purchase initial inventory

• Grand opening or other initial business promotions

• Product or service supply costs

• Real estate and leasehold improvements

• Training costs Financial and accounting advice

• Legal fees

• Discretionary equipment such as a computer system or business alarm system

• Advertising fees- Franchisees may have to pay into an advertising fund, with some portion of the advertising fee going for national advertising or to attract new franchise owners, but not to target the franchisee’s particular outlet... Read more>>
  

The Future of Digital Manga Publishing

The sudden closure of One Manga, had manga fans questioning the future of manga aggregator websites. Stricter rules imposed by publishers may push websites to close or trim down the number to unlicensed manga titles. Fortunately, two teams are racing toward an obvious solution - the digitalization of manga publishing - Open Manga and Crunchyroll.

Open Manga

"OpenManga is a Online Manga, Digital Publishing and Social Platform where comic artists can release directly to fans, receive revenue for their content, and become part of a global art and comics community."

Mission

"Our goal is to create a platform that allows manga authors and artists to publish and earn money from their work, while still reaching a multi-lingual global audience. A platform that promotes and allows artists (and eventually interested publishers) to work directly with translators and scanlators to publish their work while still remaining in control of their creations. A platform that supports an artist’s need for an income, with the possibility of free availability to the fan."

Open Manga's blog provides a detailed, and long, posts about their project. Here's a summary

• OpenManga was inspired by a business draft circulating the internet last year, which provided a model where publishers and artists can work together like in a symbiotic relationship. (Opps. They failed to specify what type of Symbiotic Relationship. I hope it's "Mutualism" not "Parasitism.")
• OP is connected yet completely independent with Manga Helpers. The same people who worked hard to bring us MH are responsible for the inception of OP.
• OP aims to create a platform (and a complete solution) where artists and publishers can publish their work and earn.
• OP aims to bridge artists/publishers, translators and scanlators for multi-lingual releases (localization).
• Artists/Publishers will earn through 3 subscription models (by artist, sitewide mobile plan and access to every content in any device), revenue shares and donations.
• OP will have its own currency available for purchase through credit card, PayPal, WebMoney.
• OP will have its own marketplace for digital and physical products.
• The manga may be available for free viewing, premium membership or subscription at the artists/publishers discretion...Read more>>