Handheld Group, the manufacturer of rugged mobile computers, PDAs and smartphones, has announced the launch of the new version of its Algiz XRW rugged notebook. The updated Algiz XRW is considerably faster than its predecessor, and has twice the amount of RAM. ? The new Algiz XRW is a slim, lightweight, compact and fully rugged notebook that delivers unprecedented performance in the field. Its 10.1-inch touchscreen display features MaxView technology, providing spectacular screen clarity and brightness in any outdoor condition, even direct sunlight. The Algiz XRW is one of the lightest and most compact rugged notebooks on the market, weighing in at a mere 1.5 kilograms, or 3.3 pounds.
New Algiz XRW features include:
A fast and powerful N2600 1.6 GHz Dual-Core Intel ATOM processor.
A larger 128 GB solid-state disk.
Twice the memory, with 4 GB of DDR2 RAM.
Newly optimised integrated u-blox GPS for better field performance.
Added data security with TPM chipset board.
An updated version of the optional Gobi 3000 technology.
?The new version of Algiz XRW is considerably faster and better-performing than earlier versions,? said Johan Hed, product manager at Handheld Group. ?The new ATOM processor is very impressive ? it?s powerful and almost twice as fast as its predecessors, yet energy-efficient with long battery life. In addition, we have added bigger cache and RAM memories and better graphics, and have optimized GPS performance to make the Algiz XRW the best in its class of mobile computing tools.? ? The full-featured and lightweight Algiz XRW offers an array of mobile capabilities. It comes standard with Bluetooth, WLAN and GPS ? features many other products add on as extras ? as well as a built-in 2-megapixel autofocus camera that allows video conferencing in the field. ? Its keyboard and mouse touchpad are fully sealed and illuminated by two LED lights, and it carries an IP65 rating for protection against sand, dust and water. It passes MIL-STD-810G ruggedness testing, including drop tests from 1.2 meters, and can handle extreme temperatures from -20 C to 55 C. ? The new Algiz XRW has a powerful N2600 1.6 GHz Dual-Core Intel ATOM processor, and it includes a 128 GB solid-state disk and 4 GB of DDR2 RAM. It runs the Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate operating system just like any PC in an office, and is ready for Windows 8. ? An optional 3G modem provides high-speed GSM/UMTS/EVDO data transmission. The Algiz XRW is ready for Gobi 3000 technology, which means it?s possible to work on any choice of wireless frequency anywhere in the world. The 57.6 Wh battery works for eight hours on a single charge. ? Like the rest of Handheld?s lineup of rugged PDAs, smartphones and mobile computers, Algiz XRW is specifically developed for use in tough environments in industries such as mining, geomatics, logistics, forestry, public transportation, construction, utilities, maintenance, military and security. ? The new Algiz XRW is available for order immediately, with shipments starting at the end of February 2013. The price point remains unchanged.
By simulating 25,000 generations of evolution within computers, Cornell University engineering and robotics researchers have discovered why biological networks tend to be organized as modules ? a finding that will lead to a deeper understanding of the evolution of complexity. (Proceedings of the Royal Society, Jan. 30, 2013.)
The new insight also will help evolve artificial intelligence, so robot brains can acquire the grace and cunning of animals.
From brains to gene regulatory networks, many biological entities are organized into modules ? dense clusters of interconnected parts within a complex network. For decades biologists have wanted to know why humans, bacteria and other organisms evolved in a modular fashion. Like engineers, nature builds things modularly by building and combining distinct parts, but that does not explain how such modularity evolved in the first place. Renowned biologists Richard Dawkins, G?nter P. Wagner, and the late Stephen Jay Gould identified the question of modularity as central to the debate over "the evolution of complexity."
For years, the prevailing assumption was simply that modules evolved because entities that were modular could respond to change more quickly, and therefore had an adaptive advantage over their non-modular competitors. But that may not be enough to explain the origin of the phenomena.
The team discovered that evolution produces modules not because they produce more adaptable designs, but because modular designs have fewer and shorter network connections, which are costly to build and maintain. As it turned out, it was enough to include a "cost of wiring" to make evolution favor modular architectures.
This theory is detailed in "The Evolutionary Origins of Modularity," published today in the Proceedings of the Royal Society by Hod Lipson, Cornell associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering; Jean-Baptiste Mouret, a robotics and computer science professor at Universit? Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris; and by Jeff Clune, a former visiting scientist at Cornell and currently an assistant professor of computer science at the University of Wyoming.
To test the theory, the researchers simulated the evolution of networks with and without a cost for network connections.
"Once you add a cost for network connections, modules immediately appear. Without a cost, modules never form. The effect is quite dramatic," says Clune.
The results may help explain the near-universal presence of modularity in biological networks as diverse as neural networks ? such as animal brains ? and vascular networks, gene regulatory networks, protein-protein interaction networks, metabolic networks and even human-constructed networks such as the Internet.
"Being able to evolve modularity will let us create more complex, sophisticated computational brains," says Clune.
Says Lipson: "We've had various attempts to try to crack the modularity question in lots of different ways. This one by far is the simplest and most elegant."
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Ted Ginn has done essentially nothing on offense for the 49ers, catching just two passes for one yard during the 2012 regular season. So it?s no surprise that when Ginn was asked today if he?d like to have more of an impact on offense, Ginn answered, ?Yeah, for sure.?
But Ginn says he?s not going to complain about his role on the offense (or lack thereof) because he understands that if the 49ers just want him to play as a punt and kickoff returner, that?s what he needs to do.
?Most of the time when you?re on championship teams, you have to sacrifice. Look at LeBron [James] and Dwyane Wade and [Chris] Bosh, they?re all number one picks,? Ginn said. ?But when they had to come together as a team, they had to give up something. You just have to give it up. I?m not saying you can?t do it anymore, but just not at that time. There might be somebody else that can do it better, or it?s the right time for them to do it. So, you just go out and control what you can control, and you play the game.?
Part of the reason that Ginn can appreciate the opportunity he has in San Francisco is that in his first career stop, in Miami, things didn?t go as planned. Ginn was the ninth overall pick of the 2007 NFL draft, but he never developed into the kind of receiver the Dolphins expected him to be. Ginn said he knows some people consider him a draft bust, but he can?t worry about that.
?I can?t help what was going on with my team at the time. I control what I control. My first year, I had eight quarterbacks,? Ginn said. ?If I?m a bust, I?m a good bust.?
Even if Ginn is never going to be a good enough wide receiver to justify being a Top 10 draft pick, a return touchdown on Sunday at the Superdome would go a long way toward erasing the perception that he?s a draft bust. After all, Desmond Howard was a Top 10 draft pick who never amounted to much as a wide receiver, but when people look back at his career, they don?t remember that. They remember him returning a kickoff for a touchdown at the Superdome and being named Super Bowl MVP.
Monday, January 28th, 2013.Author : Max Cohen.25 views.
Sometimes when you first step onto the road of personal development, it can all be a little overwhelming. There are also a lot of different improvement avenues to chose from. Personal development can range from improving your diet to enhancing your social skills. Self improvement can be achieved in many different ways. The main goal of personal development is to improve the way that you feel about yourself, but it is quite probable that others around you will notice the changes too.
Set realistic, attainable goals for yourself to ensure that you are envisioning an achievable, healthy lifestyle. By taking some time our for yourself to focus on both strengths and weaknesses, you will notice overall self-improvement.
Take the time to research the lives of successful people. Studying the processes used by others will help you better develop your own self improvement strategies. Knowing that other people have succeeded at the same goal will make it seem more attainable to you.
Be on the lookout for new ways to challenge yourself. Discovering new challenges is a great way to open yourself up to new possibilities. You can learn more and acquire new skills. You may even start a new model by doing something that has never been done before. Do something new and unique, instead of copying others.
TIP! Seeking advice from a counselor, or paster can be a wonderful source to help guide you. They have a great deal of experience in dealing with personal thoughts and are even licensed to do so.
When you are actively trying to improve yourself, failing to do well at something can hurt your self-esteem more than it otherwise would. Actually, failure is really a learning experience. Failure is a way of learning your weaknesses and your strengths. Looking at it this way, failure is a source of pride, because you?ve unlocked another piece of the puzzle when it comes to your development.
Get organized. You will feel accomplished and your mind will feel clearer. This also helps relieve you from stress caused by disorganization. When everything is in a proper place, life is a bit more calm.
Take the time to change the focus of your conversation from your own accomplishments and awards to the achievements of those around you. You?ll be able to find out about the wonderful things the people you know have accomplished, bringing about a new-found respect and admiration for them.
Find texts that help you. This could be a holy text for some people. For others, it could just a book of inspirational sayings. Sometimes having a physical representation of comfort can help you better manage your day-to-day life.
TIP! Make the most of your work time to accomplish more. One trick to doing this, is to take more breaks.
Improving your life is closely tied to willpower, and a lot can be said for the karma you develop along the way. This means that you are wise to only wish good things upon others. If you endeavor to be positive about all things, then that positivity will come back to you.
Learn to deal with stressful situations without reacting in an emotional way. Learning ways to maintain your composure when stressed will help boost your self-esteem, and help you triumph under any circumstance. Breathing deeply can be a powerful way to reduce stress and stay in the moment.
The worst way to deal with a situation is by overreacting. This will cause you unneeded and unnecessary stress. It?s best to train yourself to cope with your daily stress, and it begins with analyzing every situation where you tend to feel strained. If you screw up, you can probably fix it, or at least find a way to minimize the damage. Rather than dwelling on what you?ve lost, look at the things you still have.
Leadership is about exercising authority, but good leaders are humble, too. When delivering criticisms, remember that you should be firm, yet friendly. You will not go far if you forget your own willingness to serve. A successful leader is one who demonstrates integrity and virtue as an example to others.
TIP! Writing out your goals will help you develop your own plan for personal growth. Record the behaviors and character traits you wish to have; for example, you might list patience or gratitude.
It is impossible for you to properly care for the ones you love, unless you take care of yourself first. It doesn?t matter if you are succeeding or failing in your path. You should always find time to rest your body so that you can renew yourself.
Strive to improve daily so that each one is more perfect than the previous. Set a goal of continuous improvement through steady efforts. Try your hardest to achieve something different today than what you achieved yesterday.
Make a list of your priorities, and plan your life around these elements. When it comes to focusing your feelings and emotions, strive to apply them to the important aspects of your life that build happiness, and do not waste them on the negative aspects that weigh you down and prevent inner peace.
Your core principles are important, and your actions should reflect them. Everyone has basic principles by which they define themselves. Having a good foundation based on your core principles will benefit your sense of self esteem. Better yet, this practice encourages consistency, which is an excellent character trait to maintain.
TIP! Live your life with wisdom and humility. There are certain things in your life that you just can?t change.
Anytime and anywhere, be ready for when your ideas strike. Make sure you have a notepad on you at all times. Scribble detailed notes when something comes to you, and then carry them out whenever your creativity is piqued.
It is essential to have a clearly outlined goal, when working toward improving self improvement. Make sure to come up with a target goal for yourself. If you are clear about your goals, it will be easier to measure how well you have achieved them.
Our goal in this article was to help you to accomplish a start on your self improvement plans. However, there are many other ways in which you may further improve your life. No matter your age, you can always work on becoming a better person for both yourself and others.
Maintaining a positive attitude will get you through a lot of tough times while allowing you to grow and mature. If you do not have a good attitude you will never get as far as you could have. Maintain a positive approach to life in order to reach your goals.
TIP! One new trait that is being researched and is very important to develop is known as sexual capitol. It does not refer to using sexuality in a manipulative way.
This is a Guest Post. Read more about the author here: Click Here
Georgia State researcher gets $3.4 million grant to develop vaccine technology against flu, RSV Public release date: 30-Jan-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Jeremy Craig 404-413-1357 Georgia State University
ATLANTA Sang-Moo Kang, associate professor at Georgia State University's Center for Inflammation, Immunity and Infection, has received a federal five-year, $3.4 million grant to bolster research that will lead to better flu vaccines and vaccines against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a disease for which there is no immunization.
The grant from the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases will aid Kang's research in developing a virus-like particle, or VLP, vaccine technology.
VLPs mimic viruses, but are non-infectious, which allows for safer vaccines, especially for young children, elderly people and patients whose immune systems are compromised. VLPs trigger the immune system to respond, leading to immunity in the same way that regular vaccines made with whole viruses act.
"VLPs are a result of new technology using recombinant genetic engineering," Kang said. "VLP technology can manipulate pathogens in a safe way so that we can design a vaccine mimicking the shape and structure of a virus.
"A VLP is an empty particle without the genetic information of a pathogen, thus highlighting its safety."
The potential of this research could lead to not only better vaccines for influenza, which is potentially deadly in some patients and which has led to deaths during this year's flu season, but also RSV.
RSV is a respiratory virus that infects the lungs and breathing passages. Most healthy people can recover from RSV infection in one to two weeks, but infections can be severe in young children, infants and older adults.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 75,000 to 125,000 hospitalizations related to RSV occur among children under one year old, and RSV infection results in about 1.5 million outpatient medical visits among children under the age of five.
Kang's lab will test VLP technology and ways to deliver the vaccines without long needles, such as nasal delivery, microneedles and oral vaccination.
###
An abstract of the grant, 1R01AI105170-01, is available at the NIH's Project RePORTer website, http://projectreporter.nih.gov, or is available upon request from Georgia State 's Public Relations and Marketing Communications office.
For more about Kang, visit http://inflammation.gsu.edu/skang.html.
For more about the Center for Inflammation, Immunity and Infection, visit http://inflammation.gsu.edu.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Georgia State researcher gets $3.4 million grant to develop vaccine technology against flu, RSV Public release date: 30-Jan-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Jeremy Craig 404-413-1357 Georgia State University
ATLANTA Sang-Moo Kang, associate professor at Georgia State University's Center for Inflammation, Immunity and Infection, has received a federal five-year, $3.4 million grant to bolster research that will lead to better flu vaccines and vaccines against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a disease for which there is no immunization.
The grant from the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases will aid Kang's research in developing a virus-like particle, or VLP, vaccine technology.
VLPs mimic viruses, but are non-infectious, which allows for safer vaccines, especially for young children, elderly people and patients whose immune systems are compromised. VLPs trigger the immune system to respond, leading to immunity in the same way that regular vaccines made with whole viruses act.
"VLPs are a result of new technology using recombinant genetic engineering," Kang said. "VLP technology can manipulate pathogens in a safe way so that we can design a vaccine mimicking the shape and structure of a virus.
"A VLP is an empty particle without the genetic information of a pathogen, thus highlighting its safety."
The potential of this research could lead to not only better vaccines for influenza, which is potentially deadly in some patients and which has led to deaths during this year's flu season, but also RSV.
RSV is a respiratory virus that infects the lungs and breathing passages. Most healthy people can recover from RSV infection in one to two weeks, but infections can be severe in young children, infants and older adults.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about 75,000 to 125,000 hospitalizations related to RSV occur among children under one year old, and RSV infection results in about 1.5 million outpatient medical visits among children under the age of five.
Kang's lab will test VLP technology and ways to deliver the vaccines without long needles, such as nasal delivery, microneedles and oral vaccination.
###
An abstract of the grant, 1R01AI105170-01, is available at the NIH's Project RePORTer website, http://projectreporter.nih.gov, or is available upon request from Georgia State 's Public Relations and Marketing Communications office.
For more about Kang, visit http://inflammation.gsu.edu/skang.html.
For more about the Center for Inflammation, Immunity and Infection, visit http://inflammation.gsu.edu.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Dinner's on George Clooney! One group of diners at the Grill Royal restaurant in Berlin?were treated to a free meal because the actor was worried that he and his friends at a nearby table were making too much noise, Clooney's representative has confirmed to TODAY.
Mario Anzuoni / Reuters
According to English-language publication The Local, German newspaper Bild reported that Clooney and Co. weren't disturbing the others in any way.
"They had behaved in a very cultivated manner," one man in the group told the paper, "I was stunned."
According to The Local, the man never recognized Clooney, even when he stopped by the star's table to leave a business card in hopes he could repay the gesture some day.
The newspaper reported that the dinner bill was around 100 Euros, or $135 U.S.
It's far from Clooney's first generous gesture. Back in October, paparazzi captured a photo of the actor giving money to a man sitting on a New York street wearing military dog tags.
Clooney is in Germany to direct and star in "Monuments Men," an upcoming big-screen drama also starring Daniel Craig and Cate Blanchett. Based on Robert M. Edsel's book, the film is about a group of Allied art experts racing to save priceless artworks from destruction by the Nazis.
Jan. 28, 2013 ? Two new eye-catching views from the Herschel space observatory are fit for a princess. They show the elegant spiral galaxy Andromeda, named after the mythical Greek princess known for her beauty.
The Andromeda galaxy, also known as Messier 31, lies 2 million light-years away, and is the closest large galaxy to our own Milky Way. It is estimated to have up to one trillion stars, whereas the Milky Way contains hundreds of billions. Recent evidence suggests Andromeda's overall mass may in fact be less than the mass of the Milky Way, when dark matter is included.
Herschel, a European Space Agency mission with important NASA contributions, sees the longer-wavelength infrared light from the galaxy, revealing its rings of cool dust. Some of this dust is the very coldest in the galaxy -- only a few tens of degrees above absolute zero.
In both views, warmer dust is highlighted in the central regions by different colors. New stars are being born in this central, crowded hub, and throughout the galaxy's rings in dusty knots. Spokes of dust can also be seen between the rings.
One view, seen at http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/spaceimages/details.php?id=PIA16682 , is a mosaic of data from Herschel's Photodetecting Array Camera and Spectrometer (PACS) and spectral and photometric imaging receiver (SPIRE).
The second view, seen at http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/spaceimages/details.php?id=PIA16681 , shows data from only the SPIRE instrument, which captures the longest of wavelengths detectable by Herschel.
Herschel is a European Space Agency cornerstone mission, with science instruments provided by consortia of European institutes and with important participation by NASA. NASA's Herschel Project Office is based at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. JPL contributed mission-enabling technology for two of Herschel's three science instruments. The NASA Herschel Science Center, part of the Infrared Processing and Analysis Center at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, supports the United States astronomical community. Caltech manages JPL for NASA.
More information is online at http://www.herschel.caltech.edu , http://www.nasa.gov/herschel and http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Herschel .
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Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks during a Global Townterview at the Newseum in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks during a Global Townterview at the Newseum in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Some grass-roots supporters of Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton have formed a super PAC to help a potential Clinton presidential campaign in 2016 ? even though Clinton says she hasn't decided her plans.
A super PAC called "Ready for Hillary" was registered with the Federal Election Commission on Friday and the group plans to launch its website in the coming weeks.
It's chaired by the founder of the Eleanor Roosevelt Papers Project at George Washington University, Allida Black. As a super PAC, the group can't coordinate with a candidate.
Clinton was asked about a possible 2016 campaign during a Tuesday town hall meeting. She says she isn't thinking about that now and is looking forward to, in her words, "catching up on about 20 years of sleep deprivation."
So you come home at the end of a long work day, put the keys on the counter, and check the answering machine.
After the reminder about your kid?s doctors appointment, and the neighbors asking you to clean up after your dog, imagine if this is the next message:
?Hi, this is Tom Brady calling, . . .?
If he could have followed it up with ?Can Gronk come out and play?? he might be otherwise occupied this week.
But according to Mike Reiss of ESPNBoston.com, the Patriots are using their star quarterback?s voice to send out a message of thanks to their season-ticket holders.
?On behalf of the entire Patriots organization, I want to thank you for the tremendous support you showed our team this past season,? the message continues. ?Your enthusiasm and passion in the stadium really motivated me and the team on game day. Thanks for being our 12th man on the field. As a season-ticket holder you help provide the foundation for our team?s success and we look forward to welcoming you back in 2013.?
It?s one thing to send a letter or a trinket, but the Patriots are giving their fans a chance to have Tom Brady in their voice mail.
If they really appreciated their fans, they?d get Bill Belichick to record the message next year.
LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Quotes from the 19th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards.
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"I'm just so thrilled I have dental." ? Best supporting actress winner Anne Hathaway after accepting her Screen Actors Guild award for her role in "Les Miserables."
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"Just tape the 'Big Bang Theory' for once, for crying out loud." ? Best supporting comedy actress winner Tina Fey, whose show "30 Rock" is ending its run this week and is going up against a show more popular in the ratings.
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"Oh my God. It's ridiculous." ? Alec Baldwin on his seventh consecutive Screen Actors Guild win for best male actor in a comedy series for "30 Rock."
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"Aren't we lucky that we found a line of work that doesn't require growing up?" ? Screen Actors Guild Lifetime Achievement award recipient Dick Van Dyke, who received a lengthy standing ovation from his fellow actors.
Jason Tweed, the million dollar blogger: E-Commerce Ideas for Small Business
E-Commerce Ideas for Small Business
Is your business an e-business?
It should be, regardless of what type of business you operate.
E-commerce for Retailers
Some businesses make a logical connection to e-commerce. Retail and specialty stores are an obvious example. One of my first clients was a camera shop that sold high-end cameras and photo developing. In the 80s her business thrived with a downtown location and same day film developing, however she ran on hard times in the 90s when Wal-Mart and other stores started offering one-hour developing at dirt cheap prices. Wal-Mart would develop your film at cost because you would kill an hour shopping in their store. The impending digital revolution looked like it was going to be the nail in the coffin of the local camera shop.However, it was a unique time on the Internet. Many suppliers were reluctant to sell inventory to Internet-only businesses, and this is particularly true with high-end camera equipment. Professional photographers still had to special order merchandise locally. Man my client realized he wasn't going to make a living developing film, he focused his efforts on professionals. He started selling camera equipment on eBay, and developed a loyal following which translated into one of the first online camera shops.My client is retired now, however, she survived the transition from bricks and mortar to e-commerce, and thrived during the period when professionals moved from film to digital. Her loyal following came to her when they were replacing 100% of their gear. She sold the business to an e-commerce company and her day job became her nest egg.
E-commerce for B2B
Today most transactions happen online. At one time wholesalers and manufacturers got the bright idea to sell direct to consumers, but many of them found their best customers walk away when faced with online competition.Today smart manufacturers and distributors don't compete with their own customers. That doesn't mean, however, they don't sell online. Small manufacturers can sell products in bulk and create a website with detailed product descriptions, marketing resources and much more to help retailers maximize their profits. Furthermore, using the right e-commerce system, they can keep proprietary information out of the public eye and away from competitors. Even information such as tiered pricing for different types of customers can remain private except to the end-user.E-commerce shouldn't be a new way of doing business. A good e-commerce system focuses on extending the reach of your current business and empowering your marketing engine and customer service capabilities.
E-commerce for service businesses
Service businesses have an advantage in the digital world. A local camera store that moves to the Web is suddenly competing against thousands of other websites, some of them with very deep pockets and amazing logistics.Service businesses, however, have the advantage of a limited amount of local competition. If you're searching for carpet cleaners, IT companies, a chiropractor or a landscaper you're probably going to search locally using the web. You'll find half a dozen websites, and make the decision based on what you see and read. It's kind of like the Yellow Pages used to be; whoever had the largest ad wins most of the business.But what if your Yellow Pages ad could accept payments, schedule appointments, and even deliver a certain level of service in real-time? But then it wouldn't matter the size of your ad, it would be about the quality of your service.Service companies have the opportunity today to develop unique solutions for their e-businesses. Massage therapists can schedule appointments without answering the telephone. Cleaning services can quote a job based on square footage and other factors, schedule the work and collect payment immediately. Health clubs can schedule personal trainers, track membership dues and even sell products.
E-commerce for hospitality
Restaurants can't sell dinners online (yet), but they can generate huge revenues with printable, e-mailable gift cards. Do you have a secret sauce? Package it and sell it online. Do you require reservations? Your customers can reserve a table online, with a text, or by telephone and have them all work together.Hotels and resorts can take reservations and cross promote events with their other facilities, even before the customer arrives.Small jazz clubs can create an intimate atmosphere in the club, while simulcasting to thousands over the web, and both groups are paying customers. Your performers can sell CDs or MP3s to your audience, even after they've left, and you can collect the commission.
E-commerce for consultants, experts, and people who's product is their time
Maximize your revenue from your expertise. Consultants can create project quotes. Experts can sell e-books. Market your seminars and deliver them over the web, live and worldwide. When there's only 24 hours in the day, make sure you're maximizing the value from each of those hours, and still have time to get some sleep.
Every business is an e-business, but not every website generates real sales.
ADVANCE FOR RELEASE UNTIL 12:01 a.m. EST,WEDNESDAY, JAN, 23, 2013. THIS PHOTO MAY NOT BE POSTED ONLINE, BROADCAST OR PUBLISHED BEFORE 12:01 a.m. WEDNESDAY, JAN, 23, 2013- FILE - In this Wednesday, June, 15, 2011, file photo, job seekers wait in a line at a job fair in Southfield, Mich. In the United States, half of the 7.5 million jobs lost during the Great Recession were paid middle-class wages, ranging from $37,000 to $68,000. But only 2 percent of the 3.4 million jobs gained since the recession are mid-pay. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
Labor ? Because of advances, positions lost during Great Recession not likely coming back.
Five years after the start of the Great Recession, the toll is terrifyingly clear. Millions of middle-class jobs have been lost in developed countries the world over.
And the situation is even worse than it appears.
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From Utah, a dissenting voice
Jobs in the state probably are being lost to technology, ?but that always happens,? and it isn?t a bad thing, said Mark Knold, chief economist at the Utah Department of Workforce Services and an adherent of the process of ?creative destruction,? a concept coined by economist Joseph Schumpeter.
Schumpeter, who died in 1950, believed free markets are constantly renewed and energized by the process of tearing down old economic structures and creating new ones. That natural mutation of the economy is both inevitable and good, Knold said.
?There was a blue ribbon panel commissioned by [former President] Lyndon Johnson in 1964 to address fears that machines and technology were going to replace workers, and we have added millions workers since then,? Knold said.
?What was hard for them to see is that those innovations did replace workers in certain areas, but they also spurred innovation and productivity to the point where it created so many jobs in other areas. [Technology] wasn?t a job destroyer. It was a job creator.?
The number of jobs in the U.S. has almost tripled since the mid-1960s, to more than 143 million. Knold said that increasing the newer jobs have become more sophisticated, ?higher quality? and have commanded better pay. That shift is requiring more of workers in the U.S. and Utah labor forces, which stand at 155.5 million and 1.4 million, respectively.
?In our father?s day, [young people] could come out of high school and get a good-paying, sweat-of-the-brow job at Kennecott or Geneva Steel,? Knold said. No longer, he added, because ?good jobs now need education, [and] I would say that the shift toward more education in the job market is accelerating, not decelerating.?
Knold said Utah took part in a worldwide technological revolution in the years leading up to the start of the Great Recession in 2007. Rather than throw people out of work, the economy before the downturn generated thousands of jobs and drove the unemployment rate under 2.5 percent for awhile.
?And then we had a bad recession. But this recession was not the result of technology or any bad spinoff of technology advancements. This recession is the result of bad government policies and mismanagement of the financial sector,? he said.
Knold doesn?t see much evidence that Utah employers are replacing better-paying jobs with lower-paying ones. On one hand, there are fewer retail, construction and manufacturing jobs today than before the recession started. On the other, sectors such as professional and business services, health care, education and government ? all of which ostensibly pay workers well ? are more numerous.
Paul Beebe
Most of the jobs will never return, and millions more are likely to vanish, say experts who study the labor market. What?s more, these jobs aren?t just being lost to China and other developing countries, and they aren?t just factory work. Increasingly, jobs are disappearing in the service sector, home to two-thirds of all workers.
They?re being obliterated by technology.
Year after year, the software that runs computers and an array of other machines and devices becomes more sophisticated and powerful and capable of doing more efficiently tasks that humans have always done. For decades, science fiction warned of a future when we would be architects of our own obsolescence, replaced by our machines; an Associated Press analysis finds that the future has arrived.
Not many get a pass ? "The jobs that are going away aren?t coming back," said Andrew McAfee, principal research scientist at the Center for Digital Business at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and co-author of Race Against the Machine. ??I have never seen a period where computers demonstrated as many skills and abilities as they have over the past seven years."
The global economy is being reshaped by machines that generate and analyze vast amounts of data; by devices such as smartphones and tablet computers that let people work just about anywhere, even when they?re on the move; by smarter, nimbler robots; and by services that let businesses rent computing power when they need it, instead of installing expensive equipment and hiring IT staffs to run it. Whole employment categories, from secretaries to travel agents, are starting to disappear.
"There?s no sector of the economy that?s going to get a pass," said Martin Ford, who runs a software company and wrote The Lights in the Tunnel, a book predicting widespread job losses. "It?s everywhere."
The numbers startle even labor economists. In the United States, half the 7.5 million jobs lost during the Great Recession were in industries that pay middle-class wages, ranging from $38,000 to $68,000. But only 2 percent of the 3.5 million jobs gained since the recession ended in June 2009 are in midpay industries. Nearly 70 percent are in low-pay industries, 29 percent in industries that pay well.
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In the 17 European countries that use the euro as their currency, the numbers are even worse. Almost 4.3 million low-pay jobs have been gained since mid-2009, but the loss of midpay jobs has never stopped. A total of 7.6 million disappeared from January 2008 through last June.
Experts warn that this "hollowing out" of the middle-class workforce is far from over. They predict the loss of millions more jobs as technology becomes even more sophisticated and reaches deeper into our lives. Maarten Goos, an economist at the University of Leuven in Belgium, says Europe could double its middle-class job losses.
Some occupations are beneficiaries of the march of technology, such as software engineers and app designers for smartphones and tablet computers. Overall, though, technology is eliminating far more jobs than it is creating.
Technology?s march ? To understand the impact technology is having on middle-class jobs in developed countries, the AP analyzed employment data from 20 countries; tracked changes in hiring by industry, pay and task; compared job losses and gains during recessions and expansions over the past four decades; and interviewed economists, technology experts, robot manufacturers, software developers, entrepreneurs and people in the labor force who ranged from CEOs to the unemployed.
The AP?s key findings:
? For more than three decades, technology has reduced the number of jobs in manufacturing. Robots and other machines controlled by computer programs work faster and make fewer mistakes than humans. Now, that same efficiency is being unleashed in the service economy, which employs more than two-thirds of the workforce in developed countries. Technology is eliminating jobs in office buildings, retail establishments and other businesses consumers deal with every day.
? Technology is being adopted by every kind of organization that employs people. It?s replacing workers in large corporations and small businesses, established companies and startups. It?s being used by schools, colleges and universities; hospitals and other medical facilities; nonprofit organizations and the military.
? The most vulnerable workers are doing repetitive tasks that programmers can write software for ? an accountant checking a list of numbers, an office manager filing forms, a paralegal reviewing documents for key words to help in a case. As software becomes even more sophisticated, victims are expected to include those who juggle tasks, such as supervisors and managers ? workers who thought they were protected by a college degree.
? Thanks to technology, companies in the Standard & Poor?s 500 stock index reported one-third more profit the past year than they earned the year before the Great Recession. They?ve also expanded their businesses, but total employment, at 21.1 million, has declined by a half-million.
? Startups account for much of the job growth in developed economies, but software is allowing entrepreneurs to launch businesses with a third fewer employees than in the 1990s. There is less need for administrative support and back-office jobs that handle accounting, payroll and benefits.
A jobless recovery ? Some analysts reject the idea that technology has been a big job killer. They note that the collapse of the housing market in the U.S., Ireland, Spain and other countries and the ensuing global recession wiped out millions of middle-class construction and factory jobs. In their view, governments could bring many of the jobs back if they would put aside worries about their heavy debts and spend more. Others note that jobs continue to be lost to China, India and other countries in the developing world.
But to the extent technology has played a role, it raises the specter of high unemployment even after economic growth accelerates. Some economists say millions of middle-class workers must be retrained to do other jobs if they hope to get work again. Others are more hopeful. They note that technological change over the centuries eventually has created more jobs than it destroyed, although the wait can be long and painful.
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Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) ? A regional civic campaign group says a South African court has blocked the delivery of helicopter gunships to Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe's loyalist military.
AfriForum said Saturday the High Court in Pretoria ordered to put on hold the donation of South Africa's surplus of aging French-designed Alouette combat helicopters until another court application to stop it altogether is heard on Feb. 19.
Willie Spies, the group's spokesman, described statements that the helicopters were stripped of their weapons as "legally flawed." The Alouette, used in counterinsurgency warfare and operations to counter civil unrest since in southern Africa since the 1970s, could not be classified as civilian aircraft, he said.
The group said the helicopters would bolster the "visibility, mobility and presence" of Mugabe's military ahead of elections this year.
With travelers looking for variety, value and an ?Insider?s Edge? in planning their 2010 Summer vacations, Forbes Travel Guide announced that its new City Guides series is available at major bookstores across the country and online.
Authored by Forbes Travel Guide ? formerly Mobil Travel Guide, the originator of the prestigious Mobil Star ratings, certifications and authoritative reviews of hotels, restaurants and spas -, the new City Guides cover New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Chicago and Hong Kong.
Each Guide is a comprehensive resource for prospective visitors to a major urban destination, including shopping, art, music, sports, theater, and nightlife. With the ?inside scoop? from anonymous inspectors and top-notch local writers, the guidebooks use Forbes? time-tested, star-rating system to allow travelers to experience the very best a city has to offer, with planning tools that include updated maps with pinpoints of star-rated properties, key sites, top attractions, quick tips and insider secrets.
?For Summer 2010, it?s all about value and variety,? said Shane O?Flaherty, President and CEO of Forbes Travel Guide.
He concluded, ?Increasingly, individual travelers, couples and families are looking for the diversity and flavor of major urban destinations when planning their leisure time travel ? and we are pleased to make available a series of unmatched resources to help them research and make their travel decisions.?
Forbes Travel Guide expects to release additional City Guides later in 2010.
ABOUT THE CITY GUIDES
Each City Guide contains close to 200 pages of information-packed narrative, photographs and insider perspectives that are based on Forbes Travel Guide?s star rating system that has been the most trusted source for travelers since 1958. The information-packed Guides help direct travelers to the finest lodgings, restaurants, and attractions a city has to offer, making an otherwise daunting task ? planning a visit to a major international destination ? a lively, entertaining and enjoyable experience. Colorfully written and illustrated, each Guide comes in a handy pocket-size format, making it an ideal travel companion for the trip.
The Guides are available at Borders, Barnes & Noble, Amazon.com, Waldenbooks, Books A Million, and most major booksellers/independent book stores.
For more information about the Guides, please visit any of these retail outlets, or learn more at http://www.forbestravel.guide.com
ABOUT FORBES TRAVEL GUIDE
Forbes Travel Guide, formerly Mobil Travel Guide, originator of the prestigious Mobil Star ratings and certifications, has provided the most comprehensive ratings and reviews of hotels, restaurants and spas since 1958.
In October 2009, Mobil Travel Guide announced a strategic partnership with Forbes Media LLC. This exclusive licensing agreement between two industry leaders with more than 140 years of combined experience transfers the hospitality industry?s premier star rating and travel guide brand from ExxonMobil to Forbes. Forbes Travel Guide has a team of expert inspectors who anonymously evaluate properties against rigorous and objective proprietary standards, providing consumers the insight to make better-informed travel and leisure decisions.
ABOUT FORBES MEDIA LLC
Forbes Media encompasses Forbes and Forbes.com, the #1 business site on the Web that reaches on average more than 17 million people monthly. The company publishes Forbes and Forbes Asia, which together reach a worldwide audience of more than 6 million readers. It also publishes ForbesLife and ForbesWoman magazines, in addition to licensee editions in China, Croatia, India, Indonesia, Israel, Korea, Poland, Romania, Russia and Turkey.
Other Forbes Media Web sites are: Investopedia.com; RealClearPolitics.com; RealClearMarkets.com; RealClearSports.com; and the Forbes.com Business and Finance Blog Network. Together with Forbes.com, these sites reach on average nearly 40 million business decision makers each month.
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Careers at MTN Nigeria for a Corporate Account Partner
posted on 2013-01-25??|?by Admin | 92 views
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Careers in MTN Nigeria is focused on the strategic development of talent in line with the key business imperative of ensuring continuity through our key source of competitive advantage our people.
Job Title Corporate Account Partner Department: Enterprise Solutions Location: Lagos Job Description: Build an in-depth knowledge of the customers? operating environment, business drivers, ambition, issues, problems and obstacles in order to develop and implement solutions to meet their strategic corporate needs. Maintain excellent partnership-relationships with customers, based on trust and an in-depth understanding of the customers? business. Increase MTN market share by achieving set target through the acquisition of new accounts as well as development and maintenance of current accounts. Assist customers in understanding the value proposition and differentiations of the MTN data products and services. Account for the fulfillment of the sales process ? from lead generation to bill delivery. Log all customer requests for service, queries and complaints, escalate and troubleshoot where necessary. Conduct research on potential customers and their disposable income using the data mining system. Seek new clients and create more business opportunities daily, from existing clients so as to Increase company revenue. Carry out continuous analysis of relevant industry, to identify new prospects or opportunities for the corporate sales department. Prepare and present all corporate sales (weekly and monthly), contractual documentation and status reports according to MTN quality standards.
? Job Conditions: Normal MTNN working conditions May be required to work extended hours Tool of Trade Vehicle will be required for the Job Reporting To: ??? SM, Corporate Accounts Required Skills: First degree in Business Administration, Commerce or any other related discipline 4 years work experience Experience in the sales environment of a telecommunications company, preferably customer-facing Good business experience Exposure to strategic planning
Employment Status :Permanent Qualification: First degree in Business Administration, Commerce or any other related discipline
Disclaimer: Though we make every effort to verify the authenticity of our job posts, Employment Nigeria is in no way affiliated with any of these companies whose vacancies we publish.
CAIRO (AP) ? Egyptian security officials say 22 people have been killed in riots sparked by death sentences given to nearly two dozen soccer fans convicted of violence after a game in Port Said last year.
The security officials say most were killed in assaults on the governor's office, courthouse and prison after the sentence was handed down during a trial outside Cairo. They say two policemen also were shot to death outside the city's main prison when angry relatives tried to storm the facility.
The military has been deployed to try and restore security.
The judge sentenced 21 people to death in connection with the Feb. 1, 2012, soccer melee that killed 74 fans of the Cairo-based Al-Ahly team.
The security officials spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.
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CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) ? Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal called on the Republican Party to "stop being the stupid party" on Thursday as GOP leaders promised fundamental changes to help stave off future losses.
In the keynote address at the Republican National Committee's winter meeting, Jindal said the GOP doesn't need to change its values but "might need to change just about everything else we are doing."
"We've got to stop being the stupid party. It's time for a new Republican Party that talks like adults," he said. "We had a number of Republicans damage the brand this year with offensive and bizarre comments. I'm here to say we've had enough of that."
Jindal, thought to be a potential 2016 presidential contender, offered little detail in the 25-minute address. He called on conservatives to shift their focus from Capitol Hill number crunching to "the place where conservatism thrives ? in the real world beyond the Washington Beltway."
Hours before the speech, Republican leaders promised to release in March a report, dubbed the "Growth and Opportunity Project," outlining recommendations on party rules and messaging designed to appeal to a rapidly changing American electorate. President Barack Obama's November victory was fueled, in part, by overwhelming support from the nation's Hispanic, Asian and African-American communities.
"Losing is not fun. We want to win," said GOP strategist Sally Bradshaw, who is among five people appointed by RNC Chairman Reince Priebus to craft the report.
"I think you're going to see a very renewed, aggressive effort by this party to put on a different face," Bradshaw said. "We are going to go into areas that we do not go into and see folks that we do not see."
Republicans presidential nominee Mitt Romney struggled last fall to win over women and minorities, who overwhelmingly favored President Barack Obama's re-election bid. GOP officials conceded this week that they must change their tone and message, if not their policies, if they hope to expand their appeal in the coming years.
Romney alienated many Hispanic voters by highlighting his support for a fence along the Mexican border and "self-deportation" of illegal immigrants. Down-ticket Republican candidates alienated female voters by backing new abortion laws in a handful of swing states like Virginia and New Hampshire, while Senate candidate Todd Akin of Missouri hurt himself and his party by declaring that women's bodies could prevent pregnancy in cases of "legitimate rape."
GOP strategist Ari Fleischer suggested that his party could learn an important lesson from Democrats on messaging: "Republicans talk policy and Democrats talk people. Republicans can learn a little bit from Democrats on how to make those people connections with our policies."
Asked whether he was considering a presidential bid in 2016, Jindal brushed aside the question. "Any Republican that's thinking about talking about running for president in 2016 needs to get his head examined," he said. "We've got a lot of work to do."
He called on conservatives to stop fighting with Democrats on their terms about the size of government in Washington and focus instead on connecting with voters across the nation.
"Today's conservatism is completely wrapped up in solving the hideous mess that is the federal budget, the burgeoning deficits, the mammoth federal debt, the shortfall in our entitlement programs," he said. "We seem to have an obsession with government bookkeeping. This is a rigged game, and it is the wrong game for us to play."
Jindal's comments come a day after the House passed a bill to permit the government to borrow enough money to avoid a first-time default for at least four months, defusing a looming crisis setting up a springtime debate over taxes, spending and the deficit. The House passed the measure on a bipartisan basis as majority Republicans back away from their previous demand that any increase in the government's borrowing cap be paired with an equivalent level of spending cuts.
The Louisiana governor's blunt remarks follow criticism from another high-profile Republican based outside Washington who publicly blasted GOP leadership on Capitol Hill: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
One of the party's most popular voices, Christie earlier in the month criticized his party's "toxic internal politics" after House Republicans initially declined to approve disaster relief for victims of Superstorm Sandy. He said it was "disgusting to watch" their actions and he faulted the GOP's most powerful elected official, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., told reporters on the sidelines of the meeting Thursday that Republicans also need to develop a sound strategy for confronting the Obama administration, suggesting House Republicans could use hearings to expose waste and promote better ideas.
"A lot of Republicans, frankly, spent the last two years saying, 'Oh, gee, we don't have to do much because after Obama loses we'll work with the new Republican president.' Well, that world ain't there," Gingrich said. "So now they have to make adjustments. They've got to understand that this is a different game."
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