"Laser Engraving, Cutting, Design and Fabrication"

Summary: Noteburner M4V Converter Plus for Mac is a professional iTunes DRM removal software which can remove drm protection from both purchased and rental M4V movies videos on Mac OS X.

'''What's Apple iTunes rental service'''
Since Apple provides rental service for iTunes users, there are more and more people prefer to rent movies from iTunes store because the iTunes rental movies can still be played fine on iPhone, iPod or other apple devices. To some degree, the rental movies performs the same as purchased movies. But they are much cheaper.
But Apple sets a limition on the watching time for rental movies. Movie rentals are automatically deleted 30 days after purchase or 24 hours after you start watching, whichever comes first. However, for some classic movies, like Twnight,Wall-E etc., I think you don't want to delete these classics after watching for one time, you may want to keep them forever. In this article, we will made a tutorial on [http://www.noteburner.com/remove-drm-from-itunes-rental-movies.html how to convert iTunes rental movies to iPad for Mac Users].
To remove DRM protection from iTunes rental movies, what you need is [http://www.noteburner.com/mac-m4v-converter-plus.html Noteburner M4V Converter Plus for Mac].

Noteburner M4P Converter Plus convert iTunes DRM purchased movies and iTunes rental movies by recording video while play them on iTunes background. So, it supports converting purchased M4V and rent M4V.

'''Step 1.''' Select M4V movies and add to Noteburner M4V Converter Plus for Mac
Click the Add button in the top-left to add the video files you want to convert. The software will open the iTunes movies library by default. Select the files and then click OK.

[Image:http://www.noteburner.com/images-new/convert1.jpg]

Here you can select the movies and add to the playlist to convert. It's easy and speedy.

'''Step 2.''' Set output path and output format
Click Output dropdown list, you can customize the output path you like. If you don't set to customize the output path, the output files will be saved in the default folder

[Image:http://www.noteburner.com/images-new/profile2.jpg]

Click Profile dropdown list, you can customize the output formats for your target videos. Noteburner M4V Converter supports multiple formats well including MOV, MP4, iPod, iPhone formats as output.

'''Step 3.''' Click "Convert" button to start to convert M4V videos with Noteburner M4V Converter Plus for Mac

Summary: New page: Frankenstein and Principles in Parenting ''"My father looked carelessly at the title page of my book and said, ‘Ah! Cornelius Agrippa! My dear Victor, do not waste your time upon this; ...

Frankenstein and Principles in Parenting

''"My father looked carelessly at the title page of my book and said, ‘Ah! Cornelius Agrippa! My dear Victor, do not waste your time upon this; it is sad trash.’” – Frankenstein, Chap. 2''

Who would have thought that in one line of Frankenstein one could derive basic parenting principles? And still it provides us with keen insight into the role of parent as teacher and child as moldable student.

''“My father…”''
Most men will be fathers and most women, mothers. It is the cycle of humanity. What kind of parent one will become is based completely on the individual. One would be wise to consider what manner of parental role is being placed before their children, both now and in the future.

''“My father looked CARELESSLY…”''
There is a saying that states, “Knowledge is more caught than taught.” Beyond knowledge and verbal instruction, the parent’s emotional responses to the child play a vital role in shaping the child. What adults deem unimportant could mean the rise or demise of a child. To the child Victor in Frankenstein, his father’s very ambivalence caused him to enter a quest that would ultimately consume his life.

''“My father looked carelessly at the title of the page of my book…”''
Victor’s father looked no further than the title. He asked no questions as to why his son would be interested in such a book. He was a “surface father.” His lack of interest in the book also is symbolic of his lack of interest in his son. If he had known his son beyond the surface, his response to his son may have been one of understanding instead of patronization.

“''My father looked carelessly at the title page of my book and said, ‘Ah! Cornelius Agrippa!...”''
A parent is wiser than the child and it is natural for the child to ask questions. In the fields of history, science, life, and love, the parent has greater experience. Yet the greater responsibility for a parent is not to know the answer, but to have the ability to teach the child the answer. Every small conversation has the ability to lead the child to truth or error and every moment can be a teachable one.

''“My father looked carelessly at the title page of my book and said, ‘Ah! Cornelius Agrippa! My dear Victor, do not waste your time upon this;…”''
Because of life-experience, the parent knows what is important, what edifies, and what should be avoided. Victor’s father is aware of the error within Agrippa’s book. He admonishes Victor correctly for he, personally, knows that truth is absent within the literature. In order to mold the child though, there must be explanation beyond command. Without explanation, there will be no change of interest or direction for the child who is dabbling in the undesired behavior.

“''My father looked carelessly at the title page of my book and said, ‘Ah! Cornelius Agrippa! My dear Victor, do not waste your time upon this; it is sad trash.’”''
The hot fire is always touched when a child is given no reason not to reach for it. The beautiful, thin ice upon the lake is stepped upon if the same child is given no guidance as to the danger of such a situation. Experimentation is natural but held in check if the child has been given the right training in order to understand right and wrong, danger and safety. Yet the child will certainly experiment with the very thing that is off limits, if the parent has not taken the time to admonish clearly or is careless enough not to attempt the training at all.

Summary:

The article will show you the best way to transfer and play videos and movies on HDTV from Droid X with HDMI connectivity. To connect and play HD via Droid X HDMI output, the Verizon Gallery app is needed, which supports playing videos and movies encoded with H.264 codec, mainly for the recorded 720p videos through Droid X camera. If you want to [http://www.foxreal.com/play-videos-on-hdtv-via-hdmi-from-motorola-droid-x/ '''''watch videos on TV via Droid X HDMI'''''], you should ensure that the video format supported by the '''Motorola Gallery app''' at first. '''Foxreal Video Converter''' will do a great favor for you, which helps you convert HD videos to H.264 for Droid X, including video formats TiVo, WMV, AVI, MOV, MKV, M2TS, MTS, and more.

http://www.foxreal.com/video_converter/2010-11-29/motorola_droid_x_hdmi.jpg

'''Step-by-step guides:''' '''Converting videos to Droid X for the Verizon Gallery app and transmiting/connecting movies to HDTV via HDMI:'''

Step 1: Load HD content (videos or movies) to Foxreal Video Converter.

Click Foxreal Video Converter Add to import HD video files in various formats, like TiVo, MKV, TS, TP, WMV, AVI, etc to the powerful [http://www.foxreal.com/video-converter/ '''''Video to Verizon Gallery Converter'''''].

Step 2: Select output format as Motorola Droid X MP4.

In the “'''Format'''” option, you could easily choose '''Android - > Motorola Droid (X) H.264 Video (*.mp4)''' as the output format for Droid X. The Droid X video converter will convert/encode movies to MP4 with H.264 codec suitable for Verizon Gallery.

Step 3: Convert HD videos to MP4 for Droid X.
Click Foxreal Video Converter Convert to start video to Droid X MP4 conversion. No worry. Based on the latest NVIDIA CUDA technology, the Droid X conversion will be finished within minimum time.

Step 4: Transfer or copy videos and movies to Droid X.
With a USB cable, you can easily connect Droid X to your computer. And then put and sync videos to Droid X with 32GB micro-SD card under the DCIM - > Camera folder.

Step 5: Connect Droid X to HDTV for playback.
1) Press Droid X Menu menu key - > Settings - > HDMI to select an HDMI format, like 720p 60hz.
2) Then connect an HDMI cable from the HDMI port on the Motorola Droid X to an HDMI port on the TV monitor.
3) Touch Droid X Launcher icon launcher icon - > Home Sync Wizard - > Start - > Television - > Play
Now, you can play videos and movies on HDTV via HDMI as well as on Droid X with the compatible H.264 codec with high quality.

You can go to the [http://www.foxreal.com/droidx/ '''''Motorola Droid X'''''] column for more useful tips or tricks here.

Summary: Position paper discussing the reasons why genetically modified foods should be labeled.

Chris Martin
12 December 2010

Should it be required for Genetically Modified Foods to be labeled?

Freedom of choice - Isn’t that one of the founding principles under which our country was founded? As Americans, we take pride in the liberty of our freedoms, but how would we react to a scenario where we may have been left uninformed, and therefore do not have any idea as of the existence of other options and choices? Would you place food in your body that went against your ethical or religious standpoint? Would you ingest the food if you knew that it had potential health risks? Whether you answered yes or no, the bottom line is that you would at least like to be informed of these risks so that you could turn to other alternatives if you felt it was necessary, and labeling of these foods is one way to definitely keep the public informed of these issues.

Genetically Modified (GM) foods first hit the American market in 1996 with the introduction of a GM soybean. This new type of soybean was genetically modified to be resistant toward herbicides. Genetic modification is the use of certain technologies to alter the genetic structure of a variety of organisms, including bacteria, animals, and plants. Its technology involves combining genes from different organisms. A few of the primary purposes for genetically modifying a plant is to make it herbicide and pesticide resistant, as well as to produce a higher yield. The process of genetically modifying a food or plant is similar in concept, but greatly contrasts in process to the conventional method of cross-pollinating. “Traditional ‘engineering’ techniques involved naturally cross-breeding two different plants to produce a more desirable outcome - something that happens naturally in the evolutionary process. Genetic engineering is entirely different, involving splicing DNA and introducing various proteins, bacterias, and artificial chemicals” (Gardner). Labeling genetically modified foods would help clear up the distinction between the two.

There are numerous objections to GM foods. The three main objections are personal health risks, environmental damage, and the ethical standpoint of playing God. There is also a deep concern among certain sections of society about consuming animal genes in plants and vice versa. Many religious and cultural communities are against genetically modified foods because they see it as an unnatural way of producing foods by tampering with God’s creations.

Other than a religious standpoint, there is also the environmental detriment that GM foods inflict. Genetic modification can violate the intrinsic values of a natural organism. “The extent of damage genetic modification causes organisms like soil microbes is still being examined, but its likely outcome is loss of flora and fauna biodiversity” (Gardner). Due to the natural cross-pollination via pollen in the air, there is also a huge concern for cross-contamination. “On August 18, 2006, American exports of rice to Europe were interrupted when much of the U.S. crop was confined to be contaminated [sic.] with unapproved engineered genes, possibly due to accidental cross-pollination with conventional crops” (Butcher). One major concern that stems from cross-contamination is “crop plants engineered for herbicide tolerance and weeds will cross-breed, resulting in the transfer of the herbicide resistance genes from the crops into the weeds. These ‘superweeds’ would then be herbicide tolerant as well. Other introduced genes may cross over into non-modified crops planted next to GM crops” (Butcher). There needs to be a more efficient system implemented to better confine and separate GM crops from natural crops.

Another threat that GM foods impose onto the environment is how it can accidentally alter a plants genetic structure to be immune to ‘helpful insects.’ Many of these genetically modified plants are structured to be insect resistant, so cross-contamination amongst genetically modified and natural plants can cause an unintentional immunity for some natural plants toward some ‘helpful’ insects, which in turn completely alters the development and evolution of these plants. A laboratory study was published in Nature last year showing that pollen from B.t. corn caused a high mortality rate among monarch butterfly caterpillars. B.t. corn is a corn that has been genetically modified to protect it from pests. “Monarch caterpillars consume milkweed plants, not corn, but the fear is that if pollen from B.t. corn is blown by the wind onto milkweed plants in neighboring fields, the caterpillars could eat the pollen and perish. Unfortunately, B.t. toxins kill many species of insect larvae indiscriminately; it is not possible to design a B.t. toxin that would only kill crop-damaging pests and remain harmless to all other insects” (Waltz). This process causes an ’unnatural selection.’

Aside from the negative environmental repercussions that GM foods impose, it also intrudes upon one’s personal health. The biggest threat caused by genetically modified food is that they can have harmful effects on the human body. In 1989, the Japanese company, Showa Denko, the worlds third largest chemical company, settled a $2 billion lawsuit for their genetically altered version of the food supplement - L-tryptophan. Showa Denko’s L-tryptophan caused the death of dozens of Americans, as well as the cause for several thousand more to be afflicted and impaired. Seven years later in 1996, an overzealous company by the name of Pioneer Hi-Bred spliced the genes of a Brazil nut into a soybean. However, some individuals were so allergic to this hybrid that they went into anaphylactic shock (similar to a severe bee sting reaction), which can result in death (Whitman). Many of these side effects can be linked to the alterations being made to various bacteria strains, which can eventually have a significantly greater repercussion than benefit.

Death is obviously the greatest consequence that goes along with GM foods, but there are also many other health risks that exist. According to scientific research, it has been shown that those who eat genetically modified foods tend to see an increase in their allergic reactions to the types of foods they are already allergic to. By eating these genetically modified foods people also form allergies to foods which they were never allergic to before. Some GM foods have also caused many children in the US and Europe to develop life-threatening allergies to peanuts and other foods (Whitman). There is the obvious possibility that the introduction of a gene into a plant may create new allergen or cause an allergic reaction in susceptible individuals.

As research continues, there is more evidence exposing the harms of GM foods. As individuals ingest more genetically modified foods and organisms into their bodies, it has been shown that the body’s toxicity increases, which leads to a ton of other potentially serious health problems. As stated by NaturalNews.com it has been proven that there is a definite link between obesity, cancer, and toxicity due to the body’s introduction to new and genetically modified organisms (Smith). They are finding that GM foods are a breeding ground for bacteria and viruses, and since the digestive system is where the body is exposed when ingesting these harmful foods, reversing the damaging effects of these foods is nearly impossible.

Companies fear that labeling GM foods would scare consumers away and suffocate their market. As a consumer, one would prefer to be educated about their purchases. Since its first introduction to the US market in 1996, GM foods have come to currently consume two-thirds of shelf space in our grocery stores. Yet most of the public is not aware of their existence, let alone the potential risks and consequences of these products. Labeling of GM foods would not only inform consumers of their existence, but it would also create a better educated consumer base for these potentially harmful foods.







Works Cited
Gardner, Sue. “Should governments require that genetically modified foods be labeled?” Debatepedia. Wikipedia,
n.d., Web. 2 December 2010.
Butcher, Mavis. “Genetically Modified Food – GM Foods List and Information.” Disabled World. N.p., 22
September 2009. Web. 2 December 2010.
Whitman B., Deborah. “Genetically Modified Foods: Harmful or Helpful?” Pro Quest. CSA, April 2000. Web. 2
December 2010.
Waltz, Emily. “GM crops: Battlefield.” Nature. N.p., 2 September 2009. Web. 2 December 2010.
Smith, Jeffrey. “Questioning Modified Foods.” Natural News. N.p., 27 October 2010. Web. 2 December 2010

Summary: Kwik Yogurt

This is an alternative way of making yogurt, much simpler.

Ceramic casserole
Thermometer
Milk
Yogurt for starter
Microwave oven 1KW


Zap the milk in the ceramic container at high setting for 10 min/L. This will bring the milk to 80ºC. Put the casserole lid on from now on. Let cool to 42-44ºC. For each liter of milk add half a cup of yogurt to a cup of warm milk, stir and return to casserole, leave casserole in the microwave (lid on). Incubate for 4.5 hrs. To keep milk at correct temperature, zap for 30-45 seconds every half hour at high setting. Refrigerate when incubation is complete.

Summary:

If you are anything like me you have gone past the "lets get wasted everyday" stage in your life, usually from ages 21 to 24, and have made it to the "lets have a glass of _______ with dinner, after work" stage. This stage is great...except for the fact that good wines come in small bottles and tend to be a lot harder on your wallet than beer and liquor. What to do... what to do. I know, you can make your own tasty (and quite potent) wine...or, errrr wine-esque drink. The entire process is painless and takes about two days, and the minimal effort pays off greatly. I summon the infomercial gods and name this the "Set it and Forget it" method to making your own wine (now that we have a catch phrase you have to take a shot and yell it everytime I mention it in this article).

The first step to the (pointing at you) '''"Set it and Forget it"''' method is to get your materials. you will need
*64 oz bottle of Juice (choice of juice must have at least 32g of sugar per serving for best results)
*Airlock (readily available on Amazon.com for about $2)
*Drilled Rubber stopper (also readily available on Amazon.com for less than a dollar)
*Wine Yeast (you get where I'm going with this part...)


Pick your wine yeast according to how you would like your wine to taste. There are different kinds but for our sake it will not make a difference which one you purchase.

Now its time to (pointing at you) '''"Set it and Forget it"'''.
#Empty a Wine yeast packet into your juice (swirl it around a little to "open up" the yeast).
#Place the Drilled Rubber stopper in the mouth off the juice bottle and the airlock afterward.
#Fill the Airlock with water up to the indented line.
#store at room temperature (on top of your fridge is good)

After about two days your mixture will have have an alcoholic content of about 14%.

'''Ferment to Taste'''

If you like your booze stronger and more bitter let it ferment a few more days...hell even a week. But know that the higher the alcohol content goes, the more bitter it is to taste. Two days usually strikes a very good balance between taste and alcohol content. I ususally down an entire bottle of this stuff in one evening, but if it takes you more time and you do '''NOT''' want your mixture to continue to ferment, you must filter out the yeast (if you can't figure out how to do this part yourself then you shouldn't be trying to make wine either).

or....

you could just buy this ready made kit http://www.thinkgeek.com/caffeine/wacky-edibles/e683/ and then write a "how-to" article about it like I did (the first option is waaaaaaaaaaaay cheaper). [http://www.thinkgeek.com/caffeine/wacky-edibles/e683/]

Summary: /* Flip the switch */

[[Image:Ceiling fan.jpeg|thumb|300px|left|Photo by Michael Calore/Wired]]
When was the last time you paid any attention to the humble ceiling fan, spinning all lonely-like above your head? Stop giving it the runaround and show it some love.

Here's our guide to calibrating, hacking and improving your ceiling fan.

''This collection of tips and hacks is part of '''a wiki anyone can edit.''' If you have advice to add about putting a new spin on your ceiling fan, log in and contribute.''

<br clear="all" />

===Flip the switch===

Ceiling fans don't cool or warm a room, but they can circulate the air such that it feels warmer and cooler to you.

The trick is make sure your fan is spinning the correct way:

In the winter, that means the fan blades bring the warm air down from the ceiling, to circulate heat around the room. Since in the the winter you do not want to feel a draft, much less one on your neck, you turn the fan so it draws air upwards. In the summer, you want a breeze so the fan turns to blow the air down, creating a breeze you can feel and the sensation of "windchill" reducing the apparent temperature of the air.

Note, this might seem counter intuitive, that you are blowing warm air down at people in the summer, but the heat transfer from moving air, i.e., a breeze from a direct flow, is greater than the decrease in heat transfer caused by a few degree difference in temperature (as would be in a room with properly circulating air). See CeilingFan.org [https://www.ceilingfan.org/ceiling-fan-direction/] for a nice explanation. (or for additional confirmation, ceiling fan manufacturers, e.g.: [http://www.casablancafanco.com/Support/FAQs/#a7])

Turn on your fan and note which way it's spinning. If necessary, flip the switch which should be on the main fan drum near the pull chain.

===Fix a wobbly fan===

Wobbles are worse than annoying. They will actually wear down the motor bearings and bushings, leading to nights filled with dreadful squeaking and whining.

The first trick to balancing a ceiling fan is mark each blade with a bit of tape. For added visual help when the blade is spinning, put a bit of florescent paint on each piece of tape, one color per blade. The paint will make it much easier to keep track of the blades when they're spinning.

Now go around each blade and tighten all the mounting screws to make sure everything is firmly in place.

The next step is to stop the fan and use a ruler or yard stick to measure the distance between the ceiling and the leading edge of each blade. This will tell you which of the blades -- if any -- is out of alignment.

If the edge of a blade is clearly out of whack (step up to eye level to check) you can try gently bending the blade's mounting bracket up or down. If that works then you're home free, if not, read on.


===Balance it===

If the wobble is too severe for you to correct by bending the blade brackets, or if you just don't trust yourself to bend it properly, you can add weights to the blades to correct a wobble.

You'll need a binder clip and some small magnets or weights (U.S. quarters works well).

Clamp one of the small weights to the blade using the binder clip. Start by placing it in the center of the blade that's farthest out of alignment and turn the fan on to the speed to produces the most wobble. You may have to move the clip from blade to blade until you find the best position to correct the problem. Once you've found the most promising blade to work with, begin to slide the weighted clip in and out along the length of the blade until the wobbling stops.

Once you have found the perfect spot for the clip, apply some very strong adhesive to the weight on the back of the blade where the clip is located. Remove the clip, and your fan should be working properly.

If this isn't working, or if you're not confident that your adhesive is strong enough to hold the weight on, head to your local hardware store and pick up a balancing kit. The kits are cheap and consist of a set of self-adhesive weights and a weighted clip.

===Light it up===

The fan works fine, but it's pretty boring to look at. Some inventive hackers have taken to installing POV systems on their fans. These consist of a strip, or several strips, of multi-colored LEDs arranged along the fan blades. When the fan spins, the LEDs flash at a rate that produces an image. A POV system can be used to draw groovy patterns and shapes, or to display text.

You can get Adafruit's popular [http://www.adafruit.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=6&zenid=0618fd2e29f7f72634d5d8419a1918c8 SpokePOV] ($38 to $100), which is made for bicycle wheels, and modify it to light up your ceiling fan.

Also, [https://www.instructables.com/ Instructables] user UncleBone has created [https://www.instructables.com/id/Ceiling-Fan-LED-Display/ his own ceiling fan POV]. Check out his step-by-step instructions for further ideas.

Here's a video:

<youtube>MzyIxa1K78E</youtube>



===Overclock it===

''Got any advice to share about turning your ceiling fan into a wind-ripping turbine? Please log in and add it here.''


[[Category:DIY]]

Summary: DVDsmith Movie Backup software for Mac is a smart but easy-to-use dvd copying freeware for Mac users, which can backup dvd movies to Mac OS free with no copy protection.

[http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvdsmith-movie-backup.html DVDSmith Movie Backup for Mac] is a '''free DVD Decrypter''' and D'''VD copying software for''' Mac to copy entire DVD movie to hard drive, and removes all the DVD copy protections (CSS, RC, RCE, APS, UOPs and Sony ARccOS) while copying. With this DVD Backup Freeware, With DVD Smith Movie Backup for Mac, you can copy DVD movie with 1:1 ratio with the same quality of source DVD. You can play your copied DVD on your Mac with any free player, such as VLC player. This backup solution avoids the inevitable risk of getting your originals of your DVD movie discs scratched or damaged. You get disc protection with no loss of playback quality.

To [http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvd-copy-mac-freeware.html backup protected and unprotected DVD disc to your Mac OS free], you can follow below steps to copy DVD to ISO or copy DVD to DVD folder on Mac

'''Step 1.''' Run DVDsmith Movie Backup for Mac and Inserting DVD disc

Insert the DVD disc you want to backup in the DVD-ROM of your Mac, and then you should wait a second for Mac reading the data of the disc.

'''Step 2.''' Choosing backup mode
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvdsmith-pictures/interface.jpg]

'''Note: There are two backup modes for you to choose.'''

'''Full Disc:''' backup all DVD content, including main movie, bonus features and any other clips

'''Main Movie:''' backup only main movie of DVD

'''Step 3.''' Selecting input device, output folder, and copy method

Input device: Select correct DVD device from Input Device dropdown menu.

[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvdsmith-pictures/input.gif]
Output Folder: Choose a place that has enough space to store output file.
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvdsmith-pictures/output.jpg]

Copy Method: There are two copy methods for you to choose:
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvdsmith-pictures/copy-method.jpg]

'''Normal (for Unencrypted and CSS Encrypted DVD):''' when Normal copy method is used, the program will focus on scanning the main movie title in a DVD. If there is bad cell in the main movie title, a prompt window will come up asking you to choose Enhanced copy method.

'''Enhanced (for Encrypted and CSS Encrypted DVD):''' when Enhanced copy method is used, the program will try to read out as much titles as it can be detected in a DVD, and it will then copy all detected titles. Particularly, the program is able to identify the main movie during the scanning process, and skip all bad cells during copying process.

It's recommended to use the Enhanced Copy Method to backup the most recent DVD movies like '''Toy Story 3,Twilight Saga: Elipse''' etc. especially for Disney DVD movies.

'''Step 4.''' Starting backup, When setting finished, click Start Backup button to make copies of encrypted DVD disc on your Mac
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvdsmith-pictures/start-backup.jpg]

After analyzing DVD files, the program will start backup; you can Click Stop Backup button to stop copying.
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvdsmith-pictures/copying.jpg]

Wait for a while, the backup DVD folder of a DVD disc will be created successfully on your Mac. Click OK button when backup finished.

[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/dvdsmith-pictures/finished.jpg]

Summary: New page: The article will present the best solution to transmit/stream movies, music and photos from Droid X to Home Theater via DLNA for playback with wide screen. Before streaming movies and mu...

The article will present the best solution to transmit/stream movies, music and photos from Droid X to Home Theater via DLNA for playback with wide screen.

Before streaming movies and music from Droid X to DLNA Home Theater, you should put videos on Droid X. Just follow the article and you will get what you want.

'''Part 1: Put movies and music on Motorola Droid X.'''

As you know, Motorola Droid X can only support limited video/audio formats, like H.264, H.263, MPEG-4. If you want to transmit or stream Droid X videos to Home Theater devices (HDTV, PS3, Xbox/Xbox 360, etc), the first thing you need to do is to convert videos to Droid X supported formats. A professional '''Droid X Video Converter''' [[http://www.foxreal.com/video-converter/]] will be your best choice supporting converting TiVo, WMV, AVI, MKV, TS, TP, M2TS and other Droid X unsupported videos to H.264 MP4 for Droid X.

Step-by-step guide as below:
Step 1: Load videos/movies to the best video to Droid X converter.

Run Foxreal Video Converter as the best Droid X video converter and click Foxreal Video Converter ADD to add video files into it, including TiVo, WMV, TP, TS, M2TS, AVI, MKV and more.

Step 2: Select Droid X video format.
In the Format option to choose Android - > Motorola Droid (X) H.264 Video (*.mp4) for Droid X. You can also click Settings to adjust video/audio parameters to get the best Motorola Droid X video format Video H.264 (*.mp4) at 1500 bitrate and 23.97 frame rate with 854*480 resolution.

Step 3: Convert video to H.264 MP4 for Droid X.
Click Foxreal Video Converter Convert to start converting TiVo/MKV/AVI/WMV/M2TS/TP/TS, etc to Droid X. Do not worry. The video to Droid X conversion will be completed at up to 5x faster speed based on the latest NVIDIA CUDA technology. Even batch Droid X video conversion is supported.

Step 4: Transfer videos to Droid X.
Connect Droid X to your computer via USB (Please first ensure the 32GB micro-SD card is inserted). Then transfer and sync the converted videos/movies to Droid X under the DCIM - > Camera folder. You can know the detailed guide on how to transfer or copy videos to Droid X here.

'''Part 2: Transmit/Stream videos to Home Theater via DLNA.'''
Before streaming movies/music to your DLNA Home Theater, please make sure that the Droid X is connected to an active Wi-Fi network and has access to the Home Theater support DLNA.

Step 1: Turn on the Home Theater and Droid X, and touch Launcher icon - > DLNA on the Droid X. (If a message reminding to turn on Wi-Fi connection pops up, just touch Yes and go to the settings menu to turn on Wi-Fi.)

Step 2: Touch Share media under the DLNA screen and choose the media file (Music, Picture or Video) you want to play on the My shared media screen. (Just follow the instructions you see on the Droid X.) Then touch OK.

Step 3: Within a short time, you can view a green DLNA logo in the status bar when your handset is transmitting successfully.
Step 4: Check your Home Theater devices for Droid X and the folder files you wish to share with the Home Theater.

It is easy, isnt it? Now, you could easily '''play Droid X videos on Home Theater through DLNA''' [[http://www.foxreal.com/stream-transmit-droid-x-videos-and-movies-to-home-theater-via-dlna/]] . Hopefully the article will be of help for you to play around your Droid X phone with ease.

You can go to the '''Motorola Droid X''' [[http://www.foxreal.com/droidx/]] column for more useful tips or tricks here.

Summary:

[[Image:Siphon1.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Homebrewed beer being siphoned into a carboy bottle. Photo by Sean Mason/[http://www.flickr.com/photos/smason/275154898/ Flickr]/CC]]
Siphoning fluids -- gas out of a car, water out of a fishtank, or homebrewed beer into a carboy -- is a simple exercise in physics.

Contrary to what many assume, a siphon does not rely on atmospheric pressure (it works just fine a vacuum, should you ever need to siphon gas from your spaceship), but rather gravity (a potential problem for the spaceship scenario) and the cohesive forces at work in columns of liquid.

The mechanics of it aren't difficult to understand, and once you've started a siphon, all you have to do is cut it off once the desired volume exchange is achieved.

''This article is part of '''a wiki anyone can edit.''' If you have advice to add about siphoning, please log in and contribute.''
<br clear="all" />

===How to proceed===

[[Image:Siphon2.jpg|thumb|200px|left|Photo via [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Siphoning.JPG Wikimedia Commons].]]
At the most basic level, you need three things for a siphon: a source of liquid, a place for the liquid to go, and a hose. Ideally the hose would be clear you can see what's going on, but that's not absolutely necessary.

In order for a siphon to work, the source liquid must always be higher than whatever container you're trying to transfer it to. Remember, gravity is doing the work here.

Start by feeding the hose into the source tank and putting your secondary container on the ground.

Now you need to suck the fluid out of the source tank and get rid of any air in the tube. You can do this with your mouth, but if you're siphoning gas, you'd have to be slightly crazy to use your mouth. We've all seen it done in the movies, but unless you're in dire straits, it's far safer to buy a siphon pump. A siphon pump does a better job than your mouth, and it eliminates any chance of you swallowing something toxic and ending up in the hospital. The simple plastic device costs less than $10.

<blockquote style="margin-left:20px; padding:10px 0; border-bottom:5px solid #333; border-top:5px solid #333; display:block; float:right; width:200px; font-size:12px; color:#666;">You can "prime" the hose by filling it with water first. This eliminates the need to use a pump or suction to get the siphon going. Don't do this with gasoline, though -- putting water in a gas tank causes problems.</blockquote>
Once the air is out of the tube and the liquid has reached the end of the hose, maintain suction on the hose and carefully crimp the hose or use your thumb as a stopper. In either case, the goal is to prevent any air from entering the hose.

Now just drop the the hose into your secondary container and release the crimp. Viola, siphon complete.

If you ''must'' use your mouth, a clear hose is a must. Hold the hose between your thumb and forefinger, ready to squeeze, gripping it as close to the end as you can. Once the fluid starts making its way down the hose, it comes quick, so watch out. When the fluid column is four or five inches from your mouth, '''squeeze hard''' and pull the hose from your mouth in one motion.

When you need to stop the siphon, lift your secondary container and the hose together to a level higher than your source container. Then, remove the hose and let the excess fluid in the hose drain back into the source.

If you're draining a jacuzzi, a fish tank, or beer, just lift the hose out of the source.

===Tips===

* The trick to avoiding air bubbles in your siphon line is hold the hose straight up and down so you're sucking the liquid up, rather than sideways or down.


* Be sure to keep an eye on your source liquid and make sure the hose stays fully submerged, otherwise you'll end up with bubbles.


* It's illegal to siphon gas out of a car that's not your own, without permission.


* Yes you can siphon with your mouth. That's fine if you're draining the jacuzzi or the fish tank, but it's a '''really''' bad idea with deadly, toxic liquids like gasoline.


* You don't have to suck on the hose, unless you're siphoning beer, in which case sucking on the hose is desirable and rewarding. Here's how to avoid it: Just submerge the entire hose in the source tank, then place your thumb firmly over the delivery end of the hose. Holding the end of the hose closed, move it to the receiving vessel. Remove your thumb. If you've done it right, the siphon will flow. If it doesn't flow, then you've got a bubble in the hose. Do the whole thing over, and this time get all the air out of the hose.


* If the hose is thick or the end is too rough to get a good seal, use vise-grip pliers to pinch it off.


* Another possibility when siphoning water out of a pool is to use a garden hose hooked up to a faucet, especially if the faucet is below the pool water level. In this case, simply hook up the hose, and turn the faucet on until water flows into the pool with no bubbles coming out of the hose. Unscrew the faucet from the tap, and presto, instant siphon. If the tap is located above the pool level, use two lengths of garden hose, with the hose joint at the point you want to siphon to. Simply run the water into the pool until any bubbles disappear. Then unscrew the hoses and the one going into the pool will begin to siphon water automagically.



[[Category:DIY]]

Summary: http://www.executivejobsonline.n.nu/executive-job-online.mypage

'''Managing Executive Stress –Learn to say “NO”'''

Most executives find themselves stressed because they haven't baffled the art of accusation and saying no. Often leaders acquisition themselves adage 'Yes', back in actuality they should be adage 'No'. Stress levels acceleration as you actualize alike added burden annoying about how you are activity to get through everything.

'''Managing Executive Stress - Delegate & Nurture Others'''

One of the best tools of managing executive stress is to make the best use of the talents and skills from own resource. By knowing your people and knowing the type of work they love to do, you can delegate to them tasks that they will be only too excited to take on.

Managing Executive Stress – Indulge yourself - relax and Play

* Stop Deceiving Yourself
* Moderate Exercise
* Routine Meditation
* Break Up Your Work Day and spend good times with your families.


'''Utilize Support Network'''

A leader with high self-esteem find it easy to ask for assistance from others and never feels ashamed.

'''Managing Executive Stress - Control Your Mind'''

Many people make himself busy of thinking negative goal-setting. You have probably had experiences where you have been worrying about something in the future and it didn't come to pass. Fussing and fretting about what 'could be' does little for your energy levels or the future. Taking the right actions now is the most important thing.
[http://www.executivejobsonline.n.nu/executive-job-online.mypage]

Summary: The bank was founded on the principle of social commitment to help the weaker section of the society in their economic endeavours to raise their standard of life.

State run Punjab & Sind Bank will raise up to 4.8 billion rupees through its initial public offer (IPO) with a price band of 113-120 rupees a share to be open on 13th Dec 2010.

The bank was founded on the principle of social commitment to help the weaker section of the society in their economic endeavours to raise their standard of life.

Punjab & Sind Bank, is proposing subject to market conditions and other considerations an initial public offering of up to 4,00,00,000 equity shares of `10 each (the "Equity Shares") for cash at a Price Band of Rs. 113 to Rs. 120 per Equity Share and through a 100% Book Building process (the "Issue"). The Issue comprises a Net Issue to the public of 3,80,00,000 Equity Shares (the "Net Issue") and a reservation of 20,00,000 Equity Shares for subscription by eligible employees (the "Employee Reservation Portion"). The Issue shall constitute 17.93% of the post-Issue share capital of the Bank. The Net Issue shall constitute 17.04% of the post-Issue share capital of the Bank.

BRLM:SBI Cap/ ENAM Sec/ ICICI Sec
Issue Period:December 13– December 16, 2010 –Monday to Thursday
Issue Period (For QIB):December 13– December 15, 2010
Issue Period (For Retail & HNI):December 13– December 16, 2010
Price Band Rs. 113/- to Rs.120/-

To subscribe this IPO or to [http://www.demat9.in/demat-account-opening.html open a demat account] visit www.demat9.in.

Summary: With Noteburner M4V Converter, you can easily remove drm from m4v videos, and convert m4v videos to various kinds of common video formats. You can also extract audio from iTunes m4v movies when it's D

As we all know, MP3 is the most popular audio format nowadays. We often listen to music as mp3 format to playback on various portable players like iPad, iPod, iPhone, Walkman, Creative Zen etc. anywhere at any time.

For iTunes lovers, it's a troublesome if they want to [http://www.noteburner.com/extract-audio-from-m4v.html extract audio track from their purchased or rental iTunes M4V videos]. To get this achieved, what they need is a [http://www.noteburner.com/noteburner-m4v-converter.html iTunes DRM removal software] and a [http://www.any-video-converter.com/products/for_video_free/ video converter freeware]

'''Remove DRM protection from iTunes M4V movies'''

As we know that M4V Movies purchased or rent from iTunes store are DRM protected and limited to play on most players and portable devices other than Apple's. It's also a difficulty to extract audio from iTunes M4V movies and convert to MP3, WMA, AAC formats. Here you can learn how to convert iTunes M4V movies to MP3, WMA, AAC etc step by step.

'''Step 1. Import M4V movies from iTunes library'''

Click "Add" button, you will get a popup window listing all files in iTunes library. You can search M4V videos according name, then select the videos, click OK button.
[Image:http://www.noteburner.com/image/article/Add.jpg]

'''Step 2. Set output path and output format'''

You can select output format as MP4, AVI, MOV, MPEG, FLV etc. and output path as following pictures show:
[Image:http://www.noteburner.com/image/m4vconverter/outformat.jpg]]

'''Note:''' If you don't set to custom output path, the output files will be saved in the default folder.

'''Step 3. Customize video and audio options on the right settings panel.'''

You can customize the output video codec, bitrate, Ratio and audio codec, bitrate, channel for the output vidoes.

'''Step 4.''' Click "Convert" button to remove DRM protection from iTunes M4V movies with NoteBurner M4V Converter for Windows.
'''Extract Audio Track from iTunes M4V movies to MP3, WMA, AAC etc.'''

'''Step 1.''' Download Video Converter Freeware and install it on your PC
[Image:http://www.noteburner.com/image/article/video-converter-freeware.jpg]
'''Step 2.''' Launch Video Converter Freeware, Click "Add Video" button to add DRM free videos

[Image:http://www.noteburner.com/image/article/output-profule.jpg]

Any Video Converter freeware supports importing almost all popular video formats. So you can remove DRM from iTunes M4V movies and save to any formats you like.

Step 3. Click "Output Profile icon", you can set the output formats as "Audio formats".
[Image:http://www.noteburner.com/image/article/mp3-format.jpg]
Step 4. Choose "MP3, WAV, WMA, AAC, OGG, M4A " audio formats as output.
[Image:http://www.noteburner.com/image/article/convert.jpg]

Step 5. Click "Convert" button to start converting iTunes M4V to MP3
convert itunes m4v movies to mp3, wav, wma, aac

Summary: Any DVD Cloner is not a dvd cloner program but also a dvd decrypted, dvd shrinker software which supports copying encrypted dvd 9 to dvd 5 with 1:1 ratio quality

[http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com Any DVD Cloner] can handle single layer DVD-5 and dual layer DVD-9, so it's able to copy DVD movies between different mediums, such as DVD to DVD, DVD to hard drive, hard drive to DVD, region code DVD to region free disk.
As a DVD shrinker software, Any DVD Cloner programs support compressing DVD-9 to DVD-5 as well as copying from Dual layer DVD-9 to Dual layer DVD-9, and Single Layer DVD-5 to DVD-5.

To shrink Dual layer DVD-9 disk to a Single Layer DVD-5 disk, follow below steps

Step 1. Run Any DVD Cloner on your computer at first, get the main workplace as below:
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/images/work-space.jpg]

Step 2. Go to menu Settings > Options, select 4400 (DVD D5) in Max DVD Size:
copy single layer dvd-5 to single layer dvd-5
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/images/options-d5.jpg]
Step 3. Insert a DVD-9 disk into the drive, and click Open DVD button:
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/images/button-open-dvd.jpg]

Step 4. Check select clips page to omit some files from the source disk to let the final size fit a DVD-5 disk.

Step 5. Insert a blank DVD-5 disk into another drive (DVD burner), and click Copy DVD button:
[Image:http://www.any-dvd-cloner.com/images/button-copy-dvd.jpg]

Wait for a while, a clone DVD-5 disk will be created successfully.

Note:
a. If you frequently use this clone type, you can check Auto Burn in step 2;
b. If you want to save hard disk space, please check Delete temporary folder when DVD Cloner finished in step 2;
c. If you are Mac user, click to learn how to copy DVD 9 to single layer DVD 5 on Mac OS X .

Summary:

If you’ve collected or recorded some 720p 3GP videos by using the Droid X HD camcorder, you may find that the Droid X 720p .3gp recordings can not be played on the Xbox 360 or Xbox.


No worry. Foxreal Droid X Video to Xbox Converter [[http://www.foxreal.com/video-converter/]] will do a great favor for you, which can help you encode and convert Droid X 720p video to H.264/MPEG-4 AAC (*.mp4) compatible for Xbox and Xbox 360 with high quality.Here the article will instruct the easiest and fastest solution to convert Droid X 3GP video to Xbox and stream and play the converted Droid X 3GP 720p movie on Xbox 360 through DLNA.

Part one: Convert Droid X 3GP recordings/videos to Xbox/Xbox 360.

Step 1: Free download Droid X to Xbox Video Converter, install and launch it. Then click Foxreal Video Converter Add to load the Droid X 3GP recordings on your computer.

Step 2: Click the “Format” option to choose the video format “Android - > Motorola Droid (X) H.264 Video (*.mp4)” for the Droid X and Xbox 360. Generally, the default settings can convert video to MP4 with good quality. If you like, you can also click “Settings” to set bitrate, frame rate, codec, sample rate, and more to get the video quality you prefer.

Step 3: Convert Droid X 3GP video to H.264/MPEG-4 MP4 for the Droid X and Xbox 360 by clicking Foxreal Video Converter Convert. After the 3GP video to Xbox conversion, you can connect the Droid X to your computer via USB to transfer videos to Droid X after getting the converted videos/movies in its default output folder.

Part two: Stream Droid X 3GP movies to Xbox 360 or Xbox through DLNA connection.

Step 1: Make sure your Wi-Fi network is up and running.
Step 2: Turn on the Xbox 360 and ensure that it is connected to your Wi-Fi network.
Step 3: Open the apps tray on the Droid X and select the DLNA app.
Step 4: Check Support Xbox after pressing Menu hard key and selecting Settings. Than press back to exit.
Step 5: Touch Share media under the DLNA screen, and choose the specific media file type (videos, music or photos) you want to share on the My shared media screen. Then touch OK.
Step 6: Wait for a while, a green DLNA logo will appear in the status bar showing the DLNA connection succesffully.
Step 7: Check the Xbox 360 or Xbox for the Droid X and the specific media file you selected to stream and play.

As you see, after the above steps, you could easily stream and play Droid X 3GP videos on Xbox via DLNA [[http://www.foxreal.com/droid-x-3gp-to-xbox-360-stream-720p-videos-from-droid-x-to-xbox-via-dlna/]] with high quality.

You can go to the Motorola Droid X column [[http://www.foxreal.com/droidx/]] for more useful tips or tricks here.

Summary: New page: [[AVCHD]] (Advanced Video Coding High Definition) is a format for the recording and playback of high definition video. Got a HD home movie camcorder already and ready to shoot the coming ...

[[AVCHD]] (Advanced Video Coding High Definition) is a format for the recording and playback of high definition video.

Got a HD home movie camcorder already and ready to shoot the coming holiday gathering? We used to burn home movies to DVD for sharing sweet holiday videos with family and friends. However, nowadays more and more people would like to show the world their holiday home movies by uploading the videos to YouTube. It's easy and FREE!

A good news is YouTube recently began offering users an option to view content in high definition 1080p resolution (when the source upload supports it). But YouTube is currently experimenting with this feature and optimizing it accordingly, so it can't guarantee that your videos will always be transcoded into this format with this user option present. The recommended resolution to upload a HD home movies to YouTube is 1280 x 720, not 1920 x 1080 (1080p). So make sure you've captured HD home movies with 720p resolution.

To upload AVCHD home movies to YouTube, you have to convert the videos to YouTube accepted video formats first. Here take [http://www.ifunia.com/avchd-converter-mac.html iFunia AVCHD Converter for Mac] for an example to convert AVCHD videos to YouTube compatible video format for uploading.
== Steps ==
===Add AVCHD M2TS videos to AVCHD Converter for Mac===
Download and run AVCHD Converter for Mac, and click "Add…" button to select AVCHD M2TS video files. You can add your AVCHD M2TS video by drag-n-drop. And the software has a feature of previewing and playing your AVCHD video files. Simply select a file which you want to preview in the Source File area and click Play button; you can also take snapshot at will to store the image you like.<br>

[[Image:Avchd-m2ts-mts-imovie-import-1.jpg]]
===Change the output settings for uploading to YouTube===
Select one or more files in the file list, and select your preferred video format from the Output format drop-down menu. Here we choose MP4-MPEG4 Video File (*.mp4) video, and click the folder icon to specify a directory on your computer to save the output files.<br>

[[Image:Avchd-m2ts-mts-imovie-output.jpg]]
===Start converting MTS to MP4 video===
After the above settings, check the needed files to convert in the file list, and click "Start" button on the window to start converting with AVCHD Converter for Mac. The Progress bar shows the status of the converting task. iFunia AVCHD Converter for Mac prompts you when the converting task is completed, then click OK. Congratulations! You have converted an AVCHD M2TS to MP4 video on Mac.
===Upload video to YouTube===
Once you've finished converting videos to YouTube acceptable format, made sure it's less than 10 minutes, smaller than 2GB in size, you're ready to upload it.<br>1. Click the Upload videos to YouTube button in the upper-right-hand corner of any YouTube page.<br>2. Click the "Browse" button to browse for the video file you'd like to upload to our site. Select the file you want to upload.<br>3. Click the 'Upload Video' button to start the uploading process.<br>4. As the video file is uploading, enter as much information about your video as possible in the relevant fields (including Title, Description, Tags, and Category). You're not required to provide specific information, but the more information you include, the easier it is for users to find your video!<br>5. Click the 'Save changes' button to save the updates you've made to the video file.

== Tips ==
*It can take from a couple minutes to an hour for your video to upload to YouTube. This depends on the file size of your video and the broadband speed of your network.

== Things You'll Need ==
*A Camera
*AVCHD home movies
*iFunia AVCHD Converter
*YouTube account
==Related articles==
[[TOD format, what are TOD files, how to play TOD files on Mac]]<br>
[[Embed YouTube Videos in Your PowerPoint Presentations]]<br>
[[Watch YouTube on Your iPod]]<br>
[[Upload music to YouTube without visiting the web site]]

Summary: /* Start with tinder */

[[Image:Firelogcabin.jpg|thumb|250px|left|A classic "log cabin" style fire. Photo by kw.traveller/[http://www.flickr.com/photos/kw_traveller/4660176968/in/photostream/ Flickr]/CC]]
There's more to building a a good fire than just squirting some lighter fluid on wood and flicking a match.

Sure, it works to get things started. But if you build a proper fire and pay attention to the arrangement of the wood, your results will be longer lasting, hotter and safer, whether outdoors on the trail or in the fireplace in your living room.

''This article is part of '''a wiki anyone can edit.''' If you have advice to add about starting fires, log in and contribute.''
<br clear="all" />


===Know your science===

Before you start building a fire, it's worth taking a minute to understand what makes a fire possible -- namely, fuel, heat, oxygen and a sustained chemical reaction.

The first is easy. In this case, your fuel is wood and tinder.

The heat in the equation refers to the initial heat you provide to start the fire, whether from a match or by rubbing two sticks together.

To provide enough oxygen, we need to make sure the wood and other burnables aren't so tightly packed that the fire snuffs itself out.

The last bit is simply a reminder that a burning fire is actually a chemical reaction. Fuel and oxygen are consumed, producing heat and light as byproducts. Block any component of that reaction and your fire will go out.

===Start with tinder===

Tinder refers to anything that ignites easily and can feed the initial flame to the next step in the chain. Good tinder includes paper, dry grasses, dried moss, pine needles, wood shavings, and even lint or wax. Denim, if frayed and unraveled will do in a pinch.

If you're building an outdoor fire, pine needles and dry grass are likely to be your most plentiful sources of tinder. For indoor fires, grab the Sunday paper and crumple it up. What? The Sunday paper is on your iPad? Yet another drawback of digital publishing...

===Kindling===

The next step in the chain is kindling. Where the main goal of tinder is to ignite quickly, kindling consists of larger materials so that when the heat from the tinder moves on to the kindling the fire grows.

The best source of kindling will usually be dry twigs or small pieces of wood chipped from your main logs. Try to find twigs about 1/8 to 1/2 inch thick. Other good sources of kindling include bark or cardboard. Whatever you use, make sure it is very dry.

===Fuel===

[[Image:Teepeefire.jpg|300px|right|thumb|The classic teepee, one of the many architectural methods of fire-building. Photo by Matt DeTurck/[http://www.flickr.com/photos/dalboz17/295420227/ Flickr]/CC]]
Once the tinder ignites, it feeds heat to the kindling which then catches on fire and passes even more heat onto the actual fuel. This is where your logs come in. This is also where you'll find a number of different fire "architectures."

* '''The teepee:''' Stack your larger fuel logs in a teepee or cone shape around the tinder and kindling. As the the fuel begins to burn, the outside logs will catch at the base and then fall inward as they burn, feeding the fire.


* '''The trench:''' Best used when you don't have a lot of fuel. To build a trench fire, dig a small cross under the fire; dig down about 4 inches. Lay your tinder at the center of the two channels and then build the fire on top of that. The two channels you've dug out will pull in air and create an updraft that helps feed the fire.


* '''The log cabin:''' Build a four-walled box outside your tinder and kindling by stacking your fuel logs in alternating directions, just like a log cabin. This method creates an effect similar to a chimney, and the heat on the inside pulls oxygen through the gaps in your "cabin" walls, feeding the fire.


* '''The pyramid:''' Also known at the upside down fire, the pyramid starts with two larger logs laid on the ground, parallel to each other. Then lay a foundation of other logs across your base. Then add another layer in the opposite direction to the one below it. Continue adding layers, using smaller, thinner logs as you go up. Add your kindling above the last layer and then the tinder on top of that. Light from the top and the pyramid will burn down. This method works well in indoor fireplaces.


'''Tip''': Which architecture is best depends on the situation you're facing. The teepee is best if the fuel wood is wetter, since logs outside the main fire can dry before they burn. The pyramid is compact and requires very little maintenance, making it ideal for an all night fire.

===Summon the god of wind===

Occasionally, you have to fan your fire to keep it going, especially if it's small. We recommend this method:

<youtube>389DkzjHpus</youtube>



[[Category:Survival]]
[[Category:Travel]]

Summary: the cool gadget green laser pointer is always a good choice for Christmas Gift.

[[Image:Nether-green-laser-pointer.jpg|thumb|2315px|right|''Nether series green laser pointer'']]
With the coming of Christmas Day, gift has become an unavoidable outcome for all of American people. Well, what should I prepare for the Christmas day gift? Different people will hold different ideal, while more and more people would like choose cool gadget as their idea Christmas gift. For example, Iphone, a new brand wrist watch or the most popular [http://www.laserto.com laser pointer] are all wonderful gifts for Christmas day.
It is to strange for young adults and senior people in US, the green laser pointer is quite popular among them, which is not only a good choice for entrainment, also a very practical gadget for astronomy, teaching etc in our daily life. Why most of people would like to choose a green laser pointer as a Christmas gift?
It would be the best choice for laser man to choose the Nether series adjustable focus green laser pointer with safety key. This 532nm green laser pointer, ranging from 100Mw to 350Mw, has a long lifetime of more than 8000 hours and long warranty period of 1 year factory warranty. The most important of all should be its cheap price while comparing with those laser pointers with the same range of output power as the result of the application of the latest laser diode technology and higher working efficiency, which is a good way of money saving to choose this series green laser pointer from http://www.laserto.com.
The beam of [http://www.laserto.com/nether-series-green-laser-pointer.html nether series] green laser pointer can travel as long as 8000 hours, which can not only used for stargazing and watch celestial objects in astronomy, but also be to burn plastic, cut electric tape, light match and cigarette etc. The multiply function green laser pointer can not only bring people a lot of enjoys but also a useful tool in our daily life.
If you are still seeking the Christmas gift, just take a consideration of this cool gadget – Green laser pointer, which can never bring you any disappointment.

Summary: New page: Smoking Bans: How effective are they? By Shane Although smoking ban’s have been around as early as the 1590, in the early 2000`s smoking bans began to take affect in cities and states ...

Smoking Bans: How effective are they?
By Shane

Although smoking ban’s have been around as early as the 1590, in the early 2000`s smoking bans began to take affect in cities and states across the country and even world. From the beginning there was many supporters and non supporters of these laws, with each having their own opinion whether they were effective or not. Now that time has past it seems that the ban has gotten out of the hot seat and is just a part of daily life for everyone, which makes it a good time to stop and look at its outcomes. Although I am a non smoker and personally support the smoking ban, but its important to look at the opinions of both supporters and non supporters no matter if they are smokers or not. Facts show that smoking bans have created healthier public environments and minimizes smoking all around. I’ll support my opinion by summarizing an article about the effectiveness of smoking bans, then we’ll look at non supporters point of view and lastly my opinion and supporters opinions.
The article is from Seed magazine, and is titled, Do Smoking Bans Work?, By Dave Munger. As the title sounds it is about smoking bans and how effective they are with deterring people from smoking and minimizing impacts on non smokers. Although the author states he believes many smoking bans have proven to be effective, he feels there may be a point where they can become counter productive. He doesn’t know where that point is, but he believes its possible and we need to be careful with the extent we place laws on cigarettes. An example he used to prove not all bans are effective was a study taken on the effectiveness of warning labels on cigarette boxes. The study used two different groups of kids, one with self esteem issues and one without. Then a label that had to do with self-esteem and one with death. The study showed that each label effected each group differently, with one label making one of the groups view smoking more positive than the other and vise versa. He also supports his opinion that smoking bans are having positive impacts on controlling smoking, by discussing “bloggers” opinions on public smoking bans. One “blogger” he mentions is a physician that posted there are studies that show workers in restaurants and bars have improved health after the ban has taken affect. Another “blogger” was a bar tender at a bar that ban smoking was enforced and felt it was effecting business. This article clearly shows the type of ban affect who it is targeting is key to being successful.
From the beginning of the to now, there are many people that still oppose the bans based on the idea of in just human rights. “The Case against Smoking Bans” is a good example of non supporters argument against smoking bans. The author Thomas Lambert discusses many strong points but three stood out to me. He first states that smoking bans do not allow for the control of smoking that there once was when there weren’t bans, which causes more smoking. Smoking was controlled by all aspects of businesses, owners and both smoking and non smoking consumers. Owners were able to manage smoking to the appropriate levels that they were comfortable with. This gave consumers choices of where to go, but also managed smoking because people were aware of the amount of smoke inside which slowed smoking. Having people smoke outside doesn’t give a gauge of how much they are smoking, causing them to smoke more. Second, smoking bans have increased health insurance costs and lowered wages costing the public money. Insurance costs have raised 7 percent for men and 4 percent for women because the life expectancy has raise since smoking bans came into affect(6). Employees have also suffered a pay cut since the work environment is cleaner and safer, they no longer have the power to request a higher pay. Lastly the processes of studies conducted by the EPA supporting the need to implement smoking bans were found to be unreliable and bias. These were all strong points but the personal view can change how you look at them.
As a supporter I feel that, yes it is unfortunate that smoking bans have increased the cost of health insurance. But the fact that its because the life expectancy has risen greatly out weighs the higher costs because that is why the bans were put in place, to increase public health. This also goes for the cut in pay for employees. Yes we are at tough economic times and more money would be useful, but since health has increased the chance of going to the hospital for smoke related illnesses drops, which means you save money on actual hospital bills. A recent study by the American heart and lung association shows that health costs have dropped by 16 million since the implementation(3). Since 37 percent of non smoking adults are affected by second hand smoke, these numbers aren’t just the savings of smokers. The health benefits mentioned are just one reason for supporting smoking bans. Another reason for supporting smoking bans is the idea that it minimizes smoking and the chances of non smokers picking up smoking. A study conducted in Canada found that 20% of smokers that lived and worked in smoke free environments quit smoking within two years of the ban being enforced(2). That’s nearly a quarter of the test subjects. If bans were this effective and the results were consistent with the studies results, almost a quarter of the population would quit smoking in two years.
These stats along with my personal feelings make me believe smoking bans are beneficial to society, but there’s a point to where it needs to be the smokers choice. I believe too much regulation can have a reverse effect and people should be able to make personal choices as long as it doesn’t affect the health of others. There are many reasons I believe smoking bans are affective but the most important considers the health of both smokers and non smokers. They no longer make people have to deal with the smell of smoke in public places and it creates a healthier work environment for employees trying to make a living at their work places. I also feel it helps smokers smoke less by making it no longer convenient to light a cigarette and smoke without having to get up and leave the building. On top of those reasons I feel it doesn’t make smoking as present in everyday life, making it easier for smokers to quit smoking and less of a chance for non smokers to pick up smoking. These feelings are backed by many of the studies I mentioned earlier. As far as personal experiences.
Ultimately there wont ever be a time when everyone agrees or disagrees with smoking bans but the fact is they are making a difference. It’s the persons perspective that makes them feel whether they are good or bad and mine makes me think they are good. Nothing is ever going to create completely positive results such but if the positives outweigh the negatives it believe it is successful. The possible financial side affects of smoking bans may not be desirable, but they have definitely made positive impacts by increasing the publics health, both smokers and non smokers. Law makers need to be careful, because smoking bans do regulate a right that many Americans rely on. Too much regulation could cause negative impacts, which makes me feel that ultimately it is a personal choice to smoke and no ban should prevent a person from being able to make that choice. Freedom of choice is a right that makes our society so great and taking that away would take away a key to our societies greatness.


Source:
Seed magazine (October 27, 2010) do smoking bans work?. Dave Munger
Retrieved 11/20/10 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/do_smoking_bans_work/

(2) Physorg.com (August 22, 2007) Study: Smoking Bans reduce smoking. Retrieved 12/1/10 http://www.physorg.com/news107021203.html

(3)Instah.com (November 21, 2010) Smoking Ban Statistics in United States and Health Effects on the heart
Retrieved 12/1/10
http://www.instah.com/quit-smoking/smoking-ban-statistics-in-united-states-and-health-effects-on-the-heart/

(4) Not to smoke.com (2010) Smoking Ban- Obstruction of Freedom?
Retrieved 12/1/10
http://www.notosmoke.com/herbal-smoking-articles/public-smoking-ban.htm

(5) smoking Statistics.org ( July 29, 2009) How Smoking Bans have affected the USA
Retrieved 12/1/10
http://www.smokingstatistics.org/How_smoking_bans_have_affected_the_USA.asp

(6) Thomas A. Lambert (2007) The Case Against Smoking Bans
Retrieved 12/1/10
http://www.cato.org/pubs/regulation/regv29n4/v29n4-4.pdf

Summary: /* Eliminate drafts */

[[Image:Windowsweather.jpg|thumb|300px|left|Photo by Greg Emel/[http://www.flickr.com/photos/hillsdalehouse/1795065154/ Flickr]/CC]]

The arctic cold is creeping in again in the Northern Hemisphere, and we're all cranking up the heat. As nice as your heater is, you're wasting a good bit of energy -- and money -- if your windows aren't properly weatherproofed. But with a few inexpensive fixes, you can stop the chill from coming indoors and sending your heating bill through the roof.

Here's our guide to the tried-and-true DIY methods of stopping leaks and weatherproofing your windows.

''This article is part of '''a wiki anyone can edit.''' If you have advice to add about battling the chill, log in and contribute.''


==Eliminate drafts==

The most critical step is to simply fix up your existing windows. Give your windows a thorough inspection for cracks, gaps and holes. If there are any cracked panes, replace them or seal the cracks with clear caulk. Check the putty around the edges of the glass, and seal any cracked or missing areas.

Remember that it's entirely possible for air leaks to come from both inside and outside. Inspect the exterior of your window for gaps, missing weatherstripping or other damage. Exterior repairs can usually be made with a quality latex caulk, just be careful that the caulk doesn't interfere with the operation of the window.

===Seal the sill===

If drafts are your problem, check the crack at the bottom of the window where the window meets the sill. This is where cold air often creeps in through.

To block the crack, fill a pair of socks with rice or lentils and tie off the tops. Lay the filled socks across the window sill. Of course, make sure the socks are nice-looking, and sturdy enough to hold the rice. You can also get some bean bags and lay them across the window sill. Or, measure the length of the sill and sew your own long bean bag for a custom fit.

===Add weather stripping===

The next step is to get some weather stripping and seal the edges of your windows. Weather stripping is cheap and will go a long way toward keeping out those drafty flows of outside air.

<blockquote style="margin-left:20px; padding:10px 0; border-bottom:5px solid #333; border-top:5px solid #333; display:block; float:right; width:200px; font-size:12px; color:#666;">Vinyl is your best bet, especially if you live in a place with some pretty extreme weather conditions. It's waterproof, durable and forms a tight seal. Foam and felt are cheap, but they aren't as durable and the seal isn't as tight. All of these options come in self-adhesive strips. If vinyl's too ugly, you can use copper or some other metal, but you'll have to nail it in place.</blockquote>
Measure all the surfaces between the sashes and the frame -- the sashes are the movable pieces that hold the glass panes, and the frame is the box built into the wall that holds the sashes. If you have a double-hang window that slides up on a track to open, make sure you measure across the middle of the frame where the two sashes meet when the window closes. Add up all the measurements, then add 10 to 15 percent to the length to account for mistakes. That's how much stripping you'll need.

Apply the stripping to both surfaces to be sealed, keeping things snug in the corners. Make sure the seal is tight when the window is closed.

The areas where you're attaching the strips needs to be clean and smooth. You might need to do some light scraping or sanding if you have old weather stripping that's worn off.

===Seal your windows with caulk===

Inside, especially on older wood windows that are worn from time and use, there are temporary caulks you can use to seal all the gaps around the sashes for winter temperatures. This seals the sashes of the window to the frame, so you won't be able to open the window, but these caulks peel off easily so you can remove them when the weather warms up, restoring full use of the windows.

Look for the tubes of weather stripping caulking marked "removable" and "temporary". They're usually clear, they dry solid and they don't bond to paint or finishing. One tube should be enough for two or three windows.

==Plastic==

[[Image:Windowplastic.jpg|thumb|300px|left|Plastic window coverings are nearly invisible when installed properly. Photo by Christopher Patterson/[http://www.flickr.com/photos/dimmerswitch/2227042738/in/photostream/ Flickr]/CC]]
You're probably familiar with those plastic window-sealing kits they sell at hardware stores. They work surprisingly well -- the idea is to create a pocket of insulating air between the window and the air inside your house. It's the same concept as the one used by double-pane windows, which have pockets of inert gas between the panes. You won't be able to open your windows once you cover them with plastic, but the technique definitely will cut your heating bill down to size.

These kits are easy to install -- just seal the plastic over your window with the provided double-sided tape, then use a hair drier to shrink and tighten the plastic -- but they usually cost around $20 per window.

A cheaper option is to use generic plastic sheeting. It comes in big rolls, and it costs between $3 and $5 per window. The downside is that the result won't be as attractive. Plastic sheeting is on the opaque side, so sunlight will get through to warm the house, but you won't be able to see as clearly through the window. If visibility is important, use the bulk sheeting option on the windows in your house that you don't need to see through, and go with the more expensive kits where you need the plastic to be invisible.

Tip: For extra protection -- using either bulk sheeting or the kits -- put another layer of plastic on the outside of your window as well.


==Coverings==

Double up on curtains. Hanging one set an inch or two from the window, and a second set an inch or two away from the first. It uses the same technique as the plastic by creating an air pocket. It isn't as efficient as plastic, but it's better than nothing.

==Install storm windows==

A storm window is essentially a second piece of glass fitted over your existing window.

There are custom options, but now storm windows come pre-fabricated in the most common sizes. Just head to your local big box home improvement store and pick up a few storm windows that fit your existing windows. Mount them with a drill and screw driver to the outside of your house according to the instructions.

Just like with the plastic coverings, you won't be able to open your windows. Leave a window or two uncovered for ventilation and for escape options-- we recommend the window in the bathroom.


[[Category:DIY]]
[[Category:Lifestyle]]