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@Pooja, Jameeludeen, Alam, Nihal, Arun and Y.V.Ashalatha: We’re glad to know that this comprehensive guide on learing digital marketing has helped you. Thanks for your kind words of appreciation, our intial objective is met. We’d further like to help you groom you on leveraging digital marketing for your career and business growth. You can do that simply by registering for a FREE Live session: http://www.digitalvidya.com/dmo/.

The average cost of a major kitchen renovation is over $15,000.  Ouch!  Yet, there are SO many ways to make a kitchen look beautiful for just a few hundred dollars.  It’s actually something I’m doing right now in my own kitchen.  I bought decorative posts for the island, I’m putting brick facade on front of the island, changing the backsplash, putting wooden decorative feet under the cabinets, putting in decorative corbels under the cabinets, adding under-cabinet lighting, and painting the cabinets.  All of these things can be done for under $150 per project.  A website just about inspiration for kitchen upgrades could be fantastic!

Loved your article. Any advice on connecting to Niche Sellers? We are a small company (compared to Amazon, et al) that offers third party fulfillment. Our approach is much different than the big guys, we keep costs low, have great negotiated shipping rates and tailor our business to our customers’ needs. We don’t dictate to the seller how to do their business as the Big Guys do.

Another way to learn digital marketing is to learn it on the job. In some situations, it can be somewhat easy to get a job in the digital marketing field and then learn how things work. For example, you may take on an internship or an entry-level position that requires little to no experience. Although learning digital marketing on the job can certainly be helpful, especially if you’re a hands-on learner, most of the people miss out on the latest changes and strategies if this is the only way they are learning about digital marketing. Also, there are a lot of terminologies in this field; if you don’t learn what these terms mean from authorized sources or through your professional training, then you may end up making some unavoidable mistakes that could potentially set you back, or even worse: cost you your job.
A deposition is a formal meeting between a party to a lawsuit and another party such as the opposing party to the lawsuit, a witness, an expert witness, etc.  Basically two lawyers sit down with their clients while one lawyer grills someone for 8 hours–but it’s in an office and not in the courthouse.  When a deposition is taken, the lawyers need to video record it to have as evidence.
This program pays up to $430 per sale to its affiliates. Not the highest paying affiliate program but the conversion rates are great and the product is also very valuable to new marketers. This is one of the easiest high ticket affiliate programs to join since all you need to make money with it is a Clickbank account. If you already got that, simply visit their JV page and get your link and start promoting.

It’s not secret that I’m disappointed as to how well BestProducts.com are ranking in Google. Especially since they only benefit from sitewide footer links on Esquire, Cosmopolitan and Elle.com. It’s seems highly ironic that Google will go through Black hat world forums looking for sites and networks to penalise but totally ignore the big fish right under their nose.
When do you want to get started?  If you are just starting and have no audience then some of the programs may not accept your application to become an affiliate, while others will let you get set up in minutes.  If you want to get started straight away then make sure you’re applying for programs that are less restrictive. Generally the larger, network style places will enable you to get going quickly while specific niche programs may require you to have a certain audience size or characteristics.

Personal finance software can go a long way in helping you to take control of your money and meeting your financial goals. It’s important to note, however, that some focus more on budgeting and expense tracking while others prioritize investing portfolios and income taxes. Explore several different programs and read reviews to find the one that’s right for you.
Wow! What an awesome list! My favorite is the stock photography because I love photography. I have had some success there, particularly with one photo I make some decent income from. I think the key with stock photography is finding a shot that is high demand. Then, find a new unique way to frame that shot. This is the reason my St. Louis Arch photo is a top 10 on both ShutterStock and iStockPhoto. Thanks for the awesome ideas above!
Whether you choose to invest in just one of these modern REITs or both, keep in mind that since they’re private funds and not stocks, you won’t be able to easily liquidate your investment and access your cash right away. Depending on your investment, plan to see your money tied up for anywhere from six months to five years. However, you’ll most likely still receive monthly or quarterly payments, depending on which investment opportunity you select.
Carolanne (Annie) Mangles is the digital marketing executive and editor at Smart Insights and oversees all blog content. She is involved in SEO strategy planning and improving pages for higher organic reach. When she’s not in the office, you’ll find her hiking in the countryside, eating cake or petting the nearest animal. Connect with her on LinkedIn or follow her on Twitter
Additionally, TemplateMonster provides its partners with ready-made banners, plugins, widgets, showcases, and a number of other tools that affiliates can use for free. The progressive commission plan, life-long 5% cut for recurring affiliates, all-year-round active cookies, and a number of other advantages are delivered to the partners no matter when they join the program.
Whether you know how to flawlessly apply eye makeup or build a wooden shelving unit, you can create an online course or video for others to follow. Websites like Udemy and Teachable allow you to build a course, such as how to learn a new language or write a cover letter. Once you build your course and set the price, there’s little work to be done. You’ll receive residual income from each person who signs up to take your course.

What's up ladies and dudes! Great to finally meet you, and I hope you enjoyed this post. My name is Nathaniell and I'm the owner of One More Cup of Coffee. I started my first online business in 2010 promoting computer software and now I help newbies start their own businesses. Sign up for my #1 recommended training course and learn how to start your business for FREE!
Each of the types of internet marketing strategies and activities is explained in terms of definition, important concepts and practices that could be used to leverage your website to a new level. While search engine marketing is focused on paid advertisings programs such as Google AdWords and Bing Ads, and different kinds of search engine marketing (SEM) campaigns, learning the basics of search engine optimization (SEO) is going to help you with understanding some of the free methods that can be used to increase a website’s organic position. When it comes to social media marketing, besides the definition of the concept and recommended social media platforms, you will also learn how to develop a social media marketing strategy.

Not only do they provide a myriad of different online courses, they also have over 80 course languages to take them in, so people from all over the world can benefit from their services. All of the courses are available to download onto a smartphone or tablet so you can keep up with your studies no matter where you are, and give you the ability to learn and progress at your own pace.
However, he decided to refocus on what he loves the most (which is building and marketing businesses) and started Social Triggers, which is now one of the top online marketing blogs on the internet. The interesting thing is that Derek managed to get to the top of his niche and make a name for himself in a very short period of time. This guy clearly knows something that most people don’t.
GetResponse specializes in software solutions for email marketing on a subscription basis. You can refer your website visitors to GetResponse via a banner or a link placed in your posts or articles. This can bring you one-third (33%) of the amount the user pays every month for the subscription. Your take can be from $4.95 to $54.45 per month depending on the plan the user chooses.
At this point, you probably already know what Facebook is and what it does. What you might not know? It has a training and certification program. Facebook Blueprint offers self-paced and live e-learning courses for marketers seeking to grow their organizations using Facebook. Blueprint offers classes in different languages on how to use Facebook and Instagram -- here's a peek at the course catalog.
Earning affiliate income is one thing, but receiving the money in any country in the world you’re in, is another. A lot of people find it more difficult to receive money from low or high paying affiliate programs or networks than to literally make the money. This is why so many affiliates worldwide have thousands of dollars stuck in many affiliate programs that they can’t get their money out of.
Kickstarter has taken the world of venture funding and turned it upside down.  Kickstarter is a website where inventors and artists take an idea for something they could make, and create a page showing what they want to invent.  Then, those who would buy the product if it were available, buy the product and as soon as the inventor has the item finished, mails it to the person who bought it.  Many inventors, artists, and entrepreneurs have sold millions of dollars of products before even making the first production run of a prototype.
Have you heard of the digital skills gap? By 2020, it is projected that there will be 150,000 digital jobs available, but not enough digital marketing professionals to fill them. For those learning digital marketing, this offers a unique competitive advantage: You’re gearing yourself up for a career where demand exceeds supply. This is always a good move.

However, this comes back to the old discussion of pain versus pleasure. We will always do more to avoid pain than we will to gain pleasure. When our backs are against the wall, we act. When they're not, we relax. The truth is that the pain-versus-pleasure paradigm only operates in the short term. We'll only avoid pain in the here and now. Often not in the long term.
I apologize.  If you came to this post expecting 50 niche site ideas… I don’t have exactly that many right now.  I’m always adding new ideas and taking off old ones.  But I’m going to keep this post up-to-date (I have 37 right now—May 7, 2018).  Whenever I think of niche site ideas that I don’t have time to pursue myself and I’ll keep updating this post so we eventually get to 50.

Came here with a preconceived notion but left with totally different mindset. Was wondering when looking at searches per month what would be the minimum you would consider? I feel you are going to say depends on niche. Second question, I have never thought of a directory site, how do you go about monetizing? Simply charging for a link? I have a bunch of decent domain but not enough time in the day it seems. Any advice greatly appreciated

Turn your burning passions and daily musings into an entertaining audio show. Whether you want to talk about history, food, finance, or music, you can record and edit episodes from the comfort of your home. Once you have a large group of listeners, you can earn money from podcast sponsorships, affiliate marketing, selling products or eBooks, or crowdfunding. While you’ll have to produce episodes consistently, the time involvement is minimal and you can record several shows in advance.
You’ve drafted the most incredible email, and are ready to hit send on that puppy. But wait: have you thought about your list? How to segment it? What your CTA is? Where your readers will go? If they’ll even open the thing? Hubspot’s free course will help you master lifecycles, segmentation, content, deliverability, and much more within email marketing.
Haha, that is too funny. I wanted to make an app back in the day called “MyShares” (You can probably tell how I cam up with the name at the time). The idea was that I would loan out books and DVD’s and then would never get them back. Then I thought, how cool would it be if I could rent those items out and that would motivate people to bring them back. Obviously, books and DVD’s are cheap, so this isn’t the money maker. The idea that would probably make the most money would be things like tools, ATVs, etc.
Affiliate Platform Description: Since 2006, WarriorPlus has brought together the leaders in online digital product creation and marketing. We’ve established a thriving and dynamic community where great minds share great products for greater success. We are committed to serving you and being a part of your journey to help others build their own profitable online business.
You also get to see specific details about each loan, including what the borrower is using it for, the state they live in, how long the pay-off period is, what the monthly payments are, and what rate the borrower will pay. It helps you get a better picture of what type of risk you’re exposing yourself to, and you get to take more control over your investment.

There are a lot of paid education programs out there, but Simplilearn is one of the world’s leading certification providers. They offer a wide variety of courses for all levels of digital marketers; there is something for everyone based on what your goals are and what you are looking to specifically learn. Whether you’re looking to sharpen your digital marketing skills in general or you want to focus your studies on one specific field of digital marketing, Simplilearn is certain to have the program you’re looking for. To learn more about Simplilearn’s digital marketing courses and to sign up, browse their online course listings.

Create and monetize an app. Mobile applications are a large and still-growing market that can provide you with a large amount of income if you know how to capitalize on it. The first and most challenging step, however, is creating an app that people actually want to use. Try to assess the need for an app by thinking of useful apps you would want or problems that can be solved by an app. Then, look for current apps that met these needs. If they aren't any, or if they aren't any quality ones, consider creating your own app.

Shopify is a platform for creating, managing and promoting online stores. In addition, it is one of the top paying affiliate programs. Shopify offers a 200% commission for every user who acquires the standard subscription (which can equal up to $598) or a 100% commission for every purchased enterprise plan ($2,000). You can promote Shopify via pre-made banners and links.
For those new to this powerful online merchandising concept, affiliate programs work as intermediaries between the affiliate marketers who will sell products and services and the merchant who provides those products and services as well as the affiliates programs.  Merchants work with affiliates to help get their products or services to their consumers.

This program pays up to $430 per sale to its affiliates. Not the highest paying affiliate program but the conversion rates are great and the product is also very valuable to new marketers. This is one of the easiest high ticket affiliate programs to join since all you need to make money with it is a Clickbank account. If you already got that, simply visit their JV page and get your link and start promoting.
We will NOT be held responsible for any search engine penalties your website may receive if you don’t follow search engine’s guidelines, including (but not limited) to spammy comments, heavy and spammy linking from guest posts, spammy guest blogging, publishing poor quality content with a sole intent to gain backlinks, buying or exchanging backlinks, etc.
“Marketing in a Digital World” is one of the most popular free marketing courses on Coursera – with more then 100,000 students enrolled to this date. Taught by a professor at the University of Illinois, this class focuses on the transformation of marketing strategies an tactics into a digital-first world. Specifically, how technology is putting the power of marketing into the hands of the consumer.
How to Monetize the Site: This site is ripe for products.  Video courses on how to pass the Part 107 exam in the United States, courses on cinematography with drones, how to start an aerial photography business, etc.  When you have these courses created, PLEASE email me because I’ll gladly be an affiliate for your products.  I could send you TONS of business from my photography site.
For those new to this powerful online merchandising concept, affiliate programs work as intermediaries between the affiliate marketers who will sell products and services and the merchant who provides those products and services as well as the affiliates programs.  Merchants work with affiliates to help get their products or services to their consumers.
I am an English major and a herbalist with so many ideas and no extra income to fulfill them. I recently started renting my extra apartment in the attic with Airbnb. It’s amazing how fast I accumulated some money for few hours of work between guests. Now I want to persue all my dreams of opening an online herbal store, publishing my ebook of treating Ulcerative Colitis with herbs, blogs, and videos, and pretty much all of the ideas mentioned here. I will save this article as its really helpful for whomever needs some ideas…
When you go shopping, do you use cash, your debit card, or a credit card? Instead, why not use a cash-back credit card and make money while you shop? It sounds contradictory, but Goudreau elaborates. "With a great cash-back card, you can make money when you spend money," she says. "The key is to keep your spending rates the same and pay your balance off in full at the end of every month. It's also important to pay your bill on time. That way, you're not paying interest or getting hit with any late fees, and any cash back you earn is pure profit.

Brad shows how to evaluate your website and identify conversion goals, measure and interpret website analytics, get the most out of SEO, and set up your first text and display ads. See how to connect with communities on the leading social networks, learn best practices for developing and distributing video marketing content, and find out what makes an email marketing campaign successful. This course also covers content marketing, mobile marketing, and influencer marketing, as well as recommendations for expanding your digital marketing skillset. Upon completing this foundational digital marketing course, you'll be equipped with skills and strategies that can help you navigate today's online landscape and develop a smart plan of action.
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Amazon is largest affiliate site with one and half million sellers and provides opportunities to both affiliates and sellers. On Amazon, you can promote the product by writing reviews or articles about the product(s). The great thing about Amazon is that with its user friendly interface, you can promote multiple products. The huge amount of traffic provides opportunities for more earnings. The only disadvantage of Amazon is that the commissions start with 4% and you’ll need to work hard to earn some bills.
Digital marketing is a field in which things are always progressing and changing; something new develops each day and all digital marketers around the world want to stay updated. Gone are the days where we search for all updates on the internet. Instead, we follow hundreds of pages and influencers on social media, so we can stay notified round-the-clock. Following industry experts and influencers who are proficient in digital marketing is not only a great way to initially learn the basic fundamentals, but it’s also essential for keeping up with the latest digital marketing changes and trends.
The compensation plan offers as much as 80% commission, which is more than most other sites in this field. There are plenty of different ways for affiliates to promote the company, including banner displays and contextual ads. The site is also very well designed. It looks professional, modern and exciting, which should encourage signups. Of course, you are targeting a narrower audience than with some other dating sites.
Do you know of a successful business that needs capital for expansion? If so, you can become something of a small-time angel investor and provide that needed capital. But rather than offering a loan to a business owner, you instead take an equity position in the business. In this way, the business owner will handle the day-to-day operations, while you will act as a silent partner who also participates in the profits of the business.
While learning about persona, you will get to know about the various places on the internet your audience hangs out at. There’s business advice on Clarity, personal advice on Quora and views on politics at Reddit. Learn about the forums your audience is a part of. Identify key influencers in your industry and pull them in to talk about your products. Nowadays there are various agencies that help you in getting these influencers and manage your campaign for you.
B) Listing quality is based on algorithm that factors in things like the title, keywords, photos and bullet points in the top 10 listings. Ideally you want to find niches where listing quality is low (so yours can be much better). Here, a lower number signifies poorer quality listings and more opportunity, and a higher number shows higher quality listings in this niche.
I want to close this post by talking about how I learn marketing now. I have an app on my phone, it’s called Nuzzel, and it will tell me what the people that I follow on Twitter are sharing. So if seven people are sharing something, it’s going to pop to the top of my feed, and I follow a lot of different Internet marketers, so I can see what’s trending and then I can save it to Pocket so I can read it later. And if I’m lazy, I can have Pocket dictate it for me so I don’t even have to read it.
While residual income can be used to describe the amount of net income after all costs are paid down, it also refers to the amount of money you continue to generate after your initial work is done. There are countless ways to make money, but some are much more time-intensive than others. Active income, for example, refers to when you directly act or perform a service for money, including salaries, wages, tips, commissions, and income from a business you’re actively involved with.

Additionally, when it comes to career choices and availability, consider the fact that just about every company these days has an internal marketing department with a growing need for digital marketing professionals. From healthcare to retail, to entertainment and financial, you’ll almost always find companies in your area looking to hire digital marketing professionals. And if you want to keep things interesting by working on different accounts and in different industries at the same time, you can also look for a job at a digital marketing agency that serves multiple clients.

CPA marketing programs pay affiliates when a specific action is taken by the referral or lead. Common actions include clicks, impressions, form submits, sign-ups, registrations, or opt-ins. Since Cost-Per-Action models don’t necessarily involve a direct sale (and involve more risk taking) the payout percentages are far smaller than they are in Cost-Per-Sale.
Although there are a lot of social marketing channels, you need to focus on the top six, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest, Instagram and Google Plus (just because you don’t want Google to hate you!). Initially you should limit yourself to building profile pages, understanding how each network works and what are best practices. Every platform is unique in some way and following guides will be a good start.

Sure, it starts out with a local niche site that doesn’t require you to talk to anybody. Then as you get more invested in it and see the potential you start to leave the cave and meet people in your local area. Then living there becomes a lot more fun and you find yourself talking to people and getting human interactions you weren’t getting before.
I've taken a few awesome courses and certifications through HubSpot Academy, including an inbound marketing certification and a content marketing certification. These classes helped me be better at my job, so I started making a list of other classes I could take to learn more skills. When I finished the list, I realized that you, dear readers, might have similar skill gaps, so I wanted to share it in a blog post.
You can attend industry meetups and conferences in your area to establish and nurture relationships with other digital marketers and get professional understanding. Don’t forget to try your own projects. Digital Marketing is an area with many gray areas between best practice and what can actually get results for a business. You can try your own ideas without blindly following leaders’ opinions.
This learning path will teach you the basics of digital marketing with nearly 20 hours of free curriculum.  Users have leveraged this course to help improve their foundational knowledge of online marketing and familiarize themselves with topics like marketing channels, defining and measuring metrics, as well as building and optimizing campaigns.  This is the perfect course for anyone looking to get their feet wet with digital marketing.

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Affluent Christian Investor | July 20, 2019

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Who’s To Blame For The Socialist Resurgence?

The raised fist, sometimes associated with Socialism and resistance.

It is fascinating to watch the phoenix-like rise of socialism, long ago discredited by history, as more and more over-schooled and under-educated Americans yearn to give up their freedom for subjection.

How can it be that the common everyday man, who has been ruler of the economy under the capitalist system, despises his power and would rather be ruled than to rule?

Up to now, we consumers have been able to dictate to the talented exactly what we want, how we want it, when we want it and what we are willing to pay for it.

Voting with our earned precious dollars, we have commanded the elite, the hard-working, the astute and the wise exactly what to produce for us.

But, apparently we are not satisfied harnessing the masters of industry to meet our desires, impelling them to serve us with all their witty acumen.

No, it has been an unsatisfying system where we have been giving the orders.

Instead, give us a socialist scheme where the omnipotent political masters will be telling us what we can have, when we can have it and how much it will cost.

Apparently, more and more people want to be dominated and ruled over and, how convenient it is, as there seems to be plenty who think themselves worthy to do so.

There is a growing embrace of the idea of civil authorities having the ability to dictate how we are cared for, how we are educated, how we are fed, etc.

Freedom loving capitalists want to empower people to take responsibility for their lives in a mutually beneficial relationship.

Socialists, on the other hand, want to take care of their subjects, treating them as children, unable to make good decisions on their own.

They are intent on forcible improving others, forcing their charges to comply with their ideas.

And, if you don’t knuckle under to their commands, you are demonized and can be cruelly treated, even killed, as we are witnessing in the latest implosion of socialism in Venezuela.

The socialist come-on is that they will take care of us free of charge but, in fact, it is always out of our own pockets.

We are seeing an ever-increasing effort to force the wild and fanciful ideas of the utopians down the throats of the people in an effort to create mans’ idea of paradise on earth (which as some wit has said, is starting to feel more and more like hell).

And, it may become increasingly like hades as the controllers harness our new technology to control their people – us.

For example, India (one sixth of the world’s population) has already put ‘virtually every adult(s)’ fingerprints and iris scans in a nationwide database and issued each person an ID number.

A recent Wall Street Journal article claims the program has morphed from a voluntary program distributing benefits to one that is more and more required for daily living.

Schools are requiring ID numbers to enroll, governments refusing to issue marriage licenses without ID numbers, even some businesses requiring them for opening bank accounts and getting phones, for instance.

India’s achievement in biometrics coupled with the digitization of money (12% of Americans never use cash and almost a third don’t use cash in any given week per Harriet Torry at The Wall Street Journal) makes Biblical end-time scenarios eminently imaginable.

But, whose fault is it that the idea of socialism is resurgent even after it has been consistently proven to be unworkable?

Isn’t it ours?  History demonstrates time and time again that a righteous people is desirous and capable of freedom while a people in rebellion to the established law-order of God actually seek out and find comfort in their slavery.

We will be subject to something, we can choose to submit ourselves to the natural loving rule of the Creator or, will be subject to men who do not love us but will use us to their own satisfaction.

It is truly one of the great ironies of humanity that the more man sheds all external constraints and consequently feels free, the less free he becomes as the state necessarily steps in to act as the law-giver – always in a less gracious, less efficacious and less beneficent way.

As Lewis Cass (1848 Democrat Presidential Candidate) put it:  “The fate of republican government is indissolubly bound up with the fate of the Christian religion, and a people who reject its holy faith will find themselves the slaves of their own evil passions and of arbitrary power.”

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By Richard Mackenzie

It all began in 1987. More than a month before I witnessed preparations for the Battle of Keran and Minjon, weeks before I first met Ahmad Shah Massoud and turned to a young Dr. Abdullah as a translator, I was setting off nervous and uncertain from Washington, DC on my first trip into a war zone — a war that had then been raging for more than seven years.

As an American journalist wanting to write about the Soviet invasion and the war of resistance, I wasn’t welcome in Kabul. Likewise, Iran was inaccessible. So I started on the only route possible, flying to Islamabad, Pakistan then finding my way northwest to Peshawar. I would then head north from Peshawar to Chitral, still in Pakistan, and simply slip across the international boundary into Afghanistan.

At least on paper it seemed that simple.

In Peshawar, I checked into Dean’s Hotel, a splendid, sprawling complex on manicured lawns and steeped in history, where Rudyard Kipling had once lived — and so did a young Winston Churchill when he was a British soldier long before he was Prime Minister of Britain. Across town by the bank of a canal, I then hooked up with a mujahideen organization, Jamiat-i-Islami, one of seven such groups headquartered in Peshawar. Of them all, that was the group I wanted because they could open the door to Ahmad Shah Massoud.

One of Jamiat’s officials helped me change U.S. dollars into Pakistan rupees and Afghanis. He also advised me on what local clothes to buy and how to prepare my luggage to be strapped to the back of a horse. Finally, he introduced me to the two men who would be my escorts. I’d soon learn to regret that introduction.

But it was on my last day in Pakistan that I made my biggest mistake, one that would haunt me for months yet to come in Afghanistan. My mistake began with dinner in Chitral.

The main guide assigned to me from Peshawar was Syed Mohammad. My horseman’s name was Suffi Moussa. As soon as we landed in Chitral, they both took off to check on our passage, leaving me to stay at the Mountain Inn Hotel. I was alone as I strolled around the town in the late afternoon. By evening, I was hungry and found a restaurant beside a very murky river.

I was early for dinner, I guessed, because I was the only customer in the place. Nonetheless, I was happy with the attention the waiters gave me. I ordered and ate a plate of lamb and rice for the main course. I asked what they had to drink. I settled for a glass of water. I didn’t pay too much attention at first. I hoped the water would be refreshing.

It was only after I heard a new customer ask for water and I saw a waiter head for a stream that ran by the back door that reality dawned. I watched in disbelief as the waiter scooped a jugful and headed back inside. But it was too late. I had already downed more than half my glass.

The next morning, my escorts and I caught a ride to Garam Chashma where we spent a day preparing and packing a horse that would carry our baggage and that I could occasionally ride.

By nighttime, we were headed further up into the mountains that form the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. As midnight passed, we were still headed up a narrow path. Suffi Moussa, the horseman, led the way. Every time one of his feet hit the ground, he made a type of whistling sound with his mouth, most easily described as, “Chew. Chew.”

As dawn broke over the crest of the mountains, I was struck by searing pain throughout my gut and debilitating nausea. As I slumped forward on the horse, even in the chill of the morning, I was sweating profusely. My hands were trembling so badly I could barely hold the reins.

When I thought we were near the top of the mountain, I asked Syed Mohammad if we were in Afghanistan yet. He didn’t seem to know. In fact, both my escorts seemed to want to be rid of me.

After another hour of pushing forward, we were not alone on the mountain. Other wayfarers slogged far ahead of us up the trail. One young man had stopped and lit a fire where he was boiling tea and heating a couple of large pieces of bread. He spoke to Syed Mohammad as we passed, obviously inviting us to join him for tea. We did. I had no desire to eat anything. But I was extremely grateful for the short rest — and pulled a pattu shawl tighter around my shoulders. I tried to smile but it wasn’t easy.

As I peered into the distance, I could see nothing but an endless expanse of arid mountains, cloaked in a reddish, brown dust. As I looked at what lay ahead, I was simply terrified.

All I could think was that this was not a great start to my assignment to cover the war in Afghanistan. In fact, the way I felt, I was convinced I would never get there. I even doubted I could make my way back into Pakistan.

01 - Jamiat HQ in Peshawar

The front gate of mujahideen HQ for Jamiat-i-Islami in Peshawar.

02 - Hungry in Chitral

Downtown Chitral, Pakistan: Looking for the secret way into Afghanistan.

03 - Looking for Dinner in Chitral

Strolling through Chitral while I searched for a good restaurant.

04 - North from Chitral

On the road to Garam Chashma, still in Pakistan but not for long.

05 - Suffi Moussa

Suffi Moussa — who was to have been my horseman from Pakistan to the Panjshir.

06 - Syed Mohammad

Syed Mohammad — who was to have guided me from Pakistan to the Panjshir.

08 - More Mountains Await

At every turn, there were more mountains.

A break for breakfast on the mountainside -- but only if you could eat.

A break for breakfast on the mountainside — but only if you could eat.

09 - What Lies Ahead

The arid mountains that lay ahead of us on the first days of the trek.

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Could a man who stamps on poodles and sings about lonely person devices become president of the US?

asks Susie (spare the creamcheese) Shapiro

Sounds, December 18, 1976

Right all you Zappa heads and those who know of Zappa even peripherally (and you do unless you're a deaf ten year old with no groovy friends or sunbathing in the deserts of Mauretania, in which case they don't sell this or any other paper and you haven't the money to buy it anyway):

Frank Zappa is alive and well and touring in the USA with his new band, Zappa, and there's a record off called 'Zoot Allures' (only comprehensible to frogs at Brooklyn) which, like the other 14 Zappa records, has its moments of waggish controversy and finely conceptualized identity[?]. Beware though, you may learn something from a Zappa record, ignorants need not apply.

Zappa is a founding Mother whose offspring is his art; his credits and critical articulation could fill several books. His musical background, check full of specialties -- writing, singing, producing, re-mixing, engineering, virtuoso of synthesis, metamorphosis and catharsis -- has been pressed from every musical root in Eden. Zappa was more conscientiously affected by and effective in mastering the significant elements of the rock pop culture, putting him ages ahead of his peers.

The temptation to speak of his career in retrograde is strong because of his incredible span of the popular vox[?], from 50s doo wap lovesongs through Edgar Varese, Stravinsky and beyond; from composing for and conducting orchestras to pouring out a flawless intensity on electric guitar. Whether he's leading a continually changing band (that launched Captain Beefheart, Flo and Eddie, Jean Luc Ponty, George Duke) or supervising and starring in the brilliantly annoying film '200 Motels', Zappa rests squarely in the centre of all his projects.

He has always played it close to the edge, where artistry becomes insanity and manure becomes fertile soil. He's continually navigating in and out of thrashingly esoteric jazz and loud, cacophoneous noise. He can descend from impressively sinister social satire to doodoo caca lyrics aimed at first grade funnybones and spiral back up the cerebrum without losing balance. You either get involved in Zappa's music or he won't have you, and you won't want him on any other terms. He can prank out an audience, but only one that loves him, or eggs him on. When he misses, he can be offensive and irritating.

Zappa's scam is imperious and implicates everybody, even himself. He can magnify the trivial into the grotesque, and twist sensitivity into caricature. He laughs at nobody that doesn't have a sense of humour. Because he gives so much of himself away, he walks that fine line between art and artless, heart and heartless, affection and anger,

Life magazine described a slice of file from a typical Mothers of Invention concert, circa 1968:

"On stage there is the possibility that anything can happen. Dolls are mutilated. A gas mask is displayed. A bag of vegetables is unpacked and examined. There are spaced intervals of 'honks' and suddenly The Mothers perform 'Dead Air'. They stop, sit down and ignore the audience. Zappa might get a shoeshine from Motorhead, the percussionist. They keep this going for as long as it takes the audience to become unsettled, uncomfortable and angry. Then Zappa calmly approaches the mike and says, "It brings out the hostilities in you, doesn't it?""

Zappa did not agitate such responses at his recent Halloween gig at the Felt Forum in New York. Instead, he adopted a disc-jockey FM style palter that made him a bystander to his own party. He patronized the audience, baited them, tested their limits of decibel endurance and preconceived notions. He would throw in some sequiturs of inflammatory humor: "Mars [Manx] needs women!" Two men sitting behind me were jeering, a funky couple beside me were cheering. Zappa did most of 'Zoot Allures' while drummer Terry Bozzio lost the best that makes you tap your feet, and singers Bianca and Ray White provided some rich keyboard and guitar work over and beyond the call of competence.

'Zoot Allures' shows a tamer side of Zappa than has been seen before. Many will be tempted to evidence it as a decline in his outrageous quontient, but it's merely a more direct musical phase which is reaching out toward an audience Zappa always deserved, the mainstream. 'Zoot' is mellower and more acessible and, even as Zappa skinny dips into the cultural slime from which he takes his more savoury nuggets.

For those who do cherish Zappa's mordant moments, there's comfort in "The Torture Never Stops", an ominous litany of rats, snot, vomit, winos peeing in their clothes, dungeon of despair, and a female voice alternating currents of cackles and submissive moans of pain, or is it pleasure?

I prefer the more endearing music and comedy of 'Disco Boy' and Zappa's ode to higher education, 'Wind Up Working in a Gas Station'. The two instrumentals are the usual superlative group weave to Zappa's running stitch -- one was recorded live in Japan. 'Zoot Allures' is an incredible wedding of science and art, and its main draughtsman[?] is equally formidable.

But if you were expecting a maniac in a black leather cape and painted red fingernails, forget it. Zappa is open and soft (until aroused by dumb questions), his godly[?] Olympian stage persona is nowhere present in his hotel suite. He is the essence of Natty Dread, white silk shirt, white California cotton pants, hair pulled back in a pony tail. But it's the eyes that get you, fickle green and borderless. No presentism[?] or amplifications to protect him. Zappa bares out to be a human.

There is a legend concerning the abominations Zappa has done to reporters and other forms of life he could live without, but it sounds like baunchy rumour.

Anything else I might add would comprise a stab at placing him firmly in some manic perspective from which he could escape at any moment. Anyway, Frank Zappa talks the best about Frank Zappa and today he's in a good mood:

What is your religious background?

Zappa: "You mean, in the olden days, or what do I do for a living? In the olden days I was raised as Catholic."

Does that account for your constant preoccupation with taboo words?

"No, that doesn't follow at all. If I were a psychology professor, I'd flunk you with a Z. The words I use onstage are designed for directness of communication rather than as a protest against my Catholic upbringing. If you're gonna talk to somebody, it might as well be in a language they understand."

You use lyrical simplicity and match it against an enormous complexity in music? The people who understand the graphic images may not catch the complexity in the music.

"So what? With or without the graphic images it'll escape them. If people hear music, they hear it; if they can't, they won't. But we have a little something for everyone (the disc jockey voice)!"

I hear you were on the Steve Allen TV show about 100 years ago. What were you doing?

"Playing a bicycle. And it wasn't a hundred years ago, it was 1962. You play a bicycle by blowing through the handlebars. You can strum the spokes like a harp; you can also bow the spokes and play fiddle. Meanwhile, I had someone recite poetry. I told the guy to just go ahead and say his favorite poem, which was Mary Had a Little Lamb ... obviously."

Were you ever invited back?

"Oh no. The problem was with the lyrics, ha! Mary Had a little lamb ... the continuity department came down on that. That guy hasn't worked much either since that time."

You have a definite love/hate relationship with the opposite sex and I was wondering about it.

"I warn you right now, you can ask all you want but you're getting into trouble. This is one of my stock routines with lady interviewers who like to give me the business about lyrics ..."

Like titty-squeezing time, for example?

"Yeah, and all that male shauvinism."

Oh no, that's not what I had in mind. I was interested in your womb envy: naming your band the Mothers on Mother's Day and having your debut lp cover show you and the group with infants. Your putting a bra on the other night at the concert ... the tits and beer parties of the show, sitting on the poodle's face imitating the woman ...

"I would say those indications exist more in your lack of comprehension than in my supposed womb envy."

Unfair. Just because I choose to find those aspects significant.

"The fact that you bring it up as a topic for serious discussion when someone throws me a padded brassiere onto the stage ..."

Oh, that was spontaneous?

"Well, I didn't pay someone to toss me the brassiere 5 minutes and 28 seconds into the show."

Well, then it was one of the few spontaneous moments in the show.

"The only thing that's structured in the show is the skeleton: the sequence of tunes is changeable. The skeleton's there for the reliability of the musicians so they know what comes where. But inside each of the songs there's all kinds of latitude, especially if you're playing NY on Halloween.

"If you play a locked show you're dead, because they're always gonna try and amuse themselves at your expense. I look forward to that; they can come and raze me as much as they want 'cause I got something for them. But you know, someone throwing me a brassiere ... the funny thing about that was I threw the bra out to where my brother was sitting and he docked cause he didn't want the thing on his body."

That's Bobby Zappa, the ex-Marine from New Jersey?

"Yep. Now working for McGraw Hill, College Textbook Division. He's 31 I think, that's a guess. He was there with his wife and a couple of friends right there in the second row! Here would you like to sample some cookies his wife made? Real live New Jersey cookies."

No, thank you. Where's the booze?

"Just a minute, I'll get you some. (He fixes me a Johnnie Walker neat, none for him.) You should have been at the second show. Smothers (Zappa's large bald, black bodyguard) sang 'Muffin Man', that was the Halloween surprise. I'd say a verse and he'd sing it."

Gee, no pumpkins.

"There were some in the audience, wondering why they were there. Most people come to my concerts because they wanna see something, they wanna have something done to them. I had 3000 people at the Berkeley Community Theater doing jumping jacks in 1968. I said 'OK, now you're gonna get up and exercise, you people look like you're too tired, c'mon, get up.' I had 'em outta the wats. The house lights were on. I stopped the music. They kept on doin' it. Then I said 'OK, listen, this is what just happened. I told you to stand up and exercise and you exercised, is that right?' Yeah, that's right!

"I tell you to do anything you'd do it, wouldn't you? That's the way the government operates. They tell you to do something and you do it. You're put there doin' jumping jacks, now isn't that stupid? And all the while they're still jumping, they're waiting for the punchase. So we started playing again, the lights went down and the show resumes."

That's a very delicate and brave thing to do. It just as easily could have turned hostile.

"Why? You're doin' them a farce, you're telling them the truth. How can they hate you for that? Manipulation is a semantically overloaded term."

Find a better word.

"OK, prank. I played a prank on them. Such pranks are pulled every day, and far worse. Forget politics. One of the most depressing pieces of manipulation I saw was the Sly Stone segment of the 'Woodstock' film, that kind of bogus hysteria."

I noticed in your live show that the drummer was not necessarily the one who kept the best all the time.

(sighs) "In Bozzio's case the drum is hardly ever the instrument that keeps the beat. Since that guy discovered lipstick it's tap your foot or die. Now I love Bozzio, he's one of the most brilliant drummers I've ever worked with but, I'm sorry, sometimes he goes nuts. You're the second interviewer to say that. I'm gonna have to tell him the word is out."

I thought it was calculated that way.

"Well, if you don't calculate with Bozzio what the time is before you start playing, you're up [?] [?]. See, the biggest problem onstage is hearing what you're doing. The sound changes radically every three feet because of the directionality of the speakers, your distance from the other instruments, their acoustic output and what's coming out of the side fill.

"Because of the sight line problems at the Felt Forum we were using about 1/3 of the side fill monitors, which is where you hear the drums. So it was hard to hear the beat, period, up there and when I go three feet in either direction from my amplifier I can't hear what I'm playing: it's all guesswork.

"The words of the song, how loud and fast we're gonna play it, that's all worked out beforehand but once the lights go on and Bozzio's girl-friend puts on his lipstick you can't turn to him and say: now Terry, I've been wondering about the downbeat on this particular bar. There's no time to do that. And if you berate him after the show and say: goddammit I was tryin' to play a really good lick there and I didn't know where the beat was, he gets upset. He's a very proud, energetic young musician and you can't bang him over the head."

That sounds like a classic problem.

"The problem is, for a drummer to have a solid, coherent, rock and roll beat he's got to have enough of an animal instinct to play it that way, but if he can only play that, then he can't play the rest of what I write. Terry's learned to read music since he's been with the group. But he's sometimes interested in letting the earth know he has all these manual skills and, from time to time, he decides to show you all of them in [?] bar. And if it happens to be at the beginning of your solo well, toooooough shit. He gets very passionate and carried away while he's playing."

Do you write out all the music parts?

"I only write out the drum parts that are so technical that you can't hum it to him. The rest of the time I say, 'it goes like this -- blah blah blah.' And they say, 'so you mean blah blah blah?' And I say, 'that's right, now can you play it a little slower please? Blah ... blah ... blah'. If it's more complicated blah blah's then you have to write it down so they'll be able to synchronize everything."

Are you ever going to work with orchestras anymore?

"Thing about orchestras is, I like the way they sound but the experience of working with them is invariably depressing. Orchestra musicians are concerned with one thing: their pension. They don't give a fuck about music.

"I don't think belonging to a union necessarily makes you a bad person but there is an attitude of pseudo-professionalism that pervades a lot of the entertainment unions. People on the technical fringe of show business get into the syndrome where they won't command the respect of the other crewmen unless they're totally disinterested in the product they're working on.

"If you do show any interest well, what are you? A sissy? You gotta go back there and drink coffee with the guys screw the show. We're gettin' paid this huge fee.

"If you've got two more bars of music to record and the contractor's watch goes to zero that's it. I've got tapes of the contractor yelling: that's it! with two bars to go in the session. And if you play those two bars it'll cost you $5,000. Enough to spoil a recording."

You said a few unkind things about your record company during the concert. If you feel they're not behind you, how are you going to sell 'Zoot Allures'?

"My first plan is, during every concert I'm going to hype the album just like I was doing a television commercial. I figure I shouldn't be shy about that, it really is a good lp. I don't think the audience minds knowing that it's out. If Warners doesn't arrange for me to go to into the radio stations, I'll go myself."

How many more years are you under contract?

"That's arguable. I would love to be rid of them right now. They say I owe them four more albums. I'm trying to decide whether I'll hand them all four more right after this tour, cause I got 'em, I got more than four. And they know that. If Warners keeps fucking around like this they're gonna get a little present when I get home. One of the tapes is an orchestra album."

What's stopping you from doing that right now?

"If I do that, they'll definitely shit all over this record. I am giving Warners a fair chance, I'm saying: perform on this album. This is my first release for Warners, not DiscReet; it's not subsidiary, it's not a little independent company, it's hey, here I am on your mainline label, now what are ya gonna do about it? So far they've done diddly-shit."

Have you received other offers?

"Yeah, I've been talking to other people. My contract calls for two records a year, so the longest it could run is two years. I could actually give a company three records a year, it all depends how much time I spend touring. I've been doing 6 months on the road, 6 months in L.A. Last year I went round the world, this year I'd do the same."

Are you looking for AM hits?

"Of course. There's a single being release from 'Zoot', 'Find Her Finer', destined for the AM airwaves. The single was selected by the geeks at Warners who actually have to go out and sell it. So if they think they can sell 'Find Her Finer' better than 'Wonderful Wino' so be it."

Tell me about other songs on the record.

"Ms. Pinky is a song about a lonely person device. We have this fan in Finland called Eric and everytime we come in Finland, he's there, with his shopping bag. I think he works in a Volvo factory. One time he showed up with presents, candy and his favourite Finnish pornographic magazine. A publication called Kalle. Had the worst pictures you've ever seen.

"There's a problem with lithography when you don't get your color balance right. Things either go too red or too blue. Well, split pink is one thing, but split pink that looks infected is another. And when the people are [?] ... There was this one article called 'And now, from Leningrad', and this girl looked like she had just came out of a concentration camp, doing this splat on a bleak little bed in a bleak little room. It looked like a medical picture.

"And then they had ads for lonely person devices. There was an ad for Pinky. It was a head with it's mouth wide open and its eyes shut and a short haircut. And I thought: hmmmm, anyone who's gonna buy a plastic head just give himself a gum job is Right Out There.

"By the time we got to Amsterdam I sent Smothers out to buy one, to use onstage. Sure enough, for $69.95 he came back with Ms. Pinky. It was even worse than I imagined. Not only is it a head, it's the size of a child's head. The throat is sponge rubber and its got a vibrator in it with a battery pack and a two-speed motor. Sticking out of the neck is a nozzle with a squeeze bulb that makes the throat contract."

"'Black Napkins' is a song I've had for a year or more but it was finally named last Thanksgiving when we were having this horrible Thanksgiving dinner in Milwaukee. Sliced turkey roll with the fucking preservatives just gleaming off of it, and this beat-up cranberry material. The final stroke to this ridiculous dinner was the black napkins sitting next to the dishes. That really said the most about the dinner."

You don't smoke dope, do you?

"No. I've smoked ten marijuana cigarettes in my life. And they've given me a sore throat, a headache and made me sleepy. I can't understand why anyone would wanna use the stuff. It seems to be as impractical pastime as you can get sent to jail for it."

That seems to be less and less consideration. Pot laws have eased up.

"It's still a consideration. You never know when somebody'll go berserk at City Hall and wanna clean up. I heard a story about some guys last week who got 25 year sentences for having [?] in their pockets as they crossed the Mexican border.

Have you ever considered going into politics?

"Sure, but I'm not ready yet. I'd be a perfect President. I'd not only win but I'd be good at the job. One of these days I am going to run for President, but not until I think it would be fun."

Did you vote Election Day?

"Absolutely not. Frick and Frack."

You didn't vote but you would run for office and have us elect you!

"That's right. And you will elect me."

Are you a megalomaniac?

"No. I'm a person with a very strong conscience who knows he can do certain things very well, and has no reason to pretend he can't, and will actually do as much good as he can while he's got the chance to do it. Strictly business."

This magazine would love to know what you're favorite records are?

"'Three Hours Past Midnight' by Johnny Guitar Watson, 1955; 'Soul Motion' by Don and Dewey, '59 or '60; 'Newly Wed' by the Orchards; 'Can I Come Over Again' [Let's Start All Over Again] by the Paragons."

A quite different version of this interview is "Zoot Allures!", printed in Gig, February 1977.


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Main » 2016 » November » 04

Dubai, United Arab Emirates - Monday, October 31st 2016 [ME NewsWire]

In recognition of its fruitful efforts towards achieving its “School without Borders” mission, ITWORX Education has won the Arabian Computer News (ACN) Arab Technology Awards 2016, for its unique educational solution that extended learning to Syrian children at a refugee camp in Chtaura, Bekaa Valley, Lebanon. ACN honored ITWORX Education’s notable achievement with two mementos in the ‘Harnessing Innovation’ and the ‘Education Implementation of the Year’ categories.

While the ‘Education Implementation of the Year’ is awarded to education institutions that have implemented solutions to improve access to learning, enhance teaching, and create a positive impact on students, staff and faculty, the ‘Harnessing Innovation’ Award acclaims ITWORX Education’s excellence in utilizing the latest, cutting-edge technology, and harnessing it ... Read more »

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CAMBRIDGE, Mass. & OSAKA, Japan - Thursday, November 3rd 2016 [ME NewsWire]

– Demonstrating Expertise and Leadership in Hematologic Oncology, Presentations Include Phase 3 Data on ADCETRIS® (brentuximab vedotin) in CD30-Positive Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma, NINLAROTM (ixazomib) in Relapsed/Refractory Multiple Myeloma and Emerging Pipeline –

– Presentations Underscore Takeda’s Ongoing Commitment to Transform Care for Patients Affected by Blood Cancers –

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (TSE: 4502) today announced that it will present a total of 16 company-sponsored abstracts at the 58th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting taking place in San Diego from December 3 to 6, 2016. Takeda’s presentations at this year’s meeting will feature Phase 3 and earlier-stage data from clinical studies across the company’s broad hematology-oncology portfolio.

“Even as we c ... Read more »

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Main » 2014 » June » 9 » Computex Taipei 2014 Summit Forum Closes
11:58 AM
Computex Taipei 2014 Summit Forum Closes

Four Tech Leaders Discuss Hardware-Software Integration for Smart Internet of Things

TAIPEI, Taiwan - Saturday, June 7th 2014 [ME NewsWire]

(BUSINESS WIRE)-- The Computex Taipei 2014 Summit Forum, organized by the Bureau of Foreign Trade and run by the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA), was held in tandem with the 2014 edition of the internationally-watched ICT (Information and Communications Technology) event, the annual Computex Taipei expo. The Summit Forum was attended by industry luminaries such as Stan Shih, Acer Chairman; Tsai Ming-kai, Mediatek Chairman; Simon Segars, CEO of ARM Holdings and Shane Owenby, Amazon Web Services’ APAC Managing Director. The four leaders were invited to share their insights on the Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud services along with the theme of “Integrating Hardware and Software for Smart Internet of Things”, giving event attendees from all over the world a window to see the cutting-edge development in the ICT world from a global perspective.

Stan Shih, Acer Chairman (right) and Tsai Ming-kai, Mediatek Chairman (left) spoke at the Computex Taipei 2014 Summit Forum and announced partnership between the two companies. (Photo: Business Wire)

In his speech, Huang Wen-jung, TAITRA Secretary-General noted that the many disruptive advances brought about by mobile computing and cloud technologies over the last few years have pushed the global ICT into a brand new phase, with even international research firm McKinsey and the US President Barack Obama stating that as the foundation of the so-called “Internet of Things”, mobile computing and cloud technologies are set to change humankind’s lifestyles in a radical fashion.

At the event, Stan Shih spoke about how Acer had leveraged its hardware and software service experience to accelerate its “Build Your Own Cloud” (BYOC) service, in order to establish Acer as a mature player that supplies “Hardware + Software + Services”. He also stated Acer’s intentions to partner its suppliers and distributors to create a new value-added industry chain. Shih also invited Tsai Ming-kai of Mediatek on-stage for a photograph, expressing his confidence that future tie-ups between the two companies will create a better IoT experience for consumers.

Tsai underscored the crucial role Taiwan has played in the development of the global ICT scene over the last three decades with its strong competitive edge in areas such as hardware manufacturing, product development and services. As the world moves from Cloud 1.0 to Cloud 2.0, Taiwan players must work together to maintain the virtuous cycle of Moore’s Law and technological advances in the semiconductor industry.

Simon Segars spoke at length about the importance of innovation. Beginning with the century-old maker of the iconic Jelly Bean, he spoke about how innovation was the key to winning consumers in areas as diverse as the automobile and electronic industries. Taking remote monitoring on the dog at home as an example, Segar also discussed various IoT applications and how they can be commercialized.

According to Shane Owenby, the key to the spectacular success of Amazon Web Services (AWS) achieved in mere five years is “scale”. Thanks to scale, AWS was able to provide a tremendous amount of capacity to consumers at affordable prices. In addition, Owenby also spoke about how AWS is able to provide individuals, corporations, governments, schools, etc., with highly customized cloud services solutions.

At the Summit Forum, Simon Chang, Minister of Science and Technology, explored opportunities for Taiwan together with the four speakers. In the opinion of Shih, with regard to the emergence of the IoT, large corporations should establish platforms for young Taiwanese to develop and show off their skills; on the other hand, Tsai emphasized the need for players along Taiwan’s product chains to think deeply about how they can enhance their competitiveness through various kinds of consolidation. Segars suggested that Taiwan should direct the semiconductor talents to the IoT field. In fact, this was one of the reasons RAM chose to set up its CPU design center in Taiwan, while Owenby encouraged Taiwan to further nurture its innovation capacity in order to remain competitive on the world stage.

The four spoke for nearly five hours at the event. Not only did they sketch an informative picture of how human life may look like in five to ten years’ time, they also provided tantalizing glimpses at how the global ICT industry may harness cloud technologies in their business strategies. Surely, the Computex Taipei 2014 Summit Forum was one of the most forward-looking tech events this year.

The original source-language text of this announcement is the official, authoritative version. Translations are provided as an accommodation only, and should be cross-referenced with the source-language text, which is the only version of the text intended to have legal effect.

Photos/Multimedia Gallery Available:

Business Next

Jerry Zhan, +886-2-8773-9808 ext. 223

Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) Exhibition Services

Grace Pai, +886-2-2725-5200 ext. 2638

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Main » 2015 » March » 5 » GSMA Presents 2015 Chairman’s Award to Jamal Ibrahim, Managing Director and CEO of Axiata Group
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GSMA Presents 2015 Chairman’s Award to Jamal Ibrahim, Managing Director and CEO of Axiata Group

BARCELONA, Spain. - Tuesday, March 3rd 2015 [ME NewsWire]

Mobile World Congress 2015

Mobile World Congress 2015:GSMA

 (BUSINESS WIRE) - The GSMA today announced that Jamal Ibrahim, Managing Director and CEO of Axiata Group, has been named the recipient of the 2015 GSMA Chairman’s Award. This award, established in 1996, is the GSMA’s most prestigious award and recognises outstanding personal contribution to the growth and development of mobile communications around the world.

Presenting the award to Mr. Ibrahim at a special ceremony on Sunday evening, GSMA Chairman Jon Fredrik Baksaas commented, “On behalf of the GSMA, I congratulate Jamal on winning the Chairman’s Award. This award highlights Jamal’s outstanding leadership, commitment and significant achievements in growing and advancing the value of mobile communications across Asia, particularly Axiata’s role in driving the rollout of mobile broadband across the region. It also recognises Axiata’s long-standing support of GSMA programmes such as Green Power for Mobile, Connected Women, mHealth and Mobile Connect, among many others. Further, Jamal’s representation on the GSMA Board and service as GSMA Deputy Chair has been particularly valuable.”

“I am very honoured to receive this prestigious award,” said Mr. Ibrahim. “Axiata has always been focused on staying ahead of the curve, quickly adapting to change and positioning our business model to capitalise on the developments in an increasingly digitalised world. As important, through our ‘Advancing Asia’ initiative, we are committed to our role as a responsible corporate citizen, to make a difference to people’s lives and help transform the countries in which we operate.”

As CEO of Axiata, Mr. Ibrahim has created one of Asia’s most successful mobile networks, which spans eight countries and serves over 250 million subscribers. Revenue for Axiata Group increased by 87 per cent between 2007 and 2014 to reach US$5.7 billion. One of the largest telecommunications groups in Asia with more than 20,000 employees across the region, the company ranks among the five largest companies in Malaysia.

The Chairman’s Award is part of the annual Global Mobile Awards, which will be presented at 14:30 on Tuesday, 3 March. The ceremony will be held in Auditorium 1, Hall 4, Fira Gran Via and is open to Mobile World Congress attendees from all shortlisted companies, regardless of pass type, as well as all other Mobile World Congress attendees holding Platinum, Gold, Silver or Press/Analyst passes.

Get Involved at Mobile World Congress 2015

Follow developments and updates on Mobile World Congress on Twitter @GSMA using #MWC15, on our LinkedIn company page or on Facebook at

The Mobile World Congress is the cornerstone of the Mobile World Capital, which will be hosted in Barcelona from 2013 to 2018. The Mobile World Capital encompasses programmes and activities that span the entire year and will benefit not only the citizens of Barcelona, Catalonia and Spain, but also the worldwide mobile industry. For more information on the Mobile World Capital, visit

About the GSMA

The GSMA represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide, uniting nearly 800 operators with more than 250 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, including handset and device makers, software companies, equipment providers and Internet companies, as well as organisations in adjacent industry sectors. The GSMA also produces industry-leading events such as Mobile World Congress, Mobile World Congress Shanghai and the Mobile 360 Series conferences.

For more information, please visit the GSMA corporate website at Follow the GSMA on Twitter: @GSMA.

For the GSMA

Charlie Meredith-Hardy, +44 7917 298428

GSMA Press Office

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Posted in Plumber

Kitchen Appliance

Prime members love Cost-free Two-Day Shipping and exclusive access to music, films, Television shows, original audio series, and Kindle books. Depending on your budget and feasibility, you can get top high-quality kitchen accessories in Pakistan from Kaymu, where many brand items are readily available for sale. You might not have the spending budget to remodel your kitchen or get a bunch of new kitchen appliances, but most kitchen accessories very affordable for everybody. Not only they supply a terrific look to a kitchen but these cabinets also support a great deal in managing all points in a kitchen properly. With the presence of so lots of choices for kitchen cabinets, it can be occasionally a pretty challenging job to decide on the most effective ones.

Browse through our web site and select from top quality kitchen equipment sold on-line at incredibly inexpensive prices. People should preserve in thoughts that the greater the cost of the appliance, the greater it is. There are some that come with an economical cost tag so for those who are on a tight price range but want to make use of this sort of appliance, they can nevertheless get one for their kitchen. There is actually no kitchen tool that isn’t successful, they are all needed to simplify each day kitchen tasks, like cooking and storing meals, chores and so on. With the various types of kitchen products on line.

Obtaining a constructed in microwave for the home is uncomplicated, in particular when there are a wide variety of models to pick out from in appliance shops and in a lot of on the internet retailers. Typically, there are several discounts that consumers are unaware of, and if you do enough bargaining, you can constantly get the lowest rates on all of your kitchen appliances.

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Truancy Laws In Tennessee (TN)

Posted onLeave a commentCategoriesAdministrative Law

However laws are usually complicated and there can be a number of penal codes associated to any given issue. An in-depth discussion of the trial can be identified in Lawrence Stotter’s own perform on the history of family law, To Put Asunder: The Laws of Matrimonial Strife Far more details on the Stotter Collection can be discovered in archived articles from All Rise and in a 2015 write-up for AALL Spectrum written by Sara Sampson, Assistant Dean for Information and facts Services and Director of the Moritz Law Library.

The Moritz Law Library has numerous copies of this book, which describes itself as a survival manual.” It consists of lots of guidelines, examples, and tables. Abductions are always sneak attacks, with organizing and execution carried out in secret, and almost usually involving several jurisdictions, long distances, additional than one particular perpetrator, and two or much more state legal systems. The partnership involving state and federal law is a bit comparable to that among state and the federal governments.

While Senate Bill 1041 (2005) Aaron’s Law” made Oregon the initial state in the nation where kid abduction creates a civil result in of action, no info about the law or the Parental and Loved ones Abduction Task Force is presently obtainable by means of the Oregon State Bar or Oregon State Police net web-sites. A qualified lawyer close to you can give you with the answers to your inquiries, and can also assistance represent you if you want to be involved in lawsuit or legal claim. The State Librarians have created a wealthy heritage of major legal components for the collection.

HB 2014 need to outcome in an understanding of how and why choices to make exceptions to the statute are made at the nearby level, providing the 2014 Legislative Assembly with the chance to contemplate establishing a state policy. The Library occupied the west wing on the second floor of the New Capitol till 1973 when it moved to the Carroll Gartin Justice Creating.

HB 2014 should really be anticipated to reveal a deficiency in how abductions are prioritized by law enforcement and each the Family Law and Criminal Law systems. In response to inquiries received from members of the public, we are delighted to direct you to sources of legal details or to your nearest nearby law library, to provide material for a college assignment, or refer you to state agencies delivering info on a certain topic.

Throughout a current visit to the Moritz College of Law, Moritz alum Lawrence H. Stotter ’58 presented the Moritz Law Library with a new addition to the Law Library’s Stotter Collection: five volumes comprising the full report of The Trial of Queen Caroline, published in 1820. Main exceptions include the states of California, Montana, North Dakota, and South Dakota as nicely as the territory of Guam, all of which largely enacted Field’s proposed civil code even though it was repeatedly rejected and by no means enacted by his residence state of New York.

Tennessee V. Garner

Posted onLeave a commentCategoriesBarrister

Department of Law was established in November 1959 for the Objective of imparting LL.M. Degree Course Post-graduate Legal Education and encouraging Legal study. Each and every state keeps data about arrests and convictions within its jurisdiction as aspect the incarceration arrests records of persons either accused or convicted for law violations. This transition is in keeping with the State’s 2010 settlement agreement with the U.S. Division of Justice – and the aspirations of people today with developmental disabilities, their households, and advocates.

In the interest of security and safety, criminal history record checks have inevitably develop into the most sought following records as a gauge of human can narrow one’s search by asking the records personal computer to bring up information only on men and women who have utilized that name and have left a record of any sort as pointed out in the State of Florida.

Students of Department of Law are eligible to access the facilities of this library soon after obtaining a Readers Ticket. As a aspect of Added- Curriculum activities, each and every year department conducts a Blood Donation Camp to encourage the students to donate blood and save Life. We have details and insight on numerous sources of Colorado Arrest Records and other paid and Free of charge Criminal Records. Its central repository of the criminal history arrest files is the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. The Department has provision for unique lectures in memory of Justice Mehr Chand Mahajan and S. Ajit Singh Sarhadi.

Arrest records have been created readily available in order to supply each and every particular person an thought as to how he or she is going to deal with those people today who had arrest offenses in the previous.Texas is the compilation of arrest info submitted by the different county enforcement agencies across the pasco nation. When most folks talk about a profession in law enforcement, they are speaking about policing and joining a police force.

New Orleans P.D. was in danger of losing law enforcement federal grants in excess of $2 million for the reason that of the section 1373 violations, nevertheless, we have learned that right after the hearing was scheduled, the DOJ changed that component of the mandate. It is a lot easier than one may think to look on the web and uncover South Carolina Arrest Records on any person who claims to have lived in Florida or who has a Florida driver’s license as an identification record. The City of Cleveland Law Division does not supply legal services or legal guidance to private parties. Federal law enforcement= seventeen unique agencies that investigate the violations of federal law.


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9 The Octagon

Earlier Event: October 18
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“Don’t grow if it will make you sick.”

This is what the “mother” had told them.

My client was a small, dynamic company that produced kombucha, a natural fermented drink believed to have significant health benefits. The group had asked me to help them figure out how to respond to a huge upsurge in demand without losing the soul of their beautiful little company.

What I loved about these people was their embodied connection with life and living systems principles. After all, kombucha is a living product, made from a symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast that forms a gelatinous substance known as a “mother.” Great personal and ongoing care goes into tending to the mother, since it (she?) is what actually does the work of producing the kombucha.

As the group explored various ways forward, one of the questions I invited them to reflect on was, “What would the mother advise?” And the answer that emerged from their reflection, as if in a clear and gentle voice, was: “Don’t grow if it will make you sick.”

Was that even an option?

It was a shocking, unsettling message. And yet its wisdom was undeniable.

As the group wrestled with this advice, their exploration led them to the compelling option of propagatingrather than growing. They excitedly imagined cultivating a network of local partners: small brewpubs housed in hubs of entrepreneurship, creativity and conversation, in which kombucha infuses the space — and the community — with health and inspiration. What if, instead of gathering around alcohol, people could gather around a healthful drink? What if kombucha’s unusual collaboration between bacteria and yeast – hostile to each other in other circumstances and conditions – could be offered as an inspiring metaphor for our own potential to collaborate across difference? Instead of the soulless, over-prescribed franchise model, what if their network of partners could be locally responsive and self-organizing, like kombucha itself? Instead of simply growing their own production capacity and wealth, what if the group could grow the generative capacity of their company – its ability to generate new possibilities, new offshoots, new life? And rather than making them sick, what if such a move actually had a regenerative effect, making them and the community more healthy and whole?

None of this vision could have come into view without first expanding the group’s understanding of what it means to be a company. Rather than something fundamentally separate from the people within it – simply a production and output machine that must be grown at all costs – they came to see their company as something personal, alive and embedded in a living world.

Their experience begs the question: what other possibilities lie beyond the limits of our existing assumptions about growth?

And in fact, the region of Flanders in Belgium is engaged in just such an inquiry. My friend Anna Pollockhas been working with VisitFlanderson what she calls “regenerative tourism.” As part of the project, CEO Peter De Wilde recently narrated this breathtaking video about their project, Travel to Tomorrow. Growth in tourism, he says, “means lots of money, true, and… is that always a good thing? Perhaps the cost is higher than we might expect.”

“Could tourism possibly create more value with fewer tourists. Giving them the space to discover the things we want to share. The things that make us unique.”

“Who are we, the people who live and work here? Generous givers, who really want to enrich one another? Or do we just want to make ourselves rich?”

Just a few years ago, those questions would have been unthinkable.

Unlike the kombucha company, the team at VisitFlanders doesn’t have answers yet. Their destination remains undefined. But importantly, they’ve launched an ambitious campaign to engage people across Flanders in meaningful conversation to imagine together what more is possible, beyond assumptions of growth at all costs.

Here in Quebec, we can see growth for its own sake in the plague of blue-green algae we’ve experienced in our lakes in recent summers. Over-fertilized by human activity, the algae takes up all the oxygen, preventing other species from thriving. The water becomes toxic to all forms of life, including humans. This is where we find ourselves with today’s monopolies, mega-banks and ubiquitous franchise chains. At some point, scale and efficiency become degenerative rather than regenerative, actively working against life’s ability to thrive.

If we don’t pause to shake loose the assumptions that guide our actions, then we won’t see the many unimagined options available to us. We’ll continue to operate within the same ruts that are leading us steadily toward destruction, despair and ecosystem collapse. In place of growth as our goal, why not aim for more learning, more creativity, more love? Why not set our sights on thrivability, actively cultivating life’s ability to thrive wherever we find it?

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10 19

My pond, I'll get a better picture soon but I cropped tools and weed debris to make it more picturesque. It's roughly heart shaped, ten feet around and four deep, bisected by a foot bridge. Those are feeder goldfish purchased about a year ago and now three to four inches. The plants were a gift and I don't know what they are. I've had goldfish get up to eight inches or so until a heron takes notice and cleans them out.

By Buttercup7
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I'm putting in a pondless waterfall soon. Unfortunately, my daughter and her husband are terrified that a pond, even a 2 foot deep one, will life threatening. Any recommendations you might have based on your experience would be appreciated.

SynergySeeker Level 4 June 23, 2018

Small kids or something?

Little happy fishies! Fish are our friends smile001.gif can you put a screen or chicken wire over the pond to keep the herons out?

SkotlandSkye Level 8 June 23, 2018

I've been trying to get some scrap gillnet from a local fisherman, I think if it tangles in their feet they'll stay away. I think if it's completely full it's too deep to wade.

That is really beautiful, bet it's so relaxing just to watch the fish all day.

Sheannutt Level 9 June 23, 2018

Nice pond. Bad heron.

MissKathleen Level 9 June 23, 2018

I had a great blue heron punch a hole right through the thin pond liner I had on one of my first pond projects, I couldn't understand why I kept losing water until I was watching him early one morning, came out and checked after he flew off and sure enough there was a puncture hole where he had speared the fish. I found numerous holes when I drained the pond completely to patch the hole.

Surfpirate Level 8 June 23, 2018

Beautiful1 At least the Heron's will prevent having to deal with this scenario ?

MikeEC Level 7 June 23, 2018

That’s really nice.

Donto101 Level 7 June 23, 2018

Nice! Mine is a lot smaller, and some of my fish are 12 years old!

mjbirder Level 4 June 23, 2018

HippieChick58 Level 9 June 23, 2018

I love it! Great work!

AmiSue Level 8 June 23, 2018
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2 4

Every Year Republican Diane Black and Her Husband Spend Money to Kill TN Medical Cannabis Industry

By sassygirl38699
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Big pharma is in control and making the rich richer.

You took one person and blame half the population. Pick a cause and fight it, this is virtue signaling

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Wordless Wednesday at Duke

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  1. Beautiful montage.

    I especially like “big foot” and “putting our heads together.”

    I didn’t realize you were in NC all this time ~ we lived in Winston Salem for 8 years (from 1984-1992). I spent lots of time in Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill.

    Enjoy the rest of your trip.

    • Thanks Nancy. What a beautiful area. I had never seen the University before and what a site! The photos were taken with my blackberry so while they aren’t great quality, they do capture the moment. And how aptly you’ve named it “putting our heads together”.

  2. Oh how I love Duke. I´m so glad you got to see the place. It´s a beautiful campus. And I´m soooo grateful for the education I received there. If I hadn´t been at Duke, I wouldn´t know you! Thanks for posting the pics and for being faithful to your blog resolution. As you´ve noticed, I am not the greatest blogger. …

    • Well, you may not be blogging but you are certainly having an amazing adventure. I’d really like to connect when you return stateside.

  3. Wonderful, Tammy! And with your BLACKBERRY? Wow! What resolution/pixels on that thing? Anyway – if you are coming to western NC, stop in for a visit – we live in Waynesville, right off of Exit 20 on I-40! Favorite pis are the window, and the upshot of the building – nice composition! Keep having fun! And, have you noticed? With all the comments, Wordless Wednesday is not exactly wordless, is it? 😀

    • Thanks Paula. I’m back home now but love it there. I’ll let you know if I come again. And yes, funny about the not so wordless wednesday.

  4. Lisa H

     /  July 8, 2010

    WOW! Those are great pictures, Tammy!

  5. Beautiful pics. What is the picture that looks like a bunch of shredded paper bits flying around? Not able to figure it out…

  6. I love this idea of your’s, “wordless Wednesday”, really interesting. And creative, i must say! I love photography, and if you don’t mind, would like to bring something like this into my blog too 🙂

  7. nice collection of pictures! thanks for sharing!

  8. great pics, i love the big foot, and the lovely pics of the boys

  9. Thank you for stopping by-I have a friend whose daughter is the editor for a magazine at Duke.

  10. Oh, what lovely photos this time around too, Tammy, absolutely beautiful!

  11. I love those pictures!

  12. That looks like a gardenia! Love the fragrance. Nice photos :^)

  13. Gogeous, Tammy! What a great idea – Wordless Wednesday.

  14. great collage Tammy

  15. littlehousesouthernprairie

     /  July 20, 2010

    Yea for North Carolina!

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Our 100% Merino bases range from lace weight to worsted, a beautiful high-twist single ply to a soft-yet-sturdy 8-ply DK.  These yarns start out in a light cream color and soak up the dye to create amazing brilliant colorways, beautiful subtle semisolids, and the best mini set gradients.

AHR’s yak-based yarns are unique and durable. The dark yak fiber adds incredible depth to every color we apply to it.

We carry many specialty fiber yarns including silk, alpaca, linen, blue faced leister, and cashmere.

Minis are marvelous! A Hundred Ravens’ mini sets are perfect for stripes, colorwork, or any project you can dream up. We carry sampler sets of popular colorways and gradient sets with gradual color transitions.  Mini skein sets are dyed in our versatile and popular Iachos, Tyche, Yaksha, and Aesir bases.


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This post is also available in: frFrançais (French)

There is nothing I love more at Christmas than to make little gingerbread cookies. I really enjoy the mix of spices which come through in these little biscuits. This recipe is great as it isn’t too sweet and the biscuits turn out nice and crispy which is ideal with your afternoon tea or coffee.

Makes approx. 12 large cookies or 30 smaller ones

  • 350 g all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 2 tsp of  ground ginger
  • 3 tsp of ground cinnamon
  • 40g of unsalted butter
  • 60 g of muscovado sugar
  • 2 medium eggs
  • 50 g of  molasses
  • 1 tsp of vanilla

For the icing:

  • 200g icing sugar
  • 1 or 2 tsp of milk
  • 1 tsp of vanilla extract
  1. In a small bowl, combine all the dry ingredients together:  flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger and cinnamon.
  2. In a mixer, beat the butter, sugar and the two eggs until combined
  3. Add molasses and vanilla and mix further.
  4. Progressively add the flour and the remaining ingredients until the wet and dry ingredients have blended nicely.
  5. Take a piece of cling film and spray with a touch of oil to avoid the dough from sticking.
  6. Wrap the dough in the cling film and set in the fridge overnight (ideally, but a few hours is fine).
  7. The next day, remove the dough from the fridge and preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celcius.
  8. Prepare baking sheets by lining with parchment paper.
  9. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and roll it out with a rolling pin until it is 1cm thick.
  10. Cut out biscuits with various cutters!
  11. Place the biscuits on the baking trays, allowing a couple of centimetres between each biscuit.
  12. Bake for 5-7 minutes
  13. Remove the trays from oven and allow the biscuits to cool down until hard.
  14. After biscuits are cool you may decorate them any way you like.
  15. Mix the icing sugar, milk and vanilla extract, place the lot in a pipping bag and decorate as you wish.
Gingerbread Biscuits