Friday, November 3, 2006
On November 13, Torontonians will be heading to the polls to vote for their ward’s councillor and for mayor. Among Toronto’s ridings is Don Valley West (Ward 25). Three candidates responded to Wikinews’ requests for an interview. This ward’s candidates include John Blair, Robertson Boyle, Tony Dickins, Cliff Jenkins (incumbent), and Peter Kapsalis.
For more information on the election, read Toronto municipal election, 2006.
byadmin
It seems like every business is looking to go a little green in order to help the environment and attract customers who only patronize businesses that are proactive at protecting natural resources. With wooden pallet production using a vast amount of wood each year, it makes sense that suppliers of wooden pallets in Atlanta would offer recycling options. But how safe is a recycled pallet? Can it perform the same job functions as a newly manufactured pallet? Are there any safety risks to using recycled pallets? Below is some basic info about using recycled pallets, including safety and cost savings.
Completely Refurbished Pallets
Recycling is the process of taking one material and turning it into something new. Recycling centers recycle aluminum and create other aluminum products from old soda cans or aluminum scrap. The same is true for wooden pallets. In Atlanta, you can find companies who specialize in not only manufacturing new pallets but recycling old ones.
When a company gets a delivery of older pallets, the employees of the company take the pallet and completely refurbish it into something strong and durable for future use. New wood replaces worn wood, the pallet is strengthened with strong fasteners, and it’s treated to prevent damage from wear and tear.
Recycled Pallets Graded for Use
No company that sells wooden pallets in Atlanta expects a recycled pallet to provide the exact same strength and durability as a brand new pallet. That’s why when you order recycled pallets you’re given a grade for strength. The company will tell you how much weight the pallets can hold and which jobs the pallets will perform well. This reduces the risk of using the pallets incorrectly and helps you feel confident with your pallets.
Recycled Pallets Save You Money
The initial investment for new pallets is expensive. The cost of using recycled pallets is much less, and these pallets can probably perform most of the work you need. Because you’re not paying for brand new wood, you can greatly reduce your overhead costs by relying on recycled pallets for your business. When buying wooden pallets in Atlanta, always speak with the customer service agent to fully understand how well their recycled pallets hold up and the process in which they recycle the pallets. This will let you know if a recycled pallet is right for your business.
Contact Premier Pallets, Inc. to know more information about using recycled wooden pallets in Atlanta.
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Saturday, July 14, 2012
Community leaders at the Wikimania 2012 conference, which is largely attended by Wikipedians and volunteers from other Wikimedia Foundation projects, focused attention on diversity within the projects and specifically on the inclusion of women, people who come from developing countries, and those people who, while not tech geeks, are potential contributors.
Wikipedia is the fifth top web site visited on the internet, according to Wales.
Mary Gardiner, co-founder of the Ada Initiative, delivered the opening address, where she encouraged conference participants to think about how they could be more inclusive, especially toward women, in their work. She is the first woman ever to give an opening address at a Wikimania conference. The conferences have been held annually since 2005.
Jimmy Wales, co-founder of Wikipedia, echoed the theme of diversity in his remarks during his annual State of the Wiki address and expanded on Africa and including more people who are not technically savvy.
Participants from 87 countries gathered in Lisner Auditorium on the campus of George Washington University, Washington, D.C. for the opening session on Thursday morning.
Mary Gardiner focused on the lack of gender diversity within the Wikipedia community. She said reader and editor surveys have shown that while over one third of the readers of Wikipedia are women, the number of women who are editors is around 10 to 15 percent in the English Wikipedia and as low as 8.5 percent for all Wikipedias. “As a project of social change, even if it’s not an activist project, the Wikipedia community has a responsibility both to its mission and to the people out there in the world to always be on a journey toward diversity — to increase the size of the umbrella of the world”, Gardiner said.
The Ada Initiative, co-founded by Gardiner, encourages women’s involvement in open source projects like Wikipedia, open-source software, and open government. Prior to the conference, the Ada Initiative sponsored an AdaCamp where women shared their experiences across these projects. Gardiner, who is a graduate student in Computational Linguistics, delivered the keynote, entitled “Fostering diversity: not a boring chore, a critical opportunity.”
Gardiner said Wikipedia should not only increase diversity because it would be good for the community to have more voices, but also the community should reach out with sincerity and both engage and hear women’s voices and be open to change from their contributions.
Jimmy Wales recommended Wikipedians “reexamine [their] premises.” As an example, he asked them to consider article topics that other audiences who are not currently being served well could find meaningful. He became involved in a deletion debate about whether Kate Middleton’s wedding dress was worthy of an article. He contrasted this topic choice with the large number of obscure pages about Linux and asked the audience to consider why important fashion events could be of interest to a different audience with other interests. He said if Wikipedia is not providing content for this audience, they will go elsewhere to create and read that content.
Gardiner also said when women or another subculture focus on their identity it can actually create a stronger Wikipedian identity. “The more you encourage people retain parts of their identity that are important to them, in my case as a woman, the more you enhance their other identity as a Wikipedian… You can encourage both identities by allowing minorities to acknowledge and embrace that they are a member of a minority.” Wikipedia has encouraged the development of subcultures through the creation of chapters, portals, and even individualized user boxes.
Jimmy Wales, on a personal note, announced that he and his partner had named their daughter Ada after Ada Lovelace, who Gardiner had explained to the audience is considered the first software programmer and was an inspiration for the Ada Initiative. Gardiner credits her fellow Ada Initiative co-founder Valerie Aurora, executive director, for naming the organization after Lovelace.
Wales devoted a large portion of his speech to Wikipedia’s footprint in Africa. Wikipedia is currently offered in 285 languages and of African languages, Yorùbá, Swahili, and Afrikaans are the largest. Wales described how in a one month period in 2011 Yorùbá jumped to first in the number of articles. Yorùbá Wikipedia User:Demmy created a bot that added 15,000 articles to the language in one month and his activity doubled the number of active editors to about four. Wales presented the second annual “Jimbo Award” to User:Demmy for his contribution to the Yorùbá language version of Wikipedia.
Wales said the Wikimedia Foundation’s mobile initiative would be an important part of bringing people from developing countries to Wikipedia and would even offer new editing tools for the community worldwide.
New software is in development that could also expand the number of editors of Wikipedia. Sue Gardner, executive director of the Wikimedia Foundation, announced that Wikimedia Foundation is currently testing its Visual Editor Software that she says will make it as easy to edit Wikipedia as it is to update the status on a person’s Facebook account. “Editing is unnecessarily difficult,” Gardner said. “We’re using an older technology. And it’s an open-source environment and developers of that kind of software are not typically dedicated to design and usability issues” but to solving technical problems.
Wikimania is an international event and past conferences have been held in Frankfurt, Germany; Boston, USA; Taipei, Taiwan; Alexandria, Egypt; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Gda?sk, Poland; and Haifa, Israel. Next year’s Wikimania is to be held in Hong Kong, China.
The main conference has attracted over 1,000 participants and will be open through July 14.
Here’s An Opinion On:
Building and pest inspections
by
Vikram Kumar
If you are contemplating purchasing a property for investment purposes or buying a home to live in, there are a lot of different factors that you will need to look into before deciding on your purchase. You may have inspected a particular property with your family and liked the exterior as well as the interior. However, it is important to carry out building and pest inspection to know if there are any problems or repairs that need to be carried out.
The Inspection will report on the home or property and contain evidence of any building problems or pest infestations or damage. Pool inspections are very important when buying property to make sure they are safe for children. In a lot of cases it is not possible to identify damage in a home with the naked eye. You will require professionals who are experienced in the field to bring their equipment and thermal imaging cameras to locate the infestations that may be spread through the sub floor and other hard to reach areas. You should also be aware if there are any structural faults or if the timber framing in the wall is eaten up by borers or termites. Borers and termites can cause a lot of damage to timber and wood and the repair this damage may end up costing you a huge amount. We are aware that nearly one third of all homes in Australia are prone to pest infestations and therefore it is important to get an experienced licensed company such as Aegis building inspections to carry out an extensive inspection in order to know the true condition of the property. They will also advise you on any other important issues that you may not be aware before the actual purchase. If the property has a pool, it is necessary to get a pool inspection done as well to avoid costly repairs after you purchase. You will be devastated if you learn that repairs are need after you purchase as the cost of repairing defects can amount to a fortune and this may not have been included in your investment plans. Therefore, it is much better to be able to renegotiate after you have the report in hand to help save your valuable hard-earned money. Aegis Building Inspections perform their work in accordance with Australian Standards. They are members of the Housing Industry Association and pioneers in Building and Pest inspections. You can book an appointment or call them to find out more about their services and get quotes from them. Check out their reviews and read the testimonials of customers who have had great results and savings thanks to their prompt and efficient services. They recruit only the most highly trained professionals and their aim is to provide comprehensive and independent reports to help their clients save valuable money. They are also covered by professional indemnity insurance. A building inspection and pest inspection by Aegis Building Inspections will boost your level of confidence in your purchase. Make sure you hire the right personnel to get the job done promptly and efficiently. The report will help you negotiate a better final price with the owner and you can close the deal with their assistance and friendly service. Aegis Building Inspections
offer affordable expert services by providing a comprehensive report to help you negotiate a better deal with the owners. It is advisable to carry out an extensive
Building and pest inspections
to ensure that the property that you purchase is devoid of infestations and that your repair costs are mini
Article Source:
Building and pest inspections
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Many media outlets traditionally deliberately spread hoaxes on April Fools’ Day, including notable quality sources such as National Geographic and Science.
The popular British tabloid The Sun wrote that French President Nicolas Sarkozy is to undergo stretch surgery to make him taller than his wife, Italian artist and model Carla Bruni. The report claimed the 5 foot 5 inch leader would be made 5 inches taller in one year using a method by Israeli professor Ura Schmuck. The Sun noted that during his visit to Britain last week, Sarkozy had high-heel shoes while his wife wore a pair of flat pumps.
The Guardian on the other hand ran an article that suggested that Carla would head an initiative by Prime Minister Gordon Brown to bring more glamour, good taste and sophistication to the U.K. general population. This would involve collaboration with Marks & Spencer for high-street fashion and Jamie Oliver for meals and wine.
BBC News had real-looking footage of flying penguins fronted by documentary host Terry Jones, which were actually an advertisement for its new iPlayer.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Witnesses heard gunshots in a Wal-Mart parking lot in Cedar Park, Texas, near Highway 183, on Sunday morning. Police arrested eighteen year-old Soloman Onwukaife at the scene. Four, including the gunman who had facial wounds unrelated to the shooting, are being treated for injuries after the incident. A fifth victim has been released.
Cedar Park Police Captain Mike Harmon said authorities arrived at the parking lot around 4:30 AM local time. There they arrested Onwukaife, who has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The Cedar Park Wal-Mart was closed down briefly on Sunday morning; however, no staff or customers were injured.
Police have released the names of the victims, eighteen-year-old Cody McGrath, nineteen-year-old Shayne Davis, nineteen-year-old Zacharia Gietl and 22-year-old Leland McGlocklin. As-of Monday, Gietl has been released from hospital whilst the others remain in critical, but stable, condition. Police informed media the incident occurred follwing a dispute which began at a nearby party where alcohol was being served. After moving the fight to the parking lot, Onwukaife is alleged to have shot the four victims.
Onwukaife was expected to be released on Monday, after which he would immediately be jailed. Police advised media the investigation is on-going and more charges may still be filed. Specifically, Police are trying to determine if any other participants in the fight were armed.
By Jim Kesel
Magellan, established in 1986, is a company specializing in GPS products. It is a direct competitor of Garmin, another GPS company. Where does the difference lie between Garmin GPS products and Magellan GPS products? It mainly lies in the number of GPS products produced. Garmin has GPS products available for all types of consumers including mariners and pilots, while Magellan GPS products are designed for the average person. This means that Magellan GPS tend to be a simpler, more affordable choice for everyday navigational needs. This article will discuss the different Magellan GPS brands available for purchase.
The first Magellan GPS brand to be discussed is one designed for vehicle navigation: the Magellan Maestro. Among the Magellan Maestro are: the 3100, (which costs $299.99), the 3140, (which costs $399.99), the 4000 (which costs $399.99), the 4040, (which costs $499.99) and the 4050, (which costs $699.99). The least expensive Magellan Maestro model, the 3100, does not offer voiced directions, while the more expensive models do. The most expensive Magellan Maestro model, the 4050, offers voice-activated controlling, traffic information and voiced turn-by-turn directions. The mid-priced Maestro models, (which are the 3140, the 4000 and the 4040), only offer voiced street names. All of the Maestro models except the 3100 offer Bluetooth calling.
The second Magellan GPS brand is also designed for vehicle navigation: the Magellan Roadmate. Unfortunately, the only Magellan Roadmate available for sale on Magellan’s website is the 2200T, which costs $399.99. This model is designed for both outdoor use and vehicle navigation. It is waterproof, offers turn-by-turn directions and it can easily fit in one’s pocket. If one is interested in the other Magellan Roadmate brands, (which would include the 2000, 300, 3000T, 3050, 360, 6000T, 700, 800 and 860T), they will have to find them through an alternative dealer.
The third Magellan GPS brand is the Magellan CrossoverGPS, designed for navigation on water and land. Only one model is available for the CrossoverGPS, which is the 2500T. At a price of $399.99, the 2500T is waterproof, offers voiced turn-by-turn directions and traffic updates.
The fourth Magellan GPS brand is the Triton series, all of which are handheld navigation systems. These are another brand that for one reason or another are not featured on Magellan’s website. To purchase them one will have to go through a separate dealer. As far as their features, they offer colorized maps, touch screens, voice recorders and, (depending on the unit), an electronic compass and barometer.
The fifth and final Magellan GPS brand is the Explorist series, which are also handheld navigation systems. The Explorist models available for sale on the Magellan website include: the 100, (priced at $109.99), the 210, (priced at $149.99), the 200, (priced at $169.99), the 500, (priced at $199.99), the 600, (priced at $349.99) and the XL, (priced at $399.99). The features available on these models include: colorized screens, barometers, thermometers, track-plotting and USB access.
In conclusion, there are all kinds of Magellan GPS products available for one’s GPS needs. For the car the Magellan GPS products include the Maestro and the Roadmate. For those who want to venture on land and sea the Magellan GPS product that would need to be purchased is the CrossoverGPS. Finally, for individuals wanting a handheld Magellan GPS product, there are the Triton and Explorist series. Through a Magellan GPS product, people can always know where they need to go.
About the Author: James Kesel, MS is the Publisher of GPS Auto Tracker providing information on the latest GPS Tracking and Navigation systems.
Source: isnare.com
Permanent Link: isnare.com/?aid=184011&ca=Automotive
Friday, December 23, 2005
The Conservative Party of Canada leader Stephen Harper today made bold claims about the Canadian Arctic region at a campaign stop in Winnipeg, “The single most important duty of the federal government is to protect and defend our national sovereignty.” . The prime minister-hopeful stated, “There are new and disturbing reports of American nuclear submarines passing though Canadian waters without obtaining the permission of —or even notifying — the Canadian government.”
Harper promised a significant increase in military presence in the Canadian region, which has had notable soveriegnty disputes with the United States, Russia, Denmark and Norway.”You don’t defend national sovereignty with flags,” Harper said. “You need forces on the ground, ships in the sea, and proper surveillance.”
Among other promises, Harper stated he would station three armed naval heavy ice breakers in the area of Iqaluit with 500 regular force personnel, recruit 500 more Canadian rangers, and build a new army training center in the area of Cambridge Bay on the Northwest Passage.File:Stephen Harper voa.jpg
“As prime minister, I will make it clear to foreign governments — including the United States — that naval vessels traveling in Canadian territorial waters will require the consent of the government of Canada,” Harper stated.
The Conservative Party Website states this ““Canada First” Northern Strategy will increase surveillance, navy, army and air force presence”.
The Liberal Party of Canada, the Conservatives’ most powerful rival in the election, quickly posted a rebuttal on their website. They claim Stephen Harpers stated defense budget of $5.3(CAD) billion over 5 years is not enough to afford the two polar icebreakers, which the Liberal party claims will cost $3(CAD) billion with the party estimating an upkeep of $150(CAD) million per year. “Where does Mr. Harper plan to find another $1 billion?” the party asked in their rebuttal.
The Arctic may be an important issue in the future for Canadians, as scientists expect the fabled Northwest Passage of the Arctic to open up for year round shipping by 2050 as a result of global warming. According to the online encyclopedia Wikipedia, trade routes from Europe to the Far East could save 4000 km through the passage, as compared to the current routes through the Panama Canal.
Canada last flexed its muscle in the Arctic in 2004 in its most massive Arctic exercise ever, with six hundred personnel from the three services (army, air force, navy) involved in a large exercise in the Baffin Islands.
Canadians are scheduled to go to the polls on January 23, 2006 in an early election as a result of a non-confidence motion in parliament against the former ruling Liberal party.
Here’s An Opinion On:
Financing SR ED Credits In Canada : The SRED Tax Credit Loan : The Case Against Waiting
by
stanprokop
Financing SR ED tax credits is the final ‘ connecting dot in your firms journey in Canadas SR&ED r&d refund program. We’re examining the SRED Tax Credit Loan; it makes a strong case against waiting for your refund. Let’s dig in.
One of the characteristics of the SRED program is that despite providing billions in funding for thousands of firms in Canada the amounts range from claims from 50k up to 1 Million $ +. For firms like yours that invest in R&D that investment can be a significant portion of your costs.
While R&D is to a certain point discretionary the reality is that todays competitive environment forces you maintain the maximum investment you can. SR&ED financing certainly assists you to plough back your maximum given that waiting for your refund is eliminated – cash flow is accelerated under the loan.
While the real objective of the program is to reimburse you for your R&D capital costs it seems logical that many firms wouldnt take advantage of the program if they couldnt recapture a large part of their cash flow investment. The main resource that many firms rely on are the ‘ SR&ED Consultants that assist firms in preparing their claims and working with your accountants to properly file the claim.
That claim eligibility is a key part of the SRED tax credit loan process as a quality claim prepared by an experienced consultant helps speed up the financing process. That ‘ process’ by the way is typically the most common question we get from clients on financing SR ED credits – i.e. how long does it take to get a SR&ED bridge loan and whats involved.
The good news? Claims can be financed in a matter of weeks, in certain cases even less time. And the actual application? Just as easy – typical requirements are a copy of your SR&ED filing, your financial statement and tax return and some miscellaneous info typical for any business loan – i.e. your articles of incorporation info, etc.
Timing is everything is an oft used clich in business. The good news around financing SR&ED credits is that last years claim is financeable, as is this years, and yes, next years also can be started along! Your ability to document claims properly just moves everything along. SR&ED bridge loans are financed at 70% of the value of your claim – in simple arithmetic: every 1000.00$ of claim nets you 700.00$ in immediate financing.
Very few business people dispute the value of R&D and the tremendous benefits attached to the SR&ED program – it’s equally a good thing to fund your claims and accelerate cash flow. Seek out and speak to a trusted, credible and experienced Canadian business financing advisor who can help you ‘ connect the dots ‘ in your refundable tax credit cash strategy.
Stan Prokop
7 Park Avenue Financial : http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com Business financing for Canadian Firms , specializing in working capital, cash flow, asset based financing , Equipment Leasing , franchise finance and Cdn. Tax Credit Finance . Founded 2004 – Completed in excess of 100 Million $ of financing for Canadian corporations . Info /Contact : http://www.7parkavenuefinancial.com/sred-tax-credit-loan-financing-sr-ed-credits.html
Article Source:
Financing SR ED Credits In Canada : The SRED Tax Credit Loan : The Case Against Waiting}
Monday, March 30, 2009
First becoming famous in her native Ukraine in the 1990s, long-haired self-described “Amazon” Ruslana gained international recognition for winning the 2004 Eurovision Song Contest with her song “Wild Dances,” inspired by the musical traditions of the Hutsul people of the Ukrainian Carpathian Mountains.
In the five years since, Ruslana has decided to use her name and public status to represent a number of worthy causes, including human trafficking, renewable energy, and even the basic concept of democratic process, becoming a public face of Ukraine’s Orange Revolution and later serving in Parliament.
Currently, she is on an international publicity tour to promote her album Wild Energy, a project borne out of a science fiction novel that has come to symbolize her hopes for a newer, better, freer way of life for everyone in the world. She took time to respond to questions Wikinews’s Mike Halterman posed to her about her career in music and her other endeavors.
This is the fifth in a series of interviews with past Eurovision contestants, which will be published sporadically in the lead-up to mid-May’s next contest in Moscow.