QNAP is generally known around these parts for its ever shrinking line of NAS devices that pack plenty of goods in a small space. The company’s latest series sets a new bar for functionality, but does so in a device you probably won’t be wedging in on a bookshelf between your well-worn (but never finished) copy of Ulysses and your leaning tower of software boxes. The latest Turbo NAS series is intended for small businesses, available in sizes ranging from one to the eight bay monster you see above, each packing an Intel D510 processor with enough oomph to fuel virtualized environments, so VMware vSphere4 certification and Windows Server 2008’s Hyper-V are on-tap. iSCSI is also supported, as is IPv6 and, in one small nod toward consumers, Apple Time Machine backups have been enabled. We’re expecting to see the full suite of devices at CES just a few days hence, while they’re all slated for retail release in the coming weeks at prices ranging from $599 for the two-bay TS-259 Pro all the way up to $1,499 for that eight-bay TS-859 Pro flavor. You didn’t think all this professionalism would come cheap, did you?
Okay, so this is quite the lag from October’s North American availability, but at least when the paid portion of Palm’s App Catalog rolls out across Europe it shouldn’t experience the stuttering start it suffered back in the US of A. Palm has excitedly blurted out the news on its developer network blog, but not without the requisite garnishings of buzzwords like “leverage,” “freedom,” “choice,” “control,” and “speed,” as well as something about “faster cycle times” — all of it designed to get more developers onboard. Kinda ironic the company is boasting about fast cycle times when it can’t transition its paid Catalog to Europe in less than six months, but hey — the Pre already has that one killer app, and it’s free, so what do you care?
The contraction of M3 money in the US and Europe over the last six months will slowly puncture economic recovery as 2010 unfolds, with the time-honoured lag of a year or so. Ben Bernanke will be caught off guard, just as he was in mid-2008 when the Fed drove straight through a red warning light with talk of imminent rate rises – the final error that triggered the implosion of Lehman, AIG, and the Western banking system.
As the great bear rally of 2009 runs into the greater Chinese Wall of excess global capacity, it will become clear that we are in the grip of a 21st Century Depression – more akin to Japan’s Lost Decade than the 1840s or 1930s, but nothing like the normal cycles of the post-War era. The surplus regions (China, Japan, Germania, Gulf ) have not increased demand enough to compensate for belt-tightening in the deficit bloc (Anglo-sphere, Club Med, East Europe), and fiscal adrenalin is already fading in Europe. The vast East-West imbalances that caused the credit crisis are no better a year later, and perhaps worse. Household debt as a share of GDP sits near record levels in two-fifths of the world economy. Our long purge has barely begun. That is the elephant in the global tent.
If he had wanted to debunk those rumors that it might buy Palm, Nokia’s new mobile phones head Rick Simonson could have picked a more outright denial.
Simonson, who in November switched from CFO to run the mobile unit of Nokia’s devices division, tells India’s Economic Times: “We have been hearing that for a long time now — maybe it is like one of those things that you keep predicting and hope that by 2010, or in the next 10 years, it will actually come true. It’s like you keep saying, ‘it will rain, it will rain’ and one day it finally rains, and then you say you predicted it!”
Simonson ventures: “I can even make a prediction for 2010: In Latin America, we will grow faster than (RIM). By 2011, our efforts will start producing results, as we will be at par with Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) and RIM (NSDQ: RIMM) in smartphones. Not only we draw level with them, we will also win the war because, in addition to email, we will be adding content, chat, music, entertainment and several other features, which will soon become very critical for success of any company in this space.”
Nokia (NYSE: NOK) finds itself with diminishing market share in the U.S. and established markets but a growing embrace for Brazil, Russian, India and China. Its Symbian operating system appears increasingly ill-suited to smartphone demands in the west and all manner of systems are snapping at its heels. Simonson tells ET: “Fourteen to 15 operating systems cannot survive. There is definitely not enough room for more than four to five operating systems. Scale is critical. For instance, Palm’s OS is very good, but with less than one percent of the global volumes, it won’t be too appealing to developers.” Might Nokia fancy taking Palm (NSDQ: PALM) OS to the audience of developers its building for its own Symbian?
I have said it before. I never thought it would happen to me. Yet here I am…about three months away from my 30th wedding anniversary and I am about to be divorced. There won’t be a 30th wedding anniversary. At least not for us.
Having been deeply involved in a church that is full of long term marriage this was a shock. It wasn’t what I wanted nor what I expected. And I found out that even your long time friends are affected by the phenomena I like to call “Divorce Cooties”. You know, you finally look up from the ground where you are laying with your teeth kicked in – take a deep breath – and look around to find that you are staring at the backs of almost everyone you ever trusted as they scamper away lest they be tainted by your divorce cooties.
People grill your children. Near strangers ask you odd, personal questions and express a little too much criticism for how you are handling things. God forbid, don’t meet anyone else and begin to glue your life back together. Then you get to glue a scarlet A to your chest and change your name to Hester Prynne…. even if you are being as virginal as a 90 year old nun.
Frustrating? Yes.
On the other hand my kids are handling things just fine despite the voiced concerns of people who really haven’t bothered to talk to them. Far from pining away they are working through their hurt, grief and other emotions in a healthy way. We all are. One of the benefits of keeping those lines of communication open is that you really do communicate.
We are handling this the way any healthy group would handle anything. We talk, we cry, we laugh, we yell, we talk more. Together. And truly, we will get over this… we will get past it..and we will be stronger, better, more compassionate people because of it.
Are you going through divorce? Do you know someone who is? How are you handling the emotions? Are you experiencing the Divorce Cooties Syndrome?
Tatry (poľ. Tatry) sú krajinný celok Fatransko-tatranskej oblasti. Nachádzajú v severnej časti Slovenskej Republiky na hranici s Poľskom, pričom väčia časť – 3/4 územia Tatier leia na Slovensku. Sú najvyím pohorím celého karpatského oblúka s 25 títmi vyími ne 2 500 m n.m. Ten ete zvýrazňuje fakt, e sú po obvode lemované kotlinami.
Reliéf Tatier je dielom vodných tokov a horských ľadovcov, ktoré rozčlenili pohorie na viacero rázcoch a rozoklaných chrbtov. Územie Tatier patrí k úmoriu Čierneho mora (rieka Váh) a Baltického mora (Dunajec a Poprad).
Hlavný hrebeň Tatier má dĺku 80 km a ťahá sa od Hutianskeho sedla (905 m) na západe po Zdiarske sedlo na východe (1081 m). Jeho najzápadnejím vrcholom je Sivy Vrch (1805 m), najvýchodnejím Jahňací tít (2 229 m), z ktorého je vidieť a do Poľska, či panorámu Troch korún v Pieninách. Z hlavného tatranského hrebeňa vybiehajú rázsochy. Na juh smeruje päť hlavných rázsoch, na sever len dve.
Tatry sa delia na 2 geomorfologické podcelky a následne tieto geomorfologické časti:
1. Západné Tatry:
Červené vrchy
Liptovské Tatry
Liptovské Kopy
Osobitá
Roháče
Sivý vrch
2. Východné Tatry:
Vysoké Tatry
Belianske Tatry
títy
Najvyím vrcholom Tatier je Gerlachovský tít (2 654,4 m n.m.). Ďalími vrcholmi v poradí sú:
Gerlachovská vea (2642 m)
Lomnický tít (2633,9 m)
Ľadový tít (2627,3 m)
Pyný tít (2621 m)
Zadný Gerlach (2616 m)
Lavínový tít (2606 m)
Malý Ľadový tít (2602,7 m)
Kotlový tít (2601,1 m)
Lavínová vea (2600 m)
Malý Pyný tít (2590 m)
Veľká Litvorová vea (2581 m)
Strapatá vea (2565 m)
Kemarský tít (2556,4 m)
Vysoká (2547,2 m)
Malá Litvorová vea (2547 m)
Supia vea (2540 m)
Končistá (2537,5 m)
Baranie rohy (2526,2 m)
Dračí tít (2523 m)
Veľká Vidlová vea (2522,8 m)
Veterný tít (2515 m)
Malý Kemarský tít (2514,2 m)
Zadný Ľadový tít (2512,2 m)
Rysy (2503 m)
Doliny
Tatranské doliny sú protipólom tatranských hrebeňov. V Tatrách ich je asi 30. Najväčí vplyv na ich formovanie mali vysokohorské ľadovce.
na slovenskej strane, vo Východných Tatrách:
Batizovská dolina
Bielovodská dolina
Dolina Kemarskej Bielej vody
Dolina siedmich prameňov
Furkotská dolina
Javorová dolina
Kôprová dolina
Malá Studená dolina
Mengusovská dolina
Mlynická dolina
Starolesnianska dolina
Tichá dolina
Velická dolina
Veľká Studená dolina
na poľskej strane:
Dolina Chochołowska z Jarząbczą i Starobociańską
Dolina Lejowa
Dolina Kościeliska z Tomanową i Miętusią
Doliny: Małej Łąki, Za Bramką, Strążyska, Ku Dziurze, Białego
Dolina Bystrej z Kondratową, Goryczkową, Kasprową i Jaworzyńską
Dolina Olczyska
Dolina Suchej Wody z Doliną Gąsienicową i Doliną Pańszczycy
Dolina Filipka
hraničná Dolina Bialky z Doliną Rybiego Potoku (Dolina Rybieho potoku), Doliną Pięciu Stawów Polskich (Dolina Piatich plies poľských), Doliną Roztoki i Doliną Waksmundzką (na slovenskej strane patrí do Doliny Bialky Bielovodská dolina so svojimi časťami)
na slovenskej strane v Západných Tatrách:
iarska dolina
Račková dolina
Jamnická dolina
Bystrá dolina
Kamenistá dolina
Roháčska dolina
Spálená dolina a iné
Jaskyne
Na území Tatier sa pôsobením vody vytvorilo mnostvo jaskýň, v súčasnosti ich je zmapovaných okolo 330. Sú prevane krasové s kvapľovou výzdobou a jazierkami. Väčina z nich je pre verejnosť uzavretá. Medzi najznámejie patria:
najdlhie
Jaskinia Wielka Śnieżna – najdlhia (dĺka 22 km)
Jaskinia Wysoka za Siedmioma Progami (dĺka 10 km)
Miętusia (dlka 9 487 m)
najhlbie
Jaskinia Wielka Śnieżna – najhlbia (hĺbka 824 m)
Śnieżna Studnia (hĺbka 701 m)
najnavtevovanejie
Belianska jaskyňa – najnavtevovanejia, dĺka 3,5 km, prístupých 1 275 m, (vchod v Tatranskej Kotline)
najnovie
nové jaskyne v oblasti Javorinskej irokej – objavené a skúmané v roku 2005
The Tatra Mountains, Tatras or Tatra (Tatry in both Polish and Slovak), constitute a mountain range which forms a natural border between Slovakia and Poland. They occupy an area of 750 km², the major part (600 km²) of which lies in Slovakia. The highest mountain is Gerlach at 2,655 m, located in Slovakia just north of Poprad. The north-western peak of Rysy (2,499 m) is the highest Polish mountain.
The Tatras consist of:
Western Tatras (Slovak: Západné Tatry, Polish: Tatry Zachodnie)
Eastern Tatras (Východné Tatry, Tatry Wschodnie), which consist of:
High Tatras (Vysoké Tatry, Tatry Wysokie)
Belianske Tatras (Belianske Tatry, Tatry Bielskie)
The Tatra Mountains are the highest mountain range in the Carpathian Mountains. Although considerably smaller than the Alps, they are classified as having an alpine landscape. Their high mountain character, combined with great accessibility, makes them popular with tourist and scientists.
The North American division of BMW Motorrad recently released a safety notice concerning 2008-2010 F650 GS and F800 GS machines due to some problem with the engine cooling system. According to the manufacturer, the recall is addressed to 4,498 units.
In a notification posted on the official website of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), BMW explains that water could flow into the canister which could increase the risk of a crash and have serious consequen… (read more)
This thread aims to discuss here various civic amenities which we often find them not upto mark be it the roads,transport management/power supply,Pollution,Environmental concerns -Noise/feeling of trees for road widening purpose,Parks,Lakes conservation,Drinking water supply,Underground drainage systems,Solid waste Management. etc etc
Most importantly being the Footpaths.It is our fundamental right and hence govt must ensure that for every citizen.
Any problem which a city or town faces in the name of Urbanization can be discussed here,Model projects can be updated here such that the same may be replicated elsewhere in the state/country.
Feitjes:
De bouw duurde ruim vijf jaar, het beton van de fundering bleek na een jaar werk van dermate slechte kwaliteit te zijn dat de hele handel moest worden opgeblazen met dynamiet.
Over vijf jaar (Amsterdamse jaren, kan dus nog wel even duren) staan er in het verlengde van toren Overhoeks nog vijf torens met hoogtes tussen de 50 en 105 meter.
I know that type I’s and type II’s on insulin need to test more than those diabetics that are type II’s (at least I believe type I’s need to) so they will need a prescription for a higher number of test strips. But what about type II’s using diet and oral meds to control their diabetes? How many test strips does your doctor prescribe? Does he decide how many to prescribe or do you tell him? Of course going with how many your insurance will cover.
The reason I ask is because my endo back in September "suggested" that I could cut back to testing 2 times a day. I told him that I wasn’t comfortable doing that and we got into a bit of back and forth with him telling me that insurance doesn’t like to pay for extra strips for non insulin dependent diabetics. I told him my insurance will pay for 4 strips a day. He got a bit defensive but dropped the issue. Then when I went back in to see him on December 15th, he made the same suggestion. Again, I told him that I prefer to test 3 times a day and if I want to test only 2 times a day then that either choice will be mine. Dropped the issue again. Well, on Friday, I found out from Medco that not only did he write the wrong prescription amount for my metformin but he also wrote out a prescription for test strips for only 2 a day. This was done on December 3rd and he never told me at my office visit on the 15th that he wrote out a reduced test strip prescription. I am quite upset about this and will be speaking to him when the office opens at 9:00 a.m. I think he’s forgotten that we work as a team and that I make the final decision about my care and what I need to keep in control.
So, how many test strips is your prescription for and does your doctor try to call the shots on this?
Many hardware companies have occasional problems shipping products to customers on time–particularly if they have some hot items. But Dell seems to be really struggling this holiday season.
Close to 200 customer comments on a Dell blog–recounted on sites such as The Consumerist–are all remarkably similar: People placed their orders, months ago in some cases, and then watched as the shipping date keeps getting pushed off.
“I ordered an Inspiron 17 on NOVEMBER 28, supposedly to be delivered on Dec 14. Just checked the status page, and it has been delayed for the fourth time and now not set to deliver until JANUARY 7, 2010!,” wrote one customer.
Can anyone tell me about these renders. I put here, but I’m not sure if it is gonna be built at all.
LILYPAD: Floating City for Climate Change Refugees
There are very few urban design solutions that address housing the inevitable tide of displaced people that could arise as oceans swell under global warming. Certainly none are as spectacular as this one. The Lilypad, by Vincent Callebaut, is a concept for a completely self-sufficient floating city intended to provide shelter for future climate change refugees. The intent of the concept itself is laudable, but it is Callebauts phenomenal design that has captured our imagination.
Biomimicry was clearly the inspiration behind the design. The Lilypad, which was designed to look like a waterlily, is intended to be a zero emission city afloat in the ocean. Through a number of technologies (solar, wind, tidal, biomass), it is envisioned that the project would be able to not only produce its own energy, but be able to process CO2 in the atmosphere and absorb it into its titanium dioxide skin.
Each of these floating cities are designed to hold approximately around 50,000 people. A mixed terrain man-made landscape, provided by an artificial lagoon and three ridges, create a diverse environment for the inhabitants. Each Lilypad is intended to be either near a coast, or floating around in the ocean, traveling from the equator to the northern seas, according to where the gulf stream takes it.
The project isnt even close to happening anytime soon, but there is value in future forward designs like the Lilypad. They inspire creative solutions, which at some point, may actually provide a real solution to the climate change problem.
+ Lilypad, a floating ecopolis for climate refugees
Flurry, a San Francisco-based mobile app analytics company that recently merged with Pinch Media of New York, has teamed up with comScore in a deal that will marry Flurry’s analytics with comScore’s mobile panel data. The combined results, in turn, will be sold to comScore’s clients.
The way I see it, it’s only a matter of time before someone like comScore or The Nielsen Co. buys out Flurry and its rivals. It’s becoming increasingly evident that the mobile web and mobile apps are part of new usage behavior that goes beyond today’s plain-vanilla web.
Why pay for text messaging anymore when you can send texts for free? That’s the message GOGII is trying to send to users via its textPlus application, which has been wildly successful on the iPhone with over 3.2 million downloads.
As with many other successful iPhone applications, textPlus is moving to Android and bringing free texting along with it.
UPDATE: As noted by some commenters, this is a US-only application.
I’ve used textPlus for the iPhone and it’s a solid experience. You can easily send a message via the ad-supported application. The receiver of the text message gets a message from “60611″ indicating it is from gaganbiyani (my username on GOGII). Instructions are included in that text on how to reply to me directly. A major advantage of textPlus is in group conversations: you can create a text group (say, your friends in NYC or your poker buddies) and send one message that goes out to all your friends. Since it saves the group for future use and allows users to “reply all,” its a lot more effective than the standard texting platforms.
For Android, the process is smoother since it is a more customizable operating system. This is one of the many apps that benefits from using background processes (which the iPhone doesn’t support), because you can be notified as soon as you get a text message via textPlus. Furthermore, Android will probably see a great year in 2010, and it is a logical choice for GOGII to leverage Android as it grows as a company.
TextPlus for iPhone has proven to be extremely sticky, especially for teens and pre-teens, according to Co-Founder Austin Murray. They see a huge spike in usage on the weekends and a lot of their users are iPod Touch owners who presumably don’t have smart phones or unlimited texting plans. Murray told me that they are sending over 2 million texts per day and the average unique user spends over 250 minutes per month with textPlus.
We saw a blurry image of the XM-25 grenade launcher before, but it sure looks dangerous and menacing in the hands of a soldier. So dangerous and menacing that they could include them in an Aliens remake.
With its computer-controlled projectiles, the XM-25 grenade launcher has everyone amazed at the Pentangon. The key to its destructive power is how the projectiles can be programmed wirelessly to explode at a laser-measured range. That means that you can fire a projectile over a wall or barricade, and have it explode over the enemy, without having to make contact with any object.
The Army wants to have one in each infantry squad by 2012. [Danger Room]
Xaloy water-ring pelletizers are suitable for processing a wide range of polymers, unfilled or filled, in reclaim, masterbatch and general compounding.
Simple start-up: no strands to handle, no water-flow timing concerns.
Hot die-face cutting: insensitive to melt flow interruptions.
Continuous production: high productivity.
Exclusive flex-blade design: no sensitive knife adjustments, extended service life.
Hot cutting in air: saves power vs. cold strand or underwater cutting.
Whether the physician is standing up or the patient lying down – STABILUS gas springs provide countless types of specialized furniture in hospitals, doctor’s offices and rehab clinics with maximum mobility and functionality. For example, the locking gas springs in the BLOC-O-LIFT series work safely and silently and are maintenance-free. They are used as design elements in multi-functional operating tables and height-adjustable physician’s chairs, as well as in modern nursing home beds and mobile walkers. Through a piston-valve system, they provide force-assist in the adjusting and variable locking of movable furniture parts, making things easier for the user. Depending on the model, the locking can be unyielding or elastic. They often are a staple in massage tables, monitor brackets, or wheelchairs.
The BLOC O LIFT OR provides an override function, protecting the furniture from overload in both the tension and compression directions. In rehab or hospital beds, this gas spring can serve as a movable, positionable connecting element between the head or foot section and a bed’s main section. The BLOC-O-LIFT OBT (Over Bed Table) model is frequently installed in patient tables. It will allow variable height adjustment with rigid locking in the compression direction, with the upward movement of the table top not requiring a manual actuation mechanism. Its purpose: This will increase ease of operation for the patient and, at the same time, allow fast lifting of the table top by medical staff in an emergency.
Another successful product for the manufacture of special medical/therapeutic furniture is the HYDRO-LIFT. This non-locking gas spring is a popular design element where movable furniture parts need to be lifted or lowered into defined positions. In addition to the force-assist, it is characterized by a piston package with a valve-closing mechanism. It allows variable positioning of a furniture part over its entire adjustment range or, optionally, by pre-defined sections of the gas spring stroke – and holds the part in place without mechanical actuation. Within certain limits, this gas spring can also compensate for major weight fluctuations. Some of the application areas for the HYDRO-LIFT are the variable tilt adjustment of foot sections in hospital beds and the free positioning of monitor brackets. This gas pressure spring is also ideal for easy chairs.
Development of butter filling and wrapping machine ARM for small portions (from 10 to 25g) is finished. The machine can fill and wrap 10g, 15g, 20g and 25g as well. The machine can be connected direct to butter case packer. This machine can pack not just butter but also margarine and similar products.
What to say about this pudding? It was on our bookmarked recipes list for a long time and we finally tried it over the holidays. It’s thick, creamy, fit for dinner guests and a total comfort food too.
Casualties are nothing new in the history of the Dakar Rally, and unfortunately the 2010 event has already claimed a life. During the opening stage of the 32nd running of the 9,000-kilometer race this weekend, 28 year-old Natalia Sonia Gallardo was struck and killed by a truck being driven by Mirco Schultis. As a result of large crowds along the route, Gallardo was reportedly standing in an unauthorized area where spectators were not supposed to be and police did nothing to stop people from gathering there.
The 16 day rally starts and ends in Buenos Aires, Argentina again this year. The rally then winds across South America into Chile. Last year, the race was moved from Africa to South America after terrorist threats caused the 2008 race to be canceled. Over the three-decade history of the race, more than 50 competitors and spectators have died.
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The North American division of BMW Motorrad recently released a safety notice concerning 2008-2010 F650 GS and F800 GS machines due to some problem with the engine cooling system. According to the manufacturer, the recall is addressed to 4,498 units.
Why pay for text messaging anymore when you can send texts for free? That’s the 
