The purpose of this study is to learn more about virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) practices at the United States’ top one hundred university libraries, as well as how they are engaging with the metaverse. We conducted qualitative and descriptive analysis on the websites of the top one hundred university libraries in the … Continue reading ""Embracing the Metaverse: A Survey of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Practices at the United States’ Top One Hundred University Libraries""

Reporting to the Head of UX & Digital Accessibility, the UX Researcher/Designer will play a significant role in this project and related user experience research. Building on existing research, the person in this role will engage with users to confirm their needs, preferences, and behaviors for a unified search system and related sites. They will … Continue reading "User Experience Researcher/Designer at Harvard University"

The Michigan State University Libraries invites early career professionals to apply for our Residency in Media Preservation. This is a two-year project funded by the National Historical Preservation and Records Commission, and supports the work of the Media Preservation Unit in its effort to preserve the WKAR early television films within the University Archives and … Continue reading "Media Preservation Residency Librarian, Librarian I – Fixed Term at Michigan State University"

The Digital Collections Cataloger and Archivist creates and reviews metadata for collections in the Theodore Roosevelt Digital Library and helps to train and support others assisting with the cataloging. They also work with newly acquired physical archival collections to prepare them for storage, preservation, and presentation on the web and in other media. https://tinyurl.com/y3h2v68h | … Continue reading "Digital Collections Cataloger and Archivist at Dickinson State University"

The University of Minnesota Libraries, in partnership with the Association of Research Libraries, invites applications for a collaborative and partner-oriented Special Programs Manager, to work closely with the Data Curation Network (DCN) and the Realities of Academic Data Sharing (RADS) teams. Through generous funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (LG-254930-OLS-23), the Special … Continue reading "Research Professional 2 (Data Curation) at University of Minnesota Libraries (Term)"

Reporting to the Associate Dean for Health Sciences, the Research Support Librarian (Evidence Synthesis) will coordinate and manage the Matas Library’s Systematic Review Service, providing support and expertise to evidence synthesis efforts in the Tulane University School of Medicine, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, and National Primate Research Center. Working with the Health … Continue reading "Research Support Librarian (Evidence Synthesis) at Tulane University"

Crypto, soaring once again, could reach $100,000. As it becomes more expensive, you could afford to buy in less quantity or get into mining as an alternative option, which is what Opal is about today. Opal, as the world’s first A.I.-powered crypto-mining app, could get you up to $29 in bitcoin every 4 hours! For […]

Money is a sticky tricky thing for most people that requires some unlearning and healing love to move on. We have to learn how to have a healthy relationship with money. Right now, your clients are probably experiencing one (or all) of the following when they think about bringing in more money than they have […]

Make anywhere from $48 to $995 per day by pasting one line of code on your website to deploy an A.I. chatbot that sucks in free traffic and converts leads into sales… Without writing a single line of code, or needing any techie skills whatsoever! Say goodbye to: • Hiring an expensive programmer to code […]

Découvrez l'adhésion Priority améliorée et renommée, désormais appelée Performance ; de plus, les Day Pass sont en vente pour une durée limitée et sept jeux rejoignent le cloud cette semaine. Il est temps de briller L'abonnement Performance conserve tous les mêmes avantages en matière de jeux et offre désormais aux membres une expérience de streaming améliorée sans frais supplémentaires. Dites bonjour à l'abonnement Performance. Les membres Performance peuvent streamer jusqu'à 1440p - une augmentation par rapport à la résolution précédente de 1080p - et découvrir les jeux dans des résolutions immersives et ultra-larges. Ils peuvent également sauvegarder leurs paramètres graphiques dans le jeu au fil des sessions de streaming, y compris pour les fonctionnalités NVIDIA RTX dans les titres pris en charge. Tous les membres actuels de Priority sont automatiquement mis à niveau vers Performance et peuvent profiter dès aujourd'hui de l'expérience de streaming améliorée. Les membres Performance se connecteront à des serveurs équipés de GeForce RTX pour une résolution allant jusqu'à 1440p. Les membres Ultimate continuent de bénéficier de la meilleure expérience de streaming : ils se connectent à des serveurs équipés de GeForce RTX 4080 avec une résolution allant jusqu'à 4K et 120 images par seconde, ou 1080p et 240 images par seconde en mode Compétitif pour les jeux prenant en charge la technologie NVIDIA Reflex. Les joueurs jouant sur le niveau gratuit verront désormais qu'ils diffusent en streaming à partir de plates-formes de base, avec des spécifications variables qui offrent un jeu en nuage d'entrée de gamme et sont optimisées pour la capacité. Il est temps de jouer. Au début de l'année prochaine, GeForce NOW proposera un temps de jeu mensuel de 100 heures pour continuer à offrir une qualité et une vitesse exceptionnelles, ainsi que des temps d'attente plus courts, aux membres Performance et Ultimate. Cette limite généreuse convient à 94 % des membres, qui profitent généralement du service dans ce laps de temps. Les membres peuvent vérifier le temps qu'ils ont passé dans le nuage via le portail de leur compte (voir l'exemple de capture d'écran ci-dessus). Jusqu'à 15 heures de jeu non utilisées seront automatiquement reportées sur le mois suivant pour les membres, et des heures supplémentaires peuvent être achetées au prix de 2,99 $ pour 15 heures supplémentaires de performance, ou de 5,99 $ pour 15 heures supplémentaires d'Ultimate. […]

De nouveaux drivers sont disponibles du côté de NVIDIA, les GeForce Game Ready 566.14 WHQL. Outre la signature numérique, les nouveaux drivers promettent des performances optimales dans les jeux S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2: Heart of Chornobyl et Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024, ainsi que la prise en charge de la technologie DLSS3 dans ces titres. Le téléchargement est possible ici. […]

The main thing we'd like to mention is the gift of flowers.
I'm sure every NYC florist, Manhattan Florists, San Francisco
Florists, and Los Angeles florists is buzzing away with
flower orders for the holidays.

You can catch many florists on line to deliver flowers
for you. Calling an 800 flowers number can even be a snap,
especially if you're in a crunch.

In many cases, you can order your flowers today and have
your flowers delivered within 24 to 48 hours.

For the last several years, I've sent my mother and father
meals for the holidays. It's not easy being far away from
them, especially while in the miltary. When you're in the
military, you realize how important it is to send a gift
basket or flowers to someone you love. No matter
how far I was from home, I made sure I sent flowers, gifts,
or food :o).

Just remember, if you're delivering flowers this holiday
season, be sure to place your order as soon as possible
for on time delivery.

Take care and send flowers to the one you love for the
holidays even if you're traveling abroad.

Drifter's Memoirs
Travel Banter Blog
@------->--------- <----As you can see, I love flowers too. :o)

What is your sales organization doing about the current economic downturn? What will make a difference for your company? While the economic forecast may be “uncertain,” it is certain that our customers are reducing their budgets and spending more carefully, forcing their vendors to do the same. This economic challenge will accelerate the adoption of Sales 2.0 from a “nice to have” to a “need to have” philosophy. Companies that continue to sell the way they sold in the past will become less profitable or fail altogether. Customer preferences, the ever-rising cost of sales, and the availability of next-generation technologies are making change mandatory for companies that want to outperform the competition and minimize the impact of the economic slowdown.

What is Sales 2.0?
Sales 2.0 is not a new technology. It is the use of innovative sales practices to improve business results, creating value for both the buyer and seller, and is often enabled by Web 2.0 or next-generation technology. Sales 2.0 initiatives typically center on process and customer-engagement improvements to increase sales productivity. Sales 2.0 practices combine the science of measurable, process-driven operations with the art of collaborative relationships, using the most profitable and expedient sales resources required to meet your customers’ needs. The goal of Sales 2.0 is to produce greater, predictable, repeatable business results, including increased revenue, decreased sales costs, and sustained competitive advantage.

Sales 2.0 initiatives require changing mindset and adjusting sales strategies. A relatively simple Sales 2.0 practice involves selling more through video or web conferencing. This can be done by inside salespeople or by field salespeople who perform more of their jobs from their desks. Selling more efficiently should also mean selling more effectively, as many buyers now prefer to meet remotely via conference calls with video or web conferencing, and salespeople benefit from additional selling time that otherwise would be spent traveling. A traditional sales process that included three or four onsite visits might now have zero or just one face-to-face visit. The financial impact of reducing travel expenses can be significant and is easily measured, but the economics of giving your most expensive sales resources — your field salespeople — additional selling time is even more compelling.

Many products and services, especially those of relatively small to average value, can only be sold profitably with a remote or low-touch sales model. The definition of “small to medium orders” is different for every company, but they are generally those that fall into your bottom 50% in value. If ignored, these mid-market customers or transaction types are missed opportunities for organizations that rely solely or too heavily on a field-based sales model. And when they are sold through field sales, these smaller opportunities can derail focus and drain the organization’s profitability.

Another Sales 2.0 practice uses some “science” to accurately capture key market information and metrics such as average sales cycle, average deal size and sales-cycle conversion rates. By using a defined sales process and data analytics, you can determine how your sales force should be structured and which customers and transaction types justify the assignment of field account executives, inside salespeople, channel partners or no selling effort at all. Data analytics in this sense can range from rudimentary (pen and paper) to moderate (spreadsheets, CRM, and most reporting systems) to advanced (dashboards and on-demand sales intelligence). Rather than simply measuring the final result (revenue), a Sales 2.0 approach measures the effectiveness of every stage in your sales process by salesperson, giving managers the opportunity to provide targeted coaching. Data analytics also can be used to correlate and analyze the specific characteristics of your most profitable customers (size, industries, locations, buyer types, etc.) that produce the most revenue and profit. Sales and marketing leaders can then use this information to fine-tune your sales model and activities to ensure the loyalty of your most valuable customers and find more prospects like them.

How do I begin a Sales 2.0 initiative with limited staff and budget?
A key Sales 2.0 tenet involves experimentation, often through testing new process ideas and piloting new technology. Testing a new sales message, pricing options, new technology, or even a new sales process enables the organization to be innovative with minimal risk. Small pilot programs that use minimal resources enable ineffective ideas to fail on a small scale, while good ones can be rolled out more aggressively.

Becoming a Sales 2.0 organization requires that we proactively adapt and continually improve so we can become closer to our customers and weather the economic storm better than our competitors.

10 Tips for Effective Time Management
Does having "too much to do and not enough time to do it" sound familiar? If so, it's time to work smarter, not harder so you can increase productivity decrease stress and have more time for fun! Leading Brisbane recruitment-to-recruitment company, Galaxy Recruitment offers the following tips to help you get the most out of your time.

1. Set Goals and Plan
As the old saying goes, "by failing to plan, you plan to fail". Set your goals and develop a realistic plan for your direction.
2. Prioritise and use a To-Do list
Differentiate between the urgent tasks that produce short-term outcomes, and the vital tasks that produce long-term outcomes. Rank your priorities by numbers, colours, or symbols - use a system that suits you.
3. Learn to say "no"
It's a small word, yet many people find it extremely difficult to say "no"! By saying "yes" to everyone just to please them, you may end up overcommitting and letting them down instead. If it helps, remember to phrase your response so that you are saying "no" to the project and not the person. e.g "No, I can't take this project on right now. I simply don't have the bandwidth to complete the task properly."
4. Delegate
If you can, delegate routine activities that aren't part of your core competency. Remember you are delegating, not abdicating!
5. Avoid procrastination
Procrastination usually sets in when a task is perceived to be difficult to achieve. Try breaking your task into smaller milestones that you can satisfy systematically. Crossing off these smaller tasks as you complete them helps you make track of your progress and keeps the end outcome within sight.
6. Be flexible
Be realistic about your goals and allow time for interruptions, distractions and the unplanned "emergency" - they are inevitable.
7. Plan around your "Prime Time"
If possible, plan your tasks in accordance with the the time of the day that you perform at your peak. If you're a "morning person" plot your work schedule around fulfilling the challenging tasks during the day, and the more routine aspects of your work such as data entry, responding to emails or making telephone calls during the afternoon. If you're more of an afternoon or "night owl" reverse the order.
8. Keep a journal with you at all times
Always be ready to write down your best ideas in an instant - you never know when a killer idea might strike! Your journal should also be used as a goal-tracker that you can go through weekly to make sure you are on track.
9. Reward yourself
When you meet your goals and objectives, be sure to celebrate your success and achievements. A bit of positive reinforcement now and then serves to remind you why you are doing what you do for a living.
10. Effectiveness over efficiency
Although you should aim for both outcomes, try not to bog yourself down in processes if they add no value to the outcome. In the scheme of things, completing tasks effectively is much more important than doing things quickly.
Source: Galaxy Recruitment

The BBC is expanding the number of reports available for UK viewers to download online. Over 80 online news reports covering iconic events from the past 50 years have been made available this week by the BBC. It follows a...

You could get in polite touches with others when you meet them. But, how could you express touches of politeness in your letters? Start from the right direction to express touches of politeness.

"About SBI" explains how I use its all in one place website building and optimizing tools to build e-businesses at home. The "action guide" in text and videos help you achieve work at home goals.

Sunrise Heat & Air is dedicated to supporting veterans, whose sacrifices have ensured freedom and safety. The Free A/C System giveaway is a way of expressing deep gratitude to the heroes and to recognize the unwavering commitment to the country. The "Home of the Brave" event celebrates not only the service but also the importance of providing a comfortable, welcoming home environment for those who have given so much. [PR.com]

The 20th ALUMINIUM CHINA will take place from July 9-11, 2025, at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC). Organized by RX China, the event will feature over 600 diverse exhibitors showcasing the entire aluminium industry chain. With the theme "Aspirational·Limitless·Unique: 20 Years of Excellence," next year's exhibition will span over 60,000 square meters and expects to bring together [PR.com]

Whether shopping for friends, family, or colleagues, this fun-sized book is sure to spark conversation and bring some unexpected humor to the holiday season. Words like "moist," "load," and "soil" have a way of making people squirm, chuckle, or even cringe. In his latest release, "The Book of Those Words," author and branding expert Russ Napolitano delves into the humor and [PR.com]

29 Dicembre - Alessandro Schiffer & Dr. Hannibal (live percussions)

For over 20 years, the beloved Lititz Family Cupboard Restaurant has served the Lititz community with hearty Pennsylvania Dutch-style comfort food. Now, the restaurant is closing its doors and auctioning off its entire contents. The public auction is live now and will close tonight, Tuesday, November 12, starting at 8:00 PM ET. Bidders can participate right now, online through PCI Auctions. Originally opened as the Toll [PR.com]

Arcana Partners, a specialized recruitment firm, marks its first year of connecting top investment and capital-raising professionals with alternative investment firms across real estate, infrastructure and private credit. Founded with a vision of reshaping talent acquisition in alternative investments, Arcana has achieved significant milestones in matching firms with high-caliber professionals and fostering client growth. [PR.com]

In a new paper, researchers argue that a tendency towards self-sacrifice among humans is adaptive in some situations - for instance, a firefighter willingly risking his or her life to save someone from a burning building. But when individuals mistakenly view their own deaths as being worth more than their lives, the results can be needlessly lethal...

Dans quelques mois, Kingdom Come Deliverance 2 arrivera sur PC, PS5 et Xbox Series près de six ans après un premier épisode qui avait fait sensation....

Kauai Coffee has come out with a new K-CUP design.  It’s half the size, much more eco-friendly, with an improved filter for better flow. They have 3 new blends.  Island …

The post Kauai Coffee’s Innovative New K-CUP appeared first on Coffee Sage : Blog About Coffee.

Authentic Nyonya Kebaya in Blue Swiss voile cut in the traditional style of a narrower back piece for a slimming effect. Special 'handkerchief stitch' with perforations on the princess cut French seams.

All over sprinkling of tiny blue flowersCut-out work on embroidered crescentsPrice : RM800

Authentic Nyonya Kebaya in Sweet Mauve Swiss voile cut in the traditional style of a narrower back piece for a slimming effect. Special 'handkerchief stitch' with perforations on the princess cut French seams.

All over sprinkling of yellow flowers'Chicken mesh' cut-out lace workPrice : RM800

Authentic Nyonya Kebaya in Bright Turquoise Swiss voile cut in the traditional style of a narrower back piece for a slimming effect. Special 'handkerchief stitch' with perforations on the princess cut French seams.

All over sprinkling of pink flowers'Railway track' cut-out lace workPrice : RM1500

Authentic Nyonya Kebaya in Deep Purple Swiss voile cut in the traditional style of a narrower back piece for a slimming effect. Special 'handkerchief stitch' with perforations on the princess cut French seams.

All over sprinkling of purple flowers'Chicken mesh' cut-out lace workPrice : RM1500

Nyonya Kebaya - Maroon Swiss voile using two-tone coloured thread.

'Railway track' cut-out lace workPrice : RM1500

Nyonya Kebaya - Mustard yellow Swiss voile with 'railway track' lace work.

Nyonya Kebaya - Black Swiss voile cut in the traditional style of a narrower back piece for a slimming effect. Special 'handkerchief stitch' with perforations on the princess cut French seams.

All over sprinkling of blue flowers'Chicken mesh' cut-out lace workPrice : RM1500

Authentic Penang Nyonya Kebayas made by the experts in the traditional style.

A work of art, a thing of beauty and a joy to own.Orders in a different size will take 3 to 4 weeks.

Texas AG Paxton says Pfizer might have lied about efficacy of COVID vaccine, could be 1% effective | 6 Dec 2023 | GOP Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton says that he believes that pharmaceutical company Pfizer may have lied about the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccine and the effectiveness could be as low as one […]

UNLV mass shooter mailed ‘white powder’ to 22 university scholars before rampage, carried list of targets | 7 Dec 2023 | The scorned professor who [allegedly] slaughtered three University of Las Vegas faculty members also sent 22 letters containing laced white powder to collegiate scholars across the country before Wednesday’s shooting rampage, police said. Anthony […]

by: Darin IngelsMen with prostate cancer who take supplemental lycopene in addition to surgical removal of the testicles may experience less active disease, less bone pain, and live longer than those who only have surgical removal of the testicles, according to a new study in British Journal of Urology International (2003;92:375–8). This is exciting news for millions of men who have to undergo

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BankWest couriered the loan documents for the land to us today. We duly signed them and couriered them back to their lawyers here in town. So that part of the loan is closed out.

I was notified by phone that the refinance for our existing home went through with no problems and we should see the $65,000 less fees in our account by close of business today.

We received the final payout figure on the land, $64,034. My wife went to the bank and drew a bank check for the amount. Man I could buy a nice car with that money ;-).

We've decided to go with hard floor coverings (tiles or floorboards) in the living areas of the home and carpets only in the bedrooms. This will wear better if we decide to rent the property.

We got a quote back today for this:

$1600 for carpets
$4400 for tiling/floorboards

Total Cost: $6000

When we get closer to the house being actually built we'll decide on the actual floor covering we want.

I haven't posted for a while, simply because nothing has happened. It's been 9 weeks since we signed the building contract and today we received the engineers soil report and footings design.

The quality of the documentation and exactly what we were to do with it left a lot to be desired. I'm a professional engineer and I've got to say the drawings and report were thoroughly confusing to me, I'd hate to think how someone with no technical background would interpret them. The financial impact is an additional $1000 for footings (we had allowed $10,000) and another $500 for a site survey because there are no marker pegs on the site.

On the variations schedule there were 9 points and I had to ring up and get clarification on each one. The two that concern me the most are the level the council has chosen for the house. It means that retaining walls are now required around the whole block. Bummer. The other thing that bothers me is a cryptic mention of 'rock encountered' in one of the 5 bores taken on the site during the soil test. The contract variation just says 'owner to take note that rock encountered during soil test'. On asking this means that we *could* end up being charged more for the site to be cleared.

Our responsibilities duing the whole process are quite vague as are the order in which things are to be done. If I hadn't phoned the builder I would have had no idea that it is our responsibility to remove all soil from the site after they have levelled it out. I also am very unclear as to when we can have the retaining walls installed. To me it makes sense to have them done after the block is levelled and before the foundation is layed to allow access to front end loaders and so on. However, the person I spoke to on the phone at the builder suggested we don't put down the retaining walls until after the house is built.

This doesn't sound right to me.

We got a couple of retaining wall quotes back today and one for the paving/stormwater.

Firstly, the good news, the paving/stormwater will be around $10,200. I was expecting $10,000 for the paving alone. So this is a good thing.

Now for the bad news. I spent 30 minutes on the phone to one of the retaining wall contractors and he detailed out the problems with retaining walls in the area we are building. Most of these problems seemed to involve rock and the trouble with shifting it. If they do hit rock when putting in the walls the cost of a drilling rig to get through it is $190/hr. Ouch. Anyway the two quotes we received were:

$17,500 + allow up to $10,000 for rock drilling
$27,800 (with no allowance for rock drilling so I guess these guys are expecting it).

These quotes are $10,000 more than I was expecting when we started this whole process. Unfortunately there's absolutely nothing to be done about it as the level of the house (and thus the height and nature of the retaining walls) is determined by the local council. Of course Murphy's law prevailed and they picked the worst height for the site they could have. Oh well.

Huzzah! We received the 'bank pack', contract, and final drawings. It took 83 days and $1500 from signing the contract to get to this point. We can now take the documents to our bank and get final loan approval. We can also take the drawings to various contractors to get quotes to submit to the bank along with the documents from the builder.

Here's a couple of pictures of the house plans for those of you interested (click on them for bigger images).

The to-do-list for this week is:

1. Make appointment with kitchen sub contractor for kitchen fit out selection
2. Make appointment with interior supply company for selection of interior fitout of bathrooms/laundry/appliances etc.
3. Send out floorplan to carpet/tile suppliers for preliminary quote on carpeting and tiling
4. Send out site layout to landscape companies for quote on paving the rear and front driveway installation
5. Send out site layout to earthmoving companies for quote on installation of retaining walls and storm water.