A memorial service honoring the life of Carol JalynWilliams will be held Saturday, Sept. 1 at 3:00 at the First Christian Church in San Marcos, Texas. Jalyn, age 55, passed away on Tuesday, August 28, 2012 in Kyle, Texas after a brief illness. She was born January 14, 1957, to Jay Robey and Mary Pearl Roberts Smith in Frederick, Oklahoma. On February 16, 1975, she was united in marriage to Steve Williams. Steve and Jalyn have two children, Robyn Lyn Williams Graf and Micah Luke Williams. She was a devoted and loving wife and mother. Jalyn was known among family and friends as a most gracious hostess. She was a talented seamstress, interior designer, and decorator. She helped friends with weddings, home projects, or anything else that required creative thought. She enjoyed teaching her exercise classes. Jalyn loved traveling, spending time with family and friends and most of all her ranch life. She is survived by her husband, Steve, of their home in San Marcos, Texas; daughter, Robyn Lyn Graf and husband Chris , of Liberty Hill, Texas; son, Micah Luke Williams and wife Charlee of Kyle, Texas, her sister, Julie Wynn and husband, Mike, of Frederick, OK; brother Dent Smith of Kyle Texas, and brother, Rob Smith and wife Denise of Collierville, TN. "Ma" is also survived by her favorite boys, the grandsons, Noah Thomas Graf, Gabriel Carter Graf, and Joshua Hoyt Williams.> Jalyn leaves behind a host of nieces and nephews and a multitude of friends. Memorial contributions may be made to the American Diabetes Association or the American Cancer Society.
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It wasn't a part of Samsung's IFA 2012 press conference, but Samsung is showing off Google TV hardware for the first time since CES 2011 (pictured above), and will release a Smart TV with Google TV later this year. According to its press release and a blog post by the Google TV team, it will "enhance the Smart TV experience" with premium content from its Samsung Apps services. How exactly it will be merged we should see soon, but now that ARM chips are powering a cheaper, more conventionally built experience we figure whatever hung up the deal has been squashed. We should get an eye on it if it's anywhere on the show floor soon, as well as the Google TV box from Hisense, and Sony's NSZ-GS7 which already launched in the US and UK, but is coming to Germany, France and the Netherlands soon.
Update: We caught up with working hardware at Samsung's booth, but the device was disconnected from the internet, so we weren't able to take it for a proper spin. You can take a somewhat superficial look in our hands-on gallery below, along with the video after the break.
NEW YORK (AP) ? Robin Roberts said goodbye Thursday to her "Good Morning America" co-workers and audience. But only for a while.
"See you later. See you soon. I'll get back as soon as I can," she promised at the close of her emotional send-off from the show.
The "GMA" anchor was making her final appearance before starting medical leave for a bone marrow transplant. Her departure had originally been set for Friday, but in a last-minute change of plans she chose to exit a day early to visit her ailing mother in Mississippi, she told viewers.
During her absence, a number of famous faces will be subbing for her, including previously announced fellow ABC News colleagues Katie Couric, Barbara Walters, Diane Sawyer and Elizabeth Vargas.
In addition, Roberts announced that Oprah Winfrey, Chris Rock and Rob Lowe will be among the stand-ins, as well as the cast of the ABC comedy "Modern Family."
In June, Roberts had first disclosed that she has MDS, a blood and bone marrow disease. She will be hospitalized next week to prepare for the transplant. The donor will be her older sister, Sally-Ann Roberts, who was on hand for Thursday's broadcast.
But two of Roberts' on-air colleagues couldn't be there, thanks to the demands of breaking news.
From New Orleans, weather anchor Sam Champion voiced warm wishes, as did co-anchor George Stephanopoulos from the Republican National Convention in Tampa, Fla. He had left behind a gift for Roberts: a tap bell.
"Whatever you need, whenever you need it, ring that bell," he said.
With her and news anchor Josh Elliott in the studio, lifestyle anchor Lara Spencer presented Roberts with monogrammed matching pajamas for her and her sister.
"We're not crying tears of sadness," she told Roberts. "We're crying because we wish we could take this on for you."
One of Roberts' doctors, Dr. Gail Roboz, discussed the medical procedures that lie ahead.
"We're hoping the first 30 (days) is when we're going to see a lot of the recovery happening," said Roboz.
But Roberts replied, "I'm not even going to ask you when I can come back, because you have said, don't put a timetable on it."
Roberts, who has put a brave and usually smiling face on the challenges that await her, shared with viewers an inspirational quote: "Life provides losses and heartbreak for all of us. But the greatest tragedy is to have the experience, and miss the meaning."
Said Roberts, "I am determined not to miss that meaning."
As the program neared its end, the entire "GMA" crew gathered around the anchors' couch, displaying bracelets of support and bearing signs that promoted the "teamrobin" Twitter account.
Then Roberts' friend, country star Martina McBride, performed her Grammy-nominated song "I'm Gonna Love You Through It," an inspirational song about battling breast cancer. Looking on, Roberts mouthed the lyrics as her eyes welled with tears.
During the morning, the word "journey" had been mentioned repeatedly and "goodbye" was said in many ways.
"I take you with me in my heart," said Roberts at one point, addressing the full "GMA" staff. But wanting there to be no mistake, she added: "I WILL be back, just so you know."
A new study shows that planetary systems can form and survive in the chaotic environment around pairs of stars.
A team reports in Science the discovery of two planets orbiting a pair of stars - a so-called binary.
Gravitational disturbances generated by stellar pairs are thought to be very severe for any orbiting planets.
Nasa's Kepler space telescope found two small planets around a pair of low-mass stars.
Such systems have particular significance for science fiction fans. In the Star Wars films, Luke Skywalker's home planet of Tatooine orbits a binary star.
The planetary system, known as Kepler-47, is located roughly 5,000 light-years away, in the constellation Cygnus.
It contains a pair of stars whizzing around each other every 7.5 days. One star is Sun-like, while the other is about one-third the size of its neighbour and emits just one 175th as much light.
Circling the stars is an inner planet about three times larger in diameter than the Earth, and an outer planet that is just slightly larger than Uranus.
Continue reading the main story
Kepler Space Telescope
Stares fixedly at a patch corresponding to 1/400th of the sky
Looks at more than 155,000 stars
Has so far found 2,321 candidate planets
Among them are 207 Earth-sized planets, 10 of which are in the "habitable zone" where liquid water can exist
The inner planet - dubbed Kepler-47b - takes 49 days to complete an orbit, while the outer planet - Kepler-47c - takes 303 days.
The orbit of the outer planet places it in the so-called "habitable zone", the region around a star where it is neither too cold nor too hot for liquid water to persist on the surface of a planet.
While the outer world is probably a gas-giant planet and thus not suitable for life, its discovery establishes that these "circumbinary" planets can, and do, exist in habitable zones.
A handful of single circumbinary solar systems have been discovered before, but this is the first known example of more than one planet around a pair of stars.
It is thought that gravitational perturbations generated by the binary could either toss planets out of the system, into one of the stars, or fling them into devastating head-on collisions.
"Kepler-47 shows us that typical planetary architectures, with multiple planets in co-planar orbits, can form around two stars," said co-author Joshua Carter, from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.
"We've learned that circumbinary planets can be like the planets in our own Solar System, but with two suns."
Prof William Welsh, from San Diego State University, who presented the work at the International Astronomical Union (IAU) meeting in Beijing on behalf of the Kepler Science Team, said: "The thing I find most exciting... is the potential for habitability in a circumbinary system.
"Kepler-47c is not likely to harbour life, but if it had large moons, those would be very interesting worlds."
The Kepler space telescope discovered the planets by measuring the tell-tale drop in brightness they cause when they transit (eclipse) their host stars.
Spectroscopic data from telescopes at McDonald Observatory in Texas enabled the absolute sizes of the planets to be measured.
Three Westerners abducted nearly nine months ago by Al-Qaeda in Mali have urged their governments to help free them, Al-Jazeera television reported on Tuesday, airing footage of the hostages.
The men, identified by Al-Jazeera as British-South African hostage Stephen Malcolm, Swede Johan Gustafson and Dutch national Sjaak Rijke, appeared in good health in the video which was not accompanied by audio.
The hostages were bearded, wore traditional flowing robes and their heads were covered by turbans. They were shown sitting on rugs in a desert area surrounded by armed men.
Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) has been holding the three men hostage since abducting them in the north Mali city of Timbuktu on November 25, 2011.
Al-Jazeera said in a statement that it conducted an "exclusive interview" with the hostages who gave a detailed account of their abduction in November 2011 and urged their respective governments to step up efforts to free them.
"The captives urged their countries to engage in swift and effective negotiations with the kidnappers to bring their turmoil to an end," according to the statement.
They also said "they were taken from their hotel in Timbuktu at gunpoint into an SUV vehicle and transported to unknown whereabouts. After that they were forced into a strenuous 24-hour journey," it added.
"Later the kidnappers promised that no harm would be done to the captives who told Al-Jazeera that they have been well treated."
According to Al-Jazeera the hostages were seized by Ansar Dine, an Islamist group affiliated to AQIM, along with a German national who was killed as he resisted his abduction.
In December AQIM claimed responsibility for the abductions and released pictures of the hostages.
In April it offered to free Malcolm if London allows radical cleric Abu Qatada to choose a country for his extradition, the US monitoring service SITE reported at the time.
For more than six years, Britain has been trying to deport Abu Qatada to Jordan, where he was convicted in absentia in 1998 of involvement in attacks.
AQIM is also holding six French citizens kidnapped from Niger and Mali.
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) - Thousands of Ethiopians descended on the centre of the capital Addis Ababa on Tuesday to mourn Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, their firm-handed ruler of more than two decades, whose body was flown home after his death in a Brussels hospital at 57.
Supporters mourned him as the savior of a long-suffering nation and Washington praised its ally, but opponents hailed the death of an autocrat one group described as a "genocidal tyrant". Traffic was congested from the airport to his residence, where his body was to be put on display.
Meles, whose death ended months of rumor that he was gravely ill, had seized power 21 years ago from a military junta that had become notorious around the world for policies that contributed to mass starvation.
A former guerrilla leader turned economic reformer, he had presided in recent years over some of the fastest growth rates in Africa. But Ethiopia still remains one of the poorest countries on earth, and his opponents say his suppression of dissent held the country back.
In recent years he had become a close ally of the United States in fighting Islamic militants in East Africa, especially in neighboring Somalia, which he twice invaded. The White House mourned his "untimely loss".
Deputy Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn will be sworn in as acting prime minister by parliament and the ruling party will meet to choose a successor but no date has been set.
Secretive to the end, Meles left it to officials of the European Union to disclose that he was being treated in the Belgian capital when he succumbed to an unspecified illness. Government spokesman Bereket Simon said only that he had been ailing for a year and died after being rushed to intensive care.
Since taking power in 1991 from Mengistu Haile Mariam's military junta, Meles became one of the central political figures on the continent.
Along with Uganda's Yoweri Museveni and Rwanda's Paul Kagame, he formed part of a generation of ex-guerrillas that came to power in the 1980s and 1990s after horrific ethnic civil wars, and brought economic improvements and relative peace that they said justified ruling with a firm hand.
"The death of Prime Minister Meles has robbed Africa of one of its greatest sons," the African Union, which is headquartered in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa, said in a statement.
Rights groups criticized him for cracking down hard on dissent but the West generally turned a blind eye to the repression, reluctant to pick a fight with a partner in the fight against al Qaeda-linked groups in Africa.
U.S. President Barack Obama offered condolences, praising Meles's commitment to the poor and calling it an "untimely loss" for Ethiopia; British Prime Minister David Cameron described Meles as an "inspirational spokesman for Africa".
An EU source said he had been a patient at the Saint-Luc University Hospital in Brussels.
His deputy Hailemariam said they had spoken only recently:
"He was recovering well, even taking part in light sporting activities. We were often in touch while he was recovering and we were optimistic that he would go on towards a full recovery," he said. "Meles was one of a kind. It is very difficult to replace a man of his stature."
In Brussels, a cortege accompanied by police outriders left a hotel next to the hospital, and took his casket to a private Belgian airstrip. Belgian military officials and police were there as it was loaded onto an Ethiopian Airlines jet.
Hours later in Addis Ababa, the coffin was carried out of the aircraft, draped in the green, gold and red national flag.
On the tarmac, a sister of Meles wept. "My brother loved this country. He deserved better," she said, a black scarf covering her tearful eyes.
Outside the airport's terminal, thousands of well-wishers huddled in the rain to pay their respects. Some carried placards reading: "Meles, your legacy will never die."
Meles presided over a seven-year run of double-digit economic growth, advocating a mixture of heavy state spending and private investment.
He was widely applauded for ploughing money into infrastructure but criticized by some for selling off swathes of land to foreigners. Many Ethiopians complain that his close business ties with China did not translate into more jobs.
International rights groups criticized Meles's handling of dissent. He rounded up numerous opposition leaders after a disputed 2005 election, and several opponents and journalists have been arrested under a 2009 anti-terrorism law.
Late last year, two Swedish journalists were jailed for 11 years for promoting the activities of a rebel group and entering Ethiopia illegally.
"Today is a day of joy for most Ethiopians and all freedom loving people around the world," opposition website Ethiopian Review said, describing Meles as a "genocidal tyrant".
CONFLICTS
Somalia's al Shabaab militants, who encountered Ethiopian troops twice under Meles' tenure, in 2006-2009 and again from December last year, were jubilant: "He led the African leaders who had fingers in Somalia for two decades, but all in vain," said al Shabaab spokesman Sheikh Ali Mohamud Rage.
Government spokesman Bereket said Ethiopia was stable and would continue on the path charted by Meles. The ruling party, the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front, will select his successor.
Negasso Gidada, who was president during Meles's tenure and now chairman of the opposition movement Unity for Democracy and Justice, said he hoped the transition would be peaceful.
"We urge the EPRDF to change for the good the political, democratic and human rights situation in the country," he said, referring to the ruling Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front.
The U.S. State Department said it believed the transfer of power in Addis Ababa was under way and it did not anticipate any major policy changes from Meles' successor on the key issue of regional security.
"For internal security reasons, there will be a continuing focus on Somalia and I do not foresee any significant change towards Eritrea," said David Shinn, a former U.S. ambassador to Ethiopia.
Meles's rise to power coincided with Eritrea gaining independence from Ethiopia, and through much of Meles's rule the two countries were foes. They fought an all-out war from 1998-2000, and the border remains disputed, with each accusing the other of supporting rebel groups.
"What will happen to this problem, we leave to the incoming government of Ethiopia," Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Salih Mohammed said in South Africa, describing Meles as having been "instrumental" in the crisis.
Former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan said Meles's death heralded a challenging time for Ethiopia.
"I ardently hope that the transition period will be smooth and peaceful and that Ethiopia sees leadership that reflects the aspirations of its people and realizes the potential of this extraordinary country," Annan said in a statement.
State television said details of Meles's state funeral would be announced soon.
Acting Prime Minister Hailemariam, 47, was an adviser to Meles in 2006 before being picked as his deputy in 2010. He had also replaced Meles as chair of a number of parliamentary committees in the past few years, a sign that he was being groomed for the post, diplomats say.
(Additional reporting by Feisal Omar in Mogadishu, Sebastian Moffat, Ethan Bilby and Ben Deighton in Brussels, Mohammed Abbas in London and Laura MacInnis and Andrew Quinn in Washington; Writing by Yara Bayoumy; Editing by Peter Graff)
The United States reiterated Monday that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad should step down after a row over comments by newly appointed UN peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi.
"We don't think there's going to be peace in Syria until Assad steps down and the bloodshed ends. We will be clear with special envoy Brahimi about our views on this," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters.
But Nuland renewed US support for the veteran Algerian diplomat, saying that the United States has worked well with him in the past.
"This is an extremely difficult job and we would welcome any support that he can bring to the international community's efforts to get back" to a plan on ending the violence and political transition, she said.
In an interview with Reuters news agency, Brahimi -- named on Friday to replace Kofi Annan who quit -- was reported to have said it was too early for him to follow his predecessor in saying Assad must quit.
The opposition Syrian National Council said it was "shocked and dismayed" by the remarks.
Brahimi later clarified his comments, saying that he was not judging a resignation by Assad to be premature but rather: "What I have said is that it's early for me to say anything related to the content of this issue."
Assad's government also criticized Brahimi, with the foreign ministry on Monday denying his remarks that Syria was in civil war and saying that such a view "is found only in the head of conspirators."
Brahimi, 78, was the UN envoy in Afghanistan before and after the September 11, 2001 attacks, and in Iraq after the 2003 invasion.
Without our sexuality, human life would quickly cease to exist. Our sexuality is certainly not just confined to procreation either. It is our being, our essence. We are who we are, and you are who you are sexually?
Please Note: Topics concerning politics and religion belong in their respective groups, and not here. You can certainly breach such topics, just don?t use them as arguments and weapons against other individuals based on their lifestyle choices, especially concerning sexuality.
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MIAMI (Reuters) - Veteran long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad was plucked from the Florida Straits on Tuesday after giving up on her fourth and likely final attempt to make the 103-mile (166-kilometre) swim from Cuba to the United States.
The 62-year-old American, who battled squalls, rough seas and jellyfish, had set out from Cuba on Saturday. Nyad spent more than 60 hours in the water before she abandoned the swim.
Mark Sollinger, a leader of the crew and support team accompanying Nyad in five boats as she made the attempted crossing, told CNN a powerful and "extremely difficult Gulf Stream" had pushed her badly off course.
She had planned to land somewhere in the Florida Keys on Tuesday, a day ahead of her 63rd birthday on Wednesday. But it would have taken her another 28 to 40 hours to complete the crossing at the time she finally gave up, Sollinger said.
He said Nyad's lips and face were very swollen and she was suffering from exhaustion. Otherwise, he said, she was doing well for "someone who just spent 63 hours attempting something monumental and extremely dangerous."
He did not give the exact time when Nyad was pulled from the water or pinpoint the location, but those details were expected to be announced later.
If Nyad had completed the swim, she would have owned the world record for the longest "unassisted open ocean swim," which means without a shark cage. Instead of a cage, equipment emitting a mild electric current in the water kept sharks at bay during most of her swim.
THE DREAM
Nyad told reporters in Havana last week that she hoped her swim would inspire people her age to continue pursuing their dreams.
"Instead of staying on the couch for a lifetime and letting this precious time go by, why not be bold, be fiercely bold and go out and chase your dreams?" said Nyad, who left competitive swimming 30 years ago and has since worked in television and radio and has been a motivational speaker.
She also hoped the swim would help U.S.-Cuba relations, which have been sour since the Caribbean island's 1959 revolution.
The Cuba-U.S. swim has only been completed once. Australian Susan Maroney was 22 and used a shark cage when she made the crossing in May 1997.
Nyad has now tried to make the swim four times, including twice last year, but never got much more than halfway before she had to give up.
Asked before this latest attempt if it would be her last, Nyad said: "This has to be it, it just has to be."
Waves and stiff winds derailed her first try in 1978, when she was at the peak of her swimming career. Three years before that she swam around Manhattan in under eight hours and, in 1979, she made the 102.5-mile crossing (165-km) from Bimini to Florida.
Nyad's latest swim followed that of Penny Palfrey, a British-born 49-year-old grandmother from Australia, who tried the Cuba-Florida crossing in late June and swam 93 miles before the Gulf Stream forced her to stop.
Palfrey holds the record for the longest unassisted swim, 67.5 miles in the Cayman Islands last summer.
(Additional reporting by Jeff Franks in Havana; Editing by Eric Beech)
For most modern organizations, the Web site is now much more than just the company?s online face. It can be brand builder, revenue generator, customer service point, and so much more. Getting the site up is only the beginning; the business has to then understand if the target audience is getting the information it needs, examine the benefits delivered to customers on literally every page, and use all the gathered information to continuously improve the experience for end-users. This is why Web analytics is so important.
Today?s enterprises compete in a dynamic market: every investment in the online presence has to be justified. Studying and understanding user behavior will allow organizations to continuously streamline their online space, take quick business decisions and, in the long term, justify the costs incurred.
As Web analytics are being increasingly integrated with Content Management Systems (CMS), cutting-edge businesses now have the opportunity to simplify and rationalize the process end-to-end ? all the way from content creation and publishing to tracking and analytics.
Web Analytics: Quick Definitions
There is so much data that can be gathered from a Web site. With every visit, visitors or customers allow you to study their browsing patterns; you can also monitor traffic, transactions, usability and even aspects like server performance. Web analytics help collect, compile and review all this data, thus providing Web managers with a crucial tool to ensure the effectiveness of the enterprise Web site and monitor conversions almost continuously.
Web-based analytics typically consist of standardized analytic tool boxes through which users? can generate and view reports through a desktop or web browser. The data generated can be analyzed, graphically displayed and delivered to product development, manufacturing and senior executives who can make adjustments in real time as appropriate.
So, Is It Really Simple?
According to Eric T. Peterson from Web Analytics Demystified ?Web analytics is complex enough that companies hoping to better understand their Web sites using this technology must be committed to working for success. Web analytics is not magic, the applications are often difficult to use and desire will never replace a demonstrated effort to learn and use Web analytics tools.?
According to Peterson, there is also the need for committed and dedicated staff for Web analytics to deliver on the ROI promise. Finding resources with the right experience is also harder than it looks; most Web analytics professionals did not come by their knowledge from a university course ? they have probably acquired it from a wide variety of online and offline publications, and simply from time spent doing the work.
Usage
According to a usage survey conducted by Web Analytics Demystified in 2007, a whopping 57% of small companies (500 employees or less) were using Web analytics tools; the midsize accounted for about 20%, and very large companies (5000 or more employees) made up the remaining 23%.
The study also found that 36% of companies had begun to use analytics for tactical and strategic decisions, 26% used it for general guidance, and only 8% were unsure about how to integrate Web analytics into their decision-making processes.
Where the CMS Comes In
To make analytics really work, it seems clear that a dedicated team is a necessity. But for most growing businesses, already stretched in terms of resources, this is very rarely possible. Many of them grapple with an even more basic challenge ? managing the corporate Web site. How can a resource-starved organization ensure, for example -
o That Web updates happen on time, every time?
o That customers find the right information quickly and easily?
o Those marketers can quickly repurpose or reuse content without worrying about design and formatting?
o That subject matter experts can maintain different site sections with ease, even if they are based at different locations?
This is where the Web CMS comes in. With the right content management solution, non-technical personnel ? like your marketing staff ? can actively participate in managing, updating and reusing content without having to rely on your html experts. With central management, templates and intelligent workflow automation, the CMS can also boost content quality by ensuring that it passes through several approval mechanisms before publishing. Web CMS has also come of age over the past few years. Apart from allowing content creators to create and publish content as well as easily manage aspects like navigation, page layout and links, CMSs also help maintain brand values across the site, ensuring that visitors have a consistent, professional experience.
Now we come to the crux: centralized control also means you can effectively measure the success of your online initiatives. Think about it ? you can create a marketing campaign with a CMS, launch it using email marketing software and use a Web analytics tool to measure results ? and if the Web analytics is integrated with the CMS, you have a veritable closed-loop marketing system that can continuously improve itself: all without the need of dedicated technical personnel.
CMS and Analytics: A Winning Combination
When the CMS is integrated with Web analytics, a 360-degree view of user behavior is fairly simple to generate. You can have visibility into where visitors clicked, what they searched for, understand drop-off points (and the reasons thereof), what calls to action worked and what didn?t, where navigation seemed to be an issue, and so on.
All of this data is meaningless if not immediately actionable ? and that?s where an easy-to-use CMS can make a real difference. Based on this data, it can help your online marketers quickly reconfigure, repurpose, or even redesign sections of the site to raise effectiveness levels. What?s more, there is constant feedback from the tools, allowing your teams to quickly understand what changes are beneficial. If the CMS offers flexible workflows, you can even have the CMS update your Web site based on pre-determined metrics ? for example, you could automatically retire a page after it receives a certain number of views, or automatically promote a popular article to the home page.
To use another example ? your existing CRM system can deliver customized newsletters or offers to subscribers who have indicated their preferences; the Web analytics tool provides the intelligence here, and the CMS helps repurpose content and launch it via a medium that is well suited to the subscriber. It is easy to see how marketing campaigns can be improved on-the-go with such a solution in place.
Web CMS offered Software-as-a-Service (SaaS; also called a ?Hosted? solution) offers further advantages with the fact that there is no hardware to buy and no software to install ? all you need to do is rent the software from a service provider for a fixed monthly or quarterly subscription fee. The vendor then assumes responsibility for managing, maintaining and upgrading the software. Such a CMS is usually deployed very rapidly, ensuring that your Web site is aligned with business objectives in the shortest time possible. What?s even more attractive is that SaaS vendors like CrownPeak take the onus of integrating the CMS with your proprietary tools and third-party software ? such as a Web analytics solution you may have already invested in.
Success Guaranteed?
With the growing emphasis on analytics, reports churned out of the analytic logs are used to determine the success of the Web site. However it is important to be note that Web site hits and page views are not essentially conversions; it is essential for companies to track trends regarding conversions before determining the success of their site.
Eventually, there is also nothing to replace quality content; the CMS and Web analytics, working together, can only help make life easier for your content creators and marketers to focus on their core competencies.
Conclusion
To ensure that a company gets the most out of the integrated Web analytics-CMS approach, it is important that the right CMS be adopted; and this can be a tough choice considering the number of options available. Traditional CMS typically calls for a larger investment in infrastructure, software and labor. In an effort to reduce costs and get quality service, more and more companies are opting for hosted or SaaS CMS. Leading hosted CMS vendors have also tied up with analytics providers to offer best-of-breed pre-integrated CMS solutions.
With e-commerce and online marketing growing, companies are increasingly witnessing a need to use their analytics tools as part of content management. It is here that the challenge lies in choosing a good integrated solution ? one that is easy to use, provides the maximum number of features and delivers on the promise of good ROI.
For more info: http://www.crownpeak.com
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Actually, it's not the first day. I've been working on this for over a week now, but only last couple days I worked 12h+/day.
The theme starts shaping up, although I'm not completely happy with it, and I will keep working, doing my absolute best until I'm 100% satisfied with the result and I say to myself "Eduard, you are one hell of a designer, and handsome too!".
Take note: I have just contacted the top 10 theme authors on ThemeForest and asked them for feedback on my design. Hopefully at least a couple of them will be willing to give me some tips on how to improve it, 'cause these guys are insanely skilled.
Other than that, it's been a good day. I'm sucked of all my creative juice and can't do anything in Photoshop anymore today, so right now I'm sketching layout variants and working on my marketing.
Marketing before this thread I haven't done much marketing for my themes (or even my web design studio), other than having an account on 3 big forums and trying to help people with web design-related problems. My activity has been low anyway.
I also made an account for the studio (it will include the theme-selling side of it) on Twitter and Facebook. And by the way, follow / like me and I guarantee to give you some free stuff, as soon as I actually have products to give away.
Noteworthy: On Twitter, I have made an account and I'm sending a few tweets a day about entrepreneurship / marketing / startups / anything like this, because this is the target market for my themes: a small business or just an entrepreneur who wants to get a cost-effective site for his business / product, and look professional to his clients.
The Twitter account has been up for - I think - 2 weeks, and the use of hashtags and quality of the tweets (check them out) has got me a decent number of followers (238 right this second).
Replying to mah friendz
Quote:
I am definitely looking forward to keeping up with this, subscribed and will follow you on Twitter when I decide to make an account.
Good luck.
Thank you, Jonathan.
NOTE: I'm not, however, going to update this daily or anything like that. I'll post here just when I have something new to say (if I reached any goal, how I did it, how I'm going to tackle the next one, etc.).
Protein that helps tumor blood vessels mature could make cancer drugs more effectivePublic release date: 13-Aug-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Heather Buschman, Ph.D. hbuschman@sanfordburnham.org 858-795-5343 Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute
Sanford-Burnham researchers discover molecule that controls tumor vessel maturation -- a counterintuitive approach that could improve cancer drug delivery
ORLANDO, Fla., August 13, 2012 To survive, tumors need blood supply to provide them with nutrients and oxygen. To get that supply, cancer cells stimulate new blood vessel growtha process called tumor angiogenesis. Many attempts have been made to inhibit this process as a means to choke off tumors. But tumor angiogenesis can be sloppy, resulting in immature and malformed blood vessels. Since anti-cancer drugs are carried to tumors by the bloodstream, abnormal blood vessel development also hampers delivery. What if, rather than putting a stop to angiogenesis, we could help tumor blood vessels mature more completely, so tumor-killing therapies could more effectively reach their targets? This counterintuitive concept was proposed several years ago, but researchers lacked a way to do it. Now, in a paper published August 14 in the journal Cancer Cell, researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) found a molecule that promotes the tumor vessel maturation processa discovery that might provide a method for improving cancer drug delivery.
"Our finding suggests that an ability to regulate this molecule could allow us to solve various problems caused by blood vessel abnormalities, including inefficient drug delivery to tumors," said Masanobu Komatsu, Ph.D., associate professor at Sanford-Burnham and senior author of the study.
Tumor vessels: shut them down or repair them?
Previous cancer therapies aimed at tumor angiogenesis were developed with a simple hypothesis: kill the blood vessels that feed a tumor, and tumor cells starve and die. While drugs engineered to slow or halt angiogenesis have been somewhat successful, tumor cells are notoriously adept at surviving in the nutrient and oxygen-deprived environment. So, anti-angiogenic drugs are one possible weapon in medicine's arsenal against tumors, but others are needed.
Komatsu's strategy is based on a new understanding of one particular protein, called R-Ras. He and his team found that R-Ras helps blood vessels mature. The protein is found at high levels in normal, mature blood vessels. Tumor blood vessels, on the other hand, usually have very low R-Ras levels, accounting for their immature nature.
To examine the importance of R-Ras in tumor vessel maturation, Komatsu and his team tried boosting the protein in mice.
"Tumor vessels are chronically immature because they lack R-Ras," said Komatsu. "We found that if we introduce R-Ras there, we are able to normalize the blood vessel in the tumor environmentimproving vessel structure and function."
Harnessing angiogenesis to improve human health
Rather than worrying that improved vessel function might help a tumor blossom, Komatsu sees it another wayusing R-Ras to help tumor blood vessels mature might better enable the delivery of therapeutic drugs straight to the tumor.
Increasing R-Ras activity could also have other benefits. These include any situation where functionally mature blood vessels are needed, such as in tissue engineering when transplanted tissues need an ample blood supply. Elevating R-Ras could also be important in heart attack patients, where functional and stable new vessels are needed to re-nourish heart muscle. In brain cancer, R-Ras could help patients suffering from swelling in the brain in the area surrounding the tumora life-threatening situation caused by leaky blood vessels.
"Our discovery provided a better understanding of blood vessel formation process and may prompt researchers to re-think how this process may be controlled to improve human health," Komatsu said.
###
This research was funded by the National Cancer Institute at the U.S. National Institutes of Health (grant numbers CA125255, CA030199, and CA104898), American Cancer Society, Bankhead-Coley Cancer Research Program, Florida Breast Cancer Foundation Fellowship Award, and funds provided by the Department of Pathology, University of Alabama at Birmingham and Sanford-Burnham.
The study was co-authored by: Junko Sawada, Sanford-Burnham; Takeo Urakami, Sanford-Burnham; Fangfei Li, Sanford-Burnham; Akane Urakami, Sanford-Burnham, Weiquan Zhu, University of Utah; Minoru Fukuda, Sanford-Burnham; Dean Y. Li, University of Utah; Erkki Ruoslahti, Sanford-Burnham and University of California, Santa Barbara; and Masanobu Komatsu, Sanford-Burnham.
About Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute
Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute is dedicated to discovering the fundamental molecular causes of disease and devising the innovative therapies of tomorrow. The Institute consistently ranks among the top five organizations worldwide for its scientific impact in the fields of biology and biochemistry (defined by citations per publication) and currently ranks third in the nation in NIH funding among all laboratory-based research institutes. Sanford-Burnham utilizes a unique, collaborative approach to medical research and has established major research programs in cancer, neurodegeneration, diabetes, and infectious, inflammatory, and childhood diseases. The Institute is especially known for its world-class capabilities in stem cell research and drug discovery technologies. Sanford-Burnham is a U.S.-based, non-profit public benefit corporation, with operations in San Diego (La Jolla), California and Orlando (Lake Nona), Florida. For more information, news, and events, please visit us at sanfordburnham.org.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Protein that helps tumor blood vessels mature could make cancer drugs more effectivePublic release date: 13-Aug-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Heather Buschman, Ph.D. hbuschman@sanfordburnham.org 858-795-5343 Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute
Sanford-Burnham researchers discover molecule that controls tumor vessel maturation -- a counterintuitive approach that could improve cancer drug delivery
ORLANDO, Fla., August 13, 2012 To survive, tumors need blood supply to provide them with nutrients and oxygen. To get that supply, cancer cells stimulate new blood vessel growtha process called tumor angiogenesis. Many attempts have been made to inhibit this process as a means to choke off tumors. But tumor angiogenesis can be sloppy, resulting in immature and malformed blood vessels. Since anti-cancer drugs are carried to tumors by the bloodstream, abnormal blood vessel development also hampers delivery. What if, rather than putting a stop to angiogenesis, we could help tumor blood vessels mature more completely, so tumor-killing therapies could more effectively reach their targets? This counterintuitive concept was proposed several years ago, but researchers lacked a way to do it. Now, in a paper published August 14 in the journal Cancer Cell, researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute (Sanford-Burnham) found a molecule that promotes the tumor vessel maturation processa discovery that might provide a method for improving cancer drug delivery.
"Our finding suggests that an ability to regulate this molecule could allow us to solve various problems caused by blood vessel abnormalities, including inefficient drug delivery to tumors," said Masanobu Komatsu, Ph.D., associate professor at Sanford-Burnham and senior author of the study.
Tumor vessels: shut them down or repair them?
Previous cancer therapies aimed at tumor angiogenesis were developed with a simple hypothesis: kill the blood vessels that feed a tumor, and tumor cells starve and die. While drugs engineered to slow or halt angiogenesis have been somewhat successful, tumor cells are notoriously adept at surviving in the nutrient and oxygen-deprived environment. So, anti-angiogenic drugs are one possible weapon in medicine's arsenal against tumors, but others are needed.
Komatsu's strategy is based on a new understanding of one particular protein, called R-Ras. He and his team found that R-Ras helps blood vessels mature. The protein is found at high levels in normal, mature blood vessels. Tumor blood vessels, on the other hand, usually have very low R-Ras levels, accounting for their immature nature.
To examine the importance of R-Ras in tumor vessel maturation, Komatsu and his team tried boosting the protein in mice.
"Tumor vessels are chronically immature because they lack R-Ras," said Komatsu. "We found that if we introduce R-Ras there, we are able to normalize the blood vessel in the tumor environmentimproving vessel structure and function."
Harnessing angiogenesis to improve human health
Rather than worrying that improved vessel function might help a tumor blossom, Komatsu sees it another wayusing R-Ras to help tumor blood vessels mature might better enable the delivery of therapeutic drugs straight to the tumor.
Increasing R-Ras activity could also have other benefits. These include any situation where functionally mature blood vessels are needed, such as in tissue engineering when transplanted tissues need an ample blood supply. Elevating R-Ras could also be important in heart attack patients, where functional and stable new vessels are needed to re-nourish heart muscle. In brain cancer, R-Ras could help patients suffering from swelling in the brain in the area surrounding the tumora life-threatening situation caused by leaky blood vessels.
"Our discovery provided a better understanding of blood vessel formation process and may prompt researchers to re-think how this process may be controlled to improve human health," Komatsu said.
###
This research was funded by the National Cancer Institute at the U.S. National Institutes of Health (grant numbers CA125255, CA030199, and CA104898), American Cancer Society, Bankhead-Coley Cancer Research Program, Florida Breast Cancer Foundation Fellowship Award, and funds provided by the Department of Pathology, University of Alabama at Birmingham and Sanford-Burnham.
The study was co-authored by: Junko Sawada, Sanford-Burnham; Takeo Urakami, Sanford-Burnham; Fangfei Li, Sanford-Burnham; Akane Urakami, Sanford-Burnham, Weiquan Zhu, University of Utah; Minoru Fukuda, Sanford-Burnham; Dean Y. Li, University of Utah; Erkki Ruoslahti, Sanford-Burnham and University of California, Santa Barbara; and Masanobu Komatsu, Sanford-Burnham.
About Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute
Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute is dedicated to discovering the fundamental molecular causes of disease and devising the innovative therapies of tomorrow. The Institute consistently ranks among the top five organizations worldwide for its scientific impact in the fields of biology and biochemistry (defined by citations per publication) and currently ranks third in the nation in NIH funding among all laboratory-based research institutes. Sanford-Burnham utilizes a unique, collaborative approach to medical research and has established major research programs in cancer, neurodegeneration, diabetes, and infectious, inflammatory, and childhood diseases. The Institute is especially known for its world-class capabilities in stem cell research and drug discovery technologies. Sanford-Burnham is a U.S.-based, non-profit public benefit corporation, with operations in San Diego (La Jolla), California and Orlando (Lake Nona), Florida. For more information, news, and events, please visit us at sanfordburnham.org.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
August is here, and many film teachers are back from summer research trips and starting to prepare syllabi for the fall. Those who are using the new tenth edition of Film Art will have noticed that tucked away in its margins are references to blog entries relevant to the topics of each chapter. But since the new edition went to press, we?ve kept blogging. As has become our tradition, we offer an update on blogs from the past year that teachers might want to consult as they work on their lectures or assign their classes to read. Even if you?re not a teacher, perhaps you?d be interested in seeing some threads that tie together some recent entries.
For past entries in this series, see 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011.
First, some general entries about the blog itself and the new edition of Film Art. On our blog?s fifth anniversary last year, we posted a brief historical overview of it. That entry contains some links to some of our most popular items. If you?re new to the blog and want some orientation, it could prove useful. Maybe students would be interested as well. At least the photos reveal our penchant for Polynesian adventure and shameless pursuit of celebrities.
In case you haven?t heard about the changes we made for the new Film Art, including our groundbreaking new partnership with the Criterion Collection to provide online examples with clips from classic movies, there?s a summary post available.
And here?s another entry on the new edition, discussing a new emphasis on filmmakers? decisions and choices.
Now for chapter-by-chapter links.
Chapter 1
Understanding the movie business often means being skeptical of broad claims about supposed trends. We explained why the widespread ?slump? of the movies in 2011 was no such thing in ?One summer does not a slump make.?
Trying to keep one step ahead of students (or just keep up with them, period) on the conversion to digital projection and its many implications? Our series ?Pandora?s Digital Box? explores many aspects:
In multiplexes: ?Pandora?s digital box: In the multiplex?
In small-town theaters: ?Pandora?s digital box: The last 35 picture show?
At film festivals: ?Pandora?s digital box: At the festival?
On home video: ?Pandora?s digital box: From the periphery to the center or the one of many centers?
In art-houses: ?Pandora?s digital box: Art house, smart house??
Challenges to film archives: ?Pandora?s digital box: Pix and pixels?
How projection is controlled from afar: ?Pandora?s digital box: Notes on NOCs?
Problems introduced by digital:? ?Pandora?s digital box: From films to files?
Another case study of a small-town theater: ?Pandora?s digital box: Harmony?
Or you can pay $3.99 and get the whole series, updated and with more ?information and illustrations, as a pdf file.
3D is a technological aspect of cinematography, but it?s also a business strategy. We explore how powerful forces within the industry used it as a stalking horse for digital projection in ?It?s good to be the King of the World? and? ?The Gearheads.?
Independent films can be the basis for blockbuster franchises. ?Indie? doesn?t always equal ?small,? as we show in ?Indie blockbuster franchise is not an oxymoron.?
One of the top American producers and screenwriters of independent films is James Schamus, head of Focus Features. We profile him in ?A man and his focus.?
3D is probably here to stay, but it may have already passed its peak of popularity, as we suggest in ?As the summer winds down, is 3D doing the same??
The late Andrew Sarris played a crucial role in shaping the ?auteur? theory of cinema. We talk about his work in ?Octave?s hop.?
Chapter 2 The Significance of Film Form
?You are my density? is an analysis of motifs in Hollywood cinema, including a detailed look at a scene from Fritz Lang?s Hangmen Also Die.
Chapter 3 Narrative Form
We offer a narrative analysis of a Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, a film many viewers found difficult to follow on first viewing, ?TINKER TAILOR: A guide for the perplexed.? A follow-up, ?TINKER TAILOR once more: Tradecraft,??concentrates on the adaptation of Le Carr??s novel.
A tricky narrative structure in Johnnie To?s Life without Principle called forth our entry, ?Principle, with interest.?
In ?John Ford and the Citizen Kane assumption,? we consider the possibility that?Kane, analyzed in this chapter, might not be the greatest movie ever made.
?Chapter 4 The Shot: Mise-en-scene
For some reason teachers (and apparently students) always want more, more, more on acting, the most difficult technique of mise-en-scene to pin down. ?Hand jive? talks about hand gestures, which in the past were used a lot more than they are now.??Bette Davis eyelids? takes a close look at the subtleties of Bette Davis? use of her eyes.
?You are my density,? already mentioned, offers several examples of dynamic staging in depth.
Chapter 8 Summary: Style as a Formal System
We have posted two entries dealing with form and style, specifically experimental artifice in 1940s Hollywood. These could be of interest to advanced students. ?Puppetry and ventriloquism? deals in general with the topic, while ?Play it again, Joan? looks at scenes that replay the same action or situation. The latter contains an analysis of a lengthy scene of Joan Crawford performing that could be useful in discussing staging and acting for Chapter 4.
Chapter 9 Film Genres
If you teach a unit on genre and choose to focus on mysteries, ?I love a mystery: Extra-credit reading? gives some historical background information on the genre in popular literature and cinema.
Chapter 10 Documentary, Experimental, and Animated Films
?Solomonic judgments? centers on the gorgeous experimental films of Phil Solomon.
Chapter 11 Film Criticism: Sample Analyses
Our discussion of Tokyo Story in Film Art could be supplemented by this brief birthday tribute: ?A modest extravagance: Four looks at Ozu.?
Chapter 12 Historical Change in Film Art: Conventions and Choices, Traditions and Trends
Last September I found an extraordinary little piece of formal and stylistic analysis using video, Variation: The Sunbeam, David W. Griffith, 1912. A Spanish film student, Aitor Gametxo, had displayed the staging and cutting patterns of Griffith?s Biograph short, The Sunbeam, by laying out the shots in a grid reflecting the actual spatial relations among the sets and running the action in real time. If you teach a history unit or just want an elegant, clear example of how editing of contiguous spaces works, this is a wonderful teaching tool. Classes may be particularly intrigued that a student was able to put together something this insightful. Plus The Sunbeam is a charming film that would probably appeal to students more than a lot of early cinema would. See ?Variations on a Sunbeam: Exploring a Griffith Biograph film.? Gametxo?s film also provides an elegant example of how editing of adjacent spaces works and could be a useful teaching tool for Chapter 6.
Teachers showing a Georges M?li?s film might have their students read ?HUGO: Scorsese?s birthday present to George M?li?s,? which has some background information on the career of this cinematic conjurer.
German silent film was the focus of ?Not-quite-lost shadows.?
Not strictly on the blog, but alongside it, is a survey of how developments in film history generated changes in film theory. The essay is ?The Viewer?s Share: Models of Mind in Explaining Film.?
Further general suggestions
Looking for some new and interesting films to add to your syllabus? We cover quite a few in our dispatches from the Vancouver International Film Festival 2011: ?Reasons for cinephile optimism,? ?Son of seduced by structure,? ?Ponds and performers: Two experimental documentaries,? ??Middle-Eastern crowd-pleasers in Vancouver,? and ?More VIFF vitality, plain and fancy.?
Or if you seek information on historical films newly available on DVD, we occasionally post wrap-ups of recent releases, including a cornucopia of international silent films. See ?Silents nights: DVD stocking-stuffers for those long winter evenings.?
We have also carried on our tradition of a year-end ten-best list?but of films from 90 years ago. Not all the films on our list for 1921 are on DVD, but most are: ?The ten best films of ? 1921.?
Every now and then we post an entry pointing to informative DVD supplements that might be useful teaching tools. It?s surprising how few of them go beyond a superficial level where the actors and filmmakers sit around praising each other: ?Beyond praise 5: Still more supplements that really tell you something.?
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In college, one essential tool in getting work done is a laptop. It?s a lifesaver in countless situations. You?ll need one in case you forgot to make some changes in your presentation. You?ll need one in case you need to look something up for your homework. There are countless situations where a laptop comes in handy in a classroom setting.
The question is though, what should you choose? Well, that depends on what kind of laptop user you are. There are plenty of laptops out there, and many can do plenty of stuff. Believe it or not, some people still might think it?s a good idea to buy a desktop at this point and time. Saving money and getting twice the power for the same price as a laptop sounds great, however mobility is the number one necessary?in?college.
Every computer is broke down into eleven major components:
Screen
Speakers
Keyboard
Touchpad
Hardware
Design
Performance
OS
Battery Life
Heat
Noise
Don?t let any of this scare you, we are here to help. Buying a laptop is like buying a car. Instead of driving the car, you will essentially use the computer to complete tasks, entertain yourself, and do much more. The biggest mistake I see people make is this: They purchase cheap laptops that break after a year or so. I?m not going to go into a debate or break this theory down into pieces. You can ask any expert and they will tell you the same thing.
From my honest advice, I advise everybody to purchase a great laptop that will last them for more than a few years. There is no point to waste $600 or more every single year on a crappy laptop. Financing is available to almost everybody who needs it, so if you don?t have the money now, don?t worry, you can pay it off little by little every month.
Things You Need to Know
Here we will list a few key facts that you should have in mind while shopping for the right laptop.
Amount of RAM:?Having more RAM, is always better. Random access memory (RAM) is a form of computer data storage. A random access device allows stored data to be accessed in any order in very nearly the same amount of time for any storage location or size of memory device.?A netbook with 2GB of RAM will be a lot snappier than a laptop with 1GB. If you are buying a laptop today, make sure it has at least 4GB or RAM. DO NOT settle for anything less. Also getting 6GB or 8GB of RAM isn?t a bad idea, because you will be future proofing your machine.
7200-rpm hard drive:?Usually listed in revolutions per minute, ?hard-drive speed? refers to how fast the platter spins. Faster-spinning platters generate both faster data-transfer speeds and faster seek times. A 7200-rpm hard drive will often produce a more responsive feel than a 5400-rpm hard drive will.
Solid-state drive: If you have the money, go ahead and upgrade to a SSD?(or get a laptop that already has an SSD.) An SSD?does not employ any moving mechanical components, which distinguishes them from traditional magnetic disks such as hard disk drives. So what does this mean? SSD?s are typically less susceptible to physical shock, are silent, and have lower access time and latency.?They cannot crash like hard drives and are?disgustingly fast.
Weight:?Small differences in weight make a big difference when you?re lugging your laptop around wherever you go. The difference between 3.5 pounds and 5 pounds may not seem like much, but when your laptop bag is on your shoulder all day, it?s enormous. Try finding a suitable?weight, after all comfort is a necessity.
Battery life:?Obviously, the more battery life the better. I would strongly suggest checking professional reviews on every laptop you?re interested in. The new hype of 2012 are ultrabooks.?Ultrabooks are designed to feature reduced size (less than 2.1 cm thick) and weight (usually less than 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs)) without compromising performance and battery life. They use low-power Intel processors with integrated graphics and unibody chassis to fit larger batteries into smaller cases.?They tend to be thin and sexy, but still have the horse power to complete CPU heavy tasks.
Quad-core processors:?In the world of laptops, a dual-core processor is likely to be faster than a quad-core for most of the mainstream applications that the majority of users run; a dual-core CPU often operates at a much higher clock speed, and most general-purpose applications don?t make good use of four CPU cores. The quad core come in handy when you force the laptop to do tasks like?video-processing, heavy scientific computation, or engineering work.
Laptop display brightness:?A bright laptop screen is usually one that drains the battery quickly. Besides, 300 nits is so bright that it?s hard to look at indoors, and most users turn their display?s brightness down a little anyway. That being said, you still don?t want to by a poorly lit laptop.
Graphics RAM:?Looking to watch some high-def YouTube clips or enjoy the occasional Blu-ray video? Most people have no need to pay more to go from 1gb to 2gb of RAM on a midrange graphics card. The graphics board that ships with your laptop will more than likely be enough. However if you?re an avid gamer, we suggest opting for a laptop that has at least?1gb video memory. Got more doe? Go for 2gb!
CPU clock speeds:?Yes, a 2.0GHz processor will be faster than a 1.0GHz processor, but you shouldn?t pay more for small increases in clock speed. You won?t notice the difference between a 2.5GHz Core i5 and a 2.9GHz Core i5, so don?t pay $100 for the privilege of an unnoticeable uptick in processing speed.
DVD/Blu-ray player:?Honestly this is completely up to you, I cannot remember the last time I used my CD drive. If you want a thinner laptop then sacrifice this ability. With many streaming services, I?m sure you will find many great alternatives. We are moving into a digital age, so jump on the boat if you wish?
Warranty:?Do keep in mind that every single laptop has a one year hardware warranty. This is required by law, therefore the manufacturer is required to fix any hardware problem that happened with the machine. Please understand that this does not cover accidents.?Before you buy a laptop, ask the vendor what the average turnaround time is for fixing it if anything goes wrong.
Select a store:?After you decide on what computer you wish to get, or see in person, a good idea would be to take a ride to the nearest retail store that has a display model available. You can then get a feel for the laptop and see if you like it. This includes the speakers, screen, touchpad, keyboard, heat, noise, and much more. After testing it our search the web for a price comparison and see if you can get it cheaper. Usually online retailers like Amazon, will cut a few bucks off the top just so you buy it from them.
If you decide to buy it on the spot, do know that the return policy is usually 15 days. So technically you can try it out for 14 days and if you don?t like the laptop, just return it and get another one. The buying and testing is frowned upon by retailers, but many people take advantage of this tiny loophole. Basically you are renting a laptop for free.
Perks: If you are buying a laptop today or in the next few months, I strongly suggest opting in for a backlit keyboard. It will come in handy once you start?procrastinating.
Suggestions and Recommendations
We have managed to find sexy and reliable laptops for almost every single need. The following evaluations are based solely on our professional opinion. As you will notice most of them are in fact ultrabooks. Why? Because if you are purchasing a computer now there is no reason to get an ugly heavy laptop that slows you down. The whole point of a laptop is mobility!
Apple MacBook Pro with Retina Display
2.3GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
Turbo Boost up to 3.3GHz
8GB 1600MHz memory
256GB flash storage1
Intel HD Graphics 4000
NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1GB of GDDR5 memory
Battery Life (7 hours)
Yes, the price fells like somebody sprinkled salt in your eyes, but?..?The newly redesigned MacBook Pro with Retina Display combines an amazing screen with just enough of the MacBook Air design to feel like a new animal, and to take its place as the best of the current MacBook breed. You can bet that Apple will start putting retina displays on their other laptops in the future, so you can get a jump start on everybody else with this outstanding machine.
Buy?$2,194.00
Acer Aspire S5 13.3-Inch HD Display Ultrabook
Intel Core_i7_3517U Processor 3GHz (4MB Cache)
4 GB SDRAM RAM
256 GB Solid-State Drive
13.3-Inch Screen, Intel HD Graphics 4000
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Battery Life (6.5 hours)
Redefining ?portability,? Acer introduces the world?s thinnest Ultrabook: The Aspire S5. The ultrathin 13.3? design is just .59? slim and is less than 3 lbs. Yet this machine packs plenty of power and performance thanks to 3rd Generation Intel Core i7 and Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium. Cutting-edge technologies like Thunderbolt, USB 3.0 and MagicFlip let you instantly connect and complete your tasks faster than ever?so you?re free to enjoy entertainment using high-end visual and audio technologies.
Buy?$1,299.99
Samsung Series 9 15.0-Inch Ultrabook (Mineral Ash Black)
Intel 1.7 GHz Core i5-3317U Processor
8 GB DDR3 RAM
128 GB Solid-State Hard Drive
15.0-Inch Screen
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Battery Life (up to 10 hours)
Designed with mobility in mind, Samsung?s durable, ultra premium, lightweight Series 9 laptop (model NP900X4C-A01US) offers mobile professionals and power users a sophisticated laptop equally suited for work and entertainment. Featuring a minimalist look that is both simple and sophisticated, its polished aluminum uni-body design offers an iconic look and feel that pushes the envelope with an edge just 0.58 inches thin.
Buy?$1,349.99
Vizio Thin and Light CT15-A2 15.6-Inch Laptop
Intel Core_i7_3517U Processor 1.9GHz
4 GB DDR3 RAM
256GB Hard Drive
15.6-Inch Screen
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Battery Life (5.5 hours)
With a striking unibody aluminum design, the VIZIO Thin + Light is the Ultrabook that?s impossible to ignore. But don?t let its thin profile fool you?it outperforms notebooks twice its size. This high-performance 15.6-inch model sports a Full HD 1080p display and premium SRS sound for the best entertainment experience. Powered by the latest Intel Core processor, the VIZIO Thin + Light uses instant-on, flash-based SSD drives for speedy boot-ups and includes Microsoft Signature for fast performance right out of the box.
Buy?$1,259.99
Dell XPS13 Ultrabook Laptop (Silver)
Intel Core i5 2467M Processor 1.6GHz
4 GB DIMM RAM
128GB Solid State Drive
13-Inch Screen
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
Battery Life (8.8 hours)
Strikingly thin, with more room to view. The innovative design of XPS 13 enables an expansive 13.3? display in a compact body similar to an 11? laptop. Its razor-thin 0.24?- 0.71? profile and weight of 2.99 lbs lets you effortlessly take your XPS 13 anywhere you travel.?It goes beyond beauty. Bonded Corning Gorilla Glass, machined aluminum and carbon fiber are incorporated to enhance the performance of this Ultrabook.
Designed with super-durable, scratch-resistant glass fused to an all-aluminum body, this Ultrabook is stunning from the inside out. Hear the difference with Beats Audio. And with HP Wireless Audio, stream music to wireless-enabled devices using KleerNet Technology. Plus, the HP Radiance Backlit Keyboard on this ENVY 14 Spectre laptop lights up as you approach and dims when you step away.
Buy?$1,079.65
HP Folio 13 Ultrabook (Steel Gray)
Intel Core? i5-2467M (1.60 GHz, 3 MB L3 cache)
4 GB 1333 MHz DDR3 SDRAM (1 SODIMM slot)
128 GB Solid State Drive
13.3? diagonal LED-backlit HD BrightView (1366 x 768), Intel HD Graphics 3000
Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit,
Battery Life (9 hours)
Stay more comfortable with HP CoolSense technology on the HP Folio 13. You control the cooling so heat is directed away from your lap. This ultra-thin and ultra-fast notebook is designed to help you do everything without weighing you down. Integrated Bluetooth helps you sync your HP laptop to other digital devices, like your smartphone or desktop PC, without using cables. Plus, print, e-mail and browse the web wirelessly using built-in Wi-Fi. Edit documents and watch videos on the 13.3-inch diagonal high-definition LED-backlit display. The HP Folio 13-1020us Ultrabook has plenty of style with the brushed aluminum finish in steel gray.
Buy?$958.00
ASUS Zenbook UX31 13.3-Inch Thin and Light Ultrabook (Silver Aluminum)
Intel Core i5 Processor 1.7GHz
4GB SO-DIMM RAM
128GB Hard Drive
13.3-Inch Screen, Intel UMA
Windows 7 Home Premium
Battery Life (7 hours)
It looks like nothing you?ve ever seen. It feels like nothing you?ve ever felt. It?s breathtakingly beautiful. It?s ultra-light ? the brushed aluminum alloy body weighs only 2.87bs. It?s ultra-fast ? powerful 2nd Generation Intel?Core?i5 processor, SATA 3.0 SSD and USB 3.0. It resumes active mode in just 2 seconds, and the SonicMaster Audio delivers astounding sound.
Buy?$959.99
Apple MacBook Pro 13.3-Inch
2.5 GHz Dual-Core Intel Core i5 processor
4 GB DDR3 RAM; 500 GB Hard Drive
13.3 inch LED-backlit display, 1280-by-800 resolution
Intel HD Graphics 4000
Mac OS X v10.7 Lion,
Battery Life (7 Hours)
Last but surely not least. This is by far the most purchased Macbook Pro model?Among?college students.?The Apple MacBook Pro features Intel?s new third-generation Core architecture for a boost in processor and memory speeds. New next-generation graphics deliver performance levels that are up to 60 percent faster than before. And high-speed Thunderbolt I/O lets you transfer data at rates up to 10 GBps.?As with previous models, the MacBook Pro features a precision unibody enclosure crafted from a single block of aluminum, creating a thin and light mobile computing workhorse that?s also highly durable.
Buy?$1,099.99
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Public release date: 13-Aug-2012
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