Mayor Villaraigosa Shares Control Of The Los Angeles Schools

Last month, I wrote in an article about Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa proposing a legislative bill to take control of the Los Angeles schools (see Los Angeles Schools Strongly Opposed to Takeover by Mayor Villaraigosa). Reform Bill 1381 passed the state legislature at the end of August, with some changes.

Villaraigosa, who portrayed himself as the one person who could make a success of the Los Angeles schools system, instead must share control of the school system with the Los Angeles schools board and the Council of Mayors. The mayor did, however, receive direct control of three low-performing high schools and their feeder elementary and middle schools.

The final reform bill makes running the Los Angeles schools much more complex for everyone concerned. First, there is a logistical problem with Villaraigosa and the Los Angeles schools board in two separate locations, making decision making a longer, more drawn out process. The role of teachers in deciding curriculum now is uncertain, and many believe the mayors plan may impede new school construction, considered a successful endeavor by the Los Angeles schools board. The bills language is confusing, already causing conflicting interpretations.

There also is a question on the legality of the bill, which is expected to face an immediate legal challenge. The Los Angeles schools board, which was adamantly opposed to the bill, already has discussed a lawsuit, claiming that the bill violates the requirement in the state constitution that schools remain within the educational system. The opinion of the legislatures counsel is that the Los Angeles schools board has a case, but Villaraigosa believes it will survive a challenge.

Ever the politician, the mayor now is looking to foster cooperation with teachers, parents and the Los Angeles schools board, but he may find this difficult. He leveled blistering criticism at the school board and its members over the past year. Even Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg (D-Los Angeles) criticized Villaraigosa during a hearing by the Assembly Education Committee, which she chairs, stating that she was disappointed that he did not have the same dialogue with the Los Angeles schools board as he did with the teachers unions.

Villaraigosa continues to promote the passage of the bill as an opportunity for parents, educators, the Council of Mayors, the cities and himself to partnership for the betterment of the Los Angeles schools. Though no clear specifics have even been given by the mayor on how he will proceed, he remarked that the new power-sharing arrangement will reshape and invigorate a lethargic bureaucracy that has underserved generations of students. He further stated that success depends on his leadership and the contributions of his Los Angeles schools partners.

Patricia Hawke is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. For more information on Los Angeles schools visit http://www.schoolsk-12.com/California/Los-Angeles/index.htmlCary Blog63902
Callie Blog20836

Health Benefits For Americans Part II - who pays for Dental, Vision, Chiropractic and Prescription?

Part I of this two-part series focused on that 15 percent of the United States population that is without health benefits. It was disturbing to learn that 80 percent of uninsured households have at least one parent working full-time, and still they are without health benefits.

But there is another trend in the US that is more startling! Shrinking health benefits for employed Americans AND retirees alike. What is even more disturbing is that, because health benefits are shrinking a little bit at a time, many people don't realize it's impact until it's too late.

Deductibles rise and restrictions are placed on the kinds of services that are available. Dental, vision, chiropractic care and prescription drugs are all targets for restricted services or payout limits. In addition, both employer and government-sponsored health benefits programs are requiring larger contributions from the "insured".

In March 2006, Jim Jubak (investment guru) wrote about how his father's pension check was cut in half because the company that he retired from upped his health benefits contribution by $170 a month-with no notice!

According to the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured, the average cost of employer-sponsored health care plans was $3695 for an individual and $9950 for a family. The employee's average contribution to this plan was $2261, which is more than a 160 percent increase [from 2000 to 2004].

Who should we blame? Highly paid doctors and pharmaceutical companies for skyrocketing healthcare costs? Large companies for not seeing the impact that the aging Baby Boomers would have on their ability to take care of their retired employees? The federal government for not legislating a fix to an overwhelming problem?

The fact is that everyone and no one is to blame. And the problem isn't getting any smaller, not for a long time.

Fortunately, there are some problem solvers out there. And once again, they come in the form of Consumer Driven Health benefits programs. These programs offer something called "Supplemental Health Benefits" packages. And they work like this. For a small monthly fee, supplemental health program members get discounted rates on the very health services insurance companies are cutting. And the discounts are sizable. AmeriPlan reports up to 80% savings to its members for dental care alone. What's more, anyone can join. No one is turned down for any reason, including preexisting health or dental conditions.

The challenges of the US health care system have not gone away. The problems run deep and wide. For those of us who need complete health services-and peace of mind-Supplemental Health Benefits may be the answer.

Jim Martinez is a National Sales Director for AmeriPlan USA, offering discount health benefits programs that include ongoing medical conditions, starting at just $29.95 per month. For more information on AmeriPlan Health, Dental, Vision, Prescription and Chiropractic Benefits and more health related articles, visit http://www.familydentalhealthplans.com.Celestyna Blog23025
Anett Blog8061

Online Education

The Internet has shortened distances, making it possible almost all of the activities that traditionally required going from one place to another, investing extra effort, money, and time. Today, you can study from the comfort of your home, at any hour of the day or night and even wearing just your pajamas, if you want.

Online courses have the additional benefit of immediate availability. No more waiting time until the next visit of your mail carrier, just sit down and turn on your PC to enter into your virtual classroom or have your list of today's assignments displayed on your monitor.

Online education, also known as distance learning or e-learning, differs from traditional education because students are not required to visit an actual classroom and listen to an instructor face-to-face. If you have ever thought about an online education to further your current career, or to get training for a new career, now is a great time to get started.

An online education also means you do not have to take a break from your current job or career and can simultaneously become qualified for a better one. Contrary to belief, an online education is valued just as much as a regular one. In fact, people getting an online education are indicating that they are motivated to better themselves every step of the way and are willing to put in the required extra effort for this purpose.

Today, online education has come a long way. Instructors are now being hired to solely teach online. Companies are also hiring these online education programs, since a training session can not only be quick, but also be accessed at any time of the day or night. For many, it is a great opportunity because it gives us all more knowledge. We not only are able to get college degrees through this type of e-learning, but we also can have a life, without having to stay at the office overnight just to learn some material.

The choice for online education is vast. There are an unlimited number of universities and colleges that are ready to work with you and the time that you have available in order for you to get an education in the field you prefer.

Online education has made all degrees available to anyone and everyone who has the will to study. The cost of each degree differs from course to course but here too a payment plan can be worked out depending on your financial status and possibilities.

Overall, online education is much less expensive than going to a traditional school because you save on travel, time, and the courses themselves cost less. Much of the time you are able to get your degree much quicker and with much more ease in an online program than at a traditional college.

Modern technology allows surfers the access to a wide number of study materials and guides in a matter of just a few seconds. Nevertheless, apart from time, online educations provide economy, convenience and effectiveness to any learning program.

This article has been published by Kateri White currently writing on online degree programs topics for our website http://www.onlineuniversitydegreeprogram.info.For more details about the online degree programs, please visit our website. If any mistake found please mail kateriwhite@gmail.com.Anni Blog40475
Anastasie Blog9068

Computer Security - Startling Facts

Working on the Internet provides Internet marketers with the opportunity to make a living in the comfort of their own home. Computer Security includes threats such as viruses, identity theft, spyware, adware to name but a few. The latest statistics show that at least over 900 new viruses are created each month which makes keeping track of them really quite difficult. This article would cover three (3) subtopics namely: The Internet, Spyware and Antivirus.

Internet

If you use your computer on the internet, you need (at minimum) anti virus software. The problem of computer security is the number one problem in todays networks and Internet engineering. As hackers use different means to crack the security systems it often happens to be impossible to resist and computer security system fail.

Computer Security on the internet is vital for home and business use as there are increasingly hostile environments when users surf the net. It is very important for users to be educated on the dangers they may face while on the internet. Your computer connected to the internet is similar to your house in many ways. Users search on the internet for free computer security software which they dump into their computers and hope for the best.

The Internet is a wonderful place. Anyone with an Internet connection can stay in touch with family and friends via email. Computer security is growing rapidly by the minute and the only one who has control over their files of information is the user. It is strongly suggested that users equip their pc with an armed fire wall for vital protection.

An advice is to use Microsoft Windows Update to keep your operating system and Internet Explorer patched. Other advice could be to only conduct Internet transactions that have secured processing. Even if you have a computer connected to the Internet only to play the latest games or to send email to friends and family, your computer could be a target.

Although confidentiality, integrity and authenticity are the most important things when it comes to computer security in general, for everyday internet users, privacy is the most important one, because many people think that they have nothing to hide or the information they give doesn't seem sensitive when they register with an internet service/site.

Spyware

An avenue for Spyware to infect your machine is through popular Peer-to-Peer File Sharing software such as Kazaa. Extreme spyware like Rootkits and other advanced spyware have fundamentally changed the playing field in todays computer security.

While it may seem to be common sense, many of the most widely-spread attacks have involved spyware and email attachment worms. Often these packages come as suites including a firewall and Spyware scanner. They scan and destroy spyware as its found in the users computer.

Regardless of the type of spyware, it can slow your computer to a crawl and needs to be removed from your computer. Spyware occurs when certain websites run programs in the back ground of your computer while gleaning information from it. There is now a bill in the US Congress to make Spyware illegal.

Anti-spyware tools will greatly assist in protecting your privacy and restoring full computer functions that spyware may have taken over. In the internet world it is vital for users to have a good spyware scan (a recommended and reliable one can be found in the Author Resource Box below) and removal tool because of the multitude of different spyware, adware, Trojans and other malware constantly looking to attack your system. Spyware can slow down your computer, and would have to be removed.

There are tools available which include good free Spyware removal software among other security measures the user can take to protect the computer from malicious attack such as Viruses, Spyware and Adware. The recommended one is staed below. Spyware not only covertly runs in the background and steals personal information of the user it is a potential security threat of which the extent of the damage cannot be determined.

Antivirus

With all of the marketing commotion that surrounds viruses, you should already have antivirus software on all of your computers. Let me explain something, just because you have a antivirus software program on your computer you are not cured. Until recently could one install a firewall and an antivirus program and feel quite secure.

Protection services could commonly include the ability of an administrator to monitor activity throughout the system as well as potentially block hazardous material on the internet from being viewed by other users, the ability to manage automatic updates and what's more the ability to enquire about the status of antivirus software. These include firewall, spyware scanning software and antivirus software.

Everyone needs to have proper computer security measures in place to make sure they are consistently free from all these malicious software. Urgent action should be taken now.

Peter Crest is a Webmaster at http://www.pc-matters.info. Check out other Computer Security Articles there.Carlyn Blog71758
Alison Blog32463

The Ultimate Email Marketing Guide: 15 tips to fast email marketing success!

A practical "how-to" list for email marketing success, from small to large business.

Email marketing is easy (--ponder--) if you know how to do it. Wow, you have heard that one before, I'm sure. Is that not always the case - with almost anything? So, why even say it?

Because - in this case it is really true.

However, so many small businesses make it more complex than it is; they don't fully understand or grasp the impact of list building, what tools, services and techniques are available, and don't recognize what a successful campaign and its results can and will mean for their businesses.

We believe that a) simplicity of application, b) knowledge - and c) immediate action are the first steps to success. And, everything done in an ethical way - you got permission based marketing. Full speed ahead!

1. Get the legalities out of the way.

Did you know that recent changes in the search engine algorithms now recognize a privacy policy page as an important metric in the total number of items that helps your ranking and visibility? In fact, Google has over 100 variables that make up the secret sauce of their algorithmic search engines. Only two engineers at Google know it. (Eric Schmidt, CEO of Google chose not to learn it himself).

So, you should write and always provide a link to your privacy page. Starter text can be obtained from links below - and always make sure to review with your legal counsel for a final review. You will then include a link to it from your outgoing email campaigns.

Here are some places to start:
a) http://www.truste.org/pdf/WriteAGreatPrivacyPolicy.pdf
b) http://www.marketingpower.com/content4740.php
c) http://www.microsaw.com/privacy_policy.htm

2. Your site must capture user via first name (last name) & email address.

Burn this into your head - make it your site requirement - day one. There are too many online businesses that forget this simple rule. It's a must. If you are reading this article, then you probably already realize the importance of mailing lists.
Your audience is looking for good (relevant!) materials to solve problems in their life and business. Capture these visitors, and continue to provide this information and free information, you can grow your business by 1000% or more almost overnight, in some cases in any future mailing. It's super-important to have - and build a quality mailing list.

On your 'landing page' (sometimes called a sales page, gateway page, squeeze page, splash page) you should try to include this capture form on the "top of the fold" of your webpage. (Think of this as single sheet of paper, folded in half. The visitors will read the top portion first, from left to right - almost in an F-shaped order).

Therefore, make sure you:
Place this input form in a strategic location, "above the fold"
Make this coding your first priority for implementation - don't make it the last - or never (which many companies do)

3. Example Signup forms.

Search the internet for example sign up forms. A great technique is to look for companies that have this in their URL. Try this in Google (type into search box): allinurl: "free newsletter" (it will search any site that has this contained in the TITLE of the page).

Some examples of successful forms:
http://www.microsaw.com/myform.htm
http://www.marketingtips.com/newsletters
http://www.redhotcopy.com/workshop.htm - using interesting "slanted" pop-under and image (a black/white banana)

Note that you should always apply "up selling" techniques: links to other complimentary tools, software, articles & e-books.

In other words, give something away for free.

This is the Stephen Covey "emotional bank-account" working at its best. Web surfers are getting smarter and not just links to privacy policies and terms of use are recognized, but easy to read pages that are brief and to the point, score high. (Ed note: An example can be seen on the right side at http://www.microsaw.com/myform.htm - the "free 5-day SEO email course").

4. Popups, popunders, popup blockers & search engines.

Traditional popups (yes, the annoying ones) are banned from search engines like Google.

Therefore, smart marketers have come up with other means. They are called "popunders".
They use specialized JavaScript to display a pop-up box, but it's not tracked or recognized by popup-blockers or the search engines (Ed. Note: this could change, as the search engines change their smarts all the time).

As of writing, you should use a pop-up box, and capture first name, last name & email. Don't make it an intrusive one though (it needs to follow your style sheet guidelines, in other words).
Another way to go is to use what's called 'house-banners' -- ads that display compelling graphics, text - and uses your own local advertising system (example: double-click).

Here's what to do to capture interested visitors:
Apply a page that "slides" onto your page, and have it appear after 5 seconds.
Display this email form capture on all pages.
Only show it once, and only repeat 2-3 days later (assuming they come back). Many of the email marketing systems include this feature for you.
Annoying, but it works. I went from 5% signups a day a 75% increase overnight - only a few weeks back.

Tip: Make a note that the popup is from your site- not a partner site. (sometimes popups are thought to be from sponsors, make a note to your visitor that it's from you).

5. Do you have a newsletter you are trying to promote? Up-sell is the answer!

If you are promoting a newsletter, outside of just getting visitors to sign up, there are 3rd parties vendors that can help you publish and sell your newsletter. Throughout all campaigns, you must make sure to provide useful, relevant and unique content.

Some options for you:
Coregcomplete.com - get signups on thank you pages of other subscription forms this is a great way to promote your wares
Getsubscribers.com
Partner with companies you find, and call them up. Search for 'newsletter publishers' in Google.
When you write articles (yes, you should) - make sure to make a note in the "About Author" that you publish or have newsletters available.

TIP/Warning: Beware of commercial co-regs -- they typically have poor quality names and offers.

6. Get the best and highest performing email service.

Don't skimp here. A few extra dollars a month can really save you a lot of headaches. We worked with one company that went from about 1,000 emails on their list, down to about 100 in 24 hours, (when they switched providers). They quickly realized that they had made a bad choice.

Here's what to consider initially:
ASP hosted solutions are now connected with ISPs to ensure uptime/deliverability
Desktop applications can work well for you, for example, Gamma Dyne Mailer: http://www.soft32.com/download_4469.html
Autoresponse Plus, GetResponse, Aweber are a good place to start reviewing options.

You can also add monitoring services to make sure that emails get delivered, and keep the highest integrity of your emails via tracking.

Here are a few companies that work with monitoring:
1. pipersoftware
2. returnpath.biz
3. edeliverability.com
4. deliverymonitor.com

Other email marketing services to review are:
Sparklist
Constantcontact
Topica
Global intellisystems
Got campaigner
Vertical response
1stshoppingcart (shopping cart, affiliate programs and autoresponder)
Proautoresponders

You also need to understand and read the updated laws about email marketing and spam. The CAN-SPAM Act of 2004 is FTC governed, and the they will pursue any SPAM artist to the fullest extent of the law.

Make sure you have:
Working unsubscribe
Be careful where you get the lists
Avoid fraudulent subject lines
Include postal address, phone, privacy policy
Porn must be identified in subject line (SEXUALLY EXPLICIT)
Opt-out lists, including 'double-opt-in' (user must click to approve the email)

Tip: It's important to have a strict and trusted email service. Reputable email marketing companies will upload a few emails from your list and test your list to verify. Then, they'll approve or deny you.

7. Test, test & track, track.

No MBA student, no computer scientist, web braniac or 30 year veteran of marketing, both online and off - can predict what visitors will click on, and why. We can all make really great educated guesses, but they are only that. So, you really need to test your campaigns. Online marketing compared to traditional marketing (print, media) is vastly different.

Here's how to do it:
Test the campaigns with A/B Split test tactics - specifically on subject line and ad copy, it can help improve newsletter and pages immensely. (A/B refers to capability of serving up different content or ads, or headlines, sections on your page and campaign - that can be tracked)
Tracking conversions from email blasts (cookies and JavaScript and beacons on landing pages, thank you pages, etc)
Got campaigner and topica are high-end products, aweber is doing split-testing now (we use this - with great success)
Good reporting and database segmentation to section off to demographics, recency, frequency, sales totals
Use relevant and powerful headlines. Use wordtracker.com and keyworddiscovery.com to get keywords to back up your headline in content. (Ed Note: The site http://los-angeles.microsaw.com is dedicated to copywriting for the Internet)

8. Formatting and send options.

Formatting is an important element of any newsletter or mailing. Unfortunately, a love of companies go wild on graphics, sound, multi-media to present "their" branding or look/feel. It's important to have a clean mailer.

What are the options? See a few below:
text only
html
combination of the above & multi-part MIME

Key facts to consider:

Text more easily can penetrate spam filters, gets thru company firewalls, but only preferred by 15% to 25%.

HTML has more advantages, will double or triple the click-thru on text, nicer, pretty graphics, tracking better. It can also track opens, click-thrus and conversions. If the email marketing system supports it (most do) - send both.

Tip 1: Send Multi-part MIME, not just straight HTML
Tip 2: Place a URL reference in email to actual content on your website
Tip 3: Microsoft Outlook "Preview" mode: make sure it looks ok. Many will have this "on" by default - and it may reflect your email poorly (try it!). MarketingSherpa.com has a great article on this and how it can affect "opens". Graphics are often blocked too, so your intended "pretty" newsletter may not look the way you planned under these circumstances.
Tip 4: Make sure font is large enough for "older" folks and the smaller monitors

9. How often to send? How about text size?

In company marketing strategy meetings, where all the 'masters' will create their online strategies -- do not seem to agree. We'll outline a few scenarios below.

Daily.
Daily if you have a good "alert" system (ex: Google alerts) - this will not make sense for most companies. CNN news alerts are ok though.

Once a week.
Weekly ok if you have a strong listener base, and compelling content.

Once a month.
Monthly probably best for most small businesses. Overall - you want to retain "mindshare" - so they don't forget you, but still not too much "in their face".

How long should the text be?
Short, with longer description on website. People "scan", not read
Keep it tight, focused on brief -- "read here for more" (link to full page)

Tip 1: Archive URL's on your site, and allow it to be searched later. It's "spider-food", and you get recognized as an expert as well.
Tip 2: Also, a link to "send to friend" ('found this article, thought you'd be interested')
Tip 3: Use personalization (Dear Bob, Hello Cathy, etc.) - increases opening and reading by 50-60%. Work on the relationship -- build trust and credibility. Note: Don't overuse in the newsletter! Better to be a little conservative, than too friendly.

10. Campaigns and newsletters take time. How-to get it done in your workweek.

Unless you have a dedicated staff, you must do this yourself. Add this task to your calendar (with a recurring reminder), and consider this your "must-do" work.

Tips that work well:
Allocate some time your calendar, book it - and execute, don't delay
Use it as a marketing expense, track it in the books
Hire a writer (guru.com, elance.com) - and use search for 'copywriters' (in your niche)
Test with innovative audio and video options, outsource if necessary
Make sure to include testimonials

11. Auto-responders.

Auto responders are a fantastic and simple way to turn your business on automated 24x7 attendance. Use them, learn them and build your list and responsiveness from this feature alone. Your list will grow, which you will use for future mailings and offers. Auto-responders are software systems that allow for total automation of messaging.

Here are another few tips for you to help build your list and credibility:

Follow up for an e-Book (example: 3 days after first mailing, send "did you get the email?" In that mailing, provide a link to a free download e-book, offers, etc)
Follow up to the subscription - 'thank you'
Training series ("5-day SEO email course") -- see example on www.microsaw.com seo email course
Create free email courses, courses send every 1-2 days for a short period (less than a week).

12. Isn't use of email as a business tool dead?

Answer: No it is not. It's part of our lives, and email is still very effective. It's accepted, and with filters and advanced software solutions, it is managed.

Here are some tips and tools:

Many programs use filtering (ISP)
Bounces can be recorded: soft, hard (to edit/maintenance your list)
SpamAssassin
Cloudmark Desktop (report spam) - helps the community at large
SpamArrest

Amazon does a lot of things with email. They have applied a cool system with personalization. They have supposedly as high as a 14% conversion rate!

Tip: Do you need to check your email for SPAM? Try sending your campaign or email to: sales-spamcheck@sitesell.net?subject=TEST -- you'll get an email response back with a rating of 0 thru 5.

13. Wave of the future - "white-listing".

Email marketing is not going away, as some have alluded to. The key is to stay within the form and function of the email marketing community. Newer options exist for creating "white lists" (universally accepted lists) - a few of these new services are listed here:

Sender Certification is an important change which has been used for a while already.

Here are a few companies:
Habeas
Sender Score Certified

Habeas is expensive at $15,000 a year, and only recommended for serious, large email marketing companies. Goodmailsystems (used by AOL and Yahoo) is also another high-end product. Search on Google for 'email sender certification'.

Tip: Definitely a "future" thing, and growing in use today. You get a (good) reputation for being an email sender, and can build a strong business around this as well.

14. What other technical issues should I review?

Check spelling, graphics, relative links, use the free software XENU to get amazingly detailed reports. The Webmaster reports at the bottom of one of their reports provide a lot of good detail, perfect for executive overview.

Other tips:
Make sure to use http://, not just www... in your LINK references. Your link may not work without it.
Research shows that Tue, Wed, Thu works well for B2B (but, make sure to test!)
Some B2C lists are better on the weekends (personal feeling about this)

15. Landing pages.

We've talked about this topic in several places in the article. It's so important, we dedicate a special section here.

A landing page is a strategically developed (content and visuals) page that you bring your potential customers to. It's a call-to-action page. Many just bring their prospective customers to a home page where other non-related items may appear, including no specific instructions. You only have a few seconds to get him or her to react.

If you are not great at writing, you can hire a copywriter, check elance.com and guru.com, sometimes as low as 30-40 bucks for a pretty good writer.

Test, test, test and location, location, location.

You must test and track (metrics) your pages and run A/B splits (change a few things like color, title, subhead, etc - and not too much at the same time). You can use a free service Google analytics to get started.

More expensive ones are clicktracks, omniture, hitbox, hitlens - and the ultimate wholly grail testing, tuning and tracking system is the taguchi models (multi-variant optimizers).

The human eye scans from top left to right in a downstream manner.

The call-to-action items (like "sign up for my newsletter") would get optimal viewing if placed here, in this F-shaped Golden Triangle. Also, as we mentioned - above the fold!

Make sure you have some free downloads and give-aways, surfers love quizzes and mini-tests, including email courses, using autoresponders for immediate follow-up and tracking.

Your email campaigns should take them to a landing page for more / better conversion.

Tip: Add a "Special Message" block on your page and in your email text and allow users to discuss on your forum or in your blog link.

Jon Rognerud is a recognized authority on the subject of SEO and Online Marketing, and has spent over 10 years developing websites and marketing solutions for companies like Overture, Yahoo and Expedia. Anita Blog88604
Aubrette Blog78131

Prices Of Sunroom Kits

An overview of do it yourself sunroom kits, whats involved in choosing one and possible downsides to doing it yourself.

Once upon a time, if you wanted to build a sunroom onto your home, you would have to hire and pay a contractor to do it for you. But with the introduction of sunroom kits, that is no longer necessary. You can order a do it yourself sunroom kit from any number of sunroom manufacturing companies, who will then ship to you the elements that are necessary to put the room together. The idea behind sunroom kits is that you should be able to save money on getting your sunroom installed by putting it together yourself. Not only are you providing the labor, but you are also cutting out the middle man in the process of building your sunroom. This allows you to save money on the materials as well. Plus, depending on the do it yourself sunroom kit that you choose, you can also save money on future energy and maintenance costs.

First, understand that the price of a do it yourself sunroom kit will vary depending on your homes particular situation. For example, if you are choosing to build a small, aluminum sunroom on top of an existing deck or cement slab, it will be much less expensive than building a block foundation sunroom with more windows and wood framing. If you have an existing deck or slab, then it makes sense to choose that location for the sunroom because it is already properly graded and prepared. In that case, you can measure the deck or slab and get the proper measurements for ordering your kit. But if you dont have a slab or deck already, then you will need to decide on the proper location for your sunroom. You will also need to grade and prepare the area before you can begin construction. This obviously changes the amount of work that you will be requiring of yourself when installing your do it yourself sunroom kit. Of course, you could always hire a contractor to put in the slab for a block foundation sunroom, and then build the rest of it yourself.

Choosing the Type of Do It Yourself Sunroom Kit

When you are ordering a sunroom kit, realize that it is usually designed for a sunroom that is not going to be connected to your HVAC system. If you want your sunroom to be heated or cooled by your existing system, then that is likely not a project you will want to take on with your do it yourself sunroom kit. Otherwise, youll be relying on fans and portable heaters or coolers to keep your sunroom comfortable. Depending on the climate where you live, this may be just fine for you.

Getting a Quote for Your Sunroom

Companies that provide do it yourself sunroom kits have a number of standard sizes and types that they are ready to provide for you. These are the least expensive options because they are able to mass produce them and package them at a savings to them, which they will then pass on to you. However, that doesnt mean that you cant find the right kit for you and the design that you have in mind. If you find that the standard kits you can find dont fit the sunroom that you are looking to create, then you can certainly get a custom kit created, but you need to realize that it will cost more to do so. In order to get a quote for the sunroom kit you want to order, you will have to provide them with the measurements that you have selected for the design. This doesnt just include the dimensions of the sunroom itself; it also includes knowing how many windows you will have and where they will be placed. You will then also have to choose the materials that you want the sunroom to be built from, and the types of windows that you want. Will they all be stationary or will they be moveable? What kind of glaze will they have on them? If this seems like its an overwhelming number of decisions to be made, dont worry; you can get a great deal of help from the sunroom manufacturers themselves. Many of them have online design pages that will walk you through all of the choices you will need to make for your custom sunroom kit. The final kit, based on the design that you created, will be shipped to your home and will include customized installation plans as well.

Possible Problems With Do It Yourself Sunroom Kits

Probably the most common problem with a do it yourself sunroom kit is that the person who ordered it is simply not prepared for the type and amount of work that is involved. If you are not absolutely certain that you have the time and know-how to install the kit, you should think twice before attempting it. Also, remember that if you are doing the installation yourself, the work is not going to be covered by a guarantee of some kind. The materials will be, but the actual construction itself will not be. Plus, if you do make an error, any damages to your home may not be covered. In fact, it is a good idea to check with your homeowners insurance policy before deciding to install your own sunroom so that you know whether or not you are covered for accidents that damage your home or cause injury to yourself or others. Otherwise your savings could quickly become extremely costly if you have an accident.

Andrew Caxton is a syndicated columnist of http://www.allsunrooms.com . A free online magazine that carries articles on sunroom prices, and a guide on sunrooms cost here http://www.allsunrooms.com/prices.htmlBertha Blog39159
Bee Blog31770

Protecting Your Trade Secrets

Trade secrets means information, including a formula, pattern, compilation, program, device, method, technique, or process, that: (1) derives independent economic value, actual or potential, from not being generally known to the public or to other persons who can obtain economic value from its disclosure or use; and (2) Is the subject of efforts that are reasonable under the circumstances to maintain its secrecy.

However, in order to protect your trade secret, you must first know what information qualify as trade secrets. Trade secrets generally fall into two categories:

1. Technical information; and
2. Business information.

Trade secrets which are under the category of technical information may include: (1) Plans, designs and patterns, such as those for specialized equipment; (2) Processes and formulas; (3) Methods and techniques for manufacturing; (4) Engineering notebooks; and even (5) Negative information which means designs that did not work.

On the other hand, trade secrets which are under the category of business information may include the following: (1) Financial information prior to public release; (2) Cost and pricing information; (3) Manufacturing information; (4) Internal market analyses or forecasts; (5) Customer lists; and even (6) Personnel information of the corporation and its employees.

Please remember that the above are just sample information that may be considered as trade secrets. The actual test is if your information has all the four elements to be considered as a trade secret.

Being a valuable intellectual asset, the owner of a trade secret is duty bound to use reasonable measures to protect the secrecy of the trade secret. Generally, an owner of the trade secret must execute a confidentiality agreement involving its employees, contractors, vendors and other personnel. The confidentiality agreement will assure the owner that the named parties have knowledge of the existence of the secret information and is duty bound not to disclosure it.

Putting of warning signs and labels on confidential documents and any machines containing confidential information is another way of protecting your trade secrets.

If, on the other hand, it is not possible for a non-disclosure or confidentiality agreement to be executed to protect your trade secret, it is enough that you should state unequivocally that certain information, in the course of your business relationship is confidential and should not be disclosed. Otherwise, you are determined to pursue claims for damages as a result of disclosure of your trade secret.

Remember, over expensive or unreasonable means in protecting your trade secret is not mandated for your information to be considered and treated as trade secret under California law. It is enough that you use reasonable measure, by means of ordinary diligence to protect your trade secret.

Atty Gabriel Cosh is a legal advocate and a practitioner of law for over 10 years now. He is also an expert in the field of social legislation and personal injury cases.Becky Blog79667
Birgit Blog42957

How-to spead-up your PC workings with reg cleaners

If you've had crashes on your personal computer, error messages or other set backs of your PC systems, you could need your computer reg. cleaned. What happening is that the Windows registry in your PC acts as a central information base, with information classified according to many data and / or criteria in successive layers or levels. Windows uses this filed data to set up the system for not only users but software applications and hardware issues.

If you ever experience slow times on your computer, error messages or other malfunctioning of your systems, you could need your registry cleaned. What happens is that the Windows registry in your computer acts as a central database, with information classified according to various data and / or criteria in successive layers or levels. And Windows uses this stored data to configure your system for not only users but software applications and hardware devices.

In short, your registry maintains necessary information needed during operations; it accesses your user profiles, your software applications, your documents and folders, your shortcut icons, your hardware and ports, etc. If corrupted, this registry can slow down your system, disrupt certain applications, cause error messages and much more. So you need to take charge and clean it regularly.

Corruptions can be caused by incomplete removal of software or other applications that sometimes leave unwanted data around. Files can be corrupted due to technically glitches and any number of reasons.

How Cleaners Help

What registry cleaners can do is scan your registry for blocked paths, paths that no longer exist (like with removed software that left traces on your system), and repairing erroneous information stored there. Results are that your system can operate and run much faster and smoother. Forget failed start ups, frozen screens, error messages, long time start up operations and incomplete hook ups with files and application processes.

Registry cleaners also offer additional applications for your computer systems. They feature tools that clean up your start up menu, pulling items you rarely use or even need from your start up menu. This in itself can aped up your start up and restart timing and make the processes much more efficient.

Plus an organizer tool within the registry cleaner allows you to go into Windows and Internet Explorer (IE) to control certain functions in those areas, too, just like with the start up menu cleaning process.

Key Features

A registry cleaner usually features these basic utilities:

1. Registry scan and clean up with the click of a button

2. Backup and restore abilities

3. Defrag and Compact tools for the registry

4. Erases tracking to protect your privacy

5. Organizes startup

6. Organizes Windows and IE

7. Improves speed and efficiency of systems

To find cleaners that help your computer systems, simply search Registry Cleaner in your favorite search engine. Over 5 million listings show up on Google alone.

When seeking registry cleaners that enhance your PC system, just search “Registry Cleaner” in your search engine of choice. Well over five million listings show-up on Google™ alone.

The Articles created by Patricia Stevens are paid for by http://www.regspywarecleaner.com/, PC-Registry Cleaners data website gathers and gets you the correct PC Reg program for you, improve any PC registry damage. Reprint of this article is encouraged but must include a direct link pointing to http://www.regspywarecleaner.com/.Alyse Blog30152
Ashleigh Blog32405

Just Play Beach Soccer

One friend of mine asked me recently why all men are crazy about playing football or what is known in United States as soccer. I am sick of explaining things that you can only understand based on personal experience. But although I managed to provide her with a luminous answer, she came back stating yet another question. "Is it different to play soccer on the grass than to play it on the beach?" That was a good one. "Of course it is different," I replied. Beach soccer, as you can tell by its name, is a sport played on the beaches; preferably during spring or summer time. Although it has been played informally for decades, it was given its official name and rules only recently and specifically in 1992. Since then it managed to become a rather popular sport and I believe that if you really want to learn something about soccer you should better start playing it on the beach.

Playing soccer on the beach is considered by many fans as the paradise of the apprentice. The soft-sand playing surface can correct some usual mistakes for a beginner, as the ball often stacks on it. Actually, the element of sand does only facilitate the efforts of new players, but it is considered a heavy obstacle even for those experienced ones that wish to show off their abilities. Plus the compact pitch -measuring 28 x 37 meters if there is an official beach soccer facility- is by far smaller than the grass field and makes scoring easier, even for players who decide to try it for the first time.

A great advantage of beach soccer is the fact that one needs no special equipment to play it. An adequate size ball and the sand of the beach are more than enough for one to begin exploring this game's unique character. Even when no organized facility on the beach exists, those interested to play beach soccer need only two canes to symbolize the area of a goalpost. Canes or just a pile of clothes are preferable in comparison to heavy stones or even huge blocks of rocks, which can be very dangerous for feet injuries, as shoes are not allowed in this game. Thus, if you are on a sandy beach, it is a sunny day, and you have nine friends willing to join you, you can start playing beach soccer. When you do experience it, let me know if you liked it. Most importantly, let your girlfriend know!

When I finished my lecture about beach soccer my friend seemed excited. "I will play it every single weekend," she said. But before you ask yourselves how much time should you invest in practicing this sport, before you can consider yourselves good soccer players, try playing it for awhile. Since you cannot play beach soccer all year around, unless you move to California or Florida every time you have a beach soccer need, you have to exercise your soccer playing abilities on the actual lawn ground. Believe me when I tell you that it is not that easy there too!

Kadence Buchanan writes articles for http://outdoorstalk.net/ - In addition, Kadence also writes articles for http://recreationandmore.com/ and http://fitnessandourworld.com/Carmel Blog2650
Andreana Blog47636

What You Should Know About Online Education Certificates

The major bone of contention worldwide confronting online education is distance education online certificates. The certificate is what youre given at the end of the course or programme to show that you attended the course. The certificate unfortunately is what our society and prospective employers will use to judge your competence. The certificate is needed to show that youre educated and therefore qualified to attain any political office in the land. This and other reasons are why much importance is attached to getting certificates at the end of your educational pursuit.

However, its been discovered that distance education online certificates is no longer to be trusted. Many employers are skeptical and are denying good and reliable graduates from online institutions employment. And the reason is not far fetched. A search for free online education certificate at google will justify what Im telling you. There are so many online institutions out there offering free certificates. And you better not be fooled by this. These certificates, for sure are not genuine. Rather than help you, earning free certificate will spell doom for your career.

Most of the institutions offering these free certificates do send bulk mails to people all over the internet soliciting for enrollment. I have received a couple in my mailbox and often dont waste time deleting them immediately the subject shows its from one of the bogus online institutions out there. None of the reputable online institutions offering genuine certificates send out mails all over the web. Youll only receive their mail if you request for more information from them.

The only sure means of getting genuine distance education online certificates is to attend fully accredited universities or colleges. You wont have problem with prospective employers. These employers know the good and reliable online institutions on the internet and therefore cannot be fooled. Certificates from any good and reliable schools such as The university of South Africa, The open University and so on will mark you out. The employers know that youve undergone a lot of strict training before being given the certificates of these schools. And also, they have a means of detecting whether its a downloaded certificate or not. Moreover, the employers can easily and quickly verify your certificates from any of these institutions.

If you want that dream home of yours, if you desire to achieve that financial status youve dreamt of, make sure that you get genuine distance education online certificates from reputable and reliable online institutions.

Ras Reed provides more detailed and free information on distance education on his website. Get more info at http://distanceeduguide.com/sitemap.html.Brittan Blog90059
Anne Blog97788

Meeting Your Family's Health Needs With An HSA

Making sure that your family is able to stay healthy partly depends on having a good health insurance program for them. One of the more recent new additions to the health insurance industry is called the Health Savings Account (HSA). This new program enables you to have reduced insurance rates because of a higher deductible, and a tax deferred savings program with it. Here are some of the features of this program.

Reduced Rates

By getting a health insurance program with a high deductible, you are able to greatly reduce your monthly premiums. This is an especially good way to go, if you are younger and currently have pretty good health. The deductible amounts are pre-determined by the government, and you are required to have deductible amounts between $1,050 and $5,250 for singles, and it needs to be between $2,100 and $10,500 for families.

Savings Are Tax Exempt

One of the great benefits of this type of plan is that, like an IRA, you enjoy tax-free income, and interest on the amounts you have in the program. You can put into the plan money that comes off the top of your taxes. There are limits, though, and for singles it is up to $2,700, and for families it is $5,450. A little extra benefit is that you are able to take off of your taxes any money that is deposited into the account all the way up to April 15th. So, if you are coming up to tax time, and find you need to reduce your taxes some more, you can put it into your HSA, and find the tax break you need.

Better Coverage

The new HSA's have an extra real nice feature - they cover more. Some things that you may not have been covered for under another type of policy, you may find that you are covered for with an HSA. This could actually allow you to get a better coverage for less. Things like dental coverage, therapy, even non-prescription medicines and some alternative treatments may also be covered, and even some mental illness treatments, too.

You Keep Control

Under an HSA, you are the one in control of the money. It is yours to use. You can take money out of the account when you want, but only the money that is used only for medical purposes is tax-exempt. Generally, you will be given a card, like a credit card, that gives you access to the account. Whenever you use money from the account, the insurance company automatically gets a receipt, and it is subtracted from your account, and your deductible - and it remains tax exempt.

Like any other insurance policy, once you have paid the deductible amounts, the rest is up to the insurer to pay. By having the high deductible you reduce the premiums considerably. The savings account can also provide a good hedge for your medical insurance program for the future, too, because any money not used toward the deductible remains your money to use next year, if you need it. On the other hand, the money in your HSA might also be used to provide some money for retirement - assuming you maintain your good health.

Joe Kenny writes for the Personal Loans Store, allowing visitors to compare UK loans and also focuses on personal loans for UK residents.Amata Blog67412
Anna Diana Blog76356

Angels Are Ever Present To Guide Us On Our Journey

The Bible has much to say about an curtained world that is deeper real than the conspicuous kingdom we currently operate in - within 'fleshly tents' that we know of as 'our bodies.' This realm comprises of a commonwealth of light & of a kingdom of darkness that is perpetually at battle. How numerous people envision the effects of this particular & individual dominion on our everyday, breathing, walking around lives?

This is a province not apparent by our physical eyes. Specifically, the sphere of God is a rarefied commonwealth & not perceptible because God is not distinguishable. God is Himself, Spirit. Jesus Christ Himself said of His own commonwealth: "the commonwealth of God is within you." Luke 17:21.

'Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not apparent. By faith we conceive that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are perceptible were not made of things which are detectable.' Heb. 11:1 & 3.

"'Then He (Jesus) will also say to those on the left hand, 'depart from Me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil & his angels:'" Matt 25:41

'For we do not wrestle against flesh & blood, but principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against rarefied hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.' Eph. 6:12

The above scripture provides quite a image for us, highlighting the systematic nature of the invisible realm & the descending order of authority of specified invisible beings with varying levels of responsibility. Beyond 'flesh & blood' we wrestle principalities, powers, rulers & hosts of wickedness. To 'wrestle' means to fight by gripping & pushing at times using certain holds to force the opponent onto the mat.

Paul the Apostle had the incident numerous times of being gripped & pushed with specific holds. He knew number one-hand of being 'on the mat.' He had been shipwrecked, stoned, beaten, whipped, imprisoned, left for spiritless & incarcerated. So it is for every believer who will in their lifetime see resistance that comes in the form of principalities & powers in the invisible dimension.

As there are principalities & powers, so too do the angels have archangels & higher powers. In God's tremendous order, He uses the prayers of His on people to restrain malevolent activity & to facilitate the activities of angelic powers to confront & overcome otherworldly hosts of wickedness.

Demonstrations of this is very crystal clear in the book of Daniel 10:10 -14 when Daniel's prayers were initially resisted by an evil angel in the heavens whom was acting out his assignment: to hold the captive Israelites from returning to their homeland. Daniel's prayers were ushered through with the assistance of Michael, a ruling archangel:

'He raised me to my hands & knees & then said "Daniel, your God thinks very highly of you, & he has sent me. So stand up & pay imminent attention." I stood trembling, while the angel spoke:

"Daniel, don't be afraid! God has listened to your prayers since the basic day you humbly asked for understanding and he has sent me here. The guardian angel of Persia has withstood me for twenty-one days. Michael, who is one of the strongest guardian angels, came to rescue me from the kings of Persia. Now I have come here to give you another vision about what will happen to your people in the future.'"

This insightful passage highlights for us the powerful influence that angelic beings exercise over national issues & the affairs of ordinary men. Noteworthy also is the premise of imbibing Gods own people with visions. How amazing for us to realize that our earthly struggles in the temporal realm are often a reflection of vigorous conflict in the heavenly, eternal province.

How tremendous to know that the angels, our invisible hosts perpetuate a myriad ministry, as, described in Ps. 103:20, 21 being service, facilitating his plans, to heed the voice of Gods own as spoken through the believers on earth, to minister, to do His will.

'Praise the Lord, you angels of his, you mighty creatures who carry out divine plans, listening for each & every command. Yes, praise the Lord, you armies of angels who serve him & do his will! Ps. 103:20, 21.

A approved Psalm & prayer for protection & solace for bountious is Psalm 91 which offers much comfort on the personal activity of guardian angels.

'For He orders His angels to protect you wherever you go.' Ps. 91:11

Angels known as Seraphim are declared in Isaiah 6:2. These are consistent in that Seraphim glorify God, hover over the throne of God & supervise the worship in Heaven.

'Hovering around him were mighty seraphim, each with six wings. With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with the remaining two they flew.' Isaiah 6:2

Angels known as Cherubim appear as divine guards in the scriptures as in the case of the Garden of Eden. They also appear in conjunction with the presence & departure of the glory of God.

'He drove the man out, and at the east of the garden of Eden he stationed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life.' Gen.3:24

Jesus Christ Himself was in the presence of angels at His birth, at the forty-day fast, at His betrayal, at the Resurrection, His Ascension to heaven, & His Second Coming. Satan Himself was an angel whom fell into pride.

Angels escort & attend to believers into God's presence at death & also gather His own to Christ at His marvellous return.

'The poor man died, and angels took him to the place of honor next to Abraham.' Luke 16:22

Immediately present in our midst are the extensive work & ministry of angels: free-willed spirit beings who live eternally - possessors of superhuman intelligence & power functioning with infinite purposes - are our everyday, invisible hosts - a steadfast & very present reality.

Hamza is committed to promoting information related to sprituality.Beilul Blog54790
Auria Blog86779

The Secret Of Hacking An HYIP Program

HYIP can be a excellent way to experience success in investment. HYIP, also known as a high yield investment program, can be quite risky as the whole HYIP market. But at the same time if you use it right it can be quite profitable. So let me show you how you can hack this type of program.

The one way to get out of risk is to expand your investment into a number of HYIPs regularly. And besides that, you cannot afford to keep any interest in your investment accounts for compounding. Removing them to your e-gold account is a wise thing to do. You can easily browse HYIPs from HYIP rank and monitor sites to get an idea about their authenticity. Some of these sites even sends catalogs of HYIPs with all the relevant comments, the payment standing on each HYIP and of course the rating. You must remember, that your investment and the consequent profit aren't guaranteed at all in case of HYIPs. There is every possibility that you can even lose the principal amount, so be prepared.

Take a note on some of the 'must do' things regarding High Yielding Investment Programs. Be dead sure of not having all your money into an undersized HYIP program. No matter how promising they may look at the outset, don't get lured away. If you are ready to invest a large sum of money then do make sure to enquire whether the company offers any capital security against it.

Invest your capital into as many programs as you can. It makes more sense to do the above than settling down with two to three small HYIP programs with huge sums. Remember, you need to focus on the plan and not the programs for that matter. As for smaller programs make it a point not to reinvest extra money before you have been paid back. Moreover, with HYIP programs it is advisable to plough back smaller profits from time to time.

High Yielding Investment Programs can provide you with anything between 0.7 and 5% per day to say the least. And as for the longevity of a typical HYIP, it generally does not go beyond one year. HYIP forums come along with rating systems. Programs that have short investment-durations should be preferred. Additionally, the programs that pay back the invested sum must be chosen. You will have to keep bad programs out of our way. Try to investigate through the sites before you plunge into any kind of investment. The fact of the matter is that you will have to steer clear of "too good to be true" offers.

This steps help you to avoid hyip losses. Now I earn more than $4000 thousand a month using my favourite golden rules.

David Vagner helps other people to be succsessfull on HYIP market. To learn his secrets read his FREE HYIP report here HYIP monitor or visit http://thehyips.net/lessons/Brana Blog28569
Aurilia Blog35749

Helping Small Business Consulting Clients in Denial

As a consultant involved in small business consulting, your clients may sometimes ask you why they need the more powerful or larger network you are recommending. Many may say their networks work great most of the time.

Selling Small Business Consulting Clients Fear

When clients question your recommendations or are in denial about their needs, you will often have to sell fear. Talk to the small business consulting client about another customer that trusted his own PC-savvy bookkeeper so much that she was able to steal $50K from the company by covering her trails because no one else was paying attention to the network or its activities. Only the most nave clients will trust every employee and person that has access to the building.

Security In Small Business Consulting

In real life, small business owners don't typically think about security until an emergency arises. It's your responsibility as a small business consulting expert to inform your prospects and clients about the importance of addressing security issues. Ask them to think about sensitive files including credit card numbers, social security numbers, trade secrets, payroll information and annual employee evaluations.

Client Needs

Small business consulting clients often are not thinking big enough when they question your recommendations for a different network. This is the point at which you should take the client through a thorough initial consultation, needs analysis, IT audit and site evaluation.

Often a small business owner will just ask for file sharing or e-mail, but if you delve deeper, you will discover the client needs more sophisticated technological elements.

If small business consulting clients say they don't need better data security, you need to dig deeper. Find out where they store sensitive information and figure out how to design systems that will work with their particular needs.

Copyright MMI-MMVII, Computer Consulting 101 Blog. All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}

Joshua Feinberg of Computer Consulting 101 helps computer consultants get more steady, high-paying clients. Sign-up now for free access Joshua's field-tested, proven Computer Consulting 101 strategies at http://ComputerConsulting101.blogspot.comBirgit Blog13977
Alyson Blog62888

Cheap Web Hosting

Getting set up with cheap web hosting can be a challenge these days in the world of web hosts that provide services like domain bundling, name registration, and free email to get users aboard. Many of these services end up costing you more than a traditional basic hosting account would in the first place, and therefore web hosting can be a hard thing to find for those looking for a bargain. Many people looking for cheap web hosting end up settling for a bundle deal that isnt what they wanted. In order to get cheap web hosting one must first figure out what his or her needs are, and how best to meet them. This is not easy when it comes to cheap web hosting, because what your needs require may not be the same services offered by any given host. But taking the painful steps of identifying what your web hosting needs are will greatly enhance the ability and chances of finding the best deal in the end.

Most web hosts base their packages on bandwidth and storage space. This means that in order to get a deal on cheap web hosting, one must settle for less bandwidth, and less storage space. How much storage space do you need? Are you going to be hosting large files? Are you going to be hosting large amounts of email addresses, and various data? These questions need to be addressed before one can truly find cheap web hosting. Further, how much traffic you receive each day will have a lot to do with the cost of web hosting. If the traffic is moderate to light, you can expect to get a cheap web hosting deal without problems. If on the other hand there is a lot of traffic headed to your site, more bandwidth might be needed to keep it up and running.

Shopping for cheap web hosting is not an easy task simply because there are so many options today. Everything from basic beginners web hosting packages, to deluxe advanced web hosting packages for those running dedicated servers, and virtual servers as well. Making the most out of each package can be hard and therefore it makes sense to compare services.

One of the most popular hosting websites on the net today is godaddy. This website is the benchmark for cheap web hosting, and offers a variety of packages. The godaddy website is best known for its cheap domain registration. Godaddy also offers its users a variety of web hosting packages to fit most anyone's needs.

Another great web host is yahoo business. This website is based upon the need of small businesses looking for an easy way to host a merchant account ready website. This website hosting company provides cheap web hosting solutions for any small business that needs it.

In dealing with cheap web hosting it is important to compare all the options before making a choice. A good spot to compare services is Review Place, a website based on customer reviews of products and services. At Review Place you will be able to look at the different services, and figure out which one works best for you. It is important to compare prices and see what is offered. It will be easier to make an informed choice about what it is that you need, and which service you want to sign up with.

Andy West is a freelance writer for ReviewPlace. For more information and reviews of Cheap Web Hosting, please visit ReviewPlace at http://www.reviewplace.com/cat-372-InternetBusinessTools--Web-Hosting.html.Barbabra Blog29307
Allis Blog35154

Liar, Liar, Pants On Fire"Liar Loans" Lead To A Spike In Mortgage Foreclosures

It starts out all so innocently, the loan application (1003) is filled out while gathering the income and debts verified through credit reports and mortgage payoffs. Then the Debt To Income Ratio (DTI) is calculated dividing the debts including the new housing expense by the income and wham, it happens. The DTI is over 60%. Conventional loan guidelines historically have been around 28% for housing expenses including taxes, insurance, private mortgage insurance and homeowner maintenance fees. The total debt ratios had been around 36% for all monthly debts including the housing expense. With computer modeling and automatic approvals some DTI ratios have been allowed to float up in some cases to 50% to 60% if the borrower has lots of assets and the loan is on a full doc basis. As time passed, more and more hybrids began to show up. Mortgage Brokers were inundated with this new loan product called Stated Income. Simply the borrower would state their income on page two of the 1003 loan application and ratios would fall within lender acceptable limits. The original thinking by lenders were grounded in the premise that many busy well to do borrowers didnt have time to compile tax returns and a litany of proof of their assets. This especially applied to borrowers who owned a multitude of income producing properties or had filed for extension on filing a personal or corporate return for a self-employed borrower. This was a very popular plan and billions of new mortgage originations were sold using the Stated Income or other derivations of the basis plan. It was great for self-employed borrowers who found it difficult to compile in a timely manner all the documentation for a fully documented loan which would use tax returns and a year to date statement from a CPA.

Later on, due to the heavy volume of mortgage business and a desire on part of lenders to expand this popular niche into other areas W-2 wage earners were allowed to state their income as well as those on fixed income such as social security, disability and pensions. For a few years this seemed to be ok. However, as time went on, and the economy in various parts of the country began to slow down, borrowers with stated income loans began to have an inordinate amount of foreclosures. At this time, Stated Income mortgage loans rival the Option ARM for frequency of foreclosures. Fraud reared its ugly head as participating players in the loan process were structuring deals with phony baloney borrowers who didnt exist. These phony buyers are called straw buyers by prosecuting attorneys. Many times the first payments were never made. Most mortgage brokers and lenders have buy back agreements from the secondary markets so when a loan goes bad the originator is on the hook to buy the loan back. If fraud was involved, that shop many times already closed up and had run away with any ill-gotten gains together with the rest of the crew who were working the scam. Those players are prosecuted and serve prison time for their sins.

The other borrowers who were just trying to get a loan to pay off debts and a few months down the road after the new mortgage was in place were not able to make their payments. A Notice of Default is sent to the borrower with foreclosure action following when mortgage payments are not made. In a foreclosure process, the lender holding the bag goes back through all the files looking to perform an autopsy on the loan to determine what happened. Every piece of paper is examined, verifications are double-checked with a high powered microscope. All who committed a fraudulent lending practice are sought out and demands are made for redemption and loan buy back. Some enterprising participants had provided false bank statements and other loan documents, which were in fact fraudulently created on a fine computer word processor. The fix had been in.

Many of these stated loan products were all the rage then the fraud hit the fan. Borrowers could not afford the payments and did not even come close to having enough to even live on. Major changes are afoot. Many mortgage brokers exercise much self-discipline and will not even consider a Stated Loan with someone on fixed income. Where is the real money going to come from? Guidelines are tightening well after the horse has escaped from the barn. There is a web page called www.salary.com that gives the high and low range of income for various occupations. Lenders will immediately check this to see if the Stated Income is within this range. In the past, many times, these loans were done with a wink. This is no longer the case. Recently, Form 4506, which is an IRS form that a borrower signs allowing the lender to check with the IRS and determine income from the borrowers tax returns and W-2s if any. Formally this verification process with the IRS was a time consuming endeavor, but this is not the case anymore. For like $4.00 per file, a lender can access, with the borrowers written permission, an online web site and access the IRS site to verify income. Many lenders will not close the Stated Income loan without an IRS Form 4506 being signed. Many of these loans are sold into the secondary market that helps keep the mortgage money supply flowing. As more and more foreclosures ensue from the Stated Income Mortgage Products there will be a major shake out with tightening of regulations and a search for any player, including the borrowers, who may have had a hand in this Liar Loan product. The fallout is already underway.

What is a borrower to do? For one, look for mortgage products that do not require stating a phony income number. A No Doc loan requires stating No Income on the 1003 loan application. A No Ratio does not require income to be listed but verifies employment and term on the job. It has to make sense. The days of loose lending may be over for many. Bottom line, if it doesnt make sense, it probably is not a good loan. Think long and hard about using a Stated Income loan product. If it conforms with what it originally designed loan program for the busy borrower with lots of cash and assets and no time to pull things together, great. If not, think about passing for some other loan product. It could impact your walk around freedom. A negative loan experience will certainly impact a borrowers credit and help precipitate a long and painful recovery from this credit blemish resulting from a foreclosure. Find another mortgage product to achieve your financial goals.

Dale Rogers
http://www.brokencredit.com
http://www.sellerhelpsbuyer.com

Dale Rogers is a thirty-year mortgage veteran and frequent contributor to the Broken Credit Blog. The BCB is a free website created to assist the general public with information about credit repair and responsible mortgage lending.Angil Blog81923
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The Road To Your Childs Success Goes Through Reading

From the first day your child enters this world and hears the sound of your voice, they begin their foundation for understanding the language and becoming a reader.

From that first moment on, each time you speak to your child and respond to the sounds that they make, you are their teacher helping them to improve their understanding of the language that surrounds them in their new world.

Reading is the foundation from which all other education is built upon, and the spoken language is preparation of the surface on which this foundation will be laid.

With language as the surface for the foundation, and infants being such natural sponges soaking in everything around them, every opportunity you have to communicate with your child should be taken advantage of.

Talk, listen, and respond to your child. Sing and read to and with your child and youll be mapping a course of success.

A childs early experience is, of course, language. They take in and very soon begin to imitate that which they see and hear. Soon to follow will be the recognition of the individual characters that make up the language. From there the individual characters morph into words, words then become sentences and onward. And as reading continues to develop, so does the childs vocabulary as they encounter, recognize, and master even more new words. Then there is writing that soon develops and builds as it all ties back to reading.

With all of this going on, its easy to understand that becoming a reader is a step by step process for children. Not all learn at the same pace and some children will need more practice and attention than others.

However, by the age of about 7 most children are on their way. During this time frame, even the children experiencing difficulties can overcome them and become a very successful reader when given the proper attention. Your active participation in this early development of your childs reading skills is vitally important.

It will be a time not only filled with wonderful moments of bonding and celebrating successes, but it is a foundation you are building that your child will benefit from for their entire lifetime.

Although this timeline is greatly condensed in the form of this article, you should easily see the importance and the direct correlation reading has to the long term success that your child experiences.

When your child is but a baby, read aloud to them regularly throughout each day. Cuddle up with them and read them a story in the afternoon. And by all means dont forget about the tried and true bedtime story.

Make reading to your child a quiet, comfortable, and loving time for them; one that they look forward to and enjoy. If they are restless, energetic, and in play mode, save the reading time for when they unwind and ready to snuggle up.

Generally speaking, try to spend at least a half hour a day reading with your child. Keeping their natural attention span in mind, early on your reading time will be shorter and more often.

Needless to say, with young children, a set schedule is tough to follow as each day is such a new adventure for kids this age.

Dont worry if your reading times dont consistently come together at the same times each day. The key is to look for those quiet opportunities for reading and bonding time. Your child will begin to associate reading with something that is fun and enjoyable and not something that is an interruption to the rest of their day.

Doing this will keep reading fun for both of you, develop good reading habits with your child, and lay the foundation for a lifetime of successes.

Mary Joyce is a former educator & homeschooler who's website http://www.homeschool-curriculum-4u.com offers resources and articles on http://www.homeschool-curriculum-4u.com/homeschool-preschool.htm, reading, & more.Adrianne Blog13
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Small Business Loans Satisfying Commercial Ideas

Business is considered the best way to earn your living for most of the people. Unlike jobs, there is nobody to control you as you are the controller. But starting or running a business is not an easy task. As we know that business runs on capital and there must be sufficient flow of capital for a business to function smoothly. A small deficit of capital can lead to big losses. Small business loans are designed to help you avoid such losses through apt cash support whenever you need it.

Small business loans are loans for meeting all your business needs. Whether you want to pay off your creditors or purchase raw materials or buy office space or stationeries, computers, equipments, for transportation purposes or to cater any other need a small business loans serves it all. These loans are easily accessible through online option. In a scenario where no body has enough time to take appointments from numerous loan lenders in the market and meet them, an online option helps borrowers in getting the maximum information in minimum time. Large numbers of online small business loan quotes are available to choose from. To make your life easier, there are online instruments such as comparison tools, debt and repayment calculators and budget planners which could help you get a better understanding of the loan package.

Small business loans offer you money in two forms: one is secured and other one is unsecured. When no collateral is offered to the lender the loan is called as unsecured small business loan. The amount which you can get under this form may be lesser as compared to secured option but it is the best way to support immediate expenses as the approvals are quite faster in absence of collateral valuation. On the other hand if the need is bigger and you need money for longer term, you can rely on a secured small business loan. These loans are easily available to borrowers with a bad credit history or poor credit score.

While considering your loan application a lender will look for your business prospects. You may need to convince the lender that your business will succeed enough to repay the loan on time (when collateral is not there). Along with such information, simply fill in the loan application form with your personal details and requirement and details about your business. The lender will review your application after which he will contact you for further assistance regarding small business loans.

Mary Jones is an expert financial advisor. She has done Masters in Finance from London Business School. To find Small business loans,Payday Loans, Personal Loans, Instant personal loans, Secured Loan, Unsecured Loan visit http://www.loansvalley.co.ukBrittani Blog21114
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Design Build Projects - Whose Minding the Store?

So you're ready to start your design build remodeling project. You have hired yourself a contractor and are raring to go right? Wrong!

Of course a new renovation project is an exciting time especially a design build project which allows for the most instantaneous freedom of expression. Anticipating the end and having a fresh new look is a temptation to hurry the process along. But a word of caution; walk don't run. A design build project can also be difficult to keep on track if you don't have a plan.

Unless you are someone with endless means, don't get ahead of yourself, the work you do up front could potentially save you thousands even tens of thousands of dollars in the end.

Working out a comprehensive budget that will get you both the final design you desire while keeping you out of financial trouble is sometimes a high-wire balancing act. But it can be done.

Ok so how do you achieve this important goal when you don't even know everything you want? Well first you must take some important steps that if not done, can have a negative impact on your actual budget.

Here's the Top 10:

1. You must realistically decide how much you can "invest" in this project. And it is truly an investment as you will benefit financially from the return on investment (roi).

2. Determine what type of funding will you use? Savings, personal note, home equity line of credit or loan? Choosing the right type of funding can also save you money. You should speak to your financial advisor.

3. How much of a contingency are you able to set aside for unforeseen conditions which result in changes. (It should be at least 15%; 20% if possible).

4. Get the basic design on paper as soon as possible. This would include plans, elevations and specifications. Whatever can be determined up front should be. This will help solidify your budget.

5. Obtain a minimum of three bids from contractors based on the basic design intent. Make sure they are pricing apples to apples.

6. Establish allowances for all large purchases such as plumbing fixtures, appliances, lighting and stick to them.

7. Check contractor references thoroughly; view their work if possible. Having an incompetent contractor will cost you money.

8. Get it in writing. Whatever pricing, materials and/or project schedules are agreed upon up front, they should be part of a written contract.

9. If your renovation project is large (and large is relative to your budget), you may want to consult an attorney to review or even write the contract for you.

10. Require insurance certificates (general liability and workmen's compensaton) from your contractor and subcontractors.

So What's Up With the Title?

Ok why is this article is entitled "Whose Minding the Store"? Well of course it is only a metaphorical question but it is one of great consequence. The "Store" is your budget. And the question is who will be minding it?

Believe it or not, I see many just sort of loose track of it. Then all of a sudden, wham, the reality hits them like a freight train. Someone needs to be in charge. It can be you, your architect or your designer but it should be done consistently by the same party and updated no less than once a month on a good size project. A written comparison of actual costs versus estimated costs. This will keep your budget from derailing.

Design build projects are difficult to anticipate costs way in advance keeping constant tabs on them is imperative. A good way to do this is to create categories or phases in the beginning. The construction industry uses what are known as CSI codes. These construction cost codes break down a project by every category and assign a number to it thus creating a schedule of values.

If your contractor is unfamiliar with them, they can create their own just make sure it covers all the categories you can think of and includes material and labor. Then when they invoice you, they should bill against these categories.

Not only will you see where you may be getting into trouble, you may also see where you have a windfall and can move some money (theoretically) around. Your contractor should be able to provide you with this information. It can easily be managed on a simple spreadsheet.

Don't Forget This One:

A category that many people overlook is general conditions. These costs can add up especially on a large project. It includes items such as dumpsters, temporary utilities, portable toilets, cleaning, management fees, temporary controls and protection to name just a few.

Other substantial amounts of course will be found in the major trades. These will include rough carpentry, plumbing, HVAC, electrical, millwork and finish carpentry, flooring, doors, windows and roofing materials.

Ok so now you have your design and a budget you can live with. Now what? Now a call to action. Research your product selections and their availability. The earlier decisions are made the earlier the orders can be placed. Delays cost money pure and simple.

Dilligence is the key:

Don't let the inertia of your project get your budget spinning out of control. By carefully monitoring your budget, you will not only get the finished project you desire but also may find a way to get things that were once only on your wish list.

Tammy A. Borges is the founder and author of http://Remodeling101.com. This website is a complete beginners guide to the home remodeling process. She is an experienced and accomplished Senior Project Manager and has been in the construction industry for 25 years.Brenna Blog42344
Anna Maria Blog20405

Online Associates Degree

Associate degrees are commonly referred to as undergraduate degrees. Duration of studies is counted as units or semester credit hours. Each semester has 15 credit hours hence an Associate degree is earned once a student reaches the minimum 4 semesters, equivalent to 60 units or semester credit hours. Associate degrees are generally 2-year degrees, like those conferred at community colleges. Now, associate degrees are available online, allowing you to study whenever or wherever you want.

An associate degree is defined as, An academic degree awarded by community colleges, junior colleges and some bachelors degree-granting colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study usually lasting two years.

The program consists of three parts: general education requirements, major requirements, and electives. Online associate degrees are the same as on-campus or in-classroom associate degrees, but the degree can be taken entirely through the Internet or by distance education.

An online associate degree in business, liberal arts, and other disciplines, is widely accepted for transfer into bachelor's degree programs throughout the country.

Types of Associate Degree Programs:
A.A. - "Associate of Arts" degree
This degree is designed to transfer to a four-year college or university.

A.A.S. - "Associate of Applied Science" degree
Designed to prepare graduates for career entry or job advancement after 2 years of college study. AAS degrees may transfer in whole or in part to 4 year colleges. A.A.S degrees may also be known by occupational specific titles such as Associate in Engineering Technology, Associate in Business, etc.

A.S. - "Associate of Science" degree
Designed to transfer to a 4 year college or university.

Occupational Degree
Also referred to as "applied" degree programs, an occupational degree program at a two-year college is designed to prepare students to enter the workforce immediately following graduation. The primary function is career preparation, however some courses and/or programs may transfer to 4 year colleges.

Online Associate Degrees
Associated degrees available nationwide include disciplines such as accounting, arts and humanities, business and management, marketing, design, graphic design, early childhood development, education, engineering, fire science, health sciences, hospitality management, human resources management, law and paralegal, criminal justice, social sciences telecommunications and technology.

Taking a degree in-classroom, online or by distance learning makes no difference except for the cost, time and place. Other than these aspects, education and programs are common to all of them, although there is less emphasis on an industry-specific competency. An Associate degree is more focused on learning the basic academic discipline, than in specialization.

All associated degrees are available through the Internet, but accelerated online programs make it easier to earn a certificate in less time. Earning an Associate degree also enables students to enter interesting professions, with minimal additional training in the field of electronics, health care and other faster growing occupations.

When you earn Associate degree online, you will not be singled out because yours was distance learning. A certificate for an Associates degree looks the same, regardless of whether it was earned online or on a campus. When you learn online, you will find that you can schedule work, family obligations and fun as well as learning into your busy life. Lectures can be downloaded and listened to at any time. Documents can also be read on the website, and you can turn in your homework assignments by e-mail or fax. Those who want to earn associate degree online but who are not sure how to get started should browse through various programs and locate one that is right. This requires a lot of research, but ultimately it pays off in the form of greater confidence, qualifications, and pay.

This article has been published by Kateri White currently writing on online degree programs topics for our website http://www.onlineuniversitydegreeprogram.info.For more details about the online degree programs, please visit our website. If any mistake found please mail kateriwhite@gmail.com.Aprilette Blog99104
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How To Deal With Credit Card Offers

In this day and age, plastic rules, not just because of convenience and safety features but also because of the opportunities for rewards and rebates that many competitive credit card companies offer. You no longer have to look too hard for credit card offers because they will find you. The only question is how to pick one that will give you the best deal. If this is your current dilemma, here are some simple tips to help you narrow down your choice:

Never go random.

When there are so many credit card offers out there that seem to offer the same things, it can be tempting to just sign up for whatever card comes along. This is not a good way of taking advantage of credit card offers. Never pick a credit card based some random advertisement, a recommendation, pressure from the credit card company or a purchase emergency.

Consider what you'll use it for.

While a credit card can give you a semblance of financial freedom, it is still a form of debt, that's why it's called a credit card. Before you decide on a credit card offer, think about what you'll need to use it for and how often you think you'll be using it.

Say for example you're the type who likes to frequent a certain establishment and usually use credit for your purchases, you might want to consider a credit card from that store if they're offering one. That credit card will often carry with it a lot of great discounts, rewards, cash rebates and special privileges when used with that establishment.

Look for range.

Generally, the more locations you can use your credit card with, the better, so you might want to choose a credit card that can be used both nationally or internationally. If you dont see yourself leaving your locality for a long time, regional credit cards will work well for you.

Go for low interest rates.

When you're finding the best card among your credit card offers, look for one that has the low interest rates. Rates vary depending on the credit card company and sometimes, on the card itself, so it will be advantageous for you if you compared rates.

Low interest rates will be a good choice for you if you're the type of consumer who prefers to pay for your credit card purchases on an installment basis, with payments spread out for several months. That way, you won't be saddled with high monthly payments and end up paying more.

Other fees and features

Annual fees and penalties are another thing to watch out for when you're considering credit card offers. There are also corresponding fees for other transactions such as balance transfers and cash advances. You might also want to check what features come with a credit card, such as rebates, rewards programs, discounts, warranties and even insurance.

Mind the fine print.

The fine print can be deceiving, so make sure you read it before signing up. You might be attracted to one credit card because of the low interest rates only to find out later that the rates are part of an introductory offer and that you'll be saddled with a much higher APR after only a few months. A credit card offer is only as good as the fine print, so choose well.

Take charge.

You dont have to be passive about your credit card choice nor do you need o be stuck with what's being offered to you. Write down what your needs are and what kind of features you'd want in a credit card. Next, pick up the phone and ask several credit card companies for their best offers. If you take a more proactive role in choosing your credit card, you're more likely to find one that will fit you best.

Mario Churchill is a freelance author and has written over 200 articles on various subjects. For more information checkout http://www.applyforeasycredit.com.Cammi Blog58754
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