Vapor is used in this type of washing. There is this hot regular water removal device which causes hot regular water in the floor under questionable. Later, washing absorbs all the dust contaminants as well the other small creatures living in the materials. The benefits of using this technique can be found in the great power machine used in this procedure. This technique needs skills, so it's always better to lease the product or seek the services of a qualified program expert. We often spot our carpeting, incorrectly. The spot might be anything, from food spots generally candy spots, marinade spots, or ink spots or blood spots or pee, throw up spots, oily spots of butter or oil spots, colour spots, etc. And it is our propensity to neglect it because of actual negligence. But prevent doing so. Eliminating the spot at the best is very important for floor spots. You will always have difficulties removing a dry spot. Cleaning spots, is not a trial if you adhere to the given procedure. Don't forget to machine the carpeting at the end of the spot elimination. For wet spots, mark the spot using an organic cotton fabric with an excellent floor spot cleaner. program procedure contains washing with therapy or Wool coat cleaning agent and regular water. It's impressive so you can go for this one, in case of less heavy spots. Tips to Follow Create sure you use Wool coat floor spot purifiers of excellent manufacturers and test them before use. Do not be very severe with the floor. You might end up shedding (entangling of the Wool coat materials with each other) the floor and decolourizing it. Do not use regular detergent soaps to fresh the floor since Wool coat is a very sensitive material. Create sure you fresh the floor at least once a week if not, twice or maybe three times. Create sure you do an established washing of your floor once a year.
Monday, October 1, 2012
The Home Your Breath
Colonial Heating and Cooling is dedicated to its customers. We are a certified air vent duct cleaning company with decades of experience in the industry. We’ve been a member of the Plymouth, MI community since 1973 and have lived by our commitment to quality HVAC services ever since. Through expert installation, a sales staff knowledgeable of HVAC and ancillary services, and a team of technicians who are irreplaceable when it comes to honest technical excellence, we are proud to be a Trane Comfort Specialist Dealer. We feature a variety of products such as Trane Furnaces, a/c units and Trane thermostats.
http://miminaghshineh
flea and tick control
But after having said that, most of the pet owners are not able to use flea tick Frontline for a good flea and tick control. Frontline Plus for dogs may not be the same that could be given to cats so a pet admirer has to check the constituent of said products and decide what to take a plunge off.
Frontline Plus is easy on the skin on your pets as it spotlessly goes into the pores of the skin and helps to take out even the minutest eggs, larvae of ticks and fleas. You must know that a critical condition like fleas and ticks is not treated in time could just take your animals for even a worse condition. Thus, before it's too late, take the route of Frontline Plus and have the pet you always loved to stay happy, chirpy and even more active. When you are keeping a pet at home, it is your responsibility to provide him all things like shelter, food but since all these things could stay good if their health is taken care of well, taking care of the health of the pet animals becomes more crucial and in order to do so, Frontline Plus shall help you till no end.
http://www.articlealley.com
Sunday, June 3, 2012
The Exterior of Your Home
The pressure, owing to this situation, forces water through cracks spotted on walls and floors, as well as through joints where walls and floors meet. As a result, water vapor increases, converting the air that pervades the room into a humid one.
Humidity and moisture play spoilsport to set up a good environment for mold and mildew growth. Fungi growth can lead to respiratory problems, infections, and allergies. Exposure to mold can pave the way for health related problems like lung bleeding and asthma. To thwart ill-effects produced by water logging, a footer drain that functions at its best should get placed outside the house. The drain gets rid of excess water, and diverts its course to take it away from the residential property. Two types of drain get used, which take the form of a pump system and a gravity drain. Gravity drain works by directing water to take its course away from the residential property, on a downhill pipe that is termed as the tail line. When this method is put to use, water should get directed to an area that is lower than the residential property. If this redirected destination becomes a problem, using pump system becomes the best alternative that serves the purpose well. The pump system is also an economical option when compared to the gravity drain.
External waterproofing entwined with proper drainage and usage of good waterproofing products lead to fruitful results. External waterproofing might not be a practical option for all types of residential properties, as in the case of old residential properties. But, it becomes easy to make external waterproofing as an integral part when the house is still under construction. The property owner can come across waterproofing contractors who offer proper estimate on the cost as well as the scope of waterproofing treatments required for the property. There are professionals who offer free quotations, without strings attached to the quote. The property owner who wants to pick an ideal contractor should never forgo quality work by hiring a low-cost contractor.Humidity and moisture play spoilsport to set up a good environment for mold and mildew growth. Fungi growth can lead to respiratory problems, infections, and allergies. Exposure to mold can pave the way for health related problems like lung bleeding and asthma. To thwart ill-effects produced by water logging, a footer drain that functions at its best should get placed outside the house. The drain gets rid of excess water, and diverts its course to take it away from the residential property. Two types of drain get used, which take the form of a pump system and a gravity drain. Gravity drain works by directing water to take its course away from the residential property, on a downhill pipe that is termed as the tail line. When this method is put to use, water should get directed to an area that is lower than the residential property. If this redirected destination becomes a problem, using pump system becomes the best alternative that serves the purpose well. The pump system is also an economical option when compared to the gravity drain.
While good external waterproofing treatments are provided, the homeowner can bury his worry about internal waterproofing. Interior waterproofing works well to remove accumulated water from the house, whereas, external waterproofing ensures that water doesn’t get into the interior sections of the house.
Second Story Home Additions
Building up can often be about the same cost as building out or even less expensive, depending on the level of foundation work or structural reinforcement that is needed. Building up has the valuable benefit of keeping your outdoor space intact, which means you will be increasing your home's square footage without taking away the backyard area, which is a true home addition. Plus, you'll have more freedom of design with a second story addition, giving you the potential for more rooms and space and the opportunity to alter the style of your home if the addition will be visible from the street. The one downside to a second story addition is that because the roof of the home will be removed and then replaced, the home will need to be vacant during a portion of the construction. If possible, schedule your addition for the summer when school is out, you can take a vacation, and the weather is more effectual for an open addition like that. The warm and dry weather of the summer also keeps your new rooms from water damage, the risk of mold, and the project will be completed on time because there won't be any rain delays. Although all of the necessary preparation may feel overwhelming at times, remember that it's important for a proper addition, and the wait and effort will be worth it when you're enjoying the finished addition. The big perk of designing your own room addition is that the style and purpose will be perfectly suited for you and your family exactly as you wanted it to be from the beginning, which is nearly impossible to find in any previously constructed home.
Homes that welcome adult children or live-in elderly parents use the new rooms as apartments, families with frequent visitors can be more hospitable to guests, and those with the need for storage and work space for hobbies and other activities find a second story to be the ideal solution. Whatever your needs for an addition are, you will have the benefit of a design that is completely yours and space that is created to suit your individual needs, no matter
Home And Garage Door Styles
Selecting your appropriate design is the first step to your dream home, but this is much easier than many people think and doesn't have to be expensive. Start with your design or color scheme and then have a good look at your existing garage door. If your garage door looks old, worn, has any damage or is in an outdated style it's worth it to replace it with a style that is fresh, updated and better suits your dream home design. However, a new garage door or one that still looks brand new can be adjusted quickly to help it match your home. Most garage door materials can easily be painted, and the addition of faux hardware and decor can create a theme. Any home design will also have a garage door style to match, and an expert garage door representative can help you discover the right one. A good way to start the process is by looking at the various garage door styles on the market. Different facets each play a role, and garage door panel design to the type of windows and optional garage door decorations can create an endless array of options for you to choose. Whether your home is more traditionally styled or contemporary, there's sure to be a modern garage door style that can bring your home into the 21st century or complement your style. Your garage door can have a selection of colors, window styles and other features to make selecting the perfect one easier, and it can also give you ideas for the rest of your home's design.
Just Because Someone Decides
Toronto plumbing laws require that plumbing installation, maintenance and repair works must comply with building codes. Keep in mind that these building codes are intended to protect the safety and welfare of Toronto residents in general and individuals occupying the building where plumbing work was performed in particular. For example, shoddily-repaired gas pipes and fixtures will leak dangerous levels of gas, thus, endangering the lives of residents in a condo building. This is also true for badly-installed and repaired water and drainage pipes and fixtures are concerned. Floods containing sewage materials can cause various diseases, not to mention cause extensive water damage to the structure itself as well as the furniture and fixtures.
Indeed, building professionals including architects, engineers and general contractors are obligated by law to hire licensed plumbers and for good reasons, too. Your house and office also deserve the best Toronto plumber your money can hire for whatever plumbing job necessary. Possession of Right Education, Training and Experience
Toronto plumbing organizations require their members to possess the right set of education, training and experience before granting recognition as licensed plumbers. These professionals undergo rigorous training to ensure that their performance on the job is up to the highest standards. Again, safety is of paramount concern here followed by the functionality and durability of the water, gas and drainage plumbing systems.
Don’t just hire anybody who says that he can do the job. Always hire a licensed Toronto plumber and you will not regret it paying for his professional fee because the finished work will stand up to the highest standards of the profession.
Don’t try to hire any plumbers who say that he can do the job. Always try to hire a licensed Toronto Plumber from Leasideplumbing where you will never regret for paying their professional fees as you will get the best service from them…
Indeed, building professionals including architects, engineers and general contractors are obligated by law to hire licensed plumbers and for good reasons, too. Your house and office also deserve the best Toronto plumber your money can hire for whatever plumbing job necessary. Possession of Right Education, Training and Experience
Toronto plumbing organizations require their members to possess the right set of education, training and experience before granting recognition as licensed plumbers. These professionals undergo rigorous training to ensure that their performance on the job is up to the highest standards. Again, safety is of paramount concern here followed by the functionality and durability of the water, gas and drainage plumbing systems.
Don’t just hire anybody who says that he can do the job. Always hire a licensed Toronto plumber and you will not regret it paying for his professional fee because the finished work will stand up to the highest standards of the profession.
Don’t try to hire any plumbers who say that he can do the job. Always try to hire a licensed Toronto Plumber from Leasideplumbing where you will never regret for paying their professional fees as you will get the best service from them…
House Floor Cleaning Service
 |
| Floor |
Stay out of the way: Aside from showing the cleaners what you want done, try and stay out of the way and resist the temptation of getting into the action and clean alongside. Also, keep kids and pets away from the cleaners. This will likely just slow things down. You should refrain from offering food or drink as house cleaners are there to get the work done. They need to get on to the next job or go home for the day.
Be Appreciative: Just as it is important to provide feedback on improvement, it is also recommended to let house cleaners know when they're doing a good job. Tipping is certainly not required even if your home was in particularly bad shape, or if you asked them to do something out of the ordinary. Nevertheless, tipping is certainly appreciated.
Sunday, May 6, 2012
Unit Wall moderns
The Power
The basic ideas of stored-program computers were therefore in place before von Neumann got to work. Yet it was he who had the prestige and the connections to turn the Turing machine into reality. Because city-destroying bombs couldn’t be built by trial and error, computers were required to simulate the physics of detonation and blast waves. A computer helped build the bomb, and the bomb necessitated ever more advanced computers.
Von Neumann and two colleagues codified their machine’s architecture in a report issued in 1946. They could be called the fathers of the open-source movement, as they ultimately declined to seek any patents. Within a few years of the plans’ being shared, over a dozen siblings to the Princeton machine existed across the globe. Indeed, the processors in every cellphone, tablet and laptop still hew closely to von Neumann’s architecture.
Already one of the century’s great mathematicians, von Neumann pursued a career in academia before turning to consult on the building of bombs (and computers) during World War II. At the time, the Army had begun work on a “digital electronic computer” known as the Eniac that was programmed, via switches and cables, by hand. After Nagasaki, von Neumann sold the United States military on a more powerful “stored program” computer, one that could read coded sequences from high-speed memory and thus more rapidly, and automatically, run numerical simulations essential to the design of nuclear weapons. Von Neumann also sold his employer, the Institute for Advanced Study, on building the Faustian device in Princeton.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Tone for Neighboring Development
Just as Friends of the High Line was releasing renderings of phase three this week, Related announced that it had chosen an architect for the first residential tower in the Hudson Yards: Diller Scofidio + Renfro. The firm, whose offices overlook the High Line, has never done a high-rise building. Partner Ricardo Scofidio says he is excited about the commission. "One can argue that most architects do their best building when it’s the first commission of a type,” he says. “You're not pulling details out of a drawer."
Nor is phase three of the High Line a repeat of earlier sections. Renderings show visitors walking on railroad tracks (in the first two phases tracks were relegated to flower beds or embedded in paving). “It’s how people really want to do to it: walk on the rails,” says Robert Hammond, co-founder and executive director of Friends of the High Line. Other innovations in phase three include a free-form spiral stairway at 11th Avenue and 30th Street, a proposed amphitheater at 10th Avenue and 30th Street, and a whole lot of new “furniture” that seems to rise out of the paving—mimicking the “peel up” benches of the first two phases. There will also be a play space for children, created by exposing some of the beams that support the elevated structure. (Click on the slide show above to view the renderings.)
One section of the defunct railway—a spur that heads east from the “main line” at 30th Street—will nestle into a 70-foot cutout at the base of what is being called Tower C, a 51-story building designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox for the southeast corner of Hudson Yards. Hammond says that the 70-foot clearance will be enough to create a dramatic passageway, comparable to the High Line’s tunnel under the Standard Hotel in the Meat Packing district. And in case there is any doubt about Related’s decision to embrace the High Line, when the developer released renderings of Tower C, the High Line was prominently featured in the foreground.
For the High Line, this represents a dramatic change of fortune in just seven years. In 2005, the Bloomberg administration was hoping to build a football (and Olympics) stadium on the Hudson Yards site. Many renderings for the project showed it without the High Line. Even after the stadium plan collapsed, developers told New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, owners of the Hudson Yards property, that it would have to demolish the line to make the parcel worth building on, Hammond recalls.
Some parts of phase three—also being called the High Line at the West Side Rail Yards—may open as early as the spring of 2014. But there are caveats. According to a High Line press release, “The timeline for construction is subject to fundraising and the timing of capital funding required by zoning” (the latter a reference to funds the city will expect Related to contribute). So far, the organization has raised $38 million of the estimated $90 million needed to build phase three.
Nor is phase three of the High Line a repeat of earlier sections. Renderings show visitors walking on railroad tracks (in the first two phases tracks were relegated to flower beds or embedded in paving). “It’s how people really want to do to it: walk on the rails,” says Robert Hammond, co-founder and executive director of Friends of the High Line. Other innovations in phase three include a free-form spiral stairway at 11th Avenue and 30th Street, a proposed amphitheater at 10th Avenue and 30th Street, and a whole lot of new “furniture” that seems to rise out of the paving—mimicking the “peel up” benches of the first two phases. There will also be a play space for children, created by exposing some of the beams that support the elevated structure. (Click on the slide show above to view the renderings.)
One section of the defunct railway—a spur that heads east from the “main line” at 30th Street—will nestle into a 70-foot cutout at the base of what is being called Tower C, a 51-story building designed by Kohn Pedersen Fox for the southeast corner of Hudson Yards. Hammond says that the 70-foot clearance will be enough to create a dramatic passageway, comparable to the High Line’s tunnel under the Standard Hotel in the Meat Packing district. And in case there is any doubt about Related’s decision to embrace the High Line, when the developer released renderings of Tower C, the High Line was prominently featured in the foreground.
For the High Line, this represents a dramatic change of fortune in just seven years. In 2005, the Bloomberg administration was hoping to build a football (and Olympics) stadium on the Hudson Yards site. Many renderings for the project showed it without the High Line. Even after the stadium plan collapsed, developers told New York’s Metropolitan Transportation Authority, owners of the Hudson Yards property, that it would have to demolish the line to make the parcel worth building on, Hammond recalls.
Some parts of phase three—also being called the High Line at the West Side Rail Yards—may open as early as the spring of 2014. But there are caveats. According to a High Line press release, “The timeline for construction is subject to fundraising and the timing of capital funding required by zoning” (the latter a reference to funds the city will expect Related to contribute). So far, the organization has raised $38 million of the estimated $90 million needed to build phase three.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Through remote islands in Papua New Guinea
If the prospect of sweating your way up to a hissing, spitting volcano isn’t intrepid enough, this expedition also offers a rare opportunity to explore wild jungle trails and stay with the shy Bainings and Tolais tribes, known for their secret ceremonies and ritual dances.
The trip ends in the Duke of York islands -- bet you’ve not heard of those either -- where the locals still barter with shells and you can snorkel in azure waters. The trip is run on a bespoke basis and can be done year round, with no minimum numbers required.
US$11,492 per person (based on two sharing) for 14 days, including flights, pre-trip logistical set-up, personalized expedition equipment, private guiding from ex-military and survival specialists as well as local support and all meals and drinks; +44 (0)20 7426 9899;
The trip ends in the Duke of York islands -- bet you’ve not heard of those either -- where the locals still barter with shells and you can snorkel in azure waters. The trip is run on a bespoke basis and can be done year round, with no minimum numbers required.
US$11,492 per person (based on two sharing) for 14 days, including flights, pre-trip logistical set-up, personalized expedition equipment, private guiding from ex-military and survival specialists as well as local support and all meals and drinks; +44 (0)20 7426 9899;
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Decorating Natural Light on Your Home
The benefits of having abundant daylight in our homes are well documented. Studies show that students learn better, adults suffer less Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D.), and older adults have less trouble moving around safely when rooms are filled with natural light. In addition to psychological and physical benefits, it is clear that living and working in naturally lit spaces generally makes us feel better.
Natural light comes into most homes through doors and windows. But if you want to add beauty, style and natural light into your home, while visually expanding rooms, consider additional daylight from skylights.
Light from above makes rooms more functional and livable. With venting skylights, kitchens become more enjoyable for families because they are brighter, cheerful and free of cooking odours, heat and moisture which escape through the opening. In bathrooms, skylights can light up a room and offer a degree of privacy impossible to achieve with vertical wall windows. As a bonus, extra decorating or storage space can be used on the wall that may have been occupied by a window.
In addition to the "feel good" and decorative reasons for adding light from above, homeowners will also benefit from added energy efficiency.
Natural light comes into most homes through doors and windows. But if you want to add beauty, style and natural light into your home, while visually expanding rooms, consider additional daylight from skylights.
Light from above makes rooms more functional and livable. With venting skylights, kitchens become more enjoyable for families because they are brighter, cheerful and free of cooking odours, heat and moisture which escape through the opening. In bathrooms, skylights can light up a room and offer a degree of privacy impossible to achieve with vertical wall windows. As a bonus, extra decorating or storage space can be used on the wall that may have been occupied by a window.
In addition to the "feel good" and decorative reasons for adding light from above, homeowners will also benefit from added energy efficiency.
Proview Escalates iPad Name
The press release continues: "To further this deception, Apple used an intermediary, Farncombe International and its Managing Director, Graham Robinson, to create an elaborate but false pretext for the purchase of Proview's IPAD trademarks. Apple created a special purpose company named IP Application Development Limited ('iPAD Ltd.'), the concealed the fact that this company was acting as an agent of Apple."
"Graham Robinson further concealed Apple's involvement by adopting a false alias, Jonathan Hargreaves, which he used when negotiating with Proview," the statement says.
Proview also claims that Apple and Robinson misled the Chinese company regarding its intentions for the trademark.
Apple would not comment on the matter, but has repeatedly reiterated the company's stance that it bought the rights to the iPad name three years ago.
Apple has also threatened to sue Proview for making misleading statements to the press that could damage Cupertino's reputation in China.
The Mac maker faces several challenges in this battle. First of all, intellectual property laws are much different and much broader in China. Apple won a case in Hong Kong, but lower courts have ruled in Proview's favor.
For more, see PCMag's full review of the iPad 2 and the slideshow below.
At issue is who owns the rights to the iPad name, which Proview has been using in China since 1998. Apple bought the rights to the brand from Proview, a computer monitor maker, in 2009, but the Chinese company claims that only applies to Taiwan, not mainland China. A court ruled in Proview's favor in December, and that reportedly led to the seizure of iPads from stores in cities throughout China.
Proview also alleges that Apple was "pressed for time" when it bought the iPad brand and alleges that Apple was "predisposed to deception" considering Apple knew Proview was against its use of "similar trademarks."
Windows on the iPad for Speedy
The free version of the OnLive Desktop service arrived in January. It gives you Word, Excel and PowerPoint, a few basic Windows apps (like Paint, Media Player, Notepad and Calculator), and 2 gigabytes of storage.
Plenty of apps give you stripped-down versions of Office on the iPad. But OnLive Desktop gives you the complete Windows Office suite. In Word, you can do fancy stuff like tracking changes and high-end typography. In PowerPoint, you can make slide shows that the iPad projects with all of the cross fades, zooms and animations intact.
Thanks to Microsoft’s own Touch Pack add-on, all of this works with touch-screen gestures. You can pinch and spread two fingers to zoom in and out of your Office documents. You can use Windows’ impressive handwriting recognition to enter text (although a Bluetooth keyboard works better). You can flick to scroll through a list.
Instead of clicking the mouse on things, you can simply tap, although a stylus works better than a fingertip; many of the Windows controls are too tiny for a finger to tap precisely. (On a real Windows PC, you could open the Control Panel to enlarge the controls for touch use — but OnLive’s simulated PC is lacking the Control Panel, which is one of its few downsides.)
OnLive Desktop is seamless and fairly amazing. And fast; on what other PC does Word open in one second?
But the only way to get files onto and off OnLive Desktop is using a Documents folder on the desktop. To access it, you have to visit OnLive’s Web site on your actual PC.
The news today is the new service, called OnLive Desktop Plus. It’s not free — it costs $5 a month — but it adds Adobe Reader, Internet Explorer and a 1-gigabit-a-second Internet connection. Your iPad can’t play Flash videos on the Web. Mine can.
Plenty of apps give you stripped-down versions of Office on the iPad. But OnLive Desktop gives you the complete Windows Office suite. In Word, you can do fancy stuff like tracking changes and high-end typography. In PowerPoint, you can make slide shows that the iPad projects with all of the cross fades, zooms and animations intact.
Thanks to Microsoft’s own Touch Pack add-on, all of this works with touch-screen gestures. You can pinch and spread two fingers to zoom in and out of your Office documents. You can use Windows’ impressive handwriting recognition to enter text (although a Bluetooth keyboard works better). You can flick to scroll through a list.
Instead of clicking the mouse on things, you can simply tap, although a stylus works better than a fingertip; many of the Windows controls are too tiny for a finger to tap precisely. (On a real Windows PC, you could open the Control Panel to enlarge the controls for touch use — but OnLive’s simulated PC is lacking the Control Panel, which is one of its few downsides.)
OnLive Desktop is seamless and fairly amazing. And fast; on what other PC does Word open in one second?
But the only way to get files onto and off OnLive Desktop is using a Documents folder on the desktop. To access it, you have to visit OnLive’s Web site on your actual PC.
The news today is the new service, called OnLive Desktop Plus. It’s not free — it costs $5 a month — but it adds Adobe Reader, Internet Explorer and a 1-gigabit-a-second Internet connection. Your iPad can’t play Flash videos on the Web. Mine can.
Love and Death Story Opinion
This might be taken to mean that a limitless future would allow for even more intensity to love than a limited one. Romantic love among immortals would open itself to an intensity that eludes our mortal race. After all, immortality opens an infinite future. And this would seem to be to the benefit of love’s passion. I think, however, that matters are quite the opposite, and that “Groundhog Day” gives us the clue as to why this is. What the film displays, if we follow this interpretive thread past the film’s plot, is not merely the necessity of time itself for love’s intensity but the necessity of a specific kind of time: time for development. The eternal return of “Groundhog Day” offered plenty of time. It promised an eternity of it. But it was the wrong kind of time. There was no time to develop a coexistence. There was instead just more of the same.
This is not true, however, and romantic love itself shows us why. Love is between two particular people in their particularity. We cannot love just anyone, even others with much the same qualities. If we did, then when we met someone like the beloved but who possessed a little more of a quality to which we were drawn, we would, in the phrase philosophers of love use, “trade up.” But we don’t trade up, or at least most of us don’t. This is because we love that particular person in his or her specificity. And what we create together, our common projects and shared emotions, are grounded in those specificities. Romantic love is not capable of everything. It is capable only of what the unfolding of a future between two specific people can meaningfully allow.
Sooner or later the paths that can be opened by the specificities of a relationship come to an end. Not every couple can, with a sense of common meaningfulness, take up skiing or karaoke, political discussion or gardening. Eventually we must tread the same roads again, wearing them with our days. This need not kill love, although it might. But it cannot, over the course of eternity, sustain the intensity that makes romantic love, well, romantic. Many readers will probably already have recognized that this lesson about love concerns not only its relationship with death, but also its relationship with life. It doesn’t take eternity for many of our romantic love’s embers to begin to dim. We lose the freshness of our shared projects and our passions, and something of our relationships gets lost along with them. We still love our partner, but we think more about the old days, when love was new and the horizons of the future beckoned us. In those cases, we needn’t look for Groundhog Day, for it will already have found us.
This is not true, however, and romantic love itself shows us why. Love is between two particular people in their particularity. We cannot love just anyone, even others with much the same qualities. If we did, then when we met someone like the beloved but who possessed a little more of a quality to which we were drawn, we would, in the phrase philosophers of love use, “trade up.” But we don’t trade up, or at least most of us don’t. This is because we love that particular person in his or her specificity. And what we create together, our common projects and shared emotions, are grounded in those specificities. Romantic love is not capable of everything. It is capable only of what the unfolding of a future between two specific people can meaningfully allow.
Sooner or later the paths that can be opened by the specificities of a relationship come to an end. Not every couple can, with a sense of common meaningfulness, take up skiing or karaoke, political discussion or gardening. Eventually we must tread the same roads again, wearing them with our days. This need not kill love, although it might. But it cannot, over the course of eternity, sustain the intensity that makes romantic love, well, romantic. Many readers will probably already have recognized that this lesson about love concerns not only its relationship with death, but also its relationship with life. It doesn’t take eternity for many of our romantic love’s embers to begin to dim. We lose the freshness of our shared projects and our passions, and something of our relationships gets lost along with them. We still love our partner, but we think more about the old days, when love was new and the horizons of the future beckoned us. In those cases, we needn’t look for Groundhog Day, for it will already have found us.
Agreement on App Privacy
The announcement comes on the heels of the news that applications on smartphones routinely transmit people’s address book entries and other personal data, often without their knowledge. The practice came under scrutiny last week from members of Congress and the Federal Trade Commission, which regulates the use of consumer data on the Internet.
Google, which makes the Android operating system, requires developers to ask users upfront for permission to obtain their personal data, but users often are not told why developers need the data, how they plan to use it or how it will be stored. Likewise, Apple has said it prohibits and rejects any app that collects or transmits personal data without permission. But in practice, developers of some of the most popular applications for the iPhone, iPad and iPod have taken users’ contacts and transmitted them without consent.
In a statement, Ms. Harris’s office said that only 5 percent of mobile apps offer a privacy policy, leaving smartphone owners in the dark about what developers, advertisers and analytic services do with their “location, contacts, identity, messages and photos.”
Google, which makes the Android operating system, requires developers to ask users upfront for permission to obtain their personal data, but users often are not told why developers need the data, how they plan to use it or how it will be stored. Likewise, Apple has said it prohibits and rejects any app that collects or transmits personal data without permission. But in practice, developers of some of the most popular applications for the iPhone, iPad and iPod have taken users’ contacts and transmitted them without consent.
In a statement, Ms. Harris’s office said that only 5 percent of mobile apps offer a privacy policy, leaving smartphone owners in the dark about what developers, advertisers and analytic services do with their “location, contacts, identity, messages and photos.”
Monday, February 27, 2012
Always been to make life easier
I was but a wee lad of four years old when Apple introduced the Macintosh in 1984 and first brought a graphical user interface to the masses. “Look,” Apple said, “computers are powerful, useful tools, but they’re clumsy and inelegant. Let us show you a better way.” There was no shortage of resistance, especially from those who had gotten comfortable with typing their instructions at the blinking cursor.
Of course, the Mac was derided as a toy and not a tool for serious work, its mouse-driven approach deemed silly. While the Mac’s market share remained small in the following years, the impact of its revolutionary interface was felt throughout the world—because every subsequent personal computer operating system followed the Mac’s example.
And now, 26 years later, we’re still interacting with our computers in fundamentally the same way: a cursor-driven interface in which we point, click, drag, arrange windows, use drop-down menus, and so on. Sure, the trappings have changed, but compare your Mac running Snow Leopard today with an original Macintosh running the first version of the Mac OS and the similarities largely outweigh the differences.
While PC makers tried to push computing forward by adding extra buttons and controls to try and provide more options for telling a computer what to do, Apple went in entirely the other direction, asking itself: how do we remove a layer of abstraction between the user and the computer?
That question eventually yielded the iPhone and the culmination of Steve Jobs’s war on buttons. And it couldn’t have come at a better time for Apple. As others have suggested, I suspect that the iPad was the device Apple had long wanted to release: a touchscreen replacement for the computer interface to which we’ve all become accustomed. But launching directly into such a product, even given the resurgence of the Mac and popularity of the iPod, would have been an uphill slog.
This is the next phase of computing. Apple’s not the only one to realize it, either. The approach of Google’s Chrome OS is pretty different from what Apple is doing with the iPad, but it’s not hard to see that it’s aiming at the same target: making computing easier for the average user. I wager that we’ll see a touchscreen tablet running Chrome OS within a year of the software’s release, though I am skeptical of how effective that combination will be.
The iPad won’t kill the computer any more than the graphical user interface did away with the command line (it’s still there, remember?), but it is Apple saying once again that there’s a better way. Regardless of how many people buy an iPad, it’s not hard to look forward a few years and imagine a world where more and more people are interacting with technology in this new way. Remember: even if it often seems to do just the opposite, the ultimate goal of technology has always been to make life easier.http://www.macworld.com
Of course, the Mac was derided as a toy and not a tool for serious work, its mouse-driven approach deemed silly. While the Mac’s market share remained small in the following years, the impact of its revolutionary interface was felt throughout the world—because every subsequent personal computer operating system followed the Mac’s example.
And now, 26 years later, we’re still interacting with our computers in fundamentally the same way: a cursor-driven interface in which we point, click, drag, arrange windows, use drop-down menus, and so on. Sure, the trappings have changed, but compare your Mac running Snow Leopard today with an original Macintosh running the first version of the Mac OS and the similarities largely outweigh the differences.
While PC makers tried to push computing forward by adding extra buttons and controls to try and provide more options for telling a computer what to do, Apple went in entirely the other direction, asking itself: how do we remove a layer of abstraction between the user and the computer?
That question eventually yielded the iPhone and the culmination of Steve Jobs’s war on buttons. And it couldn’t have come at a better time for Apple. As others have suggested, I suspect that the iPad was the device Apple had long wanted to release: a touchscreen replacement for the computer interface to which we’ve all become accustomed. But launching directly into such a product, even given the resurgence of the Mac and popularity of the iPod, would have been an uphill slog.
This is the next phase of computing. Apple’s not the only one to realize it, either. The approach of Google’s Chrome OS is pretty different from what Apple is doing with the iPad, but it’s not hard to see that it’s aiming at the same target: making computing easier for the average user. I wager that we’ll see a touchscreen tablet running Chrome OS within a year of the software’s release, though I am skeptical of how effective that combination will be.
The iPad won’t kill the computer any more than the graphical user interface did away with the command line (it’s still there, remember?), but it is Apple saying once again that there’s a better way. Regardless of how many people buy an iPad, it’s not hard to look forward a few years and imagine a world where more and more people are interacting with technology in this new way. Remember: even if it often seems to do just the opposite, the ultimate goal of technology has always been to make life easier.http://www.macworld.com
 |
| Apple Ipad |
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
