Monthly Archives: July 2014

How Can I Choose the Best Drapes for My Home?

38, blinds, drapes, shades

As we continually hear in the news, our planet is getting closer and closer to the breaking point and it will all come down to our ability to change our current ways of living to be more environmentally friendly. There will be some struggles involved, but it is also a great opportunity to look at the little things that we can do to make a big change. Some of those little things can be done in your own home. The first that comes to mind is around energy savings.

hunter douglas shadesEveryone has seen the CFL bulbs that are shaped a little differently than many of the incandescent bulbs we are used to. Those bulbs actually make a huge difference and can save about one hundred dollars over the course of their lifetime. That may not seem like a lot when you think about a single light lasting for about ten years, but when you add that to all of the bulbs in your house, about thirty of them possibly, there is a good chance that you could be saving yourself some serious money in the short and long term if you just start to replace those bulbs now. The other thing to keep in mind when we are talking about energy efficiency is that a lot of heat is let in during the summer and out during the winter through windows. Not all windows are perfect, even the double paned ones, so it is important to have a strategy with how to utilize your blinds and shades. What I try to do during the winter is keep the shades open during the day, so the sun can get in and warm the place up, but close them at night. This keeps the room warmer because the residual heat actually makes a big difference. One thing that you could also do is add some drapes for really cold days. Drapes are an excellent way of keeping all of the cold from the windows out. You can actually feel a huge difference if you have the drapes in place or not.

A final thing to consider is the type of blinds that you purchase. Hunter Douglas makes some great blinds that are coated to keep them more energy efficient than some of their immediate competitors. Utilizing those blinds are a great idea to make sure that all of your heat stays centralized in one place. It allows for minimal heat transfer between the outside and your room and that is critical to making sure that your house is energy efficient. Some other things that you can do around the house are turn off lights when you are not using them, plant trees on the east, south, and west sides of the house to provide shade in the summer and sun in the winter, and finally minimize your water usage by taking shorter showers. There are a number of things that you can look up online, but for right now these are some great tips to get going on.

If You’ve Never Heard Of Plumbing SEO, I’ve Got News For You

38, Plumber Marketing gurus, Plumber SEOCaber Harmon

We’ve got to get through the rough times in order to break on through to the other side, to use a popular Doors song title and chorus. The rough times can be rough because of the uncertainty involved during those times, they can be rough as well for a whole lot of other reasons, but if any of those rough times involve your plumbing business, I think I might be able to help remove some of the uncertainty that keeps you up at night.Here are at least several reasons why, SEO for plumbers can not only get you through the rough times, but can also help sustain your business so it doesn’t experience the unfortunate times again.plumbing SEO

1. Fact: SEO is important for any business, not just a plumbing business – First of all, if you don’t even know what SEO is, if you’ve never even heard of it then that’s ok. However, don’t forget about it now that I’ve told you, because it’s probably the single most important thing that you can do for your business on top of what you’re already doing to make it function. SEO encompasses many facets of the web design and internet marketing and advertising world, only the best SEO companies truly understand it, your industry and your individual business enough to give your company exactly what it needs.

2. You probably already have a website – If this is this case, then you might think that you’re on the right path, and you would be if the alternative was that you didn’t have one at all. Many businesses, though, had their website sites built years ago, years before plumbing website design had begun to understand what it now does about your industry, and it’s own. Almost 85% of the internet searches that are done by consumers for anything on a daily basis in America, use Google as the search engine to find what they’re looking for. Several other engines make up the remaining 15% of the pie and although they’re a little less important, in a numbers comparison sense, they are still relevant and need to be considered. You need an SEO company that, not only can build you a sweet website, they also need to know how to drive traffic to your site, especially with all the competition out there.

3. A website is a website – If, during your search for the right plumber SEO, you hear someone tell you that a website is just a website, or they in any way discount it’s monumental importance, then that’s a big, red flag. Having a proper website that is free of clutter, organized and easy to read and find information on is too important to overlook. That’s just a piece of the puzzle though and there are many pieces of it, that if you’re missing, the picture you’re trying to assemble for your business will never be clear.

There are so many more things that I could talk about when it comes to plumbing SEO, but if you’ve learned anything from what I’ve told you, understand that you need it in order to get past the uncertainty you may feel now, and to avoid it in the future.

Precision linear motion systems are a staple of many tech companies

38, Alio industries, precison motion systemsTodd

linear motion systems

You may have heard of precision motion systems making headlines recently. With large manufacturers turning out high-tech and high-end smart phones and ever increasing rate, there is never been more demand for motion control systems. In this article we will be looking at precision motion control systems, specifically linear motion control systems. If you’re unfamiliar with what emotion control system is I will be going to the basics and giving examples of where they’re used in an industrial setting.

Essentially, precision motion systems help manufacturers increase productivity and the quality of the products they are producing by using sophisticated software and a precise control of robotics to replicate or produce something human beings could not. The main benefit besides efficiency is the ability for precision linear motion systems to accurately place and distribute electronic materials that would otherwise be too small for human hands. Auto manufacturers have been using a form of motion control systems for sometime now and if you can envision what a robotic assembly line looks like an auto plant in Detroit you get an idea of what motion systems are. Often times these motion systems are chosen in lieu of human interaction because the environment or materials being used pose a safety risk. In the case of automobiles and other mass-produced materials it would simply cost too much and take too much time to get the results you’re looking for.
ALIO industries is a true nano precision motion systems company. They were founded in 2001 to meet the ever-growing nano precision robot needs. Since then they have been known as an innovator in nanotechnology motion systems. Even their name ALIO is Latin for “a better way”. With the use of their bearings and air bearing motion systems manufacturers have a new way to implement their products. Many tech companies in Silicon Valley use their bearing motion systems to keep their linear motion systems running smoothly. The core of this operation is called a controller. This is the brains which sends out specific computer signals to all the other actuators and controllers on the line. Based on the feedback that sensors give the controller we can speed up production or slow things down and make microscopic adjustments so that every product comes off the line uniform. The actuators help move electric motors, hydraulic pumps and compressed air to accomplish a variety of jobs. Because the movements and tweaks can be so small it is that ideal use for such things as microchips and computer motherboards.
Without the use of motion controlled systems the US economy and into the economy of the world would not be what it is today. Many of the electronics that we value would be much more expensive and harder to get your hands on. With the set points and the closing points set you can get a very precise and accurate closed loop that will repeat and can be tweaked as necessary. The possibilities are limitless with motion control systems and the future looks bright!

Making your vehicle inspection worth while

38, Liberty Auto Center, tune ups, vehicle inspection

Making sure you have a vehicle inspection done is very important for your car. Sometimes states require a vehicle inspection in order for you to pass different types of test that this day has for your vehicle. Some tests are emission testing and in order for you to pass you must have a certain amount of items that are working properly within the vehicle to ensure that they are not wasting too much into the atmosphere when they are renting. Being able to have these types of test done can help you to ensure the vehicles working properly. If you run into a situation where you need to have your vehicle inspection then always use a professional to relying on for services for your vehicle. Trying to do some of these items can be dangerous especially when working on them on your own.

Whenever you are having a vehicle inspection done make sure you can ask lots of questions. Oil ChangeAsk if certain things actually need to be repaired or if they can go I while longer before needing repairs. Ensure that you have a good idea of what needs to be done to ensure that you were not going to be taken advantage of by anybody. Many times it’s easier to take it to the place you can trust and build a relationship over time. Also don’t be afraid to call to get a second opinion when something major has gone wrong with your vehicle. By being able to have your car auto repair done by somebody you trust you are able to get it fixed knowing that it’s going to be a good clean fixed and you can cannot holding up over time.

Having brake service, wheel alignment and tune ups done frequently will help to ensure that your vehicle is running smoothly. But you always do want to make sure you can trust you’re a repair center to ensure they are going to get you what you’re looking for and it is done properly. Too many horror stories have been shared by many that it is no reason at all for you to take out some of these crucial steps and by being sure to have a well-maintained vehicle help you to get the extended margin of your vehicle as well. Make your car top-notch when you take it to a liberty auto center. Their experts in knowing all the different parts pieces and everything you need a vehicle. Maintaining your vehicle to where needs to be in prime running condition is always important. No matter what your cars prior repairs and damages are maintaining it and keeping it running safely and properly is what you need to do to keep your car running and you safe. So even if you yourself don’t know how to do all these car repairs don’t worry because your luckily they’re great places you can take your vehicle the day and get all your needs met. This is what you get when you go with liberty auto centers.

 

Marketing is a very important aspect of any successful non profit organization.

38, non profit marketing

The internet has greatly changed the way that humans live their lives. I am a part of the final generation to know life before the internet. I have seen the internet grow and evolve over the past twenty years and have seen the various ways that the internet has impacted human life. One of the biggest changes that we have seen with the introduction of the internet is the way in which people search for and gather information. Before the internet was around if you needed to figure out how to care for your pet squirrel, or who the 19th president was, you had to go to the library and search for that information in a book. Now, when you need to figure out how to care for your pet squirrel you just type it in to the search engine on your computer and the information is literally at your fingertips within a matter of seconds. There is truly nothing that you can’t find on the internet; it is an ever-expanding  entity.

non profit seoAnother way that the internet has greatly impacted human life is through social media arenas. Before the internet if you wanted to talk to your friend you had to call them on the phone or walk over to their house. These days you can just type a quick message or have an entire conversation over the internet. Before the internet came around if you needed to send information to another person you had to put it in the mail and wait for them to receive it. Now you can send documents and information across the world in a matter of seconds through e-mail. The internet has completely changed the way that we communicate with each other. This is true for individuals and for businesses and non profit organizations.

The internet has also greatly impacted the way that businesses and other organizations market their brand. Businesses and non profit organization’s marketing strategies have been required to evolve with the growing accessibility of the internet to all people. The internet has become the most popular source for gathering information, which means that businesses and non profit organizations need to market their brand using various digital marketing strategies. One popular digital marketing strategies for non profit organizations is called SEO (search engine optimization). SEO uses specific keywords related to each client’s organization to help promote the traffic through the organization’s website and to help bump the organization’s website to the first page of the search engine results when someone searches for specific keywords on the internet. SEO has become a very popular option for businesses and organizations who have evolved their marketing strategies to fit the needs of their potential clients and donors. Knowing that most people use the internet to gather information, it would be very unwise for an organization not to take advantage of various digital marketing options. It is important that non profit organizations stay on board with the changing times and are sure to market in a way that will keep their name out there.

HJ Roofing Does Quality Work At A Reasonable Price

38, HJ roofing, roof repairCaber Harmon

roofing repairWe as human beings, should all have certain rights in my opinion. No one seems to care about the third world and whoever does, isn’t able to do enough with what they’ve got to make a significant difference. A lot of progress, though, is difficult to see when it’s moving so slow, I just don’t know if it’s moving at an evolutionary rate or going backwards. Anyway, I believe that everyone human being on this planet, by virtue of being a human being, deserves to be clothed, fed properly, educated, and sheltered. These are what I consider to be basic human rights and if this world ever comes together after deciding that sacrifices can be made for those with everything they need, maybe we can actually make a difference in the lives of a billion or more people. It doesn’t have to be a completely altruistic focus either, it’s not like helping people can’t be profitable, millions of people here in the United States do it every single day by providing valuable products and services to people who want or are in need of them. The market usually has a way of regulating itself, to a certain degree (we all remember Enron), so if someone is charging too much of this or that, or the products they make or services they sell are of low quality, usually they fall by the wayside. Competition is a big part of our economy, in fact, most capitalists would agree that it’s the secret ingredient.

Ok, so back to the basic human rights that I believe that we should all have. One of those rights is a right to shelter. This basically means, a roof over our heads. Roofing contractor all over the world make a living doing something that they’re able to support their families with, and they also help people with something that they need, something that in my mind, they have a right to. Four walls and a roof around us and over our heads can be the difference between life and death, depending on the climate that we’re living in. That’s of course, after we hopefully have some clothes to cover our naked bodies with and food to fill and nourish them with as well. There are close to 400 million people in the US and probably 200 hundred or more million homes, I haven’t checked the census recently but I don’t imagine that I’m too far off. That means 200 hundred million or more roofs that need to be built, repaired, maintained and replaced. The people who are capable of doing these kinds of things for, one of what should be four basic human rights that we should all be entitled to, are providing a valuable service. But, they don’t do it for free, and the good people at HJ roofing are no exception, however, they do a wonderful job and their services are reasonably priced. That’s all we can really ask for on top of all the things that we already have in our lives; the opportunity to find someone to get things done and to be treated fairly.

Getting a Self Storage Unit That Fits me Perfectly

38, self storage, storage rental unit

I had thought that I would be able to keep most of my possessions in my apartment, as I had a lot of space for myself. I was able to fit a lot of my belongings into the various closets throughout the apartment, and I didn’t have a whole lot of furniture, so I figured that my living space wasn’t going to be too cramped up. In addition to having ample closet space in my apartment, I was also given lots of basement storage in our apartment complex, and I could storage unitshare the space with the other tenants who lived in the same apartment building. I was under the impression that I would be able to get a lot of storage happening on my end, but I soon found out that all of the other tenants had the same idea! In no time flat, all of our basement storage had been used up, and there was definitely no wiggle room for anyone to put in an extra box or plastic tub filled with clothes. I overheard one of the tenants talking about renting out a storage unit at the nearby self storage facility, and decided to ask him what it was all about.

He said that the self storage facility was extremely easy to use, and it just required a monthly rental fee. He said that their usage ranged from extremely large storage units used to store cars and furniture, to their smaller versions what were equal to that of a standard bedroom. Since both of us only had a few boxes to split between us, we decided that we would split the monthly rent between the two of us, which would save us even more money!

Once we got to the storage rental unit, we found that it was more spacious than we had initially imagined! Everything on the inside was neat and tidy, and we didn’t find any leftover boxes from the previous tenants, so we didn’t have to clean up any extra messes, which we were both appreciative about.

Both of us had loaded up our respective trucks and soon found that we had once again packed way too much stuff to take! Thankfully, the company that owned the storage units also had a shop nearby, and they had all of the goods and supplies that would help us with our storage. We picked up a couple of boxes with markers, so we could specifically label our boxes, and we also decided that some bubble wrap would help us out as well, as both of us packed very delicate dishes. We were both happy that we were not only able to get some extra materials to help us pack our stuff, but we were also very pleased with the space that was offered to us. Now that we don’t have to rely on our apartment complex’s tiny and dingy basement storage, we no longer have to worry too much about owning too many things! Even though the monthly rates on the storage units are very inexpensive, both of us are saving a ton of money by splitting the cost.

Data Mining is Useful in Solving Structured Problems

38, data mining, data science consulting

You’ve heard a lot about data mining. You know that by using it, it enables you to get useful information from data. However one thought lingers in your mind. Should you always use this whenever you are faced with a problem? If not, when are you supposed to use data mining as a tool?

data science

data mining

This is a good question and the answer is that you need to go back to your problem in order to know if indeed you need data mining to solve it. In every company, there are problems that we can categorize as distinct and others indistinct. In some data analysis consulting cases, they call these as structured and unstructured problems. You have to remember that the reason you are applying data mining is you want to find hidden trends or patterns. If it was an obvious pattern, then most likely your competitors know it as well. By finding hidden patterns, this implies that your problem is unique and solving it would give you the advantage that you need in order to get ahead.

One example is to look at the complexity of the problem. If the problem is something that is very complex then there is a need for data mining. Another example is customer perception with regards your brand. Gathering data for these types of problems would need a large data set and multifaceted questions. Further, a good way to determine if you really need to apply this method is to look at how the experts approach the problem. If the different experts can readily agree on the best solution and how to go about it, then maybe you don’t need to do it. However if they do disagree on what the best solution is then it is possible to give this a try. All the more if the experts also disagree on the methods. These are just some of the many things that you would need to know before starting any project involving mining of data.

Since identifying if it falls into the criteria requires a degree of knowledge, the best option for you would be to avail the services of a professional analytics consulting company like Mosaic Data Services. The company has a lot of experience in this area and has been consulted by different companies in various industries like banking, manufacturing and telecommunications to name a few.

Though you can purchase the software yourself, you will still need expertise in interpreting the results and it may become a bane if you do it incorrectly. With a wide array of different techniques and a pool of highly qualified personnel to do the job, availing of their services becomes cheaper in the long run.

So to sum it up, before you do any data mining, you need first to understand the problem in order to know if you do need it. If you remain undecided what to do, then think no more and hire the best analytics consulting group there is.

The history of BBQ is older than mankind.

38, Barbeque, BBQHannah Savage

Barbeque has a long history and is popular throughout the world, not just in the Southern United States. The origin of barbeque is widely disputed. Some, like Meathead Goldwyn believe that barbeque existed even before humans did and that barbeque was merely a discovery, like fire, not an invention. Goldwyn seems to think that barbeque was discovered when homo erectus, a pre-human species, stumbled upon a wild boar that had been scorched by fire and began to eat the cooked meat, and hence barbeque was wide spread from then on. In this particular definition of barbeque Goldwyn is talking about the method of cooking meat over a flame and not so much the barbeque that we associate with today.
Others such as BBQ-My-Way.com give a more detailed definition of what they consider to be bbq, “BBQ (or “Q” as I like to call it) is the beautiful, flavorful and sumptuous end result of an all-day social experience where the meat of your choice is slowly cooked (225 degrees Fahrenheit is best) over coals that have been rendered down from real wood logs. Hickory is my wood of choice.
The meat becomes infused with a smooth and silky smokiness that is unmatched in any other method of cooking. The color of the meat becomes dark and rich. Just as beautiful as it is tasty.
The exposure of the meat to the low temperature for an extended period of time (8 to 10 hours, sometimes longer) results in tenderness and juiciness that is unrivaled. Even the toughest and cheapest cuts of meat succumb to this magical method.”
Here we have a very specific definition of BBQ and it sounds much similar to how we equate BBQ today. Most think of BBQ as being strictly American but that is not the case. One can find Mongolian BBQ, Chinese BBQ and Japanese BBQ. America does not have the rights to own BBQ.
However, America does have its own unique story as to how BBQ came to be such a part of the Southern culture. In days before the civil war pigs were the main source of meet for the Southerners. Pigs were roasted at festivals and this is where the social element of BBQ comes from. Put these two things together and vwa-la! We have modern day BBQ.
Since the Civil-War BBQ has far expanded from community pig roasting and is now a full blown source of joy and entertainment. Thousands of restaurants across the country have BBQ as their main focus. They all use different types of rubs, wood and various cooking methods to make their BBQ unique and hopefully stand out to customers. In addition pigs are not the only item on the menu. Today you can BBQ just about anything you want whether it be chicken, fish, beef or whatever else you feel like. BBQ doesn’t just stop here. It continues with sauce of all different kinds to add even more delectable flavor to the already delicious BBQ’d meat. Go out and try all kinds of BBQ and experience a part of history.

bbq

Having our class reunion on a luxury cruise ship

38, Regent Cruise Destination, Seven Sea Cruise package

When I was a kid I went to one of those way over fancy, privileged private schools. At the time I hated it there because I felt that they all were jerks because they had too much money. As I grew out of my terribly angsty and hateful adolescence I finally started to make friends with some of the people at the school. I would not say most, or even a slight majority but a good few.

Now, a number of years later I still keep in contact a little bit with a few of them and for the first time in probably close to a decade I am going to be able to see them. I am surprisingly excited to see the few people that I really grew to love at that school and a small part of me is even kind of excited to see some of the other people I did not get along with all that well. It is probably mostly curiosity about how they all turned out but oh well.

cruiseWe are finally going to be able to see each other again because it is our twenty year class reunion. I know it sounds horribly cliché to say anything about oh how the time has passed but dear god… twenty years. To celebrate such a momentous occasion as the day that we were finally able to leave that school we are all going to meet on this crazy fancy, all inclusive luxury cruise. This in all honestly, is most of the reason that I am excited for the class reunion. I may not be thrilled about seeing many of the people that I went to school with but I surely am excited to spend a week on the ocean working on my tan and drinking fancy cocktails with little brightly colored umbrellas in them. Because it is with the whole school I am also assuming that this cruise is a lot cheaper than I would ever be able to find for a Seven Seas Cruise Package so I am surely not going to pass up this opportunity. I have already contact the people I am still friends with and make sure that we have our cabins in the same area so that I can more or less choose who I am going to be close to.

I have already been checking out the Regent Cruise Destination website and checking out all of the things that we are going to do on this trip and it really does look pretty nice. Absolutely better than meeting up in the school for the reunion or something like that. I know that is what a lot of schools do and let me tell you, I would never in a million years consider doing something like that. Having the reunion on a luxury cruise ship is by far the best possible thing that they could have chosen for our reunion. Now all I have to do is find the best looking dress I can find and I am ready to go.

 

Commercial roof repairs can be a big undertaking.

38, commercial roof repair, roof repairs

roof repairsPart of the responsibility of being a home owner is staying on top of major repairs. If you let things get out of hand what could have been a small and relatively inexpensive project can blow up to be a huge undertaking. This is especially true when it comes to roof repairs. If your roof needs to be patched up it may seem like a big inconvenience or expense but that is nothing compared to the expense it will be if the leak starts to spread and cause water damage to the structure of your home. If you think that a leaky roof is bad, just wait until you have to deal with water damage repairs on top of that. When roof leaks are not attended to in a timely manner they can expand in to an even bigger problem than they already were.

Last autumn in the sate of Colorado there were some very severe floods throughout the state. This was an ironic change from the last summer when there was a terrible drought in the state and much of the state dealt with dangerous wildfires due to the overly dry climate. During the time of the floods there were many homes that where damaged because of the severe weather. I remember that I was doing some work in the coffee shop by my office during a particularly intense rain storm. The coffee shop is locally owned and only a block from my office so I spend a lot of time there. I have come to know the owner of the shop quite well during my frequent visits to his business and I remembered that a few months earlier he had talked about needing to have the roof patched up before the winter came. He must not have done this because that day as I was sitting at a table working on my computer a giant hole burst in the ceiling and water started pouring out of it. One of the employees grabbed a big bucket to catch the water but the hole in the ceiling was slowly growing. A big chunk of the ceiling came down a couple of minutes later and they made everyone leave the coffee shop.

I returned to the coffee shop a couple of days later to see if they were able to make the repairs to the roof and the ceiling. The owner was there dealing with the mess and we were able to talk for a couple of minutes. He told me that he had had a commercial roof repair company come in a couple of days before to patch up the roof. He said he hoped that that would do until he could come up with the money to have the whole roof replaced. Because the coffee shop shares a roof with a couple of other businesses they were going to have to have an owner’s meeting to figure it all out. Apparently there were also major roof leaks in the neighboring businesses.