Monday, September 14, 2009

ParetoLogic Privacy Controls - A Review

ParetoLogic Privacy Controls is a great software from ParetoLogic that has most of the essential features to keep your privacy features under check and to help keep your computer, protected. It is powerful and provides complete shredding and elimination of confidential information.

In other words, it doesn’t allow your business to become public.

Most of us are aware that any person who has access to our computer can view our Internet activities and any of our files, including pictures, music, and video entries, both permanent and temporary.


Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Searching to buy a van rack ?

What can one say about a van rack that hasn’t already been expressed...?

The van rack technology is so advanced now and if you are in the market to buy a van rack, there are certain things to check out.

Obviously, you are searching for a good price and there are prices ranging anywhere from $30 to $700. Besides, you would also want to do your homework on the different materials that they are made from...

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Market research and Synovate - one word

This is a Sponsored Post

Market research is for discovering what people want, need, or believe.

Basically, Market research represents the voice of the consumer in a company.


Wednesday, April 22, 2009

Win $10,000 From Joining Look Of The Year - be discovered !

Stand out - be discovered !

Do you love fashion or would you like to become a top model?

Are you young and beautiful and have you ever dreamt of a career in the fashion?


Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Avoiding Impulse Spending

Answer these questions truthfully:

1.) Does your spouse or partner complain that you spend too much money?

2.) Are you surprised each month when your credit card bill arrives at how much more you charged than you thought you had?

3.) Do you have more shoes and clothes in your closet than you could ever possibly wear?

4.) Do you own every new gadget before it has time to collect dust on a retailer’s shelf?

5.) Do you buy things you didn’t know you wanted until you saw them on display in a store?

If you answered “yes” to any two of the above questions, you are an impulse spender and indulge yourself in retail therapy.

This is not a good thing. It will prevent you from saving for the important things like a house, a new car, a vacation or retirement. You must set some financial goals and resist spending money on items that really don’t matter in the long run.

Impulse spending will not only put a strain on your finances but your relationships, as well. To overcome the problem, the first thing to do is learn to separate your needs from your wants.

Advertisers blitz us hawking their products at us 24/7. The trick is to give yourself a cooling-off period before you buy anything that you have not planned for.

When you go shopping, make a list and take only enough cash to pay for what you have planned to buy. Leave your credit cards at home.

If you see something you think you really need, give yourself two weeks to decide if it is really something you need or something you can easily do without. By following this simple solution, you will mend your financial fences and your relationships.

Thursday, April 2, 2009

You know you're an Australian when...

In many respects, the conventions of Australians and Americans, both in behavior (behaviour) and speech, align with similarities. This is even more clear, for instance, when an Australian newspaper made reference to the Mile High Club. And here I was all this time calling it the 1.6 Kilometer Club. No wonder I've struggled with membership.

Anyway, on the subject of cultural comparison, I've long noticed a Facebook group called "You know you're an Australian when . . ." -- which I've of course not yet joined, because it lists 50 measurements for membership, and you need to be painfully bored to read 50-item account of insanity.

Today, though, I was bored. So I took the test, pasted below (with my answers following). I decided to join the group only if I scored 25/50 or better.

1. You're familiar with Neighbours, Home and Away, Playschool, A Country Practice, Norman Gunston, Barry Humphries, Blue Heelers, Ray Martin, Bert Newton, Lisa McCune, Jon Burgess, Number 96, Molly Meldrum, Kerry O'Brien, and of course, Kerry Packer and Rupert Murdoch.

• Only three of these proper nouns ring a bell, perhaps the first handicap of life without television. Granted, one of these three is my boss's boss's boss's boss. But until I meet him, or ride on his private Gulfstream, there's no partial credit. (0/1)


2. You know that Burger King doesn't exist. It's Hungry Jacks.

• Bingo. For proof, see 13-Oct blog reference. (http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07286/825285-402.stm) Never eaten there, though. (1/2)


3. You know that snow is a memorable and freakish occurrence. Sometimes it's even fake.

• Easy. And what is this, Dubai? Most Sydneysiders don't own jackets. (2/3)


4. You know the difference between thongs and a G-banger

• Note to self: find out what a G-banger is. (2/4)


5. You know that "stubbies" are either short shorts or small beer bottles, a "gimp", "bogan" or "geezer" is a random idiot, someone in trouble is in "strife" and you're liable to burst out laughing whenever you hear of Americans "rooting" for something.

• Only the bogan reference eluded me, so I'm counting this. Rooting is the key. Say you're "rooting" here, and people will get the mental picture of nudity and orifices. I was warned about this long before departing for Australian soil. Thank you, Reg (3/5)


6. You know that some people pronounce "Australia" like "Strayla" and that's OK.

• Sure. You hear this especially out in the bush. Or on domestic-made country albums. (4/6)


7. You know that while we call our friends 'mates, we don't use terms like "shiela" and "shrimp on the barbie", contrary to popular belief.

• I've learned this, too. In fact, the whole notion that Australians know barbecue is a dangerous lie. Anybody who's dined here would agree. (5/7)


8. You know that none of us actually drink Fosters beer because it tastes like s--t. But we let the world think we do. Because we can.

• I agree with the smack-talk on Fosters. Problem is, other Aussie lagers taste quite the same. (6/8)


9. You know how to abbreviate every word, all of which usually end in -o: arvo, combo, garbo, kero, lezzo, metho, milko, muso, rego, servo, smoko, righto etc.

• I know the language, but don't speak it. Hey, the Multisyllabics gotta have some groupies, too. (6/9)


10. You resent people who succeed over others. Everyone should do the same thing, so we all get a "fair go"; a kind of 'American-dream' in reverse. This is why we actively like not liking Americans.

• Woah -- where did this hostility come from? Australians have this saying that parallels the sentiments above: something about cutting down the tallest trees among us. This culture abhors pretension, which is good. But it leads to a strange shame regarding great achievement, and you get this population overload around the median. I don't understand. (6/10)


11. You've seen Gallipoli, Crocodile Dundee, Young Einstein, Muriel's Wedding, The Castle, Beneath Clouds, Strictly Ballroom, 40,000 Horsemen, and maybe even Wolf Creek.

• No. No. And more no. No regrets losing this point, either. (6/11)


12. It makes you happy when someone in Hollywood is actually Australian. . . Mel Gibson, Nicole Kidman, Russle Crowe, Cate Blanchett, Baz Luhrman, Elle MacPherson, Olivia Newton-John, Midnight Oil, ACDC, INXS, Greg Norman, Cathy Freeman, Dawn Fraser, Pat Rafter, Ian Thorpe. . .

• Heart just isn't in it. (6/12)


13. One word: Skippy.

• Not peanut butter, evidently. (6/13)


14. You know that Sydney 2000 was one of our proudest moments in history. We just rock.

• No mention here, though, that tens of thousands of prescient Sydneysiders took three-week vacations during the Olympics to escape the mayhem. (7/14)


15. You know that you are not going to die of cholera or other Third World diseases (remote Aboriginal communities are a different matter).

• Been sick twice here, or more than I'd been in the last three years combined. The ol' immune system has been thrown by the antipodal bacteria. (7/15)


16. You know our country has never been conquered by a foreign nation (you don't count 1788).

• Clearly. Only conqueror here is named Rupert. (8/16)


17. We know that the Metric system will always be better than anything inches, feet, pounds and farenheit will ever offer.

• Disagree, and I will note the linguistic dexterity of "mile" as evidence. There is no metric equivalent, for instance, to gas mileage. No equivalent to the high-flyin' club, either. (8/17)


18. You drive on the left-hand side of the road.

• While feeling simultaneously at ease and bad a--. (9/18)


19. If you're a pedestrian and cars are stopped at a red light, you will fearlessly cross the street in front of them.

• Took awhile, but I'm comfortable now. (10/19)


20. You think of Australia as being somewhat out of place within the Asia-Pacific region; surrounded by unstable ex-colonial nations who regard you as racist, imperialist, and unfairly wealthy.

• True, but at least we've stolen their food. (11/20)


21. You know that New Zealanders are basically our naive country cousins, who have a weird fush-and-chups accent, and for some bizarre reason, think that they invented pavlova. Bastards. They are to be pitied and laughed at. They have no hope of gaining the upper hand in the endless sporting rivalry between our two nations.

• Australia : New Zealand :: US : Canada. (12/21)


22. You know that you can't eat Fantales alone. . . Otherwise who will you play the "Who am I..." game with when you're reading the wrapper?

• Huh? (12/22)


23. You know that Sydney should be the capital because Canberra is a hole.

• Canberra is like Harrisburg, but worse, because it doesn't have this guy. (13/23)


24. You know that Americans think we're all Steve Irwin clones. And crickey, they couldn't be more wrong.

• Confirmed. Australians don't wear those outdoorsy beige vests. (14/24)


25. You know that Lawyers wear wigs and gowns. And we make it look good.

• Documented by G'DFT, 1-Nov. (15/25)


26. You have some time in your life slept with Aeroguard on in the summer. Maybe even as perfume.

• Never. Not on the Bucket List, either. (15/26)


27. You feel obliged to spread salty black stuff that looks like congealed motor oil on bread. . . and actually grow to like it. You've also squeeze Vegemite through Vita Wheats to make little Vegemite worms.

• Vile quasi-food yeast residue should never be an obligation. (15/27)


28. You believe that democracy means the freedom to draw caricatures of good ol' Johnny Howard

• Funny thing about John Howard. He was Australia's PM for 12 years -- or slightly longer, if you believe everything to read here. But in my months living here, I've come to identify a curious quality that I feel certain contributed to Howard's appeal. A shocking portion of Australians between ages 50-65 look almost identical to Howard. Especially when jogging in the morning. They look healthy but well-fed. Generally of pleasant disposition. They are bald and round-faced. They are probably wearing New Balance shoes, with socks pulled up midway to the knees. My theory, basically, is that John Howard got a lot of votes because a lot of voters looked like John Howard. (16/28)


29. You think footballers dressing up in drag on TV is funny (but your son being gay isn't).

• Dear reference, meet the air above my head. (16/29)


30. You have the ability to compress several words into one -- ie g'day' and d'reckn?. This allows more space for profanities.

• Yeah, I've picked up on this. (17/30)


31. You've ever used the words - tops, ripper, sick, mad, rad, sweet - to mean good. And then you place "bloody" in front of it when you REALLY mean it.

• I say reckon, but not bloody. (17/31)


32. You know that the barbeque is a political arena; the person holding the tongs is always the boss and usually a man. And the women make the salad.

• Before we can start with all this Ralph-conch talk, first I gotta meet a man who knows his barbecue. Still waiting. (17/32)


33. The private lives of footy and cricket players become more important than local and national news stories.

• Sometimes, I even write these stories. (18/33)


34. You say "no worries" quite often, whether you realise it or not.

• If it sounds repetitive to others, I can't say I'm worried. (19/34)


35. You know what fairy bread tastes like, and you can't imagine your childhood without it.

• Back in the day, my parents enacted strict regulations on Nintendo and television viewing and sugary cereal, and I'm sure if our grocery store carried anything called fairy bread, it would have faced similar tariffs. (19/35)


36. You know the first verse to the national anthem, but still don't know what "girt" means. And you're OK with that.

• Couldn't recite it verbatim. Even when spotted the mystery word. (19/36)


37. You've drank your tea/coffee/milo through a tim tam.

• Never. But I'm picky about coffee. (19/37)


38. You know that backyard cricket is a nice way to bond with family and the rubbish bin. And the 'one bounce, one hand' rule always applies.

• I've covered cricket, but never played. (19/38)


39. You know that we are home to the just about all of the world's deadliest of animals. That's why if anybody messes with us we'll get some funnel webs on their a--es.

• It's amazing I've survived long enough to answer this question. (20/39)


40. You see people walking bare-foot on the sidewalk and don't scorn... because you're doing it too.

• Frankly, I never see bare feet. I do notice about 90-percent of the population wearing these. (20/40)


41. You know what trop-fest is and it makes you happy.

• Ignorance. (20/41). Please note, by the way, that I picked the 25/50 target without pre-reading these items, and by pure happenstance, I've been dancing just above and just below the 50 percent line. Serendipitous drama, I know.


42. Sausage rolls and meat pies. End of story.

• I've gorged on meat pies this year. Had one yesterday afternoon, for that matter, and the guy who served it to me even mentioned, "I don't know how these haven't caught on in America." Amen. (21/42)


43. You firmly believe that in the end, everything will be ok and have offered advice that included the words, "she'll be right, mate."

• I'd say, "She'll be alright, mate." Technicality costs a point. (21/43)


44. You have a story that somehow involves an excessive consumption of goon. . . but you can't remember.

• If only. Blog would be richer for it. (21/44)


45. You own a Bond's chesty. In several different colours.

• This is a chesty, which I do not own, if only because of residual stigmatisms formed from watching reruns of "Cops." I do, however, own some Bonds boxer briefs. (21/45)


46. You've ordered a steak the size as your head and only paid $5 at your local RSL

• I see signs advertising as much every day. And I keep walking. (21/46)


47. You know that Italy should never have been granted that fateful kick in the 2006 Soccer World Cup.

• Soccer? World Cup details? I'm feeling Pickler-clueless here. (21/47)


48. You know how to slip, slop, slap like it's nobody's business.

• "Budapest? I never even heard of that." (21/48)

49. You've heard the Prime Minister dismiss anyone who disagrees with him simply as "un-Australian," and that's enough to make us sit down and shut up.

• Un-Australian is the Aussie ace card, able to rationalize any behavior. I've seen it first hand. Many nights, it's been the reason to stay at the pub for one more. (22/49)


50. You know that the value of a public holiday is measured in terms of alcohol. God bless the queen and her 4-day birthday.

• Tomorrow is a public holiday, but for once, the pubs are closed. Good Friday ain't good for the Aussies. (23/50) Oh, and 46 percent won't make me an Aussie. Which is fine, frankly. There's no point in declaring full allegiance to a country that hasn't yet released the new DBT album.

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Keno And Keno Rules

Keno is a game that is similar to Lotto.

Although the word "keno" has French or Latin roots [Fr. quine five winning numbers],
it was first introduced in China many years ago. It is said that the game originated in ancient China in the Han Dynasty between 205 and 187 B.C. It is even believed that its widespread popularity helped raise funds to build the Great Wall. Finally, it was the Chinese immigrants who came to work in the mines and on the railroad that brought the game to America in the 19th century.

It is a very popular game and is in fact, very easy to play. The fun part is that it is an exciting pastime and most importantly, it offers the possibility of winning large payouts on relatively small wagers.

Now what exactly is this modern version of Keno?

The modern game of keno uses 80 numbered ping-pong balls and every game, the house draws 20 balls at random and displays their numbers on these screens [ called keno boards or Keno monitors ] located throughout the casino.

As Keno is generally played in casinos and there are many television screens placed all around the casino halls to keep players informed.

The object of the game is for the player to guess some of the numbers that the house will draw. The player makes his/ her guesses by marking a Keno ticket, a piece of paper with the numbers 1 through to 80 printed on it. Keno tickets are located at tables throughout the casino but are most readily found in the casino's Keno lounge. The Keno lounge is a room or area with chairs to sit and write with crayons provided for marking the ticket.

You can mark a ticket, anywhere from 1 to 15 (more in some places) numbers. The more numbers you mark the more you have to “catch” to win. In dollar terms, the payoffs for the house percentage is pretty much the same regardless of how many numbers you mark.

But, one of the important factors is that before you go marking a ticket, you must need to decide how much money you intend to gamble on the ticket.

Normally, you are likely to find several copies of the house's Keno brochure, which tells you what the standard bets and payouts. Generally, at any point in time, all casinos tend to have similar betting / payoff scales, but there are times, when there are various "house specials" available.

Now, simply mark a blank Keno ticket with the numbers that you want and present it to the Keno desk with your wager and the clerk will give you a duplicate ticket.

Within minutes, 20 numbered Keno balls will be drawn at random from a barrel containing 80 numbered balls, and if enough of your selected numbers are drawn and the results would be displayed on the screens.

While in some casinos, the minimum bets can be 5 cents, some of them only accept bets of $1 or more. The house's Keno brochures give you information about payoffs and various tickets you can play.

The money you win is dependent upon the type of ticket you play with and the number of 'spots' you catch. There are instances where you could win as much as $50,000 on a $1 wager in some casinos.

There is also the video version of Keno, where there are slots, with coin operated machines and it plays using the same principle with similar rules of the regular Keno, but you get the results much faster. Although, video keno offers the same odds as regular keno, the payoff scale may vary from the casino norm.

A sample game

For example, let's say you decide to play a $1 6-spot. Now what would be the basic rules for it?

You would first find or pick a blank keno ticket, get yourself a crayon and cross out your 6 choices, using a plain X. On the right side of the ticket write "$1" and you would write 6 beneath the “$1” so as to indicate that you are playing a 6-spot. Although this may be not necessary, it is used for cross-checking by the dealer, as well as being important when playing combination tickets.

After having marked your ticket, you then bring it to a dealer [who incidentally is also called a “writer’)] and who is generally situated at the front of the keno lounge. It would look more like a bank with teller windows and a stand in line

Now hand over your ticket and the money to the dealer. The “writer” would make a computer copy of your ticket, and after retaining the original, would return the copy. It is your duty to verify the copy with the original, prior to leaving the dealer window. This is because, just in case of a huge win, the house would have to verify that you did mark those numbers on the original ticket that you had given the “writer”. This also saves as an anti counterfeiting measure as they index and save the original tickets and would search through them if you made a big win.

Once you obtain your tickets, you would have to wait for the rest of the players to buy theirs, until the house declares the game as “closed”. After which, all the original tickets are collected and located in front of a video camera as a security measure. Then, the balls are mixed in the hopper and one of the dealers opens the portals chose the balls. One after another, the dealer calls out the numbers and flicks the switch that makes the number to flash on the keno board.

After the last, i.e., the 20th number is chosen, the dealers return to their stations and the few winners rush in to cash in, while the rest of the pack plan their strategy for the next game.

Friday, February 13, 2009

The Proxy Father

The Smiths had no children and decided to use a proxy father to start their family.

On the day the proxy father was to arrive, Mr. Smith kissed his wife and said, 'I'm off. The man should be here soon.'

Half an hour later, just by chance, a door-to-door baby photographer rang the doorbell, hoping to make a sale. 'Good morning, madam. You don't know me but I've come to....'

'Oh, no need to explain. I've been expecting you,' Mrs. Smith cut in.

'Really ?' the photographer asked. 'Well, good! I've made a specialty of babies.'

'That's what my husband and I had hoped. Please come in and have a seat. Just where do we start?' asked Mrs. Smith, blushing.

'Leave everything to me. I usually try two in the bathtub, one on the couch and perhaps a couple on the bed. Sometimes the living room floor is fun too; you can really spread out.'

'Bathtub, living room floor? No wonder it didn't work for Harry and me.'

'Well, madam, none of us can guarantee a good one every time. But if we try several different positions and I shoot from six or seven angles, I'm sure you'll be pleased with the results.'

'I hope we can get this over with quickly,' gasped Mrs. Smith.

'Madam, in my line of work, a man must take his time. I'd love to be in and out in five minutes, but you'd be disappointed with that, I'm sure.'

'Don't I know!' Mrs. Smith exclaimed. The photographer opened his briefcase and pulled out a portfolio of his baby pictures. 'This was done on the top of a bus in downtown London.'

'Oh my god!!', Mrs. Smith exclaimed, tugging at her handkerchief.

'And these twins turned out exceptionally well when you consider their mother was so difficult to work with.' The photographer handed Mrs. Smith the picture.

'She was difficult ?' asked Mrs. Smith.

'Yes, I'm afraid so. I finally had to take her to Hyde Park to get the job done right. People were crowding around four and five deep, pushing to get a good look.'

'Four and five deep?' asked Mrs. Smith, eyes widened in amazement.

'Yes,' the photographer said.

'And for more than three hours too. The mother was constantly squealing and yelling. I could hardly concentrate. Then darkness approached and I began to rush my shots.'

Finally, when the squirrels began nibbling on my equipment, 'I just packed it all in.' Mrs. Smith leaned forward.

'You mean they actually chewed on your, eh......equipment ?'

'That's right. Well madam, if you're ready, I'll set up my tripod so that we can get to work.'

'Tripod??', Mrs. Smith looked extremely worried now.

'Oh yes, I have to use a tripod to rest my Canon on. It's much too big for me to hold while I'm getting ready for action.

Madam ? Madam?..... Good Lord, she's fainted!'