Negotiate a Respectable Rate for Mom Blog Services

Many people have a difficult time setting a fair price for the services they offer. Mom bloggers are particularly disadvantaged because what they offer isn’t a flat product or service. A freelance writer can charge by the article, word count, or by the hour.

It is more difficult to put a value on your personality and influence, because this is an intangible thing that varies widely depending on your experience, followers, and even the topic you blog about. Many people find it so difficult to measure their own influence that they give up on trying to put a value on it.

Keep in mind that the reason brands approach you is because they value your influence — so you should, too. Ultimately, you are helping them sell their products and services — a fact that you should use to your advantage if you find yourself negotiating with a brand about your compensation.

Any time you communicate with a brand representative, frame your statements in a way that showcases what you bring to the table. Highlight what you are giving to the potential project — your influence, your audience, your voice, your contribution to their bottom line. When you are clear about what you offer, it’s much easier to ask for compensation commensurate with your experience.

To help you come to a ballpark valuation of one of your sponsored blog posts, there are a few ways you can calculate a number. The going rate for quality, impression-based online advertising is usually between $1 and $15 per 1,000 impressions. The average is usually between $3 and $10. Only you can decide what rate feels right for your blog.

Say you’ve been asked to run a contest for your readers, and your sponsor is offering a prize worth $50 — and is also offering you the same prize for running the contest. The following steps calculate the number of impressions you think you can deliver:

1. Estimate the number of views the contest blog post will likely get.

   
   

   You can do this by looking at past contest post views in your analytics program. This is the number of views just for this one post, not for your entire blog.

   
   



2. Factor in social media mentions.

   
   

   Factor in any tweets or Facebook mentions you may be able to include by adding up your Twitter followers, Facebook friends, or Facebook fan-page fans. Only include the numbers if you will be promoting your contest on the other sites.

   
   



3. Add how many RSS subscribers your blog has.

   
   



4. Add how many people you have on your mailing list if you have one.

   
   

   Only include this number if you will be promoting your contest to your mailing list.

   
   



5. Take that the total number and divide it by 1000.

   
   



6. Multiply that number by the dollar rate you want to charge.

   
   

You can use the steps just given to get the formula to calculate fair compensation:

Page Views + Social Media + RSS Subscribers + Mailing List = Number of Impressions

Number of Impressions / 1000 x Dollar Rate = Fair Compensation

For example, your contest post will get about 3,000 page views, you have 1,500 Twitter followers, 200 Facebook fan-page fans, and 500 RSS subscribers. That’s approximately 5,200 impressions, and you feel that charging $10 per 1,000 impressions is fair. So that gives you a dollar amount of around $50 as a baseline to value one of your contest posts.

A different way to value this contest post is to calculate the time it takes you to write the post and administer the contest. Then you can choose an hourly rate for the time involved.

Now factor in what the contest sponsor is offering you:

• If the free $50 product they offered you is something that you want, then you might decide to do the contest for no extra charge.

  
  



• If the sponsor hadn’t offered one of the products to you, you could ask for $50 compensation to run the contest.

  
  



• Perhaps the brand can offer you a mention on its own Facebook page, and that page has 500,000 fans. Is that worth $50 to you?

  
  



• Perhaps the brand is willing to feature you on its website, too. Is that worth $50 to you?

  
  

The only way you are going to know if what your sponsor is offering is fair is by having a baseline number to compare to.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/negotiate-a-respectable-rate-for-mom-blog-services.html

Use a Dedicated FTP Program to Publish

If you prefer to use a dedicated FTP program rather than Dreamweaver’s built-in features to publish your website for iPhone and iPad, you can download FTP programs for the Mac and PC.

Recommended programs can be found at these web addresses:

• http://fireftp.mozdev.org: This nifty little add-on to Firefox is a useful alternative to Dreamweaver’s FTP features. FireFTP is ideal for fixing problems when you’re on the road and don’t have Dreamweaver or don’t want to use it to view the files on your server. This program can be added to any version of Firefox (for free).

  
  



• http://filezilla-project.org: The popular open source option FileZilla works on computers running the Windows, Mac, or Linux operating system.

  
  



• www.ipswitch.com: A popular FTP program for the PC, WS_FTP is so sophisticated (and popular) for the PC that many web designers pay to use it; it also offers a free trial version.

  
  



• www.cuteftp.com: The popular Windows program CuteFTP can be downloaded from its website.

  
  



• www.fetchsoftworks.com and www.panic.com/transmit: If you use a Macintosh computer, popular options are Fetch, available for download at the former web address, and Transmit, available for download at the latter address.

  
  



• http://cyberduck.ch: Web designers working on the Mac platform are singling out for praise the freeware program Cyberduck because it handles FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, and Cloud Files.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/use-a-dedicated-ftp-program-to-publish.html

Examining the Company Charter When Auditing Stockholders’ Equity

Your first task when reviewing your audit client’s stockholder equity transactions is to double-check the terms of the corporate charter. The corporate charter contains pertinent facts about the corporation such as its name, address, and information about the type and number of stock shares it’s authorized to issue. The term articles of incorporation refers to the same document. The person in charge of forming the corporation (or an attorney hired to do the task) prepares this document.

After it’s prepared and approved by the corporation’s originators, the corporate charter is filed with the Department of State in the state that the corporation is located.

If you’re working on a continuing audit client, the charter should already be in the client’s permanent file. If not, you’re responsible for asking the client for a copy of the corporate charter.

So what exactly are you looking for that relates to stockholder equity? You want to make sure that the terms contained within the corporate charter match the financial statements. The charter always has a section (or article) that sets the limit for the number of shares that can be authorized. Other important facts about stockholder equity are the number of shares of stock issued and outstanding:

• Authorized shares: This term refers to the maximum number of shares a company can issue. Shareholder approval is normally required when a company wants to increase the number of shares authorized, so most corporations set an extremely high number of authorized shares from the very beginning.

  
  



• Issued shares: When a company sells stock to an investor and receives cash or some other benefit in return, it has issued shares to that investor.

  
  



• Outstanding shares: After stock is issued, it’s classified as outstanding for as long as it’s in the hands of the investors instead of the company.

  
  

Here’s an example of an audit task to perform: If the corporate charter allows only common stock to be issued, make sure no preferred stock is showing in the paid-in capital section of the balance sheet. Unless the company uses an independent registrar, proper controls dictate that an officer of the corporation (its president, vice president, secretary, or treasurer) is in charge of making sure that all stock and dividend transactions are in line with the corporate charter.

Larger companies usually outsource the handling of stockholders’ equity transactions to various registrars and agents. If your client does so, lucky you! Outsourcing serves to strengthen internal controls because it represents independent oversight of the stockholder transactions. Outsourcing also increases your audit’s efficiency because you can probably get most of your evidence to support the client’s stockholders’ equity assertions from confirmations sent to the registrars and agents. Confirmations are written responses from independent parties that do business with your audit client. The purpose of confirmations is to verify information on the financial statements.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/examining-the-company-charter-when-auditing-stockh.html

Defining Organisational Behaviour

Organisational behaviour and work psychology have similar ideas and aims. Both involve looking at the ways in which people behave at work and what this behaviour means for organisations.

Organisational behaviour topics range from those that look at employee- and employer-based issues (such as employee attitudes and leadership styles) and more general areas that all organisations are involved in (such as selection and training).

Some basic themes that organisational behaviour covers include    

• Applying knowledge at work based on what you know about how people act at work

  
  



• Appreciating how people affect each other at work

  
  



• Studying how people, individuals, and groups act at work

  
  



• Understanding how people are affected by work

  
  



• Using organisational behaviour principles to improve an organisation’s effectiveness and productivity

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/defining-organisational-behaviour.html

DNS Settings to Integrate Lion Server in Active Directory

Active Directory requires that domain name services (DNS) be working properly so that the Mac OS X Lion Server hostname and IP address are linked. The linkage should work both in forward and reverse (meaning that if you check the IP, it resolves to the server’s hostname; and if you check the hostname, it resolves to the correct IP address). These are stored as DNS service (SRV) records.

The Mac and Windows clients must use the same DNS Server, so typically, the DNS server is running on a Windows server, not the Mac server.

To check that DNS is configured properly, open the Network Utility (located in the Utilities folder in the Applications folder). Click the Lookup tab and type the server’s domain. If configured properly, the DNS server reports the IP address of the server.

To check the reverse, type the IP address of the server. If configured correctly, the DNS server reports the hostname for your Mac OS X Server. If either of these methods fails, DNS isn’t configured properly for your server.

You can also do the same lookup with the command line and the Terminal utility. Type NSLOOKUP hostname. to look up the server’s IP address and NSLOOKUP ipaddress. to look up the server’s domain name.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/dns-settings-to-integrate-lion-server-in-active-di.html

Standing Comfortably for Your Back and Neck

One of the most important things to consider in terms of a healthy back and neck is posture. A good posture involves training your body to sit, walk, lie and stand in positions that put the least strain on your body as possible. To practise a healthy standing position:

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  Stand against a wall with your heels approximately 6 centimetres away from the wall.

  
  


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  Move the small of your back toward the wall by tilting your pelvis.

  
  


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  Keep your knees slightly bent and make sure not to lock them in a straight position.

  
  


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  Ideally, your shoulders are in a straight line with your torso and not rounded forward and slumped over.

  
  


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  Your head is fairly centred over the top of your chest and in a level position, and your neck is fairly straight, with a slight forward curve.

  
  

Always try to move about and alternate your position frequently (about every 20 minutes) if you have to stand for a long period of time. Change positions to keep your muscles and spine relaxed.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/standing-comfortably-for-your-back-and-neck.html

How to Keep Your Cool When Angry

When you find yourself getting angry, it’s time to take immediate action. It only takes 90 seconds to defuse your anger if you take the following steps:

1. Score your anger out of 10. A rating of 1 to 3 means you’re irritated, 4 to 7 means you’re angry, and 8 to 10 means you’re in a rage.

   
   



2. Stop yourself reacting immediately. Reacting in anger is what gets you in trouble. What’s the rush? What do you want to happen? Try to put your message across clearly, while you keep control of your behaviour.

   
   



3. Give your feelings time. Emotions are temporary. They will pass even if you don’t act on them. Time is on your side. You don’t have to let your anger out, it evaporates.

   
   



4. Relax. Take a deep breath. Focus on the tension levels in your body. Count to ten while you focus on relaxing, becoming calmer.

   
   



5. Analyze your anger. Who are you angry at? Why are you angry? Do you really want to lose your cool? Is the cause really worth your anger?

   
   



6. Give yourself three choices (and consider the consequences of each): Let it pass; respond with a vengeance; or walk away initially but return later to discuss why you were angry.

   
   



7. Now respond. You’ve taken a moment to stay cool. Now make your response, keeping cool.

   
   



8. Reward yourself for exercising self-control. Kept your cool and made your point? Congratulate yourself – control takes effort.

   
   

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-keep-your-cool-when-angry.navId-323837.html

Green Jobs in Fish and Wildlife Resource Management

The concept of wildlife may feel removed from the economy, but fish and wildlife management is an important part of the green economy. Maintaining the balance between these resources and human life is essential to a sustainable future. As such, an eco-conscious job-seeker should remember to search for opportunities in this environmentally beneficial field. Your green career transition could land you here!

People who work in this field spend quite a bit of time creating and maintaining the delicate balance that exists between keeping animals wild and people safe. In addition, they use a variety of scientific disciplines to study, manage, and conserve wildlife populations they are there to protect. The strategies they use to achieve positive results for wildlife include protecting endangered species, enhancing biodiversity, tracking migratory birds, and restoring fisheries and other habitats. In addition to educating the public about wildlife conservation and safety, wildlife managers also enforce laws and contribute their expertise to shape federal and local wildlife policies.

What’s happening now in fish and wildlife management

In the last few decades the focus of wildlife management has shifted from concentrating on a key species to conserving, restoring, and maintaining complete ecosystems and enhancing biodiversity. The impetus for this relatively new focus is the concern about the loss of species that is likely to occur over the next few decades. The broader, more interdependent perspective on wildlife populations makes it easier to restore diversity within ecosystems.

Together the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service attend to the needs of the fish and wildlife in parks and refuges throughout the country. To explore the extent of their reach, check out this list of national wildlife programs and this map of refuges in each state. Each state also has several departments that address local conservation issues and manage wildlife issues.

As a result of the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act of 2009, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will receive $280 million over the next few years for construction projects at service facilities, renewable energy projects, habitat restoration, deferred maintenance projects, and road construction on national wildlife refuges.

Future trends in fish and wildlife management

A coalition of more than 6,000 organizations, businesses, and agencies have worked together for several years on the Teaming with Wildlife campaign to bring a long-term, stable funding source to state fish and wildlife conservation programs. In May 2009 they announced $61 million in State Wildlife Grants to go toward conservation and restoration of habitats for species in danger of going extinct. These funds are to be distributed through grants into 2010.

The push to develop renewable energy sources, including wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass, is bringing new challenges to wildlife managers throughout the world. Finding the best locations for utility-sized solar arrays, wind farms, and geothermal installations is a challenge on a good day. Unfortunately, no one really knows how these renewable energy systems will impact wildlife and habitats directly, indirectly, or cumulatively. To make the best possible siting decisions, wildlife managers must have a place at the negotiation table.

To get a sense of the scope of this challenge, consider this: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has “identified about 21 million acres with wind potential in the 11 western states, 29 million acres with solar energy potential in the six southwestern states and 140 million acres with geothermal resource potential in the West and Alaska.” As the renewable portfolio standard is put in place nationally, more and more states will be striving to generate more of their electricity through renewable energy sources.

Several groups are coming together to address this challenge collaboratively. For instance the Wind Energy Subcommittee of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies and the American Wind Wildlife Institute, a nonprofit organization that includes representatives from conservation organizations, government agencies, and industry, have been created to explore issues related to wind projects. The Audubon Society and the National Resources Defense Council have worked in concert to develop a Google map to highlight areas that are too sensitive for renewable energy developments.

Sample job functions in fish and wildlife

If you'd like your life's work to involve protecting the planet's fish and wildlife, consider some of the following careers

• Wildlife management: Wildlife biologists, wildlife forester, game warden, wildlife refuge manager, wildlife animal control technician, wildlife keeper, mammalogist, natural resource specialist

  
  



• Fisheries management: Fisheries biologist, fisheries technician, hatchery manager, aquatic toxicologist, aquatic ecologist, aquaculturist

  
  



• Law enforcement: Special agent, wildlife inspector, park ranger, refuge officer, investigator

  
  



• Research and program management: Scientist, program manager, program analyst, information technology specialist, information technology analyst, information technology programmer, natural resource economist

  
  

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/green-jobs-in-fish-and-wildlife-resource-managemen.html

How to Fix Scratches In Hardwood Floors

Fill the scratch with premixed wood filler.

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Use a plastic putty knife to fill the scratch with wood filler that matches the color of the floor. Let the filler dry thoroughly.

Be sure to use a plastic putty knife to apply the filler (you don't want to create any new scratches).

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-fix-scratches-in-hardwood-floors.pageCd-storyboard,pageNum-5.html

Child Psychology & Development For Dummies

Kids grow and develop in many ways. For the people who choose to care for children — from parents to teachers to childcare workers – keeping tabs on normal childhood development, spotting signs of trouble, giving encouragement, and keeping an eye on what’s important help to ensure a healthy and positive childhood experience.

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Tips for Parents to Guide Child Development

Parents’ work never stops. Parents usually do the best job with their kids that they can. Here are a few tips to help them along:

• Show kids love through hugs, kisses, and pats on the back.

  
  



• Show kids love through words.

  
  



• Keep kids busy — they’ll be less likely to misbehave.

  
  



• Catch children doing good things and praise them for their efforts.

  
  



• When kids misbehave, talk slowly and calmly — keep your own emotions in check.

  
  



• Be clear about your limits, boundaries, and rules.

  
  

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Teachers Shape Kids: Praising Kids in the Classroom

Teachers can improve the motivation of their students if they praise them often for doing the right things. Effective praise has four major elements, including

• When you praise, be sure to point out specifically what the child did right.

  
  



• Be enthusiastic with your praise.

  
  



• Give praise promptly without delay.

  
  



• Make sure the child is close by and paying attention when you praise.

  
  

For example, if Sadie sits quietly during the morning roll call, a teacher giving ineffective praise might say after some delay, “You’re a good girl, Sadie.” More effective would be a prompt statement such as, “Great job of sitting quietly, Sadie! I like it when you pay attention!”

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Detecting Signs of Trouble in Kids for Early Intervention

Detecting problems early makes a world of difference. Kids who receive early intervention improve more rapidly and successfully than those whose problems lie unaddressed for years. The following signs don’t necessarily indicate huge problems, but should be checked out by a pediatrician and/or mental-health professional:

• Significant delays in motor skills

  
  



• Lack of eye contact

  
  



• Lack of smile response

  
  



• Significant delays in language

  
  



• Disinterest or withdrawal from others

  
  



• Loss of interest in activities

  
  



• Sustained changes in appetite or sleep

  
  



• Emotions that are either extreme or don’t fit what’s going on

  
  



• Excessive fears

  
  



• Problems with focusing attention

  
  



• Restlessness or hyperactivity

  
  



• Lack of friendships

  
  



• Excessive, prolonged tantrums

  
  



• Aggressiveness

  
  

This list is not intended to be comprehensive. If a child you care about demonstrates behaviors that concern you, it’s always better to have the problem checked out than to overlook it. Pay particular attention to things that seem quite different than what you see in kids of a similar age.     

Pediatricians are a great place to start if you have concerns. Even if the problem isn’t physical, they usually know who to refer kids to if they show signs of emotional or behavioral problems.

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Four Goals of Successful Childhood

Parents, teachers, grandparents, and child-care givers all want to help children thrive. They can do this job best if they keep in mind what the most important challenges of childhood are all about. Therefore, successful childhood is supported by emphasizing the following four goals:

• Relationships: From early on, parents and caregivers need to be affectionate with the kids under their charge. Kids need to bond with adults and then venture out and make friends. Anything adults can do to foster this goal is a good idea!

  
  



• Healthy self-views: The worst thing you could do is constantly pump kids up and give them the exclusive message that they are wonderful, special, and that they stand at the center of the universe. Nor do kids need to hear criticisms, put-downs, and harsh words.

  
  

  Children will develop healthy views of themselves when caregivers show them unconditional support and love, tempered with realistic disapproval for inappropriate behaviors. Children need to appreciate their positive qualities while accepting their weaknesses.

  
  



• Control over impulses and emotions: When kids enter this world they have very little control over their emotions and demand immediate gratification. If they don’t get what they want, they scream and cry. That may be understandable if they’re under the age of 1 or so.

  
  

  As they grow, kids need to learn how to self-soothe and delay the immediate demand for all needs to be met. So, it’s important to teach kids to wait, have patience, and control the expression of their emotions.

  
  



• Achieving their potential: The final goal of childhood is to acquire knowledge and skills necessary for independent living. This goal depends somewhat on the genetic and biological potential that kids inherit, but also can be fostered by those who teach and care about them. In order to get there, kids need incentives, motivation, and reasonable expectations set by the adults in their world.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/child-psychology-development-for-dummies-cheat-she.html

Electronic Power Supply: Build or Buy?

You can probably purchase a preassembled power adapter that will provide the voltage you need for your electronics project for just a few dollars more than you could build the circuit yourself. A power adapter, also called a wall wart, is a self-contained power supply circuit that plugs into a wall outlet and provides a specified level of AC or DC voltage as its output.

When you purchase a power adapter, you need to check the specifications to make sure you’re purchasing the correct adapter. The specifications are usually printed on the adapter itself. Look for the following important specifications:

• AC or DC: Not all power adapters supply direct current; some are made to power low-voltage AC devices. So make sure that you get an adapter that provides direct-current output.

  
  



• Voltage level: Next, check the output voltage. Some power adapters have a switch that lets you choose from among several output voltages. If you use such an adapter, make sure you set the switch to the correct output level for your circuit.

  
  



• Current capacity: Most power adapters will have a maximum current rating expressed in milliamps. Smaller adapters can handle a few hundred milliamps, whereas larger adapters may be able to handle an ampere or more. Make sure that the adapter you use can handle the current requirements of your project. (Although some power adapters can handle several, few can handle more than that.)

  
  



• Polarity: Most power adapters use a barrel connector to plug the power adapter into the circuit. In nearly all modern power adapters, the center connection of the barrel connector is positive, and the outer connection is negative.

  
  

  However, some power adapters are wired just the opposite, with negative in the center and positive on the outside. The polarity of the connector should be printed on the adapter along with the voltage and current specifications.

  
  



• Connector size: Unfortunately, there are far too many different sizes and styles of connectors used for power adapters. Once you’ve purchased a power adapter, you can go to a local electronics store such as RadioShack and purchase a jack that is compatible with the connector on the power adapter. Then, you can use the jack to connect the power adapter to your circuit.

  
  

Using a power adapter instead of building your own power supply can make your project safer to build and use. That’s because the part of your project that is potentially dangerous — the part that works directly with 120 VAC line voltage — is fully contained inside the preassembled power adapter.

Wall warts convert AC to DC and step down the voltage, but most do not provide power that is very clean (that is, a pure level of DC) or stable (that is, with a predictable voltage). Thus, even if you use a wall wart to power your project, you may still need to add circuitry that will improve the quality of the DC supplied.

If you want to build your own power supply circuit for a project to convert 120 VAC line voltage to a DC voltage that's suitable for your circuit, you’ll have to design a power supply circuit that provides at least three distinct functions:

• Voltage transformation: Reduces the 120 VAC line voltage to the voltage your circuit needs.

  
  



• Rectification: Converts the reduced AC voltage to DC voltage. Note that the DC voltage produced by a rectifier circuit is technically direct current, but it isn’t steady direct current. Instead, a rectifier produces pulsating direct current in which the voltage fluctuates in sync with the 60 Hz alternating current that’s fed into it from the transformation stage.

  
  



• Filtering: Smoothes out the ripples in the DC voltage produced by the rectification stage.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/electronic-power-supply-build-or-buy.html

Book of Revelation For Dummies

If you're befuddled by the Book of Revelation in the Bible, don't fret. Take a look at the basic structure of the Book of Revelation; its major interpretations; the various perspectives on the Millennial Kingdom mentioned in Revelation 20; and how key events shaped John the Apostle and his writing. By doing so, you'll better understand this final book of the Bible's New Testament.

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Basic Structure of the Book of Revelation

Reading the Book of Revelation can be challenging — the storyline twists and turns and isn't strictly chronological. The author of the Book of Revelation, Saint John the Divine, offers a transcription of seven letters and later describes strange beasts, visions of judgments, governments, demonic battles, heaven, and a new world order — a prophetic vision for the end of the world. Even through all of this there is a clear structure; take a look at the layout of the Book of Revelation:

• Prologue (Rev. 1)

  
  



• Letters to the seven churches (Rev. 2–3)

  
  



• The throne room and the scroll with seven seals (Rev. 4–5)

  
  



• Judgments and vignettes

  
  
  
  

  • Seal judgments (Rev. 6)

    
    
  
  

  • 144,000; the multitude (Rev. 7)

    
    
  
  

  • Trumpet judgments (Rev. 8–9)

    
    
  
  

  • The angel and a little scroll (Rev. 10)

    
    
  
  

  • Two witnesses (Rev. 11)

    
    
  
  

  • A pregnant woman and the dragon (Rev. 12)

    
    
  
  

  • Two beasts (Rev. 13)

    
    
  
  

  • 144,000 on Mount Zion; three angels; harvest of the earth (Rev. 14)

    
    
  
  

  • Bowl judgments and the battle of Armageddon (Rev. 15–16)

    
    
  
  

  • A woman on the beast and the fall of Babylon (Rev. 17–18)

    
    
  
  
  
  



• The Millennium and the Last Judgment (Rev. 19–20)

  
  



• A new heaven and new earth (Rev. 21)

  
  



• Epilogue (Rev. 22)

  
  

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Interpreting the Book of Revelation

The real meaning of the Bible's Book of Revelation is a popular, ongoing debate. You'll find four major interpretive approaches to the Book of Revelation that can help you read, understand, and figure out the apocalyptic letter of John. Key to understanding commentaries on Revelations is knowing the position of the commentator.

Here are brief definitions of the four major interpretive approaches:

• Preterist: Revelation speaks of things that are already history. The book isn't prophecy about the end of time; it's directed at Christians trying to live their faith in the Roman Empire. This is the prevailing view among modern scholars who aren't aligned with orthodox Christianity. Strength: The observation that the book was intended for a first-century audience. Weakness: Fails to take seriously the idea that the Holy Spirit can reveal what's going to happen, as the book purports to do.

  
  



• Historicist: Revelation gives a bird's eye view of the entire sweep of Christian church history, from the post-Pentecost church (Acts 2) until Jesus returns. This view has few adherents today. Strength: The conviction that God controls the course of history. Weakness: Revelation then has little relevance for its original audience; also, historicists have wildly divergent views concerning the particulars.

  
  



• Idealist: There's no correlation between the visions and any historical reality; they're simply symbols of the ongoing struggle between good and evil. Strength: The recognition that the book clearly communicates enduring ideals. Weakness: Divorces ideas from history, thereby calling into question Jesus's historical death, resurrection, and ascension.

  
  



• Futurist: By the sixth seal (6:12–17), the book describes events leading up to Jesus's return. Glances at earlier stages of redemptive history (as in Rev. 12) illuminate End Time events. The focus is on a historical struggle that unfolds at the end of the age and climaxes with Jesus's Second Coming. Strength: Incorporates the insights of the other views without sacrificing the essential point of their position: namely, that the book prophesies a literal return of Jesus and a new creation. Weakness: The weakness of the futuristic view is that it interprets 1:9–3:22 just like preterists and historicists, that is, as referring to the first century. Then it declares that at 4:1, or at least by 6:12, the sixth seal, everything else is about the final period of earth history before Christ returns. Critics find this arbitrary and therefore unconvincing.

  
  

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Book of Revelation: Perspectives on the Millennial Kingdom

The exact meaning of the Millenium, the 1,000 year reign that John speaks of in Revelation 20, is a centuries-old debate in Christian circles. One problem comes from the different interpretations concerning the meaning of the Millenium. The following chart can help you sort out these respective viewpoints:

Category	Premillennialism	Amillennialism	Postmillennialism
Beginning of the Millennium	Jesus's Second Coming	Jesus's resurrection	When a majority of the of the Millennium world's population converts to Jesus
Duration	1,000 years or a long period of time	Undetermined; lasts until Jesus's Second	Undetermined; lasts until Jesus's Second
Jesus's type of reign	Physical, earthly	Spiritual (through conversion)	Spiritual (through conversion)
Tribulation (period of suffering before Jesus's Second Coming)	Literal 7-year period	Brief period before Jesus's Second	Brief period before Jesus's Second
Timing of the rapture (transport of believers to heaven)	Before the Tribulation, halfway through, or after it	Occurs as part of Jesus's Second Coming	Occurs as part of Jesus's Second Coming

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Book of Revelation: Events Surrounding the Apostle John's Writings

John, who wrote the Bible's Book of Revelation, was the longest living Apostle; as such, he witnessed extraordinary changes in the political, social, religious, and economic world. The following historical events were significant to John the Apostle and his audience:

• First outbreak of persecution against Christians by Nero (64 CE)

  
  



• Paul and Peter are martyred at Rome (67–68 CE)

  
  



• Jerusalem is sacked and the second Temple burns (70 CE)

  
  



• The emperor Domitian accepts worship as a god (81–96 CE)

  
  



• John is exiled to Patmos (90–95 CE)

  
  

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dummies

Source:http://eu.dummies.com/how-to/content/book-of-revelation-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.html

How to Add and Subtract on the Number Line

You can use the number line to demonstrate simple addition and subtraction. These first steps in math become a lot more concrete with a visual aid. Here’s the main thing to remember:

• As you go right, the numbers go up, which is addition (+).

  
  



• As you go left, the numbers go down, which is subtraction (–).

  
  

For example, 2 + 3 means you start at 2 and jump up 3 spaces to 5, as illustrated in the below figure.

As another example, 6 – 4 means start at 6 and jump down 4 spaces to 2. That is, 6 – 4 = 2, as shown in the following figure.

You can use these simple up and down rules repeatedly to solve a longer string of added and subtracted numbers. For example, 3 + 1 – 2 + 4 – 3 – 2 means 3, up 1, down 2, up 4, down 3, and down 2. In this case, the number line would show you that 3 + 1 – 2 + 4 – 3 – 2 = 1.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-add-and-subtract-on-the-number-line.navId-407333.html

Setting Up the Daily Briefing App

One of the handiest tools on your Galaxy S smartphone is the Daily Briefing app that comes preinstalled on your phone. It takes up one of the seven Home screens, and consists of four sections: Local Weather, Stock Prices, World News, and Calendar. To see information that is relevant for you, you need to customize its pages.

Start by tapping the Menu button on any of the Daily Briefing screens, then tapping Settings in the pop-up menu. From the Settings menu, you can customize each section:

• Local Weather

  
  
  
  

  1. Tap the AccuWeather.com link.

     
     
  
  

  2. Tap the Select City link to bring up the Edit City List screen.

     
     
  
  

  3. 3.Tap the Add button to bring up the City Search screen.

     
     
  
  

  4. When you find the city that you want, tap it.

     
     
  
  

  5. When you’re done adding or deleting cities, tap Return.

     
     
  
  
  
  



• Stock Prices

  
  
  
  

  1. Tap the Y! Finance link.

     
     
  
  

  2. Tap Select Stock to add financial instruments, such as stocks, mutual funds, and stock indices.

     
     
  
  

  3. Tap the Add button to add stocks and then enter the name of the stock you’re interested is.

     
     
  
  

  4. Tap the check box for what you want to see and then tap Save.

     
     
  
  
  
  



• World News: Tap the AP Mobile News link. Your only choices are how often this page is updated — as frequently as every 30 minutes or as infrequently as every three hours — and whether the information scrolls. Go ahead, let it scroll.

  
  



• Calendar: Got your calendar app set up? Then, you’ll see all your appointments for today in list form. There’s no set up required in Daily Briefing.

  
  

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/setting-up-the-daily-briefing-app.html

Types of Chiles for Mexican Cooking

Chiles are a staple in Mexican cooking. Take this list grocery shopping so you can recognize the type of chiles used for Mexican meals and choose the chiles with the flavor and degree of spiciness you like:

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  Serrano: A small, fresh, green hot chile. Used for spice and flavor in cooking and as a garnish.

  
  


• 
  

  Jalapeño: Larger than a serrano, though still small. This fresh green or red chile is probably the easiest to find in America. The ripe red version is sweeter; the green version can be spicy.

  
  


• 
  

  Poblano: A dark green, medium-sized fresh green chile often roasted and stuffed.

  
  


• 
  

  Habanero: A tiny, lantern-shaped fresh chile of extraordinary heat. Interchangeable with the incendiary Scotch Bonnet.

  
  


• 
  

  Chile de arbol: A small, red dried chile. It's the chile used for the dried red chile flakes in the spice section of the market.

  
  


• 
  

  Chipotle: A medium-small, wrinkled, dried brown chile with a unique smoky flavor reminiscent of bacon. It's the dried, smoked version of jalapeño.

  
  


• 
  

  Chile negro, or pasilla: A long, narrow, dark brown dried chile used for grinding into moles.

  
  


• 
  

  Ancho: A medium-sized, wrinkled, brown dried chile with a mellow, earthy, sweet flavor. It's the dried version of the poblano.

  
  

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/types-of-chiles-for-mexican-cooking.html

Network Basics: Windows 2008 Server Operating Systems

The Microsoft Windows 2008 server operating systems (consisting of the Windows Server 2008 and Windows Server 2008 R2) are closely related and build on each other and on past releases.

Windows Server 2008

In February 2008, Microsoft finally released the successor to Windows Server 2003, not surprisingly known as Windows Server 2008. Windows Server 2008 adds many new features to Windows Server 2003, including the following:

• 
  

  Even more enhancements to Active Directory, including the ability to manage digital certificates, a new type of domain controller called a read-only domain controller, and the ability to stop and restart Active Directory services without shutting down the entire server.

  
  


• 
  

  A new graphical user interface based on Windows Vista, including a new all-in-one management tool called the Server Manager.

  
  


• 
  

  A new version of the operating system called Server Core, which has no graphical user interface. Server Core is run entirely from the command line or by a remote computer that connects to the server via Microsoft Management Console. Server Core is designed to provide efficient file servers, domain controllers, or DNS and DHCP servers.

  
  


• 
  

  Remote connection enhancements that enable computers to establish web-based connections to the server using the HTTPS protocol without having to establish a Virtual Private Network (VPN) connection.

  
  


• 
  

  Yet another new version of the Internet Information Services (IIS) Web server (7.0).

  
  

Windows Server 2008 R2

In the fall of 2009, Microsoft issued an update to Windows Server 2008, officially called Windows Server 2008 R2. Network administrators the world over rejoiced, in part because most of them are also Star Wars fans and they can now refer to their favorite operating system as “R2.”

R2 builds on Windows Server 2008 with a variety of new features, including virtualization features that let you run more than one instance of the operating system on a single server computer, a new version of IIS (7.5), and support for up to 256 processors.

Also, R2 officially drops support for 32-bit processors. In other words, R2 only runs on server-class 64-bit processors such as Itanium and Xeon.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/network-basics-windows-2008-server-operating-syste.html

Sharing Drupal Content with RSS

RSS, or Really Simple Syndication, is a specific format for content that can be read by web applications. Your Drupal site can access content in an RSS format which is provided by websites with frequently updated content (such as news).

If your browser understands how to interpret RSS-formatted content, and most modern browsers do, you can preview RSS feeds by browsing to them. These feeds use web addresses, so you can paste them into your browser to preview them. For example, you can see a feed by browsing to Drupal.org/node/feed. This is a dynamic list of items from drupal.org.

Just as you can add your tweets, Facebook status, and YouTube videos, you can add a set of feeds to your website. But you have to find good feeds first.

Finding feeds can be tricky. Most major websites with content that frequently changes provide feeds. Lots of blog sites have feeds as well. If you want a feed from a specific site, hunting around and looking for a link to a feed is your best bet. The easiest way to find feeds is to use Google Reader to get the address of feeds of interest to you.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/sharing-drupal-content-with-rss.html

Using the Recall Game to Get Your Dog to Come When Called

If you’re interested in training your dog to come to you when he’s called, one way to teach him is to play the Recall Game. This training game is played with two people, one hungry dog, one 6-foot leash, and plenty of small treats. Practice the Recall Game on and off leash inside, on leash outside, off leash outside in a confined area, and then ultimately on and off leash with distractions when your dog is ready. Be sure you can touch your dog’s collar every time he comes to you, and before you give him a treat.

Here are the steps to follow when playing the Recall Game:

1. Find a partner and sit on the floor 6 feet apart, facing each other. Have your partner gently restrain the dog while you hold the end of the leash.

   
   



2. Call your dog by saying “Buddy, Come,” and use the leash to guide him to you.

   
   



3. When Buddy comes to you, put your hand through his collar, give him a treat, and praise him enthusiastically.

   
   



4. Hold onto Buddy’s collar and pass the leash to your partner, who says, “Buddy, Come,” guides the dog in, puts his hand through the collar, gives him a treat, and praises the dog.

   
   

Work through these steps until your dog responds on his own to being called and no longer needs to be guided to you with the leash. At that point, you can start increasing the distance between you and your partner (up to 12 feet). You also can begin playing the game from room to room in your house.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/using-the-recall-game-to-get-your-dog-to-come-when.html

Photoshop CS Palette Shortcuts

Palettes are important in Photoshop CS. Palettes give you access to brushes, colors, and layers, as well as info and actions. The following table shows you how to access a palette: Just find the one you want and then check under the column for the type of system you use — PC or Mac — for the shortcut that opens the palette for you

Palette	PC	Mac
Brushes	F5	F5
Color	F6	F6
Layers	F7	F7
Info	F8	F8
Actions	F9	Option + F9

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/photoshop-cs-palette-shortcuts.html

Becoming a Personal Trainer For Dummies

To become a successful personal trainer, you have to master your certification exam, market yourself to potential clients, and know what clients want and need from a personal trainer.

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Telephoning Tips for Personal Trainers

Drumming up business as a personal trainer may start from a simple a phone call. Use these tips to reassure a prospective client of your personal training ability, make them feel comfortable, and answer any questions or concerns they have.

• Introduce yourself by name and position. “This is Pat Pectoral of Pat’s Perfect Personal Training.”

  
  



• Ask for your prospect’s first name, then use it when addressing her questions. But don’t overdo this, or you’ll sound like a particularly insincere used-car salesman.

  
  



• Ask how you can help her. Then let her talk, and make sure you listen.

  
  



• Ask questions if you’re not clear on the caller's needs. Your job is to find out what the caller is looking for and how you can give it to her. Ask questions to clarify the prospect’s needs.

  
  



• Modify your rate of speech to match your caller’s. This is an old trick that helps the prospect feel comfortable with you.

  
  



• Let her know it’s okay to interrupt you if she doesn’t understand what you’re saying. Talking with a trainer can be intimidating — especially for someone who isn’t a big exerciser! Assure the prospect that she can ask you anything at any time.

  
  



• Keep your answers short and definitive. Getting too wordy can confuse your caller or make her lose interest in you.

  
  



• No matter what your mood, be upbeat and maintain a positive attitude. You want to exude health and confidence.

  
  



• Smile during your conversation. Your caller can hear it!

  
  



• Make sure your voice reflects enthusiasm and cheer.

  
  



• Speak with confidence. As the saying goes, “It’s not what you say but how you say it!”

  
  



• Know what you’re talking about. If you don’t know an answer, admit it — don’t make one up.

  
  



• Make notes to refer back to during the conversation. That way you can go back if you have a question about something the prospect said.

  
  



• If you’re able to schedule an initial consultation with the potential client, reiterate the date, time, and location of your next meeting before closing the conversation.

  
  



• Always thank the prospective client for calling, and wish her a good day/afternoon/evening before saying goodbye.

  
  

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How to Be a Successful Personal Trainer

Building up, and keeping clients, is key to the success of your personal training business. These guidelines will help you establish yourself professionally, and build your client relationships as a personal trainer.

• Be a professional. Be sure to dress professionally (a polo shirt and clean sweat pants work well), always show up on time, and keep accurate files.

  
  



• Don't be afraid to “fire” a client. If the client has become increasingly noncompliant, if you find yourself ending workouts early; or if the client has started to complain a lot, the best course of action may be to let her go. Tell her that you feel that Trainer X can offer her more than you can.

  
  



• Scope out the competition. Your competitors are the personal trainers and personal training companies in your area that. The best way to “know your foe” is to “shop” them. Call as a prospective client and ask about their services, how much they charge, whether their trainers are certified, hours, whether they travel to the client’s home or office, and so on. Not only will you get the information you need to compete in the marketplace, you may pick up an idea or two for yourself.

  
  



• Provide personal solutions. Your clients don’t all fit into one mold, and your programs and solutions for them shouldn’t, either. Ask questions to find out about the client’s unique situation and tailor your response to fit it.

  
  



• Plan one step at a time. Break down tasks into manageable steps. For example, if your client has never been on a treadmill, don’t just put him on one and hit the On button. Tell him how to get on the treadmill, how to turn it on, how to step onto the tread, how to adjust the intensity, and how to turn it off.

  
  



• Change up the program. We humans get bored doing the same thing every day. Keep your client motivated by occasionally upping the intensity and changing the exercises.

  
  



• Provide positive reinforcement. Encourage and motivate your clients to keep them coming back. Tell your client how her performance compares to her past performance (if it’s better, that is), compliment her, include positive notes about her performance in her workout log, and send her an occasional e-mail or greeting card to let her know you’re proud of her.

  
  



• Respect your clients’ privacy. Don’t tell other clients, trainers, or anyone else about a client’s home, personal life, or training program.

  
  



• Follow up. Following up with clients holds them accountable and gives them little motivational boosts to boot. It’s simple — just check in once or twice (via phone or e-mail) when the client is between sessions.

  
  



• Keep in touch with former clients. Staying in touch with your former clients is a good business practice. If you have clients who have moved on, shoot them an occasional phone call, letter, or e-mail to touch base and make sure they’re on track. You never know — they may decide to come back to you!

  
  

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How To Ace Your Personal Training Certification Exam

Being hired as a personal trainer requires a certification if you want to be taken seriously by potential employers and clients. These tips will help you hit the books and prepare for your certification exam:

• Get ready to study. Make sure you have a quiet place where you can concentrate on the course materials, whether your kitchen or the local library. Turn off the TV, the radio (unless listening to classical music helps get your brain cells moving), and your Internet connection (unless you’re using online course materials). And make sure your study area is equipped with pencils, paper, and a good light source.

  
  



• Find course materials. Each certifying organization offers its own course materials to help you study for the exam. You may receive (or be able to purchase) textbooks, online study guides, sample tests, and access to live seminars and courses. Check out the certifying organizations’ Web sites for information on the course materials that are available.

  
  



• Role-play. If the exam includes a practical portion, you’ll need to get your hands on such equipment as skin-fold calipers and blood-pressure cuffs. Recruit some friends and use them to practice measuring flexibility, measuring body fat, performing submaximal cardio evaluations, and anything else you may have to perform on the test.

  
  



• Use sticky notes. Learning anatomy is an active process — you have to get up and get moving to understand how the body works. Stick labels on your muscles and joints to remember what they’re called and how they move.

  
  



• Draw up flash cards. Make up flash cards with definitions and formulas. You can test yourself whenever you have a free minute — in line at the grocery store, in the dentist’s waiting room, while stuck in traffic — or have a friend flash you (the cards, that is).

  
  



• Get moving. Get off your chair and perform movements to find out which muscles are involved. Which muscles do you use when you kick? How about when you’re doing a bench press?

  
  

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dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/becoming-a-personal-trainer-for-dummies-cheat-shee.navId-323005.html

Picturing the Primary Symptoms of AD/HD

AD/HD has three primary symptoms: inattention/distractibility, impulsivity, and hyperactivity. These symptoms don't all have to be present in order for you to have AD/HD, and if you do have one or more of them, they may not be present all the time.

Inattention/distractibility

Inattention means you have a hard time focusing on something. Distractibility means your attention is easily pulled from one thing to another. Inattention is at the core of AD/HD. However, inattention isn't as simple as never being able to focus; nothing about this condition is as clear-cut as that. Inattention is more accurately a problem in being able to control or regulate how and when you focus on something.

A key thing to know about this symptom is that it can look different in almost everyone, and it can change from day to day in each person. But even with such variability, a few basic characteristics of inattention and distractibility are found in people with AD/HD. These are:

• Not being able to concentrate: Keeping focused on something is difficult and, at times, impossible.

• Being able to focus well on some things but not on others: Many people think that just because a person can concentrate on something, she must be able to concentrate on everything if she just tries hard enough. This is not the case for people with AD/HD.

• Being able to focus sometimes but not other times: Scattered thinking makes it difficult for sufferers to tackle complex projects because they often lose track of what they are doing.

• Being easily distracted by things happening around you: Many people with AD/HD are unable to filter out all the things going on around them and are easily pulled away from what they want to focus on.

• Being easily distracted by your own thoughts: "Daydreaming," or having unrelated thoughts flowing through their minds, is commonplace for some AD/HD patients.

• Losing track of your thoughts (spacing out): An extension of being easily distracted is spacing out. This is common with people with AD/HD — it seems like they have gaps in their awareness.

• Being forgetful: A lot of people with AD/HD tend to lose their keys, forget appointments, and get lost.

• Being late: Because many people with AD/HD have trouble organizing their time, they are often late to appointments.

• Being unable to finish things: People with AD/HD are notorious for starting a project and then moving on to something else before finishing it.

• Procrastinating: People with AD/HD often fail to even start something. Also, after repeated failures, many people avoid starting projects because of the fear that they'll fail again.

• Not attending to details: People with AD/HD are often "big picture" people. They can think up new and exciting ideas, but when it comes to actually dealing with the details needed to make those ideas happen, they just can't seem to follow through. As well, when given instructions on how to do something, they often miss important details.

• Making careless mistakes: Not attending to details leads to careless mistakes. This is a common problem with people who are easily distractible because they drift from one thought to another and lose track of what they've done and what needs to be done next.

Impulsivity

Impulsivity is the inability to consider the consequences of your actions beforehand — in other words, doing before thinking. When you have this symptom of AD/HD, it's almost as though you have an involuntary response to a stimulus. The response can take the form of actions or words.

Like the other symptoms of AD/HD, impulsivity looks different depending on the person. Some people have difficulty considering what they say before saying it, whereas others may act at times without thinking. Here are a few ways that impulsivity can manifest in people with AD/HD:

• Blurting out answers before a question is finished: Many teachers of children with AD/HD complain that the children shout out answers before questions have been asked. Many AD/HD adults have a habit of finishing other people's sentences.

• Saying inappropriate things: People with the hyperactive/impulsive type of AD/HD have a difficult time censoring themselves, and they respond to other people without considering the consequences of what they say.

• Butting into conversations: Because of the inability to keep from saying the first thing that comes to mind, people with impulse problems often butt into conversations. This is partly due to the lack of impulse control but is also due to the difficulty that many people with AD/HD have in being able to pick up on and interpret subtle signals (body language) and the rhythm of a conversation.

• Intruding on others: AD/HD sufferers often don't know where their bodies are in space, so they tend to be somewhat clumsy. Couple this characteristic with the lack of impulse control, and you often find people with AD/HD intruding on others — bumping into them, grabbing at a toy, and so on.

• Acting without considering the consequences: Many people with AD/HD act from impulse to impulse. They see something in a store and "have to have it," even though that item may not have any useful purpose for them.

• Engaging in risky behaviors: Because people with AD/HD often crave stimulus, they may get into situations where they do dangerous things. Pushing life to the limits can really help some people focus and feel more in control.

• Being impatient: One thing that is particularly difficult for people with AD/HD is waiting in line, which requires someone to stand relatively still. They are more likely to fidget and squirm while waiting.

• Wanting things immediately: This symptom can take many forms, such as wanting to have your needs met immediately, as in the case of a child who has a tantrum when you don't come running to his aid.

Restlessness/hyperactivity

Restlessness and hyperactivity are essentially the same thing — the inability to regulate your physical movements. For the person with this symptom of AD/HD, sitting still is difficult (especially at school or work where sitting for extended periods of time is expected), as is doing activities that require minimal physical movement, such as playing quiet games.

Keep in mind that most young children exhibit what would be called hyperactivity — frequent movement and activity. This isn't necessarily a sign that your child has AD/HD. Most children outgrow this level of activity by the time they're 4 or 5. And even before then, most kids have periods of time where they're able to sit quietly, such as when reading a book with a parent or older sibling.

Restlessness and hyperactivity are so variable in people that in one instance this symptom may be obvious, and in another it may be almost completely disguised. Following are a few of the ways this symptom can present itself:

• Being unable to sit still for any length of time: This is especially obvious in younger children. As children grow older, they often develop the ability to sit, although they may squirm in their seats or, as they grow older still, just fidget.

• Being always on the go: The classic descriptor is that people with this symptom of AD/HD seem to be "driven by a motor." As much as they'd like to stop moving sometimes, they can't seem to do so.

• Feeling edgy: Adults with AD/HD feel the need to move and release the energy that builds up inside them. Restlessness also can show up in other parts of a person's life. People with AD/HD often move or change jobs just because they are restless.

• Fidgeting constantly: Fidgeting can take on a number of forms, from seemingly repetitive tapping to random movements. Some people fidget to try to focus on a task.

• Talking nonstop: Rather than move their bodies, some people with AD/HD run their mouths. Constant talking is simply another way to release the energy that seems to build up from AD/HD.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/picturing-the-primary-symptoms-of-adhd.html

Understanding Liquidity Ratios in Bookkeeping

Liquidity ratios measure how easily and comfortably a firm can pay its immediate financial obligations and exploit immediate short-term financial opportunities. For example, everything else being equal, the firm that's sitting on a large hoard of cash (high liquidity) can more easily pay its bills and can take advantage of great opportunities that pop up. (If a competitor gets into trouble and wants to sell valuable assets at fire sale prices, a very liquid firm with great gobs of cash can more easily exploit such an opportunity.)

Current ratio

The current ratio liquidity measure compares a firm's current assets with its current liabilities. A firm's current assets include cash, inventory, accounts receivable, and any other asset that can or will be quickly turned into cash. Most small businesses don't have much in the way of other current assets, although they may have some, such as short-term investments. Current liabilities include bills that must be paid in the coming year: accounts payable, wages payable, taxes payable, and — if you're borrowing money on a long-term basis (such as through bank loans) — the principal portions of the coming year's payment on a loan.

The following is the exact formula used to calculate the current ratio:

current assets/current liabilities

The following simple balance sheet gives you an example of how this current ratio formula works. This firm's current assets equal $50,000, and their only current liability is $20,000 of accounts payable.

A Simple Balance Sheet

Assets
Cash	$25,000
Inventory	25,000
Current assets	$50,000
Fixed assets (net)	270,000
Total assets	$320,000
Liabilities
Accounts payable	$20,000
Loan payable	100,000
Owner's equity
S. Nelson, capital	200,000
Total liabilities and owner's equity	$320,000

To calculate the current ratio of this firm, you use the following formula:

$50,000/$20,000

This formula returns the value 2.5. Therefore, the value 2.5 is this firm's current ratio.

Here is a general guideline concerning current ratios: A firm's current ratio should be a value of 2 or higher. In other words, the firm's current assets should be double or more than double the firm's current liabilities.

Acid test ratio

Also known as the quick ratio, the acid test ratio is a more severe measure of a firm's liquidity. However, it serves the same general purpose as the current ratio. The acid test ratio indicates how easily a firm can meet its current financial obligations and exploit any financial opportunities that pop up.

The following formula is used for calculating the acid test ratio:

(current assets - inventory)/current liabilities

For example, in the case of the business described by the balance sheet, you use the following formula to calculate the acid test ratio:

$25,000/$20,000

This formula returns the value 1.25. Therefore, the value of 1.25 is this firm's acid test ratio.

Here is a guideline for acid test ratio: A firm's acid test ratio should be a value of 1 or higher. In other words, the current assets after you subtract the inventory should provide enough money to pay the current liabilities.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/understanding-liquidity-ratios-in-bookkeeping.html

How to Create Reader-Friendly Content for Your Online Community

Keywords are important in directing people to your online community, but content is even more important. In fact, content is king. No matter how many keywords you use, and no matter how hard you try to catch the attention of the search engines, people are more likely to stick around and see what you have to offer if you offer content that’s informative, engaging, and useful.

Here’s something else to consider: When you write something great, people will share your content. They’ll send it out on Twitter, and others will retweet it.

People who read good content also like to share it on Facebook, and bloggers like to lead discussions about compelling content that they read online, which also captures the attention of the search engines. Having content that attracts readers and encourages them to share is the best SEO possible.

How do you know what type of content to write for your community? Here are a few tips:

• Spread the news. If you have a company blog, use it to write news and updates about your brand.

  
  



• Write content that relates to your community. If you represent a sugar brand, write about the benefits of sugar, sugar cookie recipes, or homemade beauty products that use sugar.

  
  



• Write evergreen content. Content that remains relevant over the years is called evergreen. News items and fads that stay on the front pages for a short period aren’t evergreen.

  
  

  Provide a balance of newsy and evergreen content.

  
  

The best part about good content is how it helps grow community. web articles and blogs allow for comments. Write engaging comment, and your community will grow as they participate in the ensuing discussion.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-create-readerfriendly-content-for-your-onli.html

Reviewing Your CV before Applying for a Job

Tell the truth. After a fair evaluation, decide whether you have a standout Curriculum Vitae (CV). Maybe you need to call in the experts for a makeover on a sorry looking eyesore? As a quick review, ask yourself these questions.

• Have I selected the best format for my background and goals?

  
  



• Does my CV illustrate to an employer the benefits of interviewing me – how I can handle the job, have positive work attitudes, get along well with others?

  
  



• Does my CV stress my accomplishments and skills?

  
  



• Does my CV contain negative information?

  
  



• Are all my claims believable, backed up by measurable results, and true examples?

  
  



• Does my CV have adequate keywords to allow automated searches to retrieve my CV and bring me to a searcher’s attention?

  
  



• Is my CV inviting to read with good, clean layout and adequate white space?

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/reviewing-your-cv-before-applying-for-a-job.html

Making the Most of the Preview Pane in Your E-Mail Marketing Messages

Your prospects and customers may catch their first glimpse of your marketing e-mail in the preview pane of their e-mail program. Use this valuable e-mail real estate to entice your audience into opening your message — or at least saving it for later reading.

A well-designed preview pane increases your open rate and prompts your users to read portions of your e-mails in more detail before deciding to read more or take immediate action on the calls to action within your e-mails.

Designing your e-mails to maximize the content in the preview pane involves placing text and design elements at the top of your e-mails in strategic configurations. If you can fit your message entirely in the preview pane, you have a winning layout, but often your e-mails have to deliver more than a minimal amount of content.

When the preview pane alone isn’t enough, use the following tips to encourage your audience to dig deeper into the message:

• Insert a short sentence of plain text at the top of your e-mails that tells your audience who you are and what your e-mail contains. If you use a permission reminder at the top of your e-mails, briefly highlight the contents of your e-mail in the permission text.

  
  



• Make sure your e-mail is no wider than 600 pixels. Most e-mail programs match the screen resolution of the user’s computer, and e-mails wider than 600 pixels may exclude some of your content. Most e-mail templates are already 600 pixels by design, but you can check the template’s style sheet or table width tag to be sure.

  
  



• Place a headline directly under an image that spans the width of the e-mail. It highlights the content in your e-mail that appears below the preview pane.

  
  



• Include a table of contents (TOC) in your e-mail. Add your TOC in a row near the top of your e-mail or in a side column in the e-mail. If you use a TOC in a column, make sure it appears at the top of your e-mail.

  
  



• Use the same colors for borders, backgrounds, and other non-image design elements. A consistent color helps reinforce your brand when your e-mails use various formats.

  
  



• Avoid using text at the top of your e-mails that fails to hint at the details that appear below the preview pane. For example, an e-mail newsletter that has the date, issue number, and month at the top of the e-mail fails to describe the content of the e-mail newsletter in detail.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/making-the-most-of-the-preview-pane-in-your-email-.html

Register Your Spotify Account on ShareMyPlaylists

To add a playlist to ShareMyPlaylists (SMP) and use the social features, you need to connect your Spotify account to the site via Facebook or Twitter. Whenever you visit ShareMyPlaylists.com, a pop-up window appears, prompting you to sign in by using either of these accounts. The first time you sign in, you need to authorize SMP to have access to your basic Facebook or Twitter data.

In the case of Twitter, for example, you get redirected to a Twitter page, asking if you Authorize Share My Playlists to Use Your Account. Click Sign In to log in by using your Twitter username and password to confirm. You then get logged in to SMP via Twitter and are directed back to the site.

If you don’t have a Facebook or Twitter account, or would rather sign up separately to SMP, that’s possible, too. Just click the Register button at the top of the page to set up a separate username and password.

But it’s easier to use Facebook or Twitter, if possible, so that you don’t have to remember multiple passwords; there are handy links to publish your SMP playlists to either of these services.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/register-your-spotify-account-on-sharemyplaylists.html

Golf Etiquette

Golfers show their respect for the game, the course and their fellow players through commonly accepted rules of golf etiquette. Here are some basic tips to help you get the most from your day on the green:

Do:

• Be ready to play when it’s your turn.

  
  



• Award the honour on a given tee to the player with the lowest score on the preceding hole.

  
  



• Pay attention to the group behind you.

  
  



• Help the greenkeeper out: replace divots, repair ball marks and smooth footprints in bunkers.

  
  

Don’t:

• Talk while someone is playing a stroke.

  
  



• Hit until you’re sure that everyone in your foursome is behind you.

  
  



• Park golf carts near greens, trees or bunkers.

  
  



• Hang around the green filling out your scorecards after everyone has finished putting.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/golf-etiquette.html

PC Monitor Screen Savers: Tools or Toys?

Do you need a screen saver on your monitor? There’s no reason to run a screen saver program for its originally intended purpose: to prevent the perils of phosphor burn-in.

Back in the old days, a computer was often used for a single task, especially in an office setting. Because the same image was displayed pretty much all the time on the screen, the image burned the CRT’s phosphor, making an image visible even when the monitor was turned off.

To help “save” the screen, screen saver software was born.

At first, screen savers merely blanked the display after a period of inactivity. Later screen savers added graphical images. Screen savers are now mostly toys, though they can also serve a security function by locking the computer after a period of inactivity. But phosphor burn-in is no longer considered a serious computer maintenance issue.

• To configure a screen saver in Windows 7 and Windows Vista, right-click the desktop and choose Personalize from the pop-up menu. In the Personalization window, click the Screen Saver link to show the Screen Saver Settings dialog box.

  
  



• To configure a screen saver in Windows XP, right-click the desktop and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. Click the Screen Saver tab in the Display Properties dialog box.

  
  



• To have the screen saver lock the computer (for security), place a check mark in the box by On Resume, Display Logon Screen (Windows 7/Windows Vista) or On Resume, Password Protect (Windows XP). This option can be found in either the Screen Saver Settings or Display Properties dialog box.

  
  



• Be careful when downloading screen savers from the Internet. Many so-called free screen savers can be malware programs that turn out to be more trouble than they’re worth.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/pc-monitor-screen-savers-tools-or-toys.html

Understanding Why Dogs Misbehave

Even the most well-trained dog misbehaves once in a while. But don't make the mistake of interpreting your dog's actions in human terms. Vengeance and retaliation are human characteristics. What you may interpret as retaliation on the part of your dog is far more apt to be instinct or even anxiety and frustration. Although it may seem so, your dog did not diabolically plan to get back at you.

Punishment is entirely appropriate at certain times, but the punishment itself must be appropriate, as well. For example, separation anxiety can manifest itself in many ways. Dogs mildly affected will often seek out an object that is very personally "you." A shoe, an undergarment, or a glove are as close as your dog can get to you when you're gone, and your absence can best be endured through the dog's highly developed art of chewing.

For example, you come home and find your favorite (and most expensive!) shoes in shreds and assume your dog has done this to you because he is angry that you left him behind. But you have entirely misunderstood why he did what he did. He missed his lord and master, and got as close to him as he could in the best way he knew how. What you call retaliation, your dog calls devotion.

Assuming your dog has intentionally done something to spite you is a foolish error in judgment on your part. Flying off into a rage because of the behavior is both unfair and dangerous. It's unfair because dogs aren't vengeful creatures, and it's dangerous because some breeds — such as Rottweilers — aren't willing to accept that kind of treatment. There is a vast difference between punishment and abuse.

If you respond with rage when your dog acts out of anxiety, you're only compounding the problem. When punishment for an infraction of rules is warranted, you must always remember three rules:

• Be calm

• Be fair

• Be consistent

A responsible pet owner should be able to interact with the pet on that basis all the time and no matter what the circumstances!

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/understanding-why-dogs-misbehave.html