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Your Dream Career For Dummies

You’re taking a chance on yourself and embarking on a search for your dream career. As with any seach, you need a plan, which includes doing informational interviews to find out about jobs in different fields and using the Internet to look at descriptions of positions and salary ranges. And, if you really want to follow your dreams, you have to pay attention to your passions, keep an open mind, and think outside of the 9-to-5 box.

At-a-Glance Plan to Reach Your Dream Career

Finding your dream career is like searching for a hidden treasure. Your best strategy for success is to collect as many clues as you can about what works for you. The following points are a nuts-and-bolts version of the basics for finding your dream career:

Take stock of your current situation.

Find your personal style.

Define your ideal lifestyle needs.

Pinpoint your preferred work environment.

Specify your favorite passions, skills, and interests.

Brainstorm a list of viable career ideas.

Select your Top Two Career Ideas.

Explore additional career possibilities based on your skills.

Investigate your Top Two Career Ideas.

Blend your dream career with your life realities.

Develop your personal action plan to achieve your dream career.

Informational Interview Questions to Ask in Search of Your Dream Career

When you’re searching for your dream career, talking with people in a field you’re interested in is one of the best ways to gain a realistic and current picture of a potential new career — you want to do informational interviews. Make appointments with people in your potential new field then use the questions in the handy list following to help you plan your informational interviews:

What is the outlook for this profession?

What is your day like?

What are your key responsibilities?

What are the pros and cons of working in this industry right now?

How does this job impact your life?

How did you get into this field?

Do you know anyone who entered this field with my background?

Identifying Your Passions in Search of Your Dream Career

Evidence of your passions is in front of you every day. Use the passions that bring you alive to find your dream career. Use the following filters to follow the clues to find your passions and interests:

Listen for a change in your voice: When your speech quickens, your conversations about a topic are long, or you’re insistent about the value of a topic, you are on the trail of a passion.

Notice your excitement level: When your excitement picks up, pay attention to what you’re doing.

Track your curiosity: When you have a desire to know more, follow the thread.

Visit memory lane: Consider fascinations you’ve had since you were a kid.

Notice how you help others: Think about things you do for others.

Recognize a sense of mission: Notice when a past experience gives you a vision of what could be different.

Catalog the tools you love to use: What you enjoy using in your work and play can lead you to your passions.

Spot your natural talents: Claim the skills you do without thinking.

How to Use the Web in Search for Your Dream Career

The Internet is full of information on all sorts of topics, including careers. You can’t go wrong starting your search for your dream career by clicking the Web sites in the following list. They’re good places to find out more about careers, salaries, and professional associations:

Occupational Outlook Handbook: Check out potential careers and salary information.

Wetfeet.com: Explore your favorite careers and industries.

Monster.com: Read the job profiles.

Salary.com: Conduct your compensation research.

Career Guide to Industries: Research your industry of interest.

Weddle’s: Access professional associations related to your career.

Considering Alternatives to the 9-to-5 Schedule in Your Dream Career

When changing careers, you may find that your dream career fits into a nontraditional work arrangement. An alternative schedule may suit you better than working 9 to 5, five days a week. Some of the alternatives to 9-to-5 may be unfamiliar to you, so the following list tells you what they mean:

Compressed workweek: Work 40 hours in three or four days, instead of the typical five days.

Job share: Partner with someone else to split the workload, and the pay, of one job.

Contract work: Contract with a company through an employment agency to work for the duration of a specific project.

Telecommute: Set yourself up with the equipment you need to perform your job from home.

Freelance: Develop a working relationship with several companies so that you can choose the projects you want to work on.

Home-based business owner: Launch a business that you run from your home.

Keeping an Open Mind about Your Dream Career

As you explore options for a new dream career, you’re putting one toe into the unknown. Although it can be unnerving not to know The Answer to your career puzzle, the key to success is to keep an open mind as you explore your options. Keep your cool and keep the following tips in mind:

Think ideally.

Listen to your longings.

Let your procrastination tell you what doesn’t work for you.

Stay focused on the essence of what you want.

Turn away from things that repel you.

Pay attention to what attracts you.

Understand your unique style.

Brainstorm with an open, expansive mind.

Focus on possibilities and opportunities.

Explore your career ideas to understand them.

Test your potential career before you make the leap.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/your-dream-career-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.html

Your Baby's First Year: Dealing with Caretaker Conflicts

You love your parents — you really do. But why do they insist on feeding Baby ice cream and candy when they baby-sit? You've made it very clear that you're concerned about milk allergies during the first year, and you don't want your 9-month-old eating anything laden with fat, sugar, and caffeine. Why can't they respect your wishes and follow your rules?

Apparently, the old rules that your parents applied to your own upbringing — Mother and Father know best — have gone out the window now that you're the parent (the rule has now been revised: Grandma and Grandpa can do whatever they want). They expect that you will still yield to their whims without making much fuss about it. After all, they're the grandparents, and it's their privilege to spoil Baby. They'll point to your child and say, "Look how happy he is! You should give him candy more often."

It's the dance of the new parents versus the old hands. Not only will some grandparents (or friends or other relatives) call Baby's diet into question, they may also completely ignore your routines surrounding these issues:

Bedtime: You want Baby in bed at eight o'clock or else he'll be a bear in the morning? Your mother wants to visit with the tyke while she's baby-sitting, so he'll get to bed when Grandma is ready to say goodnight to him — whether that's at nine o'clock or eleven-thirty.

Medication: Your sister doesn't think that Baby looks sick, so she doesn't give him the antibiotic you left behind (along with specific dosing instructions).

Appropriate clothing: Your dad took Baby to the park in February without putting mittens on your child. He says it was warm enough to go without; you're checking for signs of frostbite.

Bathtime: It's part of Baby's bedtime routine, but your parents thought that Baby looked clean enough and put him to bed without a thorough cleansing.

Allowing pets near the child: Your aunt swears that her dog is harmless and allows the animal to sniff Baby while she holds your child.

Hygiene issues: Your mother-in-law thinks the way you clean Baby's hands with a baby wipe before he eats is ridiculous. She lets you know that she never did that for her kids — and you know she doesn't do it for yours when he's visiting at her house without you.

How do you deal with these issues? Surely these people are wrong to disregard your rules concerning your own child — but do you really want to instigate what could be a drawn-out fight over a few pieces of chocolate? (Keep in mind that some grandparents become very offended if their judgment is called into question — never mind that by ignoring your wishes, they're putting your judgment under the microscope.)

First, rate each issue in order of importance. It wouldn't have hurt your father to put mittens on Baby — but maybe he couldn't find them, or maybe — just maybe — it really was warm enough for Baby to go barehanded. No permanent damage is done, and it's best to let this incident go. Next time your dad is planning an outing with your child, make sure you hand him the mittens and say, "You know how I worry. Please put his mittens on him when he goes outside." You're telling him that you're concerned for your child and that this isn't some arbitrary rule you've created to make Grandpa's life more difficult.

Matters of scheduling — a skipped bath or a late lunch — are usually random and won't affect Baby adversely. These really aren't worth fighting over. What's done is done, and whoever fed Baby late had to suffer the consequences (and learn the lesson) of dealing with a hungry, cranky child. (The exception to this is a late bedtime, because you're the one left to deal with the fallout, in the form of a crabby kid the following day. This is worth a fight if it happens on a regular basis.)

Hygiene issues mean a lot more to some parents than to others. Baby's hands should be cleaned before he sits down to eat finger foods. He's been crawling around on the floor, pulling himself up on everything, and generally exploring the world through his tactile senses. Wiping his hands before a meal doesn't make you obsessive-compulsive; it makes you observant of what he's been doing. Do you accept that your mother-in-law isn't going to wipe Baby's hands off, or do you insist on it? If you're not around to make sure it gets done, realize that arguing with her could make her that much more defiant on this issue. As long as he's not coming home from her house vomiting, you're probably wise to look the other way on this particular issue.

Some issues are completely non-negotiable. If Baby is on some sort of medication, giving it to him is not a debatable whim (will he get it or won't he?). Whoever is left in charge of caring for the child needs to understand this and be given explicit directions as to the timing and administration of the drug. And pets should always be kept at an arm's length from Baby, no matter how docile (and humanlike) their owners believe them to be.

No one wants Baby's care to cause an irreparable family rift, so before things get out of hand:

Assess: Is this issue important enough to argue over, or is it possible that you can overlook it completely — again and again?

Plan: If it's something that isn't negotiable, think of the nicest way to tell the offender that this can't happen again.

Lay off: You can — and should — check up on matters of importance. But after you're convinced that the issue has been resolved, there's no need for you to continue to remind your aunt to keep that dog away from Baby. She gets it.

Find a new sitter: If things have gotten so out of control that what's happening is effectively a power struggle between you and the errant sitter, find someone else, no matter what the financial cost. Trusting the person who is caring for your child is worth every penny you shell out.

What this comes down to in the end is a matter of respect — for your parenting skills and for your position of authority as this child's parent. No one should blatantly flout your rules. An occasional slip-up by a caregiver should be expected and tolerated (because, after all, Grandma is only human), but an out-and-out debate over what you do and don't allow your child to eat shouldn't really be of concern to anyone else — as long as your child is healthy and your pediatrician is satisfied with Baby's progress.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/your-babys-first-year-dealing-with-caretaker-confl.html

How to Download Images from Your Digital Camera to Your PC

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Connect the cable that came with your camera (or your external card reader) to the corresponding port on your PC.

This port is very likely your PC’s USB port. The Scanner and Camera Wizard screen appears when you plug in the USB cable from your camera.

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If you want to assign an optional tag to the images from this camera, click in the Tag These Pictures text box and type the description.

By default, Vista uses the tag you enter to name the images and videos when they’re imported. For example, if you enter the tag Fun Photos, the filenames are Fun Photos 001.jpg, Fun Photos 002.jpg, and so on.

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Click Import to begin downloading the images.

After the download is complete, Windows Vista automatically opens the Windows Photo Gallery with the photos you just downloaded in the pane on the right side of the window.

After the images have been transferred, you can unplug your camera’s cable. If you’re done with your images, you can close the Photo Gallery application.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-download-images-from-your-digital-camera-to.navId-323809.html

Dialing Up VoIP Myth-Busters

If a new technology comes our way that brings with it the promise of reducing or eliminating tremendous monthly costs, it can be expected that supporters and stakeholders of the status quo are going to be concerned. VoIP (voice over Internet protocol) is disrupting the hugely profitable telecommunications industry, and it has had to overcome many criticisms. Here's a look at a few of the more prevalent myths about VoIP.

VoIP runs only on the Internet

The most obvious myth about VoIP is that it runs only on the Internet. What can we expect? The term Internet is built into VoIP. However, VoIP requires and runs on the Internet protocol, but not necessarily on the Internet itself.

Internet protocol isn't synonymous with the Internet. The Internet can be accessed from all types of networks. The Internet isn't a network type unto itself; it's a network other networks access, and it provides access to other networks.

VoIP runs on any network that can run the Internet protocol. But just because VoIP can run the same protocols over any network type, this doesn't mean that that VoIP runs the same way on all network types. The protocols take care of packetizing the telephony voice signals, but the network type takes care of transporting those packets.

VoIP calls can be intercepted

Can VoIP telephony packets on a computer network be intercepted? Yes, they can. What does it take to intercept VoIP packets? The same equipment and access that it takes to intercept computer data packets. How feasible is it? Not very.

After spending millions of dollars, the FBI developed a system called Carnivore that is essentially built on earlier network management technology known as a protocol analyzer. Basically, the device (a souped-up computer) plugs into a network much like any other network addressable device. It sits there and collects packets as they race by at the speed of light. The packets can then be analyzed for threats and other information, or so the theory goes.

If you're worried about such a device, keep the following in mind:

A government agency at least as powerful as the FBI is required to gain access to a given network (excluding a trusted person doing it).

Access must be physical. The person must have a key to the telecommunications closet or access to an office where they can plug into the network.

Access is achieved through the network operating system, so the person must have a network access account.

Network managers today have a variety of techniques to protect their packetized network traffic.

After all this, if you're still concerned about VoIP packet interception and security, consider the fact that anyone on the street can tap a POTS telephone line with a simple analog handset and a few wires. All they need is physical access to your line. They don't have to be inside your company; they can access the line from the street or in tunnels where the public access lines run.

A solid argument can be made that a packetized network has more security than the older circuit-switched network, particularly because you can also implement data encryption for VoIP.

911 calls may not work

Remember that the 911 network was designed to be supported by and make full use of the circuit-switched network. VoIP uses packet-switched networks. This is a colossal difference that needs to be clearly understood.

At the same time, understand that most 911 calls are local calls to local emergency centers and law enforcement agencies. The major cost benefits associated with VoIP aren't realized with local calls. Until the PSTN adopts VoIP and packet-switching, you have to maintain local POTS telephony service for local calls. Such lines can easily be used to make 911 calls directly. You don't have to lose your ability to make 911 calls just because you're converting to VoIP for all your toll calling.

On the consumer side, some low-end VoIP providers offer workarounds to enable their customers to let go of their POTS services and be fully VoIP. This is crazy. If you have an emergency, you want the fastest connection possible to 911. Why would you want a service that routes your emergency call out to the Internet, then to your VoIP provider, then back down to a POTS line, and finally to the local 911 center? Consider using DSL or cable modem for your Internet services; you can't get VoIP otherwise. Use the VoIP connection for all your toll calls and videoconferencing services. Plug a POTS telephone into your broadband VoIP adapter box and maintain at least one POTS line for local service.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/dialing-up-voip-mythbusters.html

ProShares ETFs

ProShares offers nearly the same number of ETFs as PowerShares. The Short QQQ ProShares (PSQ) allows you to short the NASDAQ 100: If the NASDAQ goes down 5 percent tomorrow, your ETF will go up (more or less) 5 percent. Of course, the inverse is true, as well.

Other ProShares offerings allow you to short the Dow, the S&P 500, or the S&P MidCap 400, among other indexes. The Ultra ProShares ETFs allow you to move with the market at double the speed. Ultra QQQ ProShares (QLD), for example, is designed to rise 10 percent when the NASDAQ 100 goes up 5 percent (and, of course, to fall 10 percent when the NASDAQ 100 goes down 5 percent).

All these percentages are rough approximations. In the real world, you’re going to profit less and risk more than you hoped for.

Be aware of shorting and leveraging strategies, especially as these ETFs employ them, which is to say on a daily returns basis. In short, selling short is akin to market timing, and market timing, while loads of fun, isn’t often profitable. As for the less-than-double-your-money, more-than-double-your-risk ProShares Ultra ETFs, well it’s hard to see the logic in that.

For more information, call 866-776-5125 or visit the ProShares website.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/proshares-etfs.html

How to Grow Perennials from Cuttings

Growing perennials from cuttings involves creating a new plant from a stem that starts out with no roots at all. If you’ve ever stuck a stem of ivy in a glass of water and watched it grow roots, you already have some idea how this technique works. Not all perennials can grow from cuttings. Use the cutting method for perennials that don’t tolerate division.

Follow these steps to coax your cuttings into growing roots:

Punch a few pencil-sized holes in the side and bottom of any clean, flat, shallow container to provide drainage for excess water.

For a large number of cuttings, a plastic kitty litter tray is a good size. A plastic container of any sort works well if you’re rooting only a few cuttings (recycled food containers are perfect).

Fill the container with a moist, not soggy wet, mixture of 50 percent fine peat and 50 percent washed coarse sand.

Alternatively, you can use vermiculite or any potting medium labeled for starting cuttings. All these materials are available at your local nursery.

Using a clean, sharp knife or scissors, cut the top 4 to 6 inches (10 to 15 cm) of the stem, just below a leaf or cluster of leaves.

Take your cuttings when the plant is growing vigorously but not blooming.

Remove all the leaves from the bottom 2 inches (5 cm) of the stem.

Don’t pinch off the leaves. Use a clean sharp knife or scissors to minimize trauma to your cutting.

Use a pencil or screwdriver to make a hole (2 inches [5 cm] deep and a little wider than the stem) in the sand or potting mix.

Make additional holes several inches apart if you’re starting more than one cutting.

Use a rooting hormone (available in powder or liquid) to stimulate root growth on the cutting.

You can purchase rooting hormone at a local nursery or most garden centers. Be sure to follow the instructions on the product you buy.

Stick the stem into the hole.

Press gently around the cutting, so that no air holes remain

Cover the container with plastic wrap or a clear plastic bag.

The plastic allows light through while preventing moisture loss.

Place the container in a brightly lit location or under a grow light.

Do not place the cuttings in direct sunlight.

Water with a misting spray bottle as necessary.

Keep the potting mixture moist, but not soaking wet, at all times.

When the stems start to grow new leaves, they’re ready for transplanting. Most cuttings are well rooted in about a month.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-grow-perennials-from-cuttings.html

Charts Used for Tracking Investments

Price data is used in charts to give you a view of market trading activity for a certain period. The following list gives you the lowdown on some of the chart types you might encounter while you track your investments:

Line chart: This chart uses price versus time. Single price data points for each period are connected using a line. This chart typically uses closing value. Line charts provide great “big picture” information for price movement and trends by filtering out the noise from the period’s range data. One advantage to line charts is that more minor moves are filtered out. A disadvantage to line charts is that they provide no information about the strength of trading during the day or whether gaps occurred from one period to the next.

Open-High-Low-Close (OHLC) bar chart: This chart uses price versus time. The period’s trading range (low to high) is displayed as a vertical line with opening prices displayed as a horizontal tab on the left side of the range bar and closing prices as a horizontal tab on the right side of the range bar. A total of four price points are used to construct each bar. OHLC charts provide information about both trading period strength and price gaps. Using a daily chart as a point of reference, a relatively long vertical bar tells you the price range was pretty big for the day.

Candlestick chart: This chart uses price versus time, similar to an OHLC chart with the price range between the open and the close for the period highlighted by a thickened bar. Patterns unique to this chart can enhance daily analysis. Candlestick charts have distinct pattern interpretations regarding the battle between bulls and bears that are best applied to a daily chart. They also incorporate inter-period data to display price ranges and gaps.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/charts-used-for-tracking-investments.html

How to Identify Lawn Diseases

Here’s the cold, hard truth about lawn diseases — most are very difficult to identify properly. Lawn diseases are hard to tell apart and easy to confuse with other problems, such as insect damage and even simple physical maladies like fertilizer burn. If you can’t identify the disease, you’ll have a hard time fixing it.

To identify lawn diseases, descriptions aren’t enough. You need to look for more help to properly identify the problem. The best place to find that help is through your local cooperative extension office. Cooperative extensions have, or can lead you to, properly trained professionals who can diagnose the problem. Even those pros may have to grow the organism in a laboratory to find out exactly what it is and tell you how to deal with it.

But even before professionals can perform their magic, you need to provide them with a sample and as much information as possible. The more information you offer, the better. Following is the information the professionals probably need:

A sample of the lawn: A square foot of 2-inch-deep sod taken from an area where the problem is just starting to show itself is ideal. You can get by on less, but just make sure that you take the sample from the right place: Half should be healthy lawn; the other half should be just starting to show symptoms. If you must mail the sample somewhere to be checked, ask them how to wrap and ship it.

Age, variety, and species of grass: It may be tough to provide this, but if you can tell how old the lawn is and the type of grass its made of, it helps.

Symptoms: How does the lawn look overall? Do you see dead patches? Where do they occur? What size, shape, and color are the patches? Do you see mushrooms? What do individual grass blades look like — spotted, melted, wilted? Do the grass blades pull up easily or stay attached to the roots?

Look for patterns. Do the spots run in a straight line? Is there any consistent relation to the location of the sprinkler heads? Do the spots follow the mowing lines? Do they follow the slope like runoff water?

How you care for the lawn: This includes general information about your soil, how you water, fertilize and mow. Have you applied any pesticides? (Don’t forget to include weed-and-feed products.)

History: When did you notice the problem? What was the weather like? Has there been any construction or painting on your house? Has anything like gasoline, alcohol, or fertilizer been spilled on the lawn? Write down any dates you can remember.

All this information may seem like overkill, but if you really have a serious problem that you believe is a disease organism, you can be on the way to a solution.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-identify-lawn-diseases.html

Training Requirements for Singing Musical Theater

Unlike the opera, the musical theater production is about the story first. Singing is high on the list of priorities, but it doesn’t rank first. Musical theater performers aren’t cast just because they sing well (although singing ability does count!); they’re cast because they look the part, can dance or move well, and can both act and sing. Musical theater singers also need to know how to make a variety of sounds.

Sound: With musical theater repertoire, you want the sound to be conversational, not oversung. The simplicity of the voice allows the singer to portray the text, which is most important. Musical theater singers do have to make beautiful sounds, but the sound should reinforce the text.

Many musical theater productions use microphones, and singers need to understand how to adjust their technique when using a hand-held mic or wearing a body mic. Those adjustments include not punching consonants (such as the T), because doing so results in a popping sound, and trusting your feeling while you’re singing instead of relying on the sound to come back from the monitors or echo in the theater.

Healthy technique: A healthy musical theater technique involves making the beautiful open, round sounds called legit (open space and round head voice–dominated sound). This technique is similar to the opera singer’s, but it also includes belt. Belting is making sounds like Ethel Merman, Kristin Chenoweth, and Idina Menzel.

The sound is brassier, more forward, sometimes nasal, and similar to a high chest voice. You make this sound by working to combine the sounds of your speaking voice and singing voice. Musical theater productions tend to be scheduled close together, and performers need solid technique to handle back-to-back performances. On Broadway, performers often do eight shows per week. Performing that much sounds like fun, but it requires stamina and skillful technique.

Naming names: Joel Grey (conversational, high belt), Mary Martin (legit sound and belt), John Raitt (rich, round, almost operatic sound), and Gwen Verdon (great dancing skill, ability to make many different sounds with her voice to create her character).

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/training-requirements-for-singing-musical-theater.html

Excel 2007 Workbook For Dummies

Microsoft Office Excel 2007 is an extremely powerful and useful application. But all the tools, buttons, drop-down boxes, and pop-up windows that give you access to Excel's power from the Ribbon can intimidate Excel beginners. But don't worry — this cheat sheet shows you how to use Excel's most common tools and commands with just a few key presses.

How to Access Common Excel 2007 File Commands

You can run Excel 2007's basic file commands in two different ways: by pressing a combination of shortcut keys or by clicking in the Excel Ribbon. The following chart shows some of the most common file commands in Excel 2007 and the two ways you can access them:

Excel Ribbon Command	Access Keys	Function
Microsoft Office Button \| New	Alt+FN	Displays the New Workbook dialog box, where you can open a blank workbook or one from a template.
Microsoft Office Button \| Open	Alt+FO or Ctrl+O	Displays the Open dialog box, where you can select an Excel workbook to open for editing or printing.
Microsoft Office Button \| Save	Alt+FS or Ctrl+S	Saves changes to a workbook. When you first select this command for a new workbook, Excel displays the Save As dialog box.
Microsoft Office Button \| Save As	Alt+FA	Display the Save As dialog box, where you can modify the filename, location where the file is saved, and format that the file is saved in.
Microsoft Office Button \| Print	Alt+FP or Ctrl+P	Displays the Print dialog box to send the current worksheet, workbook, or cell selection to the printer.
Microsoft Office Button \| Send	Alt+FD	Sends the current workbook as an e-mail attachment or faxes it using Internet Fax.
Microsoft Office Button \| Close	Alt+FC	Closes the current workbook without exiting Excel.
Microsoft Office Button \| Excel Options	Alt+FI	Displays the Excel Options dialog box, where you can change default program settings and modify the buttons on the Quick Access toolbar.
Microsoft Office Button \| Exit Excel	Alt+FX	Quits the Excel program and closes all open workbooks after prompting you to save them.

How to Access Common Excel 2007 Formula Commands

The following chart helps get you around easier in Excel 2007. It shows you the quickest way to access Excel's basic formula commands either with the Excel Ribbon or by pressing shortcut keys:

Excel Ribbon Command	Access Keys	Function
Formulas \| Insert Function	Alt+MF	Opens the Insert Function dialog box (same as clicking the Insert Function button on the Formula bar).
Formulas \| AutoSum \| Sum	Alt+MUS	Selects the occupied range above and to the left of the cell cursor and inserts the SUM formula to total the range.
Formulas \| AutoSum \| Average	Alt+MUA	Selects the occupied range above and to the left of the cell cursor and inserts the AVERAGE formula to calculate the average in the range.
Formulas \| AutoSum \| Count Numbers	Alt+MUC	Selects the occupied range above the cell cursor and inserts the COUNT formula to count the number of values in the range.
Formulas \| Financial	Alt+MI	Opens a drop-down menu listing all Financial functions — click name to insert function into current cell.
Formulas \| Date & Time	Alt+ME	Opens a drop-down menu listing all Date and Time functions — click name to insert function into current cell.
Formulas \| Name Manager	Alt+MN	Opens Name Manager dialog box showing all range names in workbook where you can add, edit, and delete names.
Formulas \| Define Name	Alt+MMD	Opens New Name dialog box, where you can assign a name to the cell selection or define a new constant.
Formulas \| Use in Formula	Alt+MS	Displays drop-down menu with range names in workbook that you can insert into current formula by clicking.
Formulas \| Create from Selection	Alt+MC	Opens Create Names from Selection dialog box, where you indicate which rows and columns to use in naming cell selection.
Formulas \| Show Formulas	Alt+MH or Ctrl+`	Displays and then hides all formulas in cells of the worksheet.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/excel-2007-workbook-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.html

How to Make Melt-And-Pour Soaps

Melt-and-pour soaps are so easy to make that you'll always have a stash of ready-made, homemade gifts on hand. To make melt-and pour soap, you begin with soap base from a craft store. Simply cut off the amount of soap base you need, chop it into cubes, and melt them in the microwave. Melt-and-pour soap is naturally translucent, so you can easily create a clear bar of soap.

Try this basic recipe:

Using a knife, cut 1 pound of melt-and-pour soap base into 1-inch cubes or smaller, place them in a microwave-safe bowl, and cover.

If your bowl doesn’t hold that much soap, feel free to melt just half the base. Even doing the lesser amount, you still end up with several small bars of soap, depending on your mold’s size.

If you don’t want to cut your soap, then buy your soap precubed. (You can usually buy it precolored, as well.) You can easily break it off with your hands.

Place your soap in the microwave and heat for 45 seconds.

Stir your soap.

Continue melting your soap in 15-second intervals, stirring in between each time, until your soap base is completely melted.

Keep an eye on your mixture. You don’t want it to boil over or become frothy. Just like food, you can burn your soap. (It even looks burnt because it turns a brownish-yellow color.)

Add in any other additives you want to use.

Keep in mind that solid additives may fall to the bottom of your mold unless you let the soap gel a bit before adding. (For Additive ideas, see the table at the end of the steps presented here.)

Pour the soap into the mold.

You don’t have to, but you can lightly spray your mold with a releasing agent, such as vegetable oil, if you like, so that the soap is easier to remove. When you pour, try to aim for the middle of the mold so that the mold doesn’t overflow before it’s completely filled.

Lightly spray the soap with rubbing alcohol (optional).

This step can help eliminate bubbles that form on the surface of your soap.

Remove the soap from the mold after it solidifies.

You usually need to keep your soap in the mold anywhere from one to three hours. The soap doesn’t completely harden, but it does get hard enough to remove from the mold. If you’re a more patient person, you can leave the soaps in the mold overnight so they’re totally firm before removal. This ensures that they keep a sharp outline if they have an intricate pattern.

To remove your soap from the mold, invert it and press gently on the bottom of the mold. If your soap doesn’t pop out, it may need to cool longer. If you’re still having problems, you can pour some warm water on the bottom of the mold or freeze it for a few minutes.

If you’re not going to use your soap right away, wrap it in plastic to store.

Common Soap-Making Additives
Additive	Description
Almond oil	Soothes irritated, itchy skin. Also used as base. Has slight odor.
Aloe vera	Relieves dry and burned skin. Can use in plant or gel form.
Apricot	Softens skin. A popular bath additive. To use, place dried apricots in water for several hours and then liquefy.
Apricot kernel oil	Softens skin. Especially good for sensitive skin.
Beeswax	Hardens soap and contributes scent. Need to melt before adding to soap. Don’t use more than 1 ounce per pound of soap.
Clay	Helps dry out oily skin. Choose finely powdered French clay.
Cocoa butter	Hardens soap and moisturizes. Looks and smells like white chocolate, but can be purchased in a deodorized form if you want its qualities without the chocolate smell.
Cucumber	Acts as astringent. Use grated skin or liquefied.
Glycerin	Moisturizes skin.
Herbs	Contributes texture and color.
Honey	Moisturizes skin and makes soap softer.
Lanolin	Hardens soap. Moisturizes and softens skin. Can cloud soap. Don’t use if allergic to wool.
Lemon	Adds texture and speckling, as well as antibacterial qualities. Use grated peel.
Oatmeal	Softens and exfoliates skin. Adds texture. Use ground rolled oats. Limit to a maximum of 1/2 cup rolled or 1/4 cup ground or pulverized oats per pound of soap. A blender works very well for making oat flour.
Pumice	Removes tough dirt, but can be harsh. Adds texture.
Vitamin E oil	Acts as a preservative when you add fresh fruit or other additive at risk of spoiling.
Wheat germ	Exfoliates skin; adds bulk and texture. Shows up in soap as light speckling. Use no more than 3 tablespoons per pound of soap.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-make-meltandpour-soaps.html

Helping Yourself with Reiki

Reiki is a gentle healing energy. Your body can use this energy for just about anything it needs. Here are some common reasons to use Reiki:

You're stressed out and need some tender loving care.

You're taking doctor-prescribed medications and want to reduce or eliminate the side effects of these drugs.

You're low on energy or feel blah or unmotivated and need a pick-me-up.

You haven't been sleeping well.

You feel stuck emotionally or mentally and want some insights on how to move forward.

You just want a delicious treat for your body, mind, and spirit.

You can think of Reiki as a dose of love. When you receive a Reiki session, you'll feel the effects that love can give you. This isn't love from any particular person; it's just the essence of love and how that can heal you.

How can Reiki help you? In oh so many ways. Reiki helps you to do the following:

Relax: The desire to feel more relaxed is the main reason people try Reiki. If you're feeling anxious, stressed, or tense, Reiki can help you feel calmer. When you're feeling relaxed, your body is better able to handle life's ups and downs. Because Reiki aids relaxation, it can help you cope with and heal from any problem or illness.

Handle a physical illness: Another main reason people try Reiki is to help overcome disease or pain. Your body is made of energy, and Reiki helps balance your energy and remove any blocks to the flow of energy. Reiki works not only to reduce anxiety, lessen pain, and relax you but also works at the underlying cause of disease.

In a family situation, Reiki helps to heal everything from minor scrapes and bruises to the flu or even major accidents or long-standing illnesses. At the very least, Reiki relaxes you enough so that you can have a better attitude toward your illness, which helps you get better quicker.

Handle an emotional upset: After you suffer a loss, such as the death of a loved one or the end of relationship, you can surely benefit from the boost that Reiki can provide. Here are some examples of times to try Reiki:

• When you suffer an emotional shock, such as the loss of a relative or friend: Even if you suffer a tragic loss, Reiki can be one of the methods to help yourself cope with this loss and rebuild your life.

• During life transitions: Changes in life, even positive changes, can be stressful. Moving home, starting a new job, or having a baby can stir up the emotional pot, and Reiki can help you make sense of your situation and feel ready for change.

• If you're in emotional burnout: Perhaps you're taking care of an elderly parent, trying to be supermom to young children, or working two jobs to make ends meet. If you feel like you're at the end of your rope or about to fall apart, Reiki can help.

• When you're making decisions: Suppose that you have a major life decision to make and you feel stuck. You may be trying to figure out whether to change a relationship or job or what course of action to take for a business venture. Perhaps you want some clarity about what to do about a physical ailment. Reiki helps you relax, and while you're relaxing, the answer just might come to you!

Feel spiritually connected: As you relax with Reiki, you detach from your everyday cares and worries. Now you can hear the still voice inside of you. You can feel peace. You're connecting with your higher self and with spirit. Also, some people find that Reiki helps their intuitive process, so you just might awaken your inner psychic!

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/helping-yourself-with-reiki.html

Find Ways — Other Than Eating — to Cope with Emotions

Keeping a food journal calls for recording what and when you eat and how you're feeling when you eat. Look back at your journal now and then: How many times did you record words that signal stress, sadness, anger, loneliness, or exhaustion?

Try one of these nonfood coping strategies if emotion, not hunger, triggered you to eat:

Talk with a friend.

Go for a walk, play with your pet, or ask someone for a hug.

Release anger by pounding your fist into a pillow or just go ahead and scream!

Confront the person who is making you angry.

Cry if you need to.

Practice breathing exercises, breathing in and out deeply, to help center yourself.

Ask for time out or help on a project, if needed.

Take a yoga or meditation class.

Schedule time for yourself.

Get a good night’s sleep or take a nap.

People who belong to 12-step programs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, use techniques to keep from engaging in their addictive behaviors. One method is called HALT, which stands for Hungry, Angry, Lonely, and Tired. These physical and emotional feelings can masquerade as cravings for substances or behaviors.

So if a 12-stepper feels the need to return to his self-destructive behavior, a quick inventory reveals what needs to be done. For example, you can relieve feelings of loneliness with a call to a friend or cure tiredness with a nap. The point is to recognize the triggers and deal with them rather than substitute unhealthy behaviors.

Psychologists know that giving your emotions a name makes them easier to deal with. Labeling makes feelings concrete, and therefore, you can cope with them. If you engage in emotional eating, labeling what you’re feeling when you eat may be the secret to eating less.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/find-ways-other-than-eating-to-cope-with-emotions.html

What Is Cause Marketing?

Cause marketing is a partnership between a nonprofit and a for-profit for mutual profit. For example, you may be familiar with the partnership between Komen for the Cure and athletic shoe maker New Balance. Komen licenses its signature pink ribbon to New Balance, which is included on a line of products, including walking and running shoes.

Komen profits from the sale of these products and gains valuable exposure. New Balance enhances its favorability with a key demographic, women shoppers, and owns the rights to a must-have product for Komen’s many walking and running events across the country.

Pinpointing exactly when the first cause marketing campaign was created is like asking who discovered America. The Vikings? The Chinese? The English? The Native Americans who lived here?

Regardless of who was the first to marry cause and company together for charity and commerce, the “Columbus moment” when people became aware of this new world was 1983 when American Express partnered with the Statue of Liberty restoration project. In this arrangement, the restoration project received a penny for each use of the American Express card, and a dollar for each new card issued. In just four months, $2 million was raised for the project.

American Express was a big winner, as well. Credit card activity increased 28 percent, and cause-related marketing, or cause marketing, as it’s more often called, was born.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/what-is-cause-marketing.html

Permissions and Management Options in SharePoint 2010

All the options available in SharePoint 2010 can seem daunting, but the good thing is that applying the configurations is easy and located all in one spot. Permissions and Management options can seem a lot more straightforward than some of the General Settings options.

Permissions and Management Options
Setting Name	What You Can Accomplish
Delete This Document Library (or List)	Just like it sounds!
Save Document Library (or List) as a Template	A way to reuse the library or list columns and settings (with or without content) in your site (or collection).
Permissions for This Library (or List)	An option that allows for different permissions for the library or list versus the entire site.
Workflow	Allows you to enable workflow and specific Workflow settings for this library or list only.
Generate File Plan Report	You can add/edit default values for columns indicated in the library or list Validation settings.
Information Management Policy	Settings to be used in conjunction with a Records Center site or for in place records management.
Enterprise Metadata and Keywords Settings	Adds a managed keywords column to the list/library and lets you treat those keywords as social tags if desired.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/permissions-and-management-options-in-sharepoint-2.html

ASP.NET 3.5 For Dummies

Creating dynamic Web sites is why you use ASP.NET 3.5. It can help you to create a reunion Web site for multiple users or to expand your business site to enable online shopping. And when you integrate LINQ queries to help sort through the info on your Web site, you make your Web life easy living.

Using LINQ Visual Basic Query Clauses with ASP.NET 3.5

ASP.NET 3.5, with its access to LINQ query clauses, is a valuable tool in creating a dynamic Web site, whether you’re designing a site for your ultimate Frisbee team or to offer online shopping to your customers. The following table describes LINQ clauses in Visual Basic and offers examples for each. Don’t look here for the Aggregate clause — it merits its own table.

Note: Precede each example with Dim cl = [Enum].GetNames(GetType(System.ConsoleKey)) : Array.Sort(cl).

Using LINQ Visual Basic Aggregate Functions with ASP.NET 3.5

ASP.NET 3.5 in tandem with LINQ makes writing queries for your Web site a snap — or at least pretty easy. One of the most-used queries is Aggregate, which helps you find any or all of the queried terms, and can do counting and averaging for you. The following table shows the Aggregate function, describes what it does, and gives an example for each. Note that you need to precede each example with Dim dw = [Enum].GetNames (GetType(System.DayOfWeek)).

>
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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/aspnet-35-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.html

How to Apply Quick Styles in Word 2007

When you use Quick Styles in Word 2007, you don't have to bother yourself with any text or paragraph formatting. Simply choose the Quick Style, and the text size, font, attributes, and paragraph formatting are chosen for you automatically.

You can apply a Quick Style to your text before or after you write, although you may find it better to write first and apply style later.

Select the text you want to format.

If you’re an inpatient highlighter, you may grab more — or less — than you want. You know the old saying . . . something about haste and waste?

Enlarge
>

Click the Home tab to display the Styles group.

The Quick Styles gallery displays some of the available styles. Use the arrows to scroll through the gallery's styles, or use the More button, located in the lower-right corner of the Quick Styles gallery, to display the menu detailing each option.

Choose a style from the Quick Styles gallery.

As you hover the mouse over each Quick Style, text in your document is updated to reflect the style's appearance — a boon to help you make that difficult choice.

Click the Quick Style you want to apply.

Word applies the style to your paragraph or selected text.

>
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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-apply-quick-styles-in-word-2007.html

How and When to Shear Your Goats

If you're raising goats to harvest the fiber for your own use or to sell, you need to know the basics of shearing. Not all goats have the same requirements. For example, you need to shear Angora goats twice a year to get the most fiber. You don't shear cashmere- or cashgora-producing goats; instead you comb or pluck the fiber once a year.

You need to shear your mohair-producing goats in the early spring and early fall. Make sure not to shear cashmere-producing goats because you will lower the value and quality of the fiber by mixing coarser guard hair with the fine, valuable cashmere.

Shearing isn't hard to do, but it's hard on your back because you have to bend over. If you have only a few goats you can use scissors or hand shears. If you can afford it and want to do all the shearing yourself, you can also invest in electric sheep shears, which range from $300 and up. Otherwise, you're better off hiring a professional shearer to come to your farm.

To prepare your goats for shearing:

A few weeks prior to shearing, use a pour-on insecticide containing permethrin or pyrethrin to kill lice and ticks.

If the weather is rainy or snowy, keep your goats confined for 24 hours before shearing so that they stay dry.

Clean and add new bedding to a dry shelter to keep the goats out of inclement weather for a month or so after they have been shorn. They're more prone to health problems without their protective coats.

Start your shearing with the youngest goats and work in order of age because the youngest usually have the best fiber.

When you're shearing a goat, always use long, smooth strokes. Doing so keeps the fleece in longer pieces, which makes it easier to work with and increases its value. Be careful not to cut the skin, taking special care on the belly, the area where the legs and body meet, the scrotum, and the teats. If you do accidentally cut a goat while shearing, treat it with an antibiotic spray such as Blu-Kote.

Before you shear, get the following supplies together:

Blow dryer

Sheep shears

Grooming stand or stanchion

Scissors

Paper bags, pillowcases, or baskets to hold the fiber

Postal or hanging scale for weighing fiber

Follow these steps to shear a goat:

Secure your goat on the stanchion or grooming stand.

Blow any hay or other debris out of the goat's coat.

Use your blow dryer on high speed.

Shear the goat's belly.

Start at the bottom of its chest and move to its udder or scrotal area.

Shear each side.

Work from the belly up to the spine, back leg to front leg.

Shear each back leg.

Work from the beginning of the coat upward to the spine.

Shear the neck.

Start at the bottom of the throat and work to the top of the chest on the bottom and from the chest to the ears on the top and sides.

Shear the top of the back.

Work from the crown of the head to the tail.

Remove any excess hair that you missed with your scissors.

One area often missed is in the area of the udder or testicles.

Release your goat.

Check the fiber.

Separate any stained or soiled fleece or other contaminants. Weigh the unsoiled fleece, roll it up, put it in a paper bag, and mark the bag with the weight of the fleece, the goat's name and age, and the date sheared. Store fleece in a dry area.

Sweep the area.

Make sure the next goat to be sheared starts with a clean area.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-and-when-to-shear-your-goats.html

Create Customized Sponsorships for Brands and Advertisers

Custom campaigns are just that: custom. Creating customized campaigns for advertisers can include social media outreach with Twitter and Facebook or creating special content for a particular advertiser.

Back before Twitter and Facebook were such an integral part of our lives, the conversations that happen on these sites were happening on blogs and in forums. So, even though you can sell advertising on your blog, it’s becoming more and more important that advertising programs become integrated social media marketing campaigns.

Traditional banner advertising doesn’t get a great return on investment in the first place. The average click-through rate on a banner ad is only 3–10 clicks per 1,000 views — kind of horrible by any measurement of advertising success.

Advertisers are moving away from doing simple banner advertising and putting together entire campaigns that tie banner ads into a Facebook outreach program — with a Twitter campaign that may even be supported by television, radio, or magazine advertising. Companies are finding that the more they can truly engage potential customers in real conversations and actions, the more likely the marketing campaigns will turn out successfully.

As a mom blogger, you’ll find that your best opportunities won’t be limited to things you can do on your blog. Building up your community on Facebook and Twitter will open the doors to more ways that advertisers can work with you — and sometimes may be the deciding factor as to whether they work with you or with someone else.

But creating customized campaigns for advertisers isn’t just limited to social media outreach. Several excellent campaigns have been developed around creating special content for a particular advertiser.

This can include tutorial projects, videoblogging, helpful articles, giveaways, or any other kind of content that incorporates the advertiser’s products or services into quality blog posts that readers enjoy — even if the posts originated in response to a sponsor’s request.

There are also many opportunities to have sponsors foot the bill to send you to an event or conference, as long as you work with them to promote their products or services to your readers and while you’re at the event.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/create-customized-sponsorships-for-brands-and-adve.navId-380724.html

How to Seek Low Correlation ETFs for Added Diversification

There are some sector-based ETFs that are better choices than others for additions to a portfolio that mostly features style investments. When deciding what sector investments to add to your portfolio, you should look for low correlation to the rest of the stock market.

Some sectors, or industry subsectors, even though they are part of the stock market, tend to move out of lockstep with the rest of the market. By way of example, consider REITs: real estate investment trusts.

Another sector that fits the bill, at least of late, is energy. Yes, Exxon Mobil and Chevron are part of the entire market, but they tend to zig when everything else zags (in part because when the price of oil rises, these companies profit more, while the rest of the economy, at least outside of Texas, suffers).

For example, consider that in 2002, when the total U.S. stock market tanked by almost 11 percent, REITs were up 31 percent. The year 2005 was pretty lackluster for the total stock market, yet energy stocks were up 31 percent.

Of late, the basic materials (sometimes called “natural resources”) sector has shown a delightful lack of correlation with the rest of the market. Presently, this sector — comprised of companies involved in the mining and refining of precious and industrial metals, and the manufacture of chemical and fertilizer products — has thus far in 2011 shown the greatest one-year return of all major industry sectors.

Of course, there are years when it works the other way, and these sectors may fall way short of the overall market.

If you decide to build your portfolio around industry sector funds, at the very least you should dip into the style funds to give yourself the value/small cap tilt. That’s especially true if you use SPDRs to build your sector portfolio. This fund group is especially weighted toward large cap.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-seek-low-correlation-etfs-for-added-diversi.html

How to Lead Discussions in Kids’ Online Communities

Kids’ online communities aren’t necessarily discussion-focused. Most children younger than 13 would much rather play games, design virtual houses, and look at fun images. Still, a fun kids’ community hosts a mix of favorite things: stories, videos, games, and good things to read, as well as town halls or other types of discussions.

You don’t necessarily interact with kids in these communities, especially in activity- or game-focused communities. Instead, you observe, plan programs, respond to questions (mostly from parents), and stay on the alert in case a moderation situation does arise. Mostly, you’re there to make sure that members are having an awesome time.

Kids have online discussions in different ways. A community for kids younger than 12 or 13 may not have discussion forums, but you can still host certain chats and discussions with members. Bringing in an author, sports figure, or other kid role model and allowing kids to ask questions is a wonderful experience.

Another idea is to host a monthly town hall where you can discuss a topic of interest to kids. Discussions can be a mix of serious and fun topics, such as bullying and favorite television shows. Don’t expect kids to participate the same ways that adults do. Some may ask questions; others may prefer posting funny icons or smileys (images with facial expressions on them).

Also, don’t be frustrated if kids aren’t exactly attentive to the subject matter. They may act silly or immature while the discussion is happening or talk about other things among themselves. It’s fine for them to do this as long as they’re being respectful of the rules, other members, and any special guests.

You may have to steer the conversation back on track sometimes if it’s too raucous, but for the most part, your young members are just learning how to interact with other people online.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-lead-discussions-in-kids-online-communities.html

What Happens When You Shut Down a PC

Sometimes things go wrong when you shut down your PC. If you have to troubleshoot a shutdown issue, it is helpful to understand the shutdown process.

A long time ago, you actually turned a computer off. The console had an on-off switch, and by flipping that switch, you instantly deprived Mr. PC of power, effectively turning the thing off.

Today’s computer comes with power buttons, not on-off switches. Furthermore, you don’t turn off a PC — instead, the thing methodically plods through what’s called a shutdown process.

When you shut down a PC, the following things happen:

A user check takes place: When other users are logged in to the computer (using another account on the same PC), you’re alerted. Do you really want to shut down? Those users may be running programs or have unsaved documents. Clicking No cancels the operation, which is the proper thing to do.

Programs close: Windows shuts down any programs or processes that you’ve begun or that “belong” to you. It sifts through that list and sends every program the shutdown signal. If a program contains unsaved data, you’re prompted to save the data to continue. (Or you can click the Cancel button, which stops the entire shutdown operation.) When a program cannot be stopped, you’re prompted to end it.

Users are logged out: After programs (and processes) belonging to you, the human, are stopped, Windows logs you out, ending your Windows session.

Windows is halted: After you’re gone, Windows begins shutting down bits and pieces of itself. These programs, services, and processes are all ended, and Windows ensures that they end properly and have no social issues or gripes.

The shutdown signal is sent: When Windows is done with itself, it sends a signal to the computer’s power management hardware to turn off the power. If that feature isn’t present, a message appears on the screen, something like It is now safe to turn off this computer and get back to real life.

The shutdown process may seem overly formal. After all, a program stops when it’s told to stop or when the electricity stops. Even though, years ago, computers were routinely shut down by flipping off the power switch, many users found that method unsettling.

By properly shutting itself down, the computer avoids the issue of digital detritus. For example, an improper shutdown causes some programs to leave pieces of themselves lying around like clutter from an explosion. Clutter builds. Rather than deal with the clutter, you should make sure that the tasks the computer does are sanely and systematically shut down.

Another advantage to a proper shutdown is that any looming errors not detected when the computer is running might show up during the shutdown process. Often, that’s the only way to identify and troubleshoot an issue, such as a dead or improperly installed program.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/what-happens-when-you-shut-down-a-pc.html

Network Administration: The ipconfig Command

Using the ipconfig command displays information about a computer’s TCP/IP configuration. It can also be used to update DHCP and Domain Name Server (DNS) settings.

Displaying basic IP configuration

To display the basic IP configuration for a computer, use the ipconfig command without any parameters, like this:

C:\>ipconfig
Windows IP Configuration
Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
   Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
   Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::cca:9067:9427:a911%8
   IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.110
   Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
   Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 6:
   Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
   IPv6 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 2001:0:4136:e38c:2c6c:670:3f57:fe91
   Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::2c6c:670:3f57:fe91%9
   Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : ::
Tunnel adapter Local Area Connection* 7:
   Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
   Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::5efe:192.168.1.110%10
   Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . :
C:\>

When you use ipconfig without parameters, the command displays the name of the adapter, the domain name used for the adapter, the IP address, the subnet mask, and the default gateway configuration for the adapter. This is the easiest way to determine a computer’s IP address.

If your computer indicates an IP address in the 169.254.x.x block, odds are good that the DHCP server isn’t working. 169.254.x.x is the Class B address block that Windows uses when it resorts to IP Autoconfiguration. This usually happens only when the DHCP server can’t be reached or isn’t working.

Displaying detailed configuration information

You can display detailed IP configuration information by using an /all switch with the ipconfig command, like this:

C:\>ipconfig /all
Windows IP Configuration
   Host Name . . . . . . . . . . . . : WK07-001
   Primary Dns Suffix  . . . . . . . :
   Node Type . . . . . . . . . . . . : Hybrid
   IP Routing Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
   WINS Proxy Enabled. . . . . . . . : No
Ethernet adapter Local Area Connection:
   Connection-specific DNS Suffix  . :
   Description . . . . . . . . . . . : Intel(R) PRO/100 VE Network Connection
   Physical Address. . . . . . . . . : 00-12-3F-A7-17-BA
   DHCP Enabled. . . . . . . . . . . : No
   Autoconfiguration Enabled . . . . : Yes
   Link-local IPv6 Address . . . . . : fe80::cca:9067:9427:a911%8(Preferred)
   IPv4 Address. . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.110(Preferred)
   Subnet Mask . . . . . . . . . . . : 255.255.255.0
   Default Gateway . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.1
   DNS Servers . . . . . . . . . . . : 192.168.1.10
                                       68.87.76.178
   NetBIOS over Tcpip. . . . . . . . : Enabled
C:\>

You can determine a lot of information about the computer from the ipconfig /all command. For example:

The computer’s host name is WK07-001.

The computer’s IPv4 address is 192.168.1.110, and the subnet mask is 255.255.255.0.

The default gateway is a router located at 192.168.1.1.

This router is also the network’s DHCP server.

The DNS servers are at 192.168.1.10 and 68.87.76.178.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/network-administration-the-ipconfig-command.html

Comparing Leasing a Vehicle with Buying Your Car

Leasing is a fast and easy way to get a car with little or no down payment. Monthly lease payments usually are less than loan payments for a new car. Additionally, you’ll encounter less paperwork, inspections, and registration hassles when leasing a car.

Leasing appeals to individuals who use cars for business, need a car for a limited period of time, trade in their cars at regular intervals, want to know their monthly costs in advance, or want to invest their cash in different activities. Leasing, however, has its share of limitations and disadvantages. The following table provides an overview of the comparison between leasing and buying.

Comparison of Leasing versus Buying
Leasing	Buying
Monthly payments are applied to depreciation, not the purchase price of the vehicle.	Monthly payments are applied to purchase of vehicle.
Monthly lease payments are significantly lower than car loan payments.	Monthly payments include financing charges.
A down payment often isn’t required.	Down payment usually is required.
After the lease period is over, you need to lease another vehicle.	When the car loan is paid, you own the car.
Exiting the lease early usually requires coming up with a large amount of cash. Early termination penalties vary.	You can modify your car any way you want. Don’t hesitate to put on those fancy hubcaps.
You must predetermine how many miles you drive per year.	No mileage restrictions; however, higher mileage reduces the trade-in value of the car.
Your vehicle usually is covered by the manufacturer’s warranty for the duration of your lease.	Car loans usually extend past the warranty period, so you’ll be responsible for repairs.
You have to pay for any excess wear and tear.	Although you have maintenance and upkeep requirements, performing routine tasks is a good idea.

Be sure to calculate the differences between purchasing and leasing by referring to the Internet. SmartMoney.com offers an auto buy-versus-lease calculator. At the home page locate Personal Finance and click on Autos. Next click on To Buy or Lease. Scroll toward the bottom of the page and enter the price of the car, your down payment, monthly payment or lease, rate of return from your investment portfolio, and value of car at the end of the lease. The online calculator makes a recommendation.

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Electronics Capacitor Tolerance Code

In electronic circuits, the tolerance of capacitors can be determined by a code that appears on the casing. The code is a letter that often follows a three-digit number (such as 130Z). The following table outlines tolerance values for some common capacitors.

Code	Tolerance
B	± 0.1 pF
C	± 0.25 pF
D	± 0.5 pF
F	± 1%
G	± 2%
J	± 5%
K	± 10%
M	± 20%
Z	+80%, –20%

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/electronics-capacitor-tolerance-code.html

Getting Hooked on Crocheting

Your crochet hook is the single most important tool you use when crocheting. To understand how it works, you need to know a bit about how it's made. This article explains, in detail, everything you need to know about hooks, such as why they're shaped the way they are and the function of each distinct part.

The anatomy of a crochet hook

Even though a crochet hook appears to be nothing more than a straight stick with a hook on one end, you notice that it has five distinct and necessary parts, as Figure 1 shows.

Figure 1: Identifying the five parts of a crochet hook.

Each part of the hook has been designed to perform a specific function.

Point: This part of the hook is inserted into previously made stitches. It must be sharp enough to slide easily through the stitches, yet blunt enough so that it doesn't split the yarn or stab your finger.

Throat: The open part underneath the point where the hook catches the yarn must be large enough to hold the yarn size that you're working with but small enough to prevent the previous loop from sliding off.

Shaft: The shaft holds the loops that you're working with, and for the most part, determines the size of your stitches.

Thumb rest: The flat part of the hook located on the shaft, the thumb rest, should be sandwiched between your thumb and middle finger when you hold the hook, enabling you to easily rotate the hook to the correct position to perform each stitch. Without the thumb rest, the hook can easily twist in the wrong direction, and you'll find yourself gripping the hook too tightly — leaving you with hookers cramp!

Handle: The remaining length of the hook below the thumb rest completes the hook; this part is called the handle. Although you don't actually hold the hook by the handle, achieving the proper balance when crocheting is a necessity.

Many different companies manufacture hooks, and each company produces hooks with slightly different shapes. Some hooks have sharp points, while others have more rounded points. Some hooks have distinct flat, cutout throats, while others have smoother, rounded throats. Nowadays, most of the standard size and steel hooks have thumb rests; although the largest of the standard hooks don't. Take some time to experiment with a couple different brands of crochet hooks to find the one that you're most comfortable working with. You'll be glad that you did.

Crochet hooks: Choosing your weapon

Crochet hooks are made in a wide range of sizes and materials, but when you go to choose a hook, don't be overwhelmed by the seemingly endless choices.

Standard hooksare most often made of aluminum or plastic (and sometimes wood) and are normally used when working with yarn. They measure about 6 inches in length and vary in thickness from 2.5 mm to 19 mm.

Steel hooks, which are the smallest of all crochet hooks, are used for crocheting with thread and fine yarns. They're made of well, you know, steel, and measure about 5 inches in length and run from .75 mm to 3.5 mm wide.

Due to the nature of crochet, each stitch is worked until only one loop remains on the hook. Space isn't needed to hold many loops (the exceptions being the Afghan stitch and double-ended crochet). Therefore, the hooks can be made to a convenient length.

Hook sizes are denoted using three different systems, U.S. (American), Continental (metric), and U.K. (English), but don't let that fool you. They're quite often labeled with both the U.S. letter-number designation as well as the numeric metric designation. The size of the crochet hook refers to the thickness of the hook, which in turn determines the size of the stitches created. For standard hooks, using the U.S. or metric system, the higher the number or farther the letter is in the alphabet, such as P or Q, the larger the hook. For steel hooks, which use only a number designation, the opposite holds true. The higher the number, the smaller the hook.

When shopping for hooks, don't be afraid to splurge. Hooks are inexpensive, and having extras of the most common sizes doesn't hurt. Even after you've found the style of hook that you're comfortable with, hang on to any other hooks that you may have collected. You never know when you won't be able to find where you put your favorite hook, and that spare one you don't like as well will do as a backup when you absolutely have to get started now!

If you opt to use plastic crochet hooks, keep in mind that with heavy use, they can bend or break. Try using aluminum hooks for the standard sizes, simply because they literally last forever, provided that they don't disappear.

Just for fun: Ten uses for a crochet hook (besides crocheting)

Guess you thought that crochet hooks were good for only crocheting, right? Well, here are some more interesting uses for them:

Pull a yarn snag to the inside of a sweater.

Reweave a dropped stitch while knitting.

Pull a drawstring through its casing.

Fix a tangled necklace.

Rescue a ring that dropped down the drain.

Pull hair through the holes of the cap when highlighting your hair.

Weave a potholder using a loom.

Weave anything through anything.

Stake up a plant.

Spear the last olive at the bottom of the jar.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/getting-hooked-on-crocheting.html