Mastering Droid X2 Touchscreen Operations

Using touchscreen operations on handheld devices such as the Droid X2 smartphone requires a little finesse. Practice these common touchscreen operations on your Droid X2, and soon your fingers will be dancing swiftly over the screen:

Action	How to Touch the Screen
Touch	Tap once.
Double-tap	Tap twice in the same location.
Long-press	Touch a spot while keeping your finger pressed down.
Swipe	Touch a spot and drag your finger left, right, up, or down.
Flick	Same as swipe: Touch a spot and drag your finger left, right, up, or down.
Pinch	Touch with two fingers apart and bring them together as you continue to touch the screen.
Spread	Touch with two fingers close together and then spread them apart as you continue to touch the screen.
Rotate	Touch with two fingers and then pivot them around a central point, like you're dialing the combination on a safe.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/mastering-droid-x2-touchscreen-operations.html

What Is Bad Breath and How Do You Get Halitosis?

About 75 percent of bad breath originates in our mouths. Decaying food caught between our teeth, coupled with dead cells and bacteria sitting on our tongues are the major culprits. Regular flossing and brushing our teeth and tongue can improve or eliminate many cases of bad breath, which is medically termed halitosis.

However, if your halitosis doesn’t get better with improved dental care, you may have a more serious health problem than lax oral hygiene. Bad breath, especially if it’s particularly pungent or odd smelling, can be a symptom of illness or disease. Here’s a look at some health conditions that can help answer the question, "Why bad breath?"

• Bowel obstruction: A block in your large intestine can cause you to have breath that smells like feces.

  
  



• Diabetes: Breath that smells like a fruity nail polish remover (acetone) can accompany ketoacidosis, a complication of diabetes. Ketoacidosis occurs when the body can’t metabolize sugars for fuel and uses fats instead. This results in a dangerous build up of ketones in the body. People who are on an extremely low-carb diet can also produce this same, fruity breath.

  
  



• Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD): Halitosis can occur when stomach acids and food contents back up into your esophagus (the tube that stretches from your stomach to your throat).

  
  



• Gingivitis and periodontitis: Inflammation in your gums (gingivitis) and its more severe form (periodontitis) can cause foul breath. The bacteria and plaque buildup at the root of these diseases is what causes offensive breath.

  
  



• Kidney failure: If your kidneys aren’t filtering wastes properly, it can cause your breath to smell like urine or ammonia.

  
  



• Liver failure: Breath that has a fishy or musty odor can indicate that your liver has stopped doing its job of filtering toxins from your body.

  
  



• Lung diseases: If you suffer from lung abscesses (pockets of pus) or chronic lung infections you can develop very severe halitosis.

  
  



• Respiratory infections: Bad breath can be caused by a number of nose, throat, and chest maladies, including: bronchitis, post-nasal drip, sinusitis, sore throat, and tonsillitis.

  
  

You can’t necessarily trust your nose to let you know you’ve got halitosis. That’s because our noses build up a tolerance for the way we smell. To make sure your breath is not offensive, ask your dentist, doctor, or a trusted friend or family member to give you the sniff test.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/what-is-bad-breath-and-how-do-you-get-halitosis.html

How to Get Potential Online Community Members to Sign Up

A bunch of people who you met offline liked you and liked what they heard about your online community. Don’t be too excited, though; only a small percentage of the people who you spoke to will become actual members. Sure, they seemed interested and gladly took your business card, but a few days later, they don’t always remember why there were so excited about your community or your brand.

You have to make signing up interesting for them. You have to give them a reason to sign up, beyond the good vibe received at a conference or networking event:

• Trial membership: If you have a pay-to-play community or your community is centered around a subscription-based service, consider offering a trial membership to potential members. They can sign up, look around, participate, and, hopefully, become more permanent members. Not everyone who takes part in a trial membership commits to a full-fledged membership, but if you get a one commitment for every ten trial memberships, you’re doing well.

  
  



• Swag: Make it so that members can’t forget you. Entice them with a perk. Use a trick many Internet marketers are now using and offer potential community members something of value for being a part of your community.

  
  

  T-shirts, Internet apps or programs, ebooks, or any other product or service entices potential members enough to have them sign up for your newsletter, join your forum, or commit to another aspect of membership.

  
  



• Discount or freebie: You know what attracts potential members? The feeling that they’re getting a bargain. Everyone loves discounts, and everyone loves to save.

  
  

  Whole communities are devoted to discounts and freebies; every time something is offered at a lower rate or a free sample is up for grabs, members of these communities share them with other members, and thousands of people will come by to see what you have to offer.

  
  

  Even if your discount isn’t shared in deal-seeking communities, when you offer a perk during your offline recruiting, you’re sure to bring in a few new members.

  
  

When potential members sign up for promotions and offers, you can offer a spot for them to opt in for future mailings. As your mailing list grows, so will your customer base.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-get-potential-online-community-members-to-s.html

Choosing a Warm-Season Grass

If you live in a warm climate, you should choose from among these commonly used warm-season grasses: Bahia grass, common and hybrid Bermuda grass, centipede grass, St. Augustine grass, and zoysia grass. Whether you live in Florida or California, chances are that your lawn has one or a combination of these grasses growing in it:

• Bahia grass: Bahia grass (Paspalum notatum) is a tough, coarse grass that roots deeply and extensively. This grass sends out runners that can help stabilize erosion-prone soil. Bahia grass is low-growing and forms a tough, open turf that resists thatch. Bahia grass has excellent wearability, but gets a high-maintenance rating in the mowing department. You need to mow frequently with sharp blades.

  
  

  Bahia grasses are shade-tolerant, moderately drought-tolerant, and do well in sandy or infertile soils of the southern coastal plains of the United States. These grasses stay green longer than most of the warm-season grasses over the winter months.

  
  



• Bermuda grasses: You can choose from two Bermuda grasses:

  
  
  
  

  • Common Bermuda grass: Common Bermuda grass (Cynodon dactylon) is a medium green, medium- to fine-textured turf. The grass roots deeply and spreads quickly, making it heat- and drought-tolerant. The rapid spreading can cause a problem of invasion into unwanted areas if not kept in check. This turf has excellent wearability, however, it doesn’t do well in shade and turns brown in winter until daytime temperatures reach a consistent 60 degrees F. Common Bermuda grass grows well in poor soils.

    
    
  
  

  • Hybrid Bermuda grass: The hybrid Bermuda grasses (Cynodon dactylon crossed with C. transvaalensis) are softer, denser, greener, and more finely textured than the common Bermuda grasses. Hybrid Bermuda grass is heat-loving, fast-growing, drought-tolerant, and very durable, making it a good choice for high-traffic lawns. The hybrid types are more disease- and pest-resistant than common Bermuda grass, but thatch buildup can become a problem.

    
    
  
  
  
  



• Centipede grass: Centipede grass (Eremochloa ophiuroides) is a medium- to fine-textured, light green grass that spreads by creeping stolons. This grass has shallow roots, making it only moderately tolerant to drought, slow to fill in as a lawn, and slow to recover from wear and tear. Centipede grass is not a high-traffic-area grass. However its good resistance to disease and pests make it a good, low-maintenance lawn grass. It’s one of the first of the warm-season grasses to turn brown in hot, dry weather and to go dormant with the arrival of winter. This grass tolerates moderate shade, but doesn’t tolerate the salt from sea spray. Centipede grass can turn yellow in alkaline soils that lack iron, but greens up with applications of iron sulphate or iron chelate.

  
  



• St. Augustine grass: St. Augustine grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum) is a fast-growing, deep-rooted, coarse to medium-textured grass with broad, dark green leaves. The grass spreads rapidly by surface runners that form a thick, dense turf, giving this grass an A for wearability.

  
  



• This grass is quite popular in southern climates, from Florida to California, because of its tolerance to heat, sun, shade, and salt. St. Augustine grass can grow in most soils, but prefers well-fertilized, well-drained, alkaline soil.

  
  



• St. Augustine grass is susceptible to brown patch, mole crickets, sod webworm, chinch bugs, and a virus called St. Augustine Decline (SAD, for short).

  
  



• Zoysia grass: Zoysia grasses are fine- to medium-textured, dark green, and moderately deep rooted. The blades are wiry, making them the least comfortable lawn for barefooted traffic. You generally plant zoysias by plugs, which may take two seasons to fill in your lawn space. However, when the plugs spread out and the space gets covered, you end up with a fairly low-maintenance lawn that can withstand high traffic.

  
  

  When properly cared for, zoysias are fairly pest- and disease-resistant when compared to other warm-season grasses. However, brown patch, dollar spot, armyworms, billbugs, and sod webworms can occasionally create problems if you slack off on maintenance. Ditto thatch.

  
  



• The Native Grasses: North America’s native American grasses are growing in popularity among more environmentally conscious lawn lovers because of their lack of demands on precious resources and labor. For the most part, native grasses need little water once established, very little fertilizer, and a haircut only a few times a year. The two most popular warm-season native grasses are blue grama and buffalo grass:

  
  
  
  

  • Blue grama: Although this grass goes dormant, it tolerates extreme heat and cold and does well in the arid regions of the Central Plains. Blue grama is very drought-tolerant and offers moderate wearability, but is slow to recover from wear damage.

    
    
  
  

  • Buffalo grass: Buffalo grass is drought-tolerant once established and becomes even more so if mowed infrequently and high. This grass thrives in areas that receive only 10 to 15 inches of rain a year, but will go brown if allowed to go completely dry. More lawnlike in appearance than other natives, buffalo grass is becoming quite popular in drought-prone regions. However, it’s expensive to plant, whether by seed, sod, or plug.

    
    
  
  
  
  

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/choosing-a-warmseason-grass.html

Fly Line Weights for Common Game Fish

Fly lines are rated according to their weight. A 1 Weight is a very light line used with an extremely flexible rod. As fly line numbers go up, so does the weight. Rods are rated according to the weight of the line they throw. This table lists recommendations of line (and rod) weights for some common game fish.

Line Weight	Type of Fish
1, 2, and 3 Weight	Panfish, trout
4 and 5 Weight	Trout, freshwater bass
6 and 7 Weight	Trout, bass, small blues, stripers, bonefish, pike
8 and 9 Weight	Salmon, stripers, bonefish, permit, bluefish, redfish
10, 11, and 12 Weight	Tarpon and other big game fish

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/fly-line-weights-for-common-game-fish.html

How PHP and MySQL Work Together in WordPress

WordPress uses a PHP/MySQL platform, which provides everything you need to create your own website and publish your own content dynamically, without knowing how to program those pages. In short, all your content is stored in a MySQL database in your hosting account.

Defining PHP and MySQL

PHP is a server-side scripting language for creating dynamic Web pages. When a visitor opens a page built in PHP, the server processes the PHP commands, or functions, and then sends the results to the visitor's browser.

MySQL is an open-source relational database management system (RDBMS) that uses Structured Query Language (SQL), the most popular language for adding, accessing, and processing data in a database. Think of MySQL as a big filing cabinet where all the content on your site is stored.

Figuring out how PHP and MySQL work together

Every time a visitor goes to your site to read your content, a request is made that is sent to a host server. The PHP programming language receives that request, makes a call to the MySQL database, obtains the requested information from the database, and then presents the requested information to your visitor via his web browser.

Content refers to the data stored in the MySQL database which includes blog posts, pages, comments, links, and options that were set up in the WordPress Dashboard. The theme (or design) you choose to use for your site isn't part of the database content. Themes files are considered the presentation layer and are essential to user friendly website display.

Theme files are part of the file system and aren't stored in the database. So creating and keeping a backup of any theme files that you're currently using are good ideas.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-php-and-mysql-work-together-in-wordpress.html

How to Block Bidders and Cancel eBay Auctions

If you're running an eBay auction, eBay's bidder-management tools let you block buyers and cancel auctions. Remember, you don't have to accept bids from just anyone. Part of running an eBay business is keeping an eye on your bidders. With bidder-management tools, you can save yourself a good deal of grief.

Canceling bids

You could have any number of reasons for wanting to cancel someone's bid. Perhaps an international bidder has bid on an auction in which you clearly state you don't ship overseas. Here are a few more legitimate reasons for canceling a bid:

• The bidder contacts you to back out of the bid; choosing to be a nice guy, you let him or her out of the deal.

  
  



• Your bidder has received several negative feedback notes and hasn't gone through with other transactions that he or she has won.

  
  



• You're unable to verify the bidder's identity through e-mail or the phone.

  
  



• You need to cancel the auction.

  
  

Canceling an auction is bad business. People rely on your auctions being up for the stated amount of time. They may be planning to bid at the last minute, or they may just want to watch the action for a while. You may lose potential buyers by ending your listing early. But if you have to . . .

For whatever reason you're canceling someone's bid, you should first e-mail that person and clearly explain why you're doing so. Your bid cancellation appears in the auction's bidding history and becomes part of the auction's official record. To protect your reputation, leave a concise, unemotional, one-line explanation on the cancellation form as to why you've cancelled the bid.

Ending your listing early

You may decide to end a listing early for any number of reasons. If anyone has bid on your auction before you end it, you'll be duty-bound to sell to the highest bidder. So before ending an auction early, it's polite to e-mail everyone in your bidder list, explaining why you're canceling bids and closing the auction. If an egregious error in the item's description is forcing you to take this action, let your bidders know whether you're planning to relist the item with the correct information.

Only after canceling all bids should you go ahead and close your auction. To end your listing, use the drop-down menu next to the item in your Selling area. Click the End Item link.

Following are some legitimate reasons for closing your auction:

• You no longer want to sell the item: Your account may be subject to a "Non-Selling Seller" warning unless you have a really good reason.

  
  



• An error occurred in the minimum bid or the reserve amount: Perhaps your wife said that she really loves that lamp and you'd better get some good money for it, but you started the auction at $1 with no reserve. (Oops.)

  
  



• The listing has a major error in it: Maybe you misspelled a critical keyword in the title.

  
  



• The item was somehow lost or broken: Your dog ate it? A meteorite fell on it?

  
  

Blocking individual buyers

If you don't want certain buyers bidding on your auctions, you can remove their capability to do so. Setting up a list of bidders that you don't want to do business with is legal on eBay. If someone you've blocked tries to bid on your auction, the bid won't go through. A message will be displayed notifying the person that he or she is not able to bid on the listing and to contact the seller for more information.

You can block as many as one thousand users from bidding on your auctions. However, you should use this option only when absolutely necessary.

Click the Add an eBay User to My Blocked Bidder/Buyer List link. On the resulting page, you can add the bidder's user ID to the Blocked list.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-block-bidders-and-cancel-ebay-auctions.html

How Assets and Liabilities Affect Your Business's Cash Flow

Your business's cash flow can be affected by asset and liability changes in your business. Changes in your assets and liabilities can affect cash flow in a way that signals serious problems:

• Accounts receivable change: An increase in accounts receivable hurts cash flow; a decrease helps cash flow.

  
  

  The accounts receivable asset shows how much money customers who bought products on credit still owe the business; this asset is a promise of cash that the business will receive. Cash doesn't increase until the business collects money from its customers.

  
  



• Inventory change: An increase in inventory hurts cash flow; a decrease helps cash flow. Inventory is usually the largest short-term (or current) asset of businesses that sell products.

  
  



• Prepaid expenses change: An increase in prepaid expenses (an asset account) hurts cash flow; a decrease helps cash flow.

  
  



• The depreciation factor: Recording depreciation expense decreases the book value of long-term operating (fixed) assets. There is no cash outlay when recording depreciation expense. Each year, the business converts part of the total cost invested in its fixed assets into cash. It recovers this amount through cash collections from sales. Thus, depreciation is a positive cash flow factor.

  
  



• Changes in operating liabilities: An increase in a short-term operating liability helps cash flow; a decrease hurts cash flow.

  
  

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-assets-and-liabilities-affect-your-businesss-c.html

Deciding on a Place of Business

Finding a location for your business (if you’re able to choose a location) is an important step. When choosing your business premises, aim to spend as little as possible while making sure that your place of business satisfies the needs of your newly launched enterprise.

Working from home

Working from home is the cheapest way to go. With computers, high-quality printers, e-mail, fax, and voice mail, a home-based business doesn’t have to look like an amateur operation. And the Internet allows even the smallest company to have worldwide exposure. You can project a big business image even if your head office is the kitchen table.

In addition to cost, working from home has other advantages, too:

• You’ll be able to claim an income tax deduction for a portion of the expenses of running your home

  
  



• You won’t have to commute to and from work.

  
  



• You’ll have more flexibility to deal with your children, aging parents, or pets.

  
  

Working from home does have some disadvantages as well:

• You may have little, if any, room for expansion as your business grows.

  
  



• You may find accommodating employees difficult or impossible.

  
  



• You may find that you need facilities and services that you can’t have at home.

  
  



• You may feel isolated from business associates.

  
  



• You may find yourself not isolated enough from family and friends!

  
  

Renting business premises

Most small businesses that need permanent retail, office, or industrial space rent the space (rather than buy). You should consider a number of factors before you rent space. Before you start to look for rental premises, stop and think about your business needs:

• What kind of space are you looking for?

  
  



• What kind of image are you trying to project?

  
  



• What location is most accessible to your potential clients or customers and employees?

  
  



• What kind of parking do you need?

  
  



• Is it best to locate near competing businesses or away from them?

  
  



• How much space do you need now and in the future?

  
  



• What kind of layout or floor plan do you need?

  
  



• What are your electrical and plumbing requirements?

  
  



• Will your suppliers need special access to make deliveries to you?

  
  



• Are you willing to pay for improvements to the property you rent?

  
  



• How long do you want to rent these premises for?

  
  



• How much rent are you willing and able to pay?

  
  

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/deciding-on-a-place-of-business.html

JavaScript & AJAX For Dummies

The tables you find here offer a one-stop reference for the most common programming variables, commands, methods, and coding miscellany used in JavaScript programs, jQuery, and AJAX.

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Code to Use in JavaScript Variable Manipulation Functions

As shown in the following table, you can use these JavaScript statements in your own code to create and modify variables in your JavaScript functions.

Element	Description
var myVar = 0;	Creates a variable with given starting value. Type is determined dynamically.
stringVar = prompt("message")	Sends message to user in a dialog box, retrieves text input from user and stores it in stringVar.
stringVar.length	Returns the length (in characters) of stringVar.
stringVar.toUpperCase(), stringVar.toLowerCase()	Converts stringVar to upper- or lowercase.
stringVar.substring()	Returns a specified subset of stringVar.
stringVar.indexOf()	Returns location of a substring in stringVar (or -1).
parseInt()	Converts string to int.
parseFloat()	Converts string to float.
toString()	Converts any variable to string.
eval()	Evaluates string as JavaScript code.
Math.ceil()	Converts any number to integer by rounding up.
Math.floor()	Converts any number to integer by rounding down.
Math.round()	Converts any number to integer by standard rounding algorithm.
Math.random()	Returns random float between 0 and 1.

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Basic I/O Commands in JavaScript

JavaScript programmers commonly use the commands shown in the following table for controlling dialog-based input and output in programs to be used on the Web.

Element	Description
alert("message");	Creates a popup dialog containing "message."
stringVar = prompt("message")	Send message to user in a dialog box, retrieve text input from user and store it in stringVar.

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JavaScript Conditions and Branching Code Structures

Look to the following table for JavaScript control structures you can use in your program code to add branching and looping behavior to your JavaScript programs.

Element	Description
if (condition){class="code"> // contentclass="code"> } else { // more contentclass="code"> } // end if	Executes content only if condition is true. Optional else clause occurs if condition is false.
switch (expression)class="code"> case: value;class="code"> //code break; default: //code }	Compares expression against one or more values. If expression is equal to value, runs corresponding code. Default clause catches any uncaught values.
for(i = 0; i < count; i++)class="code"> //code } // end for	Repeats code i times.
While (condition){class="code"> //code } // end while	Repeats code as long as condition is true.
Function fnName(paramaters) {class="code"> //code } // end function	Defines a function named fnName and sends it parameters. All code inside the function will execute when the function is called.

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Add JavaScript Comparison Operators to Condition Statements

JavaScript uses comparison operators inside conditions to make numeric or alphabetical comparisons of variables to other variables or values. Using these operators, you can determine whether a variable is greater than, less than, or equal to another variable or value. You can also use combinations of these comparison operators.

Name	Operator	Example	Notes
Equality	==	(x==3)	Works with all variable types, including strings.
Not equal	!=	(x != 3)	True if values are not equal.
Less than	<	(x < 3)	Numeric or alphabetical comparison.
Greater than	>	(x > 3)	Numeric or alphabetical comparison.
Less than or equal to	<=	(x <= 3)	Numeric or alphabetical comparison.
Greater than or equal to	>=	(x >= 3)	Numeric or alphabetical comparison.

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Create JavaScript Structures and Objects

JavaScript allows you to put together code lines to create functions and variables to create arrays. You can put functions and variables together to create objects.

Element	Description
function fnName(parameters) {class="code"> //code } // end function	Defines a function named fnName and sends it parameters. All code inside function will execute when the function is called.
var myArray = new Array("a", "b", "c");	Creates an array. Elements can be any type (even mixed types).
Var myJSON = {class="code"> "name": "Andy", "title": "Author" }	Creates a JSON object. Each element has a name/value pair, and can contain anything, including an array (with square braces) another JSON object, or a function.
Var person = new Object();class="code"> Person.name = "Andy";	Creates an object. You can add ordinary variables (which become properties) or functions (which become methods).

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Change Your Web Page with JavaScript Document Object Model Methods

The Document Object Model methods shown in the following table offer you a great way to access and modify your Web pages through your JavaScript code.

Element	Description
myElement = document.getElementById("name");	Gets an element from the page with the specified ID and copies a reference to that element to the variable myElement.
myElement.innerHTML = "value"	Changes the value of the element to "value".
document.onkeydown = keyListener	When a key is pressed, a function called keyListener is automatically activated.
document.onmousemove = mouseListener	When the mouse is moved, a function called mouseListener is automatically activated.
setInterval(function, ms);	Runs function each ms milliseconds.
myArray = document.getElementsByName("name")	Returns an array of objects with the current name (frequently used with radio buttons).

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Add Searching Tools with Regular Expression Operators in JavaScript

The regular expression mechanism adds extremely powerful searching tools to your programming. Here are some of the most commonly used regular expressions as they are used in JavaScript.

Operator	Description	Sample pattern	matches	Doesn’t match
. (period)	Any single character except class="code">newline	.	E	\n
^	Beginning of string	^a	apple	Banana
$	End of string	a$	banana	Apple
[characters]	Any of a list of characters in braces	[abcABC]	A	D
[char range]	Any character in the range	[a-zA-Z]	F	9
\d	Any single numerical digit	\d\d\d-\d\d\d\d	123-4567	The-thing
\b	A word boundary	\bthe\b	the	Theater
+	One or more occurrences of the previous character	\d+	1234	Text
*	Zero or more occurrences of the previous character	[a-zA-Z]d*	B17, g	7
{digit}	Repeat preceding character digit times	\d{3}-\d{4}	123-4567	999-99-9999
{min, max}	Repeat preceding character at least min but not more than max times	.{2,4}	Ca, com, info	watermelon
(pattern segment)	Store results in pattern memory returned with code	^(.).*\1$	gig, wallow	Bobby

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Common Methods of the jQuery Node

The jQuery library turns DOM objects into powerful jQuery nodes. The following table shows a few of the more commonly used methods of the jQuery node.

Method	Description
addClass(), removeClass(), toggleClass()	Applies or removes a CSS class to a jQuery node.
css("attribute", "value")	Applies a single CSS rule to the jQuery node.
Css(JSONObject)	Applies JSON object list of CSS rules and values to the jQuery node.
html()	Reads or changes the HTML contents of the jQuery node.
text()	Reads or changes the text contents of a jQuery node.
val()	Reads the value of a form element.
bind(event, function)	Triggers function to occur when event occurs.
Show(), hide(), toggle()	Makes element appear or disappear.
animate(parameters, duration)	parameters is a JSON object consisting of CSS rules and values. Values are smoothly changed from current value to target value over duration (measured in milliseconds).

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jQuery Selectors and Filters

Part of jQuery’s power is based on its ability to select particular sections of the page. This table includes several commonly used selectors and filters.

Selector/Filter	Searches for…
$("element")	Any HTML element.
$("#elementID")	Any element with the given ID.
$(".className")	Any element with the given class name.
:header	Any header tag (h1, h2, h3, and so on).
:animated	Any element that is currently being animated.
:contains(text)	Any element that contains the indicated text.
:empty	The element is empty.
:parent	An element that contains some other element.
:attribute=value	The element has an attribute with the specified value.
:Input, :text, :radio, :image, :button, etc	Matches on the specific element type (especially useful for form elements that are all variations of the class="code">input tag).

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Add jQuery User Interface Classes to Theme Styles

These CSS classes are defined in a jQuery UI theme. If you’re using jQuery UI, you can add any of these classes to your objects to add the theme styles.

Class	Used on	Description
ui-widget	Outer container of widget	Makes element look like a widget.
ui-widget-header	Heading element	Applies distinctive heading appearance.
ui-widget-content	Widget	Applies widget content style to element and children.
ui-state-default	Clickable elements	Displays standard (unclicked) state.
ui-state-hover	Clickable elements	Displays hover state.
ui-state-focus	Clickable elements	Display focus state when element has keyboard focus.
ui-state-active	Clickable elements	Display active state when mouse is clicked on element.
ui-state-highlight	Any widget or element	Specifies element is currently highlighted.
ui-state-error	Any widget or element	Specifies an element will contain an error or warning message.
ui-state-error text	Text element	Allows error highlighting without changing other elements (mainly used in form validation).
ui-state-disabled	Any widget or element	Demonstrates that widget is currently disabled.
ui-corner-all,class="code"> ui-corner-tl (etc)	Any widget or element	Adds current corner size to element. Specify specific corners with tl, tr, bl, br, top, bottom, left, right.
ui-widget-shadow	Any widget	Applies shadow effect to widget.

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jQuery Methods for Sending an AJAX Request

As you can see from studying the following table, jQuery supplies several methods for sending an AJAX request to the server and parsing the results.

Method	Description
get(url, parameters)	Send an HTTP GET request to the given URL. Parameters is JSON object encapsulating form data (name/value pairs). Result is returned as HTML, XML, or plain text data.
post(url, parameters)	Just like get, but uses the class="code">post method, which hides the parameters.
load(url, parameters)	Much like get(), but returns a jQuery object. Calling jQuery objects contents are replaced by the returned data (usually HTML or XHTML).
getJSON	Like get, but returns a JSON object, which can be parsed for further processing.

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dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/javascript-ajax-for-dummies-cheat-sheet.navId-405448.html

How to Offer a Job to an Applicant

11 of 11 in Series:
The Essentials of Hiring Employees

After you decide which job applicant you want to hire, you need to take care in how you offer the job to that person. If you don't make the actual job offer to the applicant carefully, you can lose the candidate or at least start the relationship off on a bumpy note:

• Don’t delay. After you make up your mind about a candidate, make the offer immediately, especially if you’re in a tight labor market. Remember, even a day or two delay can cost you the employee of choice.

  
  



• Put your offer on the table. Call the person you want to hire and give him or her all the details about pay, benefits, and anything extra. Most businesses make job offers verbally by phone and then follow up with an official letter.

  
  



• Set a deadline. Give candidates a reasonable amount of time to decide whether to accept the offer.

  
  

  What’s “reasonable” generally depends on the type of job. The time frame for an entry-level job may be a few days, but for a middle or senior-level candidate in a competitive market or for a position that involves relocation, a week isn’t excessive.

  
  



• Stay connected. While a candidate is considering an offer, stay in touch with him or her. You want to reinforce your excitement about the candidate potentially joining your team.

  
  



• Know how to negotiate salary. After receiving a candidate’s response to your offer, you must be prepared to negotiate. If the candidate suggests a higher figure than you’ve offered, you can choose to raise the amount of your proposal, wait for the candidate to respond or counteroffer, and ideally, arrive at an agreement that’s within the salary range you’ve set for the position.

  
  

  If you’re not able to match a candidate’s salary request, consider expanding other components of the package.

  
  



• Know when to draw the line. Try to identify the source of the applicant's hesitation and make reasonable accommodations. But don’t get so caught up in negotiations that you lose sight of what is appropriate for your business.

  
  



• Stay in touch. Even after a candidate accepts your offer and you agree on a starting date, keeping in touch with the new employee is still a good idea. Two to three weeks is the customary time between an acceptance and start date. Use the transition period to mail all informational brochures and employment forms.

  
  

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-offer-a-job-to-an-applicant.html

What Is a Massively Multiplayer Game?

An MMG is simply a computer game that is played over the Internet with many other people at once. There are many different styles of MMGs, but they share some common characteristics:

• The player is represented within the game world, usually as an avatar or character defined by the player. The type of character is defined by the game's world; if the game world is set in Medieval Europe, the player's character may be a knight, a priest, or a wizard. If the game is set in a futuristic setting, the player's character might be a soldier in power armor or a merchant in a suit and tie.

• The "story" of an MMG is usually that of your character's growth. Over a period of months, or sometimes years, your character will become steadily more powerful, from a new arrival to a mighty force within the game world able to defeat any challenge.

• MMGs usually (although not always) have some conflict or contest at their core. The players seek to fight in a colossal war among themselves, or seek to defeat monsters and seize their treasure.

• MMGs almost always have a monthly fee, charged by the company that runs the game. This allows the company that runs the game to pay for the game's Internet usage, server hosting, and frequent updates, known as patches, that often change the game's world dramatically.

• MMGs run continuously, whether or not you are playing. If you have set up a storefront within the game, people will browse your virtual wares while you may be off doing other things.

• MMGs usually don't have a clear goal. They are what you make of them; if you want to just log in once in a while to visit, or devote a significant amount of time to mastering the game world, the game will happily accommodate you.

• MMGs never end. You will never see a "victory screen" or a "game over" message like in other computer games. The longest-running MMGs have been played for almost ten years now. If you tire of a game, you can take a month or a year off and your character will be right where you left it.

The most popular MMGs are fantasy worlds based loosely on paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons. Players assume the roles of heroes and, through the course of the game, gain levels, or ranks of power that allow them to face greater challenges and obtain greater rewards the longer they journey through the game. Other games allow you to fight other players in large-scale battles, or put together online shops that allow you to sell things to other players in-game.

The view from a typical MMG is similar to that in many online games, such as Doom or Half-Life. You are in a three-dimensional space, and objects such as trees and buildings are represented much as if you were looking into a world from your screen. Your character is unseen; the view you see on-screen is the view from your character's perspective. If your character begins walking in any given direction, the view changes to represent your character moving through the game world. A window near the bottom of the screen has important messages from the game world, such as what other characters around you might be saying. Other games might depict other characters' speech as comic-book style bubbles over their heads. Clicking on an object or another player with your mouse "selects" it, and may provide information about what you've selected in a window.

The things you'll need to play

MMGs have some basic requirements to start playing:

• A computer: Although some MMGs now are playable via consoles (most notably Final Fantasy XI from Square Enix, which is playable on the PlayStation 2 and soon on the Xbox 360), generally playing an MMG on a console is more expensive due to the console's unique requirements (such as add-on hard drives or keyboards). The great majority of MMGs are played using Windows PCs. Two popular MMGs, World of Warcraft and Shadowbane, are also available for both Windows PCs and Macintosh computers.

• A 3D accelerator video card: With the exception of a few older games (such as Ultima Online), MMGs require a reasonably fast 3D video card to display the game's 3D environments. Again, the best card on the market isn't necessary, but the better the card you have, the better the game will look. Newer games, such as EverQuest II, can be very demanding on your hardware and look their best only on the newest 3D video cards.

• An Internet connection: Although a broadband Internet connection (such as cable or DSL) isn't required for most MMGs, it's definitely recommended, because a dialup Internet connection causes your gameplay to slow down dramatically when many people are on-screen. Due to the frequent delay of information from satellite to computer, a satellite Internet connection is not recommended for use with MMGs. The delay makes MMGs (or any other online game) unplayable.

"Wait a minute! I have to pay money? I already BOUGHT the game!"

One thing that surprises most new MMG players is that they have to pay for an account before even starting to play. Almost every MMG has a monthly fee associated with it, usually around $15.00.

Guild Wars, from ArenaNet and NCsoft, is currently the lone exception to this rule. Although you won't pay a monthly fee to play Guild Wars, the developers plan on selling expansion packs separately to add more content to the game. Still, if you really don't want to pay a monthly fee for an MMG, this is definitely a viable option.

You might think paying a monthly fee is somewhat odd — after all, you already paid for the game at the store. However, MMGs have a good deal more support available than other computer games. Unlike most games, a development team continues working on the game even after it's been released to the stores. This team, usually called the live team (so called because it's formed after the game goes "live"), is responsible for keeping the game updated, free of bugs and exploits (cheats, in other words), and every so often adding new content to the game.

MMGs also have a full complement of online Customer Service Representatives (CSRs) or Game Masters (GMs) who are on-call within the game to help with problems that might occur. Finally, there's the fact that running an MMG costs a good deal of money. MMG servers tend to be among the most demanding client/server applications on the market today, and MMG development companies learn quickly how to handle the demands of thousands of players logging into a game at once.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/what-is-a-massively-multiplayer-game.html

Nuclear Physics in a Nutshell

The energy of a nuclear bomb comes from inside the nucleus of the atom. Mass is converted into energy according to E = mc². This energy is the binding energy of the nucleus, the glue that keeps the nucleus of the atom together.

Radiating particles

In some cases, the nuclear force is not able to keep a nucleus all together, and the nucleus loses some of its particles. French physicist Henri Becquerel accidentally discovered this effect in 1896. He'd been intrigued by the experiments with x-rays that Wilhelm Roentgen had been doing in Germany. Becquerel obtained a uranium salt to see if he could observe these x-rays.

In his laboratory at the Museum of Natural History in Paris (where his father and grandfather had also been physics professors), Becquerel started his experiments by exposing to the sun a photographic plate with the uranium salt sprinkled on it, thinking that sunlight would activate the x-rays. One cloudy day when he couldn't perform one of his experiments, he placed the photographic plate with the uranium salt in a drawer. A few days later, he went ahead and developed the plate anyway, thinking that he was going to get a faint image. But the image was very sharp, with high contrast. He soon realized that he'd discovered a new type of energetic radiation.

When Pierre and Marie Curie heard of Becquerel's experiment, they began to search for other elements that could emit similar rays. They found that thorium and uranium emit the same radiation. And in 1898, they discovered two new elements: polonium (named after Marie's native Poland) and radium. The Curies named the effect radioactivity.

In England, Ernest Rutherford designed experiments to investigate this new radioactivity phenomenon and was able to show that these rays come in two varieties, one more penetrating than the other. The less penetrating one, which he called alpha, has positive electric charge. The Curies in Paris discovered that the other one, called beta, is negatively charged.

Realizing limitations of the nuclear force

Why are these nuclei giving off particles? The nuclear force is supposed to be extremely strong. Why isn't it able to keep all these particles inside the nucleus?

The answer is that the nuclear force has a very short range of action. It's able to tie in particles that are close to each other. If the particles are too far apart, the force stops working. If the particles happen to be protons, which have positive charges, the electric force acting alone will push them apart.

When the nuclear particles are bundled up in a nucleus of an atom, each particle interacts only with its nearest neighbors. In a nucleus with more than 30 particles, a particle in the middle of the nucleus won't feel the nuclear force of a particle at the edges. Each of the nuclear particles in the cluster feels the nuclear attraction of the other particles in the cluster (its immediate neighbors). However, these particles don't feel the force of the particle near the edge.

Think of it this way: Imagine that you and a group of several friends are trying to stay together while swimming in rough waters. If you all decide to hold hands, each one of you will be holding on to the two nearest neighbors. The grip of a swimmer at one end of the large chain, no matter how strong it seems to his immediate neighbor, has no influence on a swimmer at the other end. If the water gets too rough, the whole group may break apart, creating small groups of two, three, or maybe four.

Like the rough waters that break apart your group, the electrical repulsion of the protons tries to break apart a large nucleus. However, in the nucleus, certain helpers try to keep the whole thing together: the neutrons. Neutrons don't have an electric charge, and the only force they feel is the nuclear attraction. They are the skilled swimmers who won't be pushed away by the rough waters. If you have enough of them in your group, it will stay together.

Studying alpha decay

Like the swimming group with the skilled swimmers, a nucleus with a balanced number of protons and neutrons is stable and stays together. But if a nucleus has too many protons, the total electric repulsion can overwhelm the attraction of the nuclear force, and a piece of the nucleus can fly apart.

The piece that leaves the nucleus is usually in the form of an alpha particle, a cluster of two protons and two neutrons. (This particle is also the nucleus of the helium atom.) It turns out that these four particles are held together very tightly by the nuclear force, so this cluster is a very stable configuration of nuclear particles. These are the particles that Rutherford identified as alpha radiation. Physicists call the effect of the alpha particles leaving the nucleus alpha decay.

Detecting beta decay

It seems as if having a lot of neutrons is good for a nucleus because neutrons don't feel the electrical repulsion but do feel the nuclear attraction. They are the skilled swimmers in rough waters. However, these skilled swimmers don't have a lot of stamina. A neutron on its own, away from the nucleus, lasts for only about 15 minutes. After these 15 minutes, it changes into a proton, an electron, and another small particle called the neutrino. This effect is called beta decay.

Inside the nucleus, surrounded by the other particles, neutrons last much longer. When there are enough protons around, a quantum physics effect prevents neutrons from creating more protons. Quantum physics describes it by giving each proton in the nucleus its own space or slot. When there are enough protons, all the slots are taken and no additional protons are allowed.

In a nucleus with too many neutrons, a neutron at the outer edges of the nucleus can decay into a proton because there will be empty slots for this new proton to stay in. Therefore,

A nucleus with too many neutrons is unstable and decays into a proton, an electron, and a neutrino.

The protons created by this decay stay in the nucleus. The electrons don't belong in the nucleus; there are no slots for them there. The same goes for the neutrinos. Therefore, the electrons and neutrinos are both ejected. Neutrinos are extremely difficult to detect. They can go through the entire Earth and come out at the other end without a single collision. But electrons are easy to detect. These breakaway electrons create the beta rays that the Curies and Rutherford saw.

In both cases, the alpha and beta decays, the radioactive nucleus changes into the nucleus of another element when it gives off the alpha or the beta particle.

A third type of radioactive decay exists in which the unstable nucleus gives off only very energetic radiation, but no particles are ejected. The radiation is electromagnetic and is called gamma rays. In this case, the nucleus simply gives back some energy that it gained previously, but it doesn't lose its identity.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/nuclear-physics-in-a-nutshell.html

Linzer Cookies

Linzer cookies, a European specialty, are really beautiful, besides being delicious. The Linzer cookies’ scalloped edges made by round, fluted cookie cutters give them an elegant look, and the preserves glisten like little jewels in the center of the sandwich, making them hard to resist.

Preparation time: 3 1/4 hours, including chilling

Baking time: 10 minutes

Yield: 3 1/2 dozen

3/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon (1 1/2 sticks plus 1 tablespoon) unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

2 cups finely ground almonds

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 eggs

4 cups all-purpose flour

Pinch of salt

1 1/4 cups apricot or raspberry preserves

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1. Using a mixer, beat the butter in a large mixing bowl, about 2 minutes.

   
   



2. Add the sugar and mix together until smooth.

   
   



3. Add the almonds, cinnamon, and vanilla.

   
   



4. Blend well.

   
   



5. In a separate bowl, beat the eggs lightly.

   
   



6. Add the eggs to the butter mixture and blend well.

   
   



7. Add the flour and salt in three stages.

   
   

   Stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl after each addition.

   
   



8. Mix to a smooth dough, about 2 minutes.

   
   



9. Wrap the dough in plastic and chill for at least 3 hours, until firm enough to roll out.

   
   

   You can hold the dough in the refrigerator for 3 days, or you can freeze it. If frozen, defrost overnight in the refrigerator.

   
   



10. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

    
    



11. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

    
    



12. Roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface to about 1/4-inch thick.

    
    



13. Cut out circles by using a 3-inch round fluted-edge cutter.

    
    



14. Take half the circles and cut out their centers by using a 1-inch round fluted-edge cutter.

    
    



15. Gather together the scraps and center cutouts.

    
    



16. Repeat Steps 12 through 14 with the gathered dough.

    
    



17. Place the circles on the cookie sheet, leaving 1 inch between them.

    
    



18. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until golden and set.

    
    



19. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven.

    
    



20. Transfer the cookies from the parchment paper to the cooling racks.

    
    



21. When the cookies are cool, place a teaspoon of preserves on the solid cookies.

    
    



22. Heavily dust the cookies that have the center holes with confectioners' sugar.

    
    



23. Place these cookies on top of the cookies with the preserves, forming sandwiches.

    
    



24. Store in a single layer in a tightly sealed container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

    
    

Per serving: Calories 349 (From fat 64); Fat 7g (Saturated 3g); Cholesterol 20mg; Sodium 11mg; Carbohydrate 71g (Dietary fiber 1g); Protein 3g.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/linzer-cookies.html

Hire Help for Your Mom Blogging Business

The point at which you think about hiring writers should not be when you need more content, but instead when you know you can turn that content into dollars. If you’re focused on creating more content, you should already have a way to make money from that content — namely with advertisers. If you don’t already have advertisers in place, don’t hire anybody else until you get them.

If you hire writers, you have been blogging for more than just a few months. Hopefully, that means you have a track record and have established analytics in place.

So, how do you know if you can make enough money to justify hiring help? Estimating future revenue involves looking at past performance and projecting future profits based on estimated traffic.

For this example, say you want to know whether paying $50 for a tutorial on a sewing project is worth the cost. You’ll need to have an ad network or current advertisers that pay you according to the number of impressions you can deliver, not on a per-month or per-week basis. To crunch the numbers, use the following steps:

1. Pull your Top Content report up in Google Analytics: Go to your Google Analytics Dashboard, click Content, and then click View Full Report at the bottom of the page.

   
   



2. Change the date range to a full year’s worth of data: Click the drop-down list next to the current date range and type in today’s date last year as your start date. Click Apply.

   
   



3. Find a page that already exists on your blog that is a close approximation of the content you want to pay for and click on the page URL to view the Content Detail page.

   
   



4. Estimate past advertising earnings by adding the number of ads on the page and the average rate you’re paid for each ad.

   
   



5. Weigh your final calculation against your costs.

   
   

   If you estimate that you can earn $85 over a reasonable period of time, paying $50 for a sewing tutorial probably works for your budget. If you think that page will get about 24,000 views, you can definitely expect to earn your money back in less than a year.

   
   

So: Say you’ve established that you have a budget to pay for content. What other indicators signal that it’s time to hire help?

• You can’t dedicate any more time to writing than you already are.

  
  



• You have the time to commit to hiring, training, and managing writers.

  
  



• Your readers have expressed an interest in content you can’t or don’t want to write.

  
  



• You have money you can front and not earn back for 6–12 months.

  
  



• You’re ready to take your business to the next level, and are willing to do all the work that goes along with it.

  
  

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/hire-help-for-your-mom-blogging-business.html

ETFs and Mutual Funds: A Sometimes Tricky Choice

Say you have a choice between investing in an index mutual fund that charges 0.15 percent a year and an exchange-traded fund (ETF ) that tracks the same index and charges the same amount.

Or say you are trying to choose between an actively managed mutual fund and an ETF with the very same manager managing the very same kind of investment, with the same costs. What should you invest in?

If your money is in a taxable account, go with the ETF, provided you are investing at least a few thousand dollars and you plan to keep your money invested for at least several years.

If you’re investing less, and/or if you think you may need to tap the money anytime soon, you may be better off with the index mutual fund that won’t charge you commissions to buy and sell shares.

But say you have, oh, $5,000 to invest in your IRA. (All IRA money is taxed as income when you withdraw it in retirement, and therefore the tax efficiency of securities held within an IRA isn’t an issue.)

An ETF charges you a management fee of 0.15 percent a year, and a comparable index mutual fund charges 0.35, but buying and selling the ETF will cost you $7.95 at either end. Now what should you do?

The math isn’t difficult. The difference between 0.15 and 0.35 (0.20 percent) of $5,000 is $10. It will take you less than one year to recoup your trading fee of $7.95. If you factor in the cost of selling (another $7.95), it will take you 1.6 years to recoup your trading costs. At that point, the ETF will be your lower-cost tortoise, and the mutual fund your higher-cost hare.

In general, building an entire portfolio out of ETFs usually makes sense starting in the ballpark of $50,000. Anything less than that, and you are most likely better off with mutual funds or a mix of mutual funds and ETFs.

The exception would be, say, a portfolio of all Vanguard ETFs held at Vanguard, where there would be no trading fees. Or a portfolio of all Schwab ETFs held at Schwab, with the same deal. In these cases, the ETF portfolio may make sense for even the smallest of accounts.

Warning: If you have a trigger finger, and you are the kind of person who is likely to jump to trade every time there’s a blip in the market, you would be well advised to go with mutual funds (that don’t impose short-term redemption fees). You’re less likely to shoot yourself in the foot!

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/etfs-and-mutual-funds-a-sometimes-tricky-choice.html

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.

dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/detecting-signs-of-trouble-in-kids-for-early-inter.navId-323518.html

A Typical Computer Networking Setup

Networking doesn't happen without hardware. First comes the networking adapter, hardware required in order to interface the PC with the network. Wire-based networks need wire, obviously. And all networks, wired or wireless, need hardware that makes up a central location, or hub, where all the wires are connected or wireless signals go to complete the network.

This figure illustrates a typical network layout. At the center of the network is a combination wireless base station and router. The router is connected to a broadband modem that’s connected to the Internet. The router is also wired into one PC and a printer. Two additional PCs access the base station by using wireless Internet.

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A typical network layout.

The network setup illustrated in this figure is typical but not standard. The network you create may look similar, be all wireless, be all wired, or have more or fewer components. This is all good news because the network can be configured to your needs. It's very flexible.

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dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/a-typical-computer-networking-setup0.html

Nutrition For Dummies (UK Edition)

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Nutrition-Related Measurements

Struggling to make sense of your pounds and ounces? Use this handy table when working with measurements to make sure you understand their quantities and abbreviations.

Abbreviation	Measurement	Equivalent
g	gram	1,000 milligrams
		1,000,000 micrograms
mg	milligram	1/1,000 gram
mcg (µg)	microgram	1/1,000,000 gram
kg	kilogram	1,000 grams
		2.2 pounds
lb	pound	0.45 kilograms or 16 ounces
st	stone	6.35 kilograms or 14 pounds
oz	ounce	28 grams
l	litre	1,000 millilitres or 1.76 pints
pt	pint	568 millilitres
ml	millilitre	1/1,000 litre

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Key Elements Used in Nutrition-Specific Words

Use this table to help familiarise yourself with some of the language used within the subject of nutrition. Print it out and pin it up so you can refer back to it should you come across a word that needs further clarification.

Word Element	Meaning
Amyl-	starch
An-	without
Anti-	against
-ase	an enzyme
Di-	two
-aemia	found in the blood
gastro-	referring to the stomach
Gly-	referring to sugars
Hydr-, hydro-	water (also: hydrogen)
Hyper-	above normal
Hypo-	below normal
Lact-, lacti-, lacto-	milk
Lip-, lipo-	fat
Macro-	large
Micro-	very small
Mono-	one
-ose	sugar
Tri-	three

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Energy Content of Macronutrients

Need to find out about Macronutrients? Use this table as a very quick reference point when looking at the energy content of different food types.

Macronutrient	Calories per gram
Protein	4
Fat	9
Carbohydrate	3.75
Alcohol	7

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Adult Essential Vitamin and Mineral Nutrient Intake Reference

Need to know about your vitamins and minerals? Use these helpful tables to refresh your memory on reference nutrient intakes and get yourself up to speed.

Vitamin	RNI for women	RNI for men
Vitamin A	600 µg/day	700 µg/day
Vitamin D	N/a	N/a
Vitamin C	40 mg/day	40 mg/day
Thiamin (vitamin B1)	0.8 mg/day	1.0 g/day
Riboflavin (vitamin B2)	1.1 mg/day	1.3 mg/day
Niacin (Vitamin B3)	13 mg/day	17 mg/day
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine)	1.2 mg/day	1.4 mg/day
Folate	200 µg/day	200 µg/day
Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamin)	1.5 µg/day	1.5 µg/day

Mineral	RNI for women	RNI for men
Calcium	700 mg/day	700 mg/day
Phosphorus	550 mg/day	550 mg/day
Magnesium	270 mg/day	300 mg/day
Sodium	1600 mg/day	1600 mg/day
Potassium	3500 mg/day	3500 mg/day
Chloride	2500 mg/day	2500 mg/day
Iron	14.8 mg/day	8.7 mg/day
Zinc	7.0 mg/day	9.5 mg/day
Copper	1.2 mg/day	1.2 mg/day
Selenium	60 µg/day	75 µg/day
Iodine	140 µg/day	140 µg/day

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dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/nutrition-for-dummies-cheat-sheet-uk-edition.html

How to Make a Headboard

Making your own headboard can be a satisfying way of bringing your own personality to a bedroom. The following tips can show you how to make a headboard that’s quick, easy, and inexpensive. Remember, you don’t need to spend a lot of money to get a great look.

• Antique shutters: Attach shutters to the wall at the head of your bed. (Antique ones from the local salvage yard add a true cottage flavor.)

  
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  Use salvaged shutters to create a cottage-style headboard.
  
  




• Demi-canopy: Attach a curtain rod shaped like a semicircle on the wall near the ceiling, leaving a space of about two to three inches for the top of the curtain (sometimes called a curtain heading). These special rods are available at craft stores, decorating shops, and drapery makers. Then hang readymade curtains long enough to reach the floor.

  
  



• Pillows: Above the bed, firmly install a drapery rod that extends the bed’s width. Add grosgrain ribbon tabs at intervals along one side of the pillowcases. Insert pillows into the pillowcases, and hang them on the rod as a headboard.

  
  



• Standing screen: Place a standing screen between your bed and the wall. If the screen is unstable, you can secure it to the wall.

  
  



• Tapestry or quilt: Hang a tapestry or quilt on the wall behind your bed. Make sure it’s fastened securely by drilling hooks into the wall or by installing a rod supported by brackets. Make sure that your hanging isn’t so fragile that rubbing against it will damage the tapestry.

  
  



• Wagon wheel: An old wagon wheel makes a natural headboard for a boy’s twin bed. Fasten a wheel securely at the height that you like.

  
  



• Wrought iron gate: Check out the salvage yard for an old iron gate that you can secure to the wall for a headboard. These gates add plenty of Old World charm to any bedroom.

  
  

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dummies

Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-make-a-headboard.html

How to Convert Metric Measurements on Knitting Patterns

Reading knitting patterns can be slow work if you're not used to converting from metric measurements to yards, inches, and ounces. Speed up your knitting projects when you're figuring out materials by using these metric conversions. hese are approximations, but they're easy to do in your head and close enough for your knitting needs!

• Yards and meters: A yard is 36 inches. A meter is 39 inches. Multiply yards by 90 percent (0.9) to get meters (100 yards = 90 meters). Multiply meters by 110 percent (1.1) to get yards (100 meters = 110 yards).

  
  



• Inches and centimeters: Multiply the number of inches by 2.5 to get centimeters (for example, 4 inches ∞ 2.5 = 10 cm). Divide the number of centimeters by 2.5 to get inches (for example, 10 cm ÷ 2.5 = 4 inches).

  
  



• Ounces and grams: 50 grams = 1.75 ounces. 100 grams = 3.5 ounces.

  
  

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-convert-metric-measurements-on-knitting-pat.html

How to Gather Information Concerning Employee Conflicts

One of the keys to successful conflict resolution in the workplace is having all of the information you need. You may already know most of the details about how a workplace conflict escalated, or you may be new to the situation — either way, tactfully approach those impacted and see if you can get at what’s really going on.

1. Know your intent.

   
   

   Before you begin any conversations with your employees, know what your intention for meeting is. Determine whether you’re on a fact-finding mission and going to HR for documentation, or you’re going to allow room for a confidential conversation. There’s nothing wrong with either course, but be sure to communicate your intention so the employees don’t feel blindsided after they open up.

   
   

   Try to resolve the conflict at the lowest possible level. Plan a resolution strategy that uses the least amount of escalation. Start with the employees before you bring in anyone else. Your intention should be for those involved to save face, for them to see that they can work out disagreements on their own, and for you to keep the cost (and exposure) of the conflict down.

   
   

   Although your intention may be to act as an objective facilitator, tell the employees upfront what your organization requires you to report so they can determine for themselves what they’re comfortable sharing with you.

   
   



2. Sort out the players.

   
   

   Create a list for yourself that includes those directly involved, and then add any other staff members who may be impacted by the problem. As you meet with each person, ask whom he or she sees as key players in resolving the conflict. You may be surprised by how many names you get.

   
   

   When employees are in conflict, they often build armies as a means to strengthen their point of view. Make sure to check in with secondary players to determine their level of involvement and whether you think they’ll be valuable in resolving the issue.

   
   



3. Consider the meeting place.

   
   

   Where you meet communicates a lot to other employees. If everyone sees one closed-door meeting after another, fear and stress can escalate. Your employees will be more focused on what’s happening behind the door than on their work. Similarly, publicly walking up to someone’s cubicle and starting a conversation where others can overhear can cause your staff to shut down and share very little, causing you to miss important information.

   
   



4. Be consistent in your inquiries.

   
   

   When you begin approaching employees to gather information, be consistent with all parties. Communicate the same message to each employee and demonstrate that you’re not in this to take sides. Prepare a simple statement that explains the approach you’re taking to resolve the matter. End the discussion by letting both parties know what type of follow-up you’ve planned, even if it’s just to give the situation more thought.

   
   



5. Ask productive questions.

   
   

   Keeping the questions open ended rather than asking questions that only require a yes or a no draws out more information. For example:

   
   

   What’s been happening for you in this situation?

   
   

   What have you tried to do to resolve the conflict?

   
   

   What do you think the next steps are to resolve this situation?

   
   

   Who do you believe needs to be involved to resolve it?

   
   

   Is there any additional support I can offer you?

   
   

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-gather-information-concerning-employee-conf.html