Time Passes on

Will Fuel Powered Engines Replace Batteries?

2011-02-01T12:45:00.001-06:00

Amazingly as this article shows we may see small engines powered by more traditional fuels powering our technology in the near future. And it's technology like this that will be the future of innovation and job growth in the future.

Lets just hope that they don't sell this patent to manufactures out side the US. Far to often our inventions and ideas are sold only to be developed in foreign countries.

Few know that things like the VCR were developed here in the states and the patents then sold to foreign manufactures who made the lions share of the long term profits and benefited most from the job growth created.

Lets start our renewal of America's technology leadership by keeping our patents owned by American firms and only licensed to foreign firms. That has been the strength of countries like Japan and China. What they develop they keep and what other others develop they buy or copy.

Amplify’d from maximumtorque.blogspot.com

SMALLEST PETROL ENGINE

SCIENTISTS have built the smallest petrol engine, tiny enough to power a WATCH. The mini-motor, which runs for two years on a single squirt of lighter fuel, is set to revolutionize world technology. It produces 700 times more energy than a conventional battery despite being less than a centimeter long not even half an inch. It could be used to operate laptops and mobile phones for months doing away with the need for recharging. Experts believe it could be phasing out batteries in such items within just six years. The engine, minute enough to be balanced on a fingertip, has been produced by engineers at the University of Birmingham. Dr Kyle Jiang, lead investigator from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, said: “We are looking at an industrial revolution happening in peoples’ pockets. “The breakthrough is an enormous step forward. “Devices which need re- charging or new batteries are a problem but in six years will be a thing of the past.” Other applications for the engine could include medical and military uses, such as running heart pacemakers or mini reconnaissance robots. At present, charging an ordinary battery to deliver one unit of energy involves putting 2,000 units into it. The little engine, because energy is produced locally, is far more effective. One of the main problems faced by engineers who have tried to produce micro motors in the past has been the levels of heat produced. The engines got so hot they burned themselves out and could not be re-used. The Birmingham team overcame this by using heat-resistant materials such as ceramic and silicon carbide. Professor Graham Davies, head of the university’s engineering school, said: “We’ve brought together all the engineering disciplines, materials, chemical engineering, civil engineering, and mechanical engineering. “What better place to have the second industrial revolution in nano-technology than where the first took place, in the heart of the West Midlands.”
Read more at maximumtorque.blogspot.com

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Some Thoughts for the Day

2011-01-27T16:05:00.001-06:00

I hope you all enjoy these. Sometimes it's the simplest ideas that bring us the most understanding.

Amplify’d from kstaxman.wordpress.com

The power of Love isn’t the miracle… the miracle is Love its self. ~ F Woodman Jr.

He who gains victory over other men is strong but he who gains a victory over himself is all-powerful. ~Lao-Tze

The man who follows a crowd will never be followed by a crowd. ~ R.S. Donnell

A hug is truly the most powerful way to subdue an enemy. ~ F Woodman Jr.

People don’t judge you on the basis of your mistakes but the manner in which you own up to them ~Jason Fried
Read more at kstaxman.wordpress.com

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Bank of American and Countrywide Finally Face Fraud Charges

2011-01-27T11:18:00.001-06:00

Finally we see some legal action on the Countywide mortgage scandal as Bank of American (now owner of Countrywide) faces law suites over questionable ratings of the mortgage backed securities Countrywide sold during the last few years before the mortgage meltdown.

Lets hope that someone is finally held accountable for part of this mess and is made to admit that greed and corruption were the underlying causes of the current mortgage mess we are in.

Amplify’d from www.bizjournals.com

Bank of America sued by mortgage investors for “massive fraud”

Bank of America ’s Countrywide mortgage operation was accused of “massive fraud” in a suit by big investors who say they were misled about the quality of mortgage-backed securities.

A dozen institutional investors, including TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Co. and New York Life Insurance Co., filed the complaint Jan. 24 in New York state Supreme Court, according to Bloomberg News.

The litigation is the latest salvo in a battle between BofA, the largest bank doing business in the Wichita area, and institutional investors over mortgage-backed securities and the quality of the loans backing those investments.

“We will review the suit, but on first glance these sound like large, sophisticated investors who now want to blame someone for the fact that the declining economy caused their investment to lose value,” said BofA (NYSE: BAC) spokeswoman Shirley Norton.

In the suit, the investors say they purchased Countryside’s mortgage-backed securities, seeking a low-risk investment. But the plaintiffs allege that Countrywide’s documentation on the mortgage-backed securities was knowingly false. BofA acquired Countrywide in 2008.

“Countrywide was an enterprise driven by only one purpose — to originate and securitize as many mortgage loans as possible into MBS to generate profits for the Countrywide defendants without regard to the investors that relied on the critical, false information provided to them with respect to the related certificates,” according to the suit.
Read more at www.bizjournals.com

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Is Spokeo.com a Site to Opt Out Of?

2011-01-25T16:34:00.001-06:00

A recent post by Jared Brickman caught my eye as I’m always looking for new security issues and online privacy dangers and problems. And with sites like FaceBook always challenging our online privacy I was more than interested to hear about Spokeo.com. And while I hadn't heard of Spokeo before Jared’s post it only shows the rapid growth of information brokers’ sites and services that can be found on line.

Now with this information comes the confusing question of what if anything I should do about it?

For this is an example of the confusing nature of privacy on line. Many of us spend our online time blogging, tweeting, commenting, and getting Google and others search engines to index it all so it can be found. Then along comes a site like Spokeo that is set up to compile data from many sites, blogs, indexes, and data bases that provides just such public access. But since it’s a site we know little about and have no control over what they show and can only opt out of being listed or leave any search results available we have to decide; Do we opt out of being listed on Spokeo.com, or leave our listing there and available?

And while Jared elected to opt out, honestly, I personally am still considering what I want to do.

For on the one hand it's a site that is kind of scary as it is a very comprehensive collection of information that I'm not sure I want available all at one site. But on the other hand it's all information that's available anyway and most if not all of it is on Google or other search engines already. And I’m also sure that even if I opt out of Spokeo another site just like it is either out there now or soon will be.

So does opting out of Spokeo really changing anything or do I just have to accept that mega personal search sites are something I have to learn to live with?

Right now I’m just not sure which choice I will end up making.

Anyway you might want to check out Spokeo.com and see what info they’ve collected on you. And if you find that information something you don’t want to share the instructions on how to opt out of Spokeo are included from Jared’s post.

Just let me know did you decide to stay or did you decide to opt out?
And do you think Spokeo.com is a danger to online privacy or just another search engine?

Instructions on opting out of Spokeo.com from Jared’s post.
1) Go here: http://www.spokeo.com/
2) Search your name or user name
3) Click your listing
4) Copy the full URL from the browser address bar
5) Click privacy (in the footer)
6) Fill out the form
7) Click the link in the confirmation email
And feel the relief of being weirdo-directory site free (at least until the next one comes around).

Angel Investors List for Twitter and FaceBook

2011-01-24T11:18:00.001-06:00

If you're searching for an angle investor this list should help. It's nice to know and follow such investors before you contact them. And if you are an angel investor they will add you to the list so contact them.

Amplify’d from launch.is

Angel Investors on Twitter and Facebook

One of the best ways to develop a relationship with an angel investor is to stalk them on Twitter, their blogs and Facebook. Before contacting an angel, you should read everything they've written, tweeted, blogged or said (publicly)--that's just startup 101.

We've complied lists of some of the world's most notable angel investors (sorted by location), their Twitter handle, Facebook page and links to a sampling of their investments.

Angel Investors by Region

Boston Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Canada Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Colorado Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Europe Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Middle East Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Midwest US Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

New Jersery/New York Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Northeast US Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Northern California Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Southern California Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Seattle Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Southern US Angel Investors on Twitter & Facebook

Are you an angel (or do you know one) who'd like to be on our list? Fill out the form below and we'll make sure to include you.

If you spot an error or omission, please email us at references@launch.is and tell us about it.

Read more at launch.is

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Watch out for GPS Problems in the Southeastern US

2011-01-24T08:12:00.001-06:00

This article shares some interesting information (though sketchy) about GPS problems that will exist in the Southeastern US between January 20th and February 22nd.

It seems the government will be doing something (they call them tests) that will make GPS in that area be either off or unreliable for a large part of the time.

And while they say they will notify pilots of when these test will take place they don't mention how or even if they will alert drivers and others.

So be warned and watch out using or relying on GPS in that area during that time and mention it to anyone you know that might be affected.

Amplify’d from www.engadget.com

FAA warns of ongoing GPS issues in southeastern US due to Defense Department 'tests'

Don't panic, but anyone planning on using GPS in the southeastern US for the next month or so will likely want to make sure they have a fallback option. That's according to a flight advisory just issued by the FAA, which warns pilots that their GPS signal "may be unreliable or unavailable" due to "GPS tests" that the Department of Defense will be conducting between January 20th and February 22nd. Details are fairly light beyond that, but the FAA does note that when the "tests" occur they will be active for 45 minutes, and be followed by 15 minutes of off time -- additional notices to pilots will apparently be issued at least 24 hours prior to any test. Of course, while this particular advisory is directed at pilots, it will presumably will also affect all other GPS devices, as the FAA doesn't mention any GPS issues specific to aviation. The real question, however, is just what those mysterious "GPS tests" are -- if they're, in fact, GPS tests at all...

[Thanks, Brady]
Read more at www.engadget.com

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Robotic Manufacturing a Blessing... or a Curse?

2011-01-20T15:05:00.002-06:00

As we see in this video robotic manufacturing today is something right out of Star Trek. And it's given us so many of the amazing technological toys and tools we have came to use and enjoy everyday that it's hard to find fault with it.

But this video also shows the amazing amount of manufacturing work that never sees the touch of a human hand today. And while that's good for the cost and efficiency of the products being made it's a disaster for the people who now have no job due to automation.

So how do we both keep our technology and all the wonderful things it provides for us and still find enough employment to keep everyone working. That is a question that will trouble us for some time to come and will only become worse as we see more and more jobs taken over by the very technology we have came to love.

As with so may of our questions today the answers will not come easy and while we have came to love our technology we will also come to hate it's encroachment into our lives and lively hood.

So take a few minutes and enjoy the video. That's still something that a machine can't do for you, at least not yet!

Amplify’d from singularityhub.com

Robots Dominate Manufacturing – Take a Look Inside the Making of a Memory Card (Video)
Read more at singularityhub.com

Two of the major themes in the public eye here in the US are the outsourcing of jobs abroad and the current economic crisis. We’ve recently explored how workers in the US are (rightfully?) concerned about losing jobs to robots as well as to overseas factories. I think the video above shows that these are, in fact, competing interests. Look at the work done in Asia: is there any doubt that many of the steps humans are performing could be automated? The plugging in of cards for testing, the assembling of components, the placement of products in packaging – I could imagine a robot doing any of these tasks. Which probably means that, in a few years or so, they will. Asia, with its relatively cheap labor markets, is where we have exported manufacturing jobs. Yet if these processes become as automated as the wafer factories in Utah would labor costs still be the deciding factor?

When you watch the following video, I want you to compare the creation of the silicon wafers in Utah to the rest of the assembly and testing performed in Asia. The wafer building at Micron Technology (which owns Lexar, by the way) displays a minimum of human presence, even if it has “thousands of workers.” The factories in Asia are very different. Starting around 3:28, the process goes from being almost purely robotic to relying more on human-machine cooperation.

Every product in your home tells a story. Listening to the memory card in your camera or computer will give you a sneak peak into the international world of automated manufacturing. Lexar Media is one of the largest producers of memory chips (SD cards, memory sticks, keydrives, CompactFlash, etc), and they recently released a promo that shows the start to finish process for their goods. What does this video demonstrate? Total automation domination. From the creation of the silicon wafer in Utah to the packaging of the final product in Asia , machines are center stage. Watching these slick industrial robots do their thing is something else. You have to check out the video below and see what I mean. Considering how crucial automation is in modern production, maybe the big surprise at this point isn’t the robotic dominance but that Lexar still employs so many humans.

As robots get cheaper and better you have to pay your workers less and less to compete. At some point, machines win. And not just in manufacturing – automation is creeping in at all levels of the economy, including research science. In the years ahead, human labor is likely to be removed from any repetitive task. Manufacturing, tech services, legal research and other fields could try to make their way to even cheaper labor markets, but I think that robots will ultimately make such geographic concerns a thing of the past. Watching Lexar’s tour through their creation process leaves little doubt that the domination of automation is well underway. It’s only going to get more robotic from here.
Read more at singularityhub.com

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For What It's Worth a Little Humor

2011-01-20T13:49:00.001-06:00

I think this revision to the 1040 is long over due.

Amplify’d from politicalhumor.about.com

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Google Voice Now Offers Number Porting

2011-01-20T09:12:00.002-06:00

Google voice has taken another big step forward with the announcement of existing number porting. And that ability to port numbers is going to really allow the service to gain traction.

I know that from my use of Google voice it's a great service but it lacked the ability of people to port existing numbers over to it which greatly limited peoples interest in using it due to the hindrance of its requiring a new number.

With this limitation gone it's going to finally come of age and it spells lots of potential trouble for other phone service providers. For Google voice is both free and allows for calls to most other phones in the United States. So unlike services like Skype that only allow free calls to other Skype users Google allows free calls to about 90% of the US.

So I predict that once this service and its features really become know to more people it's going to take off like a rocket. This is just another area Google is using to gain even more ground in becoming an all inclusive player in just about every area of our lives.

And its things like Google voice that will keep other sites and services from gaining on Google. For none of their competitors not even Microsoft or FaceBook combine so many services as does Google. And unless FaceBook or Microsoft buys a service like Skype or Vonage they certainly have no easy way to enter into the phone market.

It's amazing to me that Google has quietly entered the areas of phone service, internet TV, online business apps, cell phone OS's, and kept its ranking at the top of search and yet few have taken much notice. For IMO it's Google's diversity and growth into a company that is everywhere that dooms all the companies and services like Microsoft or FaceBook from ever pushing it out of number one.

Amplify’d from techcrunch.com

Google Voice Is About To Take Off: Number Porting Coming Soon For $20
Read more at techcrunch.com

We’ve been huge fans of Google Voice for quite a while now — it makes screening calls and managing multiple phones a breeze — but there’s always been a huge thorn in its side: it didn’t allow people to port their existing phone numbers over. In other words, in order to take advantage of all of Google Voice’s benefits, you’d have to get a new phone number. Now, after years of waiting, that’s finally changing: Google has quietly enabled number porting for Google Voice.

Update: Google tells us that this is currently just a test available to some users and is not rolling out to everyone yet. However, it seems likely that a wide scale launch is coming soon.

Here’s a statement from Google:

“We’re continually testing new features to enhance the user experience. For a limited amount of time, we’re making the Google Voice number porting process available to users. We don’t have any additional details to share at this time, but plan to offer this feature to all users in the near future.”

The feature was first noticed by Engadget, and I’m seeing it in my Google Voice account as well. The process appears to be fairly straightforward (and yet terrifying at the same time): tell Google your existing cell phone number, agree to some strongly worded warnings, pay $20, and you should be in business.

You can see screenshots of the process below.

Oh, about those warnings. Transferring your number to Google Voice isn’t exactly painless — depending on your current carrier agreement you may have to deal with some steep early termination fees (ETFs) that can run hundreds of dollars. That means you should think twice about doing this (as the warnings make clear). And all of you who are about to buy shiny new Verizon iPhones may want to consider doing so under a new phone number, so that you can transfer your existing number to Google Voice.

This could be a turning point for the service. Up until now many people have only been able to take advantage of a limited set of Google Voice’s features (namely, voicemail) because they didn’t have a way to port their ‘real’ phone numbers over. Google Voice supports deep integration with Android, and comes pre-installed on stock Android builds, so plenty of people are going to be exposed to it, too.

I’ve been using Google Voice with my primary phone for over a year now, after the team offered to port my phone number over to the service (I was under the impression that it would be released for ‘everyone else’ much sooner than this). My experience has generally been quite positive, save for a series of downtime issues a couple months ago.

Yes, Google Voice will probably be a bit confusing to some people — it takes some getting used to the idea that one number can ring multiple phones. But think about where this is heading. Right now, you can make and receive phone calls using your Google Voice number directly from Gmail (which is awesome). Now imagine being able to do the same from your Google TV (which sports Android), your tablet computer, or any other Internet-connected device. It’s not there yet, but it’s only a matter of time.
Read more at techcrunch.com

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New Reporting Issues for Small Business Corporations Will Catch Many Unaware

2011-01-18T13:56:00.002-06:00

Working with taxes and the business reporting requirements for small businesses is a little like being a life guard during shark season. There are the usual dangers of drowning and all the swimmers know about those but there are also the special dangers of shark attack and many of the swimmers aren't aware of those dangers.

Well the sharks (IRS) are at again and with the help of new government regulations will be requiring new reporting requirements for stock and business indebtedness activities.

These are issues that can result in sever penalties but will be missed by many small business owners and sadly even those who have their taxes prepared and their accounting done by professionals won't be advised of these dangers.

So be aware that it's changes like those described in this post that show the need to be sure that you are not only receiving accounting and tax advice but overall advice on all areas of business compliance.

These new Organizational Actions regulations along with the new health care provisions are going to make some of the biggest changes in reporting and compliance requirements for small businesses that have ever taken place.

So be sure that you keep abreast of and consult with advisers that can help with all areas of your business.

Other wise the sharks may come calling.

Amplify’d from bigfatfinanceblog.com

Are You Ready for New IRS “Organizational Actions” Regs?

The United States has a “voluntary” tax system, which means that taxpayers must compute their own tax liability and report (and pay) it to the IRS. Unfortunately for Uncle Sam, not everyone volunteers. The result is a “tax gap”– the difference between tax liability imposed by law for a given tax year and the amount of tax actually paid. For calendar year 2001 (the most recent year for which data is available), the IRS estimated the tax gap (prior to any enforcement activities) at around $345 billion. That’s a 16.3 percent noncompliance rate.

One approach that Congress has used to close the tax gap has been to impose additional require-ments for reporting information to the IRS. These requirements often get little publicity and can catch taxpayers by surprise. One recent example is new Code section 6045B, enacted in 2008 and effective January 1, 2011.

This provision requires any issuer of stock or indebtedness to file a return within 45 days de-scribing any organizational action that affects the basis of that security. It must also describe the quantitative effect on the basis of the security resulting from the action.

What counts as an “organizational action”? Distributions in excess of a corporation’s earnings and profits, stock splits, mergers, and acquisitions, among other things.

The requirements apply to almost all shares of stock — public and private, domestic and foreign — of any entity treated as a corporation for Federal income tax purposes. The only exceptions are for stock of money market funds and of corporations whose shareholders are “exempt recipients” (such as other corporations, tax exempt entities, or governmental entities).

What if you can’t determine all the facts you need to make the “quantitative effect” calculation within the 45-day filing period? The rules allow you to use reasonable assumptions, provided you file a corrected return within 45 days of determining a different result. If you can’t determine what portion of a distribution is a dividend, you must treat the entire amount of the distribution as a dividend.

Statements regarding the basis change must also be made available to holders and nominees. The IRS may waive the filing of a return if the information is made publicly available (for example, if it’s posted on the company’s website for 10 years).

S corporations and certain mutual funds and REITs can be treated as having met the filing re-quirements if they properly report the information on their timely filed tax returns (including in-formation reporting, such as Schedule K-1s or Forms 2438 and 2439).

Because failure to file the required returns and statements can result in penalties, companies should examine their internal processes to ensure that they can obtain the necessary data to comply with these new requirements on an ongoing basis.
Read more at bigfatfinanceblog.com

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Todd Weiss Three Steps to Starting a Franchise

2011-01-18T09:12:00.001-06:00

A CFA I've recently started following wrote this article and it does a wonderful job of helping to remind us of some of the important steps that we need to perform as we start or acquire a business.

And while he addressed his advice to franchises it applies to businesses in general and is well worth the read. For I see people all the time that start or acquire businesses that they just don't understand and have no idea what the needs and demands of this business are.

But a business is like any other purchase or expense. What you are acquiring needs to fit your needs and you must be able to afford it. Otherwise you will soon find that things just aren't going to work and by then it's too late to avoid major problems.

So be sure to research and understand all aspects of any business you are looking at acquiring or starting.

That research and planning includes at least the following areas.

What does the business do and does it really fit with my abilities and interests? Remember any business you buy or start that you end up hating or finding you can't manage isn't going to work out for long and it certainly isn’t going to end as a happy experience.

What exactly are the needed funds, resources, and assets to both acquire and start this business as well as to run it day to day? If you can't come up with the money to support a business’s daily operation until it returns a sustainable profit you will finally be forced to give it up.

What are the expected returns on that investment and will that amount of return provide for your total support or will you need to continue to have other sources of income? Many people find that their new business just doesn't provide an income level that will support them without other income. If that is the case are you prepared to work two jobs or take income from savings or investments to support yourself? If so, for how long is this arrangement going to be necessary?

And last but not least…. the question that most people never address when starting or acquiring a new business.

What are your plans on how to eventually either sell or recover your equity in the business when that time comes? Everyone starting or buying a business seems to want to forget that someday you will either have to have provided for that business to continue to operate without you or it will have to be sold. The time to consider those issues is at the beginning not when the time finally arrives. That’s because it affects everything from what business structure you decide to use to run the business to how you might structure it to be able to pass it on to heirs or stockholders. And remember your children or family might have no interest in running this business once you are gone. So consider the fact that under many circumstances without planning you well may see most if not all of your owner equity going for taxes at some point in the future. And I would bet paying a big part of what you get out of your business to the tax man is not what you had in mind when you started or acquired that business.

So do your research and seek professional help before you get started as it will avoid many unpleasant mistakes and miscues. Remember good advice doesn’t cost nearly as much as it saves.

Amplify’d from sunshineconsultingltd.com

How much income do you need to support your lifestyle?

Think of it this way, if you were looking for a new job, what is your salary requirement? The process in franchising is the same approach. The concept must be able to generate the income needed to support your lifestyle. The first step is to determine the income you need from the business.

What is a suitable investment level?

There’s no sense researching concepts until you know what you can afford. If you’ve ever purchased a home, chances are your first step was to get pre-approval for a loan. Once you figured out what you can afford to invest, you search for houses or condos in that range. If you are looking at a franchise, it’s a similar process. Determine a suitable investment level, and then target your search for franchises within that range.

When do I want to open my business?

I generally advise clients to start the formal due diligence process if they want to open within six months or less. It typically takes between 30 and 45 days to determine if a franchise concept is right for you. Depending on the type of business (retail, food, etc.) it may take some time to find a location and build out the space. If your time frame is a little longer, its best to wait before formally engaging talks with a franchise.

Owning a franchise can be a fun and exciting experience. It’s normal to want to seek new information. If you’re curious, by all means start looking at different concepts to get a feel for what’s out there. Focus on the types of businesses you like. Don’t spend time seeking the details until you’ve addressed the above questions. This will save time, frustration and help you target specific opportunities to help achieve the ideal lifestyle. You want to keep your options open. A targeted approach can help achieve your goals.

Most people who are interested in buying a franchise start the process with a Google search for info on specific concepts. Since food and coffee are part of our everyday lives, when we think “franchise”, we generally think of food and coffee concepts like McDonalds, Subway, Dunkin Donuts, etc. While these are all successful businesses, there are other options out there that may be more suitable depending on your personal interests. It’s estimated there are over 6,000 different franchises available in the United States today. Almost every industry has a franchise model actively seeking motivated people to invest in their system. If you are serious about franchising, you don’t want to limit your options. Rather than researching concepts, your best bet is to start by asking yourself the following questions:
Read more at sunshineconsultingltd.com

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Flying Quad-rotor Robots Build Structures Autonomously

2011-01-17T15:07:00.002-06:00

Another amazing robotic accomplishment as a team of students designs autonomous flying robots that can work together. It's going to soon be possible for robots to do all of those amazing things only dreamed of in science fiction. What this brave new world is going look like only time will tell.

Anyway enjoy the video and imagine what a wonderful Christmas present these copters would make as soon as they can work with Lincoln Logs or Lego's.

Amplify’d from www.youtube.com

Construction with Quadrotor Teams
Read more at www.youtube.com

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Life in the FaceBook Fish Bowl... A lesson in Security

2011-01-17T09:08:00.002-06:00

This story is about both a hacker who abused people and in many cases caused damage that's impossible to repair and people who were foolish in what they allowed to be kept on line and potentially available for a hacker to obtain.

For to see someone's reputation destroyed by another with information they obtained by stealth or even just their being embarrassed in front of family, friends, and co workers is a tragic thing. And while this story again shows the dangers of not keeping safety and security in mind it's not the whole story.

As it's a story that also shows the danger of leaving photos or data on line that could prove damaging or embarrassing. Remember it's always possible that someone can break into any site or service. And of course there is also the chance of a mistake by a site or service provider that allows access to an account by someone with bad intentions.

So we see both the value of strong passwords and being careful of what you use as a security question as well as the use of good judgment as to what you leave "lying around" on line. Both are vital pieces in any online security and privacy strategy.

Just let this story serve as a wake up reminder of the dangers and pitfalls that not only FaceBook but all social networks expose us too. Keeping your passwords secrete and strong helps but so does not having incriminating or damaging things available to hackers if they do get into your accounts.

Amplify’d from news.yahoo.com

Calif. man used Facebook to hack women's e-mails

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – In a cautionary tale for users of social-networking sites, a California man has admitted using personal information he gleaned from Facebook to hack into women's e-mail accounts, then send nude pictures of them to everyone in their address book.

The California attorney general's office said Friday that George Bronk, 23, commandeered the e-mail accounts of dozens of women in the U.S. and England. He then scanned the women's "sent" folders for nude and seminude photos and videos, and forwarded any he found to all the women's contacts, prosecutors said.

Bronk coerced one woman into sending him more explicit photographs by threatening to distribute the pictures he already had. One victim told authorities the intrusion felt like "virtual rape."

Bronk, who lives in the Sacramento suburb of Citrus Heights, pleaded guilty Thursday to seven felonies in Sacramento County Superior Court, including computer intrusion, false impersonation and possession of child pornography.

Prosecutors said Bronk would scan women's Facebook accounts looking for those who posted their e-mail addresses. He would then study their Facebook postings to learn the answers to common security questions like their favorite color or father's middle name.

He contacted the women's e-mail providers and used the information to gain control of their accounts. He also often gained control of their Facebook accounts by hijacking their passwords, then posted compromising photographs on their Facebook pages and other Internet sites.

Investigators found 172 e-mail files containing explicit photographs of women when they searched Bronk's computer in September, according to a court affidavit. They were able to track his victims to England, Washington, D.C., and 17 states: Alabama, Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Texas, Virginia and Washington.

Piscak said one of her friends alerted her that nude photographs she had sent privately to her husband were posted on her Facebook page last fall. Facebook removed the photos the next day.

"I have a network of like 1,500 people, so they all saw my pictures. So my graduating class of 2007 saw that. I'm in the military, so all my army friends saw that," Piscak said. She had to explain the embarrassing situation to her family and husband, from whom she is separated.

Piscak used a different e-mail account to contact the person who had hacked her page.

"I said, 'Why are you doing this?' and he said, 'Because it's funny,'" Piscak said in a telephone interview. The Associated Press does not identify victims in sex cases as a matter of policy, but Piscak gave permission for her name to be used. She also said she has agreed to tell her story on a nationally televised talk show.

Piscak said she fears the postings could harm her future in the military and her plans for a career in criminal justice, though most people who saw the photos were understanding.

A second victim, Stephanie, 24, of Los Angeles, said she, the FBI and other authorities tried for seven hours to remove an album of 10 photographs that Bronk posted on her account before Facebook took it down.

"Then he wrote just crass, racist, disgusting comments on people's walls that I was friends with," said Stephanie, who did not want her last name used for fear the story could harm her career. She said she felt violated, "kind of a rape-like situation."

Stephanie said she originally had sent the private photos to a boyfriend, only to have them seen by her college professors and co-workers.

Both of the victims, along with Bronk's attorney, said Facebook should have caught Bronk's activities more quickly. Facebook spokesmen did not return telephone or e-mail messages Friday.

Bronk began his hacking in December 2009, prosecutors said. He will have to register as a sex offender because of his guilty plea.

Investigators caught on after a victim called Connecticut State Police, which referred the complaint to the California Highway Patrol. They used information from Bronk's confiscated computer to e-mail questionnaires to 3,200 of his Internet contacts, asking if they had been victimized.

Forty-six women said they had. Bronk was arrested in October and remains jailed on $500,000 bond.

The attorney general's office advised those using e-mail and social-networking sites to pick security questions and answers that aren't posted on public sites, or to add numbers or other characters to common security answers. Additional safety tips are on the California attorney general's website.
Read more at news.yahoo.com

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Now if We Could Just Get "Beam Me Up Scotty" to Work

2011-01-12T18:23:00.001-06:00

Google has released their beta (do they have any other kind of release) program that promises to one day translate speech directly in real time as two people talk to each other. This is something right out of Star Trek and if they ever get it beyond two languages and working with any degree of accuracy it will be a wonderful tool. Anyway it's something I've sure got to play with.

Mean while I've got some Romulans to check up on so I'll catch you later... "Beam me up Scotty."

Amplify’d from googlesystem.blogspot.com

Conversation Mode in Google Translate for Android

Google Translate's app for Android added a feature that has previously announced by Google: conversation mode. The new option is experimental and it only works for English and Spanish, so it's more like an early preview. Conversation mode is a fancy name for making it easy to have a conversation in two different languages.

"In conversation mode, simply press the microphone for your language and start speaking. Google Translate will translate your speech and read the translation out loud. Your conversation partner can then respond in their language, and you'll hear the translation spoken back to you. Because this technology is still in alpha, factors like regional accents, background noise or rapid speech may make it difficult to understand what you're saying," explains Google.

See more at googlesystem.blogspot.com

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Twitter Fights for User Rights

2011-01-12T09:01:00.001-06:00

In this article by wired.com the author brings to our attention how Twitter responded to government pressure and court orders to reveal information on WikiLeaks and some of it's main personal.

And while many may not agree with how WikiLeaks did their release of classified information (I count my self in that group) we can all be proud of how Twitter stood up for the user rights of all of us who use Twitter.

For in this case as in most cases the government acquired their court order for the release of the information on these Twitter users through their normal rubber stamp channel and it contained the standard gag order they ask for in such cases as well.

This means that unless Twitter fights to have that order overturned they not only have to turn over the information requested they can't tell the user or anyone else it's been served with the order. So the user has no chance of even knowing that their information has been requested much less turned over to the agencies involved.

That goes against the whole principal of due process and the presumption of innocence as well as denies the right to protection against unwarranted search and seizure. People, except in the most damaging or dangerous of cases, including those involved in WikiLeaks deserve to know when and by whom they are being investigated. And they should have the right to appear and face those who accuse them in a court of law and in so doing have the right to demand their constitutional protection against unreasonable search and seizure.

Only then can a court order be said to have been obtained lawfully in such cases. And Twitter defended that principal by going to court and having the gag order overturned. Once that order was removed they then notified those named in the court order so as to allow them to both protect their information and to appear in court to fight their information being released.

For that Twitter deserves our respect and support. Taking on the government and protecting the rights of it's users from these kinds of stealth government fishing expeditions for information took courage and a stand for principal not often seen by companies today.

So thank you Twitter. You've shown remarkably great courage and strength of convection in taking on the fight for all of your users and I for one applaud you.

Now if we can just get other companies to quit rolling over and playing dead we can begin to have the privacy we are untitled to once again protected from those who seek to destroy it.

Amplify’d from www.wired.com

Twitter’s Response to WikiLeaks Subpoena Should Be the Industry Standard

Twitter beta-tested a spine.

On Friday, it emerged that the U.S. government recently got a court order demanding that Twitter turn over information about a number of people connected to WikiLeaks, including founder Julian Assange, accused leaker Pfc. Bradley Manning, former WikiLeaks spokeswoman Birgitta Jonsdottir and WikiLeaks activist Jacob Appelbaum.

The request was approved by a magistrate judge in Alexandria, Virginia, where a federal grand jury is looking into charges against WikiLeaks related to its acquisition and publishing of U.S.-government classified information.

The court order came with a gag order that prevented Twitter from telling anyone, especially the targets, about the request’s existence.

To Twitter’s credit, the company didn’t just open up its database, find the information the feds were seeking (such as the IP and e-mail addresses used by the targets) and quietly continue on with building new features. Instead the company successfully challenged the gag order in court, and then told the targets their data was being requested, giving them time to try and quash the order themselves.

Twitter and other companies, notably Google, have a policy of notifying a user before responding to a subpoena, or a similar request for records. That gives the user a fair chance to go to court and try and quash the subpoena. That’s a great policy. But it has one fatal flaw. If the records request comes with a gag order, the company can’t notify anyone. And it’s quite routine for law enforcement to staple a gag order to a records request.

That’s what makes Twitter’s move so important. It briefly carried the torch for its users during that crucial period when, because of the gag order, its users couldn’t carry it themselves. The company’s action in asking for the gag order to be overturned sets a new precedent that we can only hope that other companies begin to follow.

The decision would be laudable in almost any situation, and may even be unprecendented by a massive tech firm. The only other gag orders I can think of that were challenged in court were those served on the Internet Archive, on a small library and on Nicholas Merrill, the president of the small New York City ISP Calyx Internet Access, who spent years resisting a National Security Letter order seeking information about one of his clients.

Even more remarkable, Twitter’s move comes as a litany of companies, including PayPal, Mastercard, VISA and Bank of America, follow the political winds away from the First Amendment, banning donations to WikiLeaks. And Amazon.com voluntarily threw the site off its hosting platform, even though there’s nothing illegal in publishing classified documents.

By standing up for its users, Twitter showed guts and principles. Much of it is likely attributable to Twitter’s general counsel Alexander Macgillivray. As security and privacy blogger Christopher Soghoian notes, Macgillivray was one of the first law students at Harvards’ Berkman internet law center and at in his previous job at Google “played a major role in getting the company to contribute takedown requests to chillingeffects.org.”

Of course, it’s not the first time tech companies have stood up to requests for user data. Google beat back a government order to turn over search logs in 2006, after AOL and Microsoft quietly acquiesced. We’ve seen ISPs stand up for their users when movie studios try to force ISPs turn over user information in mass peer-to-peer lawsuits. And just last year, Yahoo successfully resisted the Justice Department’s argument that it didn’t need a warrant to read a user’s e-mails once the user had read them.

But there’s not yet a culture of companies standing up for users when governments and companies come knocking with subpoenas looking for user data or to unmask an anonymous commenter who says mean things about a company or the local sheriff.

In the WikiLeaks probe, it’s not yet clear whether the feds dropped the same order on other companies.

Regardless, Twitter deserves recognition for its principled upholding of the spirit of the First Amendment. It’s a shame that PayPal, Amazon, Visa, Mastercard, Bank of America and the U.S. government all failed — and continue to to fail — at their own versions of that test.
Read more at www.wired.com

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How to Become More Intelligent - by Dumb Little Man

2011-01-10T08:54:00.000-06:00

How to Become More Intelligent - by Dumb Little Man

In this article the writer points out some simple but basic thoughts on how to keep the mind sharp and stay abreast of events in the world.

And while none of it is earth-shattering or new he does remind us of those basics we need to think about to stay on top of our game.

I would only add that he's got caught up in detail and missed the important fact that it's staying mentally active that underlies all of these and other activities that we can find to keep us sharp.

For it's not so much if we spend our time reading, checking out things on line, or even as he says watching TV. It's that we keep our minds nimble and active by challenging them.

So while for some it's a good book for others it's a video game. And often just some time to reflect and consider the world around us with a moment of inter reflective though can bring the mind to grasp new thoughts and ideas. Remember thinkers like Einstein and Gandhi used only their own thoughts to expand not only their minds but the minds of the world.

That means we have to spend our day doing more than just killing time it means working at find things we like to do that expand and challenge who we are, what we know, and how we use that information in our daily lives.

So while this writer's topics are fine and thought provoking they are not inclusive enough to touch all the areas that we can find to stimulate our minds and our lives. But he's sure right that we need to make it a common practice and a daily goal to seek and find new ways to challenge ourselves.

For on any day we fail to learn something new we fail to expand our world and become just a little less than we could have been.

Surveying the Use of Technology and Social Media by Small Business

2011-01-08T11:05:00.000-06:00

According to a Guardian Life Small Business Research Institute survey owners still trust and value business software and their company website(s) more than social media sites and services to operate their businesses more efficiently and acquire new customers.
Social media currently is an important tool primarily among women, millennials (under age 28), companies with 10 or more employees, and businesses that have experienced or expect to experience growth in revenue; the importance of social media drops with the age of the owners and businesses surveyed.

Important Small Business Tax Changes Under Affordable Care Act and Small Business Jobs Act of 2010

2011-01-06T13:55:00.002-06:00

As most of you know the recent and last minute changes to the tax laws affecting small businesses were only part of the overall comprehensive change in tax laws, reporting requirements, and accounting procedures passed by our federal legislatures during this last year.

And good examples are both the Affordable Care Act and the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010.

Both of these bill passed into law contain regulation covering many areas especially in regard to the issue of health care and its costs and reporting requirement for small business and the important area of deprecation deductions and allowances under 179 rules.

So it’s important to take the time to read and understand the issues that they both bring up for you and your business. And as always a good place to start is with the IRS and their guidance on these bills and how they are going to interpret and enforce them.

With that in mind I call your attention to the flowing IRS postings on these issues.

And while they are not complete in describing all the issues or areas of compliance that are raised by these new tax laws they do give good guidance on the subject in general and should help you to better understand what these laws effects are for both you and your business.

Amplify’d from www.irs.gov

Tax Changes for Small Businesses

During 2010, new laws, such as the Affordable Care Act and the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, created or expanded deductions and credits that small businesses and self-employed individuals should consider when completing their tax returns and making business decisions in 2011.

Health Insurance Deduction Reduces Self Employment Tax

With the enactment of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, self-employed taxpayers who pay their own health insurance costs can now reduce their net earnings from self-employment by these costs. Previously, the self-employed health insurance deduction was allowed only for income tax purposes. For tax year 2010, self-employed taxpayers can also reduce their net earnings from self employment subject to SE taxes on Schedule SE by the amount of self-employed health insurance deduction claimed on line 29 on Form 1040.

Taxpayers can claim the self-employed health insurance deduction if the insurance plan is established under their business and if any of the following are true:

• They were self-employed and had a net profit for the year,

• They used one of the optional methods to figure net earnings from self-employment on Schedule SE, or

• They received wages from an S corporation in which the taxpayer was a more-than-2-percent shareholder.

During tax year 2008, the most recent year for which data is available, the self-employed health insurance deduction was claimed on 3.6 million tax returns, reducing taxpayers’ adjusted gross incomes by $21 billion.

Small Business Health Care Tax Credit

In general, the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit is available to small employers that pay at least half of the premiums for single health insurance coverage for their employees. It is specifically targeted to help small businesses and tax-exempt organizations that primarily employ moderate- and lower-income workers.

Small businesses can claim the credit for 2010 through 2013 and for any two years after that. For tax years 2010 to 2013, the maximum credit is 35 percent of premiums paid by eligible small businesses and 25 percent of premiums paid by eligible tax-exempt organizations. Beginning in 2014, the maximum tax credit will increase to 50 percent of premiums paid by eligible small business employers and 35 percent of premiums paid by eligible tax-exempt organizations.

The maximum credit goes to smaller employers –– those with 10 or fewer full-time equivalent (FTE) employees –– paying annual average wages of $25,000 or less. The credit is completely phased out for employers that have 25 or more FTEs or that pay average wages of $50,000 or more per year. Because the eligibility rules are based in part on the number of FTEs, not the number of employees, employers that use part-time workers may qualify even if they employ more than 25 individuals.

Eligible small businesses will first use Form 8941 to figure the credit and then include the amount of the credit as part of the general business credit on its income tax return.

The IRS has developed a page on IRS.gov devoted to this credit with answers to frequently asked questions and with explanations of the credit through various tax scenarios.

General Business Credit for Employers

The general business credits of eligible small businesses in 2010 are not subject to alternative minimum tax The new law allows general business credits to offset both regular income tax and alternative minimum tax of eligible small businesses as described in Section 2012 of the Small Business Jobs Act. The provision is effective for any general business credits determined in the first taxable year beginning after December 31, 2009, and to any carryback of such credits. For a list of the general business credits, see Form 3800.

Small Businesses Can Benefit from Higher Expensing / Depreciation Limits

For tax years beginning in 2010 and 2011, small businesses can expense up to $500,000 of the first $2 million of certain business property placed in service during the year.

In general, businesses can choose to treat the cost of certain property as an expense and deduct it in the year the property is placed in service instead of depreciating it over several years. This property is frequently referred to as section 179 property, after the relevant section in the Internal Revenue Code.

Section 179 property is property that you acquire by purchase for use in the active conduct of your trade or business, including:

• Tangible personal property.

• Other tangible property (except buildings and their structural components) used as:

1. An integral part of manufacturing, production, or extraction or of furnishing transportation, communications, electricity, gas, water, or sewage disposal services;

2. A research facility used in connection with any of the activities in (1) above; or

3. A facility used in connection with any of the activities in (1) above for the bulk storage of fungible commodities.

• Single purpose agricultural (livestock) or horticultural structures.

• Storage facilities (except buildings and their structural components) used in connection with distributing petroleum or any primary product of petroleum.

• Off-the-shelf computer software.

Section 179 property generally does not include land, investment property (section 212 property), property used mainly outside the United States, property used mainly to furnish lodging and air conditioning or heating units.

The Small Business Jobs Act (SBJA) of 2010 increases the section 179 limitations on expensing of depreciable business assets for tax years beginning in 2010 and 2011 and expands temporarily the definition of section 179 property, for tax years beginning in 2010 and 2011, to include certain qualified real property a taxpayer elects to treat as section 179 property. Qualified real property means qualified leasehold improvement property, qualified restaurant property, and qualified retail improvement property.

The $500,000 amount provided under the new law is reduced, but not below zero, if the cost of all section 179 property placed in service by the taxpayer during the tax year exceeds $2 million.

For tax years beginning in 2012, the maximum amount is $125,000; before enactment of the 2010 tax relief legislation, it was set at $25,000.
Read more at www.irs.gov

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Impact of Estate Tax Changes on Small Business Owners

2011-01-06T13:07:00.000-06:00

The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 again raises the issue of estate tax planning as it reinstates the estate tax and sets it's rate at 35% for estates of decedents dying in 2010 (for estates not electing old rules), 2011, and 2012.

And even though each decedent has an exemption amount of $5 million many small businesses will find that they still will have estate taxes due.

According to an American Family Business Foundation study 67% of all taxable estates will include small business interests. That means up to 22,000 farms, 14,000 real estate partnerships, and 29,000 privately-held corporations will be potentially liable for estate taxes in 2011.

So with these changes it's important that all business owners have their estate plans reviewed now by their tax advisers. Other wise it's quite possible that if the unforeseen happens there may be an unexpected visit by the tax collector that could have been reduced or avoided.

As always to be forewarned is to be prepared!

Does this New California Law Help or Hurt the Internet

2011-01-01T10:08:00.001-06:00

With a law set to go into effect in California staring Today (Jan 1, 2011) making it a misdemeanor to impersonate someone on the internet the question is does this help or effect personal safety on the internet?

And it's raising some heated arguments that show just how hard it is to find ways to both protect people on the internet and still allow for people to seek anonymity on line.

It will be very interesting to see how this plays out and how California addresses the fact that most users of the internet, much less FaceBook, don't live in California. And like many laws that sound good it's going to be hard for that and other reasons to even enforce this law much less make it have any real effect in stopping internet impersonators.

So any thoughts on this and how it might change things. Does it even do more than cloud up the issue?

Amplify’d from www.allfacebook.com

Facebook Fakes Become Misdemeanors Starting 2011

Pretending to be someone else on Facebook, or anywhere else online, becomes a crime in California as of this Saturday.

The law specifically prohibits impersonating anyone online with the objective of harming, intimidating, threatening or defrauding. Such acts become misdemeanors punishable by a fine up up to $1000 and a year in jail.

The author of the law, California Democratic state Senator Joe Simitian, represents the part of the state where Facebook has its headquarters. An article in the San Jose Mercury News quoted him saying:

As a Silicon Valley legislator, I’m nothing but enthusiastic about technology. But the question is, is the technology used wisely and appropriately? This is one area where some constraint appeared necessary… The goal here really is to try to change behavior…

This new law draws on the same framework used in California’s ban on forging documents.

An early draft of the legislation had upset free speech advocates who worried that that the measure would stifle free speech. So the law effective Saturday qualifies that the person who is impersonated has to be real and credible.

That makes it still legal to have profiles that are obvious parodies or fictional characters.

We’re wondering whether a California law would enable Facebook to prosecute impersonators based outside of the state, or the country for the matter. Presumably the location of the social network’s headquarters is what matters here.

How will this law help social media and Facebook in particular?
Read more at www.allfacebook.com

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For a Good Laugh Check out these Flash Animation's

2010-12-31T20:18:00.001-06:00

URL: http://www.magicpen.net/Animation.html

I've got a friend I've known since high school that's a wonderful graphics artist and has a great time playing around with flash videos and cartoons as well. So if you want a chuckle for the day check out his flash cartoons on his site www.magicpen.net. And he's also available for any graphics or flash work you might be needing as well.

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/k5za

Put Your Best Tweet Forward: How to Schedule Tweets for Maximum Exposure

2010-12-29T09:15:00.001-06:00

Great article and I've got nothing to add beyond re posting this article.

If you want to find a way to create an effective schedule for Tweeting www.flowtown.com have provided a great example of how one company crafts their schedule.

They have also shared some great tips and scenarios on using Twitter and how to make the most of this fabulous little marketing tool for you and your business too!

Amplify’d from www.flowtown.com

Put Your Best Tweet Forward: How to Schedule Tweets for Maximum Exposure

Twitter can be an amazing marketing tool. Some would say that strictly from a marketing perspective you get more bang for your (time) buck than you do out of Facebook. Those who find the most success with Twitter know something that others don’t: not all Tweets are created equal. Normally, it’s timing that has the most dramatic effect on success. On Twitter, timing is everything.

Understand The Timing

All of the tips below will go into specifics about techniques you should employ in your Twitter campaigns. They work, but only if you understand some basic Twitter time-etiquette. First, remember the Goldilocks Rule of Twitter Timing: “Don’t Tweet too much. Don’t Tweet too little. Tweet just right.”

People often ask, “How often should I Tweet?” The answer (and it’s not a cop-out) is, “As often as you need while respecting the rules of etiquette.”

An active Twitter account has many advantages. If you have an account with tens of thousands of quality followers, you will want to be in regular communication with them throughout the day. As most business owners check their emails several times during the day, so too should they check their Twitter.

There are three kinds of Tweets you’ll want to use. Replying to people who address you directly is a must and is arguably unlimited in scope. If eight people ask you something or say anything directly at you, replying to them is acceptable and necessary. People like to use Twitter as a communication tool and you won’t make people too upset if you’re popular. Replying to others means you’re active, so you won’t be breaking the Goldilocks Rule.

If you receive several communications per day, you can group them. If a couple of different people give you similar compliments, replying to them both in a single Tweet is fine. If you are not being Tweeted at a lot, you shouldn’t group the ones you get; reply individually.

The second kind of Tweet is conversational:

Searching for Tweets about your niche and starting or joining in on conversations is a good way for smaller accounts to get noticed and to get attached to the right hashtags.

The third, the “money Tweets”, are you marketing messages:

The Goldilocks Rule applies– some will go with one message a day. Others will go with several. It goes back to “as often as you need”. Overtweeting your messages will dilute them and may make some of your followers stop following you.

There is no magic number. It all depends on you, your audience, and circumstances surround the “now” of your messages. More on that at the end of this article.

Know Your Followers

Now that you know a little bit of Twittequette, having an understanding of who is getting the message is a key to knowing when to send the message. If you have a local business, it’s easy. People normally check Twitter in the early morning, before and after lunch, and at night before going to sleep.

For national or global businesses, it becomes more important to spread out your Tweets at different times. Most businesses that operate on a national level can let their Twitter account “sleep”. Even though it’s easy to schedule a Tweet at 3:00 am, your audience will be lower and having an un-manned Twitter account can lead to mistakes. For example, if you Tweet out a special or message at 2:30 am and someone replies, nobody will be there to answer them until much later that morning. However, for a global business, timing is dependent on exposure. Once you’ve sent out enough Tweets you will be able to put the data together and understand the best times to get your message across.

Tweet It Again, Sam

Scenario #1

You have the right message. You’ve molded it into the right piece of content. You have your shortened, tracked URL ready to go.

You’ve crafted the right mix of 110 characters (leaving 30 available for Retweets, of course). You Tweet it and…

… nothing happens.

Nobody clicks. Something went wrong. All of that work wasted. Time to start again with a new message, a new piece of… WAIT!

Don’t give up so easily. You can Tweet it again. And again. And…

Scenario #2

You just had the most successful Twitter post of your life. You Tweeted it in the morning and by mid-afternoon you had hundreds of Retweets and thousands of clicks. It’s time to put that one on the mantle and pat yourself on the back, but only for a brief moment before starting on the next super-amazing message…

WAIT! Just because you had success doesn’t mean you can’t have more success. You can Tweet it again. And again. And…

Depending on how often you have new content to Tweet and how time-sensitive your content is, you may be able to Tweet and Retweet content continuously. There are times when stories get very little posted in the morning but more when reposted in the afternoon. Sometimes, a story never takes off on Twitter, then reposted a week later yields opposite results. Strong content that’s still relevant can often be reposted weeks, even months later for a repeat of the same results.

Twitter will not allow you to post the exact same message over and over again, but you can change up hashtags to repost. All it takes is one different character for Tweets to pass through the duplication filter on Twitter.

Don’t get stuck repeating yourself over and over again, but as a general rule 5 or 6 Tweets in between makes reposting acceptable.

Creating A Scheduling Matrix

One thing that makes Twitter fun is discovery. People use it to learn the latest trends, hear the latest news, and share the latest content. Unless you’re a news organization, chances are you don’t have enough content to keep people engaged constantly. This is where a proper “Twitter Scheduling Matrix” comes into play. Spread your Tweets and reposts properly so that you can stick to a routine that fits both The Goldilocks Rule as well as the personality of your business. If you are Tweeting 5 “money Tweets” per day successfully and you’re only producing 5 pieces of content per week, you will have challenges keeping your Tweets relevant without the matrix.

We’ll use a local business as our example but the same principles can be expanded to fit whatever your business is doing. You have a blog that’s updated twice a week, daily specials, and a new video once per week. In your repository of old but relevant content, you have 30 blog posts and 15 videos. Below is an example of a scheduling matrix you can apply in this situation. This is an actual schedule for a local business in Southern California. The names of the blog posts and videos have been replaced with generic terms. Let’s take a look at the thought process day by day to understand why this matrix works for them:

Daily Special

Every day the special changes. They have one special and announce it at 7:00 am every morning, scheduled well in advance and posting like clockwork. They have a large number of “Twitter regulars” who look at this and often retweet it.

You will notice that Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday they post a different piece of content shortly after their daily specials. Because of the traffic they get on weekdays from their Daily Specials and retweets, they want to take advantage of people visiting their Twitter account. Wednesdays is the exception as the manager who monitors Twitter is making purchases that day.

Based upon “best times” they discovered through monitoring clicks on Su.pr (or other analytics programs) they plan the rest of their days accordingly.

Monday

Perhaps the world moves a little slower on Mondays as we start our work week. Regardless of the reason, the peaks in traffic occur about an hour later than other weekdays. Still, it’s a good day for fresh blog traffic, so one of their two new blog posts of the week launches that morning. At noon, an older video is posted, followed by the repost (with slightly different wording) of their morning blog post. In the early evening, they select a blog post that was very successful for them in the past and repost it before their 10pm “overnight” post declaring that they have Daily Specials at 7am every morning. Monday is the only day they have 6 “money Tweets”.

Tuesday and Friday

These two days have proven to be very similar. No new content goes out since the latest blog post went out the day before. Tuesdays are normally heavy “news” days so there is more competition for eyeballs. Fridays are “bury the news” days when many people are just waiting for the week to end.

Wednesdays

Everything gets moved up a bit because of what is happening in real life as the manager in charge is off making purchases. In the morning they shoot their weekly video and post it around lunch time.

Saturday and Sunday

No new posts, just rehashing from the week and in past weeks. The account is not monitored over the weekend but the Daily Special for Monday is posted late Sunday night for the loyal “early birds” to see when they get up and around to start their week.

Overnight posts

Even though we do not have them post anything overnight, we have a different piece of “overnight content” posted at 10pm so that nightowls and early risers have something different every time.

Craft Your Schedule

Terms like “matrix” can make it seem more challenging than it really is. The overall key to success is having a plan based upon real data that you collect and having the right tools to make scheduling your Tweets as easy as possible.

Address your fans as an audience but never try to seem more important than your business really is to them. This is Twitter. The vast majority will not hang on your every word. Penetration and exposure on Twitter becomes more challenging as the site grows and people’s feeds become more loaded. Scheduling properly is everything. Remember, your audience knows what they’re getting into when they follow you. As long as you deliver consistently and without abusing the system, your strategy will flow properly and Twitter can easily become your best social media marketing tool.
Read more at www.flowtown.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jz28

End to Federal Tax Deposit Coupons Starts Jan 1st,2011

2010-12-28T18:00:00.001-06:00

Starting January 1, 2011, banks will no longer accept federal tax deposit coupons. Instead, deposits will have to be made using the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS). EFTPS business users can schedule payments up to 120 days in advance of the desired payment date and make their payments by computer or telephone.

Are you keeping up with the ever-changing tax laws and regulations? Need help? If so sign up for our monthly tax news letter or post any questions to any of our blogs or comments. http://www.proservicesks.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jwja

It's Time for Many Taxpayers to Prepare for Delays and You Can Thank Your Congressman

2010-12-28T09:16:00.001-06:00

While Congress and the Senate were patting themselves on the back for their work on the tax bill they were setting in motion changes that came so late that the IRS won't be able to reprogram their computers or make all the changes to the necessary forms until the middle of February at the earliest.

So by waiting and playing politics until the last minute the politicians have again created ciaos and made both the IRS and the American Taxpayer the losers in this game of brinkmanship.

I can only hope that the American Taxpayer will create an outcry that will make it clear that they are tired of this yearly circus. It's time that tax law reform be made in a timely manor and put a stop to the total confusion that such last minute changes make for our citizens and businesses.

The hidden costs and delays such reckless disregard for the American Taxpayer causes is just not acceptable.

Amplify’d from www.taxgirl.com

Tax Season To Start Late This Year for Many Filers, Thanks to Congress

So now that members of Congress (and President Obama) are patting themselves on the back after their 11th hour tax deal, the real work begins: the IRS and tax professionals get to explain for the next month and a half why they can’t actually start processing your taxes on time. That’s because even though they had ten years to straighten the tax mess out, Congress approved a tax deal (with some bits retroactive for 2010 filers) at the last.possible.minute.

The idea that the IRS could just throw together some last minute changes on some forms in a couple of weeks is laughable. We knew it. Congress knew it. IRS Commissioner Shulman knew it.

But now we’re all pretending it’s okay because, you know, we have a tax deal.

However, Congress’ delay in getting its collective act together means that tax season will not start on time for many taxpayers. Officially, tax season kicks off on January 14, 2011: that’s when e-file opens and when Free File becomes available. However, taxpayers who itemize deductions on their federal form 1040 Schedule A or who intend to claim the state and local sales tax deduction, higher education tuition and fees deduction or educator expenses deduction will have to wait until mid to late February to file.

The majority of taxpayers will be able to fill out their tax returns and file them as they normally do. We will do everything we can to minimize the impact of recent tax law changes on other taxpayers. The IRS will work through the holidays and into the New Year to get our systems reprogrammed and ensure taxpayers have a smooth tax season.

About one-third of all filers itemize (that works out to about 50 million taxpayers) and several million more are expected to claim those non-itemized deductions which were reinstated.

If you’re affected by the change, you can begin working on your tax return as soon as you receive your forms 1099, W-2 and the like. You just cannot submit them to the IRS for processing until IRS issues the “all clear” for those returns. The delay will affect returns filed by paper and electronically.

Expect a few bounced returns. The IRS is gonna love that. As are paid preparers. You’ve been warned.

My advice? If you’re one of those taxpayers who files early, plan on exercising a little patience this year. Don’t yell at your tax preparers. And don’t shriek at the IRS. They had nothing to do with the delays and they’re working as hard as they can to get through tax season, just like you. Deep breaths.

And if you really, really want to scream at someone, try your Congressperson…

Read more at www.taxgirl.com

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RALs Causality of Government Reporting Changes

2010-12-27T09:25:00.002-06:00

Finally the IRS has taken a stand that is stopping many if not most RAL's. And while the IRS has always taken a dim view on Refund Anticipation Loans there recent action on stopping the debt indicator has driven a wooden stake into the heart of the beast.

Even companies like H&R Block are having problems securing a backer for their RAL products and that will potentially put millions of tax payers out on the streets looking for those companies that still can offer them. Right now it looks like Jackson-Hewitt is still going to be offering them but that remains to be seen.

So love them or hate them RAL's will be tough to find this year. But at least the IRS is under pressure to keep refunds flowing at an ever faster pace and tax payers can expect refunds in days anyway so RAL's not being there isn't the problem it would have been only a few years ago.

Amplify’d from www.taxgirl.com

H&R Block Announces Glitch in RALs for 2011

If you’re hoping to take advantage of Refund Anticipation Loans (RALs) and related products during this tax season, you’re going to have to look pretty hard. Many third party preparers will not be offering those products this year, citing financial difficulties with underwriters.

Some of the financial difficulties stem from the economy. RALs (and similar products) are essentially loans secured by the promise of a tax refund. Fees for tax preparation products and tax preparation services are generally subtracted from the refund amount and the balance issued to the consumer in some form (check, debit card, direct deposit, etc.) in advance of the taxpayer’s actual refund less interest and loan fees.

In a tough economy, banks and other lenders are growing wary of offering consumer loans. Complicating factors, the IRS is sticking to their guns in a statement made back in August to no longer provide tax preparers, banks and lenders with the “debt indicator” that lenders use to determine eligibility for RALs. The debt indicator is an electronic acknowledgment to tax preparers advising whether any part of a taxpayer’s refund has been earmarked for offset due to outstanding tax debts or priority obligations such as unpaid child support or delinquent student loans. In previous years, the IRS provided this information, free of charge, to third party preparers, who then made the decision to offer a variety of loan products depending on the answer. Beginning in 2011, that information will no longer be provided to third parties, prompting many lenders to pull out of the business altogether.

One such lender, HSBC, pulled out of a deal to provide loans to H&R Block, the nation’s leading tax provider. In response, H&R Block took the lender to court and the two eventually reached a settlement for the upcoming tax season where the tax prep service agreed to cover any defaults on loans made by HSBC.

Since then, HSBC has changed its mind. Over the Christmas holiday, HSBC’s banking supervisory agency, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, advised HSBC to stop offering these loan products to H&R Block. HSBC promptly put an immediate end to their contract with H&R Block.

H&R Block has since expressed disappointment at HSBC’s actions but indicated that they have “several other financial products available and under development.” There’s no word yet on what those products will be.

Jackson-Hewitt, the nation’s number two tax preparer, has indicated that it will make RALs and related products available to taxpayers in 2011. The tax prep company relies on Republic Bank & Trust Co. to fund those loans.

Read more at www.taxgirl.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jlhx

It's Not All the Internet When It Comes to Newspaper Decline

2010-12-27T09:19:00.001-06:00

Conventional wisdom blames the internet for the newspapers decline in the US and Brittan. But as this poll and some thought show there's much more involved than just free internet content that's behind the problem.

Newspapers in the US have just depended on advertisement sales for way to much of their income. And as advertising as moved to the internet newspapers (and magazines) have lost their primary source of revenue. That loss coupled together with the resulting decline in the quality and quantity of newspapers news coverage is what has spelled their huge losses in readership.

In those areas where newspapers receive more of their income from subscribers and other sources they have fared much better. And with more stable incomes they have kept the quality news reporting that is required to engage subscribers beyond what the free content of the internet can.

So the market changes in advertising and the resulting loss of income are much more the US newspapers underlying problem than the internet. Newspapers in the US (and Brittan) must find ways to address the changing markets not seek to place the blame on the internet.

Amplify’d from econsultancy.com

Ads, not internet, to blame for newspaper woes: study

It's common wisdom that the long, painful decline of newspaper business models began as the internet blossomed.

The internet is blamed for just about everything, from declining print subscription revenue to freefalling classified ad revenue. But is the common wisdom about the internet and newspapers wrong?

According to a study conducted by Oxford's Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, British and American newspapers aren't struggling because of the internet. Instead, they're struggling because they've been too dependent on advertising revenue.

In looking at Scandinavia and Germany, for instance, the study's authors noted that online activity is high, but newspapers in these regions are still doing quite alright. So how do newspapers in Scandinavia and Germany compare to their British and American counterparts? There's one difference that stands out: the former generate on average 50% of their revenue from ads, whereas the latter generate closer to 80% of their revenue from ads.

That, the study authors believe, is a big part of the problem. "Countries like the US, Germany and Finland all have about the same proportion of
internet users," they write. "However, the American newspaper industry, which has generated more than 80% of
its income from advertisements, is today in a much more serious crisis than its
counterparts in Germany and Finland, where advertising typically constitutes
about 50% of total revenues."

While it's nice to see increasing recognition that there's a lot more to the woes of the British and American newspaper industries than the internet, to pin the blame solely on where revenue has traditionally come from might be a little bit too simple. The British and American newspaper markets have many differences with the Scandinavian and German markets. The numbers make that abundantly clear: of the top newspapers globally, as measured by circulation, only one is German and none are Scandinavian. On the other hand, six of the world's most widely circulated newspapers are in the U.K. and eight are in the U.S. Bottom line: comparing the newspaper markets in different countries to each other is often little more than an apples to oranges comparison.

In reality, British and American newspapers shouldn't 'blame' the internet. And they shouldn't 'blame' advertising either. Blame is pointless. Markets change. The companies that succeed aren't necessarily the ones that are best positioned for the precise changes that occur; they're the ones that respond most ably to it.
Read more at econsultancy.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jlh0

Here's to the Crazy Ones

2010-12-26T22:05:00.001-06:00

As the new year approaches I wanted to share a post that Apple put out some time ago. I think about it once in a while especially when I'm working on a project or idea that everyone tells me is silly, crazy, or impossible.

And as I read it I remember that most of the worlds greatest accomplishments have been done by those the world thought crazy.

So with that in mind here's Apples toast "to the crazy ones". I'm glad to consider my self in their numbers.

Here's to the crazy ones.

The misfits.

The rebels.

The trouble-makers.

The round heads in the square holes.

The ones who see things differently.

They're not fond of rules.

And they have no respect for the status-quo.

You can quote them.

Disagree with them.

Glorify, or vilify them.

But the only thing you can't do is ignore them.

Because they change things.

They push the human race forward.

And while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius.

Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world

Are the ones who do. Quote attributed to Apple

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jk9v

FaceBook Passing Google in UK Traffic Count

2010-12-26T19:40:00.002-06:00

For the first time FaceBook may have passed Google in traffic on Christmas day in the UK. Hitwise reports that over half the traffic came from FaceBook during the holidays and when the final numbers are counted up FaceBook may have generated more traffic than even Google on Christmas day.

That's an amazing number when you consider that it means that FaceBook is now pushing the combined traffic of not only Google search but YouTube and all it's video content plus all the traffic Google has for it's online apps and it's Gmail traffic into second place.

Of course I'm sure that those FaceBook traffic numbers include a lot of YouTube video content that is watched as embedded video content on FaceBook. But still it's amazing to think that one site could be the center of the web when it comes to traffic generated and yet it produces none of it's own content.

That is the real power of FaceBook when it comes to being a site to envy. It produces those numbers based on your pictures, your contacts with friends and family, your posts and comments on other FaceBook pages, and of course those games like Farmville.

Anyway you get the picture. FaceBook is on top as a destination site and controls much of the traffic on the web yet produces nothing beyond providing a meeting and exchange place. They have the best of both worlds traffic and no cost to create it.

It will be interesting to see how they manage to hold on to number one and continue to grow when they are so high on the mountain. My guess is that they will as least slow down on numbers growth soon and it remains to be seen what effect such a slow down will have on the public's perception of their worth.

Amplify’d from www.webpronews.com

Hitwise Finds Visits To Social Networks Surging

Out of a desire to say "hi" to old friends, reconnect with family members, or perhaps get a moment away from visiting relatives, it looks like lots of people are signing into social networks this month. Indeed, Hitwise relayed some UK-specific stats today, and the increase has been sharp enough that Facebook might top Google in traffic on Christmas.

We'll head straight into the data so that you can head straight back to poking acquaintances. Robin Goad reported, "As we get closer to Christmas Day visits to social networking sites have reached a new peak for the year, accounting for nearly 13.5% of all UK Internet visits. In the last week alone there has been a huge uplift in traffic, with visits increasing by 9.7% from 14 to 21 December."

Next, Goad noted, "More than half of the traffic is being driven by Facebook. The biggest social site in the world accounted for 57% of all visits to the social networking category in the UK last week and over the Christmas period could create history if it overtakes Google in overall market share online."

That scenario isn't at all far-fetched, by the way; here's a graph of what occurred last year:

It should be interesting to see how the situation turns out in 2010. Advertisers are sure to keep a close eye on things.
Read more at www.webpronews.com

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Knowing the Symptoms of Stroke May Save Your Life

2010-12-25T08:25:00.002-06:00

During the holiday season we often are under a lot of stress and we over indulge in everything from our eating to our running around. That means it's a prime time to have a stroke so be sure you know the simple signs of someone having a stroke. They use FAST to remember it.... Face, Arms, Speech, and Time.

So make a point of keeping stroke symptoms in mind and share them with others you know. With strokes it's time to treatment that matters most.

Amplify’d from www.stroke.org

Warning Signs of Stroke

Use FAST to remember the warning signs:

FACE:
Ask the person to smile.
Does one side of the face droop?

ARMS:

Ask the person to raise both arms.
Does one arm drift downward?

SPEECH:

Ask the person to repeat a simple phrase.
Is their speech slurred or strange?

TIME:

If you observe any of these signs,
call 9-1-1 immediately.

NOTE THE TIME WHEN ANY SYMPTOMS FIRST APPEAR. If given within three hours of
the first symptom, there is an FDA-approved clot-buster medication that may reduce long-term disability for the most
common type of stroke.

Learn as many stroke symptoms as possible so you can recognize stroke as FAST as possible.

Stroke symptoms include:

SUDDEN numbness or weakness of face, arm or leg - especially on one side of the body.

SUDDEN confusion, trouble speaking or understanding.

SUDDEN trouble seeing in one or both eyes.

SUDDEN trouble walking, dizziness, loss of balance or coordination.

SUDDEN severe headache with no known cause.

Call 9-1-1 immediately if you have any of these
symptoms

Note the time you experienced your first symptom.
This information is
important to your healthcare provider and can affect treatment decisions.
Read more at www.stroke.org

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jhzl

2010-12-24T20:00:00.001-06:00

I enjoy the season because I love the reason Christmas came to be. May gods blessings bring everyone a wonderful Holiday season and a glorious new year. http://amplify.com/u/jgcv

Can Grassroots News Curation Replace Mainstream News?

2010-12-24T12:28:00.001-06:00

News and the way it's coming to us has already seen profound changes but as new and more better sites come on line it's only going to continue to change. As the filtering and depth of coverage increase we will all soon at least augment our TV and Newspaper news with online services that go far beyond the news readers most are now using.

For us news/info junkies it's a wonderful time to be alive.

Amplify’d from www.wired.co.uk

The 'interestingness curators' of social news

Maria Popova calls herself an "interestingness curator". On
average 55 times a day, the 35,000 followers of her @brainpicker account are
sent links to "stuff that inspires, revolutionises, or simply makes
us think". It might be vintage photos she's discovered of Soviet
schools in the LIFE Magazine archives, "21 films to
inspire entrepreneurs", or a fascinating new book about sex and
consumer behaviour. In a world saturated in information, Popova
sees her mission as helping her readers "become interested in
things they didn't know they were interested in", thus enriching
their "creative capacity".

It's more an obsessive hobby than a job -- Popova works in New
York for an ad agency -- but to thousands of iPad users @brainpicker now serves as a
radical new form of daily magazine. A free iPad app called
Flipboard turns Popova's links into elegant magazine-style pages
that you can flip through simply by swiping the screen. One moment
you're gazing at a photo essay she's recommending, the next a long
Washington Post investigation she considers important.
Suddenly, you've gained what's missing in the vast impersonal
openness of the internet -- a trusted curator.

In his prescient 1995 book Being Digital, Nicholas
Negroponte, the visionary founder of MIT's Media Lab, described how
customised daily news would one day find you through "personal
filters" that would understand your desires and interests. "You
would consume every bit (so to speak)," he said of this futuristic
virtual newspaper. "Call it The Daily Me." Flipboard isn't it --
but it is an important step towards a level of personal news
curation that lets you cut straight through to what's likely to
interest you. As well as giving you a choice of recommended
link-streams to follow -- apart from Popova's, Flipboard offers
options ranging from the New York Times to fashion
bloggers -- it lets you turn your personal Facebook and Twitter feeds into your very own digital
magazine, based on what your circle is getting excited about. The
more of your friends are linking to a particular item, the more
prominent it becomes in your Flipboard magazine.

Welcome to the new era of social curation. We're drowning in
data: Google's Eric Schmidt is fond of
pointing out that five exabytes (billion gigabytes) of information
were created between the dawn of civilisation up to 2003, yet that
much digital data is now generated in just two days. So we all need
a little help in smartly filtering which of those unmediated news
items matter to us. And though I'd love to think that, as a
professional magazine editor, I know what's right for you, I'm
honest enough to admit that your social network understands your
interests better than I do.

Popova, for one, is convinced. "Social curation is already
beginning to substitute the editorial model of traditional media,"
she says. "More and more, we find out about the latest 'it'
restaurant from our Facebook friends, and Twitter streams are
replacing AP newsfeeds." If I think of my own media
habits, I'm now getting most of my news from carefully selected
people I follow on Twitter, from journalists and politicians to
musicians and science bloggers. Sure, I love the expert curation
that shapes the many high-quality paper magazines I still daily
plunge into -- but my social feeds are now a welcome substitute for
what used to be my daily print newspapers.

It seems I'm not alone: a Pew survey of more than 2,200
Americans recently found that 75 percent of news consumed online
was via links from social networking sites or email. And it's not
just news: TV is about to become a much more socially defined
experience. From Sky to Microsoft, big money is being invested to
let you know what all your friends are watching, so that your
television pulls in whatever content it thinks is most relevant to
you.

As for the wider web, services such as Pearltrees are seeking to
map people's online interests as well as their friends', so that
they can "individually and collectively [be] editors of their own
web". Plenty of Facebook-based services, such as Likebutton.me, are making it
easier to follow what your friends "like" as they journey online.
Even clothes-shopping is becoming a socially curated experience:
Diesel stores in Spain now feature the Diesel Cam, which allows you
to try on jeans and then upload photos to your Facebook account to
seek your friends' instant opinions. Even the New York
Times is backing a personalised news service called News.me
that relies on social sharing.
Read more at www.wired.co.uk

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jfbr

Christmas Wishes

2010-12-24T10:04:00.001-06:00

My best wishes to you all on Christmas eve, Christmas and the new Year.

God Bless you one and all,

Frank

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/jexh

Smartphone Apps Again Draw Fire in Major Article

2010-12-23T13:13:00.001-06:00

Is it just me or are only the security geeks and nerds of the world worried about our privacy?

I see article after article about this problem and it's been growing all the time both in attention to what's happening and as it's danger to us as users but where is the public outcry?

Wake up it's you, me, our wife's and kids, and even our businesses that are having our data tracked, stolen, sold, and sent to places unknown. Where are the complaints? Where is the out cry for controls being placed on such actions?

It's time that people woke up even though it may be too late. I for one don't cherish the idea that to use a smartphone to send a business text or a private email to someone special that it might be also seen by someone else without my knowledge or consent.

Nor do I think that any person with the money and desire should be able to follow my every movement in the name of helping me find my way or look for a burger barn with a sale on.

Anyway more fodder for the grist mill as PC World weights in on the whole app problem.

Amplify’d from www.pcworld.com

Smartphone Apps Are Betraying Us, Report Says

More than half of iPhone and Android apps routinely share the personal data of their users with outside companies, a Wall Street Journal
investigation has found.

Specifically, 56 of the 101 popular smartphone apps examined by the newspaper were found to transmit the phone's unique device ID to other companies without users' awareness or consent. Forty-seven of the apps transmitted the phone's location, and five sent age, gender, and other personal details to third parties.

iPhone apps transmitted more data than the Android apps did, the study found. Among the worst offenders was TextPlus 4, an iPhone app for text messaging that sent the phone's unique ID number to eight ad companies as well as the zip code, age, and gender of the phone's user to two of them.

"Apple says iPhone apps 'cannot transmit data about a user without obtaining the user's prior permission and providing the user with access to information about how and where the data will be used,'" the Journal reported. Nevertheless, "many apps tested by the Journal appeared to violate that rule." Apple also declined to discuss how it interprets or enforces that policy, it added.

Age, Gender, Location, Unique ID

Music app Pandora was another key offender, with both its iPhone and Android versions sending age, gender, location, and phone identifiers to various ad networks. Both versions of Paper Toss, meanwhile, sent the phone's ID number to "at least five ad companies," the Journal reported, while Grindr--an iPhone app targeting gay men--sent gender, location, and phone ID to three ad companies.

Despite the fact that Apple says apps must ask permission before revealing information, the Pumpkin Maker iPhone app, for example, transmits location information to an ad network without doing so, the Journal found.

Permission is not required on either Apple's or Google's platform to access some forms of the device ID, or to send it to outsiders.

"The findings reveal the intrusive effort by online-tracking companies to gather personal data about people in order to flesh out detailed dossiers on them," the Journal wrote on Saturday.

No Written Privacy Policies

Several of the app makers involved said the data they transmit isn't linked to the individual's name, while details such as age and gender are volunteered by users, the Journal noted.

Yet a full 45 of the 101 apps examined don't even offer written privacy policies, it found; in fact, neither Apple nor Google requires one.

Overall, the most commonly shared piece of information was the unique ID number assigned to every phone; it's known as the "UDID" on iPhones. Such IDs normally can't be blocked or deleted.

‘It's Nearly Impossible to Prevent'

So what can business and individual users do about all this leaking? "Not much," according to the Wall Street Journal.

"It's nearly impossible to prevent cell phone apps from transmitting information about a phone and its owner," the publication wrote.

To restrict tracking by location, the user can turn off the phone's location services, but that might also limit features like maps. And the "opt out" capabilities offered by some mobile marketing companies don't typically apply to apps, the Journal noted.

iPhone users can prevent the transmission of location data by going to "settings" and "general," it suggested; those with iOS 4 can control access even more finely by clicking on "location settings" and scrolling down the list of apps.

At least one ad company offers an opt-out feature by UDID, and Apple says it offers a similar program too, though it doesn't prevent the collection of iTunes data.

Top Suggestions

"The most important thing a user can do is pay attention to the information each app is requesting," the Journal noted.

What's most important to focus on? Among the Journal's suggestions:

* Watch for any app that asks to access "your personal information" in the list of permissions. As I've noted before, sometimes that kind of request makes sense; other times, it doesn't.

* Avoid apps you don't trust that request the ability to "read phone state and identity," which is listed under the "phone calls" heading.

* Turn off location capabilities by adjusting your location settings. As noted above, however, this could mean maps won't work.
Read more at www.pcworld.com

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Do You Know What ETF's are and Should You be Worried With Their Growth

2010-12-23T10:43:00.001-06:00

This is a great article and the clips from it only touch the surface of the information contained. If you've ever wondered just how big the ETF's market is and how they are set up and managed this article offers a great overview.

And while it is more about the size and nature of the current state of investments in ETF's it also does a great job of helping you to understand this market.

Amplify’d from www.businessinsider.com

Wednesday’s Worry – ETF Madness Hits $1 Trillion

After adding $209Bn (26.3%) in total assets so far this year, the US ETF industry has passed the Trillion Dollar mark led by $31Bn of inflows into fixed income ETFs, of all things as well as $29Bn of inflows into emerging markets, and $21Bn into domestic.

Recent outflows have knocked commodity ETFs down to $11.4Bn, miles down from last year’s $32.6Bn inflow – rats leaving a sinking ship, perhaps?

That would be very bad news for the firm that bought up 90% of the LME copper supply recently. Do ETF traders really know something or are they a lagging indicator?

There is growing speculation surrounding what is believed to be the next breakthrough product in the ETF marketplace: Single stock tracking ETFs. Unlike their index-based cousins, these new single stock trackers would, as the name implies, track only a single stock, trade at exactly the same price as the stock to which they’re linked and consequently eliminate the need for single stock ownership. A top executive with a money management firm who is familiar with his company’s plans to launch such a product and was granted anonymity so he could speak freely, put it this way: “Think about the prospect of, say, a GE tracking ETF — an investor could capture over 99% of the movement of GE while simultaneously forfeiting any claim to a dividend and paying us up to 35 basis points to manage the ETF. What’s not to like? We think this product paves the way for the ETF marketplace to collect its next trillion in assets.”

Of course it’s all about the fees. ETF’s seem "safer" than stocks and they do have a lot of diversification benefits. We are long on XLF and FAS because we sure don’t want to place a big bet on any particular bank but, as a group, we think they are in recovery mode. When we short – we like to short DIA, TZA, SPY, QID, etc. on general bets the indexes will pull back (as if that EVERY happens!) yet we rarely go long on index ETFs other than very short-term as we usually know how to pick a good stock for ourselves, thank you very much, that will outperform a whole index.

The real problem with having $1Tn worth of US ETFs out there (and who knows how many foreign ETFs are holding US equities?) is that, as happened in 2008, should investors begin cashing out, they will create waves of indiscriminate selling – just as we currently have waves of indiscriminate buying. If you wonder what kind of idiot would own NFLX at $186 – it’s probably you, as well as me, as we probably have some 401K or IRA that’s tracking the S&P or the Nasdaq and NFLX is in both.
Read more at www.businessinsider.com

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The Woman Language Translator

2010-12-22T18:09:00.001-06:00

Essential for any man...

Amplify’d from www.youtube.com

See more at www.youtube.com

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Hardship Waiver Form Released by IRS to File for Electronic Filing Exemption

2010-12-22T14:01:00.001-06:00

The IRS has finally released the form 8944 tax preparers need to allow for them to fill for a waiver from the new electronic filing requirements that take effect in 2011. So if you need to file that form get it done as the IRS has said that time is of the essence in this matter and failure to file it ASAP will result in it's not being approved.

Amplify’d from www.bnasoftware.com

IRS Releases Electronic Filing Hardship Waiver Form for 2011

The Internal Revenue Service Dec. 20 released Form 8944, Preparer e-file Hardship Waiver Request (PDF), which will be used by tax preparers who want a waiver from new electronic filing requirements.

The form will apply to tax preparers whose firms, in the aggregate, expect to file 100 or more income tax returns for individuals, estates, or trusts in calendar year 2011, Announcement 2010-96 said.

IRS promised in Dec. 2 guidance that preparers who meet the definition of a “specified tax return preparer,” and who believe they qualify for an undue hardship waiver, would be allowed to voluntarily submit waiver requests to IRS prior to publication of a final revenue procedure.

While the threshold is 100 or more returns in calendar 2011, that threshold will drop to 11 or more of the specified returns prepared in the aggregate for 2012, IRS said.

The instructions warn preparers within a firm that, even if they individually prepare fewer than 100 returns, they may be required to e-file if the firm exceeds the threshold for 2011.

Reasons IRS listed for possibly requesting a waiver included bankruptcy, economic hardship, disaster situations or “other.”

The filer must provide current cost estimates of the software, connectivity, or other services needed to e-file their clients' returns for the calendar year, and attach two written cost estimates. Failure to provide the cost estimates will result in denial of the waiver, IRS said.

For calendar year 2011, hardship waiver requests must be submitted from December 2010 through April 1, 2011. Any request submitted after the required date will only be reviewed under limited circumstances, IRS said in the instructions.

Preparers were encouraged to submit the waiver requests as soon as possible so IRS would have time to review them.

Announcement 2010-96 will be published in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2010-52 on Dec. 27.
Read more at www.bnasoftware.com

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3 Privacy Settings at Facebook you should take notice of

2010-12-22T09:07:00.001-06:00

Very good article discussing the ever complicated issue of FaceBook security. Take a minute and check your setting as you might be surprised with what you find.

Amplify’d from blog.vkistudios.com

Who is looking at your Facebook? 3 Privacy Options you NEED to set

Back in September we reported that Facebook had, at the behest of the Canadian government, implemented a host of new privacy options. However implementing these features meant changing users privacy settings, and while Facebook took lengths to make sure that users were prompted with a message about the new privacy settings and given immediate options for securing their profile, the pop up left many people with a false feeling that they had secured their Facebook profile from prying eyes.

In fact, the update left many things open and accessible to the public, things that you need to secure.

One of the first things that happened after the Facebook switch over was that everyone's albums became public, including profile pictures.

1. Reset your Album Permissions

To correct this, click profile and then at the bottom of the page click "Album Privacy". Now you have to set each album manually to be viewable by everyone, groups of friends, friends of friends, or custom settings that will allow you to do such things as make photos only available to specific people.

If you have photos from parties, photos of yourself drunk, or any other embarrassing pictures you will want to set those to private, friends, or custom.

2. Set what your friends can share about you

One of the more insidious Facebook privacy loopholes was that if a friend had an application installed, that application could mine information from your profile without you knowing—even if you had locked that information away. This persists, but you can limit it by changing your settings under privacy settings>Application and Websites>What your friends can share about you. You can't keep them from sharing publicly available information, but you can limit a lot.

By default a strange selection is on. It doesn't share innocuous information like religious and political views, but it shares your pictures, personal info, notes, status updates.
Read more at blog.vkistudios.com

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Viber a New Free Call Service App for the iPhone

2010-12-22T08:33:00.001-06:00

Viber offers free calling over 3g or Wi-Fi to other users of Viber. Kind of a mobile Skype just with less bells and whistles. It's a free app but some concerns have been raised about it's privacy policy which does as many do now in the app market state that if the company is every sold or acquired that your personal information will go to the buyer. That can't be a good thing to think about but has always been there just not discussed with all apps.

Maybe it's time we considered some rules on this subject. Maybe those free apps come at a price that is more than we want to pay when the hidden costs are finally revealed.

Amplify’d from www.viber.com

Free your calls!
Call anyone, anywhere.

International free calls to other Viber users using
3G or Wi-Fi.

Check your contacts, you can see which of your iPhone
contacts is already on Viber.

Go ahead and call. It's free* and it works great!

* Calls use your data plan

Read more at www.viber.com

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Poinsettias take Bad Rap and Actually AREN'T Poisonous

2010-12-19T10:41:00.001-06:00

Like all urban myths it's not easy to kill the always present stories that surface every year that say Poinsettias are poisonous. But study after study has shown that they offer only mild problems if any at all and certainly can't be called even troublesome much less poisonous. So help kill a rumor and save people unnecessary concern by sharing the facts about Poinsettias and telling people that they are perfectly safe.

But mistletoe as this story goes on to point is somewhat dangerous and should be handled accordingly. You might want to mention that to your friends and family as well.

Amplify’d from shine.yahoo.com

Are poinsettias poisonous?

Pity the poor poinsettia. All it ever wanted was to be a nice
emblem for the holidays: To be patiently wrapped in red foil and
hoisted on hostesses, to festoon festive Christmas sweaters, and to
be eternally mimicked in plastic. But somewhere along the way it
picked up a bad-girl reputation as a lethal beauty -- lovely to
look at and terribly toxic if tasted!

But are the rumors true? Are pretty poinsettias potentially
poisonous? About 70 percent of the population will answer yes, and
although every year there is a bumper crop of stories explaining
otherwise -- the myth persists. And myth it is. Poinsettia's
are not poisonous, merely the victim of a popularly enduring urban
legend.

It all started back in the early part of the 20th century when
the young child of a U.S. Army officer was alleged to have died
from consuming a poinsettia leaf -- a story which was later
retracted.

But, as these things have a habit of doing, the toxic potential
of the poinsettia took on a life of its own. Now many people treat
poinsettias as persona non grata (or poinsettia non grata, as the
case may be) in their households.

According to the American Medical Association's Handbook
of Poisonous and Injurious Plants, other than occasional cases
of vomiting, ingestion of the poinsettia plant has been found to
produce no ill effect. And other experts have weighed in as
well.

The Society of American Florists worked with the academic
faculty of entomology at Ohio State University to thoroughly test
all parts of the poinsettia and conclusively established that there
were no adverse effects. In 1975, the United States Consumer
Product Safety Commission denied a petition to require warning
labels for poinsettia plants.

As for your pets, the American Veterinary Medicine Association
of America does not include poinsettias on its list of plants that
are a threat to animals. The American Society for the Prevention of
Cruelty to Animals states that ingestion of poinsettias may cause
mild to moderate gastrointestinal tract irritation, which may
include drooling, vomiting, and/or diarrhea -- but nothing severe
or fatal.

In pets, mistletoe may cause gastrointestinal disorders,
cardiovascular collapse, dyspnea, bradycardia, erratic behavior,
vomiting, diarrhea, and low blood pressure. Yikes!

So keep the mistletoe securely fastened above your door, but
fear the poinsettia no more.

Mistletoe, on the other
hand? Not so innocent. Along with inspiring smooching if stood
underneath, mistletoe can cause gastrointestinal distress, a slowed
heartbeat, and other reactions if ingested, due to the presence of
harmful chemicals like viscotoxins. Although not thought to be
fatal, it can cause severe reactions.
Read more at shine.yahoo.com

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FaceBook's Latest Move is Another Security Risk Don't Fall for it

2010-12-19T03:14:00.002-06:00

FaceBook never one to neither rest on its laurels nor think that there isn't any world they can't conquer now is attempting to get users to use FaceBook as a way to sign up for sites and services on line. This goes far beyond just allowing you to sign into a site using your FaceBook password. Using the this new feature it's possible to use FaceBook more like a forms filler so that you can set up accounts and join new sites.

This means that users would have to have all of their information in FaceBook and up to date to use it. And of course it requires that you trust FaceBook to fill out such forms and to guard what for a lot of users is more than they currently share with FaceBook or that they might list incorrectly just to protect themselves.

Again FaceBook is making a move on taking over more of the internet and becoming a tool for filling forms outside of FaceBook with information provided by the user. And while this takes the users permission it raises the questions of do users and other web sites want a more intrusive FaceBook? Do the users trust FaceBook to not use this to slowly move into other areas of form filling and password management?

I think the answer will be no for most users. And as a web site owner I know that I don't like FaceBook pushing for even more power outside of FaceBook. On the one hand they guard and horde their user information unless you can pay the price while on the other they want sites to share everything with them.

Even worse is that to use FaceBook to enter the data needed to set up access to another site or service means that you have to expose the site name, location, and the password you establish with FaceBook.

I don't know about you but I don't want FaceBook to know the sites outside of FaceBook I go to. That's one of the things I already don't like about the "like" button on sights. To click it only allows FaceBook to track my on line movements and give them a list of what I like.

And it’s why I never use my FaceBook logon at the logon for another site unless I have to. That way my passwords are different and FaceBook doesn’t have my password for the other site. With their history of selling anything and everything to the highest bidder that's only being prudent in my opinion.

But the question becomes just how many will FaceBook lure into this latest information trap? How many will take the easy way out and use FaceBook even thought they have NO reason to trust how they will handle all of the new information they will be gathering about them?

I can only hope users smell the rat and avoid using FaceBook to proved any services that they can do better and safer themselves. Remember if you chose to make forms filling, password management, and bookmarks easier to manage programs like RoboForm and your browser (Not as safe or as recommended as RoboForm but better than trusting FaceBook.) work well and they are both much safer and secure from FaceBook’s prying eyes.

Amplify’d from venturebeat.com

Facebook’s new login for the Web could ruffle feathers

Facebook has launched a new registration tool that lets website developers provide a quick and easy way for users to sign up using their data from Facebook.

The tool, a counterpart to Facebook Login, involves customizing and inserting a small amount of code into a website’s pages, which then operates as a signup form.

Website developers can ask for specific fields required for an account (for example: name, birthday, gender, location, email), or add custom fields and dropdowns of their own. All the information contained by Facebook is automatically filled into these fields, which users hand over to the website when they click “Register.” If the website doesn’t require a Facebook account to signup, the form can also operate as a standalone signup form.

At a time when every website seems to work with its own signup process, the move comes as an attempt by Facebook to simplify matters for consumers. But at the same time, Facebook has everything to gain by acting as the middleman for signups and having more Web developers work with Facebook’s code.

Is this good for users? Facebook is essentially asking its users to allow it to hand over their data to third-party sites. It serves a longstanding goal of Facebook, which is to get users to use one consistent and real identity — their Facebook identity — across the Web.

But users may rebel. Most trust Facebook with their birthdays, for example, because it allows their friends to shower them with birthday greetings, but may hesitate at entering their real birthday to an unknown website. And Facebook, not that site, will face the backlash.

In a year when every other Facebook announcement seems to have instigated a privacy backlash, one wonders about the kind of response this announcement will generate as websites begin incorporating it. There’s surely mischief that can be accomplished with it. As Facebook spreads its wings even further, which new feathers will it ruffle?
Read more at venturebeat.com

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Breaking News. Next stop on the @WSJ Privacy Train. iPhone, Android and Smart Phone apps.

2010-12-18T10:02:00.003-06:00

This will be one of the bigger stories once people really understand what's going on in that expensive smart iPhones they've bought. For while it's bad to have your computer watched and tracked while on line it's nothing like having your phone snooped on and of course since you carry it with you it's also spreading much more information about your movements than your desktop ever could.

It is just unimaginable to me that Apple who touts its security and safety for its computers could allow such gaping privacy violations for phone apps.

And it's not like Apple doesn't know as this is only one of many articles that have addressed this problem. Worse still is that they are partners in crime since they control and sell most of the apps for their popular iPhones through their own store.

So every time you buy an app from Apple and they sell you one that violates even the most generous privacy policy anyone would agree to they’ve profit from these misdeeds. And just like the getaway driver in a robbery they are just as responsible as the robber.

To think that most if not all of the apps you have on your phone are spying on you and sending data that includes such things as your exact location, your age, and even the content of what you're typing to third parties is more than anyone should have to fear.

And again Apple more than any other cell phone company controls their product completely. They write the OS, they control all the manufacturing of the hardware, and of course you must buy the “approved” apps through them. So it's not like they couldn't do something about this. They just chose to look the other way rather than spend the time and money it takes to include real security and protection in the iPhones’ OS. And of course they also want all the apps they can get coded to their phones and they realize that for many of the writers of such apps the real money comes from the information they can steal and sell on the black market.

It’s time for people to wake up and demand that Apple be held accountable for such misdeeds. And if I was a lawyer dealing in class action suits and saw the deep pockets that Apple has I would be salivating with the thought of what an award in such a case could be.

Anyway just remember that when you use any app on the iPhone your security has most likely reach a new low and that while Apple has given you a great phone they’ve most likely also given you the greatest risk to your personal security you might face. And of course you’ve had the pleasure of paying for it while Apple pockets a fortune from apps sales and pleads ignorance.

Shame on you Apple… people have trusted you and you’ve betrayed that trust. And once they wake up to what’s been going on you will think that antenna gate was nothing and a simple little rubber band bumper isn’t going to fix this.

Amplify’d from www.wallstreetjournal.com

Your Apps Are Watching You

A Journal investigation finds that iPhone and Android apps are breaching the privacy of smartphone users.

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Few devices know more personal details about people than the smartphones in their pockets: phone numbers, current location, often the owner's real name—even a unique ID number that can never be changed or turned off.

These phones don't keep secrets. They are sharing this personal data widely and regularly, a Wall Street Journal investigation has found.

An examination of 101 popular smartphone "apps"—games and other software applications for iPhone and Android phones—showed that 56 transmitted the phone's unique device ID to other companies without users' awareness or consent. Forty-seven apps transmitted the phone's location in some way. Five sent age, gender and other personal details to outsiders.

The findings reveal the intrusive effort by online-tracking companies to gather personal data about people in order to flesh out detailed dossiers on them.

Among the apps tested, the iPhone apps transmitted more data than the apps on phones using Google Inc.'s Android operating system. Because of the test's size, it's not known if the pattern holds among the hundreds of thousands of apps available.

Apps sharing the most information included TextPlus 4, a popular iPhone app for text messaging. It sent the phone's unique ID number to eight ad companies and the phone's zip code, along with the user's age and gender, to two of them.

WSJ's Julia Angwin explains to Simon Constable how smartphone apps collect and broadcast data about your habits. Many don't have privacy policies and there isn't much you can do about it.

Both the Android and iPhone versions of Pandora, a popular music app, sent age, gender, location and phone identifiers to various ad networks. iPhone and Android versions of a game called Paper Toss—players try to throw paper wads into a trash can—each sent the phone's ID number to at least five ad companies. Grindr, an iPhone app for meeting gay men, sent gender, location and phone ID to three ad companies.

"In the world of mobile, there is no anonymity," says Michael Becker of the Mobile Marketing Association, an industry trade group. A cellphone is "always with us. It's always on."

The Wall Street Journal analyzed 50 popular applications, or "apps," on each of the iPhone and Android operating systems to see what information about the phones, their users and their locations the apps send to themselves and to outsiders.
More >

iPhone maker Apple Inc. says it reviews each app before offering it to users. Both Apple and Google say they protect users by requiring apps to obtain permission before revealing certain kinds of information, such as location.

"We have created strong privacy protections for our customers, especially regarding location-based data," says Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr. "Privacy and trust are vitally important."

The Journal found that these rules can be skirted. One iPhone app, Pumpkin Maker (a pumpkin-carving game), transmits location to an ad network without asking permission. Apple declines to comment on whether the app violated its rules.

Smartphone users are all but powerless to limit the tracking. With few exceptions, app users can't "opt out" of phone tracking, as is possible, in limited form, on regular computers. On computers it is also possible to block or delete "cookies," which are tiny tracking files. These techniques generally don't work on cellphone apps.

The makers of TextPlus 4, Pandora and Grindr say the data they pass on to outside firms isn't linked to an individual's name. Personal details such as age and gender are volunteered by users, they say. The maker of Pumpkin Maker says he didn't know Apple required apps to seek user approval before transmitting location. The maker of Paper Toss didn't respond to requests for comment.

Many apps don't offer even a basic form of consumer protection: written privacy policies. Forty-five of the 101 apps didn't provide privacy policies on their websites or inside the apps at the time of testing. Neither Apple nor Google requires app privacy policies.

To expose the information being shared by smartphone apps, the Journal designed a system to intercept and record the data they transmit, then decoded the data stream. The research covered 50 iPhone apps and 50 on phones using Google's Android operating system.

The Journal also tested its own iPhone app; it didn't send information to outsiders. The Journal doesn't have an Android phone app.

Among all apps tested, the most widely shared detail was the unique ID number assigned to every phone. It is effectively a "supercookie," says Vishal Gurbuxani, co-founder of Mobclix Inc., an exchange for mobile advertisers.

On iPhones, this number is the "UDID," or Unique Device Identifier. Android IDs go by other names. These IDs are set by phone makers, carriers or makers of the operating system, and typically can't be blocked or deleted.

"The great thing about mobile is you can't clear a UDID like you can a cookie," says Meghan O'Holleran of Traffic Marketplace, an Internet ad network that is expanding into mobile apps. "That's how we track everything."

Ms. O'Holleran says Traffic Marketplace, a unit of Epic Media Group, monitors smartphone users whenever it can. "We watch what apps you download, how frequently you use them, how much time you spend on them, how deep into the app you go," she says. She says the data is aggregated and not linked to an individual.
Read more at www.wallstreetjournal.com

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Jobless Benefits Bill Helps Many but Certainly Not All

2010-12-17T13:04:00.002-06:00

As president Obama is set to sign into law the extension of Jobless benefits it's important to remember that this doesn't cover all unemployed. The different states have much different coverage limits and this bill doesn't extend coverage beyond the limits the states already impose.

It simply raises the federal programs that extent the state’s coverage beyond the normal 26 weeks up to the federal's 99 weeks maximum. Many states only offer unemployment for a maximum of 60 weeks not the much longer 99 weeks or less and this bill doesn't change that limit in anyway.

So for those who've used up their unemployment benefits based on their states limits nothing changes. Nor does it change for those who have used up the 99 week federal limit that’s always been there. This means that the vast majority of those laid off at the height of the crises will still have their benefits end shortly if they haven't already even with this extension.

That means for those lucky enough to receive this extension its good news but for those not getting it they will continue to suffer in silence.

And when we see the age's and study the demographics of those losing their unemployment benefits we see and even more disturbing trend as it's heavily skewed toward the older worker. They (regardless of age discrimination laws) tended to be the first laid off or let go so they in much higher numbers are facing the prospect of surviving with no job and no jobless benefits.

Its unfortunate that while some gain others get nothing as this benefit should extend to all equally. It can’t be any easier to be without income no matter what state you live in and many in this country will continue to lose everything it’s taken a life time to acquire.

The government needs to do some kind of jobs bill along with this band aid extension bill that puts people back to work. Its jobs we need more than the extension of unemployment benefits.

Amplify’d from www.kansas.com

Tax bill won't help those who used up jobless aid

WASHINGTON - The tax-cut bill President Barack Obama is expected to sign Friday renews benefits for millions of unemployed people. But it does nothing for hundreds of thousands who have been out of work so long they've used up all benefits available to them.

In the 25 states with unemployment of at least 8.5 percent, people can receive up to 99 weeks in aid. In other states, the unemployed get less than 99 weeks - in some cases just 60 weeks, according to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities.

The bill keeps 99 weeks as the maximum anyone can receive. It doesn't provide any more weeks of benefits to people who have reached the limit in their state. Those who have exhausted all benefits are sometimes known as "99ers," even though the duration of their benefits varies by state.

The legislation renews federal programs that extend benefits beyond the 26 weeks states always provide. Those federal programs expired Nov. 30.

The Labor Department says it doesn't know how many Americans have used up all their unemployment benefits. But the number reaches well into the hundreds of thousands.

New York's 99ers tend to be older than those still receiving unemployment: Thirty percent percent of the state's 99ers are 55 or older, compared with less than 22 percent of those still receiving benefits. And more than 48 percent of New York 99ers are women. That compares with 43 percent of those receiving unemployment aid.

In Florida, 105,011 people have run out of benefits; in Nevada, 27,325. In New York, 125,284 out-of-work people have stopped receiving unemployment checks because they've exhausted their 99 weeks of aid.

In California, 5,000 unemployed people use up their extended benefits each week. And 274,185 Californians will have exhausted 99 weeks of benefits by year's end.

Many more people could be joining the 99ers. Job losses peaked in January 2009. Those who lost jobs then, at the depths of the recession, will soon lose their benefits if they haven't found work or run out of aid already. The number of people who applied for benefits for the first time peaked at 651,000 in the week that ended March 28, 2009 - 94 weeks ago.
Read more at www.kansas.com

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IRS Audits on the Rise for All Expecially the Wealthy

2010-12-16T14:22:00.002-06:00

As this article states audits are increasing and will continue to do so. And while the greatest increase is in those making 1 million or more ALL areas of audits are up.

So remember your risk of being audited is at least twice what it was only a year or so ago. That means you should be be even more vigilant in keeping records straight and taking only deductions you are entitled too.

Amplify’d from news.yahoo.com

IRS audits jump by 11 percent; wealthiest targeted

WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service is making it a bit riskier to cheat on your taxes.

The tax agency increased the number of returns it audited by nearly 11 percent this year, statistics released Wednesday show. Wealthy taxpayers and big businesses were most likely to be targeted.

The IRS also stepped up audits of charities and other tax-exempt organizations.

In all, the IRS examined more than 1.58 million individual returns in the budget year that ended in September, up from 1.43 million the year before.

"We saw individual audits increase, reaching the highest rate in the past decade," said Steve Miller, IRS deputy commissioner for services and enforcement. "The bottom line shows enforcement revenue topped $57 billion, up almost 18 percent from last year."

Overall, a little more than 1 percent of individual returns were audited, either by mail or in person. The IRS audited more than 8 percent of returns with incomes above $1 million.

Taxpayers filed nearly 143 million returns, including those from individuals and married couples. Nearly 389,000 taxpayers reported incomes of $1 million or above.

Read more at news.yahoo.com

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No One Audience - The Difference Between Friends, Fans and Followers [15Dec10]

2010-12-16T09:10:00.001-06:00

Great article on the roles of the consumer in social media and how they interact and change based on the interaction they give and receive. The pictures along are worth the read and do great job of placing things in prospective.

Amplify’d from www.briansolis.com

There is no one audience. It’s an audience of audiences with audiences and within each are varying roles of the social consumer.

At any one moment, social consumers are

- Influencers

- Decision Makers

- Peers

- Advisers

- Idea Generators

- Adversaries

- Advocates

- Customers

If we are designing our engagement strategies and social presences around the varying, yet important roles of the social consumer, we are missing our true opportunities to cultivate more meaningful communities online and in the real world.

The future of business is tied to how the 3F’s convert into the 4A’s action, advisor, affinity, and advocacy, regardless of network.

ExactTarget recently published a study that showed us, at the top level, the differences between the 3F’s. In its report, “Subscribers, Fans and Followers,” ExactTarget studied the unique attributes of consumers using email, Facebook, and Twitter as well as their influence on customer loyalty.

The first question is one that many companies often ask, but are rarely answered. Are internet users more likely to purchase from a brand after becoming a subscriber, fan or follower.

In the U.S., the results are as follows…

On Twitter, 37% said yes, 31% were indifferent and 32% said that it was unlikely.

On Facebook, at least as of the study date, which is April 2010, the numbers aren’t as promising as Twitter. Here, only 17% agreed, 34% were on the fence, and a staggering 49% disagreed.

In opt-in email campaigns, the numbers were still better than Facebook. 27% of email subscribers said that they would make a purchase, 41% stated a neutral position, and 32% would not.
Read more at www.briansolis.com

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More Than a Base Ball Player Bob Feller was and American Hero

2010-12-16T03:00:00.002-06:00

Bob Feller died Wednesday evening shortly alter 9pm and with his death we saw the passing of a great base ball pitcher but even more a great American. I missed much of his career as he entered the league before I was born. In fact he was pitching that year,1948, and helping lead his Indians to a world series victory.

But as a young man his was the first really important base ball card I obtained. And I did get to follow a little of his career.

I still remember opening that Tops bubble gum wrapper and finding his card. Wow that was exciting and to this day it's still a treasured item in what is a small but memorable collection containing few cards of value to anyone but me.

But I learned as I followed his career and later life he was much more than just a pitcher. He went on to serve with honor in war for his country. In fact he joined the day after Pearl Harbor and was the first major league player to sign up. And upon coming home he stayed a fan of his Indians and stood by his team and the city of Cleveland until his death.

So it is with sadness that I say good bye to a man that I never meet but still loved and understood. Bob you touched a lot of lives and even one very far away from your home in Cleveland.

I just hope that those close to Bob know how much even a young kid living in Wichita Kansas learned to love you. Go with God Bob and if Heaven has a ball team I know you'll be pitching on it next season.

Amplify’d from news.yahoo.com

Hall of Famer Bob Feller dies at 92

CLEVELAND – Teenage pitching sensation, World War II hero, outspoken Hall of Famer and local sports treasure. Bob Feller was all of them.

One of a kind, he was an American original.

Blessed with a right arm that earned the Iowa farmboy the nickname "Rapid Robert" and made him one of the greatest pitchers in baseball history, Feller, who left baseball in the prime of his career to fight for his country, died Wednesday night. He was 92.

Feller, who won 266 games in 18 seasons — all with the Indians — died at 9:15 p.m. on Wednesday night of acute leukemia at a hospice, said Bob DiBiasio, the Indians vice president of public relations.

Remarkably fit until late in life, Feller had suffered serious health setbacks in recent months. He was diagnosed with leukemia in August, and while undergoing chemotherapy, he fainted and his heart briefly stopped. Eventually, he had pacemaker implanted.

In November, he was hospitalized with pneumonia and recently released into hospice care.

Even as his health deteriorated, Feller continued doing what he loved most — attending Indians games deep into last season.

"Nobody lives forever and I've had a blessed life," Feller said in September. "I'd like to stay on this side of the grass for as long as I can, though. I'd really like to see the Indians win a World Series."

Feller, in fact, was part of the rotation the last time the Indians won it all — in 1948.

Fiercely proud and patriotic, Feller's life was much like one of his overpowering fastballs. He seemed unstoppable, whether on the mound or in conversation. Feller, who broke into the majors at the tender age of 17, could always bring the heat.

"Bob Feller is gone. We cannot be surprised," Indians owner Larry Dolan said in a statement. "Yet, it seems improbable. Bob has been such an integral part of our fabric, so much more than an ex-ballplayer, so much more than any Cleveland Indians player. He is Cleveland, Ohio.

"To say he will be missed is such an understatement. More to the point, he will not be missed because he will always be with us," he said.

Feller was part of a vaunted Indians' rotation in the 1940s and '50s with fellow Hall of Famers Bob Lemon and Early Wynn. He finished with 2,581 career strikeouts, led the American League in strikeouts seven times, pitched three no-hitters — including the only one on opening day — and recorded a jaw-dropping 12 one-hitters.

Feller's win total remains a Cleveland team record, one that seems almost untouchable in today's free-agent era. His numbers would no doubt have been even greater had his career not been interrupted by World War II.

The first pitcher to win 20 games before he was 21, Feller was enshrined in Cooperstown in 1962, his first year of eligibility.

The Indians retired his No. 19 jersey in 1957 and immortalized the greatest player in franchise history with a statue when they opened their downtown stadium in 1994. The sculpture is vintage Feller, captured forever in the middle of his patented windmill windup, rearing back to fire another pitch.

"When you think Cleveland Indians, you think Bob Feller and vice versa," Indians manager Manny Acta said. "He was a genuine patriot and a big-time Hall of Famer. Boy, he loved the Indians and we all loved him back."

Baseball was only a part of Feller's remarkable story.

Stirred by Japan's bombing of Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941, Feller enlisted in the Navy the following day — the first major league player to do so. He served as a gun captain on the USS Alabama, earning several battle commendations and medals.

"More impressive than his vast accomplishments on the field was being part of 'The Greatest Generation,'" Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig said. "Bob served our country for nearly four years during the prime of his career. Bob was a great pitcher, but he was first and foremost a great American."

Never afraid to offer a strong opinion on any subject, Feller remained physically active in his later years. At the end of every winter, he attended the Indians' fantasy camp in either Florida or Arizona. One of the highlights of the weeklong event was always Feller, in uniform, taking the mound and striking out campers, some of whom were 50 years younger.

Another rite of spring for Cleveland fans was seeing Feller at the Indians' training camp. Before home exhibition games in Winter Haven, Fla., or more recently in Goodyear, Ariz., Feller would throw out the ceremonial first pitch. Introduced to a rousing ovation every time, Feller delivered the throw with the same high leg kick he used while blazing fastballs past overmatched hitters.

"We have all lost a friend and the nation has lost an icon," former Indians manager Mike Hargrove said. "Bob was always there with a word of advice or a story. The thing is that they were always relevant and helpful. I will never forget before the first game of the '97 World Series, Bob came up to me and patted me on the back and told me how proud he was of me and the team, then gave me a buckeye and said it was for luck.
Read more at news.yahoo.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/ii34

All Your Data in the Cloud: Good or Bad?

2010-12-15T14:00:00.001-06:00

Richard Stallman, founder and evangelist for the Free Software Foundation, prompts computer users in to evaluating more cautiosly the advantages and disadvantages of an all-data-in-the-cloud approach, such as the one heralded by the upcoming new operating system from Google: The ChromeOS.

Amplify’d from www.guardian.co.uk

Google's ChromeOS means losing control of data, warns GNU founder Richard Stallman

Two years ago Stallman, a computing veteran who is a strong advocate of free software via his Free Software Foundation, warned that making extensive use of cloud computing was "worse than stupidity" because it meant a loss of control of data.

Now he says he is increasingly concerned about the release by Google of its ChromeOS operating system, which is based on GNU/Linux and designed to store the minimum possible data locally. Instead it relies on a data connection to link to Google's "cloud" of servers, which are at unknown locations, to store documents and other information.

The risks include loss of legal rights to data if it is stored on a company's machine's rather than your own, Stallman points out: "In the US, you even lose legal rights if you store your data in a company's machines instead of your own. The police need to present you with a search warrant to get your data from you; but if they are stored in a company's server, the police can get it without showing you anything. They may not even have to give the company a search warrant."

Google gave ChromeOS a "soft" launch last week, showing off aspects of the software and providing developers and some journalists with Cr-48 laptops set up to run it, while saying that it won't be widely available until mid-2011.

But Stallman is unimpressed. "I think that marketers like "cloud computing" because it is devoid of substantive meaning. The term's meaning is not substance, it's an attitude: 'Let any Tom, Dick and Harry hold your data, let any Tom, Dick and Harry do your computing for you (and control it).' Perhaps the term 'careless computing' would suit it better."

He sees a creeping problem: "I suppose many people will continue moving towards careless computing, because there's a sucker born every minute. The US government may try to encourage people to place their data where the US government can seize it without showing them a search warrant, rather than in their own property. However, as long as enough of us continue keeping our data under our own control, we can still do so. And we had better do so, or the option may disappear."

Stallman only sees one aspect of ChromeOS to applaud: its GNU/Linux heritage. "In essence, Chrome OS is the GNU/Linux operating system. However, it is delivered without the usual applications, and rigged up to impede and discourage installing applications," he told the Guardian. "I'd say the problem is in the nature of the job ChromeOS is designed to do. Namely, encourage you to keep your data elsewhere, and do your computing elsewhere, instead of doing it in your own computer."
Read more at www.guardian.co.uk

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/igtv

Security, Security, Where is the Security

2010-12-15T10:19:00.002-06:00

As WikiLeaks as shown us it's not just your average computer user that doesn't practice good security and protect their information. But there are good practices that we can learn and use to protect our data and make our security stronger. And as this article shows they aren't all about being fancy or using complicated tools but more about being careful and thinking about security all the time.

Anyway you say it security is a subject that brings yawns and glassy eyed stares when you bring it. But when you understand the risks and see the damage done by security lapses as you help someone clean up the mess left after a data breach it will wake you up.

So take a minute read this article and consider your security before you face the pain of identity theft or data loss.

Amplify’d from www.zdnet.com

How To Stop Your Personal Wikileaks--Personal Technology Security

Jason Perlow recently wrote about Personal Wikileaks, where he described how he had been sent a smartphone to be evaluated only to discover that the previous user was a high-level technology journalist; one that has the direct attention of major technology industry leaders. To give you an idea of what I’m referring to, my personal predictions for the tech specs of the next tablet from a fruit-named company were solidly confirmed. I’ll leave those for another article.

This wasn’t even an isolated incident. There are hundreds of instances in the tech journalism field where personal devices were used, evaluated and returned without being properly purged of personal information before being sent back, and they weren’t wiped at the vendor’s end, either. It’s a chain of carelessness.

When discussing this situation with Jason, he said it was an epidemic. I agree, but it’s not a recent one. It’s a systemic issue that is somehow ingrained in our personalities. As a people, humans do not typically consider security of their information unless they consciously focus on it. Instinctively we still go back to our early evolutionary ancestors: shelter, food, safety from predators.

Well, it turns out that there are predators everywhere, and they don’t typically want to eat your carcass in this day an age. They just want to consume your data.

I could provide dozens of links to articles concerning accidental data leaks. I’m sure my readers have seen them as well: celebrities losing their cellphones containing racy pictures of themselves; government agency employees losing their laptops, and we find out that the private information of millions of US citizens had been downloaded to it; political candidates having their email accounts hacked because they used simple passwords and easy to guess answers to security questions; commercial website databases getting hacked, revealing the financial information of their customers that ends up getting sold to some overseas black market group.

Let’s face it, there really isn’t going to be an end to these information leaks until people start treating their personal information the same way they treat their money, homes and families. Jason provided a number of examples of securing the data on your smartphone. Of course, wipe the data on phone and storage card before giving the phone to someone else.

Use remote admin capabilities with your phone in the event of losing the device so you can wipe all stored data on it. Use a screen lock PIN or password. Use a SIM lock password as well if available. Most phones will let you dial 911 (or whatever your local emergency number is) without having to unlock the phone so you can still make an emergency call even if you don’t have the time to unlock it.

But this goes much further than smartphone security. Your data is everywhere: on your smartphone, your home and work computers, dozens or hundreds of websites. One of the first mistakes people make is to use the same password for everything. If a hacker got into the user database of a popular website, such as those owned by Gawker Media, and the users there have the same passwords in operation in other places (they do), then it’s only a matter of time before they get their data compromised elsewhere.

Your passwords are probably one of the weakest links in your data security. Instead of having one regular password, have six. Make them all difficult to crack: at least 8 characters in length, and at least one capital letter, one number, and one special character (@, !, #, $, %, etc.). Don’t use actual words for your password, or anything that relates to your life. Rotate your password usage regularly. Using the same password for more than 90 days isn’t advisable.

Physical access to your personal computer and devices is another point to consider. Most of the time people carry their cellphones with them. Unless, of course, you are one of those people that gets a lot of phone calls but leaves their phone at their desk and disappears for an hour. If you are one of these people and worked near me, you may have been one of the many victims who found their battery contacts taped over, or your ringtone changed to a shotgun blast.

Practical jokes aside, it’s important to control physical access to your data devices as well. Walking away from your desk at work? Lock the screen with a password. Take your phone with you. Are you in an office where visitors can walk right in without being intercepted by security or locked doors? If you’ve got a laptop, it’s a good idea to either take it with you at the end of the day or lock it in your desk. Portable computer hardware disappears all the time. Don’t leave it on your table at Starbucks while you make room for more coffee.

Another item to secure is your cloud data. You may not realize it, but you very likely have data in the cloud right now. Your email, whether Gmail, or Hotmail, or Yahoo, or some other web-based service, uses cloud storage. Accessing your email from your own computers isn’t an issue, but accessing it from a strange computer is. Libraries, Internet cafes, pretty much any computer that isn’t your own.

You don’t know if there’s a keylogger on that computer, and even if there isn’t you may not be able to wipe the history and saved passwords from that system. If you are using a computer that you don’t fully trust, it’s not a good idea to use it to access your personal data. That goes for any website with your personal and financial data, not just your email.

Most people don’t even consider it until they suddenly discover that their identity has been stolen, or someone charged something expensive on their credit card. It even happened to me, which is why I won’t let someone read back my credit card number to me aloud when I give it to them over the phone. I won’t read it aloud either; that’s exactly how a former coworker ended up in jail by using my credit card to buy a $3000 plasma TV, emptying out my bank account in the process.

Just a small amount of effort and a shift in awareness can make all the difference. Thieves, even data thieves, are more likely to go after easy targets. If you don’t provide them with an easy target, they’re likely to go elsewhere. Keep your anti-virus and anti-malware software up to date, keep an eye on your devices, and play it safe.

See more at www.zdnet.com

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/igik

Scams and Misleading "Free" Credit Reports

2010-12-14T14:49:00.002-06:00

After watching two family members fall victim to what I consider nothing more than a scam to steal your money by misleading people into joining credit report information services I thought it was time to set the record straight.

Your are allowed one free credit report from the big three reporting agencies each year. And filing for that report doesn't require that you file for or pay for any other services or commit to paying a fee to follow your credit scores.

The article below describes it best and shows the site you need to go too.

This site ( www.AnnualCreditReport.com ) is the ONLY site that is government approved and established by law to provide that service. ANY OTHER SITE is simply a site trying to get you to sign up for some paid service that is totally unnecessary for purposes of getting these free reports.

There maybe a good reason to join such a site if your reports require monitoring more often than once a year but this is beside the point that these sites make it seem that you can only get the free reports required by joining their service.

So don't get scammed into paying a fee for what is truly free if you just go to the right site.

Amplify’d from www.ftc.gov

What is AnnualCreditReport.com?

AnnualCreditReport.com is the ONLY authorized source for the free annual credit report that's yours by law. The Fair Credit Reporting Act guarantees you access to your credit report for free from each of the three nationwide credit reporting companies — Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion — every 12 months. The Federal Trade Commission has received complaints from consumers who thought they were ordering their free annual credit report, and yet couldn't get it without paying fees or buying other services. TV ads, email offers, or online search results may tout "free" credit reports, but there is only one authorized source for a truly free credit report.

I’ve seen a box at the top of some websites saying:

"You have the right to a free credit
report from AnnualCreditReport.com
or 877-322-8228, the ONLY authorized
source under federal law."

What’s this about?

A new law requires commercial websites that say they offer free credit reports to include a box letting you know you can get a free credit report at www.AnnualCreditReport.com. Click on the link to www.AnnualCreditReport.com, the only place to get the free report that's yours by law.

Many companies claim to offer free credit reports – and some do. But others give you a report only if you buy other products or services. Still others say they’re giving you a “free” report and then bill you for services you have to cancel. If you go to www.AnnualCreditReport.com and follow the prompts for your free credit report, you can be sure the reports you get really are free.

How do I request my free credit report?

You can request your free report online, by phone or by mail. Visit AnnualCreditReport.com, call 1-877-322-8228, or fill out the Annual Credit Report Request form and mail it to Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281. No matter how you request your report, you have the option to request all three reports at once or to order one report at a time. By requesting the reports separately, you can monitor your credit more frequently throughout the year.
Read more at www.ftc.gov

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/ie2r

Electronic Accounting Records Becoming the IRS's Perfected Method for Audits and Inquires

2010-12-13T14:47:00.002-06:00

If a business is audited, the IRS now accepts tax records and booking records in electronic format rather than requiring traditional paper books and records. In fact the IRS is obviously moving toward a goal of making this the "preferred" method of receiving such records. And so you should be moving to electronic methods of records keeping before it's required if that is not how you are keeping records now.

Currently for this tax year the IRS already has trained about 1,100 agents on QuickBooks (and also an unknown number on Peachtree accounting software) so it's clear that they are moving very quickly towards this goal.

Any such records requested must be provided on a CD, DVD, or flash drive and the files should not be e-mailed nor will the IRS EVER request them to be. So be aware that any request you receive asking you to email any electronic files or records are scams and you should never reply to such requests.

Also be sure that you have any electronic records you are providing to the IRS examined by someone who's knowledgeable in QuickBooks (or PeachTree) as electronic records have their own pitfalls. And if you provide records that contain mistakes, inaccuracies, or accounting procedure errors it will make it very hard to fight IRS rulings based on those mistakes later. So be sure that everything is in order BEFORE you send it rather than work to correct mistakes later when the IRS will be using the information YOU supplied to support their findings. And with this information being electronic the IRS will have it readability for future use and comparison unlike the current paper records they have on file.

So a word to the wise. Things are changing to all electronic IRS system in the very near future and thus it's time to prepare or face possible problems in your rush to change when it becomes mandatory and that day is fast approaching.

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/ibj1

An Interesting Twitter Experiment and What it Shows About Klout

2010-12-12T20:48:00.001-06:00

I've had my questions about Klout and it's rankings since the first time I went there and checked out my Klout score.

This article and the authors experiment shows that my doubts about Klout's ratings may have some bases in fact. And while one experiment doesn't prove or disprove anything it certainly raises troubling questions. And Klout is sure the best metric we have but it's a trouble metric as I've studied it.

On the one had it claims to measure things that at least in my report never seem to change. How is it possible that I've still got the same 6 people listed by Klout as my influencers as I had at the end of my first week on Twitter.

No more no less and no changes. That's hard to understand as over that time I've climbed from 0 to around 2,000 followers. You would think that something about this list would change. And as troubling is the fact that while most of my metrics have shown the natural rise one would expect from an active Tweeter who tweets and isn't just a name hiding a bot I've seen sudden and unexplained drops in my Klout ratings at times.

For example in the first two days that I started on Amplified my Klout score dropped over 10 (59>43) points and only slowly came back up to almost what it was before I was using Amplify (53).

That mystifies me as while I didn't post as many Tweets on Twitter directly as before I have almost all of my Amp posts and comments also sent to Twitter. And by Twitters numbers my number of Tweets per day actually went up slightly during that time and their content changed only in their coming from Amplify.

So I'm sure that people will say well Klout looks on that kind of thing as suspect and docked you accordingly. But that can't be the reason or I wouldn't have climbed back up to almost the same Klout score while still Amping and Tweeting the same since joining Amplify.

Anyway it's an interest article and raises some good questions that Klout and Twitter should respond too. I doubt they will but it leaves me wondering if behind the scenes both Klout and Twitter are failing in their jobs and letting bots rank far too high and send what anyone can see is at best glorified spam.

Amplify’d from wallblog.co.uk

Can you become influential on Twitter merely by Tweeting a lot?

A bit more than a month ago, I asked the question: Can you become influential on Twitter, and get a high Klout Score, merely by Tweeting a lot?

To test this, I set up an experiment, which involves four Twitter bots that automatically tweet the output of the Unix fortune command-line application. Fortune randomly outputs mildly humorous quotes, and was often used on Unix to produce a ‘welcome message of the day’ upon login.

The four bots Tweet once every minute, once every five minutes, once every fifteen minutes and once every thirty minutes respectively. They are completely anonymous, have no avatars or custom user profiles set, and do not follow anyone.

Now, after 80 days of running the experiment (Jules Verne style), there’s a set of pretty hot data available.

The Data (the good)

We can clearly see from this graph (quite surprisingly), that each bot accumulated followers linearly. Also, it seems the more they tweeted, the steeper the follower accumulation rate is, without any drop off, even for the bot that tweets every minute.

Let’s normalize the data by plotting the amount of followers against the amount of Tweets, thereby literally measuring the amount of followers per Tweet:

Let’s test this assumption, by plotting the curves over time again, including an amplification factor equal to the amount of minutes that lapse between Tweets. That means, we assume the once every 5 minutes bot would have had 5 times more followers if it Tweeted once every minute, etc:

That means, the more you Tweet, the more followers you get. Period. It doesn’t matter how often you tweet, you gain an equal amount of followers for every time you Tweet.

The Followers (the bad)

Looking at the followers of these bots, many of them seem to be bots themselves (there are quite a few real people who attempt conversations with them, but they are in the minority). Most of these bots get triggered by keywords present in our bots’ Tweets, and then follow and retweet our bots’ Tweets. A good example is @BurroughsBot, which retweets Tweets that match the search term William Burroughs.

At this point I turned to Klout (which, incidentally, is the actual reason for setting up this experiment in the first place). Surely Klout should be able to make sense of this robotic mess (like Google does with link farms), shouldn’t it?

The Klout Scores (the ugly)

Klout score for ‘once a minute’ bot

Klout Score for ‘once every 5 minutes’ bot

Klout Score for ‘once every 15 minutes’ bot

Klout Score for ‘once every 30 minutes’ bot

What’s wrong with this picture? To start off with, it should not really be possible for a bot to reach a Klout Score of 50 within 80 days merely by Tweeting random (yet entertaining) rubbish every minute, should it?

Taking into account that many Twitter clients (like Hootsuite) and filter applications (like Datasift) are using Klout as a trusted way of filtering tweets, it means Klout will have to up their game on this one to stay in the game.

Or else, we might just be run by machines sooner than we think!
Read more at wallblog.co.uk

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/i8i5

Interest on business checking accounts

2010-12-12T09:55:00.001-06:00

Hidden in the Dodd-Frank Reform Act that passed last summer is a favorable change for small business. Starting next July 1, banks are permitted to offer interest on business checking accounts. The Glass-Steagall Act of 1933 had barred such interest for more than 70 years. So be sure and check with your banker on whether you will need to make changes to your account to qualify for interest.

See this Amp at http://amplify.com/u/i7nh

The Truth Regarding the Current Tax Cuts Extension Bill.

2010-12-11T09:45:00.001-06:00

With all the talk and rhetoric floating around about the tax credit extension bill I can’t as an accountant not say something about this issue. For this bill has become a political football that is being kicked around for no other reason than to gain some political goal or objective without any regarded for what is really involved. It’s a case of trying to make someone or some group look bad and thus garner a supposed political advantage in the next election.

This needs to stop while we really look at what is happening in our economy and what the passage or failure of this bill means. To do that requires that we forgo the ideology for a moment. The question of is it a good idea to have tax cuts when we have record debt? Or are the rich entitled to share in tax cuts given to the average American? And are tax cuts in general just another form of social welfare system? Are all important questions and need to be understood and worked out.

But not right now!

For at this unique economic time in American’s history I can only say that to not pass some kind of tax cut extension bill will be terrible for the economy and for either party to play politics with this is inexcusable. This issue isn't about Obama nor the Republicans or the Democrats. It’s not even about income taxes or if our country is becoming a Socialist State.

It's about if the average family in America right now can stand an additional 2 to 3 thousand dollar increase in tax liability. This is especially true for those who have recently lost jobs and would be paying such an increase for their 2010 taxes from the unemployment they will be receiving in 2011 when it's due.

As an accountant and a tax preparer I would caution those of you who are rooting for this bill to fail to check and see just what it will probability cost you. Your feeling about this issue may well change when you realize that a family with three children that has been receiving the child tax credit on those children and had a refund in 2010 (for their 2009s return) of 2 thousand dollars will with no other factors figured in will owe around 1 thousand dollars in additional taxes come April 15th 2011 due to the loss of just this one credit.

I can't see how that can be good for the tax payer or our economy right now to be reducing income many need just to survive. And for those who have lost jobs and will be paying this out of unemployment it will be a disaster. With foreclosures rising, housing prices falling, and unemployment at record highs not to continue these tax cuts until the economy recovers much more that it has now would be a reckless experiment in economics.

So let's understand the full result of this measure failing. Americans, many unemployed and expected to stay that way for some time to come, would face an additional cut in disposable income at a time they need that income more than any time I can remember.

Can anyone in good conscience watch as our friends, neighbors, and relatives suffer further economic hardships all because they want some person, party, or ideology to be made to look bad. I would hope not but that is just what may happen as the good of America and Americans seems to be taking a back seat to partisan politics of unimagined cruelty for those already in economic distress.

Diabetes in America

2010-12-11T01:32:00.001-06:00

Very interesting site and it's interesting to see the vast differences across the country. Wonder if we'll ever understand why?

Amplify’d from www.neatorama.com

Slate has an interactive map showing when and where cases of diabetes are soaring. At the link, you can adjust the year with a slider and mouseover the counties to find yours. My county had a diabetes rate of 11.4% in 2008. Link -via Gene Expression
Read more at www.neatorama.com

See this Amp at http://bit.ly/dI9bpB

2010-12-10T11:08:00.001-06:00

"Dream as if you have forever. But live as if you only have today" ~James Dean RT @ruhanirabin http://amplify.com/u/i41k

Time Passes on

Will Fuel Powered Engines Replace Batteries?

SMALLEST PETROL ENGINE

Some Thoughts for the Day

Bank of American and Countrywide Finally Face Fraud Charges

Bank of America sued by mortgage investors for “massive fraud”

Is Spokeo.com a Site to Opt Out Of?

Angel Investors List for Twitter and FaceBook

Angel Investors on Twitter and Facebook

Watch out for GPS Problems in the Southeastern US

FAA warns of ongoing GPS issues in southeastern US due to Defense Department 'tests'

Robotic Manufacturing a Blessing... or a Curse?

Robots Dominate Manufacturing – Take a Look Inside the Making of a Memory Card (Video)

For What It's Worth a Little Humor

Google Voice Now Offers Number Porting

New Reporting Issues for Small Business Corporations Will Catch Many Unaware

Are You Ready for New IRS “Organizational Actions” Regs?

Todd Weiss Three Steps to Starting a Franchise

Flying Quad-rotor Robots Build Structures Autonomously

Life in the FaceBook Fish Bowl... A lesson in Security

Calif. man used Facebook to hack women's e-mails

Now if We Could Just Get "Beam Me Up Scotty" to Work

Conversation Mode in Google Translate for Android

Twitter Fights for User Rights

Twitter’s Response to WikiLeaks Subpoena Should Be the Industry Standard

How to Become More Intelligent - by Dumb Little Man

Surveying the Use of Technology and Social Media by Small Business

Important Small Business Tax Changes Under Affordable Care Act and Small Business Jobs Act of 2010

Tax Changes for Small Businesses

Impact of Estate Tax Changes on Small Business Owners

Does this New California Law Help or Hurt the Internet

Facebook Fakes Become Misdemeanors Starting 2011

For a Good Laugh Check out these Flash Animation's

Put Your Best Tweet Forward: How to Schedule Tweets for Maximum Exposure

Put Your Best Tweet Forward: How to Schedule Tweets for Maximum Exposure

Understand The Timing

Know Your Followers

Tweet It Again, Sam

Scenario #1

Scenario #2

Creating A Scheduling Matrix

Daily Special

Monday

Tuesday and Friday

Wednesdays

Overnight posts

Craft Your Schedule

End to Federal Tax Deposit Coupons Starts Jan 1st,2011

It's Time for Many Taxpayers to Prepare for Delays and You Can Thank Your Congressman

Tax Season To Start Late This Year for Many Filers, Thanks to Congress

RALs Causality of Government Reporting Changes

H&R Block Announces Glitch in RALs for 2011

It's Not All the Internet When It Comes to Newspaper Decline

Ads, not internet, to blame for newspaper woes: study

Here's to the Crazy Ones

FaceBook Passing Google in UK Traffic Count

Hitwise Finds Visits To Social Networks Surging

Knowing the Symptoms of Stroke May Save Your Life

Warning Signs of Stroke

Can Grassroots News Curation Replace Mainstream News?

The 'interestingness curators' of social news

Christmas Wishes

Smartphone Apps Again Draw Fire in Major Article

Smartphone Apps Are Betraying Us, Report Says

Do You Know What ETF's are and Should You be Worried With Their Growth

Wednesday’s Worry – ETF Madness Hits $1 Trillion

The Woman Language Translator

Hardship Waiver Form Released by IRS to File for Electronic Filing Exemption

IRS Releases Electronic Filing Hardship Waiver Form for 2011

3 Privacy Settings at Facebook you should take notice of

Who is looking at your Facebook? 3 Privacy Options you NEED to set

1. Reset your Album Permissions

2. Set what your friends can share about you

Viber a New Free Call Service App for the iPhone

Free your calls!Call anyone, anywhere.

International free calls to other Viber users using3G or Wi-Fi.

Poinsettias take Bad Rap and Actually AREN'T Poisonous

Are poinsettias poisonous?

FaceBook's Latest Move is Another Security Risk Don't Fall for it

Facebook’s new login for the Web could ruffle feathers

Free your calls!
Call anyone, anywhere.

International free calls to other Viber users using
3G or Wi-Fi.