Web design kick the tires

Website design is a purely personal expression. When you work with a designer you are attempting to pass along your vision for the website in the hopes that they can capture that vision and bring it to life. Often what you get doesn’t really coincide with your vision, but it’s a website so you may not get too upset.

Often the process of wed design is a bit like attempting to reinvent the wheel. Sure, it may be a rather unique wheel with lots of technical gadgets, but the truth is the wheel has already been invented.

If we continue the wheel (tire) analogy we see that the tire can be improved with various tread designs, shapes and sizes, but in the end it is still a tire.

When you go to buy a tire do you look for the best value or the most expensive one available? Chances are you probably do some comparison shopping first. You take into account the amount of miles you can expect from the tire, what sore of road conditions the tire is best suited for and, of course, you will be interested in the overall price associated with the tire.

Before mass marketing there was a time when everything had to be hand crafted. Each individual piece was made specifically for the item being produced. When you received the product you could be guaranteed it was one of a kind. Can you imagine having to visit a Vulcanized Rubbersmith who had to forge tires made specifically for your vehicle?

Even typing that last line seems absurd, yet it is this exact mentality that is prevalent in web design. Many ecommerce stores approach web design in the same way you might approach our proverbial Vulcanized Rubbersmith.

There is an option available that does not require the time and money of a traditional web design option, yet the more accessible option is either ignored or remains misunderstood.

Web builder technology allows you to essentially customize an existing ‘tire’. You can determine which options you want, you can access them personally and forge the site into a personally crafted vision.

The wheel doesn’t need to be reinvented, but along with all the other alternatives you might want to investigate template rich web building options. They are always available at a reduced price and often offer options that may be unavailable (or extremely costly) in a traditional web design option.

Compare price, features and function before making a decision. And unlike traditional web design options you can even take web-building technology for a test drive.

First date ideas

When thinking of ideas for a a first date I like to try new things. Rather than cater to what either one of us enjoys I try to find something completely new. This is my way of starting off the relationship with a bang and some excitement. Dinner and a movie has been done to death and so have trips to bars and clubs. Give a few of these ideas a shot and you will be pleasantly surprised.

Skydiving

I haven’t tried this out for a first date idea yet but it seems like it would really be great (provided neither of you are afraid of heights). It’s exhilarating and standing together at the door of a plane about to jump out at several thousand feet has a romantic appeal that not many other things can match. Call your local municipal airport to see if they have any skydiving instructors.

Hookah Cafes

If you’re not one of the enlightened who enjoys middle eastern food and hookah then you should definitely give it a try. It might not be a good option for the health conscious but for the rest of us it makes an excellent first date. Hookah cafes are usually bustling places with a laid back and cozy atmosphere and is a great place to smoke a hookah, enjoy some coffee and have a nice conversation. This works especially well for college students as there are usually many cafes nearby.

Art Conventions/Galleries

One of my favorite places to have a first date is at the monthly art walk they have here through the downtown area. Artists and vendors get together and line the streets. Musicians play their music for you as you walk around and take in the artwork. It works wonders for anyone who can appreciate art.

Live Comedy

Another astounding option for first dates are local comedy clubs. There are a handful of really excellent ones in my area featuring both professional and amateur local comedy acts. This is a great way to break the ice; with some laughs.

Wine Tasting/Tours

If you live somewhere close to vineyards taking a tour or going to a wine tasting make excellent first dates (as long as you’re 21+). A few good wines and good conversation tucked away on a vineyard seems peaceful to me and has worked wonders for me in the past.

Scuba Diving

If you are fortunate enough to live near the beach snorkeling or scuba diving make great date activities. Follow a romp in the ocean with a nice seaside dinner and you have the makings of romance.

Poetry Readings/Book Signings

Poetry readings make great first dates and if you’re the adventurous type you can even whip up a peace to read your date at the reading. Talk about a way to score some points! Book signings are also great even if you’re not really into books. You can enjoy coffee and conversation with your date and often enjoy a dramatic reading from the author.

Truck covers for a snug fit

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Much like car covers, a high quality custom fitted truck cover can protect your pick up truck from a whole cluster of nasty insults to your truck’s body. Even if you park your truck in a garage and give it regular washes and polishes, your finish can soon diminish and your truck quickly show its age without the added benefit of using a truck cover. Let’s take a look at some of the advantages of owning a truck cover and what you need to look for when considering purchasing a high quality product.

When you choose your truck cover, you will soon discover that even just one manufacturer can make several assorted covers for the same truck model. Simple covers offer partial protection from the elements while first-rate truck covers offer far-reaching protection.

The following are some of the key features found in a high quality truck cover:

Provides protection from harmful and penetrating rays of the sun.

Resists moisture, including rain, snow, sleet, hail, and ice.

Diverts airborne rubbish and/or small impacts on the truck’s body including dings, scratches, and unsightly marks.

Limits the ability of pollution, dust, and dirt from marring your finish.

Completely withstands bird excrement, tree sap, bug nesting, feral cats, etc.

Keeps the prying eyes of strangers away from your truck who can rub up against your finish and/or look inside your truck to see what they can steal from it.

The highest quality truck covers generally come equipped with mirror pockets to give your truck a truly snug fit. Most covers are made of 1 to 4 layers of durable polypropylene [a thermoplastic polymer that is highly resistant to acid and chemical solvents]; so the more layers you have means superior protection for your truck from each of the listed hazards.

Garaged pick up trucks, while not subject to the same hazards as one always left outside, are still vulnerable to seeing its finish marred by indoor pollution and dust. Many motorists, in the interest of preserving their finish will garage their trucks and then cover them over with a truck cover to ensure maximum protection.

Prices for truck covers vary, however you can save yourself some cash by purchasing one through a wholesaler who gets their supply directly from the manufacturer. You avoid third party markups and if you shop via an online retailer, you can avoid additional mark ups in price and in some cases get your cover shipped to you for free.

More often than not, your truck cover will come with a warranty. You can expect your high quality truck cover to provide great protection for a reasonable amount of money. A worthy investment, indeed.

Water damaged automobiles flooding the market

In my capacity as the owner of an import car dealership, I am often amazed at the levels some wholesalers will go to in order to cover up damages to vehicles. As any reputable reseller will tell you, finding the best vehicles is not only a matter of knowing what to physically look for, it's also a matter of knowing how to spot title and ownership oddities. Lately, I have noticed many wholesalers in possession of autos that were originally sold in the Louisiana and Mississippi areas. For some reason, these vehicles had their titles transferred to wholesalers from states far away. While this isn't completely uncommon, it does raise a red flag when you consider the recent natural disasters that have occurred on the Gulf Coast.

Dealerships need to be aware of the opportunity for unscrupulous parties to effectively "launder" the titles of these vehicles. As a result of Hurricane Katrina, many vehicles were likely paid for via insurance claims against flood damage. These vehicles are finding their way back into the market. While there is nothing inherently wrong with re-selling a designated flood damaged vehicle, there is something entirely wrong with reselling a flood damaged vehicle under the guise of it not having been damaged.

Being in the industry, I have heard both sides of the argument. Many wholesalers will tell you that flood damaged vehicles are often appropriated by insurance companies as "totalled", when in fact they may have never been submerged in water at all. My answer to that is to say that any business which values its customers and strives to maintain integrity and honesty would never sell a product they are unsure of. In other words, I'm not willing to take a chance with my business and reputation at stake, nor am I willing to gamble with someone else's money. That's exactly what selling a flood damaged automobile is: gambling with your customers money.

Flood damaged vehicles can have corroded electrical systems that are primed for failure, unseen rust damage, and a variety of other problems that can surface at a later time. My advice to dealerships is to use every resource at their disposal to find out the history of the cars they are purchasing and avoid flood damaged vehicles, unless you plan to sell them as such.

How to pick the right pavilion for you

Choosing the right computer for you is something that you should not just take for granted. Note that you computer is one of your constant companions and will most probably serve as your partner in your work and in your studies. If your computer is less than adequate, you will probably suffer through a lot of inconveniences with your work and studies.

When it comes to computers, the products from Hewlett-Packard (HP) are considered as one of the most reliable. For the past several years, HP has been known as a leader in the computer industry thus you can be sure that this company knows what it is doing. The introduction of the HP pavilion in the middle of the 1990s is one of the landmarks of this company. The HP pavilion especially the HP Pavilion Notebook PCs and the HP Pavilion Slimline which were designed to work perfectly with the mobile products of HP, became an instant hit when they were first introduced into the market. However, since the HP pavilion line of products has expanded considerably over the years, there are now a variety of choices when it comes to this line of products. To make sure that you get the right type of HP pavilion, here are some pointers for you to consider.

The Capacity Of the Computer

The first thing that you will need to look into when choosing an HP pavilion is the capacity of this computer to handle multiple applications at once. If you are busy person who love to multi-task, it would be better for you to get a computer that will allow you to open spreadsheets, documents and presentation materials while letting you play your favorite music. On the other hand, if you belong the super bust category of people who cannot spare time to wait for their computers to shift from one task to another, get something that will allow you to perform several task at the same time such as opening spreadsheets and database, doing complex graphics, internet browsing, entertainment applications and others.

Portability of the Computer

Since most of us are always on the go nowadays, you will need a computer that will allow you maximum flexibility of movements. If you are one of those people who frequently travel, HP pavilion notebook PCs that weigh not more 4.5 lbs would be idea for you. Since these types of computers are small and lightweight, they usually come with small monitors. On the other hand, if you do not really move around much or if you expect to travel only short distance, HP pavilion notebook PCs that weigh around 4.0 to 6.0 lbs will do nicely. The good news about these types of laptops is that they usually have bigger monitors and will allow you better viewing compared to the smaller computers.

Advantages oflearning blackjack strategies

Money, Money, Money

One of the main reasons that people play blackjack is because it's fun. Another reason could be for financial gain. If this is your reason, you will need some expertise in this field. The best way to win at blackjack is to know the ins and outs of the game. Once you know the strategies of blackjack, you will win money instead of losing it. Playing blackjack can be a good way to earn extra income on a regular basis. Although, the only way to accomplish this is to master the blackjack techniques. Everybody wants some extra pocket change. Learning how to play blackjack can help you put that extra money in your pocket. If you take the time to learn the game and its strategies, and choose where and when to play, there is no reason why you can't use your winnings to enjoy the finer things in life.

Entertainment

Another reason to learn how to play blackjack is entertainment. There are people who play blackjack as a hobby; they use the game as a form of entertainment to occupy their leisure time. Blackjack can be a very challenging game, but like anything else, the best way and usually the only way to improve your skills are to practice. You can improve your skills two ways. First, learn as much about the game as possible. Second, challenge yourself continually. By following these rules, consistent winnings are just around the corner. Some of the benefits of playing blackjack on a regular basis, and learning the strategies, are improving your reasoning and calculating skills. The extra money you make will just be a bonus. That's not too bad for a hobby.

What's More Fun, Winning or Losing?

Last but not least, the final reason to step up your blackjack playing abilities is because winning is much more fun than losing. What could be more satisfying than leaving the casino with your pockets full of their money? When you become an expert in blackjack strategies, you will enjoy the feeling of knowing that you beat the casinos at their own game. It will take a lot of hard work and diligence to become a blackjack expert. If you apply yourself, the rewards you receive will outweigh your efforts to learn tenfold.

There are many more reasons why people play blackjack. We don't need to touch on all of them. The reasons stated above should be enough to motivate you to be the best that you can be, to show the casinos they can be beaten. There are many ways to make money, none of them are easy, some of them are fun. Blackjack is a great way to combine entertainment and money making. Good luck.

Using hypnosis to cure bad habits

Why can't I cure my own bad habit?

If you have a bad habit - such as comfort eating, smoking or an addiction to gambling or alcohol, for example, then you can probably answer the question for yourself. A lot of us simply can't kick a bad habit on our own - we tend to say that it's because we don't have the willpower to actually carry it through.

The fact is that any kind of bad habit takes hold of you both psychologically and physically. So, when you try to kick the habit yourself you have to deal with a lot of mental stress and physical side effects that can really throw you. So, for many people, it's simply easier to pick up the bad habit again to make the nasty symptoms go away. This doesn't make us weak or mean that we lack willpower - it simply means that our bad habit has taken such a hold we need external help to deal with it once and for all.

How can hypnosis help?

There are all kinds of methods you can try to help you kick a bad habit. Most of these will try and appeal to your brain on a conscious level. So, for example, you might go along to a 'Quit Smoking' group where you socialize with other smokers and counsel each other on the effects of smoking and so on. On a purely rational level you will walk out of a meeting knowing that smoking is bad for you and knowing that you want to quit.

But, it isn't that easy. The rational side of your brain might be telling you all this but your subconscious may still be hanging on to the fact that you are a smoker and could be telling you to go into the nearest store and buy a pack right away! So, to put it simply, hypnosis deals with the subconscious thus making it far easier for you to quit effectively.

Going for hypnosis sessions to cure a bad habit will simply help ALL of your mind focus on the goal of giving up. The methods used by hypnotherapists vary. Some, for example, use a form of aversion therapy that makes you feel slightly nauseous at the thought of smoking. Others simply tell your subconscious that you are not a smoker so - after your session; you'll act like a non-smoker because your brain is telling you to.

Can it help me quit smoking?

Hypnosis is a great way of quitting smoking. So many of the issues involved with nicotine addiction are psychological so this form of therapy works perfectly here. The fact is that many good hypnotherapists can help you quit smoking in just one session.