Finding A Pro To Help You With Roof Installation | Home ...

Things like missing shingles or leaks are red flags that your outer covering needs some TLC, and you don?t want to wait until things are really bad before getting professional help. A skilled contractor will be able to visit your property and inspect your outer covering. If things look really bad, it may be time to replace your old outer covering with something new. Also, while you may think you?re pretty handy in the repair and home improvement department, unless you?re a licensed contractor, it?s not worth the risk. Examine some of the many benefits of leaving the task to a pro.

If you know you are having issues with your outer covering for your home, but don?t know what?s wrong, a pro will come out and do a free estimate. This contractor will get up on top of your house and do a thorough inspection. He or she will be able to tell you if you need a few repairs or new roof installation. Also, this pro will talk with you to find out what issues you?ve been experiencing inside the home, such as water leaks.

Once the issue has been pinpointed, a professional will communicate with you to help guide you through all the steps in the process. For instance, when a pro is working on putting a new covering on your home, there are many details involved. So to help you stay up to date on everything that?s going on, an expert will be sure to discuss the planning project with you. This means having you agree to the work agreement, materials used and more. As a result, you and your contractor will be sure to be on the same page throughout the project.

When you need a new outer covering, an expert can meet your needs in an assortment of ways. The biggest thing you can expect is quality work. If you contact a good company, these professionals are eager to do a quality job. That?s because doing quality work for you can result in more business for them. When you allow a skilled professional to provide a good roof installation, you can rest assured that it will be done correctly. In addition, a good company or contractor will use top-notch materials to ensure you get a strong, durable covering that will last the test of time.

Source: http://www.niutranslations.com/finding-a-pro-to-help-you-with-roof-installation.html

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5 Tasks To Never Outsource | Business Computing World

Outsourcing may be useful for many reasons, saving money being one of the most obvious. However, certain jobs a business should always complete in-house. These are five of the top such tasks.

1. Social networking activity

Businesses should never outsource their social networking activity, no matter how small or easy the tasks may be. The reason for this is that businesses should always be aware of what type of public interaction their company is participating in. This interaction includes who is following them on social networks, who the business is following and what posts are being written under the business?s brand.

2. Taxes

When tax season rolls around, a company should hire their own tax professionals rather than outsourcing the job. It seems that every single year tax laws change, so a business should be up to date on the relevant laws and file taxes themselves. Outsourcing to a company that does not know the current laws can spell huge legal and financial trouble for the business.

3. Employee Training

Businesses know their employees and their vision for the future better than anyone. Therefore, training employees and employee development are jobs that should be handled in-house. If a company outsources this task, they could find themselves staffed employees or with employees who do not understand the company?s goals and vision.

4. Goal and succession planning

Goal development and succession planning are tasks that should only be handled by people who hold leadership within the company. Only people who work within the company can say who deserves a promotion or a raise, and only people within the company can decide what the company?s goals should be. If these tasks are outsourced, many different things can go wrong and lead the company in the wrong direction. Third parties simply do not possess the same level of inside understanding, nor the same level of passion for the business?s future, as those inside the company.

5. Payroll

It is true that some companies outsource payroll responsibilities, but this can be a major risk. For one thing, payroll processing involves handling a great deal of very sensitive personal information; the only way a company can truly ensure that it is protected is to process it in-house. Additionally, if an outsourced payroll ends up being messed up, this can end up costing a company a great deal of both money and stress ? not to mention the damage to employee morale and faith in the company. Payroll mistakes could actually lead to very serious legal consequences. This is certainly not an area to leave in the hands of a third party.

Outsourcing or hiring third-party companies and freelancers can be a great way for a company save money and improve efficiency. Especially if a company has begun to experience the benefits of this type of outsourcing, the temptation can be strong to outsource everything under the sun. Tasks like those discussed above, however, should never be outsourced. The potential savings in these situations are simply not worth the risk in terms of money, time and intangibles.

Jordan Rodgers

Jordan Rodgers is a freelance writer that has worked extensively as a business management consultant. His articles appear on various business blogs.

Jordan Rodgers is a freelance writer that has worked extensively as a business management consultant. His articles appear on various business blogs. ...less info

Source: http://www.businesscomputingworld.co.uk/5-tasks-to-never-outsource/

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Miami Real Estate ? What Is A Passive House? Miami Has Them?

August 13th, 2012

What Is?A Passive House?? Are There Any Passive Homes In Miami?

A passive house is?described as a ?super well insulated, airtight home,??empowered ?to cut energy consumption by 90%.

The origin of the term was ?Passivhaus? and it is a strict high-efficiency building standard developed in Germany in the ?80?s.? It is about achieving a standard of energy efficiency in a building which reduces the building?s ecological footprint.

The objective of this movement is to build structures which require little energy for heating or cooling of? our spaces.? It is approached as part of the process of the design, then becomes a component of ??the architectural design.? The passive building idea is more often associated with new buildings but it is also used for refurbishing structures.

Most of the passive house buildings in the world have been built in Germany, the Scandinavian countries and New Zealand.? The German Passivhaus Institute is presently at odds with the American Passive House Institute, on account of the American counterparts? proposal to relax certain standards.

Cost Of Passive Houses

A Passive House costs more to build than the average house.? A home buyer has a choice between a house that will cost thousands of dollars a year to heat or cool versus a high performance house that will cost very little to heat or cool.? Access to solar energy, superinsulation, advanced window technology, air tightness, ?energy recovery ventilation are all components of the passive design.

Passive Houses In Tropical Climates: e.g. Miami!

Passive Houses in tropical climates are very much in the developmental stage not to say in a ?wish? stage!? Considering Miami?s population density, continued growth and construction, and what it takes to cool our homes, wouldn?t it be brilliant to allocate some thought and resources?to this building type for Miami?s future?? I know little or nothing about Passive Houses; however, the thought they might help lighten the impact of Miami?s buildings and endless construction?on the environment is exciting!

I couldn?t find any trait of a Passive House in Miami, do we have any?

A Passive House is a vehicle to achieving a net-zero energy building!

?

Curious about your? Miami home?s value?? We will provide a no-obligation market evaluation of your home today.

Miami Real Estate Experience and Market Knowledge You Can Trust!

Monica Ferrari, 305. 213. 5902 and Jose Luis Pere, 305. 588. 6498

[email?protected]????? [email?protected]

www.MyMiamiMoves.com

?

*pictures from Inhabitat (http://inhabitat.com/passivhaus-the-greenest-building-standard/passivhaus-section/)

This entry was posted on Monday, August 13th, 2012 at 11:53 am and is filed under For Buyers, For Sellers, Green Living, Miami News, Updates & Reports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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Source: http://mymiamimoves.com/2012/08/13/what-is-a-passive-house-miami-has-them/

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How to do anything, according to eHow

3 hrs.

John Herrman , BuzzFeed

Just follow these simple steps. The world's greatest website, ladies and gentlemen.?

"Random tattoos, piercings with things like giant safety pins and lots of black rubber jangly bracelets help cement the look."

"Take turns describing the surroundings and ambiance: food, wine, decor, music."

Only five steps! "Click "Update" to send the Tweet to everyone on Twitter."

"Open your eyes wide. Open your mouth and breathe in so that you feel the air rushing in your mouth."

"Know how to defend yourself. If you're really good, you may never have to defend yourself, but if you ever have a bad day, a black belt in karate is a good backup plan."

"If you've assessed the situation, and it seems probable that a kiss is imminent, the next things to think about are timing and approach. The key to nailing the pre kiss is matching your partner's speed and intensity. The kiss is the first opportunity to physically connect with your partner, and so you want to meet him or her halfway."

"Read through the membership agreement and click "'I agree.'"

"Make sure the water bottle is always full! This is very important. Your pregnant rat should never be without water."

"Feel free to offer blunt wisdom and rag on her for putting on a tacky outfit."

"Commit to a life of individual responsibility realizing that existence proceeds essence and faith is available as a personal choice, but that commitment to whatever personal choice you make is your greatest weapon against fear, dread and anxiety."

"Many movies (especially Hugh Grant films) can be useful in helping you to sound more authentic through colloquial language."

"Realize the lack of supernatural power of the Harry Potter series. Look for instances in the book where the mechanical spells do not lead to contact with the supernatural world."

"Work with your lawyer to identify a defense strategy that you'll use to try to create reasonable doubt in the minds of the jury members... Call the character of prosecution witnesses into question as much as you possibly can."

"You can win a stare-down with a cat. Even an adult cat. Even an adult cat who's used to winning stare-downs with humans. The result of winning a stare-down with a cat is usually that the cat will stalk away."

"Look at the water. If large bubbles are rising from the bottom of the pot to the surface, the water is boiling."

But wait, there's more! If you still don't feel like a complete human being,?check out these and?72 more favorite (or just insane)?eHow tutorials on BuzzFeed's FWD channel.? When you're done, you'll be ready to?go forth into the world, capable of anything.

Thanks to Katie Notopoulos and Brian Feldman for the many, many suggestions.

More from BuzzFeed FWD:

Source: http://www.technolog.msnbc.msn.com/technology/technolog/how-do-anything-according-ehow-935263

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I just want to write; don't ask me to promote my title. ? Jawbone ...

Posted on August 11, 2012

I hear this declaration all the time.? Such an attitude will limit your sales to your close friends (maybe!) and your parents. Whether you are independently published or have a contract with a publishing house, you are expected to do your own promotions.

Published authors quickly learn that, in order to sell books, the author must promote, promote, promote. After all, who knows the book better than the author? And who has the most skin in the game? The author, of course!

I know. Promotion is not easy. We authors are a dime a dozen. With desktop and e-book publishing, the number of titles seems to multiply each year. But the number of titles that sell in quantity is only a fraction of that. Simply having your title on e-bookstores will not sell copies, regardless of what self-publishing companies tell you.

Let me offer some advice from a veteran in the book business. You may have a dynamite book, a fantastic cover, a distributor, presence in both e-book and brick-and-mortar stores; but if you do nothing to inform the reading public about your title, all those things mean nothing. NOTHING!

Back to speaking. If you're petrified of standing before a group, enroll in your local Toastmaster's Club. You will soon overcome your fear. Or simply dive in. Start small - perhaps an afternoon with friends and neighbors in your living room, a reading at a local book club or a presentation to a civic club's local monthly meeting. Do a reading at your local library. Speak in a school classroom.

Ask yourself: do I have something of value to present to the group? Avoid simply promoting your book; that is a really big turn-off. Offer something of value to the group. If yours is a children's title, don't simply read the book, but have some sort of activity that relates to the story to share with the kids. If you read to a book club, have Q&A prepared. Tie your presentation into something that will be of interest to the organization before which you're presenting.

Always seek permission to do a book signing prior to your presentation. If that is impossible, be sure to invite your audience to go to your website.(Do that, anyhow!) And have something there that not only seeks sales but also offers? added value to them ... a chapter of the book or links to websites where additional information can be obtained (if your title is non-fiction) or a small article you've written that relates to the title.

Plan your presentation. Ask how much time you are expected to speak, and DO NOT go over that time allotment. Add some interesting facts, humorous stories -- anything that will draw your audience into your presentation. Nothing is more entertaining than personal stories or humorous anecdotes.

Avoid? centering the presentation on you. That is a quick turn-off to your audience. Remember: you're there to make the audience like you and what you have to say enough to buy your book.

If you don't sell any books at a presentation, don't despair. You may receive requests from audience members to speak at other events, where you might sell lots of books.

As an author of a physical book, you are seen as an authority on whatever topic you've written. Keep speaking to build up your resume. Word will get out that you are an authority. You will also build up your confidence. And make sure your presentation can answer this question for your audience: what's so good about that (WSGAT)? After all, that's what people want to know.

If you can tie your topic into a current event, that's an added bonus! In that case, get on the horn and let your local radio/TV stations know. Contact your local newspaper. (Actually, you can submit a news release to the paper and you may see it published word-for-word as you sent it.) It's all about human interest. Always.

When Ronald Reagan was diagnosed with Alzheimer's, I contacted the local TV stations in Orlando; I had written a book for children about the disease. That very day, a news crews showed up at my house and taped an interview for the evening news.

If you plan on being interviewed, always have a sheet with questions to give to the interviewers. Make their assignments as uncomplicated as possible. In most cases, they will not have had time to read your title, but your questions make it seem as if they have. And this allows you to prepare answers, so that you don't have to stutter in front of the mike or camera.

I welcome any advice you wish to share concerning promoting book titles through public speaking.

Keep on writing. It's the write thing to do!!

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Source: http://jawbonepublishing.com/?p=273

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Fishing Nets, Climate Change Threaten Yellow-Eyed Penguins in New Zealand

It has been a rough few decades for endangered yellow-eyed penguins (Megadyptes antipodes). The species can only be found along a small portion of the southeastern coast of New Zealand?s South Island, the nearby Auckland Islands, and the isles of Campbell, Stewart and Codfish. Their total population numbered nearly 7,000 birds just 30 years ago but today that total has fallen to closer to 4,000. The species seems to face threats from all sides: Feral cats and invasive stoats (a kind of weasel that also threatens kiwis) prey on their nests; bacterial diseases and a blood parasite have killed them by the hundreds; food has at times been scarce, possibly due to climate change; and ecotourists have been known to disturb the penguins? breeding colonies, lowering fledglings? chances of survival.

Now we have word of yet one more, growing threat to the penguins at coastal New Zealand. According to data presented this past weekend at a symposium on the species, an estimated 70 yellow-eyed penguins are known to die every year from entanglement in trawling nets or long-line fishing hooks used by commercial fishing vessels.

But that number might be an underestimate. According to marine ecologist Ursula Ellenberg, director at Eudyptes EcoConsulting, Ltd., more data is needed to understand the mortality rate of yellow-eyed penguins. Ellenberg, who has been studying the birds since 2003, told the symposium audience that there is a need for more monitoring of large commercial fishing vessels and the creatures that are caught in or die in their nets. Earlier this year conservationists attempted but failed to place human observers on commercial ships in two of the penguin?s primary habitat regions along the Otago Peninsula on South Island and the Foveaux Strait between South and Stewart islands.

Ellenberg reported that an electronic monitoring system is being tested on smaller boats that use set nets, fixed gill nets set into place with anchors. The system combines cameras, GPS devices and winch sensors to document what is being caught in these nets. The boats that use set nets are typically too small to carry human observers in addition to their crew. Set nets are the biggest threat to New Zealand?s critically endangered Maui?s dolphins (Cephalorhynchus hectori maui).

New Zealand?s Ministry for Primary Industries?which was formed in April following the merger of the ministries related to fisheries, agriculture and forestry?reported at the symposium that they are developing a five-year observation plan to see how fishing vessels affect all seabirds in the region.

Yellow-eyed penguins are kind of the ?odd ducks? of the penguin world. They nest in coastal forests and scrub patches. They are solitary animals, unlike some other penguin species which prefer groups. They are also quite vocal; their high-pitched calls, show below, earned them the Maori name hoiho, which means ?noise shouter.?

Photo by Harald Selke via Flickr. Used under Creative Commons license. Map via Wikimedia Commons

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=210b7b73cbc3a3b52cffe15a8cc63652

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Barracuda exposes online trade in fake Twitter followers

Security vendor claims boom in fake profiles is eroding value of social networking sites.

By Caroline Donnelly, 6 Aug 2012 at 16:08

Security vendor Barracuda Networks has shed some light on the shady business of people paying to artificially inflate their follower count on the social networking site Twitter.

The practice usually involves end users purchasing batches of ?fake followers? to bolster their number of Twitter fans and appear more popular.

The Barracuda?s research team has been tracking the initiative since May 2012, and discovered the average selling price of a batch of 1,000 followers is $18.

The higher the price, the more real these followers look.

As part of its investigation, the firm set up three Twitter accounts and purchased between 20,000 and 70,000 followers for each one from online auction site eBay.

Through this, the firm discovered 20 eBay sellers and 58 websites offering fake followers for sale, and claimed some of them could be making up to $800 a day.

?Dealers can apply obscure techniques to make them hard to detect, [for instance] by randomly following some famous and some average people or posting tweets grabbed from the Twitter stream,? explained the firm.

?This is one reason that the prices of followers vary dramatically on eBay and other online websites, ranging from $2 to $55 per 1,000 followers. The higher the price, the more real these followers look.?

The vendor also identified more than 72,000 fake Twitter accounts, which were typically set up around five months ago and follow an average of 1,799 users.

?Fake accounts normally follow a lot of people, but normally no [more] than 2001, indicating Twitter may internally use this number as a cut-off for abused account detection,? said the company in a blog post.

Meanwhile, 75 per cent of the people who buy fake followers have a URL in their profiles and nearly 49,000 followers.

?[Having a URL in your profile] means they might buy followers for website promotional purposes,? suggested the post.

Jason Ding, research scientist at Barracuda, said the company was amazed by size of the fake follower trading market.

?Creating fake Twitter accounts and buying followers is against Twitter?s terms of service and gradually erodes the overall value of the social network,? he said.

?If [Twitter] does not move faster, these fake accounts will continue to be created, blending into the massive Twitter population, bringing bigger and bigger impact.?

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Source: http://feeds.itpro.co.uk/~r/ITPro/Management/~3/JmLZErQ0YAM/barracuda-exposes-online-trade-in-fake-twitter-followers

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