Thursday, November 22, 2007

Spam

All About Spam

Feel free to reprint this article in newsletters and on
websites, with resource box included. If you use this
article, please send a brief message to let me know where
it appeared: kara333@earthlink.net

Word Count = 375
Word Wrapped to 60 characters per line
URL: http://www.karathecomputertutor.com
author photo: http://www.karathecomputertutor.com
date of copyright: March 2005

All About Spam
by Kara Glover
kara333@earthlink.net
Spam is annoying. Period. Why people would want to send all of us stupid messages about buying prescription drugs or getting some outrageously good mortgage rate is beyond me. Well, not really.
You might ignore those emails. But not everyone does. And that's why they're sent. Emails cost so little (or nothing) to send. So sending out a million of them could be a cakewalk. Let's say one out of every 1,000 recipients falls for their ploy. Someone just got 1,000 new customers!
How in the heck did those spammers get your address in the first place? Well, they actually use a variety of techniques. They use programs called spambots to search the web and pick up any email addresses that could be listed on websites. They use what's called the "Dictionary" technique, where they take a well-known email extension (earthlink.net, for instance), and make up all kinds of possible user names to go with it. For example, with me they could try the usernames "kara", "kara1", "kara2"


and so on, until they can confirm one of those connected to an earthlink.net extension is a valid email address. Kinda like going page by page through the dictionary.
Ever fill out a registration form on a website and find a little checkbox, probably near the bottom, asking if you want to receive additional information, newsletters, or something of that nature? Often the box is checked, and in order NOT to receive the info, you have to UNCHECK it (or else). Well if you miss those types of boxes on the wrong kinds of sites, your email addresses may be handed to spammers on a silver platter. Well, almost. Often a zillion email addresses are sold for next to nothing to spammers on CDs. (Couldn't you almost call those silver platters?)
Many internet service providers (those guys that keep you connected to the internet so you can send and receive email) use a variety of methods to block spam before it ever gets to you. Nevertheless, we all know that some spam inevitably gets through to our inboxes. That's when we need to take a proactive stance and install some sort of software to filter it out!
© 2005 by Kara Glover

About the Author

Kara is a Computer Tutor and Troubleshooter. For help on installing anti-spam software, check out this article on Kara Glover’s website: http://www.karathecomputertutor.com You can also find more articles, tips and tutorials on topics such as Microsoft Word., Excel, and PowerPoint there.

© 2006 "> - All Rights Reserved.

Friday, November 16, 2007

Animals

Animal Husbandry and Other Unnatural Acts: A Career in Dog Training

Do you like dogs? Do they like you back?

Well, in that case, maybe YOU have what it takes to make it in the ruff and kibble world of canine coaching. Maybe. But before you start barking up this career tree, it might be beneficial to get a little information first. The exiting world of dog training covers several areas of expertise, so consider which dog track you want to take.

So, like, what do I need to know? Isn't it just "Sit, Heel, Stay"?

I am so glad you asked. Dog training encompasses much more than simple submission commands. Yes, a career in dog training can and does involve obedience training, but it can also delve much deeper. For instance, you could become an Animal Behaviorist, or a Behavioral Consultant. These professionals burrow into Rover's psyche, working to dig up the long buried bones of his past. Rather than flea the past, they use it to see what makes him tick (Ooh, that one even made ME groan).

You mean I have to be a dog shrink?

Many in the dog-training field, especially Behaviorists, study not only veterinary science, but also psychology. So, in a way, you kind of become a "dog shrink" as you so eloquently put it. But this training helps with more than just the dog. Don't forget, the dogs you will be training generally have owners, and some dog owners don't realize that they may be the cause of the behavioral issues exhibited by their puppy pals (think of the mom of that snotty, screaming kid in the checkout line at grocery store who thinks she's a great parent), and that they need to learn how to interact more effectively with their pets. It's up to a trained dog specialist to uncover and rectify this.

So how much schooling up am I gonna need before I begin my career in dog training?

Many experts in the field of dog training will tell you it takes three to five years of serious, intensive study and hands-on dog training and handling to even become a good novice trainer. Becoming an experienced Master Dog Trainer takes many years of working with the animals, gaining valuable field (or park) experience. You will most likely even pay your dues with a few nips here and there (bites, not nerve-settling sips of schnapps). It's all part of the price - and the leash you can do, if you are serious about a career in dog training.

So, are there like, dog trainer colleges?

There are indeed schools that offer courses in canine training. The program lengths and costs vary from school to school, depending upon the type of study you wish to pursue. There are even online and home study courses (I am familiar with one that charges $995 for a home study video package), but anyone who seriously wants to work with dogs should look for a school with actual animals that you can touch. Sniff around and dig up a school that fits your situation.




The Animal Behavioral College (ABC, get it?) charges about $3000 for its hands-on program to become a Certified Dog Trainer, which takes around six months to complete. And there are some accredited universities and colleges that proffer animal behavior programs. These are not necessarily dog-specific, but nevertheless will assist you in beginning your career in dog training. Cornell University in Ithaca, NY; Guelph University in Ontario, Canada; and Tufts University in Boston, MA are three such universities. Standard college tuition would apply at these schools, but they might throw you a bone and let you apply for financial aid. Beg...beg...good boy!

And then I can become employed as a dog trainer and watch the scratch (money, not the flesh wound) roll in?

No.

Why not?

Good dog trainers - and by that you can read "employed" dog trainers - enter their careers in dog training because of their love of dogs. They work for the intrinsic pleasure of helping man's best friend, not for the money, power, or glory often associated with dog training. Initially, the novice dog trainer may even begin his career by working for a more experienced trainer as his assistant, trainee, or lackey. The pay grade for such positions is, of course, Lhasa Apso-sized - assuming you can find an experience dog trainer who will take you under his paw. If not, when was the last time you read a classified ad seeking a dog trainer?

The way many dog trainers collar a career in dog training is to become self-employed. Hang a shingle on the front door. This has been suggested by the American Dog Trainers Network, which states that you can have a part time career where, nationally, trainers earn an average of $20/hour. Not a bad living. But Uncle Sam is always snapping at the heels of the ambitious with his own statistical snarls and growls. The Occupational Outlook Handbook, put out by the U.S. Department of Labor, states that the median hourly earnings of non-farm animal caretakers were $8.21 in 2002 (the most recent year they have numbers for).

So what should I do? I love them pups!

The bottom line is that a career in dog training is something you do because you have a desire, passion, or drive to work with dogs, not because it's a quick, easy, lucrative career option. As with most any career choice, there is effort involved. Shed your fears (regular brushing helps), put on your shiny coat, and get out there and claw your way to your career in dog training. Or you can just sit...stay...roll over. Good dog.

About the author:

Albert Medinas has developed and maintains the website Dog Training Resources, which answers the most common questions people have about Dog Training. Please visit us at http://www.dogtrainingresources.net today.

© 2006 "> - All Rights Reserved.

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Weight Loss Program

If you're on a weight loss program you're under constant attack - attack from the food bandits all around you.

There is food waiting to ambush your weight loss efforts at every turn.

It's there on every street corner: available, fast, in huge portions and full of fat.
It's there at every checkout: convenient, brightly-packaged and calling "Eat me! Eat me!"
It's there at work for every occasion: birthdays, promotions, leaving parties, "because it's Friday".
It's there at home brought to you larger than life on every TV set, seductively advertised, calling from the fridge and pantry "I'm here! Come and get me! You know you want to!"

Given that the food bandits are out there, what can you do about them?

Be ready to defend yourself!

Know your weak spots - those food temptations you find hard to resist, and plan to

Avoid them as much as you can. Don't drive past fast food outlets even if it means a detour. Keep tempting high-fat snacks out of your home. Give TV ads a wide berth - in fact give TV a miss altogether and get out and do something. Walk away from offers of food, declining as politely and firmly as possible. "No thanks, I'm not hungry just now" should be enough.

Treat your encounter with food bandits with a sense of fun. Make a note in your mind that you've spotted one "Alert! Food bandit on left flank. Eyes right! Defeat!"

If you succumb once in a while to the food bandits, don't let it get you down. Brush yourself down and be ready to come out fighting against the next lot.

Be delighted each time you spot and overcome a food bandit. Feel proud that you were able to show who's in charge. You're the boss!

Once you recognise the food bandits for what they are, they lose their power. Each time you take them on and defeat them, you'll notice their influence over you diminish.

Gradually you get into the habit of ignoring the bandits. Long term result - a slimmer, healthier, beautiful you, in total control of the food you eat.

Healthy Skin

Achieving Youthful Healthy Skin with Vitamins A, C and E

We all want healthy skin. While the main reasons for pursuing healthy skin tend to be purely shallow and cosmetic in nature, healthy skin is beautiful and keeps us looking younger than our years and there are actually some practical health benefits to maintaining the good health for our skin. The purpose of the skin is to act as a barrier. It serves to prevent bacteria, viruses and other contaminants from entering the body and causing infection, illness and disease. There are many vitamins and minerals that help to keep skin healthy and thus be able to serve its vital role in the protection of the body.

Antioxidant vitamins such as Vitamin A, Vitamin C and Vitamin E are very important to healthy skin because it is these vitamins that share in the responsibility of controlling the damage that free radicals byproducts of energy production within the body and of environmental contaminants such as air pollution produce. Among the several types of damage done by free radicals is the destruction of collagen and elastin which are fibers that support the skin and keeps it looking supple. As these are damaged wrinkles and a lack of that youthful firmness can occur. Vitamin C also plays a part in the production of collagen making it essential to the function and look of the skin. Recent studies have found that Vitamin C and E used together may help to repair sun-damaged skin.

Vitamin A has its own important role in skin health and beauty in addition to its anti-oxidant properties. In terms of diet even small deficiencies can negatively affect the skin causing flakiness and dryness. Dryness can make lines and wrinkles that are much more apparent. Its primary use however, is as a topical solution for the treatment of severe acne and the reduction of lines and wrinkles themselves. Recent research has showed that a topical solution that contains both Vitamin A and Vitamin C can in some cases reverse the damage done by the aging process and by sun-damage.

Deficiencies in the Vitamin B complex can leave the skin prone to cracking, bleeding and dangerous skin


lesions that allow all kinds of bacteria, viruses and other contaminants to easily enter the body. But in terms of strictly cosmetic concerns even a little shortage of the Vitamin B complex can result in scaly and poorly textured skin. Topical preparations have been found to play an important role in the hydrating of skin cells leading to noticeably firmer and healthier looking skin.

Vitamin K has been found to relieve those awful dark circles under the eyes. Some research has found that creams made up of both Vitamin K and Vitamin A are more effective than those that just contain Vitamin K but researchers are still following up on these results.

Minerals important to the look and to the health of the skin include selenium, copper and zinc. Selenium whether used as a topical solution or taken in the form of a dietary supplement is thought to play a big role in the prevention of skin cancer. Copper, zinc and Vitamin C work together to form elastin which helps to support skin keeping it firm and healthy.

Topical solutions and dietary supplements can help to keep the skin healthy and youthful in appearance. However, it is important to recognize that these are powerful substances and using them within the standard guidelines of dosage is essential to good health. There is such a thing as too much of abusing such natural healing powers which could then result to a not so pretty sight. But when used correctly however, your skin can look better than ever.

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Note: This article may be freely reproduced as long as the AUTHOR'S resource box at the bottom of this article is included and and all links must be Active/Linkable with no syntax changes.
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About the Author

Charlene J. Nuble 2005. For up to date links and information about Vitamins, please go to: http://vitamins.besthealthlink.net/ or for updated links and information on all health related topics, go to: http://www.besthealthlink.net/

Thursday, November 8, 2007

FOODS

Fat Burning Compatible Foods

Fat burning compatible foods seem to be a popular topic around the gym these days. We also hear a lot about negative calorie foods which are considered a part of fat burning compatible foods. So if you are wondering what all the hype is about here is a simple explaination.

Fat burning compatible foods and negative calorie foods require more energy for your body to break down, absorb and then use than the actual calories that they contain. Eating these foods requires the body to create a calorie deficit that may help with weight loss.

Fat burning compatible foods are high in fiber, high in water content, and low in fat. They have a strong metabolism-boosting impact on the body and speed up the rate at which your body burns calories.

These foods require the metabolism to rev up and use the stored energy and fat to help in the digestion process. They are very healthy for you and you are probably already eating a lot of these foods.

Because these foods are considered to be fat burning compatible foods, there are no caloric limits. That means you may eat


any of these foods until you feel satisfied without feeling guilty.

Here are a few examples of fat burning compatible foods and negative calorie foods:


· Fruits: oranges, pineapples, grape fruit, and cantaloupe

· Vegetables: broccoli, cabbage, green beans and onions

· Breakfast foods: Oatmeal, low-fat milk and whole grain cereal

· Spicy foods: cayenne peppers and most Chile peppers

· Meats: Turkey, Chicken and lean beef

· Fish: Tuna and Salmon

· Beverages: Coffee, Green Tea and Black Tea

Fat burning compatible foods and negative calorie foods are easily implemented into your everyday diet and are healthy and delicious.

Copyright © 2005 Treadmill Info.com All Rights Reserved.

About the Author

This article is supplied by http://www.treadmill-info.com where you will find valuable information, ratings, reviews, articles and buying tips before you make the investment in quality fitness equipment. For more fitness related articles go to: http://www.treadmill-info.com/articles_1.html

© 2006 "> - All Rights Reserved.

Weight Loss

Discover the best weight loss exercise!

by: Armand Dupuis

The Best Weight Loss Exercise

The exercise the experts are keeping a Secret.

The easiest exercise in the world actually "Burns the Most Fat"!

There is only one weight loss exercise that's the best fat burning exercise for everyone by far, there's not even a close second.

However, most so-called weight-loss experts don't teach this exercise, either because they are ignorant of the facts, or more than likely, because they can't make any money from it.

They can't make any money from the best weight loss workout, because you don't need to join a gym, and you don't need to buy any exercise equipment to do it.

People who advise that...

You have to go through all the different exercise routines on all the different exercise equipment in a gym, or buy all this weird exercise equipment, or that you need to be running for weight loss, are just giving you the runaround.

Weight Lifting As a Weight Loss Exercise

Many people who call themselves experts, make the claim that since muscles burn fat, you need to build big muscles so that you can burn more fat, and so...

You should work with weights, because that builds the biggest muscles.

That's totally misleading, but it sells a lot of gym memberships, and lots of exercise equipment.

Many people are looking for a quick weight loss workout, and also, many fitness professionals (note that I didn't say experts), believe that the harder you work out, the more fat you will burn, but...

That's a Lie!

The people who make these kinds of claims, obviously haven't a clue how the human body works as it relates to weight control, and they should probably look for some other line of work.

The Fat Burning Workout Or Sugar Burning

Yes it's true that fat is burnt in the muscles, but so is sugar. All the really hard exercises where you sweat a lot and your muscles hurt, is burning practically nothing but sugar, and almost no fat.

Most professional teach that you have to work really hard to burn fat, and so the more motivated you are to have a fat burning workout, the harder you work, and the harder you work, the more sugar you burn, but practically no fat whatsoever.

You can go through all kinds of weight lifting routines for your weight loss workout, and even build big muscles, but they will be "sugar burning muscles", not fat burning muscles.

If you're a woman, you can build such big muscles this way, that you'll begin to look like a Guy, but you'll still be fat!

Walking for Weight-Loss

Realize that "walking for weight loss" is the absolute best weight loss exercise available. Unless you're already very fit, walking for weight loss is a much better fat burning exercise than running for weight loss.

It's all relative!

If you're unfit and overweight, especially if you're obese and a typical couch potato, then...

If you go running for weight-loss, you'll burn almost nothing but sugar and you'll probably be very sore the next day.

On the opposite extreme, if you're an experienced marathon runner, then your body is a very efficient "Fat Burning Machine", which burns almost nothing but fat during a run.

However...

Just ordinary walking won't do it for you, as there are 10 Secrets which we teach you in the free Slim America weight loss Project, which turns ordinary walking into a very efficient fat burning workout, but that's not all...

Not only is walking for weight loss a fast weight loss exercise and the best fat loss workout, but it will also a rebuild your metabolism so that you burn more fat the rest of the day, even when you're not exercising.

So you see, walking for weight loss, is really the best weight loss exercise available to you, because you really rebuild your metabolism, and that's the key to permanent weight loss.

Have a Great Life!
About the Author

Armand Dupuis is a Personal Trainer, Lecturer, Teacher, & Permanent Weight Loss Specialist, who has been a Serious Researcher into Human Consciousness for 5 Decades.

Mr. Dupuis has presently specialized his Teachings, into a powerful permanent and "free" Weight Loss System, and Information is available on his Web Site. http://www.slimamericaweightlossproject.com/ga



COMPUTER

Build your first computer from hardware scratches

Wow- if you do it first time and have some asset of time in your disposition – then go ahead and purchase motherboard, your favorite processor, memory, video card (probably it is better to purchase it external for advanced quality). You will also need computer case – first computer should probably go to the cheap one – with USB 2 ports from the front side – the only question – you might want to replace noisy cheap power supply with $50 dollars one. Processor fan – nowadays you will see the variety for all the tastes – get the one with adjustable spinning speed to regulate noise (if you could not place it into the basement of your house – I guess you live in apartment or student dormitory). Let’s go to details:
•Ahead of Generation. It is not a secret that when you build your own computer – you might overpay – in considering to what is available in the stores.. However you usually get ahead of technology. For example – it is still common when Dell/Compaq/IBM computers use PC2700 standard of memory. If you bought PC3200 – you have two years of being ahead of the competition
•Processor. If you build your computer from scratches – you should look into 64-bits processor from the beginning. Get AMD Athlon 64 3400+ at least
•Video Card. For $100 you can get maximum of memory and performance. This is why


we recommend to get external videocard
•DVD Writer. RW+/- unfortunately Japanese manufacturers are in the process of decision making on winning standards plus DVD of high density. Get both supported.
•Hard Drive. Decent motherboards support IDE raid and you could experiment with striping (raid 0). Then if you purchase two IDE disks 400 GB each – you will get 800 GB – unbelievable for supercomputers – but you are on your own and cosmopolitan individual – step forward and be ahead of competition.
•Troubleshooting. Understood and respected. First listen your mother board beeps and refer to its documentation. It might not see memory, graphical card, etc. When you are installing memory – be very careful to static electricity issue. When you are attaching your mother board to computer case – the most typical issue is motherboard shorting – so do not be surprised to try your motherboard first outside the case

About the Author

Andrew is Lead Software Developer in Alba Spectrum Technologies – USA nationwide Great Plains, Microsoft CRM customization company, serving clients in Chicago, Houston, Atlanta, Phoenix, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Miami, Denver, UK, Australia, Canada, Europe and having locations in multiple states and internationally ( http://www.albaspectrum.com )