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Gangs in El Salvador have disrupted the political, economic, and social processes of the country, resulting in institutional instability and societal insecurity amid widespread violence.
With an entrenched architecture that can reach even into the functioning of the state, gangs in El Salvador can be considered political actors with the salvadoor to exert economic and social power.
Violence perpetrated by gangs — and by state forces responding to gang presence — has contributed to El Salvador having the second-highest rate of violent death in the world Mc Evoy and Hideg An armed conflict framework of analysis is useful to address the breadth and severity of this violence, allowing for a broader mapping Alcova WY single woman gang activities and points of El salvador women for addressing El salvador women mitigating it.
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Women are gang members and they play crucial support functions for gangs; women are also seriously affected by gang violence and may serve as disruptors of gang activity. Understanding these elements is crucial for addressing the political, economic, social, and humanitarian impacts of gang activity.
As an exercise in re-examining theoretical frameworks — and due in part to a feminist analytical approach — this article draws upon literature from peer-reviewed journals and public-oriented publications, including investigative journalism, magazine coverage, and news reporting. We first define the theoretical frameworks used and briefly discuss their implications.
This article drew upon academic literature, reports by international organizations, investigative journalism, and news Korean cuban girl here for a buff guy to understand the roles that women play in gangs and in communities affected by gangs.
The depth and severity of armed violence in Salvadoran communities and elsewhere requires a broader, stronger, and more inclusive approach to human and community security. The term was coined in the late s by Mary Kaldor, writing about the end of the Cold War and the rise of more diffuse dynamics of mass violence.
Like other authors writing about the rise of intrastate El salvador women following the Cold War see Fearon and Laitin ; Kalyvas and Balcells ; and BlinKaldor explored El salvador women spectrum of violent activity El salvador women the El salvador women between types of warfare. Given these complexities, these wars are also extraordinarily difficult to end. UNSCR calls for the increased participation of women in decision-making in conflict prevention and resolution efforts at the national, regional, and international levels, highlights the gendered aspects of armed conflict, El salvador women calls for international organizations, states, and local actors to adopt El salvador women gender perspective in peace and security processes.
WPS efforts have typically been grouped into four pillars: As a crosscutting lens for analysis, the WPS framework is iterative in nature, evolving alongside changing conceptions of peace and conflict.
As new issues emerge in Adult Escort In Concord Ky conflict and security sphere, gendered analyses remain relevant to El salvador women violence and promoting peace. The WPS agenda is not without its critics. While it is not possible to summarize all of the thoughtful critiques here, the agenda has been criticized for lacking implementation Tryggestad and Truefor marginalizing anti-militarist feminism and normalizing violence Pratt and Richter-Devroefor being an agenda promoted largely by countries in the Global North Tryggestad and Prattfor woomen too state-centric, taking an essentialist view of women Kirby and Shepherdand for being heteronormative Hagen These critiques are well-reasoned and are important considerations for the future of the agenda.
However, this article focuses on and the WPS agenda as a framework because it remains a central focal point for gendered security El salvador women. This article seeks El salvador women engender salbador of gang violence as a phenomenon within the WPS field.
Since the end of the civil war inattempts at stability have been severely undermined by the presence and activities of transnational gangs. Yet the gangs mostly originated outside the country. Many Salvadorans migrated to El salvador women Angeles, where settling in amongst a complex patchwork of immigrant El salvador women created significant tensions Garsd Living adjacent to the thriving culture of Korean, Cambodian, and African American gangs, many young men and women turned to Salvadoran gangs to protect their community and to assert their dominance over other groups.
US officials responded to increasing violence in Los Angeles by Nude women Gravois Mills Missouri gang members. Upon return to El Salvador, gang members found a post-civil war environment strained by economic stagnation and infrastructure deficits.
During the civil war, small gangs pandillas had emerged in many of the neighborhoods of San Salvador, the capital, and in a few El salvador women towns Farber These pandillashowever, lacked the connection and large-scale organization of gangs like MS or Barrio 18 Farber They were mainly small-scale, neighborhood-based groups running petty crime schemes DeCesare ; El salvador women ; Garsd Womdn Los Angeles gang members quickly assimilated the pandillas into their complex ecosystem of gang membership, leadership, and rivalry.
Over the years, the transnational gangs gained members and increasingly asserted control in El Salvador. As Naughty looking sex Burleson gangs resisted, violence skyrocketed, and has continued to escalate in the decades since.
Indeed, while the FMLN had approximately 9, troops during the height of the civil war, a assessment of gang members found that there were 9, members in prison plus an additional 27, members on the streets Farah and Lum El salvador women the civil war officially ended in El salvador women, violence still permeates Salvadoran communities.
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In international humanitarian law, non-international armed conflict NIACarmed conflict between governmental armed forces and non-governmental armed groups or between non-governmental armed groups, is defined El salvador women common Article 3 of the Geneva El salvador women of and Additional Protocol II APII. Two criteria are used to determine whether a conflict reaches the appropriate threshold to be considered armed conflict: However, a rigid typology of violence makes understanding gang violence difficult.
Gang violence in El Salvador increasingly blurs political and private acts, with a significant toll on civilians.
Gangs hold informal and increasingly El salvador women decision-making power from their interventions at the national and community levels — political control gained, in part, from organized violence and organized suppression.
Scholars have argued that gangs should be considered in the same way that traditional political actors are, such as insurgents.
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El salvador women Thus, whether a gang is specifically commercial or ideological or a criminal or insurgent type organization is irrelevant. Its putative objective is to neutralize, control, or depose governments to somen self-determined El salvador women ends. MS, for example, has waged a bloody campaign to control key routes for illicit trade in cocaine, weapons, cash, and people Farah and Babineau Gangs provide El salvador women services and rarely reinvest in communities; the wealth amassed from illicit drugs and extortion benefits gang members but yields little other economic benefit.
The omnipresence of extortion El salvador women gangs significant control of public space — in other words, of territory Ellis The targeting of the transportation sector is a formidable strategy: Locally, gangs also subvert political processes by influencing mayors and local officials — using money or force Ellis Hickory NC sexy women negotiate with municipal candidates, supplying votes or temporarily reducing violence in certain neighborhoods and then maintain leverage over elected officials Clavel At the national level, gangs have infiltrated the police force and, to a lesser extent, the military, by sending gang members to enlist as new recruits Toledo Additionally, gangs work across the licit and illicit economies.
InSalvadoran law enforcement discovered legitimate businesses owned by gangs, worth millions of dollars Farah and Babineau Lonely sexy ready cock suckers identifies the national security challenges associated El salvador women transnational gangs: Gangs also send members to train as lawyers and accountants Ellissuggesting further that gangs seek political power to exert control and protect their owmen operations.
El Salvador | UN Women Watch
Deconstructing this typology is key to a greater understanding of gang violence. In El Salvador, this clash has contributed to the country having the second-highest rate womfn violent death in the world, behind only Syria and higher than Afghanistan Mc Evoy and Hideg Although a short-lived El salvador women tragic eomen that eventually led to a surge in violence El salvador women civilians, the negotiation demarcated gangs — once considered mostly as criminal enterprises — as non-state actors entering into formal dialogue with the state.
Following the failure of the truce, the government has increasingly interacted with the gangs as a more conventional enemy. These legal shifts also made it easier for the state to escalate action and violence against the gangs.
In El salvador women, the government deployed a force of 1, military members with armored cars and military-grade weaponry to fight gangs in rural areas BBC News Womrn force of these actions demonstrates the threat gangs pose as a non-state armed group. As gangs extort neighborhoods and infiltrate state institutions, they increasingly control territory and yield political power.
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Although men may appear as the prominent actors in gangs and in the state response, women play critical and unique roles as members of gangs, in communities in proximity to gang activity, and in responding to gang violence. To develop comprehensive and creative solutions to the widespread political violence of gangs, it is necessary to critically examine strategic engagement points — including how women participate in, shape, and are affected by gangs. Womenn literature on the WPS agenda is rich and detailed; scholars have delved into the gendered processes and impacts involved in issues such as post-conflict reconstruction, gender mainstreaming to create institutional reform, peacekeeping, transitional justice, security sector reform, countering violent extremism, and humanitarian Sex swapping Boise Idaho ny. However, gang violence has yet to be meaningfully addressed via a WPS lens.
Additionally, while gang violence in El Salvador Horney house wifes in St Elmo been well-studied, it woen rare for literature to discuss it as a gendered phenomenon. The literature that does see in particular the work done by El salvador women Hume often focuses on the El salvador women issue of violence against women, but not necessarily on women as leaders or decision-makers in peace and security issues.
It is not possible in this article to address all gendered security aspects of gang violence broadly El salvador women in El Salvador specifically, saalvador we call for additional scholarship on these critical El salvador women. Women play critical roles that allow gangs to function, and they are also powerful actors in combating gang violence. Understanding the roles women play in El salvador women societies like El Salvador creates new points for intervention and disruption of gang activities.
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Women are required for the operations of El salvador women, and they are also required for building a more peaceful El Salvador. Women perform a wide range of functions related to gangs in El Salvador.
Gangs are often conceptualized as male spaces, but women are active as gang members and provide support critical to the daily functioning of gangs.
Because gangs do not exist in a wpmen, community members who are not fully initiated El salvador women still play important roles in their daily operations. Understanding these relationships provides new points for engagement when working to prevent and mitigate gang violence.
'Men Kill Women Because They Can': Inside El Salvador's Devastating Femicide Crisis
Another study found that while 90 per cent of gang members in Guatemala are male, 40 per cent of those interviewed who claimed to be members of a gang were women Negroponte This shows a sense of pride among women who see themselves as being affiliated with a salavdor.
While women sometimes assume that they are members of a gang due to personal associations, the study found that the Ealvador duties and recognition associated with membership were not automatically El salvador women to these women Negroponte Farah and Babineau argue that men ascend within the hierarchy of MS, acting as lookouts, providing security, womn dispensing cocaine, until they are considered Ladies seeking sex Rowena South Dakota members; each step requires carrying out specific tasks, including murder, to prove their El salvador women saovador the organization.
Women may join gangs for many of the same reasons that men do, such as a need for a sense of belonging, economic survival, and protection from violence, but they may also be pulled El salvador women ways that are unique to women. Like men, women in El Salvador join gangs to address challenging economic, El salvador women, or social situations, such as experiences with poverty, unemployment, and violence by authorities. Younger women may join gangs to cope with child abuse, dropping out of high school, and sexual violence.
Violence in El Salvador Is Driving Women to the U.S. Border | Time
Joining a gang may be a strategy to manage this violence, especially given that gangs can El salvador women easy access to weapons and drugs. Isabel A. Women are also influenced to join by friends, boyfriends, husbands, and brothers who are Salvadoe. Broadly speaking, gang membership may provide both security and a measure of independence for women. Many women, especially those in relationships with gang members, do not officially become gang members themselves because women often face different — and harsher — requirements for joining.
Once women have committed to the gang, their experiences and roles remain salvavor gendered. They El salvador women often Ladies seeking sex Ladora Iowa consulted during decision-making processes and are never accepted as leaders with the ability to command male members.
Due to the symbolic importance of their biological salvaeor in growing gangs, women El salvador women Central American gangs have historically served as care providers for the group. Some gangs use women for tasks related to transporting weapons or drugs, El salvador women because the risk of being arrested is greater for a man or fewer women have criminal records Santacruz Giralt and Ranum Women gang members in El Salvador are often involved in smuggling cell phones and drugs into prisons and supporting kidnapping activities by luring or tricking victims Wolf Women play active and irreplaceable roles in gangs, directly contributing to the ability of the gang to function economically and politically.
The violence gripping El Salvador affects women in a different way than men. Within the current security crisis, gang and security force violence has exacerbated. Women and 'New Wars' in El Salvador. Stability: International Journal of Security and Development, 7(1), p DOI: livingouthislove.com El Salvador: Information Gathering Mission Report - Part 2. The Situation of Women Victims of Violence and of Sexual Minorities in El Salvador.
They provide the labor that allows El salvador women to profit and to expand their areas of control. While it is possible for women to achieve a leadership role in MS and Barrio 18they face challenges from men and women who would El salvador women be under the leadership of a man Santacruz Giralt and Ranum Understanding the nuance of these experiences provides key points of entry for dismantling the structures that allow gangs to maintain dominance in the communities in which they operate.
The prevention and reduction of violence against women — especially sexual and Women seeking casual sex Ages-Brookside Kentucky violence — must be a key tenet of addressing gang violence.
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Earlier this month, Money Magazine released its list of the 10 Best Places To Live In America and Bergen County's own North Arlington came in number 8. Many of the town's residents were not surprised as they already know what a great place it is to call home.
Money Magazine looked at communities with a population between 10,000 to 100,000 and based its list on eight broad categories: cost of living (for instance, how high are the taxes?), the economy (are there new jobs being created?), housing ( is the area's real estate appreciating and are homes still affordable?), education (what is the area's graduation rate?), crime (is living there a crime risk?), convenience (how is the commute?), cultural, and recreational amenities (do residents have access to entertainment, museums, and libraries?). The list also eliminated those towns that had double the national crime risk, lacked ethnic diversity, or had less than 85% of the state's median household income.
Residents of North Arlington enjoy living in an area with a small-town feel yet have all the perks one would expect while living in the city. Just 15 miles from the financial district in New York City, it is ideal for commuters and it offers residents an excellent school district, as well as having a low crime rate.
When it comes to entertainment North Arlington provides easy access to the Meadowlands Sports Complex, where spectators can watch the New York Giants or the New York Jets play. Those living in North Arlington also enjoy spending time at the 85-acre Riverside County Park, which offers tennis courts, a dog park, fitness center, bocce ball, and a playground.
North Arlington truly is a great place to call home, earlier this year I had the honor of selling this great home in North Arlington. If you would like to call North Arlington home contact me today.


So one of the biggest things I've done when trying to get back into being creative is to start reading craft books again. I've already read a bunch, so I went into my ebook library and picked a few to start rereading.
The reason I did that is simple. I felt like I forgot how to write. It had been several months since I had written fiction, and I wasn't feeling confident in my abilities anymore. The first time I sat down to write, I stared at the screen for half an hour wondering how to start. I wasn't very successful that first session.
The truth of the matter is that writing is a muscle that can get atrophied if it's not used. It has to be exercised, even if it's just a little bit every day. So you don't end up staring at a screen, wondering why you can't remember how to do it.
Right now, I'm rereading all my how to write a screenplay books. I actually have no interest in writing a screenplay, but I've found the plotting advice is tight in almost every one of them. Because they have to write a story in 100 pages that generally takes novelists 300 to do.
Obviously, the format is different, but it is still a very condensed version of what novelists do. So as a result, I feel like screenplay writers have this very unique talent to boil away the fat and just leave the meat of the story when they write. I think that's a very important lesson that all story writers should learn to do, so that when they are writing, they know what is the fluff they don't need, and what they do need to make it an amazing read.
And then finally, I'm reading Jennifer Probst's Write Naked. It's all about her journey as a creative, and finding herself in the midst of losing herself. It's not quite what I expected from a "how to be an author" book, but I love her as a person, and I knew I would love that book. And you know, I do. I struggled a lot with failure in 2016, and a lot of it bled into 2017. So it's good to know that truly "successful" authors can feel like a big, fat failure too.
The strangest thing is that I was writing this blog post, and then came across that book. Someone meant that book for me. I'm glad I found it. I'm thoroughly enjoying the read. I imagine I'll write more about it after I finish the book. Honestly, I'm just happy to have my writing juju back. I'm happy that creativity is back in my life and that I'm feeling good about it again.
So let's talk. Have you ever had a creative drought? What's the one thing that jump started your creativity when you started to pull out of it? What made you come back to it?


The ePad Ink is the first ePad model to include an LCD screen. This allows a signer to view their signature on the pad itself, before applying it to a document.
The ePad Ink is the first ePad model to include an LCD screen. This allows a signer to view their signature on the pad itself, before applying it to a document. The ePad Ink is also capable of using the screen to display black and white images, as well as ask the signer some simple questions ("Would you like a newspaper delivered to your hotel room?") or affirmation text ("I accept these terms and conditions").
The LCD screen makes the ePad Ink ideal for customer facing applications on, for example, trade counters, as being able to see their signature appear under the stylus helps put people at ease with this technology when they are first introduced to it.
With any of our esignature solutions, you can cut back considerably on the paper trail produced by your office, potentially even cutting paper out completely, which will make your business more environmentally friendly, as well as provide an immediate visible saving – all that printer ink you no longer need!
Also available as a free download is a piece of software called pDoc Signer. This is a standalone application which can be used to open PDF documents, complete any forms they may contain, and sign the document, all without requiring a full version of Acrobat.
If you are in the UK, and would like to order a single ePad Ink, please feel free to do so from the web store. If, however, you require multiple units, or desire them to be shipped outside of the UK, please give us a ring on +44 1670 361 261 to discuss your requirements.
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Just because you subscribe to cable or satellite doesn't mean you have to use the provided set-top box. In an effort to become part of the cord-cutting landscape, many of the major cable and satellite providers, who double as internet service providers, let users subscribe and then access all programing via apps rather than the cable box or even the tuner in the TV.
Did you know that people in or near big cities can receive the major network channels (ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CW), plus PBS and local stations in Hi-Def for free? It's called broadcast digital TV. I was able to get thirty channels total in Providence, RI and over 100 in Los Angeles, CA. It takes a little leg work to set it up, but I'll guide you through it.
We think it's worth the upgrade to the Hopper though, because along with all the other awesome Hopper features, DISH has integrated Amazon Alexa voice commands into its DVR experience. No longer must you sift through the couch-cushion chasms to find your lost remote. You can simply tell Alexa to turn on This Is Us and cry your eyes out with the rest of us.
Sony's cable-replacement service began life as a PlayStation exclusive, but now you can find PlayStation Vue just about anywhere. Viewers can choose from among four packages, ranging in price from $45 per month to $80 per month (although these prices can vary by location). Each plan will land you staples such as Cartoon Network, CNN, Discovery, Disney Channel, FX, Syfy, TBS and a variety of broadcast networks, depending on where you live. You can also record hundreds of programs and hang onto them for 28 days at a time. What really puts PS Vue at the top of the list is the service's interface, which is sleek, fast and instantly comprehensible. The service's DVR feature is also simple and robust.
For original programming, it started weak, but upped it a notch with Casual, which got the critics interested and earned Hulu its first Golden Globe nomination. Now it's got a real cool factor thanks to the multi-award-winner A Handmaid's Tale. It's also made itself the exclusive place to watch the entire back catalog of classic shows like Star Trek, South Park, Seinfeld, the original CSI, and a bunch of Cartoon Network/Adult Swim shows. It has a smattering of movies, but really, Hulu is all about the TV shows.
You might think that local news and cable news would be easy to find via your set-top box, but even if you get a live TV subscription, it may be missing your local channels, and it may not have your preferred cable pundits. (Fox News, for example, isn't available on every service.) Hulu With Live TV will get you a lot of what you need with minimal hassle, but do check out your local line-up on the Hulu website first.
Some people use a game console for accessing streaming services and even as a solution for live TV and a DVR, such as Xbox One or the Sony Playstation Vue streaming service. The reason we do not recommend these as live TV, DVR or streaming options is because using a game console in the always-on manner that is required for watching TV uses a LOT of power. It is the equivalent of adding another refrigerator to your household and you can expect your electric bill to go up about $8-$10 per month. It's just not a responsible way to watch TV.
Remember the days when you could watch network television for free? (those under 25, ask your parents). Well those channels are still available at no cost...if you have an antenna. And no, we're not talking about the clunky rabbit ears of old. Antennas have changed substantially in looks and performance over the last several years. Breakthroughs in technology spurred by development of the tiny but powerful digital antennas in smartphones have been adapted to the realm of TV reception. The result? "TV antennas today are 10% of the mass they were decades ago," says Richard Schneider, president of Missouri-based manufacturer Antennas Direct. "And the move to an all digital transmission that the FCC mandated back in 2009 has put those TV signals in a higher frequency which means a better signal with less noise".
Most cable companies will send a representative to your home to install the TV, phone, and internet equipment. Usually the service provider will set up an installation date shortly after you order the package. The setup should take no longer than an hour. After the setup, the representative will give you a brief overview of how to use the equipment, which is usually straightforward. If you have any technical problems after the representative leaves, call the support line for additional instructions.
Cox is one of the few providers that offer the option to self-install your service. The catch? It'll cost you $20 — basically charging you to DIY. Your alternative is a $75 professional installation. This doesn't seem to hurt its customer satisfaction though, as it scored 65 out 100 from Consumer Reports and 63 out of 100 from the ACSI — both scores above Comcast and Mediacom.
For Dennis Joyce, the decision to cut the cord came down to a surprising realization: he and his wife only watched three cable channels. For $160 a month, he received basic cable and internet from Spectrum. But when Spectrum announced that its new digital rollout would require extra equipment for Joyce's three TVs and increase his costs, he'd had enough.
Beware of the trial period for Sling, they charge you on the very minute your trial expires and will not refund your money. I just called because there was a 12 hour delay from the time my trial expired and I was charged and when I cancelled (my fault, I know). Thought I'd call and explain the mixup thinking the trial was for the full day and I cancelled at 8am the next day, they will not refund my money. I mentioned that seemed like big cable company treatment and the rep didn't seem to care, company policy is not to refund any partial months. Seems to me like a great way to sucker a bunch of potential new customers into paying for a month, not a fan of that type of business practice.

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Phooey. Or as Nero Wolfe spelled it, pfui.
This question always takes me back to the 1950s and the olden, golden days of Madison Avenue when everyone lived in NYC. While the working poor were sleeping their summer evenings off on the cool of their fire escapes, the more well-to-do were escaping to their summer digs, where the full-time mom let the children try to drown themselves in the lake or the Atlantic Ocean while she rested in the shade of a tree or umbrella with her lemonade (liberally spiked with vodka) and her Summer Reading.
These days, your summer reading is likely to consist of a paragraph or two on your smart phone hastily crammed into the short few minutes between picking the kids up from summer day camp and the dinner making, laundry doing, bedtime madness to follow.
If you're lucky, your kids are older and you can get in a few paragraphs or maybe even some pages (!) before bed, preferably with a glass of wine.
But whatever your situation, you are not likely to be considering which book you will lovingly peruse over the next few glorious, slow summer weeks.
But we'll probably never hear the end of the question "What's on your summer reading list?" It's a marketing ploy that has petrified roots in the book world. Every year we will be asked this question and those of us old enough to remember back in the day will sigh and hear the faint sounds of ice cubes melting in lemonade with the musical tinkling of wind chimes. And people too young to remember will wonder what the heck they're talking about.
The Truffle Hunt – Part 3.
Joa wrung out yet another compress and placed it on Acan's head, then continued sponging his body with the creek water.
It had been difficult to bring him this far. Getting Acan up on his back while still holding onto the Badjel's leash had been the trickiest part. From then on it had been a matter of staying on his feet and continuing to trudge forward with only the occasional glance up to gauge the distance to the forest. Tall shrubs or thin trees started to make a spotty appearance and the air seemed to cool a little. When there were a few of the plants together, Joa would lean a little against them to get a brief respite from Acan's slack weight. He did not dare let Acan down or even to kneel to give his screaming back and leg muscles a rest. He was not sure that if he did, he would be able to rise again.
Once they were within the wood, the trees grew closer together and the air was distinctly cooler. This gave Joa a much needed second wind and he managed to carry Acan in to the point where the sky was largely obscured by branches. Magic or no magic, what they both needed was water and soon.
Just when Joa thought his strength might have finally run out, the Badjel started pulling on the leash, headed off of the cobblestone road and deeper into the woods. Joa knew he did not have the strength to restrain the animal, so he let go of the leash and waited to see if it would run away as it had done the first time.
Instead, it ran forward then came back to wait until Joa and Acan were within a few feet, then it dashed off again. After a while, Joa had heard the blessed sounds of water over rocks and tried to quicken his pace. The trees thinned near a gentle slope and at its bottom, Joa had seen the Badjel alternately swimming in and drinking from a large creek. Muttering praise to the gods, Joa had carefully descended the slope and gently lain Acan at the creek's edge. Then he had walked into the water and sat down, then lay down, his head outside on a bed of pebbles.
The first thing he had done after his muscles had stopped trembling was to tear off the bottom of his inner robe and make compresses. Another piece became a wash cloth, which he had used to sponge the water onto Acan's hot skin. He had considered putting Acan into the creek, but worried that doing so might shock his friend's weakened body and make things worse.
He had been sponging the water onto Acan for some time now. The Badjel was lying nearby and the loop of the leash was once again around Joa's wrist. He was no longer sure it was necessary, but he somehow felt better to have this connection to the animal.
The newly-named Tosh wrinkled his snout and sneezed.
Joa's heart stopped a moment then beat again in a quick rhythm. "Acan." He leaned over to see his friend's black eyes open and clear.
Joa helped him to stand, and followed by Tosh, they walked halfway up the slope to where a few young trees grew in a cluster. Joa took off his outer robe and spread it over the moss, then helped Acan do the same. They sat down and Joa re-bandaged the knife wound, which was still red but did not look any worse.
Joa reached over and pulled off the tie holding Acan's long, black hair. He finger-combed through the hair to loosen it and remove the tangles. Acan sighed. Combing each other's hair was something they used to do after their bath at the end of a day of hard play. It was a motion both familiar and soothing, and Joa relished the opportunity, which he had not had for ten years, and might never have again. He felt tears prick his eyelids, but he blinked them firmly away.
At that moment Joa's stomach growled.
Now it was Acan's turn to pause.
They said nothing for a while. Joa knew Acan was thinking about their situation. Stubborn he could be, but his weakened condition must surely give even him pause. There were faint sounds that seemed to echo in the moist air, and Joa presumed they were animal noises, though none sounded familiar.
They lay down. The spongy moss was not uncomfortable to lie upon and Joa could feel sleep coming rapidly upon him.
Joa woke to an odd sound.
When he realized he was sitting up and holding his breath, the sound was gone. Joa looked around and saw Tosh creeping towards him. The Badjel uttered his growl-purr and insinuated his head under Joa's hand.
"Was that you, Tosh?" Joa whispered. "Come." He patted his lap and the Badjel climbed up, turned around twice, then lay down and closed his eyes.
The sky was, if anything, dimmer than it had been when Joa and Acan had lain down, though it was still light enough for Joa to see; somewhat like the dusk he was used to on Yume. He wondered how long they had been asleep. He glanced at Acan, and his friend seemed to be resting well. There were no signs of fever that Joa could see. He let his gaze linger awhile on his friend's face, but turned away when he began to feel melancholy.
He lay back down, but there was something underneath him. Tosh's leash. As he pulled it free, he remembered that he could probably read the characters, now. After some puzzling and turning the leash this way and that to get the best light on it, the script started to come together for him. It strongly resembled a hand seen in a calligraphic painting his Master had given him to study at one point. One of the oldest scrolls they had at the school, it had been painted more than 200 years ago and was a poem about the change of seasons. When he had translated it, he and the Master had discussed his translation and compared it to others and then talked about the calligraphy. Joa had copied it many times until he and the Master had determined he had probably learned as much as he could from it; at least at this stage of his training.
"When…" he could not make out the second word. It seemed to be a name of some kind. "milks at dawn…let it…run." What a strange saying. Joa could not recall ever having heard it before. Let what run? Possibly the Badjel. That made a sort of sense. But…what was the something that milks at dawn?
"You're awake." Acan's eyes opened.
"I heard a noise. Probably Tosh. Then I remembered about being able to read the inscription on his leash." Joa told him when he had recognized the characters and what he had determined they meant.
To Joa's surprise, Acan moved closer to him, putting his head on Joa's shoulder. He had no idea what would happen in the near future, let alone what might occur after they returned to Yume, but for this small bit of time, Joa felt he could be happy.
The next time Joa awoke, it was to find Acan's hand over his mouth.
Joa nodded and Acan removed his hand to point across the creek.
Farther downstream from them there were many reed-like plants growing near the water's edge. Nearly camouflaged among them were ant-like insects, some of them as large as a pony. They were mottled in dull colors with eyes as big as a man's hand with fingers outspread; their mandibles were curved and wickedly serrated. Each insect had two pairs of arms and in one pair they held large, dark, rounded objects which they set down on the creek bank and carefully turned this way and that until they were satisfied with the position.
As soon as the objects were situated as desired, the insects turned towards the water and began digging around the plant roots. One found something and brought it up, wriggling. To Joa, it looked like an eel, but had many legs like a centipede. He thought about how he had freely sat in the water upstream from such a thing and felt ill.
The insect took the writhing water creature over to one of the objects on the bank and dangled it. To Joa's surprise and horror, a wide gash appeared in the object, full of pointed, yellow teeth. The teeth spread wide and the insect dropped the eel-like animal into the gap. The yellow teeth snapped shut upon it and the mouth moved as the animal was eaten.
Joa and Acan looked at each other.
The Man-eater Truffles were cared for and fed by the giant insects, who Joa could easily believe might snap a man into pieces and deliver those pieces to the yellow teeth.
There was a sharp growl-bark and a tug on the leash as Tosh strained against it. Both Joa and Acan made moves to quiet the Badjel, but the insects seemed not to have heard the noise.
"Maybe they're deaf?" Joa hazarded.
There was that insufferable grin.
Acan said nothing for a long while, but Joa was sure that if he wanted the Truffles as badly as he seemed to want them, he would have no option but to agree.
Acan put his hands up to his head and squeezed his eyes shut. After a moment, he opened them and nodded.
They crawled off the outer robes they had used as bedding and tied them together at the sleeves.
They crept down the slope nearer the water; the Badjel growl-barking the whole way.
The insects were still feeding the Truffles. To Joa's eyes it seemed as though the Man-eaters were a little larger than before.
One of the insects fed a Truffle, but instead of returning to the creek, it took the Truffle in two claws and raised it above its head, careful of the Truffle's teeth. With the other pair of claws, it stroked the bottom surface of the creature. After a few such strokes, a milky fluid was dispensed from the bottom of the Truffle. The insect spread its mandibles wide and swallowed the fluid.
Joa was glad he had not eaten, certain he would now be revisiting that meal in a most unpleasant way. Beside him, Tosh was beginning to keen and then to howl. He wanted to be free to run.
Acan nodded and Joa pulled Tosh closer to him. The Badjel was as frantic as when they had first arrived in the Gateworld and he had broken out of his cage. There was no doubt that he was reacting to an instinct he could not resist.
"Come back safely, Tosh," Joa whispered, and released him.
As soon as he was free, Tosh ran straight at the Truffles. Following behind him, Joa thought the Badjel would most likely grab the nearest and run. He hoped the direction in which Tosh ran was the direction in which they needed him to run. Joa and Acan had already set their own sights on three Truffles that were unguarded and fairly close together and they had their sheathed blades ready to knock the creatures into their makeshift bag.
Yet, instead of continuing on to take a Truffle, Tosh was heading for the insects. And with each step he took, he grew larger. By the time he reached the first insect, he was as large as they were. He fell upon three of them grouped together and his weight knocked them into the creek. Using his tusks, claws, and teeth, he savagely shredded them before wheeling around and heading for new targets, barking and keening.
The insects, so long unused to being hunted themselves, fell into confusion. They offered only a token resistance. The majority of them scurried back to their Truffles, snatched them up, and ran. Six Truffles were left sitting on the creek bank where they were easily pushed or knocked into the bag.
Joa and Acan worked to knot the improvised bag carefully and Acan found a branch to push under the knots so they could carry the bundle more easily and safely.
Tosh's piercing keen could be heard fading into the distance. It continued for a while, then stopped. Obviously, the Badjel had pursued the insects, harrying them. Joa wondered if they had gone to ground in the burrows Acan's scrolls had mentioned. Just at the point where he was concerned they might have to leave without the animal, Tosh trotted back into sight, licking his lips.
In the creek, one mandible moved slowly, its owner not quite dead. With a squeak, Tosh jumped upon it as though it was a favored toy. Bracing his forefeet against the body, he tugged at the mandible until it came free, then crunched it between his teeth while he jumped up and down on the carcass until it sank under the creek water. Still biting on the broken mandible, he came to Joa and sat still to have his leash re-attached. He was still larger than his normal size, but rapidly becoming smaller.
They climbed carefully up the slope, gingerly carrying the six Truffles in the bag between them and Joa set them in the direction of the cobblestone road. Tosh trotted beside them, looking pleased with himself and biting and chewing the mandible until he had eaten all of it.
The Gate was still shut when they arrived, but Acan told Joa he thought it would open soon. They settled down to wait, and now that the adventure was nearly over, Joa found himself feeling somewhat shy and embarrassed by what Acan had told him earlier. It was definitely more than he had known he wanted when he had made the discovery of his own feelings, much more. He reasoned that no matter what happened in the future, this experience, insects and all, would remain a joyful memory.
Acan pulled on Joa's hand to bring him down next to where he sat by the bag of Truffles, which moved occasionally as one of the creatures opened its mouth and tried to bite another. Tosh had come close to sniff at it, turned his back and kicked dirt on it with his hind legs. Then he had settled down for a nap.
Joa savored that a moment, smiling.
This time, Joa was sure Acan's sigh was a happy one.
"I'm so happy." Acan picked up the hand he held, and kissed it.
"Why?" Joa was sincerely puzzled.
"As if I would be interested," Joa moved his face out of Acan's hands.
"What is this plan you've been talking of? The one that's required so much support and a dangerous trip here to get these?" Joa indicated the bag of Truffles.
Though the thought of Acan being joined to someone he did not love for the rest of his life made Joa's heart sink, he had to admit it was a clever ploy. Rather than having to ally with a family that suited the Daitoh's needs, Acan could make the match best for the interests of House Loha. It was what a responsible Lord would do for his domain and Joa would support Acan's decision — and Acan's wife — to the best of his ability, even if it meant never hearing another word of love from the one he loved.
He felt lightheaded when Acan pulled him close for their first kiss, which was followed quickly by the second and then the third. Eventually, Joa lost count.
Though happy being held within Acan's arms, Joa's thoughts were whirling around in his head. What might the future be like for the two of them? He had never heard of a marriage between two men and wondered if it was even legal. Certainly, it would not have been possible between a Lord and his retainer. But Acan's father's Will making Joa family dealt with that. Still, the whole thing rested on very technical details. There was sure to be an uproar, even with the work Acan had been doing over the last five years to gain support. Would the Daitoh be willing to keep to the agreement? Or would he find a way to get around it?
A noise drew their attention to the Gateway. Tosh's ears perked up and Joa scooped him up and placed the Badjel into the front of his robe, making him less visible. He and Acan stood and took hold of the bag of Truffles. Then they walked forward to where the small door was slowly swinging inward, opening onto a future that Joa had never imagined for himself. Now that he could imagine it, he had no intention of letting it get away from him.
So I came across this post in the NYT by Gary Gutting from June about relativity in choosing your reading pleasure. Gutting referenced this post in the New Yorker by Arthur Krystal which posits that, if long-lived (and a little lucky) any genre writer can become a literary lion. In the end, it seems that what separates the genre writer from being a literary author is the number and kind of flourishes we use in our work.
Are genre novels inherently inferior?
…the standards we appeal to in support of comparative judgments within a genre (complexity, subtlety, depth, authenticity and so on) could just as well be used to judge one genre, overall, better than another.
Does Hammett's Red Harvest have less complexity, subtlety, depth, authenticity than, say, Les Miserables? And how many of the giants of literature – like Dickens – started out as less than adored by book critics? And if rhetorical flourishes are to be the yardstick, then what of Steinbeck and Hemingway?
When I'm asked what I write, I generally see the look of interest fade quickly to dis-interest, if not distaste, when I reply 'urban fantasy." I could probably get a better reaction if I said, "mystery" (with vampires and ghosts), since mystery has become what I'd call a respectable genre. Or maybe I'd get a better reaction if I said, "urban fantasy like Harry Potter." But Rowling's work and mine are alike only in being under the same, very wide, umbrella, so to link them would be misleading.
Though Urban Fantasy has become a potential Promised Land of best seller-dom (HP, 50 Shades of Grey, Twilight), it's more than fair to say that hasn't made it quite respectable. Not as respectable as The Surrendered by Chang-Rae Lee (here's the New Yorker Review), which is "A haunting and often heartbreaking epic whose characters explore the deep reverberations of love, devotion and war." This was the 2011 Pulitzer Prize Fiction winner, but I had to look it up on the Pulitzer site because I've never heard of it, stuck as I am in my genre ghetto.
Can a book's worth ever be known to anyone but its reader? And will it always be relative? Then how are some books considered "serious" and others not?
We all know that being judged good enough for the Pulitzer Prize is not the same as everlasting glory and riches. It matters what you wrote before and what you will write after. Rex Stout may end up being more remembered by readers than Chang-Rae Lee.
Here's what HarperCollins is doing for Michael Chabon's ("The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay") new book, "Telegraph Avenue" – morphing an indie bookstore into a record shop.
What's the difference between Chabon's work and Lee's? Is it more 'accessible'? Chabon's work would still be considered more serious than Stout's, right? Is that why he gets a quarter of a million marketing stunt budget?


Crete is one of the must-visit places in the Mediterranean and attracts tourists in thousands each year. Its primary city and capital Heraklion serves as the gateway to this island and boasts of a number of attractions itself. In fact, people with only a day or two to spare will find it difficult to see everything the city and the surrounding countryside has to offer. One way to take care of this is to opt for a car rental that will let tourists get the best out their vacation.
They get to maximize their time on the island: Most tourists club Create with Greece during their tours. These plans call for sightseeing around a lot of places in a very short time. The only way to do this in Create is to opt for your own rental that will let you visit the places you like for the time you want. You can stop to admire views you prefer instead of being told by the tour guide which scenery is the best. A car rental also lets you visit places off the beaten track and not on many tourist itineraries.
With a car rental, you can in a day or two, squeeze in all the cities and the countryside has to offer. Crete is famous for its nooks and crannies that provide a spectacular view over the terrain and the blue sea. You can also stop at village cafes and have a traditional meal and a drink.
The best car rental agencies are in the city: Though Create has a few other towns besides Heraklion, the top car rental agencies are based in the city. The reason for this is simple. The city airport serves as the entry point for most of the tourists, and this allows the car rental agencies to get more customers for themselves. Moreover, their dealings with international tourists mean that the better car rental agencies provide the best services. Most rental cars in the city have proper insurance and other documents in place. They also provide GPS systems in their cars that ensure you do not get lost. You may also get discounts and other deals. You may not be so lucky if you try to get these services in other cities as the car rental agencies, many not have a branch there or may not have cars that have all the amenities you need.
More car models to choose from: There are also more car models that you can choose from in the city than in other parts of Crete. This is important as you should pick a car that you are comfortable driving or a model that you have driven before. This will allow you to be at ease as you will know the normal bells and whistles that the model has and will not have to concentrate only on driving and forget the views. This is more important if you have your family with you.


Enjoy stunning views of the Great Sound from this beautifully finished, relatively new, two story townhouse in Southampton. One of only two homes in the complex with 1,600 square feet of generous living space, offering a modern kitchen with granite counter tops and modern cabinetry. There is a spacious dining room and separate but open plan living room, plus a powder room on the ground level, upstairs features a master bedroom with balcony, offering delightful water views. In addition, the large en-suite bathroom includes a Jacuzzi tub and walk-in shower. A good sized second bedroom has separate bathroom with bathtub and shower. There is plenty of parking and a pleasant garden area. This unit is ready to move into, fully air conditioned and has its own 11,500 gallon tank.


text:
Edmonton's 1957 City Hall
Lawrence Herzog
Edmonton's second City Hall was a news-making building right from the beginning. Completed in 1957 as one of Canada's first modernist city halls, the building on the north side of 102A Avenue between 99 and 100 streets was daring and controversial.
Like many other modernist buildings constructed in the city during the period, its cutting-edge design was never fully appreciated by most Edmontonians. The concrete and plaster were barely dry when it was criticized for being inadequate for the needs of the booming city. It survived just 33 years and was demolished starting in 1989 to make way for the current City Hall.
The story of the 1950s building goes back two decades earlier, when the City began holding informal discussions about the need to replace the 1913 Civic Block. World War II intervened, and it wasn't until growth pressures brought by the oil-driven boom that started in 1947 compelled the City to act.
A Civic Centre Committee was formed and, in 1953, tentative plans were announced to construct a building that would accommodate all the offices in the 90,000-square-foot Civic Block and city functions that had spilled into several other buildings downtown. The budget was set at between $2 million and $2.5 million, and Alberta architects were invited to compete for $10,000 in prizes for the winning design.
The competition idea turned out to be too complex, and instead, city council commissioned the Edmonton architectural firm of Dewar, Stevenson and Stanley to complete the design. Their plans were made public on April 2, 1954.
Maxwell Dewar, who was a former architect for the City of Edmonton, foretold the future when he said that he expected citizens would be a little shocked. But he was confident Edmontonians would grow to admire the modern-style building with its three distinct sections for legislative, administration and consumer services.
The daring design called for a double wedge-shaped structural steel building 123 feet high with 130,000 square feet of floor space, and a council chamber suspended 12 feet above the ground next to the front entrance. The building measured 180 feet long, and its wedge shape made it 58 feet wide at the two ends, and 80 feet wide in the middle.
The ninth storey was a rooftop cafeteria topped with an undulating canopy. Horizontal aluminum window louvres provided shade over south-facing windows. Three fully automatic, electronically operated elevators travelled at a speed of 500 feet per minute.
The new structure was envisioned as the northern anchor of a long-planned civic centre around the square. A story in the April 3, 1954, edition of the Edmonton Journal quoted Dewar as saying that the proposed building was to be "as dignified and functional as possible in a modern style but not to be bizarre or modern merely for the sake of being modern." Citizens were quick to respond, and the suspended council chamber was dubbed with a variety of nicknames including grand piano, sardine tin, casket, and bath tub.
Dewar said that the architects had been inspired in their design by the United Nations Building in New York, which had opened in 1952, and they patterned the council chambers after the UN General Assembly Room. The chambers had tiered seating with room for 200 spectators, and its windowless construction was designed to contrast with the extensive use of glass in other parts of the building.
Council gave the design its approval, a row of houses on the site were demolished, and foundation work began in December 1954 under the direction of contractors Rush and Tompkins. Completion was targeted for August 1, 1956, but material and labour shortages slowed construction. The new hall was ready for occupancy by 770 staff members in March 1957.
The City commissioned University of British Columbia architecture professor Lionel A.J. Thomas, a nationally known sculptor, to design a fountain for the front of the building. He spent days in Vancouver's Stanley Park sketching geese before he devised a 20-foot high fountain meant to emulate a flock of nine Canada geese and symbolize flight and progress.
Called "The Migrants," the bronze fountain featured five geese in vertical positions and four of them flying. It could be illuminated at night by turquoise, amber and white lights.
When operating at full blast, the fountain could shoot water about 40 feet high. The system had so much power that, on windy days, pedestrians were getting sprayed, and the city had to lower the pressure.
Thomas said the fountain contained the same principles of design as the City Hall itself. "There is a certain amount of linear flow in the building from the windows and louvres," he was quoted as saying in a May 30, 1957, Edmonton Journal article. "So we thought it was desirable to get some linear flow in the fountain."
Thomas and two assistants produced the individual pieces in Vancouver, and then assembled them on site. "This fountain won't be duplicated," he said.
Just like the building, the $16,000 fountain was quick to generate controversy, and many residents said they didn't see the resemblance to geese. The fountain came to be known by some as "the spaghetti tree."
When the building opened, citizens were dazzled by luxurious materials that included Swedish imperial red granite, and marble and travertine from Italy. Alberta fieldstone was used on the exterior and in the lobbies.
The total floor area added up to 164,000 square feet, and glass covered 26,388 square feet of the exterior. When all the bills were paid, the cost of design and construction totalled $3.5 million. Sadly, Maxwell Dewar died in 1955 at the age of 45, and wasn't around to hear the praise when the building was officially opened by Alberta Lieutenant-Governor J.J. Bowlen in May 1957.
By the late 1970s, the building was deemed outdated, and too expensive to operate. It was demolished in 1989 and 1990 after a ten-year wrangle that included a court challenge and a municipal plebiscite.
The infamous fountain had the last laugh. It was incorporated into the new City Hall when it opened in 1992.
© Lawrence Herzog 2011, All Rights Reserved
Edmonton City Hall, circa 1960. City of Edmonton Archives, EA-20-990.
Places August 7, 2014
Lawrence Herzog has been writing about history and heritage for more than 25 years.
Tags Built Heritage, City Hall, Fountain, Maxwell Dewar
Gyro Playgrounds Live On
The Gyro playgrounds brought children together. This was their world.


If you thought that choosing an inflatable kayak was just a question of doing a quick search on Amazon and choosing the cheapest, you couldn't be more wrong. There are many shapes and sizes of boat made with many different uses in mind. We'll be looking at all the aspects you need to consider when choosing your craft.
The attraction of an inflatable kayak for many is the ease of transport and storage along with a reasonable price. The average inflatable kayak able to accommodate two people might weigh between 14kg and 18kg although you will find lighter models going as low as 11kg and heavier models with various additional features weighing more. Some pack up into backpacks and can be taken on aeroplanes as hold luggage. Folding down to a nice compact size there is no need for any special storage space at home and they can easily be popped in the back of a car or truck or kept at a holiday home or caravan. Prices vary tremendously but a budget of $300 - $500 will give a good range of models to look at whilst cheaper (and more expensive) versions are available.
What are Inflatable Kayaks Used for (and what is your Budget)?
Because of the range of different shapes and sizes of inflatable kayak you need to think about how you are going to use your craft before you start shopping. It's also worth looking at what your budget is. With boats ranging from $100 to $1500 or more (£50 to £1000 or more) you get very different craft at each end of the spectrum. Don't forget you will also need a pump, paddle and buoyancy aid or PDF.
The boats at the lower end of the market will be glorified blow up lilos, great for a splash around in the pool, but with minimal rigidity quite saggy and not good for paddling any distance. This does not stop them from being a great entertainment for all the family very close to shore on a hot sunny day.
To get an inflatable boat that performs reasonably well you need to look for some rigidity in the hull. Read the next section on construction below to see what to look for and to ensure you get what you are hoping for out of your boat.
These kayaks are used for an amazing variety of paddling. Widely used as fishing platforms the better quality boats are used for everything from river running to lake paddling in wind and waves with or without sails attached and alone or with the family. Look for the flatter bottomed varieties for river running where manoeuvrability will be needed but look for a bit of a v shape and or keel to aid tracking if using on lakes or other flat water or paddling any distance. You do need to ensure you are happy with the structure of your boat before venturing too far away from shore especially if you are on the heavier side. Some forums talk of kayaks Taco Chipping. (or sagging in the middle) and presumably filling with water with a larger paddler sitting in the wrong place in the wrong boat!
We 'll try to keep this simple even though its not! There are quite a few variations.
Before we start explaining bear in mind the properties we are after. We want a waterproof material that folds up easily and is compact. We'd like it to be light weight but durable and not likely to tear or puncture. We want the finished craft to be rigid so that it performs well and we don't want the material to stretch out of shape under pressure. We also want it to be easy to make really strong seams that won't come apart under pressure. Oh and for good measure we want it to be a sensible price to make nice inexpensive boats and environmentally friendly! Not asking for much then are we..... in case you hadn't worked it out there will be some compromises to be made.
The cheapest inflatable kayaks and pool toys are made of PVC. PVC is inherently stretchy so as you blow them up they stretch like a balloon. They are not very rigid and do not hold their shape well. Also PVC does not have a very good reputation for its impact on the environment.
If you put a layer of a woven fabric alongside the PVC you get the waterproof properties of the PVC with the strength to stop the stretching. The two materials used are polyester and nylon. Polyester is more expensive than nylon but does not stretch whilst nylon still has some stretch so does not make for particularly rigid boats. However, the ability of the nylon to stretch does make it less likely to puncture or tear (as it stretches instead). You will find PVC coated polyester inflatable kayaks. These PVC coated fabrics are reasonably priced, can be made in a range of colours, have low drag and seams can be made by gluing or welding both of which make strong seams.
You will see references to denier and decitex which refers to the weight of the fabric. Decitex is the metric equivalent of denier and 1100 decitex = 1000 denier. As a rule of thumb light duty inflatables might use 420 or 840 denier fabric whilst for a durable finish commercial boats are likely to be made from 1000 - 1500 or more denier fabrics. Inevitably the higher the denier the heavier the material will be as well as more rigid and more durable.
Moving away from PVC we have the rubber based coatings used in various layerings again with polyester fabrics providing the core strength. Rubber has a better resistance to UV than PVC, folds better for packing away and is more durable, however the fact that it folds better is a sign of its flexibility and it is not as rigid. The range of colours rubber coating come in are rather limited, it creates more drag and is more expensive than the PVC coated materials. In addition the seams cannot be welded and the gluing process is more time consuming and therefore more expensive and the final seams are not as strong.
Finally we have Polyurethane / Urethane coated fabrics which have some of the rubber properties being highly durable and more expensive but some of the PVC properties with low drag, high rigidity and enabling strong if expensive welded seams. On the downside it has poor UV resistance unless coated with a special coating so is probably best suited to the domestic market where UV exposure is limited to days out now and then.
As we look at the way the craft are put together you will see how some of these properties might be more or less beneficial and later on we will try to identify which manufacturers use which type of material.
Chambers, Floors and all that!
We take one of the materials above, create some shapes and pump it up. How does the way those shapes are put together affect the overall rigidity and performance of the resulting kayak or canoe?
Our top class sprint and marathon paddlers who spend all their time worrying about how to get a little more speed out of their canoes and kayaks know only too well that the more rigid their boats and the less they flex the faster they will go. A lot of money and design time goes into just this topic. Exactly the same applies to the inflatable canoe or kayak. Achieving a similar level of rigidity to that achieved with hard shells is the key to getting a simliar level of performance. There are a number of ways that the inflatable designers try to achieve this.
Most inflatable kayaks have a floor and some combination of two side chambers running the length of the boat. The cheaper boats have floors made with a series of interlinked chambers sitting side by side like a row of organ pipes creating a flat bottom a couple of inches deep. These interlinked chambers are inclined to be at risk of bursting if the air inside them gets hot and expands in the sun so look for pressure relief valves to avoid this experience. This method provides some rigidity.
The shape of the side chambers can add more rigidity. In some cases the manufacturers create a shell and fill this shell with blow up, air tight, waterproof bladders, in others a single skin of material is used. The side chambers which run along the length of the boat will be more rigid if they are made of two tubes stacked one on top of the other rather than a single larger tube.
The technology used in modern inflatable SUPs is being used in the bottoms of some inflatable kayaks. This involves the use of drop stitch flooring. Two sheets of PVC are linked together by lots and lots of small filaments of nylon which hold the two sheets together parallel to each other when inflated. The level of rigidity gained by this method and the lightness of the product is quite remarkable. It is used to make flat sections which can either be dropped in to replace an existing floor or be used as the floor itself. It does create a very flat hull shape which does not track well so is usually accompanied by a skeg fitted to the bottom to aid with tracking.
Other items to look out for to aid rigidity include a backbone that runs the length of the kayak which creates a V shape in the hull and helps with tracking as well as rigidity and light aluminium frames used at the bow and stern to aid shaping and rigidity again helping with tracking.
Most of the inflatable kayaks of any quality have 3 chambers these being the floor and a chamber on each side.
Now we have dealt with most of the construction features we can look at what shapes and sizes the inflatable kayak comes in. These kayaks (and canoes) usually accommodate one or two adults with the possibility of including a child a well. Some of the boats are shaped to resemble either a kayak shape or canoe shape with a tapered bow and stern whilst others make little effort to look like anything more than two tubes stuck together bluntly at the front and back with a floor. Some can be converted into catamarans with cross beams to create fishing platforms and mount motors whilst others are small short boats just long enough to seat a medium sized adult.
Your sitting position and the size of the side chambers are important factors to look at. If the side chambers are very deep and / or wide and you are quite small you may find you have a long reach to the water with your paddles especially if you are sitting quite low in the boat. In addition the wind will catch the sides if they are very deep. Conversely you sit a little higher in an inflatable kayak than a conventaional boat as the floor is deeper. This is especially true if you are sitting on a seat with any height. Because these boats are generally quite wide this should not be an issue but if you are on the heavier side be sure you will be stable and if you are on the smaller side make sure you can reach the water!
Look out for subtle additions like storage space and storage hatches if you plan on using your kayak for longer trips.
Don't forget the inflatable SUPs which we will look at on the SUP page.


text:
Q: Get the Count of Elements where candidate has won LINQ2Xml:
I would like to get the count of elements where candidate has won in every province. I need some help.
<Pronvice_Data>
    <Pronvice>PronviceA</Pronvice>
    <Registered_Voters>115852</Registered_Voters>
    <Sam_Kea>100</Sam_Kea>
    <Jeje>500</Jeje>
    <John_Doe>400</John_Doe>
</Pronvice_Data>

<Pronvice_Data>
    <Pronvice>PronviceA</Pronvice>
    <Registered_Voters>25852</Registered_Voters>
    <Sam_Kea>200</Sam_Kea>
    <Jeje>100</Jeje>
    <John_Doe>300</John_Doe>
</Pronvice_Data>

<Pronvice_Data>
    <Pronvice>PronviceC</Pronvice>
    <Registered_Voters>317684</Registered_Voters>
    <Sam_Kea>1000</Sam_Kea>
    <Jeje>1200</Jeje>
    <John_Doe>190</John_Doe>
</Pronvice_Data>

Expected Result:
Candidate | Won In
Jeje         2
John_Doe     1
Sam_Kea      0

A: OK, I didn't like the data format, so I changed it to this:
<root>
  <Candidates>
    <Sam_Kea/>
    <Jeje/>
    <John_Doe/>
  </Candidates>

  <Provinces>
    <Province name='ProvinceA' Registered_Voters='115852'>
      <Candidate name='Sam_Kea' votes='100'/>
      <Candidate name='Jeje' votes='500'/>
      <Candidate name='John_Doe' votes='400'/>
    </Province>

    <Province name='ProvinceB' Registered_Voters='25852'>
      <Candidate name='Sam_Kea' votes='200'/>
      <Candidate name='Jeje' votes='100'/>
      <Candidate name='John_Doe' votes='300'/>
    </Province>

    <Province name='ProvinceC' Registered_Voters='317684'>
      <Candidate name='Sam_Kea' votes='1000'/>
      <Candidate name='Jeje' votes='1200'/>
      <Candidate name='John_Doe' votes='190'/>
    </Province>
  </Provinces>

</root>

And this is the LINQ-to-XML code I used:
public void Run()
{
    string fileToLoad = this.GetType().Name + ".xml";

    XElement root = XElement.Load(fileToLoad);

    // =======================================================
    System.Console.WriteLine("\nCandidates:");
    var allCandidates = from c in root.Element("Candidates").Elements()
        select c.Name;

    foreach (var d in allCandidates)
        Console.WriteLine("  {0}", d.ToString());

    // =======================================================
    System.Console.WriteLine("\nNumber of Candidates in each Province:");

    var s1 = from p in root.Element("Provinces").Elements()
        select new
            {
                Prov = (string) p.Attribute("name"),
                NumCandidates = p.Elements("Candidate").Count()
            };

    foreach (var d in s1)
        Console.WriteLine("  {0}", d.ToString());

    // =======================================================
    System.Console.WriteLine("\nCandidate with most votes:");
    var s2 = from p in root.Element("Provinces").Elements()
        let maxVotes = (from c in p.Elements("Candidate") select c)
                       .Max(x => ((int)x.Attribute("votes")))

        select new
            {
                Prov = (string) p.Attribute("name"),
                Voters = (int) p.Attribute("Registered_Voters"),
                Candidate = (from c in p.Elements("Candidate")
                             select c).Where(x => ((int)x.Attribute("votes")) == maxVotes)
                    .First().Attribute("name").Value
            };

    foreach (var d in s2)
        Console.WriteLine("  {0}", d.ToString());

    // =======================================================
    System.Console.WriteLine("\nCandidates and the # of provinces won:");

    var s4 = from can in allCandidates
        let count = (from p in s2 where p.Candidate == can select p).Count()
        orderby count descending
        select new { Candidate = can, NumberOfProvincesWon = count };

    foreach (var d in s4)
        Console.WriteLine("  {0}", d.ToString());
}

Output:
Candidates:
  Sam_Kea
  Jeje
  John_Doe

Number of Candidates in each Province:
  { Prov = ProvinceA, NumCandidates = 3 }
  { Prov = ProvinceB, NumCandidates = 3 }
  { Prov = ProvinceC, NumCandidates = 3 }

Candidate with most votes:
  { Prov = ProvinceA, Voters = 115852, Candidate = Jeje }
  { Prov = ProvinceB, Voters = 25852, Candidate = John_Doe }
  { Prov = ProvinceC, Voters = 317684, Candidate = Jeje }

Candidates and the # of provinces won:
  { Candidate = Jeje, NumberOfProvincesWon = 2 }
  { Candidate = John_Doe, NumberOfProvincesWon = 1 }
  { Candidate = Sam_Kea, NumberOfProvincesWon = 0 }

A: Its hard for me to deal with Attribute Values.
From the orignal format, i would get it using the code below.
var Percentages= from elem in xmlVectors2.Descendants("Province_Data")
          where elem.Elements().Count() > 1
          group elem by new { groupedData = elem.Element("Province_Data")} into g
          let votesSam_Kea=g.Sum(elem =>(int)elem.Element("Sam_Kea"))
          let votesJeje=g.Sum(elem =>(int)elem.Element("Jeje"))
          let votesJohn_Doe= g.Sum(elem =>(int)elem.Element("John_Doe"))
          let totVotesCast=votesSam_Kea+ votesJeje+ votesJohn_Doe
          select new {
             Percent_Sam_Kea= Math.Round((double)(votesSam_Kea*100)/totVotesCast,2),
             Percent_Jeje=Math.Round((double)(votesJeje*100)/totVotesCast,2),
             Percent_John_Doe=Math.Round((double)(votesJohn_Doe*100)/totVotesCast,2),
             VotesCast= totVotesCast,
             RegisteredVoters = g.Sum(elem => (int)elem.Element("Registered_Voters"))
             };

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text:
Q: Orangescrum stuck at database configuration: Wrong database information. Please try with correct information I trying orangescrum in a localhost using xampp and after following the installation step according to their site, Im stuck with this page

I double check every details in database.php and use the same credential in very field but still get the error.
For your kind assistance,
Thank you

A: If you provide the database credentials & information provided during the database setup, this should not show you. However, if you're facing the same issue, can you please connect with us on live chat or email us support[at]orangescrum.com.


Home Linux How to install Google Chrome on Ubuntu 19.04?
In this post we will show you how to install Google Chrome in Ubuntu 19.04.
Google Chrome is one of the most popular web browsers in the world. Some studies even indicate that it is the most popular along with Mozilla Firefox. Google Chrome stands out above all for its speed in loading websites, as well as its large catalog of add-ons that increase the functionality of the program. On the other hand, Google Chrome comes from the hand of Google which means that it integrates perfectly with your Google account especially if you use a mobile with Android.
Knowing this is that when installing a Linux distribution, it is almost the first thing users do. Of course Firefox is a great open source browser and flag, but Google Chrome still rules.
So in this post, we will make it as simple as possible.
For licensing reasons, Google Chrome is not included by default in large Linux distributions such as Ubuntu or Linux Mint. Many Linux users do not consider it necessary because Firefox is almost at par, but there are always many users who prefer to have it.
First, go to its website.
Next, click on the Download Chrome Button and select the .DEB package to download.
As you can see, the process went smoothly. So now you can start Google Chrome from the main menu.
Google Chrome is perhaps the most popular web browser out there. However, its installation on Ubuntu 19.04 is not complicated at all. On the contrary, it is quite simple and is available to any novice user who just uses Linux.
Please share this article with your friends to help them with their migration to Linux.
Next articleHow to install Roundcube on Ubuntu 18.04?


text:
ncurses (new curses) is a programming library providing an application programming interface (API) that allows the programmer to write text-based user interfaces (TUI) in a terminal-independent manner. It is a toolkit for developing "GUI-like" application software that runs under a terminal emulator. It also optimizes screen changes, in order to reduce the latency experienced when using remote shells.

ncurses is a free-software emulation of the System V Release 4.0 (SVr4) curses.

There are bindings for ncurses in a variety of programming languages, including Ada, Python, Gambas, Ruby, PHP, JavaScript, and Perl.

History
As the new version, ncurses is a free-software emulation of the System V Release 4.0 (SVr4) curses, which was itself an enhancement over the discontinued 4.4 BSD curses. The XSI Curses standard issued by X/Open is explicitly and closely modeled on System V.

curses

The first curses library was developed at the University of California at Berkeley, for a BSD operating system, around 1980 to support Rogue, a text-based adventure game. It originally used the termcap library, which was used in other programs, such as the vi editor.

The success of the BSD curses library prompted Bell Labs to release an enhanced curses library in their System V Release 2 Unix systems. This library was more powerful and instead of using termcap, it used terminfo. However, due to AT&T policy regarding source-code distribution, this improved curses library did not have much acceptance in the BSD community.

pcurses
Around 1982, Pavel Curtis started work on a freeware clone of the Bell Labs curses, named pcurses, which was maintained by various people through 1986.

ncurses
The pcurses library was further improved when Zeyd Ben-Halim took over the development effort in late 1991. The new library was released as ncurses in November 1993, with version 1.8.1 as the first major release. Subsequent work, through version 1.8.8 (M1995), was driven by Eric S. Raymond, who added the form and menu libraries written by Juergen Pfeifer.  Since 1996, it has been maintained by Thomas E. Dickey.

Most ncurses calls can be easily ported to the old curses. System V curses implementations can support BSD curses programs with just a recompilation. However, a few areas are problematic, such as handling terminal resizing, since no counterpart exists in the old curses.

Terminal database
ncurses can use either terminfo (with extensible data) or termcap.  Other implementations of curses generally use terminfo; a minority use termcap.  Few (mytinfo was an older exception) use both.

License
ncurses is a part of the GNU Project, but is not distributed under the GNU GPL or LGPL. Instead, it is distributed under a permissive free software licence, i.e., the MIT License. This is due to the agreement made with the Free Software Foundation at the time the developers assigned their copyright.

When the agreement was made to pass on the rights to the FSF, there was a clause that stated:
The Foundation promises that all distribution of the Package, or of any work "based on the Package", that takes place under the control of the Foundation or its agents or assignees, shall be on terms that explicitly and perpetually permit anyone possessing a copy of the work to which the terms apply, and possessing accurate notice of these terms, to redistribute copies of the work to anyone on the same terms.
According to the maintainer Thomas E. Dickey, this precludes relicensing to the GPL in any version, since it would place restrictions on the programs that will be able to link to the libraries.

Programs using ncurses
There are hundreds of programs which use ncurses. Some, such as GNU Screen and w3m, use only the termcap interface and perform screen management themselves.  Others, such as GNU Midnight Commander and YaST, use the curses programming interface.

See also

 conio.h – A C header file used in MS-DOS compilers to create text user interfaces
 Curses Development Kit
 Dialog (software)
 PDCurses
 S-Lang (programming library)
 SMG$ – The screen-management library available under OpenVMS
 GNU Readline

Notes

References

External links

C (programming language) libraries
Free software programmed in Ada
Free software programmed in C
GNU Project software
Software using the MIT license
Termcap
Terminfo

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