Who Were the Boskops
This sounds like a science fiction story, but apparently it’s true. It’s all the more amazing because whenever we hear of extinct variations of human beings, they are always neanderthals.
Boskops?
Apparently they were a a species of human being that died out 10,000 years ago at the latest. There’s that old familiar number 10,000 again.
And they had some odd features some of us would immediately recognize: small “childlike” faces and huge “melon” heads, allegedly 30 percent larger than our own, which has led to speculation in a new book about their superior intelligence.
A number of people are already wondering if the Boskops did indeed die out, and if the Grays are actually Boskops.
I am most amazed by the fact they have been kept secret while neanderthals got all the press.
You can find different reviews of the new book here and here. Very interesting.
UPDATE: You can read an excellent and eloquent excerpt from Immense Journey, by Loren Eiseley, about these strange humanoids, here.
Outdoor recreational home improvements
This is not a super detailed subject, but if you are thinking about investing in an outside recreational improvement for your home, it’s written just for you. What is an outside recreational improvement? One of the most common forms of outside recreational improvements, aside from Andersen windows of course, is a swimming pool. Both above-ground and in-ground pools are discussed in this chapter, and you might not like hearing the truth about the resale value of these items. What else could be considered an outside recreational improvement? A tennis court would fall into this category, and gazebos and spas could fit the description. Even elaborate playgrounds could fit the mold.
Do people really invest major amounts of money in these types of home improvements? You bet they do, and many of them are devastated when they discover the effects the improvements have on resale value of their properties. I’m sure you are already getting the idea that these playful projects don’t provide strong returns to their investors, and you are right. This group of improvements is definitely in the personal-enjoyment category. To see just how much the price for pleasure is, let’s look at some specific examples.
Above-ground swimming pools
Above-ground swimming pools have come a long way since my days in the wading pool out back. Today’s above-ground pools are sophisticated and can be very large. The attraction to this type of pool is its lower cost over that of a conventional in-ground pool, the lack of serious excavation work, and the mobility of the unit.
Are above-ground pools good investments? Not likely. They are fine if you are buying them for enjoyment only, but if you are expecting to get your money back out of the investment, forget it.
How much does an above-ground pool cost? Well, that depends on the size and the quality, but I can give you an example. A family-size pool with the necessary filtering system and accessories can be bought for less than $3500. Then you get to erect it. If you think putting a bicycle together is hair-pulling, wait until you try to set up your new pool. After days of frustration, my guess is that you will call in a professional installer. Boom! The price shoots up.
Okay, you have the pool standing and all the parts hooked up. Now you need about 15,000 gallons of water. I don’t think you want to try pumping 15,000 gallons of water into your pool with a garden hose. So what will you do? You will probably call a company that brings a tanker truck to you home and fills the pool. Uh oh, the price just went up some more.
If you want a water heater, cover, or other handy accessories to make using the pool more enjoyable, you are going to have to reach back into your pocket. The cost just seems to keep escalating.
All in all, by the time you are done, you probably have between $5000 and $7500 invested in your yard toy. With what you’ve gone through to install the poll, it is unlikely you will have any desire to move it to sell your house. Oh, and did the pool salesperson tell you about the local ordinance that requires all swimming pools being close with fencing? Don’t worry, the local code in force in officer will tell you.
Not all areas require pollster be fenced, but most do, and you party scene what the cost and rate of return for fencing art. It is quite conceivable that your final investment in the pool and related necessities will top off somewhere near $10,000.
Now, how much does this capital investment amount to on the new appraised value of your home? It depends on many circumstances, but it would be surprising if the value on the appraisal report exceeded 30% of your investment. Some experts claim in-ground pools only return between 20 and 50% of their original cost, and you can bet that an aboveground pool will do that well.
Likewise, a little art couldn’t hurt. Check out Charley Harper for some affordable but great artwork for your outdoor living space.
Get Your Own Cincinnati Web Design in Place
Advantages of having a website are many and it is due to this that many businesses worldwide whether new, big, medium or small have their very own websites. Work promotion is best possible by using an effective website if you are into business. Websites can feature all your activities in journal form. Depending upon your liking, particular topics or ideas can be placed on a platform for communication. Audience in a larger group can get attracted to an effective Cincinnati Web Design websites as they can benefit from ideas featuring on the sites.
Place Advertisements on Your Very Own Website
By placing advertisements on your own website you can also make money via the process of affiliate marketing. For constructing a site on the web a few important steps need to be followed. An ordinary website design will not serve the purpose and hence you will need to ensure that a unique Cincinnati Website Design is created. Some new business owners may feel a bit confused about website designing. If basics are understood well, things can just become easier.
Website builders can be best used for website construction. For adding links, text, images, etc. interfaces that are interactive enough can prove to be of great help. A website builder can greatly enhance Web Design Cincinnati general appearance and website layout. If in case you want to start with a funky idea then a complete layout change can happen. A domain name which is basically the website name will also be necessary to make a website. An easy to remember and appropriate name should be considered. Website building cost is to be considered while hosting a Website. For using a particular domain name, the registrar will have to be paid an annual fee.
Page Layout and Colour Scheme
Once the domain name is decided then domain name registration is the next process. A web host, which is best and affordable, will have to be selected for which you will have to conduct a survey. Make sure you hire one of the best Website Designers Cincinnati for this. Different web hosts come at different prices so accordingly research will have to be done. When the web host and the domain fall into place, web page designing will be the next step. Page layout and scheme of color will also have to be decided.
Many of the business owners prefer to hire services of a proficient Web Designer Cincinnati for this. If you do not want to hire services of the website designer, different kinds of HTML codes can be used for make the site as colourful and attractive. High quality content, links, Meta tags, back links, proper keywords, key phrases, high quality articles etc. will need to be added for website optimization. The website will have to be tested to see if it works well with different browsers, most of which come free of cost. Website submission will also have to be done to different kinds of search engines. Finally make an announcement of your website to the public.
Keyboard Failure
The keyboard was the problem in another computer service call I made. It locked up in the middle of a program and wouldn’t do anything. This is the problem description I received. I took the keyboard with me to my service center and I plugged it into my computer and verify the problem. The keyboard would not respond at all. I noticed the number lock, caps lock, and scroll lock LEDs did not light when the computer booted up; ordinarily, during boot up these LEDs light momentarily. I wondered if the keyboard was getting power.
I remove the screws from the back of the unit and separated the two halves. The keyboard cord terminated into a five pin connector on a PC board. The circuit board had a few components, a microcontroller, and if you support components. The silkscreen on the board indicated the signals and voltages at the connector. I checked the connector to see if it was receiving power from the 12 supply. Noble did was present. I suspected an open in the keyboard cord. I flexed the court while I monitored the voltage. At one point midway in the cord I managed to obtain a reading momentarily.
Since I cannot find a direct replacement, I purchased the board extension cable and cut the connector on one end. I re-terminated the connector internally and test the keyboard; the keyboard worked fine. Keyboards are relatively inexpensive, but in some cases they can be repaired economically. It may be beneficial to exchange the defective keyboard for a customer and repair theirs for another job.
The personal computer can be an exciting and challenging piece of equipment to troubleshoot. On the other hand, it can also be time-consuming and frustrating. If you need help of experts, please visit Cincinnati Computer Repair. The personal computer, like all other consumer products, is changing rapidly.
Installing Landscaping Pavers on a Walkway
Using pavers on a walkway instead of standard concrete can really make your home shine and give it that little added curb appeal. That’s the beauty of landscaping and why I love it so much: it’s those small details that turn a house from “eh” to “wow!” In this article I’m going to detail a fairly simple landscaping task that anyone can do…adding landscaping pavers to a walkway.
To get the best look, remember to keep things simple. One of the biggest design mistakes people make is going too bold and complicated with their landscaping plans. Elegant simplicity is what you should be aiming for with your landscaping pavers. That said, it is a matter of taste, so if you’re the type that likes super flashy, flamboyant designs, feel free to reflect that in your landscaping. I should also mention here that if you think installing your own pavers is too daunting a task, and your in the tri-state area, look for a Cincinnati landscaping company to give you some assistance or just do the job for you…it does make it much easier than learning this stuff from scratch. Check out the following video for a brief introduction to what will be covered in this article.
Paver Patterns
You should choose a pattern that reflects the feel you want your pavers to portray. Straight lines will be seen as more formal and structured, whereas curves will give your pavers more of an informal cottage-like feel. The best thing to do is match the feel of your pavers to that of the rest of your landscaping.
Grading the Walkway
You’ll have to grade the walkway, which means you’ll have to even it out. Most lawn are incredibly uneven, so flattening that out is essential because you don’t want your walkway to be all bumpy and uneven. The surface should be flattened to 6 – 8 inches below the surface of the surrounding landscaping. This will give you enough room to add the pavers and have them be level with the surrounding surfaces.
Edging
Once you’ve graded the area you’re going to pave you’ll need to edge it. Edging basically forms an outline for the pavers and keeps them from spreading out.
Add a Base
The next step is to add a base upon which the pavers will sit. The base is usually gravel or sand and helps the pavers from sinking into the soil and becoming uneven.
Finishing Touches
Once you’ve put down the pavers, you’ll need to spread sand over the top and then sweep it around the surface so that it drops down into the gaps between the pavers. This is like the grout for bricks and keeps the pavers together and finishes the surface so it looks even instead of having big gaps between the paving materials.
Hopefully this article gave you the information you need to get started on your own pavers. If you’re in the tri-state area and need Cincinnati lawn care, the guys over at American Landscapes should be able to help you get the job done pretty easily.
What is Search Engine Optimization?
For anyone that owns a business, or a website for that matter, whether it be related to a business or not, should be aware of SEO (Search Engine Optimization). SEO is the process by which a website is moved to the top of the Google (and other search engines) rankings. The search engines rely on certain metrics when determining where a website should rank in the search results. Some of these metrics are found on the site itself, and others are off-site metrics. Before we get into that, if you’re looking for Cincinnati SEO services, or web design Cincinnati, contact RLM, they know what they’re doing.
On Site Metrics
When a search engine “spider” crawls a website – fancy geek talk for finding and storing metrics on a particular web page – it uses proprietary technology to determine what the website and all the pages within that site are about. Based on various clues, such as meta tags, content on the page, images on the pages, video, etc, the search engines are fairly adept at determining the topic of a particular page and what keywords that page relates to most significantly.
I said they’re “adept” at determining this information, but that isn’t the entire story. In fact, because these “spiders” are merely computer programs that follow links from website to website all around the internet, they can’t determine the topic of a particular page nearly as accurately as a human being could. Because of this, if you’re dentist in Cincinnati, you may have a page that’s all about you, a Dentist in Cincinnati, but the search engines may not determine that page to be totally related to the keyword “Cincinnati Dentist” as much as they probably should. Because of this, a thorough understanding of the way search engines read and understand content on the web is vital so that you can actually rank for the search queries your potential customers are searching for.
So, I guess you could say the on-site side of SEO relates to understanding the search engines’ weaknesses and making changes on the site itself to help the “dumb” search engines better determine that a particular page is, in fact, very closely related to a particular search term. When the search engines think a page is very closely related to a particular search term, they will generally rank that page higher in the search engines.
Off Site Metrics
Google pioneered what many of the search engines now use to determine how closely related a particular web page is to any given search query based on off-site metrics. The primary off-site metrics used for this purpose are links and anchor text. A link is simply that blue (or sometimes other color) text that you find underlined on a web page that, when clicked, leads you to a new web page. The reason Google took off and became as big as it is now is because they realized they could essentially view those links as votes for a particular website. The more links a website has, the more votes Google sees, and the higher that website will tend to rank.
Now, that leaves the problem of determining which keywords a website should rank for based on the links pointing to that website. That’s what the anchor text does. Let’s say you have 1,000 websites linking to your homepage, and the text in those links (also known as the anchor text) is your name. That will tell the search engines that 1,000 other website owners think your homepage is about you, and those search engines will likely rank your homepage near the top of the results when someone searches for your name.
Likewise, going back to our Cincinnati Dentist example, if you want to rank for the search term, “Cincinnati Dentist,” you would want to get other sites to link to your website with the anchor text, “Cincinnati Dentist.” When the search engines see links like these, then visit your site and see that it’s about dentistry and, perhaps a mention of Cincinnati, they’ll likely rank you near the top of the results for “Cincinnati Dentist” because all those other website owners essentially voted for your site to be ranked high for that term.
