Different Types of Merchant Accounts

After cash, credit cards are the most widely accepted means of payment in the world. No matter what business you are running, or what product you are selling. Chances are that you will require a credit card processing system. From American Express to Visa, the brand may vary, and since there is no such thing as an individual payment gateway for each individual company. Every company may have a payment system that is unique to them, but the payment gateway is what is the essential link. But before we go into the technicalities, lets get some of the basics out of the way. Especially some of the terms just used.

Any credit card transaction on the planet acts in a predefined manner, first the customer will offer his credit card details, the credit card details are then processed through a payment gateway, and finally the credit card payment is received in a merchant account. The way in which the credit card payment is accepted is different, you could be using the credit on a EPOS (electronic point of sale terminal), or you could have a successful online store that is accepting payments. The important thing to remember is that the mode in which you are accepting the payment is not as important as having a payment gateway and a good merchant account.

Okay so the next thing to discuss here is what is a payment gateway? well a payment gateway is usually a third party system that processes the credit card transaction it could be the server an EPOS dials out to, an e-commerce system, however the term payment gateway usually refers to the latter, and once the checks are done the funds are then transferred into a merchant account. The essential component is the merchant account, the merchant account is offered by companies and based on the volume of transaction and certain other criteria; the charges and upkeep is different. No merchant account is free as the company is offering you services. Merchant accounts in general are of various categories and depending on the type of business you are running, different monthly charges, and percentage charges are applicable.

Important merchant account types

a) Regular merchant accounts Although in business there is no such thing as a typical business, however a majority of businesses are usually treated as regular merchant accounts, they have low maintenance fees and lower rates than other merchant accounts.

b) High risk merchant accounts This category is usually reserved for high risk credit card processing accounts, for example accounts that handle a large volume of transaction that may or may not offer a 100% authorisation rate. An example will be an outbound call centre, that attempts hundreds of credit card transactions to verify the credibility of the credit cards. There are also additional complications like currency conversion involved. Hence the term high risk merchant account.

c) Specialized merchant accounts There are some businesses that require specialized credit card processing, or might require a specialized merchant account that caters to requirements such as offshore processing, etc. Such merchant accounts are usually referred to as specialized merchant accounts.

Mike Knudtson is the co-founder of the http://www.fastcharge.com Payment Gateway and the founder of merchant account provider Electronic Transfer, Inc. (http://www.electronictransfer.com). He has helped thousands of merchants set up retail and ecommerce payment processing for their business. Electronic Transfer, Inc. is one of the leading merchant service companies serving merchants since 1989.Aretha Blog47142
Audre Blog71839

Up-Close, Behind-the-Scenes Look at Career Training

Making decisions can be difficult especially if you dont have all the facts. When it comes to deciding which career path to take the options appear to be varied and complex. In this day and age the number of fields in which to have a career have steadily increased but the career training for these fields may not be readily available. Or so it would seem. With the advent of the computer and the internet, career training has grown and expanded in leaps and bounds. So how does one make sense of so many career choices and options? Get the facts.

Career training is highly affordable Unlike a traditional four year college or university education, career training is quite inexpensive. In some cases the training could be charged to a credit card without exceeding the spending limit. Or a part-time job could be worked in order to save enough money to pay for the career training in cash in a relatively short time. A personal loan from your bank could also pay for the necessary training. Only one loan would be needed whereas with a college education multiple student loans are usually required to pay for tuition. Whichever method of payment you choose none of them will leave you in heavy debt for many years to come.

Career training is convenient In the comfort and privacy of your own home your career training can be carried out with a minimum of fuss. By means of a computer and internet access you can get started on the road to a rewarding and fulfilling career. There is no need to get in your vehicle, battle with rush hour traffic and arrive at an overcrowded university campus. Instead you can take your training at your leisure because it is up to you when, where and how long you want to immerse yourself in your studies. You set your own schedule and pace for your career training which leaves you firmly in control of your life.

Career training is diverse Career training gives a student unlimited opportunities to learn about any number of subjects and topics. Whichever way your interests turn you can find a corresponding career training course to match them. There are many people who enjoy the role of educator and they make their extensive knowledge available to others by means of career training courses. All you have to do is take advantage of them by means of your computer and internet access. Because experts are teaching the course of your preference you can be confident that you are receiving the best training available. This leads us to our next fact.

Career training is efficient Upon completion of a course your skill and knowledge level will be at peak condition because career training provides real-world experience. Instead of studying about the theory of a particular subject you will actually do the work as if you are already on the job. Career training provides hands-on interactive instruction. Receiving the experience of doing the work in the field of your choice will put you ahead of the people who merely sat in a classroom and did nothing but read books and listen to a professor give lectures. There is no substitute for real-world experience and that is exactly what career training provides. In addition most career training subjects can be learned in just a few months as opposed to a four to five year university education.

As the facts indicate, career training is a very viable option for people who want to have a career and be successful. Studies have shown that the trend in many industries is moving away from hiring people with college degrees to hiring people who have specialized skills or knowledge. Career training allows a person to choose a specific topic and gain an extensive knowledge and skill set. Employers then hire the person because they have received specialized practical training and experience in a certain area of expertise. So ask yourself, Do I want to waste time and money obtaining a degree that I may or may not be able to use to get a job or would I rather gain a specialized skill in a short amount of time without incurring a large debt and land a great job? If you are unsure of how to answer the question do yourself a favor and get the facts.

Sherry Harris is the President & CEO of online career training school, Malibu Institute. For more information on career education courses and programs offered, go to: http://www.MalibuInstitute.comCaitrin Blog51822
Amalie Blog78893

Are You Committing The Same Mistake Most Network Marketers Make?

Now that you've signed on the dotted line to start an MLM Business, how does really it work?

You signed an independent distributorship contract that says you're licensed to market the company's products or services and you're also licensed to build a distribution channel of marketers to bring those products or services to the consumer market place.

This contract explicitly says that you're not an employee to the company. You don't derive a salary, benefits, or any other compensation other than what you are entitled to as more products or services are sold. Your compensation is directly proportionately to your ability to move products/services on behalf of your provider MLM company.

The problem is that most of us are trained to think in terms of "being employees" as opposed to thinking as "business owners". MLM companies understand that it is easier to train people to be employees than entrepreneurs because that's what we're taught to become in our early years of adulthood. So most people still continue to have an employee mindset even though they are now full fledge independent MLM business owners.

There is a mindset that you as a network marketer distributor needs to have if you are to become a successful start up MLM home business owner.

You must treat your mlm business as your own enterprise or company separate from your provider MLM company.

When you signed those papers from your company, you became an Independent Representative. You've been asked to conduct your business in a manner that is in alignment with the company's policy. While the company implements these policies, at the same time, it treats you as if you were an employee. Meaning, that the training, tools, and techniques to promote company's products and/or services are made available to YOU to guarantee the success of the company's business first and foremost and not necessarily your own success.

Regardless of where you are in your business: just started or have a large organization; this mindset should carry you and help you avoid the traps and save you money. Most importantly use this mindset to guide yourself as you run your business. Ask yourself, if I spend this money what is my return on my investment? Don't allow yourself be moved by the hype and the emotions. Don't let an upline leader entice you to spend your money if the rationale behind his/her line of thinking is not there.

I am not saying that you should not bet for the company's success, on the contrary you should. What I am saying is that you should treat your network marketing business as your own company, just the same way as your provider company treats its business.

Your actions should be guided by this principle. Ask yourself. If my provider ever goes out of business, would I still be in business or would I be out of business, too? If you run your business as your own, you should be able to use another provider's services or products without any interruptions to your customers. You should always thrive for that. This is the concept of independence, become the CEO of your own distribution company.

When you realize this concept, you can begin to see holes in many techniques used in network marketing. They're just not designed to benefit your distribution channel company. However, they are designed to benefit your provider company or your upline leaders.

Take a look at marketing to your friends and family for instance. How can you build a business when you are taught to market to a handful of consumers who by the way might or might not have any interests in your products or services? What happens after you run out of your warm market, what then? Do you see the hole in that thought?

In conclusion, as a business owner you should work your business like any other business even a network marketing business, guide your actions as a CEO of your own distribution company, so that your own company benefits the most.

Wil Chirinos is an MLM instructor who helps struggling distributors grow profitable businesses. Visit http://www.mlmtrainingpro.com to access his brutally honest MLM Insider Report and subscribe to his newsletter.Berget Blog91317
Arleta Blog84379

Atlanta Schools Have a Busy and Productive Summer

Summer GRAD (Graduation Really Achieves Dreams) Programs

Students from Atlanta Schools have been very busy this summer. The GRAD projects and programs aim to insure that Atlanta school students make to graduation and then on to university. Several GRAD programs are designed to spark students interest in science, mathematics and arts. This summer rising sophomores, juniors and seniors from South Atlanta, Washington and the New Schools at Carver high schools took part in 2006 Project GRAD Summer Institute. The Atlanta Schools 2006 Project GRAD Summer Institute involved students attending a four week session held at several Atlanta colleges and universities, including Clark Atlanta, Emory, Georgia State, Morehouse, Oglethorpe and Atlanta Technical College. The idea was to give students a taste of college life. Students attended classes, meet school administrators, and spoke with current students. More than five hundred students were allowed to take part in this years project. The students and their parents attended an awards ceremony held at Martin Luther King, Jr. Chapel at Morehouse College honoring the students achievements. Each of participating universities presented awards to the Atlanta Schools 2006 Project GRAD Summer Institute students for the categories of most outstanding, most improved, citizenship and best all around student.

Project GRAD asks students to promise three things: that you will seek assistance and support from counselors whenever you get stuck, add the word cant to the list of four-letter words youve been told not to say, and to continue to reach back and help other students long after you graduate from college. Project GRAD is a school-community partnership program that aims to improve the academic performance, high school graduation and college attendance of inner-city students from low-income backgrounds. Currently Project GRAD operates in approximately one-third of Atlanta Schools and in 211 schools nationwide. Students who complete two summer institutes, maintain the required grade point average in core college prep or technical school courses and graduate on time with their class are awarded $4,000 scholarships to college or technical school.

Atlanta Schools Holds First Teach For America Summer Institute

The Teach For America Summer Institute, hosted this year by Atlanta Schools, is an intensive five week designed to aid new college graduates in pursuing a career in teaching. Teach For America Summer Institute is a national organization that seeks to enlist recent college graduates in teaching in urban or rural school districts for at least two years after graduation. The Atlanta Schools Teach For America Summer Institute will be housed at Georgia Tech. More than 530 newly graduated teachers willed be prepared to provided education to all students no matter what their economic or social background. The Atlanta Schools Teach For America Summer Institute is the most recent location to host an institute

Stacy Andell is a staff writer for Schools K-12, Which provides free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. Stacy has a nose for research and writes stimulating news and views on school issues.Astrid Blog8478
Alfie Blog94013

Replenish Credit Score by Credit Card Debt Management Services

Credit cards are getting popular these days due to the convenience it offers. In other words there is no need to carry cash all the time if you have a credit card. But while using credit cards the people generally forget its another aspect that is high rate of interest. And once the credit cards debts start building it is very difficult to control them. As if an individual doesnt pay his debts on time, interest on them starts building which furthers worsens the financial condition which in turn emerges as bad credit in the credit report of a person. So, in order to avoid such undesirable situation its better to avail credit card debt management services.

Credit card debt management service basically provides an advice as how to handle your credit cards debts effectively. A credit card debt management service is the part of debt management services. The agencies offering credit card debt management services combine all the credit card debts of a person into a single debt which enable him to pay single payment rather than paying to number of creditors. In simple terms after availing credit card debt management services the person deals with single lender and not with number of creditors.

The agencies offering such management services negotiate with the creditors of the borrower and appeal them to reduce the rate of interest and waive certain penalties if possible. As a result of which the person is able to save money which he can use for some other purpose.

Availing debt management services also helps in improving the credit score of a person. Credit card debt management services not only help the person in managing the present debts but also guides the person regarding handling debts in future so that same situation doesnt arise in future.

It is also recommended that the person must consult to credit counsellor. Credit counsellors listen to the problem, evaluate it and suggest the measure according to the problem. Usually these credit counsellors provide free advice but sometimes they charge nominal fee for their services.

Other than availing credit card debt management services the person has an alternative to get rid off the debts through bankruptcy and IVAs. But they are never suggested as they are considered as bad credit for a person which comes up as a hurdle in performing any activity in the financial market. So, the person should never go for these kinds of alternatives.

Aldrich Chappel has been associated with credit-card-debt-management , since its inception. To find credit card debt management, Credit card debt management service,credit card debt management UK,consolidate credit card debt management,professional credit card debt management visit http://www.credit-card-debt-management.netAlethea Blog48461
Brook Blog94954

Five Smart Steps for Buying a Business

Fable:

A business buyer asks a fortuneteller What it will be like to own a business? She answers, The next five years will be hard very hard.

Okay, he says, I can handle five years, then what?

Youll get used to it.

Though more than two dozen steps must be completed to successfully buy a business, five of the most basic steps are often ignored completely. These buyers often find these steps confusing and unfocused, all five steps show up early in the process and will spell the difference between business-buying success and failure. The five steps are: know your reasons, dont go it alone, begin with criteria, search in the private marketplace, dont be lazy.

1. Know your reasons

Actually owning a business frequently fills the new business owner with feelings of such uncertainty that the experience becomes unlike anything else the new owner has ever known. Strong positive images are needed to drive the new owner through the initial hard work and feelings of doubt.

Both seller and banker for example will want to know about the buyers motivation and resiliency. Will you the potential buyer give up when you hit a hard spot, or will you plough through? Seller and banker want to know how much they need to use their knowledge, network, and time to help you.

You must have a good reason to own a business, one that emanates from your gut and that drives your faith in yourself. If you have that, others will see it, appreciate it, and will want to help you succeed.

2. Dont go it alone

Nobody knows enough all by themselves how to buy a business. Though people are ready to help you, they dont like helping total do-it-yourselfers. Thus the first two people on your team should be an attorney and a CPA. A CPA helps with the numbers, provides some perspective and talks about taxes. Your attorney will know about forms, letters, and legal work to be done. Hell understand, for example, how to do due diligence on the sellers legal record.

Nobody can manage all aspects of a business. Recognize your areas of strength by next adding a business consultant or coach to help you identify those and strengthen your weaker areas. Trade associations and Chambers of Commerce are good places to start to find such an advisor

Another valuable member of your team will be a business buying mentor, someone who knows about how to best buy a business and can guide you through the many steps. Such a mentor will steady you to prevent buyer fever, essentially a crazed emotional state of mind that hurries you through the process and sometimes burns bridges. You need to stay cooler than that.

All these advisors will help you to adequately prepare, search, conduct due diligence, negotiate, and (ultimately) close the right deal. Mention these advisors as references and both seller and banker will now know you are a serious, careful, motivated buyer.

3. Begin with criteria

Criteria are different from goals. Goals are your issue. Criteria help others see how they can help you. Once introduced as a business buyer, youll be asked a simple question: What kind of business do you want? Youll want to answer with such specifics as type, size, location, and industry. These details allow others to visualize the right business for you.

You wont want to answer this way: Oh, any kind. Ill know it when I see it. Too vague. Answers like profitable or owner ready to retire are too vague as well. Do not force someone to guess.

A truly serious buyer knows criteria about size, type, scale, and tempo of a good business. Imagine a conversation with someone who knows businesses, who loans money, or who may know someone that you should meet. Specific criteria allow this person to visualize your ideal business and match it up with people he knows who might be willing to sell.

4. Search in the private marketplace

The Internet, newspaper ads, and brokers are all easy places to look for good businesses. This is the public marketplace. But most good businesses are sold privately to people in the owners network of friends, advisors, suppliers, and customers. These deals are never located publicly.

According to the SBA, about one-fifth of all businesses change ownership every year. Most of these dont go public with their situation. These businesses would be open to talking with a qualified buyer confidentially.

With your advisors, you can make a target list so that you can carry out a comprehensive, professional approach to shopping your target businesses. You will be using networking, publicity, and direct approaches. This system will get you out of the business-buying business and into the business-owning business.

5. Dont be lazy

Clicking through online listings after work while you're also watching a ballgame isn't going to get the job done. Making a few phone calls and asking a few questions of a few brokers isnt going to make your dream happen either.

Ask yourself, Will I spend 10 to 15 hours a week committed to the search? It's going to take that much and possibly more, weeks filled with a lot of looking, reading, analyzing, and conferring. Youll need to do research, make phone calls, and meet people. Heres your new motto: If you cant spend the time, dont spend your dime.

In conclusion

Money is indeed necessary to buy a business. But preparation and knowledge are even more important. My five basic steps will help get your business buying and business owning process launched in the right direction, guiding your search and your due diligence and everything else you need to bring the process to a happy conclusion. You will be working with all the advice and guidance you need to put together a deal that will be work for you.

Bill Mueller is a business buy/sell advisor, helping people prepare themselves to find a deal and to make it happen, a deal serving both sides fairly. He can be reached at Strategies for Business Ownership at 617-444-8600 or SBOwnership@aol.comAmandi Blog38828
Annaliese Blog89205

Why Is It Dominant To Get SEO Services For Your Company!

Why is it absolute for your company to fetch search engine optimisation "Seo" services for your website?

Competition on the Internet is tough. As of March 2006, there are around 50 million websites and 80 million registered domains on the Internet. Each one of those websites has a product to sell and a message to deliver. With over one billion public worldwide surfing the Internet on a day-to-day basis, the goal of each website is to corner a share of that market in order to assign money. To do this, a company must drive as a lot traffic to their website as possible, and from the volume of traffic going to the website, the company forms its customer base.

Enquiry has shown that 90% of all Internet users use the three major search engines: Google, Yahoo and MSN. These search engines are designed in such a way that whenever a user types in the needed search keywords, the search engine will bring up a list of websites ranked according to their relevancy to the keywords typed in. The more associated a website is to a set of keywords put in, the superior is its ranking is on the search engines results.

How does a getting Seo service come into this picture? You see, absolutely search engine users only take the time to visit the top 20 websites listed on the results page brought up by the search engine. They usually do not disturbance anymore with websites with lower rankings. Thus, absolutely of the traffic goes to the highest-ranking websites while the lower-ranking ones are left high and dry.

It is clear then that to earn money with your website, your website has to have a high search engine ranking. To overcome this, it has to be search engine optimised.

Besides that, your web site is an integral part of your market plan. It may be the first view your visitors have of your firm. You therefore must to update and maintain it regularly so your visitors will want to revisit and keep doing market with you. Now, growing number of companies are realizing that their sites neediness to be designed in accordance with the basic Seo guidelines described by Google and other search engine. Online market is grown volcanically and if you are not aware about the potential of Seo services, then you are surely missing some of the powerful stuff in present market scenario.

The services provided by Seo are on page optimization, one way link building, article submissions, directory submission, content writing, and press release. From these services you can expect top search engine rankings. Seo services mainly concentrate on superior site traffic, more visibility over competitors, greater brand recognition, lower cost/new customer, enhanced sales and conversions, performance feedback, and lower promotion costs.

Seo services are cost magnetic from other marketing services in the long boost. They are sound and robust in their effectiveness and are very a lot promising in getting you the results you have set. Unlike other traditional types of advertisement, Seo can turn you fast results. Seo ranking has more leadership than emails, banners, pay-per-click ads which are shown especially on the side or in a box.

But Seo involves many and various aspects of site design and content, it requires dedicated enquiry, technical expertise, and distinguished communication skills. It's no longer sufficient to specify a list of keywords in your website's Meta tags. Many and various factors affect modern search engine value, and it is critical to look at everything the search engines do: from website copy to file naming and site navigation.

Presently, almost of the advertising companies are launching their websites and the main objective behind it is to return maximum number of targeted customers to their websites. It ultimately helps them to increase the sales of their products and services. But you cant gain your target with non-search engine-friendly website. For better Seo visibility of your website, you must to implement your website search-engine-friendly whether your enterprise is partly or wholly related to internet; Search Engine Visibility has a great role in making your website SE-friendly. You should design your website for search engines standpoint and visitors standpoint. Unequal Seo companies contribute conflicting Seo services to enhance the search engine visibility of their clients website. As a webmaster you have adopted various Seo techniques to boost your search engine visibility, but yet you have not got your desired result. Then its time for you to seriously consider hiring a professional Seo company who can give a phillip to your websites visibility in the major search engines.

James Saunders is the owner of Traffic Booster Pro at http://TrafficBoosterPro.com, the SEO Tool and Marketing Tool that turns any web site into a Self managing unit! Self Growing Intelligence Web Sites builder at http://TrafficBoosterProV2.comAnthia Blog53050
Alisa Blog22877

DBA Degree Programs Are A Secure Education Choice For Solid Employment

A company's database is the heart and soul of client information. Databases store valuable information such as contacts, sales and income, financial statements and organizational plans for management, and to lose their database means a business can no longer function. Optimal care and maintenance of databases are becoming more and more important, as old accounts bog up space or the difficulty in retrieving information slows down productivity. Not only that, security in administration is a must in our high tech world, constantly under onslaught from viruses, hacker attacks and other subversive tactics meant to steal data and destroy competition. Proper care and effective management in handling databases and their administration is vital to any successful business that relies on computer technology to function, and a DBA degree program will help you acquire the necessary skills to become an integral part of an administrative team.

A DBA degree program involves learning the skills and getting solid training to be able to design, create and implement databases for important corporations and businesses. Knowing how to administer databases is also part of the practical, hands on training you'll acquire at educational facilities competent with information technology. Some institutions will include networking knowledge in the program so that you can effectively administer databases to their maximum potential. Learning the basics of networking and its application to database administration will help you become a valuable asset for multi-million dollar corporations or international businesses. Furthermore, a DBA degree will provide you with the analytical ability to troubleshoot and improve upon existing databases or design new ones that serve companies more effectively.

Security is a large part of working with databases and no company wants to discover that its database no longer functions, wiped clean thanks to an insidious virus. The popularity and ease of use of large capacity USB drives combined with curious human nature has made them a huge tool of those who would sabotage a company's functioning and databases are perfect places to strike. Learning how to protect against such threats and knowing effective backup and replication procedures to further safeguard a company's vital information is part of being a high quality database administrator. Only training will provide you with the abilities you need to meet today's standards of safety and archiving and a DBA degree program offers that know how.

Career opportunities are widespread for those who have the backup of accreditation and degrees. The investment of time and money in going after the training you need to become a valuable asset to any company is well worth the pay off, as businesses will offer strong employment packages to those who will help them protect their important information. What's more, a proper DBA degree program from a recognized educational facility will probably have employers come looking for you, rather than you having to pound the pavement with lesser skills. Colleges and universities also usually have career placement services available, with a bank of businesses looking for skilled people. The prospects of a strong, stable professional career are very good and the job market will open up to you, thanks to your newly acquired knowledge.

Finding a good, reputable educational facility to provide you with your DBA degree program is easy, as schools have developed websites with pertinent information for what you need. What's more, many schools offer different forms of financial aid or will help you locate sources to fund your education. Searching the internet turns up plenty of facilities with programs geared specifically to the information technology industry and you'll easily find a college or university that will give you the high quality education you need to be a contender in the database administration field.

Andy West is a freelance writer for Virginia College. Virginia College offers a professional dba Degree program. Please visit Virginia College at http://www.vc.edu/site/program.cfm?programID=17 to learn more about obtaining a Database Administration and Design Degree.Carine Blog54868
Bernardine Blog69586

The Dangers of Buying a Custom Term Paper

In case you are planning to cheat on a term paper, you should at least know how to do it right. Even though most teachers are not willing to admit it, many of the essays they get from students are copied, plagiarized or written by someone else. There are hundreds of companies available which offer custom term papers for lazy students who have enough money to pay for them. These websites are constantly looking for students who wish to get their papers done without any efforts. These companies will provide them with papers for a fee, promising that it will be custom term paper and will get a good grade.

Many students who have tried this will tell you that custom term papers are not as good as they might seem at first. Many colleges and universities have tracking down systems. They check if there are the same essays online and even cross-check the past students essays from your university. Thus, if you are planning on buying your economics class from a senior student, then you might consider the possibility of being caught. It is also possible that your custom paper is not as custom made as you think it is. Many professors will copy one paragraph of your paper and check it online and they might find some similar essay posted online somewhere.

Many of the websites selling custom term papers provide a few paragraphs of the essays on the website, so that students will get an idea what they are paying for. However, this is a wonderful way for any suspicious professor or teacher to find what you've done. Sometimes you might try to contract someone else to write a term paper for you via e-mail or a message board.

However, most frequently the style of the essay will vary your own writing style and the teachers might get suspicious. They will start asking questions and eventually you might get into trouble, so in my opinion it's not worth taking that risk. Many high schools will be able to forgive plagiarism but if you do that in college or university you might get suspended. Most students realize the risks of paying for custom term papers and thus they don't do it. Don't risk being expelled. If you really don't have the time to finish your paper in time, talk with the professor. Most of them will give you some time extension. Even if they don't, it is better to give them a late essay than a stolen one.

Morgan Hamilton offers expert advice and great tips regarding all aspects concerning Custom Term Paper. Get more information by visiting http://www.theeducationannex.com/education/education--learning/the-dangers-of-buying-a-custom-term-paper.html.Caterina Blog52771
Antonella Blog93031

Fabulous Gifts for the Bride

There are few things in life more wonderful than getting married. It just gives a good feeling to see two people in love starting out together, doesn't it?

Buying gifts for the wedding or engagement party is almost as fun as buying gifts for yourself, but wedding gifts don't have to break the bank. In fact, it's usually cheaper to buy the couple a something for their new home rather than giving them cash. So, if you want some great gift ideas (because the thought of giving them a toaster just makes you cringe ), read on. We've got some great ones.

For a Creative Gift

Well, that high-priced photographer is going to produce mounds of photographs, all of which will need a home. A photo album or funky, artistic frame is always a good choice for a wedding gift.

Or, why not think about getting the happy couple something to do together in their leisure time? Perhaps a picnic basket and set of picnic supplies, a doublewide hammock, or an exquisite wine gift basket.

For a Healthy Gift

If the newly married couple is into healthy or organic living, why not put together a gardening kit for them? Find some organic vegetable or flower seeds, and collect all the tools they'll need to garden together in the backyard.

You could also think about ordering them a gift basket full of organic foods. With all the stress of planning and pulling off a wedding, it might be nice to just relax one night and munch on some organic, tasty treats!

For Pure Decadence

Decadent gifts can be anything from the pure luxurious to the downright fun. With all the blenders and plates the couple is going to be getting, why not lighten things up and get them a basket full of games? Stock it up with things they can play together, everything from a deck of cards to Monopoly.

If you're thinking luxurious, well the sky is only limited by your imagination! What about a digital photo frame? One of these will allow them to upload all their wedding pictures. The screen changes every few seconds, so they always get to look at a new picture.

For the Time Honored Gift

What about an expensive journal and pen to record their wedding experience in? It would definitely be an adventure to look back on 10 years from now and read about how Aunt Marge got drunk at the reception and lead the conga line for over an hour!

Or, what about some personalized stationary to write thank you notes on?

For a Technology Gift

If you're thinking luxurious and techie, why not purchase a new home theater system? There's almost nothing better than curling up to a good movie with theater surround-sound (although it might be hard to resist keeping this one for yourself ).

If that's a little out of budget, what about nice photo printer to print all their wedding pictures out on? If you're feeling a bit on the luxurious side, you can also stock them up on ink refills as well.

With a little advance planning and creativity, you can go above and beyond the toaster and blender clich of wedding gifts. You'll give a gift that's unexpected, appreciated, and certainly memorable!

Copyright (c) 2007 Pat Brill

Pat Brill is co-founder of http://www.SilkBow.com which supports Busy Moms with free gift ideas and helpful tips to meet the challenges of motherhood. She is also co-founder of http://www.WellnessArticles.net , a directory of articles covering many areas of wellness. You can reach Pat at pat@SilkBow.com.Amanda Blog14813
Amata Blog67412

Plasma, LCD Or CRT? Your Choice, Your Computer Monitor

We all know that computers have changed our lives. The technology is growing rapidly and at the end of every single year there is some thing more advanced version in the older version(just a year older). Since the mid-nineties, many of us have become accustomed to the home computer. We may have started with those dinosaur-looking desktop computers monitors that came with space consuming towers like television size monitors. But certainly, things have advanced over the last decade Computer monitors have stayed pretty much the same for a long time. The traditional CRT technology has been the standard for computer monitors ever since computers advanced to the point where they could display graphics. Processors have gotten thousands of times faster, hard drives thousands of times bigger, RAM memory thousands of times more efficient, but computer monitors have been basically the same old crap for decades. Dont get me wrong, computer monitors have certainly gotten better, but in !
am talking about the basic technology behind them which hasnt improved much. That has all changed recently, and computer monitors have finally at least partly caught up to the advances with computers in general.

When you buy a computer you have a number of options. But when it comes to the monitors you still have the first option is still the CRT or Cathode Ray Tube, monitors. Even though there are better technologies available now, CRT monitors should not be completely overlooked. Even today, in the middle of the 2006 the CRT computers are available at a cheaper rate. And most of the people who prefer to buy a computer at a affordable price will buy the CRT monitors .It is true that these computer monitors does not suffer from some of the bugs that the newer technologies are sometimes prone to. Also, CRT monitors are supposed to have the fastest response time. There are few drawbacks of the CRT monitors. Their large size as compared to the new LCD monitors and they generally require more power and have a poorer picture quality compared to the newer technologies.

LCD, or Liquid Crystal Display, monitors are much smaller, require less power, and provide a sharper, clearer image compared to CRTs .LCD displays are making serious inroads into the computer monitor market, and not without good reason. Now a days, LCD displays have already become the standard for the laptop computer monitors, and it is only a matter of time before they become the standard for desktops as well. Although they are more expensive than CRTs, the price tags on LCD monitors are rapidly dropping. Now and affordable LCD is not unimaginable.

Now its the time for Plasma. The latest computer monitor. Plasma display is now another option you have if youre looking for a computer monitor .Plasma displays are the high-end technology of computer monitors, and carry a heft price tag. They offer a superior picture quality capable of resolutions far greater than CRT or LCD equivalents, and are capable of displaying high definition graphics. Plasma display technology, while improving, still suffers from a number of bugs and an overall short life span, but if youve got the money to spare, they are certainly worth a look! So after have a fair idea of the computer monitors have you decided which one do you want on your computer table? So go ahead and get it today.

Luke Cameron is owner of eComputers Mag - an online magazine offering news, tips and articles on Computer related topics. His website can be found at: http://www.ecomputersmag.com and http://www.computercubicle.com.Celie Blog61846
Carmen Blog36677

Application Essay

Application essay writing is also referred to as admission essay writing. As the name suggests, this kind of essay is written when you need to apply to some place. Usually, you write an Application essay to obtain admission in a college or university. In order to gain admission, you need to have a goal in mind. The goal you write about in your essay depends on a few things. You may write about what you want to become professionally, your reason for choosing the subjects you wish to study, and why you want admission in a particular college or university.

Prior to writing your Application essay, you need to do some important research. If you wish to apply for admission in a university, you must know about the subjects you can study there. You also need to know what the university is well known for. For example, Harvard University is well known for producing law professionals and medical experts. So, your Application essay should acknowledge that the university you are applying at is the best for you to study your subjects of interest at.

Your Application essay, should also mention the route that you have taken to reach where you are. You need to demonstrate why you can fit into the program that your prospective university offers you. This is crucial because whoever reads your Application essay would want to see how you feel about your role with regard to the program offered.

When you write an Application essay in a format provided by a university, you might be given a one-page general question to answer. You may also be given different short questions. In either case, you will have to express your thoughts about your admission according to the instructions. In an Application essay, if you do not write according to instructions [such as specified word count], admissions officers will wonder how you would manage following instructions in the program you wish to study.

Your Application essay should also reveal some important things about yourself. This will help to inform admissions officers more about your personality and how you would manage the program you are applying for. It is important for you to realize that you must be honest in what you right. This is because you are making a career move with your Application essay. You need to prove to your prospective university as well as yourself that you are making the right choice.

Once you are clear about the main points for your Application essay, you can put together your first draft. You will probably need to go over it a few times to make sure you have written the right things. Getting another person to read your draft is a good idea too. Whether you write and submit your Application essay at the University or write it at home, you should be prepared with your answers. With an honest approach and belief in what program at university is right for you, your essay will be convincing.

Sharon White is a senior writer and writers consultant at Term Papers writing.Benni Blog31468
Buffy Blog58273

The Okavango Delta the river that never reaches the sea

It's a very different Africa. Not one of dust and sand and great fiery sunsets, but of the wettest desert on Earth.

In the middle of dry land a great river spills out onto to the sands of the Kalahari Desert in the northern corner of Botswana to create an extraordinary watery jungle. Like an immense oasis surrounded by desert, the Okavango Delta is filled with mysterious waters, lush vegetation and entrancing wildlife.

The Okavango, "The river that never reaches the sea," flows south from the uplands of Angola winding it's way into Botswana, and then spreads out over the parched plain irrigating 6,000 square miles to create the largest inland delta on Earth. The area that was once part of Lake Makgadikgadi, an ancient lake that dried up some 10,000 years ago, has once again been transformed into a labyrinth of channels, lagoons, swamps, and wooded islands that sustain a remarkable concentration of life.

Seasonal flooding of the delta during May and June winter in the southern hemisphere brings fresh water and a renewal of life to this vast swamp. Islands can disappear completely during the peak flood, and then reappear at the end of the season. These countless islands give birth to several diverse ecosystems, which are home to vast numbers of birds and animals, while the crystal clear waters are filled with a veritable zoo of life.

A consistent source of water and food, amid the arid landscape, the delta draws large numbers of migratory elephants to the area. Lumbering their great masses into the cool water, the elephants swim gracefully weightless among the forests of lily pads. This impenetrable aquatic forest of pinks and greens also hides schools of tiny silver fish.

But the tranquility of the green waters belies an exciting and dangerous side of this idyllic place. Great Nile crocodiles take a refreshing dip from a day spent basking on the riverbank and glide across the surface to settle unnoticed among the vegetation. Meanwhile a group of visitors enjoys a tranquil ride in mokoros (traditional dugout canoes) with a guide watching intently for signs of hippos swimming unseen, whose danger lies in their unpredictable nature and lack of fear of humans.

By day, a cruise along the maze of narrow papyrus-lined waterways of the Okavango Delta offers the chance to enjoy a prosperity of wildlife including lions, hyenas and buffalo, an array of different antelope and other smaller animals - warthog, mongoose, spotted genets, monkeys, bushbabies and tree squirrels. But nighttime on the delta is a full sensory experience. An incomprehensible number of stars and constellations will make you wish you knew more about astronomy, while you are serenaded by the sound of Hippos and Bell Frogs that mingle with the cacophony of other bleats, burps and hoots; some seemingly threatening, some just unusual and unrecognizable, and some delightfully soothing.

Copyright (c) 2007 Lindsay Carswell

Lindsay Carswell is a passionate adventurer and explorer. Having lived on three continents she has currently settled in the worlds original cultural melting pot, New York City, where she works as a television producer and freelance writer. for more information on Botswana safaris visit http://www.magicglobe.com/botswana/safaris.Anne Marie Blog84389
Benni Blog31468

Understanding Your PC's CPU Clock Speed And Front Side Bus

Have a computer in your home that is put to use often? Why not take the time to fully understand the terms, the components,and software used to make it work. To understand your PC is not hard and you'll be rewarded greatly.

How you ask? By upgrading your own system as well as repairing those of your friends while earning extra cash in the process. One of the more important PC components are the Motherboard,CPU Chip,and your computer's Hard Drive.

The CPU or Central Processing Unit is the brains of any computer and the two major manufacturers are Intel and AMD or Advanced Micro Devices.

For many years Intel CPUs were found in nearly all PCs. And now the Intel is found in most systems but the newer Athlon class cpu from AMD have taken a large chunk of the cpu market.

AMD's top cpu is the Opteron which compete's with Intel's Itanium and the Xeon.The Athlon is next on AMD's cpu lists and is intended for mid to high end computers.The Athlon XP was introduced in 1999 and is there most popular CPU.

Intel advertised their CPU's by their clock speed but now have introduced a rating system using a three digit number such as Intel Pentium 735.To understand the meaning of the number you can visit www.intel.com/products/ processor_number/info.htm

There you will see a list of all Intel CPUs, their rating numbers and meanings.This information is a valuable asset in helping you further understand your computer's CPU.

What then is meant by the term Clock Speed? This is the speed at which the CPU runs and is measured as a frequency such as 500 MHz or 500 million cycles per second.

As every action carried out by the CPU requires one or more cycles,be means that the higher the clock speed, the more instructions it will be able to process in any given second.Take the time to know the clock speed of your current CPU.

Want to know the clock speed of your CPU? There is a handy little utility named CHKCPU that will show your CPU's speed,and type.It can be downloaded in either DOS or Windows versions and its absolutely free.

The CPU's clock speed is an important indication of its quality but is by no means the only one.You must also understand and consider its FSB or Front Side Bus speed.

The FSB allows the CPU to communicate with the rest of the computer.The 3 GHz Pentium 4 PC has a FSB of 800 MHz and the 3 GHz Celeron's FSB is 533 MHz. Other names for this technology is the CPU Bus Speed, Memory Bus and System Bus.

Note that they both have the same processing power but the Pentium 4 can transfer data much more quickly since it has the faster FSB.

To make it easier for us pc users,manufacturers of the motherboards made them to support several FSB speeds within a specified range.To find the FSB rating for your computer look in the owners manual.

The Front Side Bus speed can generally be set either using the system BIOS.Short for Basic Input/Output System,this small software is responsible for starting the computer's bootup procedure.

The BIOS also recognizes and configures the system's hardware prior to the loading of the operating system. To access the BIOS,you must press a combination of keys such as CTRL-ALT-DEL on older systems but newer PCs allow you enter setup by press F1 or F10.

As your computer boot's up,watch the screen for a key to press to access your Setup.Once inside the BIOS, look for references to the FSB.Other motherboards allow FSB setup with jumpers located on the motherboard.

While most motherboards allow you to set the FSB to any setting,ensure that the FSB is properly set unless you plan to speed up your system by overclocking the Central Processing Unit.

The AMD has its own Hyper Transport Integrated I/O Bus and don't use FSB numbers.This technology resulted in communication much faster between the CPU,the RAM and other parts of the motherboard.

Now when you decide to upgrade your CPU or the Motherboard, don't overlook the Front Side Bus capacity and the CPU clock speed.You'll further boost your PC know as you understand these terms in more detail.

Copyright 2006 Otis Cooper

Otis F. Cooper is solely dedicated to boosting the knowledge and confidence of every computer user. Sign up to receive his informative articles every month and learn PC Repair absolutely free.Sign up now at http://www.ultimatepcrepair.comCelia Blog26522
Cari Blog24986

Six Yrs Of Stunning Naturopathic Research Says: Lose The Weight, Lose The Guilt: Gain Your Immunity Too

Weight loss and subsequent balance now becomes the side-effect of 'growing the cellular immune system of your body' NOT an effect of Mind-set or Willpower to 'force' weight-loss / balance...

For indeed you may achieve tens of kilos in weight loss by becoming the equivalent of an 'Olympic athlete' BUT when you've reached your goal weight but realise you want your life back seeing there is more to it than spending 2-4 hrs daily in the gymnasium or at the track WHAT HAVE YOU CHANGED?

.. Sooner or later your-underlying-physiology-will-revert-to-the-old-you unless you can reclaim your ideal cellular health especially if you don't know how to build your gut immunity & use immune positive foods to maintain it forever thereafter.

"Have you ever wondered why Doctors tell us Obesity itself is powerfully related to the 'big 4' illnesses of Diabetes, Arthritis, Breast/Bowel cancer & Heart disease?"

We'll tell you! ...Because much of the stubborn weight issues is ALSO IMMUNE-RELATED-DISORDERS just as are these 'Big-4' illnesses in the first place!

Current Medical research states:

Diabetes IS officially classified as an Auto-immune disease.
Arthritis IS officially classified as an Auto-immune disease.
Breast & Bowel cancer are both MAJOR immune related illnesses.
Heart-Disease is officially NOT classified as an immune disease YET. However since 1999 both Scandinavian & more recently even USA studies are beginning to powerfully link the immune-system even here too. So much so that we believe by the year 2010 Medical science will begin to classify it in the same category as these first three illnesses above.

But it seems the doctors who make those Obese-Diabetes-Arthritis-Cancer-Heart statements themselves JUST-CANNOT-SEEM-TO-JOIN-THE-DOTS.

In light of the above, My job as a Naturopath now is quite simple.

Work out just what is it that is interfering with our immune systems!

Hmm, not so easy or even straight-forward.

However the past 7 years have elucidated the 9 following areas mostly, as you will see are, directly attributable to the complex world we all live in being:

Genetic patterns-(Yes weight issue CAN run-in-family-lines)
What we do to ourselves with diet and drugs of addiction (Damages gut/immune cell)
What Doctors do to us with drug side effects (Again damages Gut/immune cells)
What Dentists do to us; Root canals, Amalgam metals, etc(Toxins placed by man)
Ill-effects of Radiation; X-ray, Microwave foods, Nuclear, etc (All forms of Radiation tend to suppress our immune systems)
Shock -Be it near Drowning/starvation(Anorexia)/near Asphyxia (thru acute asthma), near death(Car accident), etc.
NOT being breast-fed properly as an infant (The genesis of your immunity stems from the Maternal breast)
Chronic spinal issues (Just ask your chiropractor),
Foreign bodies such as Gall/Kidney stones, Surgical/cosmetic implants- (Foreign bodies are seen as invaders & place the immunity under load)

BY FAR, the most common areas as they relate to obesity is the first Six above

TREATMENT

Our activated 'milk extract (Allowing the Life Force) capsules' will clear the ill-effect of these issues at around 16% per week.

We can tell you the immune positive foods and immune negative foods to employ and use ALF to revive damaged gut cells.
We can tell you which to try and reduce over time.
Again, the ALF revives gut drug damaged cells.
Please seek out a biological dentist in your area to measure your metals in your mouth.
Reduce if you can- Microwave foods, X-ray exposure, excess Mobile phone radiation, Move out of radius of Nuclear power stations if possible, Deep-screen computers, Even your solarium could be dangerous too.

We write the above NOT to shock or even threaten, but simply inform you.

Twenty four years of hands on Full-time naturopathy in country Victoria, Australia.

Glen F Rees BSc, ND. http://www.pranicpulseoflife.com

Glen F Rees BSc, ND. A fulltime practicing Naturopath of some 24 yrs.Bette Blog37770
Becka Blog80028

Linux Freely Available? Linux Free? Confused Enough?

Many new Linux users are confused by the terms bantered around Free, Freely Available, Commercial Distributions and Shareware.

The confusion comes primarily from the description and terms Freely Available and Free and their distinctions.

Linux is open source software which means any software developer can add on to change the products basic source code. This is diametrically opposed to a strict proprietary concept such as Microsofts approach which is to own and have control the software and its code lock stock and barrel. There are some advantages to the proprietary approach particularly if you are dealing with a major mainstream product with millions and millions of users many of who are foolish novices; Life has enough problems without throwing in a monkey wrench to complicate efforts. Remember that if only 1/10 of 1 % of users think that if the computer throws out an error message commonly You have committed an illegal actions and run to lock their doors as the police are coming then that small percentage is a lot of people.

The confusion arises in that the source code and any changes made to it must be made freely available ... Whiskey may be freely available at your local saloon but that does not make it free of cost to you as a customer. However in actuality much of the software available in the Linux world is given away at no charge or cost except with the proviso that changes and work done to source code must be made available to others without restriction.

Linux applications differ widely in cost and appearance. Many new Linux users are confused by the apparently contradictory terms used in Linux software product descriptions. These are Freely Available Software , Shareware and Commercial Linux Applications.

Freely available software is available for free use by the end user. Although software may be freely available, it is often not the same thing as Public Domain software. Public Domain Software is software that is freely given on the open market either by the permission of the software developer or by being older than copyright constraints , that you as a user can do anything you wish to in terms of use , redistribution or changes. However Freely Available Software is different in that it is often owned and copywriter by the owner, author (or authors) who then allow people to use and / or make modifications to it. The term Freely Available Software can be further divided into software that you can either Freely Copy or Freely Distribute. Some people make their software Freely Available only if you copy or download it from a particular site or from a non commercial distribution. Other people will let you copy their software from anywhere. Copying restrictions usually apply to people making a commercial distribution, not to the end user of the distribution. The distribution maker has the responsibility to be in compliance with the packages copying restrictions which are usually outlined in the programs source code or about or Help sections.

A lot of freely available software can be obtained by downloads on the internet. Some can be bought in physical form from commercial retail outlets either online or at a physical location.

Many freely available applications have been converted from UNIX to OS/2, Windows 95, 98, NT, 2000 and XP. And other operating systems... If you use an application that has been ported to many operating systems you will be able to carry your skills and data to alternate platforms if you wish to or have to change for one reason or another.

NonFree Applications consist of commercial applications and shareware applications. Commercial applications are sold outright. Shareware programs may be tried out and evaluated then either not used, uninstalled or a license key purchased. Sometimes shareware programs may be used for free in a home environment but purchased if used within a business setting.

Hopefully now the distinctions between these terms bantered around in the Linux software distribution distro and downloads sites will be clearer to you now.

Max Rubin Ag Chemist Linux as well as vintage computing Celestine Blog78642
Carry Blog64485

Franchising As A Vehicle For Economic Empowerment

WHAT IS FRANCHISING?

The simplest definition for franchising is: A method of doing business whereby a franchisor licenses trademarks, systems and methods of doing business to a franchisee in exchange for a recurring ongoing consideration i.e. a royalty fee or a franchise management fee.

Franchising is a form of a business by which the owner (franchisor) of a product, service, or method obtains distribution through affiliated dealers (franchisees). A franchisor is expected to offer assistance in organising, training, merchandising, marketing, and giving direction in return for a consideration.

Franchising usually involves a contractual arrangement between a franchisor (a manufacturer, a wholesaler, or a service sponsor) and a retail franchisee, which allows the franchisee to conduct a given form of business under an established name and according to a given pattern of business.

DOES FRANCHISING IMPLY THAT YOU ARE SELF-EMPLOYED?

In some respects, NO. You still have to answer to someone else and follow his or her direction. You don't really own the business; you own the assets you've purchased in order to establish the business. If you consider that you are in business for yourself, but not by yourself, then YESyou are self employed.

FRANCHISING IS THE FASTEST GROWING BUSINESS ECONOMIC MODEL

Globally, franchising is the most popular and the fastest growing business economic model. It assembles business relationships that allow people to share brand identification, a proven method of doing business and a successful marketing and distribution system. When most people think of a franchise, they think fast food. Franchising, however, long ago grew beyond the burger and fried-chicken shops. Today franchise concepts span over 70 different product and service sectors, including such businesses as auto-repair shops, children's art centers, fitness clubs, law & consulting practices, and many home based businesses. The franchising business model has turned into a major economic engine globally and it is one that's providing increasing opportunities for companies and individual entrepreneurs alike.

For South Africa, and for Africa as whole, franchising is a perfect vehicle for the economic empowerment of the historically disadvantaged sectors of the population. This brings with it the need for the establishment of more franchises. That is, franchising businesses that are established, that has a unique offering and where the method of doing business has been tried, tested and perfected. Apart from empowering companies and individuals, there should be a particular focus on identifying labour intensive businesses that have the potential to make a significant and positive impact on employment creation as well as those businesses that have a product or service offering for export markets with the ultimate objective of booming local economies.

THE ADVANTAGES OF FRANCHISING

1. An investment is usually made into a proven business.

2. A faster start up, developing a customer base quicker, and experiencing profitability quicker are key attractions.

3. There is a known quantifiable proven formula.

4. Owner transition and training is available, and there is full control of strategic direction and ability to thoroughly review past records and company history.

5. The biggest advantage of franchising appears to be the reduction of risk you will be taking for your investment.

6. You also usually get better deals on supplies because the franchise company can purchase goods and supplies in bulk for the entire chain, and then pass that savings on to you and the other franchise units.

7. Customers are dealing with a "known" rather than an "unknown."

THE DISADVANTAGES OF FRANCHISING

1. Some franchises can be very expensive. Franchisors expect you to follow their operations manuals to the letter. No flexibility on your part.

2. Buying a franchise is like marrying someone you haven't known for long.

3. The relative security offered by franchisors may be exaggerated. Some franchisors are in for a quick buck.

4. Franchising as a pyramid scheme. Some companies try to make money by just collecting franchise fees, and won't spend the time or money necessary to help their existing franchisees succeed.

5. Overcharging for supplies. Some franchisers may require you to buy supplies exclusively from them at inflated prices.

6. Fees for unnecessary training.

7. Misleading sales presentations. Some franchisors over-promise the moon in their pitches to prospective franchisees

BUSINESS OWNERS: IS YOUR BUSINESS FRANCHISE READY?

An appropriate first step in the decision to franchise is an examination of the question of whether or not a business concept is actually "franchisable." Any organization seriously considering franchising should undertake this analysis before implementing a franchise strategy. While it is impossible to determine the franchisability of a business concept without a significant amount of analysis, most franchise experts are guided by the following criteria to assess the readiness of a company for franchising and the likelihood that it will achieve success as a franchisor.

1. Credibility: To sell franchises, a company must first be credible in the eyes of its prospective franchisees. Large organisation size, number of outlets, years in operation, strength of management are key credibility factors.

2. Differentiation: In addition to credibility, a franchise organisation must be adequately differentiated from its franchised competitors. This can come in the form of a differentiated product or service, a reduced investment cost, a unique marketing strategy, or different target markets.

3. Transferability of knowledge: The next criterion is the ability to teach a system to others. To franchise, a business must generally be able to thoroughly educate a prospective franchisee in a relatively short period of time.

4. Adaptability: Next, measure how well a concept can be adapted from one market to the next. Some concepts do not adapt well over large geographic areas because of regional variations in consumer tastes or preferences.

5. Refined and successful prototype operations: A refined prototype is necessary to demonstrate that the system is proven, and is generally instrumental in the training of franchisees. The prototype also acts as a testing ground for new products, new services, marketing techniques, merchandising, and operational efficiencies.

6. Documented systems: All successful businesses have systems. But in order to be franchisable, these systems must be documented in a manner that communicates them effectively to franchisees.

7. Affordability: Affordability merely reflects a prospective franchisees ability to pay for the franchise in question. This criterion is as much a reflection of the prospective franchisee as it is of the actual cost of opening a franchise.

8. Return on Investment: This is the real acid test. A franchised business must, of course, be profitable. But more than that, a franchised business must allow enough profit after a royalty for the franchisees to earn an adequate return on their investment of time and money.

9. Market trends and conditions: While not an indicator of franchisability as much as general indicators of the success of any business; these trends are key to long-term planning. Is the market growing or consolidating? How will that affect your business in the future? What impact will the Internet have? Will the franchisees products and services remain relevant in the years ahead? What are other franchised and non-franchised competitors doing? And how will the competitive environment affect your franchisees likelihood of long-term success.

10. Capital: While franchising is a low-cost means of expanding a business, it is not a "no cost" means of expansion. A franchisor needs the capital and resources to implement a franchise program. The resources required to initially implement a franchise program will vary depending on the scope of the expansion plan. If a company is looking to sell one or two franchised units, the necessary legal documentation may be completed at low costs. For franchisors targeting aggressive expansion, however, start-up costs can run into Hundreds of Thousands and more.

11. Commitment to relationships: Successful franchisors focus on building long-term relationships with their franchisees that are mutually rewarding. Unfortunately, not all franchise organizations understand the link that exists between relationships and profits. Strong franchisee relationships enable the franchisor to sell franchises more effectively, introduce needed changes into the system more easily, and motivate franchisees and their managers to provide a consistent level of products and services to their customers.

12. Strength of management: Finally, the single most important aspect contributing to the success of any franchise program is the strength of its management. More often than not, new franchisors will try to take everything on themselves. In addition to absorbing several new jobs for which the franchisor has little to no time, the franchisor needs to exhibit expertise in fields in which he or she may have little or no experience: franchise marketing, lead handling, franchise sales, ad fund management, training, and multi-unit operations management.

ENTREPRENEURS: HOW TO SELECT THE RIGHT FRANCHISE

Buying a franchise can be a daunting task. With thousands of franchises in over 70 different industries available worldwide, finding the best franchise can be like finding a needle in a haystack. Moreover, the best franchise for your neighbour might be a disaster in the waiting for you. How do you invest in the right franchise?

1. Why?: First, you must ask yourself certain questions and be very objective. Why do you want to own a franchise? If it's to get rich or to get on easy street and not have to work, then franchising will probably not meet your expectations. If you are like many people who have the dream of owning your own business (but not being on your own), being your own boss and having control of your life, then franchising may be for you.

2. Strengths: Be realistic and fully understand your strengths and weaknesses. Invest your strengths into the right type of franchise. Dont explore every franchise opportunity. Select only those you believe co-incides with your strengths

3. Research: Compile a list of the franchises that interest you. Go through their websites and set up meetings with the franchise manager/director.

4. Disclosure Document: Study the franchise disclosure document or prospectus. Here you want to see strong financial history, experienced people in key positions, and a company that has been in business for 3 years or more, the longer the better, has a large number of outlets and has few closed or bought back.

5. Franchise Agreement: Closely examine the franchise agreement. This is the contract between you and the company. Franchise agreements are always biased in favor of the franchisor, that's just the way it is. This can be good and bad. The company can be unfair in it's dealings with you and the franchise agreement may allow this, on the other hand you should want a strong franchisor.

6. References: Call as many franchisees as possible. Call at least 10. Find out how they are doing. The key question is "Would you buy this franchise again?"

7. Visits: Visit personally as many operating units as possible. At least three. Often the owner or manager will be more forthcoming in person than over the phone.

8. Verify Financial Information: If everything still looks good, then contact the sales rep and get as much definitive sales information as possible. Most franchisors will not make earnings claims but they will provide information with which you may extrapolate gross sales.

9. Advisors: If everything still looks good then go for it. If you are unsure, speak to qualified advisors.

THE FIVE REASONS FRANCHISES FAIL

Generally, on a global level, 30% of small independent businesses fail within the first year, with less than 20% going beyond year 5. Franchises, on the other hand, are significantly more successful. Less than 5% of franchises fail. The reason(s) for failure could be a number of factors, most of which could have been prevented by due diligence during the early phase. The following are the main reasons franchises fail:

1. The Idea. Whether you are franchising your own company or buying into a franchise system, how the concept is received by the community is critical. While burgers seem to have universal appeal, not all food chains meet with majority approval. Also, if your business model is complicated you are in for a struggle. You want to create an operational standard that can be taught to and replicated by any businessperson. A company may be successful when run by the entrepreneur who dreamed up the concept, however, if the business model or prototype is not easily duplicated the chances for success are not so optimistic.

2. Bad Location. Ask seasoned franchisees to name one of the most important keys to a successful franchise and undoubtedly they will say, "Location, location, location." Even with a well-branded name, if you are off the beaten path, inconveniently located or in an isolated area the opportunity to be as lucrative as possible diminishes.

3. Poor Marketing/Advertising. Many well-established and reputable franchisors have marketing and advertising funds into which franchisees contribute monetarily. Chains like McDonald's and Subway have national campaigns, while other types of franchises may advertise on a local level. Some franchise concepts require a lot of legwork on behalf of the franchisee. Depending on the business you chose, you may have to solicit your own clients, as in technical and computer support franchises. If you are considering a concept that requires outside sales skills and you lack them, you may want to rethink your choice.

4. Competition. There are approximately 160,000 franchises in operation in the US. That means a lot of competition. If your market already is saturated with a concept you may want to consider something that still is popular but not yet tapped out. Medical spas and restaurants offering healthy choices are gaining ground among the public but there is abundant room on the business owner side.

5. Unrealistic Expectations. New franchisees are notorious for having very high expectations for their businesses. It may take 2-3 years before you see a profit and if you don't plan for that you may sink before you have a chance to swim.

A word to the wise: If you don't like people you should not buy a franchise. If you want to make it you have to put in long hours and work with all kinds of personalities. It's an undeniable fact that some people are more difficult to interact with than others. As a business owner you need to be able to interact well with people from all walks of life. The ability to manage employees also is essential to the success of your business.

Visit http://www.africabrokers.com The Leading business brokers in Africa offering a large range of businesses and franchise for sale.

Silvan PillayAindrea Blog65235
Alis Blog75365

Using Risk Reversal Closes More Sales

When you minimize risk in purchasing decisions a lot more people are willing to say "yes". Once they sample your product or service, if it performs as you say, most customers will keep that product and continue buying again and again.

Here's a little story to illustrate my point.

A farmer wanted to buy a hunting dog for his son. There were two for sale in a nearby town. The first seller told the farmer he was asking $300 for his bloodhound, non-negotiable.

The second seller told the farmer about his bloodhound, long before he mentioned a price or asked for a commitment. He said the puppy was from a long line of champion bloodhounds, well-known in the area for their tracking skills. And he brought out the puppy's mother and father and explained that they were like members of the family - very loyal and constant companions for the last six years.

The man went on to tell the farmer that he wanted the farmer's son to try out the puppy for a month before he had to make any decision. He offered to provide an extra kennel and a month's worth of food for the puppy. Finally, he said, at the end of 30 days, he would drive out to the farmer's house and either take back the puppy, or ask then to be paid.

Which puppy do you suppose the farmer decided to purchase for his son? Obviously there was no question. And there will be no question for you if you apply strong risk reversal into every sales offer you make. What exactly do I mean by a strong risk reversal? I'm referring to an iron-clad guarantee that eliminates all, or most of all of the customer risk in the transaction.

The clearer, stronger and more detailed the guarantee, the more credibility and impact it will have on a buyer. Consider how much more powerful it is if instead of saying, "your satisfaction is guaranteed," you say, "we unconditionally guarantee performance for a full 30 days." That's better, wouldn't you agree? But, what if you went a step further and said, "No questions asked, 100% money-back guarantee anytime within 60 days if my product doesn't perform exactly as promised." That's even better. But you could go still further by saying, "No questions asked, 100% money-back guarantee. If you don't experience noticeable and measurable improvements in your speaking abilities, a wider vocabulary, and bolder voice delivery, if you don't get the results we promised within 90 days of using our system, we'll gladly give you a complete and immediate refund of your full purchase price, no questions asked...that's our guarantee to you."

Notice the difference a strong and specific risk-reversed performance guarantee can make? When you apply risk reversal this way, your sales almost always skyrockets, and stays that way. You make more sales, sell larger purchase units and sell more frequently when people don't worry about making the wrong or bad buying decision.

When you incorporate risk reversal, you essentially eliminate your prospect's fear that they will make a bad, incorrect or damaging purchasing decision. That's an extremely powerful, persuasive point to make. It moves anyone who's indecisive or mildly interested and turns them into highly favorable prospects. If people are trying to decide between you and one or more of your competitors, it tips the level of the playing field significantly to your advantage.

Just adding risk reversal and a purchase strong guarantee to your sales offer makes a powerful difference.

There are a variety of approaches to the risk reversal strategy:

* A software vendor guarantees its product will reduce manufacturing costs by at least 10 percent.

* A copywriter offers his services for free if his direct mail package pulls less than a 5 percent response.

* A commercial water filter distributor offers to buy back any filtering units not sold in the first 3 months.

* An interior decorator agrees (in writing) not to be paid until her customers are completely satisfied with the work she's done.

If you don't employ some form of risk reversal, start doing it right away. If your current guarantee is short and vague, enhance your copy with more specifics and more attractive terms.

If your product or service is high quality and meets performance expectations, the longer the guarantee and the more specific the performance promise you make, the more people will buy. It's that simple.

Typically a 60-day guarantee will out pull 30 days by 20 to 100%. Test it yourself and see what results you get. The more specific you get in describing what "satisfaction" means, the more compelled they become to act in order to experience that benefit for themselves.

If you're concerned that employing a strong risk reversal will cost you in product returns and lower profits, don't be. Typically, unless your product or service is flawed or just plain inferior in terms of meeting customer expectations, the number of people exercising a refund guarantee is negligible. But the increase in people taking you up on the initial sales offer is anything but negligible.

Archie R. Lawhorne is an accomplished writer, author and marketing consultant. His powerful direct-response marketing system shows you how to erase peoples purchase anxiety so they will eagerly crawl over broken glass to buy what you sell. Discover how to crack the code here: http://www.marketing-funnel.com.Barbi Blog64258
Bambi Blog77126

Wi-fi Wireless Internet Made Simple

Just what is all this Wi-Fi wireless internet stuff they are trying to confuse and torment me with?

It is actually quite simple, useful and most of all convenient.

All you probably want to do is to share your internet connection throughout your home whether it be to other computers or so that you can sit in your bedroom and wirelessly surf the internet or send email. Perhaps as well you wish to share files such as songs throughout the computers in your house, apartment or condo.

Dont let them confuse with all this alphabet soup - b , g , a , 11 megabytes , 54 , 108.

To begin with most any of the systems are beyond overkill. All will go faster than the even high speed broadband internet. Most use the same frequency as the standard cordless phones (2.4 GHz). . Be reassured the phones and the wireless internet in most cases will co- exist and work well with each other.

The most common wireless setups wireless b and g use the frequency most cordless phone use. G wireless internet is sort of a faster b standard. What is important to know is that it is all standardized. B will work with G and G products will work with B. G is said to up to 5 times faster than B that is assuming that you are relatively close. G wireless is very useful primarily if you are sharing large files between computers. For ordinary browsing b wireless is still overkill speed, faster as said than most broadband internet connections. The usual stated range of these wireless products is 300 feet indoors range and 1000 feet outside. The range is basically line of sight. Heavy dense objects primarily metal, metal doors, metal foil insulation, heavy bricks and pipes and objects such as furnaces, metal filing cabinets will block reception to some degree. As well if the manufacturer makes some ultra high speed claims remember that both the router and wireless network adapters will have to be that brand and that special computer networking hardware feature to work at those high speeds and transmission rates. Remember to that wireless internet transmission speeds fall rapidly with distance.

Wireless internet is basically a radio setup with a transmitter and receivers. The transmitter is a box that plugs into the internet to share your internet connection. This is called a Router . . Wireless routers are made by a number of manufactures and the most widely known are the Linksys and D-Link brands. All routers are fairly good now. Tech support may be something to consider for setup ease. Routers are often sold on sale at big box stores as a means of drawing customers who already have at least one computer into their stores. It is reasoned that if a customer wants to buy a router the odds are good that he or she has more than one computer and once in the store will make additional purchases .Perhaps they will be even so fed up with the older computer as the kids have taken use of the newer faster model that the customer will even buy a additional new computer from the store.. The routers that you will find on sale will most likely be the newer g standard routers which will work with your B or G wireless network adapters in your computers.

Secondly you will need a receiver to receive the wireless internet signal at the computer end. You will have several options depending on your setup. If your laptop is a newer model then you may have a wireless network adapter: already built into your laptop. If you have an older laptop you can install a PCMCIA wireless network adapter into the credit card sized slot on your laptop. If you have a desktop computer you will have several options. If you have the abilities and are allowed by your warranty to open your computer case then you can install a standard PCI wireless card. The advantage of the PCI cards is that they almost always work, are screwed in so that they cannot be dislodged to stop working. The disadvantage is that the antenna of the card is hidden behind the metal of the computer case limiting reception. Another option is USB wireless adapters. Not only can the USB wireless adapter be installed without opening the case but as well with a USB extension cord the YSB network adapter can be lifted away from the computer to a higher more open place.

Several points on setup to make your life easier. After all networking is often called Voodoo Science . First if you are buying both the wireless adapters as well as the router try to buy the same brand, There will be easier setup , perhaps faster speed and tech support will not be able to blame the other vendors product for setup issues. You can tell tech support even after the return period of the store: I guess the products are defective and have to be replaced . There will be no issue of blaming the other vendors product. Case closed. Secondly most of the routers are setup by a web based interface . Some will come with an install disc as wizard. With others you will enter a web address usually 192.168.x.x and a password. To enter this setup interface. The instructions and passwords should be in either your instructional manual or disc that came in the box with your router. If you have a standard cable broadband account then just follow instructions if you have a DSL type of broadband internet connection then you will need the paper the phone company gave you with your internet account name and setup password. The type of connection that you set up in the router for DSL connections is called POPE The connection internet connection password is most likely different than your email password. This internet connection password is of very little value to anyone else. If you do not have this information phone your DSL provider tech support.

Next install the wireless adapters. Windows XP has its own wireless utility program installed. With previous versions of windows (Windows 98, 2000 and ME) you will have to install the utility program that the manufacturer provided on the install disk.

Most of his install manuals have 2 different sets of instructions one for Windows XP, the other for the remaining operating systems.

When you setup the router you will be given a choice of whether to turn on the security features so that other people can drive up in front of your house and freeload your internet signals. It is anyones choice whether they wish to use this feature or not.

Believe me there will be no shortage of wireless internet connections for those freeloaders estimate is 60 %. You can say to yourself if someone wants to waste gas to sit in front of my home to download songs or whatever good for them . If you wish to turn on the scrambling to sign onto your internet it will be in the advanced wireless or wireless security section of your router control panel. There are a number of choices. Most common is a setup called WEP (Web Enabled Protection)... This is available in a standard 64 bit or more secure 128 bit WEP settings. 64 bit setup is easier. 128 bit has you enter a long string of characters twice. Lots of fun with mistakes on entering those digits correctly. The easier to use security setup routines will allow an easy to use phrase code generator. For example in the phrase code generator you enter the word

Badgerlinux. The number / character code will then be generated that you must enter both the router and wireless adapter ends of your system. WEP is considered by purists not as secure as a newer system called WPA. Not all of the older hardware supports WPA. You may look at it as if someone in my area can break into my WEP protected wireless system then that is the least of my troubles.

Lastly the biggest problem with wireless internet networks in neighbors. That is right neighbors. It is estimated that 40 % of wireless products are returned to big box stores. There are 12 available channels available in the wireless router settings. For convenience and to aid setup most brands of routers place the default channel of their routers as channel 6 right in the middle of the 12 channels available. It does not take much a signal at all to confuse your wireless adapter. You will see signal strength of your wireless route signal but you will unable to get a solid internet connection.

Worse yet this phenomenon of no internet connection may be sporadic. In many cases you will not be able to even spot the culprit in your wireless configuration software.

Remarkably wireless internet signals can travel a fair distance and may even appear to come out of nowhere. Worse yet the interference may be on sporadic. And as said it does not take much of a signal at all to leave you with no internet connection.

The answer is simplicity itself. Change the Channel . There are 12 available channels in your router setup control panel. The next 2 choices for wireless channel selection are at the 2 ends of the spectrum channels 1 and 11. However it may simply be a matter of trial and error.

Wireless internet is rather amazing, you can surf the world, download songs, send email and transfer files conveniently at high speed and at some distance away from your internet connection. In addition you do not have to call or pay electrician to string the internet network wiring in your home. And if you wish to move the computers or even move just pickup and make the move.

If in the end you are having troubles on setup do not feel afraid to call tech support. Someone in India or the Philippines will be more than happy to assist you. Remember in the end you have the ultimate threat of all , that is to take your new Wi-Fi wireless products back to your store of purchase.

Maxwell Z. Rubin Agricultural Chemist Linux as well as vintage computing http://www.vintagecomputermanuals.com http://www.badgerlinux.netCamila Blog14523
Belle Blog21630

How Do I Get My CEUS Online?

Its that time again: you need continuing education units (CEUS) to renew your professional license or credentials. Certification organizations, government licensing boards, and professional societies require continuing education (CE) for licensing. While some people plan carefully and attend courses, conferences, and seminars, others get caught behind. Such is the predicament facing nurses, marriage and family therapists, and social workers in need of continuing education every few years.

The International Association for Continuing Education and Training gives the following definition of a Continuing Education Unit:

One (1) CEU is equal to ten (10) contact hours of participation in an organized continuing education experience under responsible sponsorship, capable direction, and qualified instruction.

One contact hour is 50 consecutive clock minutes in a board-approved continuing education class or activity.

Instruction must come from a continuing education program recognized by the licensing board of your particular profession. Upon completion, your CEU records not only supply evidence to licensing boards of successfully passing the courses, but they also give employers information about your training.

Luckily, getting CEUS is easier than ever with the internet. Whether youre an LCSW, an MFT, a nurse, or another professional in need of continuing education, there are a variety of CE offerings online. Online CEUS offer several advantages:

Save time. You can complete CEUS online at your own pace. If your deadline is approaching quickly, you dont have to wait for books, materials, or tests to be mailed back and forth. You can finish your online education in a matter of a few days, whereas through traditional mail could take up to 30 days. You also dont have to wait for your conference or seminar to roll around and save commuting time.

Gain Instant Access. After signing up, you get immediate access to reading materials and tests. You receive instant feedback on your test scores, and upon successful completion, you can print the course certificate from the comfort of home.

Save Money. The online environment does not have the same overhead that conferences, seminars, and colleges do. Most online courses cost less than $10 per CEU. Compare that to hundreds of dollars youd pay for CEUS at conferences or college courses.

Make sure your online CEUs will be accepted.

When considering online CEUS, verify that your course will count towards your CEU requirements. Requirements vary by state, so be sure to check with the professional licensing board over your jurisdiction. Save yourself the hassle: get an answer in writing before you start.

Rob Zawrotny is a copywriter assisting Nursing CEUS in providing information to those looking to get a CEUS online. Visit http://www.ceus-nursing.com for more information.Brynne Blog88262
Antonia Blog65224