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The New Pittsburgh Collaborative (NPC), a non-partisan network of diverse and civically engaged Pittsburgh organizations, and the AARP co-hosted a packed forum on Social Security reform this week that was attended by more than 400 young professionals and retirees.

Because many of the 22 NPC member organizations serve a young professional demographic that may be seriously affected by the outcome of the proposed changes to Social Security, the NPC felt it was important to foster an open dialogue where younger generations and older Americans could engage in a discussion about Social Security reform....(Continue Reading...)

PLUS Model Magazine (http://www.plusmodelmag.com), the premiere virtual magazine celebrating the plus size fashion and plus size modeling industry, is celebrating its' first year in virtual print.

Designed as a fusion of technology and gloss, PLUS inspires the plus size woman to thrive in her curves, crave contemporary fashion and design her life on her own terms, sans apologies.

"In the Anniversary issue, PLUS dedicates the virtual pages to helping plus models put their best foot forward in their curvy career," shares Creative Director, Maddy Figueroa-Jones. "We take a look at photography; the inspiration, the art and the curvy form."...(Continue Reading...)

Digital Media Wire announced today the agenda for the highly-anticipated Future of Television Conference (http://www.televisionconference.com/index.shtml) to be held at the Museum of Jewish Heritage November 8-9, 2007, in New York City. The innovative conference will tackle the digital demands being placed on the television industry as consumers increasingly shift their attention to the other "tubes" and advertisers sway their checkbooks from traditional broadcast.

"At the intersection of these significant market changes, great opportunity abounds," said Ned Sherman, CEO & Publisher, Digital Media Wire. "We've been a leader in the digital media industry with timely market intelligence since its inception. It's exciting to provide a medium where these changes can be explored and debated and the stakeholders and other interested parties can forge alliances."...(Continue Reading...)

Longmont, CO (PRWEB) March 14, 2006 -– The Longmont Area Economic Council (www.longmont.org) has announced that four area companies are relocating to or expanding in the Longmont area.

"We're pleased to announce this good news during the first quarter of 2006," said John Cody, President and CEO of the Longmont Area Economic Council (LAEC). "The area's positive economic momentum is continuing after a strong 2005, and we expect that to continue."

The companies involved in this news include:

Sopris West Educational Services, an educational publishing company with headquarters in unincorporated Weld County, broke ground last week on a new facility constructed at 4195 Salazar Way in Frederick. Established in 1978, Sopris West is a publishing and staff development company that produces, markets and distributes resources and professional development services to education professionals. With a focus on at-risk and special-needs children, the company's research-based products and training offer positive, proactive instructional solutions to address the complex challenges found in today’s classrooms. For more information, visit www.sopriswest.com....(Continue Reading...)

In a pre-holidays study, the Journal de Montreal newspaper rated Aldo Shoes and La Senza E-Commerce websites in its top two positions of its e-commerce rankings. The Newspaper's journalists went shopping online and compared retail e-commerce websites in categories including: website usability, search capabilities, merchandising, multilingual capabilities, payment, shipping, packaging and return policies. Both Aldo Shoes and La Senza operate their e-commerce websites using iCongo's Retail E-Commerce Platform....(Continue Reading...)

Wired Destinations will donate a portion of each hotel booking for Malaysia to the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre.

Wired Destinations recently started supporting the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre in the Sabah region of Malaysian Borneo. Mr. Heiko Wilms, CEO of Wired Destinations parent company WD Travel states: "We are pleased to announce that Wired Destinations will donate a portion of each hotel booking for Malaysia from April 1 to September 30 to the Sepilok Rehabilitation Centre. We also encourage our customers to make individual donations by visiting the Centre's website." Funds generated by Wired Destinations are channeled via the Sepilok Orangutan Appeal UK with official charity status in the UK and the first and only NGO to be recognized by the Malaysian Government....(Continue Reading...)

The Email Experience Council (eec), an organization of global professionals driving and defining email marketing and communications practices, today announced an expanded agreement and partnership with two Atlanta based companies. BrightWave Marketing, a leading independent email marketing services firm, and EmailStatCenter.com, the first centralized online repository of statistics and research specific to the email marketing industry, will join the eec's sponsorship roster and enhance their existing relationships....(Continue Reading...)

TrialPay marks yet another record-breaking month by expanding to 15 million users and 7,500 merchants. For two years, TrialPay has boosted online sales for industry-leading merchants across many verticals, including software, online games, retail, subscription services and publishing, by giving customers a compelling way to pay. As a result, the rapidly growing e-commerce payment platform has seen its merchant and user numbers jump by 25 percent.

WinZip, one of TrialPay's earliest merchant partners, can attest to TrialPay's ability to increase online revenue by making its award-winning compression utility accessible to a broader audience. WinZip launched TrialPay as a payment option on its Web site in August 2006, and its immediate success led to further integration with additional touch points, including in-product messaging, seasonal e-mail campaigns and more. TrialPay helps WinZip convert thousands of free trial users into licensed users every month....(Continue Reading...)

LASTCALL Testing Services, Inc., the makers of RTIME, just announced the release of RTIME 3.5, a powerful methodology/tool suite proven to prevent software defects. RTIME is a requirements-driven Project Management, development and testing methodology tool suite. RTIME is easily understood and used by both technical and non-technical personnel. It substantially enhances a companys ability to communicate project information, and provides defect-free implementation throughout the software development life cycle. ...(Continue Reading...)

Announcing the re-launch of Britain's Finest Museums, http://www.britainsfinest.co.uk/Museums, with interactive Google Mapping. Britain's Finest Museums features over 400 Museums and Galleries to visit throughout Britain.

Britain's Finest Museums & Galleries features over 500 high quality Museums & Galleries to visit throughout the UK. These top quality Museums & Galleries, which are subject to strict assessment, There is good geographical coverage across Britain, so that whether you are searching for a Museums in Scotland, Art Galleries in Devon, Cornwall, Suffolk or in Wales....(Continue Reading...)

NuWire Investor, an online financial news publication, recently released its rankings of the Top 10 Cash Flow Markets for 2008.

Appreciation is often the most significant form of profit for real estate investors, but it is harder to determine and higher in risk. Cash flow alone, rather than any potential for future appreciation, was used in ranking this list.

Rankings were determined based on an adjusted average rent payment for the area according to the rental vacancy rate. This value was compared to the amount spent monthly on mortgage payments and upkeep, including utilities, taxes and insurance. Mortgage payments were estimated based on an average loan and the median cost of a home in the area. Statistics were gathered from U.S. Census data....(Continue Reading...)

When it comes time to replace that tired old roof or, heaven forbid, Mother Nature makes the decision for us, people typically focus on what they will see at the end of the day. Asphalt shingles, clay or concrete tiles, or perhaps metal roofing is the big question.

Little attention, if any, is paid to what goes underneath the roof's top layer. Call it "underwear" for your roof, but underlayments are the heroes of your home. For years, roofers always used asphalt-saturated felt underlayment. Now, thanks to modern science, high-tech, highly breathable synthetics similar to those we use next to our skin to keep us dry and comfortable are available for your roof's under layer....(Continue Reading...)

For the third year, Leadership Excellence magazine has released its ranking of the best Leadership Development (LD) programs in the country.

"Every organization benefits from developing its people through some program or process," says Ken Shelton, editor since 1984. "The best programs are designed to deliver outcomes aligned with the vision and strategy. They build bench strength--a pipeline of people who are prepared to step up and lead out when the calls comes or the opportunity arises."

Leadership Excellence Selection Criteria

Considering hundreds of programs, Shelton selected 160 based on seven criteria:

1. Vision/mission. Are these statements linked to strategy, meaningful to participants, and focused on target outcomes?

2. Involvement and participation. How broad is the involvement and how deep the participation?

3. Measurement and accountability. What ROI measures are made and reported and to what degree is accountability for performance and results part of the program?

4. Design, content, and curriculum. How well designed is the program? How credible is the content? How relevant is the curriculum? How customized is the program?

5. Presenters, presentations, and delivery. What are the qualifications of the presenters, how effective are their presentations, and how is the program delivered?

6. Take-home value. What do participants take away and apply to improve themselves, their families, their teams, and their volunteer work?

7. Outreach, outcomes. What is the impact of the program on the organization and its various stakeholders?



"Having this criteria," says Shelton, "helps us to weed out those programs that may be well intentioned but lack substance and fail to deliver promised results."...(Continue Reading...)

1031: Alligator Blunder:

There are 3 major Blunders that can turn an investment into a nightmare. It is one’s duty to avoid these at all costs when contemplating a 1031 exchange.

Blunder #1: Dealing with a non specialized company that does not know what it really does. Check their history of TIC offerings, ask for referrals from satisfied clients. Ideally, they should only be doing this kind of transactions. Are all their properties "top of the range" commercial buildings or not ? Ask how they get listings and what are their criteria to select them. Quality properties are hard to find and sell out quickly. In real estate, quality properties remain always desirable - low ones lag....(Continue Reading...)

Sponge-Jet, Inc., the world leader in clean, dry, low dust, reusable abrasive blasting, was selected by NASA's Acquisition Pollution Prevention (AP2) Office as the "superior technology" following an extensive three year abrasive blasting study.

The objective of the study as published "was to qualify candidate alternative low-emission surface preparation/depainting technologies for structural steel applications at NASA facilities…. this project compares the surface preparation/depainting performance… to existing surface preparation/depainting systems or standards."...(Continue Reading...)

Write2Site announces the launch of a redesigned website for Green Heating and Cooling as an information portal for Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina homeowners to find information about heating and air conditioning solutions and educational information in regards to keeping their home energy efficient. The website contains cutting edge proprietary programming and interface design to evoke actions based on emotions by web visitors.

The site was completely redesigned by a professional digital marketing firm that specializes in taking the highly technical information of heating and air conditioning and translating it into a language that homeowners understand. Chris Smith who works with the digital marketing firm Write2Site stated, "Homeowners are looking for a comfortable home with cleaner indoor air. They are in no way interested in condensers, furnaces or evaporators. The old adage still holds true, that people are looking for a quarter inch hole, not a quarter inch drill."...(Continue Reading...)

A comprehensive, in-depth study by Dittmar Associates aimed at understanding public perceptions of NASA and particularly the Space Exploration Program reveals that Americans continue to support human space flight, with 69% supporting Space Exploration and 26% opposed. In addition, when provided information about the percentage of the U.S. budget allocated to NASA each year (less than 1%), 42% of the respondents indicated that it should be increased, 29% said it should be decreased, and 29% believed it should remain at its current level....(Continue Reading...)

The U.S. economy continues to show expansion with gains in the manufacturing and service sectors, according to the latest economic study produced by the National Association of Credit Management (NACM).

The Combined Credit Manager’s Index (CMI) showed an increase for July, with all three indices increasing on a month-over-month and year-over-year basis. According to commentary and analysis provided by Euler Hermes ACI Chief Economist Dan North, the CMI indicates continued economic expansion and had few “dramatic swings” in July with the exception of a 4.6% increase in favorable components for the manufacturing sector. “The survey once again describes an economy which has had enough strength and momentum to overcome the obstacles of a tightening Fed, inflation fears, high energy prices, a weak stock market, and a wobbly consumer,” said North. These challenges continue to cloud the nation’s future economic picture, particularly the uncertainty of whether or not the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates.

Manufacturing Sector

The manufacturing sector index for July rose on a seasonally adjusted basis 0.9%. The rise was driven mostly by an increase in the sales component of 5.8% and an increase in the amount of credit extended of 9.6%. Both of these top-line oriented indices bode well for future growth.

Services Sector

The July service sector index rose only 0.1% on a seasonally adjusted basis. There were no particularly notable movements which would suggest a significant shift or pattern, but six of the ten components rose.

July 2006 vs. July 2005

On a year over year basis, the combined CMI rose 1.3%, while the Manufacturing sector rose 0.8% and the Services sector rose 1.8%. Eight out of ten components for the combined CMI rose, while seven of ten rose in both the manufacturing and services sectors. Overall, the indices reflect the strong economy of the past several quarters....(Continue Reading...)

Las Terrazas (http://www.lasterrazasresort.com), Belize's premier luxury residential resort, and neighboring Journey's End Resort (http://www.journeysendresort.com) announce their partnership with the White Sands Dive Shop (http://scubalessonsbelize.blogspot.com) on the island of Ambergris Caye. This partnership will allow discerning scuba divers from all over the world to enjoy top-notch accommodations and world-class scuba diving off of the largest barrier reef in the Western hemisphere.

The White Sands Dive Shop is a full service PADI dive center specializing in daily diving, SCUBA instruction and snorkeling for the island of Ambergris Caye, Belize. White Sands is a PADI International Resort Association member and is licensed by The Belize Tourism Board....(Continue Reading...)

Innovative health and wellness businesses may apply for The Radial Group’s unique Wellness Vision Award through December 1, 2005. Award recipients receive expert business coaching and mentoring at no charge for a three-month period.

The award recipient will be announced in December 2005. Previous winners include innovative weight management programs, personal training firms, wellness-oriented retailers, physician-led wellness centers, and mind/body practitioners.

Leslie Nolen, chief executive officer of The Radial Group, states, “Improving wellness in America depends on healthy local businesses led by visionary entrepreneurs. Radial’s Vision Awards support the most outstanding and creative business ideas in the wellness community by providing expertise that might otherwise be unaffordable for these firms.”...(Continue Reading...)