Wednesday, October 29, 2008

First look: Windows 7 takes on Apple and IT needs

Activists have long known that the way to take the sting out of a pejorative moniker is to adopt it and proclaim it with pride. So it is with Microsoft, whose "I'm a PC" campaign goes to the question that Mike Nash, corporate VP of Windows product management, says he's asked all the time: Why is Microsoft letting Apple define Vista?

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That's an issue that Microsoft needs to put to rest if it wants Windows 7, the heir to Vista as Microsoft's officially blessed client OS, to get a better reception. Nash was first to the podium at Microsoft's Windows 7 Reviewer's Workshop on Sunday. Held before the start of Microsoft's Professional Developer's Conference, the event was packed with journalists and bloggers from around the world -- not least because Microsoft handed out Windows 7 Milestone 3 (M3) eval notebook PCs to all in attendance. Not to worry; they're all clearly marked as Microsoft property.

[ Join the Windows 7 conversation in Randall C. Kennedy's Windows Sentinel blog. | For more news from Microsoft's Professional Developers Conference, check out InfoWorld's special report. ]

Given Vista's uphill road, you can understand Microsoft's overzealous approach. But it might have done just fine with reviewers in attendance if it had just shown Windows 7, which addresses Apple, press, and market cynicism by fixing what's widely perceived to be wrong with the OS, taking particular aim at IT objections to Vista. Steve Sinofsky, in charge of Windows and Windows Live, said that "it's not necessary to break everything to make big changes." Sinofsky and others acknowledged publicly, and in the plainest terms I've heard to date, that the XP-to-Vista transition was botched. Microsoft hopes to wipe the slate clean by first pushing Vista SP1 into the market, then doing a bang-up job of the transition from Vista SP1 to Windows 7.


Click for larger view.
The reworked Windows: tighter, leaner
The operating system itself has gotten a considerable amount of reworking below the presentation layer. If M3 is any indication, that work has led to a tighter OS, and by "tighter" I mean that resource requirements are being lowered. Microsoft won't go on record about specific system requirements, editions, pricing, or much of anything related to the final product -- Nash said of Windows 7 that "there has never been as large a gap between what we know and what we disclose" -- but Microsoft intimated that netbooks and similarly underpowered hardware were among Windows 7's platform targets. Some small changes, like the elimination of in-memory double buffering of window contents, will make a huge difference in the memory footprint and overall demand.

The commitment to reduced utilization is echoed in an energy management profiling and reporting toolkit that Microsoft will release to developers. It takes advantage of new instrumentation in the OS to identify and recommend remedies for energy-sapping processes and drivers.


source : http://www.infoworld.com/article/08/10/28/44TC-windows-7_1.html

Microsoft Becomes Just a Little More Like Apple

While Microsoft has only just begun fighting the perception problems surrounding Windows Vista, the company is already thinking and planning way beyond its latest operating system. We all know that Windows 7 will build on top of the foundations laid by Vista, and that it will include a fancy multitouch framework (and a mysterious new taskbar). According to Microsoft, Windows 7 is still on track for January 2010, and in a memo to his employees, CEO Steve Ballmer outlined some interesting new approaches the company might try with Windows 7 - including being just a little more like Apple.

It is a more or less generally accepted fact that Apple ‘has it easy’ when it comes to developing certain parts of its operating system when compared to Microsoft. While the former needs to address a mere handful of hardware configurations, the latter has to provide support for a more or less infinite amount of possible hardware combinations. Apparently, Steve Ballmer agrees with this, and notes in his memo that Microsoft’s commitment to providing choice (when it comes to hardware, I assume) interferes with the company’s ability to provide a decent user experience.

In the competition between PCs and Macs, we outsell Apple 30-to-1. But there is no doubt that Apple is thriving. Why? Because they are good at providing an experience that is narrow but complete, while our commitment to choice often comes with some compromises to the end-to-end experience. Today, we’re changing the way we work with hardware vendors to ensure that we can provide complete experiences with absolutely no compromises. We’ll do the same with phones - providing choice as we work to create great end-to-end experiences.

What that exactly means remains to be seen, but we can be pretty sure Microsoft wants to at the very least prevent the utter disaster where loads of OEMs created sub-standard hardware that simply wasn’t cut out for running Vista, or where Microsoft itself marked computers Vista-capable, while in fact they were barely Vista-possible. Some Apple/Mac websites even go as far as to say that Microsoft will “mimic the experience offered by the Mac maker”, but I don’t believe we’ll see Microsoft coming out with computers themselves, or even reference boards. A firm tightening of a possible “Windows 7 capable” campaign seems a lot more feasible.


source : http://www.windows7.cc/general-discussion/microsoft-becomes-just-a-little-more-like-apple/

Windows 7 M3 Screenshots

Here are the latest screenshots of main desktop and programs of Windows 7 Milestone 3.

Windows 7 Start Menus

Windows 7 Start Menu Windows 7 New Installed Programs Windows 7 Accessories Menu

Windows 7 Programs

Windows 7 Paint Windows 7 Wordpad Windows 7 Calculator

Windows 7 Desktop Menu

Windows 7 Desktop Menu

My Computer Window

Windows 7 My Computer Window

Solution Center

Windows 7 Solution Center


source : http://www.windows7.cc/windows7-news/windows-7-m3-screenshots/

Official name of Windows 7 has suprised !

The new version of Windows was being developed under “Windows 7″ codename for a long time. Now, it is time to learn the “real” official name of the new Windows.

Windows 7Mike Nash, from Microsoft has announced the official name of the new Windows on his blog. He says;

And, as you probably know, since we began development of the next version of the Windows client operating system we have been referring to it by a codename, “Windows 7.” But now is a good time to announce that we’ve decided to officially call the next version of Windows, “Windows 7.”

Yes, you didn’t read wrong. The official name of Windows 7 is “Windows 7″. He tells how they decided this name for new Windows:

The decision to use the name Windows 7 is about simplicity. Over the years, we have taken different approaches to naming Windows. We’ve used version numbers like Windows 3.11, or dates like Windows 98, or “aspirational” monikers like Windows XP or Windows Vista. And since we do not ship new versions of Windows every year, using a date did not make sense. Likewise, coming up with an all-new “aspirational” name does not do justice to what we are trying to achieve, which is to stay firmly rooted in our aspirations for Windows Vista, while evolving and refining the substantial investments in platform technology in Windows Vista into the next generation of Windows.


source : http://www.windows7.cc/windows7-news/official-name-of-windows-7-has-suprised/

First Public Windows 7 Beta is Expected in December

Good news for everyone who cannot wait to get their hands on the upcoming Microsoft operating system. According to Mary-Jo Foley at ZDnet Microsoft is planning to run a public beta test of Windows 7 beta 1 at the end of this year. It was rumored that participants of Microsoft’s two developer conferences in October and November (Professional Developers Conference (PDC) Windows Hardware Engineering Conference (WinHEC)) would be the first to receive beta versions of the Windows 7 operating system. The most likely scenario would be that participants of the conferences will receive a preview build of Windows 7, a beta beta probably.

It is not yet known how the public Windows 7 beta will be delivered to the public. Rumors are that Microsoft will use the Microsoft Connect service to administrate the test and signup beta testers. Good news is there will be a public beta of Windows 7 pretty soon. Question is, will you install it or wait for the release candidates or final release instead?


source : http://www.windows7.cc/windows7-news/first-public-windows-7-beta-is-expected-in-december/

20 different editions for Windows 7

One of the major problems customers face when upgrading to or purchasing a copy of Windows Vista is the so called “edition chaos”. Windows Vista was released in so many editions that it was complicated to find the most suitable edition for one’s needs. Many users fear that Microsoft will continue the trend of releasing lots of editions. Some would even go so far to estimate that the number of editions for Microsoft’s next operating system will exceed the number of editions of Windows Vista. Boing Boing mocked the edition chaos by announcing that Windows 7 would ship in 20 different editions using elusive names including Windows 7 Home Basic Premium, Windows 7 Big Business and one of our favorites the Windows 7 Penultimate edition.

The most likely scenario is that Microsoft will release about the same editions that shipped at the release of Windows Vista. Screenshots of current Windows 7 builds display the version that Microsoft is shipping to its partners as Windows 7 Ultimate which could be a hint that we will see a Windows 7 Ultimate edition. If Microsoft stays true to that strategy they will most likely release editions like Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Premium and Windows 7 Business as well.

The interesting question is if Microsoft will increase or reduce the amount of editions of Windows 7. What is your opinion on the matter? Will it be more or less?


source : http://www.windows7.cc/windows7-news/20-different-editions-for-windows-7/

Strategic management into ancient

The emergence of Strategic Intent, which is a strategy based on a dream or vision, made the Strategic Management used as a weapon main business school to become outdated. Strategic Intent has a view to the future, but only oriented Strategic Management at this time.

In the Strategic Management or Strategic Planning and Corporate Plannning or, how the opponents always look puny with what the company now. In business schools Strategic Management is the peak of knowledge that combines all knowledge management. Starting with the mission set, to analyze among the SWOT Components, which contains the strength and weakness of the internal and external threats and opportunities, set goals, develop strategy, program design, implement and evaluate programs. Although the mission has, but more oriented to the problems that the new views, from this opportunity and threat in the future. Analyzing the strengths and weaknesses internal and external threats and opportunities to use the current time. Similarly in the set targets, develop strategy, program design, implement and evaluate programs. If the orientation of the current time, the company will not be able to successfully jump, but only spread slowly. Matshusita will not be able to overtake Sony.

Meanwhile, Strategic Intent, set the mission, to analyze among the SWOT Components, which contains the strength and weakness of the internal and external threats and opportunities, set goals, develop strategy, program design, implement and evaluate programs oriented to the future.
In the Strategic Intent, dreams and imagination must have obsession to successful and should be achieved gradually. Canon seize market obsession with Xerox, gradual and controlled. Initially Canon Xerox to take a license to enter the market, and develop their own research and development, and find the technology itself and eventually enter the market in Japan and Europe that Xerox is not so dominant.

To set a specific target on the competitors sometimes difficult, so competitors can set the target a little more common, such as that conducted by NEC in the early 1970s, with the target computer and telecommunications industries. To make this dream a strategy based on the emotions do not use the blind. Start with the most possible. For example, this year on improving customer service, next year improving the quality of the product, again entered forehand years to the global market and so forth.


source : http://entrepreneursmart.com/?p=37

Start a business from accident

Various ways to start a business. One way to start a business is through an event, such as that done by Ruth Handler, Barbie Toys inventor. This is a toy doll children the most successful in the world. Barbie comes from the name of the daughter Ruth Handler, which is Barbara Millicent Roberts. Business dolls started when this day. Handler see the children playing with paper dolls. Then the day. Handler thinks dolls make a more permanent and realistic. Ny. Handler is the wife of one of the founders of Mattel. In modern management, Barbie dolls that can survive long this is strange. According to Ian Ritchie from the Oxford Group consultant who has worked with the toy company Hasbro children, find the key lessons from the business toys children. Leaving children’s toys to market as quickly as possible is very important. The time required from an idea to stockholders in the shelves of shops toys children can be a difference between success and failure. In the world of marketing dolls election time must be really appropriate. To achieve success dolls must follow the trend movies, books, stories, or the latest television series.
Barbie is a product that is universal and is usually standard. There are also a number of costumes are diverse. More than 100 new costumes are added each year. This is because, Barbie is a woman Renaisansi, a successful career woman, a member of rock band Serious players and football world cup for women.
Success is when deciding the next male friends from Barbie, namely Ken. Ken creation is indeed not accidental, but in fact produce the brand’s expansion outside of the normal. Ken introduced in 1961, which hides in the background, the possibility he was pleased to see Barbie achieve success in various aspects of their lives. Introduction Ken has been laying the foundation for all network expansion to maintain the Barbie brand remains the center of attention.
Barbie is a friend Midge, which established 1963, and younger women, Barbie, Skipper, namely in 1964, followed by 1968, Christie, a friend of color. In 1988, Barbie has a confident, and Teresa is a Hispanic friend. People are Regina, as a friend of Asia was launched in 1992. Younger women is the smallest Barbie Kelly and Becky, who sat in a wheelchair, introduced in 1997. Barbie now has 15,000 combined with the change shirts, eyes, color, but not to change his feet.
Similarly Elton John, created the song “Candle In The Wind II” in the event of passing Lady Diana. The success, because in one month sold 32 million pieces. Even in 1997, keeping VCD containing the Candle In The Wid II, as the Best Product of the year 1997

source : http://entrepreneursmart.com/?p=98

Interview : Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf (2)

If the message is the same, then how come the people don't agree with each other?

Well, God's perennial lament -- not only in the Quran, but in other scriptures as well -- is that people generally do not follow God's dictates and the guidance and the mandate that God has offered to humanity to follow. We tend to be recalcitrant. We tend to be disobedient to divine guidance. And if you look at human conflict, it has even existed within people of the same religious tradition. I don't need to remind you that even among those who call themselves Muslims there has been a lot of bloodshed.

We're finding that it's very hard to define who Muslims are. Every time we figure, oh, that's what it is, or that's who they are, there's an exception to the rule. There's a very traditional housewife-looking lady in Malaysia who's also an OB/Gyn who ministers to unwed mothers. We have girls in Turkey who are saying, "Look, we want to express ourselves as Muslims. We want to cover our hair." And we have a secular government that's discriminating against them -- women who want to cover, women who don't. Men who want to keep women in the house; men who agree that women have absolute opportunity to do what they need to do in society. How does this all fit?

The definition of the faith of Islam that I gave you before is the Quranic universal definition of the human being vis-a-vis the creator. There is a narrower definition of Islam which is used, which is those who follow the teachings of the prophet Muhammad. Now, according to that definition, their Islam is defined by what was commonly called the five pillars of faith. This is what theologians call the orthopraxy, or the orthopraxis. It means the practices which define you as a Muslim.
There are also five articles of creed, of belief, which theologians call the orthodoxy. That which defines you as a Muslim, if you adhere to these beliefs, [parallels] to, say, [Christianity] and Judaism, that in the Jewish faith, there is an orthopraxy, not much of an orthodoxy. As long as you abide by the rituals, the dietary laws, male circumcision, et cetera, et cetera, there is flexibility within the Jewish tradition on what you might choose to believe in to be considered as a member of the Jewish faith community. So there is flexibility in whether [you] believe in an afterlife, heaven and hell and so forth.
In the Christian faith, you have the opposite situation. You have a fundamental orthodoxy, which is, you have to believe that Jesus Christ is savior. If you believe wholeheartedly that Jesus Christ is savior, you are saved; you receive salvation. And there's a great flexibility on the ritual end. What you do in terms of prayers or dietary laws, circumcision, et cetera, there's flexibility on that.
In Islam, we have both an orthodoxy and an orthopraxy. The orthodoxy of the Islamic faith is defined as a belief in the oneness of God and the right attitude, the right understandings of God, as I mentioned earlier. A belief in the angels, beings created of light, who convey the divine commandments. The belief that God communicated to humanity via scriptures. And these scriptures are considered to be both oral and written form. ... And the belief that God also communicated his guidance and messages and teachings to humanity via human intermediaries, human messengers, we call them. prophets, or messengers.
And the last item of the Islamic orthodoxy is the belief in the last day. The last is a compound concept which means that this creation will, in fact, come to an end. So those of us who believe in the big bang theory, there will be a big implosion, in other words, at the end of time, so to speak, followed by a day of resurrection, where all the souls shall be resurrected; followed by a day of judgment, where all souls will be judged; followed by the obtaining of divine approval or divine disapproval. A pass grade or a failing grade. Those who get a passing grade will be in paradise. Those who get a failing grade will be in what we call hell. And the underlying theme of the last day is that we are all accountable for our ethical actions. ... That's the orthodoxy.
The orthopraxy of Islam is a declaration of faith: the statement that there is no God but God; that Muhammad is the messenger of God; the five-time daily prayer; the giving of alms, typically 2.5 percent of one's income or assets; the fasting of the month of Ramadan; and the going to pilgrimage, or hajj, once in one's lifetime, if one can afford it, financially and physically. Anybody who does these things is within the box of Islam.
There are other things, secondary things. Rules of dress and rules of behavior and rules of what may be considered right or wrong. And these come from cultural norms and from secondary sources of jurisprudence. But anybody who believes in these things and practices these things is a Muslim. ...


source : http://globalislamnews.blogspot.com/2008/10/interview-imam-feisal-abdul-rauf-2.html

Global Threats

Globalization and free market are expected as the global effort to improve efficiency. Global trade to help many countries to develop more quickly. Globalization is also considered to make the developing countries gain access to knowledge that can not be obtained previously. Globalization is as if the progress that must be accepted developing countries, if they want to grow and fight poverty effectively. But for most people in developing countries, globalization does not bring the promised economic benefits (Stiglitz, 2002:6).

Globalization in practice, developing countries must pay for the welfare of the efficiency of the world's developed countries. South efficiency of the global fund for the benefit and progress of the North. Market failures or failure, market failure occurs everywhere, not only because of the conditional demands for the realization of the market that can be self-regulating is not met (because of the assumption realization of the competition-free for the formation of a pure free market is not proven empirical-realistic), but also because of the economic interests and nonekonomi that must be maintained and through efforts to distort the market significantly (Swasono, 2003:83).

The increasingly wide gap between the rich and the poor has raised a lot more people in the Third World to become increasingly poor. In 1990, 2,718 billion population live with less money than $ 2 per day, whereas in 1998 the number of poor people who live with the money less than $ 2 per day is estimated to be 2,801 billion. This happened with the increase in total revenue in the current world average of 2.5% every year (World Bank, 2000:29).

Globalization has not succeeded in reducing poverty and ensuring stability has not been successful. The crisis in Asia and Latin America has been the economy and threaten the stability of developing countries, even the 1997 crisis and 1998 is a threat to the entire world economy.

source : http://msuyanto.com/baru/?cat=13

Interior Design (2)

Training

Postsecondary education, especially a bachelor's degree, is recommended for positions in interior design. Within the United States there are 24 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, that have some form of interior design legislation with regard to title and practice. The National Council of Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ) administers a licensing exam. To be eligible to take the exam, a candidate must have a minimum of six years of combined education and experience in the field, where at least two years includes postsecondary education. Once the examination has been successfully taken, the designer may indicate that they are an NCIDQ certificate holder. In certain jurisdictions, this is linked to the ability to practice or self-identify as an interior designer. The laws vary greatly across the United States and in some jurisdictions, NCIDQ certification is required in order for the designer to call themselves a Certified, Registered, or Licensed Interior Designer. In others, however, there are no minimum qualifications and anyone with a desire to do so may call themselves an interior designer. Continuing education is required by some states as part of maintaining a license.

Alabama has recently rolled back legislation regarding the licensing and practice of interior design. It is important to note that there is a difference between title acts which restrict who can call themselves an interior designer and practice acts that limit who can actually practice activities defined as within the scope of interior design.

Earnings

Interior design earnings vary based on employer, number of years with experience, and the reputation of the individual. Interior designers within the specialization of architectural design tend to earn higher and more stable salaries. For residential projects, self-employed interior designers usually earn a per-minute fee plus a percentage of the total cost of furniture, lighting, artwork, and other design elements. For commercial projects, they may charge per-hour fees, or a flat fee for the whole project. The median annual earnings for wage and salary interior designers in the year 2006 was $42,260. The middle 50% earned between $31,830 and $57,230. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $24,270, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $78,760. [4]

While median earnings is an important indicator of average salaries, it is essential to look at additional key factors in a discussion about revenue generated from design services. Location, demographic of client base and scope of work all effect the potential earnings of a designer. With regard to location, central metropolitan areas where costs of living expenses, and median earnings are generally greater, so is the potential for higher earnings for the interior designers and decorators in these locations. Indeed, urban areas attract a greater population of potential clients thereby creating a greater demand for design services. Additionally, as the average square footage of homes and offices has increased over time, so has the scope of work performed which translates directly to higher earnings. Scope refers to the overall size and detail of a project - materials, furnishings, paint, fabrics and architectural embellishments utilized are all examples of scope. As stated above, earnings for interior designers and decorators may include a margin charged to the client as a percentage of the total cost of certain furniture and fixtures used in the scope of work. Hence, as scope increases, so do earnings.


source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Interior_design

Interior Design (1)

Specializations

Interior designers can specialize in a particular interior design discipline, such as residential and commercial design, they can also help with making rooms in the hospital and even work with schools to make offices or another things with some developing expertise within a niche design area such as hospitality, health care and institutional design. In jurisdictions where the profession is regulated by the government, designers must meet broad qualifications and show competency in the entire scope of the profession, not only in a specialty. Designers may elect to obtain specialist certification offered by private organizations. Interior designers who also possess environmental expertise in design solutions for sustainable construction can receive accreditation in this area by taking the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) examination.

The specialty areas that involve interior designers are limited only by the imagination and are continually growing and changing. With the increase in the aging population, an increased focus has been placed on developing solutions to improve the living environment of the elderly population, which takes into account health and accessibility issues that can affect the design. Awareness of the ability of interior spaces to create positive changes in people's lives is increasing, so interior design is also becoming relevant to this type of advocacy.

Disciplines

There is a wide range of disciplines within the career of interior design. Some of the disciplines include: structure, function, specialized performance, special group needs, discipline needed for business, computer technology, presentation skills, craft skills, social disciplines, promotional disciplines, professional disciplines, aesthetic disciplines, and disciplines with cultural implications. This list shows how interior designing encompasses many different disciplines and requires both education in science and technology as well as being moved.

Working Conditions

There are a wide range of working conditions and employment opportunities within interior design. Large corporations often hire interior designers for regular day-to-day working hours. Designers for smaller firms usually work on a contract or per-job basis. Self-employed designers, which make up 26% of interior designers [2], usually work the most hours and often stress to find clients to provide for themselves. Interior designers often work under stress to meet deadlines, stay on budgets, and meet clients' needs. Their work tends to involve a great deal of traveling to visit different locations, studios, or clients' homes and offices. With the aid of recent technology, the process of contacting clients and communicating design alternatives has become a lot easier and requires less travel. Some argue that virtual makeovers have revolutionized interior design from a customer perspective, making the design process more interactive and exciting, in a relatively technological but labor intensive environment [3].


source : http://home-students.blogspot.com/2008/10/interior-design.html

The Final Day of Busby SEO Challenge

1 day next this busby seo challenge competition will ending, tomorrow we will know the champion, tomorrow we will know who has best ability in SEO.

Actually, contest like this can’t prove us as a SEO Master, because this is in short time, SEO master will made the website on top search enggine result in long time, they will make their website on top position everytime.

I know many technique to make top position on search enggine result with this busby seo challenge keyword. Some of them are quick and accurate, yes Buy link is simple quick and easy way to got million backlink instanly.

My idea.. the real winner is who that still on top position on next 4 or 5 month after this busby seo challenge finish. You knw why? yes because after this busby seo challenge end, all paid backlink and contributon backlink from supportter wil release. They will lose many backlink. So then we will know who real champion after that.

Don’t be anggry, i still believe who on top position on this busby seo challenge competition tommorow is the champion too. they can make best position in short time, they have good and best SEO skilled.

I still have time to try to make my busby seo challenge website on better position. Let’s see tommorow on busby seo challenge finish line.


Source : http://perth.rayofshadow.com/the-final-day-of-busby-seo-challenge/

Banking (2)

Types of investment banks

  • Investment banks "underwrite" (guarantee the sale of) stock and bond issues, trade for their own accounts, make markets, and advise corporations on capital markets activities such as mergers and acquisitions.
  • Merchant banks were traditionally banks which engaged in trade finance. The modern definition, however, refers to banks which provide capital to firms in the form of shares rather than loans. Unlike venture capital firms, they tend not to invest in new companies.

Both combined

  • Universal banks, more commonly known as financial services companies, engage in several of these activities. For example, First Bank (a very large bank) is involved in commercial and retail lending, and its subsidiaries in tax-havens offer offshore banking services to customers in other countries. Other large financial institutions are similarly diversified and engage in multiple activities. In Europe and Asia, big banks are very diversified groups that, among other services, also distribute insurance, hence the term bancassurance is the term used to describe the sale of insurance products in a bank. The word is a combination of "banque or bank" and "assurance" signifying that both banking and insurance are provided by the same corporate entity.

Other types of banks

Islamic banking

  • Islamic banks adhere to the concepts of Islamic law. Islamic banking revolves around several well established concepts which are based on Islamic canons. Since the concept of interest is forbidden in Islam, all banking activities must avoid interest. Instead of interest, the bank earns profit (mark-up) and fees on financing facilities that it extends to the customers.

Banks in the economy

Size of global banking industry

Worldwide assets of the largest 1,000 banks grew 16.3% in 2006/2007 to reach a record $74.2 trillion. This follows a 5.4% increase in the previous year. EU banks held the largest share, 53%, up from 43% a decade earlier. The growth in Europe’s share was mostly at the expense of Japanese banks whose share more than halved during this period from 21% to 10%. The share of US banks remained relatively stable at around 14%. Most of the remainder was from other Asian and European countries. .[7]

The US had by far the most banks (7,540 at end-2005) and branches (75,000) in the world. The large number of banks in the US is an indicator of its geography and regulatory structure, resulting in a large number of small to medium sized institutions in its banking system. Japan had 129 banks and 12,000 branches. In 2004, Germany, France, and Italy had more than 30,000 branches each—more than double the 15,000 branches in the UK.[8]

Bank crisis

Banks are susceptible to many forms of risk which have triggered occasional systemic crises. Risks include liquidity risk (the risk that many depositors will request withdrawals beyond available funds), credit risk (the risk that those who owe money to the bank will not repay), and interest rate risk (the risk that the bank will become unprofitable if rising interest rates force it to pay relatively more on its deposits than it receives on its loans), among others.

Banking crises have developed many times throughout history when one or more risks materialize for a banking sector as a whole. Prominent examples include the U.S. Savings and Loan crisis in 1980s and early 1990s [9] the Japanese banking crisis during the 1990s, the bank run that occurred during the Great Depression, and the recent liquidation by the central Bank of Nigeria, where about 25 banks were liquidated

Source : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank

Banking

Types of banks

Banks' activities can be divided into retail banking, dealing directly with individuals and small businesses; business banking, providing services to mid-market business; corporate banking, directed at large business entities; private banking, providing wealth management services to high net worth individuals and families; and investment banking, relating to activities on the financial markets. Most banks are profit-making, private enterprises. However, some are owned by government, or are non-profits.

Central banks are normally government owned banks, often charged with quasi-regulatory responsibilities, e.g. supervising commercial banks, or controlling the cash interest rate. They generally provide liquidity to the banking system and act as the lender of last resort in event of a crisis.

Types of retail banks

National Bank of the Republic, Salt Lake City 1908
National Bank of the Republic, Salt Lake City 1908
National Copper Bank, Salt Lake City 1911
National Copper Bank, Salt Lake City 1911
  • Commercial bank: the term used for a normal bank to distinguish it from an investment bank. After the Great Depression, the U.S. Congress required that banks only engage in banking activities, whereas investment banks were limited to capital market activities. Since the two no longer have to be under separate ownership, some use the term "commercial bank" to refer to a bank or a division of a bank that mostly deals with deposits and loans from corporations or large businesses.
  • Community Banks: locally operated financial institutions that empower employees to make local decisions to serve their customers and the partners
  • Community development banks: regulated banks that provide financial services and credit to under-served markets or populations.
  • Postal savings banks: savings banks associated with national postal systems.
  • Private banks: manage the assets of high net worth individuals.
  • Offshore banks: banks located in jurisdictions with low taxation and regulation. Many offshore banks are essentially private banks.
  • Savings bank: in Europe, savings banks take their roots in the 19th or sometimes even 18th century. Their original objective was to provide easily accessible savings products to all strata of the population. In some countries, savings banks were created on public initiative, while in others socially committed individuals created foundations to put in place the necessary infrastructure. Nowadays, European savings banks have kept their focus on retail banking: payments, savings products, credits and insurances for individuals or small and medium-sized enterprises. Apart from this retail focus, they also differ from commercial banks by their broadly decentralised distribution network, providing local and regional outreach and by their socially responsible approach to business and society.
  • Building societies and Landesbanks: conduct retail banking.
  • Ethical banks: banks that prioritize the transparency of all operations and make only what they consider to be socially-responsible investments.
  • Islamic banks: Banks that transact according to Islamic principles.

source : http://home-students.blogspot.com/2008/10/banking.html

ASUS Mb P5GC-MX/1333 Intel?




Product Description

DescriptionBest Performance of All-in-one Solution MB - Intel LGA775 Pentium CPU - Intel? Core 2 Duo Ready - Dual-Core CPU Support - Intel? 945GC/ICH7 - Dual channel DDR2 - 6-channel High Definition Audio - EZ Flash
CPULGA775 socket for Intel? Core 2 Duo / Pentium? D / Pentium? 4 / Celeron? D Processors Compatible with Intel? 05B/05A/06 processors Intel? Hyper-Threading Technology ready
ChipsetIntel? 945GC / ICH7
Front Side Bus800 / 533 MHz
Memory2 x DIMM max. 2GB DDR2 533/400 MHz non-ECC un-buffered memory Dual channel memory architecture
Expansion Slots1 x PCI-E x16 @16 1 x PCI-E x1 2 x PCI 2.2
VGAIntel Graphics Media Accelerator 950 Max. resolution2048x1536@75Hz Max. Vertical Refresh Rate85Hz@ up to 1920x1440
StorageSouthbridge - 1 x UltraDMA 100/66/33 - 4 x Serial ATA 3Gb/s
LANPCIe 10/100M LAN controller
AudioRealtek ALC883 6-CH High-Definition Audio CODEC
USB8 x USB2.0 ports 4 ports at mid-board 4 ports at back panel
Special FeaturesASUS CrashFree BIOS 2 ASUS Q-Fan ASUS EZ Flash ASUS MyLogo
Back Panel I/O Ports1 x PS/2 Keyboard 1 x PS/2 Mouse 1 x VGA 1 x Serial port 1 x Parallel port 1 x LAN (RJ45) port 4 x USB 2.0 6 Channel Audio I/O
Internal I/O Connectors2 x USB connectors support additional 4 USB ports 1 x Floppy disk drive connector 1 x IDE connector 4 x SATA connectors 1 x CPU/ Chassis Fan connector Front panel High Definition audio connector 1 x S/PDIF Out connector Chassis Intrusion connector CD audio in 24-pin ATX Power connector 4-pin ATX 12V Power connector System Panel
BIOS4 Mb Flash ROM AMI BIOS PnP DMI2.0 WfM2.0 SM BIOS 2.3
ManageabilityWfM 2.0 DMI 2.0 WOL by PME WOR by PME
O/S CompatibilityWindows Vista/XP/2000
Accessories1 x UltraDMA 100/66 cable 1 x Floppy disk drive cable 1 x SATA cable I/O Shield User's manual
Form FactoruATX Form Factor 9.6x 7.2 (24.5cm x 18.3cm)




Source : http://www.chevrontechnologies.net.au/P5GC-MX-1333.html?affiliate=myshopping

Principles of Insurance

Commercially insurable risks typically share seven common characteristics.[1]

  1. A large number of homogeneous exposure units. The vast majority of insurance policies are provided for individual members of very large classes. Automobile insurance, for example, covered about 175 million automobiles in the United States in 2004.[2] The existence of a large number of homogeneous exposure units allows insurers to benefit from the so-called “law of large numbers,” which in effect states that as the number of exposure units increases, the actual results are increasingly likely to become close to expected results. There are exceptions to this criterion. Lloyd's of London is famous for insuring the life or health of actors, actresses and sports figures. Satellite Launch insurance covers events that are infrequent. Large commercial property policies may insure exceptional properties for which there are no ‘homogeneous’ exposure units. Despite failing on this criterion, many exposures like these are generally considered to be insurable.
  2. Definite Loss. The event that gives rise to the loss that is subject to insurance should, at least in principle, take place at a known time, in a known place, and from a known cause. The classic example is death of an insured person on a life insurance policy. Fire, automobile accidents, and worker injuries may all easily meet this criterion. Other types of losses may only be definite in theory. Occupational disease, for instance, may involve prolonged exposure to injurious conditions where no specific time, place or cause is identifiable. Ideally, the time, place and cause of a loss should be clear enough that a reasonable person, with sufficient information, could objectively verify all three elements.
  3. Accidental Loss. The event that constitutes the trigger of a claim should be fortuitous, or at least outside the control of the beneficiary of the insurance. The loss should be ‘pure,’ in the sense that it results from an event for which there is only the opportunity for cost. Events that contain speculative elements, such as ordinary business risks, are generally not considered insurable.
  4. Large Loss. The size of the loss must be meaningful from the perspective of the insured. Insurance premiums need to cover both the expected cost of losses, plus the cost of issuing and administering the policy, adjusting losses, and supplying the capital needed to reasonably assure that the insurer will be able to pay claims. For small losses these latter costs may be several times the size of the expected cost of losses. There is little point in paying such costs unless the protection offered has real value to a buyer.
  5. Affordable Premium. If the likelihood of an insured event is so high, or the cost of the event so large, that the resulting premium is large relative to the amount of protection offered, it is not likely that anyone will buy insurance, even if on offer. Further, as the accounting profession formally recognizes in financial accounting standards, the premium cannot be so large that there is not a reasonable chance of a significant loss to the insurer. If there is no such chance of loss, the transaction may have the form of insurance, but not the substance. (See the U.S. Financial Accounting Standards Board standard number 113)
  6. Calculable Loss. There are two elements that must be at least estimable, if not formally calculable: the probability of loss, and the attendant cost. Probability of loss is generally an empirical exercise, while cost has more to do with the ability of a reasonable person in possession of a copy of the insurance policy and a proof of loss associated with a claim presented under that policy to make a reasonably definite and objective evaluation of the amount of the loss recoverable as a result of the claim.
  7. Limited risk of catastrophically large losses. The essential risk is often aggregation. If the same event can cause losses to numerous policyholders of the same insurer, the ability of that insurer to issue policies becomes constrained, not by factors surrounding the individual characteristics of a given policyholder, but by the factors surrounding the sum of all policyholders so exposed. Typically, insurers prefer to limit their exposure to a loss from a single event to some small portion of their capital base, on the order of 5 percent. Where the loss can be aggregated, or an individual policy could produce exceptionally large claims, the capital constraint will restrict an insurer's appetite for additional policyholders. The classic example is earthquake insurance, where the ability of an underwriter to issue a new policy depends on the number and size of the policies that it has already underwritten. Wind insurance in hurricane zones, particularly along coast lines, is another example of this phenomenon. In extreme cases, the aggregation can affect the entire industry, since the combined capital of insurers and reinsurers can be small compared to the needs of potential policyholders in areas exposed to aggregation risk. In commercial fire insurance it is possible to find single properties whose total exposed value is well in excess of any individual insurer’s capital constraint. Such properties are generally shared among several insurers, or are insured by a single insurer who syndicates the risk into the reinsurance market.

Income from discharge of indebtedness

Although a loan does not start out as income to the borrower, it becomes income to the borrower if the borrower is discharged of indebtedness. [18] Thus, if a debt is discharged, then the borrower essentially has received income equal to the amount of the indebtedness. The Internal Revenue Code lists “Income from Discharge of Indebtedness” in Section 62(a)(12) as a source of gross income.

Example: X owes Y $50,000. If Y discharges the indebtedness, then X no longer owes Y $50,000. For purposes of calculating income, this should be treated the same way as if Y gave X $50,000.

For a more detailed description of the “discharge of indebtedness”, look at Section 108 (Cancellation of Debt (COD) Income) of the Internal Revenue Code.[19]

United States taxes

Most of the basic rules governing how loans are handled for tax purposes in the United States are uncodified by both Congress (the Internal Revenue Code) and the Treasury Department (Treasury Regulations — another set of rules that interpret the Internal Revenue Code).[2] Yet such rules are universally accepted.[3]

1. A loan is not gross income to the borrower.[4] Since the borrower has the obligation to repay the loan, the borrower has no accession to wealth.[5]

2. The lender may not deduct the amount of the loan.[6] The rationale here is that one asset (the cash) has been converted into a different asset (a promise of repayment).[7] Deductions are not typically available when an outlay serves to create a new or different asset.[8]

3. The amount paid to satisfy the loan obligation is not deductible by the borrower.[9]

4. Repayment of the loan is not gross income to the lender.[10] In effect, the promise of repayment is converted back to cash, with no accession to wealth by the lender.[11]

5. Interest paid to the lender is included in the lender’s gross income.[12] Interest paid represents compensation for the use of the lender’s money or property and thus represents profit or an accession to wealth to the lender.[13] Interest income can be attributed to lenders even if the lender doesn’t charge a minimum amount of interest.[14]

6. Interest paid to the lender may be deductible by the borrower.[15] In general, interest paid in connection with the borrower’s business activity is deductible, while interest paid on personal loans are not deductible.[16] The major exception here is interest paid on a home mortgage.[17]

Type of Loan

Secured

A secured loan is a loan in which the borrower pledges some asset (e.g. a car or property) as collateral for the loan.

A mortgage loan is a very common type of debt instrument, used by many individuals to purchase housing. In this arrangement, the money is used to purchase the property. The financial institution, however, is given security — a lien on the title to the house — until the mortgage is paid off in full. If the borrower defaults on the loan, the bank would have the legal right to repossess the house and sell it, to recover sums owing to it.

In some instances, a loan taken out to purchase a new or used car may be secured by the car, in much the same way as a mortgage is secured by housing. The duration of the loan period is considerably shorter — often corresponding to the useful life of the car. There are two types of auto loans, direct and indirect. A direct auto loan is where a bank gives the loan directly to a consumer. An indirect auto loan is where a car dealership acts as an intermediary between the bank or financial institution and the consumer.

A type of loan especially used in limited partnership agreements is the recourse note.

A stock hedge loan is a special type of securities lending whereby the stock of a borrower is hedged by the lender against loss, using options or other hedging strategies to reduce lender risk.[citation needed]

Unsecured

Unsecured loans are monetary loans that are not secured against the borrowers assets. These may be available from financial institutions under many different guises or marketing packages:

The interest rates applicable to these different forms may vary depending on the lender and the borrower. These may or may not be regulated by law. In the United Kingdom, when applied to individuals, these may come under the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

Abuses in lending

Predatory lending is one form of abuse in the granting of loans. It usually involves granting a loan in order to put the borrower in a position that one can gain advantage over him or her. Where the moneylender is not authorised, it could be considered a loan shark.

Usury is a different form of abuse, where the lender charges excessive interest. In different time periods and cultures the acceptable interest rate has varied, from no interest at all to unlimited interest rates. Credit card companies in some countries have been accused by consumer organisations of lending at usurious interest rates and making money out of frivolous "extra charges". [1]

Abuses can also take place in the form of the customer abusing the lender by not repaying the loan or with an intent to defraud the lender.


source : http://home-students.blogspot.com/2008/10/types-of-loans.html

Interview : Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf (1)

What are the fundamentals of Islam? What does it teach to be a Muslim?

The fundamental idea which defines a human being as a Muslim is the declaration of faith: that there is a creator, whom we call God -- or Allah, in Arabic -- and that the creator is one and single. And we declare this faith by the declaration of faith, where we ... bear witness that there is no God but God. And that we are accountable to God for our actions.

And that's the bottom line?
That is the universal Quranic definition of a person who is a Muslim. Because God says in the Quran that there is only one true religion, God's religion. It's the same theme that God revealed to all of the prophets, even before Muhammad. They all came to express the truth about ultimate reality: that the ultimate reality, with a capital "R" is God; that God created this universe; and God created humanity for a very specific purpose and mandate, which is to recognize what he or she truly is -- a being created, as we say in the Judeo-Christian world, in the image of God. The Quran uses a different language. It says, created out of a divine in-breathing, because the Quran says when God created the shape, the form of Adam from clay, God says, "When I shall have breathed into him from my spirit." Then he announced to the angels, "Fall in prostration to Adam."
So the defining aspect of a human being is that the human being has within its envelope a piece of the divine breath. This is the Quranic definition of what you might call the quote, unquote, "divine image in the human envelope." And the human mandate is to recognize this essential definition of self, and to acknowledge the very special relationship that exists between that self and the creator.
It doesn't sound so different from Christianity or Judaism.
The Quran does not speak about Christianity or Judaism. You will not find that word once mentioned in the Quran. But you'll find many, many instances of Christians and Jews, because the definitions the Quran uses are human-based definitions. Not conceptual definitions; very much it speaks about the realities. So God, for example, is creator. God is seeing. God is knowing. God is all-powerful. You don't have words of concepts as much. God is beautiful. So the ascriptions or the descriptions or the adjectives are what are used to describe the creator. Religion is defined by the relationship between God and man. And Islam is the submission and the acknowledgment of the human being to the creator.

Could you just give me a short version on how these two religions are related to one another?

God says in the Quran that there is not a single community on earth to whom we did not send a messenger. So the same message, the same truth, was revealed to all of humanity through a series of prophets; whose complete number, we don't know. The Quran mentions 25 of them by name. But the message is one: that God is one; that the creator is single; that the creator has no partner; that the creator is described by the perfection of a number of attributes, which Muslims call the divine names. So God is one; God is almighty; God is all-seeing; God is all-knowing; God is all-hearing. God is compassionate, merciful, forgiving, loving. God is just. And so forth.
So we are forbidden to ascribe to God attributes of weakness or imperfection. So we cannot say God is one, but God is poor; God is one, but God is blind, for instance, or doesn't have the attribute of seeing. It is equally important for Muslims to assert, not only the oneness of God, but the perfection of his attributes.
And the message, in its substance, embodies what Jesus said were the two greatest commandments. When Jesus was once asked, "Rabbi, or Rebbe, what are the greatest commandments?" he said, "To love the lord your God with all of your heart, with all of your soul and all of your mind." And the second, which is co-equal with it: that you love your neighbor as you love yourself. Love for your brother or your sister, what you love for yourself. Not to harm them in a way that you do not wish to be harmed.
That again embodies these two principles: A, that you have to acknowledge the creator correctly. And B, that you are going to be held accountable for your ethical decisions and choices. And the particular form of revelation was a function of society. So every prophet or messenger spoke in his own language to his own community. Some words were spoken in Hebrew, or in ancient Egyptian. Every revelation was given in the language of the community to whom it was sent. The rituals may have been a little bit different, but the essence of the rituals were there: prayer, charity, and fasting.

source : http://globalislamnews.blogspot.com/2008/10/interview-imam-feisal-abdul-rauf-1.html
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