admin

When were the forms of media created? When did advertising first show up? Who owns the media?

Creation of the various forms of media

*

Newspapers & Magazines ~ 1880

*

Movies ~ 1910

*

Television ~ 1945

*

Cable Television ~ 1980’s

*

Satellite Television, Internet, Digital Communication ~ End of the 20th century

In 1920, radio was first developed, primarily for use by the military, strictly for sendingHistory of the Media – Old Radios messages from one location to another. David Sternoff, the then-president of RCA, first had the idea to sell radio sets to consumers, or what were then called radio receivers. However, consumers needed a reason to buy radios, so RCA was the first to set up radio stations all over the country. Between 1920 and 1922, 400 radio stations were set up, starting with KBKA in Pittsburgh. Stations were also set up by universities, newspapers, police departments, hotels, and labor unions.

*

By 1923, there were 600 radio stations across the United States, and $83 million worth of sets had been sold.

The biggest difference in radio before and after 1923 was that the first advertising was not heard on the radio until 1923. RCA at the time was made up of four companies:

*

AT&T

*

General Electric

*

United Fruit

*

Westinghouse

United Fruit was one of the first global corporations, and one of the first to advertise on the radio. The AT&T division of RCA first thought about selling time on the air to companies, which marked the start of “toll broadcasting.” WEAF was the first station to operate this way, causing widespread outrage, and accusation of “polluting the airwaves.”

Because of this controversy, the practice of selling advertising time was called “trade name publicity.” Sponsors linked their name with a program on the air, rather than advertising a specific product in a 30 second “commercial” as we know it today.

Why did AT&T decide to experiment with charging companies for air time?

AT&T was not making any money from broadcasting at the time since they only made transmitters, not receivers. They only made money when new radio stations bought the equipment required to broadcast. They did not make money from consumers buying radios.

AT&T also started the practice of paying performers for their time on the air, rather than only volunteers, which was standard practice for radio content up until that point.

The first radio network

In 1926, RCA set up the first radio network, NBC. They decided it was more effective and efficient to produce shows in New York City, and then link the main radio station with stations all across the country, connected by AT&T (another RCA company) phone lines. (Now television networks are linked by satellite to their affiliates).

This was the beginning of the network affiliates system. The ideal network makes sure everyone in the country is capable of listening to their signal. NBC at the time had two philosophies:

*

Radio content was a “public service,” whose function was to sell radios.

*

Radio content was designed to generate income from advertising.

History of the Media In 1927, the second network was formed. It was CBS, started by William Paley. Paley was the first to think that networks could make money strictly from advertising, not even getting involved in the sales of radios. Like AT&T, CBS did not make radios. From the start, they made their money from selling advertising.

The rising of radio networks caused the Radio Act of 1927 to be passed, which established the FRC, or what is now known as the FCC, to allocate broadcast licenses. The need for such an organization was brought on by the fact that airwaves are limited resources, and broadcasting itself is a scarce public resource. By the 1930’s, the structure of radio have been set by the commercial format, although advertising never dominated radio like it would television later on.

In the 1920’s and ’30’s, radio programs were divided into two groups. Sponsored shows, which had advertisers, and unsponsored shows, which did not. The radio station paid for the unsponsored shows. The sponsored shows, on the other hand, were created entirely by the company sponsoring the show; advertisers were totally in charge of the radio station’s content. The content became advertising. Radio set the precedent for television, in that the same companies that controlled radio early on went on to control television.

Soon thereafter, television inherited the structure of radio. In the ’40’s, during the rise of television, RCA also held a monopoly on all television sets sold. By 1945-1955, advertising had taken over all of television. Television was organized around the premise of selling things. The entire television industry was creating a political atmosphere of suspicion and fear. Senator Joseph McCarthy, the founder of McCarthyism, which was based on the fear of Communism, and the HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee, began to question people involved in television about their beliefs and associations.

What affected television in its early stages?

*

Politics (McCarthyism / HUAC).

*

Blacklists: From almost the inception of television, many writers, directors, and actors were considered to be pro-Communist and/or un-American.

Certain topics were totally off-limits at the time for television, particularly issues of race relations in the 1960’s. Overall, networks were not happy with the political situation for television in the 1960’s, both in terms of the blacklists, and of the fact that when every show had one sponsor, that sponsor controlled the entire program. Networks preferred to control the program, by way of moving to multiple sponsors/advertisers, where networks would retain control of the show, and advertisers would buy time in between the programming.

In the 1950’s, networks decided to eliminate the practice of sponsors controlling the shows with a move to spot selling, or advertisements between programs, as we know it today. What caused the move to spot selling?

1.

Discovery of fraud in the quiz shows on television. Quiz shows were extremely popular at the time, and were liked by the networks, the sponsors, and the viewers alike. It turned out, however, that quiz shows were largely fixed. Charles Van Doren on “21″ became a huge star due to his repeated wins, until it came out that the whole thing had been fixed. In the case of “The $64,000 Question,” the owner of Revlon was personally hand-selecting the winners and losers on the show.

2.

It was becoming financially difficult for just one advertiser to support an entire show.

Around this same time came the inception of ratings to measure a show’s popularity. Ratings, quite simply, measure the number of people watching a show. To understand why ratings are so important, it’s crucial to understand how the television industry works, through three questions, and their respective answers:

1.

Who owns television? [The networks]

2.

What is sold on television? [Viewer's time, not television shows]

3.

Who are the customers of television? [Advertisers, not viewers]

This might be a counterintuitive concept for some. The networks, which own television, areHistory of the Media – Old Television the buyers of shows, not the sellers. On the other hand, they sell our eyeballs, so to speak, to advertisers. Networks want the maximum possible profit from buying and selling time, both viewers’ time, and advertisers’ time.

The primary measure of television ratings, which determine the price of that time being bought and sold, is AC Nielsen, an independent company which provides information as to who watches what on television. Currently, about 4,000 households are used to represent the national viewing of television. In the 1980’s, only 1,200 households were used. Some households have an electronic device installed on their television which tracks what they watch, while others keep a diary of viewing habits.

There are two measures for determining a show’s audience. One is the rating, and the other is the share.

*

Rating: Percentage of total homes with televisions tuned into a particular show.

*

Share: Percentage of those watching television at a particular time who are tuned into a particular show.

The share is always greater than the rating. Ratings are more important for advertisers, and share is more important to the networks.

Example:

*

Total households with televisions: 150 million

*

Total households watching television at 8pm on Monday nights: 90 million

*

Total households watching American Idol at 8pm on Monday nights: 45 million

*

Therefore: Rating: 30, Share: 50

It’s important to note how many factors can skew the results. Shows cost producers much more than the networks typically pay them for those shows. The way for producers to make money is by getting the networks to renew the show, in order to have a shot at making money from syndication on other channels, also knows as reruns. That is the case when individual stations (say for example, the Miami affiliate of ABC wants to carry Seinfeld), buy the rights to a show from the producers of that show. Shows that last only one season, for the most part, lose millions of dollars. One of the most important factors in whether shows will be renewed or not is their rating.

This brings us to how ratings can be skewed. For example, if a show has a 20 share, and it needs a 25 share to be renewed for another season, what might the producers do? In principle, they need to convince another 5% of the people watching television when their show is on to watch their show; this is no simple task, as that involves convincing millions of people. However, since the ratings are based on those 4,000 Nielsen households, that means that they could convince just 200 Nielsen households to watch their show, which would increase the share from 20 to 25. This is why Nielsen households must be kept totally secret from the networks. When the Nielsen households have leaked to the networks, one way which they got people to watch their show was by offering viewers a small sum of money for filling out a survey about a commercial which they were told would play only during a particular show. Since they had to watch that channel while their show was on, this would boost the share.

Once ratings are determined, advertising prices are set by two factors:

* The size of the audience.

* The demographics (income, age, gender, occupation, etc) of the audience.

In short, the job of television programs is to collect our time as a product, which they then sell to advertisers. Programs have to support the advertising, delivering viewers in the best possible state of mind for buying when the time for the commercials comes, which brings us to the Golden Age of Television.

The 1950’s are considered the “Golden Age of Television.” During this time, something called the “Anthology Series,” where different actors each week took part in a show gained History of the Media – I Love Lucypopularity across the board…that is, with everyone except for advertisers. The anthology series format was not right for advertisers, as it covered topics which involved psychological confrontations which did not leave the viewers in the proper state of mind for buying the products shown to them between program segments. The subject matter of the anthology series was of the type that undermined the ads, almost making them seem fraudulent.

This brought up the question of what to network executives actually want shows to do? The answer is not to watch a program that makes them feel good, makes them laugh, or excites them, but rather to watch the television for a set amount of time. With so many new shows being proposed, standards began to be intentionally, or unintentionally, laid out for what shows could and couldn’t do. Risks could only be taken at the beginning and/or end of shows. Laugh tracks were conceived to tell the audience when to laugh. Programs began being tested with audiences prior to being put on television and/or radio. Show writers now had to write shows that would test well.

Naturally, this caused many of the same elements and themes to appear in all shows. This was the beginning of recombinant television culture, where the same elements are endlessly repeated, recombined, and mixed.

This same culture is what perpetuated the idea that people watch television, not specific shows. While people certainly choose to watch certain shows instead of others, people less commonly choose to watch television instead of other things. People watch television. Regardless of what was on, television viewing rates were extremely stable.

David Pakman is editor/adminstrator of politics and media website Hear the Issues ([http://www.heartheissues.com]), a website frequented and praised by many mainstream journalist and pundits.

An application for a job is accompanied with a resume. This is a document that presents all the information about your qualifications, abilities, skills and personal traits in a proper format, such that the reader gets all the required information about you. The main purpose of your curriculum vitae (CV) is to answer the employer’s queries related to the vacant job position. It is thus used for a formal and professional communication. This makes it very important that you have a professional resume. Your CV or resume is your first impression on the prospective employer. It will represent your professional attitude, and not make you look very casual.

Some resumes do not have a standard format throughout. The fonts, spacing, tabs, bullets, etc. keep varying throughout the resume. The quality of paper on which the resume is printed also matters a lot, when it comes to giving a professional look to your resume. The page borders, page background, etc. need to be thought over well before drafting a resume on it.

It is very important to give your resume a professional look. Your resume should present you in such a way that you stand out among others, and make the reader believe that it is beneficial for him/her to choose you over others. The instructions given below will help you draft a professional resume.

HOW TO DRAFT A PROFESSIONAL RESUME?

Resume Basics:

The resume should be divided in various sections to present all the information systematically. Before choosing the style of a resume, and writing a resume, one must know some basics that are a must for a professional look of the resume.

• The resume should never be handwritten.
• Use Times New Roman, Verdana, or Arial font, and the font size should be 12.
• Do not vary the font size and font in your resume.
• Instead of changing the size of the font for headings, it is advisable to mention the headings in ‘bold’. This will maintain the standard font size throughout.
• Never use, Italics, fancy fonts and fancy page borders in your resume.
• Never use any color, watermark or background color for your resume. It should be on a plain white background, and the font color should be black.
• While taking a hardcopy of your resume, always take a print on a good quality paper. Never take photocopies of your resume, which gives it a very blurred and dull look.

The above mentioned points are basics for any resume. These should never be overlooked or else a ‘professional looking resume’ will be a myth. After this, comes resume writing. The style of the resume depends completely upon the candidate’s information to be included in it. A fresher and a candidate with work experience will definitely have different styles of resumes. There are basically three styles of resumes.

Chronological Resume:

This is a resume, which lists all the qualification and professional details in a chronological order. It is more like a list of all that one has done and achieved in life. This style of resume has very less scope for the reader to interpret and understand the applicant, because it is merely a list of information.

Functional Resume:

This kind of resume gives the applicant a chance to be descriptive, and speak about his/her qualifications, achievements, experience, etc. The drawback of this style is that it becomes too descriptive, and might make your resume look like a thesis.

Hybrid Resume:

This style of resume is the most preferred. It takes the strong points from chronological as well as the functional resume. It presents all the information in chronological order, and also provides scope to be descriptive, where necessary. This makes it very impressive as the reader gets all the information in a proper order, and also gets a chance to judge you.

Content of the resume:

After choosing the resume style, the next step is presenting all the necessary content in your resume.

• Heading: The heading of the resume should include your name and contact details. You can keep it aligned to the left or center of the page.
• Objective: The resume objective should be written carefully, and should be such that it clearly presents your career goals.
• Academic Details in chronological order beginning with the recent.
• Details of Professional experience.
• Achievements: Academic as well as professional
• Personal Details
• Declaration and Sign

These contents presented using the ‘resume basics’ tips given above, in the right style, will help you prepare a professional resume. You can take reference from many professional resume templates and resume samples, to get a clearer idea on this.

Stela a professional writer here to share some tips regarding to resume building and cover letter building through my website where one can get number of resumes and one can build their own resume by referring resume samples provided here.

When you think of fly fishing, two things come to mind – the casting of a fly line and the fly on the end of the line. Fly fishing flies are a unique aspect of our sport and are without doubt the most hotly debated aspect of fly fishing. Flies, typically fall into 4 categories, nymphs, dry flies, streamers and wet flies. Each of these types of flies have hundreds of variants that work in different situations, it would take an age to describe them all. So what we’ll focus on understanding is the key differences between the different types of flies.

Nymphs

Nymphs are a subsurface fly; they can be classed as either ‘nymphs’ or ‘lavae’ – they key difference between these two are that nymphs look a bit like the fly they will hatch into whereas larvae don’t. Trout feed on nymphs as they float downstream or up to the waters surface. The nymphs we tie onto our fly line imitate nymphs that are floating down stream after being dislodged by water pressure, a nymph that is moving to another food source or a nymph that is floating to the surface in order to hatch into a fly.

Fish feed heavily on nymphs, a trout, for example, can sit in on the bottom of a river and simply move toward the floating nymph, open its mouth and suck the nymph down. It’s easy food for little effort – that’s why fly fishing with nymphs can be so successful.

Dry Flies

A ‘dry fly’ is simply a nymph that has hatched into an insect with wings that sits on top of the water, or flies above it. The most common time for nymphs to hatch into flies, is during the warmer months. It is common to have a large hatch of flies on a summers evening, fish will feed aggressively at these times to chomp down as many flying insects as possible – this is the best time to fish with a dry fly. You’ll increase your chances of hooking ‘rising’ fish, if you ‘match the hatch’, or match the type of dry fly you use to the type of insects hatching on the water. Purists often treat dry fly fishing as the only real type of fly fishing.

Streamers

Streamers are completely different to the two above types of flies. They are fished under water and represent a small baitfish. Streamers are typically longer, larger flies that appear bushier; some streamers use bright materials which will often attract a hungry fish. Streamers are fished near the bottom of a lake or river. They are cast out, allowed to sink then retrieved; you’ll get some very aggressive bites or takes on a retrieved streamer as the chasing trout swims in and hits the fly by surprise. Streamers are also a popular choice for fly fishing at night time.

Wet Flies

These flies, as you’d expect (and similarly to streamers) are fished in the water. Wet flies represent either small fish or larger swimming insects. Wet flies are commonly fished with a sinking line or intermediate line and are retrieved as they sink to the bottom of the lake or river. Wet fly fishing is one of the oldest types of fly fishing and is quickly being overtaken by techniques such as nymph fishing.

The above types of flies cover the majority of all flies sold today. Each type has a huge number of variations or species, it can be quite daunting knowing which ones to choose for which pieces of water. The best way to decide on what fly to choose is to try and understand the aquatic life of the piece of water you’re fishing or even easier talk to someone and ask them what types of flies work well on that piece of water. Most fly fishermen will be happy to help you out if you are trying to learn to fly fish.

Matthew Dunne is an experienced fly fisherman and the editor of an informational fly fishing website:

[http://startflyfishingnow.com]

StartFlyfishingnow.com [http://startflyfishingnow.com] is a resource for anyone interested in learning to fly fish or someone looking for information on fly fishing. Check my site for other articles and much more.

Nutritional Research Boosts Development of Dog Food

Evolution in dog food has come a long way and new dog food trends emerge every year. As knowledge about dog nutrition increases more and more specific dog foods hit the market place. Veterinary nutrition has become a mature science that strives at discovering the essential food nutrients and their optimum dosage.

It is believed that the life span of our beloved pets has increased due to the revolution in cat and dog food. Estimates are that the life expectancy of dogs has increased by 3 years in the last 15 years because of the developments in dog food.

Nowadays we have breed specific dog food, health stage specific dog food, prescription dog food and natural and holistic dog food. Dog food history shows us the evolution from table scraps to ultra-premium dog food based on the dog’s personal DNA profile (the latest addition).

Objectives of Dog Food Change in Time

The very basic objective of dog food is to sustain and maintain your dog’s body. Dog food should contain at least contain the minimum amounts of amino acids, minerals, vitamins and fats to comply with this objective. To also deliver energy to your dog so he can run and play there must be sufficient amounts of carbohydrates and fats present. The very first commercial dog food (beginning 19th century) did nothing more than that as it was high in sugar and starch.

In the nineties dog food was developed based on physiological differences between the different dog breeds. Also size, age and activity level was taken into account. In this century dog food has become more advanced. The dog genome has been sequenced and more knowledge is gained about the relation between food nutrients and disease or between calorie restriction and life span. More knowledge is gained about breed specific diseases and nutritional requirements. And as we also see in the human food business, health food is big business. Health and wellness is a dog food trend driver in itself. Nutraceuticals gain more attention and the development of these has not stopped.

On top of the basic objectives (sustain the body + deliver energy) we want dog food nowadays to help prevent certain diseases. Manufacturers enrich dog food with supplements such as anti oxidants, prebiotics for dogs, probiotics for dogs, glucosamine, omega-3 and omega-6.

Marketing Tactics Come Into Play and Drive Dog Food Trends

As more and more different dog food products hit the market, competition grows and marketing becomes very important for a food manufacturer. Buzz words and health claims are printed on dog food bags, with beautiful pictures of healthy happy dogs running in the woods towards a bowl of dog food with fresh peas and risotto. Dog food has become big business. The millions of dollars are to be divided by the top dog food companies whereas niche players are trying to get a bite of this by delivering super premium dog food or specialized dog food for dogs with health problems.

The marketing department is greatly inspired by the trend of pet humanization or anthropomorphism. Dog owners start calling themselves pet parents and are treating their canine companion as little humans with fur. This is all fine of course as long as everybody’s happy. Though there are risks involved. Amongst others: Dogs will be dogs and they have different nutritional needs than humans. That pizza that you love is certainly not the best meal for your furry friend. So ignore dog food names such as ‘Chinese take out with vegetables and chicken’ and turn around the bag to read the dog food label.

Dog Food Trends where Science is the Driver

The most recent step in dog food evolution is the approach to speed up recovery from specific illnesses. Certain nutrients are now added or removed from the dog food recipe. So with prescription dog food and curative dog food, the evolution of dog food has progressed one step further since we got from feeding to prevention.

Dog Food Trends where ‘Back to Nature’ is the Driver

Another recent trend in commercial dog food is the development of natural dog food and holistic dog food. A lot of emphasis is displayed for the human-grade ingredients that are used. Holistic dog food is about looking after the well-being of the whole animal and not just the individual parts.

Perhaps the biggest competitor for commercial dog food is home made diets. In emerging markets most dogs are still fed table scraps as their main diet. However, in developed markets the food penetration levels are between 50 and 75% when one looks at the proportion of calories that are coming from commercial dog food. This means that there is still growing potential for ready made dog food as convenience is also a big market driver. Home-cooked meals and leftovers will continue to compete against commercial dog food especially with the big recall of March 2007 in mind. A lot of concerned dog owners turned to the art of canine cuisine and even dog food cooking classes emerged.

And we will probably continue to see new dog food trends. Science continues, the market changes, new dog food ingredients are developed and dog food recalls and environmental awareness change the dog food landscape.

For more information about dog allergies visit http://www.Best-Dog-Food-Guide.com Here you will find much more dog food related information. Subscribe to the e-zine to receive the free e-book ‘A bit of Tender, Love and Care for Dogs’.

To stay tuned to dog food news and trends please pay a visit to http://www.dog-food-blog.com
All the best, Barbara.

Collector Car Insurance and Classic Car Insurance

If you are fortunate enough to own a classic car – or any collectible automobile – then you want to ensure that your luck does not run out because of having inadequate insurance coverage. Call it covering your butt – or covering your “asset” – but by all means, call one of the major providers such as American Collectors, Haggerty, or Parish Heacock insurance companies and let them put you in the driver’s seat in terms of professional protection of your cherished automotive investment.

How to Kick the Tires on Classic Car Insurance

The whole idea of insurance is that it needs to do what you expect of it in an emergency, when the rubber really hits the road. And classic car insurance is as different from conventional auto insurance as, well, a classic car is from your run of the mill generic vehicle.

When you buy a classic car insurance policy, you are essentially purchasing protection for those times when – God forbid and knock on wood it doesn’t happen – disaster strikes in the form of a fire, a collision, or an act of theft or vandalism. Just as we now have modern airbags to save us in the event of a crash, we also have collector’s car insurance, to protect us with adequate moneybags when calamity throws a wrench in the works.

The time you invest in choosing the right classic car insurance coverage is well worth the value and peace of mind that a quality collector’s insurance policy delivers for owners of classic motor cars.

The Nuts and Bolts of Classic Car Insurance Coverage

Collector car insurance is not the same as the insurance you buy for normal coverage of your daily transportation. Collector car insurance, or classic car insurance, is made especially for the needs of the car collector. And while ordinary insurance does offer some protection, no matter what you drive, it can leave you high and dry in the event of a loss that it not effectively covered by the terms of the insurance contract.

For example, you may have a garage-kept Cadillac Sedan DeVille with swooping fins your grandparents bought for $7,000 brand new back in the 1960s. But dealers have offered you three times that much, and you saw another one sell at an auto show for $35,000. If you don’t have special collector car insurance or classic car insurance, and the car is totaled, you will be lucky to get $7,000 for it. With depreciation calculated in, the insurance statisticians may decide that it is worth only half that much, or less, and you could wind up with two or three grand in exchange for your dream machine.

Stipulations or requirements normally encountered while shopping for collector car insurance or classic car insurance:

• A decent driving record.
• At least 10 years driving experience
• No teen drivers on the policy or drivers with poor driving records
• Secure and out of the weather garage
• Proof that you have another car for daily transportation
• Collector vehicle insurance is sometimes limited by the age of your car, and if your car is too young it may not qualify for a particular policy.
• Limited mileage. You probably don’t want to drive your creampuff car all the time, and your insurance company doesn’t want you to either. Mileage limits have increased recently, though, so if you can live with 250 miles a month you’re probably okay.

Coverage with collector car insurance or classic car insurance: Three kinds of value are important to understand when buying your policy. 1) Actual cash value: This is what you usually get with ordinary insurance, and is based on replacement cost minus depreciation.

2) Stated value:

The insurance company pays up to the stated value of the car, but may not guarantee the full stated value. And deductibles of up to $1,000 usually apply.

3) Agreed value:

In most jurisdictions, those who provide collector car insurance or classic car insurance are allowed to insure for a value that you and your insurer agree upon. And for most autos, there is no deductible. If your $100,000 vintage Rolls get trashed, you get a check for 100 grand, plain and simple – which is exactly why collectors use special classic car insurance coverage.

Do a periodic review of your coverage limits, because classic car prices are rising. What you insured your cherry classic for ten years ago may be a fraction of what it’s worth today. And if you are restoring a vehicle, ask your agent to give you appropriate insurance. There is no need to pay extra based on mileage statistics, if your car is up on blocks with no engine inside it. And as the car’s value increases thanks to your hard work of restoring it, you should raise the coverage to keep up with the added value of the restoration.

Keep all your receipts and paperwork – for everything from parts and labor to expenses incurred to take it to a classic car show – so that you can document the total investment your collector’s car represents. And take photos and keep them updated, for the same reason. And Last But Not Least: Special Savings Opportunities

As long as you meet the criteria in terms of how you use and take care of the car, you can usually buy a policy.

Traditional insurers will either refuse coverage, offer only a replacement value based on the nuts and bolts (minus heavy depreciation) of the car, or will charge you a prohibitive amount for the premium. But many collectors find that special collector’s coverage saves them money – as much as half – while insuring them for higher limits, sometime three or four times what a traditional company gave them.

Yes, it’s possible to get collector’s insurance coverage for full market value for your car, and save up to 50 percent off of the premium you’d pay with ordinary insurance. That makes classic car insurance a must-have for any serious car buff.

Below is information about three of the most reputable and dependable collectors and classic car insurance companies in the USA (All information listed below subject to change, please contact the insurance companies listed to be sure.):

Hagerty Insurance P.O. Box 1303 Traverse City, MI 49685-1303

Email: auto@hagerty.com Toll Free: 800-922-4050

Qualifications:

• Similar to the others listed below, but please contact Haggerty for details.

American Collectors Insurance P.O. Box 8343 Cherry Hill, NJ 08002 Email: info@americancollectors.com Toll Free: (800) 360-2277 Qualifications (subject to change or regional laws so check with the company for specific up-to-date information).

• At least 15 years old
• Garage-kept
• Driven on a limited, pleasure-only basis (up to 5,000 annual miles – available in most states)

You may also qualify by:

• Having at least 10 years driving experience
• Having a good driving record
• Having at least one “regular” vehicle for every licensed driver in the household You may request a policy application either directly from American Collectors Insurance or through your local insurance agent (rates are the same either way).

Parish Heacock Classic Car Insurance P.O. Box 24807 Lakeland, FL 33802-4807 Email: info@parishheacock.com Toll free: (800) 678-5173 Qualifications (subject to change or regional laws so check with the company for specific up-to-date information).

• Each household member of driving age must have at least 10 years driving experience or be excluded.
• Each household member must have a regular use vehicle less than 15 years old that is insured with liability limits equal to or higher than the limits being applied for on the collectible vehicle.
• All licensed members of household and any other drivers of the vehicle must be listed on the application.
• Maximum of two accidents or violations in the household, maximum of one per licensed household member in past 3 years. No major violations permitted in past 5 years.
• A Driver Health Questionnaire must be completed for all drivers over 70 years old.
• Auto must be stored in a locked permanent garage facility when not driven.
• Auto may not be used for commuting to or from work or school, used for business purposes or as a substitute for another auto.
• Autos not covered while on a racetrack or when being used for: racing, speed, driver’s education, or timed events.
• Must display pride of ownership: well maintained, in restored or well-preserved condition.
• Vehicles under restoration must be stored at residence or a restoration shop, with a target date for completion. Agreed value coverage is not available on cars under restoration. Eligibility subject to company review.
• Replica Vehicles and Pro Street vehicles are subject to company review.
• Trucks and Jeeps must be over 25 years old, and not be used for towing, hauling, off-road or utility use.
• Generally do not require appraisals, but may ask for one if vehicle value is difficult to determine.

Michael Modica is an avid musclecar fan. He is the webmaster of the world’s leading Second Generation Camaro resouce, http://www.nastyz28.com

Back when I first started my online home business I didn’t have

a clue concerning how to go about it. I had never done any

Internet marketing, and didn’t know anything about websites or

search engines or any of that other online business stuff…in

short, I was a complete rookie. In retrospect, the two major

things that really helped me was that I refused to be intimidated

and I kept a realistic perspective (both in terms of initial

financial results and the time frame necessary to become

successful).

I know from my own years of experience that relatively few

business ventures are started on the Internet by people with

the experience, motivation, determination, backing, and support

that it takes to even have a reasonable chance of success.

Real online business people are those who work hard, who immerse

themselves deeply in marketing and advertising, and who put in

long hours in the beginning in order to see their Internet-based

businesses succeed.

Achieving success in an online business is not difficult to

comprehend. There is indeed a learning curve, but it’s not brain

surgery. The process of learning isn’t as much the issue as are

the personal traits of motivation and determination.

Develop your marketing plan and execute it. There’s no magic in

this online home based business stuff. We’re talking real world

here. It’s not nearly as romantic as winning the lottery, yet

many of the thousands of people I have helped to start up their

home businesses on the Internet clearly came in with what I have

come to refer to as the “magic/lottery” mentality. Many of those

folks went off to chase another rainbow after a few months, but

some of them also came to their senses and buckled down to

develop very successful home based businesses.

Run, don’t walk, away from all of those people that offer you

“shortcuts” or “success secrets” (probably in exchange for some

of your money). I mean, if they had it all figured out, why

would they sell this “magic answer” to you for a few bucks

instead of just keeping it private and then making tons of

money for themselves? (I’ll leave it to you to connect the dots)

A key point to always keep in mind is that…business is

business. Regardless of whether you are on the Internet or

operating a business in a shopping mall. The same

fundamental principles apply to both businesses.

1) You need to have a product, or products, to sell.

2) You need to advertise to get customers to buy your

products.

3) You need to provide support to your customers who buy

your products as a result of your advertising efforts.

4) You need to build a loyal customer following, so you can

maintain a profitable business over a period of time.

Many people fall into the trap of believing that because

they are doing business on the Internet, some of these steps

can either be skipped or they need to overemphasize one area

or another.

The bottom line regarding an online business is that you will

need to advertise and you will need to take care of your

customers.

Run your online home business just like a real company

because it is, in fact, a real business and you have a real

opportunity to either be successful or to fail. The primary

difference between an online business and a traditional

business is location (no traditional “storefront”). Nearly

everything else is essentially the same. You have products

and your objective is to sell those products to people who

want/need your products.

Remember, building a business takes time, determination,

and patience. Far too many people seem to think that the

traffic is just going to pour in once they have put up their

own website on the Internet. As anyone who has had a website

for a while knows…this simply is not true, but it is often

the reason people get frustrated and quit. The fact of the

matter is that you need to diligently promote/advertise your

website in order for your online home based business to

flourish and prosper.

One of the most important bits of advice that I can pass on to

you is that you must be patient. Most people start their online

home business with great enthusiasm and high expectations. Often,

after a few months, they become disappointed and frustrated

because they are not already making a large amount of money.

These impatient home business entrepreneurs then often start to

jump from one program to another every few months (never allowing

themselves enough time to succeed at any of them) and, finally,

throw up their hands in frustration and declare that they just

can’t make money online.

Stick with your business and don’t give up. Dogged persistence

(much like the tenacity of a pit bull) is an absolutely vital key

to your eventual success. Don’t give up when things become

frustrating and you are not achieving the immediate success you

expected. Give your online home based business sufficient time to

develop and you realize the success you are seeking.

There is nothing magical about running an online home based

business. It should be run the same as any traditional “bricks

and mortar” business and it will succeed or fail depending on

the time and effort you put into it.

There are many very ordinary people working at home and making a

very good living on the Internet, will you be the next one?

—————————————————————-

This article is freely available for reprint provided that the

resource box at the end of the article is left intact and the

article is published complete and unaltered. If you are using

this article on a website or e-book, please make sure that the

link in the resource box is live or clickable.

—————————————————————-

Kirk Bannerman operates a successful home based business and coaches others seeking to start their own home based business.

Visit his website at Legitimate Home Based Business for more details.

Most people in the United States have heard that if a black cat crosses your path, bad luck will follow. Most people who respond to such an event by saying something like “uh-oh” don’t follow up and blame the cat for the fact that a few days later they are, say, fired from their job or trip over the dog and sprain an ankle. But the notion persists, as do many other folk beliefs about cats-as-trouble. Most of these notions arose (in the West) during the late Middle Ages, persisting well into the seventeenth and even the eighteenth centuries. They come down to us today, happily, for the most part filtered by time and reason into paler, less scary versions. In fact, in England it is good luck if a black cat crosses your path. But Europeans in earlier times found plenty of reasons to be truly horrible to cats, especially black ones.

Black cats were not only nocturnal like all cats, skulking around in the dark as if guilty of something, and they were often indifferent to humans, even haughty, but also they had the misfortune of being black. For Europeans in early times, black was-simply-bad. It was associated with the underworld, with night (when bad things like werewolves were on the prowl), with the dark forests where dangerous spirits and crazy people bent on mayhem lurked. It was a scary world, where Satan himself was a constant threat. He and his dark minions practiced the black arts and were always looking to traduce innocent souls into evil.* The world, back in late medieval times, was also full of somewhat attenuated beliefs based on ancient times. Rome’s Diana the Huntress was associated with cats and later in her career morphed a little bit into Hecate, goddess of the underworld and given to dark doings. Also she was associated with the moon, that unreliable and protean body in the night sky. Cats were awarded these attributes.

Early on, the Catholic Church tried to dispel any such pagan notions, discouraging belief in the witchcraft that appears to have always been part of life in most preliterate societies. But late in the Middle Ages when universal satisfaction with the teachings and workings of the Church began to decay, scapegoats were needed. In 1233, Pope Gregory IX explained that black cats were satanic and suddenly the Christian world was overrun with witches and their “familiars,” which is to say the black cats that the witches sent forth to do harm to people. Indeed, witches often turned into black cats. And witches of course were agents of the devil. Thousands of people, mostly women, were burned at the stake along with their cats. Putative witches were typically tortured, and they readily admitted their guilt to stop the torture, even repeating various totally made-up incantations. Thus the virulence of witchcraft was proved, leading to a kind of mass hysteria in which yet more witches were put to the torch. Meanwhile, with such a bad rap, cats of all colors were persecuted.

In one common event, they were hung in bags that avid medieval sportsmen would attack with lances. Indeed, killing cats by one means or another was a highly popular pastime. In these exercises, there was no special emphasis on black cats-any cat would do. From this era comes the old saying “no room to swing a cat,” another sportsmen’s amusement. Possibly harking back to the Egyptian belief that cats were associated with fecundity, some medieval European farmers would bury a cat-alive- near each field they planted, to ensure the growth of the crops. In one macabre case, English archaeologists in the nineteenth century found the remains of thousands of cats buried by the adoring ancient Egyptians, and shipped them back to Albion to be ground up and used as fertilizer.

Mistreatment of cats in this era took many forms. As James Serpell of the University of Pennsylvania describes it, On feast days as a symbolic means of driving out the Devil, cats, especially black ones, were captured, tortured, thrown onto bonfires, set alight and chased through the streets, impaled on spits and roasted alive, burned at the stake, plunged into boiling water, whipped to death, and hurled from the tops of tall buildings; and all, it seems, in an atmosphere of extreme festive merriment.

Europe was not alone in the world in its distaste for all that cats stood for. Evil cats were common features of some Oriental folklore. In Japan, huge vampire cats took the form of human females and sucked the blood and strength from unwitting men. The Japanese used to cut off cats’ tails, believing the tail to be the seat of their malevolence. On the other hand, cats were looked upon with great favor in many Japanese monasteries, where bobtail cats called temple cats or kimono cats were thought to exemplify much of the wisdom passed on by the Buddha. And today, the Japanese have given the world the manekineko or beckoning cat, which can be found in many Asian restaurants and homes in this country as well as Japan and the rest of Asia.

The ceramic figure, something like a children’s illustration, recalls a cat that legendarily stood at the entrance of a famous temple beckoning a feudal lord to come inside. A lightning bolt struck where the lord had been standing and thereafter the beckoning cat was taken to be an incarnation of the goddess of mercy. It is also said to be good for businesses, beckoning customers, and for happiness and harmony-a long way from the cat vampires of old. Today in the West the association of cats with witches is memorialized in Hallowe’en costumery and iconography wherein witches on broomsticks ride across the disc of the full moon, while cartoonish black cats with malevolently arched backs spit and hiss in the foreground. On the last day of October, diminutive witches with black pointy hats will now turn up on doorsteps cheerfully calling for tricks or treats. And, of course, at least 278 zillion people have read about Harry Potter whose witch-filled world is also populated by kneazles, catlike creatures with spots and big ears, that appear to be mostly benevolent. In Islamic countries, cats are and were much admired, especially since the prophet Mohammed was particularly fond-and respectful-of cats, once cutting off his sleeve rather than awakening the cat who was sleeping on it. On the other hand, most Muslims find dogs objectionable. Dogs are eaten in many Asian restaurants, but I know of no place where cats are part of the normal diet.

The idea that a black cat crossing your path is bad luck is a southern European and Irish superstition, exported to the Americas. The English, as noted earlier, consider such an event good luck, and here and there local superstitions suggest that the appearance of a black cat in the presence of a pregnant woman assures a healthy offspring. Cats, and especially black ones, seem to have enjoyed a remarkable power: to be (in one place or another or at one time or another) all things to all people. Even at the height of cat persecution, plenty of cats lived comfortably with families who valued them for their help in vermin control. Indeed, in some places in England, if someone killed your cat, he would be forced to provide you with a pile of grain as high as the cat was long.

I myself had a black cat for several years. I did not seek him out. Instead, two women in the office where I worked at the time thought it would be funny (I suppose) or somehow fitting for them to present me with a large carton at the end of one October day-it was a few days before Hallowe’en-in which there sat a lanky young black cat with a look in his eyes of what seemed low-level outrage. The carton itself was decorated with various kinds of feline graffiti. I was unable to think of a graceful, or even ungraceful, way to refuse this gift, but the thought of schlepping the elaborately decorated carton to Grand Central Terminal in New York City and boarding a crowded train for the hour’s ride to my town, then arriving at my door and trying to explain to my then wife how we had come to have a cat and then introducing the cat to our dog while our three young daughters enthusiastically mauled it… well, it was not an auspicious beginning.

I was aware that black cats had a reputation for bringing bad luck, but as a science editor I was not going to worry about such nonsense. We found it difficult for reasons I don’t recall to come up with a name for this interloper, so finally, in a burst of paternal authority (this was the late 1960s) and stunning imagination I unilaterally named him Cat. Science or no, I was tempted to look up a few superstitions about black cats and found, of course, that I should be careful about him crossing my path, and if he did the antidote was something like walking around the point where I had seen him twelve times, then heading off backwards in my original direction. I pronounced myself grateful for my exposure to science, thinking how time-consuming it would be for me to feel I needed the antidote, what with Cat strolling though the house day in and day out. Imagine the superstitious life: you would have hardly any time for anything else.

Anyway, I came to know Cat and to be very fond of him, admiring all the things about cats that all cat people admire, though if he ever caught a mouse and dispatched it (or a bird, for that matter), I was unaware of it. I did not consider this a failing-just Cat’s amiable and, I thought, admirable approach to life. He took things easy and stayed out of trouble. Like most people, I have experienced plenty of misfortunes, mostly minor ones, but it has never occurred to me to blame any of them on Cat, who was a really good guy. One day, in his late teens, with out having shown much by way of signs of aging, he simply stopped being alive.

I have since learned that nowadays it is not always easy to obtain a black cat from an animal shelter in the days near Halloween. This is because some of the good people who devote themselves to such places do not want to run the risk of someone taking a black cat off to some horrid altar and performing lethal satanic rituals with it. This, in the twenty-first century!

It is a sad commentary to think that such a precious and complicated organ as the human brain, capable of designing a laser, or a symphony, or a democratic constitution, or of divining the common molecular basis for all of life on this planet, can still be so foully and stupidly misused.

Not all superstitions about cats that persist today are malevolent, of course; most of them are positive and harmless, if a bit silly. Upon reflection, it does seem strange for an animal whose evolutionary history is so steadfastly catlike-you have to go back many millions of years to find a cat ancestor that doesn’t look and act unmistakably like a cat-to be assigned so variegated an array of meanings. The human propensity to imagine the supernatural or the anthropocentric and pin it on perfectly innocent animals is astonishing. Snakes have, as noted, gotten an especially bad rap (aside from the fact that some are poisonous) for conning Eve, and other offenses. Most American Indian cultures believe the presence of an owl, and especially the hooting of an owl, presages a death. Who doesn’t-deep down-believe that the bluebird brings happiness? Dogs have both suffered and been esteemed in their symbolic essences. Horses come off pretty well in this regard: malevolent horses are rarely seen in human folklore or in the tribunals of people of faith.

Cats and dogs are considered either contemptible or splendid in a kaleidoscope of ways and for a host of reasons. The Church of Rome, for example, found dogs to be despicable because of their licentiousness but also heroic for their loyalty. The Church held cats in some contempt (not only were they licentious but they were noisy about it) until a papal successor to Pope Gregory IX began raising them. Then attitudes toward cats slowly changed to mostly positive. Today, in the United States, more cats are pets than dogs.

We have been talking about cats as seen in the mirror that many people carry around, imagining that their own reflections project some truth about the rest of nature. These are what Michael Sims, the scholar of the remarkable tales of archy and mehitabel, calls “symbolic delusions.” It seems to me that all such notions-complimentary ones as well as utterly insulting ones, none of which has been solicited by cats themselves-are, if anything useful at all, a version of a Rorschach test, those ink blot examinations that humans use to try to figure out other humans. But this is a book about real cats, so the rest of it will endeavor to tell the story of cats largely from their own point of view, as best we can perceive that.

visit http://www.petsrunway.com

The time has come. You have stopped by the pet shop every day on the way home from work to dote on the cute puppies in the window. Normally you return home with the thoughts of a cute puppy scampering down your hallways. Well, today you did it. You decided to purchase your very own puppy. However, before you bring your puppy home you need to be prepared. You need to purchase various dog supplies so that you can provide a welcoming home to your new dog.

What types of dog supplies do you need? There is a bounty of dog supplies available on the market today. The dog supplies range from basic necessities such as dog food to cute dog costumes. Dog supplies have become such a hot market today that numerous pet supply companies have popped up to meet any needs you have for dog supplies. This competition in the market place is a benefit to you because often times you can find great prices on dog supplies by doing a little market research.

Let’s first take a look at the basic dog supplies that you will want to have when your pooch arrives home. Basic dog supplies include: dog food, dog bowls, collar, leash, kennel/crate, and dog bed. Dog food is number one on the list because you shouldn’t feed your canine table scraps or your own dinner. You can place their food in regular bowls, but it is fun to search for a cute dog bowl. You can find dog bowls that even have their name on it.

Dogs have specific nutritional needs to need to be met so they grow up strong and have a healthy life. Proper dog supplies include the dog food that is geared towards their age, weight/size, and activity level. It is vital to maintain the proper weight for your dog’s size and breed. Table scraps and human food can lead to excess weight that is a detriment to your dog’s overall health. Not to mention they might have some unsightly waste products as a result of the human food.

When searching for dog food from your dog supplies list it is crucial that you find the right dog food. Check with a veterinarian, breeder, or dog shop owner for recommendations on the proper food. Dogs also will become used to their specific brand and type of dog food and if you suddenly change it they may suffer from upset stomach. Since they will be on the dog food for a long time it is a great idea to spend time finding the proper dog food for your pooch.

A dog collar and a dog leash should be next on your list of dog supplies. Many states require that you register your pet with the state. In addition you may need to demonstrate that your dog has had the required vaccines, such as rabies shots, and they must wear a tag on their collar regarding this. Also create a dog tag that has your dog’s name on it, your name, and phone number in case your dog ever gets lost.

Most cities require that your dog be on a leash through various leash laws. Keeping your dog on a leash is a smart idea especially when you head out to parks or walk along the road. You don’t want your pooch to bother other people or run out in front of an oncoming car. These scary situations can be avoided by using a leash to control your dog’s movement. Leashes are also a training tool which you can use to teach your dog the proper behavior for their daily walk.

Dog supplies have improved over the years especially regarding different types of leashes. Does your dog constantly pull away from you on the leash causing them to cough? If so, you can buy a least that doesn’t connect to just their collar, but is instead a harness that wraps around their entire body. You slip their legs through it. This type of leash can be much more comfortable for your dog, so consider it when looking for dog supplies.

If you leave your dog outside at all, whether you are home or not, you need to make sure that your dog is in a secure area. Therefore, you can keep them on a leash that is connected to a runner cord so they have a great area to run. Or you can provide a fenced in area for them to play in. Special things to note when looking for these types of dog supplies is that the leash should be a chest harness leash because you don’t want the dog to constantly run after passersbys and hurt their throat. If you have a fence then make sure that it is in line with your dog’s jumping ability. You don’t want your dog jumping over the fence the second you turn your head.

Next on your dog supplies list should be a dog kennel/crate and/or dog bed. Your dog needs a place they can call their own in your home. A dog kennel/crate helps a dog to feel safe, especially when you are gone. Refrain from using the dog kennel as a discipline retreat. You want them to look forward to their own space in your home.

These are the basic dog supplies you need to purchase before you pick up your new pooch. Later on, you can spend hours finding fun toys, dog chews, and dog costumes for your new best canine friend.

Visit the Dog supplies [http://www.dog-breeds-infosite.com] website to research dog breeds & get free tips on dog training, dog books, dog products & how to find dog sitters & dog walkers.

Auto repair is a headache for motorists all over the world. Repair and replacement of parts have become so costly that motorists are looking for cheap auto repair as an alternative to regular repair.

Many auto repair firms advertise to repair vehicles at cheap rates but they do this by using inferior parts and employing unskilled workers. Generally, specialized shops, including transmission repair and old car repair shops, offer cheaper auto repairs compared to general shops. There are even general repair shops that provide you quality repair at cheaper rates.

It is imperative that you discuss the exact nature of the repair job and take time with the mechanic before you actually launch the repair. Most of the modern vehicles have computerized monitoring systems, which help mechanics identify problems easily. Auto repair manuals and guides call tell you details of each repair job and the normal time taken for each. These manuals can be bought from auto parts shops in your neighborhood.

Online you can find many experienced mechanics advertising cheap auto repair. They do brake jobs for as little as $50.00 and many other repair jobs just as cheap. There are also part-time mechanics who do most of their work at their own house and are ready to do cheap auto repair on request.

Cheap auto repair is usually sought by people who are money-minded. Cheap repair has many drawbacks too. It is not reliable, and often functionality is not guaranteed. Mechanics doing cheap auto repair generally do not give proper attention and, in many cases, inferior parts are used. Cheap auto repair can lead to long-term problems that may sometimes cost you much more money in the long run.

Auto Repair provides detailed information on Auto Repair, Auto Glass Repair, Online Auto Repair, Auto Body Repair and more. Auto Repair is affiliated with Discount Auto Parts.

Are you planning to revamp your child’s room? Are you looking out for things which will make your child’s room bright and trendy? Have you ever given a thought for children’s furniture, kids’ toy boxes? Not much, right?

Furniture and toys will be the best option to start with the renovation of your kid’s bedroom. Always look out for things which are going to help your child to learn faster, bring those toys which will encourage them, which will fire their imagination and every creative aspect of their life. The first thing you can to do is to plan out the things and then start working on it. Make sure how you are going to do it, what things are you going to place in their rooms, which colors you are going to put on their walls, and the color of the children’s furniture. Have you ever thought from where you are going purchase all these things and what will be the expense?

Try to make your child’s room special by using decorative things like cartoon print bed sheet, colorful flowers, etc. Many parents want to give the best to their children no matter if it is little expensive. A variety of kids furniture are available in the market like tea party tables, rocking toys, wooden toys, educational toys, art activity desk, bookshelf, toy box etc. These things not only make their room attractive but also help them to learn lot of things for example; tea table will be helpful in learning table manner, bookshelf will help them to keep their books in an organized way, after playing children put their toys all over the room so don’t you think toy box will be helpful to them to keep their toys back after playing. Toys are the best thing which will help your child to learn lot of things in their day to day life.

Now this is not all about making your child’s room look special but it’s also about what quality kids furniture and kids toy boxes are you using. Parents look out for those kids furniture which are not harmful to their children. Lots of toys are made of plastic which contains toxins in it and those are harmful for the health of the children. These toys and kids furniture should be of better quality and try to use wooden furniture in their rooms which will last for long time and will not prove harmful to their health.

You can find this furniture in well known shops of wooden kids furniture where you will get lot of varieties. Try not to buy inferior quality things due to lesser cost. If not possible, use a few things in the room but of good quality. There are number of stores dealing with children’s furniture in the internet market so just enter your search and purchase appropriate furniture for your child’s bedroom.

Bart Albert is the author of this article on Childrens furniture [http://www.oldfashionedtoyshop.co.uk/component/virtuemart/?page=shop.browse&category_id=8].

Find more information about Childrens toy boxes [http://www.oldfashionedtoyshop.co.uk/component/virtuemart/?page=shop.browse&category_id=12] here.