#Hassan.

A multinational software development company has brought High Court proceedings against several Irish-based outgoing employees whom it alleges have unlawfully diverted its business to a rival firm allegedly set up by them. Scotland-headquartered Integrated Environmental Solutions Ltd (IES) and related IES R&D Ltd develop specialised software used to help design buildings that are more environmentally friendly. They have brought proceedings against John Gleeson, Stephen Earle, Darren Jordan, Sean O’Riordan and Building Performance Consulting Engineers (BPCE). The court heard all four were senior employees at IES’s Irish branch and had, on dates between December and January last, resigned from that company. IES claims. during the course of their employment, and in breach of their contracts of employment, they diverted business from it to the benefit of BPCE. The High Court heard IES apprehends the defendants have taken its property, including creating models of IES’s ‘Virtual Environment’ software, which it is alleged they will use for the BPCE’s benefit. That software is used in the design and construction of energy efficient and sustainable buildings. IES, which has offices in Scotland, India, Singapore, USA and Australia as well as in Ireland, sells licences to use its software and also provides consultancy services to clients. Building simulation tool IES claims that its Virtual Environmental Software is widely recognised by experts as being the best building simulation tool in the world. It is claimed the BPCE, with a registered address in Ashbourne Co Meath, was set up by Mr Gleeson, Clontarf Park, Dublin 3 when he was still an employee of IES. It is claimed Mr Jordan of Rosealier House, Kilnagoran, Co Kildare; Mr Earle of Kilmuckridge, Co Wexford, and Mr O’Riordan, Hanover Quay Dublin 2 were all recruited to join BES. IES claims that its business has been damaged by the defendants’ actions. Represented by Marcus Dowling SC, IES seeks various orders against the defendants including injunctions restraining them using IES’s virtual environmental software and requiring them to pay IES any revenues generated and received in respect of any business they solicited for the benefit of BES while employed by IES. Those orders, if granted, would remain in place pending the outcome of IES’s damages claim against the defendants. On Friday, Ms Justice Leonie Reynolds granted Mr Dowling permission, on an ex-parte basis, to serve short notice of IES’s proceedings on the defendants. The matter returns before the court next week

NORFOLK — Jeff Helton remembers life — and business — before the big-box stores came to town. “There used to be a hardware store in every neighborhood,” Helton said. “Everybody had their hardware store. It’s changed.” A Home Depot averages 100,000 square feet while neighborhood stores range from 2,100 to 6,500 square feet. But, despite the change and direct competition of the mammoth stores, Helton said it is possible to make a living. And with four local stores and 25 employees under his charge, the president of Tidewater Hardware Group should know. “None of us are getting rich, but I feel good at the end of the day,” he said. He entered the industry while still in high school at 17 years old when he took a job in a warehouse for a hardware wholesaler. Now, at 56, he oversees four stores: Ocean View Hardware and Bayview Hardware in Norfolk and Meiggs Hardware and Churchland Hardware in Chesapeake. The Virginia Beach resident is actively looking to open a fifth store in his city. He stepped in to his current leadership position in May 2020, succeeding Benny Potts who retired after more than 40 years in the business. The stores operate under the corporation, Tidewater Hardware Group, an offshoot of the original wholesaler, Waters and Martin, which started in 1865 in Norfolk. “I worked in the wholesale part for a long time and ended up taking over the distribution center until it closed in 2009,” Helton said. Facing unemployment at that time, Helton was fortunate when the company plucked him to work alongside Potts. It’s come a long way and nowadays, Helton is busy trying to create uniformity across the neighborhood stores. “We bought a POS (point-of-sale) system so that all four stores are talking to each other,” Helton said. “If I’m out of something, I can see my inventory live.” Each store has a good customer base, he said, and that was apparent at the start of the pandemic. “When everybody was standing out front of Home Depot with a shopping cart waiting to get in, we had a nice uptick in business from people that remembered the hardware store on the corner,” Helton said. 2020 was a great year for the business, he said, and he’s hopeful patrons continue the support. “It’s been good for our industry, but you worry,” he said. While the big-box stores tend to carry current items and replacement parts for in-stock items, it’s the hard to find items that he sets out to supply, Helton said. “You can come to one of our stores and get copper/aluminum wire receptacles for an old house; not everybody’s going to have that,” he said. Neighborhood hardware stores, Helton said, often carry inventory that people in the specific area need. “You’re coming into a local hardware store to hopefully get a little bit of knowledge and a lot of help,” he said. Customer service is another important facet to the business, Helton said. He encourages his employees to treat people the way they want their family members to be treated. “We’re trying to stay aggressive because if you’re not growing, you’re going in the opposite direction,” Helton said. “I’m trying to grow this business, not make it go away.” With the additional competing force of Amazon, Helton said it’s important for the stores to stay competitive when it comes to pricing. “If you’re not in the neighborhood on the price, they will walk out the door, have it bought before they get to the car and it’ll be on their porch tomorrow,” he said. But, Helton said he hears daily from customers who want to support the local mom and pop shops and feels there is a spot for what they do. “The industry is still there, but the players have been moved around,” he said. “The stores have gotten bigger and there’s not a hardware store on every corner, but it’s still there.”

TOKYO, Feb 12 (Reuters) - Tokyo 2020 Olympics chief Yoshiro Mori is expected to resign on Friday over sexist comments he made early this month, with the mayor of the Olympic village, Saburo Kawabuchi, saying Mori had asked him to take over. Kawabuchi said he was in tears before a meeting where he accepted Mori's request on Thursday. "Mr. Mori was straightforward saying 'I want you to take over now this happened'," Kawabuchi, 84, told reporters late on Thursday. "I thought how hard it must be for him and I couldn't stop crying," said Kawabuchi. The 83-year-old Mori, a former Japanese prime minister, sparked a global outcry with sexist comments that women talk too much, which he made during an Olympic committee meeting. Mori has apologized for his comments but has so far not resigned despite growing calls for him to step down. RELATED:Larry Flynt, porn publisher and free speech activist, dead at 78, according to The Washington Post Dozens of former Republican officials in talks to form anti-Trump third party His resignation less than six months before the Summer Olympics are scheduled to begin are likely to raise new doubts over the viability of holding the postponed Games this year. Games officials are already struggling with how to hold a safe Olympics, with tens of thousands of athletes and possibly spectators, during the coronavirus pandemic. Kawabuchi, who has represented Japan in football at the 1964 Olympics and is a former Japan Football Association president, said he wants Mori to play a consulting role in the Games to help make the event a success. The choice of Kawabuchi prompted questions on social media about whether there was no better alternative than an older, male figure. Later on Friday, the Tokyo Olympics organizing committee, which has not officially commented on Mori's resignation, plans to hold a meeting of its council and executive board, followed by a press conference. Mori will explain his position at Friday's meeting, Japanese Olympics Minister Seiko Hashimoto told parliament, referring to a phone call with Mori. Hashimoto said the government would continue to work with other parties including the International Olympic Committee, to prepare for the event based on Olympic principles. (Reporting by Ju-min Park; Editing by Michael Perry and Raju Gopalakrishnan

(Reuters) - Volkswagen AG on Thursday said it will use Microsoft Corp’s cloud computing services to help it streamline its software development efforts for self-driving cars. Volkswagen, which owns brands such as Audi and Porsche, is working on both self-driving cars for the future and driver-assistance features such as adaptive cruise control in current vehicles. But the company’s brand had been developing those features independently. Last year, Volkswagen consolidated some of those development efforts into a subsidiary called Car.Software to better coordinate among the makers, with each company handling its own work around the look and feel of the software while collaborating on core safety functions such as detecting obstacles. ADVERTISEMENT But the various companies inside the group were still using different systems to develop that software, and the deal announced Thursday will put them on a common cloud provider, Dirk Hilgenberg, chief executive of Car.Software, told Reuters in an interview. The Microsoft deal will also make deploying software updates to add new features to cars - a practice that helped set Tesla Inc apart from many rivals early on - much easier. Volkswagen in 2018 inked a deal with Microsoft to connect its cars to Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing service. The Thursday deal means that the software updates will be developed on the same cloud that will then beam those updates down to the cars. “Over-the-air updates are paramount,” Hilgenberg said. “This functionality needs to be there. If you can’t do it, you will lose ground.” In practical terms, the deal means that cars that initially hit the road with a few driver-assistance features today could add new capabilities over time that bring them closer to autonomous driving, said Scott Guthrie, executive vice president of cloud and artificial intelligence at Microsoft. “For our phones 15 or 20 years ago, when you bought it, it pretty much never changed. Now, we expected every week or every couple of days that, silently, there’s new features,” Guthrie told Reuters in an interview. “That ability to start to program the vehicle in richer and richer ways, and in a safe way, transforms how the experience works.”

Telstra reported on Thursday it had a challenging end to the calendar year of 2020, as the company saw double-digit drops in revenue and earnings before interest, income tax expense, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) and, consequently, it has revised its guidance downwards. For the half year to December 31, the company saw revenue fall 10% to AU$12 billion, while EBITDA dropped 14.7% to AU$4 billion, and EBIT took a 20% hit to decline to AU$1.64 billion. Thanks to a substantially lower level of income tax, down 60% to AU$209 million, net profit fell only 2.2% to AU$1.13 billion. The reasons for the lower revenue was pinned on lower hardware sales, while the now regular blame on NBN headwinds and a lack of international roaming revenue due to the pandemic drove the lower profitability. The company said handset and tablet sales were down by 450,000 units, which translated to a 29% decline to AU$1.24 billion for the quarter as a line item. COVID-19 slowed sales during the quarter by lowering foot traffic in stores by 30%, customers were using pricier handsets for longer before replacing them, more people were purchasing phones outright from other retailers, and the latest iPhone release was later than usual. "Of these reasons, impacts of COVID on sales and the later iPhone release drove outcomes materially different to our estimates when we set guidance," Telstra CFO Vicki Brady said. "We anticipate these impacts to continue in the second half." On the positive side, despite an 8.6% reduction in average revenue per user, the company maintained that figure would increase in the second half of its fiscal year. How 'Hybrid' Workplaces Will Shape the Post-Pandemic Workforce Most businesses will not be back in office until mid 2021, and surveys show at least a quarter of the workforce has no intention of returning to the office. In this session, you'll hear from Mark Pesce and our panel of experts on: How hybrid workplaces will shape the workforce Managing & supporting employees through the continuation of remote work Strategies & policies that embrace flexible working options And more! Live Event provided by GoTo by LogMeIn Now that the company has reversed course and resumed its T22 job shedding, Telstra CEO Andy Penn said the company is looking to complete its goal of firing 8,000 people by the end of the 2021 calendar year. "In terms of reductions in indirect headcount, it was initially our expectation to reduce by around 25% or 10,000," Penn said. "However, we have already reduced 16,000 and we expect to make further reductions to our indirect workforce due to the significant progress we have made in digitising the business. The majority of these roles have been offshore." Penn added that the company closed its Cebu call centre in the Philippines last week as it looks to have its consumer and small business customer calls answered in Australia within the next year and a half. Telstra also announced on Thursday it would take full ownership of Telstra branded stores around the country. "As more customers interact with businesses online as a result of COVID, we think now is the right time to bring back ownership to ensure a consistent and integrated customer experience across our online channels and entire store network," Penn said. "At the height of COVID last year we were able to redeploy frontline staff from Telstra owned stores to assist customers through our digital channels or via the phone. It's this flexibility that we'll be able to unlock as more retail branded stores are under Telstra's ownership." The company currently has 67 owned and operated stores, with 166 stores run by independent licensees, and 104 stores operated by Vita Group. The telco said it would begin discussions with its licensees today, and would "offer roles to current store staff in the majority of cases". Looking at its revenue by division, mobile was down 12% to AU$4.7 billion, as the company added 80,000 postpaid customers, which included 22,000 from Belong. It also had an extra 456,000 IoT services on its network by the end of the half, and now has around 1 million 5G devices on its network. For consumer and SMB fixed line, revenue was down 7.5% to AU$2.43 billion with declines in voice services and Foxtel from Telstra users. Enterprise fixed line dropped 6.4% to AU$1.85 billion as not all copper line users migrating to NBN stayed with the telco. "Single-digit growth in managed services, including security and cloud applications, was insufficient to offset structural declines in calling applications (including ISDN), as well as equipment sales and professional services," Brady said. Wholesale fixed continued to shrink with the shift of services to NBN connections, with revenue diving 19% lower to AU$770 million. The international business of Telstra Enterprise was down 11% to AU$755 million. "Our underlying results remained challenged ... however, our continued focus on T22 is delivering simpler, better outcomes for our customers and greater productivity," Brady said. "Product margin improvement is also imminent, and already occurring in mobile. We see clear positive indicators of an improved financial trajectory, which we expect will return us to underlying EBITDA growth in FY22, and put us on the path to achieving our FY23 financial ambitions." Telstra touted it would be handing AU$950 million of its cash to shareholders in the form of an 8 cent dividend.

In what has proved to be a controversial move among game developers, Warner Brothers has secured a U.S. patent for the Nemesis System, the signature mechanic of two hit video games set in the Lord of the Rings universe. WB’s patent on the Nemesis System, #US20160279522A1, is listed as “Nemesis characters, nemesis forts, social vendettas, and followers in computer games.” Notably, WB has been trying to get this patent approved since March of 2015, shortly after the initial September 2014 release of Middle-Earth: Shadow of Mordor. The US Patent and Trademark Office released a notice on Feb. 3 that states the patent will go into effect on Feb. 23, and could remain in effect until 2035. This has created widespread backlash in the industry, ranging from indie developers (one of whom has founded an ongoing “game jam” project, the Neme-Jam, to play with the concept in the two weeks before the patent takes effect) to AAA studios. It’s a low-key debate, but one that could have wide-ranging consequences for the already strange relationship between video games and intellectual property law. Shadow of Mordor, developed in Kirkland, Wash., by Monolith Productions for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows, is set in the decades between the events of J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and the first book of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Fellowship of the Ring. As Talion, a ranger in Gondor’s army, players are charged with conducting a campaign of guerilla warfare against the orcish armies of Sauron. Shadow of Mordor was both commercially and critically successful, which led to a sequel, Shadow of War, in 2017. One of the major cited reasons for both games’ success is the Nemesis System, an elaborate gameplay mechanic which can turn random orcs in Sauron’s army into unique antagonists for the player. If one of the Uruk-hai you encounter in-game manages to perform a unique feat, such as beating you in a fight or surviving their encounter with you, the Nemesis System remembers that and begins building that previously-nameless soldier into a recurring antagonist. Your Nemesis can earn promotions in the army’s ranks, remember details about their fights with the player, and eventually turn into a custom-made non-player character (NPC) that can be fought again and beaten for greater rewards. In the late game, they can even be converted into double agents for the player, working from the inside to weaken Sauron’s army. In practice, it’s not unheard-of for game companies to file a patent on behalf of their products’ unique features. For example, the Japanese company Namco Bandai has a patent on record for its series Katamari Damacy, which was filed in 2003 and granted in 2008. The unique central mechanic of the Katamari games, where the player rolls a sticky ball around an arena to gather up loose objects, is legally protected until 2026, which goes a long way towards explaining why there haven’t been a couple of hundred “Katamari-likes” by now. What’s creating the controversy with WB Games’s patent on the Nemesis System isn’t simply the establishment of a patent, then, but from two separate sources. One comes from how broad the patent’s language is, which could allow WB to charge competitors for licensing, or simply take them to court, when they attempt to implement anything even vaguely similar to the individual elements of the Nemesis System. This could include features in recent games such as Watch Dogs: Legion, which allows you to recruit virtually any person you pass in the game’s world as a playable member of your team, or the unique Mercenaries who may spawn to hunt you down in Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey.

The new generation of the Toyota Mirai arrives in French dealerships, while orders have just opened. We have been talking about the new Toyota Mirai for a little over a year , although the production version had already been shown in January 2020, although all the details had not yet been revealed. about her. Now we know a little more about the hydrogen sedan, which is just landing on the French market, when orders have just opened. If we will have to wait until spring to see the first copies arrive on the road, this is good news that is already awaiting customers, since the car is much cheaper than the previous generation. Displayed from € 67,900, this new version shows a price down by 15%, no doubt to better attract customers and to forget the failure of the old version, which had not really met the expected success. It must be said that its engine, still little known and its very particular look did not really help it. But Toyota has heard the criticisms and decided to take matters into their own hands, with a new generation that is more aesthetically successful. But the sedan is also evolving technologically speaking, with an increase in power, now rising to 174 horsepower, while the hydrogen storage capacity has increased by 20%, for a reduction in consumption, then offering a total autonomy displayed at 650 kilometers. Refueling is always done in five minutes, in one of the specific charging stations, which are still relatively few for the moment. Note that only Toyota dealerships located near one of them will offer this new Mirai for testing and purchase, pending a democratization of these infrastructures. Anyway, we invite you to discover the prices of this new Toyota Mirai now! Discover the range and prices of the Toyota Mirai 2021 Toyota Mirai Louge - from € 67,900 (ecological bonus of 6,000 to be deducted) LED lights 19 inch rims Automatic emergency braking with detection of pedestrians and cyclists Adaptive cruise control 360 ° vision Dual zone air conditioning Reading traffic signs 12.3-inch touchscreen navigation Hands-free access and start Toyota Mirai Executive - from € 74,900 (ecological bonus of 6,000 to be deducted) 20 inch rims Slot assistance Tri-zone air conditioning Sunroof Head-up display Digital interior rear view mirror

Samsung, India’s largest and most trusted consumer electronics brand, has announced ‘The Lifestyle Fest’ for its most po[CENSORED]r lifestyle range of TVs: The Frame and The Serif, with exciting offers. During this fest, valid till February 28, 2021, Samsung’s lifestyle TVs will be available at special prices with exclusive discounts across all leading consumer electronics retailers across the country. Both The Frame and The Serif are stunning lifestyle TVs that add to your home décor and transform your living spaces with their gorgeous design and premium features. What’s most unique and spectacular about The Frame is that when it is not being used as a TV, it moves into Art Mode, and turns into a picture frame that can display over 1,200 digital art from around the world, and transform everyday living space into an art gallery. The Serif goes beyond the traditional concept of a TV to a piece of home décor that elevates the design of any living space – a result of the true collaboration between Samsung and the acclaimed Parisian design duo Ronan and Erwan Bouroullec. From its iconic uni-body design in the shape of the letter “I” to its brilliantly crisp QLED picture, The Serif is a statement centrepiece that not only redefines TV viewing, but also creates an eccentric space that complements one’s lifestyle while creating a lasting impression. During this offer period, buyers will get a cashback of INR 4,500 on purchase of 43-inch, 49-inch and 50-inch models and INR 7,500 cashback on 55-inch, 65-inch and 75-inch models of Samsung’s lifestyle TVs. Customers who purchase the 75-inch The Frame will also get a complimentary Samsung Soundbar HW-Q800T worth INR 48,990. Other offers include easy EMI options starting from as low as INR 1,190, along with a 2-year warranty (1+1 year extended warranty) on panels and a 10 year no screen burn-in warranty. “There has been a rise in demand for lifestyle TVs as consumers today look for products which offer a great balance of stunning design and premium technology. As they continue to spend more time at home, unique and personalised elements, including technology are key deciding factors while designing their living spaces. “The Lifestyle Fest’ is aimed at creating great consumer offerings for the unbelievably beautiful The Frame and The Serif that are designed to be more than just TVs,” said Raju Pullan, Senior Vice President, Consumer Electronics Business, Samsung India. The Frame TV The Frame QLED TV is a perfect amalgamation of technology and design, enhancing both the living space and entertainment experience for consumers. The Frame offers superior picture quality with QLED technology, which enables beautiful colors, exceptional contrasts and impeccable details with 100% color volume. The Frame also has in-built motion and brightness sensors. When it is not being used as TV, The Frame moves into Art Mode and displays digital pieces of artwork to turn an everyday living space into an art gallery. Just like how a framed picture looks different depending on the time of day, The Frame adjusts the screen brightness based on the ambient light in the room. The TVs will come with 10-year no screen burn-in warranty and two-year warranty on the panel.

On the second day of the trial of former President Donald Trump, US Senators from the Republican Party described the case against former US President Trump as "convincing" after watching a new video of the riots in the storming of the Capitol building on January 6. Related news Democrats still have a daunting task to convict Trump, with only six Republicans declaring themselves standing by the 50 Democratic senators to vote in favor of starting the trial. Democrats will need at least 17 Republican votes in order to achieve the two-thirds majority needed to convict Trump. However, both Republican Senators John Thun and Susan Collins described the case presented on Wednesday as "compelling ". He described the performance of the prosecution team thon of the Democratic Party is very Balfal said: " I think they were very effective." "They had a strong presentation compiled in a way that I think makes it very compelling, " he added. Thon added, "I think they did a good job of pointing letters through their payments by referring to Trump's Twitter account, and I think I said they did an effective job going back several months and showing this public record." Senator Susan Collins, a Republican from Maine, described sitting during the prosecution presentation as "very quiet," adding, "You may have heard a tip of the iceberg," noting that the footage was "proven." She added: "The presentations were compelling, especially from Virginia Senator Stacy Blasket, and I also think the Colorado Representative was very good too." And Collins continued: "It was the restoration of the scenes of that day with some additional details, reinforcing my belief that it was a terrible day for our country and that there is no doubt that it was an attempt to disrupt the electoral counting process." "I will always be grateful to law enforcement and the Capitol police for protecting us, but I am also proud of the fact that we came back that night and finished our constitutional duty, not letting the rioters achieve their goal of disrupting the voting process," she added. The prosecution team showed a new video tape of the Capitol events and previously unseen footage that appears in exceptional scenes of the storming operation. In the footage shown, a pro-Trump demonstrator can be heard asking to know the location of the hall where the Electoral College vote count is taking place, while a Capitol Police officer named Eugene Goodman tries to remove the protesters . Other footage showed Senators Mitt Romney and Chuck Schumer miraculously fleeing the demonstrators in search of a safe place. Republican warning Related news On the other hand, many Republican lawmakers warned of the dangers of continuing Trump's trial , noting that it would have negative effects on attempts to restore the vertical split in the country between the right and the left, as it stood in the way of President Joe Biden's political and legislative agenda and delayed the approval of his ministerial appointments according to opinions Some monitors. Political analyst Chris Berodhome told Sky News Arabia: "This trial will affect the Democrats, explaining that the Americans will realize that what has happened is enough and the country needs to move forward. Even President Biden himself has said that the Senate does not have enough votes to condemn Trump, so why pursue this?" the case!" As he put it . Related news On the other hand, Democrats defend Trump's trial, noting that it is a prerequisite for moving towards unity in the country under a broad slogan that says that unity cannot be achieved without accountability. Press reports indicated that more than thirty thousand Republican supporters in California have changed Their party affiliation after the events of the storming of Congress . Former House Speaker Nancy Piolsy, former House Speaker Danny Weiss, explained during an interview with Sky News Arabia, that the Republican argument that this impeachment trial obstructs the legislative agenda is a political argument. The aid package to confront the Corona epidemic from March to December, and there was nothing standing in their way, adding that most Republicans in the Senate still support Trump, according to him . Related news As for US President Joe Biden, he stressed the importance of unity and healing the rift that afflicted the country, but he worked hard not to interfere with what is happening in the Senate regarding Trump's trial . And between talking about justice and then unity and talking about moving forward and avoiding further wounds, the United States keeps holding its breath, both politically and security, until the end of the trial and resolving its order to condemn or acquit Trump

For many of us, our experience with software is that it can often be rigid and cold. And, truth be told, most software is. But some of the better software companies are building today embraces human traits in order to be warmer to users and adapt to their needs. Over my 30-plus years of software development experience, I have identified four human service-minded traits you can use to assess any software product. Individually, each of these traits helps create a positive customer experience. In combination, I believe they provide a world-class innovative platform capable of disrupting any industry. PROMOTED Deloitte BRANDVOICE | Paid Program Will 2021 Be The Year To Align Globally On Sustainability Reporting? UNICEF USA BRANDVOICE | Paid Program Unicef And Partners Are Standing Up For Children In India During The Pandemic Grads of Life BRANDVOICE | Paid Program The Gateway Jobs That Can Open Opportunity For Workers Skilled Through Alternative Routes Helpful A helpful person selflessly gives their time to provide assistance when needed. They provide useful advice. They are intentionally focused on the needs of others, and perhaps most importantly, they ask for genuine feedback to make sure they are, in fact, being helpful. It’s easy to imagine software that helps you perform a specific job or task, like a simple to-do list with reminders. It helps you in a way that is right for you. It’s available on a device that is handy when and where you need the help. MORE FOR YOU 5 Ways Uber-Successful People Handle Burnout Character Is A Muscle. How Are You Exercising Yours? How To Banish Self-Doubt, Trust Yourself And Stop Procrastinating In order to produce useful software, an organization must know their customers’ Jobs to Be Done, as outlined in the book by Stephen Wunker, Jessica Wattman and David Farber. But the jobs of our users are never about function alone — there are powerful social and emotional dimensions to explore as well. Understanding these dimensions requires an investment in strategic planning and user research in order to achieve true product-market fit. Beautiful A beautiful human is more than just a pretty face. They are fun to be around and they don’t deplete your energy by complaining. Indeed, they spark joy. Similarly, beautiful software products elicit delight and offer a frictionless experience so users don’t have to think hard. These products work and feel like tools that fit perfectly in our hands. They are easy to use, as though they were designed specifically for us. And they are hyper-intuitive, like a best friend who knows what we’re thinking before we even think it. To produce beautiful software, forward-leaning teams embrace human-centered design. They innovate continuously by running frequent design sprint workshops, building prototypes and testing hypotheses. They fall in love with the problem they’re trying to solve rather than their current solution to that problem. Rugged When a person is rugged, they are strong, adaptable and capable of handling any situation. They tend to prefer outdoor activities where they can exercise their speed, strength and dexterity. They might appear a little rough around the edges — unless they’re beautiful too. Software that is rugged is secure, reliable and easily maintainable. When your customers need it, it’s there. It’s available and waiting for orders. Like a well-trained soldier, it’s ready for anything and knows how to react when worst-case scenarios arise. If your software is rugged, your customers can count on it, and they feel safe and secure using it. It fosters trust. Product leaders striving to produce rugged software should invest in DevOps best practices, such as chaos engineering. They should embed quality and security assurance into the release process so that flaws and vulnerabilities are discovered long before they reach the customer. Caring When someone truly cares, they do everything in their power to help. They abide by allowing your agenda to drive their agenda and your concerns to drive their concerns. When you need something, they rush to your assistance with all due haste. Software is caring when it is frequently updated and maintained behind the scenes and without burdening the end user. New helpful features appear so regularly and seamlessly that you never know — or need to know — what version you’re running. It just works. Caring software is made when your organization cares deeply enough to evolve and embrace more modern software design and development philosophies, like lean and agile thinking. Caring organizations produce incremental product improvements as frequently as several times per day. This allows them to better serve their customers and reap the rewards of faster feedback cycles. Fast feedback leads to faster learning, which ultimately leads to better customer service. Summary The world would be a better place if all software was helpful, beautiful, rugged and caring. Until then, there is a deafening cry from the user community for product owners to strive toward this ideal and commit more resources to the mission. As consumers continue to shift their loyalty toward brands with more modern products, there is a growing revenue opportunity for organizations that love to listen, learn and adapt. If you realize you need to improve your game in one or more of these areas, you can get started by defining a clear problem statement for a challenge you want to tackle. Define the objectives for a small discovery phase. It’s important to think big and start small. Collaborate with your team to set measurable goals and decide on the approach that’s right for your team. Or, if you don’t have the right talent or culture internally, it might be a good time to bring in a third party to guide you. The next step is to define a phased roadmap. Break down your goals into a phased approach to produce quicker wins. Finally, plan how you will calculate ROI for the first phase so you can demonstrate to your stakeholders how this initiative will pay for itself. And don’t forget your users along the way. They’re the whole reason you’re here in the first place, right? In 2011, Marc Andreessen published an article (paywall) in the Wall Street Journal saying that software is eating the world. Combine software with the power of human-centered design and no industry is safe from disruption. Without question, software is here to stay. And the more humanlike we can design our software, the better positioned we’ll be to succeed in the race for the most loyal and enthusiastic customers.

Food delivery was booming before the pandemic, and now it’s skyrocketing. With so many restaurants not able to serve in-store customers, they have adapted by signing up with as many third-party food delivery services as possible. This has been great for the food delivery companies, but with great success can come great challenges. Although leading third-party ordering and delivery platforms have customer experiences covered, both with online ordering and on-time delivery, they needed to find a way to scale rapidly and get orders to restaurant kitchens as quickly as possible. The Problem of Online Order Management Restaurants often don’t anticipate the added steps to their workflows that a new partnership with a third-party delivery platform can create. Online orders typically come in on a tablet in the front of the house, and then the staff has to communicate that order with the kitchen. Handwriting orders or keying the order into the point of sale (POS) system for transmission to the food prep area is time-consuming and error-prone. The most efficient, accurate and quickest way to get orders to the kitchen is to send them directly to printers. Under normal circumstances, managing online orders can be a challenge, but during the rapid increase in restaurant online ordering during the pandemic, it could quickly become overwhelming. Furthermore, a business’ ability to get orders from the front- to the back-of-the-house promptly and efficiently could directly impact the success of this revenue stream and customer loyalty – and keeping customers happy and cash flowing was crucial during difficult economic times. The No-Friction Way for Third-Party Delivery Companies to Equip Restaurants With Printers As is the case with many software companies, providing printers or other hardware is beyond third-party delivery platforms focus. It has been especially true during a time of high-volume onboarding and scaling that occurred due to restaurant restrictions during the pandemic. One leading third-party delivery company is leveraging ShopPOSPortal to manage hardware sales and distribution through a branded hardware microsite. ShopPOSPortal partnered with Star Micronics to provide compatible printers to restaurants partnering with third-party food delivery platforms. By visiting the custom-branded microsite, restaurants can easily find the compatible printers they need and purchase them without the online ordering platform having any involvement in the sale of the hardware. ShopPOSPortal drop ships the products directly to the end user’s address and handles everything else related to the hardware sale, including inventory management and customer support. Want to Provide Hardware Without Managing It? The ShopPOSPortal model has proven to be successful for other software companies that need to ensure their users have the correct, compatible hardware for the best user experiences but don’t have the resources to manage the hardware. Software companies providing solutions for point of sale (POS), warehousing and logistics, healthcare and more can benefit from turning the problem of providing your users with hardware over to a company that makes it its primary focus. Partnering with a company that manages hardware sales and customer support gives you more time to focus on development, meeting your customers’ demands and optimizing releases while having confidence that your customers have the exact hardware they need at the best prices.

Star Wars games have had a rough go under EA, from the multiple canceled projects to the debacle of Star Wars Battlefront 2's launch. Recent years have seen things improve, however, especially with the release of Jedi Fallen Order. The first single-player Star Wars game in years, Fallen Order introduced a brand new protagonist, a Padawan named Cal Kestis who barely managed to survive Order 66. Cal goes through quite the journey, and Fallen Order has some interesting tidbits on the history of the Jedi. While it's pretty much guaranteed that there will be a Fallen Order 2, it'd be a shame to not use such an interesting character in other parts of the Star Wars universe. Star Wars games are about to get a new lease on life as other developers take a stab at the series, like Ubisoft. As the franchise moves into its next-generation, Cal Kestis could be one of the characters that unite all the experiences. Cal Kestis is one of only six Jedi still alive by the end of the original trilogy, and presumably the events of The Mandalorian. With one of the other surviving Jedi being Cere Junda, Cal's mentor, it gives him an important place in the current state of the universe. Cal could work as the connective tissue between the next set of Star Wars games, and work to re-establish the Jedi order. The Mandalorian has gone to great lengths to connect disparate parts of the Star Wars universe, like introducing Dark Troopers and the Krayt Dragon. With Disney establishing Lucasfilm Games, it's clear the company is going to put more weight behind video games in the coming years. The end of Fallen Order doesn't really make it clear where Cal and his crew are going next, but it's easy to see them traveling the galaxy, trying to fight the Empire and do good where they can. That creates the perfect setups for Cal and company to pop up in other stories, like the next Battlefront or Ubisoft's open-world game. Luke Skywalker has served as the character uniting the series so far, even appearing in Star Wars Battlefront 2's campaign in a big way. With Luke's story over, however, new characters will have to fill that role. There are a lot of years in between Fallen Order and the sequel film trilogy, and it'd be fascinating to see Cal have a larger effect on the universe, maybe even training a few Padawans separate from Luke's new Jedi Temple. While it's easy enough to have Cal appear in other Star Wars games, the character could appear in plenty of other media as well. This is especially true considering the character's likeness is directly based on the actor that portrays him, Cameron Monaghan. Fallen Order saw characters like Saw Gerrera and Darth Vader cross paths with Cal Kestis, and now it's his turn to really leave a mark on Star Wars. Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is currently available on PS4, Xbox One, and PC. A PS5 and Xbox Series X patch was recently released that upgrades the game to 60fps, among other things.

Audi lifts the veil, not on one, but on two e-tron GTs, the new 100% electric sedan from the firm with the 4 rings, including the RS version. New Audi e-tron GT 2021 - The new all- electric sedan is officially unveiled after a long teaser period, which started at the end of 2018 at the Los Angeles auto show. She took the opportunity to reveal her more muscular version called Audi RS e-tron GT , which was not expected soon. Taycan's Daughter If Audi's fully electrified sedan takes the silhouette of the A7 Sportback, it rests on the platform of the Porsche Taycan, its cousin, hence its low height under the roof of 1.41 m. The Audi is 3 cm longer, since it is close to 5 meters long. Its trunk accommodates 405 l, while a front compartment offers 81 l in addition. Below 500 km The new Audi e-tron GT uses the technology of the sports car from Zuffenhausen , but it favors range over performance, with a 93 kWh battery with 800 V technology. Therefore, the range of sports car with the four rings allows it to travel 488 km on the WLTP cycle , compared to 473 km for the RS version. As for recharging, it can be done up to 270 kW, which allows you to start again for 100 km after an express charge of five minutes. An RS variant The engine power of the Audi e-tron GT reaches 476 hp (530 hp in overboost) for a torque of 630 Nm, to ship it from 0 to 100 km / h in 4.1 s. For its part, the RS variant peaks at 598 hp (646 hp with overbocst) and 830 Nm of torque for only 3.3 s claimed up to 100 km / h. Audi e-tron GT price Prices for the new Audi e-tron GT start from € 101,500, excluding any ecological bonus. The price of the RS version is € 140,700. Marketing is scheduled for next fall.

Facebook announced the intensification of its efforts to curb the spread of misleading information about Covid-19 vaccines and enhance the dissemination of facts, in addition to inferring the groups that are wary of taking the vaccine. The move includes banning groups that frequently spread misinformation about the virus and vaccines in general. For months, Facebook has been working to remove misleading Covid information and promote health advice from trusted organizations, and the social site has expanded this initiative. Related news Facebook has updated its list of false allegations about the virus and vaccines, with the help of the World Health Organization. The list of prohibited information included allegations that Covid-19 is made by people and infected with it is safer than a vaccine and that vaccines are toxic or cause autism. But Facebook's initiative was not enough to convince some, as the "Center for Combating Digital Hate " wrote on Twitter that "Facebook has promised over the past year to crack down on misleading information about Covid and anti-vaccinations," adding that "every time it fails to match these ads Salient work. " Guy Rosen, Facebook's vice president for integrity affairs, has warned accounts of groups that share misinformation about vaccines against banning them permanently. Facebook said that 50 million people participated in the survey it conducted last year on Covid-19, which focused on symptoms, masks and access to health care. He added that "the survey is the largest of its kind ever, and it helped health researchers to better monitor and predict the spread of Covid-19," noting that the data will help to better understand intentions to take the vaccine in terms of "social demography, race, geography, etc." And Facebook promised to share with all countries of the world the results of the survey on the position on vaccines

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Palantir Technologies Inc. and International Business Machines Corp. are uniting in a partnership that will dramatically expand the reach of Palantir’s sales force while making IBM’s own artificial-intelligence software easier for non-technical customers to use, the companies plan to announce Monday. The global partnership is the largest of its kind for Palantir, the maker of data-analysis software whose shares have more than quadrupled since its September debut on the New York Stock Exchange. Palantir gains access to a sales team of more than 2,500 people, up from its current 30. Palantir’s stock rose 10% as trading opened in New York Monday, boosting the shares to $37.53. The relationship is the payday for the project Palantir started more than a year ago to break its data integration and analysis software into smaller, less pricey modules. The Denver-based company mainly sells to companies with revenue in excess of $500 million -- many of which already have relationships with IBM. Reselling Palantir’s software to augment the data and AI tools that IBM already offers and make them easier for more people to use was “a natural” fit, said Rob Thomas, IBM’s senior vice president of software, cloud and data. “We’re going to sell it to 180 countries and thousands of customers.” Palantir’s software requires little to no coding, enabling less technical employees to use it, Thomas said. To expand IBM’s cloud and AI business, half the revenue will need to come through partnerships like the one struck with Palantir. “That’s a pretty fundamental change for us,” he said. Expanded Access Without providing a time frame, Thomas said he expects the partnership to help boost IBM’s customers using AI to 80% from its current 20%. Palantir Chief Operating Officer Shyam Sankar said the technical fit with IBM and its reach are part of his company’s long-term effort to finally ramp sales. In addition to commercial customers, government contracts have surged both in number and size during the pandemic. “This is the biggest [partnership] we’ve announced -- expect more,” Sankar said. He said he expects to triple Palantir’s direct-sales team to about 100 this year, a significant hike for a company whose management once prided itself on not employing a single salesperson. Started with funding from PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel in 2003, Palantir found early success with users at the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and went on to sign the Defense Department and Internal Revenue Service, which, respectively, have used the software to locate roadside bombs and hunt tax cheats. Government Contracts More recently the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention use Palantir’s software to help predict Covid-19 outbreaks, distribute protective gear and allocate vaccines. While Palantir’s government contracts have grown -- sometimes amid privacy and surveillance concerns -- the company’s commercial business has been slower to evolve. Palantir last reported 132 total government and commercial clients, a concentrated pool that includes BP Plc, Merck KGaA and Airbus SE. Early customers like American Express Co. and Coca-Cola Co. which experimented with low-cost Palantir software trials and later ditched them, aren’t necessarily top of Palantir’s list now, Sankar said. “We hope to win all this business back in the fullness of time,” Sankar said, adding there is no “pride list” of former customers it hopes to now re-engage. Palantir reports financial results for 2020 on Feb. 16. A shareholder lockup expires three days later, unleashing the remaining 80% of all shares that have not been eligible to trade. Palantir shares rose $2 to $34.05 on Feb. 5, giving it a stock-market value of $59.3 billion.

Key companies include Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company, Ultimaco GmbH, Atos SE, SWIFT, Yubico, Futurex, Thales E-Security Inc., IBM Corporation, Ultra Electronics, and CardContact Systems GmbH. Email Print Friendly Share February 08, 2021 11:13 ET | Source: Emergen Research New York, Feb. 08, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The global hardware security modules market is expected to reach a market size of USD 1,916.5 Million by 2027, and register a significantly high revenue CAGR over the next seven years, according to the latest report by Reports and Data. Growing deployment of hardware security modules can be attributed to growing demand for IoT and cloud-based solutions. Increasing adoption of IoT and cloud computing is boosting demand for hardware security modules to prevent cyber-attacks and provide data security. Considerably high demand for hardware security modules originates from banks and financial service providers for secure payment processing. Also, the growing use of digital payments has been driving market growth to a significant extent. Get FREE Sample Copy with TOC of the Report to understand the structure of the complete report@ https://www.reportsanddata.com/sample-enquiry-form/3778 Some primary benefits offered by hardware security modules include physical access security, secure key generation, and a secure processing environment. Hardware security modules provide several protective mechanisms, such as resin-embedded chips, temperature and voltage sensors, and drill protection foil to prevent any physical tampering attempts and external attacks. Further key findings in the report Portable hardware security modules are garnering significant traction in the market for their ease of usage, portability, compact size, and low cost. Portable hardware security modules support applications, including low volume root key generation. Rising incidence of cybercrimes across the globe is driving demand for hardware security modules. In February 2020 for instance, ForgePoint Capital announced provision of funds up to USD 450 Million to early-stage growth firms focused on providing solutions to combat cybercrimes. Hardware security modules are used for authentication purposes to offer a secure mechanism for improved identity management of an individual involved in a digital payment transaction and assure that the individual is authorized to make the payment. Implementation of hardware security modules enables cryptographic operations associated with the authentication process to be carried out inside a FIPS 140-2 Level 3 secure equipment, and hence delivers enhanced security from unauthorized access. Hardware security modules market revenue in Latin America is expected to register the fastest CAGR during the forecast period, owing to increasing investments in network connectivity infrastructure and increasing digital transformation initiatives in countries in the region. High incidence of cyber-attacks is another factor driving market growth in the region. In 2018, around 57.0% of enterprises in Latin America experienced ransomware attacks, and approximately 55.0% were victims of data breaches. Key companies include Hewlett Packard Enterprise Company, Ultimaco GmbH, Atos SE, SWIFT, Yubico, Futurex, Thales E-Security Inc., IBM Corporation, Ultra Electronics, and CardContact Systems GmbH. Buy Your Copy Now (Customized Report Delivered as per Your Specific Requirement)@ https://www.reportsanddata.com/checkout-form/3778 For the purpose of this report, Reports and Data has segmented the global hardware security modules market on the basis of product type, application, industry vertical, and region: Product Type Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion; 2017-2027) Network-based Hardware Security Modules Embedded Hardware Security Modules Portable Hardware Security Modules Application Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion; 2017-2027) Payment Processing Secure Socket Layer Transport Layer Security Code and Document Signing Database Encryption Authentication Application Level Encryption Credential Management Industry Vertical Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion; 2017-2027) BFSI IT & Telecommunications Manufacturing Government Energy & Utilities Healthcare Retail Others Click on the link to read key highlights of the report and look at projected trends for years to come: https://www.reportsanddata.com/report-detail/hardware-security-modules-market Regional Outlook (Revenue, USD Billion; 2017-2027) North America U.S. Canada Europe Germany UK France BENELUX Rest of Europe Asia Pacific China Japan South Korea Rest of APAC MEA Saudi Arabia UAE Rest of MEA Latin America Brazil Rest of LATAM Take a Look at our Related Reports: Transit Cards Market Size, Share & Analysis, By Type (Bus Card, Subway Card, Others) By Application (Traffic, Transportation, Others), And By Region, Forecast To 2027 Augmented Reality in Retail Market Information By Device Type (Head Mounted Display, Handheld Device, Smart Augmented Reality Mirror), By Technology (Marker-based Augmented Reality, Marker-less Augmented Reality), By Retail Product Type (Furniture, Clothing, Groceries, Shoes, Jewelry, Toys, Makeup), And Region Forecast To 2027 E-Learning Market Size, Share & Analysis, By Technology (Online Learning, Learning Management Systems, Mobile Learning, Microlearning, Virtual Classrooms), By Application (Academic, Corporate, Healthcare, Government, Others), By Region, Forecast To 2027 About Reports and Data Reports and Data is a market research and consulting company that provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. Our solutions purely focus on your purpose to locate, target and analyze consumer behavior shifts across demographics, across industries and help client’s make a smarter business decision. We offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a multiple industries including Healthcare, Technology, Chemicals, Power, and Energy. We consistently update our research offerings to ensure our clients are aware about the latest trends existent in the market. Reports and Data has a strong base of experienced analysts from varied areas of expertise.

Terraria co-creator Andrew Spinks has announced that the game will no longer be coming to Google Stadia after his Google account was disabled. The entire ordeal has been going on for around three weeks, when Spinks' studio Re-Logic had its YouTube channel taken down for currently unexplained reasons. In a thread between the Terraria Twitter account and Team YouTube, the Terraria team explained that they had received an email regarding an alleged TOS violation, despite having posted no new content in several months. The email was assumed to have been received in error, but days later the account was disabled. It appears that Spinks' personal email is the one assigned to Re-Logic's YouTube channel, with the dev taking to Twitter to announce that his Google account is still disabled, losing access to "thousands of dollars of apps" on Google Play, as well as his Google Drive and Gmail address.@Google my account has now been disabled for over 3 weeks. I still have no idea why, and after using every resource I have to get this resolved you have done nothing but given me the runaround.February 8, 2021 "My account has now been disabled for over 3 weeks. I still have no idea why, and after using every resource I have to get this resolved you have done nothing but give me the runaround," Spinks tweeted at Google. He then went one step further, announcing that Terraria would no longer be coming to Google Stadia as a result of the situation, saying "I can take this no other way than you deciding to burn this bridge. Consider it burned. #Terraria for @GoogleStadia is canceled. "I will not be involved with a corporation that values their customers and partners so little. Doing business with you is a liability." It's a bold move, and one that will probably stir Google into taking some action to try and repair relations—after all, Terraria has sold over 30 million copies of the game as of April 2020. That's a big game to lose after Google only recently announced they would be closing Stadia's internal development studios in order to focus on "deepening [their] business partnerships."

Having already made a lot of talk for a few weeks, is the new “Yoke” steering wheel of the restyled Tesla Model S really approved? Auto-Moto tells you everything. There are a few weeks, Tesla revealed to the surprise of the restyled version of its Model S and Model X . On the program, a slightly revised exterior style, new Plaid and Plaid + versions that are even more efficient, but above all a completely new interior. In addition to the new presentation, including among others a brand new touch screenin a horizontal and no longer vertical position, this impromptu facelift also marks the arrival of a new steering wheel never before seen on a production model, which has not failed to appeal to the public. And for good reason, its astonishing shape inspired by the world of aeronautics has caused much ink to flow in the specialized press, saluting the audacity of the firm of Elon Musk or on the contrary, questioning the practical aspect and especially legal of this command, called " Yoke ", and distinguished by its truncated shape, which may complicate certain maneuvers for example. This one also sparked debate by its lack of physical keys, replaced by touch controls. So what does the law say about this? If nothing has been specifically said for France, you have to look on the side of the Dutch regulations to get a start of an answer. The RDW (Rijksdienst voor het Wegverkeer), in charge of the administration of vehicles and all the legal aspects around them, affirms that the steering wheel "Yoke" would in no way be illegal in the Netherlands, since it is Accordance with the legislation in force. This being then the same on a European scale, this order is by extension completely legal on all the territory, and even on our premises. Moreover, according to UN-ECE 79 regulation , the steering wheel does not have to meet shape criteria, as long as it meets certain obvious safety constraints, such as the presence of airbags or the fact that the "the direction of actuation of the steering control must correspond to the desired change of direction and there must be a continuous relationship between the control angle and the steering angle ”. However, the shape is completely free, and Tesla will therefore be able to market this steering wheel with us. Really practical? On the other hand, the question of practicality now arises, because this new command can then complicate certain maneuvers, due to the absence of an upper part. This is particularly the case when parking, where you will then have to get used to positioning your hands differently on the steering wheel so as not to be caught off guard. However, systems allowing the car to park without the intervention of the driver should be the beginning of the solution, as should a greater reduction. However, Tesla could also offer a standard round model as an option, so as not to alienate the most reluctant. As far as touch controls are concerned, Europe does not seem to have any drawbacks either, while the UN-ECE 121 regulationonly requires that they be clearly visible and accessible. The only point that could be a problem is the lack of turn signals, with Elon Musk claiming that the car will be able to "guess" for itself which direction the driver will take. However, the Vienna Convention sti[CENSORED]tes that only the driver is able to activate these warning lights. This automatic device should therefore not be available from us, except for a surprising turnaround.

New Delhi: Being healthy and staying fit are on this list of goals for everyone - no matter who they are and where they live. People often associate all their health troubles to the lifestyle they follow. Whether it is waking up in time, eating healthily, exercising regularly, or the habits we have - all are a part of the lifestyle we lead. However, people often confuse various health phenomenons - for instance, some people believe that being skinny is healthy - whereas being underweight, or unusually skinny can be both a cause and effect of an underlying health condition. "Physical fitness is simply our body’s ability to complete physical work. This can include cardiovascular fitness, muscular strength and muscular endurance etc. Usually, people who maintain a good level of fitness are lean, maintain normal body weight and lead a healthy lifestyle. But, this may not always be true, as exceptions are there," says Dr Biju K S, Senior Medical Officer at Vieroots Wellness Solutions, even as he shares more insights on the link between fitness, and lifestyle. Can your level of fitness bespeak your lifestyle? The word ‘Lifestyle’ has broad meaning as it incorporates elements of health, finance, culture, environment etc. Considering the aspect of health, it is fair to say that, the better level of fitness of a po[CENSORED]tion is directly related to a good lifestyle of the po[CENSORED]tion. Since ‘fitness’ is a measurable indicator of health, generally we can say, the more fit you are the healthier you are. The physical fitness assessment of a person can help a healthcare professional to understand about his lifestyle, which in turn helps to advise regarding what changes the person needs to make in his lifestyle to become more fit and healthy. Here also there are exceptions, that one may seem ‘fit’ in his external appearance, but internally he may not be ‘healthy’. Pointing to the case of Sourav Ganguly, even a fit person can also easily get into lifestyle diseases. This was not an isolated incident. It is happening to a lot of common people around us, and since they are not celebrities these incidents go unnoticed. Thus it is high time to analyse your level of ‘fitness’ with the help of a competent professional and using highly advanced tools. We all know, lifestyle diseases are the number one killer, when it comes to death due to diseases. The ultimate solution for these diseases is nothing but changing the lifestyle itself. As a part of adopting a healthy lifestyle, embracing a fitness regime and supplementing the nutrients which are lacking in food are some of the methods adopted by people nowadays. The flipside is, some used to lead unhealthy lifestyles (smoking, eating a lot of junk foods) and to overcome its ill effects, they indulge in various quick-fix fitness programs and overload themselves with dietary supplements, which is absurd. But in general, people who give importance to fitness and find time for it knows the importance of a healthy lifestyle and follow it. Dietary supplements and your lifestyle Dietary supplements cannot substitute a well-balanced diet. at the same time, it is tough to have all the required nutrients in our daily diet these days due to innumerable reasons. Consuming dietary supplements became a part of our lifestyle as many nutrients are lacking in our new dietary practices in this fast-paced world. But, there is a not-so-familiar dimension for this. For example, if you think, you are taking enough supplements to better your health, sometimes you might be wrong. Consider, you are taking a Vitamin-A supplement in B-carotene form and if your body has reduced capacity to convert B-carotene to Vitamin-A, you still possess the risk of deficiency of vitamin-A. Thanks to the advancement in medical science, now it is easier to find which nutrients you need in supplement form by doing a metabolic assessment using various advanced techniques. Also, it is crucial to find out the right brand. The purity, efficacy and bioavailability of the supplements play a vital role, as this market is flooded with products and some of them are sham, too. Consuming a lot of supplements won’t make you healthy but the right choice of them as per your need and its efficacy are the keys. Yes, your nutritional habits and your fitness levels play a major role in deciding whether you are leading a healthy lifestyle or not. It is worth every penny in spending in these ‘preventive’ areas because the expenses incurring after becoming a victim to lifestyle disease will be much higher than that required to prevent it. Also many at times your money cannot bring yourself back to perfect health, too. RELATED NEWS Your mealtimes with your family play a more important role in your health than you think, finds studyYour mealtimes with your family play a more important role in your health than you think, finds study Losing weight with healthy snacking: Include these snacks with various health benefits to stay fit and healthyLosing weight with healthy snacking: Include these snacks with various health benefits to stay fit and healthy World Epilepsy Day: Mental health burden of the disorder - Know some tips for caregivers of epilepsy patientsWorld Epilepsy Day: Mental health burden of the disorder - Know some tips for caregivers of epilepsy patients Disclaimer: Tips and suggestions mentioned in the article are for general information purposes only and should not be construed as professional medical advice. Always consult your doctor or a professional healthcare provider if you have any specific questions about any medical matter.

The study of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine indicates its effectiveness in preventing exposure to severe disease due to infection with the South African strain of the virus. The British Ministry of Health announced that scientists are working to develop vaccines to confront mutated strains of the Corona virus. This comes at a time of mounting concerns about the effectiveness of the vaccine developed by the University of Oxford in Britain and AstraZeneca in the face of the mutated strain of the virus that appeared in South Africa, and some cases of infection appeared in the United Kingdom. The results of a mini-study conducted on 2000 people to test the effectiveness of this vaccine against the mutated strain of the virus circulating in South Africa indicated that the vaccine provided minimal protection in the case of mild infection with Covid-19 disease. However, Britain's Secretary of State for Health Affairs, Edward Argar, said that there is no evidence that the vaccine is ineffective in preventing exposure to severe disease due to infection with the South African strain of the virus. And 147 people in the United Kingdom have contracted the mutated strain of Corona virus, which is responsible for about 90 percent of cases of Covid-19 in South Africa The scientists warned that this strain could spread very quickly, but the strain that was discovered for the first time in the British city of Kent remains the most widespread strain in the United Kingdom. The minister in charge of vaccinations in Britain, Nazem Zahawi, said that the vaccine used in Britain has proven to be very effective in facing the most widespread strain of the virus in the country. South Africa has suspended the vaccination campaign with the vaccine developed by Oxford-AstraZeneca, pending any recommendation on the best way to proceed with the vaccination campaign in light of the preliminary results of the study conducted to test its effectiveness. South Africa received one million doses of AstraZeneca, and it was supposed to start the vaccination campaign next week. According to scientists in South Africa, the strain, also known as "501. F2", infected about 90 percent of new cases of coronavirus in the country

A number of new businesses have opened in Bradford, Vt., recently. Ryan Chase hopes to bring in more after purchasing the building that housed Aubuchon Hardware. (Valley News - Jennifer Hauck) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com. » Buy this Image On Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2021, Ryan Chase, of Bradford, Vt., recently purchased at auction the building Aubuchon Hardware had occupied in Bradford. (Valley News - Jennifer Hauck) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com. » Buy this Image A number of new businesses have opened in Bradford, Vt., recently. Ryan Chase hopes to bring in more after purchasing the building that housed Aubuchon Hardware. (Valley News - Jennifer Hauck) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com. » Buy this Image Previous Next Previous Next By JOHN LIPPMAN Valley News Business Writer Published: 2/6/2021 9:47:50 PM Modified: 2/6/2021 9:47:50 PM BRADFORD, Vt. — A key piece in the future of Bradford’s downtown is falling into place. Valley Floors owner Ryan Chase recently purchased the former Aubuchon Hardware building at 200 N. Main St. at auction for $269,500. The prominent downtown storefront has remained vacant since the Westminster, Mass.-based hardware store chain closed its Bradford outlet a year ago because of declining business. Even after Aubuchon said it couldn’t attract enough customer traffic at the location, Chase believes he’s making a solid business bet. “It’s a good investment, a good opportunity,” Chase said last week about acquiring the 28,000-square-foot building, which he expects to close on within a month. “I was born and raised in Bradford, own a successful business now, and I’m concerned about the future of our town. ... I’m committed to owning and keeping this building.” Assessed at $400,000, the property has 14,000 square feet of space on two floors, with the top level divided into three units, one of which is currently occupied by a taekwondo studio. On the lower level, which is accessed around the back of the building and below street level, is a bottle redemption center. Chase’s pending purchase is the latest commercial real estate reincarnation since downtown Bradford lost three mainstay businesses, first when Perry’s Oil Service and appliance store, then Hill’s 5 & 10 department store, both closed in 2015, and then Aubuchon’s early in 2020 before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. “Those three were huge and threw a lot of traffic to Main Street,” said Marvin Harrison, retired vice president of commercial loans at Wells River Savings Bank and now board member of the Cohase Chamber of Commerce. The closings of the three family-owned businesses was in line with the grim reality repeated across other Upper Valley towns, from Claremont to Randolph and even to tony Hanover, where big-box stores and online shopping have sucked away customers from the Friday night and weekend shopping sprees. But the past two years have witnessed, if not exactly a roaring comeback, a serious effort among a new entrepreneurial generation that is seeking to revive Bradford’s North Main Street, which greets drivers coming from the south with a three-story red brick with a castle-like turret — a former bank building dating to 1891 — and guideposts the way out with a row of 19th-century Greek revival homes headed north on Route 5. “I can’t tell you the number of people I’ve seen in my 22 years here who stop and get out of their car to photograph the bank building and turret,” said Mark Johnson, who runs the Bliss Village Store & Deli on North Main Street. The attempt at revival began in 2017 when Orford trucking, timber harvesting and heavy equipment operator Stacey Thomson bought the former Perry’s property, which was assessed at $570,000, at auction for $139,000 and reopened the only gas pumps in the center of town and launched a home fuel heating business. That was followed by the opening of the coworking and event venue The Space on Main in 2018 and, in 2019, the opening of a women’s boutique, a cheese shop and an antique and collectibles store. “Things are coming back slowly,” Johnson said. “It’s a start.” Since he won the bidding at the auction on Jan. 28 — attended by about two dozen people but only three were actively bidding at the end — Chase has been on a tour of sorts, meeting with members of the Bradford business community to exchange ideas on renting out the building. He met with Space on Main founder Monique Priestley and on Tuesday night with members of the Cohase business chamber on a Zoom call. “I’ve been bumping into people already throwing ideas at me,” Chase said. For his part, Chase said any retail space needs to be adapted to today’s economy, rather than trying the same products and business models that sent previous stores packing. “Retail has changed. You can’t have the usual things any longer. That doesn’t work, not when you can get it at a box store or jump online and have it delivered to your home in a couple days,” he said. Among his ideas is setting aside a portion of the street-level space to “kiosk spaces” which merchants can rent a month at a time, like a pop-up store. Space on Main’s Priestley said one model she has pointed Chase to is the The Soda Plant in Burlington’s South End Arts District, market of about 30 small businesses sharing space in a former factory and which span artist studios, shops, galleries and food stalls. “Say you get a taco shop next to a bike shop next to an arts organization. They all get customers and feed ideas off each other. It’s like a farmer’s market, only a little more permanent,” Priestley said. Harrison said before the auction there had been talk in town about converting the Aubuchon building into a “food hub,” with food vendors and a commercial kitchen. “Food is one of the things that is hot right now,” Harrison noted, as carry-out ordering has soared during the pandemic and the locavore movement has flourished in Vermont. At one time, Ryan Chase’s life plan didn’t include taking over the family business located near the intersection of routes 5 and 25 in Bradford’s Lower Plain from his dad, Dean Chase. The elder Chase had started Valley Floors, which designs and installs hardwood, vinyl and stone floors as well as carpet and tile, in 1981. The younger Chase, a 1997 Oxbow High School grad, went off to study at Colorado State University with the intention “never to return to Bradford. I said I would never live here. But life changes.” After a “couple years in Colorado camping, biking and having too much fun,” Chase said he “called it quits and came back home,” working as a substitute teacher for a couple years before “my father asked me to come on board. “I fell in love with the town again and realized I wanted to stay here,” said Chase, who bought the business from his father five years ago (Chase’s old brother, Chris Chase, also works as an installer at the company). Those deep Bradford roots bode well for the former Aubuchon building, according to Harrison. “The nice thing is that Ryan is in it for the long term,” Harrison said. “There’s no knee-jerking going on. That sure is better than having someone come in from the outside who doesn’t know what we need.”

Management and business simulation game OpenTTD is coming to Steam in April, an expandable and beloved classic of the tycoon genre. In OpenTTD players run a transport business, moving passengers and cargo via water, rail, air, and road from place to place to develop a world and get rich. It first started in 2004 as an open-source remake of the 1995 game Transport Tycoon Deluxe and has been maintained and expanded ever since on account of its open-source nature and simple moddability. Prior to this release, OpenTTD was only available via its dedicated website. OpenTTD is a very well-regarded game among fans of transport and management tycoons, focusing on logistics and spatial placement on its square grid. Despite its simple appearance it's actually a rather complex simulation, with trains taking into account things like acceleration and torque as they move up slopes. It's also very simply moddable, with community-made extensions available in-game for new vehicles, industries, and scenarios. There's even stuff like cat trains, space trains. It gets weird and it gets excellent. You can check out OpenTTD on Steam, and wishlist it before its April 1st release. GET NOTIFICATIONS FROM PC GAMER Jonathan Bolding Jon Bolding is a games writer and critic with an extensive background in strategy games. When he's not on his PC, he can be found playing every tabletop game under the sun Management and business simulation game OpenTTD is coming to Steam in April, an expandable and beloved classic of the tycoon genre. In OpenTTD players run a transport business, moving passengers and cargo via water, rail, air, and road from place to place to develop a world and get rich. It first started in 2004 as an open-source remake of the 1995 game Transport Tycoon Deluxe and has been maintained and expanded ever since on account of its open-source nature and simple moddability. Prior to this release, OpenTTD was only available via its dedicated website. OpenTTD is a very well-regarded game among fans of transport and management tycoons, focusing on logistics and spatial placement on its square grid. Despite its simple appearance it's actually a rather complex simulation, with trains taking into account things like acceleration and torque as they move up. It's also very simply moddable, with community-made extensions available in-game for new vehicles, industries, and scenarios. There's even stuff like cat trains, space trains. It gets weird and it gets excellent. You can check out OpenTTD on Steam, and wishlist it before its April 1st release. GET NOTIFICATIONS FROM PC GAMER Jon Bolding is a games writer and critic with an extensive background in strategy games. When he's not on his PC, he can be found playing every tabletop game under the sun.

Another tragedy of the road at the intersection of viale Regina Margherita and via Nomentana, already the scene of numerous fatal accidents in recent years, as evidenced by the numerous tombstones and dried flowers on the street lamps. In the same area, moreover, other fatal accidents also occurred in the same period, the last of which last December when a young mother on a scooter lost her life. This time it was a 26-year-old from Ecuador who died riding his white Honda Sh scooter who died under the eyes of his girlfriend who was miraculously unharmed. She is hospitalized for observation in a strong state of shock at the Policlinico Umberto I. On the dynamics of the accident now investigate the police of the mobile radio core intervened in forces together with little traffic wardens before 13. The scooter would have collided in the middle of the intersection with a blue Ford conducted by a man: the impact was very violent and for the scooter driver there was nothing to do. Rescue was immediate with the young woman accompanied by an ambulance to the hospital. The military of the weapon are carrying out investigations to reconstruct the dynamics of the facts. It is not clear whether one of the two vehicles went through a red light at an intersection considered very dangerous and never secured, despite the presence of a municipal police booth.