Internet Guardian

Posts Tagged ‘Life’

Anyone who has tried to locate a part for a low voltage life safety knows it’s true: It’s nearly impossible to try to find parts to repair life safety systems that are no longer being manufactured. (Life safety systems include fire alarm, nurse call, patient tracking and infant security systems.) The essence of the problem is a combination of the facts that: 1) such systems typically last for 10 – 15 years and 2) the manufacturers of such systems tend to change product lines and/or configurations every 3 – 5 years. As such, for example, a fire alarm system installed in a building in 2006 will function properly until at least 2016, but the company that manufactured the system may stop producing parts for it in 2010. (As an aside, even the 10 year old systems would likely function longer, but improvements in technology may mean that the existing system no longer operates efficiently, or may not have certain features or functionality that have become commonplace in the interim and, therefore, its owners may deem replacement a necessity.)

Companies that have these life safety systems installed and find themselves with a system that has a faulty part for which replacement parts are no longer manufactured are faced with a troubling and potentially costly dilemma: they either have to find an alternate source for the parts OR they have to find a way to make the system function in an acceptable manner without the faulty part in place OR they have to purchase and install an entirely new system. Depending on the size and complexity of the system, such companies can find themselves in a situation in which they need to find a $100 part or be faced with a system replacement with costs upwards of $200,000. Further exacerbating the problem is the fact that the very nature of these systems require a quick resolution or else, literally, lives could be at stake.

A temporary solution that some companies employ is to purchase a stockpile of spare parts when they initially install the system. The problems with this strategy are: 1) it is only a temporary fix, because the company will eventually run through its stock of spares, 2) due to the relatively high cost of the initial system and due to the fact that these systems do not provide any income to their owners, the cost justification of spare parts purchases at the time of installation is often not there, 3) the manufacturer’s warranty will expire while the spare parts are in stock and 4) the company would be guessing at which parts may fail at some point in the future, so it would not be guaranteed that its spares on hand would be the correct ones in the event of a parts failure down the road. Due to these problems, this strategy is generally ineffective.

Some of the companies that install life safety systems have recognized that this problem exists and have attempted to fill the void by maintaining a pool of spare parts. This solution works well for customers who are fortunate enough to be acquainted with these installation companies. For the vast majority of the companies who have life safety systems installed, but do not know these installers with the spare parts pools, this solution might as well be nonexistent.

Fortunately, the growing acceptance of business-to-business ecommerce has created a mechanism to address this problem. This mechanism would enable a company to become a clearinghouse for hard to find parts for low voltage systems. It facilitates both an efficient supply chain workflow and an effective product delivery system. PrimaryParts.com has taken the steps necessary to cultivate relationships with suppliers and end users to create a network of companies that maintain these hard to find parts and are willing to supply them to those who need them. PrimaryParts.com has also created a website that enables companies who are seeking such parts to easily search for the parts by a wide variety of features and to verify that they have found their part by viewing a photo of the part.

The Internet to the rescue! Fortunately the growing acceptance of business-to-business ecommerce has created an excellent mechanism to address the original problem and the shortcomings of the other solutions. Companies have risen to become clearinghouses to both buy and sell hard to find parts. These companies have cultivated relationships with both the end users and the suppliers to facilitate the exchange.

So search out websites such as primaryparts.com, to fill your legacy parts needs. You needn’t scrap an otherwise effective system for lack of a part!

If you need help with a hard to find part, email me at mwong@primaryparts.com or visit us at PrimaryParts.com and I’ll put our team to work on it. We handle new and legacy parts for fire alarm, nurse call, access control, and CCTV systems.

We have all come to know that the world we live in is a dangerous place. It doe not have to be that way, but for some reason human beings in our modern societies cannot, or will not, learn to live with each other in peace and harmony. Murder, kidnappings, rape, and a host of other problems occur on a daily basis, touching lives irregardless of race, gender, or location. It does not happen to many people, but those who have to live with the aftermath of these terrible crimes suffer greatly.

The absolute worst is out there in people and we need to find ways to minimize the risk of such terrible and unthinkable things happening to us or to the people that we love. Deploy a kids gps device is one such way that we take back some of the safe feeling that has been taken from us by the evil that we know lurks in our cities. We want our children to be safe and sound, free to grow up a normal life in this world.

GPS cannot do it all alone, but it does have some useful features that can really assist a parent in helping their child navigate their environment with safety and ease. Because most child GPS device have many of the normal GPS features – the ability to calculate, track, and log position, direction, and speed information – they are great for helping a child see exactly where they are (if they have that feature enabled, like a few cell phone do).

In addition to these regular features, these devices also transmit this information to a central location where that information is processed and made available to you, the parent.

If a child is late in getting home all you need to do is run over to the computer to put to rest any fear that the child has become the victim of some deranged lunatic bent on the destruction of the life that is most precious to you. You will be able to clearly see that they are on their way home, walking at 2 mph and will be home in about 10 minutes because they are at the corner of Jefferson and Pine, just a few blocks away. If you were particularly interested in seeing your child you could even go out and meet them.

Now imagine the situation where you do find out the worst. Your child is late and you check in on your tracking information that is easily accessible on the internet. Your child is 5 miles from home at 1345 Conner Road and the signal is noticeably moving on your screen. You do a quick check of your child’s friends and see that no one you know lives there. You call your child’s cell and no one answers. In less than two minutes you are out the door with your web-enabled cell phone in hand on a B-line to 1345 Conner Road.

Your children are one of the most important things in the world, shouldn’t they be protected like there are?

Internet can be compared to an ocean, which hides in its depths myriads of thinkable and unthinkable things. This is an ocean, indeed, the ocean of information concerned with all possible aspects of our life. And as such, the virtual space of world wide web is linked directly to our material world. Hence, you can pull out of www almost everything you want: music, movies, clothes, furniture, tropical cruises, cars, philosophical concepts and real love: your boyfriend or girlfriend. Important is just to know what kind of fish (or, perhaps, mermaid or merman) you want to catch from these “waters”, how to choose right nets, where to deploy them, what kind of bait to use, and when mermaids/mermen come, how to get one without scaring her (or him) away.

The anonymity of the www can go so deep, that you may flirt on-line with a real mermaid while thinking that this is just a girl. How you can tell? Well, note if she knows well about fish and whales, likes to sing and (beware!) proposes you to meet her on a beach or seashore.

Now, seriously, no scales! For start, and now I am talking about finding your best half on-line, you have to set your mind for the quest. This is a most important starting point: set your mind on who you want to find, to date, to love! Everything else will be derived from this point. Usually people are finding what they are looking for – this is a law of the Universe. So, before getting into this quest, you need to set your goals. To make things easy, best of all is to prepare a list, which will help you to determine what are the major features that you want to find in her or him, what kind of things you may accept or ignore, and, finally, what you really would like to avoid.

The technical approach to your search can be done either by placing your profile on the dating/matchmaking site, by looking through posted profiles and contacting those whom you found interesting, and finally (the best approach) by doing both and using different networks. However, most important is to do all that right!

When you are posting your profile, describe yourself briefly but precisely, i.e. avoid any ambiguities. Present your personal virtues, interests and life priorities. Your photo must be of high quality, large, recent (important!) and really showing the original (the picture of yourself in scuba gear taken from a passing-by motor boat would not work for you, even if this is your favorite one). Also, you will save a lot of time for yourself if you openly list all character features, habits, etc. of potential candidates, which are unacceptable for you. “Married chronic junky” are very common rejection keywords, although, you might think to be more specific. Word of caution, though: if you will narrow down your requirements to somewhat as “I am looking for a model, who is also a role model in life”, be careful: your potential match can be repelled by a thought that you are driven by some inferiority complex, which makes you too picky.

Don’t be shy, if you see a profile, which you really like, contact him or her first. By all means do not send a generic letter. Mention specifics which you like in the profile of this person, what touched you, why you are writing to him or her. However, do not let yourself to be dragged into a long on-line exchange. If you are not seeking a virtual romance (some people do, but this is not what we are discussing here), move to the next step as soon as possible. Give your phone number. However, don’t give your phone number to anybody. Better: open separate cell phone account for such calls only. This will cost you less than changing both your home and cell numbers if you will run into some obnoxious drag.

Before actual meeting, you need to talk to the person by a phone: there are several reasons for doing that. First, you need just to hear a voice. Sometimes this may tell you a lot, it can be complete turn-off, but do not put too much into it. I had once a date with a lady who sounded on a phone like a drunken old hag. I almost hang up thinking that I am a victim of a prank, but natural curiosity won, so I set the date, time and place for a meeting. One who sounded so badly on the phone in life appeared young and beautiful girl, who made all men turn their heads when she entered the restaurant. Honestly, my jaw dropped down when I saw her: so much the actual appearance contrasted with the slow and squeaky voice which I’ve heard on the phone. Second, phone talk may give you an idea on vocabulary and, hence, social position of the person. One young lady, a friend of mine, had a week-long exchange with a guy, who apparently enchanted her with his writings. They decided to meet, so he called her on a phone. When he called, his talk was saturated with so many unnecessary colloquial terms, that she became absolutely convinced not to pursue this acquaintance any further. Needless to say, that the meeting never took place.

Transfer from virtual relationship into a real one is a serious deal. There are no small things there. All is important: where to have a meeting, what to wear, what to talk about, and what better no to talk about too.

So, the place of meeting is important indeed. According to my brief study out of 15 men questioned on the subject, 4 proposed meeting in a church (warm, soothing and inexpensive environment), 3 in café, 3 in a restaurant, 2 in night club, 1 invited to his place, 1 offered walk in a park, and one couldn’t answer. Perhaps, any place for a first meeting will be good, as long as you would have enough time and space to learn about each other. Thus, church might not be the best choice, considering perhaps different religious backgrounds, and the fact that some people are coming there for speaking to God and not to each other. Meeting outdoors might be OK, as long as weather permits, and there is enough safety and not too much noise, crowd and cars. Perhaps out of all mentioned places café, restaurant and night club were the best choices. Advice to ladies: if man having a problem with picking a meeting place or offers you something that you don’t really feel comfortable about, propose a meeting at a local museum of art or any other place of this kind. You can always find in such places a small café nearby or just a bench to sit and talk, it is always quiet there, safe and peaceful, and you will be surrounded by beautiful objects of art.

When you are preparing for the first meeting keep in mind, that you are meeting with a stranger. The odds that you will run into Jack the Ripper are next to none, but less dramatic nuisance is still possible. In other words some reasonable safety considerations would not be an extra. The place must not be completely deserted by people (cemeteries, remote parks or abandoned factories are bad choices), there must be a clear way for retreat. It would not hurt you to leave a note to one of your close friends or relatives that you going to a first date with so-and-so (name), and to leave a phone number of this person. Just in case.

The attire should be in accord with the place of a meeting. Important to have not only nice, but comfortable clothing, so you will feel firm.

It is scientifically proven fact, that opinion about a person is usually formed over the first 15 seconds of a meeting. In other words, one will never have a chance to make a first impression for the second time. Kindness, calmness and smile – this is what is needed for making a contact and winning the trust.

At the first meeting it is a bad idea to talk about your past wives (or husbands) and lovers, about issues with your health, talk about problems at work or touching any religious subjects. Best approach is to listen more than talk, ask supporting questions. Of course, you have to listen actively, give short phrases or just words, like “Is that right?!”, “Yeah, I see”, “Interesting”. Your task will be to find a topic of mutual interest. Then your date will open and the talk will be sincere.

Now you have to observe. If your date talks only about him(her)self, about his(her) accomplishments, and so on, then, very likely, this person is trying to raise oneself in your eyes. And this is not a good sign. If your date talks a lot and in detail about his(her) past relationships, problems at work, etc., it is quite possible that he (or she) just trying to compensate oneself for the lack of social connections, while you, as a person, are not interesting to him(her) in a bit. One of my on-line dates, whom I finally met at a restaurant, almost didn’t touch her meals, but talked in a great detail about her past boyfriend, their break-up and how much she still suffers from it. I understood, that the main reason for this meeting was her need to tell her sad story to somebody else and that’s all.

Clearly, the purpose of a first date is to find out: do you like this person and do you want a continuation. If you don’t like the person, better not to lie that you will call later, just tell upfront that you think that you made a wrong choice.

If you like one you’ve just met, but have no idea if this feeling is mutual, there are several ways to figure this out. 1) Before leaving you should say something like: “I really enjoyed my meeting with you. I don’t know if you feel the same, but if you like, please, call me or write me. I will be happy to see you again”. After that you just have to wait for development. Or, “I really enjoyed my meeting with you. Maybe we can go together to cinema (theater, baseball game, restaurant, museum …).” This is a good option, because the answer will not be not postponed.

In spite of common (correct) opinion that dating over the Internet is the easiest way to find someone, my personal experience of Internet dating (I’ve met my wife through Match.com and we live happily ever since) is that this is still a lot of work. Preparing and tuning your profile, writing numerous personal messages, doing search, talks, meetings require certain commitment. Many people are getting sucked into this “game”, they cannot stop out of a fear that tomorrow they may meet someone who is smarter, handsomer, better than their current candidate(s). Do not let yourself to be stuck into this state, be pro-active, get yourself out of virtual circle as soon as you can.

Internet became a part of modern culture, and it reflects the society, which created it. It can be good and it can be evil. An opinion, that only losers suffering from inferiority complexes are meeting through the Internet can hurt only those who can mindlessly express such nonsense. Millions of interesting, kind, smart and decent, but lonely people cannot find their match just because they are spending too much time at work and live in well-isolated from strangers environment. Indeed, where one can find his or her match? In a car on a way to/from work, in a grocery store, or, perhaps, at executive meeting? Often dating sites on the web are the only ways to find someone for such people. 

Meeting over the Internet makes many things easy. You don’t have to go somewhere, seeking right person, think what to say and how to approach. Besides, in a real life such person may not be into dating at all. It is just opposite in the Internet: we contact another people, who have the same goals as ourselves. It is a failure-proof system!

If, for whatever reason you couldn’t find someone you are looking for, switch the network (another network likely will have another database of members) or, if tired, take 2-3-week break. Small timeout will help you to regain your determination about meeting someone on-line. Besides, thousands of people join the networks daily, so the “pool” of potential dates changes fast. Just don’t give up and don’t be discouraged if you will not achieve the desired results immediately. There are no failures, you just getting more experience. Believe in your success, and it will come to you one day. Isn’t it a miracle one day to pull out of an ocean a mermaid or merman, who will tell you: I love you!