Tips and Tricks

Hayden “leaning towards big bang”

2010-11-12T21:57:00.001+08:00

Echoing the sentiments of Filippo Preziosi, the Ducati rider reviewed the two-day Official MotoGP Test at Valencia following its conclusion.

After two days of riding both the big bang and screamer versions of the Desmosedici GP11 at the 2010 post-season Official Test at Valencia, factory Ducati rider Nicky Hayden gave his reaction to his last on-track action of the year.
The American completed a huge 91 laps on Wednesday setting his best time of 1’32.583 (which left him sixth overall) with the big bang engine. After weighing up the two he stated his preference for that version, which appeared to be the direction Ducati Corse General Director Filippo Preziosi also favoured pursuing.
“That's it – the season is finally over!” said Hayden on Wednesday evening. “Today was a positive day for us. We tried the screamer and it wasn't easy to switch between engines but it was important to do a proper test on them both and get the data we need to make an important decision. I am leaning towards sticking with the big bang but we will make the decision together.”
Hayden continued: “In general I am happy because we have been pretty quick. We know there is a lot of work to do but we are ready to get on with it. We tried a new Bridgestone tyre, which I liked a lot and actually I did my fastest time on it. I also went well on the race tyre we used on Sunday and we were just a couple of tenths off my best. We tested some other things that I liked but we need to test them more. I want to thank everybody in the team because they did a great job as always even though it wasn't easy, coming on the back of two races.”

Fifa Rules of Soccer

2010-11-09T21:31:00.001+08:00

Law 1: The Field of Play

(1) Dimensions.: The field of play shall be rectangular, its length being not more than 130 yards nor less than 100 yards and its breadth not more than 100 yards nor less than 50 yards. (In international matches the length shall be not more than 120 yards nor less than 110 yards and the breadth not more than 80 yards nor less than 70 yards.) The length shall in all cases exceed the breadth.
(2) Marking.: The field of play shall be marked with distinctive lines, not more than 5 inches in width (not by a V-shaped rut) in accordance with the plan, the longer boundary lines being called the touch-lines and the shorter the goal-lines. A flag on a post not less than 5 ft. high and having a non-pointed top, shall be placed at each corner; a similar flag-post may be placed opposite the half-way line on each side of the field of play, not less than 1 yard outside the touchline. A halfway-line shall be marked out across the field of play. The center of the field of play shall be indicated by a suitable mark and a circle with a 10 yards radius shall be marked round it.
(3) The Goal-Area.: At each end of the field of play two lines shall be drawn at right-angles to the goal-line, 6 yards from each goal-post. These shall extend into the field of play for a distance of 6 yards and shall be joined by a line drawn parallel with the goal-line. Each of the spaces enclosed by these lines and the goal-line shall be called a goal-area.
(4) The Penalty-Area.: At each end of the field of play two lines shall be drawn at right-angles to the goal-line, 18 yards from each goal-post. These shall extend into the field of play for a distance of 18 yards and shall be joined by a line drawn parallel with the goal-line. Each of the spaces enclosed by these lines and the goal-line shall be called a penalty-area. A suitable mark shall be made within each penalty-area, 12 yards from the mid-point of the goal-line, measured along an un-drawn line at right-angles thereto. These shall be the penalty-kick marks. From each penalty-kick mark an arc of a circle, having a radius of 10 yards, shall be drawn outside the penalty-area.
(5) The Corner-Area.: From each corner-flag post a quarter circle, having a radius of 1 yard, shall be drawn inside the field of play.
(6) The Goals.: The goals shall be placed on the center of each goal-line and shall consist of two upright posts, equidistant from the corner-flags and 8 yards apart (inside measurement), joined by a horizontal cross-bar the lower edge of which shall be 8 ft. from the ground. The width and depth of the cross-bars shall not exceed 5 inches (12 cm). The goal-posts and the cross- bars shall have the same width. Nets may be attached to the posts, cross-bars and ground behind the goals. They should be appropriately supported and be so placed as to allow the goalkeeper ample room. (Footnote) Goal nets. The use of nets made of hemp, jute or nylon is permitted. The nylon strings may, however, not be thinner than those made of hemp or jute.

(Decisions of the International F.A. Board)

In international matches the dimensions of the field of play shall be: maximum 110 x 75 meters; minimum 100 x 64 meters.
National Associations must adhere strictly to these dimensions. Each National Association organizing an international match must advise the visiting Association, before the match, of the place and the dimensions of the field of play.
The Board has approved this table of measurements for the Laws of the Game:
130 yards 120 Meters120 yards 110 110 yards 100 100 yards 90 80 yards 75 70 yards 64 50 yards 45 18 yards 16.50 10 yards 11 12 yards 9.15 8 yards 7.32 6 yards 5.50 1 yard 1 8 feet 2.44 5 feet 1.50 28 inches 0.71 27 inches 0.68 9 inches 0.22 5 inches 0.12 3/4 inches 0.019 1/2 inches 0.0127 3/8 inches 0.010 14 ounces 396 grams 16 ounces 453 grams 8.5 lb./sq.in. 600 gr/cm**2 15.6 lb./sq.in. 1100 gr/cm**2
The goal-line shall be marked the same width as the depth of the goal-posts and the cross-bar, so that the goal-line and goal- posts will conform to the same interior and exterior edges.
The 6 yards (for the outline of the goal-area) and the 18 yards (for the outline of the penalty-area) which have to be measured along the goal-line, must start from the inner sides of the goal-posts.
The space within the inside areas of the field of play includes the width of the lines marking these areas.
All Associations shall provide standard equipment, particularly in international matches, when the Laws of the Game must be complied with in every respect and especially with regard to the size of the ball and other equipment which must conform to the regulations. All cases of failure to provide standard equipment must be reported to FIFA.
In a match played under the rules of a competition if the cross-bar becomes displaced or broken, play shall be stopped and the match abandoned unless the cross-bar has been repaired and replaced in position or a new one provided without such being a danger to the players. A rope is not considered to be a satisfactory substitute for a cross-bar.
National Associations may specify such maximum and minimum dimensions for the cross-bars and goal-posts, within the limits laid down in Law 1, as they consider appropriate.
Goal-posts and cross-bars must be made of wood, metal or other approved material as decided from time to time by the International F.A. Board. They may be square, rectangular, round, half-round or elliptical in shape.
'Curtain-raisers' to international matches should only be played following agreement on the day of the match, and taking into account the condition of the field of play, between representatives of the two Associations and the referee (of the international match).
National Associations, particularly in international matches, should
- restrict the number of photographers around the field of play.
- have a line (photographers' line) marked behind the goal-lines at least two meters from the corner flag going through a point situated at least 3.5 meters behind the intersection of the goal- line with the line marking the goal-area to a point situated at least six meters behind the goal-posts.
- prohibit photographers from passing over these lines,
- forbid the use of artificial lighting in the form of "flashlights".

Law 2: The Ball

The ball shall be spherical; the outer casing shall be of leather or other approved materials. No material shall be used in its construction which might prove dangerous to the players.

The circumference of the ball shall not be more than 28 inches and not less than 27 inches. The weight of the ball at the start of the game shall not be more than 16 ounces nor less than 14 ounces. The pressure shall be equal to 0.6 - 1.1 atmosphere (==600 - 1,100 gr/cm(sq)) at sea level. The ball shall not be changed during the game unless authorized by the referee.

(Decisions of the International F.A. Board)

The ball used in any match shall be considered the property of the Association or Club on whose ground the match is played, and at the close of play it must be returned to the referee.
The International Board, from time to time, shall decide what constitutes approved materials. Any approved material shall be certified as such by the International Board.
The Board has approved these equivalents of the weights specified in the Law: 14 to 16 ounces == 396 to 453 grams.
If the ball bursts or becomes deflated during the course of a match, the game shall be stopped and restarted by dropping the new ball at the place where the first ball became defective, unless it was within the goal-area at that time, in which case it shall be dropped on that part of the goal-area line which runs parallel to the goal-line, at the point nearest to where the ball was when play was stopped.
If this happens during a stoppage of the game (place-kick, goal-kick, corner-kick, free-kick, penalty-kick or throw-in), the game shall be restarted accordingly.

Law 3: Number of Players

A match shall be played by two teams, each consisting of not more than eleven players, one of whom shall be the goalkeeper.
Substitutes may be used in any match played under the rules of an official competition under the jurisdiction of FIFA, confederations or National Associations, subject to the following con

Grow Your Adsense Piggy Bank: $30 to $300 A Month

2010-11-09T10:17:00.001+08:00

Maybe you’ve had your own “Aha” moment with Google Adsense.

I had mine earlier this year when I realized I could make more than just pocket change by featuring those now familiar ad blocks on my websites. I had

worked hard building my content oriented niche sites and had expected to make decent affiliate income—which never materialized.

You see, most people online (including you and me), are looking for information. I call them “lookey-loos.” They want to gather information before making a purchasing decision. This is normal behavior. However, if you are looking to earn or make online money via a web site affiliate program, you’ll quickly realize that it takes a lot more than slapping banner ads and links on your site.

Although, I’ve made a modest amount of affiliate income, it didn’t seem enough to make it worth my while, in spite of what the affiliate marketing ebook gurus said. That’s the point where I decided to put Adsense on my sites. Got nothing to lose, right?

At first I was like “Cool. A few pennies a day in the piggy bank.” I didn’t have to do anything extra for it, so it was kind of an easy way to make some “spare change.” I didn’t care how much I made each day. Anything was better than looking at a big fat zero.

Then something changed. The money accumulating in my Adsense account began to grow. Hmmm. Maybe there’s something more to this Google Adsense thing than I realized. Adsense seemed like a pretty decent opportunity to make money online.

This is when I got serious about the potential to make money with Google Adsense. I know I’m just one of thousands of website publishers that has recently discovered that this is one of several ways to make extra money.

So here many of us sit, anxiously checking our stats to see how much money we’ve made today. What is our CTR (click through rate)? How much are we getting paid per click? And so forth.

While we all hear the tales about those making thousands per day or month with Adsense, most of us web publishers, here in the trenches, are not blessed with having a gazillion visitors that produce big fat checks. We are trying to steadily grow our modest Adsense income fairly and honestly.

But what is the secret to doing that?

**WARNING: If you’re interested in information on how to make lots of money quick and easy using black hat techniques or using SPAM website generators, you can stop reading now**

I believe that slow and steady wins the race—and, you’ll get to keep your Adsense account for the long run. Let me give you some perspective. Google is worth $120 billion. Google stock is now valued at over $400 per share. A good portion of their profit comes from pay-per-click advertising (Adwords). Yet, online advertising is still a relatively small percentage of total (U.S.) advertising dollars spent. However, things are rapidly changing. Online advertising will see steady growth for many years to come.

The potential windfall for online web publishers is enormous. A web publisher making $30 a month today, could be making $300-$500 per day in a few short years. Those who go for the quick, unethical profits now, but lose their Adsense accounts because of it, may be kicking themselves in the future. To me, it’s just not worth it.

Anyway, for those of you who think that you’ll never make it to that coveted $100 per month mark so that you can join the Google monthly check club, take heart. There’s still plenty of time for you to get there. However, you must get serious. You won’t make the big money if you’re treating your websites like a hobby.

Ok. So, here’s some quick tips on what you can do to grow your Adsense profits (I’m currently making over $300 per month with Adsense by following this very strategy):

***BUILD QUALITY CONTENT SITES***

Content is King.

You will not see good CTR without quality content. Put yourself in the visitor’s shoes. What’s the first thing you’ll want to do when you visit a crap website? Yeah, that’s right. Leave. Some web publishers believe that quality content doesn’t matter. That people will be less likely to click if they get good information at a site. This is not my experience. Some also believe that a crappy content site will cause visitors to click on Adsense ads to “escape” a bad site. I think this is B.S. When’s the last time you clicked on an ad to escape someone’s site? It’s too easy to hit the “back” button or close the browser.

Your job as an online web publisher is to give people quality information. The ads are an added benefit to your visitors. If they want more information on a product or service related to your subject matter, then they are more likely to click on an ad. They will trust your site more. And, yes, my sites consistently have really good CTR. That means “high interest.”

***BUILD MORE THAN ONE WEBSITE***

While a few lucky web publishers have hit the golden jackpot ($10,000 a month and up) with only one site, most of them had built up a very popular site over several years and already had tons of steady traffic (in the thousands). When they put Adsense on their sites, they saw instant big money, and they continue to reap the rewards.

You and I, down here in the trenches with fairly new sites, cannot realistically expect to achieve these lofty heights overnight. It’s gonna take a lot of work to get where they are, if we ever do. Even if we don’t, we can still make a nice enough income to achieve our desired financial goals. So quit obsessing over what so and so is making and focus on your own web publishing business.

Now the truth is, the more quality websites you build, the more money you’ll make with Adsense. This goes for blogs too. If one site drops in clicks, then another site often picks up the slack. This is my experience. And these sites don’t have to be big money makers on their own, or get lots of traffic. It’s a numbers game. The more sites you build, the more opportunities you’ll have to reap Adsense profits. How many sites you build is up to you, but it’s not uncommon for successful web publishers to have between two and 10 sites, some have many more!

Yes, this takes a lot of work. You have to research a niche topic, keywords, popularity potential, design a decent looking site, write or hire someone to write quality content, get your site listed in the search engines, keep monitoring your site, etc. So, you’ll be working some long hours in front of your computer. But think of it as building your online empire—one site at a time.

***USE HIGHEST PERFORMING AD BLOCK***

While you can test various Adsense ad block sizes and colors on your website, others have already done the research as to the top performing ad block. It’s the 300x250 rectangle. This block should be blended into your web page so that it doesn’t look so conspicuously like an ad. People hate ads. They don’t like to be sold to. However, if your ad blocks don’t scream “advertisement” to them, they’re more likely to click. This has been proven.

The best positioning for ad blocks is at the top of the page (center position seems to get more clicks). Also, blue link color gets more clicks than any other link colors. But of course, you’re free to experiment with ad blocks on your own site.

***TWEAK AND UPDATE YOUR WEBSITES***

No website is perfect. You can always make improvements. Change or add new (relevant) information. If your website is ranking low, try adding new information. Search engines love websites that have fresh information. You don’t have to add something new every week, but you can tweak and update your sites periodically. I’ve had sites move into excellent search engine positions just by doing a little tweaking.

BEWARE of auto-generated feeds and content. Google is cracking down on sites that have too much automation. The search engines seem to love organic content that looks and reads like the web publisher put some personal effort into it.

***WORK ON GETTING MORE TRAFFIC***

I know. This is the 100-pound gorilla for all of us. By now you know it’s not easy getting web site traffic. Whole ebook empires have been built around this very subject. All I can tell you is that there are some proven techniques, but they take work and time. One of the best ways, and the method I use consistently to get great results is writing articles like this one, and submitting them to article directories and lists. It’s also a nice way to get new sites indexed relatively quickly.

You MUST keep working on getting more traffic to your websites. Traffic=Clicks=$$$

I know it can be frustrating when your site traffic is in the single digit per day category. Look at it this way, there’s nowhere else to go but UP.

***KEEP LEARNING***

An important KEY to increasing your Google Adsense profits is to learn as much as you can about the business of making money online with your website. Knowledge is power. There are plenty of generous people online offering free advice on how you can improve your Adsense income.

I wouldn’t be where I am now without taking full advantage of free and paid resources. Remember, you’re not alone. There are lots of folks going through the same thing that you are. If you are open to learning, you CAN move forward towards reaching your income goals with Google Adsense.

***SET GOALS***

If you made $30 this month, set a goal to make $40 or $50 next month. If you made $80 this month, set a goal to make $100 next month. Having a monthly goal is a great way to stay motivated while you work on your website business. Trust me, I know. My first month with Adsense I earned a whopping $32.46. It took several months for me to make it into the monthly check club. However, with steady work, and determination to increase my Adsense income, that check has grown bigger every month.

***HAVE RESPECT FOR ADWORDS ADVERTISERS***

Adwords advertisers respect web publishers who understand that the reason they allow their ads to show up on your website pages is so that you can help bring them quality prospects. Adwords advertisers are looking for a decent return on investment (ROI) for their Adwords dollars. They don’t have to run their ads on the content network. Google makes it easy for them to turn that option off—and many do.

So, keep in mind that it’s in YOUR best interest to keep the Adwords advertiser’s best interest in mind when you build your websites. Advertisers want to see profits just like we do. They want some of those clicks to produce sales. If they don’t make enough sales, they will quit using Adwords. That leads to less money for web publishers.

There are some greedy, opportunistic web publishers out there who only care about filling their pockets with quick cash. They don’t care about how much money their SPAM pages cost advertisers when they send unqualified, or barely interested visitors, clicking onto the advertiser’s site. Poor quality website traffic may make some web publishers a tidy sum, but they risk being downgraded eventually by Adwords advertisers and Google itself. Google is giving their Adwords advertisers more tools to track clicks and sales conversions.

Trust me, you want to be on the good list of web publishers that can be trusted by Adwords advertisers to consistently bring them qualified visitors. That’s what they are paying for. And, quit crying over low paying clicks. Google and their advertisers don’t owe you a living. If you want to make more Adsense money, then you’ll have to work smarter and harder.

***BE PATIENT BUT PERSISTENT***

While Google Adsense is a great way to earn or make online money, it’s definitely not a get-rich-quick scheme. It’ll take months, maybe even a couple of years before you realize those big check dreams. Meanwhile, keep doing a little bit here and there to build a solid online business.

Actually, what we really do is provide a needed service to people—we provide quality information to help them find what they’re looking for quickly and easily. We help the “looky-loos” save time and money. We are information providers extraordinaire!

What a great way to make a living.

Obilale to receive USD 100,000 from FIFA

2010-11-09T09:49:00.000+08:00

FIFA is to donate a sum of USD 100,000 to Togolese international goalkeeper Kodjovi Obilale, who was seriously injured during an armed attack on his team’s bus in the Angolan enclave of Cabinda ahead of the CAF African Cup of Nations in January.

The 25-year-old goalkeeper, formerly with French side Pontivy, was gravely wounded when the Togolese team bus was hit by gunfire on 8 January. The ambush took the lives of assistant coach Amelete Abalo and press officer Stanislas O’cloo, while Obilale himself is still continuing his rehabilitation.

Sadness and painShortly after the attack in January, FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter sent a letter of condolence, and support for Obilale, to the Togolese Football Federation. “I wish to express both FIFA’s and my own sincere condolences and steadfast support during this time of sadness and immense pain,” read part of the letter. “We also send your goalkeeper Kodjovi Obilale our best wishes for a full recovery.”

Towards the end of September, the FIFA President exchanged correspondence with Obilale, explaining that FIFA had “decided with immediate effect that a payment of USD 25,000 would be made from our humanitarian fund. In addition, we will continue to study this dossier.” He also wished the goalkeeper “lots of courage and strength”. FIFA has now decided to raise that sum to USD 100,000.

FIFA President receives Korean Order of Merit for Sports

2010-11-09T09:29:00.000+08:00

FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter today received the Order of Merit for Sports of the Republic of Korea from President Lee Myung-Bak during a ceremony held at the Blue House in Seoul.

“The Republic of Korea would like to honour President Blatter for his contribution to the development of sport and the steps taken by football towards world peace,” said President Lee during the ceremony.

Following the event, both dignitaries made a statement in front of the media. The President of the Korea Republic said: “FIFA and football play a very important role in fostering peace and friendship across the world, as we have seen recently with the success of the FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Football is also a tool for development and education”, he added.

Discussing his country’s bid to host 2022 FIFA World Cup™, President Lee underlined the commitment of his government and indicated that “football is the only common link which can unite the people of the two Koreas”. He added: “Organising the FIFA World Cup would bring a message of hope and peace not only to the Korean peninsula, but also to the world.”

Blatter, for his part, spoke of his pride at this latest honour: “It is a great honour for FIFA and for me personally to receive this Order of Merit. I am happy to be back in the country where the Fan Fests became a global phenomenon in 2002, where they were organised with great success. Above this, there is no doubt that Korea should be ready to organise a good World Cup in 2022.”

“Football is more than a game, as it has a socio-cultural impact and can therefore connect people all over the world”, he concluded.

FIFA Statutes

2010-11-09T09:24:00.000+08:00

The FIFA Statutes and the accompanying regulations governing their implementation form the Constitution of football's international governing body. They provide the basic laws for world football, on which countless rules are set for competitions, transfers, doping issues and a host of other concerns.
Changes to the FIFA Statutes can only be made by the FIFA Congress and require a three-quarter majority of the associations present and eligible to vote.

The Statutes have undergone several thorough revisions during FIFA's history, giving FIFA a modern and comprehensive legal framework for its increasingly important work.

These Statutes were adopted at the 60th FIFA Congress in Johannesburg on 10 June 2010 and came into force on 10 August 2010.

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2010-11-08T19:49:00.001+08:00

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Empowering the world's poorest

2010-11-08T19:47:00.000+08:00

Grameen Foundation provides microfinance and technology services to help the world’s poorest, especially women, improve their lives and escape poverty through access to information, small loans, and viable business opportunities.

We create opportunities for the world's poorest.

Grameen Foundation provides micro-lenders in poor communities with access to capital and technology, helping them make micro-loans to those working to develop or

expand a small business. We also provide innovative mobile phone-based solutions that provide the poorest, especially those living in hard-to-reach rural areas, with easy access to information about healthcare, agriculture, and finances. By providing opportunities for the poor, we enable them to escape the cycle of poverty and build a better future for themselves and their families.

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