Baby Gifts: Shop for the Baby, Not the Parents

by: Jacoba Fenny

Babies can be the most difficult people to buy gifts for – we have no idea what they like! But then again, we do know their needs, and we know about their parents well enough. These little pieces of knowledge are often enough to help you come up with great baby gift baskets – and they're pretty easy to prepare, too.

Of course, that doesn't mean that you can just throw anything into a basket and expect it to be received well – parents of a new baby would probably wonder why you prepared a basket filled with solid food. It's best to give something that the new baby can use for a long time. Here are some tips on which kinds of baby gift baskets are the most popular.

1.) Clothes and Toys. Every baby needs soft clothes to keep warm, as well as toys to keep them occupied while in the crib. You can fill a basket with clothes and toys themed around a single color – blue and purple is best for boys, while pink and yellow goes best for girls. Red, purple, and green are colors that can be used for babies as well. If you can afford it, shell out an extra few dollars to have the clothes and toys personalized with the new baby's name.

2.) Blankets and Pillows. Newborn babies sleep a lot – up to 20 hours a day – so it's also a good idea to give new baby blankets and pillows. A baby gift basket with blankets and pillows may also contain a storybook for the parents to read, plus maybe a musical toy to help lull the little guy to sleep. It may also be a good idea to include a milk bottle that's suited for the outdoors, in case the baby decides to snooze while their parents take him/her out for a walk.

3.) Stuff for bath time. During the few hours of the day when the baby is awake, they always look forward to bath time. Babies love to kick and splash in the water, especially when they learn to sit up and hold things. A great bath-themed gift basket would contain some hypo-allergenic bath items, like baby baths, talcum powder, towels, and bath toys.

But why not give all of the above-listed baby gifts? Nothing says you care more than a whole welcome wagon gift basket! You can easily take a small toy wagon or cart and fill it with everything a new baby may need – clothes, toys, blankets, pillows, and bath time items. Personalize these items and you'll have a gift basket that the baby's parents will appreciate for a long, long time.

Another way to let the put a smile on the parents' faces is by customizing the gift basket to reflect a parent's occupation or profession. If the dad is a construction worker, for instance, you could get a toy wheelbarrow and fill it with baby items and toys themed around construction. If the mom is a teacher, you can combine a small blackboard (to write the baby's feeding schedule, for instance), some toy blocks, and clothes with numbers and letters. A gift basket is always more thoughtful the less generic it is!

An even easier way to bring the parents into the picture is to put together a sports-themed gift basket for the new baby. If the parents are fans (or even players) of basketball, football, tennis, or any other sport, feel free to theme your gift basket around that. You don't know just how cute babies can be until you see them wearing a martial artist's black belt uniform.

Everyone knows that babies grow pretty quickly during the first few months, and it's a pretty exciting activity to watch and record a baby's growth. There are many kinds of growth charts out there that make a welcome addition to any baby's basket – you can be sure the entire family will be using it for years to come.

As the baby grows older, they'll begin to appreciate picture books and storybooks more. It won't hurt to include a few good books in your basket – it's a pretty good investment for the child's development. You can make it even more special by giving books that the parents used to enjoy in their youth, such as the classics by Dr Seuss and Charles Schulz.

Another great thing you can do with books is to have them personalized. Personalized storybooks are a growing trend among new parents these days – all you have to do is to find an author of these storybooks and give the child's name. When a child's still young, having their name in a storybook can be a pretty novel experience, especially when their parents read their stories over and over.

And of course, you can't go wrong with toys. Babies start out with chew toys and little things that they can grasp with their tiny hands. As they grow older, they'll like toys that require hand-eye coordination, like push-button toys and building blocks. Stuffed toys are also great companions in the crib, and can help little kids fall asleep even when their parents are in another room.

As the child grows older, it isn't a bad idea to give them board games and other games that are usually reserved for kids of schooling age. For instance, chess is a great game that challenges and develops their analytic skills. It can be great fun for a child to play at an adult's level so early in life – and the less the adult knows about playing chess, the better the game gets!

When you're putting together a baby's gift basket, you should always keep in mind that the baby will be doing two things best – growing and developing. As such, some gifts last longer than others. Try not to give short-term gifts like nappies and baby formula – the mom and dad probably already has that covered. Instead, try to think of baby gifts that are for keeps.

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Theft Prevention Accessories for PDAs

by: R James Cook

Protect Your Investment, Your Data, and Your Privacy With These Theft Prevention Accessories for PDAs

Losing a PDA through theft is one of the biggest challenges owners of personal data devices face. As the prices and capabilities of these units increases, so does the market for stolen PDAs, year after year. Of course, locking the unit up in a drawer and never taking it out is about the only certain way of making sure a PDA is never stolen, but that limits the usefulness. Attaching a heavy chain and a wheel hub may help, but it won't fit in your pocket. Instead of taking these sorts of extreme measures, consider one or more theft prevention accessories for PDAs.

Permanent Markings Scare Away Thieves

If you're a little handy and have a steady hand, you can try the tried-and-true method of etching. Grab your rotary tool and lightly carve an identifier into the back of the case, like a phone number or email address. Doing this will probably void your warranty. Don't try this unless you have a steady hand and neat handwriting.

A less extreme option is a security sticker. A sticker may not seem like much of a deterrent, but what if peeling off that sticker announced that the PDA is stolen? That's the idea behind security sticker theft prevention accessories for PDA units. The self-adhesive sticker is attached to the back of the unit, and gives an 800 number to call and report the PDA. The sticker also advises them that by reporting the unit, they can avoid prosecution.

However, if the sticker is peeled off, the phrase "STOLEN PROPERTY" and the 800 number are left behind in large, very obvious lettering of indelible ink. This type of theft prevention accessories for PDA units stops theft from those who want to snatch the item while you're not looking, and turn around and sell it on the street. Few people, regardless of how dishonest they are, will buy an item that announces it has been stolen.

Tracking the PDA With GPS

The GPS functionality built into many modern PDAs is usually used for convenience for the unit's owner, but with tracking security software, it can also be a way to find a stolen PDA. This form of theft prevention accessories for PDA units consists of software that is installed on the unit and a subscription service. The software installed will be linked to the unit's built-in password protection, and will automatically broadcast an emergency signal after an incorrect password has been entered. The subscription service will then pick up the signal and start tracking the PDA, informing the authorities where to find it.

Common Sense

Probably the best theft prevention accessories for PDA units, however, is our own common sense. Don't leave it lying unattended on a table, even for a moment. If you put it down and look away, someone else will probably pick it up. Don't leave it in plain sight inside a vehicle, even a locked vehicle. Make sure you use the built-in security functions of the unit itself. A password can, at the very least, protect the information on a unit from prying eyes if it is stolen. Think about that if you keep your kids' pictures and contact information for your kids' school on the unit.

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"Planet Earth" Is A Documentary That Must Be Viewed In HD!

by: John Wilkerson

We just bought a Blue ray HD DVD player for our HDTV. After we got it hooked up, which took a while... I, for some reason or another just realized that I did not know any HD movies for me to observe on it. Well I already knew which one I loved to see foremost and that was Planet Earth. So I got on the internet and purchased it from an online store.

The bad thing tho' is that I had to wait three days; nonetheless I did save myself around twenty dollars, so it was worth the wait. So it came with multiple disks with around three to four episodes of Planet Earth on each of the disks.

If you did not know already each program of Planet Earth is one hour long. So once I put in Planet Earth to examine on our HDTV I went to the menu of the premiere disk for the premier broadcast. As you can ideate it was quite awesome how fine the illustration looked.

All of the landscapes were rich as can be in appearance and the animals looked as if they were fluid across the screen as they moved. I was impressed also on how well Planet Earth was filmed with a HDTV camera.

Some of the animals they record in the picture looks as if they are right there close to them and the animals are not even being disturbed by them being around. It is genuinely the most amazing flick of its type. One program that really impressed me is the freshwater one.

In the opening of it, it shows Angel ... the highestl water downfall in the world. Then it starts to break off from there and shows the extraordinary animals that live in the freshwater surroundings.

Another attribute Planet Earth does is how fine it shows the over view of the earth. Many shots are taken in high Earth altitudes while others are from space viewing the landscape and everything around it. The space shots are also one of my preferred things to look at.

Of course on our HDTV it looks as smashing as it possibly can but it gives you a idea of how diminutive the World truly is but at the same instance when it talks about some of the environments it feels that the world is very massive.

When you are watching Planet Earth you may get to an environment that they begin to speak about that upright looks unknown to you. Some of the things that are in the surroundings look as if it was not realistic and you can not even imagine about being in any of these places in true life.

One that truly shows what I am talking about is the caves installment. Fundamentally what it shows you is the subsurface world of Earth. How things work under the surface and the weird little creatures that inhabit the caves. It is truly something that will be hard for most people on the planet to believe once they have seen some of the awing animals that live on it. This docudrama is really awesomel especially if viewed on a HDTV!

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Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Horror, Gaming, Anime & Comic Conventions - They Are Not All The Same

by: June Williams

A very large number of people who have never attended a Sci-Fi convention have the idea that they are all about people standing in line to get autographs of actors while wearing Klingon makeup and costumes or pointed ears. I’m not saying that those stereotypes don’t exist but the Convention experience is much richer and diverse than you may have been led to believe. To get the best experience it is important first consider your interests and then match them to what conventions are available.

Conventions come in two primary flavors. Professional and fan run. Professional conventions should have actors who have appeared in genre television and films ready to sign autographs and have their photos taken with fans. Some of these conventions include the costs of autographs and photo sessions in the cost of admission others operate in more of an a la carte fashion.

Often genre conventions have previews of new shows and films, and usually an extensive dealer’s room where you can buy anything from jewelry, ornaments, t-shirts and action figures to full scale replicas and costumes...and more. While there are a number of professional promoters the best known and run are Chiller Theatre Expo, Creation Entertainment, Fed Con ( Germany ), Starland and Vulcon. Do expect things to be as advertised and run on time. Do not expect warm and fuzzy.

Warm and fuzzy is more the field of fan run conventions. Fans who get together to run conventions have a great deal of enthusiasm, but usually are run with a volunteer staff and can be a bit “bumpy” with organization of the activities. What you can expect? A movie room, anime room, gaming room, art show, dealer’s room, and various special interest group rooms and tables. It is a rare con that doesn’t have a dance and a masquerade. Many fan run conventions also have guests ranging from actors, authors, cartoonists, illustrators, scientists etc. You may also find workshops for writing, acting, art, costuming, make-up and special effects. It all varies from convention to convention and year to year. Older fan run conventions such as Aggie Con, Balticon, Bay Con, CONvergence, Dragon Con, ICON, Shore Leave, United Fan Con, Toronto Trek to name a few.

The following sections may help you in selecting the kind of convention you would enjoy the most. Don’t be afraid to try other sorts once you’ve sampled those that are in your comfort zone. Exploration can be fun:

• LITERARY CONVENTIONS

Love to read speculative fiction? Do you have an interest in attending workshops on writing and publishing? Would you like to mingle with like-minded fans and meet professionals in the field such as authors, editors, illustrators and publishers? Then a literary convention would be the place you might enjoy most. Conventions such as World Science Fiction Convention (which is where the Hugo awards are announced), the World Fantasy Convention, World Horror Convention, Balticon, Philcon, Lunacon, Boskone, Readercon, Wiscon and Capclave are all reader friendly and while you may find the occasional filking group, men in kilts, swords and women in medieval garb I doubt that you’ll see many people dressed like the attendees of the convention seen in the movie Galaxy Quest. OK maybe one or two but they are a tiny minority.

• MEDIA CONVENTIONS

Media conventions are very much about television and film. Science Fiction & Fantasy or Horror & Paranormal guests abound. You may meet and hear behind the scenes stories of actors and illustrators, SFX experts and make-up artists and a host of media professionals. Many of the attendees may be wearing costumes. Depending on whether you are going to a “pro” con or a fan run con the rest will vary greatly. Parties are expected and encouraged. At a pro convention this will take the form of a banquet with the guests at a fee and/or a dance or cocktail party all for various prices. Fan run convention also may have a price attached to a banquet or “private” gathering with a particular celebrity or celebrities but they will also have fee free dances, masquerades, art shows, filking, sword demonstrations etc. Toronto Trek, Celebration, BotCon, Dragon Con , Comic-Con ( both Dragon Con and Comicon will appear under many categories)

• GAMING CONVENTIONS

Gamers come in all shapes, sizes, ages, colors and ethnic backgrounds but they all have something in common. A love of games. Role playing, live, pen and paper, MMOG as well as video gamers and board gamers all have a lot of interactive fun at gaming conventions. You can meet game designers, try out new games that have yet to hit the general market, and play in tournaments for glory and prizes. Once an almost male-only pursuit, gaming now has a growing number of female enthusiasts Gaming has become so pervasive that it is now nearly socially acceptable to the mainstream public. Nearly.

There are giant conventions like GENCON and ORIGINS, where it is so crowded you may have trouble negotiating the exhibition halls due to the crowds. The upside is the great diversity and FREEBIES as there are so many gaming companies competing for your attention. Then there are the more intimate play intensive ones like Archon, CastleCon, Dragonflight Dreikonigsnacht (Twelfth Night), Festival of Dreams, HexaCon, KublaCon, MACE, MarsCon, Marmalade Dog, ShaunCon, Strategicon, The Once and Future Con, and many many more.

Keep in mind that many conventions other than pure gaming conventions have gaming tracks. If you like to game but want to do more than only game during the weekend you might look into some of the other cons with a strong gaming element.

• ANIME CONVENTIONS

For the older generation anime seems so foreign, even unreachable. It shouldn’t be. Yes, anime and its siblings manga and ahem *cough* hentai are of Japanese origin but the striking visual styles and beauty, the characters and stories connect with westerners as well as audiences in the east. Because they are animations they can either be sub-titled or dubbed in the language of the country where it is being broadcast. In anime the stars are the illustrators, authors, and voice actors. At conventions you will find many of these sorts of guests as well as companies promoting their projects. You will also find some of the most imaginative of costumes created and worn by fans. At larger conventions you may find multiple rooms running films day and night. At smaller ones perhaps just one room will be devoted to showing their favorites. There are often panels discussing aspects of cosplay, fan fiction, video games, favorite voice actors, anime series or movies. As in literary conventions there are often workshops. These workshops are mostly how to draw manga, make computer animation, or how to become a voice actor. The dealers room will be filled with DVDs , software, graphic novel manga, art books, apparel, toys and exotic ( for us ) foods.

While the U.S. and Canada have the largest SF conventions in the world the largest Anime conventions are Lucca Comics & Games in Lucca Italy ( 85,000 ) , Japan Expo in Paris France ( 83,000 ) Salon del Manga in Barcelona Spain ( 63,000 ) and Romics in Rome Italy ( 50,000 ). The big guys in North America are Anime Expo Los Angeles California (41,000), Otakon Baltimore Maryland (23,000) and A-Kon Dallas Texas (14,500). Hey, size isn’t everything and some of the smallest might be the way to start if you have never been to a con before!!


• HORROR CONVENTIONS

What a perfect place to let it all hang out (dating myself but who cares). Horror conventions revel in going over the top. Long live Elvira, Freddy Krueger, Jason, Dracula, Zacherley, Even the names of these conventions and expos are meant to be graphic illustrations of what you will find there. Chiller Theatre, Fangoria, Fright Night Film and Fantasy Fest, HorrorFind, HorrorHound Weekend, Spooky Empire. Nothing to subtle here. No sparing of the gore. It’s like the rollercoaster of genre conventions. If you have a strong stomach and a dark sense of humor you will have tons of fun. The dealer’s room, art show, video rooms all are in sync with the horror theme. Guests that reach back decades up to the present. Once again there is a chance to meet actors, artists and authors for autographs, photo shoots, and anecdotes. Attendees go wild with costumes and you can do so too even without a ton of money or a pile of cash. Try out your best monsterish clothes and make-up or come asa victim…or not. Costumes aren’t required, they are just fun. There is usually a monster mash even if that isn’t the name given. Some horror conventions invite guests that more about nostalgia than horror. Chiller Con is a good example of this. Some of their guests are Micky Dolenz from the Monkees, Ernest Borgnine , Lindsay Wagner, Brigitte Nielson, Katey Sagal (Married with Children), Stephen Baldwin, Daniel Baldwin, Barry Bostwick, Erin Murphy (Tabitha of Bewitched), Avery Brooks, Armin Shimmerman, Robert Picardo, Geri Reischel (Jan from The Brady Bunch), Susan Olsen (Cindy from The Brady Bunch),Joe Pantoliano,Richard Kiel ("Jaws" Moonraker), Lou Ferrigno, William B Davies (X-Files-Cancer Man), Stella Stevens, Frank Stallone, Ron Bumblefoot ( Guns N Roses ) and a host of others.

• COMIC CONVENTION

When you think of a comic book convention you will probably think of a sea of old comic books, toys, Star Wars stuff, Star Trek stuff, action figures, collectible card games and magazines for sale and you would be right but that is only a part and an increasingly small part of the experience. You will find illustrators, authors, publishers and very often interesting workshops and panels that deal with every aspect of the industry past, present and future. There are the costume contingents that always show up at the larger conventions and some are so good that you could almost believe you were seeing superheroes and villains walk out of the pages and off the screen to meet you and be photographed. Some cons such as Dragon Con and Comic-Con began solely as comic conventions but grew to tremendous size, scope and diversity that they have transcended the genre that gave rise to them. Even those such as HEROES which remains focused on comics manages to have a number of other aspects and should be able to keep the whole family amused for the weekend. Comic conventions often have a lot of pop culture and nostalgia guests. So if you would like to see people like Creature, Parthenon and Fat Mama from Who wants to be a Superhero or maybe even Stan Lee himself, you might get your chance. How about James & Oliver Phelps who played the Weasley Twins in the Harry Potter movies ? Or perhaps Sean Astin or Billy Boyd and even Elijah Wood . From Heroes Hayden Paniterre and Masi Oka, or Ice-T…yes I said Ice-T AND his swimsuit-model wife Coco.

For a walk down memory lane there is Erik Estrada, Betsy Palmer, Soupy Sales, Richard Hatch, John Saxon, Adam West and Burt Ward ( Batman and Robin) , Julie Newmar, Peter Mayhew, Eddie Byrnes (77 Sunset Strip), Erin Gray (Buck Rodgers), Gary Coleman, Lou Ferrigno and on and on. Some are from your childhood others are from your parents childhoods. I can tell you that when I unexpectedly got to meet the very ladylike and gracious Betsy Palmer it was a thrill.

The bottom line is conventions are places where adults can go and play and slough off the average workday week . Have fun !!

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The Coming Age Of HDTV - What Does It Mean To Me?

by: Lloyd Howard

HDTV - high-definition television: it is something that has been discussed for some time now, however not everyone has a strong sense of what it is and why he or she would want to have it.

Because all television stations will be required to broadcast a digital signal after February 17, 2009, many viewers are beginning to ask a lot more questions about how the new digital age of television will affect their personal viewing experience. They want to know whether or not their television set will be compatible, whether or not they will have to replace it, and what steps they will have to take in order to keep watching their favorite shows.

How To Identify If Your Television Is An Analog TV

Analog television has been with us since the inception of television broadcasting. Analog is the old way of processing a television signal.

Television technology took a big leap in the 1960's with the transition from television tubes to circuit boards, but that conversion failed to bring with it any major strides in the quality of the television picture.

If your current television does not have a logo on its front that indicates DTV (Digital TV), EDTV (Enhanced Definition TV), or HDTV, then your television set is an analog TV.

Understanding The Transition From An Analog Signal To The New Digital Signal

Digital image processing is a technology that began in earnest during the 1970's, when Japanese technology companies began to explore the concepts of HDTV. The Japanese TV manufacturers were exploring ways to improve the picture quality of the television image, as a way to find more customers for their television products.

While Americans were busy playing with building the computer industry, the Japanese were hard at work trying to build a better television set. The first HDTV systems developed by the Japanese still relied on the old analog system of sending a broadcast signal to their televisions, but they were still able to produce a better television viewing experience.

When initially introduced to the U.S. Government, the new HDTV system produced a myriad of concerns, which included the issue of an analog HDTV-system needing more bandwidth than what was currently allotted to the television broadcasters.

In 1993, a consortium of American researchers and manufacturers (known as The Grand Alliance) joined forces to find a way to bring HDTV-quality to the American public, while keeping the bandwidth requirements of broadcasters within the existing limits.

Researchers soon understood that they would need to push at least part of the television signal in a digital format to make sure that HDTV could be transmitted within the limits currently allotted to the television broadcasters. By the time they had finished their work, the Grand Alliance had created a system that was 100% Digital.

In 1995, after considerable opposition from the television broadcast industry, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission officially set the standard for completely digital HDTV broadcasting system. This put into motion the events that are just now coming to fruition, with the rollout of the new Digital Television broadcasting system.

Although most television stations have been broadcasting a Digital Television Signal now for a few years, analog television owners have been none the wiser. But that will all change on February 17, 2009.

Will My Analog Television Stop Working In 2009?

The simple answer is "yes", but that does not mean that you will have to buy a new television in order to get the new digital broadcasts. While you may not need to replace your television set, you may have to make changes in how you get your television signal.

There are in fact three ways that the average consumer can continue to get a television signal using their old television set:

1. Subscribe to a cable television service (and use their digital television converter);

2. Subscribe to a satellite television service (and use their digital television converter); or

3. Buy a DTV converter (Digital TV Converter) to receive signals from your analog antenna and to convert that signal back to analog, so that you can continue to use your analog television. (If you receive your television signal over-the-air, the Federal Government has implemented a Coupon Program to help consumers offset the cost of the DTV converter boxes: http://www.ntia.doc.gov/dtvcoupon/index.html )

Understanding The Three Facets Of The New Digital Technology

1. Lines Of Resolution

The newer digital technology is all about Lines Of Resolution. With more lines of resolution, the viewer will receive more image information, therefore bringing the viewer much more picture clarity and detail.

When the Japanese rolled out HDTV on the Japanese mainland, the lines of resolution numbered 1080. To put this into perspective, the standard analog TV signal exhibits 330 lines of resolution. This makes it more than clear that the original analog HDTV format really was a real issue for television broadcasters in the United States. To produce a resolution of 1080 lines on a system designed for 330 lines would have literally required three times the bandwidth of the current analog system.

Here are the standard television resolutions:

* Analog Television - 330 Lines of Resolution

* VCR's - 240 Lines of Resolution

* DVD's - 480 Lines of Resolution

* EDTV - 720 Lines of Resolution

* HDTV - 1080 Lines of Resolution

There is a caveat to this chart though. The minimum requirement of the FCC is that broadcasters must produce a minimum of 720 Lines of Resolution. As a result, some broadcasters like ABC chose the 720-resolution, and yet they can still legally call their programming standard, HDTV.

Other broadcasters like PBS opted for the higher 1080 format. Good for them.

In 1998, when the first HDTV's became available to the buying public, the Headline News newscasters were joking that with the rollout of HDTV, we the audience would be able to see every blackhead and blemish on their faces. Of course, they were probably correct in that assumption. The detail of the HDTV-signal is absolutely amazing.

2. Aspect Ratio

Another factor connected to the new HDTV-format is the Aspect Ratio.

In a standard analog television, the Aspect Ratio is a 4-by-3, which nearly looks square. The 4-by-3 ratio means that it can be measured 4-parts wide to 3-parts high.

With the new HDTV format, the Aspect Ratio has been changed to the same format seen in the movie theatre - a 16-by-9 Aspect Ratio, or 16-parts wide to 9-parts high.

3. Sound Quality

The third factor connected to the new HDTV-format is Sound Quality. In fact, most HDTV programming will carry with it Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound, as frequently heard on DVD's. So long as you have a surround sound unit attached to your television set, the surround sound will enable to the television viewer to be immersed in the sound, so much so as it often feels as if you are in the middle of the action happening on your television set.

In Conclusion...

While it is true that you do not need to upgrade your television from the analog format to the new digital format, you might seriously consider doing so anyway.

Now that we are quickly approaching the end of the analog-television era, the cost of HDTV television sets has fallen considerably. Whereas five years ago, the average HDTV cost in the range of $3-4,000, the cost of most HDTV's has fallen to under $1200 today. After February 17, 2009, the cost of HDTV should drop again, making it much more affordable to the general public.

Although it will be possible to convert the digital television signal to analog, you will lose the extra picture detail on the conversion. So, if you stick with your analog television, you will be restricting yourself to the quality of picture you are currently receiving, even after the change in television broadcasting formats is complete.

Although color-technology was first introduced to audiences with the release of The Wizard Of Oz in 1939, color television did not become mainstream until the late-1960's. And although the technology of color was mainstream, black-and-white televisions were still being manufactured and sold well into the 1980's.

Fortunately, this transition will be a bit quicker than the conversion from black-and-white to color. Under the FCC rules for the transition to digital television, television manufacturers were required to include a digital tuner in all television sets manufactured after March 1, 2006.

This conversion is much like the transition from AM to FM as the standard listening medium in the radio industry. Radio listeners could not listen to FM stations until which time they had upgraded their radio from AM to the AM/FM format. The same thing will happen here as well. If you want to receive the beautiful, high-quality HDTV images, you will need to upgrade to a television set capable of displaying the HDTV images.

If you have any lingering doubts about the better HDTV standard, all you need to do is to visit your local television store and see for yourself just how awesome of a picture HDTV actually produces. Just as Dolby Digital Surround Sound enables the listener to feel as if they are in the middle of the action on the television, HDTV permits the viewer to feel as if they are standing in the same room as the actors, on the sidelines at the football game, or on the same beach as the models - it really is that good of a picture.

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Customer Service Is Dead In Britain!

by: Mark A Robinson

A Working Man's View

So What? Who cares? What is Customer Service? What are the repercussions? What does it represent? Who are the culprits? What can be done about it?

Dear Reader,

I've had enough. After being brought to the point of anger where profanity would've been my next utterance, I've decided to 'vent my spleen' in this article, highlighting the cause & effect the breakdown of quality customer service is having on our society.

I'm sure if you've ever had a bad experience with customer service, you will appreciate some of the points and suggestions I make in this article. Before I begin, let us first establish what is 'good' & 'bad' customer service.

WHAT IS GOOD CUSTOMER SERVICE?

To be greeted politely with eye contact & a pleasant countenance;

To be spoken to with a clear, even, tone.

Always ready to listen than assume;

Always prepared to provide assistance.

Ensuring the customer is never kept waiting unnecessarily.

Ensuring your attitude is geared to assistance & understanding;

Providing unknown but helpful advice to the customer;

Delivering/responding on time.

WHAT IS BAD CUSTOMER SERVICE?

Intolerably long queues/idle staff;

Calls not answered within 2 minutes.

To be put on hold for more than 3-5 minutes;

Following call-scripts instead of listening to the customer's problem;

Late or no arrival of delivery with no explanation;

Unexplained & unwarranted blocks on credit/debit cards;

Unjustified high service charges or penalties by financial institutions;

Misinformation causing expense to customer;

Poor workmanship;

Sour, cynical, unhelpful attitudes;

Overcharging/hidden charges;

Withholding useful/valuable information;

Inadequately trained staff.

WHO ARE THE MAIN CULPRITS?

Mainly Banks, Supermarkets, Home Shopping Centres, Mobile Phone Companies, Mechanics, Fast Food outlets, Service engineers - plumbers, gas fitters etc.

Virtually any large institution is, but not exclusively, a culprit of bad service.

WHO CARES?

We are in a time where a majority of people are in debt and we are in debt to the very major institutions that provide poor service.

If I'm going to spend my hard earned money with you and possibly add to my debt, the very least I can expect is to get what I pay for without fuss, rudeness and with value for money. It's as if these institutions think "you or someone else is going to spend your money with us anyway, so why should we bother about customer service? - You'll be back!"

Banks, Home Shopping Centres et al

We all lead busy lives where time is of the essence, yet the queues in Banks etc. get longer & longer. It is not unusual now for someone to spend 45 minutes of their lunch hour waiting to be served in a bank.

There have been numerous times when I've had to ask a member of staff to open another till to alleviate the queuing - why couldn't they do this of their own accord? Why did it need me to point out the obvious? This is indicative of the attitude business has towards their customers.

By the way, you are legitimately allowed to ask a member of staff or management at any venue or outlet to open another till & start serving customers if it's obvious the queues are too much for the member/members of staff currently serving.

WHY ARE THEY GETTING AWAY WITH THIS?

We are in a time where government is increasingly forcing us to 'accept our lot' in life; 'SHUT UP, BE HAPPY'!

(To prove my point I could expand here into 'Game Theory', 'Negative Freedom' and our budding totalitarian state, but I'll leave that for a future article!).

Add to this the 'sheep' & 'don't make waves' mentality of the British and you have a nation that is ripe for arrogant, sloppy business practices. >If we can't be bothered to take action, they don't need to respond.

The irony is that under the present political climate it is assumed by government and the captains of industry that what we buy is a true representation of our wants & needs and therefore a true representation of democracy.

Yet we fail to see the power that belief gives us, the consumer. No matter how much small print and word trickery is invested into an organisation's Terms & Conditions, we are still protected under Consumer Law which has been strengthened considerably over the past decade.

HOW DID THESE PRACTICES SEEP INTO OUR NATION?

I would like to suggest a number of possible factors:

One factor is the Americanisation of Britain - our government taking existing American policies and tailoring them to suit the British economy - that was started under the Thatcher era, and continued with fervour under the Blair government.

Anyone who's visited the West Coast of America frequently like I have will know that 'service with a smile' is not a standard approach, be it from a public servant or an average serving citizen. The "Time Is Money" principle is applied with fervour.

A second factor is the practice of globalisation. We are in a world where foreign companies can own any company in any country, even if it's considered to be a major culturally important institution of that country.

Successive British governments from the Thatcher era onwards have made it clear that anyone willing to invest is welcome & ensure our virtually non-existent union laws make this country a viable prospect.

Add to this the fact that a company residing in Britain may have a telephony service in India and a production factory in South-East Asia, and you can see how loyalty to an ideal can be become a passing thought.

A third factor is technology. The advent of automated lines, email & text communications, in addition to internet shopping, is creating a nation where person-to-person communication is rarely practised, therefore there is less patience when performing the art of speech. Pitch, Inflection, Courtesy, Tone, Understanding, Rate & Enunciability are fast becoming a quaint approach to communicating.

A fourth factor is immigration. With a large influx of people from all over the globe, the importance of good customer service in this nation needs to be highlighted when you have people from Australia to Zaire whom haven't been raised with the British shopkeeper mentality & may have been brought up to believe that getting the job done is good enough. It isn't.

A fifth factor is staff consideration - which may range from poor pay to poor working practices to poor working environment. Good pay is not enough to motivate staff; almost every employee survey carried out on job satisfaction puts pay 3rd as the most important requirement for an employee.

Giving an employee a sense of worth goes a long way to a happy workforce - although this needs to come from the employee as well; if money is the only motivation to work and nothing else, make sure you never deal with customers. Go and work on a production line somewhere - we don't have to deal with your lack of ambition or self-worth.

Taking pride in whatever you do goes a long way to affecting your approach to a task.

HOW WOULD THIS AFFECT CUSTOMER SERVICE IN BRITAIN?

Policies can direct and shape a culture.

Policies shape the decisions of what products will or will not be available; how they will be available; how much they cost. These in turn will shape our buying and shopping habits.

This in turn will help to shape attitudes and practices throughout society.

Modern day communications have made vast savings for big business; the trade off of unhappy customers as a result seems to be worthwhile in their eyes.

Britains reputation and culture was built on its customer service. The nation continues to trade on that reputation from being the first called to provide UN relief to being the first contacted to train police forces of the developing nations. The British workforce used to think it a grave slight on their character if they were accused of bad service. Now, in the event of a complaint, the manager pretends indignation in front of the customer and ridicules their 'pettiness' behind their back. "The Customer Is Always Right" is from a bygone age.

WHAT ARE THE REPERCUSSIONS?

The repercussions are already being felt.

The increase in these no-win, no-fee companies is a testament to that.

The second stage is the unpleasant aspect of public servants being attacked, verbally or otherwise. Indeed, were the figures for physical assault on public servants and shop assistants to be measured over the past 20 years, I'm guessing they would show a sharp increase.

The third stage - which has already begun - is when customers start taking individual action in small claims courts when they are not happy with the conclusion of a complaint to a Customer Services Dept. Increased, continuous litigation on big business cannot be a good thing for a company in terms of cost and man hours.

WHAT CAN BUSINESSES DO?

Branch Services

-Any organisation that makes sure customers are not queuing for more than 5 minutes per customer will see their volume of visits triple.

-Make sure there are never more than 5 customers per till person.

-Make sure that whatever your staffs is doing - no matter how important & time sensitive they think it is - as soon as a long queue has developed, get them on the tills or assisting to clear the queue.

-Even if customers are still queuing for some time, they will appreciate the attempt and the importance you place on their custom.

-If there are processes & procedures that have to be performed throughout a business day, there should be a flexible contingency method that enables the staff member to help clear long queues then get back to their procedural matters or conclude them in a quiet period.

-Any branch of any business that takes the above stance will see their volume of customers increase.

Telephony Services

-Ensure the option to talk to an actual person is on the 1st list of menu options offered.

-Teach your staff to actually listen to the problem.

-Teach your staff not to be menu-driven when giving support.

-Ensure the Reduction of waiting times is a constant priority.

-Design the menu options you offer from the customer's point of view.

WHAT CAN CUSTOMERS DO?

Vote with your feet!

&

COMPLAIN! COMPLAIN! COMPLAIN!

When making a telephone call, have a piece of paper and pen ready.

Always seek the name & job title of the person you're speaking to and write it down.

Ask to speak to/see the manager or senior member to make a verbal complaint.

If that fails, seek the name of their customer services manager - they have to give to you.

Seek the address of the customer services department for complaints - it may be different than their standard customer service dept.

Find out the email address of the person or department you need to speak to.

Write to the relevant person. In these instances the pen is truly mightier than the sword.

Send letters recorded delivery. Someone has to sign for it.

Organisations still have to reply to a written letter by law.

Go to http://www.parkingletters.co.uk

click on "Useful Links" and you will see links and information on a number of organisations who provide invaluable help in this area.

WHAT WOULD I LIKE TO SEE?

The Present

Customers to respond to bad service with their feet. Don't go back.

If it's a chain store, don't visit that branch; better still, the whole chain.

If we can't be bothered to take action, they don't need to respond.

The Future?

-A website database where a customer enters the place of business, the person who served them, their own name and a contact no.

-A list of the good and bad accessible to all.

-Management of respective business presented with a daily/weekly/monthly list of complaints to resolve. Their response monitored.

-Highlight bad/good Company of the week/month.

-Arrange boycott of bad company/branch through their respective local press. Promote good company/branch.

BIG BUSINESS BEWARE,

WE THE CONSUMER HAVE HAD ENOUGH!!

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Advice to King Dave of the Isle of Man

by: Louis Rosas-Guyon III

To HM King David of the Isle of Mann (or Man), cousin to Queen Elizabeth II, come forth, I, your Not-So-Humble Servant to render such Wisdom as I can…

For about ten minutes today, David Howe, a 38 year old businessman from Maryland commanded the front page on FoxNews.Com with the story of his Coronation. In 2006 some Brit genealogist called to tell him that he might have a claim to the throne of the Isle of Mann (or Man). So, he filled out the right forms and sent them to Her Majesty's Stationary Office which after a 90 day review period approved his Royal application. Apparently they sent him a crown, a royal robe and a spoon. Some Kings get swords, others get scepters, but David gets a spoon.

My favorite part of the story is the reaction from the people of the Isle of Man, which I think can best be summed up as: "Who?" The elected government of the Isle of Man is probably still laughing themselves senseless. They are so disrespectful of their new King that the official government website has no mention of his coronation. Well King David, it looks like you'll need to stage an invasion to enforce Your Royal Rights. I recommend you look into some the old laws on how to execute traitors. That's how you get medieval on their butts.

The best part about this story is that HM (that's His Majesty, to you) King David has a lovely website. On his home page under an enormous picture of him, he details his efforts to provide aide for the poor AIDS afflicted children of Insert African Nation Here. Even Americans know you cannot be a Royal unless you have some charity to support. Especially useful are those charities that show you pictures of starving children. Those work best of all. Good choice there, Your Majesty. You hit that nail right on the head.

But if you do a little digging into the Royal website you find his Royal Pedigree. You know, like they do with dogs. Not only does he include his family tree proving his Royal Title, but he also proves that he is a cousin to the Royal Family of Great Britain. Wow, he's cousins with the Queen! Let's get something straight; I'm no genealogist but it seems to me when you cast such an enormous net (like the Cousin's Net), you are probably also related to Cher, Bill Clinton and Dick Cheney. I recommend that you lose the whole Cousins thing. Let's agree that you are only allowed to be a Royal Cousin if they invite you over for tea.

Also, if you take the time to look at his Pedigree you may notice that he has achieved his gentle rank through marriage. Now, that is perfectly legitimate. But, does that mean he's Royal by insertion? If so, then good job King David! I always heard you were supposed to pull your Sword out of the stone. It just goes to show that you cannot trust legends. But it might damage your macho image, so I would dump that webpage too.

Now, there's the matter of Royal Revenue. Until you conquer your island you can't collect taxes. But I have solved that for you! Just sell Knighthoods! There are tons of obnoxious idiots who would pay dearly for a title. I would add a web store and sell them that way. Between the money you can make from titles and the cash that will come in from your charity, you should have a pretty nice war chest.

To invade, you will need an army. And let's face it, no regular mercenary army will do. You need to show your subjects that you mean business and will not tolerate anything but total loyalty. For that mission, I can only recommend Blackwater. It might take up some of the money for the African kids, but you can always pay them back later.

Anyway, I hope you look charitably on Your Servant for his Words of Wisdom and that Your Majesty remembers to send me money when you use any of these ideas.

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