Steve Collins's Articles - Avid Articles - Free Content - Search - Find - Submit Articles

Search:

Steve Collins's Articles

Display Category\|Title\|Newest\|Oldest
How to Maximize Your Time with a Credit Counselor Seeking the services of a credit counselor is a smart way to find a solution to your financial problems. An experienced credit counselor has a full arsenal of suggestions and strategies to help you in making the most of your income and modify your spending habits as you work towards reducing and eventually eliminating your debts. The Different Pitfalls of College Loans There are lots of students who could not afford to go to college or to remain in college through their graduate school years without college loans. The fact that these loans are the only factor actively allowing some student to stay in school and graduate makes their value incalculable. The understanding that these loans will not have to be repaid until sometime in the seemingly distant future make college loans even more attractive. But that sad day will come, and a few months after leaving college, students are asked to begin paying back the college education loan. Are You In Over Your Head? Do burdensome financial troubles make you wonder if you are days away from eviction? Do you dread opening your mailbox, knowing it will be full of past due notices? Do you have bad dreams about being unable to satisfy creditors? Do you live from paycheck to paycheck? Consumer credit advising may best be the best way of addressing these severe worries. Daisy Duck: The Other Duck Daisy Duck, as it happens, was created around 1920. Daisy's brother married Donald's twin sister, Della Thelma Duck, and together, they became the parents of Huey, Dewey, and Louie, which is why the triplets call her "Aunt Daisy". In the early days, she wore a red dress and had a bow in her hair. Daisy Duck became Donald Duck's girlfriend in 1940, after his regrettable affair with Donna Duck in 1937. Daisy became Donald's new neighbor and potential love interest. She was seemingly soft spoken, but had a fiery temper and Donald often found himself at the receiving end of it. Donna returns from time to time, to ignite the jealousy between Daisy and Donald. The Pirates of the Caribbean - Swashbuckling Good Fun Whether it is Johnny Depp's famous portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow, or Orlando Bloom's dashing Will Turner, the PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN has quickly become an audience favorite. A story of love, family ties, and curses, the film deftly balances humor with edge-of-your-seat thrills. Entering the murky world of pirates will transport your and your family to faraway places lost to time and memory. The series of films has managed to win over audiences and critics alike. Pixie Love: Tinkerbell Tinkerbell is one of the best-known characters in the world. She was created by J.M. Barrie in his play "Peter Pan" in 1904 and initially envisioned as a ball of light. Since her debut, she has been featured in numerous films and television shows. J.M. Barrie also included her in a novel called "Peter and Wendy" in 1911. Originally, she was little more than a secondary character. That all changed when she was featured in the 1953 animated film PETER PAN. Disney made her a pivotal character in the movie despite the fact that she does not say a single word! Minnie Mouse: The Love of Mickey's Life Minnie Mouse is undoubtedly one of the most beloved and recognizable cartoon characters of all time. She, along with her beau Mickey Mouse, is part of the long line of characters that form the backbone of the Disney Empire. People from all over the world recognize her as the love of Mickey Mouse's life, his girlfriend, his reason for being. Bolt - Disney's Newest Classic Look out world, Bolt is soon to be unleashed! The latest Disney movie follows the adventures of Bolt, a white Shepherd puppy voiced by John Travolta. Bolt has lived his entire life on the set of a dramatic television show, where he plays a dog with super powers. When he is accidentally shipped cross-country to New York City, he embarks on a mission to return to Los Angeles. The only problem is, Bolt thinks his superpowers are real. He is soon joined by Mittens the cat, voiced by Susie Essman, and a TV-obsessed hamster, Rhino, voiced by Mark Walton. Ashworth College and Distance Education Distance education is becoming a fashionable way to learn in today's educational environment. While it is still growing in popularity, it has been around for some time. It may not have been as advanced as it is now, but it has enjoyed a long history. The history of distance education is a long and storied one. Some of the greatest minds on the planet like Thomas Edison have been involved in its development. The Disney Movie Club and the Mouse The most popular animated character of all-time is undoubtedly Mickey Mouse. Mickey Mouse is the creation of Walt Disney with the help of fellow animator Ub Iwerks. While he was originally nothing more than a cartoon character, he has become one of the most recognized symbols in the world. How did this astounding character come to be? Donald Duck and the Disney Movie Club One of the most popular cartoon characters of all-time is Donald Duck. Donald is a character in the Disney family and was first introduced as a follow up to Mickey Mouse. He appeared in his first cartoon on June 9th 1934. His first cartoon was "The Wise Little Hen." From there he went on to be featured in several supporting roles, before eventually landing his own cartoons. How PCDI Can Get You Out Of That Rut Do you feel like you are a living case of the square peg in a round hole? Somehow, you have found yourself in a job that bores you? Maybe you have nurtured a new interest in a hobby which you would love to see blossom into paying work. Or maybe you never chose any career and have been working in meaningless jobs just to keep the cash flow going. Revisit the Magic: Disney Movie Club One of the largest theme parks, and most famous tourist attractions in the world, is Disneyland. Feverishly fabricated over the span of 1954-55, the project was the only theme park Walt Disney personally oversaw in his lifetime. Today it is second only to Disney World as the most visited theme park in the world. Disney Classics Continue to Appeal to Kids Do you remember the first Disney movie you ever attended? How many Disney movies have you been seen since childhood? How many Disney DVDs do you own? If you have children, the answer to the final question could easily be "dozens." Disney has been entertaining people for more than eight decades! There are hundreds of movies in the Disney vault after all these years. Walt Disney Was an Astounding Man Walt Disney was a peerless man whose main goal in life seems to have been to entertain. His fifty-nine Academy Award nominations (and twenty-six Oscars) bear out that as fact, as do the theme parks he envisioned which are now fantasy destinations for families all over the globe. Sleeping Beauty - Arguably Disney's Finest Work Sleeping Beauty was the sixteenth film in Walt Disney's canon, following Lady and The Tramp and preceding One Hundred and One Dalmatians. It was the last feature to be based upon a fairy tale, written by Charles Perrault. Indeed, Disney Studios would not return to a fairy tale again until the 1989 release of The Little Mermaid. Moreover, this was the last feature to use hand-inked cells. Pocahontas - An American Legend Comes To Life In 1995, Walt Disney Pictures released the first Disney feature where, as the tagline states, "an American legend comes to life." Pocahontas, the first Disney film based on an genuine historic figure, was the 33rd animated film ever released by Disney Studios and marked the high-watermark for the Disney Renaissance which had begun in 1989 with The Little Mermaid. This film was one of the few Disney films to ever portray an interracial romance (between Pocahontas and John Smith). When XBox Meets Disney, the Results are Huge Because of the internet, the world is a radically altered place, and changes happen overnight. It has metamorphosed the way we communicate with one another, the way we study, and the way we entertain ourselves. About a year ago, for instance, the Xbox Live Marketplace was launched to enable users to download movie rentals on demand. The Innovative Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs The creation of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs began sometime in early 1934. This was Walt Disney's first effort at producing an animated film. To this point, Disney had effectively produced a series of animated shorts entitled The Alice Comedies as well as Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies. The Fox and the Hound - Bright Original Talent for Disney The Fox and the Hound is an animated feature produced by Walt Disney Productions. The twenty-fourth animated feature in the Disney animated canon, The Fox and the Hound was released in 1981 to generally positive reviews and great box-office success. The story was based on the book of the same name written by Daniel P. Mannix in 1967. Study For A Glamorous Career in Fashion Have you ever wondered why some styles of clothing are featured in fashion advertising while others are seldom mentioned? Have you ever been interested in planning and producing a successful fashion show? A degree in fashion retailing can grant you this knowledge and teach you these important skills. The intriguing world of fashion retailing and buying is replete with the insights of well-known fashion forecasters, fashion show coordinators, store and department managers, personal shoppers and more. Advanced TCA - The Innovative Industry Standard Computers have evolved from their earliest models, housed in multiple rooms, requiring complex infrastructure and a seemingly endless supply of individual cards to carry out what, by today's standards, were very simple tasks. Second Story Restaurant I recently had the pleasure of staying in Manhattan Beach and happened upon the Second Story restaurant, located on the second floor of the newly renovated Belamar Hotel. It recently opened its doors to offer hotel guests and Manhattan Beach residents the inviting combination of contemporary American classics featuring fresh organic produce, a commitment to sustainability, warm service and a warm, inviting interior. Second Story, owned and operated by Larkspur Hotels & Restaurants, has the feel of a neighborhood restaurant and is open for breakfast, lunch and dinner daily. Tech Lighting Fascinates Innovative. Fun. Imaginative. Funky. Remarkable. Singular. None of these words come close to describing the inventive fixtures by Tech Lighting. If you are looking for lighting fixtures that provide way more than light, you can find creations beyond your wildest imagination-along with some very chic, clean selections to complement the most streamlined home dcor. High School Musical, Disney's Great Franchise If you have a preteen in your life, you probably have been hit with a lot of chatter about a movie called High School Musical. Even if you do not know a preteen, you cannot have escaped the amazing popularity of this film. Seldom has a made-for-television movie been such a hit, but Disney knew it had an enormous hit on its hands from the day of its premier, January 20, 2006. Sharkboy and Lavagirl, An Unusual Classic The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl takes viewers on an unpredictable ride in the grand tradition of creative films such as Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, which is set in a bizarre world, and films such as The Never-ending Story, in which mistreatment by bullies sends the victim into a dream world where he can be a hero. The juxtaposition of fantasy and reality in the film is demands your full attention. The Country Bear Jamboree When Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, it featured a great audio-animatronic show called The Country Bear Jamboree. As the name suggests, the show featured bears playing country music. The show was such a hit that capacity was expanded, Disneyland got its own Jamboree, and an additional theatre was built to satisfy the demand. Computer Technician Training Gives You The Skills to Compete How many times has this happened to you? You call an airline representative to check on your flight and they cannot tell anything you because the computers are down. You go to the bank to make a deposit but you cannot get your balance at the moment because there are technical difficulties. You have to wait seemingly forever for a car title at the DMV because no one understands the new computer system. Digital Consoles - Convenience and Quality If you are looking for a new sound system for a recording studio or for your live sound venue, new may not be the best choice. After all, a brand new digital audio mixer can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Upgrading your old sound system does not have to drain the till, however. There are some excellent pre-owned consoles to be had for a fraction of the cost. Photo Secrets Glamor photography is first and foremost about making one look great in pictures, this is the type of skill that is most appreciated in the high fashion world. Glamor photography is generally handled and distributed by big names in the business that create great shots they afterwards sell to magazines and publications. There are all sorts of tutorials and courses that can teach one the secrets of glamor photography, as any apprentice photographer needs to acquire important knowledge that allows expert picture status. Some people say that shooting glamor photos is like making traditional portraits as it requires following certain lighting setup steps. Advanced MCs -- Reliable and Versatile The only sure thing in the current world of computers and computer applications is that adaptability and versatility are critical. Think about a toolbox. Sure, everyone wants some specialized tools and gizmos, but simple solutions always work the best. And now that computing and telecommunications are so fully connected, the more dependable, easy to use and versatile computer components need to be. All these positive descriptions aptly describe the Advanced Mezzanine Card, or AdvancedMC. Computer Engineers Are Creating Science Fiction From Science Fact A CompactPCI (cPCI) system is a 3U or 6U ("U" is a unit of measurement of the height of a rack-mounted device, with one rack unit, or RU, equaling 1.75") Eurocard-based industrial computer which has all of its boards connected by way of a passive PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) backplane. The pin assignments of the connectors are documented in standards, published by the organization PICMG U.S. and PICMG Europe (PICMG means "PCI Industrial Computers Manufacturers Group"). The Aristocats - A Distinguished Classic The tagline for The Aristocats was, aptly, "Meet the cats who know where it's atfor fun, music and adventure!" The Aristocats was the twentieth animated film in the Disney canon. It was purportedly the last film to receive Walt Disney's personal approval and was the first animated feature released after his death. It was originally intended to be screened in two installments on television, but was quickly promoted to feature status. It should be noted that the basic premise of the film, an animated comedy about cats in France, had been realized by UPA with the 1962 release of Gay Purr-ee, starring the voice of Judy Garland. Digital Sound Mixers Are Intuitive To Operate It would be quite impressive for a layman to see the type of equipment most modern sound technicians work with on their assignments since most of it seems to be from a science fiction motion picture. Study to be an Electrician with PCDI Electricians, by in large, master their trade through various apprenticeship programs. Apprenticeships include field work and hands-on training with extensive classroom instruction. Unions, including the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers and the National Electrical Contractors Association, as well as independent electrical contracting corporations, fund apprenticeship programs. In addition to these subsidized training curriculum, many vocational and technical schools offer training courses. Graduates are often appointed at higher rates than trainees who haven't had this kind of training. Some electricians begin their path to mastery by beginning as helpers-assisting electricians by cleaning job sites, gathering materials, and completing other nonelectrical work. Regardless of the selected training direction, all apprentices need a high school diploma or a General Equivalency Diploma (G.E.D.). In some cases, an electrician may be required to pass some complex mathematics classes for certain wiring specializations. Minka Aire Cools with Good Looks and Grace Nothing beats a soft breeze wafting your cheek on a muggy day. That is the allure of ceiling fans. While air conditioning is a marvelous thing, there is something relaxing about the lulling spin of a ceiling fan. It seems to invite you to slow down and rest a spell. Fans are found everywhere now-on porches, in bathrooms, on restaurant patios-they make hot places pleasant on all but the hottest days. Handsome fans grace the finest living rooms in the country. Feel Like a Star at the Belamar, Manhattan Beach Manhattan Beach hotels offer access to one of California's most stunning and sparkling areas. This cheerful, youthful setting calls for a different kind of lodging-one that is hip, but not self-conscious; one that offers the better things in life seasoned with a good amount of whimsy. The newer Manhattan Beach hotels "get it' and cater to a younger clientele. They offer interesting cuisine, a wide variety of water sport options, and a dcor that stimulates the eye. Firms Are Eager to Hire Competent Computer Programmers Visual Basic is one of the most fashionable computer programming languages today. In large part, its popularity is based on the fact that the very fundamentals of the Internet are built on the Visual Basic language. It allows professional programmers to create a series of graphical user interface (GUI) applications, which make software development easy to handle. Because it's a graphical and object-oriented language, it's quite easy to learn. It is vital prospective students enroll in an academic program that will familiarize them with the host of programming rules, vocabulary, and codes. A series of thrilling tutorials are available, which logically and precisely guide you through the learning process. Chicken Little - a big hero in a little body In the children's fable of Chicken Little, the protagonist was a small barnyard hen who was hit on the head by a falling acorn. Rather than stopping and thinking about what happened calmly, she became convinced that the sky was falling and that the king of the land needed to be warned. The Many Lives of Edward Bear aka Winnie If you spent your formative years watching Disney, it's a good bet watching Winnie the Pooh was a significant part of it. Disney has made Winnie the Pooh into one of its most popular features, with many different direct-to-video featurettes, an animated television series as well as three feature length films. Children and adults alike have enjoyed such fare as The Tigger Movie, Piglet's Big Move and Pooh's Heffalump Movie, but you may not be aware of the rich history behind them, and the person responsible for it all. The Little Hero Of Piglets Big Movie Is Sure To Please Walt Disney is great at creating characters that people cherish long beyond the boundaries of childhood. Among these are the memorable collection of characters who inhabit the Hundred Acre Wood. Disney's various Winnie the Pooh tales follow the plots of stories originally told by English author A.A. Milne in the 1920s. A short History of Fans People have always loathed being too hot, and civilized folks have consistently attempted to do something about it. The ancient Romans, for instance, found ways to employ the water in their famous aqueducts to cool their homes. The rich installed systems for water to be propelled through the walls of their houses to lower the temperature and make life more comfortable. Persians had similar success creating systems of cisterns and wind towers. When the wind was non-existent, there was always a servant around to wave a palm frond to cool you! Why You Should Consider Using A Respirator Each job that stirs up dust and particulates calls for respiratory protection. Numerous people think respirators are necessary basically for recognized hazards such as lead, asbestos, chemicals, and gases, but all categories of airborne particles can aggravate the lungs and cause breathing distress. Now is the time to make certain of your Digital Security There is an old motto that ignorance is bliss. No. Ignorance is stupid and immature. It may feel freeing. You may feel relieved of the need to worry about things of which you have no knowledge, but how blissful is it when your lack of knowledge leads you to becoming a crime statistic? Why You Should Sanitize Your Hands When you think about it, life is pretty yucky. It is not what you see-like that dead opossum down the street getting flatter and stinkier with each passing day or the garbage can in summer-but what you do not see that should have you concerned, though. Conservation is a Broad Open Field Conservation is a wide and woolly field encompassing a wide range of fields, including geography, geology, hydrology, economic, and business. Successful students of the field must have a firm grasp of water and soil conservation, modern forestry methods, wildlife management, the effects and composition of pesticides, and even waste management. This isn't a field for the faint of heart - most graduates can testify to the essential "messiness" of working in the elements. It's less of a major and more of a multi-disciplined, multi-leveled way of life. Brother Bear - One of Disney's Most Successful Films To Date Welcome to a world where animals rule and the only human around isn't human anymore. Welcome to the world of Brother Bear. Marking the 43rd film in Disney's line of animated features, the film, originally entitled Bears, marked a short return to traditionally hand-drawn animation. It was the third feature completed at the Disney-MGM Studios in Orlando, Florida, and subsequently the last. The studio shut down the Orlando facility in an effort to produce computer animated features. New Gloves Offer Critical Protection In Multiple Settings Any person in the medical profession will testify to the importance of wearing gloves when dealing with a patient. The millions of people who have taken first aid classes were lectured never to touch a sick or injured person without the protection of gloves. Sending Video Greetings is now Fast, Easy and Enjoyable Have you ever wanted a simpler way to stay in contact with friends? Sure, everyone has cell phones and email these days, but sometimes you just want to say "Hey there!" without the commitment of a extended phone conversation or the effort of thinking up a clever message. That is where video greetings are great! Digital Sound Mixers Are Very Intuitive To Operate It would be quite great for a layman to see the type of equipment most modern sound technicians work with on their assignments since most of it seems to be from a science fiction motion picture. Rapunzel is Disney's forthcoming Groundbreaking movie What's new on the horizon for Disney? Judging by the remarkable amount of buzz surrounding both Bolt, set for release in 2008, and Rapunzel, set for a Christmas 2010 release, Disney is prepared for greater glory. Both films are breaking new ground in the realm of animation and both are enjoying a new cultural hunger for fantasy and entertainment. Indeed, many believe these films could spark the next Disney Renaissance. Whereas Bolt is an original story, Rapunzel, of course, sees Disney revisiting the familiar realm of the fairy tale. Upon its release, it will become the 49th film in Disney's animated feature canon. A Fun Space Age Adaptation of a Classic Treasure Planet is a science fiction animated movie produced by Walt Disney Pictures. Released in 2002, Treasure Planet marked the 42nd animated feature in the Disney canon. It is a science fiction variation of Robert Louis Stevenson?s beloved novel Treasure Island. It employed the revolutionary technique of featuring two-dimensional animation over three-dimensional backgrounds. Indeed, this technique was used effectively on the character of John Silver, where his cybernetic arm was computer generated and the remainder of his body hand-drawn. The Hunchback of Notre Dame - Disney Animates a Classic Tale The Hunchback of Notre Dame was premiered on June 22, 1996. It marked the 34th animated film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation. Inspired by Victor Hugo's 1831 novel, The Hunchback of Notre Dame, the film varies considerably from the source material. This variance ensured the film received a G rating, but defenders and fans of the movie point out the fact that the it does address some rather mature themes, including lust, infanticide, religious hypocrisy, prejudice, and social injustice. Curiously, this is the first animated Disney movie to use the word "damn," though it is used only in the sacred sense. Home on the Range Come on people and "bust a moo." When Home on the Range was released on April 2, 2004, it was designated to be the last traditionally animated feature for Disney. The studio declared, to the surprise of industry insiders, that all features following Home on the Range would be rendered with CGI imagery rather than the CAPS method, which had been in use since The Rescuers Down Under. Indeed, Disney's traditional method of animation dates back to Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. This decision prompted Disney to fire most of its animation department. Sound System Rental Must Be Trustworthy Rent or own? For many products, this is real challenge. For instance, is it smart to rent a rototiller if you do not often need one, or is it better to buy one, assuming it will eventually pay for itself over years of us? In some cases, renting is questionable. After all, you never know who operated equipment last and how they treated it, and can you truly trust the owner to administer proper maintenance every time? The Emperor's New Groove - Nuttier Than a Holiday Fruitcake! Most fans agree that The Emperor's New Groove lived up to its tagline: "nuttier than a holiday fruitcake!" It was a critically lauded, if not ultimately successful, animated feature, and the first Disney animated film to ever feature a pregnant woman. Released in December 2000, The Emperor's New Groove mixes a careful balance of comedy designed to appeal both to adults and children. It marked the 39th film in Disney's canon and was initially slated to be a traditional musical along the lines of The Lion King. Though the title builds on the Danish fairytale, The Emperor's New Clothes, by Hans Christen Andersen, the original story was based on Mark Twain's The Prince and the Pauper. The initial incarnation of the project was titled Kingdom of the Sun, with the creative team behind The Lion King, director Roger Allers and producer Randy Fullmer, at the helm. So prestigious was the production that Allers and Fullmer contracted Sting to write the music for the film. Pocahontas - An American Legend Comes To Life In 1995, Walt Disney Pictures released the first Disney feature where, as the tagline states, "an American legend comes to life." Pocahontas, the first Disney film based on an genuine historic figure, was the 33rd animated film ever released by Disney Studios and marked the high-watermark for the Disney Renaissance which had begun in 1989 with The Little Mermaid. This film was one of the few Disney films to ever portray an interracial romance (between Pocahontas and John Smith). Cinderella iii Lives Up to the Charm of the Original People are fond of referencing Cinderella, merrily joking about the magical midnight transformation of the star character from an enchanted princess into her regular self. The 1950 Disney full length cartoon was nominated for three Academy Awards and has remained a childhood favorite for nearly sixty years. Asian Stock Photos Save Time And Are Valuable In today's business environment, companies have to remain progressively more competitive in a global market. As more and more companies and individuals from the Pacific Rim do business with each other, businesses struggle to find an edge, to separate themselves from the group. Organizations that recognize the multicultural nature of life will succeed, while others fail. Hannah Montana: Life's What You Make it Teaches Valuable Lessons You can tell when you have made it to the top when you receive a reference on The Simpsons. Miley Cyrus, aka Hannah Montana, broke that popularity barrier in December, 2007 when Bart had to write on the blackboard "The capital of Montana is not Hannah." In the same month, Wheel of Fortune featured the celebrity in one of its puzzles. Do Not Overlook Lilo and Stitch Lilo & Stitch is an animated film released by Walt Disney Pictures in June of 2002. It was only the second feature made at the animation studios at Disney-MGM Studios in Orlando, Florida. It marks only the sixth Disney film to be set in present times, and had originally been slated to be set in rural Kansas. The setting was soon changed to Hawaii to facilitate a new take on the story. Tarzan - Groundbreaking Technology Coupled with a Classic Story Tarzan is the Academy Award-winning animated movie produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation. It was released by Walt Disney Pictures in 1999, becoming the thirty-seventh film in the Disney animated features canon. Based on the famous story by Edgar Rice Burroughs, the story follows the adventures of a feral child raised in the African jungle who returns to England to reclaim his birthright. This adaptation of the Tarzan tale is the first animated version Robin Hood, one of the most beloved films in the Disney canon. Robin Hood, the twenty-first animated film released by Walt Disney Studios, premiered on November 8, 1973. It was the first feature the studio released that had no creative input from Disney himself, who died in 1966, and had many Hollywood insiders doubting the ability of the studio to carry on without him. The success or failure of this one film would make or break the most successful animation studio in U.S. history. Aladdin - The Most Popular Movie of 1992 Aladdin is the multi-award-winning feature from Walt Disney Pictures. Released to rave reviews in 1992, Aladdin was the thirty-first animated feature released by Disney Studios. It was released at the peak of the Disney renaissance that had begun with the release of The Little Mermaid. It was the most successful movie of 1992, earning over $217 million domestically and $504 million worldwide. Digital Audio Mixers from the Audio Experts There are lots of of applications for sound systems. Some tiny venues, such as a coffee shop or a room in a library designed to host lectures, may require only a uncomplicated public address system with a single microphone and a 100-watt amplifier. Church sound necessitates systems of various sizes-the larger ones even employ sound technicians for sound mixing during worship. Large live sound events like music festivals, rock concerts, and political rallies call for sophisticated sound reinforcement systems with tens of thousands of watts to relay sound over a vast area. Microflex Diamond Grip Gloves Nurses have never had it easy. Never. Throughout history they have been underappreciated, and disrespected, faced difficult patients, suffered disgusting working conditions, and endured unkind slights of all types. Not until the Crimean War and Florence Nightingale's famous appearance on the scene did people even consider the possibility of hospital conditions having an effect on the mortality rate. It is hard to imagine now the sort of appalling experience she faced. Mary Poppins, An Oscar Winning Classic Mary Poppins is the beloved musical produced by Walt Disney and starring Julie Andrews. Released in 1964, the film was based on the best-selling children's book written by P.L. Travers and illustrated by Mary Shepard. It enjoyed phenomenal success when it was released, and was ranked by the American Film Institute as the 6th best musical of all time, just above A Star Is Born and below Cabaret. Minka Aire Creates a Cool Breeze Imagine sweltering through the heat of summer in the American south without ever having the benefit of cool. moving air! That aggravation alone could ignite tempers ripe for Civil War! Not until the 1860's and 1870's did inventors discover how to get a little man-made breeze blowing! Beauty and the Beast, the Highlight of the Disney Renaissance Beauty and the Beast is the 30th animated feature made by Walt Disney Studio. Based on the traditional French fairytale made popular by Madame Beaumont's story published in 1756, the film premiered at Disney's El Capitan Theater in Los Angeles in 1991. Beauty and the Beast is still one of the best known and beloved films in the Disney canon. The Shaggy Dog - Disney's First Live Action Comedy The Shaggy Dog is a black and white 1959 Walt Disney movie about a youngster who is transformed into a sheep dog by a magic ring. Aside from its comic merit, it is noteworthy as being the first Walt Disney live-action comedy ever made. A testament to its appeal is the number of remakes and spin-offs based on this source material. The Creation of the Pioneering Disney Studios The Walt Disney Company was founded in 1923 by brothers Walt and Roy Disney in Los Angeles. The Disney brothers started by creating a series of live-action/animated short films collectively named The Alice Comedies. Within four months of the first screenings, the brothers were urged to relocate to larger facilities, dubbed "Disney Bros. Studio." According their official website, in 1925 the Disney brothers made a deposit on a lot on Hyperion Avenue in the Silver Lake district of Los Angeles. This lot would house the Disney Studio for the next 14 years, seeing the beginning of such beloved characters as Mickey Mouse, Pluto, Goofy, and Donald Duck. Bambi, Disney's 5th Animated Classic In 1942, Walt Disney released his fifth animated movie, Bambi. It was based on the Austrian book Bambi, A Life In The Woods, by Felix Salten. Published in 1923, the book followed the adventures of a male roe deer from birth to maturity. The book was popular both in Europe and the United States. Salten, whose real name was Siegmund Salzmann, was Hungarian by birth but spent most of his time in Vienna. The popularity of the book inspired Salten to write a sequel entitled Bambi's Children. Digital Audio Consoles - Create a mix in minutes. The recent screen writers strike made nearly everyone in the country aware of just how vital one segment of the entertainment business can be. It was a field day for reality television, but for everyone else it was a nightmare! The result of a sound technicians' strike to any aspect of the music, television, or movie industry could be equally harmful. Few people outside the business grasp the importance of a sound man or could begin to fathom the workings of an audio console. Silicon Valley Hotels all Envy the Sainte Claire Silicon Valley in northern California is a lively place. Formerly associated with computer chip technology, the name now refers to a wide array of high technology businesses. Talented engineers met venture capitalist and moved into the neighborhood! Among the truly thousands of corporations headquartered in the vicinity are Apple Inc., Hewlett-Packard, and Cisco Systems. Obviously, with so many huge names in the tech industry housed there, the hotel business is going strong. The Country Bear Jamboree When Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom opened in 1971, it featured a great audio-animatronic show called The Country Bear Jamboree. As the name suggests, the show featured bears playing country music. The show was such a hit that capacity was expanded, Disneyland got its own Jamboree, and an additional theatre was built to satisfy the demand. Sharkboy and Lavagirl, A Dreamy Classic The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl takes viewers on a wild ride in the grand tradition of fantastical films such as Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, which is set in a bizarre world, and films such as The Never-ending Story, in which mistreatment by bullies sends the victim into a dream world where he can be a hero. The merger of fantasy and reality in the film is intriguing. The Internet Is Now Portable In New and Exciting Ways Imagine yourself in a crisis: you are supposed to be meeting a client for dinner to finalize a big deal and you have been delayed because a meeting in a nearby town ran long. When you go to contact your client, you realize you forgot to charge your cell phone. The battery is dead, and the client's contact information is in your dead phone! What do you do? Your contract is suddenly at risk just because you did not remember to plug in your cell phone?! When XBox Meets Disney, the Results are Huge Because of the internet, the world is a different place, and changes happen overnight. It has metamorphosed the way we make friends with one another, the way we study, and the way we entertain ourselves. About a year ago, for instance, the Xbox Live Marketplace was started to allow users to download movie rentals on demand. This innovative service was embraced immediately. Within seven months, more than 10 million movies had been accessed via Xbox's online downloading service. Currently, it is the only company renting on demand movies in high definition. Disney DVDs are Not Just for Children to Enjoy Nobody wants to be the parent who allows their children watch videos all the time or who uses the television as a baby sitter. However, on a dull day or for a special occasion, it is welcoming to be able to have a shelf of movies that are appealing fare for kids. It is also a sanity saver to have a portable DVD player to entertain kids on never-ending car rides or airplane flights or on the occasional days when your children have to accompany you to the office! Digital Audio Mixers for Sale or Rent No one watching a live television feed such as the Grammys or the Academy Awards show, could fathom all that goes on behind the scenes! It may look smooth as silk on your television screen, but just beyond what the camera sees lies a veritable bustle of activity complete with cameras, long swinging jibs, boom mikes, dozens of focused technicians, and miles and miles of wires. What may look spontaneous is anything but! Kimberly Clark Gloves Offer the security of Nitrile Rubber Many careers call for the use of gloves, both for the protection of workers and for cleanliness. Where once the manner of disease transmission was unknown and care for employees' health and safety was minimal, now such things are a matter of vital concern. Today, people in all sorts of jobs rely heavily on gloves. Day care workers and food handlers wear gloves to avoid the spread of germs, as do health care employees. Laboratory workers need protection from harmful chemicals, and industrial workers use gloves to guard against injury as well as harmful chemicals. The variety of gloves manufactured is amazing. Minka Aire Cools With Class There is something about a beautiful ceiling fan that stirs the imagination. For some people, they recall a easier time, when life moved at a less crazy pace, often dictated by the heat of the day. For the romantically inclined, the sight of fans spinning slowly conjures up visions of inviting porches in hot southern climates or the exotic atmosphere of tiki bars in tropical paradises. Anyone can appreciate the cool breeze generated by a ceiling fan as opposed to the punishing cold air blasted from an air conditioner. Remembering Disney 2008 ushered in the 85th year for the movie giant the world all refers to as Disney in general. Disney, specifically, began very small in 1923. The first productions were called "Alice" comedies, beginning with "Alice's Day at Sea." A lot of folks today have no memory of Alice, but the name Mickey Mouse rings a bell with nearly everyone in the country. Purell Hand Sanitizer Protects You Wherever You Are Have you ever been in a situation where you badly needed to wash your hands and there was no bathroom available? Maybe you just shook fifty hands at an outdoor company picnic, any one of them contaminated with who knows what. Or maybe you petted a dog in the park. Or the worst yet-the port-a-potty at your son's baseball field provided no way to clean your hands. The feeling that there are germs setting up camp all over your hands is enough to make you sick--literally! Fantasia - Disney's Classical Masterpiece Fantasia is the third feature Walt Disney produced and is perhaps the most experimental. The feature has no dialogue, relying instead on a splendid soundtrack performed by the Philadelphia Orchestra conducted by Leopold Stokowski. Though the film is mostly animated, it does have some live-action sequences featuring Stokowski and the Orchestra. Fantasia was also remarkable for being the first major film to be screened in stereophonic sound. The Great Disney Movies are also some of the Greatest Movies Almost from its unremarkable beginnings as an animation company housed in a garage, Walt Disney has been turning out blockbusters. From the iconic Mickey Mouse to the popular collection of Disney princesses now taking over the world, Disney has won over both children and their parents. For the eighth decade running, they are producing blockbusting movies which dominate the box office. The Innovative Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs The production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs began sometime in early 1934. This was Walt Disney's first crack at producing an animated film. To this point, Disney had effectively drawn a series of animated shorts entitled The Alice Comedies as well as Mickey Mouse and Silly Symphonies. Sleeping Beauty - A Classic You Should Revisit Sleeping Beauty was the sixteenth film in Walt Disney's canon, following Lady and The Tramp and preceding One Hundred and One Dalmatians. It was the last feature to be based upon a fairy tale, written by Charles Perrault. Indeed, Disney Studios would not return to a fairy tale again until the 1989 release of The Little Mermaid. Moreover, this was the last feature to use hand-inked cells. Pinocchio is the Best Hand-drawn, Pre-computer Disney animation. Pinocchio, the character, was imagined by Carlo Collodi in 1883. The adored boy made from a block of pine by Geppetto the woodcarver was first introduced in the story The Adventures of Pinocchio. Collodi was very keen on using a impish, cynical character to explore his own personal convictions and cultural and political critiques. As late as 1938, this was how Walt Disney had characterized the much-loved wooden puppet who longed to be a real boy. How Disney's Cinderella Changed 20th Century Animation Cinderella, the twelfth film released by Walt Disney, was the first full-length film since Disney released Bambi in 1942. The Second World War and a series of lower than expected box office returns made the prospect of a full-length feature problematic. Indeed, most critics regard Cinderella a pivot point between the classic Disney animation of the 1930s and 40s and the new animation of the 1950s and 60s. Why I Enjoy Kuletos, one of the finest San Francisco Restaurants When it comes to fine dining, San Francisco is a difficult city to beat. It has a reputation for featuring cuisines from all over the globe. One of the local stand outs for Italian fare is Kuletos. Its menu is full of unique flavors from Northern Italy that often include the city's famous seafood. Reservations can be made online, so you can shop and tour the area surrounding Union Square, then hit Kuletos and be escorted straight to your table! Mickey Mouse Club Still Resonates with Baby Boomers Older Americans remember with fondness coming home from school in the latter years of the 50's to watch Walt Disney Studios' Mickey Mouse Club. The second television show offered by Disney, The Mickey Mouse Club was televised in part to help finance the creation of the Disneyland theme park. From 5:00-6:00 in its first two seasons and from 5:00-5:30 in its last two, U.S. teens were glued to the set. Ratatouille Is Scrumptious Film Fare Ratatouille, the eighth Pixar production, is a delectable treat. The irony of the kitchen's most dreaded menace, a rat, becoming a fine chef is too fun to resist-at least, that is what Pixar thought of the concept when it was introduced in 2001. The name comes from a French recipe and translates literally to "toss food." It is difficult to imagine a more delightful title for this film. Why I Chose Disney's Cars from the Disney Movie Club The 2006 animated feature film Cars is a movie that will entertain everyone in the family. In a world populated entirely by vehicles, Cars carries a message of admirable sportsmanship and examines the idea of success and how it is measured. The seventh Pixar film (the final one before Disney took over) is as delightful as its predecessors. Why I Bought Peter Pan at the Disney Movie Club Based on the famous play, and subsequent novel, by J.M. Barrie, "Peter Pan" had been intended to follow the huge success of "Bambi." Walt Disney had planned to make the film as early as 1939, even going so far as to parley the rights with the Great Ormond Street Hospital (who had been bequeathed the rights to play by Barrie). The onslaught of World War II delayed the production until 1949. The film was not released until 1953. Larkspur Hotels Delight Travelers of all Types Every hotel likes to advertise itself as 'your home away from home" but few reach the level of comfort which Larkspur properties provide. Located in some of the most vibrant, naturally breathtaking areas of America, they make business travel a pleasure and pleasure travel nothing short of decadent. The Benefits Of Tech Lighting How quickly humans forget! With iPhones which let us order our lives and even check our e-mail and home entertainment centers that rival a cinema, we hardly give a thought to the wonder of lighting. Yet lighting is just that-nothing short of a marvel. Have you ever tried to accomplish anything by candlelight during a power outage? Effortless things like reading and climbing the stairs to bed become clumsy. And it was not that long ago that our forefathers lived out their entire lives in that manner. No wonder everyone went to bed at dusk and woke at first light!

Sign Up for a free account!
Undecided? Learn more about the benefits of submitting your articles to Avid Articles!

Submit Articles
Member Login
Top Authors
Most Popular Articles
Submission Guidelines
New Article Notifications
Article RSS Feeds

What's New
About Us
Link to Us
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service

Powered by Article Dashboard