From the Amazon rainforest to human body cells: Quantifying stability

Jan. 6, 2013 ? As they typically result from severe external perturbations, it is of vital interest how stable the most desirable state is. Surprisingly, this basic question has so far received little attention. Now scientists of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), in a paper published in Nature Physics, propose a new concept for quantifying stability.

"Up to now, science was able to say if a complex system is stable or not, but it wasn't able to properly say how stable it is," says Peter J. Menck, lead author of the paper. The proposed concept is the first to fill this gap. "We conceive a system's alternative states as points in a mountainous landscape with steep rocks and deep valleys," explains Menck. "In the sinks between the peaks, a system comes to rest like a rolling ball would. Now the likelihood that the system returns to a specific sink after suffering a severe blow strongly depends on how big the surrounding valley is." In the high-dimensional systems Menck and his colleagues study, the equivalent of the valley is called the basin of attraction. The basin's volume is the measure the authors suggest to use for the quantification of stability.

Getting the actual data still is a challenge

The authors envision the new concept to become a powerful tool for complex systems studies, including the assessment of climatic tipping elements like the Amazon rainforest. Under unabated global warming, this ecosystem might change from its present fertile forest state to a much drier savanna state. Such a transition would destroy one of the planet's most important CO2 sinks, thus contributing to further climate change. "Amazonian bistability arises from a positive feedback: Deep-rooting trees take up water and transpire it to the atmosphere" Menck says. Forest cover in the region increases overall rainfall and thereby improves its own growing conditions. If the forest cover gets pushed below a certain threshold, this mechanism doesn't work any more -- the rainforest would die.

The "basin stability concept" is apt for quantifying this risk. However, it is critical to actually do this from measured data. "Other researchers recently have collected the characteristics in terms of precipitation, temperature, soil of rainforests and savannas under defined climatological conditions," Menck says. Still, the assessment is extremely challenging as the tipping of a forest is a rare event, so observation data is scarce. In contrast, observation data of human cells changing from a healthy state to cancer can be abundant. "So medical researchers told us that our concept could be quite helpful in better assessing the risk of sane cells to turning sick when disturbed by specific exogenous factors."

"Simple yet compelling -- that's the way fundamental physics looks like"

Power grids have to function in good synchronization to assure that lights can be switched on everywhere anytime. Previous theory suggested that this should most easily be achieved if power grids had what researchers call a random structure, which in fact would yield many short-cuts between distant nodes. Yet in reality, grids look far more regular. Applying the basin stability concept shows why that is: In more regular grids, the desired synchronous state possesses a far bigger 'basin', hence is much more stable against perturbations.

"The basin stability's applicability to high-dimensional systems allowed us to solve a puzzle that has long haunted complex network science," says J?rgen Kurths, a co-author of the paper and co-chair of PIK's research domain 'Transdisciplinary concepts and methods'. "Our new nonlinear approach jumps from a local to a whole system analysis, thus complementing previous research mostly based on linearization. This new concept is simple, yet compelling -- that's the way fundamental physics looks like."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK), via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Peter J. Menck, Jobst Heitzig, Norbert Marwan, J?rgen Kurths. How basin stability complements the linear-stability paradigm. Nature Physics, 2013; DOI: 10.1038/NPHYS2516

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_technology/~3/ItxWuJXKM_w/130106145745.htm

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Seagate's Central debuts at CES, accesses your digital wares inside your home and out (video)

Seagate's Central debuts at CES, accesses your digital wares inside your home and out

Seagate's Wireless Plus portable streaming hard drive isn't the only device the company is pulling the wraps off of at CES. The outfit has also announced Central: a robust shared storage / consumer NAS solution for your home that allows streaming to DLNA compatible devices and Samsung Smart TVs as well as computers and mobile devices. The same Seagate Media app that sorts your files on-the-go is at work here on iOS, Android and Kindle Fire to push content to your living display or view while you're on the road -- and to multiple users, too. Central also allows for automatic and continuous backup of connected computers with 2TB, 3TB and 4TB options that range in price from $189 to $259. If you're looking snag one for your casa, you'll have to wait until March. But don't fret, a closer look and a quick demo reside on the other side of the break.

Continue reading Seagate's Central debuts at CES, accesses your digital wares inside your home and out (video)

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/01/06/seagates-central-debuts-at-ces/

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Gardening ? Could you be in legal trouble over plants?

By Lee Reich
Associated Press
The intricacies of plant patenting came home for me this past year with a shipment of strawberry plants.
Strawberry plants send out runners, thin stems on the ends of which new plants form, which themselves take root and bear fruits and send out more runners. Those daughter plants forming at the ends of runners are useful for filling in a strawberry bed as well as for transplanting elsewhere to make a new bed.
But these particular plants that I bought last spring were a patented variety (Chandler). So transplanting those daughter plants would constitute a crime.
How about just letting the plants root by themselves? OK, but only for fruit production to fill in my strawberry bed. Propagation of any plant produced asexually (that is, not by seed) just to make new plants is forbidden under the Plant Patent Act of 1930.
The only exceptions are plants propagated by edible tubers ? white potatoes, for example. Growers of white potatoes evidently were vocal enough back when the Act was being drafted to press for the right to save and replant their own potato tubers.
Some might argue that the Plant Patent Act was too long in coming. If it had been in place earlier, then Stark Brothers Nursery, which bought propagation rights to the original Red Delicious apple for $3,000 in 1894, would not have had to erect a cage around the original Red Delicious tree. That cage only stopped people from using the original tree for propagation, however; once Stark Brothers started selling trees, those trees could be used by anyone to propagate new ones.
The 1930 legislation was broadened, in 1970, with the Plant Variety Protection Act.
It meant that seeds, which are sexually produced when pollen fertilizes eggs, could now also be protected by patents ? so-called utility patents. That?s the same kind of patent used for, say, a new and better stapler or dog whistle or ? more recently and controversially ? genes.
To be offered patent protection, a seed variety must not have been sold in the U.S. for longer than a year, or elsewhere for longer than four years. The variety must also reproduce reliably and be distinct.
Distinctiveness has always been a potential bone of contention, especially since DNA fingerprinting can now be used to unlock a plant?s genetic code, some of which is just ?junk,? not expressing any trait.
Patents are valid for about 20 years, after which anyone can propagate the plant for sale or otherwise. Someone could even then produce hybrid seeds, produced by crossing specific parents, because patents, available for anyone to see, spell out exactly how a product is made.
Enter trademarks. Whether or not a plant has been patented, it could be assigned a trademark name. What?s more, that trademark is assigned to a company or individual, who could put that name on any of their plants, even a few different ones. A patented variety also could be marketed under more than one trademark.
A patented plant is one thing and a trademark name another. Patents have a limited life; trademarks can be renewed indefinitely, which makes them useful. If you start selling some outstanding patented plant under a trademarked name, people will continue to buy it under that trademark even after the patent expires. Other people could propagate the patented plant, but could not sell it under your trademark.
A plant label stating ?PPAF? (plant patent applied for) means, for plants, the same thing as ?patent pending? for anything; ?PVR? (Plant Variety Rights) means the plant has been patented. A plant may be patented, though, without it stating so on its label. Names of trademarked plants are followed by a symbol that looks like ?R? with a circle around it.
I recently learned that three birch trees I planted have broken a rule about patenting and trademarking. They are Heritage birches. The variety name under the patent is Heritage, and the plant was later trademarked Heritage. That?s a no-no: a variety and trademark name must be different.
Oh well, I?m not the one who broke the rule, and the plant is pest-resistant and beautiful despite its brush with the law.
http://leereich.blogspot.com/
http://leereich.com/

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Source: http://blogs.rep-am.com/garden/2013/01/06/could-you-be-in-legal-trouble-over-plants/

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Venezuela looks for missing plane with Missoni CEO

Essential News from The Associated Press

AAA??Jan. 6, 2013?4:05 PM ET
Venezuela looks for missing plane with Missoni CEO
AP

In this photo taken on Feb. 23, 2010, Vittorio Missoni poses for photographers in Milan, Italy. The search resumed Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013 for a small plane that has disappeared off the Venezuelan coast with six people aboard, including Vittorio Missoni, a top executive in Italy's Missoni fashion house, officials said. Vittorio Missoni, 58, is the director general of the iconic brand and the eldest son of the company's founder. Flying with him on Friday's flight from Venezuela's Los Roques resort archipelago to Caracas, was Missoni's wife, Maurizia Castiglioni, two Italian friends of the couple, and a crew of two Venezuelans. (AP Photo/Gian Mattia d'Alberto, Lapresse)

In this photo taken on Feb. 23, 2010, Vittorio Missoni poses for photographers in Milan, Italy. The search resumed Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013 for a small plane that has disappeared off the Venezuelan coast with six people aboard, including Vittorio Missoni, a top executive in Italy's Missoni fashion house, officials said. Vittorio Missoni, 58, is the director general of the iconic brand and the eldest son of the company's founder. Flying with him on Friday's flight from Venezuela's Los Roques resort archipelago to Caracas, was Missoni's wife, Maurizia Castiglioni, two Italian friends of the couple, and a crew of two Venezuelans. (AP Photo/Gian Mattia d'Alberto, Lapresse)

In this undated photo provided by Venezuela's Ministry of the Interior and Justice Press Office, a plane that went missing sits on the tarmac of the airport in Los Roques, Venezuela. Venezuela's Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said the plane was declared missing hours after taking off Friday, Jan. 5, 2013 from Los Roques, a string of islands, cays and islets that is popular for scuba diving, white beaches and coral reefs. He said the plane was expected at Simon Bolivar International Airport in Caracas but didn't arrive and that the four Italian tourists aboard, including Vittorio Missoni, a top executive in Italy's Missoni fashion house and his wife Maurizia Castiglioni, had spent their Christmas and New Year at the resort. The plane had two Venezuelan crew members. (AP Photo/Ministry of the Interior and Justice Press Office)

In this photo taken on March 30, 2005 Vittorio Missoni, right, and his wife Maurizia Castiglioni smile in Milan, Italy. The search resumed Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013 for a small plane that has disappeared off the Venezuelan coast with six people aboard, including Vittorio Missoni, a top executive in Italy's Missoni fashion house, officials said. Vittorio Missoni, 58, is the director general of the iconic brand and the eldest son of the company's founder. Flying with him on Friday's flight from Venezuela's Los Roques resort archipelago to Caracas, was Missoni's wife, Maurizia Castiglioni, two Italian friends of the couple, and a crew of two Venezuelans. (AP Photo/Livio Valerio, Lapresse)

In this photo taken on Nov. 23, 2004 Vittorio Missoni, left, and his father Ottavio smile in Milan, Italy. The search resumed Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013 for a small plane that has disappeared off the Venezuelan coast with six people aboard, including Vittorio Missoni, a top executive in Italy's Missoni fashion house, officials said. Vittorio Missoni, 58, is the director general of the iconic brand and the eldest son of the company's founder. Flying with him on Friday's flight from Venezuela's Los Roques resort archipelago to Caracas, was Missoni's wife, Maurizia Castiglioni, two Italian friends of the couple, and a crew of two Venezuelans. (AP Photo/Livio Valerio, Lapresse)

(AP) ? The search for a missing plane carrying Italian fashion executive Vittorio Missoni and five other people has entered its third straight day on Sunday with no signs of the aircraft.

Venezuela's government said authorities would not call off the search involving the National Civil Aviation Institute, Coast Guard and Navy until they find the BN-2 Islander plane that disappeared off South American country's coast and all of those who were on board.

"All the authorities involved in these tasks are not reducing the intensity of the search until they locate the plane as well as its crew and passengers," the government said in a written statement. It said search teams are using a plane and two helicopters as well as several coast guard vessels and 29 divers.

The small, twin-engine plane was reported missing hours after taking off Friday from Los Roques, a string of islands and islets popular among tourists for their white beaches and coral reefs.

The plane was carrying the CEO of Italy's iconic Missoni fashion house, his wife, two Italian friends and two Venezuelan crew members.

Officials from Venezuela's civil aviation agency have said that authorities declared an alert after the plane didn't make contact with the control tower at the Caracas airport or with the tower in Los Roques. The plane took off at 11:39 a.m. on Friday and had been expected to arrive at Caracas' Simon Bolivar International Airport 42 minutes later, according to officials.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-01-06-Venezuela-Italy-Missing%20Plane/id-e3002c94557c42d98e4058f3bbe18b46

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Should lottery winners' names be kept secret?

In this Nov. 29, 2012 file photo, television cameras rolling, as store manager Bob Chebat, middle, hands over Wes Prinzen's, right, modest $4 winnings, at a 4 Sons Food Store where one of the winning tickets in the $579.9 million Powerball jackpot was purchased in Fountain Hills, Ariz. When two winning tickets for a record Powerball jackpot were claimed last month, the world focused on the winners. One, from Missouri, showed up at the newsconference, while the other, in Arizona, chose to remain anonymous. Releasing information on the lottery winners reflects a broader debate playing out in state Legislatures and lottery offices nationwide: Should the winners? names be made public?(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, file)

In this Nov. 29, 2012 file photo, television cameras rolling, as store manager Bob Chebat, middle, hands over Wes Prinzen's, right, modest $4 winnings, at a 4 Sons Food Store where one of the winning tickets in the $579.9 million Powerball jackpot was purchased in Fountain Hills, Ariz. When two winning tickets for a record Powerball jackpot were claimed last month, the world focused on the winners. One, from Missouri, showed up at the newsconference, while the other, in Arizona, chose to remain anonymous. Releasing information on the lottery winners reflects a broader debate playing out in state Legislatures and lottery offices nationwide: Should the winners? names be made public?(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, file)

In this Nov. 29, 2012 file photo, members of the media document store cashier Tanice Stefanich helping a customer at a 4 Sons Food Store where one of the winning tickets in the $579.9 million Powerball jackpot was purchased in Fountain Hills, Ariz. When two winning tickets for a record Powerball jackpot were claimed last month, the world focused on the winners. One, from Missouri, showed up at the newsconference, while the other, in Arizona, chose to remain anonymous. Releasing information on the lottery winners reflects a broader debate playing out in state Legislatures and lottery offices nationwide: Should the winners? names be made public?(AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, file)

PHOENIX (AP) ? When two winning tickets for a record $588 million Powerball jackpot were claimed from the Nov. 28 drawing, the world focused on the winners.

A Missouri couple appeared at a press conference and held up the traditional giant-sized check. The Arizona winner, however, skipped the press conference where lottery officials announced last month that someone had claimed the second half of the prize.

The differing approach to releasing information on the winners reflects a broader debate that is playing out in state Legislatures and lottery offices nationwide: Should the winners' names be secret?

Lawmakers in Michigan and New Jersey think so, proposing bills to allow anonymity because winners are prone to falling victim to scams, shady businesses, greedy distant family members and violent criminals looking to shake them down.

Lotteries object, arguing that publicizing the winners' names drives sales and that having their names released ensures that people know there isn't something fishy afoot, like a game rigged so a lottery insider wins.

When players see that an actual person won, "it has a much greater impact than when they might read that the lottery paid a big prize to an anonymous player," said Andi Brancato, director of public relations for the Michigan state lottery.

Most states require the names of lottery winners be disclosed, albeit in different ways. Some states require the winner to appear at a press conference, like Missouri winners Mark and Cindy Hill did on Nov. 30.

Arizona and other states allow winners not to appear in public, but their names can be obtained through public records laws. The Arizona winner, Matthew Good, was not identified at the news conference a week after the Hills' came forward, and has not given interviews or appeared in public.

When news media including The Associated Press learned of his name through records requests, TV crews and reporters flocked to Good's neighborhood to get reaction from the winner of a lottery that captivated the nation.

Jeff Hatch-Miller, executive director of the Arizona Lottery, said he understands winners' desire for privacy, but he argues they are essentially entering into a large contract with the government that is public. Others argue that appearing at a news conference helps defuse media interest because the winner is available to answer questions that satisfy the media's interest in telling their stories.

In Michigan, Republican state Sen. Tory Rocca pushed a lottery bill that allows winners to remain anonymous. It didn't pass, but in arguing for it, he cited cases where lottery winners were shot and killed because of their newfound wealth.

A Florida woman was convicted last month of first-degree murder after she befriended a man who won a $30 million jackpot in 2006. Prosecutors said she took control of his assets, killed him, buried him in her yard and poured a concrete slab above the grave.

An effort in New Jersey by Democratic Sen. Jim Whelan took a middle ground between public release and privacy, calling for a one-year delay in releasing winners' names. It also didn't make it out of the Legislature last year, but he said he'll keep pressing to get it passed.

Whelan said a one-year delay would give winners a chance to adjust while still keeping the public disclosure lotteries say they need. However, Whelan said he doesn't really buy the agencies' arguments for public disclosure.

"I'm not sure how many people are spurred to buy a lottery ticket because they see a picture of someone in the paper holding up a big check - and I don't think people don't buy a ticket because they think the whole thing's fixed," Whelan said.

Of 44 states participating in Powerball and 33 in Mega-Millions, only Delaware, Kansas, Maryland, North Dakota and Ohio allow blanket anonymity, said Chuck Strutt, executive director of the Multi-State Lottery Association, which oversees the games.

"Obviously, it is a law that is designed to ensure an open and transparent process, so that the public can be ensured that insiders are not winners," Strutt said. "But in today's world, most of us can understand the wish to remain anonymous."

The most famous modern lottery fraud case happened in 1980 when Pennsylvania Lottery district manager Edward Plevel and TV announcer Nick Perry were convicted of fixing the result of the Daily Number drawing.

Authorities found that some of the ping pong balls used in the game were injected with paint to make them too heavy to float up the winning slots. The result paid $3.8 million, a record at the time, and eight people involved in the fix won a total of about $1.2 million.

Former Missouri child services worker Sandra Hayes shared a $224 million Powerball jackpot with a dozen co-workers in 2006 and said she understands the push for anonymity.

Hayes said she received many requests for money or to make investments, both at work (she kept her job another month) and at home, where she'd find people waiting on her porch. Her lump sum payout after taxes was more than $6 million.

Even if people are allowed to remain anonymous, it's often inevitable that their identities will become known.

Steve Thornton, a lawyer in Bowling Green, Ky., has helped two big lottery winners shield their names through corporations despite rules in his state that require disclosure of winners. Even though they were kept out of the public eye, one winner couldn't stay hidden.

"It was not many months later that lots of people knew who won, even though it was not released, because of their gifts and their spending." Thornton said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-01-04-Lottery%20Privacy/id-501a7f55c2b84861b64c0fe0608a3199

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Web Hosting Glossary Phrases It'S Best To Know | Veritas India

Posted on January 4, 2013 by dufttuey508 in Internet

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NASA?s Curiosity rover finds ?flower? on surface of Mars

Does this image taken by Curiosity's Mars Hand Lens Imager show a "Martian flower?" (NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS)NASA has released a series of new photos taken by its Curiosity rover that appear to show a ?flower? on the surface of Mars.

NBCNews.com?s photo blog reports that the photos were taken as part of an effort to capture 360-degree images during Curiosity?s trek through Mars? Yellowknife Bay.

New Jersey-based journalist and photographer Ken Kramer has assembled the Curiosity photographs, adding color to give a realistic view of what the rover is seeing on the planet?s surface.

But what has really caught people?s attention is a raw image from NASA?s photo feed that one reader on Above Top Secret has called a ?Martian flower.? On the posting, the commenter going by the name ?Arken,? writes: ?The Albedo (or Reflectivity of Sun Light) of this object is very high, and its translucent appearance, the irregular conformation (like pistils) and the 'texture' of its wider areas is smooth, and seem that it is ground attached. This is the SECOND TRANSLUCENT ANOMALY detected by Curiosity in Gale Crater.?

NBC?s Alan Boyle writes that he at first assumed the ?flower? was actually just a piece of plastic that had fallen off the Curiosity rover. A similar event happened in October. So, Boyle reached out to NASA spokesman Guy Webster. Interestingly, Webster shot down the plastic theory, saying in response, "That appears to be part of the rock, not debris from the spacecraft."

On Wednesday, scientists announced that an ancient rock that traveled from Mars to Earth over 2 billion years ago appears to have interacted with water on the planet?s surface.

So, what do you think? Does the image show a decayed piece of organic life residing on the surface of Mars?

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/sideshow/nasa-curiosity-rover-finds-flower-surface-mars-220649001.html

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Outright Plus

Several years ago, a couple of young men left Intuit to start their own business. They struggled with the organization of their new company's financial data because it was spread out all over in places like online bank accounts, spreadsheets and PayPal. Outright Plus ($9.95 per month) grew out of that frustration. Kevin Reeth and Ben Curren didn't set out to create an application that would compete with QuickBooks. Rather than trying to build a financial solution that would provide A-Z accounting tools, they wanted to address one very challenging situation: taxes. Specifically, quarterly and annual income taxes and sales taxes for sole proprietors, freelancers and other small businesses.

Today, the collection of tools that used to be called Outright is instead Outright Plus, and it now costs $9.95 per month to subscribe?a reasonable charge considering its scope (you can still use the site's income- and expense-tracking tools for free). The company has done a great job of selecting integrated partner sites that their audience might be likely to frequent and use for related financial functions, solutions like PayPal and FreshBooks, eBay, and Etsy.

A Smart Shell
Outright Plus itself is really just a framework that manages your core financial functions. It imports, categorizes, stores and reports on transactions from other sources so that your sales- and income tax-tracking require exponentially less data entry and time. It also maximizes accuracy, since you never have to re-key the same transaction twice.

Setup is simple. The first thing you'll do is add the accounts that contain financial transactions that you'll want to import and keep updated. This process works similarly in all of the sites reviewed here. You click, "Add an Account," and then either type in the name of the institution or select it from the list provided. Enter the user ID and password you use to sign in to its website, and Outright Plus establishes a connection, then downloads your first group of transactions (you can update these whenever you want to). Clicking on the Income and Expenses tabs opens the checkbook-like registers that contain your activity.

If Outright Plus recognizes the name of the company that you exchanged funds with, it assigns it to a category. If not, you can select one yourself from the list provided, and indicate whether you want Outright Plus to always assign that category to that particular source. You can also enter income and expenses manually.

Getting Ready for Taxes
There are four types of categories: income, expense, non-business expense and non-business income. The first two are the most important, as they're linked to specific areas on the IRS Schedule C. For example, "Sales" links to "Gross Receipts or Sales." The Non-Business Income and Expense categories are used for personal transactions, credit card payments, estimated and income tax payments, etc.

You can add and edit categories, but you shouldn't alter any category related to taxes. The founders were reticent at first to even allow this capability because it can affect the accuracy of your Schedule C.

There are two special categories that are not true income or expenses, because you're simply passing along money you collect that belongs to the state: Sales Tax Collected and Sales Tax Submitted. Some imported deposits, like those coming from eBay, will have already separated sales tax from the other money collected from sales and categorized it correctly. You can also enter sales taxes collected manually and run a report that displays sales by state.

Fulfilling Your Obligations
Lest you worry about all of these financial transactions flying into Outright Plus, there are a couple of things you should know. First, Outright Plus uses bank-level security. There are actually security professionals standing guard in the facilities that house the remote servers. And second, no one can compromise your accounts and transfer funds elsewhere. You can't even do that. Outright Plus simply houses and categorizes your transactions.

All of this account updating and careful categorization pays off when taxes are due to states or the federal government. Click the Taxes tab, and a page opens with four subtabs. The first, Annual taxes, displays the happy number that is your current net profit, as well as your total income and expenses. Under each of the latter two, Outright Plus supplies the dollar figures that will appear on specific lines of the Schedule C. Click on a line, and you can view or edit the individual transactions that contributed to the total.

If you're self-employed, you know how difficult it is to determine how much to submit each quarter in estimated taxes. Outright Plus does that for you, providing a number that should be reasonably accurate, assuming that you've imported and recorded every related transaction. So when it's time to pony up. click the Quarterly Taxes tab. Outright Plus displays the amount you should pay and lets you record the payment on that same page (unfortunately, you'll have to submit the payment yourself ? Outright Plus doesn't do that). Sales taxes are handled similarly. Outright Plus tells you how much you've collected and should pay, and provides a field to record your payment.

If you've received a 1099-K form, you'll get help understanding this new IRS requirement and finding related data within Outright Plus.

Pulling It All Together
Outright Plus' dashboard ("Overview") does a nice job of consolidating your most critical financial information on one page. The left vertical pane displays links to new sales and uncategorized transactions; account totals for money you have and owe; and current calculated tax obligation totals. Two big charts on the right show you your profit and loss totals (with a link to a detailed table) and your expense category breakdown.

Outright Plus is representative of the future of small business accounting. We're very slowly moving toward cloud-based procedures, a la carte financial management. Today's smartest people in the field tell us that years from now, companies will be able to select individual solutions from different vendors that meet their needs in areas like bill-paying, invoicing, payroll, inventory management, reports, etc. They'll be built to easily integrate with each other.

Small business accounting vendors have long been partnering with companies that make complementary solutions, applications that add more sophisticated features to traditional software. The QuickBooks desktop family is the best example of this; there are hundreds of add-ons in its App Center. But financial management has begun a long, slow evolution away from the desktop and into the cloud.

Today, Outright Plus has a fairly small group of solid add-on partners. But its founders had the right idea. It'd be a good choice for you if you're a sole proprietor or very small business that simply wants a way to track income and expenses by importing financial transactions, invoice customers (by integrating with FreshBooks), track and record sales tax obligations, and have your quarterly taxes estimated and your Schedule C business data automatically calculated and categorized. If you want a more comprehensive, traditional solution online, QuickBooks Online is your best choice today.

More Accounting and Tax Software Reviews:
??? Outright Plus
??? Less Accounting
??? Kashoo
??? QuickBooks Online Plus
??? Wave Accounting
?? more

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Y-cam's HomeMonitor and Cube camera helps you monitor babies, burglars from the cloud

Ycam launches HomeMonitor and Cube cameras to help you monitor babies and burglars from the cloud

The downside of a consumer society is that we need to protect our smartphones with as much vigor as our babies. Fortunately, the price of freedom isn't eternal vigilance, but $200, paid straight to Y-Cam, makers of the WiFi Baby. It's releasing the HomeMonitor, a secure, cloud-connected camera that lets you stalk / observe your offspring or prized possessions over the internet with a smartphone or tablet. An indoor variant is $200, while a weatherproofed version for scanning the frontiers of your home will set you back $350 and both will drop shortly. At the same time, you can pick up the Cube, a night-vision IP camera designed for professionals that'll cost you between $200 and $350, depending on the resolution you plump for, when it arrives in February.

Continue reading Y-cam's HomeMonitor and Cube camera helps you monitor babies, burglars from the cloud

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/01/03/y-cam-homemonitor-cube/

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Life in the Stars

Life in the Stars

A 1 on 1 roleplay with nikarorse. A military space adventure that helps changes two soldiers forever.

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boultinator93
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