Now, where was I ? Oh yes...

The hunters, or more to the point, the hunted.

They got the problems, I'll supply the solutions. At least, I'll be offering some ideas that might help.

We have established during the last post that Hunters lack two things - easy to use crowd control and a reliable enough escape mechanism.

Wait. I sense something. Something comes to mind.

Actually, more than one something. Let's have a look.

Aspect of the Monkey (Rank 2)

The hunter takes on the aspect of a monkey, increasing chance to dodge by 8%. Also frees the hunter from one movement impairing effect. Only one Aspect can be active at a time.

After all, monkeys are slippery creatures, aren't they ?

Let's analyze this new feature. Does it grant the hunter improved escapism ? In a way, it does. While it doesn't put him further from his enemy, it does allow him to flee after applying some snare to his target (e.g. Wing Clip). Lore-wise, it is incorporated into a skill that is already associated to tight situations and minimizing incoming damage. Balance-wise, it does make the hunter less prone to movement impairing effects, but nothing too world-shattering, as Druids already have a similar feature built into their shapeshifting.

Scatter Shot [Trainable]

I know, you heard it before. Heck, you even thought about it yourself. And I said I'll be inventive, you probably say to yourself.

Hold your horses. Recycling is part of the deal. An indispensable aspect of renovation is also bringing new light to some oldies.

Back to the topic then, trainable Scatter Shot.

How does it help the Hunters ? It gives them a reliable way to gain a 4 second distance twice a minute. As it is not subject to the 5 yards keep-your-gun-holstered zone, it can be used in any close quartered situation, in contrast to all other ranged skills. Design-wise, this isn't a big deal, Blizzard has a history in making talents trainable (may I remind the court of the Ice Block precedent ?).

Balance-wise might be more complicated though. Scatter Shot with its current design can be used every 30 seconds, which makes it rather powerful. Moreover, it has decent range, thus making it useful as an offensive ability, which will probably be the case in arena to delay escaping opponents. Making it trainable will require some toning-down.

What I have in mind, it probably is the most straightforward solution, but also the most effective in my opinion - Increase the ability's cooldown to 1 whole minute.

WHAT ?!

I can already hear the accusations. "You come with the flag of buffs, but instead bring us nerfs ?? Witchcraft. Blasphemy. Paganism. Burn, crush, destroy the heretic !".

Wow, tough crowd. Hear me out, please. Obviously, I am not finished, yet.

We have taken away one of the Marksmanship's core talents, so we should compensate them. They used to have a 30 seconds Scatter Shot, we can't have them have a longer cooldown ability as replacement, it wouldn't be fair. We give them something instead. Something nice. Something that will probably reduce the cooldown by 30 seconds, on top of something else. What would it be ? Don't ask me now, I'm having such a good time, I'm writing my blog. Maybe later. Maybe.

Camouflage (Rank 1)

From Wrath of the Lich King Alpha leaked information:

(Level 68, 5 min cooldown) You Camouflage, causing you to blend in with your surroundings. Instantly removes all physical and spell debuffs, and you fade into an improved invisibility state. Camouflage will break after you deal damage. Lasts until cancelled.

So this isn't exactly my idea. Also, at the time of writing, this isn't exactly any longer in the game.

Which leads me to assume it has been removed.

This could have been one of the best escape skills in the game. The debuff removal would have guaranteed survivability, on top of allowing the hunter to swiftly retreat from the hot zone. The improved invisibility would have given him the precious time to find a new cozy spot.

I suppose it was too good to be true. The removal of all debuffs, and the invisibility was mimicking the Rogue's Vanish and Cloak of Shadows combo, so it was really that good. Additionally, this skill would have allowed Hunter to sneak into instances, unseen, then exploit various bosses for shiny shinies. A definite no-no in the big book of gaming.

But it's such a nice idea. Hunter actually camouflage to get their prey, don't they ? (let us forget for a moment we actually dwell into the kingdom of escapism).

They do, but they can't do it that well. What would it be then ? Here's a thought.

(3 min cooldown) You Camouflage, causing you to blend in with your surroundings. For the duration, you ignore all physical and spell debuffs, and you fade into an improved invisibility state. Camouflage will break after you deal or suffer damage. Lasts 6 seconds.

Changelog: Cooldown decreased. Ability no longer lasts forever, but has a very short duration now. Additionally, it no longer "cleanses" all debuffs, but now strictly ignores them for duration of the skill.

This makes it no longer exploitable, Rogue envy-free, and yet strong enough to allow the Hunter to move away from trouble. Lore-wise, the name and description might no longer be accurate (6 second camouflage won't bring meat to the table...), but that's just cosmetics. Design-wise might be tricky, since the game currently does not have immunity mechanism that do not remove debuffs (Divine Shield for example instantly removes any debuff on the target), but I'm sure Blizzard developpers will cope with it (*cheer*).

There is more to come, but not right now. Same place, random time. The Hunter arsenal shall be revised, with more À-la-escape-artist trick bunnies popping out of hats.

Teaser: Primal Roar.

Until we meet again.

Hunters. The less you see them, the more you're in danger.
Keep them close - Keep yourself safe.

Yesterday I finished reading another biography, only this time it was an autobiography by non the less then Italians, if not the worlds, most famous ex porn star: Ilona Staller, in art: Cicciolina.

It is an interesting book, very easy to read, again, unpretentious but pretty honest in the way she deals with most topics. I suppose whoever reads a biography of this kind expects a lot of juicy sex scenes described into minimum details and maybe even with other famous men... but none of the kind can be found in Cicciolina's book. Don't get me wrong, she doesn't ever deny her glorious past as a porn diva and she also does describe a couple of adventures she went through in her carrier as an actress, as well as a famous woman with an adventurous private sex.

She starts with her birth and goes on pretty much chronologically all the way through to her marriage with Jeff Koons, being pregnant, losing the baby and getting pregnant again... Now, the part about her and Jeff Koons is the best one because it is the freshest from a time poin of view and also the most spectacular and sad at the same time, so of course, the reader has to go through all th book to get to the most interesting part, at least gossip wise. But Cicciolina never really goes very deep into details. She describes facts and events without ever really giving in to her emotions and often not telling the reader what really led her to make certain choices in life. She makes everything sound too naive. She often repeats of herself as being too naive but loving herself for it at the same time.

I have to admit that there were parts in the book where I thought she was overdoing it with the naive little girl story so she did make me angry because she is a grown woman and has made it through a great deal of stress and problems in life and one would think she learned from her and other people's mistakes... but no... she just kept on making the same ones over and over again. So, for example, at one point it was forbidden for her to travel to the united states. She wanted to go to the Bahamas from Italy and the flight she chose to take was over New York. She could have taken a flight over London instead, but no... let's play with fate and destiny. So guess what happens after she lands in New York?!?! I don't want to spoil the surprise... read the book!!! Let's just say that she does arrive to the Bahamas in the end... (she seems to have fans all over the world... especially in airports). I consider myself one of those big fans:)

I start reading the part where she describes her political/sexual engagement in Italy and her triumphant parliament years. All sounds so weird and great at the same time. She was a sort of rebel when it all adds up to resisting and surviving in hostile environments. A lot of fucked up Italian puritans didn't like her at all. In my opinion she was the best thing that could have happened to Italy back in the day and still would be today. She writes about her employment as a Hungarian spy and how it was to be used by the communist regime back in the day. There is also an interesting part about her spectacular shows in theaters and discos across Italy in the eighties and I really wish I would have seen some of them.

But still we are all waiting for her to finally start writing about the Koons period and failed marriage. Well, I can only say that even if only a segment of how she describes him is really true then he would still be one of the most awful people on this planet. A total jerk. He treated her like hell. Called her a bitch and a whore, hit her even. He kidnapped her son and she had to risk a lot to run after him to the States and try to fight legally to get Ludwig, her sons name, back. Unfortunately, as it usually is in the states, the Americans are always right and add the fact that the father was a millionaire, and the judges consider Jeff to be the proper parent to raise Ludwig. Ilona was devastated and had almost no money left to fight for her child legally. Jeff's security team was following her day and night to make sure when she spent time with her child that she wouldn't try to escape with him. Jeff's mother was a horrible smoking couch-potato sort of a woman, as described by Ilona. She hated Ilona and never missed a chance at making her feel like a slut and a lower being.

I know love is blind and I know many people are prone to commit to an agressive relationship and a partner that kills them inside, maybe even slowly. But still... get over it girl! Wake up! Cicciolina always continued with her naive manner and made me go crazy as I was reading the book. But then, suddenly, as if from nowhere, she gets the guts and the strength and makes a plan to escape with Ludwig from New York. The odyssey lasts not that long and she doesn't give any real insight as to how and where she ran from and to to get back to Rome with her son, but she did. and here she starts a quick wrap up of the book, as if bored by all the mess she had to go through after getting back to Italy and trying to fight legally for the custody of her child. Let's just say that in the end she gets custody of Ludwig and he is now about sixteen or seventeen years old. She could have written a lot more about her life in the past ten years, but maybe she thought it wasn't as spectacular as it should have been. If this is the reason, she is mistaken. She should definitely bring out a second part or the continuation of her life in a book. I would love to read it.

The rest is history. I really wish you would read the book. It's fun and special. And Ilona Staller is a dear character and a person I would definitely like to meet some day soon. The version of the book I have is in Italian and the title is : "Ilona Staller - Per amore e per forza - l'autobiografie di Cicciolina". Mondadori editions. ISBN 978-88-04-56730-1

Love,

Ivan

Yesterday I have listed a (rather long I'd say) compendium of abilities that help each class to survive incoming damage.

Today I'll start to pinpoint which classes have the upper hand, and which might need a helping one.

I think we'll have to consider an arena setup. In this setup, you're fighting in a closed environment, for a limited duration of time. Moreover, you usually have some allies at your side, so delaying your opponent a bit will usually be enough to get some help.

Under such a setup, we'll have to consider a few things.

• Ability Cooldown. Abilities that can be used once a fight are obviously less effective than those that can be used multiple times over the duration.
• Efficiency. Does the ability guarantee an escape ? To what extent ?
• Ease of Use. Title says it all. Defining factors are if the ability is target-able, is cast quickly, requires facing the enemy, etc.

Let's start with a class that is nowadays considered to be one of the best in arena survivability - the Druid.

Why is he so good at it ? Well, first because he got many options. Second, because most those options have short cooldown, and have a pretty good escape guarantee.

Let's look closer.

Before anything else, Druids have healing over time spells. What this means is they can heal themselves while they are escaping. Sure, it isn't as effective as a big heal cast over a few seconds, but saving those seconds ensures the Druid is no longer close to danger (hopefully).

Conclusion: HoTs are an asset when you got to run for your life.

Now, to the tricks and quirks.

Druids have very good mitigation between Bear Form and Barkskin. Within 1.5 seconds (shifting into bear, then casting Barkskin), they have about +50% damage mitigation vs. melee, and +20% against spells.

When mitigation just won't do, they can move away from their enemies quite efficiently as well. Either using Travel Form, or switching to Cat Form then popping Dash. Those skills are amongst the fastest escape mechanism currently available (with the Mage's Blink and the Rogue's Sprint).

Now, let's assume there is a rather persistent enemy on the Druid's tail, which needs to be shaken. Two skills come to the shapeshifter's aid, both are spammable and have no cooldown - Entangling Roots against everything that is melee, or Cyclone for anything else. It is important to notice that those are 1.5 second target-and-forget skills, so are very easy to use, and harder to counter as they are cast quickly. Each will keep the enemy occupied for enough time to prepare for the worst that's coming.

EDIT:Obviously, I forgot one of the most important things that make the Druid such a master of elusion. The act of shapeshifting removes from the caster any movement impairing effect. In other words, he can remove anything that holds him in place (while still having control over the character) in a blink of an eye. Basically, you can't be slowed down or held in one place. Impressive.

(Note: I won't go for now into more advanced considerations, such as Cyclone being completly dispel immune, making it one of the best CC spells for PvP currently available.)

Let's recap quickly. Druids have excellent escapism because:

• They have fast considerable damage mitigation on demand.
• They have fast and easy to use reliable crowd control.
• They have the mean to create some distance between themselves and the enemy.

For now, I think Sir Druid will receive the title The One That Got Away.

Let's analyze the next class in line, in comparison to what we just discovered. Let's take a look at the Hunter.

First comes to mind, is the lack of spammable crowd control. Hunters have traps that can hold the enemy in place, but those are linked to a 30 second cooldown. Once one trap is set (even unsprung), no other can be used for another thirty seconds.

This surely can't help them escape very easily. Suffice for their opponent to counter the first one, and the hunter has one less trick to use for a little while. But well, this isn't everything they have.

Hunters also have Wing Clip and Concussive Shot, depending on the range of their enemies. Both have short duration cooldown, but aren't as effective as other escape systems, since they rely on slowing their enemy down, instead of hastening themselves. In arena setups, it is a good assumption that if you are slowing down your enemy, he is probably also slowing you down. Hence, moving slowly away from a slow opponent leads you back to square one. But again, it isn't all.

Those who hunt have Aspect of the Cheetah, which makes them faster by 30%. The drawback however, is they become dazed (-50% speed if I remember correctly) for 4 seconds each time they are hit. Conclusion - this is hardly useful while trying to flee.

Tough luck so far for hunters, when it comes to escape. But, do not despair, for I have kept the best for last.

Depending on their spec, hunters have some special abilities that can come to their aid. Marksmen use Scatter Shot to gain precious seconds to run away, Beast Masters use Intimidation for the same goal, or The Beast Within to gain slow immunity, while Survivalists can pop Detterence to avoid melee slowing effects, then Wyvern Sting to keep an enemy at bay for a bit.

Concluding all I've just said, I think that hunters at the moment, lack the ability to escape reliably from battle. Why ? Well, for starters they have no skill that helps them to get some space between themselves and their foes. Additionally, they have no CC whatsoever that can be used frequently enough.

Problems, problems, problems... What about a solution ?

Stay tuned. In my next post, I'll try to invent something useful for the tamers of beasts.

Stay.
They say.
Pray.
They say.
Nay.
He ran away.
He saw another day.

I’m still part of the rat race. I still judge my accomplishments by how much money I make and how accomplished I feel I am in my career. Since I am very hard on myself I often feel like I have not accomplished anything.

But then I stop for a moment and realized that nothing of that is true. The only thing that is happening is that my mind is on autopilot and is repeating what it was taught an accomplishment to be.

I have a wonderful life, do only what I want and I’m my own boss. What would I do if I would have what I was taught success is? What if I would have all the money in the world?

I would live the life I’m living right now.

My mind still does not want to accept that. It does not want things to be good, there always has to be something wrong. So while I am having a wonderful life I am suffering because my mind is telling me that I have never accomplished anything.

What is an accomplishment? To take pictures for Italian Vogue, shoot a big fashion campaign, making millions of dollars?  Or writing this blog, maybe helping a few people and living a simple but fulfilled life? My heart is picking the second choice and my mind picks what it was programmed to do, Italian Vogue.

The mind/ego is always for rat-race. It will push us to be faster, bigger, richer, more successful, stronger and more intelligent. It will always focus on what we don’t have instead of how rich our lives are and it will keep us unhappy.

The trick is not to listen. :-)

"The Rat Race" Manhattan/New York City/7th Avenue and 38rd Street 07-17-08 at 07:30 PM

Copyright © July 24, 2008 David Hodges

Wrath Beta is on the way. There is a ton of information flowing, anywhere you look. You can try and avoid it if you like, but you'll never escape some whines. Some people whine so hard, you can hear them everywhere.

And oh, there seem to be alot people whine about.

But this isn't about those people. This is about one of the topic they discuss.

I think a good place to start discussing balance in the game, is in PvP. Where players bash, dodge, counter-bash and counter-dodge each other, since the creation of the world (of Warcraft of course).

So PvP is about making sure your opponent bites the dust before you, and you have more or less two ways to increase your odds in doing that.

1. Call forth the elements of destruction to your side, and make sure you are done with your foe as quickly as possible.
2. Pray for the spirits of protection, hoping they'll make you survive longer than the enemy.

Today (and in the upcoming days I think), I'd like to talk about what's behind curtain number two.

You're under attack! Suffering focus fire from deadly enemies. You can retalliate, but it seems the best course would be to duck for cover. What do you do? A duck would obviously, well, duck.

Most WoW classes on the other hand, have more versatile options. Those options can be classified into several similar areas.

• Healing. Healing through incoming damage is a way of avoiding it. Also includes "cleansing" hostile abilities.
• Damage Mitigation. Powers that reduce how much you suffer will ultimately keep you on your feet longer.
• Avoidance. In contrast to mitigation, this means not suffering any damage completely.
• "Escapism". The ability to take distance from your enemy. Also includes abilities that prevents your enemy from slowing you down.
• Crowd Control. When your enemy is under control, he can't hurt you
• "Delays". Spells that grant you a moment's breath to reorganize. This includes short stuns and moving impairing effects.

Every spec can perform one or more of the above feats. Some are better at it, some got more options. Let's start with a complete rundown.

• Druid. Healing over Time spells, Remove Curse, Poison removing spells. Generic: Dire Bear Form (Mit.), Entangling Roots (CC), Barkskin (Mit.), Bash (Del.), Dash (Esc.), Travel Form (Esc.), Maim (Del.), Cyclone (CC). Balance: Nature's Grasp (CC).
• Hunter. Aspect of the Wild. Generic: Aspect of the Monkey (Avo.), Concussive Shot (Del.), Wing Clip (Del.), Aspect of the Cheetah (Esc.), Freezing Trap (CC), Frost Trap (Del.). Snake Trap (Del.). Survival: Deterrence (Avo.), Counterattack (Del.), Wyvern Sting (CC). Beast Mastery: Intimidation (Del.), Bestial Wrath (Esc.). Marksmanship: Scatter Shot (Del.).
• Mage. Remove Curse, Mage Armor. Generic: Frost Armor (Del.), Frostbolt (Del.), Polymorph (CC), Frost Nova (Del.), Blink (Esc.), Mana Shield (Avo.), Cone of Cold (Del.), Ice Block (Avo.), Fire Ward (Avo.), Frost Ward (Avo.), Invisibility (Esc.) Frost: Ice Barrier (Avo.). Water Elemental - Freeze (Del.). Fire: Blast Wave (Del.), Dragon's Breath (Del.).
• Paladin. Healing spells, Cleanse, Shadow, Fire and Frost Resistance Auras. Generic: Hammer of Justice (Del.), Blessing of Protection (Avo.), Divine Shield (Avo.), Blessing of Freedom (Esc.). Protection: Holy Shield (Mit.), Avenger's Shield (Del.). Retribution: Repentance (CC).
• Priest. Healing spells, Healing over Time spells, Disease removing spells, Shadow Protection. Generic: Power Word: Shield (Avo.), Psychic Scream (Del.), Fear Ward (Esc.), Mind Control (CC). Shadow: Shadowform (Mit.), Mind Flay (Del.). Discipline: Pain Suppression (Mit.).
• Rogue. Generic: Gouge (Del.), Evasion (Avo.), Sap (CC), Sprint (Esc.), Crippling Poison (Del.), Distract (Esc.), Vanish (Esc.), Kidney Shot (Del.), Blind (CC), Cloak of Shadows (Avo.).
• Shaman. Healing spells and totems, Poison and Disease removing spells and totems, Frost, Fire and Nature Resistance Totems. Generic: Earthbind Totem (Del.), Stoneskin Totem (Mit.), Tremor Totem (Esc.), Frost Shock (Del.), Frostbrand Weapon (Del.), Ghost Wolf (Esc.), Grounding Totem (Avo.), Windwall Totem (Mit.). Enhancement: Shamanistic Rage (Mit.). Restoration: Earth Shield (Mit.).
• Warlock. Generic: Fear (CC), Healthstones, Drain Life, Curse of Weakness (Mit.), Shadow Ward (Avo.), Howl of Terror (Del.), Death Coil (Del.), Seduction (CC), Sacrifice (Avo). Affliction: Curse of Exhaustion (Del.), Siphon Life. Demonology: Soul Link (Mit.). Destruction: Shadowfury (Del.).
• Warrior. Generic: Thunderclap (Mit.), Hamstring (Del.), Defensive Stance (Mit.), Shield Block (Mit.), Intimidating Shout (Del.), Shield Wall (Mit.), Berserker Rage (Esc.), Spell Reflection (Avo.). Protection: Last Stand (Mit.), Concussion Blow (Del.). Fury: Piercing Howl (Del.).

Ok. Having this chunk of text and links behind, I'd like to say a few things.

First, it's the last time I'm going to do this, I promise. I just realized how much work it takes, and how... Gah! It looks so nightmarish. Blogging comes with its hard lessons learnt with time.

Second, I'm aware some of the above skills will probably almost never be used in PvPish environments, but I have decided to list everything that can theoretically help.

Third, I have decided not to list interrupts, silences and disarms. Those however are still kinds of "delays" and avoidances. I suppose I'll elaborate more on those another time.

Fourth and lastly, in PvP, some classes are more reliant on staying away from their enemies, while others attempt to get close and personal. While I have listed anything to escape damage and close contact, I am aware that some classes (e.g. Warrior, Rogue, Paladin) are likely to use other skills to prevent their target from escaping. Again, this will probably be elaborated another time.

That it! Now we are ready to analyze stuff.

Alas, the wall of links has drained all my strength, I'll have to continue tomorrow.

"Brave Sir Robin ran away."

- Month Python and the Holy Grail

Here's an interesting article I found on the subject:

The Dinner Table

Remember the good old days when families had dinner together, with the TV turned off, and discussion time was a group effort from every member. With the inventions of the modern world we as humans have lost something that is very dear to our nature; we have lost human connection. When your dinner conversation is replaced by an internet game itinerary, and factious names that a face cannot be placed with, do you start to question your quality of life? Who are their real friends, what do they have in common besides a computer and a made up world? Maybe they find that working in 40hr work week with a hour commute home is to much of the real world, so they have to escape. They escape away from it all, away from the office, the home, and the people of today's world. But are they also are escaping from their families, their kids whom go to school for 8 hours and want just a small amount of activity with their parents. Even if they give attention to the children before their bedtime, what about the spouse? Where is that human connection, the discussions of the day, how they are feeling, and what are their plans for tomorrow. "We can talk about it later.........I have to logon now."

-From wivesagainstwarcraft.blogspot.com

Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay is the 2008 comedy film sequel to the 2004 film, Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle. John Cho and Kal Penn reprise their roles as the eponymous stoner duo, along with Paula Garcés as Harold's love interest, Maria. Neil Patrick Harris also returns as a satirical version of himself.

Download Torrent

Los intermediarios financieros fijan sus precios y comisiones en función del perfil de cada cliente y del riesgo que conlleva los productos contratados. Éstos van desde la búsqueda de la mejor oferta para financiar la compra de una vivienda hasta la unificación de todos los créditos, incluidos los personales, o las deudas contraídas en tarjetas.

El tipo de interés medio ronda el euríbor más el 3%, mientras que la comisión de gestión se sitúa alrededor del 2% sobre el total del capital que está pendiente de amortizar. 'Nosotros proponemos una solución a medida de cada cliente', explica Carlos Carrera, director de negociación financiera de DFin. Añade que su entidad acaba de sacar al mercado, por ejemplo, una hipoteca muldivisa, que se dirige a personas con unos ingresos altos y una elevada cultura financiera.

Pero también cuentan con otros remedios para aquellos que estén pasando apuros económicos o que hayan dejado de pagar las cuotas durante algunos días o meses. La válvula de escape consiste en alargar el plazo del crédito, lo que repercutirá en una rebaja de la cuota mensual. A cambio, el usuario tendrá que correr con los gastos del cambio de hipoteca, los de constitución de la nueva y la comisión que cobra el intermediario.

Según una simulación realizada, una persona que tenga una hipoteca y dos créditos personales, con un capital pendiente total de 148.963 euros, verá reducida su factura mensual de 1.275 euros a 808,17 euros. Su deuda total, sin embargo, se incrementará desde los 332.300 euros hasta los 387.921 euros, con lo que al final tendrá que pagar 55.621 euros más. Esta cantidad incluye las comisiones que ingresa el intermediario, así como los costes de la operación. Con la desaceleración económica, los expertos esperan que esta actividad se incremente en España. 'En 2008, esperamos un crecimiento de en torno al 35%, lo que supone un volumen de 1.900 millones de euros', señalan en Asifin, la patronal del sector que agrupa 22 entidades.

Una tendencia que ya se comenzó a detectar a finales del pasado año. 'Existe una inquietud por abaratar las cuotas y por las subrogaciones tras la nueva Ley Hipotecaria; también para agrupar deudas. Esperamos que el repunte se produzca a partir de marzo ya que los bancos han endurecido sus políticas de riesgo y hay entidades que ahora mismo no quieren financiar', explica Carlos Carrera.

Desde Asifin se defienden de las críticas acerca de los elevados precios que en algunos casos se aplican. 'Somos un sector regulado', explica Massimo Scavarda, director general de Asifin, que añade que su principal cometido es 'el asesoramiento al cliente de toda la oferta bancaria para que éste elija la que más le interesa'.

Claves para conocer cómo funciona esta actividad

Entidades

En España operan unas 8.000 entidades en esta actividad, pero no todas son intermediarios financieros puros. En esta cifra se incluyen, por ejemplo, algunas inmobiliarias que han entrado en este negocio como una vía para vender pisos. Existe además una variedad de modelos que va desde franquicias hasta sociedades limitadas o financieras. Esta situación hace difícil que se establezca una catalogación única.

Productos

La gama es muy amplia. Va desde hipotecas o la búsqueda de las mejores ofertas en créditos entre diferentes entidades financieras (el intermediario negocia con bancos y cajas, que son los que conceden el préstamo al usuario) hasta la unificación de todas las deudas. En este último punto se incluyen tanto clientes que estén al corriente de los pagos como aquellos que hayan entrado en la lista de morosos.

Comisiones

No existe un standard, ya que depende del importe y de la solvencia de cada cliente. La comisión de gestión suele rondar el 2% sobre el importe del préstamo, aunque cuando la cantidad rebasa los 5.000 euros se suele poner un tope. El usuario debe también tener en cuenta los gastos que le supondrá la cancelación de la hipoteca, así como la apertura de una nueva y los seguros que tendrá que contratar.

Publicidad

Algunas entidades basan sus campañas en una agresiva publicidad tanto en radio como en televisión. El consumidor debe leer la letra pequeña, al igual que con los créditos rápidos, y no hacer caso sólo del gancho que se utiliza en estas ofertas. Muchas veces al tipo de interés que anuncian hay que añadirle todos los gastos que van implícitos en el cambio de un préstamo.

Documentación

Depende de cada intermediario financiero. Pero la mayoría suele solicitar al cliente que pide un préstamo el:

1. Documento Nacional de Identidad,
2. las tres últimas nóminas
3. información fiscal (IRPF o certificado de retenciones e ingresos) y algunos datos bancarios. Si se trata de una hipoteca también se exige la escritura de propiedad de la vivienda.

Compartir:

Fuente: Guía de créditos

Los intermediarios financieros fijan sus precios y comisiones en función del perfil de cada cliente y del riesgo que conlleva los productos contratados. Éstos van desde la búsqueda de la mejor oferta para financiar la compra de una vivienda hasta la unificación de todos los créditos, incluidos los personales, o las deudas contraídas en tarjetas.

El tipo de interés medio ronda el euríbor más el 3%, mientras que la comisión de gestión se sitúa alrededor del 2% sobre el total del capital que está pendiente de amortizar. 'Nosotros proponemos una solución a medida de cada cliente', explica Carlos Carrera, director de negociación financiera de DFin. Añade que su entidad acaba de sacar al mercado, por ejemplo, una hipoteca muldivisa, que se dirige a personas con unos ingresos altos y una elevada cultura financiera.

Pero también cuentan con otros remedios para aquellos que estén pasando apuros económicos o que hayan dejado de pagar las cuotas durante algunos días o meses. La válvula de escape consiste en alargar el plazo del crédito, lo que repercutirá en una rebaja de la cuota mensual. A cambio, el usuario tendrá que correr con los gastos del cambio de hipoteca, los de constitución de la nueva y la comisión que cobra el intermediario.

Según una simulación realizada, una persona que tenga una hipoteca y dos créditos personales, con un capital pendiente total de 148.963 euros, verá reducida su factura mensual de 1.275 euros a 808,17 euros. Su deuda total, sin embargo, se incrementará desde los 332.300 euros hasta los 387.921 euros, con lo que al final tendrá que pagar 55.621 euros más. Esta cantidad incluye las comisiones que ingresa el intermediario, así como los costes de la operación. Con la desaceleración económica, los expertos esperan que esta actividad se incremente en España. 'En 2008, esperamos un crecimiento de en torno al 35%, lo que supone un volumen de 1.900 millones de euros', señalan en Asifin, la patronal del sector que agrupa 22 entidades.

Una tendencia que ya se comenzó a detectar a finales del pasado año. 'Existe una inquietud por abaratar las cuotas y por las subrogaciones tras la nueva Ley Hipotecaria; también para agrupar deudas. Esperamos que el repunte se produzca a partir de marzo ya que los bancos han endurecido sus políticas de riesgo y hay entidades que ahora mismo no quieren financiar', explica Carlos Carrera.

Desde Asifin se defienden de las críticas acerca de los elevados precios que en algunos casos se aplican. 'Somos un sector regulado', explica Massimo Scavarda, director general de Asifin, que añade que su principal cometido es 'el asesoramiento al cliente de toda la oferta bancaria para que éste elija la que más le interesa'.

Claves para conocer cómo funciona esta actividad

Entidades

En España operan unas 8.000 entidades en esta actividad, pero no todas son intermediarios financieros puros. En esta cifra se incluyen, por ejemplo, algunas inmobiliarias que han entrado en este negocio como una vía para vender pisos. Existe además una variedad de modelos que va desde franquicias hasta sociedades limitadas o financieras. Esta situación hace difícil que se establezca una catalogación única.

Productos

La gama es muy amplia. Va desde hipotecas o la búsqueda de las mejores ofertas en créditos entre diferentes entidades financieras (el intermediario negocia con bancos y cajas, que son los que conceden el préstamo al usuario) hasta la unificación de todas las deudas. En este último punto se incluyen tanto clientes que estén al corriente de los pagos como aquellos que hayan entrado en la lista de morosos.

Comisiones

No existe un standard, ya que depende del importe y de la solvencia de cada cliente. La comisión de gestión suele rondar el 2% sobre el importe del préstamo, aunque cuando la cantidad rebasa los 5.000 euros se suele poner un tope. El usuario debe también tener en cuenta los gastos que le supondrá la cancelación de la hipoteca, así como la apertura de una nueva y los seguros que tendrá que contratar.

Publicidad

Algunas entidades basan sus campañas en una agresiva publicidad tanto en radio como en televisión. El consumidor debe leer la letra pequeña, al igual que con los créditos rápidos, y no hacer caso sólo del gancho que se utiliza en estas ofertas. Muchas veces al tipo de interés que anuncian hay que añadirle todos los gastos que van implícitos en el cambio de un préstamo.

Documentación

Depende de cada intermediario financiero. Pero la mayoría suele solicitar al cliente que pide un préstamo el:

1. Documento Nacional de Identidad,
2. las tres últimas nóminas
3. información fiscal (IRPF o certificado de retenciones e ingresos) y algunos datos bancarios. Si se trata de una hipoteca también se exige la escritura de propiedad de la vivienda.

Compartir:

Fuente: cincodias.es

"There are only 10 kinds of people in the world: Those who understand binary, and those who don't." -- Unknown

Granted, you are probably part of the geek sector if you think like this. But, we have all been impacted by digital technology and it shows by the way we talk, the tools we use and the toys we play with.

The 1980's

I began my career in 1981 as a software developer working on a teleconferencing project at the University of Dayton Research Institute for the U.S. Air Force. The system included large screen projection, a dual screen lectern with a "soft keyboard" and digitizing surface for electronic handwriting and control of the pointer. Images were called slides. They could be either color business charts or digitized black and white camera images (aka freeze frame.) Separate software existed for creating the business slides, capturing and processing the B/W images, and for presenting the slides (like PowerPoint). All of the application software was homegrown by our research staff as well as the multipoint network controller.

The audio portion of the conference used a secure government conferencing bridge. Hardcopy came in three forms: B/W thermal copies, 35mm color slides and 8x10 Polaroid prints. By 1985 we had customized and installed 5 complete multimedia and conferencing systems for the USAF, including the Logistic Command's command post.

Limited bandwidth, computing speed and memory prohibited full-motion video at that time. Our system provided control of the electronic slides, electronic pointer and real-time handwriting over a 4800 BPS connection. The computing platform consisted of PDP-11 class hardware running RT-11 and RSX-11 operating systems. In the 1980's, this was bleeding edge stuff!

The 1990's

While I had moved on to other software projects and without my permission, the teleconferencing industry continued to move forward. I was drawn back into the communications arena when UDRI deployed our first email system. Not long afterwards a colleague introduced me to the WorldWide Web. I immediately started creating Websites by hand coding HTML. The Web remained my professional passion for the remainder of my career as a research scientist.

In between Web projects I found time to tinker with Webcams, Webinars, and various other communications tools. Sometime around 1998 I participated in a point-to-point video conference at Wright-Patterson AFB and a demonstration by TeleSuite near Dayton, OH. These were partly responsible for drawing me back to the teleconferencing industry.

2000 and Beyond

More computing speed and memory is available in today’s run-of-the-mill laptop computer than a whole rack full of those PDP-11’s. The combination of cheap computing power, widespread access to residential broadband and the viability of Voice Over IP (VoIP), set the table for what we all heard about in the 1960’s, what I flirted with in the 1980’s and what a few experienced in the late 1990’s – video conferencing. In fact, today it is available and affordable for anyone, anywhere there is a broadband connection -- worldwide. I believe before long, the term "video conferencing" will be shortened to "conferencing" to eliminate redundancy.

Movies and television programs had shown us for years what to expect. Even so, people seem to have been caught off guard by this technology. It’s amusing to watch people experience their first video call. Like puppies, kids are curious and fearless -- they can’t wait to sink their teeth into new stuff. Adults are more like cats. They tend to sneak up on the phone so they can see, but not be seen. But after a minute or two, some are waving, smiling, making faces, doing gestures and thoroughly enjoying the experience just like the pups, I mean the kids. I never get tired of watching this scene.

I think any company that is considering an investment in video conferencing would be wise to get started with video phones. The model I own is portable and hides in the corner of a suitcase. It's easy to setup and use and very inexpensive. When needed, it interfaces easily to other equipment like DVD players, video cameras, external sound systems, large screen televisions, and more. It even acts like a regular phone when calling someone without video. Video phones are an excellent training tool for other video experiences like broadcast quality video conferencing.

Sooner than expected, some companies will recognize the benefits of acquiring a customized, acoustically engineered video conference room with special lighting, multiple cameras, a control room and more. This does not make those video phones obsolete. Their benefits remain the same.

Portability -- Take video phones on the road; loan video phones to key clients that do not have a video conferencing capability.

Training -- Video phones are great for acclimating people to video calling.

Low Cost -- Because not every video conference needs full-blown conference room treatment, video phones make video calling affordable company-wide.

Video conferencing has finally arrived. Get started, have fun and gain a competitive edge.

God bless,

-- CC

© Copyright July 2008, Clancy Cross. All rights reserved.
Read more “Clancy’s Quotes” at: ClancyCross.WordPress.com

I drew a complete blank. Amsterdam? Athens? "Ummm... er... Budapest" I finally managed to splutter. My brain must store cities alphabetically, because at that stage this morning, after three hours sat on the floor in a sweaty dog box of an airport, plus another forty minutes stuck on the runway while thunder and lightning blared around the plane, I was running on auto. Ryanair are a shower of wastrels, but even their incompetence last night couldn't detract from a brilliant weekend in Budapest.

The best of the best bits:

- Our five star hotel, featuring a classy pool and spa, and champagne breakfast on Sunday morning
- Endless coffees and slices of cake at a little cafe down the street
- Dancing like maniacs on a boat until the wee small hours on Saturday
- Climbing Mount Gellert in flip flops in thirty two degree heat; the view from the top was ample reward
- Chats and giggles and pranks, and incredulity that we've known each other ten years now

I'm broke as hell and every muscle in my body aches, but I'm happy out the door.

i found the above on google images. credit to whoever did it. bloody brilliant plus it suits the title of this post.

those who watched the 7 o'clock news on channel news asia will know this - mas selamat kastari, toliet escape extraordinaire and hater of all things civilised, has acquired a spanking new headgear, courtesy of 2 philanthropic members of the local business community.

ok, here's the gist (poor journalistic practice i know) - mas selamat just got a million dollar bounty placed on his head. the grand prize will be bestowed upon whoever or whatever steps forward with information leading to his arrest.

this latest bounty replaces the pathetic 40 grand previously on offer. i mean come on, 40 grand an't enough to buy you enough kalashnikovs and RPGs to arm the boy scouts, let alone a terror cell. furthermore, i doubt $40k is enough to convince potential informants to risk their lives with barely enough moolahs to start anew elsewhere. 1 millon bucks? now we are talking.

all this is very interesting in light of the recent developments or regression in the venerable world of charity. seems to me that the rich and famous are no longer too keen on sponsoring charities especially when their spare change keeps ending up in the pockets of bleating wolves.

instead, they appear to have decided that it is time to take the game to a whole new level - bloodsport. used to be that the english gentry was slammed for hunting game for leisure. these days we have manhunts. progress is a wonderful thing.

the 2 charitable souls who contributed the sum have requested that their identities be kept secret, for fear of retaliation against their lives, the lives of their families as well as their substantial business interests (you'd better believe it).

when asked about the motivation behind such a move, they stated that the very presence of individuals like mas selamat sours the climate for doing business in the region as well as internationally. also, they were getting increasingly disillusioned with the lack of headway that was being made in this regard.

henceforth, a chided society welcomes the noble act, and we wait calmly for the pigs to squeal.

for more news related posts (usually not satirical in nature), click here.

anyway, i'm on the top area, running into the seating area to meet up with my mom and some other female. we're in the far right corner of the room and no one is really around where we're supposed to sit. i dunno how it happens, but my mom accidentally pushes me off the side onto the bottom section, and i try to hold on but fall down. it doesn't feel like much of a fall, but now i'm in the middle of the room. the play spans three rooms and actually the cast is in one of the other rooms right now.

i try to find a seat by the side so that i will no longer be in the center of the room. but i can't find one. there's one man sprawled across a table... like, his stomach is on the tabletop, and his legs and arms are hanging off. a lady is sitting on the ground near him and she says i should do the same thing that guy is doing. apparently, that is less inconspicuous. i am a bit uncomfortable, though, so i try to look for a seat.

before i know it though, one of the guys in the play has walked into our room and he is spouting his dialogue. but i'm still in this weird public spot, and people are angry that i'm ruining the vibe of the play.

i freak out and run out. get lost. arrive outside. it is a maze, after all.

there's a group of guys. one of them starts to make sexually abusive comments and seems to be rather threatening. the other ones don't actually say anything; it seems that guy is the bossguy. i start to run away or something but one of the guys grabs me back.

he picks me up by force, in the way that princes pick up princesses in fairy tales, though. his arms are under my knees and supporting my back, and i have my arms around his neck i think. a little odd. for some reason, i decide to kiss him. he's not even particularly good-looking, but that surprises everyone there. they tell me i'm messed up. the guy puts me down.

i say to the group, "if i go with you, will you let me go back safely?"

no one answers quickly. one guy nearest to me has a grim face and shakes his head slowly, so i run away. some follow, but no one catches me. i get lost trying to find my way back to the room the play was in, but no luck.

That day, escape held no heft. I chose to simply be detached. From flesh, gravity, religion, opinion, and judgment.

~

Excerpt from That Day, July 2008

I thought I was doing everything right, or at least trying to. But here's the thing, I now realize that no matter what I bring into my life, it's all going to slip between my fingers if I don't fix myself at the core.

I don't need to recreate my external world. As I get older, I can see that I've gone that route too many times. It's time to take a hard look at myself and figure out why life has never gotten better no matter where my home is. It's not easy to do, and I know now that I can't do it on my own.

I'm so fortunate to have the friends that I do, they're my family. But it's gotten to the point where I can see the pain in their eyes as they watch me self-destruct. My personal problems have now permeated everything and everyone around me. Co-dependency, self-medicating and escapism have been my downfall.

No matter how many times I've felt my heart ache in these past few months, I know I've arrived at this point for a reason. All of this pain that I am going through is necessary to become the person I want to be. Every last drop.

I'm not going to let this city turn me away. Because guess what? It's not the city, it's me. The only thing I am running from, is myself... and I'm too logical to keep planning an escape when I keep returning to the same place.

If I leave, it's going to be on my terms and not based off of delusional fear. My personal faults cannot be masked as external factors any longer... it's as if I've been chasing my own shadow.

I created this situation and I am the only one who can pick up the pieces. I feel like I'm finally taking the right path to become the person I know I'm capable of being. Big things are about to happen.

"Man looks into the abyss
There's nothing staring back at him
At that moment, man finds his character
And that is what keeps him out of the abyss."

- G.G. in Wall Street

When I was a little girl in the 1970s, Amelia Earhart was my hero. Amelia had piloted the skies, you see, and I wanted to be an astronaut when I grew up. I grew up to be a basket case instead. I bought a camera last year. This telling photo came from the very first set of photos I took with it:

The sky became my favorite subject, nearly to the exclusion of all others. I ended up incorporating water, but usually only if it reflected the sky above it. I have always been a bit of a 'space cadet', but I never understood it. I have even had comments on my blog remarking that some of my photos look as if they were taken from space. Well... they sort of were. I shoot 'em like I see 'em, you know? To me, my sky photos are alternate landscapes. They illustrate another place which I sometimes inhabit to one extent or another. I began to understand late last year when I posted this. And then these photos came together with a work of fiction I had written previously - and they had words; an actual story. I was terrified. If you knew the story (as yet unpublished), you would understand why. I had a terrible flashback after that. I had accidentally salvaged an unwanted and terrifying memory fragment out of the sky. I was afraid to take pictures for a while, but my own personal 'space flights' continued. Eventually, so did my pictures. The sky is a good place to hide as long as I don't forget that I have elements of myself on the ground somewhere as well. If I forget that... I might run into some space debris up there.

I know why I still need the sky photos. They represent my escape from overwhelm. They show me where I went when I was a little girl. I had nowhere else to go. I had no protection, no comfort, no uncontaminated love - I had no safe place on the ground. I had only the sky. To me it was the safety of a mother. Sometimes I still flee there. I go where my tormentors could not follow. They didn't have wings like me. They never did. They cannot get me up there. There I am safe. Unless I get too lost and bring something back out of there with me again. It makes me very angry that that can even happen.

Sometimes I still wonder what really happened to Amelia. It is wrong that a flier should fall from the sky and languish to death on forsaken ground. Even more wrong to fall into the hands of men. Maybe the ocean welcomed her and her navigator. And maybe it reflected a good sky.

wallow so long in what isn’t

a score of sunsets of can't find, of

questions

that seize so much room

there isn’t any space left…

not 2 paint

not 2 write

my guitar empty

squinting eyes looking for love and happiness

in every place eyell never find it, but

20/80

only catches images transient as a shadow…

it can't read love 2 the 9s

and that’s truth.

you give it

they take it away

make you weak

make you feel lonely in different places, they

keep you offended by honesty

keep you negligent

indecisive

and hence

and spent

a score of sunrises

afraid 2 face myself, simply

2 disorderly 2 stretch it out
before eye tore it wide
.
.
eye wont make that mistake again

A bit about my life, first.  I am recently married to my partner of nine years.  We run a very demanding business.  A business that can not function, without us.  So we are stuck to mini-weekend vacations through-out the year, and the one week, maybe two if we are lucky week long vacation at Christmas.  This leaves us mostly stuck on a local level for travel, except during our Christmas Vacation, where we can venture farther away from home.

Our home, is in Langley, British Columbia, Canada.  A suburb located in Metro Vancouver.  With Less than 4 hours driving, we can easily escape the city.  Perfect for us to take our RV, or what I like to call it, "our second home" where-ever we feel like for a weekend of peace, quiet, and relaxation.

We can never make a decision, until it comes to the last moment.  We talk and talk about exactly what we want, but when it comes down to it, we might find something so completely different, that we must have it.

We talked about a C-Class motor-home.  This makes me nervous, for a few reasons.  High cost of fuel, it has an engine, and with engines, come mechanical "errors," and once you pull up to a campsite, you are basically stuck there without a secondary vehicle to take you to the "yummy gourmet" restaurant you saw in the next town you just drove through on your way to the site.  The idea of getting dressed up, and taking your motor-home to a fancy part of the town/city, doesn't really appeal to me very much.

So I mentioned a travel trailer (TT).  My new husband start to squirm in his chair.   I started going on about how cost effective a TT would be as they are much cheaper than a C-Class, we can tow it with a secondary vehicle, and the secondary vehicle would be much better on fuel than a C-Class.  He told me, it had to be small, 18ft, cause he didn't like the idea of pulling something.  Ok, deal. 

Next thing, New or Used?  I liked the idea of a used one, as again, it's cheap compared to buying a new one.  But the big reason is, I can renovate it, put our own style into it, and still come out, much cheaper, than buying a brand new one.  Yes, I know, watch for leaks, the stove or oven probably wont work in an older one, etc, but that can all be replaced and fixed.   Once I mentioned this to the husband, he went for it, with the low cost, being the deal breaker.

So we are in the search for the perfect "vintage" Travel Trailer.  Preferably something late 70's or early 80's.  Must have a dinette, and a bathroom.  And must have an oven, as a microwave can be difficult to run on solar-panels, when boon docking. 

And thus the blog.  Whatever I come across something, I will post it here.  I will also post our progress in our search for the perfect "second home."

1Dutta Supratim 23
...was on his way to work at HCL in Gurgaon in an office cab. The driver was allegedly speeding and according to the victim’s family, he fell asleep at the wheels

2U As -turn the car near approached Ghitorni on a MG Road, it hit a Metro barricade at full speed. Eyewitnesses said construction material was lying on the road at the spot 3angle A five- from foot-long the construc iron - tion site rammed into the
bonnet of the car, pierced
the dashboard and impaled
Supratim, sitting in front,
through his torso

This is my first card ever using alcohol inks and I was really happy with the results.  I added 7 stamps from the Escape set by Inque Boutique and no ribbon or embellishments.  Next time I will add those- but this was more of an experiment.  I've decided to go through my stuff a little at a time and either "use it or sell it".  These were purchased and never used, but will get to stay!

I'm in a bit of a sore mood today - I have been trying to order something through my local scrapbook store since May and I keep getting brushed off.  I'm a pretty patient person and I really would rather spend my money locally first if possible.  They say they do special orders and they kept telling me they could get it, then they would check on it, then they didn't know and all over again for two months.  So I emailed them today and said forget it.  I could have ordered it online in 5 seconds two months ago 45 times over.  I wish, wish, wish that customer service still existed - that a simple honest answer was the only option.  I would eagerly keep shopping at a store that told me straight up yes or no, than one that gave me the run around for two solid months.  Ugh.  If you want to keep your customers, be honest.  Even if it sucks.  That's my public service announcement for today.  I'm waiting to hear how they respond...but this really isn't even the first time I've asked for something and haven't gotten any response - it's just this time - I actually NEEDED the thing and was persistant.  I will be shopping online in the future.

Supplies for Summer Fun:
Stamps: Escape by Inque Boutique
Paper: Summer Sun and Glossy by Stampin' Up
Ink: Jet Black StaZon, Nature Walk Kit by Ranger

I really do need a holiday.

Conveniently enough, come 4pm tomorrow (Ryanair and radar willing) I'll be on one. Here's to a weekend of thermal baths, spa treatment, Eastern Europe-style cheap shopping and cheaper booze, and girly chats with old friends.

Back Monday.