#300 slots is not nearly enough for a medium

[elfyourmother]

Finally completed the royal chateau this weekend, with Gisele’s bedroom and the cellar salon finished. 

I...severely ran out of item slots and so the lowest level is much sparser than I’d like, but I was at least able to get the dining table to my liking, and it’s the focal point of the room. Those of you who remember the old table at the S might notice Aymeric has an actual meal now instead of his tea set (the alpine supper, same as Ysayle, despite sitting at the literal head of the table in the fanciest chair as king), and there are two more places set at this table than before. Stephanivien in true engineer fashion has a cup of coffee and a plate of burritos. The giant burger is for Zenos just because it’s funny.

Since it’s an FC house I’m utilizing the individual rooms as a spa bath and bedrooms for as many of the elfpile as I can, but other than the bath that’s more of a long term project.

[monstersdownthepath]

Tena’s Tiny House

Major Artifact

Aura: Overwhelming Conjuration

CL: 24th

Weight: 10lbs

Slot: —

This miniature domicile can easily be lifted from the ground with the attached handles, but inside is a space larger than some towns. The original creator was an eccentric architect by the name of Tena J., a Conjurer obsessed with miniaturizing and optimization of various extradimensional space. The Tiny House was not only her greatest creation, but her final one before she vanished mysteriously.

Tena’s Tiny House can be entered via the front door. Opening the door via manipulation of the extremely tiny knob instantly shrinks the opener to a scant few inches in height. This miniature size only persists so long as one remains within an inch of the surface of the House. Once inside, it’s easy to become overwhelmed, because its small and cutesy name belies the fact that it’s the creation of a powerful Extradimension Conjurer; the interior of the Tiny House is akin to a Mage’s Magnificent Mansion, except it interior dimensions are almost two miles in diameter, and nearly three-hundred feet tall from the lowest floor to the ceiling. The entry hall is an enormous, grandiose affair akin to a resplendent hotel atrium, where one can see hundreds of doors, halls, and further constructs beyond that and peer upwards to see the dozens of floors. One can look from the first floor all the way to the ceiling, the entire interior lit by bright, multicolored lights.

The whole of the Tiny House is staffed by countless Unseen Servants and several usually-harmless, humanoid constructs, and has small “tele-pads” which allow guests and the ‘staff’ to rapidly move between the floors of the Tiny House without needing to climb up and down miles of stairs. There exists numerous empty but important structures that suggest the Tiny House was meant to be lived in permanently but was nowhere near finished, such as a garbage pit with unfinished, nonfunctional furnaces (which some guests have taken upon themselves to aid in cleaning), several silent boilers which should have provided warm and hot water to all the rooms (they have functional plumbing--which itself seems to have been finished by a third party--but the water never exceeds 60 degrees Fahrenheit), and enormous conjuration engines which, via careful magical analysis, would have apparently created clothing and minor supplies for the guests. Several portions of the Tiny House also remain completely unlit, though whether this is because it’s unfinished or to accommodate light-sensitive guests is unknown. There is also a half-finished circle of Transmutation magic nearly thirty feet across, analysis of which suggests that it was going to be used to shrink or grow guests on an individual basis to assure they could exist comfortably in the House; as it is, all the rooms are scaled only for Medium-sized creatures.

Tena did seem to finish the most important parts before vanishing, though. the main kitchens function perfectly, capable of generating enough food to feed up to 300 people each day and magically restocking every 24 hours. The food is, unfortunately, rather bland, and the selection of spices and flavorings is tragically limited. In addition, there is another conjuration engine of prodigious size, defended by automaton constructs and automatic turrets which allow no one to approach, which generates raw materials that the Unseen Servants use to repair or replace portions of the Tiny House’s interior that become damaged. Typically, it takes no more than 1d4 days for the servants to repair even the loss of whole rooms at a time.

A being can stay within the Tiny House as long as they remain comfortable and so long as they do not destroy too much of the locale--doing so will cause the constructs within to become lethally hostile. They are only armed with simple weapons, but they are constantly manufactured by the primary conjuration engine within the House until the hostile element is dead or removed. Any being exiting the artifact for any reason cannot re-enter for 24 hours; if they attempt to open the door, they will simply not shrink.

Destruction: The Tiny House, and everything in it, is destroyed if a Sphere of Annihilation is brought inside of it, and then the Sphere is destroyed via the Gate spell achieving the 15% “rip into the spatial fabric” result. The interior and inhabitants of the Tiny House will be drawn into the tear and ejected across random points in the Multiverse.

Bringing a Sphere into the Tiny House will automatically cause all of the constructs within it to become hostile. In addition, there are many inhabitants which would prefer not to be scattered to the astral winds and would likely work against the would-be destroyer.

[alorconsulting]

Homemade Gnocchi is delicious, satisfying, inexpensive and it’s relatively easy to make, but that’s not the reason I love it. Rolling out Gnocchi reminds me of two beautiful, intelligent, highly capable, caring, warm hearted women, I respect and love my Moms.

In 2012, my now Husband brought me home to Italy for the first time. During this trip Bello’s Mom, the women I now call Mamma, taught me how to make the lightest, fluffiest Gnocchi I had ever had.

At the time we could barely speak to each other due to a language barrier. Darn you Tower of Babel! Thankfully, food and love translate all languages and Mamma patiently demonstrated how she made the best Gnocchi on the planet. After boiling the potatoes, running them through a potato ricer and adding just the right amount of flour, Mamma began rolling out the Gnocchi into rope like lines.

At that moment I smiled, because this part, the rolling of the dough into a rope, this part was familiar to me, from of all places, MY Mom a proud Norwegian American. I grew up making a traditional Norwegian pastry called Kringla that requires rolling spoonfuls of dough into a rope, then twisting it into the shape of a pretzel.  Oh lord, I need to share that recipe, it’s addictive! Anyway, back to the tale of Gnocchi at hand.

When it came time for me to help Mamma roll out the Gnocchi, I was ready. I stepped over and expertly rolled out a perfect rope and Mamma said… well something in Italian, and started excitedly pointing out my handy work to Papà and Bello. I didn’t have to speak Italian to get the gist of her excitement. It takes a lot of Kringla or in Mamma’s case Gnocchi practice to make rolling dough into a rope look so effortless.

Thankfully this was a gift my Mom gave me young and so from that day forth, each time I make Gnocchi, it reminds me of my Moms, both of them, and all the great times we’ve shared in the kitchen together.

Sharing Traditions

Rolling out Gnocchi in Italy

Mom Returns with Camera to a Surprise!

What I’m a Pro!

Gnocchi with Creamy Blue Cheese

Servings: 4

Time: 1 Hour

Difficulty: Easy

Print

Gnocchi Ingredients:

1 Pound of Gold Potatoes

3/4 to 1 Cup of Flour (plus a little more for your rolling surface and hands). If you have Cake Flour it makes the dough even lighter but good old all purpose works just fine.

Uhmm… yeah that’s it’s for your Gnocchi. Really!

Blue Cheese Sauce Ingredients:

2 Tablespoons of Butter

2 Cups of a GOOD Buttermilk Blue Cheese or Gorgonzola crumbled (don’t skimp here, cheap Blue Cheeses do not melt well.)

1/2 Cup Heavy Cream

Instructions:

Boil potatoes till done (slide off fork easily.)

Drain and let cool enough to handle

While cooling, prepare a baking sheet with a little extra flour to hold your Gnocchi once it’s rolled and cut

Run boiled potatoes through a Ricer, discard skins

Potatoes Riced for Gnocchi

Add half your flour and stir with a fork

Mix in as much of the remaining flour in large spoonfuls as necessary by hand (this allows you to feel the dough and add just enough flour till it stops sticking to your hand.)

Roll into a ball and section into 3 or 4 segments

Using light pressure begin rolling one portion of dough back and forth with both hands on a lightly floured surface. Slowly increase your pressure and move both hands out from each other. With a little patience and some more rolling your dough will begin to form a rope and lengthen. Roll until the rope is about 1 inch thick.

Hand Rolling Gnocchi

Cut the rope of dough into 1 inch segments

If you’re in a hurry, toss cut segments carefully onto your floured baking sheet so you can move on to the rest of the dough. I recommend, if you’re not in a rush to roll each segment down a fork across the tines to get those classic Gnocchi grooves that give your sauce something to stick in. Sure there are fancy boards at cookery stores for this, but really, why? A fork does just fine.

How Gnocchi Gets Its Grooves

Once you get all the Gnocchi rolled, sliced and grooved, it’s time to get a large pot of salted water boiling

Start your sauce: Melt butter over a low heat

Add the crumbled or cut up Blue Cheese

Blue Cheese Sauce Started

Add 1/4 cup of heavy cream and allow the cheese to SLOWLY melt over a low heat.

As the cheese melts, slowly add in each remaining 1/4 cup of heavy cream. Cheeses vary so much that it’s nice to prep this one slow enough to allow your own preference in creamy vs a thick sauce.

I’m Melting Blue Cheese!

When nearly all of the cheese has melted turn the burner down on both the sauce and your boiling water. Fresh Gnocchi needs a low boil, too high and it will fall apart.

Carefully add your Gnocchi to the boiling salted water, ensuring you leave extra flour behind on your baking dish.

Once the Gnocchi float to the top of the water, they are done. Remove with a slotted spoon draining as you go and place into your sauce to incorporate.

Hello Gnocchi, Meet Blue Cheese

Salt and Pepper to taste and if you like, for color add a little garnish of basil or parsley after plating.

Gnocchi With Creamy Blue Cheese

How to Make Homemade Gnocchi

The secret to making Gnocchi light, is skipping the eggs and handling the dough as little as possible, both of which weigh Gnocchi down. Most recipes call for starchy potatoes like russets but I follow my Mamma and use golden because they just taste so good.  Get a feel for the dough, mix in just enough flour to where it’s no longer clinging to your hands as you work with it. Make sure to use a low boil and have fun with how you use your Gnocchi, from Brown Butter Sage to In-Season Tomatoes sautéed with olive oil and Basil, you can hardly go wrong.

It might take a few trials but I promise it’s worth it in the long run. Just think how inexpensive the ingredients are and how often you have them in your pantry!

There is a bonding that happens with women in the kitchen and it’s a tradition as old as man. Even if you can’t speak the same language, you can share the work and feel good knowing you love, care and provide for your family in a way no restaurant can, that’s homemade.

Mom and Mamma with my Nephew Shawn

Gnocchi & Creamy Blue Cheese Recipe Homemade Gnocchi is delicious, satisfying, inexpensive and it's relatively easy to make, but that's not the reason I love it.

[fincore]

The case for light jets in Europe

Article from EVA Magazine, EBACE Edition by Slobodan Vuckovic, founder and CEO of AirDB a member of Fincore

The business aviation industry in Europe employs some 160,000 highly skilled workers, generating around $12.5 billion in annual revenues. Yet Europe accounts for only 14% of the global annual sales of business aircraft. Why? On one level, the reason is simple. European companies up and down the scale are hugely reluctant to be seen to be buying corporate aircraft. That reluctance hardly fits with the fact that the European economy is one of the world’s strongest.

One of the more obvious reasons why European management teams find it tough to justify the capital expenditure required for a corporate jet is Europe’s unique geography and the superior nature of the European rail and road networks. So many business trips, even across borders, can be easily accommodated by taking a high speed train or driving 300 kilometres or so.

But there’s another reason. European politics tends to be centre left, with a leaning towards socialism – the kind of political environment that fosters the (mistaken) view that private jets are the playthings of billionaires and tycoons and rock stars. For the ordinary hard working European businessmen and women, using private jets is all too often seen as laying themselves and their company or brand open to getting hammered in the media.

However, as those of us in the industry know, there is a huge gulf between this faulty public perception and the actual reality of business jet usage by companies. According to the NBAA fact-book, only 3 percent of all business aircraft are owned by Fortune 500 corporations. The overwhelming majority of the remainder, some 85 percent, are owned by small and medium size companies. Moreover, in excess of 70 percent of passengers aboard business aircraft are non-executive employees and more than 60 percent of business jets and turboprops are used to reach remote locations that are not on a scheduled airline route.

A typical business aviation mission is 4 passengers on a 600-800 nautical mile business-related trip. The vast majority of city-pairs in Europe are under 1,000nm apart and a private jet offers the opportunity for a really time efficient connection. Only a handful of the most frequently connected city-pairs are over 1,000nm. One thinks here of London-Moscow (1,350nm), which is still considerably closer than the US equivalent of New York-Los Angeles (2,150nm), or Miami-San Francisco (2,250nm), or the capital cities of two Latin American neighboring countries such as Brazil and Colombia – (Brasilia-Bogota - 2,000nm).

This shorter journey distance has made Europe the showcase market for light-jets. Ironically, none of the 4 to 8 passenger aircraft that are suited to 1,000 nm business trips are manufactured in Europe.

This is despite the fact that Europe is the leader in the commercial aviation sector, since it is home to Airbus, and is the leader in helicopter technology where it has Finmeccanica helicopters (AgustaWestland) and Airbus helicopter (Europcopter). It is also, of course, able to boast the military fighter-jets Eurofighter Typhoon, Dassault Rafale and Saab Gripen. Europe also has leading OEM jet engine manufacturers in Safran/Snecma/CFM International, Rolls-Royce and IAE.

The shining star of European business aviation industry is Dassault, manufacturer of Falcon business jets. However, the smallest Falcon carries up to 10 passengers and costs close to $30 million – not exactly light jet territory! On the plus side, the two the most successful high-performance single turboprop business aircraft, namely the Pilatus PC-12 and Daher TBM900, are designed and manufactured in Europe and Pilatus will shortly be delivering the first PC-24 light jets, which could represent a real breakthrough for the European market.

Also positive is the fact that over the last few years, with the slow recovery from the global economic downturn, small and mid-size business leaders across Europe are starting to show a greater interest in business aviation. The message that in Europe, a small, hard-working team of executives can fly on a light jet to a meeting and be back home in the same day - at the cost not far from what they would pay for first-class commercial tickets. And of course, with a single flight they can reach customers in remote locations, avoiding wasting time in commercial hub connections, where the main airport is often a long way from their destination.

Business aviation is all about productivity and connectivity. And there are a lot of choices for European business travellers.

Interestingly, the airplane that was once hailed as the potential king of the four passenger, 600-800 nautical mile business trip, the Eclipse EA500, has been upgraded and reborn as the One Aviation EA550. The aircraft has now been certified for European commercial operations and has a purchase price under $3 million. Add to this a cost per flight hour of under $900 and it is a very attractive proposition as a business aircraft. The first EA550 registered for Europe charter operations is already flying, with two others registered privately. It will be interesting to see how the EA550’s relatively size-challenged cabin is accepted by European business travellers.

However, the true business aircraft poster-boy for the European market is undoubtedly the Cessna Citation Mustang, which can take four passengers 700 nm in 2 hours at the cost of $1,000 per flight hour. In the US the Mustang is mostly used by pilot-owners as a private/business aircraft but in Europe it is fast becoming the aircraft of choice for a new generation of charter companies. Austrian GlobeAir, for example, flies a fleet of 12, the UK-based Blink, which straps itself as Europe’s air taxi service, has a fleet of 10, while the Spanish charter company, Sun Aviation has a fleet of six.

The Mustang is officially still in production even though only 8 were delivered during 2015. The replacement/upgrade for the Mustang is the $4.7 Million Citation M2 - delivering more speed and more cabin space, with a private lavatory and more range. It’s been a year now since the first M2 joined the European charter market. Since then a few more have been registered, going to Denmark, Italy, Luxembourg and Switzerland respectively. They are part of a total of 41 M2s delivered worldwide (mostly in the US). In addition, Cessna delivered 56 of the CJ3+ and CJ4 light jets.

M2’s main competitor, and the Mustang’s, is Embraer’s Phenom 100E. Offering even more cabin space than the M2, and with the same long-range speed, it costs less per flight hour. However, only 12 Phenom 100E were delivered in 2015 as Embraer shifts its focus toward larger aircraft. In 2015 Embraer delivered 70 of the 100E’s big brother, the Phenom 300.

While Cessna and Embraer are concentrating on the higher end of the light jet market, the new very-light-jet about to burst on the scene is the long-awaited HondaJet. This is a clean-sheet design, fully composite airframe with a brand new GE-Honda jet engine and a completely original look thanks to its over-the-wing engine mount. After 13 years in development the HondaJet is finally being delivered to customers. With an acquisition price of $4.5 million it slots neatly in between the Phenom 100E and Cessna’s M2, but offers more cabin space and a longer range, with considerably less fuel burn. The cost per flight hour is a very economical $1,135, which is not bad for the fastest aircraft in the category.

Charter operators in Europe have expressed great interest in the model and the first European registered HondaJet was delivered in April. With Honda’s bold promise to deliver 100 units annually and the latest expansion of the Honda Aero engine plant in Burlington, NC ( with a current production capacity of 200 engines annually), it probably will not be long before we can expect the development of a bigger HondaJet with a cabin for 6-8 passengers.

Hondajet’s 13 years in development sounds unreal compared to the Swiss manufacturer Pilatus’ success in delivering a brand new light-jet in only 4 years, from clear-sheet design to the initial deliveries. Pilatus surprised the aviation market at EBACE 2013 with the announcement of the PC-24 and by the following year Pilatus had pre-sold the entire 3 years’ worth of production. If testing and certification are on schedule, deliveries will start in 2017. The $9 million jet is capable of flying nearly 2,000 nautical miles with acabin large enough for 6-8 passengers, making it the first European light jet (as opposed to very-light-jet).

2016 started as the year of HondaJet, but we have another very light jet coming to market later this year. The $2 million Cirrus Vision SF50 can accommodate a 4 passenger 600-800 nm mission at a cost of only $660 per flight hour. This is a very impressive proposition made possible mostly by the aircraft’s composite lightweight airframe powered by single jet engine mounted on the top of the fuselage. It will be ideal for European customers interested only in private operation, as was noted above, single-engine aircraft are not as yet allowed to be deployed for commercial operations.

However, European regulators are considering lifting this restriction and if they day, then 2016 could be a truly historical year for European business aviation. Not only would business travellers and charter operators be able to benefit from the new Cirrus Vision single-jet’s low cost per flight hour, but European made single-engine turboprop aircraft would also be able to be used for charter operations. They could access smaller airports in remote locations and fly 4-8 passengers at an even more competitive cost per flight hour. Such a change would be a tremendous boost for business ownership of light jets across the whole of Europe.

The original article published in the EBACE edition of EVA Magazine

[cartaodecreditoja-online]

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   Can I link my PSP to my PC? The PSP can operate as a USB Memory Stick Duo reader. To access the Memory Stick Duo in your PSP from your PC, you’ll require a USB cable television that has a “Mini-B” adapter (typical for digital cams) and a “Standard-A” adapter (typical for printers, etc).

[aroundtheworldin18years]

Close your eyes and picture the scene.  Your flight from Dublin Airport is scheduled to depart at 09:00 and you’ve left the house (by car) in plenty of time, but…as well as the rush-hour traffic; there’s been an accident.  The tailbacks are huge and minute-by-minute you see the time dwindling away.  A frantic rush through the airport, security has held you back for not putting your 100ml liquids in plastic bags, and the plane leaves without you…disaster!  There’s definitely an easier option than driving on flight day!  If you have an early morning flight from Dublin Airport, you should consider a Stay, Park and Fly package with CityNorth Hotel.

STAY, PARK AND FLY AT CITYNORTH HOTEL

Dublin Airport is a 2.5 hour drive from our home, therefore we’ve never felt the need to stay at any of the Dublin Airport Hotels the night before our flight.  If you’ve been following Around The World In 18 Years travels for some time, you will know that Mummy has a habit of booking the cheapest flights possible.  More often than not the flight leaves at the most outrageous hour of the day.  Our recent family holiday to Italy provided us with the perfect opportunity to try out the Stay, Park and Fly option with CityNorth Hotel, located just 20 minutes from Dublin Airport.  You will find many Dublin Airport Hotels (and hotels situated close to Dublin Airport) offer a Stay, Park and Fly service. The CityNorth Hotel just so happens to be in the perfect location for us travelling from the North of Ireland.

CityNorth Hotel Stay, Park and Fly

IS STAY, PARK AND FLY EXPENSIVE

Our stay at CityNorth Hotel was gifted but it was still important for us to see if the Stay, Park and Fly provided good value for money to the hotel’s paying customers.  Although we didn’t check out prices for every single Dublin Airport Hotel that offered Stay, Park and Fly, we did compare CityNorth Hotel with four of the most popular Dublin Airport Hotels.  Prices ranged from a reasonable €199 to a whopping €351!  CityNorth Hotel Stay, Park and Fly package, like-for-like for the same period; came in at an astonishingly low price of €131, by far the cheapest in our comparison search.  Parking is free for the first 7 days and charged at €3 per day thereafter.

STAY, PARK AND FLY vs LONG TERM PARKING

It was also important for us to compare CityNorth Hotel to our normal option of Long Term Parking at Dublin Airport.  When comparing the Stay, Park and Fly against Long Term Parking with Dublin Airport ,we found that the price difference was just €20! So, if my Math is correct; that would mean that you can have a Family Room at the 4* CityNorth Hotel, the night before your early morning flight from Dublin Airport; for only €20 more than the cost of long term parking at Dublin Airport. So, with that in mind…why wouldn’t you?

Credit: Dublin Airport Long Term Parking

WHY BOOK CITYNORTH HOTEL STAY, PARK AND FLY PACKAGE?

You may find yourself asking why you should book a CityNorth Hotel Stay, Park and Fly Package? For us, we have to say that the CityNorth Hotel Stay, Park and Fly is great value for money, and definitely convenient.  Check in is from 15:00 which means you can start your holiday from the moment you arrive and settle in.  After an evening meal and maybe a glass or two of vino, you can slope off to bed for an early night and grab a few extra hours of essential sleep ready for an early flight the following morning.  There’s also the option of adding a Summer Package to your CityNorth Hotel Stay, Park and Fly package, full details can be found on the CityNorth Hotel website.

CityNorth Hotel, where the welcome is a sweet as the treats

Checking in

CITYNORTH HOTEL LOCATION

Located just 20 minutes north of Dublin Airport at Junction 7 on the M1, CityNorth Hotel is in a prime location making it the perfect hotel to stay in if you’re travelling from outside Dublin.

Handy location

CITYNORTH HOTEL ACCOMMODATION FOR FAMILIES

Modern, stylish and welcoming, CityNorth Hotel (4*) offers family rooms and also interconnecting family rooms which can sleep up to 2 adults and 4 children.  All of the rooms have free high speed Wi-Fi internet access which is very important for us and our photo uploads to the ‘cloud’.  The rooms also have the following:

Air Conditioning

Plasma television with satellite channels

Refreshment tray with tea/coffee

Electronic laptop safe

Ironing unit

Power hairdryer

Power shower and invigorating range of toiletries

24 hour hotel room service menu

This is my room, no…it’s a macaroon silly!

Sometimes work and pleasure go hand in hand.

Quality and comfort, all that’s needed in a bed.

DINING AT CITYNORTH HOTEL

Due to our typical pre-holiday rush, we missed out on a square meal before our journey to CityNorth Hotel.  After a quick room tour and freshen up, our hungry tummies led the way to the Tara Lounge for an early evening meal.  The Tara Lounge serves a variety of food daily from 07:00 until 21:30 and a carvery is also available daily, for further information, visit CityNorth Hotel website.  We were pleased to see a value-for-money Family Meal Deal with something for each of us to enjoy.

Family Feast at the Tara Lounge

Tara Lounge at CityNorth Hotel, Dublin

Double dipping, don’t go there

BREAKFAST AT CITYNORTH HOTEL

Breakfast at CityNorth Hotel is served from 07:00 until 10:30 on weekdays and 07:00 until 11:00 at the weekend. If, like us, you are leaving CityNorth Hotel for your flight from Dublin Airport long before 7am, the hotel offers a carry-out Continental Breakfast that you can take with you to the airport.  We found this ‘continental carry-out’ really handy as we didn’t need a hearty big breakfast so early in the morning.  The ‘breakfast goodie bag’, which contained a croissant, an apple, a yoghurt and a bottle of water; is just enough to stop little tummies from rumbling before the flight.  Mummy especially loved not having to spend €10 on two slices of toast and butter at Dublin Airport!

Brekkie in a bag

FREE AIRPORT SHUTTLE FROM/TO CITYNORTH HOTEL

CityNorth Hotel offers a free 24 hour eight-seater shuttle service to take you to Dublin Airport, and then collect you upon your return to Dublin Airport after your holiday. The free shuttle service must be pre-booked.

PLANNING AHEAD DOESN’T ALWAYS WORK

Our arrival back at Dublin Airport was late at night and we looked forward to a swift pick up with the free shuttle service provided by CityNorth Hotel.  Just a ‘slight hiccup’ but the fault lay entirely with us, well, I say us, but I’m dropping this ‘hiccup’ on Mummy!  Giving ourselves a time of one hour between landing, baggage reclaim and passport control, Mummy thought that we would have plenty of time to reach the pick up point, but unfortunately, we hadn’t!  The CityNorth Hotel free shuttle picks up at Zone 16 from Terminal One every hour on the half hour (21:30, 22:30, 23:30 etc) and we had missed our time slot.

Bus pick up points at Dublin Airport

Mummy hadn’t read the full details of pick up and assumed that our driver would be waiting for us; he wasn’t!  As you can imagine, it wasn’t a good moment with two very tired little ladies just wanting to go home!  All was not lost and a quick call to CityNorth Hotel had the shuttle bus enroute back to us.  All ended well and a valuable lesson learnt…give ourselves more time in future!  Our journey back to the hotel was cosy in the warm shuttle bus, and once we arrived and collected our car we were ready for our final leg of the journey back home.  And, as always, Mummy and the girls slept so all I had for company was the car radio and the open road!  I’m not complaining…the journey was peaceful and not once did I hear the words ‘are we nearly there yet’!

WOULD WE GO BACK?

I’m fairly certain that we will return to CityNorth Hotel time and time again when we are travelling to distance lands and departing Ireland via Dublin Airport.  The hotel is family-friendly and we love that the hotel has interconnecting rooms, offers a ‘takeaway’ breakfast goodie bag, has a free shuttle service available and is located just 20 minutes from Dublin Airport.  A big thumbs up from The Callaghan Posse.

With a very special THANK YOU to:

Niamh Leddy (CityNorth Hotel Marketing and E-Commerce Executive) – for organising our stay at CityNorth Hotel and for your hospitality.

We are extremely grateful to you and have had a great experience working alongside CityNorth Hotel on this collaboration.  Until our next visit…slán a fhágáil anois.

LILY-BELLE SAYS (10)

The hotel is really funky and stylish and after a long drive, it was nice to drop into the dining room for food.  The bedroom was warm and the bed was so comfy.

MATILDA SAYS (4)

I wanted to go to the play park but it was late and Daddy said no but that’s because he’s grumpy!

Travel Itinerary

Date(s) of travel:  3rd July 2019 (1 night)

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                Information, currency and prices are correct at the time of publishing. Views, opinions and experiences are that of The Callaghan Posse and are correct at the time of publication. Photos, unless credited, are taken by The Callaghan Posse for use and distribution by Around The World In 18 Years. Images and content may not be used or copied (private or commercial) without obtaining prior permission.

[disclaimer:  CityNorth Hotel Stay, Park and Fly was gifted.  Gifted item(s) was provided in return for social media and blog coverage]

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CITYNORTH HOTEL, DUBLIN, IRELAND – REVIEW Close your eyes and picture the scene.  Your flight from Dublin Airport is scheduled to depart at 09:00 and you’ve left the house (

[topicprinter]

Let me introduce you to a world where you can make millions of dollars sending emails alerts with hand picked cheap flight deals.I’m going to break down the business strategies and tactics that I’ve seen "flight hackers" employ methodically over time to grow, monetize, and optimize.I’m going to show you how these systems predictably lead to success with the right combination of experience, charisma, and grit.Then I’ll explain how I’m breaking into the market with my own spin on things and realizing my destiny as a 21st-century cheap flight list disruptor. Or something. Meet the players:• Scott’s Cheap Flights (SCF) is a freemium internet service that sends email alerts for cheap international flights.o Scott himself even documented the early days of starting the flight alert service, and has become massively popular with reddit users through a series of highly upvoted AMAs.o Since beginning in 2015, SCF email list has amassed 1.6 million members and they employ a team of over 30 individuals including content marketing managers and IT wizards. It's a legit operation.• Jack’s flight club is a freemium internet service that sends email alerts for cheap international flights specifically from England. He calls himself a flight hacker.o Jack himself even documented the early days of the flight service and has been massively popular with reddit users through a series of highly upvoted AMAs.o Jack now employs a bunch of people and has over a million subscribers.• Fly Almost Free is also a fremium internet service that sends email alerts for cheap international flights. o There seems to be some reddit beef between SCF and FAF due to alleged stealing of content which I have not been able to confirm or deny.o He also claims to be a “flight hacker” and has done massively popular reddit AMAs.There’s also: Dollar Flight Club, Thrifty Traveler, and the list goes on... The Similarities and the RealityWhat these flight alert services all have in common:Well traveled young dude sending links to cheap flight dealsHip and helpful marketing persona that’s accessible to Gen Z through the geriatric.Similar email drip campaigns over the first few weeksSimilar premium subscription offers and pricingBut first of all…Where do these flight deals come from?These flight hacking ninjas will readily admit that the sophisticated technology they use to find these incredible deals is mostly stuff like: • google flights • sky scanner • ITA • momondo, • hipmunk • skiplagged, etc.This suggests that finding good deals seems to be primarily an outcome of putting in the time to look as opposed to any reliance on proprietary technology (though I cannot confirm what tools any given individual may or may not use).My original perceptionI remember seeing one of the Reddit AMAs a few years ago and feeling quite impressed by this man who claimed to be a “Flight Hacker”. This idea of hacking your way to cheap flights—it felt mystical and mysterious and welcoming all at the same time. I now realize that “flight hacking” is less like computer hacking, and more like the hacking up a journalist with a bone saw. The parallel being that you can hack a flight itinerary into sub-component parts to optimize your value.So yeah, it’s different than I originally perceived it to be, but who cares.There’s absolutely still value being offered here.If there wasn’t, there wouldn’t be millions of people subscribing to these flight lists.So what is the real value?The need being met here isn’t about new technology. In fact it’s quite the opposite.It’s about adding the human touch back into a medium that’s become automated and increasingly irrelevant with stupid nonsensical deals.Like, ok: $300 to Paris is a good deal. But I don’t want to make the 39 hour layover in Uzbekistan. It’s not all about price.It’s having someone who’s looking out for you. Like a buddy.Anyone can look at Google flights every day… but honestly who wants to?Wouldn’t you rather just have some friendly well-traveled dude who’s actually been to some of these places suggest flights?The answer has been a resounding SURE WHY NOT. How these launch:From inception to scale, this seems to be the formula of how to jump start the business engine of a cheap flight alert service:Earned media like a magazine interview leads to scale of subscriber base (worth noting that Scott of SCF was a journalist in his previous life)Leverage that subscriber base into massively successful reddit AMA where you interact with your fans in the comments to show how much you are loved.Reddit AMA delivers mucho free traffic to your site because “everyone wants a piece of this flight hacker thing” once it has 17k upvotes.Once they land on your landing page this is the basic sequence: The FunnelPeople sign up for free versionThey get free email alerts for cheap flights. These alerts also display an advertisement for a paid premium version, usually offering more deals and extras.An email drip campaign is employed to build brand familiarity before presenting the paid subscription more directly a few weeks later.A portion of free subscribers convert to paid and money is made.The money is then used for subscriber acquisition, support, beer, etc. But how much money?Exploring the economicsI’ve had a lot of fun building some pretty advanced models in excel to look at different outcomes, but here’s a really simple example to give you a baseline:100,000 Free subscribers 2% conversion rate (SCF claimed 10% in one Reddit post so maybe conservative) = 2,000 paid members X ~$35/yr =$70,000 Revenue - $5700 for email hosting = $64,300 profit/yr (excluding web hosting, design, technical, etc)So theoretically, you could spend up to $64,300 to acquire 100,000 Free subscribers and break even within a year… assuming that you’re able to execute a similar strategy and assuming that free subscribers convert within a year.This works out to a free subscriber break even acquisition cost of about 64 cents.Interesting theory…Let’s try it out. Aiming my sights:I knew I wanted in on this. It was something that large amounts of people genuinely enjoy and get value out of.Now I probably could’ve rushed out and bought AmericasCheapestFlightsByPW.com and started up a copycat with moderate success. But why bother?There has to be some actual unique value I’m providing or I’ll eventually become the lamest offer and fade away into irrelevance.I needed to be differentiated somehow, whether through brand, focus, price, etc.To take on the big dogs who have the scale, you gotta think like an insurgent.So I started looking around for what I DIDN’T see... What I couldn’t find out there:What was missing? What might people enjoy? What pisses people off about the existing offers?Two things stuck out as pain points:1.Domestic flight deals. Everyone seems to be so focused on the international flights. And when they expand, they expand to other countries. I decided to look inward and offer international and domestic flight deals.2.City Specific Focus. I’d get an email alert with a very enticing subject line. I’d hurry to open it so I could jump on a good deal. I excitedly scrolled down the list of 10 airports only to find that my city wasn’t on there! It was like waving a steak in front of a dogs face just to yank it away. Needlessly cruel. Not ok. So I’m focusing on these 2 BIG THINGS:These two major differentiations will become my calling card:1. Cheap flight email alerts JUST for your city.Each city has it’s own individual email list so you ONLY see deals for YOUR departure airport.This also has the added bonus of getting to build a more segmented and intimate relationship with each city. You’ll get to know which deals they really love and look for and can send accordingly.2. International & Domestic dealsAmerica is beautiful, too, and we’re not all digital nomads. Sometimes it’s nice to go see your Aunt Sally’s in Dallas for a weekend. We send domestic deals, too. A quick note on why I'm qualified to run a cheap flight email listI’m a young well traveled dude who knows how to use all the travel search sites and even has some tricks up my sleve from the years of booking flights.I’ve been tracking my deals and I am providing cheap fares that are on par with the major players.I’m A PEOPLE PERSON I’m GOOD WITH PEOPLE!I grew local sandbox site to 6k subscribers and proved a premium conversion funnel that sustains the operation and people love it. I’m actually having fun too, so I want to do more now.So here's how I started testing it out... The Sandbox – PhillyFlightList.comI’ve spent the last 5 months growing a sandbox version of this idea in my own local city (Philly). I honestly never expected it to get as large as it has, but with nearly 6,000 subscribers it’s starting to gain traction. And it’s this positive reception that’s encouraged me to share this with other cities.There was an article written about Philly Flight List early in its existence, and another reporter from a larger publication has reached out to schedule an interview as of yesterday which is promising.I set up a paid premium version for $5 to help cover the email hosting fees which are getting higher as the list grows. The revenue from that is enough to cover the email fees and have some left over to continue investing in the site.The business engine works.And as an added bonus, t’s surprisingly fun looking for flights. When you find a good deal it feels like you finally hit the winning combo on a slot machine.I wonder if getting medically diagnosed as a cheap flight addict would help build street cred?But anyway, it’s going well. People like it, I like it, and it’s sustainable.And very importantly, it’s scalable.Which brings us to… Expansion Time: The Launch of LocalFlightList.comI’m now launching the nationally reaching Local Flight List, which consists of 11 different city-specific flight lists:• Atlanta• Boston• Chicago• Dallas• Los Angeles• Miami/Ft. Laud.• New York City• Philadelphia• Phoenix• San Francisco• SeattleAgain, the distinction in my service is twofold:  1. When you get an email alert you KNOW it's for your departure airport. You don't have to scroll through a long list of airports just to see if it even matters to you.  2. In addition to international flights, you also receive cheap domestic flights. This is something that really isn't being offered but has proven very successful in my initial list. The domestic deals are equally as popular as international. A question for the web experts:Though each city specific flight list is hosted on the same site—localflightlist.com/seattle, localflightlist.com/phoenix, etc… I also purchased some associated standalone domain names just for the hell of it.Would love any thoughts around the idea of hosting all on the same site, vs different totally stand alone sites. Interested in learning more about pros and cons from perspectives of SEO, CX, Branding, etc. if you have any tips. Final thoughts:Congrats if you’ve made it this far. This was a major brain dump and I hope it’s been an entertaining read. I could write another 30 hours about this and not run out of things to say. But I won't.Just a few other things I wanted to tack on before I let you go… Why I singled out Scotts Cheap Flights in the title:Honestly, I have absolutely NOTHING against them! I just figured they’d be the most well known example of a similar service that people would be familiar with. Also since our main offers are somewhat different, I think there's certainly room for both of us.The truth is that we’re still at the very beginning of the cheap flight alert industry development and there is true value being created here by all parties involved. Anyone who makes affordable travel more accessible is good in my book and I’m proud to be serving up flight alerts along side other experienced travelers.Which brings me to my next point…NEVER LOSE FOCUS ON THE CORE COMPETENCY:Yeah, I just spent a bunch of time talking about the strategy and the numbers and the whatever, but the truth is that regardless of your industry, no amount of support structure or strategy can save you if you deliver shitty results.So first and foremost: I WILL CONTINUE TO FIND AND SEND GREAT FLIGHT DEALS!I’m lucky enough to have traveled quite a bit, and I’m definitely excited to bring my personality and experiences to the whole process. It really doesn’t get better than finding a niche that’s both extremely helpful and profitable. So far so good, but I’ll let you guys know. And one last thing: Don’t go rushing off to buy http://yourcitiescheapflights.com 5 minutes after you finish reading this. Because you also need to think about:The websiteThe software and integrationsThe payment systemsThe designThe marketing and communicationsThe email campaignsThe customer support and answering questionsTHE CONSTANT FLIGHT SEARCHINGThe accountingThe legalThe charisma...Don’t kid yourself—it requires a tremendous amount of time and effort. But is it worth it? Who knows.

[toptecharena]

Poptel is a new challenger brand from mainland China, one that specializes solely in rugged smartphones, just like Nomu or AGM. Rugged smartphones usually carry higher margins and the competition tends to be less intense than the mainstream market.

The P9000 Max doesn’t shine thanks to its design or performance, rather, it differentiates itself by adding a massive 9000mAh battery, the biggest we’ve seen on a rugged smartphone to date, offering the sort of autonomy that a sizable portion of its target audience will crave.

But has Poptel been too ambitious in trying to cram as much as possible into such a compact body for a relatively low price? Read on to find out.

Design

The P9000 Max is heavy at 327g, which isn’t surprising since that hefty battery was always going to weigh it down – but what was a bit of a shock is this phone’s size. At 168 x 83 x 17mm, it is smaller than we expected, given the fact that it is an IP68-rated device.

It embraces the traditional design associated with rugged smartphones: an eight-side enclosure featuring plenty of polycarbonate plastic, loads of visible screws and a black/yellow color scheme with a bit of metal to reinforce the chassis.

Oddly enough, the power button is located on the bottom area of the left edge of the device, which feels unnatural for right-handed users. Instead, the volume buttons are where one would expect the power button to be. Poptel added a dedicated photo button on the lower part of the right edge – that’s great to take snaps quickly but sadly it cannot be customized.

There are no status lights and the permanent navigation keys are flipped – the back button is on the right, rather than on the left (as is the case on most Android smartphones). Rubber flaps, located at the top and bottom of the phone, cover the headphone socket and a USB Type-C connector.

The SIM tray can be found on the left-hand side while a speaker grill, the fingerprint sensor, and a 13-megapixel camera can be found around the back. The latter has four flash LEDs which are hidden behind a white strip of transparent plastic that acts as a flash cover, to stop the flash from blowing out the subject of a photograph.

Specifications

This smartphone offers a set of mainstream components as one would expect. You get an 8-core midrange Mediatek system-on-chip, 4GB of RAM and 64GB on-board storage – so there’s enough oomph under the hood to last a couple of years, by which time, Android 10 (Quiche?) will probably be out.

It supports dual SIM, dual standby and a microSD card; all three at the same time. Note that the P9000 Max supports global LTE bands which is useful if you plan to travel all around the world.

There’s no 802.11ac Wi-Fi (such a shame) but you do get NFC, along with a 9V/2A battery charger (that can charge the phone from zero to full in 3.5 hours) and OTG capabilities (you can use the handset to charge other phones, although that requires an adaptor).

The screen is oleophobic, a surprise for a device at this price level, and uses Corning Gorilla Glass 3 for protection.

In use

There are no big surprises here. The CPU powering the P9000 Max is slightly less powerful than Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 630 found in the Cat S61, but it offers plenty of power for most (mundane) tasks.

The phone runs Android 7.0 and as with the majority of existing rugged handsets from China, it’s unlikely to get any sort of update to Android Oreo or Pie. There were no updates available when we checked.

Another downside is the lack of any bundled apps (such as those present on the Doogee S60 or the Cat S61): there’s no sound level meter or pedometer, although there are free apps available from the Google Play store to cater for these duties.

The IPS display produces brilliant colors thanks partly to the absence of a matte overlay (something common on entry-level rugged smartphones), and it’s suitably bright even when outside, where the P9000 Max is expected to be used most often. 

Poptel promises nearly two days of video playback on a single charge and a staggering two months on standby even with both SIM card slots active. We didn’t check on either count due to time constraints, but this seems highly plausible given the exceptional battery capacity of this device.

The competition

If you want a rugged smartphone with a large battery, the P9000 Max is your only option. The AGM X2 has a much more impressive set of components (Qualcomm system-on-chip, 6GB RAM, triple cameras, AMOLED screen) but only a 6000mAh battery; it also ships with a 100% premium on the price.

The Oukitel WP 5000 is marginally more expensive, has a lower screen resolution (which might help improve battery life) and a smaller battery. But it has three cameras, a more powerful system-on-chip and 50% extra memory.

If battery capacity is all you care about, then consider the yet-to-be-reviewed Blackview P10000 Pro with its 11,000mAh battery capacity. It doesn’t have an IP68 rating but you get four cameras, a bigger screen with a higher resolution, a lower price tag and a more powerful system-on-chip.

Last but not least, consider the leather-bound Oukitel K10 and its equally impressive 11,000mAh battery (charged using a 5V/5A power supply unit). It retails for under $300 (around £235) but other than the missing IP68 rating, delivers an even better range of components compared to the P10000 Pro, with a combined camera pixel count of 50 megapixels!

The undisputed king of capacity remains the Ulefone Power 5 and its 13,000mAh battery, the biggest ever found in a smartphone. However, this isn’t IP68 rated and doesn’t have NFC, but everything else (Android 8.1, 6GB RAM, FHD+ screen) is included for less than $300 (around £235).

The business take

There’s a lot to like about the P9000 Max and to Poptel’s credit, it has managed to produce the first real high battery capacity smartphone with an IP68 rating. With a very reasonable price, the P9000 Max should be a fairly good seller for an audience that requires both the promise of a lengthy stay away from a plug socket, and being impervious to knocks, drops, dust and water.

Outdoor workers who have to cope with challenging conditions day-in, day-out, and require guaranteed full-day operation on a single charge won’t be disappointed, as long as they understand the usual caveats associated with buying from a challenger Chinese mobile vendor.

We’ve picked out the best rugged smartphones

Go to Source Author: Poptel P9000 Max Poptel is a new challenger brand from mainland China, one that specializes solely in rugged smartphones, just like…

[saimdeals-blog]

Keytendo Video Game Console Key Holder

Keytendo Video Game Console Key Holder

Somewhere between way too much and not nearly enough geek lies the Keytendo, an NES-themed key holder, and your Goldilocks gift for a geek.

Modeled after a Nintendo video game console, this wall-mounted rack includes a pair of keychains with dangling plugs that fit perfectly into the Keytendo’s controller ports. One for you, and one for Player 2.

Up top the game cartridge slot serves as a storage…

[toptecharena]

The Bluetooth headphone space may have some audiophile’s baulking at the thought of listening to music without a cable, but there have been great strides in the technology and, in return, the sound. Technological advancements usually mean price rises but not so, here – the Audio-Technica ATH-S200BTs offer up quality sound for a modest price. 

But it’s not just the audio that’s the talking point – the battery inside will mean that worrying about charging your headphones will be the last thing on your mind.

Audio-Technica ATH-S200BT: design and features

Given the modest price, Audio-Technica has created a pair of headphones that are functional, rather than stylish, in their design. The only metal you will find here is in the head band extender. 

Everything else is plastic; that’s by no means a bad thing, though, as the ATH-S200BT’s aren’t cheap feeling but nice and solid. There’s little movement when they are on the head, at least nothing that was at the detriment of the sound. 

On each of the earcups is the Audio-Technica logo, on these earcups are soft earpads – they are not memory foam but comfortable nonetheless. These cans are ‘on ear’ so they rest but don’t envelop the ear. Each earcup has enough movement to suit most heads and the band has a stretch of soft material on the top. 

All of the buttons and inputs are on the bottom of the left earcup. These are: an on/off switch, Bluetooth notification light, volume, and a pause button that also acts as a call button. There is also the charging slot, which is micro USB.

Audio-Technica ATH-S200BT: performance

Let’s get the biggest niggle out of the way first: these headphones are a bit too tight on the head. On-ear headphones are always a Goldilocks situation – some are too loose, some too tight. It’s rare that you get them just right. 

These ones are on the tight side, with the addition of being really light at 190g, and that means after long listens they did start to pinch our ears. Again, this isn’t uncommon with on-ears but is worth noting. A re-adjustment and few minutes’ ear rest and all was good. 

We started with that niggle as there isn’t too much else that can be criticised when it comes to these headphones. 

The sound is as solid as the ATH-S200BT’s build quality. Taking into consideration the price of these headphones, the sound really is impressive. There isn’t quite the depth we would have liked, but there is a clarity there that’s usually only heard in £100/$100 plus headphones and here you get it for nearly half the price. 

We had no issue with loudness, although Bluetooth headphones are always a little on the quiet side, and would have liked a little more richness in the midtones but the bass was deep and cut through most of the sound. 

The brooding timbre of Damien Jurado sounded lovely through the headphones, his song Allocate’s fragile bass taking centre stage. The synths of Weezer’s take on Toto’s Africa were given a nice bit of space, while the hymn-like Yikes by Kanye West stood strong through our listening tests. 

Yes, there could have been a touch more detail across the board – and the lack of aptX is unfortunate – but we have to keep coming back to the price tag. It’s rare you get this quality of sound and design at this price. 

And then there’s the battery life. We certainly haven’t tested a pair of headphones at this price with 40 hours on the clock before – it’s a fantastic amount of battery life that means you can go a week or so and not worry about charging them. When you do, it takes around four hours and is done through micro USB. 

Audio-Technica ATH-S200BT: final verdict

The ATH-S200BT’s are a well-built, great-sounding, long-lasting pair of headphones. Their features constantly outweigh their modest price and we can’t get enough of that 40-hour battery life. 

Although the earcups are comfortable, they are a little too tight on the head and this can cause pinching. But this is a small niggle against what are a great pair of headphones. 

Go to Source Author: Audio-Technica ATH-S200BT The Bluetooth headphone space may have some audiophile’s baulking at the thought of listening to music without a cable, but there have been great strides in the technology and, in return, the sound.