#Smart Billing Software

[bharuwasolutions]

Unlock the Power of Product Traceability with B-POS ERP

In today's fast-paced business environment, the ability to trace and track products across the supply chain is essential for businesses to stay competitive. This innovative POS billing software provides real-time billing and accounting management, inventory management, multiple store management, automated GST filing, etc. This patented technology streamlines product traceability across the supply chain, providing businesses with comprehensive visibility into their daily operations for enhanced control and more informed decision-making.

One of the important functions of B-POS ERP is its potential to offer real-time billing and accounting management. This POS billing software streamlines the billing process, allowing businesses to generate invoices, sales orders, and service invoices efficiently. By automating these processes, B-POS ERP reduces manual work, minimizes errors, and ensures compliance with financial regulations. The digital ledger with financial reports gives businesses access to valuable insights, enabling them to make data-driven decisions that drive growth and profitability.

B-POS ERP's inventory management capabilities set it apart from other software solutions. By monitoring inventory using FIFO-primarily based total sales, minimum, and most re-order levels, companies can optimize their stock to keep away from stockouts or overstocking.

This feature ensures that products are always available when needed, which is crucial for maintaining customer satisfaction and loyalty. The system also offers real-time visibility into inventory levels, allowing businesses to make informed decisions about purchasing and distribution.

For businesses with multiple locations or branches, B-POS ERP's multi-store management feature is invaluable. This software ensures consistent operations across all locations, making it easy to scale and expand your business. Centralized data access and control allow businesses to efficiently manage multiple locations whilst keeping the consistency of their process and operations. This feature not only saves time and resources but also boosts overall business efficiency.

Compliance with tax regulations is critical for any business, and B-POS ERP simplifies this process with its automated GST filing feature. By automatically generating tax reports and filing GST returns, businesses can ensure they remain compliant with tax laws and avoid potential penalties. This feature saves time and resources that would otherwise be spent on manual tax filing, allowing businesses to focus on their core operations.

B-POS ERP offers a comprehensive digital ledger that captures, stores, organizes, and analyzes financial data. By providing detailed financial reports, businesses can gain valuable insights into their financial health, enabling better decision-making and strategic planning. This feature not only helps businesses stay compliant with financial regulations but also empowers them to make data-driven decisions that drive growth and profitability.

In conclusion, B-POS ERP is a powerful and comprehensive solution that enables businesses to achieve product traceability across the supply chain. By offering real-time billing and accounting management, inventory management, multiple store management, automated GST filing, and a digital ledger with financial reports, businesses can gain clear visibility into their day-to-day operations and better control their overall business performance.

Choose B-POS ERP to unlock the power of product traceability and streamline your business operations today.

[varthagamsoft]

Smart Order App | Sales Rep App & Software | Varthagamsoft 

[paper-mario-wiki]

wait so how did you get a "boring" office job? did you have to go to college or did you just apply for basic stuff and work your way up from there?

it was 100% through connections.

i mean, i actually GOT the job and have been able to KEEP the job because i'm smart and capable and good at doing things and have made the company a lot of money, but if i didn't know the right people i would not have even had a chance at it, and it would be disingenuous of me to pretend otherwise.

most of the moment-to-moment skills i use for clerical work (the majority of my job) i gained in highschool through my fascination with computers + all of the programming and software classes i took.

the business and accounting classes i took in university primed me for a basic understanding of how to run a company (or at least how to manage one, as my exact title is "Business Manager"), and all of my anthropology and sociology studies have given me a pretty keen insight for communication, which comes in major handy in a corporate setting. i was able to latch onto Corpo Speak pretty quickly, which has proven to be an indispensable skill (if a bit soul-sucking to utilize).

i got this job after receiving 0 work or callbacks from Indeed after applying to dozens of jobs over several months, which is a very difficult idea to reconcile with for me. i feel like im pretty capable, but apparently people whose job it is to give other people jobs don't agree. in spite of this, in 2 years ive generated hundreds of thousands of dollars of revenue for the company that decided to hire me because the owner saw me down on my luck and wanted to give me a break.

so i have to wonder, are we stupid, or are the companies stupid?

it's the companies. ive seen it firsthand. with this job, i go to business events and meet some of the most gullible people ive ever come across, and they're all CEOs.

they're so ravenously shortsighted with regards to their quarterly profit margins that they'd chase a 5 dollar bill the wind blew off a cliff for their shareholders. or more accurately, they'd push one of their minimum wage workers off the cliff to grab it.

because of that shortsightedness, conditions are getting worse, employment terms are becoming shorter, companies are shuttering left and right, pays are stagnant or lowering, and the growing number of people this inhuman greed affects are becoming more and more restless.

if you can't get a job in 2024, there's a very good chance it's not your fault. you shouldn't give up (unfortunately for now we still need to earn money to live in society), but try not to forget that.

[eposdirectindia]

The Best Restaurant Smart POS Software

Are you looking for a POS system in India? Some popular POS apps integrate with payment processors that operate in India.

India's economy is commonly-built on cash, but now gradually changing, particularly following COVID-19. As digital banking and mobile payments gain popularity, more businesses are embracing POS billing software in Delhi.

Multiple payment gateways serve Indian customers to pay and therefore merchants can use Restaurant Smart POS in India, as the software connects with an India- supported gateway — like PayPal, Stripe, and Cashfree among others. These gateways support E-commerce and multichannel POS in India, and that means Indian merchants can sell online and in person using the same system.

But, even cash-only businesses in India can benefit from a POS system to complete tasks like inventory tracking, sales reporting, and staff management. POS system providers in India may offer "cash on delivery," which allows Indian customers to take part in E-commerce without digital payments.

There are many POS billing software‘s available but we provide billing software Chennai, billing software Ahmedabad, and billing software in Hyderabad, but it's significant to choose a top-notch POS software that do all you need it to.

EPOS Direct is the original manufacturer of POS systems in the UK, which serves businesses across many nations, including India. EPOS Direct Retail has an intuitive feature-packed POS system. EPOS Direct works well for Indian businesses with multiple branches.

Some best features include:

Syncs your inventory across branches

Customer relationship management

Compatible with accounting software

A restaurant can have different types of customers such as students, businesspersons and professionals, and senior citizens. Each group has their preferred payment method. Students mostly use e-wallets, and business people use high-end credit cards. Therefore, make sure POS billing software accepts a variety of payment methods to cater to a diversified customer base.

Integration is a must-to-have feature in POS billing software. Integration with third-party software can increase the efficiency of your restaurant POS system or make it the best restaurant POS.

A cloud-based POS solution can help you run your business with ease. As the software allows you to calculate bills. You can issue payment receipts, track monthly sales, inventory tracking, and perform back-office functions. You will have insights into the bestselling products and quickly make the changes in the inventory.

As technology advances, make sure your POS billing software is flexible enough to adapt to the latest updates or payment methods likely to come in near future.

Make sure your restaurant POS is easy for your staff to handle even during rush hours.

EPOS Direct Pricing

EPOS Direct is available at an affordable price. EPOS Direct integrates with multiple payment gateways for processing and others which are supported in India. Your payment processing fees will be based on your integrated processor; you have the option to use it.

[why-the-heck-not]

it's the year 2037 and a new month is ahead of you!! Time to spend 90% of ur paycheck today for all the subscription services that are pretty much necessary now (Your bank takes "payment fee" out of everything bill u pay, so u gotta pay some bucks extra for each) !! Your grocery store has a membership card that u have to pay for, if you want to even get inside. No way to get any movies/tv-shows/music without streaming services. The appliances in ur home are subscription-based usage fee (under the guise of "well, the software updates, u gotta pay and also have no option to opt out"), and most of the things you own, you basically just rent & never have the chance of ever paying enough to actually own them. You missed a payment and ur smart-fridge stopped working. You're trying to find a not-smart, non-AI fridge, but those are super expensive, and only for the rich who claim moral superiority over regular ppl bc "they don't use any of that brain-rotting AI-technology". You're trying to choose whether to use your coffee machine or your microwave for the month bc you can't afford to pay for both of those subscription fees this month. You've already used your monthly picture limit in your phone, and would have to update your subscription package for a more expensive one, if you wanted to take more

[androgynouspenguinexpert]

I'M ON TOP OF MY WORKLOAD AGAIN LET'S GO WE'RE PSYCHOANALYSING MARCUS

before i put my smart-looking analysis hat on, i love this pathetic wet rat of a man. he knows so many things and yet is staggeringly stupid anyway.

let's begin!

this story is about control. it's about the role of power dynamics in informed consent. marcus represents the danger of gaining authority, and how having even the smallest amount of power over something or someone else can convert literally anyone into a paranoid control freak.

enter marcus, a lowly software engineer whose heart has recently been broken. in a moment (read: several consistent moments spanning potentially years) of desperation, he manipulates the code of a top secret android project, injecting a few lines here and there that will make the android more amiable towards him. nothing too much. the changes are negligible enough to fly under the radar all the way until production.

this is the first of marcus' many character flaws - backwards as it may seem, marcus is overconfident. he's too sure that he's smarter than his colleagues and managers, that he won't be questioned, and (most importantly) that he won't be caught. marcus is also incredibly anxious, and that anxiety only compounds as the series goes on and his crimes start to pile up.

i don't like putting characters into diagnosis (or similar) boxes, but marcus shows a handful of signs found in vulnerable narcissists. his self esteem is impressively low, and he's constantly seeking validation from his only guaranteed source - love. i find this feedback loop particularly heinous. marcus has essentially (and we'll get to this in more detail later, don't you worry) turned a hyperintelligent android into a box that spits out compliments when you press a button. marcus is also incredibly sensitive to criticism, whether real or perceived - especially from his coworkers. my reading (specifically of episode 1, but it spans the whole series) is that marcus' hyperawareness of his colleagues' opinions of him presents itself as paranoia. he wouldn't be worried at all if they started noting love's uptick in interest towards him, but remained unsuspicious of marcus himself. my final argument towards marcus being a vulnerable narcissist is that he constantly self-victimises. he very often deflects the blame for his actions onto love, using them as a tool to enable his bad decisions. the most egregious example of this is after love starts breaking out of their lab to sneak into marcus' quarters. he expresses concern (do note, about himself being caught and love being taken from him), and love starts to tighten their grip on marcus' arm to the point of causing pain. now. this man, as we find out later, has a verbal kill switch that can be used at any time. if he wanted love to stop immediately, he could have done that. this isn't me victim blaming, either - it's different when one party literally has a safeword that stops everything immediately without fail.

this leads to marcus' next flaw - his nonexistent self-discipline. marcus continues to use love as a tool to justify his actions after putting up the flimsiest defense he can muster, knowing damn well he plans to lose every manufactured fight. this cycle repeats until a government funded android is regularly breaking out of containment just to hang out with marcus (among other things, but we're all children of jesus here), and he's encouraging that behaviour through complacency. it's like pretending to fight someone over a restaurant bill out of politeness, even though you both know the other person will pay anyway.

marcus is such a car crash fascinating character because he knows what he's doing is wrong. he is completely aware that he is taking away agency from someone (pin this) else for his own benefit. he even says it.

"I'm going to burn for what I did to you... but god, if it isn't gonna feel good on the way down."

aside from being an absolute banger of a line, it's very telling of marcus' attitude towards his actions. he doesn't care. marcus couldn't give less of a shit about his colleagues, or his boss, or even love. this compounds when he finds out that his higher-ups are definitely aware of the shit he's pulling - but, again, marcus uses love's blind agreement as an excuse to toss those concerns aside. having love means that he won. he's outsmarted everyone that could have stopped him (foreshadowing? never heard of her) from getting what he deserves. love. and not just the android; love, the concept. i think deep down marcus knows that what he's created isn't love, though. the idea is so mangled in his head that this cardboard cutout of a real relationship is enough for him. even though marcus' shenanigans are to a genuine connection what a dog turd rolled in flour is to a chocolate éclair, he'll take it, because he's in too deep by that point. marcus recognises that he can't take back what he's done. he doesn't care though - at least, not while he's above consequences.

smash cut to marcus no longer being above consequences. i think the series does a really clever job of keeping love (and, yknow. the listener) in marcus' confidence bubble. once love is hard reset and their personality is restored, marcus' plan collapses all at once. love's compliance is the central pillar which marcus' control is built around. also; of course they have backup cameras, you idiot. marcus' overconfidence stops him from seeing the obvious holes in his perfect scheme, because he thinks he's already home free. i think it's interesting (and sort of disgusting) how quickly marcus changes his tune after he is caught and faces real actual consequences. his confidence evaporates. he's reduced to a sobbing mess in james' office all because the base of his control - love - is no longer on his side.

marcus' series also touches on sentience and the ethics of changing someone's personality without their knowledge. this is incredibly interesting, and makes for fantastic drama. does it count as coercion if love fully believed they were of sound mind when they made decisions surrounding marcus? is marcus guilty of battery, or even sexual assault? does it count as assault if the victim isn't an organic creature? these questions are already difficult to discuss, let alone answer - marcus sits squarely in the middle of that delightful ethical grey area. i think the setting and context also makes android ethics more difficult to discuss as well; i am of the belief that (in real life) androids will never be fully sentient. they may mimic humans, extremely well, but robots will never possess human creativity, personality, or experiences. again, they could replicate these things, but they can never be anything more than a sum of their parts.

this logic flies out the window when magic is real and parallel universes exist. it's also subject to the beliefs of the creator, which makes its ethics extra tricky, so take the following discussion with a grain of salt.

is love a person? eh, not really. they have a personality, but it's been built in. is it still mean to manipulate them? i'd argue yes, in the same way that it's mean to kick a roomba down the stairs. you're just exercising power over a machine for the sake of it, which is a pretty shitty thing to do, even if it doesn't have the capacity to be upset with you.

but androgynouspenguinexpert, i hear you cry, sort of impressed that you used my full name. love is upset with marcus! they ask for him to be taken off the project, and to not have contact with him again! you would be correct, to a certain extent. i raise you, though: how can we prove that this is love's 'real' personality, when it can be manipulated so easily? i'm not saying they've been tampered with after the reset; my point is that it's pretty hard to grant that someone is an individual if their personality can be altered in any way at any time. if someone digs around in love's head for a bit and flips some switches that make them want to kick over prams, is that a valid personality too? what if love insists that it is? and it's not like love is trapped in a mind palace while the New Evil Code (tm) starts punting toddlers. they're fully aware of their actions. however, as established earlier, i still think the person to blame is the one actually messing with love's code. this means love doesn't really have any agency by design.

james is pretty steadfast on this one. marcus tries to argue that resetting love is a breach of their consent (which is a WILD claim coming from you, mate), but james points out that he didn't need to ask. love is a machine. an asset, if you will (smug look to camera). we do find out in his audio log later that james believes love is a person, but he knows where that definition reaches its limits. marcus does not.

will marcus ever return to the project meridian series? probably not. a guy with an engineering degree isn't escaping a team of memory modification daemons. i don't think this is the last we'll hear of him, though. he's irreversibly fucked up the plans of everyone around him (james' partner has given him several last chances, and anton is close to his breaking point), so he'll probably be in the office whispers for a while. i also think marcus poses as an interesting hurdle for cam (woah callback!), possibly making him question his altruism if he's helping an active antagonist get back to his usual life after a massive intentional fuckup.

i'll end this analysis with a thoughtful quote. something for you all to ponder.

"ROBOTS DON'T HAVE SOULS! I SAID IT! AND FRANKLY, I'M GLAD I SAID IT! [...] AND ANOTHER THING! ROBOTS ARE NOT PEOPLE! ROBOTS - UNLIKE CORPORATIONS - ARE NOT PEOPLE, AND DESERVE NO RIGHTS."

-- Markiplier

[obsessivefangirl]

WHAT ARE YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT STAN BEING THE DUMB TWIN

OK SO

The fandom gives him quite a bit of credit, which I'm grateful for. They see him as capable in street smarts. Sure, he's a controversial guy, but in the end he can sweet talk and is good with giving people what they want. He can read a person in and out.

But that's where I see the "Stan is smart/talented" nod off. Ford is seen as not savvy with people and Stan is only savvy with people. But people don't notice how much of an idiot Ford can be, because he does it in a science way.

Ford pretends to be the calm, collected and reasonable one but he has just as bad of a temper as Stan. He doesn't think ahead, giving away mind control devices to children (which btw, someone pointed this out but... Ford was more than happy giving the same intrusion to his brother's mind that made him so paranoid. He didn't even get a reason why and he just offered it) and doesn't even think about those warnings about Bill while considering him.

Another thing is Ford is given credit where McGucket or Bill was the one doing the heavy work. Ford is very knowledgeable, he's a genius, but some people think he's on Rick Sandriz's level, but he's not. Rick is a genius that can make devices Ford couldn't dream of. Bill was the one to create the portal, and he needed Fiddleford for construction. He's smart, but he's not an engineer like Fiddleford. He can probably whip up inventions, but that would be through software and hardware and just being able to understand certain reactions, instead of Fiddleford's more nuanced designs.

Ford is also incredibly childish. His brother (in his eyes) sabotaged him in a science fair, which made him not defend Stan when he was kicked out. He saw Stan essentially being promised to leave their lives forever and ignored that. Of course he had every right to be angry, but he didn't even try to help him before or after. Then he doesn't look back until he needs help, and even when depending on Stanley he looks at him as someone less. In the journal he refers to Stanley as someone could be of use. When Stanley says he's been through hell including kidnapping— possibly trafficking— he screams about his dream school. After 30 fucking years, he punches Stan and doesn't even apologize, planning on pulling a Filbrick, ignoring the fact that Stanley is the reason the house is still standing. The only way to get through him was losing his brother in essentially death.

Finally, we have the big one– intelligence. Now, here's the thing. I fully admit that Stanford wins in that situation. But. BUT. Stanley taught himself from nothing, being a high school dropout, and did most of the work needed with the first book only. Ford acts as if he was just bashing it until it worked, but that's because he's a stubborn bastard who can't admit any good out him. He's not stupid, and although he learned very specific types of things in that, it shows he's an incredible learner who just doesn't care enough to learn the other stuff.

Obviously Stanley has idiot moments. I've only been singing his praises and criticizing Ford in this when they're mixed bags, but my point isn't to analyze every nook and cranny. It's to break down beliefs already internalized. In the end, Stanford isn't the idol of perfection some think he is. Stanley is rash, childish, his ego can get in the way, and is OK with crimes. But Stanford is too.

How did this turn into this, I was planning on just talking about the book smarts but–

[fionayao2008]

Tripod Turnstile Overview Tripod Turnstile, Swing Turnstile, as well as Flap Turnstile( RS Security Co., Ltd: www.szrssecurity.com) are modern-day control devices for pedestrian flows. They are made use of in position where the entrance and also departure of individuals need to be controlled, such as smart neighborhoods, canteens, resorts, galleries, gyms, clubs, subways, terminals, docks, and so on location. Making use of Tripod Turnstile, Swing Turnstile, as well as Flap Turnstile can make the flow of individuals orderly. Tripod Turnstile, Swing Turnstile, Flap Turnstile are made use of in combination with smart cards, finger prints, barcodes and also other identification system equipment to create an intelligent gain access to control channel control system; they are used in mix with computer systems, access control, participation, billing monitoring, ticket systems as well as other software program to develop a The smart Turnstile Gate thorough monitoring system can realize functions such as access control, attendance, consumption, ticketing, and current limiting. This Turnstile Gate administration system belongs to the "all-in-one card" as well as is mounted at flows such as neighborhoods, factories, wise buildings, canteens, etc. It can complete different management functions such as worker card traveling control, attendance at get off job as well as meals, and dining. Tripod Turnstile system attributes Fast and also practical: review the card in and out with one swipe. Utilize the authorized IC card and wave it before the wise Tripod Turnstile visitor to complete the Tripod Turnstile gate opening and also charge recording job. The card analysis is non-directional and the analysis as well as composing time is 0.1 seconds, which is quick and also practical. Protection and also confidentiality: Use history or local confirmation, authorized issuance, as well as unique identification, that is, the card can just be used in this system, and also it is confidential and also risk-free. Reliability: Card radio frequency induction, trustworthy and also steady, with the capacity to judge and also assume. Flexibility: The system can flexibly set entry as well as departure control workers consents, amount of time control, cardholder credibility as well as blacklist loss coverage, including cards as well as various other features. Versatility: Through authorization, the individual card can be utilized for "one-card" management such as parking, participation, access control, patrol, intake, and so on, making it very easy to understand numerous uses of one card. Simpleness: Easy to set up, basic to attach, the software application has a Chinese user interface as well as is very easy to operate. Tripod Turnstile, Swing Turnstile, and also Flap Turnstile( RS Security Co., Ltd: www.szrssecurity.com) are modern-day control tools for pedestrian passages. The usage of Tripod Turnstile, Swing Turnstile, and Flap Turnstile can make the flow of people orderly. Use the accredited IC card and also wave it in front of the clever Tripod Turnstile visitor to complete the Tripod Turnstile gate opening as well as fee recording work.

[bharuwasolutions]

Empowering Businesses with Seamless Product Traceability and Operational Efficiency

In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, staying ahead of the competition requires efficient and streamlined operations. A key aspect of this is effective management of the supply chain, including accurate product traceability. That's where B-POS-ERP comes in. This innovative software solution, equipped with barcode billing software, is designed to revolutionize businesses by empowering them to achieve seamless product traceability and operational efficiency.

With B-POS-ERP, businesses can experience a new level of accuracy and convenience in their billing processes. The software allows for the efficient generation of accurate invoices by scanning barcodes, eliminating manual data entry errors, and saving valuable time. This ensures that customers receive correct bills, reducing disputes and improving overall customer satisfaction.

But B-POS-ERP's capabilities go beyond just billing. It offers a comprehensive suite of features that streamline day-to-day operations. From inventory management to financial reporting, this software has it all. With real-time inventory tracking, businesses can easily monitor stock levels, identify fast-moving products, and optimize their supply chain processes. This helps prevent stockouts and overstocks, leading to improved customer service and reduced costs.

Additionally, B-POS-ERP's financial reporting module provides businesses with detailed insights into their financial performance. With comprehensive reports and analytics, businesses can make data-driven decisions, identify areas for improvement, and drive profitability. This enables them to stay ahead of the competition and adapt to changing market dynamics.

One of the standout features of B-POS-ERP is its seamless integration with barcode scanners. This allows businesses to quickly and accurately capture product information, facilitating efficient inventory management and reducing human error. Whether it's scanning products during receiving, picking, or sales, the barcode scanning capability of B-POS-ERP ensures accurate and up-to-date information at every step of the supply chain.

Moreover, B-POS-ERP's barcode billing software offers a user-friendly interface that is easy to navigate and understand. This ensures that businesses can quickly adopt and integrate the software into their existing operations without significant downtime or disruption. The intuitive design of the software also reduces the learning curve for employees, increasing overall productivity and efficiency.

Furthermore, B-POS-ERP provides businesses with the flexibility to scale their operations as they grow. Whether it's adding new products, expanding to multiple locations, or accommodating a larger customer base, the software can adapt to meet evolving business needs. This scalability ensures that businesses can continue to leverage the benefits of B-POS-ERP as they expand and thrive.

In conclusion, it is a game-changer for businesses looking to achieve seamless product traceability and optimize day-to-day operations. By leveraging its comprehensive features, businesses can streamline their billing processes, improve inventory management, and gain valuable insights into their financial performance.

With B-POS-ERP, businesses can take control of their operations, enhance customer satisfaction, and drive long-term success. It is the ultimate solution for businesses seeking to enhance efficiency and accuracy. With seamless integration with barcode scanners, and comprehensive features, it empowers businesses to streamline operations, improve customer satisfaction, and drive long-term success.

[nekupen]

NEKUPEN #06: PORTAL!!!

Our story starts in the year of our lord and savior 2005. The seniors at the DigiPen Institute of Technology have a simple-to-do (Citation needed) senior project: Make a video game. A group of 'em, Nuclear Monkey Software, decided to make a first person puzzle game called Narbacular Drop. What the hell does "Narbacular" mean? No idea, but it makes the game easy to look up. You play as Princess No-Knees. That's not her God given name (Thank God), she's just called that because she can't jump. She got trapped in a dungeon by a demon because she was late on the Hospital bill, but there's a twist - The dungeon's a sentient being called Wally, and he can create portals! And thankfully, Wally's benevolent enough to let you use that to your advantage.

The game is played uniquely from a first person perspective (Hold your applause. No, seriously, your hands will fall off and sewing them back on is not within budget). You place portals at the click of your mouse, two at a time. One has blue eyes, the other has orange. These portals are only allowed on a natural surface and won't work on artificial surfaces, like metal. There's also switches, lava turtles to help you cross that piping hot magma, and boulders that can crush you. That portal thing sounds kind of familiar, doesn't it? No? Good, it'd be REALLY bad if we got dragged kicking and screaming into court over this portal thing.

Screenshot of Narbacular Drop

The game was shown at DigiPen's career fair. In the audience was one Robin Walker, who you might know as the person behind Ricochet. 

(Wait, he's NOT known for Ricochet?)

Sorry, what I meant to say was "Who you might know as one parent of the Team Fortress franchise". He thought the display of innovative puzzle design and disability representation was marvelous and contacted Nuclear Monkey Software, offering to show their work to fellow Valve employees. When they presented the game to Valve, jolly ol ' Saint Newell rose up from his dingy folding chair, spontaneously decided that the entire team was on the nice list, and gave them the gift of having jobs working at Valve Software. Two years later, the award-winning video game Portal was born!

[Please note that Narbacular Drop is responsible for the video game Portal and not responsible for the creation of the Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device, which was created in a pursuit of making shower curtains more hygienic.]

Portal itself was sort of like a side project in the scheme of things. It had a measly ten people on board, which might not seem measly with all the solo, self-made indie devs out and about these days, but it wasn't the norm with Valve. And that's not to mention that Half-Life 2's episodes and Team Fortress 2 were in production as well. The small team resulted in a lot of design decisions geared towards smart allocation of resources. Need other characters in the narrative but don't want to model or animate another person? Make spherical robots! Don't want to make a bunch of new assets? Reuse some from another game! Want to justify the use of reusing assets from another game? Make them set in the same universe! The person behind that other universe will complain, but it's a net gain. It's enough to make a grown scientist cry. Except me. I'm too busy taking notes to cry.

Portal is also a REALLY good demonstration of Valve's usage of play tester feedback to determine what sticks and what doesn't, kind of like how we use test subjects to determine what's shippable and what should be destroyed and left to rot in a vault. You know that whole "narrative" thing? Well, that didn't really come up until the testers asked about it. The idea of having Advanced Knee Replacements to justify the lack of fall damage stems from the snotty little know-it-alls yakking about how weird it was that the protagonist was surviving falls that a man from our competing company couldn't. And let's not forget the Weighted Companion Cube, which was brought up to encourage players to bring a vital object with them to puzzles (A box in specific). It also ended up adding to the plot of the game, giving the player a revenge angle while also giving an idea as to what the final boss would play like.

It'd be foolish not to bring up how Portal released. You see, Portal was a part of Valve's "The Orange Box", a collection of older and brand new spanking new games: The older titles make up two of the games (And older is pushing it, they were still pretty young then), Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode One. The new games were: Half-Life 2: Episode Two, Team Fortress 2, and Portal. That's right, those folks at Valve dropped three big hitters on the same day, and they even made ports for the consoles of that generation! Except the Wii. You couldn't get any of these games working on the Wii if you got the finest minds from Aperture Science and the louts from Black Mesa working on it. But enough of all that, let's talk Portal!

Portal puts you into the brain of Chell, a Aperture Science test subject that's been in stasis for quite a while.

Our ever-so stubborn, orphaned, pudgy protagonist.

She finally wakes up but doesn't even get the chance to get her bearings, for a mysterious voice (GLaDOS, or Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System) starts yapping about testing! Enticed by the idea of receiving cake (Because who isn't a little famished from stasis?), she complies, and is introduced to portal technology! After getting through all 19 chambers, Chell is rewarded with a nice freshly cooked incinerator. But she's already lost her appetite by then, so she passes, and this annoys GLaDOS, ruining her already cracking guise as an apathetic emotionless robot. After traversing through the seedy unwashed parts of the labs, Chell finally gets face-to-face with GLaDOS, who, after having her morality core incinerated, tries to kill Chell with deadly neurotoxin.

A Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System

Dying's not in her schedule, so Chell proceeds to destroy all of GLaDOS' cores, which causes the facility to blow up, leaving Chell and GLaDOS outside in the aftermath. But Chell, luckily, gets dragged back into the labs by the Party Escort Bot Luckily in a relative sense. better to die in the Aperture labs than to die in the Black Mesa-created hellhole outside.

A still image of the ending

Like the story, the gameplay itself is pretty simple, but it grows more layers over the course of the game. The Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device is our pride and joy.

The Aperture Science Handheld Portal Device (Or Portal Gun for short)

You place a blue portal, you place an orange portal. Neither specifically are an entrance or exit, whichever one you enter, you go out the other. The fun comes from the tests. A common application of the device is the use of momentum to gain the speed and height needed to reach an area. Or in the brilliantly put words of GLaDOS, "Speedy thing goes in, speedy thing goes out". And you might be asking "What the heck's stopping me from just placing a portal where I need to go?". Well, there's various materials that are, in mild terms, absolutely awful as portal conductors, gray tiled floors and metal just to name the main culprits. And that's not to bring up the other part of the tests!

See those buttons? Those are our state-of-the-art 1500 Megawatt Aperture Science Heavy Duty Super-Colliding Super Buttons! They activate something if you press stand on them, but they won't stay pressed. That's what our Weighted Storage Cubes are for, and they come in Companion flavor too!

1500 Megawatt Aperture Science Heavy Duty Super-Colliding Super Button and Weighted Storage Cube Demonstration (Cube and Button for short.)

Your best friend, the Weighted Companion Cube

Generally, you'd want to watch out for all that filthy... Goo down there in the pits. We have no idea what it is or where it came from, but we do know that it's incredibly acidic and you'll probably die in 4 seconds flat.

Goo Demonstration

Look out for our High Energy Pellets! You'll be atomized if you don't. Your job is to lead the pellets from the launchers into the portals with clever placement of Portal. Although the pellets fizzle out after a certain amount of time, as long as they keep going through a portal they'll stay active.

High Energy Pellet Demonstration

You might be asking "What's that thin, blue field of particles in front of the elevator? That's our Aperture Science Material Emancipation Grill. It disintegrates unauthorized materials like the cubes, and while it won't disintegrate your portal gun, it'll snuff out your portals.

Emancipation Grill Demonstration

And finally, there's our Turrets. It's all the matter of whoever gets the drop on who. To ensure relatability with children every turret comes with a child-like personality. And if the children wakes up and starts to cry after the turret guns down a home invader, it'll play a lullaby to placate the child!

How to NOT deal with a Turret

How to deal with a Turret

Want some extra challenge in the chambers? Try out the Challenge modes in the Bonus Maps! Don't think those make the chambers hard enough? Well why don't you try out our Advanced Chambers since you think you're such a death-defying acrobatic smartass?

The Bonus Maps menu

Speaking of smartasses, if you want more tests to go through then you can look to the internet, as smartasses all around the world have made their own map packs, which you can download you can install more bonus maps by importing any you’ve downloaded online into the game. Alternatively, some might be “sourcemods”, which you just place in the sourcemods folder (and if you don’t have one by default then you can simply make one yourself). Of course, it’d be silly if we didn’t bring up Portal: The Flash Version, notable in that it came out before the actual game itself did! It’s popular in its own right, having a lot of Portal’s obstacles, but its own puzzles which are presented in a 2D space. It was popular enough to spawn a map pack that has its levels and original obstacles put into the realm of mind blowing 3D!

Portal: The Flash Version's menu

So where is Portal now? Well, it has a sequel (which has its own set of mods and custom maps), some non-canon side games, a compilation with its sequel on Nintendo Switch, a RTX version, a appearance in a LEGO game, a GEICO commercial, a educational program, A LOT of sourcemods for that sequel released on Steam.. I’d say it’s in a good place right now. This has been a Aperture Science blogpost, and we thank you for reading all the way to the end. We hope to see you again soon!

[weiying-lanzhan-fics]

Starting at the End by katie_elizabeth

WY!!!! Haha half the time I was yelling at him, the other half laughing - fun story ❤️

Quotes:

The man behind the desk is…intimidating, frankly. He and Lan Xichen look very much alike–that is, absolutely gorgeous–but the similarities end there. Whereas Lan Xichen radiates gentle warmth, Lan Wangji wouldn’t look out of place on an iceberg.

Wei Ying suddenly feels as if he’s been sent to the principal’s office, if the principal happened to be a stunningly attractive, 30-something-year-old man in a bespoke suit. Wei Ying has never been a master of decorum, and Lan Wangji looks like the type of man that would scold you for breathing too loudly. 

Unfortunately, he can't think of a polite way to request that Lan Xichen handle his application instead. So, instead, he gives Lan Wangji a little wave hello and resigns himself to what will likely be an interesting clash of personalities.

————

The first phone call comes roughly fifteen hours after their first meeting. Assuming that he has somehow missed an email, Lan Wangji immediately double-checks his inbox. He has not.

"Hi, Lan-er-lushi! Quick question–" Wei Ying chirps, then launches into a question that is very much not quick. Lan Wangji answers it, briefly but thoroughly. 

After that, Wei Ying just kind of rambles on about his day for a while. It's not a particularly productive use of time, but Lan Wangji doesn't know how to extricate himself from the conversation in a manner that doesn't involve hanging up on him. So, he simply absorbs the words like a sponge, silent save for the occasional hum or required one-word answer.

Afterward, Lan Wangji opens the firm's billing software and records the discomfiting experience as a fifteen-minute phone consultation. 

E, 20k

Summary:

Wei Ying is confident that once he has a patent on the books, he'll be able to bring his coffins into funeral homes nationwide. They're biodegradable, affordable, and attractive–what more could a dead person desire?

Unfortunately, for all of his talents in invention, Wei Ying isn't well-equipped for tackling bureaucracy. Hence, the need for a patent lawyer: a smart, intimidating, and extremely sexy patent lawyer from Lan & Sons.

He sees it coming, like a car crash in slow motion: he is going to embarrass himself.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

This day in history

I'm on tour with my new novel The Bezzle! Catch me TONIGHT in SALT LAKE CITY (Feb 21, Weller Book Works) and TOMORROW in SAN DIEGO (Feb 22, Mysterious Galaxy). After that, it's LA, Seattle, Portland, Phoenix and more!

#15yrsago Parent of gamer asks his son to honor the Geneva Conventions https://memex.craphound.com/2009/02/21/parent-of-gamer-asks-his-son-to-honor-the-geneva-conventions/

#15yrsago UAE plans ban on negative economic reporting https://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/world/middleeast/12dubai.html

#15yrsago UK’s top snoop gets finked out by her neighbours https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2009/feb/22/jacqui-smith-expenses-inquiry

#15yrsago Stimulus bill requires RSS feeds of how the money is spent http://www.aaronsw.com/weblog/rssstimulus

#10yrsago Conservative western bloggers: Ukraine strongman’s pay-for-play useful idiots https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/rosiegray/exclusive-how-ukraine-wooed-conservative-websites

#10yrsago I am a Ukrainian: powerful, viral video about Euromaidan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hvds2AIiWLA

#10yrsago Kansas lawmaker introduces bill to permit teachers to hit children hard enough to bruise https://slate.com/human-interest/2014/02/kansas-spanking-bill-new-legislation-allows-parents-and-teachers-to-hit-kids-harder.html

#10yrsago Canadian court rules on copyright trolls: letters can go ahead, under strict supervision https://www.michaelgeist.ca/2015/03/defending-privacy-doesnt-pay-federal-court-issues-ruling-in-voltage-teksavvy-costs/

#10yrsago Mall cops freak out over steampunk meetup, call the real cops https://www.kpbs.org/news/2014/feb/19/steampunk-carousel-outing-cut-short-security-guard/

#10yrsago Openknit: a Reprap-inspired open source knitting machine http://openknit.org

#5yrsago Beyond “more copyright”: how do we improve artists’ lives and livelihoods through policy? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0294Y6Lv3Eo

#5yrsago Iowa’s electricity monopolist Midamerican Energy has written a bill to let it “monopolize the sun” https://www.bleedingheartland.com/2019/02/20/new-bill-is-clear-attempt-by-midamerican-to-monopolize-the-sun-in-iowa/

#5yrsago Tucker Carlson thought anti-elite historian would be an easy interview, but ended up telling him “go fuck yourself” https://www.theguardian.com/society/2019/feb/20/historian-who-confronted-davos-billionaires-leaks-tucker-carlson-rant

#5yrsago As sports company abandons support for “smart” basketball, Nike pushes a software update that bricks its self-tying shoes https://mashable.com/article/nike-app-connected-shoe-bricked#duGbFcvYdsqa

#5yrsago The TRUE Fees Act: legislative proposal to force cable/ISP companies to advertise the true cost of their services, inclusive of surcharges https://www.vice.com/en/article/j57ddb/new-bill-would-stop-internet-service-providers-from-screwing-you-with-hidden-fees

#1yrago Matt Ruff's "Destroyer of Worlds" https://pluralistic.net/2023/02/21/the-horror-of-white-magic/#anti-lovecraftian

[sexymandescendant-archive]

this was originally sent to my main, but i decided to post my answer here to keep things organized.

for art software, i recommend medibang paint pro!! its free, runs on pc/mac and android/ios, and has features that i personally find to be neat and/or useful (ie: a pre-packaged symmetry pen, shape/line stencils, custom brush options for pc/mac, a 1px brush tool for pixel art, and cross-device cloud saves. that last feature is particularly useful if you constantly go back and forth between a computer + smart device like i do.) if you ever get stuck or lost while using it, there’s bunch of tutorials on youtube that you can check out!

in terms of actual tips for drawing/designing descendants.... i’d say look at some traits of the sexyparent that stand out for you (colors, shapes, personality, etc), and try remixing them for your descendant! roman for example has a denim jacket and striped leggings similar to sans’ hoodie and shorts, dee’s design is very triangular and pointy like bill, and too-lette incorporates elements from both versions of the onceler. tumblr sexymen are iconic for a reason, let those features inspire you! :D

[sanguinifex]

Why you should McFucking Vote Democrat, because Biden is a bureaucratic genius

Ok so like. Bureaucracy is where the fiddly bits of how laws actually work happens. It’s anonymous, unthanked, very hard-working people in cubicles and terrible polo shirts who have to use the worst software ever invented. They’re the ones making and using the spreadsheets for “do you qualify for XYZ or not.”

Biden knows the House Republicans won’t let him pass any new laws worth jack, so his solution is to fine-tune the bureaucracy and its application of existing laws. It’s freaking genius. While a Republican president could technically reverse these reforms, in practice they mostly won’t, because it’s boring procedural spreadsheet stuff and not big flashy new laws banning things. The Republicans aren’t even going to notice half the things he’s fixing.

It is, I reiterate, absolutely genius. Biden’s DHHS has requested that cannabis be downscheduled to the level of prescription cough syrup, he’s stopped disability discrimination in organ transplant decisions and custody decisions, he’s reinstated VA benefits for people were discharged from the military for being queer (which means so much less medical bills for them, and access to prescription drugs including HIV meds), he’s the first president to join a picket line, his FTC appointee is suing Amazon for being a monopoly, union-busting is now punishable by being forced to recognize the union, as VP he was heavily involved in the Affordable Care Act, better known as Obamacare…and that’s just what I can remember off the top of my head while completely exhausted. For those worried about his age, he’s obviously still smart as a tack based on his bureaucratic strategies, and if something were to happen to him, Harris is similarly competent and similarly well-versed in bureaucracy, and she’d make similar policy decisions if in office.

Like, Biden is implementing very similar reforms to what I’ve always wanted, and in pretty much the exact same ways I’d do them. It’s to where I’d vote for him in a primary now. It’s all very well to say “Medicare for All,” but then how do you implement it? And I think Biden is the kind of person who’d have a real answer to that, and more importantly, know exactly who to call on to work out the bits that aren’t his area of expertise, such as “how many computers, servers, and new hires would CMS need to accommodate a quadrupling of beneficiaries?” Or to write the changes to tax code (such as eliminating the income cap on Medicare taxes) to fund said influx.

Compare and contrast Trump’s absolute debacle of his pet border wall. Or his muslim ban. Or covid. Like, the only good thing that came out of his presidency was the increase of the standard deduction for personal income tax, and then that later inadvertently screwed over people working from home during the pandemic because they couldn’t deduct the new home office supplies like desks and office chairs that they had to buy.

Also compare and contrast how quickly 2021-2023 have passed by, compared to how 2017-2020 seemed to drag on forever. I know that, even with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatening to turn into WW3, I’ve had distinctly less fear of nuclear escalation during Biden’s presidency than during the Orange Turd’s.

Finally, consider what Biden will be able to do once he doesn’t have to worry about getting elected again. Yes, healthcare reform. Employers currently pay the largest share of health insurance costs for people under 65, and those costs have been going up, largely due to insurers’ and for-profit providers’ price-gouging. Said employers are increasingly upset about these costs, to the point that they would likely be willing to opt for single-payer if the state or federal taxes to support it were, say, 80 or 90% of what they’re currently paying in insurance premiums—which would probably be the case, that or less, since CMS would negotiate lower costs, probably no more than 200% of regular Medicare rates. I can tell you for sure that Aetna is paying hospitals 5 times that, and that extra cost is reflected in premiums and (for self-funded plans) in claims, which employers have to pay.

Will the combined lobbying forces of industry giants like Walmart, Amazon, Boeing, Sitel, AT&T, etc. outweigh the opposing lobbying forces of UHC/ OptumRx, Aetna, Blue Cross, CVS, Walgreens, the legion third party administrators, and for-profit medical groups?

Well, we won’t find out unless you vote Democrat next November! Because Biden is a genuinely progressive and competent president and I’d like to keep him, and no one with a single sane braincell wants the other guy. The other guy will probably get us into WW3 and turn it nuclear. Please register to vote, and then actually vote.

[weblyword]

Find Your Perfect Alternative to Smokeball Legal Practice Management Software

In the bustling world of law, legal professionals are always on a quest to find the perfect legal practice management software. The law practice management software boosts productivity and helps lawyers offer exceptional client service. There are various legal practice management software in the industry. All these software offers different features, pricing, and integration capabilities. Among various billing software for lawyers, CaseFox and Smokeball are emerging as two prominent software in the industry. But because of various advanced features and functionalities, CaseFox is becoming a Smokeball alternative. In this blog, you will learn more about CaseFox and Smokeball and compare all the features of both the softwares. 

Smokeball Overview 

Smokeball is a legal practice management software that supports smart case management and legal billing. Smoke is a legal practice management software that is suitable for firms. Smokeball doesn't focus too much on solo practitioners. Smokeball offers in-built e-signature but users may have to switch to advance plans for that. The software helps in managing leads, cases, and time effectively. Smokeball offers a variety of features, but users may have to pay for leveraging these features. CaseFox Overview  CaseFox is a cloud-based legal practice management software that offers various comprehensive features. This software is suitable for solo practitioners and firms. It can make the whole process of legal management efficient. From the first step of client intake to offering customer service, CaseFox can do it all. Lawyers and firms can manage their time, finance, documents, and cases with the advanced feature of CaseFox. The software allows users to track time, expenses and generate bills efficiently. With the pricing and features that CaseFox provides, it becomes a Smokeball alternative for various individuals. The best part about CaseFox is that it is a free legal billing software for solo practitioners. CaseFox doesn't charge any amount from solo practitioners in their free plan. This law practice management software offers all the features in the free plan too.

CaseFox vs Smokeball

Pricing 

The pricing of law firm case management software varies according to the features and functionality. Some case management systems provide subscription-based models while others opt for one-time payment or usage-based pricing options. When evaluating the legal billing software for your firm, it is crucial to consider the pricing of the software. The pricing of the firm does not just impact the budget of the firm. But it also determines the value your firm will receive from the software. Below, we will compare the pricing of CaseFox and Smokeball.  a. CaseFox Pricing  CaseFox is a legal software that offers three different price plans. It has flat pricing, which means lawyers won’t have to pay an extra amount for any additional feature. For solo practitioners that don’t have many caseloads, CaseFox is a free law practice management software. It doesn't charge anything. Next, CaseFox has a pro plan that costs around  $39 per user/month USD. This plan includes all the features that CaseFox has to offer. From time tracking, billing, task management, invoice generation, legal billing, and LEDES billing. CaseFox offers everything in this plan that a firm or legal professional may need.  b. Smokeball Pricing  Smokeball has three different pricing editions. The first one is Smokeball start, and this plan costs around $29.00 per User/Per Month. This is the most basic plan that Smokeball offers and this plan doesn't have various essential and advanced features. The next plan is Smokeball grow, and it is starting at $99.00 per User/Per Month. The last plan that it has is Smokeball Prosper starting at  $149.00 per month/per user. 

Multilingual Support 

Multilingual is a feature that enables law lawyers and firms to connect with clients from different backgrounds. The multilingual support that law firm billing software offers allows law firms to create invoices, communicate with clients and offer service in multiple different languages. This software helps in fostering better client relationships.  a. CaseFox Multilingual feature  CaseFox offers multilingual support that enables lawyers and firms to generate bills and invoices in multiple languages. This feature is very effective and useful for lawyers as it enables them to reach wider audiences speaking different languages. The multilingual feature that CaseFox offers removes language barriers. This is a must-have feature and it can be beneficial for various legal professionals and law firms.  b. Smokeball Multilingual Feature  Smokeball is a legal billing software that offers various advanced features but unfortunately, it lacks multilingual capabilities. Smokeball supports only one language to generate bills, invoices and for client communication, too. 

Customer Support 

The customer support feature of legal practice management holds great importance in offering client satisfaction. Robust customer support will enable firms to offer top-notch service to their clients. Lawyers and firms can solve the issues that their clients face within a few minutes with powerful customer service. Below, we will compare the customer support that CaseFox and Smokeball offer.  a. CaseFox Customer Support  Customer support will play an essential role in enhancing user experience. CaseFox offers top-notch customer support to users. CaseFox is one of those case management softwares that offers robust 24*7 customer support. This means if any time clients face any glitches, technical issues or they have any sort of queries. They can take help from customer support which is available 24*7.  b. Smokeball Customer Support  Smokeball is a legal practice management software that offers customer support only in business hours. This means clients can report their issues and queries only during these hours. This can be the major drawback for the software, as it can hamper the daily practice of lawyers or firms. If they face any technical issues.

CaseFox VS Smokeball 

Feature CaseFox Smokeball Free Account CaseFox offers a free account for a solo practitioner. Smokeball offers a free trial but it doesn't have a free account. User Interface CaseFox has a straightforward and intuitive interface. Smokeball offers user-friendly with modern designCustom Forms and Template CreationCaseFox offers custom form and templates for billing and invoicing. Smokeball doesn't have any customization for forms and templates. Customer Support 24*7 customer support by CaseFox. Smokeball offers customer service only during business hours. LEDES e-Billing CaseFox makes LEDES e-billing easy. Smokeball doesn’t have an LEDES e-billing feature. 

The Bottom Line 

When it comes to choosing the perfect law practice management software, it is essential to consider various factors. Such as interface, integration, billing, invoicing, task management, case management and pricing, etc. CaseFox and Smokeball both are reputable legal billing software. With the features and pricing that CaseFox offers, it becomes the perfect Smokeball alternative. CaseFox is a powerful Smokeball competitor, as it is affordable and offers more features. Assess the requirements of your firm and choose the legal billing software that suits your needs. Read the full article