10 of the Best Memory Aids to Help Prevent Misused Words

Do you have trouble remembering which word to use in certain situations? Plenty of words are similar and easy to confuse — and that can make you sound stupid even if what you’ve written is brilliant. Here are some tricks for choosing the right word.

Using words correctly in our writing is crucial to maintaining credibility. Too often, though, we misuse words. Here are 10 of the most commonly misused words, along with memory aids to help you keep them straight.

1 - Principal / principle

The principal of a school is the head of that school, in other words, the main person of the school. Likewise, the principal of a loan is the main portion of the loan. Because the principal of a school is responsible for our education, and loans help us meet our needs, both are our pals. On the other hand, a principle is an idea or a concept, and both of these words, like principle, have an e in them.

2 - Council / counsel

A council is a group of people who make decisions. Counsel, as a noun, refers to a person who gives (typically legal) advice. The last two letters of counsel are e and l, which appear at the beginning of legal.

3 - Loose / lose

When something is loose, it is still there, but not as tightly fastened. A loose button doesn’t stay as close to your shirt or jacket as it should — in other words, it’s farther away. Loose, because it has two instances of the letter o, is longer than lose. But it takes only an instant to lose something, therefore lose is shorter than loose.

4 - Compliment / complement

To compliment someone is to praise that person. Both of these words have the letter i near the middle. To complement something is to make it complete. Both of these words begin with comple.

5 - Capital / capitol

The capital of a state or a country is the city where the main functions of its government are located. Main has the letter a, as does capital, at the end of the word.
A capitol is the building where government officials meet. Such a building typically has a round dome, or rotunda — similar in shape to the letter o that is in capitol.

6 - To / too / two

When we go to a place, we start from one location and typically end up in the desired location. Think of the t in to as your start and the o as your ending.
Too refers to an excessive amount of something. Here, too has too many instances of the letter o.
Two refers to the number. The last two letters, wo, are the first two letters of won. This word, in turn, sounds like the number one, which immediately precedes two.

7 - Bankrupt / bankruptcy, insolvent / insolvency, pregnant / pregnancy

In each pair of words, the adjective form (bankrupt company, insolvent organization, pregnant woman) is shorter than the noun form (a company in bankruptcy, or insolvency; a woman with a difficult pregnancy). Adjectives modify nouns. In other words, adjectives are merely the window dressing, while the noun is the main act. A noun can exist by itself, but an adjective can’t.

If you were to see, for example, George Strait in concert, you wouldn’t see him right away. There would be one or more warmup performers preceding him (adjectives), usually with a smaller set of songs and a smaller audience. However, Mr. Strait, as the headliner (noun), would have the larger audience and the larger set of songs.

Caution: Bankruptcy can be a noun, but it can also be an adjective, as in bankruptcy court.

8 - E.g. / i.e.

E.g. means for example, while i.e. means that is. E.g. and example both begin with e. The phrase that is and the abbreviation i.e. both have the letter i.

9 - Imminent / eminent

Something that is imminent will happen soon, in other words, immediately.
An eminent person or idea is one that stands out from the rest. That is, it has made an exit from the rest. Both eminent and exit begin with e.

10 - Allude / elude

To allude to something means to refer to it. If you did so while speaking, such an action would be oral. The last two letters of oral are the first two letters of allude.
To elude someone means to escape capture or recognition. Escape and elude both begin with e.

Hope you learn a LOT guys! Ciao...

• Reference/Source: techrepublic.com by Calvin Sun

10 Most Misspelled Words in Blogs

Ok, so technically the following words aren’t misspelled. They’re misused. The reason you should review this list is because a spell checker won’t correct these for you. Make sure that you’ve got foolproof control over them (especially if you tend to write around 3:12 AM like I am now). Extensively misusing them throughout your posts may actually cost you a visitor or two every now and then because some folks do get caught up on these, which means they won’t focus 100 % of their attention on your incredibly valuable content!

1. Your - You’re
As mentioned above, your message might lose impact if you’re not paying attention to this number one word maltreatment. If you find it particularly difficult to separate them from each other, stop using ‘you’re’ altogether and notice how you are starting to improve your spelling.

2. Then - Than
The next step is then to tell yourself that it’s better late than never to get that vowel placement in order. Then your readers might find something more useful to comment on than your apparent spelling impediment.

3. Its - it’s
It’s best to write an article and its words properly for optimal reader engagement. Again, if you still fail to tell the difference without effort, just write how great it is not having to worry about misusing or misspelling words.

4. To - Too - Two
To write two posts per day, or not to write two posts per day. That too is the question.

5. Were - Where - We’re
Where in the world were you? We were at Billy’s and we’re staying for another day. Make sure your blog visitors do that too.

6. There - Their - They’re
They’re moving their cursor over there. By focusing more attention on proper word use, your visitors won’t highlight and pinpoint your mistakes.

7. A - An - And
A flawlessly written article serves as an eye-opener and should provide lasting value. Remember also that an abbreviation like SUV starts with a vowel pronunciation and requires an ‘an’ in front of it.

8. Off - Of
Of all the mistakes you could prevent from appearing, start off by checking out this common mix up. You should have paid attention at school when they told you not to write ’should of’. Or off your visitors go.

9. Here - Hear
Hear ye! Hear ye! Here is a blog worth reading. You can almost hear the distant clicks of new visitors finding their way over here this very moment.

10. Lose - Loose
But if you’re too loose on your writing discipline, you will end up losing those readers after a while. You’d have a bolt loose if you don’t apply these 10 writing rules from now on with greater care. You win some and you don’t lose anyone.

• Reference/Source: theprobabilist.com by The Probabilist

Top 10 Largest Countries in Europe

List of Top 10 Largest European Countries Listed in Descending Order by Maximum area Covered.

1. Russia is the largest European country that occupies 17,075,400 Square Kilometer (6,592,800 Square Miles).



2. Ukraine is the second largest country in the Europe that covers 603,628 Square Kilometer (233,090 Square Miles).



3. With 551,695 Square Kilometer (213,010 Square Mile) France is third largest country in Europe.



4. Spain Comes on fourth rank with 504,030 Square Kilometer (195,364 Square Mile).



5. Sweden holds fifth position with occupying 449,964 Square Kilometer (173,745 Square Mile).



6. Germany stands as a Sixth biggest European country with 357,021 Square Kilometer (137,847 Square Mile).



7. Finland covers 338,424 Square Kilometer (130,596 Square Mile) and hold position of Seventh largest country in Europe.



8. Norway, this eighth biggest European country occupies 385,252 Square Kilometer (148,746 Square Mile).



9. In the list of top 10 largest countries in Europe Poland ranks at number nine with 312,685 Square Kilometer (120,696.41 Square Mile).




10. Italy, this tenth largest Country of Europe Occupies 301,338 Square Kilometer (116,346 Square Mile).

• Reference/Source: worldrecordsnews.com

Top 10 Hot Mobile Trends for 2011

The world is going mobile. In 2010, we saw some major jumps in terms of mobile development, including the explosion of the Android operating system, the introduction of the iPad and an increased rate of internet access via smartphones. In 2011, we can expect to see even more of a shift towards the mobile realm, as more consumers access the internet while on the go. By 2011, more than 85 percent of the handsets shipped globally are expected to include a browser, which means a major percentage of phone users will be accessing the web through mobile means.
Analysis

These are the top 10 trends we can expect to see in the mobile realm for 2011:

1. Android vs. iPhone showdown – This summer, the Android surpassed the iPhone in terms of market share, with Droids taking 27% of the market and iPhones taking 23%. In 2011, there are substantiated rumors saying that Verizon will be getting the iPhone, which may help to increase Apple’s market share. Additionally, the Droid will continue to see improvements and a growing number of apps in their marketplace (one of the main arguments of iPhone proponents). 2011 looks to be the key year that will determine which operating system reigns supreme.

2. Mobile advertising spike – As more and more consumers begin to access the web through their smartphones, versus home or work computers, we’re going to see more opportunities for advertising in these mediums. Due to the size and constraints of mobile, this advertising has to be simpler and more concise, so marketers need to change their strategies compared to standard digital placements. 2011 is looking like a landmark year for mobile advertising.

3. Mobile SEO – The importance of having a mobile site is becoming more substantial, as growing numbers of consumers with different levels of web-enabled phones begin accessing sites. Business owners need to be aware that mobile browsers have different algorithms than traditional browsers, so SEO efforts need to be adjusted accordingly. 2011 is a year that will demonstrate the difference between those who adopt mobile SEO practices and those who fail to meet the new challenge.

4. Touchscreen website development – Touchscreens offer a different user experience than regular computers that utilize mouses, and their popularity is skyrocketing. For website developers, this means it’s time to consider how sites can best be developed to meet the needs of consumers who are navigating with their fingertips. In 2011, look for an increased focus on the schematics and usability of a website to be geared towards a touchscreen functionality.

5. Location-based apps –Increasing numbers of applications and sites are relying on location-based functionalities to aid consumers. From Yelp’s check-ins, to Facebook’s places, there are growing numbers of opportunities for location-based communication and promotion of local businesses. Expect to see more websites & smartphone applications that take advantage of location–based technology.

6. Free wi-fi – Many communities are enacting free wi-fi programs. Miami Beach and Times Square in NYC have put these into effect. As wi-fi access grows nationally, more and more consumers are likely to use their devices and computers on the go, and in public places. Also, this means more consumers are likely to get online, since the cost will be significantly lower.

7. Location-based social networks – With the rise of sites like Foursquare and now Scvngr, location-based social is continuing to rise in popularity at a rapid rate. Foursquare recently reached 3 million users, and SCVNGR just passed the 500,000 user mark. These networks designed around location are going to see a bigger push in 2011, and we’re likely to see additional social sites hit the market.

8. Increase in mobile video viewing – By the end of this year, the number of mobile video viewers is expected to hit 23.9 million, and those numbers are set to double by 2013, according to eMarketer. Addressing video as a function of mobile, versus traditional desktops, is something marketers have to consider, especially when looking at new advertising opportunities. As this number spikes in 2011, there will be many additional ways to capitalize on this growing market.

9. Consolidation of technology – As smartphones and tablet computers are able to do more and more, expect to see a decline in the use of more specific technology – GPS units, mp3 players, cameras, etc. Many smartphones serve to fill all these needs, so consumers no longer need to purchase additional devices. The same applies to tablet computers, which can serve as e-readers, making Kindles and Nooks less necessary.

10. Mobile to mobile technology – With the iPhone 4’s introduction of Face Time video calling, a new era was born in terms of communicating via mobile devices. Smartphone video calling is expected to reach 29 million users by 2015. The Skype app allows video calling on all Android smartphones, and this market is likely to see substantial growth in 2011 thanks to these new technologies.

Conclusion: Mobile is gaining market share by the day, and eventually the majority of our browsing will likely happen via smartphone. Savvy business professionals and marketers need to get ahead of the game when it comes to mobile, and start learning more about these trends for 2011, as well as taking advantage of mobile-based opportunities.

• Reference/Source: www.focus.com by
  Hannah Sentenac

Gartner Identifies the Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2011

Gartner, Inc. today highlighted the top 10 technologies and trends that will be strategic for most organizations in 2011. The analysts presented their findings during Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, being held here through October 21.

Gartner defines a strategic technology as one with the potential for significant impact on the enterprise in the next three years. Factors that denote significant impact include a high potential for disruption to IT or the business, the need for a major dollar investment, or the risk of being late to adopt.

A strategic technology may be an existing technology that has matured and/or become suitable for a wider range of uses. It may also be an emerging technology that offers an opportunity for strategic business advantage for early adopters or with potential for significant market disruption in the next five years. As such, these technologies impact the organization's long-term plans, programs and initiatives.

“Companies should factor these top 10 technologies in their strategic planning process by asking key questions and making deliberate decisions about them during the next two years,” said David Cearley, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner.

“Sometimes the decision will be to do nothing with a particular technology,” said Carl Claunch, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. “In other cases, it will be to continue investing in the technology at the current rate. In still other cases, the decision may be to test or more aggressively deploy the technology.”

The top 10 strategic technologies for 2011 include:

Cloud Computing. Cloud computing services exist along a spectrum from open public to closed private. The next three years will see the delivery of a range of cloud service approaches that fall between these two extremes. Vendors will offer packaged private cloud implementations that deliver the vendor's public cloud service technologies (software and/or hardware) and methodologies (i.e., best practices to build and run the service) in a form that can be implemented inside the consumer's enterprise. Many will also offer management services to remotely manage the cloud service implementation. Gartner expects large enterprises to have a dynamic sourcing team in place by 2012 that is responsible for ongoing cloudsourcing decisions and management.

Mobile Applications and Media Tablets. Gartner estimates that by the end of 2010, 1.2 billion people will carry handsets capable of rich, mobile commerce providing an ideal environment for the convergence of mobility and the Web. Mobile devices are becoming computers in their own right, with an astounding amount of processing ability and bandwidth. There are already hundreds of thousands of applications for platforms like the Apple iPhone, in spite of the limited market (only for the one platform) and need for unique coding.

The quality of the experience of applications on these devices, which can apply location, motion and other context in their behavior, is leading customers to interact with companies preferentially through mobile devices. This has lead to a race to push out applications as a competitive tool to improve relationships and gain advantage over competitors whose interfaces are purely browser-based.


Social Communications and Collaboration. Social media can be divided into: (1) Social networking —social profile management products, such as MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn and Friendster as well as social networking analysis (SNA) technologies that employ algorithms to understand and utilize human relationships for the discovery of people and expertise. (2) Social collaboration —technologies, such as wikis, blogs, instant messaging, collaborative office, and crowdsourcing. (3) Social publishing —technologies that assist communities in pooling individual content into a usable and community accessible content repository such as YouTube and flickr. (4) Social feedback - gaining feedback and opinion from the community on specific items as witnessed on YouTube, flickr, Digg, Del.icio.us, and Amazon. Gartner predicts that by 2016, social technologies will be integrated with most business applications. Companies should bring together their social CRM, internal communications and collaboration, and public social site initiatives into a coordinated strategy.

Video. Video is not a new media form, but its use as a standard media type used in non-media companies is expanding rapidly. Technology trends in digital photography, consumer electronics, the web, social software, unified communications, digital and Internet-based television and mobile computing are all reaching critical tipping points that bring video into the mainstream. Over the next three years Gartner believes that video will become a commonplace content type and interaction model for most users, and by 2013, more than 25 percent of the content that workers see in a day will be dominated by pictures, video or audio.

Next Generation Analytics. Increasing compute capabilities of computers including mobile devices along with improving connectivity are enabling a shift in how businesses support operational decisions. It is becoming possible to run simulations or models to predict the future outcome, rather than to simply provide backward looking data about past interactions, and to do these predictions in real-time to support each individual business action. While this may require significant changes to existing operational and business intelligence infrastructure, the potential exists to unlock significant improvements in business results and other success rates.

Social Analytics. Social analytics describes the process of measuring, analyzing and interpreting the results of interactions and associations among people, topics and ideas. These interactions may occur on social software applications used in the workplace, in internally or externally facing communities or on the social web. Social analytics is an umbrella term that includes a number of specialized analysis techniques such as social filtering, social-network analysis, sentiment analysis and social-media analytics. Social network analysis tools are useful for examining social structure and interdependencies as well as the work patterns of individuals, groups or organizations. Social network analysis involves collecting data from multiple sources, identifying relationships, and evaluating the impact, quality or effectiveness of a relationship.

Context-Aware Computing. Context-aware computing centers on the concept of using information about an end user or object’s environment, activities connections and preferences to improve the quality of interaction with that end user. The end user may be a customer, business partner or employee. A contextually aware system anticipates the user's needs and proactively serves up the most appropriate and customized content, product or service. Gartner predicts that by 2013, more than half of Fortune 500 companies will have context-aware computing initiatives and by 2016, one-third of worldwide mobile consumer marketing will be context-awareness-based.


Storage Class Memory. Gartner sees huge use of flash memory in consumer devices, entertainment equipment and other embedded IT systems. It also offers a new layer of the storage hierarchy in servers and client computers that has key advantages — space, heat, performance and ruggedness among them. Unlike RAM, the main memory in servers and PCs, flash memory is persistent even when power is removed. In that way, it looks more like disk drives where information is placed and must survive power-downs and reboots. Given the cost premium, simply building solid state disk drives from flash will tie up that valuable space on all the data in a file or entire volume, while a new explicitly addressed layer, not part of the file system, permits targeted placement of only the high-leverage items of information that need to experience the mix of performance and persistence available with flash memory.

Ubiquitous Computing. The work of Mark Weiser and other researchers at Xerox's PARC paints a picture of the coming third wave of computing where computers are invisibly embedded into the world. As computers proliferate and as everyday objects are given the ability to communicate with RFID tags and their successors, networks will approach and surpass the scale that can be managed in traditional centralized ways. This leads to the important trend of imbuing computing systems into operational technology, whether done as calming technology or explicitly managed and integrated with IT. In addition, it gives us important guidance on what to expect with proliferating personal devices, the effect of consumerization on IT decisions, and the necessary capabilities that will be driven by the pressure of rapid inflation in the number of computers for each person.

Fabric-Based Infrastructure and Computers. A fabric-based computer is a modular form of computing where a system can be aggregated from separate building-block modules connected over a fabric or switched backplane. In its basic form, a fabric-based computer comprises a separate processor, memory, I/O, and offload modules (GPU, NPU, etc.) that are connected to a switched interconnect and, importantly, the software required to configure and manage the resulting system(s). The fabric-based infrastructure (FBI) model abstracts physical resources — processor cores, network bandwidth and links and storage — into pools of resources that are managed by the Fabric Resource Pool Manager (FRPM), software functionality. The FRPM in turn is driven by the Real Time Infrastructure (RTI) Service Governor software component. An FBI can be supplied by a single vendor or by a group of vendors working closely together, or by an integrator — internal or external.

• Reference/Source: gartner.com | Analysts Examine Latest Industry Trends During Gartner Symposium/ITxpo, October 17-21, in Orlando

Top 10 IT security trends for 2011

Software security firm Imperva will release details of its 10 key security trends for 2011 next week. Here is a preview.

1. Man in the browser (MITB) attacks are a new threat which consumers will face and the hacking industry is widely adopting, especially as many security products are not mature enough yet to deal with this problem.

2. File security. With Sharepoint being the fastest growing product in Microsoft history and data growing at a 60% annual rate, file security will become the top security issue. With PCI DSS being expanded to refer not only to databases and web apps but also to files, organisations will need to carefully consider how they protect their files.

3. Smartphones will be the new target in 2011. Hackers are using mobile devices (smartphones and tablets) as a new attack platform. With a number of applications on mobile devices (CRM, Salesforce, Access to work e-mails), these will become more susceptible to attack.

4. Hackers and security side-by-side in the cloud. As organisations' IT infrastructure moves to the cloud, so will their security controls. However these services will also become hot targets for hackers, with the popular ones being the most data-rich, the security on these services will need to be tightened immensely.

5. Insider threat. With more job losses set for 2011, there will be more disgruntled employees than ever. Employees are more likely to want to take information to help them with new jobs or as an act of revenge to pass on to competitors.

6. Social networks have started to blur the notions of privacy and security. 2011 will bring even more confusion when it comes to security and the trust people put in social networks.

7. Convergence of regulations over countries. Convergence of regulations amongst the OECD countries will lead to standardising laws on data security and privacy.

8. Security is becoming part of the business process. With the recent acquisitions of McAfee by Intel and Fortify by HP, suppliers are gaining an understanding of the need to apply security throughout the complete process of building a system. Today, cybersecurity can't be separated from business operations. Security teams need to become business process experts to keep the bad guys disarmed while keeping the good guys productive.

9. Hackers are feeling the heat. Proactive security seems to be the new approach for most security practitioners and due to this more hackers will get caught. However, due to the industrialisation of hacking, hackers will raise their professional bar by "buying" other smaller groups or merging, leaving the more sophisticated hackers in business.

10. Hacktivism meets industrialisation. Hacktivism as we know it has been very targeted. However, hacktivists are learning from the success of industrialised hackers and will soon follow in their footsteps. The attacks will transition from restricted targets to a wide range of targets.

• Reference/Source: computerweekly.com by Ian Grant

The Top Ten Fitness Trends for 2011

It’s only November, but luckily for us, the fine folks at ACE and ACSM have put together their respective Top 10 Fitness Trends for 2011 lists.




So, if you’re interested in knowing what programs your local health club will be pushing onto you come January, read on.

The ACE Top Ten List includes:

1. Economic Upswing: In general, consumers are preparing for an economic upswing that is motivating more individuals to resume their personal training and fitness regimens.

2. Added-Value Wellness Services: More gyms and clubs will begin to hire other allied healthcare professionals to serve the expanding needs of their health-conscious members – nutrition, physical therapy, etc.

3. Stress Reduction Through Fitness: With the increased knowledge of how stress negatively affects the body, gyms and clubs will start offering wellness programs so their members develop effective strategies for managing their stress levels.

4. Technology Becomes a Support Resource: Although there have been a great deal of technological advances within the fitness industry, online interactive classes will not proliferate in 2011, demonstrating the desire for human contact with fitness professionals. However, social networks like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube will become increasingly popular serving as an online motivational support system to complement personal training sessions.

5. Buddy System: Healthy support groups will become a more popular offering in gyms due to peer encouragement and increased potential for success. This thinking also holds true for older adults, with the majority of them seeking group classes to stay fit.

6. Most Popular Workouts: Boot camp-style workouts will remain popular among consumers based on its intensity and efficiency. Zumba classes will continue to offer a fun alternative to more traditional dance classes, while TRX Suspension training and interval training both offer intense workout experiences with impressive results.

7. Small-Group Workouts: Small-group sessions remain a very popular way for individuals to exercise. Whether through personal training, strength training, cardiovascular exercise, or sessions for older adults, small-group sessions will be “in” as a way to socialize, cut costs and stay motivated.

8. Youth-Based Fitness: Expect to see more youth-focused classes and clients popping up in gyms thanks to the national attention and focus on childhood obesity. Schools and fitness centers will also incorporate more exercise curriculum for the youth population.

9. Corporate Wellness: Whether it is through the hiring of in-house personal trainers or discounts and incentives offered to employees that join a health club, corporate wellness programs will emerge country-wide to help encourage healthy lifestyles among workers, especially time-crunched consumers.

10. Elevated Professionalism: There will be a significant increase in the hiring of personal trainers that hold a NCCA-accredited certification at gyms and fitness centers. With consumers becoming more educated and fitness-savvy, they understand the need for fitness professionals to have the proper education and high-quality certifications…like an ACE certification perhaps?

The ACSM Top Ten List includes:

1. Educated and experienced fitness professionals. see #10 on the Ace list

2. Fitness programs for older adults. As the baby boom generation ages into retirement, some of these people have more discretionary money than their younger counterparts. Therefore, many health and fitness professionals are taking the time to create age-appropriate fitness programs to keep older adults healthy and active.

3. Strength training. Strength training remains a central emphasis for many health clubs. Incorporating strength training is an essential part of a complete physical activity program for all physical activity levels and genders.

4. Children and obesity. With childhood obesity growing at an alarming rate, health and fitness professionals see the epidemic as an opportunity to create programs tailored to overweight and obese children. Solving the problem of childhood obesity will have an impact on the health care industry today and for years to come.

5. Personal training. More and more students are majoring in kinesiology, which indicates that students are preparing themselves for careers in allied health fields such as personal training. Education, training and proper credentialing for personal trainers have become increasingly important to the health and fitness facilities that employ them.

6. Core training. Distinct from strength training, core training specifically emphasizes conditioning of the middle-body muscles, including the pelvis, lower back, hips and abdomen—all of which provide needed support for the spine.

7. Exercise and weight loss. In addition to nutrition, exercise is a key component of a proper weight loss program. Health and fitness professionals who provide weight loss programs are increasingly incorporating regular exercise and caloric restriction for better weight control in their clients.

8. Boot camp. Boot camp is a high-intensity structured activity program modeled after military style training and led by an instructor. Boot camp incorporates cardiovascular, strength, endurance and flexibility drills in both indoor and outdoor settings.

9. Functional fitness. This is a trend toward using strength training to improve balance and ease of daily living. Functional fitness and special fitness programs for older adults are closely related.

10. Physician referrals. Physician referrals, a key component of the Exercise is Medicine initiative, partner medical professionals with heath and fitness professionals to seamlessly integrate exercise into their patients’ lives.

Well, I don’t know about you, but these lists seem to be focused on commercial health club activities and personal training. It’s almost as if ACE and ACSM are using these lists as a promotional tool to encourage more people to sign up for their courses to become personal trainers.

Damn, I have become cynical in my old age.

• Reference/Source: healthhabits.ca by healthhabits