Monday, 16 March 2009

Wrist Wrap Gloves - lifting gloves, weight lifting


Been using the gloves for a few weeks at cross fit and they are working fine so far. They have not separated at seams like others complained of. They are also very comfortable and because of the multiple closures, they can be adjusted to your exact preferences. I highly recommend them. Valeo Ocelot Wrist Wrap Glove, Black, Large - Weight Lifting - Weight Training - Gym - Lifting Gloves'


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Clear Contact Paper - clear contact paper


Lining your books is an art. If you've never done it before, find a book you don't care much about and experiment. After about the third book, you'll get it right.



This material is excellent but not as stiff as I've seen in the past; I am referring to other vendors. It is suple but will harden after a year so it is best to line your books at one time, say six or seven at a time. Throw this material away after a year or so because it gets stiff and brittle.It will also be hard to remove the covering material.



The best way to use this product is described below:



Tools: sissors, exacto knife or small 1- 1-1/2" pen knife.



Take the book and open it to make a rough cut of the material. You will to leave about 1-1/2" below and above for the flaps. Leave material for tieing down

the flaps. For large books lay the book out length-wise with the roll itself rather than parallel to the roll. Mark the future cuts with a permanent pen.



Ideally, if there is time, cut these strips and put books over them to flatten them so they won't curl while lining the book. Flattening takes about a day.



Use the sissors to cut the book liner. Leave 1-1/2" above and below the book dimensions.



To start lining the book, cut a triangular edge out of one of the corners. Cut deep enough to part the cover from the lining.



Pull the cover free but slowly and smoothly. You want to roll slowly to allow the adhesive between the cover and the lining to separate.



Now, pull the cover and liner apart and place the front of the book in the way you lined it up when you made a rough cut. Leave 1-1/2" above and below the book edges. Line the edge of the book first, then slowly roll the lining in place until it gets to the trench in front of the backing. Then, slowly pinch the lining into this trench. Use your fingers here but also use the outside palm of your hand as a squeggee (outside palm is opposite of the thumb). Now, roll the lining over the back. All the time push the bubbles towards the spot where the book meets the lining forcing the bubbles out. With the back done roll through the trench, pinch it in, then continue to the edge of the back cover.



With sissors cut the liner, careful not to catch the adhesive and wind up caught in your own web. Cut a rectangle around the book with enough room for the flaps.



Cut diagonal flaps for each of the edges: 4. Cut vertical cuts at the book binding, to let the liner breath; without this you run the risk of breaking the back of the book when the liner is attached. Fold the flap inward attaching them to the inside of the book. Take care to leave enough liner to hold the lining securely without using up all of the inside of the books. Cut strips to make vertical seals for the edges of the flaps: at least 2 each per diagonal flap. Seal any edges that look loose with additional cut strips.



Lastly, trim the book binding at the back of the book. Push inward to seal. Push any bubbles out.



Open and close the book to make sure the book binding can breath. If not, consider cutting the liner near one of the binding ridges.



If this review was helpful, please add your vote. Kittrich Rolled Adhesive Bookcover, 18 Inches x 9 Feet, Clear, 1 Roll (03-750-12)

I attempted to use this for hardcover textbooks with thick front and back covers.



The product adhered great to the flat surfaces of the front/back covers, but when I tucked the extra 1.5" around the edge onto the inside of the cover, these "flaps" wouldn't stay put -- it wasn't adhesive enough. I've never had this problem with other brands of contact paper. I had to resort to tape to secure these inside flaps; the other option would have been to trim the flaps altogether, but I like to protect the bottom and side edges of the book, as that's where most damage occurs.



My bottom line opinion: This product works great when it stays flat (e.g. laminating stuff), but don't rely on it for any applications where you need to bend, fold, wrap, or tuck a small edge or flap: the contact paper since it isn't sticky enough to hold its own. I'll be getting a different brand for future textbook-covering endeavors.

I covered 3 thick cookbooks and 1 paperback cookbook and have enough left for 1 more book. This product was fairly easy to apply and remove for repositioning. The instructions aren't very helpful where covering a book is concerned and on the first attempt, I had to remove and reposition the adhesive several times, but it became easier after that. When applying to books with dust jackets, I put a rolled piece of tape under the inside flaps to keep the dust jacket from moving around. Though not perfectly applied (with some bubbles here and there), I'm very happy with the results. I wanted something to protect the books and this adhesive works just fine.

Lining your books is an art. If you've never done it before, find a book you don't care much about and experiment. After about the third book, you'll get it right.



This material is excellent but not as stiff as I've seen in the past; I am referring to other vendors. It is suple but will harden after a year so it is best to line your books at one time, say six or seven at a time. Throw this material away after a year or so because it gets stiff and brittle.It will also be hard to remove the covering material.



The best way to use this product is described below:



Tools: sissors, exacto knife or small 1- 1-1/2" pen knife.



Take the book and open it to make a rough cut of the material. You will to leave about 1-1/2" below and above for the flaps. Leave material for tieing down

the flaps. For large books lay the book out length-wise with the roll itself rather than parallel to the roll. Mark the future cuts with a permanent pen.



Ideally, if there is time, cut these strips and put books over them to flatten them so they won't curl while lining the book. Flattening takes about a day.



Use the sissors to cut the book liner. Leave 1-1/2" above and below the book dimensions.



To start lining the book, cut a triangular edge out of one of the corners. Cut deep enough to part the cover from the lining.



Pull the cover free but slowly and smoothly. You want to roll slowly to allow the adhesive between the cover and the lining to separate.



Now, pull the cover and liner apart and place the front of the book in the way you lined it up when you made a rough cut. Leave 1-1/2" above and below the book edges. Line the edge of the book first, then slowly roll the lining in place until it gets to the trench in front of the backing. Then, slowly pinch the lining into this trench. Use your fingers here but also use the outside palm of your hand as a squeggee (outside palm is opposite of the thumb). Now, roll the lining over the back. All the time push the bubbles towards the spot where the book meets the lining forcing the bubbles out. With the back done roll through the trench, pinch it in, then continue to the edge of the back cover.



With sissors cut the liner, careful not to catch the adhesive and wind up caught in your own web. Cut a rectangle around the book with enough room for the flaps.



Cut diagonal flaps for each of the edges: 4. Cut vertical cuts at the book binding, to let the liner breath; without this you run the risk of breaking the back of the book when the liner is attached. Fold the flap inward attaching them to the inside of the book. Take care to leave enough liner to hold the lining securely without using up all of the inside of the books. Cut strips to make vertical seals for the edges of the flaps: at least 2 each per diagonal flap. Seal any edges that look loose with additional cut strips.



Lastly, trim the book binding at the back of the book. Push inward to seal. Push any bubbles out.



Open and close the book to make sure the book binding can breath. If not, consider cutting the liner near one of the binding ridges.



If this review was helpful, please add your vote. - Clear Contact Paper'


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Moshe Feldenkrais - rehabilitation, health


The first time I read this book, it was such a daunting task I put down and saved it for a time when my intelligence was ready to 'understand' the instructions. If you're the equivilent of a college freshman in the science of movement this book will probably be something you want to save for a more advanced place in your progression. Or read it and get what you can...planning to come back to it over and over. If I hadn't seen and tried the method via videotapes and then in an actual seminar I probably wouldn't have given the book a chance at all. That choice, however, would have been a huge mistake. This book offers a series of "lessons" that take the human body through movements most children could do easily but had been pushed out of my movement repertoire. These are also movements most people, including my extremely strong and lean 30 year old daughter(who's a personal trainer I might add), cannot do with ease. The movement patterns provided in the book help me rollerblade without fear (well, a reasonable level of fear!) and increase the likelihood that I'll still be able to chase men when I'm old enough to know better but still too young--what's 95 anyway?-- to care. On a more serious side these strengths will be absolutely crucial if we want to be able to get into a shower or go to the restroom alone when we get older. I've been a runner and fitness specialist for a LONG time and have worked from just about every angle in the fitness field that exists, from aerobic instruction to power lifting to yoga and the Awareness Through Movement theory was alien to anything I'd learned in the traditional "western" pursuit of fitness. Instruction like this was not in any of my personal training courses. Though certified in anatomy and strength training for several years, this just didn't even appear on my fitness 'radar'. I wasn't used to working that hard for information. I wanted cut and dried instructions with pictures to boot. It was normal to use traditional exercise methods because they aren't very complex, are easy to teach and mistakes are fairly easy to see and correct. Books that instruct bench presses, abdominal crunches, and squats also are easy to read and follow; unfortunately they miss the subtlties necessary to truly powerful human movement. No good athlete depends on exercises like those alone. That's where this book has helped. It has required some intense think and move sessions but all these movement lessons yield surprising results if you have the patience to stick with them. One note: you must have the patience of a baby learning to walk.I read Feldenkrais' other books which actually gave Awareness Through Movement context and made it easier with which to work . Feldenkrais was a judo master as well as one of the earliest developers of cybernetic science and all of this shows in his book but it also means the book isn't light reading. Learning to do the method from written text will be as difficult as learning the basics of one of the martial arts. I agree that the photos of wooden models are difficult to use, front and back are almost impossible to discern (I did some creative artwork..noses, ears, etc. once I figured out where they needed to be) and might make it difficult to understand the movement clearly. There is also no index or reference table which is a little frustrating at times.Despite these drawbacks I wouldn't give the book to a family member unless I knew a replacement would be easy to find! Awareness Through Movement: Easy-to-Do Health Exercises to Improve Your Posture, Vision, Imagination, and Personal Awareness

Feldenkrais was one of the century's great geniuses. Originally recognized for his nuclear physics research and for his introduction of Judo to Europe in the 30s, he developed the gentle Feldenkrais Method during the second World War in respose to his own knee problems. In Awareness Through Movement, Feldenkrais gives you a wonderful introduction to the group part of his method--Awareness Through Movement. The processes are gentle, painless and easy. The best way to use the exercises in this book is to get yourself a cassette player and to then read the instructions aloud into the cassette. Then rewind the cassette, lie down on your back, hit play and be amazed as that magnificent voice on the cassette recording shows your body how to improve more quickly than you've ever believed possible.

Moshe Feldenkrais, renaissance man, scientist, educator, wrote this book regretably in a manner more suitable for his science students. However, to be able to profit the most from these 10 fundamental Awareness Through Movement lessons is to read them out loud and transfer them to an audio-tape while your favourite relaxing music is playing in the background. Then follow these instructions - in your own voice - while being gentle with your body. Be ready to switch off your recorder after each part of an exercise and relax for 18 breaths (= 1 minute)-- or better take consideration of this fact when originally dictating the lessons to your recorder. Permit yourself to fall asleep if you feel you need to do so. Remember that your neurological system needs to be trained to accept these deeply regenerative movements and it may take some time until you feel comfortable moving in a slow and fluid manner. Gábor, Feldenkrais Movement Educator.

i have been interested in learning about the feldenkrais method for some time. after seeing all the five star reviews for this book i thought that it would be a great introduction to the method. boy was i wrong. this is NOT a book for people who have very little or no knowledge of the feldenkrais method. i found it to be complex, technical, wordy, and in many cases more complicated than it needed to be. there are almost no pictures accompaning the text, and the few pictures that exist are of wooden manequins. don't be fooled by the glowing reviews written by people are who are practicioners of the method. if you are like me and just want a book to introduce you to the concepts then this is not the book. - Health - Posture - Rehabilitation - Moshe Feldenkrais'


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Automatic Movement


We needed a Yo Yo that could take an eight year old from beginning to mid level practice without breaking and this model worked very well. We had read reviewers on Amazon and how they preferred Yomega's model over the Duncan brand and we now understand why. The Yomega Brain model is a very good model for serious beginners. We are happy with this model and can recommend it to others.

Pros- Smooth, well balanced, extra string.

Cons- Bubble pack, no choice of colors. Yomega Brain Yo-Yo (Colors May Vary)

Really cool Yo-Yo! I remember when they first came out with these. It takes me back. It's a toy, but it really does have educational value, I'm sure you could make a physics or science lesson there somewhere! :)

Remember how hard it was to do yo-yo tricks back in the 1970's? Sure, you could get the yo-yo to go up and down, but what you really wanted to do was "walk the dog" and swing a "cat's cradle," right? The big problem was getting the thing to "sleep." And of course, only a handful of yo-yo gods on TV could get the thing to "sleep" long enough to do all of the cool tricks. Well, the Yomega Brain Yo-Yo has solved the problem! It's ingenious centrifugal clutch allows the yo-yo to "sleep" every time and ten minutes after we opened it up, my dog was walking and my cat was cradling. Thirty years of pent-up yo-yo frustration resolved in ten minutes with my son's Christmas present. Priceless!!!

This yoyo is good for beginners, like myself. There is a way so that it will sleep and come back on its own. I did that and now i have a cool yoyo i can play with and learn tricks. Even though this yoyo sounds great and all but it doesnt sleep for a long time before coming back up (Once you set it). After a few weeks or so my string broke from playing with it a lot so i would get some extra strings. It is plastic with color in the middle and the rim is clear. Over all i think this is a good yoyo for beginners. Hope this comment helped! :D

I bought this for my youngest sister's 10th birthday. She got this cheap plastic yo-yo party favor and it wasn't doing her any good. She still liked it, but it was hard for her to learn how to play with it (like having the yo-yo return).



This yo-yo was perfect! It had great balance. Before I cut the string to adjust it to her size, everyone in our big family wanted to try it. It kept hitting the floor since the string was still long, causing the yo-yo to come apart. I was hoping I didn't get sent a defective toy. I realized after it was my turn that it only came apart after hitting the floor a few times. (I know I know, DUH.) I cut the string to fit her height, and now she's so in love with her new yo-yo. :)

I knew nothing about yo-yos, and within an hour of messing around with this yo-yo I was doing some pretty sweet tricks. The built-in clutch allows for some really cool action, and sometimes I can even surprise myself with the tricks I can do. If you have a kid that wants to learn the yo-yo, then this seems like a great place to start.'


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Baby


These two frames are perfect for my baby girl's bedding! I ordered bedding also off amazon that has a damask print and bright vibrant colors also. They are pretty heavy and since I can't nail into my walls I had to buy some heavy duty double sided tape to hold them up, and also got some little hooks to hang the strings on. It all turned out pretty good! If you like sticking to the theme of your nursery or room I would definitely buy these frames! Trend Lab Versailles Black and White 2 Piece Frame Set

I love that these picture frames match the crib bedding we bought PLUS when our son gets older they will blend easily with the decor in our other rooms because they are not overly kid-oriented. For some reason I thought they would be constructed of fabric so I was surprised to see that they are made of wood- which actually makes them very sturdy.'


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Digital Recorders - digital recorders, digital voice recorders


I bought this specificaly to record individual conversations in a relatively noisy environment -- e.g. coffee shop, restaurant, with several people involved in the conversation. It worked very well for me by moving the device in front of the person talking -- in some cases the individual would pick it up and this of course worked even better. All in all, I am very pleased with the performance. I was able to produce a verbatum transcript at nearly 100% accuracy for all of the conversation I recorded over a 4 day period of time. I didn't test recording any musical performances.



With regard to construction and overall operation, I found it extremely easy to operate and to seamlessly download to my pc using the built in usb connector. I was able to playback all of the conversations directly on my computer and start and stop and replay at will to produce an accurate transcript. (You can of course play back directly from the device but I wanted to store it on my computer anyway).



The unit is very small, smaller than my LG Chocolate mobile phone, and is easy to carry around and use. I give it a 5 star rating for my purposes. Sony ICD-UX200 Digital Voice Recorder with Built-In Stereo Microphone (Silver)

I searched around many places for a recorder to record lectures in class. I am so glad that I bought this recorder. I normally put the recorder up front, by the professor's desk, so the sound quality is great and the volume goes up pretty high when replaying the files. I love the fact that I can transfer files straight to my computer and that it is mac compatible without having to download additional software. It's a nice looking, compact recorder and, personally, I think it is a great buy.

I bought this for my nursing lectures, as there was just too much information to write down for my tastes! This little recorder works great!



STORAGE: Even on the best quality setting, I was able to record at least a week's worth of lectures around 2 hours each.

BATTERY LIFE: The battery life is really great too, I only charge it maybe once a week. If you have a laptop, you can charge it in class with the USB port.

FORMAT: The recordings are in mp3 format already, so you don't have to worry about converting it for other purposes.



Be careful which setting you choose.. out of the box it is set for the highest quality and you can easily have huge file sizes over 100MB. I recently set my quality a little lower and it still sounds just fine for my purposes.



I sit in a large lecture hall that seats over 100 students. I am usually in the middle rows, and the instructors use a portable microphone to speak. It picks up their information just fine, although it is a little soft if they aren't using their microphone. You could easily ask to place it up near the front and it'd probably fix that problem.



I can upload the files to my computer to put on a CD or pop in my earbuds and listen to the lectures straight from the device! (This is GREAT for studying the book while replaying lecture notes to follow along with)



There's a pause feature for breaks without having to create a new file, and 10 folders so you can organize your files without having to replay each one trying to figure out which class it was. (I usually write the file name on my notes so I know which lecture is which)



Overall this was a great choice and invaluable for my classes!

I recently bought this device to record lectures in my medical classes. I was expecting a completely average quality device, even given the price, due to past experiences with these types of devices. What I got was far in excess of my expectations.



First of all, this unit is quite small and lightweight. It's about the size of a small candy bar, maybe 3/4 the size of a standard snickers bar or something, but thinner. It's build quality is slightly above average, but I would suggest you not expose it to any sort of trauma or it seems like it'd break pretty easily. The buttons are all sturdy enough though, and the screen has a back light, which is nice for accessing the device in those dimly lit lecture halls/auditoriums.



Now, the really important thing, and the main reason I am so happy with my purchase: the recording quality of this device is nothing short of superb. It's so good, that even if you scale it down to a lower setting to allow for more record time, the quality is still excellent. This unit has two microphones built into it that record audio in crisp high quality stereo sound. I was recording a lecture recently and was sitting in the rear of the room with this device on the table in front of me and was still able to record the professor's lecture as though I was sitting right in front of him. The device has some features that I believe aided in this as they are able to remove a little bit of the noise within the room that was outside of the normal vocal range, which cut down on some of the shuffling students tend to do as they take notes, etc. It's not a research quality sound, but for the sub $100 price tag, it's a very, very nice high quality sound you will get with this device.



The device includes a set of Sony headphones in the event that you'd like to monitor the recording as you're taking notes and/or review a lecture while reviewing notes at home, on the bus, in the library, etc. Of course, you can use any set of headphones though, and I'd recommend something a bit better than the ones included as they're a bit uncomfortable - but they're small and fit nicely in a backpack, so they're not a bad option in a pinch or as a backup.



The device also comes with many of the features you find on similar devices from other manufacturers (and some you don't), such as looped playback, equalizer options, an alarm, many different menu options, etc. As a college student I really appreciate that I can use this device as a USB thumbdrive (it's got it's USB plug built right in, but comes with a corded dongle in case you cannot attach it directly to a PC), it's also capable of replaying any music you download to it as it has a headphone port, you can also attach an external mic to the device (sony makes a few really nice ones), and it also records great audio, of course. So in my opinion it's really a multifunctional device that definitely belongs in the book bag of every college student.



If you're in the market for a high quality voice recorder, especially one that does well in a lecture situation, you owe it to yourself to seriously consider this little unit. - Digital Recorder - Mac Compatible - Digital Recorders - Digital Voice Recorders'


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Assasins Creed - kickass games, ubisoft


I was a little skeptical this game would live up to the hype. Then some diminished reviews came around and I was already feeling a let down. Where could they go wrong? Was my thoughts. Well that didn't stop me from purchasing this game. After 30 minutes I was blown away. All skepticism was gone and I was in Gamer Heaven.



Let me start off from the beginning. Yes there is a plot twist and it's pretty bizarre. Just think that your watching a Michael Crichton movie and it will make sense. Playing in the Middle East several hundred years ago is a different idea. It's hard to say what you could expect with this concept.



So what makes this game amazing. Lets start off with the landscape. It's brilliant and beautiful...Really majestic. You don't understand the scope of this game until you start playing. The world is surrounded by several small villages and three large cities. The only way to travese this open terrain with a horse. Fortunately they are about as easy to find as a car in todays society.



What also sets this game apart is the ability to do what you want when you want. There is no clock on you and your not stuck going into a mission. Everything is open based. The character is amazingly fun to control you can scale tall buildings and make amazing leaps of faith. Climbing up a building that is several stories and then leaping to certain doom is breathtaking excitement. This is what games should be about.



Beyond that is a mission based game. Similiar to Grand Theft Auto in style. You can accept simple missions like pickpocketing and protecting citizens to the more main based assasin missions. You can battle soldiers if you want as you have many enemies but it's not really advised. Following the assasin missions can be complex and involve several steps that make the story very intresting. Obviously a lot of time was put into making this top notch.



For anyone who likes open based games with large environments then Assassins Creed is for you. From the majestic peaks to the clustered cities. This is trully a next gen experience. The storyline and incentive program will keep you playing for many hours. Definately a worthwhile gameplay experience. If you want something to keep you busy that doesn't involve guns go out and get Assasins Creed. Assassin's Creed

First of all let me say, Ubi has laid down the foundation for great things in the future. If this is the direction games are heading, they are going to be amazing in the near future.

Having said that though, I must say that although this game is amazing for the first few hours of play, its repetative nature begins to wear on you after a little bit.

The controls, gameplay and general feel of the game are very good. But completing basically the same missions over and over begins to tarnish this game. It's the same folks that have to be rescued, the same style of fighting, and the same basic solutions to all the missions.

I would recommend renting this game rather than buying, because once you finish the game, I can see where there is no value for playing it again.

The graphics are some of the best I have seen to date, and there are some really neat features that could be used for later games.

As I said before, Ubisoft has really started something wonderful with this game, I just hope they continue to build on this base and really open up the world of gaming. They just seemed to miss the curve, (slightly) with this release.

Echoing the sentiment of other reviewers, I was also concerned about the professional reviews concerning this game, having anticipated it for so long. My fears were eased, however, right after I popped the disk in.



Pro's:

Again, as it's been said here, I really enjoyed the flow of the character and the freedom this game gives you. It's a perfect blend of an open world without leaving you lost to figuring out where to go next.

The learning curve is high, but the game slowly introduces you to new moves within each mission, which are enough to complete them, but leaves room for improvement as you become more proficient.



The story line is good and I didn't mind so much the sci-fi twist about which most are complaining. It's a good break from the intensity of the game and it adds a personal connection to the ancient character through his descendant in the present.



The game saves are excellent. For the most part you won't find yourself having to redo several missions in the event that you die. There are plenty of checkpoints throughout the game to keep the game flowing and non-repetitive.



Lastly, the world Ubi has created in this game is simply phenomenal! Hats off to the design team. The amount of detail is just outstanding on each street, building, market, character, and everything else you'll find in this game.



Cons:

The idea of accomplishing side missions add a greater dimension to the game, but, unfortunately, they get repetitive pretty quickly.

Some of the things you can do are eavesdrop, pickpocket, or save a person from being harassed by the local guards (there are others), but once you get the hang of each one, they're pretty much the same thereafter.



The fight sequences are fun and can be tense enough, but similarly lack a bit of diversity. I hope they get a little more challenging and technical as I acquire new weapons and progress in the game.





Now, to explain the title of my review (this is not a con, just an observation), I was a bit surprised with the main character Altair.

I got a feel from the previews, for some reason, that I would be dealing with a cool and calculated assassin who kills to rid the world in which he lives of evil people (a little theatrical, I know). However, my first impression was of a reckless, spoiled, somewhat-messed-up-in-the-head newbie killer who let his skills go to his head and now is forced to redeem himself.



Overall, I really enjoy playing this game and hope Ubi continues to produce other titles using this engine and creating such wonderful virtual worlds. - Ubisoft - Assassins Creed - Video Games - Kickass Games'


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