#also does a premium account get you coins or do you still have to pay to get your 'double coin' rate?

[xcziel]

can anyone tell me more about the coin system for resistbot?

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Pluralistic: 22 Mar 2020 (Preppers in times of crisis, work-from-home vs smart speakers, scientist's coronavirus painting, DNA Lounge needs help, City Council showdown, Tlaib's trillion dollar coins, plutes are hoarding pandemic supplies)

Today's links

How prepper media is coping with the crisis: Fantasy meets reality while grifters pick up the pieces.

Law firm tells work-from-homers to switch off smart speakers: Bugging your own house is not compatible with attorney-client privilege.

Gorgeous painting of coronavirus from a molecular scientist: Free to use, too.

Slim's is shut, but DNA Lounge needs your help: It's not a business, it's a community.

Florida mayor ducks accountability for threatening power disconnections during the pandemic: Mayor Pam Triolo has permanently disqualified herself for public office, and commissioner Omari Hardy has the receipts.

Rashida Tlaib proposes minting two trillion-dollar coins: A people's covid bailout.

How "concierge doctors" supply the "worried well" with masks, respirators and tests: Pandemic capitalism is guillotine capitalism.

This day in history: 2005, 2010, 2015, 2019

Colophon: Recent publications, current writing projects, upcoming appearances, current reading

How prepper media is coping with the crisis (permalink)

I just listened to the most interesting coverage of the pandemic I've heard so far: On The Media's deep reporting on how preppers are coping with the Current Situation.

https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/segments/why-preppers-werent-really-prepared-pandemic

I admit I felt some schadenfreude when I heard prepper media trying to reconcile their hair-trigger belief in the apocalypse with blind loyalty to Trump and his deny/spin tactics. Not to mention some smugness when I heard about all the scammy products grifters are pimping out to preppers. There's even a fucking Kardashian flogging own-brand prepper gear.

But what made the segment amazing – and not just amusing – was the interview with Richard Mitchell, an ethnographer who embedded with preppers for years.

http://people.oregonstate.edu/~mitchelr/

He wrote the canonical book on the prepper movement, Dancing at Armageddon: Survivalism and Chaos in Modern Times.

https://www.press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/D/bo3637295.html

As Mitchell explains it, prepping is NEVER about actual preparedness. It's about imagining a scenario in which you will uniquely be poised to thrive, irrespective of the likelihood of that scenario. For example, a chemist he profiles in the book is totally prepped for a future in which terrorists poison the water supply and has stockpiled antidotes, water purification chemicals, etc.

The most important thing about this possibility is not that it's likely, but rather than he'd shine if it were to come to pass.

Prepping is a way of playing out a fantasy in which you are elevated to savior status, not an exercise in disaster-mitigation. And the thing is, coronavirus is not a thing anyone can individually prepare for. Individuals in bunkers don't invent novel viral therapies, vaccines, or field-expedient ventilators. That's done by society: labs, research institutes, universities, makerspaces.

The problem with actual prepper-level crises is that they demand social responses, not individual ones. The prepper's quest for individual meaning and supremacy means that he can never be actually prepared, because the way to solve a crisis is run towards it, not away.

Cowering in a luxury bunker trying to unstick the pages of your beloved copy of The Turner Diaries is a hell of a way to while away the end of the world.

Law firm tells work-from-homers to switch off smart speakers (permalink)

Mishcon de Reya is an elite UK law firm whose partners are – like so many others – working from home. The company has issued guidance to staff about shutting down their "smart" speakers while at home, to avoid leakage of sensitive client information

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-20/locked-down-lawyers-warned-alexa-is-hearing-confidential-calls

The guidance – to power off these devices – comes from Joe Hancock, the partner in charge of the firm's cybersecurity, and covers all IoT devices with cameras/mics, including baby monitors, smart speakers, Ring doorbells, etc.

Gorgeous painting of coronavirus from a molecular scientist (permalink)

David S. Goodsell is a molecular scientist and artist at the Scripps institute. His latest "Molecular Landscapes" piece is "Coronavirus".

http://pdb101.rcsb.org/sci-art/goodsell-gallery/coronavirus

You can tune into some of the process notes here: "he emphasizes that molecular processes in our body don't stand on their own (despite how they're usually shown in textbooks), but that all these components are part of a crowded environment."

https://www.forbes.com/sites/evaamsen/2020/02/10/what-does-a-coronavirus-look-like/#2b4337f03c7f

Goodsell has declared it "free to use." You can get a high-rez here:

https://cdn.rcsb.org/pdb101/goodsell/tif/coronavirus.tif

Slim's is shut, but DNA Lounge needs your help (permalink)

Two years ago, the billionaires who operated San Francisco's beloved blues club Slim's flogged it off to the predatory venue operator Golden Voice, who have now shuttered it.

https://www.dnalounge.com/backstage/log/2020/03/21.html

As JWZ points out, the fact that Slim's wasn't operated to turn a profit is in no way exceptional. Clubs are labors of love, "We facilitate the creation of culture: You push money in, turn the crank, and what comes out the other side is art, community, music and stories."

He knows. He's run the wonderful DNA Lounge for 30 years: "It isn't some whim of dilettante plutocrats. It's not some hobby I toy with when I'm not private-jetting off to my luxurious doomsday bunker. This is all I do. I didn't expect this to be my life's work, but it is."

He's just about run out of his tech money, and he's had to close during the pandemic, but he's still paying staff and still wants to continue providing a service to his community. He's seeking donations:

https://www.dnalounge.com/donate/

"The 'two or three rich dudes' model is not sustainable, because two or three people, billionaires or not, are not a community."

Florida mayor ducks accountability for threatening power disconnections during the pandemic (permalink)

The city of Lake Worth Beach, Florida was brutally slow to recognize the seriousness of the pandemic. Not only did the Mayor Pam Triolo fail to take action to limit the spread of the virus, her administration also continued to send power disconnection notices to the city's poorest residents.

https://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/20200320/watch-coronavirus-florida-lake-worth-beach-meeting-gets-ugly-and-heated-about-emergency-powers

Her administration refused to agendize or properly debate the response for far too long, provoking commissioner Omari Hardy to call her and city manager Michael Bornstein out for their inaction and their cruelty to the city's poorest.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bgCCXSrwHA

The commissioner's righteous – and technically excellent – intervention during a council meeting is a masterpiece, as he bulls through cack-handed attempts to silence him using mishandled parliamentary procedure, while dogging the mayor as she ducks responsibility.

Forcing people in the worst economic downturn in living memory to choose between spending their last check on power or food, during a once-in-a-century pandemic, is an act of permanently disqualifying depraved indifference and mismanagement.

Rashida Tlaib proposes minting two trillion-dollar coins (permalink)

Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib has revived an idea from the 2011 debt crisis to finance the stimulus, pulled from the #ModernMonentaryTheory playbook: having the Federal Reserve mint two "one trillion dollar coins" and deposit them in its Fed account.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/economy/tlaib-proposes-minting-two-1-trillion-platinum-coins-to-finance-monthly-coronavirus-debit-cards

Doing so would avoid federal debt strictures and immediately give the USG $2T to spend on reviving the economy, which it would do by sending every person in the USA a $2K prepaid credit card that would receive $1K/month until a year after the crisis's end.

Each person – children, adults, documented, undocumented, rich, poor – would get the card and the deposits, and progressive taxation would rake it back from those who don't need it (far more reliable than means-testing, which is a persistent failure).

Trillion-dollar coins are a well-theorized and documented proposal. You can read more here:

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3536440

(Image: Merrick Mint)

How "concierge doctors" supply the "worried well" with masks, respirators and tests (permalink)

One big difference I observed between my life under Canadian medicare (30 years), and UK NHS (13 years) is that in the former, there is no private option, so rich people have to advocate for everyone's care in order to improve their own. I think the relative fortunes of the NHS and OHIP can be largely explained by this difference. Allowing the rich to opt into a private system reduces the political costs of slashing the public system.

In the US, this process proceeds on steriods. Those in the USA lucky enough to have "insurance" find that their massive premiums buy them little-to-no healthcare, with endless bureaucracy and denials.

https://twitter.com/doctorow/status/1240411901055492097

Meanwhile, wealthy Americans buy their way out of the system altogether with "concierge doctors." In good times, this is merely an injustice. During the pandemic, it's an invitation to start building guillotines.

https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2020/03/19/nelson-schwartz-coronavirus-inequality

Concierge services have finagled all kinds of pandemic unobtanium: respirators, tests, swabs and masks. These are not going to unwell people, they're going to the "worried well": rich people who just want to be on the safe side.

This could make us all much sicker. We need tests for exposed people, masks for health-care workers, respirators for emergency cases. The fact that these are piling up in mansions in the Hamptons and other wealthy enclaves is proof that markets are not efficient allocators.

We're supposed to tolerate inequality because it is an unavoidable consequence of efficient market allocations, making us all better off in the long run. But when inequality allows plutes to hoard pandemic supplies and endanger every human on Earth, the pretence runs thin.

There's a great book about this, The Velvet Rope Economy: How Inequality Became Big Business, by Nelson Schwartz: "In every realm of daily life–from health care to education, highways to home security–there is an invisible velvet rope that divides how Americans live."

https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/561374/the-velvet-rope-economy-by-nelson-d-schwartz/

This day in history (permalink)

#15yrsago EFF appeals Apple versus Online Journalists https://web.archive.org/web/20050323164233/http://www.corante.com/copyfight/archives/2005/03/22/eff_files_for_appeal_in_apple_v_does.php

#10yrsago Delusional EU ACTA negotiator claims that three strikes has never been proposed at ACTA http://www.michaelgeist.ca/2010/03/eu-acta-consultation/

#10yrsago Teacher's heartbreak and anger at No Child Left Behind http://lilysblackboard.org/2010/03/nclb-science-of-making-up-stuff/

#5yrsago Taxonomy of theme park narrative gimmicks <a href="https://passport2dreams.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-theme-park-trope-list.html>https://passport2dreams.blogspot.com/2015/03/the-theme-park-trope-list.html

#1yrago Gollancz has published its first anthology of South Asian Science Fiction https://factordaily.com/gollancz-south-asian-science-fiction-anthology/

#1yrago After fatal crash, Boeing reverses sales policy that locked out some safety features unless airlines paid for an upgrade https://apnews.com/140576a8e9d4449eae646c8c479fdc3a

#1yrago Philadelphia city council candidate says his secret AI has discovered disqualifying fraud in the nominations of 30 out of 33 candidates https://www.inquirer.com/politics/clout/council-at-large-petition-challenges-devon-cade-allan-domb-nick-miccarelli-20190322.html

#1yrago This Could Be It: Key Polish Political Party Comes Out Against Article 13 https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2019/03/could-be-it-key-polish-political-party-comes-out-against-article-13

#1yrago Unnamed stalkerware company has left gigabytes of sensitive personal info unprotected on the web and can't be reached to fix it https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/j573k3/spyware-data-leak-pictures-audio-recordings

#1yrago Wireless vulns in Medtronic's implanted defibrillators allow remote shocks, shutdown, denial-of-service battery attacks and data theft http://www.startribune.com/750-000-medtronic-defibrillators-vulnerable-to-hacking/507470932/

Colophon (permalink)

Today's top sources: Slashdot (https://slashdot.org/). Hugh D'Andrade (http://hughillustration.com/), Late Stage Capitalism (https://www.reddit.com/r/LateStageCapitalism/), Naked Capitalism (https://nakedcapitalism.com/).

Currently writing: I've just finished rewrites on a short story, "The Canadian Miracle," for MIT Tech Review. It's a story set in the world of my next novel, "The Lost Cause," a post-GND novel about truth and reconciliation. I've also just completed "Baby Twitter," a piece of design fiction also set in The Lost Cause's prehistory, for a British think-tank. I'm getting geared up to start work on the novel next.

Currently reading: Just started Lauren Beukes's forthcoming Afterland: it's Y the Last Man plus plus, and two chapters in, it's amazeballs. Last month, I finished Andrea Bernstein's "American Oligarchs"; it's a magnificent history of the Kushner and Trump families, showing how they cheated, stole and lied their way into power. I'm getting really into Anna Weiner's memoir about tech, "Uncanny Valley." I just loaded Matt Stoller's "Goliath" onto my underwater MP3 player and I'm listening to it as I swim laps.

Latest podcast: The Masque of the Red Death and Punch Brothers Punch https://craphound.com/podcast/2020/03/16/the-masque-of-the-red-death-and-punch-brothers-punch/

Upcoming books: "Poesy the Monster Slayer" (Jul 2020), a picture book about monsters, bedtime, gender, and kicking ass. Pre-order here: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781626723627?utm_source=socialmedia&utm_medium=socialpost&utm_term=na-poesycorypreorder&utm_content=na-preorder-buynow&utm_campaign=9781626723627

(we're having a launch for it in Burbank on July 11 at Dark Delicacies and you can get me AND Poesy to sign it and Dark Del will ship it to the monster kids in your life in time for the release date).

"Attack Surface": The third Little Brother book, Oct 20, 2020. https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250757531

"Little Brother/Homeland": A reissue omnibus edition with a new introduction by Edward Snowden: https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250774583

[guruprincess-blog]

Join Gazpo Games and play free games to get paid

The Gazpo IO website allows visitors to play against each other in a great selection of games from a variety of categories. The basic concept of it is straight forward really. The visitors enter free tournaments on the site, win gems by being one of the best players, and then redeem the gems they won for cash!

On the Gazpo.IO website you can certainly play the games and get rewarded there for free. The website is open to free users as well as upgraded Pro users. There is definitely no obligation whatsoever to upgrade to pro. There are quite a few benefits to becoming an upgraded member as you will see below but it is not necessary to play games and get paid here.

After you decide to join gazpo games for free and made your free account you can then have a look through the wide variety of game titles available for you to play. There definitely is something for everyone with what Gazpo has on offer. Whether it is action, shooters, puzzles or even arcade style games, they have got you covered.

When you go to the games page from the main menu you'll see big game cards for every title available to be played on the Gazpo IO website. You'll see below every card that there are three kinds of tournaments listed and they display the prize pool of gems that players can win.

When you click on the game you are going to play, you then have to select which of the three tournaments you want to go in from the Free, Coin and Pro tournaments.

All Gazpo IO visitors can enter in the free tournaments and compete to get on the leader boards to win gems. Gems are like a currency that can be redeemed for USD cash in members bank accounts.

The Coin tournaments are best described as the mid-level tournaments on Gazpo. These tournaments cost 10 coins to play in and all visitors can freely earn coins. These coins are like a kind of internal currency and can be earned by doing simple tasks such as browsing a webpage, watching a video or completing a simple survey. On all of these task pages you can see there are some ads and this is the way the Gazpo.IO website builds income. This allows them to pay the top players who play the games and get on the leaderboards. It is a very well thought out system they have built and one which is sustainable in the longterm.

The coin tournaments offer everyone the second-highest level of prizes on the site. You receive much higher quantities of Gems compared to the free tournaments. Gamecoins can also be redeemed for Ad-free game time where members aren't distracted by advertising running at the same time while they try to play and win some gems.

To enter into the Pro tournaments, you need to be an upgraded member. There are three choices for you to choose from. They are monthly, yearly or lifetime.

If you upgrade and become a Gazpo Games PRO member, you automatically unlock multiple benefits that give you more coins, allow you to enter more tournaments, and access additional referral benefits instantly! The earnings potential for Pro members is substantially higher than for the free members and could possibly pay for itself in the future.

On every week day, Monday through to Friday, one percent of each tournament's payout goes to a bonus pool which is split into two larger Pro-only tournaments that run on Saturday and Sunday. Also every day one percent of every tournament's payout goes to a massive bonus pool that Pro members can compete for each 1st of the month!

These weekend and monthly Pro player tournaments definitely do add a lot more incentive! The exciting thing to keep in mind here is this is still a quite new website with the regular advertising, social media promotion and SEO currently building. As all of this does it's magic, the membership is going to rise. As more members participate in the games, the bigger the prize pools will be!

PRO Members Earn Fifty Percent More Coins

Gazpo PRO members receive 50% more coins for all of the coin earning activities that they complete. More coins equals more tournament entries and more chances to get higher scores for higher rankings! Coins can also be used to purchase ad-free time for a premium gaming experience.

Gazpo Games Referral Program Upgrades

Pro members unlock much higher ruby rewards in the referral program. They earn 10% instead of 1% that the free players earn from the gems that their direct referrals earn as rubies. Also Pro members get 5% of all gems earned on their 2nd referral level as rubies, and one percent of all gems earned on their third referral level as rubies! Rubies are automatically calculated and converted to gems at a rate of 100 rubies = 1 gem.

Ad Free Time Bonus And Discount

PRO members get ten times the amount of complementary Ad-free time added into their account every month compared to the free members! PRO players also receive a 25% discount on cash purchases of ad-free time and gem redemptions. You are able to enjoy more ad-free gaming by becoming a Pro player! More info on becoming a Pro can be accessed from the button labelled PRO on the top menu of the Gazpo website

Gazpo.IO Payment Information:

To be able to receive payments of your USD balance, you are required to fully complete both of these steps.

On the first day of the month any USD balances over the $10 minimum withdrawal level that are eligible* to be paid will be placed in the queue automatically. Payments will be processed and made using the members chosen payment information within fourteen days after it has been queued.

Play games, have fun and get rewarded for doing it. I think many people would find that appealing, right? :)

[its-bianca]

Studying/Planner Apps

Essential apps for studying, planning, health, etc. Who says everything has to be analog?

These are all the ones I’ve tried and downloaded (unless said otherwise). The ones with the * next to it are the ones I don’t use or have gotten rid of for personal reasons, but still highly recommend all of them.

I go through apps like a child goes through toys. I try them out, get rid of the ones I don’t like. Apps are toys.

There’s tons more, but these ones are the ones that I recommend to people with similar needs and schedules like mine. The ones I haven’t or don’t use anymore are ones I could definitely see being helpful to others or that I’d maybe use in the future if my needs change. 

Note: these are things from the App Store, but I’m pretty sure most are available on the Play Store too.

Podomoro Time Trackers

Forrest* - Haven’t tried this because you have to pay for it on the App Store, but I’ve seen everyone go bonkers over this app and how they plant trees for studying, etc. etc. 

Plantie - Best and only Podomoro app I still use. Gamified, but not TOO gamified. You just grow fruit, collect, coins, buy more fruit trees. It’s super simple, while still providing really good graphs and charts. Also, it allows you to turn off the feature where it stops your task as soon as you leave the app. Sometimes I need to use my phone for assignments, and I still want to track my time. It’s completely FREE, with GREAT charts as a visual. Other apps need a premium subscription to access the graphs and charts, which is why I love this app because even though the chart is quite simple, it does its job. Although, it doesn’t tell you when to take the longer break and it has to be adjusted manually. That’s fine for me, because I always get disturbed by something before I even get to 4 blocks, and if I waited until I had a big chunk, I’d never get anything done.

Block & Flow: Stay focused* - Podomoro but visualised with stacks of blocks for each day or week. And you can list out what tasks you have for that day and sort out sections for work, reading, school, etc. I didn’t need that feature, which is why I used Plantie instead.

Workflow Timer* - Another good option with options to make multiple tasks lists. One of the simpler and more user-friendly ones. It also looks really good!

Hours Time Tracking* - App for timeblocking, scheduling, and tracking the time while you’re working. It’s not helpful for me, because it’s practically impossible for me to strictly schedule something in my day after school, but could be useful for others. Really easy to makes tasks and separate by color. 

Stay Focused* - Simplest Podomoro timer out there. No distractions, no graphs, no gamification, just pure focus.

Planners/Calendars/Tasks

Wunderlist - Great reminder system, intuitive (type in “essay next mon” and it will schedule the task to be due next Monday), syncs everywhere, attach documents, etc. I used this for my assignment list, books to read list, schedule etc. for a long time, until recently where things got hectic and I wanted to make a daily to do list rather than only a master list. I use a bullet journal for school stuff now, but still keep Wunderlist for that shopping/movies/books/apps/websites to check out list. 

24me* - Personal assistant, lots and lots of features, with scheduling, to-do lists, notes, journaling, etc. Tracks weather and traffic to and from work/school. All in one.

Google Calendar - I don’t schedule on this, but use it to sync my school calendar with personal calendar. Easy scheduling and you can SHARE your calendar with a friend! All Google apps are made for collaboration basically. 

Habitify* - Habit tracker on your phone and tracks progress every day, showing when you skip and reminding you of it. Don’t quite remember why I got rid of it because checking back it seems really good. Might redownload. 

Trello* - Kanban boards, “cards” and lists, great reviews. I’ve heard people use it as a bullet journal sort of and project planner though that wasn’t it’s original purpose. I downloaded it for a club thing, but never really used it personally. 

Notetaking/Planning/Journaling

OneNote - I use this ALL the time, even though I don’t use my Microsoft account much anymore. My notes are organized and have a hierarchy. Very customizable with headers, notebook sections, pages, subpages, etc. Easy to share with group mates and an okay collaboration space if you want to see each other’s progress on research or something during a group project. MUCH better than having tons of Google or Word docs of notes. Completely FREE for the full experience.

Notion* - One in all workspace for journaling, notes, scheduling, planning projects basically a mini-website for your life and work. Great guide for bullet journaling on Notion from studyblr Eintsein here. Another Notion bullet journaling guide on YouTube here and here. I highly recommend it, but don’t use it since I use an analog bujo, prefer OneNote for class notes, and don’t have much use for it other than that currently. You do have to pay for unlimited notes, but there’s a pretty good amount to start out, and if you really don’t want to pay, there are workarounds to it.

Milanote* - Like Notion, but more restrictions on the free version. I don’t use it anymore because I’ve realized I didn’t really have a good purpose for it and it cluttered up my phone. In a way, it’s more ~aesthetic~ than Notion, but there are less things you can do. It does have a better learning curve though.

Evernote - I don’t use it often, but I have it to take quick notes or other stuff. Evernote is like a god in the notetaking world, because it’s user friendly, quick, and syncs up really easily with everything. 

Health

7 Minute Fitness - There’s a lot of these out there. Go find one or two. Don’t be sedentary.

30 Day Fitness Challenge - Same concept as above.

Simple Habit - FULL of free mostly 5 minute guided meditations (though there’s premium access). There’s no excuse now. Also, I used to try 10 minute meditations on Headspace which made me really sleepy. 5 minutes work best, because they’re quick, and if you want more time, just move on to the next part in the series or find another one. Lots of free series for basically any subject (school, women, mothers, grade anxiety, sleep) and SOS mode. Unfortunately, you can’t download any of them in the free version.

AloeBud* - Self-care pocket companion. Make reminders on your phone for every self-care thing you can think of. Schedule notifications multiple times a day with personalized messages. 

TaoMix2 - Mixer for relaxing nature/white noise sounds. It’s pretty restricted in the free, but it’s enough for me.

Cove* - If you’re a music person, this app let’s you make quick music and tunes matching your mood. A sort of an easy music therapy if you’re not good with instruments or composition. 

Reflecty* - Little journal buddy asking you fun/reflective questions about your day and tracking your mood. It’s short and sweet. Each entry is a “story”.

Oak* - Great for breathing and very simple guided meditations. Breathing practices for anxiety, freshening up, and calming nerves before a big performance. It just takes 15 seconds to breathe.

Grid Diary* - Journal prompts in grid fromat. Customizable daily prompts.

DayOne Journal* - Again, RAVING reviews. Everyone loves it. I haven’t used it because I prefer analog journals, but it’s a pretty good for travel journals with pictures, audio, video, etc.

UVLens - Reminds you to put sunscreen on throughout the day depending on your skin, activities that day, and type of sunscreen. 

Flo - Period tracker. Need I say more? 

Tasty - FOOOD (by Buzzfeed). New recipe ideas, includes shopping list, make your own cookbook.

KitchenStories - MORE FOOOOD. Includes Asian and international cuisine since it’s crowd-sourced.

Miscellaneous

Audiobooks - Audiobooks from the Gutenberg Project, but in app form. You can download classics for free, etc. There are some paid audiobooks, but they’re usually for better narrators/text corrections, so absolutely not necessary to get lost in an old book. Jane Austen, Charlotte Brönte, L. Frank Baum, all the good stuff.

Daylio - Tracks mood, activities, with intuitive charts. You can edit moods and activities shown per day. Free version is pretty good, and it replaces the need for making a habit tracker in my journal, because I don’t like making those.

Scannable - Very intuitive scanning app. I’ve used this for many legal/important documents and nobody had a clue it was “scanned” on a phone. It makes regular photos of documents easier to read and look like it came from a scanner. It can share as a PDF or jpg. Granted, you need good lighting for the best quality. 

Google Docs, Spreadsheets, Slides - Everyone’s probably used this before, but to reiterate, this is the best collaboration app/website. Super easy to share with real-time tracking and updates.

BEAKER by THIX* - For chemistry people. Mix compounds/elements together, make new compounds, see their reactions. Don’t have much use for it since my chemistry class is moving at a glacial pace but I could see this being useful for others. 

Chemtriz - Same as above, but gamified. You take elements and put them together in the right configuration to make compounds.

PictureThis - Plant Identifier - Weird addition to list, but it’s a cool app to get back in with nature. Now I know what a boxwood plant looks like.

IFTTT* - Hard to explain, but it enables different apps that don’t usually work together to work together. So if you input something in an email, you can make it go into a Google Spreadsheet(?). Just go check it out. It’s cool. Many shortcuts, track stuff in the Health App, get emails showing cool NASA pictures. 

Canva - AMAZING graphic design app/website for those who can’t use Photoshop (ie. me). It’s better online, but there are hundreds of templates for magazines, book covers, planners, posters, flyers, and basically any graphic design needs. Many free graphics and photos ready to use. Premium version is NOT necessary to get full benefits from this program. I used it to create this calendar for my room. 

[cryptosharks1]

Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency, Finance & Global News – March 22nd 2020

VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

Hi guys. Thanks for tuning in to tell episode of nuggets news. Well another truly amazing week we’ve got so much macro news and crypto news to get through. A lot of that is intertwined these days so I do encourage you to watch the full video. We welcome a couple of thousand new subscribers. Thanks so much for following us we’re trying to give you the most up to date information we’ve got literally thousands of people contacting us through all our channels wanting to know how to learn about gold and silver Bitcoin crypto currency what is going on in the economy. So we’ve got all these free resources on our Web site guys. So said friends and family they’re all your favorite videos. This video we encourage you to share all that content. That’s why we’ve been busy making it all for you for the past few years for these types of situations particularly a big thank you to our members like all businesses we are relying on you for our revenue and I employ 13 people now and I know I need that money coming in to keep them employed to keep giving you guys the best content. So huge thank you. 58 new members in our premium area read that welcome post guys stick by the rules it’s all functioning really well for the most up to date information you know to the minute type updates from everything around the world and I can’t thank you guys enough for the way that’s all running at the moment. Let’s get into the local news first where Prime Minister Scott Morrison has just gone live. He’s unveiled a far bigger stimulus package. I’m all for anything that gets money in the hands of people that are losing their jobs. We just need to make sure that people can get by. And I know a lot of people are still saying he says well you know how do I keep my business going and this time the other big guys. The reality is businesses are going to close. It’s going to be bad. This is what I’ve been talking about. A lot of people have never had a rainy day and we need to acknowledge that you know let’s support people. Let’s make sure there’s food on the table. They don’t have to pay their rent their mortgage their power bills. We need to just you know do everything we can to get by until this all passes and it will pass so I’m not getting into all the details of that package. We’re going to go through all the different countries and what they’ve done so I’ll let you guys read the details of those specifics but I certainly think there’s been no mistruths pushed by the media. So look at these stats again from today from Core Logic and all the real estate industry telling us that house prices are still going up by the day. I mean who on earth believes this stuff and we know that it’s all connected particularly in Australia where we need to protect house prices from going down. That’s very hard to do when people start losing their jobs and have a lot of investment properties because it’s all connected now. Our banks the most exposed in the world in terms of their mortgage books. So yes the government are going to do everything they can to rescue the banks. We’ve seen all these excuses around the world now encouraging people not to take out cash or you know telling you the reasons why you can’t even spend your own cash. So look these things are to be expected. If you’ve been following the channel we’ve been saying this is going to happen and it’s just happened probably faster than we thought because of these recent catalysts. So earlier this week a lot of super funds including Australia’s largest Super Fund sent out emails to clients basically saying you know markets go up and down you have to really ask yourself if it’s if it’s a work taking these unnecessary risks and trading your super assets. So a bit of a typo there that tells you that that was rushed and panicked and telling people not to sell. Markets are since down another 15 per cent and I know a lot of people with their super fund are hurting at the moment. I certainly feel for you guys the RBA coming out and they’re going to have to print this money and buy our bonds. The next step is obviously corporate bonds and then stocks you know mortgage backed securities in other countries. It is just insane the level of stimulus that we’re seeing at the moment. And obviously bitcoin and go to the two things they can’t print. We’ll get to that in just a second but all this leads to the collapse of the Aussie dollar down to 55 cents you can’t quite see that behind me there sorry. That’s. This is one of the side effects of our economy that I’ve been warning about since we made our documentary over a year ago. And this pushes up yields. So when the government is now issuing debt because governments are going to run up huge huge debts and they’re issuing these bonds trying to get people to give them money but people aren’t going to give them money when they know the economy’s in trouble and this is when interest rates rise and that’s when central banks might be forced to raise interest rates. And that is just the nightmare scenario having to raise interest rates. Well everyone’s got all this debt. This situation is really messy and that’s why everyone is looking to escape into these perceived safe haven. So look good timing over in Italy where some of those banks are opening up bitcoin trading. One point two million you’re in lockdown. So these are the options the on ramps that we’ve been talking about that are now really global for people to escape the crumbling financial system. I did a detailed video on that all the different options you have to get into US dollars gold silver Bitcoin stable coins the counterparty risks of each of those so watch that video share it with friends and family if you haven’t already. FCX have got two gold stable coins a T and Pax G is the other one over there and they’ve also recently added Aussie dollars as an on ramp so you can connect your bank account and it’s a very quick way to get into US dollars or stable coins and then you can withdraw those and keep them on your hobby wallet or your ledger as well as other tutorials I’ve done recently on how to hedge if you’ve got your gold and silver holdings or bitcoin holdings as well there’s ways to hedge with the other products. All right. So what are you that managing your own money. Very happy right about now and we’re hearing all these stories about super funds and the delays. We’ve had a record amount of people start to manage their own so finding super funds so I’m gonna get Mike on this week because there’s a lot of questions now about can we withdraw from our super fund another thing that the government announced today. So hopefully we can address all those questions really clearly. One thing I will mention with that announcement from the government is that if people are withdrawing that ten thousand dollars or more from their super you remember the stock market is down it’s probably gonna keep going down. So all that money that you’re drawing now could be more down the road. Now some people don’t believe we’re going to have retirement funds in decades from now but that can start more of a ceiling because traders and investors are going to say Well everyone’s going to be selling to take many of their super. I’m going to front run that selling. And so that can I just think it’s coming together. There’s nothing that is going to make markets go higher anytime soon until this all passes. So that’s the financial side of things in terms of the health care side of things. I thought our government were going to announce more measures on Friday. They’ve come out again today and extended things encouraging people not to do non-essential travel. But it’s still not really enforcing any of this. It’s up to you as the individual just like no one’s going to save you from the world of finance. No one’s going to make you healthy and no one is going to protect you and look after you guys you have to take that responsibility yourself and a lot of you guys know that you’ve been following the channel you prepared for everything that’s happening now. So yes schools still aren’t closed. There’s talk as I’m recording of New South Wales and Victoria looking to implement that in the next 48 hours as soon as one state does it they’re probably all going to follow. But yeah I’m certainly surprised I’m giving everything that’s happening firstly on Friday. It was one cruise ship. Now it’s five separate cruises that have all had confirmed cases those people are scattered throughout Australia. We haven’t really seen that spike yet but if this doesn’t scale nothing will. This is a beach on easily 12 days ago. This is absolutely reminiscent of what we’re seeing in Australia down here in Tassie. I spoke to friends. They went for a walk this morning. All the restaurants are packed all the bars are packed. No one is taking this seriously yet and no one is taking it seriously. In Italy twelve days ago just have a look at where they are now. These excuses that we’re hearing it’s only all people 54 percent of New York City’s cases are between 18 and 49 year olds. So it is not just affecting all people at all. We’ve now got cases of babies as young as seven months old and and children that are getting this so please guys you have to realize the severity of what’s going on at the moment. I’ll just press refresh here. There’s a couple of Web sites giving us up to date information on the Australian statistics. But this is just growing continually. You know 20 percent a day exponentially we haven’t even slowed it yet mathematically we are still on track to you know to hit the number that is going to overwhelm our hospitals unless we slow this down. So we’re not quite as bad as Italy and Iran. We’re somewhere in the middle here. We are certainly not down here near Singapore and we’re not flattening the curve like the government is is telling us that they you know they’re really happy with the job they’ve done so look a couple of positives here. Kofi to help dot com today you. This is a website built by one of our friends. It lists all the freebies and the help how you can help other people charities check that out in the time of need we’ve got to come together and help each other globally. Let’s just refresh that. Three hundred eight thousand now at time of recording the deaths ratio has actually gone up a little bit recently. Again we don’t know how accurate this is in terms of total that are going undiagnosed and not tested recovery takes a little bit longer. Two or three weeks you’re in hospital in a lot of cases. So we get the deaths before we get the recoveries. That’s all to go through the system but the wiring thing here is that even on the exponential scale we’re now accelerating higher again in across Europe across Australia across the US. All right let’s go to China another 50 percent plunge after 44 percent last month. So these auto sales a lot of industries are down 90 percent. There’s talk that China’s factories and people going back to work. Now we don’t know if they just try to push out those stats or if that is the truth. I certainly don’t believe the numbers we’ve seen some photos from hospitals with new cases in China. So they’re saying I’ve got zero new cases I’m not sure if I believe that Secretary I’m a nutrition. Now the same guy who said that cash is not used for money laundering now says that won’t cause a recession in the US so I’m not sure what he’s looking at. But if you have a look at some of these State of the restaurant industry statistics Australia hasn’t been hard hit yet because we’re a week or two behind the rest of the world. But globally restaurants are down 98 percent Canada is down 100 percent. The friends that I talk to that own restaurants and businesses having to fire staff this week there’s just no nice way to put it guys this is the reality we face where we have to lock down and if we do that for a month that gives us the greatest chance to pull through the other side. Five hundred thousand jobless claims in Canada. I certainly think some of these estimates about unemployment and GDP are going to be around 10 per cent loss. And this is kind of the slack that governments are gradually picking up in terms of the stimulus that they’re putting out. Trump looking to give every American a thousand dollars. We’ve now got similar things in all the different countries. Yeah. I think you have to do it. Some people get to complain about government debt. That’s another issue altogether. They were already running huge deficits but we’ve got to make sure that people have food on the table in the US. Some of my friends are telling me that the swearing over there about how the system is you know treating different patients with different health care and insurance and some of the backlogs for just getting those admissions and claims and whatnot it’s another headache altogether. So if you know more about that let me know down in the comments below about how that’s going to work once those U.S. hospitals start to get busy and people losing their jobs. New Jersey the latest one to shut down. I think the total is now around 100 million in terms of Americans that are in lockdown. National Guards deployed because people aren’t taking it seriously. Similar over to the UK in Europe now where British police are giving people powers to detain suspected cases of people that quarantine themselves. And this is where the totalitarian invasion of privacy is beginning now. There’s all sorts of conspiracy theories going around but the big tech giants being asked to hand over all that data once they do that there’s no going back. I guess that’s what what worries me. So yeah they’re asking the big tech giants to hand over all these tracking data so they know where you are every time even if you turn your location data off and your phone off. Edward Snowden has told us that you know these new smartphones. That’s why you can’t take the battery out because they’re always triangulating your signal to the different cell towers. Now tying that together with how you can maintain your privacy with a VPN a P2P VPN office offering free services so it’s lovely to see all these communities looking out for each other. In this time of need so orchard this is actually a cool little project that I’m going to talk about more in future. Great stuff there at the brave browser. If you don’t use these already to block all the ads and to block all the data it’s free to use download brave browser but are they really taking on the big tech giants with all these privacy issues at the moment. Bank of England have canceled all their stress tests. Look all these stress tests don’t plan for these sort of situations so you know it’s all a bit of a walk in the park and they take these boxes and tell the public how strong the banks are. Well look look at them now they’re all getting bailed out. You know a week into a bear market Britain 2000 sorry. Twenty five thousand dollars to the local businesses there AC base got out their bazooka in terms of QE and other stimulus. The stock market has hit record highs in the VIX closing at 82. So that’s perceived volatility from the stock market. They’re saying that markets could currently what they’re pricing in is that it could go 82 percent lower. Now that rarely actually eventuates but that’s just the level of fee at the moment in the S&P 500 in the volatility index. The Lehman playbook continues So the Fed have unveiled another bailout this time for the money market funds. The Fed is going to have to bail out everyone the engineers of the 2009 bailout say that this has to be bigger than the GFC bailout. These numbers are off the charts. Outflows absolutely everybody is getting out of ETF bond funds. The stock market investment grade bonds people are just running for the exits and trying to go into US dollars. And there’s simply not enough dollars in the world at the moment that’s why the Fed is having to expand their credit and bail out all the different countries including Australia at the moment distressed debt has doubled in the U.S. in two weeks half a trillion dollars now. So this is that spike that they’re talking about the interview with Marika to star will be out this week. He’s the commodities expert and a lot of these junk bonds that have been issued by the U.S. oil frack is shale producers. They can’t pay that. They don’t have any revenue and positive cash flow they’re going to default on all this debt and that can stop the next wave down in the stock market. So Boeing is just one example of a company that repurchased over 100 billion dollars in stock and now they’ve had their debt downgraded to sorry 4.5 trillion dollars worth of buybacks have occurred. And this is what’s pushed up stock prices and now all these U.S. execs are demanding that taxpayer funded bailouts of shareholders after they’ve spent all that money buying back shares and making themselves rich. The Fed extending its currency exchange program to all those central banks around the world. I just mentioned that confirmed these theories and these rumors that were going around earlier in the week that the Fed are now bailing out hedge funds. Absolutely crazy stuff and a lot of people still completely unaware this is happening. Insiders were dumping their stock. So this is Kelly Loeffler who came out and denied that she said all her investment fund manager. So really stock so the day after they were briefed about how things were how bad things are getting in China and how it was going to affect other countries and come to the U.S. these you know the elites that were in this meeting room dumping millions of dollars of shares in things like hotels and airline companies and whatnot. So wait to see if that goes to criminal charges. But man I mean these people are just so corrupt. So the record number of CEOs left they saw this coming. Two hundred nineteen CEOs left in January after we already had record amounts in the months leading after that. So the reach that are paying themselves a hundred 200 or 300 times the salary of the average worker they’ve got so much money they’ve gone to their private islands or their bunker or whatnot and they’ve got out privatized the profits and then published the public put stumbling my words he guys publicized the losses. So get the government to bail you out. Taxpayers. So so frustrating to watch these happen and I hope this brings about change. You know the bank of Japan have been buying up trillions of dollars worth of yen of stock markets. They own all the ETF. And a lot of shares they own all the government bonds and I’ve lost money doing so. So if this doesn’t bring about radical change in our financial system I just don’t know what does. We need a new system and obviously hopefully a lot of the decentralized world those ledges that cut out people in the middle and bring about transparency and trust was what would get a 10 to couple of positives to finish on the FDA have authorized these new 45 minute rapid point of care tests. We’re getting stories that people of you know in one case people have died waiting for test results to come back. There’s more tests and newer tests being designed in manufactured in Australia. Hopefully these things are still a few weeks away. But look all the smartest minds are out there trying to work on solutions. High hopes for a treatment. We’ve seen some positive results in a few of these other HIV drugs. I spoke about that in yesterday’s video a little bit say look these trials are going to take weeks as well. Anti malaria drugs. There’s a few others that have shown benefits for me. What I recommend you do. I’m going to do a whole whiteboard video about this but it’s just getting your immune system as healthy as you can help. You know he’s eating healthy trying to de stress I know that’s tough at times like these with meditation or going for a walk or just tuning out at nighttime you know you vitamin C.. Personally I love eating you know that the spicy foods getting you chilli garlic Asian food really healthy style diet. Guys get your immune system ready to fight off anything that he catches a lot of jobs are going to come out of this as well as a lot of job losses so people are going to all be wanting to get hired at Amazon Coles and Woolworths are putting on people. I think we tend to see huge demand for extra health care workers. Maybe we can do some fast tracking you know one month basic nursing course. Something like not just all hands on deck society coming together almost like a wartime effort until we until we beat this. For those of you that are wanting to trade this just remind you of how risky and how volatile markets are. But if you do want to short the stock market don’t use any leverage or anything like that. It is possible to still make money but I think for most people now it’s about hedging whether that your currency risk your portfolio your crypto holdings or whatever you want to be hedging and protecting your capital. So we’ve got that hundred dollars free bitcoin sign up for those that are interested in trading these guys off of that virtual account. And if all you want to do is practice trading in these sort of conditions you know that is going to be a lifelong skillful when we have that you know the next market cycle whether it’s 10 or 20 years from now. So look even a practice account is good for learning while you’re at home. Let’s get into the crypto news where bonds and with Xerox have announced a 50 million dollar block chain fund in India. These guys are doing great stuff. They’ve got a token that’s been performing extremely well again of late. So once crypto markets turn around I think exchange tokens are ones that are going to do well. Ripple have cemented their Asian presence with more partnerships in Thailand with fintech Company D money their car down in the headlines again. Charles Hoskinson did go live and say this wasn’t a big deal. This was an old partner. Nothing to worry about and it’s not going to affect the launch of their may net which has been months and years in the making now. So hopefully Shelly does come out soon. The Teslas Foundation has settled a lawsuit for 25 million and saying that they’re sick of paying all these legal fees. We know how much lawyers love to charge and in the crypto world we’ve got steam in the community. They’re actually hard for the network and they’re relaunching hive as they’re calling it they’re after everything that’s been going on with Justin sun trying to buy out the network. So great to see a decentralized community coming together there storage decentralized cloud storage is in computing. I’m very bullish on these type of projects. They’re tardy grade upgrades now live. This is a perfect example all the theorem being able to have these censorship resistant file storage so Chinese journalists are sharing reports on a theorem because if they tried to share them on the Internet they can get censored and blocked and shut down. So this is the decentralized World in Action that Micah has had its issues this week. The system didn’t function as it should because the theorem got clogged during that huge sell off. So they had to issue some more make it tokens and that is the way the system was designed to function. That was the emergency backstop those auctions have all finished now. There were plenty of buyers in the make a token and that one has bounced back really well in terms of price after a lot of people were fearful that was the end for the project. With all these issues happening in the world of day at the moment insurance has never been more important. So Delphi digital did a great research piece on all the best insurance projects in the world of five. And um I’ve spoken out nexus meet you had them on the channel open. I’m going to have those guys on as well. Ether risky is another one you can’t see behind me there are some very cool little projects there. So I read that report from Delphi digital. HTC are getting right behind Kibo and a lot of these smartphone companies are really integrating with crypto wallets and what not so great to safety for public awareness. The theory and baseline protocol is now open source on github. So this is the the protocol for building private systems for corporates and businesses to use the fear in public chain while still keeping the data that they need to private. Using this protocol layer on top of the theory in public chain open browser have enabled Apple Pay debit card crypto purchases in the U.S. So as if they didn’t have enough on ramps already it’s more these developing countries which is really the rapid expansion of getting the millions or billions of people into the crypto world that I’m excited about. But Coinbase Coinbase has said that traffic broke records and so huge volumes during the recent market collapse. So these are very similar to the stories that I’ve been hearing. Like I spoke about at the start of this video the website traffic was it was through the roof. We’ve had thousands of people and hundreds by Go Silver and bitcoin for the first time because with everything happening as ro says here Heyman I’ve been talking every day at the moment because it’s kind of you know you need to branch out with so much happening around the world. But in some ways it’s exciting for the bitcoins and the people that have been expecting this and bunkering down living within their means and saving getting into your goals you Silver’s getting out of shares and if you’ve been prepared hopefully there’s a lot of good that can come from from the bad at the moment when people lose their jobs. Hopefully the new system when the dust settle it’s going to create a better job and a better quality of life for a lot of these people. That’s what I hope can come out of all of this. I certainly think that decentralized system is going to play a huge role in all that. So just quickly looking at the charts here. Bitcoin has had a pretty decent bounce this week. We’ve got to be careful that this is just a bear flag when we see a huge sharp sell off like this. But you know my thoughts that that liquidation on Pete makes actually push prices a lot lower than they maybe otherwise would have gone if we didn’t have that cascade where they had to shut the systems down and other exchanges were getting dragged lower. So there’s plenty of healthy buying like gold and silver have not been immune from this either. It’s ridiculous to see the price of silver under 12 dollars when you can’t get physical silver at basically all bullion dealers around the world. So that is going to break in the coming weeks when people actually buy those futures contracts and they demand delivery at the 12 dollar price. So the paper market is going to break and it’s going to come back to the real world price and demand for silver. The same with gold. You’ve got your digital options. I’ve done videos on that guys hang in there. I just can’t explain how bullish I am with the governments and central banks around the world printing trillions of dollars. What this means for these finite currencies that can’t be printed longer term so hang in there. We’re all in this together. Head over to our website to check out our resources. Join up to our community if you want to join the discussion and stay up to date with everything that’s happening. Thank you for supporting the channel more than ever guys place mass that like button subscribe. You haven’t already shown these videos around and I’ll talk to you again soon. Cheers.

The post Bitcoin, Cryptocurrency, Finance & Global News – March 22nd 2020 appeared first on Cryptosharks.net.

source https://www.cryptosharks.net/finance-global-news-march-22nd-2020/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=bitcoin-cryptocurrency-finance-global-news-march-22nd-2020

[writingonjorvik]

Can We Discuss What’s Up With SSO’s Pricing

So I wanted to bring this topic back up because it’s important to me. Also, this one is gonna be formatted weird because of those pictures, but they’re kinda central to this whole thing. But before we dive into this, I want to remind folks that I absolutely believe SSO’s devs should be fairly compensated and that MMOs are expensive to run (somewhere around $20+ million to run a year). However, I do think the pricing is dangerously high, and I think long term, it’s bad for the game. Let me explain. To start, these pictures.

The picture on the left is a calculation of SSO’s current Star Coin prices and how much you spend a year if you buy them. If you’ve done this survey for me before, this is where that data collection comes from (it’s also about to hit 100 entries and when it does I’m gonna send all of this math to support). If you want to see the findings of that survey broken down, the whole sheet and the math is here. It’s the key tab for these tables, and the SSO’s Current Pricing for the math.

The picture on the right is a table of calculations based on what SSO’s price would look like if they were based on other MMOs in the industry. I started this by looking at other MMOs that have mounts that aren’t just reskins but actually serve a purpose, like GW2 and RDO, and found the average cost of a mount in those games, about $10. Setting 1000 SC, the average about SC you need to buy a horse in SSO, at $10, I worked backwards and built the rest of the table to make a cost speculation of what SSO’s prices would look like if they followed industry standards. 

I think the color alone says a lot just by the decrease in red. To explain, the average gamer will spend about $125 USD on an MMO a year. SSO backed this up with a $120 figure for their average spender in an interview a few years ago. There are resource links peppered throughout the sheet as well, so I’m not going to repeat source a bunch in this post. So, the color coding works like this:

Blue is an underspender, spending less than $50 a year

Green is an average spender, spending between $50 and $150 a year

Pale red is an over spender, spending between $150 to $500 a year

Dark red is a whale, spending over $500 a year

The difference it would make to knock down Star Coins to $10 for a 1000 would mean that someone who wants to buy a horse a month would go from being a whale at $359.88 to exactly SSO’s average spender at $120. That’s an over $200 difference, not to mention that right now spending $120 would only get you 4 horses, where on this new chart, it would get you 12, not counting allowances. That is a massive difference in buying power.

This is why the cost is problematic. The costs are egregiously high when compared to other games in the industry, meaning we have less content to engage with for the money we do spend. Player buying power is a quarter of that in other games, in a game targeted at preteens. I don’t know about you, but preteens aren’t the group I think of when I think of having a lot of money to spend, which makes this system make even less sense.

I did want to be fair though, so there are calculations in that math about the profit loss SSO would have and if this system would be sustainable, so I also did that math. It’s on the MMO Standards tab, and my findings based on the information y’all polled was yeah. So long as players bought about 10% more Star Coins and the group of players spending increased by about 50%, this model would make as much money as the current one, and its distribution of spending looks a lot more like what a normal MMO spender distribution looks like.

That math may seem kinda wild, but I’d like to remind folks that SSO’s last reported group of monthly active players was 400,000, with only 200,000 spending regularly out of 13+ million accounts. That’s 1.5% of their player base. That’s not a huge ask. It’s an increase of about 100,000 people, and asking folks to spend about $40 a year on SSO. Again, check out the math in that spreadsheet, I ran a bunch of tests on this and I’d be happy to run some more. It’s all in color coded boxes to lay it out.

What’s even more, based on all of the bundles you guys averaged at buying, most of you dropped to underspenders on my speculation chart. Most of you would be spending less than $40 for the content you’re already getting if SSO had a system that looked like most other MMOs. Some of you dropped as far as over spenders to underspenders, and I already pointed out the whale comment. Overspenders and whales were actually cut in half as a spending group.

Look, I want SSO to make money, but their current model is short sighted on taking advantage of their current high population of overspenders and whales, which based on early polling from my recommendations poll, also is one of the bigger reasons a lot of you aren’t recommending the game. Further, it’s incredibly dangerous when talking about how this game is marketed towards kids and preteens who don’t need to be trained into overspending.

I know there’s an easy argument that SSO gives us free Star Coins with the allowance, but also, look at SSO’s main demo: preteens, a demographic not well known for its abundance of cash or copious amount of patience. Waiting three months for a new horse doesn’t sound like a good model to encourage people to keep playing, particularly when they’re likely broke and easily distracted, or their parents aren’t willing to pay for that habit. It certainly doesn’t help SSO’s monthly users if most of their players just park their accounts to wait for enough coins for a horse they want instead of logging on, or leave because they don’t want to keep investing in a game that makes them wait with no meaningful reward.

Further, all of the games I used to model my speculation chart on allow you to either buy mounts with ingame currency, earn the premium currency in gameplay, or convert the ingame currency to the premium currency. That is just as free as SSO is with its allowance, if not more “free” since you can actively grind for premium currency without needing to wait weeks at a time. There are guides in GW2 to grind enough gold to buy a mount in a weekend. Those devs still have their premiums at $10 for their average mounts.

I want SSO to make money, and the devs absolutely deserve to get paid well, but this system is abusive to players and wildly overpriced when compared to other games in the same genre with the same or similar types of mounts. By all accounts too, SSO is an indie publisher (or was? There’s some gray area with one of their investors right now). But the point being, SSO is charging at a rate that is triple the industry average, and that if a triple A game asked for this kind of money, it would be laughed for being so comedicly high. And as an indie company, with no prior games besides some old CD-ROMs to back up their credibility, they’re charging nonsensically high for their market. And a lot of the time they can get away with it because their players have no base of reference or because they’re already super passionate and able to spend. This is your base of reference.

Only 1.5% of SSO’s audience wants to spend money on the game regularly. The average business analytic of people who are willing to spend extra on a company is 10%. I love SSO, but something has to give.

[thewishmistress]

At this point, all i can say is that beemov is a company lacking of strategy and made of the impulsivity of their workers.

I know well multiaccounts were forbidden since always, but I clearly understand the reasons some people wanted to risk anyway.

I was really pissed off that in Eldarya the currency for playing the game and buy things was the same, that some items were only premium, I felt it so distant by what beemov offered us with mcl. Now I have a lovigins and I can barely keep it and play the game, because its food costs 30 maanas out of the 50 we get daily.

I say beemov lacks of strategy because everything they do is disappointing and they don't understand that all of this is going against them and their well so protected money.

Now let's take by example the maana-for-gold coins trade. That maana is yet collected with fake accounts but you still had someone paying you real money to buy those gold coins. Now that you did all this mess, neither that person will buy anything from you never again, because one can't risk their account for you being a prick.

And let's talk about the drawings, what does it do to you?! Why you should be concerned if a person lets another pay his work with maana instead of money? Why not letting a person get a drawing if she maybe can't afford it with real money?

Also let's talk about your timing matters . You immediately shut down the game, while it is on an Halloween event for a day, probably not even giving it back since it's our 'fault', but take ages to answer some basic questions about your own game changes, in a disappointing way that only you can do it, treating your customers like fools and open wallets.

I don't wish anyone bad things, but by the way you are behaving you don't deserve anything from the players.

Think twice whenever you want to give money to this shit company. I am done. Bye

[arethabraddon49-blog]

World Paper Money regarding Replaced By Electronic-digital Currency

12/5: Episode 10. Leo Wolpert, a true grinder alongside good friend, joins us on the 10th show. Leo has a WSOP bracelet, a law degree, a Quiz Bowl pedigree, Cyber Security Profits Review or a Jeopardy! appearance to his name, when he finished 50th in the 2012 WSOP main seminar. He's also got a few hands around the Palms Heartland Poker Tour event for all our strategy message! [Visit Website] [Download MP3].

Whether or even otherwise you ever need to get rid of off if you just CombiBar Gold 1 gram bars from the whole become worse payments, it is still perfectly good physical Gold person. The premium is only a percent or two higher than a sovereign Gold coin like a Buffalo or Eagle.

Wright exchanged for money 130 of his Bitcoins at $127 each ($16,510) and was looking forward to using the gains to Cryptocurrency pay up outstanding medical bills. Mt. Gox does have a policy of just allowing $1000 to be cashed in a 24-hour period. Wright was slowly getting disbursements of his money and was looking for the entire transaction in order to become finished inside of a few several weeks. During that period, a hacker broke into his account and interrupted the process of cashing elsewhere. The thief converted all targets of kaczynski's nearly back into Bitcoins then transferred all of these books out to himself, thus circumventing the $1000 just about every policy. 12/26: Ryan Eriquezzo, WSOP Circuit Champion, makes an inspirational go back to the show as he nears the conclusion of his self-imposed 180 day hiatus from poker. However much to learn Bitcoin Mining from this young poker star will be quickly proving to be wise beyond his months or even years. [Visit Website] [Download MP3]. Get a miner. A large number of mining options for multiple platforms although OSXusers may feel the in a few things of a pickle. Miners utilize spare GPU cycles to power the mining operation, significantly like services like SeTi. Miners, however, start using thise types of cycles that will handle peer-to-peer processes something connected to bitcoins. Therefore by doing "work" the preserving the network too. Yesterday, while a quantity of banks were closed, Bitcoin decided to break another major psychological barrier, and has became trading at above $100 USD per coin. In the moment, Bitcoin is trading at $118 USD/BTC. As a very little resistance to further price increases, so expect the price of bitcoin to increase very rapidly over the following few many days. These are also record highs for the currency. You can enjoy the price of Bitcoin rise and fall here, as well as see what the record books for asks and bids are, that helps you figure out how easily it's also possible to to move the price to any point. 12/18: Episode 12. Our guest is PokerStars Team Online member, occupational therapist, and Cyber Security Profits all-around delightful poker player Adrienne Rowsome. She talks to us about getting ladies into the game, getting everyone so you can get more fun at the table, taking a shot attending the 300/600 Omaha 8-or-better game, and meeting her husband through cards. [Visit Website] [Download MP3].

[mypersonalinjuryattorneyinf-blog]

Personal Injury Attorney

How do you know if a personal injury suit is right for you? It’s distressing to know that roughly 18, 800 motorists and the concerned passengers suffer injuries every year, almost 360 of which lead to fatalities. Thus, you have no idea about when you can have some serious injuries. To hire the best personal injury attorney go to the jamesponton.com website.

It would also be a clear indication that you have no respect for the South Carolina courts and this would attract dire consequences. If there was no sufficient signage or verbal caution and they subsequently slipped, there is a clear breach of duty on behalf of the restaurant. There are several points that need to take into consideration while going to hire a personal injury lawyer New York. Neither is there any specific location such as private or public for an injury to take place. Our outstanding settlements are one thing, but we also take great efforts to hold the responsible parties accountable and ensure they are aware of the effects of their actions. Since they never use the phone while driving, they believe they are less likely to get into a wreck.

Personal Injury Attorney

Companies sometimes will use any means to get people to waive their rights to sue, and you should generally always first speak to a lawyer before making any decisions or signing anything regarding your case. As a result, it is especially important to retain an attorney who will investigate the case from the victim’s perspective, ensure that vital evidence is preserved, and put pressure on the defendant and their insurer to offer a fair settlement. A personal injury attorney is a person who specializes in this law aspect. The first an Injury Lawyer in Kingston does in such situations is negotiating with your insurance adjuster. The insurance adjusters have years of experience in twisting the facts in their favor or influencing a person’s emotions with sympathetic words. Just substitute that skeptical person with the insurance company and you have it. You may have serious injuries that require ongoing treatment. They might opine that the treatment by your doctor was both necessary and appropriate. The dedicated attorneys help in forwarding the case to the jury or judge as and when necessary. A lawyer will have to take this into consideration when he or she presents your case to the jury. He or she will take the necessary procedures to ensure that the information that doctors have about your medical condition or that of your relative are disclosed.

Who will pay for my lost wages? From at that place you lot tin pay them. Accidents can bring lots of pain and suffering both physically and emotionally. The attorney will consider all aspects of the case and your pain and suffering as well to ensure fair justice to all. Boris Lavent is an award-winning attorney who takes a hands-on approach to every case he handles. From the astute representation of the case in the court of law to fetching the righteous amount, Personal Injury Lawyer in Milton is the way to go about it. It is important that you not leave the outcome of your personal injury case to chance. If you want to settle your personal injury claim, there’s somethings which have to happen first. The best protection is to have your child wear a safety helmet. Why not meet with all of us with absolutely no requirement to determine if all of us are actually the best personal injury lawyer for your requirements. You probably notice St. Louis personal injury lawyers website touts past results and personal service with the personal injury lawyer Atlanta.

If you or a loved one suffers from severe injuries, your life changes without any notice. You can also find a plethora of severe medical cases like brain injuries, spinal cord injuries and resultant trauma. The second category is based on the types or classes of injuries. They can assist you to stay organized by handling all the non-core activities, saving you time and money. However, when it comes to negligence, the time to file a claim is reduced to two years (mainly cases of medical malpractice and wrongful death ). When it comes to this, it is a very tough, mean business. In this situation, you might be able to sue the organization for compensatory damages if they were negligent in supervising their employees. They awake the morning of an accident, living their life in an ordinary way, and then, without warning, everything changes. Proper investigation and scrutiny of the proofs will reveal the facts. No matter what type of accident you’ve experienced, our skilled personal injury lawyer will offer guidance tailored to your unique situation with the personal injury attorney.

This careful assessment of these areas will give you the necessary and crucial answers that were not provided by the hospital or OB. Data Provided by: U.S. You should hire a lawyer or the services of a law firm that has previously dealt with cases similar to yours. The contingency fee arrangement is unique in personal injury law and the government has capped the fees that any injury lawyer may charge from the plaintiff. The ICO Law Group website also lists its involvement in more crypto-related projects funded in other ways, including crowdfunding but not via Form D filings: Latium, Bexam, Leep Network, Troventum, Shopper Coin, Delta, askfm, and smartimpact. Adam continues to give back also in the form of seminars. One call can give you peace of mind. APIL stands for the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers. Be sure to ask this right as you sit down for the consultation with your Philadelphia personal injury lawyer.

Bad Faith - An Easy to Understand Explanation

When you access an insurance contract, sometimes you pay premiums for many years when you ever need to make a claim. When you spend these premiums, you are doing so with the belief that when and if your time and effort of need comes, your insurer can pay you fairly and may provide you with all the benefits promised within the policy. Unfortunately, sometimes an insurance company won't live up to its end from the bargain. When this occurs, it's call an insurance attorney for legal help.

There are generally five main reasons which could indicate the call to retain a personal injury attorney to handle your case following a car crash. If these things five things occur, It is strongly advised that you simply check with a trauma attorney to safeguard your rights - most injury attorneys provide a free no-obligation consultation, so you don't have to pay anything unless help you recover on your injuries.

Secondly, people believe these lawyers are extremely expensive and they also don't give their customers much attention because they are working on a lot of cases. It is true that you have a lot of people, who're available just to make money. But it's also correct that its not all lawyers are similar to this. There are some very honest lawyers in the industry, whose sole issue is to represent their client and have them the compensation they deserve. The most dedicated and committed lawyers are the types, who divide their time fairly between each of their cases. They are genuinely concerned about winning all their clients' cases and be sure that no industry is treated unfairly. As far as the fee with the lawyer is worried, people also believe it will be too costly to rent a lawyer because all of them charge quite high fees. It's true the fees can be high, in case you think about it, there isn't any situation that is incredibly cheap for just about any individuals currently. There are some lawyers who charge some reasonable fees to the services they're offering. In addition to that, some lawyers may even will give you flexible mode of payment or could supply you with some concessions too. This depends from lawyer to lawyer.

Be careful what you say right after the accident as these words could possibly be considered in relation to filing your case. Your personal injury lawyer will probably advice that speaking with others, who might be charged to your injury, without her or his consent may be harmful to your case and, because of this, may advise against it. Try to keep your conversations concerning the accident to a minimum try to be clear that you have been injured so you will be trying to find medical assistance after you have been injured within an accident. Stating that you're okay or fine after an accident could end up hurting you afterwards once you have filed your claim having a lawyer.

Your lawyer will carry the weight of the challenges, directing your self on the most effective path to take, correctly calculating what you're owed, and fighting to suit your needs problem, if you need to. You yourself will be shielded from all of these stressful activities, and will still reap the primary benefits, that gives the finest chance to recover the damages inflicted upon you and to go onto the most your daily life.

To read more about the personal injury attorney go to https://www.catesmahoney.com/belleville-personal-injury-lawyers/why-hire-a-personal-injury-lawyer/.

[waycityparkingdestinations]

How to Avoid Expensive Baltimore City Parking Tickets

No one enjoys the sight of a parking ticket stuck to their car's windshield. But even when you are super careful, there's always the risk of an unintended parking violation. The best you can do is be prepared as much as you can – here's all you need to know about Baltimore city parking and essential tips to avoid Baltimore city parking tickets.  

City of Baltimore Parking Facilities  

The Parking Authority of Baltimore City (PABC) manages 14 city-owned garages, several surface lots, and 900+ multi-space parking meters and 4000+ single-space parking meters. Daily and monthly parking spaces at PABC garages can be reserved online on, but you can expect waiting lists as there are limited spots. The best alternative is Baltimore City parking garages and lots that offer secure and affordable hourly, daily, overnight, and monthly parking spaces across the city – most of these facilities also offer special discounts on online reservations. It is cheaper to pre-book paid parking space than pay off Baltimore City parking tickets.  

Street Parking in Baltimore City  

On-street parking is available across the city – however, the best spots are located off the main streets. Look for alleyways and cross streets in safe neighborhoods, but keep an eye out for parking restrictions, especially permit requirements and special parking zones.   

Two types of parking meters are in use in Baltimore city – single-use and multi-use; both accept cards and coins and are generally enforced between 8 am and 6 pm, from Monday to Saturday. Typical meter rates range from $1 - $4 per hour, but these are subject to change as per demand and availability. Free street parking is allowed on national holidays, Sundays, and in some neighborhoods after metered parking hours. Keep an eye on RPP areas and check posted signs for additional restrictions.   

What is the Baltimore RPP Program?  

Baltimore's Residential Parking Permit program was introduced in 1979 to provide preferential parking privileges to the city's residents. Currently, there are 47 RPP zones across the city, where regular street parking is restricted to address the high demand from residents. With a residential permit or visitor pass, you can get unlimited on-street parking any time of the day, except during street cleaning hours. However, other than the RPP time restriction for non-resident vehicles, all other traffic regulations are applicable to permit holders.   

Only Baltimore City residents are eligible for RPP – you must have proof of residence within an RPP area to apply for a permit. RPP applications can be made online on pabc.thepermitstore.com -- create an account, and once it is verified, you can order permits and visitor passes. Permits will be mailed to you or can be collected from the Baltimore Parking Authority on W Lombard Street. Temporary permits can also be printed at home for immediate use. RPP is valid for a year, and annual renewals can be done on the designated month for each zone.   

Obtaining an RPP is highly effective in avoiding Baltimore city parking tickets to an extent. With a permit or visitor pass, you have better chances of finding a secure parking space and also avoid short time limits that often lead to parking citations. However, this ease of parking is restricted to one neighborhood or RPP zone. You'll still need to hunt for street parking spots in other parts of the city or just book an affordable garage space to avoid the hassle.   

Baltimore City Parking Garages  

In Baltimore, garage parking rates range from $5 to $40 depending on the service you opt for and the location. It is also possible to find hourly parking rates at secure, well-maintained parking lots with the latest amenities for as little as $2. Daily maximum rates for covered self-parking will cost you only $30 - $35 at Baltimore city parking lots and garages. Valet parking rates start at around $10, which is quite affordable compared to many other cities.   

You can save more on garage parking in Baltimore with an easy trick – quit the habit of last-minute parking spot hunts and book your parking space in advance. Use a parking app or website to get the maximum benefits. Online reservations are often offered special rates and discounts at premium parking lots, and you'll find the best deals on parking apps. Download a parking app on your phone and search for all garages near your destination – you'll find all the top-rated parking lots in one place. Now, compare rates and amenities at each lot and pick one that best suits your needs. It will certainly cost you much less than a Baltimore city parking ticket.   

PABC is quick to spot parking violations, and a ticket can cost you at least $32. Obstructing traffic will race that figure to $252 or more – even when you are aware of parking rules, there is always a risk of unintended parking violations.  

  While street parking is cheaper and, if you are lucky, sometimes free, it comes with limitations that might not always suit your needs. An RPP could save you a convenient spot in your neighborhood, and visitor passes can be helpful to an extent. But a permit does not exempt you from other parking regulations, and it's important to be aware of the basic City of Baltimore parking rules.  

Here is a round-up of essential tips to avoid an expensive Baltimore city parking ticket:  

Always check parking signs posted on the street to make sure parking is allowed at the time of your visit. There could be temporary regulations like construction restrictions or changes in street cleaning schedules.   

Do not gamble with the meter; move your car at least a couple of minutes before it expires. Be mindful of maximum parking time limits too, especially when using a free street parking spot.  

Never park in restricted or special parking zones designated for people with mobility limitations. You cannot park within 15 feet of a fire hydrant or in any way that prevents access to the hydrant.   

Make sure to display Residential Parking Permit (RPP) or visitor pass on your car's windshield as instructed.   

Keep an eye out for No-Parking, No-Stopping, Loading, and Reserved Handicap Parking zones when looking for curbside parking.   

[bioclub778]

Free Trial Coffee Meets Bagel

About Coffee Meets Bagel

Bagel Meets Coffee App

Coffee Meets Bagel Free Trial

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Coffee Meets Bagel Wiki

Coffee Meets Bagel is a San Francisco based startup with a dating and social networking mobile app of the same name. To stand apart in the crowded field of dating apps, Coffee Meets Bagel focuses on improving women’s online dating experiences by offering a curated selection of matches (based on an ever-changing profile matching algorithm) with the opportunity for continuing the introduction by commenting on something in a profile as an icebreaker, which might lead to further interactions on the platform.

About Coffee Meets Bagel. Coffee Meets Bagel is a San Francisco based startup with a dating and social networking mobile app of the same name. To stand apart in the crowded field of dating apps, Coffee Meets Bagel focuses on improving women’s online dating experiences by offering a curated selection of matches (based on an ever-changing profile matching algorithm) with the opportunity for. Actually, you can do it 'twice'. Sign up, make sure to cancel the sub immediately (which will still let you use the remainder of the duration) then go to another tab in the app. It apparently let's you try the trail again. While you still only have till the same expiration, it does give you another 6000 beans (so I ended up getting 12k) 2.

LovingFeel is an international website focused on international communication. Our user-friendly search tool makes it possible for you to meet someone who shares your interests and satisfies your communication needs. We strive to help thousands of people meeting someone exciting, and feel positive emotions from an enjoyable conversation. Loving feel dating site.

Data from 2017 shows that Coffee Meets Bagel made ~2.5 billion introductions and more than 70,000 couples met using the app.

The Infrastructure

Coffee Meets Bagel uses a variety of Amazon Web Services. Okcupid video chat free. From EC2 for compute to S3 and Redshift for storing their various data sets and many more (Kinesis, SQS, CloudWatch). Given Coffee Meets Bagel’s heavy investment in AWS, its management is ultra sensitive to unexpected or unintended costs arising from a sub-optimal use of these infrastructure components. That’s where CloudForecast comes in.

The Challenges

We spoke with Stephen Brandon, Manager of Engineering and Infrastructure at Coffee Meets Bagel. As the manager of all the infrastructure, as well as handling SRE and DevOps related aspects, Brandon is acutely aware of the need to keep the hundreds of servers on AWS operating with no down time and allowing the workflow to progress smoothly.

Like others, he found AWS tools for monitoring and reporting, such as Cost Explorer, cumbersome and confusing. While Amazon Web Services provide all sorts of APIs to extract raw data into CSV files (Cost & Usage Report), there were too many reports to compare to get actionable data. Prior to their investment in CloudForecast, they would often be surprised by cost overruns only when they got the monthly AWS bill. Also, it was not very easy to slice the CVS data to find the sources of the cost increase. It would have been cost-prohibitive and time-consuming to build a proper in-house reporting tool from all the Cost & Usage Report, and anything quick and dirty would have been a hack with limited usability.

The Screening Process

Brandon’s team surveyed the landscape of available tools, selecting four for evaluation. Their main requirement was that the tool provides the total daily and monthly spend in a simple and easy-to-understand manner — especially, as much of this data would be shared with C-levels in the organization. They didn’t need a lot of organizational tools and pay for features that might be more useful to a large enterprise.

Pricing was a major factor in their evaluation, but also the complexity that arises from too many features. Some of these offered far more features than Brandon’s team felt they would ever need. He says that CloudForecast’s AWS cost monitoring and reporting tool “..fits us to a tee. The tool makes it simple to let us know how much we are spending on AWS, the areas where we are spending, surfaces any cost increases and gives us a way to slice/dice our costs through our tags so that we can extrapolate our cost better.”

The Benefits Of Using CloudForecast

Coffee Meets Bagel found just the right amount of features in CloudForecast’s tool. “We wanted to make sure we would actually use the product and all the features. The product is simple and the daily cost reports we received are easy for me and my team to understand”, Brandon observes.

Brandon sends out two different AWS cost reports each day, via email and Slack, one to the engineering leads and another to himself and the CFO. Each report is built using CloudForecast’s custom report tool, tailored using cost tags to highlight those aspects that the recipients are responsible for, allowing them to react to any cost anomalies that day.

The engineering leads responsible for the data, which accounts for 60-70% of their monthly AWS spend, particularly appreciate this visualization and insight on their AWS usage. Prior to using CloudForcast, the data engineers would not have proactively used AWS Cost Explorer to check daily costs, or even monthly ones. “Now, with the daily cost reports from CloudForecast, I’ve had the data team leads message me noticing cost increases and catching them before I do,' Brandon observes.

For example, Brandon cites the case where the data leads noticed cost increases in AWS ECS usage because of the use of an old data model that was not being leveraged within their solution. Deprecating that model “saved us some money that would have been a recurring wasted cost had it not been caught earlier,” he said. Other examples of hidden costs include detecting zombie on-demand server instances not caught by the usual garbage collection tools, unnecessary large GPU on-demand instances, and unneeded “tests” when commiting code to GitHub in the staging process. Catching these early has saved them thousands of dollars per day.

With the straightforward visibility offered by CloudForecast, the engineers take greater ownership, responsibility and accountability for costs, a factor they have now added to their technical processes.

With CloudForecast, the CFO is now able to slice the data in different ways to better understand cost using novel, in-house metrics such as Revenue/Daily Active User and improve forecasts for AWS spend.

'

Saved us money that would have been a recurring wasted cost had it not been caught earlier.

Stephen Brandon, Manager of Engineering and Infrastructure

Summary

It takes a lot of time and effort to look at a company’s AWS infrastructure and check for situations that can cause unexpected or unintended cost spikes. With CloudForecast’s AWS cost monitoring tool, Coffee Meets Bagel has been able to catch these situations within a day, rather than wait for the surprise in the bill a month later.

A final note from Brandon: “You have probably paid for yourself 10 times over. I can’t put a number on it, but I know you have saved us at a minimum tens of thousands of dollars over the course of our engagement.”

'

You have probably paid for yourself 10 times over. I can't put a number on it, but I know you have saved us at a minimum tens of thousands of dollars.

Stephen Brandon, Manager of Engineering and Infrastructure

Coffee Meets Bagel Review

Is the Coffee Meets Bagel (CMB) dating app better or worse than other popular dating apps like Bumble or Tinder? How does Coffee Meets Bagel compare with these popular options?

We researched Coffee Meets Bagel and combed the internet for detailed user feedback and reviews. Here’s a quick but complete summary of our findings.

Bagel Meets Coffee App

How Does Coffee Meets Bagel Work?

Coffee Meets Bagel prides themselves on their algorithmic matching, and only handpicks a couple suggested users for you to like each day at noon.

Women only see users who have already liked them in their suggested list.

If you’re not into your suggestions, you can always browse through profiles in the “discover” tab of the app.

Does Coffee Meets Bagel Cost $?

How much does Coffee Meets Bagel cost? Nothing.

Coffee Meets Bagel is free to use, but like Tinder Plus and Bumble Boost, they offer a paid premium service with some extra perks (like increasing the amount of profiles you can like each day), and it costs from $20-$35/month. You’ll get the best deal on Premium if you commit to 6 months up front.

Like Bumble coins, CMB has their own in-app currency “beans” you’ll need to purchase to access premium and other perks. You can also earn free beans just by using the app.

Coffee Meets Bagel Dating App PROS

• Coffee Meets Bagel limits the amount of users you can like to five per day, which greatly discourages the swipe-now-look-later spirit of apps like Tinder. Thus, Coffee Meets Bagel attracts users who are more discerning and review whole profiles, not just pics.

• There are more women on the app than men. Coffee Meets Bagel has a ratio of about 60/40 women to men. This helps everyone out — women get to be more selective, and men don’t need to worry about competing with tons of other guys.

• CMB limits how long you can chat before setting up a date. You only have 7 days after matching to get to business and exchange info and/or plan an IRL meeting. This eliminates the who’s-going-to-make-the-first-move game, and cookie-jarring matches to hit up later.

Coffee Meets Bagel Dating App CONS

• Fewer opportunities for matching — Because CMB only shows users a handful of profiles each day, it can take longer than other apps to get matches. This longer process can feel discouraging for users who want a more min/max experience.

• There’s no desktop version of Coffee Meets Bagel.

• Some users have complained that not enough people are on the app, making high-quality match material more of a scarcity.

Overall Takeaway: ✔️

We can conclude our review by saying that Coffee Meets Bagel is a pretty cool dating app, and can be a refreshing change from the endless swiping game of Tinder and Bumble. We like CMB’s mentality that more doesn’t always equal better, and it can be a more fulfilling experience to carefully review a handful of profiles than swipe through hundreds.

How to Optimize Your Coffee Meets Bagel Profile?

Good pics.

Seriously, you can’t underestimate how much good pics matter, especially for apps that attract discerning users like Coffee Meets Bagel.

Coffee Meets Bagel Free Trial

With the wrong pics, you can end up with 0 matches. The right pics can change your dating life completely.

Test your dating pics on Photofeeler to make sure you’re using your best ones.

Coffee Meets Bagel Update

Go to Photofeeler.com now and give it a try!

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Want more about CMB? Check out:

[yourlifeinsurance411]

New Post has been published on http://www.lowestpricetermlifeinsurance.com/index.php/2021/05/20/why-millennials-need-to-start-thinking-about-life-insurance-now/

Why Millennials Need to Start Thinking About Life Insurance Now

Why Millennials Need to Start Thinking About Life Insurance Now

Not only is life insurance is far cheaper when you're younger—but it can also be a great way to accumulate wealth for retirement.

By Mia Taylor

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CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES

During my "invincible" young adulthood, life insurance was the furthest thing from my mind. Not only was I confident that the need for such a policy was a long way off, but I was also clueless about the many savings and investment benefits that can often be derived from certain types of policies. 

Fast-forward more years than I care to reveal with any specificity, and I've learned the costly error of my earlier thinking the hard way. For a variety of reasons, obtaining a life insurance policy at this point would be a seriously pricey endeavor, one I simply can't afford. This is why I've set out to help others avoid a similar mistake. Millennials, in particular, should take heed.

While COVID-19 has raised awareness about the important role life insurance plays in families' financial security, new research from LIMRA shows that 42 percent of Americans would face financial hardship within six months if the primary wage-earner were to die unexpectedly. The very same study shows that young Americans are most at risk, as more than half of millennials have no life insurance coverage.

Here are five reasons millennials really need to consider getting life insurance sooner rather than later.

  When you’re younger, life insurance policies are cheaper

Let’s start with the most obvious point, one you’ll hear like a steady drumbeat from nearly every life insurance expert or financial advisor: The earlier you get a life insurance policy, the more affordable it will be.

“Life insurance is cheaper and easier to get while you are young and healthy,” says Micah Metcalf, owner of Metcalf Financial, a fully digital insurance agency. “As you age, your health tends to age too, potentially bringing a whole host of medical complications that you may have never even thought about in your 20s. Things such as diabetes, depression, or arthritis can all bring about more difficulty with obtaining life insurance, which can make it much more expensive.”

To drive this point home, Metcalf rolls out the following dollars-and-cents example. If a healthy 25-year-old male were to obtain term life insurance right now, the monthly cost would be a mere $30. This is based on quotes from such companies as AIG, Protective, and Banner William Penn. However, if a 45-year-old were to seek coverage, those monthly premium costs are more than five times higher, ranging from $164 to $169 per month from the same insurance companies quoted for the 25-year-old.

While we’re on the topic of policy cost, it’s also cheaper to get larger policies less expensively when you’re younger, which is not an insignificant consideration.

“You can get more coverage for less,” says Jessica Lepore, the millennial founder of the life insurance agency Surevested. “Larger policies are much cheaper to pursue when you are younger. Although you might not think that a $1 million life insurance policy is necessary when you live alone in your New York City studio apartment, think five, 10, 20, and even 30 years down the line. Your needs will for sure change by that point, and by pursuing coverage while you’re young, you will be saving much more money than if you waited until later in life to start coverage.”

  Policies are also easier to obtain when you’re younger

Another important point while youth is on your side: When you’re young and healthy, life insurance policies are easier to qualify for (in addition to being a bargain). The flip side of this coin is that when you’re older and saddled with health challenges, you may not qualify at all—or it may cost a small fortune to secure a policy because of any significant health conditions you may have developed. And this is no small concern even among millennials because a recent Harris Poll found that 44 percent of older millennials already have chronic health conditions.

“In many cases, when you’re young, you may be able to get a policy without even having to undergo a medical exam. As you get older, this may no longer be the case. Life insurance companies may require you to undergo an exam, blood work, or even request up to five years of your medical records just to get approved,” says Metcalf.

As a bonus, when you obtain coverage younger, before being hit by any serious health issues, the policy is often guaranteed from that point forward. Meaning, if you develop health conditions later in life, you need not fret about being unable to obtain life insurance, because you already have a policy.

“Some policies are guaranteed to be renewable at the end of the term, so if you get in now you don't have to worry about qualifying later if a medical condition develops,” says Derek Szeto, co-founder of Delaware-based Walnut Insurance.

  Student debt galore

Raise your hand if you have student debt. Chances are, that hand is in the air right now, because as of the second quarter of the 2019 fiscal year, for borrowers ages 25 to 34—a significant share of the millennial population—there was 497.6 billion dollars in outstanding student loan debt, according to New America. Furthermore, a recent Harris Poll found that most older millennials (68 percent) are still paying down their student debt a decade or so later. Now, who will be charged with paying off that debt if something were to happen to you?

“Unfortunately, when we pass away, our debts don't always go with us,” says Lepore, of Surevested. “Even if you're not someone with a family or mortgage, you might have other debts like student loans. By taking out even a small life insurance policy when you're young, you can ensure your family won't be left with the burden of paying those debts back if something were to happen to you.”

And while we’re headed down this road, do you happen to have a co-signer on that student debt? All the more reason you should be thinking about these issues.

“If you had a co-signer on your student loans, that person could still be responsible for your debt even if you passed away,” explains Allison Kade, millennial money expert from the digital life insurance company Fabric. “If you want to make sure that your parents or other co-signers aren’t stuck single-handedly paying off your debt in your absence, you could get a life insurance policy that would give them money to pay off your loans.”

  Retirement savings

Now put your phone and Slack messages on "do not disturb" and spend some time with this next point, so that you can fully absorb it: One of the least understood and most valuable benefits of life insurance is that it can be used as a lucrative investment vehicle to build significant cash value over the course of your lifetime. This is particularly important if you’re behind on saving for retirement.

Cash-value life insurance also referred to as permanent life, provides a death benefit and can be used to build cash (as opposed to term life insurance, which does not offer the cash value component). The money you put into these policies can be used to develop an investment portfolio that helps you accumulate wealth. And as you age, the cash in the policy can be tapped to cover retirement living expenses.

And here’s perhaps the best part: You’re accumulating wealth tax-free.

“This is the most misunderstood and overlooked benefit of permanent life insurance by the average consumer,” says Brian Carlson, a certified financial professional and vice president of wealth management with GCG Financial. “If utilized properly, a permanent life insurance policy can provide a tremendous value to a person’s long-term savings goals. The concept of FIRE (Financial Independence Retire Early) is hot amongst millennials. The usage of a permanent life insurance policy fits perfectly into the FIRE strategy due to the ability to remove funds without taxes or penalties before age 59 half. Permanent life insurance policies have a tremendous benefit, in the form of cash value.”

A permanent policy provides the ability for the policy owner to grow funds on a tax-advantaged basis and remove funds in the future without incurring any taxes if removed properly, explains Carlson. But, like retirement accounts, the sooner you start contributing, the greater the account value will grow to be as you age.

As independent life insurance agent Susana Zinn explains, most millennials do not have a financial plan that's robust enough to successfully cover their retirement. A life insurance policy can correct that shortfall.

“Seventy-one percent of millennials don’t think they will have saved enough at 65 to meet their retirement needs,” says Zinn. “And according to the National Institute of Retirement Security, 66 percent of working millennials have nothing saved for retirement. Instead, they’re busy paying down debt and covering their general living expenses, while saving for retirement is pushed to the bottom of their priority list.”

At the risk of beating a dead horse, life insurance can help you as a millennial ensure a financially healthy retirement.

“With life insurance, you don’t have to die to use it; you have flexibility with how the money is used, which can help with financial needs for both your planned and your unplanned expenses,” adds Zinn.

OK, you may now return to your regularly scheduled programming.

  Protect your business after you’re gone

Actually, one more point. And it should be a point of pride. Millennials are one of the most entrepreneurial generations America has seen in a long time. A recent GoDaddy survey of 3,000 Americans—including 1,000 millennials, 1,000 Gen Xers, and 1,000 baby boomers, found that millennials lead the pack in entrepreneurial efforts, with nearly one in three millennials (30 percent) reported as having a small business or a side hustle. Securing life insurance can be a way to protect this legacy, making sure your business survives long after you’re gone.

If you share your business with another entrepreneur, for example, "that person could use the cash from your life insurance policy as a transition to keeping business flowing in your absence,” says Kade, from Fabric.

  The financial burden you would leave behind

 If all of the reasons already stated are not convincing enough, ask yourself this one last question: Would anyone have a financial burden if I passed away? No need to tell us the answer, just be sure to heed this final bit of advice.

“If the answer is yes, then you need life insurance protection now, so you won't leave your family with thousands of dollars in lost income or debt,” says Metcalf.

Mike Sheehan

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How to Avoid Expensive Baltimore City Parking Tickets

No one enjoys the sight of a parking ticket stuck to their car's windshield. But even when you are super careful, there's always the risk of an unintended parking violation. The best you can do is be prepared as much as you can – here's all you need to know about Baltimore city parking and essential tips to avoid Baltimore city parking tickets.  

City of Baltimore Parking Facilities  

The Parking Authority of Baltimore City (PABC) manages 14 city-owned garages, several surface lots, and 900+ multi-space parking meters and 4000+ single-space parking meters. Daily and monthly parking spaces at PABC garages can be reserved online on, but you can expect waiting lists as there are limited spots. The best alternative is Baltimore City parking garages and lots that offer secure and affordable hourly, daily, overnight, and monthly parking spaces across the city – most of these facilities also offer special discounts on online reservations. It is cheaper to pre-book paid parking space than pay off Baltimore City parking tickets.  

Street Parking in Baltimore City  

On-street parking is available across the city – however, the best spots are located off the main streets. Look for alleyways and cross streets in safe neighborhoods, but keep an eye out for parking restrictions, especially permit requirements and special parking zones.   

Two types of parking meters are in use in Baltimore city – single-use and multi-use; both accept cards and coins and are generally enforced between 8 am and 6 pm, from Monday to Saturday. Typical meter rates range from $1 - $4 per hour, but these are subject to change as per demand and availability. Free street parking is allowed on national holidays, Sundays, and in some neighborhoods after metered parking hours. Keep an eye on RPP areas and check posted signs for additional restrictions.   

What is the Baltimore RPP Program?  

Baltimore's Residential Parking Permit program was introduced in 1979 to provide preferential parking privileges to the city's residents. Currently, there are 47 RPP zones across the city, where regular street parking is restricted to address the high demand from residents. With a residential permit or visitor pass, you can get unlimited on-street parking any time of the day, except during street cleaning hours. However, other than the RPP time restriction for non-resident vehicles, all other traffic regulations are applicable to permit holders.   

Only Baltimore City residents are eligible for RPP – you must have proof of residence within an RPP area to apply for a permit. RPP applications can be made online on pabc.thepermitstore.com -- create an account, and once it is verified, you can order permits and visitor passes. Permits will be mailed to you or can be collected from the Baltimore Parking Authority on W Lombard Street. Temporary permits can also be printed at home for immediate use. RPP is valid for a year, and annual renewals can be done on the designated month for each zone.   

Obtaining an RPP is highly effective in avoiding Baltimore city parking tickets to an extent. With a permit or visitor pass, you have better chances of finding a secure parking space and also avoid short time limits that often lead to parking citations. However, this ease of parking is restricted to one neighborhood or RPP zone. You'll still need to hunt for street parking spots in other parts of the city or just book an affordable garage space to avoid the hassle.   

Baltimore City Parking Garages  

In Baltimore, garage parking rates range from $5 to $40 depending on the service you opt for and the location. It is also possible to find hourly parking rates at secure, well-maintained parking lots with the latest amenities for as little as $2. Daily maximum rates for covered self-parking will cost you only $30 - $35 at Baltimore city parking lots and garages. Valet parking rates start at around $10, which is quite affordable compared to many other cities.   

You can save more on garage parking in Baltimore with an easy trick – quit the habit of last-minute parking spot hunts and book your parking space in advance. Use a parking app or website to get the maximum benefits. Online reservations are often offered special rates and discounts at premium parking lots, and you'll find the best deals on parking apps. Download a parking app on your phone and search for all garages near your destination – you'll find all the top-rated parking lots in one place. Now, compare rates and amenities at each lot and pick one that best suits your needs. It will certainly cost you much less than a Baltimore city parking ticket.   

PABC is quick to spot parking violations, and a ticket can cost you at least $32. Obstructing traffic will race that figure to $252 or more – even when you are aware of parking rules, there is always a risk of unintended parking violations.  

  While street parking is cheaper and, if you are lucky, sometimes free, it comes with limitations that might not always suit your needs. An RPP could save you a convenient spot in your neighborhood, and visitor passes can be helpful to an extent. But a permit does not exempt you from other parking regulations, and it's important to be aware of the basic City of Baltimore parking rules.  

Here is a round-up of essential tips to avoid an expensive Baltimore city parking ticket:  

Always check parking signs posted on the street to make sure parking is allowed at the time of your visit. There could be temporary regulations like construction restrictions or changes in street cleaning schedules.   

Do not gamble with the meter; move your car at least a couple of minutes before it expires. Be mindful of maximum parking time limits too, especially when using a free street parking spot. 

Never park in restricted or special parking zones designated for people with mobility limitations. You cannot park within 15 feet of a fire hydrant or in any way that prevents access to the hydrant.   

Make sure to display Residential Parking Permit (RPP) or visitor pass on your car's windshield as instructed.   

Keep an eye out for No-Parking, No-Stopping, Loading, and Reserved Handicap Parking zones when looking for curbside parking.   

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The Best Guide To Buy Bitcoin With A Credit Card Instantly - Best Crypto Wallet ...

And expect you have $20,000, equally divided between a taxable brokerage account and an IRA. If you put the coin account outside the IRA, it values to $40,000 and becomes $34,000 after tax. Inside, the stocks and bonds double to $20,000 and become $12,000 after tax. Overall to invest: $46,000. Now try flipping the locations, as the bitcoin IRA vendors would have you do. Inside the IRA your coin account quadruples to $40,000 and becomes $24,000 after tax. Outside the shelter the stocks https://veldtgold.com/gold/ and bonds incur tax along the method and grow to only $18,000 approximately. Overall to invest: $42,000.

CME (see # 6) also provides options on futures. Sadly, trading volume is useless. Stay away till it gets much bigger. This brand-new competitor to the Grayscale trust has a cost ratio of just 0. 8% (a management charge of 0. 5% plus custody and other expenses approximated at 0. 3%). Profile. In its first few weeks of over-the-counter trading Osprey (ticker: OBTC) altered hands at ridiculous premiums to net property worth, in some cases north of 100%. The premium has actually decreased to 18%, but that's still too much. (To get the NAV, divide bitcoin's cost by 2,930.) When the Osprey premium is 1% or less, this fund is a buy.

Purchasing bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies can be an enjoyable method to check out an experimental new investment. However it's likewise real that any financial investment in cryptocurrency need to carry a warning label like cigarettes: "This item might be hazardous to the health of your finances. Never ever purchase more than you can pay for to lose." The value of bitcoin the world's very first and most popular cryptocurrency has increased from $3,237 in December 2018 and is now breaking new record highs (see rate listed below). Like all cryptocurrencies, bitcoin is speculative and subject to a lot more volatility than many reliable investments, such as stocks, bonds and mutual funds.

If you're new to investing, learn more about how to invest cash. The spot rate for Bitcoin broke $50,000 for the first time on Feb. 16, 2021. Here's the cost in U.S. dollars to buy one bitcoin today: Data is pulled from Google Financing and might be postponed as much as 20 minutes. Information is solely for informational functions and not for trading purposes or recommendations. Choose where to purchase bitcoin. Cryptocurrency exchanges like Coinbase and a couple of traditional brokers like Robinhood can get you started investing in bitcoin. Consider how to keep your cryptocurrency. Are you going to keep your bitcoin in a hot wallet or a cold wallet?Make your purchase.

What Does Buy Bitcoin With Skrill - Skrill Do?

Manage your investment. Identify your long-term strategy for this asset. Ad Geek, Wallet's rankings are figured out by our editorial team. The scoring formula for online brokers and robo-advisors takes into consideration over 15 aspects, consisting of account costs and minimums, investment options, consumer assistance and mobile app capabilities. Geek, Wallet's rankings are figured out by our editorial team. The scoring formula for online brokers and robo-advisors takes into consideration over 15 aspects, including account charges and minimums, investment options, consumer assistance and mobile app capabilities. Geek, Wallet's scores are identified by our editorial team. The scoring formula for online brokers and robo-advisors takes into account over 15 aspects, consisting of account fees and minimums, investment options, customer assistance and mobile app abilities.

You can acquire bitcoin from a number of cryptocurrency exchanges. Numerous charge a portion of the purchase price. Do your due diligence to discover the right one for you. A few of the more popular exchanges include: Coinbase: This is a popular choice for U.S. bitcoin purchasers, in part because you can easily link your bank account. Coinbase likewise provides access to etherium, litecoin and other cryptocurrencies. On each transaction, Coinbase charges a spread (a change in the purchase or price of an investment) of about 0. 5%, plus a fee. The charge is the greater of a variable portion based upon area and payment type for example, 1.

checking account or a flat cost that varies from $0. 99 to $2. 99, depending upon the amount transferred. (Want to understand more? Read our Coinbase review.) http://edition.cnn.com/search/?text=bitcoin Binance. United States: The U.S. arm of the world's largest exchange by volume for all cryptocurrencies, Binance. United States charges a 0. 1% cost for all crypto trades (some discounts are available), plus a withdrawal cost. The exchange's 50-plus choice of cryptocurrencies, plus a variety of crypto-to-crypto trading sets, is larger than lots of other U.S. cryptocurrency exchanges. (Read our Binance. United States review.) Gemini: This U.S.-based crypto exchange trades bitcoin, ether, bitcoin cash, litecoin and zcash. Transaction charges range from $0.

49% of your order, depending on the size of the purchase or sale, plus a charge of about 0. 5%. (Discover more from our Gemini review.) Coinmama. This exchange trades in 8 cryptocurrencies, including bitcoin. Coinmama needs a minimum $60 purchase and charges a deal cost of 5. 9% (plus an additional 5% fee for charge card purchases). The choices among conventional brokers that offer consumers a method to buy and offer bitcoin are few today Robinhood was the first mainstream financial investment broker to use bitcoin (Robinhood Crypto is readily available in most, but not all, U.S. states). Like its stock-trading platform, Robinhood charges no fees for bitcoin trades.

The Definitive Guide to How To Buy Bitcoin - River Financial

Other brokers have revealed plans to use cryptocurrency trading in the near future. Bitcoin ATMs. These work like typical ATMs, just you can utilize them to purchase and offer bitcoin. Coin ATM Radar shows more than 7,000 bitcoin ATMs around the U.S.Peer-to-peer bitcoin owners. You can purchase bitcoins directly from other bitcoin owners, similar to you would purchase items on Craigslist, through peer-to-peer tools like Bisq, Bitquick and Resident, Bitcoins. com. Usage extreme caution if buying bitcoin straight from people. Grayscale funds. Grayscale Investments is a digital currency possession supervisor. Two of its investment trusts Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (its ticker symbol is GBTC) and Grayscale Ethereum Classic Trust (ETCG) are publicly traded over the counter, which implies you can buy them through many discount rate brokers.

The thinking is that some financiers want to pay additional to buy bitcoin through a conventional exchange, without needing to fret about wallets and storage. Have information you may need handy. Setting up a cryptocurrency account takes minutes, however you'll require to supply some info, including your Social Security number and the number to your checking account, debit card or credit card to fund your bitcoin account. Some companies likewise may require you to have a photo ID. Record and protect any new passwords for your crypto account or digital wallet (more on those listed below). Don't use a credit card.

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency financial investments are not guaranteed by the Securities Investor Security Corporation for exchange failures or theft, a protection that conventional stock brokerage accounts take pleasure in up to $500,000. Some exchanges like Coinbase offer private insurance coverage, but that doesn't secure versus private online breaches like somebody stealing your password. Utilizing a protected, personal internet connection is essential at any time you make financial choices online. Purchasing bitcoin while at the coffee bar, in your hotel room or using other public internet connections is not encouraged. Bitcoins can be stored in two sort of digital wallets: a hot wallet or a cold wallet.