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jtrbluv · 4 years

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we’re not really strangers | pjm

summary: We’re Not Really Strangers is a purpose-driven card game and movement all about empowering meaningful connections. Three carefully crafted levels of questions and wildcards that allow you to deepen your existing relationships and create new ones. Ready?

or alternatively,

your furtive infatuation with your lifelong best friend proves to be hard to suppress when there’s (1) alcohol involved and (2) a card game that forces you to reveal more about yourself than you could ever wish for. in short, no, you are not ready.

[friends to lovers!au]

pairing: jimin x reader

genre: fluff, crack, slight angst

word count: 8.7k

warnings: swearing, alcohol consumption, two emotionally constipated best friend, PG-15

A/N: hi, i’ve been really excited about this fic for a while, and i’m genuinely so happy that i finally finished it! the card game is in fact real and i got inspired for this fic after i had played the game with a couple of friends myself. AHEM! @koushiningg ! we both cried and i do highly recommend to play it! but anyways, i hope you enjoy this fic because i had a lot of fun writing it! sending love always... jumi out!

EDIT: @bangtans-peaceful-piegon i’d also like to thank the lovely pidge for beta reading this 4 me as well! PIDGE I FUCKIN LOB U!!!

PLAYLIST ; SEQUEL

♤ ♤ ♤

Not once in your life did you ever imagine a simple card game to become the bane of your existence.

Yet Park Jimin was able to prove you wrong.

Let’s play ‘We’re Not Really Strangers’ he said. It’ll be fun, he said.

You stare down at the card in front of you—everything else in your periphery was blurry in vision and you can audibly pinpoint the erratic beating of your heart.

The card was practically taunting you, laughing in your face. It was as if there was a sentient being in the room who was aware of your own subconscious and the not so latent feelings you had for the boy sitting in front of you.

Same said being loved to constantly place you in a state of trepidation concerning your current situation—your blood pressure skyrocketing—nearly feeling the muscular pink thing inside of you thrusting itself against your ribcage.

The white card with crimson red writing made sure to leave an impact, making you feel the most ridiculed you’ve felt all night which says a lot—leaving your mind in a complete frenzy although you refused to let it be known.

And so you sat there. Fiddling the card in between your fingers, feigning nonchalance. You were very much on the brink of cracking your facade—your sanity practically crumbling as the minutes ticked by. You didn’t think you’d last this long to be honest. Yet an hour and a half proved to be way too straining on your body, especially your heart.

He simply sat there with his hands folded on the table—void of emotion, whistling a familiar top 50s tune you couldn’t quite put your finger on. You considered shifting your focuses on trying to comprehend the tune—hoping it would ease the concerning state of apprehension you were in.

But then you remember that you aren’t that pathetic. Even though you both had probably been sitting in complete silence for about two minutes now. Up to the point where you could probably hear the crickets chirping outside his apartment, except the only sound that was filling your ears was your own conscience telling you how idiotic you were being.

Your face may be gradually morphing the same shade of crimson as the writing inscribed onto the card itself, and you may have a whole line of sweat encompassing your hairline. But it’s just a stupid little card game. You could say any stupid little answer and the stupid not-so-little boy wouldn’t care. He wouldn’t care. So you shouldn’t care.

When did you become so pathetic after all?

-one hour and a half ago-

“Why can’t we just play Mario Kart or Uno? This sounds like there’s too much thinking involved,” you whine, leaning against the side of his couch.

“One, we always play that. And two, I always lose,” he grumbles, plopping down onto the floor.

Jimin rests his back on the frame of the couch as he sits in the small gap made by the large piece of furniture and the coffee table that resided in front of it. You decide to sit on the floor as well, around an arm’s length away from your friend. He places the red box down onto the table—opening the cap and revealing the contents with a mischievous glint in his irises.

Within the box was a deck of cards, separated into three piles with two pencils on either side. Knowing Jimin, you assumed this game had an ulterior motive you were unaware of, and by the title of the game, you could already tell that you weren’t going to like it very much.

“How do you even play this?” You ask, causing him to look up in return.

He bites his lip, taking a couple seconds to ponder on your question, “I don’t know it’s my first-time playing too,” he shrugs. “I was watching Jin and Namjoon playing it a couple of weeks ago and for some reason, Jungkook started crying.”

“He is a sap,” you hum in agreement, thinking in retrospect of Jungkook crying from various situations such as Iron Man dying or that one time Jin farted on his pillow and he got pink eye for a whole week.

“The biggest,” he concurs, “Hm, there’s no instructions in here.” He mutters while shuffling through the cards.

“Why don’t you just search it up?” You suggest, sliding the box to yourself as he nods and fishes his phone out of his pocket.

While holding the box in the palm of your hand, you scan the contents—turning it around in your palm until your eyes narrow in on the words printed at the bottom.

“Oh, it says something here.”

His head perks up. “Hm? What is it?”

You clear your throat at the sight of the long explanation. “We’re Not Really Strangers is a purpose-driven card game and movement all about empowering meaningful connections. Three carefully crafted levels of questions and wildcards that allow you to deepen your existing relationships and create new ones.” You internally grimace at the words. The game hasn’t even started and you already had a bad feeling about it all. “Ready?” You say through clenched teeth, purposely keeping your head hung low.

Jimin’s lips quirk up into a cheerful grin, unaware of the piercing stare you were giving him. “Okay, I think I got it,” he declares, eyes zeroed in on his phone once more, ”There’s three levels—perception, connection, and reflection. Each level we pass, the deeper and more thought-provoking the questions get. Helping us make a deeper connection and get to know each other better yadda yadda yadda.”

You nod in understanding, sliding the box of cards back towards him—forcing the grimace that kept threatening to plaster itself onto your face into a small, smug smile.

“The first thing we have to do,” he begins, taking out two pencils and two small pieces of paper, “is write messages to each other. We won’t be able to open these until after we leave.” He explains, sliding a pencil and paper towards you.

“Wow, very cryptic,” you tut, biting down on your bottom lip before more distasteful remarks decided to leave your lips. He doesn’t catch your reaction or your comment though because he’s already got his pencil in his hand, scribbling vigorously onto the tiny piece of paper. Knowing him it could very well be nonsensical insults and doodles, or a whole essay about your friendship and what you mean to him. Most likely ludicrous and full of thought, either way, just like him.

Without much thought, you lazily jot onto the paper.

know that i love u, u fucker <3

-y/n

The sound of your pencil falling against the table causes him to look up at you, eyes knit together in confusion.

“You’re done already?”

You chuckle, “I mean, I wasn’t going to write an essay. You already know how I feel about you. But it seems like you’re writing one though.”

His eyes narrow in on you—giving you an indiscernible look before letting out a small ‘hmph’ and lowering his focus back down to his pencil and paper. You dismiss his enigmatic behavior—deciding to mindlessly scroll on your phone while waiting for him to finish his MLA formatted essay.

Two minutes pass and you hear the sound of his pencil being placed onto the table. “Done.”

“You added citations too right?”

He scoffs, “No, but i’ll gladly add some if you’d like.”

You roll your eyes for what seems like the umpteenth time in the last five minutes, “Just start the goddamn game.”

He takes the first stack of cards and shuffles them between his hands. “In all three levels, there are wild cards or basically dares we have to complete. And for each level, we get two ‘dig deeper’ cards. Pretty self-explanatory. So this is the perception level. It’s basically designed for first encounters and strangers, and we’re gonna be asking each other questions about ourselves.”

Your eyes widen at the whole confidentiality of it all. “Are we going through all of those cards?” You blurt out, staring at what seemed to be like 50 cards in his hands.

“Oh no,” he quickly refutes, “It would take hours. We’ll just do like 12 cards each.”

“Alright,” you huff, letting out a small breath of relief.

“Yay! Okay I’ll go first,” he beams, his toothy smile evident as he places the deck in between the two of you while grabbing a card from the top, “What do you think my name is?”

You snort at the conspicuousness of the question, “Jamal.”

He immediately guffaws at your response, throwing his head back in addition. “Hey, I don’t mind that.”

“Are all of the questions like this?” You say in between hushed laughter.

“Nah,” he shakes his head as you pick up another card from the deck, “now you ask me.”

“Alright, what’s the first thing you noticed about me?” You ask, slightly taken aback by the sudden earnestness of the question, causing you to become genuinely curious about what his answer was going to be.

He hums, taking a second to think it through. “I think your smile and your laugh. It’s always been really contagious since the day I met you.” He admits, almost matter-of-factly as if it was something you should’ve known by now, yet you did not.

Your heart nearly disintegrates into a puddle of goop right then and there, but you manage to conceal your reaction, “Aw, you actually like me.” You tease.

He scoffs with a playful grin on his lips. “Don’t flatter yourself. You still cackle like a damn hyena.”

Your eyebrows shoot up, “At least I don’t laugh at every single of Jin’s lame ass jokes.”

He gasps, jaw slack open due to your all too accurate truthbomb, “I did not ask to be attacked in my own residence.”

“Well, what are you gonna do about it then.”

He snorts. “Holy shit, do you remember when I banged my head on the corner of his coffee table.”

“How could I forget? I had the picture of the bump on your head as my lockscreen for like a month.” You reminisce, resisting the urge to pull up the picture from your phone.

“Yeah, and that same month I bought and rotated between the same 10 hats.”

“Hey! It genuinely didn’t look as bad as you thought.”

He whips his head towards you, giving you a piercing glare that made you want to redact your statement immediately.

He grins from ear to ear, the little shit, amused at the reaction he was able to garner from you.

“Aha!” He suddenly guffaws, shooting out of the floor and prancing towards his fridge. He then takes out three bottles of lychee-flavored soju and makes his way back towards the table.

Jimin being the borderline alcoholic he is, it doesn’t come as a surprise to you. Not even after he takes another trip back to the fridge to grab yet another three bottles of soju, mango-flavored to be exact. He has probably one of the stupidest grins etched onto his face as he held onto the bottles—meanwhile you were more concerned about the possibility of having to clean up a bunch of broken glass and wasted soju. Then again, it wouldn’t be the first time.

“And do you plan on drinking all of this by yourself?” you say, gesturing towards the bottles.

“I know my liver is strong, but I don’t buy this shit just to enjoy alone,” he retorts. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees you shake your head as you click your tongue, “Playing this while tipsy just sounds ten times better don’t you think?.”

You shrug—although you had a strong hunch for what he was insinuating, “I mean I guess.”

He starts to pour soju into his shot glass, stopping just before it hits the brim. He slides the glass to you and you take it into your hand, eyeing the sparkling fluid and thinking about the way the contents would do its little all-too-familiar dance on your tongue.

“Well, you know what they say,” he says, pouring a glass for himself, “drunk words are sober thoughts,” he finishes while dragging out the last word—downing the first shot in one quick swig. You follow his lead soon thereafter, refusing to let your mind linger on what he had just said and the viable likelihood of you spewing out the words that could just make or break your longstanding friendship and lead to a lifetime of regret.

Obviously, everything’s going fine and dandy for you.

The next 20 minutes consisted of a plethora of superficial questions that would vary from:

“What's your favorite song lyric you can think of off the top of your head?”

Your head shoots up as if the lightbulb in your head just flashed on. “Easy. Shawty’s like a melody in my head that i cant keep out got me singing like-“

He lunges over to clap a hand over your mouth before you could sing the next line. “Na na na na no Y/N. Please stop.”

Or something along the lines of:

“What character do you think I'd play in a movie?” He asks with a smug smile.

“You’d be the second male lead that everyone secretly wants to end up with the main character because you act all sweet and kind and and genuinely cares about her but instead she chooses the other guy because something about him draws her in and it was her ‘gut instinct’ or some shit like that.”

“So I would get second male lead syndrome?” He reiterates.

“Yes.”

He sets his shot glass back down with a glower, clearly taken aback. “That is the biggest insult I’ve ever gotten in my entire life.”

You also couldn’t forget about:

“Oh, this one says to create a secret handshake.”

“No.” You deadpan.

“And why not?”

“Your pinky‘s the size of a vienna sausa—“

He smacks you square in the cheek with a pillow before you could finish your sentence. You don’t even fight back because your mind was so slow to process what he had just done. The fact that you only slept for 5 hours last night didn’t help whatsoever. Your evident lack of energy causes him to jab his finger into your side, causing a loud shriek—your fight or flight response starts kicking in as you grab the back of his neck and slam his face against the fabric of the couch cushion.

Soju was never able to make the two of you full on drunk—buzzed of course, but not enough for complete incoherency. And so you both down a bottle each before finishing the first round.

“I’m surprised we didn’t get any wild cards that round,” he says while resting his head on the couch.

You purse your lips, “You spoke too soon.”

His eyes flash open as he cranes his neck in an attempt to see the card. “Wait actually?”

You can feel your insides churn as you read the words in front of you, and you were sure that it wasn’t the alcohol talking. “Write down the three most important things to you in a relationship for 30 seconds and then compare.”

Jimin reaches over to grab two pieces of paper and pencils while unlocking his phone to find the timer app, “Okay, I’ll put a timer on for 30 seconds starting… now.”

And so the internal monologue in your head begins.

Three most important things… only three? That’s not anywhere near enough to suffice. Wait, what would the first one even be… oh yeah, trust. Trust is very much important yes, yes, yes. What else? Um, communication? Yes of course, that’s essential. Okay, what would the last one be?

You sneak a glance over at Jimin. His cheek is squished against the palm of his hand, making his cheek fat (an area in which he lacked in) more prominent and the pink, plush flesh of his lips appear even bigger than they already were.

The ceiling light emitted a faint, ambient glow—the lights and shadows hitting all the slopes and curves of his face. You never understood how someone could be so effortlessly stunning. Even the mess atop his head that’s supposed to be his hair looks purposely tousled—the ebony strands sticking up in multiple directions was framing his temples and contrasted with the honey-like hues of his skin.

Unlike the glow that radiated from the lights of the worn-down apartment and the radiance of whatever was beyond the glass of the window behind him, everything about him seemed to glow much brighter.

“Hello, earth to Y/N, your 30 seconds is up.” He interrupts pointedly, waving a hand in front of your face.

Blinking rapidly, you shake your head as well as all preceding thoughts that definitely weren’t consuming your mind a few seconds ago, “Sorry w-what?”

He laughs at your disoriented state, “Did you finish writing your three things?”

No, I wrote your name as number 3. “Yeah, I did. You can go first though.”

He nods with a small smile. “Oh, okay then let’s see. First, I put trust. I don’t know, I think everyone puts that to be honest. After that, I put communication. I feel like that’s just a given y’know. Another thing I feel like most people would say.”

You utter a timid “mhm” under your breath albeit zoning out and being unaware of what he was saying. Opportunely, you managed to scribble out his name with the mere seconds that had passed and now you were tapping the lead point of the pencil against the paper, littering the page with a bunch of grey, little dots—incognizant to the fact that he had his eyes focused on you the whole time.

“I didn’t really know what to put last. Three things isn’t anywhere near enough in my opinion. But at the last second, I wrote down vulnerability,” he continues.

You look up upon hearing the last word. “Oh wow, that’s good. I didn’t even think about that.”

He chuckles unabashedly, clearly pleased with your reaction. “Right? I just figured. At first, I thought it would go in the same category as trust but then I thought about it more. Yeah, you can trust someone and someone can trust you, but to what extent does that all go to. Where does it start? And where does it even end? You need to be able to open up to the person I feel like. So I guess trust and vulnerability go hand in hand.”

Impressed with his words, you decide to chime in. “Wouldn’t communication go along with it too?”

“Hm?”

You place your pencil down. “You would open up to each other by means of communication, becoming more vulnerable, and then overall gaining more trust in the end.”

His brows raise at your sudden revelation, “Wait, you’re so right, did you just wax poetic and full cycle all that?.”

You smile, “I mean I guess,” you respond humbly, “ it does make sense though, does it not?”

He hums in agreement while downing another shot, “It applies to us, right?”

You force out a chuckle, but it comes out a lot more faux-sounding than you would’ve liked. “Haha, yeah I guess it does, doesn’t it.” Once again, starting to dive deeper into the abyss of pitiful hope and unrequitedness.

“Describe your perfect day.” He suddenly interjects.

You quirk a brow. “Didn’t I just go?”

“It’s okay, I’ll go for this one too.”

“Alright,” you say, foot tapping on the wooden floor as you look past him and out into the glass window of his living room, “well, I wouldn’t have school of course. And I think it would all depend on how I feel that day. If I was feeling particularly lazy, the day would probably consist of me binge-watching shows in bed while eating a shitton of carbs. And the other case would probably be galavanting around the city or going to an amusement park with friends.”

Jimin listens intently and smiles as you speak, causing you to avoid his stare before pigment threatened to rush to your cheeks, “Both of those scenarios sound really nice. I better be included too.”

You roll your eyes, turning away to hide the grin creeping up your cheeks, “We’ll see.”

He groans, standing up from his spot on the floor and falling onto his couch instead, “My asscheeks hurt.”

Your face contorts into a look of disgust, “And you want me to do what with that information?”

Scoffing lightly, he leans back into the cushions and tilts his head back, “It was a declaration, not a cry for help.”

“Yeah, and it’s the bony ass for me.”

His head perks up. “It’s having a flatter ass than their guy best friend for me.”

Gulping down the sad but unequivocal truth, “It’s kissing up to every teacher’s ass for me.”

His eyes narrow in pure chagrin, “It’s the crying on your teacher’s doorstep for them to round your grade for me.”

“It’s splitting your pants on orientation day for me.”

“Fuck you, people would pay to see this ass! It’s getting a concussion from falling down the main hall stairs for me.”

“For fuck’s sake, I told you that they waxed the floors that day!” You snap back.

“Okay, and who said it was a good idea to walk down three flights of stairs while trying to cram for a midterm? Yeah, exactly no one.” He says incisively, giving you an even bigger urge to push him off of the couch, yet you digress.

“This could go on for hours.” You heave out.

“Is that the sound of someone giving up I’m hearing?”

“Is that the sound of a midget I’m hearing?”

“But I’m taller than you?!” He screeches petulantly, smacking your shoulder. You burst out into a fit of laughter—toppling onto the wooden floor with pure malice.

Gasping for air, you attempt to stifle your laughter and regain your breath. “Wow, I’m on a roll today! I deserve another shot.”

He shakes his head, his anger quelling at the sight of your giddiness. “Remind me to not let you drink and play this game.”

You turn over from your side to lay on your back. “This will be the first and the last time I play this game with you.” You say almost immediately—the words involuntarily slipping from your mouth before you could stop it.

He sinks in his spot on the couch, brows knitting at your comment. “Why?”

Sobriety crashes into you like a colossal wave —your irritation dissipates almost immediately. The exaggerated tone your voice begins to register through your head—as well as the fact that you sounded a lot more disapproving than you intended.

Groaning at your hindered ability to think and process properly, you attempt to clear the air, “Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that. We just... practically know everything about each other I guess. What else is there to know?”

He hums. “You sure about that?”

What? “Wait what?”

“Nothing,” he chuckles awkwardly, “next question.”

The straightforwardness of the next question causes you to quirk a brow, “How are you, really?”

His eyes widen. “Well, that’s a deep one, isn’t it?”

You smile. “A little.”

He sighs, a small grin lacing his features, “Hm, how am I,” he affirms, adjusting himself in his spot on the couch, “I feel content with where I am right now, I guess. Things can always be better, but at the same time they could be worse too.”

Your number one defense mechanism as of late has been to constantly tease and make jokes at the poor guy—essentially using him as your own mental punching bag. He went along with it out of the assumption that it was all caused by your stress from school while you knew the true origins of your behavior.

You smile at his optimism, "Hey, that's always good to hear."

He chuckles, shifting his position on the couch so he could face you directly, "I don't know, maybe it's the new sense of freedom. Or all the amazing people I've gotten to meet and the opportunities that are offered here. Or the fact that I'm still going to the same school as my best friend after all this damn time."

"Chim, don't get sappy on me man." You warn him while pouting exaggeratedly— slumping onto the frame of the couch while he takes a strand of your hair in between his fingers. You bask in the moment, your eyes shutting close.

"Hey, I'm just being honest! For some reason, it all makes up for the impending student debt and draining lectures and professors that have a superiority complex as fat as their paycheck."

"Too bad their paycheck still isn't as fat as your ass."

An audible gasp coming from the only other person in the room causes your eyes to flutter open.

"Aw," he coos, ruffling the hair atop of your head, "that’s the nicest thing you’ve said to me all night. Admit it, you love me."

Out of instinct, you opt to stick your tongue at him instead of replying with a witty comeback. You turn away from him before mumbling to yourself, "More than you'll ever know buddy."

"What was that?"

Shit. "Nothing. Next question!"

After twenty questions and a whopping 10 empty soju bottles later, you are quite literally about to implode.

Your eyes stare down at the card in front of you—everything that surrounds it is blurry in vision and you can audibly pinpoint the erratic beating of your heart.

The card was practically taunting you, laughing in your face. It was as if there was a sentient being in the universe who was aware of your own subconscious and the not so latent feelings you had for the boy sitting in front of you. Same said being loved to constantly place you in a state of trepidation concerning your current situation—your blood pressure skyrocketing—nearly feeling the muscular pink thing inside of you thrusting itself against your ribcage.

The imminent headache was starting to spread towards your temples and you practically felt like you could feel your brain shifting inside your head at this point. Although you felt groggy, you were certain that your heart was at a rate that is way faster than it should be. And sitting on your legs has caused them to lose all feeling from the tips of your toes all the way up to your kneecaps. One attempt at standing and you would come crashing to the floor in a heartbeat.

To say you were mad was an understatement. Out of all the times throughout the entirety of this hour and a half that you were playing this game, he decided that now would be the best time to use his 'dig deeper' card.

There it was.

Admit something.

"Okay fine, I was the one who stuck pink hair dye in your shampoo last semester."

"Y/N, did you really think I didn't know? C’mon I know there’s something else in there.”

You scowl, brows furrowing, “Why would I keep something from you?”

“Why are you getting so defensive over this?”

"What the hell is there for me to admit to you?" You snap back in exasperation, the harsh tone of your voice rendering the two of you speechless.

He averts his gaze, closing his eyes while inhaling a deep sigh. "Ever since we started college, why have you been treating me so differently?"

Your eyes widen in disbelief, stumped. Yet you refuse to wither out of this.

"I– are you mad?"

"No. Of course not," he quickly digresses, softening his gaze, "I just noticed after all this time that you've only been acting differently towards me. Did I do something wrong?"

"No, you didn't do anything wrong Jimin. You never have."

His eyes narrow, giving you yet another indecipherable look, "I'm using my 'dig deeper' card." He deadpans.

And so you sat there. Fiddling the card in between your fingers, feigning nonchalance. You were very much on the brink of cracking your facade—your sanity practically crumbling as the minutes ticked by. You didn’t think you’d last this long, to be honest. Yet an hour and a half proved to be way too straining on you in a variety of different ways.

He simply sat there with his hands folded on the table—void of emotion, whistling a familiar top 50s tune you couldn’t quite put your finger on.

You considered shifting your focuses on trying to comprehend the tune—hoping it would ease the concerning state of apprehension you were in. But then you assured yourself that you haven't reached that level of patheticism yet.

Even though you both had probably been sitting in complete silence for about two minutes now —practically anyone else could detect was the crickets chirping outside his apartment, yet the only sound that was filling your eardrums was your own conscience telling you how idiotic you were being.

This was it. There was no point in trying to weasel yourself out of this situation. If you tried, your more than futile attempt could very well end up causing more problems than if you were to go with the latter.

So instead of constantly wracking your brain with witty banter and deceitful ways to gaslight your feelings for the man sitting in front of you, you come to terms with the fact that your time had run out. You internally commend yourself for putting up a good fight, as well as internally become accosted at how immature you were at handling the whole situation.

You sharply inhale through your nose, peering at the man sitting in front of you as his eyes meet your own, "Alright."

He offers you a small yet empathetic smile in return, giving you the tiniest sliver of reassurance. His hand pats the couch cushion next to him, motioning for you to sit down next to him.

You push yourself up from the floor, immediately propping a leg onto the couch to avoid your numb limbs to be the cause of your embarrassment.

You inhale slowly through your nose and out through your mouth. "This is going to sound really absurd. Like more than absurd. Possibly borderline hysterical." No Y/N, why would you say that?

He interjects, placing a hand on your forearm. "I'm beginning to think you're becoming borderline hysterical," he lets out a small chuckle, "slow down Y/N. One thought at a time."

Your jaw is still slack open due to your previous rambling. "I'm sorry, I just—I don't think I've ever felt this anxious… around you at least."

He bites his lip, eyes trailing away from yours as he tries to think of a way to aid you, "Will it help if I turn around?

"Maybe." You reply timidly, smiling to yourself as his back came into view.

“It’ll be pretty funny if we don’t remember this in the morning,” you start off with, “I shouldn’t be saying that either I’m sorry. Stupid alcohol.”

He snickers at your drunken state, it was adorable. “Pretend I’m not here Y/N. Like you’re talking to a wall.” He advises, back still turned.

You nod although he can’t see you. “Okay. Well, hi Mr. Wall. I’ve been keeping a secret from my best friend for as long as I’ve known him and I don’t know what to do about it. I’ve suppressed it all this time in hopes that it would eventually fade away, and it almost did. No really, it actually almost did. But now it’s back again and all the same feelings came, but like freaking twofold. No, tenfold. No, like a hundred fucking fold.”

Jimin tries excruciatingly hard to stifle his laughter, cupping a hand to his mouth so he wouldn’t move and distract you.

“I’m literally in love with my freaking best friend when I know he doesn’t see me in that light nor will he ever. If he did, we wouldn’t be where we are right now because I am so shitty at hiding my feelings that I am more than certain that I’ve let the truth slip a couple of times.” You say all in one breath.

He slowly detaches his hand from his mouth, eyebrows raising in disbelief in the words you had just said. His body urges him to turn around. Yet you continue to think out loud. So he digresses.

“Towards the end of high school, I think my feelings started to become more dormant because I had become more concerned over finishing high school and transitioning into college. I was content and I convinced myself that my feelings were fleeting for once.” You begin with, allowing whatever thoughts that you consumed your mind to spill all out for Mr. Wall to hear.

You sigh, taking a pillow from his couch and squeezing onto it for dear life. “That was until we ended up getting into our top picks and going to the same school. I couldn’t believe it. My stupid head tried to convince me that life had always just paired the two of us up together for some reason. And that maybe, just maybe I had a chance. But whatever I guess. I don’t know.”

A notification causes your eyes to trail to your phone. Really, Professor La, this is not a good time to tell me to finish my research paper. You swipe at the notification, revealing your lock screen—a photo of you and Jimin at an amusement park back at your hometown, sporting matching university hoodies with bright smiles on your faces that were captured mid-laughter.

Setting your phone down, you lean into the couch—letting your head fall into the cushions as your eyelids slowly start to droop shut. “What also didn’t help is how college life just seems to suit him perfectly. He just always looks so happy now. Like yeah, he’s always been a social butterfly. Yet in addition to that he has top notch grades. He charms professors. For fuck’s sake the Dean treats him like a son. His passion, his laughter, his love, his happiness. It’s always been so infectious. But college just made the effect he has on people grow even stronger. I-,” you stammer, pausing breathlessly, “it just looks like he truly belongs here. Like college was just made for him.”

He sits there in a complete stupor—still trying to process all the words that he had just heard. His body is itching to turn around, take you into his arms, whisper soft nothings into your ear. Anythings. Everything. He never wanted you to feel anxious about his feelings for you ever again.

“Mr. Wall, that was a lot, I’m sorry. But I’m really… really tired.” You utter quietly, a long yawn escaping your lips. You fall asleep.

Ten seconds pass until Jimin sneaks a glance over his shoulder, scanning your body as he notices your shut eyes and timid grip on his pillow.

“Y/N?”

You’re unresponsive.

He grins at the sight. Getting up from his seat, he makes his way toward you—slowly prying the pillow from your grasp as you carefully slides his hands under your body and picks you up from the couch.

Instinctively, you wrap your arms around his neck and bury your face into his shoulder as he carries you to his bedroom. You are very much still asleep, yet you always had the habit of needing something to hold onto while you were unconscious.

Kicking the sheets aside, he makes room for you to lie down as he gently places you onto his bed. He quickly scurries to the other side, slipping into the covers himself as he lays down beside you.

The sudden contact causes you to shift in your sleep—suddenly wrapping an arm around his torso. He lays there, completely stunned at your actions and begins to heavily debate whether he should give into his desires or not.

The internal conflict lasts about two seconds before he turns to his side—placing his free hand on the small of your back and pulling you into his chest, leaving a small pocket of space in between your two bodies.

Unknowingly, you close the gap almost immediately—nestling your head into the crook of his neck as your arm that was lazily slung over his torso starts to tighten its hold around his body.

His arm slings over your unconscious form, his hands making his way to your back as he basks in the foreign feeling, being this close in proximity to you. It was different. Yet it almost felt like it was where he belonged. And he was scared because he didn’t want it to end.

While gently placing his chin on the top of your head, he begins to stroke your hair as fatigue starts to wash over him as well. “Things will make sense soon Y/N, I swear.”

He retracts, craning his neck in an attempt to see your sleeping form. His attempt proves to be futile when an indecipherable groan leaves your lips—brows knitting slightly and lips curling downward from the sudden lack of warmth.

His soft laughter fills the room as he obliges—carefully pressing a small kiss to your forehead before reverting back to his original position.

“For now, just know that I love you too.”

The intolerable throbbing sensation in your temples caused you to stir in your sleep.

The only events you could recall from last night was being at Jimin’s apartment, playing that stupid card game, and downing the most soju you’ve ever had in one sitting.

It only occurs to you that you’re wrapped in someone’s arms when you open your eyes and the only thing in your periphery is a firm chest, steadily heaving each time they take a breath.

Your legs were messily entangled with theirs—arms slung around each other’s torsos as you felt a strange yet dense weight on the top of your head.

Carefully, you try to pry yourself from their grasp albeit your haphazard state of mind. You pull back ever so slightly, making sure not to wake them up in the process, discovering that the excess weight was actually their chin that had been resting on top of your head. Their fingers were still twined in your hair as you pulled back, making you freeze in your spot. Curious, you tilt your head, peering upwards and catching a glimpse of their face.

The boy is undoubtedly still asleep. Eyes shut and ample lips slightly parted. Your timid movement, to your luck, which hadn’t phased him in the slightest, as he was unperceptive and nearly immobile at this point.

If it weren't for your abhorrent headache and the even more abhorrent symptoms that had rooted from your hangover, it would be an understatement to say that you would be freaking out right about now. In reality,

You'd be in a complete state of manic.

Because of the fact that your body was paying for the despicable amount of alcohol you had decided to consume the night before, an influx of any intense emotion would cause your body to exacerbate itself even more. And the last thing you needed was to puke all over the poor guy after sleeping together for the first time.

While you were physically experiencing withdrawals, your mind felt slightly inebriated nonetheless. You weren't quite sure if it was from last night's affluence of liquor or the way everything's starting to come back to you. And the longer your eyes linger on the boy's face, the clearer everything starts to become. From the foolish banter to your childish outbursts leading up to your intoxicated yet conscientious confession.

You left your heart all out for him to witness last night, and now the only thing you could do is wait for a response.

Taking a deep sigh, you retreat back to his body—deciding not to ponder any longer on the matter and wait until you had felt physically capable of doing so.

Steaming hot streams of water splash against his back. He stands under the shower head while massaging soap into his hair, replaying the events that had happened last night on loop.

The words that left your mouth were engraved into his mind as they involuntarily kept replaying over and over again—particularly your inebriated confession, which kept garnering the same reaction of both hope and frustration within him.

The solution should be simple. In reality it is, yet he still felt so internally scattered.

“—he doesn’t see me in that light nor will he ever...”

That was the singular line that he just couldn’t wrap his head around. There was never a moment where he would hesitate to drop everything he was doing to be there for you and make sure you were okay.

Yes, he knew that you two were best friends and that it was natural. But what best friend drives across town at 2am because you had the stomach flu and your parents were out of town. Keep in mind it was his mom’s birthday that day.

What best friend ditches their prom date when yours had stood you up. Or coax the drama teacher into giving you the lead in the school play because he saw the ways your eyes glimmered when you saw the words ‘High School Musical’. And damn, weren’t you justthe greatest Gabriella he’s ever seen.

Little did you know that in reality, he always wanted you to be the Gabriella to his Troy, and not Chad. Yet you seemed to have believed the latter all along.

But in the end, what the hell kind of best friend remains oblivious to the fact that for years, past exes have consistently broken up with him for the same reason.

“Your heart belongs to someone else.”

Or alternatively,

“I’m not the right person for you.”

Straight A’s don’t mean shit when no teacher has ever taught him how to realize that he was irrevocably in love with his best friend, and that she had always, almost candidly, felt the same way.

He shuts his eyes tightly, hands aggressively running through his soaked hair as he comes to a conclusion.

Being strangers could never be an option. Being friends, or moreso, best friends was fine. But that’s it. It was just fine. It was normalcy. It has been for years.

And that just wasn’t going to cut it for him anymore.

Your arm traces along the fabric of the bedsheets, alerting you that there was a void of space and lack of warmth from the other side of the bed. Your eyes spring open to see that there was no one laying beside you.

A long yawn escapes your lips as you stretch your limbs, body sprawling all over the bed before selfishly tugging the sheets all to yourself.

Soft hissing from which you assume was coming from his shower was confirmed to be true when your eyes spot the closed bathroom door and the small beam of light that was emitting from it.

A small, folded piece of paper that was taking up the space of where his head was resting was where your eyes shift to next.

y/n <3

You knit your brows together, knowing that it was most likely put there strategically rather than a piece of trash that had slipped out of his pocket.

It was addressed to you after all and so you grab it while making a futile attempt to rub the sleep out of your eyes. Your throbbing headache and churning insides had significantly died down. Regardless of your recovery time you internally make a promise to yourself to never get this wasted ever again. The chances of you sticking to it? Highly debatable considering the current situation you’re in.

Blinking rapidly, you finally are able to decipher whatever is written onto the paper. And it says:

hi y/n, i can already tell by the looks that you’re giving me that you already despise this game and im sorry. all i wanna say is that by the time you read this, i hope that we remain close as ever even though what i plan on saying tonight could obliterate all of that. i wanted to play this game bc i know we’re both hiding stuff from each other and it’s about time we get it out. at least for me. whatever happens, i love you. always will.

- chim :)

EDIT: for fuck’s sake y/n i’m FUCKING IN LOVE WITH YOU TOO I WAS SUPPOSED TO CONFESS TO U FIRST LOSER NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND T-T

“Finally awake?” You hear a familiar voice call out. He walks out of the bathroom, fully clothed (to your dismay) while drying his hair with a towel, eyes immediately softening as they connect with yours.

You swallow down your nerves, “Yeah, I’ve been.”

He walks over to the edge of the bed, eyes shifting to the piece of paper in your hand before reverting his focus back to your face, “What are you reading there?”

“I don’t know,” you huff, feigning ignorance, “why don’t you tell me.”

A soft chortle leaves his lips as he throws the towel to the side, smiling as wide as ever as he jumps onto the vacant spot on his bed right next to you.

Propping himself up, he sits against the headboard, letting out a content sigh before looking down at you once more. “Come here.” He says, reaching his arms out in hopes that you’d fill the idle gap.

And you do, shaking the sheets off of your body as you place yourself in his arms, freshly revelling in the comfort. You wrap your arms snugly around his waist, letting your head rest on his chest while he clutches onto you tightly.

“I’m sorry for pushing the subject so hard onto you last night.” He starts off with, “I guess I just never fathomed the fact that you could return the feeling, and I was too stubborn to even admit it to you in the first place.” He expresses while stroking your back, “I didn’t mean to confront you so harshly, it’s unlike me, and I’m really sorry about it Y/N.”

“Do you think I’m mad about that Jimin?” You inquire, just barely above a whisper.

He pulls back slightly, peering down at you, “Are you?”

“Of course not. I should be the one apologizing anyways for being even more stubborn and resorting to such childish ways.” You disclose whilst mentally beating yourself up.

“Hey, there’s no use in beating ourselves up over it. Look where we are now.”

“Where exactly are we Jimin?” You inquire timidly, head still resting on his chest.

His fingers brush over the base of your chin, gently tilting your head up until your eyes found his.

“Y/N, it’s honestly hard for me to formulate the words but all I know is that I think I’m in love with you. And I think I have been for a long time, no scratch that, I have been for a long time,” he says all in one breath, making you smile at how high-strung he was acting.

The grin remains plastered onto your face, “I’m not drunk still right because did I just hear you say that you’ve been in love with me?”

“Y/N…” he whines, jutting out his bottom lip as he drags out the last syllable of your name.

You can’t help but laugh. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry! Go on please.”

He bites his lip, “I honestly had a whole speech prepared in the shower but I forgot all of it.”

“It’s alright, I barely remember half the stuff I spewed out last night,” you chortle.

He chuckles, “Well, if you were wondering, you’re cute as fuck when you’re piss drunk.”

The compliment makes your breath hitch in your throat—your heart starting to pick up speed dangerously quick.

A few seconds pass, allowing you to slightly gain back some of your composure, “Why did you um– I mean– when do you think you fell in love with me?” You stutter.

“I was actually trying to figure that out too,” he starts, “in the shower. Well, this is going to sound dumb,” he admits, sharply exhaling out of his nose, “But do you remember when we went on a field trip to that amusement park in 8th grade? Around halloween time.”

“I think so… but what about it?”

He nods. “I still remember that night so vividly for some reason,” he pauses, collecting his thoughts, “There were haunted houses all over the park. And they were all different themes. And I think the first one we went into together was—”

“The clown one.” You deadpan.

“Yeah!” He beams, laughing at the way you shudder after your words, “Anyways, you were walking behind me with your hands on my shoulders, but you had a razor grip and I thought my arms were going to fall off, so I made you walk next to me instead. We had our arms interlocked and you were gripping onto me so closely and you had your head buried in my shoulder the whole time.” He explains, the smile never ceasing to leave his lips.

You don’t take his eyes off of him—smiling sweetly as he explains the retrospective moment that you never knew had held so much significance to him.

“All of a sudden, you grabbed my hand, and honestly, I think that was the scariest part of the whole experience,” he admits, chuckling softly.

“But then I intertwined fingers with you. And I liked it. Thinking about it now, I probably loved it. It felt almost borderline euphoric. Like as if I was riding a high, and when we detached hands, it felt like there was just something missing. And I guess I never really put the pieces together because it just became a normal thing after that. And when our skinship kept evolving from there, I just kept dismissing it over and over again. Like as if that feeling was a normal thing to happen between friends, because I genuinely thought it was. Yeah, I think that’s the moment I pretty much fell in love with you.” He finishes, giving you a close-mouthed smile while he tucks a loose strand of hair behind your ear.

Astounded was an understatement. You couldn’t believe that you both had been suppressing these feelings for so long. Yet somehow, this whole confession didn’t seem out of place or time, it was as if everything that had happened beforehand had led up to this very moment.

“Wow, Jimin I– I don’t know what to say.” You reply.

He shakes his head. “You don’t have to say anything Y/N. I’m sorry for making you wait for so long, after all.”

You interject, “Please don’t say sorry, I think we were definitely both in the wrong here.”

He smiles, except this time his eyes crinkle up all the way, “Alright, but can you at least let me make it up to you?”

“I’m listening.” You jokingly reply.

“Let’s go on a date,” he declares brazenly, “but tonight, after we’ve recovered from our hangovers and what not.”

The corners of your lips upturn so high that your cheekbones sting, “Jimin, I’d love to–”

“Ah, wait! I’m not done.” He cuts you off, head inching forward, leaning in so close that you could feel his breath tickle your ear and the heat rushing up to your cheeks.

“And at the very end of the night, I’ll make certain that you won’t be able to walk normally by tomorrow.” He whispers into your ear— voice low and full of lust.

Shivers run through your body as it feels like all the wind had just gotten knocked out of you. Yeah, this was definitely worth the wait.

MASTERLIST ; SEQUEL

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flyingaroundinabusinesssuit · 3 years

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Managing Corporate Travel Takes On New Complexities

From Pop-Up Corporate Travel Management Policies to Bio-Safety Wellness

Coronavirus has accelerated a range of latent travel trends over the past six months, most related to technology. Now you can add traveller well-being to that list.

Many international organizations have, quite rightly, reacted to the pandemic with a renewed focus on their employees’ safety and well-being.

But some of these new wellbeing pushes, which tend to be associated with the risks the deadly Covid-19 virus can pose when travelling, may end up finding a permanent home in the company travel policy. Because in the same way, the pandemic has accelerated virtual technology adoption, among other areas, it’s highlighting the importance of looking after the traveller.

A lot of work was admittedly already being carried out around wellbeing, and mental health in particular, by companies before Covid, but as travel slowly returns it’s back on the radar as they work on policies that will be fit for purpose in the coronavirus era and beyond.

“Covid-19 has changed the health and safety conversation, putting it front and centre for all travellers,” according to booking and expense platform SAP Concur. Its recent 2020 Business Travel Survey found that ensuring personal health and safety while travelling was most important to business travellers, with 65 percent placing it in their top three considerations.

For the survey, which polled 4,850 business travellers in 23 global markets, and 800 corporate travel managers in eight global markets, it also found they expressed more positive emotions with the prospect of returning to the road than negatives — but 97 percent expect changes to travel norms, reflecting renewed interest in safety and wellbeing.

“With these changes in place, 45 percent of travellers now say the trip itself is the most stressful phase of travel, a 50 percent increase from last year,” SAP Concur added.

So what is on travel managers like TravelManor’s’ radars at the moment?

BIO-SAFETY WELLNESS

Pre-Covid, few employees would have come across this term in their travel policy, being unaccustomed to the finer details of HEPA filters, nucleic acid tests and Hilton’s latest partnership with cleaning brand Lysol.

Today, of course, it’s all hotels, airlines and airports are talking about, to help reassure guests and passengers.

“We’ve done a lot of work over the past year, like a lot of travel buyers have, about wellness, but it’s been focused on physical wellness, jetlag, fatigue, have hotels got access to a gym,” said Alice Linley-Munro, global travel analyst at Oil Spill Response.

“We’ve started to move more into mental health wellness, but now with Covid, bio-safety wellness as well — because that in itself impinges on all the other areas of wellness,” she added while speaking at WIN Global Travel Network and Hickory Global Partners’ ITMC Virtual event.

“But it can’t just be an add-to the policy. For us, it’s been important to have conversations with our corporate travel management company about how we can really build it in from the get-go so that it just becomes the culture,”.

In other words, companies need to plug their booking systems into a lot of new hygiene protocols, no mean feat when they’re constantly being updated. It’s a lot of work and one where travel management companies also have a role to play.

TECHNOLOGY FOCUS

It’s more than simply ensuring a traveller isn’t being booked on to a middle seat.

“Customers want more control and predictability over the end-to-end business travel experience, allowing them to better manage essential travel and also reassure their employees that their health and wellbeing is valued over and above cost,” said Manuel Brachet, vice-president of commercial, multinational and global at Egencia. “Travelers want access to essential information, like hotel health and hygiene measures, directly in the booking path so they can book with confidence.”

As well as agencies, medical and travel security services firms are also stepping up.

International SOS, for example, is providing Singapore’s Energy Drilling Management its new ICC AOKpass — an app that stores an individual’s Covid-19 test result. This has helped its employees travel to Thailand, which has strict Covid-19 entry requirements.

It’s not an easy task, but by being able to dynamically feed updates to the traveller, during their trip, they’ll be able to remove some of the stresses and anxieties they may feel, having to keep up with multiple protocols.

“All that information is in different buckets,” said Cindy Heston, director, travel and events at insurance firm Anthem. “It’s great from a buyer perspective because you really do have detailed information from each supplier, but there are a lot of different brands, and all brands are following different protocols and solutions.”

Also speaking at the ITMC Virtual event, she added that Anthem was discussing how to universally bring all that information together, using a dedicated business information system, and overlaying the data with its booking tools.

“What are the rules in that market, as far as masks, restaurants, temperature checks? They’re changing every day, every minute, so how do you accurately get this information together?” she continued. “We don’t have the solution. The agencies are helping us pull that data together. This has been a great learning experience. When you look at the duty of care, protecting your travellers, this is one of the most cumbersome things we’re going to deal with. Partner wise, we’ve found some great solutions.”

In the future, suppliers and agencies can expect to see companies place a greater emphasis on technology and data that can be flowed in to help inform the traveller at every stage of the journey.

OFFERING THE OPTIONS

As well as companies turning to agencies for help with the data, there’s also a drive towards greater flexibility emerging. In the current environment, staff are conscious of the risks and employers of course can’t force travel upon an employee. However, certain companies do have cultures that penalize those who aren’t prepared to travel, particularly in high-pressure sales roles.

Covid has now forced companies to be more prepared to learn or hear, more about the individual’s situation and history ahead of a business trip. And now one mental health expert believes Covid, finally, is opening the door to more of those conversations, where the amount of travel can be questioned, particularly in light of virtual meeting adoption.

“You have to have a conscious awareness of the fact that not everyone will feel the same way about going on a trip,” said Matthew Holman, owner of Simpila Healthy Solutions and co-founder of the Business Travel Wellbeing Community. “How do you manage those people who don’t want to travel again? We need to be able to educate every traveller around what alternatives there are. What are the levers or the pulleys that would make them more comfortable for the trip?

“We need that front-end interface that allows the traveller to say, actually, I don’t want to stay overnight. I’d rather do a day trip return. But maybe that’s not what the policy states. How do you engage that conversation?”

At energy company RWE Generation UK, those processes have already begun.

“I talked to 12 of our most frequent travellers, who manage teams of technicians, and who do need to go to various sites,” Holly Bemrose, travel manager energy company RWE Generation UK, told Skift. “We asked how they’d imagine travel post-Covid, in a world where a vaccine has been developed. They were saying they’d like to travel a lot less, perhaps 60 percent less. Before they had the expectation themselves that any meeting had to be face-to-face. They’ve now realized it’s unnecessary. So instead of one night away, they’d do two nights to get more done, and they can then travel less frequently.”

We also understand that for those companies where travel hasn’t been curtailed, such as the energy sector where electricity plants still have to be maintained, travel managers have created “pop-up policies” to inform and reassure staff they’ve planned every detail of the travel.

These are implemented for individual projects, where employees work in certain locations for certain periods of time, with dedicated websites or intranet pages packed with safety guidelines and Q&As surrounding travel to that region.

These are yet another example of travel manager innovation — and while they could be perceived as temporary fixes or workarounds for business-critical trips, they’re set to have longer-term implications as corporations rethink travel during Covid and beyond.

As SAP Concur concludes in its study: “The data suggests travel will continue to play an irreplaceable role in meeting critical business demands. However, travellers’ health and safety, and a new era of trip preparation and policies, will be front and centre as travel resumes …. Emerging expectations around personal and community health and safety will mean a new era of decisions, processes, and innovations across the travel industry.”

Original article from https://skift.com/

#corporate travel #travel management #corporate travel management

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theblogdesign · 3 years

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Ginger Benefits And Uses

Ginger Benefits And UsesGinger is perhaps the best food on the planet. Especially in the Asian, Indian and Arabic custom, the root has a long history of utilization both as a flavor and natural cure.

The root has been utilized for ages to animate its drive. Likewise, the ginger root has a warming impact and invigorates blood flow.

This sound super carrot ought not be absent in a solid, adjusted eating regimen. Today, most stores sell top notch new carrot.

Ginger decreases garlic smell

I have been utilizing ginger in different dishes practically day by day throughout recent years.

Ginger decreases garlic smell

In which dishes would you be able to utilize the carrot?

Utilizing ginger in your dishes

Why is ginger so sound?

Diminish torment with these quality food varieties

Improving your cerebrum capacities

Ginger for sickness and colds

Ginger assists you with shedding pounds

Diabetes and ginger

Is it accurate to say that you are consistently cold?

Delectable ginger tea/ginger water formula

Mending impacts of ginger tea

1 Ginger decreases garlic smell

Garlic is generally utilized in cooking and is solid. In any case, garlic has a significant downside and that is its serious smell.

Individuals who go to your space who have not eaten garlic will quickly smell that you have eaten garlic.

Numerous individuals discover the garlic smell terrible.

I additionally had a place with this gathering, which is the reason I stayed away from dishes with garlic for quite a long time.

A couple of years prior I heard something brilliant: utilizing garlic in mix with ginger and the garlic smell has vanished.

I would not like to accept this thus needed to give it a shot right away.

I think you got it, it works consummately. The mix of ginger and garlic kills the smell and the food is more absorbable.

From that point forward I fry finely slashed garlic along with finely hacked ginger as the reason for every one of my dishes.

2 In which dishes would you be able to utilize the carrot?

As said previously, I utilize ginger in practically all dishes.

I utilize the sound carrot in chicken sautés. When simmering chicken filet,

I add one to two cloves of garlic to the dish alongside finely cleaved ginger root. Ginger root fits very well with meat.

In a newly made chicken soup or meat soup, this super carrot gives your soup an enhancement.

Crude and finely cut, it is flavorful in fiery plate of mixed greens dressings, spice spread or quark.

Genuinely intriguing utilized me ginger own blends of mango chutney, Karot cake and natively constructed bread.

With a delectable pumpkin soup you can undoubtedly cook a huge piece.

3 Utilizing ginger in your dishes

What you can be sure of is that ginger never bubbles delicately. In the event that I set up a chicken or meat stock,

I add the carrot in an enormous piece to the soup, to effortlessly eliminate it from the soup later.

All solid fixings are as yet in the soup following 2-3 hours of cooking time. In different dishes you need to cut it finely.

I for one prefer to chomp on a little piece of ginger, yet on the off chance that you don't care for that I can suggest utilizing a fine grater.

With the grater you make a fine ginger puree and it spreads well in your dish.

4 Why is ginger so sound?

It animates the blood flow, has a calming impact, reinforces your heart, brings down cholesterol and invigorates the digestion.

New ginger comprises of 160 unique fixings. It is plentiful in minerals like iron, calcium, potassium, zinc, copper, sodium and phosphorus.

Moreover, the ginger root contains nutrients like C, B1, B2, B6, water, proteins, starches and fiber.

The common sharpness of the ginger root is because of the dynamic substances present like gingerol, shogaol and zingiberene.

these substances have cancer prevention agent properties on your body. Because of its fundamental oil (bisabolene, farnesene, cineol, citral and gingerol), it is effectively utilized in fragrance based treatment for respiratory sicknesses.

Gingerol is to a great extent liable for its mending impact.

5Diminish torment with these quality food varieties

Logical investigations have tracked down the pain relieving properties of ginger.

It goes about as an inhibitor of cyclooxygenase (COX) and lipoxigenase, bringing about a hindrance of the creation of leukotrienes and prostaglandins.

Henceforth, ginger is utilized as a pain relieving. The pain relieving impact depends on the hindrance of prostaglandin union in your body.

The prostaglandins invigorate the vibe of agony in your body.

6 Improving your cerebrum capacities

Customarily, its concentrate has been utilized as a methods for improving mind capacities.

It builds the degrees of noraddrenaline, adrenaline, dopamine and serotonin in the huge cerebral cortex and hippocampus.

Furthermore, the dynamic fixing 6-gingerol likewise hinders the protein cholinesterase, which thusly builds the centralization of acetylcholine, a synapse that assumes a significant part in learning and memory.

7 Ginger for sickness and colds

Conventional Chinese medication has been treating illnesses like stiffness, muscle agony and colds with ginger for a very long time.

The gingerol from the root assuages torment and diminishes the chemical serotonin in the digestion tracts.

The chemical serotonin in the gut is answerable for sickness, torment and bulging.

Thus, it is utilized, likewise in kids, as the solution for queasiness, movement ailment or nausea, to stifle the sickness and propensity to upchuck.

The root animates gastric juice, bile and spit creation and helps digest food, particularly fats.

Examination has shown that the superroot likewise has a useful impact against sickness during chemotherapy, after medical procedure and around feminine cycle.

In any case, for this helpful impact, you need to eat a genuinely huge measure of ginger (tantamount to 5-6 bundles of salted stem ginger).

8 Ginger assists you with shedding pounds

📷

For weight reduction, this sound root can be useful as it manages hunger and along these lines forestalls food yearnings.

Ginger additionally invigorates the digestion to consume additional calories.

As indicated by an examination by Columbia University, drinking or eating ginger toward the beginning of the day will decrease the sensation of craving.

It isn't prescribed to eat a lot of ginger during pregnancy,

9 Diabetes and ginger

Different examinations (in vitro, in vivo and clinical) have shown an enemy of diabetic impact on him.

The components of activity fundamental this are identified with progress of insulin delivery and activity and improved insulin affectability, bringing about expanded glucose take-up in fringe fat and muscle tissue.

The intense lipid-bringing down impact of ginger may likewise help improve insulin opposition.

It likewise improves starch and fat digestion by restraining significant key chemicals in sugar digestion.

Also, ginger has a defensive impact against diabetes inconveniences. The wellbeing of ginger as a reciprocal hyperglycaemic control specialist has been enough shown in intense and persistent harmfulness considers.

10 Is it accurate to say that you are consistently cold?

Most ladies will concur with me now, we get cold rapidly and all the more frequently.

Really a ladylike quality! New ginger is a very decent cure. Its utilization animates blood dissemination and in this way you get it quite warm once more.

You can gradually bite a little piece of crude ginger into your mouth. You will be astonished how rapidly you get warm!

On the off chance that you don't really want to bite on crude ginger root, I suggest making a tea from the crude ginger root.

11 Delectable ginger tea/ginger water formula

Heat water to the point of boiling. Meanwhile, take a piece (around 2 cm) of new ginger and eliminate the skin.

Presently cut the stripped piece of ginger into little shapes.

Put this in a tea kettle or in a steeping ball, at that point you don't need to strain the tea later.

Empty the bubbling water into the tea kettle with the finely hacked ginger.

Put the cover on and let the tea steep for in any event 8 minutes.

Try not to permit the ginger tea/ginger water to soak for a really long time, as this will make the tea extremely sharp.

Take out the steeper. On the off chance that you utilized ginger pieces, strain the tea.

Eliminating the new ginger is essential on the grounds that generally your tea will taste excessively sharp.

You can in any case utilize the leftover ginger pieces in new servings of mixed greens.

To do this, let the pieces cool down well and slash them finely.

The solid ginger tea/ginger water is prepared! Drink it hot or cold.

Appreciated virus is the flavor of the ginger water lemon new, an extraordinary beverage for a blistering summer day, likewise for youngsters.

Incidentally, ginger tea and ginger water are something similar; on the grounds that ginger isn't viewed as a genuine recuperating plant, the sound beverage is called ginger water.

12 Mending impacts of ginger tea

Numerous societies all throughout the planet utilize in excess of 50 distinct kinds of ginger for tea planning.

The a wide range of arrangements of the ginger tea likewise all have an alternate recuperating impact.

In Burma it is blended along with the sugar extricated from the sap of the palm trees. As a solution for this season's virus.

The most recent pattern in China has as of late been well known with ginger tea blended in with cola or red bull.

The dynamic elements of the root in blend with caffeine is supposed to be a virus cure.

Indians use it exceptionally adaptable. It is a significant piece of Ayurvedic treatment.

Applying newly ground ginger root to the sanctuary is said to soothe the cerebral pain.

Ginger tea with the juice of the mango tree has been utilized in Congo for ages as a panacea for some afflictions.

The Indonesian populace utilizes ginger tea for exhaustion or as a counteraction against stiffness.

You see ginger can be utilized from multiple points of view. Ginger is exceptionally sound and in this manner has the right to be utilized in the entirety of your plans.

Ginger has been appeared to healingly affect sickness, colds and irritation.

It invigorates digestion and blood course and has a reinforcing impact on the heart.

Regardless of whether you use it in hot dishes, as ginger tea or crude, ginger is probably the best root on the planet

Last idea

the main fixings are extricated to positively affect your wellbeing.

There is a similar guideline likewise with tea produced using mending spices like sage, vex, chamomile or peppermint, which you need to pour over bubbling water and let it steep for 8 - 10 minutes.

Since I don't have a research facility,

I can't demonstrate the number of dynamic fixings are as yet in it, however on the off chance that you smell the ginger and taste it, it actually has its very own great deal taste.

#health & fitness

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freenewstoday · 4 years

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New Post has been published on https://freenews.today/2021/03/23/amazon-hires-former-executive-adam-selipsky-to-run-aws/

Amazon hires former executive Adam Selipsky to run AWS

Amazon has chosen to Adam Selipsky, currently CEO of Salesforce-owned data-visualization software maker Tableau, to run its Amazon Web Services division. Andy Jassy, the current head of AWS and the person chosen to replace Jeff Bezos as the head of all of Amazon, informed employees in an email on Tuesday.

Amazon rules the market for public cloud infrastructure that companies use to run internal and external applications, a modern alternative to relying on in-house servers, storage and networking equipment. In 2019 industry research company Gartner estimated that Amazon had 45% of the market, more than any other company, including Microsoft and Google. As such, Selipsky becomes the most visible person in the growing category, perhaps second only to Jassy, who enters a bigger job when he becomes Amazon CEO in the third quarter.

Selipsky is one of the people several insiders had identified as a possible successor to Jassy. The two men have an excellent relationship, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC. Selipsky had held a prominent position inside AWS, as vice president for sales, marketing and support, before leaving to run then-public Tableau in 2016. Salesforce bought Tableau for $15.7 billion in 2019.

The role Selipsky left at Amazon was vacant for years. Last year AWS chose executive Matt Garman, who had worked on AWS’ core EC2 virtual-computing service, to take over the position.

Selipsky was viewed as a rising star within Salesforce after the Tableau acquisition. At an event hosted by Goldman Sachs in January, the bank’s CEO David Solomon asked Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff to name something that investors aren’t fully appreciating about his company. As part of his answer, Benioff listed a few top executives.

We “have so many other CEOs in our midst like Adam Selipsky, the CEO of Tableau,” Benioff said. “Soon, we’ll have Stewart, CEO of Slack,” he added, referring to Stewart Butterfield.

Salesforce CFO Mark Hawkins responded to a question about the Tableau integration in December. He said: “It’s a best-in-class, unique asset in the world. Great leadership team, great CEO with Adam Selipsky and the management team.”

Selipsky has remained president and CEO of Tableau since the acquisition. Mark Nelson, who joined Tableau as an executive vice president of product development in 2018 from SAP-owned expense-management service Concur, where he had been technology chief, will become the new head of Tableau, a Salesforce spokesperson told CNBC in an email. Nelson starts in the new job immediately, according to a person close to Salesforce, while Selipsky will return to Amazon on May 17, Jassy wrote in the memo.

Selipsky joined Amazon in 2005, a year before the company introduced EC2 and the S3 storage service, and stayed for 11 years. Before that he had been a vice president at RealNetworks.

A copy of the memo follows. Amazon later confirmed the move in a blog post.

I want to share that Adam Selipsky will be the next CEO of AWS.

Adam is not a new face to AWS. Back in 2005, Adam was one of the first VPs we hired in AWS, and ran AWS’s Sales, Marketing, and Support for 11 years (as well as some other areas like our AWS Platform services for a spell). Adam then became the CEO of Tableau in 2016, and ran Tableau for the last 4.5 years. Tableau experienced significant success during Adam’s time as CEO– the value of the company quadrupled in just a few years, Tableau transitioned through a fundamental business model change from perpetual licenses to subscription licensing, and the company was eventually acquired by Salesforce in 2019 in one of the largest software acquisitions in history. Following the acquisition, Adam remained the CEO of Tableau and was a member of Salesforce’s Executive Leadership Team.

Adam brings strong judgment, customer obsession, team building, demand generation, and CEO experience to an already very strong AWS leadership team. And, having been in such a senior role at AWS for 11 years, he knows our culture and business well.

With a $51B revenue run rate that’s growing 28% YoY (these were the Q4 2020 numbers we last publicly shared), it’s easy to forget that AWS is still in the very early stages of what’s possible. Less than 5% of the global IT spend is in the cloud at this point. That’s going to substantially change in the coming years. We have a lot more to invent for customers, and we have a very strong leadership team and group of builders to go make it happen. Am excited for what lies ahead.

Andy

P.S. Adam will return to AWS on May 17. We will spend the subsequent several weeks transitioning together before making the change sometime in Q3.

— CNBC’s Ari Levy contributed to this report.

Source

#Alphabet Class A #Amazon.com Inc #Breaking News: Technology #business #business news #Enterprise #Gartner Inc #Goldman Sachs Group Inc #Microsoft Corp #RealNetworks Inc #Salesforce.com Inc #SAP AG #Slack Technologies Inc #Technology #UBS (Irl) ETF plc - MSCI ACWI Socially Responsible UCITS ETF Hedged EUR A Acc

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onlinetrustworld · 4 years

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SAP ARIBA TRAINING LONDON

SAP is associate intelligent, integrated ERP system that runs on SAP’s real time in-memory platform, SAP HANA. It addresses industry-specific needs with proved best practices for twenty six verticals and permits new business models as marketplaces evolve. It revolutionizes business processes with intelligent automation, supported by AI and robotic method automation. It helps users create higher choices quicker with embedded analytics, a colloquial interface, and digital assistants. SAP offers customers a alternative of readying choices together with cloud, on-premise and hybrid so that they will opt for the state of affairs or combination that's right for them, all on identical knowledge model with a uniform user expertise. Over five hundred SAP S/4HANA customers were additional within the quarter, taking total adoption to quite fourteen,600 customers, up twenty second year over year, of that quite seven,400 area unit live. within the second quarter, quite thirty seventh of the extra SAP S/4HANA customers were internet new. In the second quarter, world category organizations like Neptune Energy, Vedanta, BNP Paribas, Comix, and Deutsche Börse conductor hand-picked SAP S/4HANA. RAK Ceramics, route GmbH, and Zalando recently went live to tell the tale SAP S/4HANA. A aggressive variety of corporations of all sizes like E.ON, Rizing LLC, Mageline and Trevi Finanziaria Industriale selected SAP S/4HANA Cloud. Colgate-Palmolive, Diamond State Nora cluster, Grupo immoderate, and SUSE computer code Solutions area unit currently live to tell the tale SAP S/4HANA Cloud. IDC MarketScape recently named SAP S/4HANA Cloud as a pacesetter for Cloud Finance and Accounting Apps. Human expertise Management (HXM) The SAP SuccessFactors Human expertise Management (HXM) Suite provides solutions for core hour and payroll, talent management, worker expertise management and folks analytics. designed as a extremely ascendible platform it meets advanced cross border needs, delivering tax regulation and hour policy updates in ninety nine specific countries, forty two languages and payroll in forty six countries. HXM is intended around what workers would like, however they work, and what motivates them. It empowers workers and permits hour leaders to accelerate business growth. SAP SuccessFactors HXM solutions leverage Qualtrics solutions permitting customers to capture insights from workers and link them with operational knowledge to examine what's happening, perceive why and take action. quite 640 customers have hand-picked these solutions. FMC Corporation is one example of diverse corporations victimisation the Qualtrics and SAP SuccessFactors platforms. Capgemini, JSC Lithuanian Railways, Bechtle AG, and Migros cluster were a number of several competitive wins. Etihad Aviation, cluster Erste cluster Bank, and Royal London Mutual Insurance Society recently went endure SAP SuccessFactors solutions. SAP client expertise SAP client expertise (CX) combines leading solutions for commerce, service, marketing, sales, and client knowledge, sanctionative corporations to manage and deliver personalised client experiences across touchpoints and channels supported a whole read of the client. As a part of the Intelligent Enterprise, SAP 110 suite integrates with SAP S/4HANA from demand signals to fulfillment in one end-to-end method. SAP 110 solutions additionally use the advantages of Qualtrics client expertise Management to know the needs and wishes of shoppers. this allows organizations to mix client feedback and operational knowledge to pay attention, perceive and take action within the moment to enhance the client expertise.

We are leading SAP Ariba certification training course provider in London. We deliver the SAP Ariba course through classroom and online training. Contact us:::(+44) 207 096 1129.Our blog site::::: https://itraininglondon.blogspot.com/more now visit::::: https://www.itraininglondon.co.uk/course/sap-ariba-certification-training-london/ In the second quarter, SAP’s e-commerce resolution was a standout, nearly doubling new cloud business year over year. Lumileds, Commission Diamond State la construction du Québec, Delivery Hero, Jiangsu Hengshun cluster Co. Ltd., Telefônica Vivo, and Hirose electrical Co. area unit some samples of corporations UN agency selected SAP client expertise solutions. Business Technology Platform SAP’s Business Technology Platform helps customers to show their knowledge into business worth. It encompasses information and knowledge management, analytics, application development and integration, and intelligent technologies. The Business Technology Platform represents a mix of SAP’s leading technologies like SAP HANA, SAP Cloud Platform, SAP knowledge Warehouse Cloud, SAP Analytics Cloud, SAP knowledge Intelligence and SAP Intelligent Robotic method Automation bundled into one single reference design. It supports cloud, on-premise and hybrid client landscapes. to boot, the Business Technology Platform offers seamless ability with hyperscalers’ technologies to deliver a high level of quantifiability and suppleness. The Business Technology Platform provides customers with convenient access to SAP knowledge, SAP technology and SAP pre-configured business services to assist them drive business worth across their entire resolution landscape. The Swiss Canton of Zurich, the Australian Department of Defence, and L’Oréal hand-picked SAP’s business technology platform and analytics cloud solutions within the second quarter. SAP Ariba provides cooperative commerce capabilities from sourcing and orders through invoice and payment along side experience to assist customers optimize their pay. It drives easy, intelligent exchanges between several patrons and suppliers across each direct and indirect expense classes. The SAP Ariba platform is embedding Qualtrics to boost expertise and to form a nonstop electrical circuit for patrons and suppliers on the network. SAP Ariba and SAP Fieldglass, in conjunction with SAP Concur, represent SAP’s intelligent pay platform, the biggest commerce platform within the world with over $3.8 trillion in international commerce annually transacted in additional than one hundred eighty countries. SAP Fieldglass is that the leader in external men management and services procural. It helps organizations ﬁnd, engage, and manage all kinds all kinds resources together with contingent staff, consultants and freelancers. SAP Fieldglass additional quite 760,000 new external staff throughout the second quarter. Apache Corporation selected SAP Fieldglass solutions within the second quarter. Concur In the second quarter, Concur phase revenue was down four-dimensional to €379 million year-over-year (down five-hitter at constant currencies) thanks to lower pay-as-you-go transactional revenue as a results of considerably reduced business travel thanks to the COVID-19 crisis. SAP Concur provides integrated travel, expense, and invoice management solutions that modify and automatise these long everyday processes. The SAP Concur mobile app guides workers through each trip, charges area unit effortlessly inhabited into expense reports, and invoice approvals area unit machine-driven. By desegregation close to time period knowledge and victimisation AI to audit 100 percent of transactions, businesses will see and expeditiously management their travel pay. Qualtrics In the second quarter, Qualtrics phase revenue was up thirty fourth to €168 million year-over-year (up thirty second at constant currencies). With Qualtrics, SAP combines market leadership in expertise Management (XM) with end-to-end operational power in twenty six industries to assist organizations manage and improve the four core experiences of business: client, employee, product, and brand. The Qualtrics XM Platform™ is sure by over eleven,800 customers to pay attention, understand, and take action on expertise knowledge (X-data™) by combining X-data with the operational knowledge (O-data™) systems of the enterprise. In the second quarter, Etsy, Inc., Blue Cross and Blue defend of Alabama, Kendra Scott style, Tableau and plenty of others hand-picked Qualtrics to maneuver on the far side systems of record to new systems of action and win breakthrough results.

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icasbay · 4 years

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SaaS vs PaaS vs IaaS: What’s The Difference?

The cloud is a popular topic for small companies all the way to multinational companies, but it becomes a broad concept that covers a lot of online area. As you start to consider moving your company to the cloud, whether for application or network delivery, knowing the drawbacks and advantages of the different cloud providers is more important than ever.

Cloud service typically has three models to compare: Software as a Service (SaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS). Each one has its own advantages as well as variances, and the variations between SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS have to be understood to know how to choose the best one for your company.

SaaS: Software as a Service

The most widely used alternative for companies in the cloud industry is software as a service, also defined as cloud application services. SaaS uses the Internet to deliver applications to its users which are managed by a third-party vendor. A lot of SaaS applications run directly through your web browser, ensuring that no updates or installations on the client side are needed.

SaaS Delivery

SaaS eliminates the need for downloads and installation of applications by IT management on each single computer because of its web delivery model. With SaaS, providers handle all possible technical problems, including data, middleware, servers and storage, thereby simplifying business service and support.

SaaS Advantages

It offers various benefits to people and businesses by decreasing the time and money spent on repetitive tasks such as installing, managing and upgrading software, thereby giving technical staff plenty of time to spend on more pressing problems and issues within the company.

SaaS Characteristics

There are a few ways to help you determine when SaaS is being utilized:

Managed from a central location

Hosted on a remote server

Accessible over the internet

Users not responsible for hardware or software updates

When to Use SaaS

SaaS may be the most beneficial option in several situations, including:

Startups or small companies that need to launch ecommerce quickly and don’t have time for server issues or software

Short-term projects that require quick, easy, and affordable collaboration

Applications that aren’t needed too often, such as tax software

Applications that need both web and mobile access

SaaS Limitations and Concerns

Vendor lock-in. Providers can make joining a company easy and it’s hard to get out of that. For example, data might not be portable–technically or cost-effectively–over other vendors ‘ SaaS apps without incurring significant cost or rework in-house engineering.

Lack of integration support. Deep integration with on-site apps, data, and services is required by many companies. In this way, the SaaS provider will offer limited assistance, requiring companies to invest internal resources in the design and management of integrations.

Data security. Large volumes of data may need to be exchanged to SaaS apps ‘ backend data centers to perform the software functionality required. In addition to significant costs for migrating large data workloads, the transfer of sensitive business information to a public cloud-based SaaS service may result in compromised security and compliance.

Lack of control. SaaS solutions involve granting third party service provider access. Such controls are not limited to the software–related to version, changes, or appearance–but also to data and management. Therefore, customers may need to redefine their data security and governance models to fit the SaaS service’s features and functionality.

Feature limitations. Since SaaS applications frequently come in a standardized way, the selection of features can compromise safety, cost, performance and other organizational policies. Alternatively, vendor lock-in, cost or security concerns could mean that it is not feasible to move vendors or services in the future to meet new feature requirements.

Performance and downtime. As the manufacturer manages and administers the SaaS program, the clients now rely on vendors to ensure the protection and efficiency of the service. Despite appropriate Service Level Agreement (SLA) protections in place, planned and unplanned maintenance, cyber-attacks or network problems can impact the performance of the SaaS app.

Examples of SaaS

These are several popular examples of SaaS, including: Google GSuite (Apps), Dropbox, Salesforce, Cisco WebEx, SAP Concur, and GoToMeeting.

PaaS: Platform as a Service

Cloud platform services, also known as Platform as a Service (PaaS), give some good software with cloud components, when being used primarily for applications. PaaS provides developers with a system that they can build on and utilize to produce custom apps. The company or a third-party vendor can handle all servers, storage and networking while the developers can maintain program management.

PaaS Delivery

The PaaS delivery model is similar to SaaS, except for when PaaS offers a software platform for creation rather than providing the software over the Internet. This system is distributed over the internet, giving developers the ability to focus on developing the app without thinking about operating systems, software updates, storage or infrastructure.

PaaS enables companies to design and create applications that have special software components built into the PaaS. These applications, sometimes referred to as middleware, are scalable and highly available since they take on certain cloud features.

PaaS Advantages

No matter the size of your company, using PaaS offers numerous advantages, including:

Simple, cost-effective development and deployment of apps

Scalable

Highly available

Developers can customize apps without the headache of maintaining the software

Significant reduction in the amount of coding needed

Automation of business policy

Easy migration to the hybrid model

PaaS Characteristics

PaaS has many characteristics that define it as a cloud service, including:

Builds on virtualization technology, so resources can easily be scale up or down as your business changes

Provides a variety of services to assist with the development, testing, and deployment of apps

Accessible to numerous users via the same development application

Integrates web services and databases

When to Use PaaS

The use of PaaS in several situations is useful, sometimes necessary. For example, if multiple developers work on the same development project, PaaS can streamline workflows. PaaS can offer a high rate and flexibility for the entire process if other vendors are to be include. PaaS is particularly helpful if custom applications must be built. This cloud service can also significantly reduce costs and eliminate other problems if you quickly develop or deploy an app.

PaaS Limitations and Concerns

Data security. Organizations can use PaaS software to manage their apps and services, but data from third-party cloud servers with supplier-control raise security risks and concerns. Your security choices may be limit because customers cannot enforce special hosting policies.

Vendor lock-in. In the future, business and technical requirements which drive decisions for a particular PaaS solution may not apply. Where the vendor has not provided convenient migration policies, it may not be possible to switch to alternative PaaS options without affecting the business.

Customization of legacy systems. PaaS might not be a plug-and-play solution for outdated mobile apps and services. Instead, some customizations and configuration changes may be necessary to work with the PaaS service for the legacy systems. The resulting customisation will lead to a complex IT system that can totally restrict the value of the PaaS investment.

Runtime issues. In relation to limitations associate with specific apps and services, PaaS solutions might not be optimize to suit your choice of language and frameworks. With the PaaS service, particular framework versions may not be available or perform optimally. With the platform, clients may not be able to develop customized dependencies.

Operational limitation. With PaaS applications, personalized cloud operations with management automation workflows may not apply, as the application appears to restrict end-user operating capacities. While this is design to reduce the operational burden on end users, the loss of operational control can affect how PaaS solutions are controll, supply, and operate.

Examples of PaaS

Popular examples of PaaS include AWS Elastic Beanstalk, Windows Azure, Heroku, Force.com, Google App Engine, and OpenShift.

IaaS: Infrastructure as a Service

Cloud infrastructure services, known as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), are compose of highly scalable, automate computing resources. For computers, networking, storage and other service access and monitoring, IaaS is fully self-service IaaS enables businesses to buy on-demand and as-needed resources instead of purchasing hardware outright.

IaaS Delivery

IaaS provides the cloud computing infrastructure through virtualization technology, including servers, network, operating systems, and storage. Usually, these cloud services are delivere to the enterprise via a dashboard or an API, allowing IaaS clients full control over the entire infrastructure.

IaaS offers the same technology and functionality as a conventional data center without the need to operate or handle all of it physically. IaaS clients still have direct access to their servers and storage, but everything is outsource in the cloud via a “virtual data center”.

Unlike SaaS or PaaS, IaaS clients are responsible for the management of things such as programs, runtime, operating systems, middleware, and results. But, IaaS companies handle the servers, hard drives, networking, virtualizing, and processing. Some providers even provide more services beyond the virtualization layer, such as databases or queuing messages.

IaaS Advantages

IaaS offers many advantages, including:

The most flexible cloud computing model

Easy to automate deployment of storage, networking, servers, and processing power

Hardware purchases can be based on consumption

Clients retain complete control of their infrastructure

Resources can be purchase as-needed

Highly scalable

IaaS Characteristics

Characteristics that define IaaS include:

Resources are available as a service

Cost varies depending on consumption

Services are highly scalable

Multiple users on a single piece of hardware

Organization retain complete control of the infrastructure

Dynamic and flexible

When to Use IaaS

Just like with SaaS and PaaS, when IaaS is most useful there are specific situations.

Startups and small businesses that prefer IaaS to avoid spending time and money on hardware and software purchases and creations. Larger companies may want to retain full control of their software and infrastructure, but they only want to purchase what they actually consume or need. Organizations experiencing rapid growth need IaaS scalability, and as their requirements expand, they can easily change new hardware and software. Whenever you’re unsure of the demands of a new application, IaaS offers plenty of flexibility and scalability.

IaaS Limitations and Concerns

Many limitations associated with SaaS and PaaS models – such as data security, cost overruns, and vendor lock-in and customization issues – also apply to the IaaS model. Particular limitations to IaaS include:

While the customer controls the software, files, middleware, and OS layer, the host or other virtual machines (VMs) may still provide security threats. Insider threat or device vulnerabilities can expose unauthorized entities to data communication between the host infrastructure and VMs.

Legacy systems operating in the cloud. Although customers can run legacy cloud apps, the infrastructure may not be design to provide specific controls to secure the legacy apps. Minor enhancement of legacy apps may be necessary before migrating to the cloud, possibly leading to new security issues unless adequately tested for safety and performance in IaaS systems.

Internal resources and training. For the workforce, additional resources and training may be need to learn how to manage the infrastructure effectively. Data security, recovery, and business continuity will be the responsibility of clients. Nonetheless, due to inadequate oversight of the infrastructure, it can be difficult to monitor and manage the resources without sufficient in-house training and resources.

Multi-tenant security. Additional resources and training may be need for the work force to learn how to effectively manage the infrastructure. Clients will be responsible for data security, recuperation and business continuity. Nonetheless, due to inadequate infrastructure oversight, it can be difficult to monitor. It manage resources without sufficient in-house training and resources.

Examples of IaaS

Popular examples of IaaS include DigitalOcean, Linode, Rackspace, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Cisco Metacloud, Microsoft Azure, and Google Compute Engine (GCE).

SaaS vs PaaS vs IaaS

Each cloud model offers specific features and functionalities, and understanding the differences is crucial to your organization. Whether you need cloud-based storage solutions apps, a seamless framework that allows you to build personalized programs. Or complete control over your entire infrastructure without having to maintain it physically, there’s a cloud service for you. No matter which choice you select, the future of business and technology is a migration to the cloud.

SaaS vs PaaS vs IaaS

https://www.casbay.com/blog/tips-sharing/saas-vs-paas-vs-iaas-whats-the-difference/

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beautyslave17 · 4 years

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The Hidden Techniques And Also Traps You Need To Watch Out For When Signing A Building Agreement.

Usage Sunrooms As An Alternate To Complete.

Content

How The Building Remodelling As Well As Repair Solutions In London Job.

Rj Repair Solutions.

Begin Your Project.

Tiny Orangery Conservatories And Glass Conservatories.

Exactly How The Property Restoration And Repair Services In London Job.

Our office refurbishment solution is simply one of the elements that make up our complete interior design and also construct solution. Their analysis of our needs as a business were solid, with all the useful abilities and also expertise you would pertain to get out of one of the market leading workplace design company's. Head over to the blog area of our web site as well as keep up to date with the most up to date office design, fitout as well as repair news from Blend Office Design. When you select Blend Office Layouts for your London office refurbishment, we will certainly encourage you with a timescale at the factor of reservation.

Does sunroom add value to the house?

Value report suggests nationally homeowners recoup an average of 47 percent on a sunroom additions to their homes with an average cost of about $73,000 returning a value of $34,000 upon resale. While a sunroom addition adds to the home, it does not return the full project cost to the homeowner.

In addition, we pride ourselves on being as unobtrusive as possible, implying we will certainly carry out the works with very little disturbance to your service and various other tenants. Refurbishment refers to the renovation of an existing room, and can include redecoration, new furniture, and also even a brand-new floorplan. The purpose of a refurbishment is to upgrade as well as enhance a space from exactly how it currently looks. Our office refurbishment professionals are skilled at the workplace together with a functioning business, maintaining interruption to a minimum and operating in zones where possible.

That's why we're professionals at efficiently delivering tasks in occupied workplaces. Interior decoration, office refurbishment professionals, fit out and office partitioning in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Scotland and beyond. Having refurbished numerous offices over the years, you can trust us to embark on the operate in a fast, professional as well as reliable manner. To ensure this happens, you will be designated an experienced task supervisor, that will collaborate the project by creating a schedule of jobs.

It's not constantly essential to transfer in order to accomplish the ideal office to suit the means your organization works. Analyzing if as well as just how your current area can be utilised further to achieve optimal potential is a worthwhile workout.

What is the difference between an orangery and a sun room?

The most striking difference between sunrooms, conservatories, and orangeries are: Orangeries are supported by solid brick-built pillars, low-level walls and/or an insulated internal pelmet. Orangeries tend to feature bright & airy roof lanterns, although these can be added to conservatories too.

Rj Refurbishment Solutions.

The more time you have to engage with your selected partner, the higher chance of success as you'll have spent even more time developing your short and also specifying exactly what will benefit your organisation. In addition, you might feel that your existing spaces is not made use of properly and that a refurbishment would create a much better, much more reliable place to work. An example of this is where companies have countless conference room or other room that aren't utilised efficiently. Where individuals or tiny groups make use of large conference rooms for phone calls or informal conferences that can quickly take place in breakout locations or smaller, personal vessels.

Do glass extensions need foundations?

The principal of a glass room does mean the base required is fairly flexible as you do not actually require foundations as you would for a conservatory or brick built extension but only require concrete pads where the support legs are situated.

Your furnishings selection is important as it must mirror your brand and will be one of the most noticeable component of your brand-new work environment. The quicker you choose a companion to collaborate with to develop and also construct your new workplace, the far better and also the sooner you can start planning.

Start Your Project.

Do I need SAP calculations for an extension?

Does every extension require an SAP calculation? The short answer: not. As https://www.bromleygaines.co.uk/bedfordshire/ as any areas of new glazing account for no more than 25% of the new floor area (plus an allowance for existing windows that need to be removed) then you can carry on without an additional calculation.

Whether you're lacking room, desiring even more adaptability or you are looking to implement new methods of working you can ensure that your office fit out task has a resilient and lasting result. An intelligent technique to your workplace fit out lets you get rid of obstacles and also shift culture patterns in your workspace as well.

Taking environmental variables right into account when preparing your refurbishment can assist to get rid of lots of usual problems found in the modern workplace. So a typical 5,000 sq foot office may require a budget plan of ₤ 200- ₤ 350K. Interaction is key at this stage, not just with your refurbishment companions yet additionally with your job group (do not be afraid to delegate) and most importantly with your personnel. Guaranteeing that all staff understand what is taking place, what to anticipate and that to route inquiries to is important. If you have actually concurred a phased handover of area, handling this handover as well as change to an all new working environment is essential to make certain team can stand up and also running rapidly.

The knight's crossbow can be farmed from Lothric Knights or purchased from Greirat during his quest.

Progress throughout the game as normal, placed points into Vigor as well as Stamina in the beginning.

Start levelling stamina and also mastery, when you get to 16/16 strength/dexterity desert the fire mixture and also port in the fine-tuned treasure.

Fire is a very effective element throughout the begin of the video game and some enemies will certainly thrash about in pain instead of strike back if touched by fire.

After killing how to choose builders garage conversions , Crystal Lizard and Sword Master most likely to Andre and instill your tool with fire.

At around level 30 you need to have the ability to get to the 27/19 landmark.

Then set aside the one pale estus to the regular estus port, level up your vigor and also endurance.

27/19 is a good stopping point as this will give you 1000 wellness unembered and 110 endurance which suffices for 5 swings and roll.

Little Orangery Conservatories And Also Glass Conservatories.

for a profile of a few of one of the most recent workplace refurbishments we have actually created. Our feedback-led office layouts will attend to pre-existing problems or problems with the current office gathered from our 'listening' procedure-- and also we'll assemble a cutting-edge and also sensible re-design. It is necessary that we comprehend what a business's aspirations are prior to continuing to the style stage. We'll want to know just how your staff feel around things as they stand in the workplace, and also just how business itself intends to expand and also run in the future.

Is a sunroom cheaper than an addition?

A sunroom is a fantastically tempting alternative to a conventional, full-sized addition. On average, these light-bathed spaces are cheaper than stick-built additions, and since fewer subcontractors are involved, sunrooms go up quickly.

Stage II starts with the strip-out of the existing workplace fit out, preserving components of the Teapoint, function as well as numerous conference room. Retaining aspects of an existing workplace interior is a regular difference in between refurb and fit-out in addition to moving team in numerous phases. If you find on your own searching for Office Fit Out London, after that make sure to speak to the group at Combination Office Style today.

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This way, we can function our magic as well as change our technique heading into the next phase. Possibly the workplace has actually had damage, or damage with time, and also you can't keep in mind the last workplace repair. We recognize that you can't place your service on hold for a day, not to mention a month or 2.

Is glass wall cheaper than brick wall?

Glass is normally double the price of a solid wall of plaster or brick. I generally would guess $70 a square foot today for glass.

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Office design as well as layout preparation is all component of the JBH Refurbishments workplace indoor fit out service. An office refurbishment is an interesting opportunity to refresh your office without the added issues of moving. Yet not having a style is the same as not having a plan, and all of us recognize the consequences of an absence of preparation.

If you need your refurbishment to be performed during working hrs then this is something we are greater than satisfied to oblige too, our quotation would certainly be sent utilizing out of typical functioning hours prices. Establishing an office refurbishment specification is a mix of common sense, market understanding and planning. Time spent on a requirements before engagement with specialists will certainly be an useful workout, eliminating price, speeding up the process and also making certain the outcome much better fits the goals.

Also if https://www.thebalancesmb.com/tips-for-builder-and-contractors-4161567 are not a customer-facing entity, it's equally as crucial that your personnel are bought your brand and what it stands for, as well as your workplace style is important in promoting this. It would certainly be an excellent world if restrictions weren't a variable on our office refurbishment checklist, yet we have yet to find throughout a job with no at all. Our office style specialists are well-versed in identifying the advantages of a room that isn't being utilized in the most effective method, and can review your readily available options with you.

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dipulb3 · 4 years

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Florida prosecutor's office stops pursuing most resisting arrest cases, causing concerns for local police

New Post has been published on https://appradab.com/florida-prosecutors-office-stops-pursuing-most-resisting-arrest-cases-causing-concerns-for-local-police/

Florida prosecutor's office stops pursuing most resisting arrest cases, causing concerns for local police

Police have used resisting arrest charges to stifle protests and free speech, said State Attorney Aramis Ayala, whose jurisdiction covers almost 1.8 million people in Orange and Osceola counties.

“I would not be surprised if there was an attempt for some type of political gratification, but I’m just defining alternative methods of prosecution,” she told Appradab.

Officers undermine public safety when they bring “the force of our criminal justice system to bear against nonviolent citizens who are simply promoting the change our society so desperately needs,” her policy, announced Tuesday, says.

Abuse of power is another factor, she said. Especially when dealing with African Americans, police too often charge people with resisting arrest as a retaliatory measure or to cover up their own misdeeds, she said.

Under the policy, most people charged with nonviolently resisting will be ordered to watch a 30-minute video on the importance of obeying police. Offenders who have been arrested in the previous six months for resisting arrest will be prosecuted normally, the policy says.

Data shows that between September 2019 and September 2020 police charged Black residents with resisting arrest almost twice as often as other demographics combined, despite African Americans making up less than 21% of the counties’ populations. The contrast could be starker for people of color in general, Ayala said, but her arrest data doesn’t differentiate between White and Hispanic.

Prosecuting the cases encourages disproportionate policing, saps needed resources, creates trauma and long-term economic hardships and fosters distrust in the legal system, the policy says.

While research shows correlations between public trust and public safety, Ayala said, there’s nothing that indicates prosecuting nonviolent resisting arrest charges leads to less crime.

“There is absolutely no research that supports the nexus,” she said, “between a person who is arrested for resisting an officer without violence and future criminality.”

Other cities, including Chicago, New York and San Diego, reportedly have had similar racial disparities in resisting arrest charges, and some prosecutors have taken steps similar to Ayala’s. But Ayala believes hers is the nation’s most sweeping, she said.

‘It’s a bad decision’

Ayala’s team will still pursue cases involving violence or other aggravating factors, but the resisting arrest announcement isn’t sitting well with some of the 21 police agencies in her sprawling Ninth Circuit.

Heads of her circuit’s two largest police agencies say they worry Ayala’s policy was hastily conceived and will create problems if people are emboldened to defy lawful orders, they told Appradab.

“That could start the chain of events that leads to us using more force, where we were just detaining you and had reasons to stop you and just wanted you to get out of the car or come and sit down,” Orange County Sheriff John Mina said. “We just think this is going to confuse our residents.”

It will also encourage drug dealers carrying narcotics to flee, the sheriff said.

“We already have an issue with people, when being stopped by law enforcement, pulling out their phone and refusing to get out of the car,” Mina said. “Police give a lawful command, you need to follow instructions.”

He and Orlando Police Chief Orlando Rolón were not consulted before Ayala’s Tuesday announcement. Rolón and Ayala briefly discussed the matter at an event this month, he said.

Ayala provided Appradab a letter she sent to police chiefs and sheriffs the day before the announcement, but Mina didn’t receive it, he said. Only Windermere Police Chief David Ogden responded, Ayala said, asking to see the video.

“It caught many people off guard … In the end, it’s about communication,” Rolón said. “We all want a nation where people feel that they are being policed (justly), and everyone is treated the same with dignity and respect and there is no question about the way law enforcement is performing their duties.”

Without singling out Rolón or Mina, Ayala said some police leaders have declined to support her reforms or issued statements contradicting her vision, she said.

“Seeking the counsel of people who don’t have same vision as me is counterproductive,” she said.

Rolón believes Ayala has good intentions, but he would have liked to share his insights. Ayala previously sought police guidance on her plan to publicly list officers who committed ethical or criminal violations, Rolón said, and he felt police input made officers more amenable to her policy.

He worries Ayala’s office is sending a message that protesters can take over an interstate or block an intersection, and it’s no big deal if they disobey police because they’ll just watch a video and do it again in six months, he said.

“It’s a bad decision,” he said. “When the only consequence of their actions is going to be a 30-minute video, then that is concerning.”

Mina was dismayed he could fast forward through the video, provide a fake name and receive a certificate of completion, he said. Appradab was able to do the same.

The video made good points, the sheriff said, but there “needs to be more deterrence.”

In Orlando, located in Orange County, officers responded to 500,000 calls and made 12,000 arrests last year, Rolón said. Only in about 2% of arrests did officers employ a takedown, pepper spray, Taser, baton, gun or other force, and the numbers are declining annually, the chief said. In Orange County, only 1.7% of arrests list nonviolent resistance as the lone charge, Mina said.

As for Ayala’s assertion that 63% of resisting charges target African Americans, Mina and Rolón did not refute the number but pointed out most reports originate with residents. In Orlando, Rolón said, most of those calls come from communities of color.

‘It tends to be widely abused’

Ayala also based her decision on her decade as a public defender, when she routinely saw trumped-up resisting arrest charges.

Her ex-boss, Ninth Circuit pubic defender Robert Wesley, concurs. He says he has seen clients charged with resisting arrest for “more innocuous” behavior such as walking away, refusing to give a name or recording police during a stop.

Once, a client who was hospitalized on Christmas Eve stepped outside in his gown for a cigarette. When a police officer told him to put it out, Wesley said, he took one more drag before complying and was charged with resisting arrest. The client spent Christmas morning in jail, he said.

“It tends to be widely abused,” the defense lawyer of 36 years said. “It can be used for less serious reasons.”

Wesley declined to say if Ayala’s policy would lighten workloads for his more than 150 staffers. But he said it would allow prosecutors to focus on “violence and other abuses” that injure people and their livelihoods.

The video nonviolent arrestees must watch informs them of their rights and when to comply with an officer’s demand.

“The police are important and so are you,” it says.

It reminds viewers that officers face risks on their jobs and may be apprehensive. The officer also may not have received treatment after a previous violent encounter, it says.

“Defusing the situation might save your life,” the video warns. “Live to tell what happened. You can fight it out in court later if you need to.”

It adds, “While citizens who have been stopped by police should not shoulder the burden of deescalation, the fact is the law does not require police to do it, and the failure to deescalate is dangerous and could even be deadly.”

From Ferguson to San Diego

Ayala’s policy notes racial disparities in resisting arrest charges are not unique to her jurisdiction.

In February, a San Diego television station reported similar differences in resisting, delaying or obstructing an officer over a seven-year period. In 2019 alone, the station reported, African Americans and Latinos accounted for 159 such arrests, compared to 54 for Whites, in a city where two out of three people are White.

The news outlet Slate last year, using data from the police watchdog Invisible Institute, reported that in 60,000 instances between 2004 and 2016 Chicago authorities more frequently used force on Black people, despite Whites being more prone to resist.

New York police were highlighted in a 2014 WNYC report that found in minor drug possession cases, Black residents were arrested for resisting at more than twice the rate of Whites in four of the five boroughs.

A 2015 article in The New York Times showed police in Greensboro, North Carolina — which was 48% white — charged Black and White offenders with resisting, delaying or obstructing at a four-to-one clip (836 Black, 209 White). The Citizen-Times in Asheville cited a University of North Carolina study showing disparities across the state.

And in Ferguson, Missouri — where Justice Department investigators converged after a police officer fatally shot Michael Brown — the agency found African Americans accounted for 92% of resisting arrest charges.

“They are inclined to interpret the exercise of free-speech rights as unlawful disobedience, innocent movements as physical threats, indications of mental or physical illness as belligerence,” the department said of Ferguson police.

Brooklyn, San Francisco also target resisting

Several agencies have strived to level Lady Justice’s scales. In Fayetteville, North Carolina, then-Police Chief Harold Medlock instructed officers to avoid resisting arrest charges unless there was a more serious crime, The New York Times reported in the Greensboro story.

More recently, the Brooklyn district attorney opted not to pursue resisting charges unless they were accompanied by body camera footage, while also declining to charge protesters unless they were violent or damaged property, spokesman Oren Yaniv said.

As part of an effort “to protect the public — especially Black communities — from police violence,” San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin this summer instituted similar policies, he wrote in an op-ed.

The policy was driven by the George Floyd protests but also by a local case in which a resisting arrest charge was dismissed after a bodycam showed an officer pinning down a suspect’s head with her knee, spokeswoman Rachel Marshall told Appradab.

“This policy was created to ensure that officers are not manufacturing false charges to cover up excessive force,” she said. “Police body camera footage may reveal a very different picture than police reports depict — especially when police officers are worried about protecting themselves from allegations of excessive force or illegal conduct.”

Boudin is pleased with the results, she said, as it “ensures the integrity of filed charges.”

Sheriff Mina in Florida likes the idea of the body camera policy, he said, adding he might have suggested something similar to Ayala had he been consulted.

“I think that’s smart,” he said. “That would be my preference: Let’s watch the video and see if this is a case that needs to move forward.”

Ayala knows she’s a lame duck — voters will decide her successor next month — but she hopes she can convince the next state attorney to maintain her reforms, such as the resisting arrest policy, publicizing the names of bad police officers and her conviction integrity unit.

“I wanted to recognize history, and change in this country comes from people on the ground moving the people in power,” she said. “I was moved by the protests and wanted to protect rights.”

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un-enfant-immature · 6 years

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Microsoft’s new expense tracker Spend hits the App Store

The team behind mileage-tracking app MileIQ, a company Microsoft acquired a few years ago, is out with a new application. This time, the focus isn’t on tracking miles, but rather expenses. The new app, simply called “Spend,” arrived on the App Store on Thursday, offering automatic expense tracking for work reimbursement purposes or for taxes.

Spend doesn’t appear to be a part of some grand Microsoft plan to take on expense tracking industry giants, like Expensify or SAP-owned Concur, for example. At least, not at this time.

Instead, the app is a Microsoft Garage project, the App Store clarifies.

Microsoft Garage is the company’s internal incubator when employees can test out new ideas to see if they resonate with consumers and business users.

Through the program, a number of interesting projects have gotten their start over the years, like the Cortana-based dictation tool, Dictate; mobile design creation app Sprightly; short-form email app Send; the Word Flow keyboard for smartphones; a Bing-backed alternative to Google News; and dozens more.

The new Spend app, at first glance, looks well-designed and easy to use.

Like most expense trackers, it offers features like the ability to take photos of receipts, expense categorization features, and reporting.

However, what makes Spend interesting is the app’s automated tracking and matching, and its user interface for working with your receipts.

The app begins by automatically tracking all your expenses from a linked credit card or bank account. You can then swipe on the expenses to mark them as personal or business. These expenses are automatically categorized, and you can add extra tags for added organization.

You can also add notes to purchases, split expenses, and customize expense categories, in addition to tags.

And the app can generate expense reports on a weekly, monthly or custom bases, which can be exported at spreadsheets or PDFs. There’s a web dashboard for when you’re using the app at your computer, but Spend doesn’t appear on the MileIQ main website at this time. It does, however, have a support site.

The company says the new app is an early version, and they plan to revise it going forward as they make improvements. Microsoft has been asked for more details on its plans with Spend, and we’ll update if they have more to offer.

#TechCrunch

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kairostechinc · 4 years

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Top 15 Most Popular SaaS, Cloud Apps for Business 2020

Which cloud applications and SaaS offerings are most popular with business users? The sixth-annual Business @ Work report, from Okta, pinpoints the 15 most widely used SaaS and cloud applications. The report is based on real-world monitoring and analytics data rather than customer surveys.

Here’s a look at this year’s Okta list, along with ChannelE2E’s channel-centric observations about each SaaS and cloud offering. Note: The Okta research was published before the coronavirus pandemic — which has driven even more consumption of SaaS and cloud apps.

Most Popular Cloud Apps 2020 by Number of Customers

1. Microsoft Office 365: No surprise here. Check ChannelE2E’s Top 100 Vertical Market MSP list for 2020 (coming later this month), and you’ll notice that channel partners consider Microsoft’s SaaS suite as the top offering in their business software toolkits.

2. Salesforce: It’s hard to debate this one as well. Amid strong business demand for Salesforce deployments, the company’s channel partners and Salesforce IT consulting firms continue to buy one another.

3. Amazon Web Services (AWS): Known best as an IaaS platform, AWS continues to attract public cloud MSPs to back Amazon’s cloud.

4. Google G-Suite: Give the search giant credit. After hiring Oracle veteran Thomas Kurian as CEO of Google Cloud, the business has gained momentum through new partner programs and acquisitions. Among the most recent partner wins: SADA, a Top 200 public cloud MSP, in February 2020 committed to driving $500 million in revenues for Google Cloud Platform (GCP) over the next three years.

5. Atlassian Product Suite: The company’s software allows software developers, IT service desks and other types of teams to collaborate. From time to time, Atlanssian has been the subject of Google Cloud takeover rumors.

6. Slack: The popular Microsoft Teams alternative also has some momentum in the MSP market. For instance, a next-generation MSP called Electric leverages Slack for its customer support systems.

7. Zoom: Okta’s report was published long before Zoom security concerns went mainstream. But even amid those concerns, Zoom’s user base grew amid the Work From Home (WFH) craze driven by the Coronavirus pandemic,.

8. Box: You know about the classic competition vs. Dropbox (ranked 14, below). But more recently, Box has faced activist investor pressures from the likes of Starboard Value. Even when you rank among the world’s most popular SaaS applications, some investors always seem to want “more.”

9. SAP Concur: The travel and expense management platform was wildly popular ahead of the coronavirus pandemic. But as business travel slows, the platform may need to promote some additional use cases to partners and customers.

10. Cisco Meraki: A pioneer in cloud-based networking, Cisco Meraki remains a trend setter for MSPs seeking multi-tenant management capabilities.

11. DocuSign: The e-signature platform will surely get another boost amid the coronavirus pandemic — as law firms and legal teams increasingly leverage digital documents for business transactions of all types.

12. Zendesk: The SaaS giant now offers IT service management and CRM management tools. And other the past year, Zendesk has been building out a network of global systems integrators.

13. GitHub: Built for developers, GitHub attracted Microsoft as a new owner in 2018. Here are five reasons why Microsoft spent $7.5 billion to acquire GitHub.

14. Dropbox: The Box rival has a strong following in the SMB channel, and has made these moves in recent years…

15. Lucidchart: This is a web-based platform allows users to collaborate on drawing, revising and sharing charts and diagrams. It’s a popular tool for helping IT service desks design processes to provision and troubleshoot technology issues.

This Article Source is From: https://www.channele2e.com/channel-partners/csps/top-15-most-popular-saas-cloud-apps-for-business-2020/

#saas #cloud #salesforce #google cloud #public cloud #technology

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piyushskumar · 5 years

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SAP Concur Extends TripIt Pro to Help All...

Starting March 13, TripIt is making our premium Pro service accessible to all travelers to help them stay on top of flights delays or cancellations, and to find alternative flights. We hope this makes things a little easier for anyone traveling.

SAP Concur Extends TripIt Pro to Help All...

SAP Get Social

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oliverhuschke · 5 years

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SAP Concur Extends TripIt Pro to Help All...

SAP Get Social

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itsfinancethings · 5 years

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If there’s a left-leaning policy being proposed by a Democratic presidential candidate this election season, odds are it has already been suggested—and probably even tested—in Seattle. Want to tax the rich, like Bernie Sanders advises? Seattle’s city council unanimously passed a bill doing so in 2017 (though it quickly got tied up in court.) Want a $15 minimum wage for all workers, as Elizabeth Warren calls for? Seattle passed that into law five years ago. How about a bill of rights for domestic workers, a measure supported by Kamala Harris? Seattle passed that last year. And while critics of those plans say they put an undue burden on businesses, local officials in Seattle say they’re helping, not hurting, economic growth.

“The interesting role that Seattle has played in the last 10 or so years has been to lead with progressive policy and show that it worked,” says Teresa Mosqueda, a 39-year-old city councilwoman, from her second-floor office in Seattle’s City Hall, which is dwarfed by huge skyscrapers on all sides.

But business leaders in Seattle are pushing back against left-leaning officials like Mosqueda, pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into attempts to defeat proposals that raise taxes to benefit low-income workers and the homeless. “There’s a basic feeling that [the City Council] isn’t doing a good job, and we don’t want them to take actions that are going to hurt the one thing that is going well in our town—the economy,” says Heather Redman, a venture capitalist and chair of the Washington Technology Industry Association, whose membership includes hundreds of tech companies doing business in the area, including Microsoft and Amazon.

An unprecedented seven of nine seats on Seattle’s city council are up for grabs in November. Local business leaders, especially those in tech, see November’s election as a way to reset the city. “There is really this sense that the council has moved too far to the left, and the Chamber [of Commerce] sees this election as a way to really take control of the council,” says Knute Berger, a columnist for Seattle magazine. National politicians may want to keep an eye on Seattle, one of the most progressive cities in the country, where businesses are trying to convince voters that there is such a thing as too liberal. The city’s upcoming election will be a test of whether Democratic voters are truly willing to stand behind the progressive ideas being talked about nationwide after they’re passed into law.

Stephen Brashear—Getty ImagesSeattle City Councilor Teresa Mosqueda speaks to protesters before the Starbucks annual shareholders meeting at WAMU Theater, on March 20, 2019 in Seattle, Washington.

Seattle’s recent legislative history reads like the ultimate progressive checklist. In 2014, it passed a landmark minimum wage law and created a city office that enforces the law and investigates potential violators. Two years later came a “secure scheduling” law that requires employers to give workers more notice about what hours they’ll be working, and compensate them if their hours change without enough notice. In 2015, Seattle passed a law making it easier for Uber and Lyft drivers to unionize. (The U.S. Chamber of Commerce challenged it in court; the case is ongoing.) In the last month alone, Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan introduced a bill that would tax ride hailing companies and establish a minimum wage for drivers, the council voted to avoid doing business with any company that leases land in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil exploration, and council member Kshama Sawant, a member of the Socialist Alternative party, led a march on City Hall to support rent control, which is currently illegal in the state of Washington.

Council members like Mosqueda, who was formerly a lobbyist and campaign manager for the state AFL-CIO, says the city’s progressive policies have helped grow Seattle’s economy. The minimum wage increase put more money in residents’ pockets, which they can spend at local businesses, she says. The Seattle metro area’s 3.1 percent unemployment rate is much lower than the state average of 4.6 percent, and taxable retail sales in Seattle have grown 50 percent over the past five years, according to state data. Last year, Forbes named Seattle the best place in the country for business and careers. Tech in particular has boomed in Seattle — in addition to Amazon and Microsoft, the region is home to SAP Concur, Expedia, Redfin, Tableau, and hundreds of others. “I think part of what has made this economy so good is the fact that we’ve invested in workers,” says Mosqueda.

Try telling that to local business leaders. They say the high minimum wage has forced small businesses to close, that the secure scheduling rule gave them less flexibility, and that a proposed tax on businesses to pay for affordable housing and homelessness services would have driven out companies that power the region’s economy. Dick’s Drive-In, a 65-year-old Seattle restaurant chain, had to raise prices when the minimum wage went up, says Jasmine Donovan, the company’s president. Employees now want to work fewer hours, so it can be hard to find people to fill shifts. “If these regulations were around when our business started, we wouldn’t have made it,” she says. Ari Hoffman, a businessman who lost a race for a city council seat in an August primary, calls the council’s projects “virtue signaling with no practical applications.” “None of them have ever run a business before, and have no practical, common-sense solutions to the city’s problems,” he says.

Seattle’s booming technology sector is becoming particularly vocal about the city’s leftward march — and it’s putting its considerable money behind moving the city back towards the center. “Tech companies are really wading into Seattle politics in a big way, and it’s a role they haven’t played before,” says Dean Nielsen, a Democratic political consultant in Seattle. In July, the Washington Technology Industry Association issued its first-ever endorsements in a City Council race. It backed only one incumbent, saying it was looking for candidates “who will genuinely engage in a productive dialogue with the technology sector.” Amazon gave $400,000 to the Civic Alliance for a Sound Economy (CASE), a PAC sponsored by the Seattle Chamber of Commerce, in 2019, which made similar endorsements. An Amazon spokesperson said the company supports CASE’s endorsements, and that it donated to the organization “because we care about the economic health of Seattle and the region.” Other companies that donated to the Chamber’s PAC this year include Expedia ($50,000), Boeing ($30,000), and Vulcan ($155,000), the company created by the late Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen.

Tensions between the business community and elected officials came to a head last year over one issue in particular: homelessness. In May of 2018, Seattle’s city council passed a $275-per-employee tax on businesses making more than $20 million a year that would have raised money for programs to address the city’s growing homelessness crisis. But the law ran head-first into a brick wall of corporate opposition. Amazon threatened to stop construction on a downtown Seattle office tower over the tax, and gave $25,000 to an initiative created explicitly to oppose the tax and send it to a ballot referendum. The group created to oppose the tax raised tens of thousands of more dollars, and a few weeks later, in an embarrassing reversal, many of the council members who had voted in favor of the tax voted to repeal it. Only two, Mosqueda and Sawant, voted to keep the tax.

David Ryder—Getty ImagesA homeless man, who said he was aware of the forecast for extreme weather, rests in a park while covered with snow on February 8, 2019 in Seattle, Washington.

As in cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles, Seattle’s homeless population is growing as affordable housing gets harder to find. Rising homelessness has increasingly become a way for politicians to criticize West Coast cities whose progressive policies might otherwise be threatening to them. After President Trump visited San Francisco last month, he said that he wasn’t going to let West Coast cities “destroy themselves” because of rising homelessness, and said the Environmental Protection Agency was going to look into environmental problems created by people living on the streets. “Some of the issues falling on their plates are divisive and intractable and not within the city council’s capacity to solve,” said Berger, the columnist. “Homelessness, for instance, is not something a city council can solve on its own.”

Who voters blame for the homelessness crisis, rather than how they feel about minimum wage hikes or secure scheduling ordinances, will likely determine whether Seattle’s great liberal experiment can continue. With that in mind, businesses are focusing in on the issue as a means to pursue their legislative goals, says Nick Hanauer, a Seattle venture capitalist who was one of Amazon’s earliest investors and who created Civic Ventures, a Seattle public policy think tank. “There is a concerted effort by the business community to weaponize the issue of homelessness — it’s the best way they have found to attack the progressive governance,” he said. “Pay no attention to the fact that anytime anyone suggests that cities need to raise revenues, they kill it.”

Tensions between business leaders and urban elected officials are only likely to rise in coming years across America. Cities are becoming more and more liberal as they become hubs for high-skilled, educated workers, and urban areas become too expensive for anyone else. Around 62 percent of registered voters in urban counties identified as Democrats in 2017, according to the Pew Research Center, up from 55 percent in 1998, while 54 percent of voters in rural counties identify as Republicans, up from 45 percent in 1998.

Seattle isn’t the only city that has embraced progressive policies over the last few years, to the chagrin of many local business leaders. San Francisco launched a universal health care program more than a decade ago, and last year passed a tax on businesses to raise money for a homelessness program. New York City is trying to guarantee universal pre-K to all residents. Chicago has also passed a law giving unprecedented protections to domestic workers.

It will be crucial for progressive officials like Mosqueda to convince voters that they’re simultaneously improving conditions for workers while trying to address problems like homelessness. As politics come to a standstill at a national level, it’s up to cities to prove that the best way forward is the progressive way, she says. For her, that was the lesson from election night in 2016, when she was celebrating the passage of a statewide minimum wage and paid sick leave law on the same day that Donald Trump was elected President. “It became clear that this was the last line of defense,” she said. “We have to stand up for our progressive cities, which are going to be the front line for defending the most vulnerable people in America.”

#IFTTT #Blogger

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