Alternative fuels including wind, solar, geo-thermal, ethanol, coal seam gas and natural gas.

Why You Should Hire an Architect

Posted: September 8th, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: | No Comments »

An architect is a highly trained professional who has experience in planning, designing and the construction of buildings and the oversight of construction projects.

Also, one is not considered an architect until he or she has properly passed all the necessary education and accredited programs to procure a license in order to practice architecture. When practicing architecture, the architect can have free reign to design the building or group of buildings, as well as the space around it that still counts as part of the project. These ideas form the planning stage of the project and can take months to finalise.

The reason why architects are so important to the success of any building plan is simple: they can put your ideas into a feasible and concrete reality. If you have great ambitions for your home or place of business, then an architect can make sure that those visions will come true.

But aside from the actual design of the building, there are so many other complex factors (beyond the scope of inexperienced people) that need to be taken into account, and these are also covered in the responsibilities of the architect.

For example, there are some architectural firms that not only design the building for you, but they also prepare the tender documents for the pricing of the entire project, and are the ones that most commonly talk to the contractors, stakeholders and any third parties involved in the assignment.

When you hire an architect, you will not have to be confused by by all the small technical details. All you have to be concerned about is if whether or not the building is coming along according to your plans originally established with the help of the architect.

The architect is also very helpful before construction begins. If you do not have an actual plan but do have an idea on what you want your structure to look like, then that is where the professional can help you on the project.

All you have to do is to present them with some ideas and they can be the ones to take care of site analysis, the assistance you may need in zoning and planning, any environmental impact studies you may need, bidding and contract negotiation with the contractor and his men, and so much more.

The architect that you hire will be involved in all of the aspects of your project. Essentially, you are hiring an architect because you require a trained expert to take charge of planning and designing the building or dwelling as well as provide the necessary feedback and support throughout the entire project.

Hiring an architect is like taking on a business partner for your project, one who is knowledgeable, knows the risk areas around the project and knows how to minimize those risks, has the necessary people skills to work with contractors in order to hire additional resources within budget.

A good architect will treat the project as though it is his or her own and will devise creative ideas and plans to the manager, and discuss in great detail the advantages, disadvantages, any problems of a particular strategy.

These are just some of the many important benefits and key reasons why you should use an architect. There are so many more reasons that really prove that any project worth going through with has to be under the supervision of a highly qualified architect. In the end, it all boils down to the fact that you have a dream construction project, and your architect is the person to make all these dreams become reality.

Looking for Brisbane architects? For renovation architects Brisbane, contact Dion Seminara Architecture. They are leading home improvement architects. Brisbane office is located in Morningside.


Tents and Marquees

Posted: September 2nd, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , | No Comments »

marquees-pavillion-3Event Tents, such as wedding tents are used when you want to make a splendid outdoor scene. They are generally structures installed at a location for a period of time.

Why A Tent?
Commercial Tents are used as protection from the sun, rain or a gathering place. They can make a stunning and creative atmosphere for any event.

Tent Rentals
Tents can be rented or leased for a day, a weekend, weeks, months, etc. For one or two day events, the Tents are usually installed a few days before the event, depending on scheduling and weather, and remain until a few days after the event. Many rentals are quoted for the entire week, allowing for time to set up and design the interior and exterior. Some Tents are built for exceedingly long-term events and have been installed and remain installed for years.

What Kind of Tent Should I Rent?
Tent rental companies come in all sizes – from small-sized companies with just a few Tents to exceedingly large-sized companies – carrying dozens of several sizes and styles of Tents. Some general rental companies rent from tent rental companies to accommodate their client’s needs.

You may know you want to use a standard Tent for your event, or your event planner may already have in mind to use a Tent. You have options! There are lots of other splendid
structures and Tent styles out there. Some are unique and make a statement of their own. Ask the rental company you’re working with for a list of the type styles they have on hand.

Usually, the different types of Tents available in most companies are (the names vary depending of the company):

Folding Tents Easy and fast to use and always in demand. Very popular, because usually is the less expensive tent. Fast, flexible, cost effective and long lasting.

They are used by:

  • Corporate brands across most industries
  • Government & Council buyers
  • SME business marketers
  • Franchisees
  • Agricultural exhibitors
  • Emergency services & community groups
  • Folding Tents create brand exposure opportunities.
  • You can reach your audience at the right time, in the right place with the right message.

Inflatable Tents An exciting and fun alternative Tent. Easy & fast to set up. Be sure they have removable printed roof because in that way you can share the investment with other licences.

What Size Tent Will I Need?

The size of Tent depends on a few factors:

1. The number of guests you expect
2. Layout or seating arrangements or the style of event:

* Reception with what type of tables?
* Speaker engagement with what type of seating?
* Will you need a dance floor?
* Will you need display areas for your products?

If you are interested in a Tent, you can expect to need about 2,000 – 2,500 square feet for 200-seated guests. That could mean a 40 x 60 size Tent (Always ask the Tent rental vendor directly and they’ll give you the best dataabout the size of Tent you’ll need).

Therefore, the key rule is; know what you are going to use your tent for. The choice of tents is amazing, almost on par with the choice of cars that you can buy.

So if you need a tent for the family BBQ, for example, your needs are fairly fundamental
and your budget may be tight. Look for cheap tents that offers a waterproof Polyester roof and a good warranty for under $600.

If you need a tent for a school or sports club you will need a diverse range of sizes, and colours. Most plain colour Tents s range between $995- $2900. If you are keen to advertise yourself, you can have your names printed for around $150-$300. Printing logos usually be a little more expensive.

In the last 5 years, portable Tents have become important to businesses for their marketing. The key need for these buyers is a prominent and quality reproduction of their logo. Sign written or printed Tents can be as dull as a website address or they can be a design masterpiece.

Remember, if it is for commercial purposes, the aim is to build awareness of your company with your printed Tent. Printed corporate Tents range in price from $1500- $4000. Good ones will really catch your eye.

Once you have decided on what sort of buyer you are and how you are going to use your Tents, a good Tents company will offer you a choice of frames, a warranty of between 3-5 years and help with designing the printing-if you need it.

For more information about tents, contact Extreme Marquees. We have a range of cheap tents, for all sorts of home and business applications.


Repairing Flooded Carpet: A cheap job is a good job right? Wrong….

Posted: August 18th, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »

Don’t allow an amateur 24 hour carpet cleaner come to repair your carpets damaged by water. These are the worries you have to be wary of:

Overcharging. An amateur water restoration technician may fill the job up with superfluous inclusions. E.g. using dehumidification on the water damaged carpets may not be needed.

Using the correct equipment. They might borrow equipment from hire places to dry the carpet. This is permissible, but an experienced water damage restorer will have all their equipment so they offer a speedy response and hopefully a better value job.

Moisture metre. If they don’t have the right moisture meter, they will not be able to know when the carpet is fixed. This furthers the potential of mould in future. Mould removal may be required.

Specialised. There are many “Carpet Cleaners” in this industry who do restoration repairs on the “side.” i.e. they aren’t those who complete this sort of task each day. Be aware of it. Repairing carpets is an art. Removing and repairing and reinstalling the carpet must be taken on by a professional, otherwise it can be permanently damaged.

You might be wondering, how do I decide on a proper Flood Restoration Business? Below I have set out some signifiers to look out for when you call around for a carpet flood damage business:

What size is their Yellow Pages ad slot: This can signify how much repair work they have already. A full-size Yellow Pages ad can cost more than $50 000. So if they have got a large ad, you have some assurance that they are professionals.

Where do they show in Google? The higher their rank in Google, the more webpage views there has been for the business.

What Qualifications do they have? The fundamental qualification required is a IICRC qualification in Applied Structural Drying and Water Damage Restoration.

Do Insurance companies use them for their own water damage jobs? This is a top indicator. If insurance companies use them, the business is likely to be good at their job. Insurance companies often use the providers that give them the better value for their money.

What Equipment do they have? They should own at minimum 100 Air movers. If they possess this many, this could indicate they have been established for a while. Our business took 8 years to build up that many wet carpet drying air movers.

What sort of commitment can you get for them on the phone? See if you can pin them down to a set price for water extraction, water removal and initial inspection. If they can’t give you a package for this in the least, you know they are not willing to assist you, so move on.

Response Time – Our Water Damage Brisbane business operates to a 59 minute response time to water damage emergency. The restoration needs to be done ASAP. Mould can develop during a 24 hour period.

If you go by these tips you are sure to get a Flood Damage Restoration company who can get the job done right.

If you have carpet water damage Brisbane, call us for flooded wet carpet drying. Brisbane storm season is approaching and you may need storm damage carpet cleaning. Brisbane and surrounding areas serviced.


Podiatry as a Career in Australia

Posted: August 13th, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , | No Comments »

As a practicing podiatrist in Brisbane, Australia, I am frequently asked by parents if podiatry would be a good career for a school leaver to contemplate . There are many things to recommend a career in podiatry including:

  • You can be self employed: This is a choice that is increasingly being denied to other health care providers such as optometrists and even GPs . Big Business controls a lot of health practices. Consider how often you see an independent optometrist these days – can they compete on price with the multinational chains?
  • Legal Issues: In Australia (unlike the USA where things are very different), podiatrists very, very rarely face litigation . The nature of podiatry practice does not lend itself to accidentally harming one’s patients. Also, you never have to give your patients the bad news that their condition will be terminal.
  • Working Hours: Emergency call outs are very unlikely. This is a desirable fact for those among us who like their sleep uninterrupted.
  • Financial Reward: Whilst it is true that podiatry doesn’t pay as well as being a dentist or doctor , the remuneration is generally commensurate with other allied health providers.
  • Instant Gratification: One of the most fulfilling things about a career as a podiatrist is the instant gratification! People come in with pain and leave happy. You will see a plethora of bite-sized jobs each day, many with a cure you can provide immediately. From someone that has worked with unanimously grumpy customers in a past career, believe me when I tell you, it makes the day much more pleasant when people leave you smiling.
  • Philanthropy: Podiatry will give you a great deal of opportunity to help resolve the suffering of your fellow human beings.
  • Self – Determination: Podiatry affords a clinician the power to determine their own course of action for the benefit of their patients. This is unlike a career in nursing for example where one works under the direction of a doctor.
  • Clear Job roles: The only people who can work as a podiatrist are those with a podiatry qualification. The clear roles that this defines relieves the requirement to find your ‘niche’ after university – as someone with a more generic Bachelor of Science degree might need to do.
  • Like to travel? There are many places across the world that do not qualify their own podiatrists including Tasmania, the Northern Territory, all of Asia and all of the Middle East. If you want to travel the world, Australian podiatrists can work in any Commonwealth country and are particularly in demand in Singapore, Egypt, United Arab Emirates and other far flung fields.
  • Variety: In any given day, a podiatrist will see a big range of complaints. There may be an ingrown toenail or two, a painful corn, a sporting injury, some back pain and at least a couple of painful heels . The essence of being a good podiatrist is to be an effective problem solver. Every patient is an individual with a unique problem requiring a well considered solution.

How do you become a qualified as a podiatrist ?

To qualify as a podiatrist requires six Australian Universities:

  • Curtin University
  • La Trobe University
  • Charles Sturt University
  • Queensland University of Technology
  • University of South Australia
  • University of Western Sydney.

Last year, the entry score for the QUT was OP 8.

Stephanie Cosgrove graduated as a podiatrist from QUT in 1990 and with a Master’s degree in Applied Science (Podiatry) in 1996. Since 1991, she has worked in private practice as a Podiatrist Brisbane. She received three university prizes during her studies, including the award for excellence in design and manufacture of orthotics. Brisbane has been the site of her private practice since 1991 which has grown to four locations and eleven staff. If you want to Walk Without Pain consider a visit to Brisbane’s most innovative podiatry practice today. Call for an appointment now on 1300 A1 Feet.


Eight Steps to Great Web Design

Posted: August 7th, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , | No Comments »

Take charge of getting your site conceived by a developer and comprehend the process it will save you money and get you a site that actually works the intended purpose!

1. Understanding your business and how you are currently positioned in your market.
In order to establish a site that truly meets your requirements; you first need to have a full understanding of your business including your products, and/or services and more importantly their market position. You then have to acknowledge how you want to explain your business and what it offers in 7 seconds or less. Sounds impossible? Well that is the average time that a user will consider the point “is this site I searched for?”.

2. Budget and estimation
Have a budget in mind and don’t be afraid to let the developers know what it is. In saying this: BE REALISTIC, $500 will never see a great web site created, nor will they be anything left in the bank to market it.

3. The creative process
Be furnished with example sites and more importantly the elements of the site you like so they can accomplish an understanding of what you would like to see on your site and also what you find frustrating about other sites. This will build a good profile and realise not only what type of site to actualize for you but your tolerance to colours, animations, layouts etc. for your requirements which will allow for efficient development. The more interaction and information you confer them in the beginning the more time you will save everybody in the long run by getting what you want 1st time round. Check with the designers on how many rounds of changes come with the contract, most will allow for a total conceptual redesign only once and 2 rounds of changes after that.

4. Production and Content
After the home page design is created, the developers will more than likely collect the general layout of this concept and then formulate the inner page template. It is this template that will be duplicated for most of your pages for your site.
Present your content in a pre-proofed word processed document; don’t become too creative with the document fonts etc. as these will not be kept when the content is copied into the code of the site. It is preferred that you do use bolding, underlining, headings and sub heading though ,as these highlights are transferred into the site and are very important later on in not only interacting with the reader but for Search Engine Optimisation.
One last tip for content; provide a decent amount of content but formulate it in a way that a reader may achieve a summary of what you are trying to present across in the 1st couple of paragraphs and an image or to. The rest of the paragraphs that get into finer details ARE FOR GOOGLE !

5. Development Programming and CMS
If your website contains Content Managed Areas (CMS) or has any other dynamic sections the developers will wrap your design around a content management program such as Joomla or Drupal or they may have a custom built system. Make sure that you get to see how the CMS system works on another site they have developed or an example site they may have. You need to know that you can utilize and comprehend the system when your site is complete.

6. Testing and training
We work closely with the developers to test your site especially if there are any CMS or special programs that have been made for you. You can guarantee if it is has just been written for you then it will not work 100% first time round. This is a where things can get ugly in the process you must understand the way the program works and test it as if you were normal website user. If it doesn’t make sense to you, odds are it won’t make sense to your audience. Make sure you test your website on more than just your browser, try to test it on Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari. All of these browsers are available to download on the internet for free!

7. Launch – going live
When the developers are ready to make your site onlive make sure you have completed the above testing step until you are pleased that this website is the best representation of your business / product it can be. Remember even though you can change things after going live it is still a poor reflection on your business if there are spelling mistakes or broken images when you launch.

8. Marketing
There is little point in having a website if nobody visits it, make sure as part of you contract you have considered search engine optimisation and or search engine marketing as part of your website build. This is the absolute most important factor of the whole process. If you are the only one looking at your site then you are in trouble.

Remember Search Engine Optimisation is about 30% Onsite (getting your site correct for Search Engine to index correctly) and 70% Promotion. Any developer who tells you otherwise hasn’t been in the industry too long.

For more information about web design Brisbane, contact Web Site Blue. Our web designers understand marketing as well as design.


Tips to Creating a New Business Logo

Posted: August 6th, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , | No Comments »

A logo is a central step to forming a business. It is the face of your business. And like your face represents the tone of your business, indicates the service and reveals the professionalism or lack there of.

People spend a lot of money on the formation of their logo and walk away with no artwork files. Then a couple months down the track when they require to put signage on their new building they cannot track the design studio down that created the original logo for them and so incur costs to have it recreated. This is redundant and may cause complications when trying to recreate the logo exactly as done originally.

We have created some basic tips you for to think about when creating a logo. Hopefully these will help you from experiencing any future difficulties.

Tip 1
First things first – you need to decide if you would like your logo to have an accompanying icon. It is hinted that if your service or product name is not in your business name then perhaps an icon will assist in portraying a clear message across to your target audience.

An icon can add an extra element to your branding in that you could use the icon on its own on collateral where perhaps you are looking for a more illustrative finish without losing recognition.

A excellent example of this is the well-known and executed Nike logo.

Tip 2
Colour can be an extremely important decision as it not only could alter the output costs but can also hinder your output use. Think about the end result and what you will be bringing your branding onto in the future. Make sure your designer is aware of this as they should design accordingly.

Tip 3
Insure you get a back up disk of your logo as a master file and insure that it includes all the files required for the different printing formats.

Creative software updates frequently and some programmes become obsolete. Assure you have a copy of your logo as a PDF – with the text converted to curves.

Tip 4
Using images in your logo is not very easy to regulate. For example it is troublesome to reverse into black and white. Images also have limitations when it comes to size – they can only be reproduced to a certain size before they start pixilation.

Tip 5
Using gradients in your logo is not recommended. This too can have limitations when it comes to output for ie: gradients are hard to reproduce when embroidering fabrics.

Tip 6
Assure sure the font is legible. Some logos need to be reproduced on small pieces of collateral ie: post stamps. It is important that in this case the text is
legible.

Tip 7
Make certain that you accept a copy of your logo in CMYK high resolution 300 dpi (for printing use) and RGB 72 dpi(for web use).

Tip 8
It is important to have a style guide of your logo. It will clearly show you how to use your logo so it looks exactly the same every time it is reproduced. This allows you to keep your corporate image consistent.

Tip 9
Make sure that you get a letter from the design studio declaring that you own the copyright to your logo.

If you follow these tips then not only will you collect a well-designed logo but you will also own the artwork. And when it comes to reproducing your collateral you will be doing it the most cost effective way.

For logo design Brisbane and web design Brisbane, contact graphic design Brisbane today for a free two hour consultation.


How to Create a Style Guide

Posted: July 31st, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | No Comments »

How many times have you sent business cards to print and collected yet another version of your corporate colour? Ever been enthusiastic to see your advert in the latest newspaper and then spotted that the crucial tag line is missing or your logo has been squashed.

There is only one way to stop this from happening and that is to set up a style guide. Not only will a style guide aid you direct the reproduction of your logo – it will also help you sustain your brand recognition – which many argue is one of the strongest selling tools.

We have placed the below steps together for you as a starting point.

Step 1 : Outline the audience for your Style Guide. Is this for staff to use in-house or is this for suppliers and contractors to refer to?

Step 2 : Outline what your output uses are. This is important because you will want different logos and file formats for example, black and white publication adverts in comparison to vehicle graphics.

Step 3 : Define the tone for the copy and content required. For example you may requirecopy rules for printed content and then copy rules for website content.

Content rules cover all punctuation rules and how to attribute to the business and team.

Step 4 : Confirm you layout all the design templates so it is clear how and where the logo and branding sits on all the different pieces of collateral that may be reprinted.

Step 5 : Insure to take into account any contributing logos or logos of business that are affiliated with you. It’s also important that you mail a copy of the layout to these companies to insure they approve the layout of their logo as they too may have their own Style Guide and hierarchy layout rules.

Step 6 : Confirm that grammar, spelling and contact details are correct.

Step 7 : Confirm that when suppliers are using the Style Guide they understand~know~discern~apprehend} that a proof needs to be dispatched~sent~mailed~commissioned}to you to be affirmed as correct.

Have your Style Guide finished and as established as possible. Then have it saved in an email friendly file format and have a couple printed. Once this is done we strongly suggest a training session – whereby your design studio comes in and trains your staff on how to use the Style Guide and most importantly your brand.

For graphic design Brisbane, logo design Brisbane and web design Brisbane, contact Bydaughters today. We help your brand build business.


Projectors: LCD Verses DLP (The downfall of DLP technology)

Posted: July 19th, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , | No Comments »

The common question that is asked when acquiring a new projector for the home, office, or classroom is: will I buy an LCD projector or a DLP projector? LCD, standing for ‘liquid crystal device’ and DLP, short for ‘digital light processing’ are the two top projector imaging technologies. With so many different brands and models available, it can be difficult for the buyer to decide between these technologies. It comes down to the fact that LCD projectors have far better image quality and colour accuracy. The following article explains why DLP projectors struggle with creating a comparable standard of image quality.

Visualise a set of blinds in your room for your bedroom window. By pulling on a rod you can make the shutters open or closed, depending on if you want to let light in or not. That is exactly how an LCD projector functions. Each pixel operates like an individual shutter on a set of blinds to either allow light through or to block it. DLP on the other hand is created of millions of microscopic mirrors or ‘pixel elements’ as experts like to call them. Each pixel element functions to either reflect light or block it.

How the light source is processed from when the projector turns on to when the content reaches your screen is absolutely important for image quality, brightness and colour accuracy. LCD projectors process white light from the lamp by cutting it into red, blue and green components, by three mirrors which direct the coloured light to 3 separate LCD panels. The 3 LCD panels create the elements of the image by turning each pixel on and off. The pixels are then meshed in a glass prism to create the projector image. A point to remember about LCD projectors is that all three colours are sent onto your projector screen all at once. The way a DLP projector runs is totally different and even the produced image comes out is not the same. With DLP, white light from the lamp is sent through a rotating colour wheel with transparent red, blue and green segments, at speeds up to 11,000 rpm/s. This way of forming an image creates a sequence of red, blue and green light. The millions of micro mirrors as described above reflect the coloured light on the pixels to create the image elements. The elements of the image are projected in sequence on the screen, one colour at a time. The viewer’s vision will then put together each coloured element of the image into a whole image. From LCD projectors, all colours are available all the time to deliver high brightness and superb colour accuracy. In DLP, just one colour is available at any given time, causing lower colour brightness and accuracy. Some manufacturers have added a white segment into the colour wheel to improve general brightness, but this then degrades colour accuracy.

I see in forums all the time that DLP provides a higher contrast ratio and ergo must be superior. For those unaware, the contrast ratio is a measure of a display system defined as the ratio of the luminance of the brightest white to that of the darkest black that the technology is capable of producing. DLP projectors do provide high contrast specifications when compared to a majority of LCD projectors. At a glance, this seems to be a benefit, however, in truth, the true black level is determined by the ambient light in the room in which the projector is utilised. Do not be tricked by contrast specifications on websites and in brochures.

When the content you are trying to bring to life includes moving images, DLP projection technology can also have image marks, or ‘artifacts’. The most often seen artifact that a DLP projector forms with moving images is colour break up. Colour break up is unavoidable in DLP systems because moving images change between the time red, blue and green colours are shone. LCD projectors do not have this disadvantage because the colours are processed at the same time. DLP designers have formed 3DLP solutions using 3 chips to resolve the colour break up problem, but the cost of these projectors make them hardly practical for many businesses and consumers.

Another variance between LCD and DLP is how they balance for the refractive qualities of light. Think back to high school science, and they taught you how different colours of light refract differing amounts when directed through the same lens. The downfall with DLP projectors is that they use the one same panel for the same lens to project Red, Blue and Green. All 3 colours are different and refract light in different ways. Most of the time with a DLP projector, some yellow colour will be projected above and some blue will appear below an image of something as simple as a single black line. In manufacturing LCD projectors can be fixed to reduce these effects on the projected image, because each colour is projected on its own LCD panels.

The only real buy point (excluding price) with taking a DLP projector is its smaller overall size and weight. However, this is only relevant with regard to transport and must be traded off against the image superiority of LCD projectors. If overall picture quality is important to you, then the decision is no-brainer. Choose an LCD projector! LCD projectors will consistently create bright, colourful images with fewer image errors. If you desire to find out more about LCD technology in more detail, have a look at this fabulous resource website: Explore 3LCD. If you have any more questions, get onto Projector Central and send me an email.

Jonathan King is the sales and marketing manager of Projector Central, Australia’s leading online shop for projectors. Based in Brisbane, Projector Central has served Australia for 15 years. For data projectors in the Gold Coast and Interactive Whiteboards, contact Projector Central today.


Yachting and Yacht Clubs

Posted: July 16th, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , | No Comments »

As the Dutch came to dominance in sea power during the 17th century, the first yacht had been a pleasure craft used mostly by royalty and then by the burghers for the canals and then in the protected and unprotected waters of the Low Countries. Racing yachts was incidental, arising as private matches. English yachting started with King Charles II of England during his exile in the Low Countries. On his restoration to the English monarchy in 1660, the city of Amsterdam presented him with a 20-metre (66-foot) leisure boat with a beam (maximum width) of 5.6 m (18 feet), which he then named Mary. Charles and his brother James, the duke of York (James II, ruled 1685–88), built additional yachts and in 1662 raced two of them from the Thames, from Greenwich, to Gravesend, and back, on a £100 wager. Yachting was found to be fashionable for the wealthy and aristocracy, but after that period the trend did not last.

The first yacht group in the British Isles, the Water Club, was started at about 1720 at Cork, Ire., as a cruising and unofficial coast guard group, and had great naval panoply and rigour. The closest thing to a race was the “chase,” for which the “fleet” pursued an imagined enemy. The club endured, largely as a social club, until 1765, and in 1828, after merging with other groups, it was known as the Cork Yacht Club (later the Royal Cork Yacht Club).

Yacht racing began in some organized method on the Thames about the mid-18th century. The duke of Cumberland instigated the Cumberland Fleet for Thames racing in 1775. When George IV came to sovereignty in 1820, it was then named the Fleet to His Majesty’s Coronation Sailing Society. The Thames Yacht Club seceded following a racing dispute, to become the Royal Thames Yacht Club in 1830. The first English yacht society had been formed at Cowes on the Isle of Wight in 1815, and royal sponsorship made the Solent – the strait between the mainland and the Isle of Wight – the continued location of British yachting. The organisation at Cowes became the Royal Yachting Club, likewise at the rise of George IV. Each member was required to own boats of at least 20 tons (20,321 kg). Sailing races for large bets were held, and the society life was splendid. Ultimately Royal Yachting Club boats increased in size to over 350 tons.

In North America, yachting began with the Dutch in New York in the 17th century and persisted when the English took control. Sailing was mostly for leisure and reached its epitome in George Crowinshield’s Cleopatra’s Barge (1815), which sailed on the Mediterranean Sea and created a standard of luxury and elegance for the later yachts in those waters from the late 19th century. The first continuing American yacht society, the Detroit Boat Club, was started in 1839. In 1844, John C. Stevens instigated the New York Yacht Club while aboard his schooner Gimcrack.

Kinds of sailboats
The Early sailing yachts were within the style of such naval craft as brigantines, schooners, and cutters from the 17th century through to the second half of the 19th century. The style of bigger yachts was originally heavily impacted by the victory of America, which was drawn by George Steers for a club led by John C. Stevens, and it was the boat for which the America’s Cup (q.v.) had its namesake after its victory at Cowes in 1851. Early yachts were not designed and crafted in today’s sense, with only a model for an outline. Not until the latter half of the 19th century did what was called naval architecture come about. Not until the 1920s did the use of the research of aerodynamics do for the structure of sails and rigging what science had previously done for hulls.

Because almost all sailboats had to be individually custom-built, there came a desire for handicapping boats as this was previous to the one-design class boats were made. Hence, a rating rule was written, which ended up in the International Rule, accepted in 1906 and amended in 1919. Today, one of the most rapidly growing areas in sailing is that of one-design class boats. All boats in a one-design class are built to single specifications in length, beam, sail area, and other aspects (for an example of a two-person sailboat, see illustration). Racing those boats can be held on an even playing field with no handicapping necessary. A great example is the uniform International America’s Cup Class taken on board for participants in the 1992 America’s Cup race.

As long as yachting was an activity largely for the aristocracy and the affluent, expense was no object, and the size of boats grew, in both length and weight. The promotion and popularity of smaller craft occurred in the later half of the 19th century out of the sailing of the Englishmen R.T. McMullen, a stockbroker, and E.F. Knight, a barrister and journalist. A journey around the world (1895–98) sailed single-handedly by the naturalized American captain Joshua Slocum in the 11.3-metre Spray made plain the value of less sizeable yachts. Following this in the 20th century, notably after World War II, smaller racing and recreational yachts became commonplace, down to the dinghy, a favourite training boat, of 3.7 m. In the late 20th century, yachts of less than 3 m were sailed single-handedly across the Atlantic Ocean.

Kinds of power yachts
Following the decade 1840–50, in which steam started to replace sail power in public craft, the steam engine, and later the internal-combustion engine, were favoured increasingly in personal boats. Large power yachts were developed to a high degree, and long-distance cruising became a preferred occupation of the wealthy. The first power yachts were paddle-wheel boats; those then gave way to those powered by the completely submerged screw or propeller kind of propulsion. Like naval and merchant boats, auxiliaries with both sail and power were the yacht standard for many years. By the second half of the 20th century, many yachts were still auxiliaries, but the majority were solely power yachts containing gasoline or diesel engines.

During the last decade of the 19th century there was a push in the design of bigger steam yachts. Conspicuous of these was the Mayflower (1897) of 2,690 tons, with triple-expansion engines, twin screws, and a compartmented iron hull, and was manned by a crew of over 150. The Mayflower, commissioned by the United States Navy in 1898, was the official yacht of the president of the United States until 1929 and was used in active service for World War II.

As bigger and more reliable internal-combustion engines were produced, many bigger boats were using them for power. The creation of the diesel engine, using heavy oil for fuel, progressed from World War I. During the decade that followed, bigger power-yacht building grew, climaxing in the Orion (1930) at 3,097 tons. During that period the best auxiliary yacht constructed was the four-masted, steel, barque-rigged Sea Cloud (1931) of 2,323 tons.

The manufacture of big power boats lessened from 1932, and the trend thereafter was in preference of smaller, less costly boats. Following World War II, many small naval craft were bought by private owners for conversion to yachts. By the late 20th century, yachting had become a globally loved activity enjoyed by thousands of yachtsmen individually manning and maintaining their own small pleasure craft. The number of yachts and owners is increasing steadily, not only in the traditional areas along the sea but also on inland waterways and lakes.

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Proportional, Progressive, and Regressive taxes

Posted: July 8th, 2010 | Author: squadron | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , | No Comments »

Taxes can be distinguished by the impact they have on the allocation of income and wealth. A proportional tax is a kind that puts the same relative liability on each taxpayer—i.e., in the case where tax liability and income increase in equal proportion. A progressive tax is recognisable by a higher than proportional increase in the tax onus relative to the increase in income, and a regressive tax is characterized by a less than proportional rise in the related burden. Ergo, progressive taxes are seen as reducing inequalities in income distribution, but regressive taxes might have the result of increasing these inequalities.

The taxes that are generally regarded as progressive include individual income taxes and estate taxes. Income taxes that are categorically progressive, however, might become less so within the upper-income categories—particularly if a taxpayer is able to reduce his tax base by claiming deductions or by removing some certain income elements from his taxable income. Proportional tax rates which are applied to lower-income categories can also be more progressive if exemptions of a personal nature are made.

Income measured over the course of a given period does not necessarily give the most accurate measure of taxpaying requirement. For example, transitory rises in income can be saved, and during temporary declines in income a taxpayer might select to finance consumption by decreasing savings. So, if taxation is compared along with “permanent income,” it would be less regressive (or more progressive) than if it is made comparable with annual income.

Sales taxes and excises (with the exception of luxuries) are generally regressive, because the dissemination of personal income consumed or spent on a specific good lowers as the level of personal income grows. Poll taxes (also termed head taxes), nominated as a flat amount per capita, clearly are regressive.

It is complicated to dictate corporate income taxes and taxes on business as progressive, regressive, or proportionate, principally because of a lack of certainty about the ability of businesses to shift their tax expenses (see below Shifting and incidence). This difficulty of deciding who bears the tax burden is dependant essentially on whether a national or a subnational (that is, provincial or state) tax is being decided.

In analysing the economic effects of taxation, it is important to distinguish between several points of tax rates. The statutory rates will include those specified in the law; often these are marginal rates, but occasionally they are median rates. Marginal income tax rates signify the fraction of incremental income that is taken by taxation when income grows by one dollar. Thus, if tax onus rises by 45 cents when income rises by one dollar, the marginal tax rate is 45 percent. Income tax laws usually contain graduated marginal rates—i.e., rates that grow as income increases. Structured analysis of marginal tax rates are required to take into account provisions in addition to the formal statutory rate structure. If, for example, a particular tax credit (reduction in tax) decreases by 20 cents for each one-dollar growth in income, the marginal rate is 20 percentage points higher than nominated by the statutory rates. Since marginal rates specify how after-tax income changes in response to changes in before-tax income, they are the relevant ones for considering incentive effects of taxation. It is even more complicated to know the marginal effective tax rate to apply to income from business and capital, since it may be reliant on such considerations as the structure of depreciation allowances, the deductibility of interest, and the provisions for inflation adjustment. A basic economic theorem determines that the marginal effective tax rate in income from capital is zero under a consumption-based tax.

Average income tax rates show the percentage of total income that is required in taxation. The pattern of average rates is the one that is important for judging the distributional equity of taxation. Under a progressive income tax the average income tax rate increases with income. Average income tax rates usually grow with income, both because personal allowances are granted for the taxpayer and dependents and because marginal tax rates are graduated; on the other hand, preferential treatment of income received mostly by high-income households can dampen these effects, forcing regressivity, as displayed by average tax rates that decrease as income increases.

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