VistaVG Ultimate Theme for Windows XP

Here's a very nice Vista theme for Windows XP by Vishal. Been using it for a while now and it looks great!

http://www.askvg.com/vistavg-ultimate-theme-for-windows-xp/

Here's a sample:

-- Benjie

Keena tops the Librarian Board Exam

Wow, a few days after it was announced that Chichi topped the Teachers Board Exam, it was Keena's turn to have her name in the Top Ten list. God has been showing us His immense favor and it really serves as an encouragement to all His people in Sovereign Grace Bible Church.

RANK	NAME	SCHOOL	RATING(%)
1	ELIJAH JOHN FERNANDO DAR JUAN	UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES - DILIMAN	87.75
2	BERNADETTE DAVA SUENO	UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES - DILIMAN	86.50
3	RUEL ROMARATE YU	UNIVERSITY OF SAN JOSE-RECOLETOS	86.45
4	KRISTINE YAP MARTINEZ	UNIVERSITY OF SAN CARLOS	85.70
5	NOMER ALBARANDO ALCAZAR	UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES - DILIMAN	85.60
6	MARION JUDE MARISTELA GOROSPE	ROOSEVELT COLLEGE-CAINTA	84.55
7	JACQUELYN JOY LATINA LLAVE	CENTRO ESCOLAR UNIVERSITY-MANILA	84.30
8	LORRAINE DAWN GAMEL HONRADE	UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES - DILIMAN	84.15
9	CZARINA PAOLA PAREJA DELA LLARTE	UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES - DILIMAN	84.00
10	EDWARD HILADO PUZON	UNIVERSITY OF SANTO TOMAS	83.80

-- Benjie

Chichi tops the Board Exam for Teachers with 5th place

By the grace and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, Chichi's efforts were rewarded with a 5h place finish during the 2008 Licensure Examination for Teachers, Secondary Level. Of the 53,195 who took the board, 18,801 passed and Chichi is no. 5. Lipay kaayo akong sweetheart. Galing lang sa ka excited, tukar dayon ang hyperacidity. He-he...

Here's the proof:



-- Benjie

Technology Resume Gaffes to Avoid
Nimish Thakkar, Computerworld
Nov 12, 2008 6:15 am

From tech-support professionals to CIOs, almost everyone is consumed by the perception that the effectiveness of the resume is somehow linked to the length of the document. A one-page resume is not going to improve your chances, nor is a 10-page document indicative of super-employee status.

Candidates, even senior-level IT executives, often use microscopic fonts, leave off important information, use 0.1-inch margins, and resort to myriad ill-advised practices -- all in an attempt to curtail resume length. Many well-meaning college counselors advise their students to be concise and limit their resume to one page. That may be important for students with little or no experience, but why subscribe to the same wisdom after rising to higher ranks?

Read more at PC World

Defending Your Machine 2

This Blog identifies some steps to take and various Internet locations and software that may be useful in protecting your computer system from "malware" and in cleaning it up if you become infected.

Read more at http://defendingyourmachine2.blogspot.com/

What Makes a Good Boss

When you're looking for work there are also key traits that you are looking for in the person you want to work for. While the expectations you have for an employer will vary a little by industry, there are certain elements that make a good boss.

A good boss....

Listens: This is a key skill in an employee, but it is also essential for an effective manager. The responsibility for office decisions is ultimately up to the boss, but a manager who can listen will base decisions on the abilities, needs and limitations of staff, resources and time frame. Also, the more you feel heard, the more you feel appreciated, something everyone deserves on the job.

Communicates: This is a continuation of listening. A good manager should not only hear what you say, but be able to tell you what they want from you in a manner that is clear and professional. A boss shouldn't be too vague in their directions, nor should they speak to you in a patronizing tone. A manager should never yell, make personal comments or use humor as a put down.

Delegates: A manager is responsible for the overall workplace or project. This can lead some to try and control every aspect of the work flow to make sure no one else "messes" things up. This, in turn, can lead to a stressful work place with an overworked boss who is resentful of staff and a workforce of people who feel unappreciated and bored. A good boss will recognize that you are the best person to do your job and will provide you with clear direction that allows you to do it without watching over your shoulder.

Empathizes: A manager may deal with a variety of staff, of all ages and in all stages of life. A good manager can acknowledge the need of the parent of three to stay home with her sick kids, while also recognizing that the single colleague shouldn't always have to stay late to compensate, or that sometimes you will miss the train and be late for work, but that someone who is late all the time causes work flow problems for the rest of the staff.

This is not the same as the boss who tries to be everyone's friend. It is a person who believes a little courtesy makes for a healthier workplace.

Supports: A good boss will recognize that employees want to better themselves and further their careers. They should not be threatened by this. Good managers will help you find professional development opportunities and allow you to take part in new projects when it is applicable to your talents, time and career goals. Within a company, a good manager will also not pass the buck down to staff members when dealing with upper management and will make sure the concerns of staff are known to the powers that be.

Instructs: Very few people like to be micro-managed, but it can be even more frustrating to be given no clear direction and end up in trouble with your boss for not meeting expectations. A good boss makes it clear what they want, and tells you promptly and professionally if you are not providing what they need. They will also be frank and fair about concerns surrounding performance, attitude and behaviour -- there should be no surprises in your performance review.

Encourages: A good boss is one who is always willing to acknowledge a job well done.

Respects: This is a big one. A lack of respect is one of the main reasons people feel unfulfilled at work. What is respect? Respect means appreciating the people who work with and for you.

Respect is not offering a shiny plaque for doing three-times your workload. Respect means sincerely trying to help employees through crunch times and acknowledging that having limitations does not mean being inferior. Respect means understanding that people have different cultural and religious holidays and traditions. It means acknowledging people have different learning styles and ways of presenting themselves.

Sees the Big Picture: Finally, a good boss should always have their eye on the final product or deadline. Staff can sense when an employer has a handle on things and when they are letting something slip. This can be stressful since it puts staff in the awkward position of possibly offending their boss by mentioning oversights, or not saying anything and jeopardizing a project.

source: http://www.poss.ca/book/print/787

http://www.allprodad.com/playbook/viewarticle.php?art=183

The Big O in happy marriages
WELL-BEING By Mylene Mendoza-Dayrit
Tuesday, November 4, 2008

The following is a common scene in a lot of households with both spouses working. Wife arrives stressed from the traffic, fetching the kids, and a boss who never appreciates her work. She drops by the kitchen to give instructions to the help regarding dinner.

The husband arrives after a very stressful board meeting. Exasperated, he sinks into the couch in front of the television, a can of cold beer in hand. He turns the TV on, zapping from news to sports channels and back. Wife sits in front of husband and starts talking about her day, giving a litany of things she had and has to do.

Husband never looks at wife, seemingly lost in what he is watching. Wife gets hurt, feels more rejected and alone. Happens all the time and before they know it, a thick wall is already built between them.

A wife who feels unloved and unappreciated, and a husband tired of what seems to be endless nagging. Love lost? Irreconcilable differences? No common interests? Grounds for divorce? Stop those thoughts, a study from UCLA on the differences between male and female responses to stress may just save your marriage, as revealed by Dr. John Gray, author of all the Mars & Venus book series, the latest of which are Why Mars & Venus Collide and Mars & Venus — Diet & Exercise Solutions, to the delegates of the Department of Tourism’s “Embracing Health & Wellness in the Heart of Asia,” held recently at Sofitel Philippine Plaza.

Read more at Philippine Star

What are the Best Tools for Removing Spyware, Adware, and Malware?

If you have been on the Internet for any length of time, you've probably ran across the topic of spyware, adware, or malware. This is software that has installed on your computer, many times without your permission, or accidentally by clicking on a popup ad, etc. The problem with these programs is they will slow your computer down, make changes to your desktop, homepage, search page, load programs into your taskbar tray and otherwise get in the way. In the worst cases, they will even transmit information from your computer to servers on the Internet. So the question becomes, if your computer is infected with these problematic programs, how do you get rid of them. In most cases, you can run a free removal program to remove these infections, in more serious cases, you may have to download a specialized removal program to free yourself of these problems.

Read more at PC Hell

From design to meaning: a whole new way of presenting?

My favorite book of the summer is Daniel Pink's A Whole New Mind. A simple book in many ways, and a most profound and well-researched one as well. At 267 pages (in paperback), it's a quick read. In fact, I read it twice, the second time underlining, highlighting, and taking notes as I went along. "The future belongs to a different kind of person," Pink says. "Designers, inventors, teachers, storytellers — creative and empathetic right-brain thinkers whose abilities mark the fault line between who gets ahead and who doesn't." Pink claims we're living in a different era, a different age. An age in which those who "Think different" may be valued even more than ever.

Read more at Presentation Zen

A Blog Posted by Singapore ’s Youngest Millionaire
By Adam Khoo In Money

Some of you may already know that I travel around the region pretty frequently, having to visit and conduct seminars at my offices in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Suzhou (China). I am in the airport almost every other week so I get to bump into many people who have attended my seminars or have read my books. Recently, someone came up to me on a plane to KL and looked rather shocked.

He asked, ‘How come a millionaire like you is travelling economy?’ My reply was, ‘That’s why I am a millionaire.’ He still looked pretty confused. This again confirms that greatest lie ever told about wealth (which I wrote about in my latest book ‘Secrets of Self Made Millionaires’). Many people have been brainwashed to think that millionaires have to wear Gucci, Hugo Boss, Rolex, and sit on first class in air travel. This is why so many people never become rich because the
moment that earn more money, they think that it is only natural that they spend more, putting them back to square one.

Read more at Jean's Blog

The Cause of the Crisis People Won’t Face
From the Nov/Dec 2008 Trumpet Print Edition

Experts are feverishly crunching numbers and punching out calculations to see if the economy can last. They should be analyzing something else.
By Joel Hilliker and Robert Morley

If not for speedy and sweeping government intervention, America’s economy would have tanked in September. The trouble is, their solutions—the most radical federal intercession in the economy since the New Deal—in the long run will not prevent systemic meltdown. Why? The reason is simple. These remedies are failing to address what caused the problems to begin with.

Read more at The Trumpet

What is good PowerPoint design?

Occasionally, I'm asked by colleagues or clients to send samples of "great slides" or "good PowerPoint." I usually hesitate to send examples of slides since my answer to the question, "what does a great PowerPoint slide look like?" is "...it depends." In a world which often thinks in terms of absolutes — "this is good, that is bad" — "it depends" is not the most popular answer.

Read more at Presentation Zen

A Scary Kind of Love
Why fully devoted followers can be really threatening.
by Gordon MacDonald

While hiking in Switzerland this past month, I came to a town in which one of my favorite hotels is located. It's a very Swiss hotel, not overly expensive, with a wonderful view of the mountains. I stay there at least one night every time I go to Switzerland. And last month I intended to stay there again.

But the man at the desk turned me away. "You have no reservation," he said, "and the hotel is full for the night."

I tried to coax him to find a way to let me in: "I come here every year … you've always had a room for me before … I only have this one night … this is my favorite hotel." Most New England inn keepers would have caved in to my efforts at charm, but not the man at the desk of the Swiss hotel.

When I realized his mind was made up, I was really piqued. But not so that he would have noticed. Christians, after all, act nice. But inside I felt rejected and disappointed. I really wanted to say as I went out the door, "I never liked your stupid hotel anyway. I only stay here because it's cheap." But the truth is that I did like it. Strange, the conflicted attitudes that breed like bacteria in the human heart when one feels rejected.

Read more at Christianity Today

What is "Righteous Anger"?

How can I know whether I'm feeling that or just being a hothead?

Lisa Harper

Q: What is "righteous anger"? How can I know whether I'm feeling that or just being a hothead?

A. I grew up believing anger was a "bad" emotion. So I've needed several years of Christian counseling even to admit I get angry, much less to learn I can express those feelings righteously! Thankfully, God's Word sets clear parameters for getting peeved.

What does God say about this?

The bad news for hotheads is that Scripture contains many more verses warning believers against blowing their cool than verses advocating such behavior. The writer of Proverbs connects anger with foolishness: "Fools quickly show that they are upset, but the wise ignore insults" (Proverbs 12:16, NCV). And the apostle Paul recommends letting our heavenly Father fight our battles: "My friends, do not try to punish others when they wrong you, but wait for God to punish them with his anger. It is written: 'I will punish those who do wrong; I will repay them,' says the Lord" (Romans 12:19, NCV).

Read more at Christianity Today

The Stranger

"A few months before I was born, my dad met a stranger who was new to our small Tennessee town. From the beginning, Dad was fascinated with this enchanting newcomer, and soon invited him to live with our family.

The stranger was quickly accepted and was around to welcome me into the world a few months later. As I grew up I never questioned his place in our family. In my young mind, each member had a special niche. My brother, Bill, five years my senior, was my example. Fran, my younger sister, gave me an opportunity to play 'big brother' and develop the art of teasing. My parents were complementary instructors -Mom taught me to love the word of God, and Dad taught me to obey it. But the stranger was our storyteller. He could weave the most fascinating tales.

Read more here

The Modern 23rd Psalm

The TV is my Shepherd, I shall not want.
It maketh me to lie down on the sofa.
It leadeth me away from the scriptures.
It destroyeth my soul.

It leadeth me in the paths of immorality,
For the sponsors' sake.
Yea, though I walk in the shadow of my Christian duties,
There will be no interruptions,
For the handheld TV is with me.
Its cable or wireless controls,
They comfort me.

It prepareth a commercial before me,
In the presence of my carnality.
It anointeth my head with humanism.
My coveting runneth over.

Surely laziness and ignorance shall follow me,
All the days of my life,
And I shall dwell in the house of TV forever.

-Author Unknown

Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands by Paul David Tripp
review by Tony Reinke (4/30/07)

"This is the comfort we offer people. We don't comfort them by saying that things will work out. They may not. The people around them may change, but they may not. The Bible tells us again and again that everything around us is in the process of being taken away. God and his love are all that remain as cultures and kingdoms rise and fall. Comfort is found by sinking our roots into the unseen reality of God's ever-faithful love" (p. 152).

Read more at Monergism.com

Digital Photography Tips - Lighting
By Steven Boudreau

Advances have been made so much in technology surrounding photography over the years with in introduction of digital photography. There is so much to be learn about photography, even with all of the point and shoot cameras available on the market today. Point and click cameras lead us to believe that all we have to do is pick up a camera shoot the picture and presto a work of art has been captured. Boy is that ever wrong. While these point and click cameras do offer so much in the lines of ease of use and convenience, capturing a high quality photo does require a bit more work than that.

Read more at Ezine @rticles

The Megapixel Myth
by Ken Rockwell

Introduction

For normal 4x6" (10x15cm) prints, even VGA (640 x 480 or 0.3MP) resolution is just fine. Digital cameras did this back in 1991!

In 1999 when digital cameras were only 1.2 or 2 MP, each megapixel mattered if you were making bigger prints.

Today, even the cheapest cameras have at least 5 or 6 MP, which enough for any size print. How? Simple: when you print three-feet (1m) wide, you stand further back. Print a billboard, and you stand 100 feet back. 6MP is plenty.

Sharpness depends more on your photographic skill than the number of megapixels, because most people's sloppy technique or subject motion blurs the image more than the width of a microscopic pixel.

Even when megapixels mattered, there was little visible difference between cameras with seemingly different ratings. For instance, a 3 MP camera pretty much looks the same as a 6 MP camera, even when blown up to 12 x 18" (30x50cm)! I know because I've done this. Have you? NY Times tech writer David Pogue did this here and here and saw the same thing — nothing!

Read more at kenrockwell.com

A large proportion of the readers of Digital Photography School classify themselves as beginners - so we thought it might be helpful to have a page set up that collates some of our Digital Photography Tips for Beginners.

Below is just a selection of some of our digital photography tips and tutorials aimed more at the beginner photographer. We’re always writing more beginner tips - so subscribe to DPS today to get all of our updates.

Read more at Digital Photography School