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Just in time for Christmas, users of Facebook application Big Photo - which allows you to share a larger copy of the photos you've uploaded online - were informed that their application is being taken over and will now be users of the SpeedDate application. At the moment that probably means that someone paid the Big Photo developers a lot of hard cash to gain access to an audience of over 700,000 users who use one application. This isn't exactly the same thing as Microsoft buying out all the Apple users in the world, and telling them that OS X will be Vista in a week's time, but it's something along the same lines. Here's the official message all users received - the lump of coal in their stockings: "Next week, Big Photo's name and functionality will be changed to SpeedDate. Data entered into the original app won't be used anymore. Soon you'll be able to try SpeedDate, the fastest way to meet new people, so stay tuned! P.S. If you want to opt-out of...
You know you're attached to certain things, if you respond with enthusiasm to changes. I refer of course to the new gmail theme s. If you don't have themes available on your account - gmail will inform you when they're loaded on your particular account, it takes some time to activate worldwide - you'll know. I heard about it earlier today from a friend on the other side of the continent, but didn't see them until now. And it looks cool. I'm very much intrigued by how some themes change based on which location you report being in . I changed to Tokyo from home, and boom, it changed from night to day, literally, in the background graphics. Very cool. Geeking out on gmail themes seems appropriate, because I today I also learned that I'm apparently the #2 geek in the city, based on the now-tabulated CISA exam results. I am, of course, very curious to see how much geekier you have to be to score first place on that exam. And did that guy - I presume, sorry, that...
This is a continuation of the examination of WSJ's article "The 'Trophy Kids' Go to Work" started previously - see part one here . You know you're dealing with a train-wreck of an article when it spouts phrases such as, "they needn't worry about their next paycheck because they have their parents to cushion them." Sure, some people are lucky and for them that's true. But for many others it's not: if they aren't gainfully employed, they're out on the street. Not pretty. Or they may be at home, but they're still expected to help their parents - and it's not just a matter of "pulling your weight around", it's a matter of keeping the family simply fed! Does the reporter really think everyone's parents look like Uncle Moneybags ? I don't have a lot of Uncle Moneybags -style stock photos. Sorry. Though he has the mustache, and a pipe too. It's kind of sickening really to think that someone can be this ignorant...
And to think I voted for you. New taxes tend to not bother me - until I'm smacked in the face with them when they surprise me on their "payment due" date. And of course, to achieve maximum "kick you while you're down" effect, tack them on with other fees I had to pay. For absolute bother, ensure that those taxes also achieve nothing! While renewing my car's registration I saw signs warning residents of Toronto that under the new and improved City of Toronto Act the city has new abilities with which to completely mess with our wallets. I'd like to report a robbery "Messing with us" includes jacking up taxes to support the heavily unionized labour force that cleans our parks, fights our fires, and polices the rabble. Now general taxes for housing I've long accepted, as have most people. You own property in a city, you support the services you get. You use specialized services, you pay additional fees. Fine, whatever. If I paid more for driving...
Dennis , the online business guru - go read his collected wisdom - wrote a little article listing ways companies can save money. It's a quick and clever little list. But one point made me shudder: cutting back on cleaning expenses. "Consider the frequency of janitorial services. Does the office really need cleaning every night? Might staff at least partially fulfill that service?" Some random statistic I stumbled across ages ago said that offices are some of the worst places in terms of germs. Accounting firms lead the pack according to the study. Perhaps it was just advanced internal fear mongering to generate sales of hand sanitizer. Perhaps not. Regardless, I continue to wash my hands, but I also appreciate the hard work of the cleaning staff. I also know for a fact that people would revolt if they were confronted with overflowing mounds of rubbish in the office. It'd be nice to thing everyone can pitch in and help, but unless you work in a very small office that's...
Another one of my intelligent comments to the PwC blog got blocked . This is getting a bit annoying . This time, I had some free job application advice to share. The pumpkins sum up my feelings about this shabby treatment rather succinctly. Here's the advice, for those of you looking for tips on how to prepare your resume and cover letter for that CA student position you're trying to land: "For most candidates the one page cover letter is a good call, but I've said before and had success personally with the mythical two page cover letter. It only works if you have very strong writing skills and know you're actually going to deliver a solid message - that means, no buzzwords or filler, but strong selling points that show why you're a good candidate. Maybe one out of a hundred candidates can pull it off, so make sure you know what you're doing if go down this route. Checking with your university career centre is a very good idea no matter what - but sharing your...
I found another CA blog out there - the first French Canadian one I've come across . If you have trouble reading Julien's French, run it through Google Translate. The translation's not perfect, but it'll do. The newest posting caught my eye ; in the spirit of hyper-critical UFE prep, here's some analysis. His writing's pretty good - the post about travel is a good read , and it's amusing to note that he looks forward to the chance to perfect his English in his travels, whereas I could say the same about improving my French when I'm sent on the road to the francophone parts of the world. Going back to his newest post about the UFE process, however, Julien talks about two factors that he claims make his program unique compared to those experienced at other firms - any message like that delivered on an official blog deserves closer scrutiny since new recruits are going to put some weight into what they're being told. Special Educators The first claim is...
Just when you thought Air Canada couldn't get any cheaper, or callous: sweet merciful crap. That link takes you to a CNN story this site picked up, explaining that Air Canada's regional operator, Jazz, has decided to save 25 kilograms of weight from each flight by getting rid of the life vests. The rules state that as long as your plane is flying within 50 miles of land, it's okay to do this - you can use the seat cushion as a flotation device instead. So as long as I can swim 50 miles I'll be okay? Oh sweet mother - I think I have to sign up for some advanced swimming lessons before going to my next client, which happens to be on the coast. Let's pray and hope - and assume for argument's sake - that in the unlikely event a plane needs to make an emergency landing it doesn't crash and crumple and otherwise disintegrate catastrophically. If you were to look for a place to land and there were no roads in the area, what would be a better touch-down pad? A bunch...
I try to help people, they turn me down. That's about par for the course, I should say - auditors are used to not getting much respect. With the exception that other auditors usually listen to what we have to say. If I offer help to someone, they're usually happy to get it. My UFE mentees are a prime example. They listen carefully to my suggestions, and pass their exams. It's a strong symbiotic relationship - I'm happy to share knowledge. With that in mind, imagine my surprise when, while stationed a day's drive north of the city, I checked my mail in the morning to find an unusual e-mail from another writer. What I received was a polite e-mail from PriceWaterhouseCoopers explaining why my commentary isn't welcome at Nisha's PwC blog , part of the new "PwC Connect" recruiting site that's gradually rolling out. That they don't want to permit my voice to be heard at their site doesn't concern me too greatly as I have - oh, my own little soapbox...
Every time I see someone write about how they have "so much paid time off" to take, and no time to take it , I can't help but shake my head. Shortly after coming back from vacation last April I already started plotting my next bit of time off. It'll be in December, when I use up the remainder of this year's vacation time. Thanks to some careful planning I still have over a week off, and the Christmas holidays mean I get to enjoy almost a full two weeks off, which is simply awesome. Plotting time off, as well as fancy dinners. This all of course reminds me of a friend who scoffed in response to all this gleeful talk of vacation planning - "your entire life is a vacation." Hey, if you can pull that off, more power to you, I say. Even a child can realize that the world we live in asks that people work far too much considering the abundance of resources on the planet and the number of able bodied people able to help harvest the fruits of our collective labour...
I'm not really in the mood to argue. I mean, I've had some excellent food lately, which should really put anyone in a good mood. But I'm still shocked and appalled. And I really should've replied to the news that photography is banned from the station with a chilly, "what for?" You see, according to the best guess of the Montreal train station's security, I apparently must look like a terrorist. Wow, they should've seen me when I was all scruffy and bearded in university. One of my friends from back then thought I was a History, rather than a Commerce student, for that simple fact. This is the second time in two months that I've been witness to an instruction from security to stop taking photos in a government-owned facility. And it's so stupid I wish I got drop the hammer on someone the way America's Henry Waxman does two and a half minutes into this video . Waxman is understandably annoyed with the stonewalling he gets from the EPA about...
This is funny if you know a few basics about quantum physics, simply because of the instant joke that stems from it: Quantum Cryptography Broken, and Fixed . The joke is in the comments to the article - " It was actually broken AND fixed at the SAME TIME! " It's an easy one - an earlier series of comments is even better: > Quantum stuff is so illogical to us mortals that you'd expect attempting to break it would just make it stronger. Which is precisely what happened. It continues along these lines, becoming progressively more incomprehensible to people who aren't interested in this sort of thing. Which of course is a sign that I should probably get back to studying for my exam. Ironically, however, reading articles like these at /. (slogan: New for nerds, stuff that matters) is technically a form of studying if you focus on security issues and ignore the non-essential nerd stuff, like HP's deal to buy EDS which is important for many reasons - perhaps you own...
A week after they sent me the e-mail making it official, my certificate finally showed up at the office, proudly proclaiming to the world that I'm a CA. Whee! The other 1157 pieces of 'mail' where spams that hit me - roughly as much as last month . Although the ICAO should probably be ashamed of itself for actually INCLUDING some old fashioned junk mail with the certificate - an offer for insurance with TD Meloche Monex. How. Incredibly. Tacky. Whoever thought of that idea should be stripped of their CA, if they have one, for bringing disrepute upon the profession. We have a bylaw along those lines which mandates for an expulsion or a flogging of some sort. I say we enforce the rules, even if the offender does work for the Institute. Scratch that. Especially. I exaggerate a bit - they're quite nice and friendly people at the ICAO. Their procedures could use some efficiency improvements, though. You see, I noticed that although my e-mail arrived last Friday, but it was the...
Unfortunately you won't learn how to pass most exams with this knowledge, but applying the rules or tips in Dave Pollard's "When not to use e-mail" posting will make you a much better communicator. This list applies to all people, but there are specific insights for auditors. Especially when you're starting out, and you find yourself thinking, "this is great, I can just e-mail everything and wait for answers to come back." Although it can, funnily enough, often work in spite of Pollard's list, it's important to know how this can and will fail. Above: there are media other than e-mail which you can use for communication, more successfully too Remember, that time is precious, and e-mail can unfortunately waste it. Consider these two 'rules'. 3. When you are seeking information that is not simple and straight-forward 4. When you're sending a few people complicated instructions The rules are tightly linked - the more confusing something gets...
Here's something post that Growth , Nancy and just about any Canadian should care about: a quick look at the current status of interest rates paid for small cash investments. Let's see how three banks measure up on 1 year GICs, as of right now: TD Canada Trust: 2.05% or 3% (poorly defined money market version) ING Direct: 3.75% HSBC: 2.30% I didn't do an exhaustive search because there are charts available at baystreet.ca and redflagdeals.com , among, no doubt, a few other places too that do the job for you. I figure banks must have decided that people are so sufficiently lazy that they'll take whatever product they're offering instead of moving their cash over to another bank. Only that can explain the over roughly 2% difference between the lower TD rate and the over 4% rates on redflag . What I like about redflag's site is that you can sort by any column, making it easy to identify who gives the best 1-year or 5-year rate. I had trouble confirming the 4.4% rate...
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