Month: September 2011

Next Generation Access Promises Change

Things are looking up for rural web users as community broadband steps up to the plate with the launch of next generation access to online services. The UK’s ICT infrastructure is developing at a fast pace, and will soon allow web users to access their favourite sites far quicker than ever before.

For a long time, internet users in rural areas have been severely disadvantaged, in comparison with users from urban areas. While traditional ‘dial-up’ internet still works as well as ever in the countryside, the increased speed of broadband services – not to mention the uncluttered phone line which broadband frees up – mean that the vast majority of users are always looking to improve their internet access with broadband services. However, the extremely different services experienced by inhabitants living in broadband ‘hot spots’ and those living in broadband ‘not spots’ are so far apart that the variation has been termed a ‘digital divide.’ Shockingly, those with connections in the ‘not spots’ pay exactly the same price for their internet connections as those in ‘hot spots,’ despite the inferior service that they receive.

The average speed of internet access, considered acceptable for everyday use at home, is 8 to 10 megabytes per second – but this figure is far from being universal. At the moment, around 4,000 households in the UK have no broadband access at all, as a result of their rural location. And there are another 2.5 million houses which only receive web access at a speed of 2.5 megabytes per second. This speed of access means that streaming videos – for instance on YouTube or on TV networks’ ‘catch up’ services – is just impossible for many country dwellers.

Luckily, more and more people in these rural households are finding solutions to this inequality. Many rural communities are forming co-operative ways of achieving faster broadband; for instance, creating their own ISPs (internet service providers) by buying their own cable connections. These are pricey, but the collaboration of local businesses or well-off residents also wins them a stake in an enterprise which may well provide returns on their investments.

This type of collaboration is known as a community broadband project, in which inhabitants of a certain region join up to find internet solutions through the power of numbers. And the prospect of next generation access, in which fibre optics will replace some of the slower copper cable through which broadband currently runs, may well change the UK’s ICT infrastructure for good.

Please visit http://www.broadbandvantage.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

http://www.broadbandvantage.co.uk/

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Hotel Jobs Dubai Has Great Prospects

For job seekers today, the sky truly is the limit. No longer happy to settle down in the same old rut at home, more and more people are deciding to seek work abroad – and Asia Caterer has jobs on offer all across the spectrum of the leisure and tourism industry. Because of this company’s presence all across the Asian and Middle Eastern regions, job seekers can travel to the exact place where their particular skills are required. For hotel jobs dubai is often seen as the top prize: this playground of the rich and famous has the most glamorous hotel jobs Gulf countries can offer. Its gigantic and extravagant hotels mean that work in a high-powered setting is a very real possibility for young Brits looking for overseas jobs.  Meanwhile, for other hospitality jobs Singapore is very popular, offering hotel and bar jobs in more relaxed and subtle settings.

Many different types of hospitality workers choose to work abroad, rather than staying at home. For instance, in the current financial young people may choose to work their way through gap years in thrilling destinations where they can spend their days on beaches and their nights behind top-class bars – maybe even saving up some cash on the way! Alternatively, these opportunities are also often taken up by hospitality professionals who want a change in their careers, a change of scene, or just a break from the normal routine. After all, Brits have always loved to run away to the sun and the waves. And with jobs available everywhere from Israel to Vietnam, there’s a wide variety of experiences out there for those who love to travel and to work.

Although some of these jobs will need past hospitality or catering experience, there are hotels, bars and restaurants all over the world who will be happy to employ an enthusiastic, friendly native English speaker. When searching through the hotel jobs dubai has to offer you’ll often notice that fluent English is a much-requested skill, thanks to the large international community gathered in the region. And this cosmopolitan feel means that even for those holding low-level hotel jobs Gulf regions can be very glamorous. The hospitality jobs Singapore and other Far Eastern countries offer often include English fluency on their lists of desirable qualities as well, because of the strength of the tourist market in these countries. So it’s no wonder that there are so many of British hospitality workers finding new positions in Asia and the Middle East all the time – and no wonder that employers are welcoming them with open arms.

Please visit http://www.asiacaterer.com/ for further information about this topic.

http://www.asiacaterer.com/

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Sales presentations to captivate your clients’€™ imagination

So many people working in sales deplore the tedious meetings they have had to sit through at the office. They lament the length of time they have had to sit through ideas repeated, regurgitated and served up unsavourily on a screen. Powerpoint presentations are often part of such complaints, as if an innocent piece of software might be acting alone on a mission to induce severe disinterest. But this is not the case, or at least simply pointing the finger Powerpoint design does not get to the fundamentals of what people are complaining about. Only when Powerpoint is used badly does it generate boredom. It is important to state, therefore, that good, exciting, even inspiring sales presentations can be created using Powerpoint – it is a tool for our hands and minds to do with what they will.

Certainly, it is not instantly obvious how to begin changing a working lifetime’s build-up of bad habits. Old habits die hard, as the saying goes. This is why there are companies out there with a special aim to help ease the bad Powerpoint design users out of their old ways and into eye-opening new ones. These will know the extent to which people in business need their sales presentations and Powerpoint presentations to work to their full capacity. And their results are quite impressive to say the least – in some examples these companies might increase their clients’ sales success by up to 35%.

It wouldn’t be worth just automatically enlisting the assistance of specialists though. Indeed, people working in sales will hardly need telling that they should take a while to reflect upon how their particular company might benefit from assistance in optimising their sales presentations skills. No company is the same, and it is the very idea of uniqueness that can really be highlighted via the medium of Powerpoint presentations in order to persuade others round to a given company’s mindset. The notion of underscoring difference to achieve maximum success is surely evidenced in the clients of Powerpoint presentation service providers – those who have come top of the class in good Powerpoint design practice are as diverse as Colgate-Palmolive and Santander.

Please visit http://www.eyefulpresentations.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

http://www.eyefulpresentations.co.uk/

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Cheap loans not an option? There are fast alternatives.

If you need quick cash then there are a limited range of places to go. By the time they get to this stage most people will already have exhausted the other options. Banks will eventually stop you borrowing, when you get to the bottom of your overdraft and if they don’t think you’re a reliable prospect for a loan. You’ll no doubt have gone to friends and family. You can take money out on a credit card – not the best option, since it’s subject to higher rates of interest than purchases, but if needs must then you’ve likely hit your limit there too. If the most cheap loans (and that’s a relative term) aren’t an option, you’re down to less traditional prospects for fast cash.

That’s where you need to be a bit savvy. If you need cash and you’ve run out of other options, then you’re down to more expensive loans. And these come in a range of forms. Some are a necessary evil, others to be avoided totally. Whatever the penalties for non-payment of your existing debts are, they need to be seriously weighed against the impact of a loan – which may only push the problem a few weeks or months down the line, making it far worse in the process.

So it’s important to know just what you’re getting into. Log-book loans, for example, put your car up as collateral and can incur enormously high rates of interest – often leading to you losing the car. Doorstep lenders and other loan sharks can be a nightmare. This aspect of the industry often operates outside of the law, meaning you lose its protections as well as its restrictions. It also means that, because it’s unregulated, there’s no ‘best practice’. It’s in the interests of these organisations to keep you in debt, never quite paying off your loan. Often their records are bad, or non-existent.

The alternative is quick cash from a specialist short-term loans business. These will typically offer fast cash when other cheap loans aren’t available. The term of the loan is usually about a month: the idea is that you use the money to get out of trouble, not keep rolling the debt over month after month. You can expect to pay around 30 percent a month – not cheap, by any means, but better than a doorstep lender, and within the law too. Many will offer help and guidelines for staying out of debt in the future, meaning you shouldn’t have to keep going back again and again.

Please visit http://www.cashgenie.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

http://www.cashgenie.co.uk/

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A cash advance is occasionally worth looking into

Student loans are some of the most reasonable debt out there. They are low cost (in fact, some people have ended up with next to no interest on them) and they don’t need to be repaid until you are earning above a particular threshold. If you reach a minimum age without achieving that threshold, they may be cancelled completely. The system is currently going through changes, so it’s worth keeping your eye on the ball, but all in all, as debt goes, such loans aren’t bad value. But they are often paid infrequently, if regularly, meaning that you may get to the end of your overdraft a touch too early for the next payment to get you out of trouble. It’s in these circumstances that you need to look around for any alternatives – friends, relatives, credit cards and, if you need to, unsecured loans. These aren’t to be taken on lightly, but a cash advance can get you out of a tricky spot. If that’s going to save you more money (in late-payment fines, for example) than it costs in interest, then it may be a solution worth considering.

No debt is good debt, and it’s best to be really strict and structured about your finances in order to avoid accidentally running out of funds. And it’s true that short-term loans can be quite expensive – you can expect to pay around 30 percent over the course of a month, which is much more than you’d pay for a loan from a bank, or on your overdraft, or even on a credit card (the most expensive of which are around 30 to 40 percent per annum). But they are supposed to be short-term cash in fairly small amounts – typically between £75 and £750.

Whilst student loans may not be bettered in their terms, sometimes there’s no alternative. If you haven’t planned well – or have just been thrown a curve-ball by circumstances beyond your control – then a cash advance could get you out of trouble. Unsecured loans are usually expensive and not designed to function in the same way as a student loan; they are for short-term snags rather than long periods of time, and the interest rate reflects this (as well as the risk to the lender). However, if there aren’t any good (or cheaper) alternatives, then it makes financial sense to search for one. If that gives you the breathing space to address your budget and put measures in place so that the same thing doesn’t happen again, then it has served a handy purpose.

Please visit http://www.cashgenieblog.co.uk/ for further information about this topic.

http://www.cashgenieblog.co.uk/

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Shop for sale in London – check with your local estate agency

London is the place where business will never slow down; the financial, political and cultural hub of the UK. There’s always a room to rent or a shop for sale in london – and from office space in the City to shops to let in North London, established brand Claridges has it all. Whether you’re looking for retail or commercial property London can’t fail to satisfy.

Shops in particular are changing hands every day in this buzzing metropolis, and it can be hard for a budding business entrepreneur to work out just where to move to. Many people choose to set up small businesses, or to let commercial property, near to their homes for the advantages of doing business in an area they’re familiar with. However, this plan can let you down badly. A little more dedicated research can reveal what the real priorities in making the decision should be – which is why most new business owners either cover research themselves, or seek the advice of a professional, before deciding to purchase or rent new premises.

London is a very diverse city, and its cultures can change from area to area. Only first-hand knowledge of the city will enable business people to know, for instance, that a kosher butcher’s shop stands a better chance in Brent Cross than in Brixton; or that luxury goods are better placed in Hampstead than in nearby Tottenham. The many districts of London constantly diversify; King’s Cross was a low-priced address not so long ago, but now the Eurostar at St Pancras, along with other trends, has made it a hub for tourist shopping and good restaurants.

And people don’t only buy or go for shops to rent in north London in order to develop businesses; property space can also be bought as an investment. The speedy gentrification of certain areas means that large returns can be achieved when the right investments are made. Real estate in London is some of the most expensive in the world, and with more and more people wanting to live and work in the UK capital, this is the one area of investment in which entrepreneurs can feel really secure.

So for those clients looking for shops to let in North London or Canary Wharf’s best commercial property London has a lot to offer. Anyone aiming to find a warehouse to rent or a shop for sale in london will have a great chance of getting what they’re looking for in this ever-changing city and its diverse districts.

Please visit http://www.claridges-commercial.co.uk for further information about this topic.

http://www.claridges-commercial.co.uk

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School uniforms to make family life simpler

The great majority of parents will one day face the outstanding day of their child starting school. From that instant, until their child gets to school-leaving age, school uniforms will no doubt become an issue setting off arguments from time to time. Luckily for those in the capital though, as well as in a number of other locations, the London schoolwear supplier Uniform4Kids specialises in taking the pain away from school uniforms and school clothes buying.

Everyone knows that kids grow rapidly, indeed sometimes at an almost astonishing rate! So no parent wants to dig deep for an overly pricey pair of school trousers, blazer, or other item of uniform that will soon be flashing their child’s ankles or coming up improbably short in the arms. Conversely, few parents want to spend so meagre a sum that the quality of the school clothes they acquire is compromised – many mums and dads get great value for money by passing school uniforms from older to younger kids as hand-me-downs. London schoolwear suppliers are aware of all of this, especially those suppliers whose school clothes company is family-run. The mark of a good uniform supplier thus begins in a combination of fair prices and hard-wearing yet comfortable materials and designs.

Great materials and designs are not only appreciated by parents of course; kids will also be so much more content with school uniforms that meet with their tastes. Obviously, no good London schoolwear supplier would look to overly indulge children’s fast-changing whims but the best schoolwear suppliers know how to meet parents’ and children’s needs midway. The demands of specific schools must also be taken into account. It is worth looking, therefore, for a uniform supplier offering not just basic schoolwear but also specialist uniforms with the correct badges etc.

However, all parents, and indeed good school uniforms suppliers, realise that children’s uniform needs do not stop at the school gate and at school clothes. Many parents urge their kids to take up activities such as Brownies or Cubs: the kind of sociable pursuits that can so easily be swapped for computers and TV. The reputable London schoolwear supplier stocks uniforms for extra-curricular activities, not to mention sports.

Please visit http://www.uniform4kids.com/ for further information about this topic.

http://www.uniform4kids.com/

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