By: Dennis Koray
A blog is basically an online journal wherein you can digitally pen down your thoughts, ideas, opinions and practically anything that you want people to read. Blogs come in different styles, formats, and settings, depending on the preference of the user. Many blogging sites, offer built in features such as hyperlink, straight texts, pictures etc. Some blogging sites, even allow you to put video and mp3’s on your blogs.

Instead of writing texts, some bloggers choose to make their blogs more audio friendly, by using spoken word entries. This is called audio blogging.

Basically a blog contains these features:

title- which allows you to label your post

body- this is the content of your post

trackback- other sites can be linked back to your blog

permanent link- every article that you write has a URL

comments- this allow readers to post comments on your blog.

One of the advantages of blogging, is that it is made of only a few templates. Unlike, other websites that is made up of numerous individual pages. This make it easier for blog users to create new pages, because it already has a fix setting that include: slots for title, body of the post, category, etc.

This is especially useful for first time users, since they can start blogging right away. They can chose from a number of templates that blogging websites provide.

Anyone who wants to start a blog can do so by becoming a member of a blogging website of their choice. Once they’ve become members, they automatically become a part of that particular blogging community. They can browse through other bloggers pages, and link them back to their own blogs. They can also make comments on other members’ blogs.

Blogging is not just limited to personal usage. There are a lot of blogs that follow a theme such as: sports, politics, philosophy, social commentary, etc. These blogs espouse on their specific themes. This way blogging becomes a medium in which people can share their knowledge and opinions about a variety of themes and topics.

Some bloggers even use their blogs as a means to advertise. Some authors advertise their books on their blogs. While other bloggers, use their blogs to shed light to currents issues, events, news and catastrophes.

Nowadays in education, blogs also play an important part. Professors use blogging to document the lessons that they have discussed and taught. This way, students who who have missed classes, can easily catch up with their assignments.

A lot of entrepreneurs benefit from blogging by promoting their businesses on their blogs, with millions and millions of people logging onto the net everyday, blogging has become a lucrative move. Some bloggers who run online businesses promote their merchandise online. While others profit through advertisement.

But by far, the most popular blog type is the one that takes the form of a personal journal. This is the kind that is usually used by first time bloggers. Individuals who want to document the daily struggle of their everyday lives, poems, rants, opinions, find that blogging offers them a medium in which to express themselves.

Bloggers usually communicate within themselves. This is one of the appeals of blogging. It creates a community of people sharing their ideas, thoughts, and comments with each other.

Blogs varying in topics, themes, and set-ups, can be found in blog directories. First time users who want to get an idea of what the blogging world is all about can browse through a number of blogs using these directories. This way they’d get an idea of what these blogging communities are like.

Blogging is popular all over the world. Blog is short for the term weblog. There are no rules when it comes to blogging. Bloggers have the freedom to express themselves how ever way they want, and the best thing about blogging, is that most blogging sites are free.

There are numerous blogging websites to choose from in the net. This give first time users the option of joining a blogging community that appeals to their interests.

Just search any blogging directory and you’d get a listing of a lot of blogging sites that are available on the net. It’s easy to search a blogging directory, because it is organized according to category. This way you would get exactly what you are after. Blogging is really for everyone. It is fun, simple and easy.

Dennis Koray is a webdesigner and passionate online marketer since 2001! If You Are Struggling to Get Sign-ups He Will Show You How To Quickly And Easily Generate More Paid Sign-ups To Your Primary Business In 3 Simple Steps… Guaranteed! Sign-up now free for a limited time:

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By: Senthilvelan M

Total Quality Management in Libraries

M.Senthilvelan

WHAT IS   QUALITY?

The word Quality has many different meanings ranging from conventional to those that are strategic in nature.  Conventional meaning of quality usually describe a quality as one which looks good, works well, which is reliable etc.,  Strategic meaning of quality is concerned with “meeting customer requirements”.  When a manufacturer is able to meet the exact   requirements of the customer consistently then that is called as Quality.  Quality then need not always mean good, reliable, long lasting etc.  If the manufacturer provides what the customer demands (good or bad) then that is Quality.

Some classical definitions of quality are as follows:

Quality if physical or non physical characteristics that constitutes that basic nature of a thing or is one of its distinguishing features. Quality should be aimed at the needs of the consumer, present and future.

By Deming Webster’s Dictionary

TQM is “a system of continuous improvement employing participative management and centered on the needs of customers” (Jurow & Barnard, 1993). Key components of TQM are employee involvement and training, problem solving teams, statistical methods, long-term goals and thinking, and recognition that the system, not people, produces inefficiencies. Libraries can benefit from TQM in three ways: breaking down interdepartmental barriers; redefining the beneficiaries of library services as internal customers (staff) and external customers (patrons); and reaching a state of continuous improvement (Jurow & Barnard, 1993).

A library should be focusing on providing the best services possible, and be willing to change to serve its customers. To determine if changes need to be made, a librarian might ask:  What do the customers come in for? How can I look at the efficiency of my library? How do we serve the current users that exist today? First learn about the customer, then solve the problems. An American, W.Edwards Deming, developed the concept of Total Quality Management (TQM) after World War II for improving the production quality of goods and services. The concept of TQM is applicable to academics. Many educators believe that the Deming’s concept of TQM provides guiding principles for needed educational reform. In his article, “The Quality Revolution in Education,” John Jay Bonstingl outlines the TQM principles he believes are most salient to education reform. He calls them the “Four Pillars of Total Quality Management.”

Principle 1: Synergistic Relationships:-

According to this principle, an organization must focus, first and foremost, on its suppliers and customers. In a TQM organization, everyone is both a customer and supplier; this confusing concept emphasizes “the systematic nature of the work in which all are involved”. In other words, teamwork and collaboration are essential. Traditionally, education has been prone to individual and departmental isolation. The very application of the first pillar of TQM to education emphasizes the synergistic relationship between the “suppliers” and “customers”.

 The product of the successful work together is the development of the student’s capabilities, interests, and character. In one sense, the user is the customer for the library, as the recipient of educational services provided for the student’s growth and improvement. Viewed in this way, the library is the  suppliers of effective learning tools, environments, and systems to the users, who is the customer for library. The library staff  must educate the users regarding how to access the resources in the library for the users s by teaching them.

Principle 2: Continuous Improvement and Self Evaluation

The second pillar of TQM applied to education is the total dedication to continuous improvement, personally and collectively. Within a Total Quality library setting, administrators work collaboratively with their users. The foundations for this system were fear, intimidation, and an adversarial approach to problem-solving. Today it is in our best interest to encourage everyone’s potential by dedicating ourselves to the continual improvement of our own abilities and those of the people with whom we work and live. Total Quality is, essentially, a win-win approach which works to everyone’s ultimate advantage. According to Deming, no human being should ever evaluate another human being. Therefore, TQM emphasizes self-evaluation as part of a continuous improvement process.

Principle 3: A System of Ongoing Process

The third pillar of TQM as applied in academics is the recognition of the organization as a system and the work done within the organization is an ongoing process.  Quality speaks to working on the system, which will identify and eliminate the flawed processes.  Since systems have made up of processes, the improvements made in the quality of those processes largely determine the quality of the resulting product.

Principle 4: Leadership

The fourth TQM principle applied to education is that the success of TQM is the responsibility of top management. The librarians must establish the context in which users can have benefit by providing best services through the continuous efforts and improvement in the services.  According to the practical evidences, the TQM principles help the library in following clauses:

 1) Redefine the role, purpose and responsibilities of libraryschools.

 2) Improve library as a best user center for a best “way of life.”

 3) Plan comprehensive leadership training for users at all levels.

 4) Create staff development programmes.

 5) Use research and practice-based information to guide both policy and practice.

In order to achieve the above as opportunities to the academic scenario, in addition to patience, participatory management among well-trained and educated partners is crucial to the success of TQM in libraries, everyone involved must understand and believe in principles. Some personnel who are committed to the principles can facilitate success with TQM. Their vision and skills in leadership, management, interpersonal communication, problem solving and creative cooperation are important qualities for successful implementation of TQM.

14 STEPS TO TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT

Based on his work with Japanese managers and others, Deming (1986; Walton, 1986) outlined 14 steps that managers in any type of organization can take to implement a total quality management program.

1) Create constancy of purpose for improvement of product and service. Constancy of purpose requires innovation, investment in research and education, continuous improvement of product and service, maintenance of equipment, furniture and fixtures, and new aids to production. 2. Adopt the new philosophy. Management must undergo a transformation and begin to believe in quality products and services.

      3.  Cease dependence on mass inspection. Inspect products and services

          which only enough to be able to identify ways to improve the process.

    4.   End the practice of awarding business on price tag alone. The lowest priced goods

         are not always the highest qualities; choose a supplier based on its record of   

          improvement and then make a long-term commitment to it.

   5.   Improve constantly and forever the system of product and service. Improvement is

         not a one-time effort; management is responsible for leading the organization into

         the practice of continual improvement in quality and productivity.

6.     Institute training and retraining. Workers need to know how to do their jobs

         correctly even if they need to learn new skills.

7.     Institute leadership. Leadership is the job of management. Managers have the

        responsibility to discover the barriers that prevent staff from taking pride in what

        they   do. The staff will know what those barriers are.

8.  Drive out fear. People often fear reprisal if they “make waves” at work. Managers

     need to create an environment where workers can express concerns with confidence.

9.  Break down barriers between staff areas. Managers should promote teamwork

     by helping staff in different areas/departments work together. Fostering  

     Interrelationships among departments encourages higher quality decision-making.

10. Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the workforce. Using slogans

     alone, without an investigation into the processes of the workplace, can be offensive

     to workers because they imply that a better job could be done. Managers need to

     learn real ways of motivating people in their organizations.

11. Eliminate numerical quotas. Quotas impede quality more than any other

      Working condition, they leave no room for improvement. Workers need the

      flexibility to give customers the level of service they need.

12. Remove barriers to pride of workmanship. Give workers respect and

     feedback about how they are doing their jobs.

13. Institute a vigorous program of education and retraining. With continuous

      improvement, job descriptions will change. As a result, employees need to be

    educated and retrained so they will be successful at new job responsibilities.

14. Take action to accomplish the transformation. Management must work as a

       team to carry out the previous 13 steps.

HOW LIBRARIES HAVE IMPROVED SERVICES WITH TQM

Many libraries have implemented TQM successfully. Harvard College Library created a task force which rewrote the library’s vision statement, and considered changes that would have to be made in order to develop a new organization culture–one that “highlights the changing nature of staff roles and responsibilities in an era of pervasive change” (Clack, 1993). With the help of consultants, Harvard learned about TQM, and found that its principles of service excellence, teamwork, ongoing training and skill building, process/systems focus, continuous improvement, and cooperation across boundaries could help them make the changes they needed.

The Oregon State University Libraries also decided to test TQM. Two small teams, the Shelving Team from the stack maintenance unit, and the Documents Team from the government publications unit worked with outside facilitators. Each team surveyed users and staff and found that some issues, perceived as critical by staff, were not perceived as critical by customers and therefore needed rethinking in terms of TQM. The Shelving Team, which wanted to address the problem of long lasting shelving backlogs, found that the shelvers, who worked alone on the floors, felt isolated and unmotivated to make progress. Using this information, the team devised a plan for shelvers to work in small groups and have an assigned floor. The result was an increased “espirit de corps,” tidier shelves, and less backlog (Butcher, 1993).

Sirkin (1993) suggests some ways a library might use the principles of TQM to enhance library services.

Create service brochures and information kits

Conduct a user survey about library services

Change hours of operation

 Provide a more convenient material return

 Simplify checkout of materials

 Use flexibility in staff assignments

 Ask vendors to give product demonstrations

 Give new staff a thorough orientation

 Create interdepartmental library advisory groups

  Improve the physical layout of the library

  Track complaints

  Develop an active outreach program

  Publicize new or changed services

  Develop user and staff training materials

  Target services to specific groups

   Offer electronic document delivery

POTENTIAL CHALLENGES IN LIBRARIES

While TQM clearly has positive aspects, implementing it can have potential challenges as well. Jurow and Barnard (1993) identify four barriers to the adoption of TQM in libraries:

1)  Vocabulary: objections to terms such as “total,” “quality,” and “management”

2) Commitment: TQM takes several years to implement and requires a long-term

     Commitment by library managers

3) Process: Our culture tends to be impatient and we try to solve problems quickly,    

     to TQM’s careful process analysis; and (4) professionalization: professional staff can  

     be resistant to turning over their practices and services to what they perceive as

    the  uninformed whims of the customer”.

Riggs (1992) summarizes the notable principles of TQM:

(1) Manage by fact: make library decisions after careful analysis of data gathered

     With tools such as check sheets, histograms, and Pareto charts;

(2) Eliminate rework: library work is often labor intensive-simplify it and make

     sure, it is done properly the first time;

(3) Respect people and ideas: staff is the library’s most valuable resources, and

     they should be encouraged to point out problems without fear of management;

(4) Empower people: trust library staff to act responsibly and give them the

     appropriate authority to make decisions that can improve the quality of work they do.

CONCLUSION

Libraries are apt places to implement TQM.  Libraries are service organizations dedicated to their users (customers). By formulating a strategic plan, and following it with a commitment to continuous quality improvement, library managers can transform and improve their organizations.

REFERENCES & SUGGESTED READINGS

Butcher, K. S. (1993). Total quality management: The Oregon State University Library’s experience. “Journal of Library Administration,” 18(1/2), 45-56. (EJ 469 102)

Deming, W. E. (1986). “Out of the crisis.” Cambridge, MA: Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Center for Advanced Engineering Study.

Jurow, S. & Barnard, S. B. (1993). Introduction: TQM fundamentals and overview of contents. “Journal of Library Administration,” 18(1/2), 1-13. (EJ 469 099)

Mackey, T. & Mackey, K. (1992). Think quality! The Deming approach does work in libraries. “Library Journal,” 117(9), 57-61. (EJ 446 234)

Name:M.SENTHILVELAN

Designation: Librarian

Affiliation: INFO INSTITUTE OF ENGINEERING
COIMBATORE-641 107

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By: Kenneth Scott

Physical fitness refers to the ability to function as healthy human beings with energy and alertness in all daily activities. There are many places to learn about fitness, but the most common resources are easily found and can be used by anyone.

These resources include libraries, the Internet, a physical fitness instructor, or a health teacher. Libraries contain vast amounts of information about health in general and physical fitness in particular. Libraries have medical journals, magazines, and many books that can inform people about the ways to become fit and to maintain their fitness levels. Information sources can provide information about the physical and psychological benefits of being fit, as well as the benefits for a persons self-esteem and emotions. Libraries also may offer an opportunity to obtain audio and video materials that can provide the same types of information as magazines or books. Libraries also give low-income people a chance to see fitness materials that they may not readily have.

The Internet represents an excellent source of information about physical fitness. It is like a combination of many articles, books, libraries, and information from other people. If a search is performed on the word fitness using one of the popular search engines on the Internet, a list of many, many resources will be returned. Search engines generally provide their lists in terms of the relevance of the material to the initial questions, so users should keep that in mind and ask relevant questions. With any search engine, the first few pages will provide the most useful links to information about the topic. Using a search engine, individuals can find information about local fitness centers and instructors in their area who offer specialized, one-to-one fitness training programs.

Local schools are also good sources of information. A schools physical education instructors and health teachers represent valuable sources of fitness information. They understand and are educated about the major issues related to physical fitness. Their expertise can help individuals find other reliable sources of fitness data. Many articles that are found may not always be totally accurate, so having the ability to ask teachers and health instructors specific questions is very useful to those interested in pursuing a physical fitness routine.

Additionally, the federal government publishes lots of information about fitness issues in the United States from a variety of perspectives. The United States Department of Agriculture, which is responsible for setting the daily recommended allowances of various vitamins and other food substances for human consumption, collects and provides information about fitness alternatives, the status of fitness in the country, and how well Americans participate in fitness programs.

The local fitness center also has considerable information to share about the subject of physical fitness. These centers may provide posted information or current magazines that address the most current fitness questions. The centers often let people observe fitness programs in action as well.

To find information about taking care of your body and the true meaning of fitness visit http://bodycaresite.com

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By: Michael Jenkins

Many people believe that to lose weight that they need to make drastic changes to their lifestyle. The rise of fad diets and the mass publicity that they have been given most likely has promoted this philosophy. Radical changes to the way you live generally are not realistic to maintain long term. To lose weight and keep it off you need to develop some simple habits and educate yourself in areas that will help you live a healthier lifestyle so you can get the most out of life.

Below are some steps to take to start your weight loss journey. This article serves as a ‘how to’ guide to start lose weight.

1. Keep a food journal

Studies have shown that successful weight loss begins with first identifying where you are consuming most of your calories. Keeping a food journal will be a huge self education tool, as you will immediately see where you can cut out unnecessary calories from your diet. Furthermore, once you begin your weight loss plan this step also keeps you very accountable. Review your food journal once a week. If you have a personal trainer or nutritionist, then take your food journal to them and get there advice.

2. Are you in a healthy weight range?

Take a diet profile and BMI test to see if your are in a healthy weight range. I believe that your weight should be healthy, and one should not aspire to being a stick figure like the media portrays is attractive. Remember that the people in the in the magazines are airbrushed and photo shopped and that it is unrealistic to look that way! A diet profile will work out how many calories that you need to consume and the calorie differential that you need to lose weight and achieve your weight goal on the time frame you specify. Many online diet companies use a diet profile to set your program.

A BMI calculator will serve you well. A BMI calculator will give you your healthy weight based on your height and weight and will give you a numerical figure for this. Healthy BMI ranges are summarized below:

< 19 Underweight – should consider putting on some weight

20 – 25 Healthy weight range

25 – 30 Overweight – should lose some weight to avoid health risks >

30 Obese – should see doctor to help lose weight and avoid likely health risks

Remember BMI is only a guide, however it is a good place to start!

3. Use a calorie counter

Using a calorie counter is a fantastic educational tool and also ensures that the food you are eating works in with your daily calorie allowance. You can use a calorie counter in a book form or via the internet. The internet is much more interactive, however a book can be convenient when you are out and about during the day. Start calculating the ingredients to your meals and you will soon educate yourself on the calories that you are consuming and areas that you can eliminate unnecessary calories from your diet.

4. Exercise 60 minutes per day

Now you have identified how much weight you want to lose, the time frame to achieve that goal, areas you can eliminate calorie, the next step is to exercise every day! Exercising burns calories, speeds up your metabolism and massively fast forwards your weight loss goals. Exercise doesn’t need to be an hour of strenuous exercise. A walk or a light swim is all that is needed.

5. Get plenty of sleep

Sleep is essential for your body and brain to function properly. Many people are not getting sufficient sleep. People tend to be more susceptible to binge eating and emotionally eating when they are tired. If you are consuming less calories from your diet and burning more calories through your exercise, chances are that you may feel tired as your body is adjusting to your new lifestyle. One thing is for sure though; once your body adapts you will be feeling full of life!!

At Australian Lifestyle & Fitness we understand how hard it is to lose weight. That is why we provide you with weight loss programs to lose weight and keep it off.

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By: Kate Loving Shenk
aning the barn today, a job that will take at least several days. I kept finding things I totally forgot about, like an old green urn that used to sit in the corner of the living room in the old home stead, which housed a large wooden protractor we used to draw circles with on the chalk board.

This urn is probably a good sixty years old, at least.

Then I found a letter I wrote to the New York Times in 1998 that I sent but was never published. I remember the feeling of disappointment at the time because it was a great letter and I enjoyed writing it.

The letter in question addressed a fourth grade science project that sought to disprove the validity of Therapeutic Touch and was written in the April 1998 edition of Jama (Journal of the American Medical Association), and was reviewed April 1, 1998 by the New York Times.

The New York Times stated that seeking to disprove or debunk at the onset of any scientific experiment is not the way of pure science. And the 9 year old fourth grader at the onset of her project set out to do just that. The article was entitled: “A Child’s Paper Poses a Medical Challenge,” written in response to the JAMA article, “A Close Look At Therapeutic Touch.”

My letter addressed the JAMA article itself. At the time, I served an indigent population as a Nurse Practitioner in York, Pennsylvania. I practiced one form of energy healing, as taught by Leonard Laskow, author of “Healing With Love,” in my practice “without the permission or knowledge of the attending physician.”

The JAMA article made it obvious for all to see the appalling polarity that continues to exist between doctors and nurses. The article was indeed about Therapeutic Touch yet the undertone of scorn the editor/writer (Steven Barrett, MD) had for nurses showed me and my colleagues how doctors still believe that nurses are their hand-maidens.

And ten years later, these attitudes still exist.

Nursing at its heart has always been one of healer and healing. Our education is holistic in nature, teaching compassion and non-judgment.

Many physicians are proponents of energy healing called by various names. I doubt, as the conclusion of the JAMA article suggests, that the “claims of Therapeutic Touch are groundless and that further professional use is unjustified.”

Add to this the method by which the practitioners were asked to sense the energy of their subject. A card board screen was set up by the disbelieving child through which the practitioners put their hands. With their sight blocked, the child asked them to identify which of their hands was near one of hers, which they were able to identify only 44% of the time.

When one is engaged with the energy from one human or animal to another, the idea is to remove blocks that impede synergistic flow. In the experiment, a cardboard barrier was placed between the healer and the skeptical child.

I dare say that this artificial prop did little to release the free flow of healing energy from one subject to the other. In fact, a 44% success rate is better than the medicine my father used to take for Alzhelmers, which supposedly helped patients only 25% of the time.

This medicine hasn’t been taken off the market yet.

Dr Mehmet Oz was interviewed on the Peter Jennings evening news program 4/1998 in response to the JAMA article. He vowed to legitimize Therapeutic Touch in his Cardiology practice.

Ten years later, he accomplished that and more. Therapeutic Touch is used more widely now than it was ten years ago. Dr Oz uses Therapeutic Touch (TT) practitioners in his surgical rooms to hasten the recovery of his cardiac patients undergoing heart operations.

Dr Oz is widely loved. His best selling books have created a huge audience. I believe that the JAMA article served to strengthen resolve for healers everywhere to bring TT and energy healing out of the closet for once and for all.

The fourth grade science project was a success, after all, but not in the way Dr. Barrett had hoped.

Love coupled with healing intention triumphed over dry science; and triumphed over those seeking to discredit the great personal meaning a spiritual healing has in a person’s life.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=–=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
Kate Loving Shenk is a writer, healer, musician and the creator of the e-book called “Transform Your Nursing Career and Discover Your Calling and Destiny.” Click here to find out how to order the e-book:
http://www.nursingcareertransformation.com Check Out Kate’s Blog:
http://www.nursehealers.typepad.com
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

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By: Jose Nunez

By Anne Marie Baugh

For instance if you are a web designer begin cultivating relationships through specific industries such as the gourmet food industry, private pilot industry, etc. Every single business has its trade organizations and publications for which they stay on top of their own trends. Break into these arenas and you will find rich resources for building your sales.

Begin by deciding which arenas you can be most effective. For instance if you are a search engine doctor it is certainly possible to work with anyone coming online. However, if you have a certain love of animals, a natural connection will be made through the pet industry. These industries have publications that are read by these types of business owners. Begin targeting these publications for advertising, article submissions, etc. By speaking their language and sharing their passion, you will have an instant connection.

Set yourself up as the expert in the niche industry of your choice. Look for publicity avenues that might be available through those trades. It is often much easier to get recognized in a trade than it is in a mainstream publication. Trades are constantly looking for content that will educate and inspire their business readers. Keep in mind when pitching that you are indeed speaking to business people and not the average consumer off the street. This means that your approach must be more sophisticated and educational. It is vital that you provide content that will make a significant difference in their everyday business ventures.

Create a specialized press kit that targets each niche trade publication and will speak “their” language. Make one-page pitches to the editors with a follow up call in about one week. Be polite and helpful. Offer your expertise and don’t be afraid to share trade secrets. It will endear you to the editor and create more opportunities to get you into print. The fact is that some readers will take your trade secrets and actually use them, but the majority will be dazzled by your knowledge and choose to hire you to do the work. Most business owners recognize that they cannot do everything and wise one stick with what they do best and hire experts to do the rest. So become the expert they cannot do without. What do experts have? Knowledge and visibility.

Trade journals are the most overlooked publicity avenue in the business. This creates a dynamic opportunity for you to make a big impact and bring in mega loads of business while increasing your media attention.

Anne Marie Baugh is a noted publicist online publicist to rising Cyber-stars. She also owns and operates Write-Promotion an online business that works hands-on with businesses looking for promotional avenues to cyber-success!

Create Success Today at: http://www.write-promotion.com
Or write to: write@write-promotion.com
We look forward to hearing from you!

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By: anwar
Global Positioning System

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is the only fully functional Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). Utilizing a constellation of at least 24 medium Earth orbit satellites that transmit precise microwave signals, the system enables a GPS receiver to determine its location, speed/direction, and time.

Developed by the United States Department of Defense, it is officially named NAVSTAR GPS (Contrary to popular belief, NAVSTAR is not an acronym, but simply a name given by Mr. John Walsh, a key decision maker when it came to the budget for the GPS program[1]). The satellite constellation is managed by the United States Air Force 50th Space Wing. The cost of maintaining the system is approximately US$750 million per year,[2] including the replacement of aging satellites, and research and development. Despite these costs, GPS is free for civilian use as a public good.

GPS has become a widely used aid to navigation worldwide, and a useful tool for map-making, land surveying, commerce, and scientific uses. GPS also provides a precise time reference used in many applications including scientific study of earthquakes, and synchronization of telecommunications networks.

Simplified method of operation

A GPS receiver calculates its position by measuring the distance between itself and three or more GPS satellites. Measuring the time delay between transmission and reception of each GPS microwave signal gives the distance to each satellite, since the signal travels at a known speed – the speed of light. These signals also carry information about the satellites’ location and general system health (known as almanac and ephemeris data). By determining the position of, and distance to, at least three satellites, the receiver can compute its position using trilateration.[3] Receivers typically do not have perfectly accurate clocks and therefore track one or more additional satellites, using their atomic clocks to correct the receiver’s own clock error.

[edit] Technical description

Unlaunched GPS satellite on display at the San Diego Aerospace museum

Unlaunched GPS satellite on display at the San Diego Aerospace museum

[edit] System segmentation

The current GPS consists of three major segments. These are the space segment (SS), a control segment (CS), and a user segment (US).[4]

[edit] Space segment

The space segment (SS) is composed of the orbiting GPS satellites, or Space Vehicles (SV) in GPS parlance. The GPS design calls for 24 SVs to be distributed equally among six circular orbital planes.[5] The orbital planes are centered on the Earth, not rotating with respect to the distant stars.[6] The six planes have approximately 55° inclination (tilt relative to Earth’s equator) and are separated by 60° right ascension of the ascending node (angle along the equator from a reference point to the orbit’s intersection).[2]

Orbiting at an altitude of approximately 20,200 kilometers (12,600 miles or 10,900 nautical miles; orbital radius of 26,600 km (16,500 mi or 14,400 NM)), each SV makes two complete orbits each sidereal day, so it passes over the same location on Earth once each day. The orbits are arranged so that at least six satellites are always within line of sight from almost everywhere on Earth’s surface.[7]

As of September 2007, there are 31 actively broadcasting satellites in the GPS constellation. The additional satellites improve the precision of GPS receiver calculations by providing redundant measurements. With the increased number of satellites, the constellation was changed to a nonuniform arrangement. Such an arrangement was shown to improve reliability and availability of the system, relative to a uniform system, when multiple satellites fail.[8]

[edit] Control segment

The flight paths of the satellites are tracked by US Air Force monitoring stations in Hawaii, Kwajalein, Ascension Island, Diego Garcia, and Colorado Springs, Colorado, along with monitor stations operated by the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA).[9] The tracking information is sent to the Air Force Space Command’s master control station at Schriever Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, which is operated by the 2d Space Operations Squadron (2 SOPS) of the United States Air Force (USAF). 2 SOPS contacts each GPS satellite regularly with a navigational update (using the ground antennas at Ascension Island, Diego Garcia, Kwajalein, and Colorado Springs). These updates synchronize the atomic clocks on board the satellites to within one microsecond and adjust the ephemeris of each satellite’s internal orbital model. The updates are created by a Kalman filter which uses inputs from the ground monitoring stations, space weather information, and various other inputs.[10]

GPS receivers come in a variety of formats, from devices integrated into cars, phones, and watches, to dedicated devices such as those shown here from manufacturers Trimble, Garmin and Leica (left to right).

GPS receivers come in a variety of formats, from devices integrated into cars, phones, and watches, to dedicated devices such as those shown here from manufacturers Trimble, Garmin and Leica (left to right).

[edit] User segment

The user’s GPS receiver is the user segment (US) of the GPS system. In general, GPS receivers are composed of an antenna, tuned to the frequencies transmitted by the satellites, receiver-processors, and a highly-stable clock (often a crystal oscillator). They may also include a display for providing location and speed information to the user. A receiver is often described by its number of channels: this signifies how many satellites it can monitor simultaneously. Originally limited to four or five, this has progressively increased over the years so that, as of 2006, receivers typically have between twelve and twenty channels.

A typical OEM GPS receiver module, based on the SiRF Star III chipset, measuring 15×17 mm, and used in many products.

A typical OEM GPS receiver module, based on the SiRF Star III chipset, measuring 15×17 mm, and used in many products.

GPS receivers may include an input for differential corrections, using the RTCM SC-104 format. This is typically in the form of a RS-232 port at 4,800 bit/s speed. Data are actually sent at a much lower rate, which limits the accuracy of the signal sent using RTCM. Receivers with internal DGPS receivers can outperform those using external RTCM data. As of 2006, even low-cost units commonly include Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS) receivers.

Many GPS receivers can relay position data to a PC or other device using the NMEA 0183 protocol. NMEA 2000[11] is a newer and less widely adopted protocol. Both are proprietary and controlled by the US-based National Marine Electronics Association. References to the NMEA protocols have been compiled from public records, allowing open source tools like gpsd to read the protocol without violating intellectual property laws. Other proprietary protocols exist as well, such as the SiRF and MTK protocols. Receivers can interface with other devices using methods including a serial connection, USB or Bluetooth.

[edit] Navigation signals

Main article: GPS signals

GPS broadcast signal

GPS broadcast signal

Each GPS satellite continuously broadcasts a Navigation Message at 50 bit/s giving the time-of-day, GPS week number and satellite health information (all transmitted in the first part of the message), an ephemeris (transmitted in the second part of the message) and an almanac (later part of the message). The ephemeris data gives the satellite’s own precise orbit and is output over 18 seconds, repeating every 30 seconds. The ephemeris is updated every 2 hours and is generally valid for 4 hours, with provisions for 6 hour time-outs. The time needed to acquire the ephemeris is becoming a significant element of the delay to first position fix, because, as the hardware becomes more capable, the time to lock onto the satellite signals shrinks, but the ephemeris data requires 30 seconds (worst case) before it is received, due to the low data transmission rate. The almanac consists of coarse orbit and status information for each satellite in the constellation and takes 12 seconds for each satellite present, with information for a new satellite being transmitted every 30 seconds (15.5 minutes for 31 satellites). The purpose of the data is to assist in the acquisition of satellites at power-up by allowing the receiver to generate a list of visible satellites based on stored position and time, while an ephemeris from each satellite is needed to compute position fixes using that satellite. In older hardware, lack of an almanac in a new receiver would cause long delays before providing a valid position, because the search for each satellite was a slow process. Advances in hardware have made the acquisition process much faster, so not having an almanac is no longer an issue. An important thing to note about navigation data is that each satellite transmits only its own ephemeris, but transmits an almanac for all satellites.

Each satellite transmits its navigation message with at least two distinct spread spectrum codes: the Coarse / Acquisition (C/A) code, which is freely available to the public, and the Precise (P) code, which is usually encrypted and reserved for military applications. The C/A code is a 1,023 chip pseudo-random (PRN) code at 1.023 million chips/sec so that it repeats every millisecond. Each satellite has its own C/A code so that it can be uniquely identified and received separately from the other satellites transmitting on the same frequency. The P-code is a 10.23 megachip/sec PRN code that repeats only every week. When the “anti-spoofing” mode is on, as it is in normal operation, the P code is encrypted by the Y-code to produce the P(Y) code, which can only be decrypted by units with a valid decryption key. Both the C/A and P(Y) codes impart the precise time-of-day to the user. Frequencies used by GPS include

* L1 (1575.42 MHz): Mix of Navigation Message, coarse-acquisition (C/A) code and encrypted precision P(Y) code, plus the new L1C on future Block III satellites.

* L2 (1227.60 MHz): P(Y) code, plus the new L2C code on the Block IIR-M and newer satellites.

* L3 (1381.05 MHz): Used by the Nuclear Detonation (NUDET) Detection System Payload (NDS) to signal detection of nuclear detonations and other high-energy infrared events. Used to enforce nuclear test ban treaties.

* L4 (1379.913 MHz): Being studied for additional ionospheric correction.

* L5 (1176.45 MHz): Proposed for use as a civilian safety-of-life (SoL) signal (see GPS modernization). This frequency falls into an internationally protected range for aeronautical navigation, promising little or no interference under all circumstances. The first Block IIF satellite that would provide this signal is set to be launched in 2008.

[edit] Calculating positions

[edit] Using the C/A code

To start off, the receiver picks which C/A codes to listen for by PRN number, based on the almanac information it has previously acquired. As it detects each satellite’s signal, it identifies it by its distinct C/A code pattern, then measures the time delay for each satellite. To do this, the receiver produces an identical C/A sequence using the same seed number as the satellite. By lining up the two sequences, the receiver can measure the delay and calculate the distance to the satellite, called the pseudorange[12].

Overlapping pseudoranges, represented as curves, are modified to yield the probable position

Overlapping pseudoranges, represented as curves, are modified to yield the probable position

Next, the orbital position data, or ephemeris, from the Navigation Message is then downloaded to calculate the satellite’s precise position. A more-sensitive receiver will potentially acquire the ephemeris data quicker than a less-sensitive receiver, especially in a noisy environment.[13] Knowing the position and the distance of a satellite indicates that the receiver is located somewhere on the surface of an imaginary sphere centered on that satellite and whose radius is the distance to it. Receivers can substitute altitude for one satellite, which the GPS receiver translates to a pseudorange measured from the center of the earth.

Locations are calculated not in three-dimensional space, but in four-dimensional spacetime, meaning a measure of the precise time-of-day is very important. The measured pseudoranges from four satellites have already been determined with the receiver’s internal clock, and thus have an unknown amount of clock error. (The clock error or actual time does not matter in the initial pseudorange calculation, because that is based on how much time has passed between reception of each of the signals.[clarify][citation needed]) The four-dimensional point that is equidistant from the pseudoranges is calculated as a guess as to the receiver’s location, and the factor used to adjust those pseudoranges to intersect at that four-dimensional point gives a guess as to the receiver’s clock offset. With each guess, a geometric dilution of precision (GDOP) vector is calculated, based on the relative sky positions of the satellites used. As more satellites are picked up, pseudoranges from more combinations of four satellites can be processed to add more guesses to the location and clock offset. The receiver then determines which combinations to use and how to calculate the estimated position by determining the weighted average of these positions and clock offsets. After the final location and time are calculated, the location is expressed in a specific coordinate system, e.g. latitude/longitude, using the WGS 84 geodetic datum or a local system specific to a country.

[edit] Using the P(Y) code

Calculating a position with the P(Y) signal is generally similar in concept, assuming one can decrypt it. The encryption is essentially a safety mechanism: if a signal can be successfully decrypted, it is reasonable to assume it is a real signal being sent by a GPS satellite.[citation needed] In comparison, civil receivers are highly vulnerable to spoofing since correctly formatted C/A signals can be generated using readily available signal generators. RAIM features do not protect against spoofing, since RAIM only checks the signals from a navigational perspective.

[edit] Accuracy and error sources

The position calculated by a GPS receiver requires the current time, the position of the satellite and the measured delay of the received signal. The position accuracy is primarily dependent on the satellite position and signal delay.

To measure the delay, the receiver compares the bit sequence received from the satellite with an internally generated version. By comparing the rising and trailing edges of the bit transitions, modern electronics can measure signal offset to within about 1% of a bit time, or approximately 10 nanoseconds for the C/A code. Since GPS signals propagate nearly at the speed of light, this represents an error of about 3 meters. This is the minimum error possible using only the GPS C/A signal.

Position accuracy can be improved by using the higher-chiprate P(Y) signal. Assuming the same 1% bit time accuracy, the high frequency P(Y) signal results in an accuracy of about 30 centimeters.

Electronics errors are one of several accuracy-degrading effects outlined in the table below. When taken together, autonomous civilian GPS horizontal position fixes are typically accurate to about 15 meters (50 ft). These effects also reduce the more precise P(Y) code’s accuracy.

Sources of User Equivalent Range Errors (UERE) Source Effect

Ionospheric effects ± 5 meter

Ephemeris errors ± 2.5 meter

Satellite clock errors ± 2 meter

Multipath distortion ± 1 meter

Tropospheric effects ± 0.5 meter

Numerical errors ± 1 meter

[edit] Atmospheric effects

Inconsistencies of atmospheric conditions affect the speed of the GPS signals as they pass through the Earth’s atmosphere and ionosphere. Correcting these errors is a significant challenge to improving GPS position accuracy. These effects are smallest when the satellite is directly overhead and become greater for satellites nearer the horizon since the signal is affected for a longer time. Once the receiver’s approximate location is known, a mathematical model can be used to estimate and compensate for these errors.

Because ionospheric delay affects the speed of microwave signals differently based on frequency—a characteristic known as dispersion—both frequency bands can be used to help reduce this error. Some military and expensive survey-grade civilian receivers compare the different delays in the L1 and L2 frequencies to measure atmospheric dispersion, and apply a more precise correction. This can be done in civilian receivers without decrypting the P(Y) signal carried on L2, by tracking the carrier wave instead of the modulated code. To facilitate this on lower cost receivers, a new civilian code signal on L2, called L2C, was added to the Block IIR-M satellites, which was first launched in 2005. It allows a direct comparison of the L1 and L2 signals using the coded signal instead of the carrier wave.

The effects of the ionosphere generally change slowly, and can be averaged over time. The effects for any particular geographical area can be easily calculated by comparing the GPS-measured position to a known surveyed location. This correction is also valid for other receivers in the same general location. Several systems send this information over radio or other links to allow L1 only receivers to make ionospheric corrections. The ionospheric data are transmitted via satellite in Satellite Based Augmentation Systems such as WAAS, which transmits it on the GPS frequency using a special pseudo-random number (PRN), so only one antenna and receiver are required.

Humidity also causes a variable delay, resulting in errors similar to ionospheric delay, but occurring in the troposphere. This effect is both more localized and changes more quickly than ionospheric effects and is not frequency dependent. These traits making precise measurement and compensation of humidity errors more difficult than ionospheric effects.

Changes in altitude also change the amount of delay due to the signal passing through less of the atmosphere at higher elevations. Since the GPS receiver computes its approximate altitude, this error is relatively simple to correct.

[edit] Multipath effects

GPS signals can also be affected by multipath issues, where the radio signals reflect off surrounding terrain; buildings, canyon walls, hard ground, etc. These delayed signals can cause inaccuracy. A variety of techniques, most notably narrow correlator spacing, have been developed to mitigate multipath errors. For long delay multipath, the receiver itself can recognize the wayward signal and discard it. To address shorter delay multipath from the signal reflecting off the ground, specialized antennas may be used to reduce the signal power as received by the antenna. Short delay reflections are harder to filter out because they interfere with the true signal, causing effects almost indistinguishable from routine fluctuations in atmospheric delay.

Multipath effects are much less severe in moving vehicles. When the GPS antenna is moving, the false solutions using reflected signals quickly fail to converge and only the direct signals result in stable solutions.

[edit] Ephemeris and clock errors

The navigation message from a satellite is sent out only every 30 seconds. In reality, the data contained in these messages tend to be “out of date” by an even larger amount. Consider the case when a GPS satellite is boosted back into a proper orbit; for some time following the maneuver, the receiver’s calculation of the satellite’s position will be incorrect until it receives another ephemeris update. The onboard clocks are extremely accurate, but they do suffer from some clock drift. This problem tends to be very small, but may add up to 2 meters (6 ft) of inaccuracy.

This class of error is more “stable” than ionospheric problems and tends to change over days or weeks rather than minutes. This makes correction fairly simple by sending out a more accurate almanac on a separate channel.

[edit] Selective availability

The GPS includes a feature called Selective Availability (SA) that introduces intentional, slowly changing random errors of up to a hundred meters (328 ft) into the publicly available navigation signals to confound, for example, guiding long range missiles to precise targets. Additional accuracy was available in the signal, but in an encrypted form that was only available to the United States military, its allies and a few others, mostly government users.

SA typically added signal errors of up to about 10 meters (32 ft) horizontally and 30 meters (98 ft) vertically. The inaccuracy of the civilian signal was deliberately encoded so as not to change very quickly, for instance the entire eastern U.S. area might read 30 m off, but 30 m off everywhere and in the same direction. To improve the usefulness of GPS for civilian navigation, Differential GPS was used by many civilian GPS receivers to greatly improve accuracy.

During the Gulf War, the shortage of military GPS units and the wide availability of civilian ones among personnel resulted in a decision to disable Selective Availability. This was ironic, as SA had been introduced specifically for these situations, allowing friendly troops to use the signal for accurate navigation, while at the same time denying it to the enemy. But since SA was also denying the same accuracy to thousands of friendly troops, turning it off or setting it to an error of zero meters (effectively the same thing) presented a clear benefit.

In the 1990s, the FAA started pressuring the military to turn off SA permanently. This would save the FAA millions of dollars every year in maintenance of their own radio navigation systems. The military resisted for most of the 1990s, and it ultimately took an executive order to have SA removed from the GPS signal. The amount of error added was “set to zero”[14] at midnight on May 1, 2000 following an announcement by U.S. President Bill Clinton, allowing users access to the error-free L1 signal. Per the directive, the induced error of SA was changed to add no error to the public signals (C/A code). Selective Availability is still a system capability of GPS, and error could, in theory, be reintroduced at any time. In practice, in view of the hazards and costs this would induce for US and foreign shipping, it is unlikely to be reintroduced, and various government agencies, including the FAA,[15] have stated that it is not intended to be reintroduced.

The US military has developed the ability to locally deny GPS (and other navigation services) to hostile forces in a specific area of crisis without affecting the rest of the world or its own military systems.[14]

One interesting side effect of the Selective Availability hardware is the capability to correct the frequency of the GPS caesium and rubidium atomic clocks to an accuracy of approximately 2 × 10-13 (one in five trillion). This represented a significant improvement over the raw accuracy of the clocks.[citation needed]

On 19 September 2007, the United States Department of Defense announced that they would not procure any more satellites capable of implementing SA. [16]

[edit] Relativity

According to the theory of relativity, due to their constant movement and height relative to the Earth-centered inertial reference frame, the clocks on the satellites are affected by their speed (special relativity) as well as their gravitational potential (general relativity). For the GPS satellites, general relativity predicts that the atomic clocks at GPS orbital altitudes will tick more rapidly, by about 45,900 nanoseconds (ns) per day, because they are in a weaker gravitational field than atomic clocks on Earth’s surface. Special relativity predicts that atomic clocks moving at GPS orbital speeds will tick more slowly than stationary ground clocks by about 7,200 ns per day. When combined, the discrepancy is 38 microseconds per day; a difference of 4.465 parts in 1010.[17]. To account for this, the frequency standard onboard each satellite is given a rate offset prior to launch, making it run slightly slower than the desired frequency on Earth; specifically, at 10.22999999543 MHz instead of 10.23 MHz.[18]

GPS observation processing must also compensate for another relativistic effect, the Sagnac effect. The GPS time scale is defined in an inertial system but observations are processed in an Earth-centered, Earth-fixed (co-rotating) system, a system in which simultaneity is not uniquely defined. The Lorentz transformation between the two systems modifies the signal run time, a correction having opposite algebraic signs for satellites in the Eastern and Western celestial hemispheres. Ignoring this effect will produce an east-west error on the order of hundreds of nanoseconds, or tens of meters in position.[19]

The atomic clocks on board the GPS satellites are precisely tuned, making the system a practical engineering application of the scientific theory of relativity in a real-world environment.

[edit] GPS interference and jamming

Since GPS signals at terrestrial receivers tend to be relatively weak, it is easy for other sources of electromagnetic radiation to desensitize the receiver, making acquiring and tracking the satellite signals difficult or impossible.

Solar flares are one such naturally occurring emission with the potential to degrade GPS reception, and their impact can affect reception over the half of the Earth facing the sun. GPS signals can also be interfered with by naturally occurring geomagnetic storms, predominantly found near the poles of the Earth’s magnetic field.[20] Another source of problems is the metal embedded in some car windscreens to prevent icing, degrading reception just inside the car.

Man-made interference can also disrupt, or jam, GPS signals. In one well documented case, an entire harbor was unable to receive GPS signals due to unintentional jamming caused by a malfunctioning TV antenna preamplifier.[21] Intentional jamming is also possible. Generally, stronger signals can interfere with GPS receivers when they are within radio range, or line of sight. In 2002, a detailed description of how to build a short range GPS L1 C/A jammer was published in the online magazine Phrack.[22]

The U.S. government believes that such jammers were used occasionally during the 2001 war in Afghanistan and the U.S. military claimed to destroy a GPS jammer with a GPS-guided bomb during the Iraq War.[23] Such a jammer is relatively easy to detect and locate, making it an attractive target for anti-radiation missiles. The UK Ministry of Defence tested a jamming system in the UK’s West Country on 7 and 8 June 2007. [24]

Some countries allow the use of GPS repeaters to allow for the reception of GPS signals indoors and in obscured locations, however, under EU and UK laws, the use of these is prohibited as the signals can cause interference to other GPS receivers that may receive data from both GPS satellites and the repeater.

Due to the potential for both natural and man-made noise, numerous techniques continue to be developed to deal with the interference. The first is to not rely on GPS as a sole source. According to John Ruley, “IFR pilots should have a fallback plan in case of a GPS malfunction”.[25] Receiver Autonomous Integrity Monitoring (RAIM) is a feature now included in some receivers, which is designed to provide a warning to the user if jamming or another problem is detected. The U.S. military has also deployed their Selective Availability / Anti-Spoofing Module (SAASM) in the Defense Advanced GPS Receiver (DAGR). In demonstration videos, the DAGR is able to detect jamming and maintain its lock on the encrypted GPS signals during interference which causes civilian receivers to lose lock.[26]

[edit] Techniques to improve accuracy

[edit] Augmentation

Main article: GNSS Augmentation

Augmentation methods of improving accuracy rely on external information being integrated into the calculation process. There are many such systems in place and they are generally named or described based on how the GPS sensor receives the information. Some systems transmit additional information about sources of error (such as clock drift, ephemeris, or ionospheric delay), others provide direct measurements of how much the signal was off in the past, while a third group provide additional navigational or vehicle information to be integrated in the calculation process.

Examples of augmentation systems include the Wide Area Augmentation System, Differential GPS, Inertial Navigation Systems and Assisted GPS.

[edit] Precise monitoring

The accuracy of a calculation can also be improved through precise monitoring and measuring of the existing GPS signals in additional or alternate ways.

After SA, which has been turned off, the largest error in GPS is usually the unpredictable delay through the ionosphere. The spacecraft broadcast ionospheric model parameters, but errors remain. This is one reason the GPS spacecraft transmit on at least two frequencies, L1 and L2. Ionospheric delay is a well-defined function of frequency and the total electron content (TEC) along the path, so measuring the arrival time difference between the frequencies determines TEC and thus the precise ionospheric delay at each frequency.

Receivers with decryption keys can decode the P(Y)-code transmitted on both L1 and L2. However, these keys are reserved for the military and “authorized” agencies and are not available to the public. Without keys, it is still possible to use a codeless technique to compare the P(Y) codes on L1 and L2 to gain much of the same error information. However, this technique is slow, so it is currently limited to specialized surveying equipment. In the future, additional civilian codes are expected to be transmitted on the L2 and L5 frequencies (see GPS modernization, below). Then all users will be able to perform dual-frequency measurements and directly compute ionospheric delay errors.

A second form of precise monitoring is called Carrier-Phase Enhancement (CPGPS). The error, which this corrects, arises because the pulse transition of the PRN is not instantaneous, and thus the correlation (satellite-receiver sequence matching) operation is imperfect. The CPGPS approach utilizes the L1 carrier wave, which has a period 1000 times smaller than that of the C/A bit period, to act as an additional clock signal and resolve the uncertainty. The phase difference error in the normal GPS amounts to between 2 and 3 meters (6 to 10 ft) of ambiguity. CPGPS working to within 1% of perfect transition reduces this error to 3 centimeters (1 inch) of ambiguity. By eliminating this source of error, CPGPS coupled with DGPS normally realizes between 20 and 30 centimeters (8 to 12 inches) of absolute accuracy.

Relative Kinematic Positioning (RKP) is another approach for a precise GPS-based positioning system. In this approach, determination of range signal can be resolved to an accuracy of less than 10 centimeters (4 in). This is done by resolving the number of cycles in which the signal is transmitted and received by the receiver. This can be accomplished by using a combination of differential GPS (DGPS) correction data, transmitting GPS signal phase information and ambiguity resolution techniques via statistical tests—possibly with processing in real-time (real-time kinematic positioning, RTK).

[edit] GPS time and date

While most clocks are synchronized to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), the Atomic clocks on the satellites are set to GPS time. The difference is that GPS time is not corrected to match the rotation of the Earth, so it does not contain leap seconds or other corrections which are periodically added to UTC. GPS time was set to match Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) in 1980, but has since diverged. The lack of corrections means that GPS time remains at a constant offset (19 seconds) with International Atomic Time (TAI). Periodic corrections are performed on the on-board clocks to correct relativistic effects and keep them synchronized with ground clocks.

The GPS navigation message includes the difference between GPS time and UTC, which as of 2006 is 14 seconds. Receivers subtract this offset from GPS time to calculate UTC and specific timezone values. New GPS units may not show the correct UTC time until after receiving the UTC offset message. The GPS-UTC offset field can accommodate 255 leap seconds (eight bits) which, at the current rate of change of the Earth’s rotation, is sufficient to last until the year 2330.

As opposed to the year, month, and day format of the Julian calendar, the GPS date is expressed as a week number and a day-of-week number. The week number is transmitted as a ten-bit field in the C/A and P(Y) navigation messages, and so it becomes zero again every 1,024 weeks (19.6 years). GPS week zero started at 00:00:00 UTC (00:00:19 TAI) on January 6, 1980 and the week number became zero again for the first time at 23:59:47 UTC on August 21, 1999 (00:00:19 TAI on August 22, 1999). To determine the current Gregorian date, a GPS receiver must be provided with the approximate date (to within 3,584 days) to correctly translate the GPS date signal. To address this concern the modernized GPS navigation messages use a 13-bit field, which only repeats every 8,192 weeks (157 years), and will not return to zero until near the year 2137.

[edit] GPS modernization

Main article: GPS modernization

Having reached the program’s requirements for Full Operational Capability (FOC) on July 17, 1995,[27] the GPS completed its original design goals. However, additional advances in technology and new demands on the existing system led to the effort to modernize the GPS system. Announcements from the Vice President and the White House in 1998 initiated these changes, and in 2000 the U.S. Congress authorized the effort, referring to it as GPS III.

The project aims to improve the accuracy and availability for all users and involves new ground stations, new satellites, and four additional navigation signals. New civilian signals are called L2C, L5 and L1C; the new military code is called M-Code. Initial Operational Capability (IOC) of the L2C code is expected in 2008.[28] A goal of 2013 has been established for the entire program, with incentives offered to the contractors if they can complete it by 2011.

[edit] Applications

The Global Positioning System, while originally a military project, is considered a dual-use technology, meaning it has significant applications for both the military and the civilian industry.

[edit] Military

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The military use GPS for the following purposes:

[edit] Navigation

GPS allows soldiers to find objectives in the dark or in unfamiliar territory, and to coordinate the movement of troops and supplies.

[edit] Target tracking

Various military weapons systems use GPS to track potential ground and air targets before they are flagged as hostile. These weapons systems pass GPS co-ordinates of targets to precision-guided munitions to allow them to engage the targets accurately.

Military aircraft, particularly those used in air-to-ground roles use GPS to find targets (for example, gun camera video from AH-1 Cobras in Iraq show GPS co-ordinates that can be looked up in Google Earth).

[edit] Missile and projectile guidance

GPS allows accurate targeting of various military weapons including ICBMs, cruise missiles and precision-guided munitions.

Artillery projectiles with embedded GPS receivers able to withstand forces of 12,000G have been developed for use in 155 mm howitzers.[29]

[edit] Search and Rescue

Downed pilots can be located faster if they have a GPS receiver.

[edit] Reconnaissance and Map Creation

The military use GPS extensively to aid mapping and reconnaissance.

[edit] Other

The GPS satellites also carry nuclear detonation detectors, which form a major portion of the United States Nuclear Detonation Detection System.[30]

[edit] Civilian

See also: GPS applications

This antenna is mounted on the roof of a hut containing a scientific experiment needing precise timing.

This antenna is mounted on the roof of a hut containing a scientific experiment needing precise timing.

Many civilian applications benefit from GPS signals, using one or more of three basic components of the GPS; absolute location, relative movement, time transfer.

The ability to determine the receiver’s absolute location allows GPS receivers to perform as a surveying tool or as an aid to navigation. The capacity to determine relative movement enables a receiver to calculate local velocity and orientation, useful in vessels or observations of the Earth. Being able to synchronize clocks to exacting standards enables time transfer, which is critical in large communication and observation systems. An example is CDMA digital cellular. Each base station has a GPS timing receiver to synchronize its spreading codes with other base stations to facilitate inter-cell hand off and support hybrid GPS/CDMA positioning of mobiles for emergency calls and other applications.

Finally, GPS enables researchers to explore the Earth environment including the atmosphere, ionosphere and gravity field. GPS survey equipment has revolutionized tectonics by directly measuring the motion of faults in earthquakes.

To help prevent civilian GPS guidance from being used in an enemy’s military or improvised weaponry, the US Government controls the export of civilian receivers. A US-based manufacturer cannot generally export a GPS receiver unless the receiver contains limits restricting it from functioning when it is simultaneously (1) at an altitude above 18 kilometers (60,000 ft) and (2) traveling at over 515 m/s (1,000 knots).[31]

[edit] History

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The design of GPS is based partly on the similar ground-based radio navigation systems, such as LORAN and the Decca Navigator developed in the early 1940s, and used during World War II. Additional inspiration for the GPS system came when the Soviet Union launched the first Sputnik in 1957. A team of U.S. scientists led by Dr. Richard B. Kershner were monitoring Sputnik’s radio transmissions. They discovered that, because of the Doppler effect, the frequency of the signal being transmitted by Sputnik was higher as the satellite approached, and lower as it continued away from them. They realized that since they knew their exact location on the globe, they could pinpoint where the satellite was along its orbit by measuring the Doppler distortion.

The first satellite navigation system, Transit, used by the United States Navy, was first successfully tested in 1960. Using a constellation of five satellites, it could provide a navigational fix approximately once per hour. In 1967, the U.S. Navy developed the Timation satellite which proved the ability to place accurate clocks in space, a technology the GPS system relies upon. In the 1970s, the ground-based Omega Navigation System, based on signal phase comparison, became the first world-wide radio navigation system.

The first experimental Block-I GPS satellite was launched in February 1978.[28] The GPS satellites were initially manufactured by Rockwell International and are now manufactured by Lockheed Martin.

[edit] Timeline

* In 1972, the US Air Force Central Inertial Guidance Test Facility (Holloman AFB) conducted developmental fight tests of two prototype GPS receivers over White Sands Missile Range, using ground-based pseudo-satellites.

* In 1978 the first experimental Block-I GPS satellite was launched.

* In 1983, after Soviet interceptor aircraft shot down the civilian airliner KAL 007 in restricted Soviet airspace, killing all 269 people on board, U.S. President Ronald Reagan announced that the GPS system would be made available for civilian uses once it was completed.

* By 1985, ten more experimental Block-I satellites had been launched to validate the concept.

* On February 14, 1989, the first modern Block-II satellite was launched.

* In 1992, the 2nd Space Wing, which originally managed the system, was de-activated and replaced by the 50th Space Wing.

* By December 1993 the GPS system achieved initial operational capability[32]

* By January 17, 1994 a complete constellation of 24 satellites was in orbit.

* Full Operational Capability was declared by NAVSTAR in April 1995.

* In 1996, recognizing the importance of GPS to civilian users as well as military users, U.S. President Bill Clinton issued a policy directive[33] declaring GPS to be a dual-use system and establishing an Interagency GPS Executive Board to manage it as a national asset.

* In 1998, U.S. Vice President Al Gore announced plans to upgrade GPS with two new civilian signals for enhanced user accuracy and reliability, particularly with respect to aviation safety.

* On May 2, 2000 “Selective Availability” was discontinued as a result of the 1996 executive order, allowing users to receive a non-degraded signal globally.

* In 2004, the United States Government signed a historic agreement with the European Community establishing cooperation related to GPS and Europe’s planned Galileo system.

* In 2004, U.S. President George W. Bush updated the national policy, replacing the executive board with the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Executive Committee.

* November 2004, QUALCOMM announced successful tests of Assisted-GPS system for mobile phones.[3]

* In 2005, the first modernized GPS satellite was launched and began transmitting a second civilian signal (L2C) for enhanced user performance.

* The most recent launch was on 17 November 2006. The oldest GPS satellite still in operation was launched in August 1991.

* On September 14, 2007, the aging mainframe-based Ground Segment Control System was transitioned to the new Architecture Evolution Plan. [4]

[edit] Satellite numbers

Name Launch Period No of satellites launched, inc. launch failures Currently in service

Block I 1978-1985 11 0

Block II 1985-1990 9 0

Block IIA 1990-1997 19 15+11

Block IIR 1997-2004 12 12

Block IIR-M 2005- 3 3

Total 54 (plus one not launched) 30+1

1One test satellite

[edit] Awards

Two GPS developers have received the National Academy of Engineering Charles Stark Draper prize year 2003:

* Ivan Getting, emeritus president of The Aerospace Corporation and engineer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, established the basis for GPS, improving on the World War II land-based radio system called LORAN (Long-range Radio Aid to Navigation).

* Bradford Parkinson, professor of aeronautics and astronautics at Stanford University, conceived the present satellite-based system in the early 1960s and developed it in conjunction with the U.S. Air Force.

One GPS developer, Roger L. Easton, received the National Medal of Technology on February 13, 2006 at the White House.[34]

On February 10, 1993, the National Aeronautic Association selected the Global Positioning System Team as winners of the 1992 Robert J. Collier Trophy, the most prestigious aviation award in the United States. This team consists of researchers from the Naval Research Laboratory, the U.S. Air Force, the Aerospace Corporation, Rockwell International Corporation, and IBM Federal Systems Company. The citation accompanying the presentation of the trophy honors the GPS Team “for the most significant development for safe and efficient navigation and surveillance of air and spacecraft since the introduction of radio navigation 50 years ago.”

[edit] Other systems

Main article: Global Navigation Satellite System

Other satellite navigation systems in use or various states of development include:

* Beidou — China’s regional system that China has proposed to expand into a global system named COMPASS.

* Galileo — a proposed global system being developed by the European Union, joined by China, Israel, India, Morocco, Saudi Arabia and South Korea, Ukraine planned to be operational by 2011–12.

* GLONASS — Russia’s global system which is being restored to full availability in partnership with India.

* Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS) — India’s proposed regional system.

* QZSS – Japanese proposed regional system, adding better coverage to the Japanese islands.

[edit] See also

Satellite navigation systems Portal

Nautical Portal

* RAIM

* SIGI

* radio navigation

* High Sensitivity GPS

* Degree Confluence Project Use GPS to visit integral degrees of latitude and longitude.

* Exif, GPS data transfer.

* Geotagging

* Geocaching

* NaviTraveler.com, – a GPS point sharing community.

* GPS Drawing Digital mapping and drawing with GPS tracks.

* GPS tracking

* GPS/INS

* Assisted GPS

* GPX (XML schema for interchange of waypoints)

* ID Sniper rifle

* OpenStreetMap, free content maps and street pictures (GFDL)

* Telematics: Many telematics devices use GPS to determine the location of mobile equipment.

* The American Practical Navigator—Chapter 11 “Satellite Navigation”

* Point of Interest

* Automotive navigation system

* NextGen

[edit] Notes

1. ^ Parkinson, B.W. (1996), Global Positioning System: Theory and Applications, chap. 1: Introduction and Heritage of NAVSTAR, the Global Positioning System. pp. 3-28, American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Washington, D.C.

2. ^ a b GPS Overview from the NAVSTAR Joint Program Office. Accessed December 15, 2006.

3. ^ HowStuffWorks. How GPS Receivers Work. Accessed May 14, 2006.

4. ^ globalsecurity.org [1].

5. ^ Dana, Peter H. GPS Orbital Planes. August 8, 1996.

6. ^ What the Global Positioning System Tells Us about Relativity. Accessed January 2, 2007.

7. ^ USCG Navcen: GPS Frequently Asked Questions. Accessed January 3, 2007.

8. ^ Massatt, Paul and Brady, Wayne. “Optimizing performance through constellation management”, Crosslink, Summer 2002, pages 17-21.

9. ^ US Coast Guard General GPS News 9-9-05

10. ^ USNO. NAVSTAR Global Positioning System. Accessed May 14, 2006.

11. ^ NMEA NMEA 2000

12. ^ http://gge.unb.ca/Resources/HowDoesGPSWork.html

13. ^ AN02 Network Assistance (HTML). Retrieved on 2007-09-10.

14. ^ a b Office of Science and Technology Policy. Presidential statement to stop degrading GPS. May 1, 2000.

15. ^ FAA, Selective Availability. Retrieved Jan. 6, 2007.

16. ^ http://www.defenselink.mil/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=11335

17. ^ Rizos, Chris. University of New South Wales. GPS Satellite Signals. 1999.

18. ^ The Global Positioning System by Robert A. Nelson Via Satellite, November 1999

19. ^ Ashby, Neil Relativity and GPS. Physics Today, May 2002.

20. ^ Space Environment Center. SEC Navigation Systems GPS Page. August 26, 1996.

21. ^ The hunt for an unintentional GPS jammer. GPS World. January 1, 2003.

22. ^ Low Cost and Portable GPS Jammer. Phrack issue 0×3c (60), article 13]. Published December 28, 2002.

23. ^ American Forces Press Service. CENTCOM charts progress. March 25, 2003.

24. ^ [2]

25. ^ Ruley, John. AVweb. GPS jamming. February 12, 2003.

26. ^ Commercial GPS Receivers: Facts for the Warfighter. Hosted at the Joint Chiefs website, linked by the USAF’s GPS Wing DAGR program website. Accessed on 10 April, 2007

27. ^ US Coast Guard news release. Global Positioning System Fully Operational

28. ^ a b Hydrographic Society Journal. Developments in Global Navigation Satellite Systems. Issue #104, April 2002. Accessed April 5, 2007.

29. ^ XM982 Excalibur Precision Guided Extended Range Artillery Projectile. GlobalSecurity.org (2007-05-29). Retrieved on 2007-09-26.

30. ^ Sandia National Laboratory’s Nonproliferation programs and arms control technology.

31. ^ Arms Control Association. Missile Technology Control Regime. Accessed May 17, 2006.

32. ^ United States Department of Defense. Announcement of Initial Operational Capability. December 8, 1993.

33. ^ National Archives and Records Administration. U.S. GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM POLICY. March 29, 1996.

34. ^ United States Naval Research Laboratory. National Medal of Technology for GPS. November 21, 2005

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Global Positioning System

Government links

* GPS.gov—General public education website created by the U.S. Government

* National Space-Based PNT Executive Committee—Established in 2004 to oversee management of GPS and GPS augmentations at a national level.

* USCG Navigation Center—Status of the GPS constellation, government policy, and links to other references. Also includes satellite almanac data.

* The GPS Joint Program Office (GPS JPO)—Responsible for designing and acquiring the system on behalf of the US Government.

* U.S. Naval Observatory’s GPS constellation status

* U.S. Army Corps of Engineers manual: NAVSTAR HTML and PDF (22.6 MB, 328 pages)

* PNT Selective Availability Announcements

* GPS SPS Signal Specification, 2nd Edition—The official Standard Positioning Signal specification.

* Federal Aviation Administration’s GPS FAQ

Introductory / tutorial links

* How does GPS work? TomTom explains GPS, navigation, and digital maps

* GPS Academy Garmin interactive video web site explaing what exactly GPS is and what it can do for you

* HowStuffWorks’ Simplified explanation of GPS and video about how GPS works.

* Trimble’s Online GPS Tutorial Tutorial designed to introduce you to the principles behind GPS

* GPS and GLONASS Simulation(Java applet) Simulation and graphical depiction of space vehicle motion including computation of dilution of precision (DOP)

Technical, historical, and ancillary topics links

* Dana, Peter H. “Global Positioning System Overview”

* Satellite Navigation: GPS & Galileo (PDF)—16-page paper about the history and working of GPS, touching on the upcoming Galileo

* History of GPS, including information about each satellite’s configuration and launch.

* Chadha, Kanwar. “The Global Positioning System: Challenges in Bringing GPS to Mainstream Consumers” Technical Article (1998)

* GPS Weapon Guidance Techniques

* RAND history of the GPS system (PDF)

* GPS Anti-Jam Protection Techniques

* Crosslink Summer 2002 issue by The Aerospace Corporation on satellite navigation.

* Improved weather predictions from COSMIC GPS satellite signal occultation data.

* David L. Wilson’s GPS Accuracy Web Page A thorough analysis of the accuracy of GPS.

* Innovation: Spacecraft Navigator, Autonomous GPS Positioning at High Earth Orbits Example of GPS receiver designed for high altitude spaceflight.

* The Navigator GPS Receiver GSFC’s Navigator spaceflight receiver.

* Neil Ashby’s Relativity in the Global Positioning System

[show]

v • d • e

Satellite navigation systems

Historical Flag of the United States Transit

Operational Flag of the Soviet Union / Flag of Russia GLONASS · Flag of the United States GPS

Developmental Flag of the People’s Republic of China Beidou/COMPASS · Flag of Europe Galileo · Flag of India IRNSS · Flag of Japan QZSS

Related topics EGNOS · GAGAN · GPS·C · LAAS · MSAS · WAAS

[show]

v • d • e

Time signal stations

Longwave DCF77 · HBG · JJY · MSF · TDF · WWVB

Shortwave BPM · CHU · RWM · WWV · WWVH · YVTO

GNSS time transfer Beidou · Galileo · GLONASS · GPS · IRNSS

Defunct time stations OMA · VNG

[show]

v • d • e

Global structure in Systems, Systems sciences and Systems scientists

Categories Category:Conceptual systems · Category:Physical systems · Category:Social systems · Category:Systems · Category:Systems science · Category:Systems scientists · Category:Systems theory

Systems Biological system · Complex system · Complex adaptive system · Conceptual system · Cultural system · Dynamical system · Economic system · Ecosystem · Formal system · Global Positioning System · Human organ systems · Information systems · Legal system · Metric system · Nervous system · Non-linear system · Operating system · Physical system · Political system · Sensory system · Social system · Solar System · System · Systems of measurement

Fields of theory Chaos theory · Complex systems · Control theory · Cybernetics · Holism in science · Sociotechnical systems theory · Systems biology · System dynamics · Systems ecology · Systems engineering · Systems theory · Systems science

Systems scientists Russell L. Ackoff · William Ross Ashby · Gregory Bateson · Ludwig von Bertalanffy · Kenneth E. Boulding · Peter Checkland · C. West Churchman · Heinz von Foerster · Charles François · Jay Wright Forrester · Ralph W. Gerard · Debora Hammond · George Klir · Niklas Luhmann · Humberto Maturana · Donella Meadows · Mihajlo D. Mesarovic · Howard T. Odum · Talcott Parsons · Ilya Prigogine · Anatol Rapoport · Francisco Varela · John N. Warfield · Norbert Wiener

Retrieved from “http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_Positioning_System”

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By: Kristin Gabriel

A recent Wall Street Journal article called, “Murder Spike Poses Quandary” talks about how criminologists are offering a number of explanations for an increase in the murder rate in some cities over the last month. In Washington in April 2008 there were 18 murders during a 13 day violence spurt, 20 percent deadlier than one year ago.

Other cities including Chicago and Philadelphia had similar murder waves during the same period. This leads criminologists to wonder if this signifies the srat of a new trend. People studying crime tell us they can see no easy explanations, other than the usual usual reasons like poverty, gangs, easy access to guns and the economy.

Murder rate statistics overall have dropped for years, but lately have been inching up in the black community — accounting for only 13 percent of the country’s population. However more African-Americans are killed in the U.S. than any other racial group, and it accounts for 49 percent of all murder victims, states the FBI.

One county medical examiner in Cincinnati who analyzed all the available data on his region’s most recent murder victims thinks that the reason is lack of education. This Hamilton County medical examiner studied the death certificates of his victims and realized that 60 percent of them had quit school over a five-year period.

There are a number of organizations that are trying to do something about the negative aspects in their communities, including Children of the City in Brooklyn who believe that improving the quality of life involves breaking the cyclical effects of poverty, therefore giving families hope. In this community alone there is a 48 percent high school drop out rate. With 30,000 children, that means 15,000 are dropping out. One in three families are under the poverty level. A culture of drugs and gang, 1,000 deaths annually. Kids are into violent acts like selling drugs.

They believe that the only way to fix the problem is via educating kids and their families. For more than two and a half decades, this group of volunteers has been making a difference through programs like its Create Success program, countering the near 50 percent drop out rate and instigating positive change.

The best news is that almost half of the kids enrolled in the education program believe that it helped deter them from drugs.

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By: HARNEET KAUR

The opportunity is fantastic, and so is the writer’s life that you could enjoy. But where can you find the jobs you need to establish a full-time writing career?

One way to start is through working the Internet job boards. Here aAlso included and listed separately are resources for business and technical writers, editors, journalists, and translators.

Writers’ Resources–General

Absolute Write – freelance writing, screenwriting, playwriting, writing novels, nonfiction, comic book writing, greeting cards, poetry, songwriting. One stop shop

Emily’s Writing for the Web Emily A. Vander Veer gives professional writers the tools needed to promote, publish, and sell work to the largest and fastest-growing market in the world: the Web.

e-Writer’s Place For writing inspirations, motivations and prescriptions.

Freelance Writers is a searchable database of writers from all around the world.

Freelance Writing This is the ultimate job board for freelance writers.

Freelance Writing Organization – Int’l This site hosts one of the largest free writing resource links databases in the world! It offers education, daily news, a writer’s store, creativity advice and forums, to name a few of the resources. Over 2,000 free writing resources in 40+ categories of writing

FundsForWriters – A plethora of sources where freelance writers can find paying jobs

Momwriters A community of professional and new writers … who face the unique challenges of writing with children underfoot.

National Writer’s Union ‘The only U.S. trade union for freelance and contract writers.’ We offer contract advice, grievance resolution, health & dental plans, member education, Job Hotline, and networking. See also: Writers Union Job Hotline

Published! Articles and resources…from Marcia Yudkin, author of eleven books and hundreds of magazine articles, syndicated columnist, public radio commentator, writing coach

Published – The Directory of Independent Writers & Artists. searchable directory of independent Writers & Artists

SharpWriter Grammar. Complete writing resources. Lot of good stuff here but not geared expressly for freelancers

Suite101 This is an online community for writers. Not only is this a great site for work-at-home resources. You can apply to become an editor for them and get paid for your work.

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The Burry Man Writers Center freelance job links, resources for fiction and nonfiction writers, working professionals and beginners

with particular support for writing about Scotland

The New Writer – the monthly magazine with the best in fact, fiction and poetry. aimed at all writers: the short story writer, the novelist, the poet, feature writer, anyone with a serious intent to develop their writing to meet the expectations of today’s editors.

The Writers Home A Web Site For Writers, Editors And Lovers Of The Written Word.

TrAce Online Writing Community trAce connects writers and readers around the world … with the focus on creativity, collaboration and training. New media writing, web development

Worldwide Freelance Writer How to sell your writing overseas. Find out where to sell your freelance work. Detailed guidelines for paying writing markets all over the world.

WriteCraft Writers Resource Center Companion to the WriteCraft Critique Group – where writers learn the trade.

writejobs Job Title. Company. Location. Proofreader/editor. Bioedit Ltd. Freelance. Digital Photography Writers …

Writers Unbound Writing resources, Internet resources related to writing, writers, publishing, epublishing, authors and more. Articles and resources related to creative writing.

Writer’s Software SuperCenter Writer’s Software SuperCenter has software for writing books, articles, novels, and screenplays, including Writer’s Blocks software, StyleWriter editing software, StoryCraft, and more!

Writing World – Moira Allen provides writing tips, markets, news, contests and more.

The Writer’s Gazette Writing resource site for writers on freelance and publishing, including articles, job board, contests . Nice, comprehensive list of writers’ job boards.

Business and Technical

Copywriter world Freelance writers bid for writing projects such as resume writing, documents in APA style or MLA style writing, poems, sonnets, research papers, business plans, your biography, free e-books, your business proposal, essays, marketing plans, web content, ghost writing, ad copy, catalogs… virtually any form of writing.

Freelance Online – a professional online service for freelancers in the publishing and advertising fields. Free for employers; freelancers pay $15.00/year for membership.

Freelance Success Freelance Success is a community of professional, nonfiction writers who subscribe to a newsletter that guides them toward well-paying markets and editors. There is not a job board located on this site.

Techwriters Employs technical writers on and off site. The pay is excellent, but you must have a lot of experience with the topics

writingassist.com Provides local freelance technical writers for projects such as manuals, policies, software documentation, and work flow integration.

Children’s Literature

Institute of Children’s Literature offered the premiere writing course, books, and a newsletter to adults interested in learning how to write and be published for children and teens.

Editing

Manuscript Editing Fiction and Non-fiction; Serving writers, literary agents, and publishers since 1976.

Fiction

Fiction Factor – The Online Magazine for Fiction Writers. NEW!

International markets

Australian Writer’s Marketplace The essential resource for getting published in Australia and New Zealand.

Author Network – resources for writers including links, articles, monthly columns and ePublishing services.

Canadian Writer’s Journal Canada’s Independent Writer’s Magazine.

Freelance Spain – the online Spanish resource for editors and journalists.

FreelanceJournalist.co.uk Helping journalists build a presence on the web. The web directory for UK freelance journalists.

Freelancers.co.uk offers you the complete guide to freelancing for publishers as a copyeditor or proofreader.

New Zealand Writers Website Writing Resources for New Zealand writers

writelinkpro.co.uk WritelinkPRO is the content provider for top UK monthly newsletter and website. We pay on acceptance for writing articles, fiction, poetry, reviews. We offer free e-book workshops, free e-book on travel writing, exclusive Members Area.

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International Federation of Journalists – The world’s largest organization of journalists, representing around 450,000 members in more than 100 countries.

News Jobs Network Journalisms resources and News jobs in US, Canada and Utah.

UK Links 4 Journalists the most useful sites on the web. This is the journalist’s section.

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Writers’ Federation of Nova Scotia Fostering creative writing and the profession of writing in Nova Scotia.

Writer find New Zealand Linking New Zealand writers with local and global markets.

Play writers

Writer network. We provide dramatic writers with the tools they need to build better careers and redefine the

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By: Tobius Whitman
Weight Watchers Points Program is commercially successful, however with such weight loss tools it is important for participants to get a good idea of the program and how it works. This article provides a brief point view of the Pros & Cons of the Weight Watchers Point System that allows anyone to obtain an overview about how the program works and the benefits it can off. Hopefully this will help you make the decision whether or not Weight Watchers Point System is for you.

Weight Watchers Point System

The Pros:

- Weight Watchers Programs balance a nutritional diet, with counselling and exercise, which are the keys to both healthy weight loss and healthy living.

- The programs nutritional values never leaves dieters feeling hungry or lethargic, it maintains the body’s metabolism rate and avoids creating fat stores within the body (starvation leads to fat stores).

- A very nutritional diet program with recipes and meals being provided to members that are directly related to the Weight Watchers Point System. Dieters are able to keep these materials themselves.

- One of the few major programs to offer face-to-face support.

- It is also a flexible program that can be conducted online through help forums for meetings, or not attending meetings all together and simply using the program tools such as the Weight Watchers Online Point Calculator.

- The Points program doesn’t just provide dieters with a solid diet program, but also avoids pill pushing and starvation techniques, and educates the dieter on potion control and the nutritional value certain foods have.

- The Weight Watchers Point System takes the worry out of weight loss as dieters have a freedom of choice within their diet as no foods are “off-limit” and its flexibility enures everyday use no matter what type of schedule the member has.

- An incredible number of positive testimonials and commercial success that is based just as much on results as successful marketing.

Weight Watchers Point System

The Cons:

- The Weight Watchers Point System heavily relies on gimmicks to sell the product. Whether it is the Weight Watchers Points, Weight Watchers Point Chart, and Weight Watchers Point Calculator etc. These devices are aggressively marketed to prospective dieters in attempt to make the process appear easy.

- Advertising also convinces overweight people that they can lose weight without sacrificing the foods they love. The truth however is that through the Weight Watchers Point System, and Weight Watchers Point Calculator, dieters are only able to eat tiny portions of the unhealthy food to fit within the point schedule.

- From various studies, on average only 5% of dieters maintain weight loss beyond five years from starting the program and in these cases it has usually been achieved via long-term therapy that can be expensive.

- The use of therapy and meeting attendance within the Weight Watchers Program can potentially prevent development of self-discipline and reliance.

- There have been a number of testimonials reporting the meetings within the Weight Watchers Program as annoying and expensive, and that a competitive nature is fostered.

- Dieters have also reported becoming obsessed with food within he program due to the extensive focus on managing points within the Weight Watchers Point System.

In concluding it is clear that the Weight Watchers Points plans offer both positives and negatives for the dieter. Understanding these aspects, as well as conducting an honest self-analysis of yourself is critical to identifying whether or the plan is for you. Most of the negative aspects of the Weight Watchers Points System can be mitigated through the use of tools and support such as the Weight Watchers Point Calculator, and Weight Watchers Point Chart etc. However the conclusion drawn by Dr. Stanley Heshka, author of the Weight Watchers Program study within the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) is a must to consider for any prospective Weight Watch Dieters:

“…while Weight Watchers and similar programs may work for some people, they clearly don’t work for everyone. Programs have the best chances of working if they feel natural to the people following them, otherwise the weight loss is too difficult to maintain. It works as long as you stay with it.”

SOURCE: Journal of the American Medical Association 2003;289:1792-1798,1833-1836.

Tobius Whitman is an expert in the feild of Health & Nutrition, particularly diet techniques and weight loss programs. He has an extensive knowledge and experience with the Weight Watchers Program and the
Sonoma Diet Program and those systems work. As a result he has produced several detailed reviews covering each aspect of the program.

For more details refer to his websites:

http://www.sonomadietreviewed.com
http://www.weightwatcherspointcalculator.com

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