Yearly Archives: 2012
How online websites are Transforming the Entertainment Industry. The entertainment industry is notoriously difficult to enter. Talented actors, singers, musicians and artists often have to spend a considerable amount of time looking for work.
Work is generally hard to find, and the field requires performers to investigate multiple lines to contact those who are hiring. The Internet, however, has created a valuable platform that can help performers connect with casting experts and production teams. In particular, a company is attempting to create a one-stop location to allow members of the industry to communicate and find each other.
As part of their effort to streamline the process of casting for television shows, commercials, movies and other performances, film websites are targeting multiple platforms. Their web-based interface allows people to connect from their desktops and laptops, but much of their effort is spent on creating high-quality applications for smart phones and tablets. Whether one uses an Apple device or an Android device, film website offers applications that can help. This allows those looking for performers and artists to post listings from anywhere, and it gives performers a means of finding work regardless of where they are located.
In the past, the entertainment industry revolved largely around newspapers and call sheets posted in various locations. In order to find work, performers had to travel to these destinations. These call sheets often contained little information about what the job required, and performers would have to call to find more information. A considerable amount of energy was wasted as performers had to spend hours finding out which jobs were appropriate for their talents. With the Call Sheet app, performers can find this extra information without having to place phone calls.
In addition, the this Call Sheet app allows performers to search for certain keywords. In popular locations, there may be too many job openings to view manually. With search filtering, performers can find the right jobs that suit their talents. The time saved allows performers to spend more time preparing for auditions and honing their skills as much as possible. Further, those with little time to look for potential jobs can use those rare free moments they have to find work.
Many young performers also lack access to agents. In the past, agents were important for finding great auditions and making a living in the entertainment industry. Their costs, however, were often too high for those who had trouble even paying the bills. Online sites can help alleviate the difficulties that arise from lacking an agent, and many performers are using this call sheet aps to find useful jobs that may lead to new opportunities.
Although online film sites are still a fairly new platform, it has seen tremendous growth in its short history. Originally, these sites were used by small production companies looking to avoid the costs of traditional means of reaching out to performers. Recently, however, a number of major production companies have been using online film sites to reach out to larger audiences. While it remains unclear if online film sites will dominant platform used by the industry, it is poised to become the leader in finding talent and jobs online.
Attached Images:
Thanks for reading this article on how certain websites are chaning the entertainment industry. With so many new sites, and platform to choose from be sure to check out call sheet app.
RIM used to produce one of the most popular brand of phones, Blackberries. But ever since the iPhone was invented and Android came into the market Blackberry has lost its share of users.
In 2012, Blackberryâ??s phone share made up only 6% of phone users. Web traffic from Blackberries has collapsed to 1% and RIMâ??s entire company may soon fail. ‘Soon fail’ means already failing. In the first quarter of 2012, RIM reported a loss of $518 million. Itâ??s certainly not looking good for them.
Why I Thought Blackberry Had a Chance
I had never even bothered with Blackberries up until a couple of months ago when I started using a Blackberry Tour 9630. Let me tell you I wasn’t a fan of the phone or its OS at all. It took ten minutes to boot at its fastest record and had the worst App Market imaginable. In fact when I first clicked on the App Market it told me I needed to update some RIM service. Once I did that it asked me to reboot, which of course took 10 minutes. After waiting for my phone to turn back on I tried to open the app market again.
Guess what? I was now asked to download the App Market itself which was followed by rebooting again. Then when I finally got to opening the App Market I needed an update, which once again promoted a reboot. I’ve used iOS and Android all my life and let me tell you I was not impressed one bit by RIM at first… But then I started seeing the value that RIM created.
After a couple of weeks of using my Blackberry I can doubtfully tell you my quality of life improved. You may think Iâ??m joking but Iâ??m not. No longer was I wasting my time downloading apps, or rooting Anroid, or jailbreaking iOS. My Blackberryâ??s internet was so bad that I couldn’t do anything but not use it. I stopped becoming distracted through my phone and the only apps that were available on the RIM market made me more productive.
Surprise, surprise. If you still don’t believe me think about it like this: I went from using phones that were built on the consumer market which focuses on entertainment, to a phone that is built from the ground up for businesses. Naturally my productivity would increase if I started using a business phone. It sure did…
The email on my Blackberry works better than any phone I’ve ever used before. My Blackberry notifies me within 2 seconds of receiving an email. Iâ??ve tested it by sending an email from my computer to my email address. The results were staggering.
It took less than 2 seconds for my phone to vibrate; something I wasn’t accustomed to with iOSâ??s/Android. I was used to waiting about 5 minutes for the notification to come up.
Another amazing thing about the Blackberry is its battery capacity. With the Blackberry I could now listen to Pandora on my morning run, use the phone for checking email, make a couple of calls throughout the day, listen to Pandora again while I ran and worked out, and throughout an hourâ??s Jacuzzi sessions and 15 minute walk back home. All of this was done on one charge which was really awesome. With other â??smartâ? phones I always need more than one charge a day to keep my phone alive.
Another great feature of the Blackberry is the keyboard. It feels really good writing emails and it saved me time wasted on other touch keyboards.
So when I thought about Blackberryâ??s future I knew they had a niche to fill. That niche was people that needed real keyboards, fast email notifications, great battery life, and a professional feel/look. I knew in my heart that Blackberry would live for ages even if they would not thrive as well as before. It turns out I was mistaken.
What the Guy at Sprint Thought
After I got my Blackberry my tech enthusiast friend and I debated the usefulness of owning a RIM product. It got to the point where we concluded that if you couldn’t decide between an iPhone and a Blackberry that you might as well buy both.
When we were at Sprint the day the iPhone 5 came out my friend asked The Guy about buying a Blackberry. The Sprint Guy laughed in our faces as if we were old grandmas trying to buy surfboarding lessons. He told us Blackberry is dead and itâ??s a waste of money to buy a Blackberry phone.
We were appalled and left the story immediately. I was holding a Blackberry in my pocket and it surely didn’t feel like Blackberry was dead.
I thought Blackberry was alive until I thought about writing this article. I knew it was dead as soon as I tried to think about reasons why Blackberry will make it.
The Reality
I went to the online Sprint store to try and compare an iPhone vs a Blackberry phone. Guess what I saw? Sprintâ??s Blackberry selection was made up of 4 phones. Even if you visit them now it will look exactly like this.
What!
There are actually two phones that are exactly the same price and model, expect that one doesn’t have a camera. RIM actually thought to make a phone without a camera because someone would buy one for the same price as a model that doesâ?¦ What are they thinking?
So once you click on the last two phones (Blackberry Bold 9930’s) you’ll see the real deal. The Blackberry Bold 9930â??s regular price is just about $499.99. If you sign a 2-yr agreement you’ll get $250.00 off, and if you buy it online you’ll get $50 off. That’s $199 with a 2-yr plan.
That makes absolutely no sense for a number of reasons.
- You could buy an iPhone 5 for the same price with a 2-yr agreement.
- You could spend $150 extra to get the iPhone 5 at retail price as opposed to the Blackberry’s retail price
- You could buy a Nexus 7 tablet for $199. (Itâ??s not a phone but think about the parts that go into making both products. Surely if you can sell a tablet for $199 retail price, RIM should be able to sell a darn Blackberry phone for $199 retail. With a 2-yr agreement no Blackberry phone should cost over $100).
- You could buy an iPad mini or iPad 2 at retail price for less than the retail price of the Blackberry Bold.
Do you see how that business model makes no sense? Why am I even holding a Blackberry in my hand right now? Why does the Backberry Curve cost $350 at retail price?
The Curve
That makes no sense RIM! What are you people doing with your lives!
Blackberryâ??s Last Stand
There are rumors about a glorious new Blackberry. In truth RIMâ??s plans arenâ??t going to amount to much. Blackberry 10 OS is planning to â??give control to the user over the OSâ? and the new phone models aren’t that impressive either. Iâ??m not saying I even know what these models are going to look like but I can take a safe bet that theyâ??re not going to save RIM one bit.
They plan on releasing an all touchscreen model and another one that will support a physical QWERTY keyboard. How fantastic? No matter what RIM releases itâ??s not going to change anything. Itâ??s highly unlikely that they will make these new models have any advantages over an iPhone or an Android phone.
When the top dogs such as Google and Apple have brought their tablet prices down to $200-$329, it really makes you think if the hardware in a Blackberry is really worth it. I understand the iPhone costs $650+ at retail price but if you can buy an iPad mini for $329 would buying a Blackberry for less ever be justified? Hopefully I made some sense here. Hopefully I’m not the only consumer on earth that looks at things this way…
Their Last Stand Will Become a Failure
RIM is trying to make a last stand tâ??s impossible to get into the phone market again. There arenâ??t any new features that RIM can bring to the table and thereâ??s not much pricing competition they can offer either. RIM is going to give it their all in 2013 but unless their phones can be bought for $100 or less (with a 2-yr agreement) I see them failing hard. If consumers can buy the old iPhone 4S 16GB for $99.99 with a 2-yr agreement why would they ever buy a Blackberry instead?
Buying an iPhone 4/5 and using it only for email/productivity apps is still a better choice than buying a Blackberry for the same price and being locked into their failing schemes/app markets. Clearly itâ??s come to the point where your choices are Windows Phone, iOS, and Android. Blackberry doesn’t have any more room in the market.
Would You Blame Them Either?
I thought that Blackberry would always have a niche to fill, and I’m sure they did too. But they’ve realized that thereâ??s no value they can offer anymore and itâ??s too late to change anything. Itâ??s too late to get into the market that phones have become.
After all if you really need a QWERTY keyboard that bad you can just buy an Android phone or a keyboard attachment for the iPhoneâ?¦
Article written by Octavian Ristea. He currently uses a Blackberry Tour that is that is activated with Sprint and a non-activated iPhone 4.
The Black Death was a plague that spread through Europe from 1348-1351, killing anywhere from 25-66% of the European population. This is approximately 75-200 million deaths resulting from the Black Death plague.
What Was the Black Death?
The Black Death plague was one of the most devastating pandemics to have ever struck the human population. The plague originated from Yunnan, a province in Southwest China. From there the Black Death spread either on the Silk Road network or through naval trade.
The disease was spread via rat fleas. The Yersina pestis bacteria started out in the digestive tracts of small rodents and was harmless. Feas that would bite the rodent host would get infected with the bacteria. From there the infected blood pretty much fermented inside the guts of fleas.
The next time an infected flea bit a human, the Y. pestis bacteria would be regurgitated into the bite wound. The bacteria would spread to the lymph nodes and begin to multiply inside the human host causing awful boboes to form…
The Black Death wreaked havoc across Europe because of its aggressive nature and the absence of medicine that could combat it. During the plague the disease was actually called â??the Great Mortalityâ? or â??the Pestilenceâ?. People in England may have called it the Black Death because of the black spots produced on the skin, but other than that itâ??s believed that â??Black Deathâ? is a fairly new term.
Cultural Effect on Europeans
Many odd things arose from the Black Death. Some might even surprise you.
Flagellants
The Flagellants believe that the Black Death was godâ??s way of punishing the sinners. So they felt that if they publically inflicted a similar punishment on themselves, that it would make God happy and he would stop the Black Death. It was the idea that if they punished themselves enough that God would feel that the humans were good once again and they had paid for their sins.
The Flagellants would pass through towns and villages flogging themselves to the point of broken skin and flowing blood. It was common for villagers to line up and watch these people beat themselves, it was even believed that the blood of the people sacrificing themselves would save the others. They believed that the scarified blood would prevent them from being infected with the plague. Surprise, surprise, the watchers would often rub blood from the Flagellants onto themselves in hopes of being safe from the plague. What else could we expect from medieval villagers? It was also common for the Flagellants to splash the blood from their whips into the crowds. You can imagine how much this helped the infection spreadâ?¦
Ring Around the Rosy
This nursery rhyme came from the Black Death itself. Hereâ??s what it really means.
â??Ring around the Rosieâ? â??this refers to the red marks that would appear on bodies as the first sign of the plague
â??A pocket full of posiesâ? â??herbs thought to protect you from becoming infected.
â??Ashes! Ashes!â? â??a reference to the cremation of Black Death victims, or a reference to sneezing which was another sign of the plague. Some versions replace this line as â??Atischoo, atischooâ?, the sound of sneezing.
â??We all fall down.â? â??the plague had no cure and killed anyone and everyone
Thereâ??s no way to prove this popular interpretation and some even argue that this rhyme was not inspired by the Black Death. Of course weâ??ll never know but it sure makes it more interesting this way!
Other Facts about the Black Death
Widespread quarantines started taking place during the Black Death. If you started showing symptoms of the plague your house door would be painted with a cross and you would be locked inside for 40 days. You can imagine after 40 days no one would actually be emerging from the homes aliveâ?¦
The Black Death also increased resistance to viruses. In fact a very small percentage of Caucasian people are immune to HIV. Itâ??s believed that either smallpox or the Black Death caused certain mutation to take place that makes some of us immune to HIV. Itâ??s unknown how many people are immune to HIV but the number is under 1% of Caucasians.
Article written by Octavian Ristea.
Web-based Learning management systems is a software application that is put into use while planning, implementing, and reviewing learning methods that are linked to offline and online working out administration and performance organization.
Learning Management system provides an instructor a technique in which to produce and send content, check and observe the contribution of the learner and evaluate the performance of the student. Web-based Learning Management is being used in business environments and in industries like electronics, telecommunications, insurance, banking, manufacturing of medical equipments and many others. The chief reasons of using Web-Based Learning Management for Customer Acquisition are :
It is money-spinning to use learning management systems
Learning management systems are used in creating records of customized online courses that exhibit the ways to use the items and services of the company. These products can be upgraded every now and then without paying anything every quarter to get new guides and manuals printed. It is also very useful in tracking the customers and in this way you do not have to use a large amount of spreadsheets. The learning management system is also used to inform the customers about the expiry of their certification by sending an email to them.
Ensure an incessant chain of communication with the customers to fabricate loyalty
A web-based Learning Management system can be used to create an inexhaustible stream of conversation between you and your consumer.
Learning Management System supports web conferencing technology
Learning management systems is time saving and supports web conferencing expertise that can be put into use in different ways for customer support like synchronous guidance that is used in implementation of a product; a web conference on a feature set that can be stored for viewing at a later date.
 24*7 support through Web-Based Learning Management system
An excellent LMS is accessible with a special feature of a help desk that offers round the clock services and is used to distribute training along with the product support and is offering 24*7 customer supports. Such top-quality customer support service will surely enhance customer trustworthiness.
Imprint the awareness of the companyâ??s product and services on the mind of the customer
A web-based learning management system is very handy in offering training and displaying products to strengthen the optimistic awareness of your items and services and the reputation of the company in the market.
Experiment with new products and services
A web-based learning management system is effectively used in launching your fresh products and the services to your customers. Use this efficient system to perk up your product opening campaigns to rapidly erect product dispersion amid your present customers.
Advertise your products, new entries to your present customers
You can advertise your products and other value added services to your existing customers. The incorporated online survey, e-mails and web conferencing instrument gives enhanced sales and many ways for the marketing professionals to promote their products and services.
On the whole, we can conclude that web-based learning management system is a proficient, effective and affordable mechanism in which you can be in touch with your clients on various levels through a variety of online methods.
This guest post is written by Marlin Yee who provides knowledge sharing software for modern workforce through her website. This enables you to capture, display, save, and share information. Visit her website to know more.
Image from: sheelamohan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
Have you noticed that slowly but surely smartphones are taking over the world?
As we progress further and further into this millennium, the grasp that smartphones have over us is getting tighter by the day; as we rely on them more than ever. Through the use of clever apps and capabilities, androids, galaxies, iPhones and Windows phones alike can perform a range of different functions; from to ordering your weekly groceries. Of course, one brand has not been left by the wayside with the dominance of smartphones, brick by brick building on utilising innovative technology; LEGO.
Lego always have found a way to update their market to their technological surroundings, especially by using robotics; appealing to wider and older market. Using apps such as iNXT for iPhone or MINDdroid for android, LEGO users worldwide are able to remotely control their creations from their mobile devices. Here are the top five LEGO robots chosen by legolandholidays.co.uk that you can control from your phone.
Shooterbot
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ehb9nDKnRM
Well, now this is a bit special â?? when something is called the â??shooterbotâ?? you know itâ??s going to be pretty darn cool. A father and son utilise an android phone as a remote, taking control of the mean machine as it darts around the wooden floor and fires a ball to demonstrate its capabilities.
NXT Remote Control Application
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egllcH-0rQ0&feature=related
This video shows the LEGO Mindstorm NXT robot being controlled via android using Bluetooth functionality. The app is called â??NXT remote controlâ??; and as you can see, can be utilised in a variety of interesting ways.
R2D2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_vjQJW3pkA
Who wouldnâ??t want to take control of one of the most loved characters from Star Wars? Here we see R2D2 being controlled by a mobile phone.
Walking the Line
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QqIeZ0HFbL0
By combining an android phone camera with a Lego Mindstormâ??s robot, this LEGO enthusiast shows it is possible to make a robot follow a dark black line. Clever stuff!
Robot Fight (Scorpion vs Robogator)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnDNKDDwjpE
This is similar to the popular TV show robot wars, but on a smaller scale. In this video witness a robot scorpion go toe to toe with a robot alligator (aptly named Robogator). Both of these robots can be remote controlled using the apps.
Even though functionality is currently basic, it is only the beginning for mobile phone controlled robots. It wouldnâ??t be silly to suggest that in the future, just a simple tap on your iPhone would send a LEGO robot whizzing around to do your chores or fetch you a drink. We can dreamâ?¦
Image from: idea go / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
With the advent of the Smartphone, more and more photos are being taken using the integral cameras which these devices bring as standard.
Whilst some users may consider themselves as accomplished photographers overnight, there is some snobbery towards this method by certain factions who feel that â??real photos should be shot with real camerasâ?. However, their views are merely views and a good picture is not necessarily down to the equipment it was taken on. Rather, it has more to do with the methodology and if done correctly, many great photos can be taken on any one of the Smartphones out there.
Clean Your Lens
This is more important than you might think. A lot of people keep their phones in their pockets and given the nature of the inside of oneâ??s pocket, itâ??s of no surprise that the lens can become greasy and smeared quite quickly. Take time to give it a clean with a cloth to give your pictures a real fighting chance.
Get Up Close
Once you have cleaned your lens, you are now ready to take your pictures. If youâ??re taking a family shot, it might not be as easy to get as close as if you were taking single shots. Try to get as close as you can so as to take advantage of the small sensor on the camera. These sensors generally give a wider depth of field than a dedicated camera would be able to.
Stability
One of the main problems with using a Smartphone camera is that you can never keep the phone absolutely still by just using your hands alone. This problem is manifested when you look at the pictures and see blurred or hazy views. In order to resolve this, you will need to use some type of stand.  There are of course tripods and accessories you can purchase but this is not always necessary. You can achieve the same results by utilising an empty cup or a bag of sugar and then lining them up accurately to take in your chosen subject.
Donâ??t Zoom
A lot of the Smartphones have a digital zoom function but its best not being used at all. The reason being that zoomed shots will quickly degrade the quality of the picture as the camera at this point is just guessing what the image should look like. It is much better to crop the photo as by doing this, you are dealing with the pixels you already have available and not compromising on the quality by expanding on something that isnâ??t already there.
Flash
In restricted light, itâ??s better to forget the in-built flash. You cannot control the amount of light that is emitted and more often than not there is over kill. If you have an issue with lighting, you would be better served by utilising another light source which will lessen the chance of those red devil eyes which are all too apparent on many pictures.
This article was written by Alton-Towers-Breaks who hope these tips make you a keener smartphone photographer. How you can get any children you might have to stay still for a photograph is another matter.
Introduction
Choosing a career path can seem like an overwhelming decision. Although it isn’t something that you should take lightly, it’s also something that can be a lot less stressful when you do a little homework before making your leap of faith. For those who are thinking about a career in IT support, here’s a useful guide to help you on your way.
Jack of all Trades; Master of IT
The first thing to understand is that a career in IT doesn’t just mean that you’re a technical whizz with no other skills. The best support staff are those who have the knowledge and know how to use it! Although it’s great to understand networks and code like the back of your hand, support is often about helping other people with their problem, and not always rushing in to save the day. Many support services today are great time savers; this is because they can be done remotely, via the phone, or internet. If you work in IT support you may want to make sure that your skill set includes good people skills, patience, and good communication…you’ll need plenty of it all!
Because of the nature of some companies, having knowledge that extends beyond your job description can be a real asset. IT support can be applied in hundreds of different areas and environments, and so you might find that your affinity for art, engineering or business will come in handy!
Different Every Day
Many would think of IT support as being a boring desk job, where every day is the same; fix a computer, answer a phone, watch the clock, rinse & repeat. If this is your idea of a perfect job, then there are plenty available to fit the bill! IT managers, however, usually love it when employees want to be challenged, when they want to take on more responsibility and increase their value within a company.
There’s no end to the knowledge base available in IT, so there’s plenty for you to learn and opportunities to continue to grow! Whether you want to learn a new programming language, study alongside your work for more qualifications and recognition, there are lots of chances to progress. Taking an active mindset into a career will set you miles apart from those who are ‘comfortable’, and the powers that be are likely to take note.
Don’t Forget to Smile
One of the most important factors if you’re going into any career is how you interact with people, including your peers, superiors and customers. IT support isn’t about being locked away with broken computers until your retirement, it’s all about people. As with any career, make sure you share your knowledge, and go out of your way to be helpful. As a ‘support’ staff you might think this is a given, but you’ll quickly notice colleagues who resent their work and don’t give off a friendly vibe. Be kind, respect your workmates, and remember that your reputation will be built by the customers you help. They will notice if you’re polite, helpful, friendly and happy, and will pass news of a good service onto your boss!
Moving On Up
IT support comes with a little bit of a stigma attached to it. Some people think that being an IT technician doesn’t leave much room for advancement as a career, but they couldn’t be more wrong. A career in IT support is a fantastic launching pad. Most people have had interaction with an IT helpdesk at their school, but education is only one of the many areas that IT support is available. Many IT services and organisations are indispensable to some of the biggest, most successful companies in the world today. They allow for huge growth, expansion, and provide great opportunities to move on and up. Why not set your sights on the position of managing director, and work your way from the bottom up?
Conclusion
While some of the advice in this guide may seem like common sense, on a day to day basis it takes motivation to carry you through. Keep learning, keeping reaching for more experience and higher responsibilities, and enjoy the benefits of getting to work with a whole range of people and companies around the country. You may be offering IT support in and around London or Seattle or someday you’ll even be travelling the world!
An article by Nathan Griffiths who is a prolific writer of technology articles.
Hosting your own web server may seem like the way to go for your website, there are a number of things that may make you want to host your own server, you’re sick of hosting fees, downtime or poor customer service from your web host.
If you strike out on your own and go with hosting your own web server, there are a number of things to consider. I will set out some of these things in a pro and con format, allowing you to make the decision that is best for you.
Pros
– No Shared Hosting
This is potentially one of the biggest pros of hosting your own web server, on a web host you will most likely be on a server with thousands and thousands of other sites also being hosted on the same server. If one of them sites receives a traffic spike then your website can slow to a crawl which can look unprofessional for your customers or even cost you a sale. If you move to hosting your own web server then you will become the only website on your server thus eliminating all of these issues.
– Truly Unlimited Hosting
We’ve all seen the adverts with hosts, unlimited bandwidth, unlimited space etc. But in reality if you ever use a huge amount of bandwidth or a huge amount of space they will cut you off and you will discover that your hosting is not truly unlimited, however with your own web hosting that will never be an issue, you can host as much as you want on your own server and you will never be cut off for using ‘too much bandwidth’ in the eyes of the host.
Cons
– No Technical Support
This is probably the largest issue that you will encounter when hosting your own web server. When using one of the large hosts they have teams of technical support staff that are experts in their field and can help you with your technical problems. However if you go it alone you are on your own, responsible for diagnosing and solving any technical issues that arise, of course if you are an expert on server technical issues this wouldn’t be a problem but if you are not then you could run into issues.
– If The Server Goes Down, You Are Offline
When you are with one of the large web hosts they generally will have your website on a number of different servers, so if one goes down they can redirect to another one with minimal downtime for your website. However if you are hosting a single server on your own then if that server goes down for whatever reason, be it technical issue or power cut then your website is offline, gone from the internet until you can get that server backup which could take some time.
Overall there are many different things to consider when hosting your own web server as you can see, in the end you must way up the pros and cons and come to your own decision on what is best for you and your website.
Denis is a freelance writer that loves to share tips pertaining to mobile phones. You can visit his site on Reverse Cell Phone Lookup if you want to learn more on him.
With the UK having recently hosted arguably the most successful Paralympic Games in history, wheelchair users all over the country have been inspired to get active.
Whilst traditional wheelchairs aren’t usually sturdy enough to withstand the rigours of outdoors activities, there’s new technology available which transforms manual chairs into powered off-road trikes, offering individuals the chance to access more rugged terrain.
So with this in mind, here’s some ideas for some different days out that you might not previously have considered.
Dances with Wolves
The UK Wolf Conservation Trust in Berkshire offers visitors the chance to get up close and personal with the furry beasts that have such a bad reputation.
A not for profit organisation, the centre does not operate as a zoo but instead runs several ‘wolf walk’ days throughout the year, some of which are specifically designed for those with mobility difficulties.
Starting in the education centre, visitors will then get the opportunity to first see the 12 wolves in their spacious enclosures before getting to meet two or three and have actual contact! Handlers will be present at all times and things will move quite slowly to ensure the wolves feel comfortable with you.
The centre is based on a farm and whilst it caters for those in a standard wheelchair with accessible toilets and building, the grounds are far from easy to navigate. With muddy grass and stony paths, not to mention a significant slope, users in a manual wheelchair might find it difficult to get around without help. However, using a chair specially designed for less accommodating terrain (such as the Viper Power Trike from http://www.steeringdevelopments.co.uk/) will allow you to remain totally independent both up and down hill as well as across the long grass.
Feel the need for speed
Fans of Formula 1 will be familiar with Silverstone, one of the most famous racing tracks in the UK. And whilst you may have been lucky enough to have been to see a Grand Prix, experiencing the roar of the engines mixed with the heady smell of hot oil, you might never have seriously considered taking a spin around the circuit yourself.
However, Silverstone offer Driver Experience Days which includes vehicles that can be adapted for those with a disability, such as fitting hand controls. Cars on offer include the Audi R8, Nissan GTR and the Ferrari F1 430 Modena. However, if you use more personal and customised steering controls such as SDL joystick steering or an infra-red bleeper system (both available from Steering Developments) you can still experience the thrill of burning rubber by taking your own vehicle for a spin around the track. Alternatively, if you don’t fancy risking life and limb by pushing your own driving skills to the max, you could opt to be whizzed around the three mile circuit by professional drivers, giving you a taste of what it feels like for Michael Schumacher and co. Whichever option you go for be warned, it’s an addictive experience!
Forest delights
Hidden away in the depths of a Snowdonian forest lies Aber Falls, an ancient site which has previously yielded evidence of human life dating back to prehistoric times.
Lying in Abergwyngregyn on the North Wales coastal area, Aber Falls are a spectacular sight at the end of a gorgeous walk through a plantation which passes through beautiful natural landscapes.
The kissing gates along the route are large enough to allow wheelchairs to pass through and in other areas; wider gates can be opened with a RADAR key if they are locked. The upper car park along the route has an accessible picnic table for wheelchair users whilst the path itself can be accessed more easily slightly further along close to the lower car park.
But whilst the walk is said to be suitable for wheelchair users, it should be described as challenging at best. The woodland is owned by the Forestry Commission and the route has a rustic charm, but this means that much of the path is bumpy with a rough surface. There are also some rather steep climbs along the way. Individuals attempting the route in a manual wheelchair may find it almost impossible to navigate without assistance, especially after bad weather.
However, using a wheelchair designed for off-road experiences will make the hike far more enjoyable and give individuals the freedom to tackle the challenges without aid. Despite the challenges along the way, it is worth making the effort to arrange use of an off-road chair as the Falls are simply stunning and there is a good chance of seeing wildlife along the way. There are also several viewpoints which you will pass en-route which deserve a few moments to stop and admire the scenery.
A section of the breathtaking Aber Falls
Conclusion
The above are just three ideas of some more adventurous days out which would not be possible, or would certainly be far more difficult, without the use of special adaptations. Steering Developments offer a range of services to make life more accessible, including adapting your vehicle as well as different types of wheelchairs from basic electric packages right the way up to the Viper Power for adrenaline junkies! And if you only need a vehicle occasionally, it is also possible to rent a specially adapted Chrysler Grand Voyager.
So, there really is no excuse not to get out there and enjoy everything there is to see and do!
An article by Samantha Wood who enjoys wild crazy adventures herself.
Image credits:Â Rick McCharlesand elleneka102
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