IROBOT SCOOBA

SETUP AND INSTALLATION

Getting this little bot up and running is about as simple as it gets. Don’t even bother with the instructions manual — just pop in the batteries, fill up the water and soap compartment, punch a couple buttons, and you’re done. The pictorial directions iRobot includes in the accompanying Quick Start guide are practically impossible to screw up, which we really appreciated. All in all, you’ll have this thing out of the box and roving your floors in just a couple minutes.

FEATURES AND DESIGN

Somewhat unsurprisingly, iRobot decided to stick with it’s iconic “oversized hockey puck” look with the IROBOT SCOOBA. It’s a bit taller and beefier than your average Roomba, but otherwise retains the exact same design aesthetic – minimalist, round, and low-profiWhen it comes to the control interface, we’ve got to give iRobot big props for outfitting Scooba with one of the easiest control systems we’ve ever encountered on a household robot – though it’s worth mentioning that this lack of difficult controls largely comes as a result of having few advanced features and settings. Even so, the Scooba is a breeze to control. There are only three buttons you use to access all the functions: one big one in the center for activation, a smaller one on the right to play voice instructions, and another that toggles the bot between its two room-size settings. Even your grandma could figure it out.But don’t let the look fool you – under the hood, this little bot is completely different than Roomba. On the undercarriage, it sports a different brushroll that’s better suited for scrubbing flat floor surfaces like tile, laminate, concrete, and hardwood. Additionally, because this is a floor scrubber, the bot is outfitted with a two-compartment reservoir – one for water and cleaning solution, and another for the dirty wastewater it squeegees off the floor. Unlike other robomops out there, this one doesn’t push around the same gunk-ridden water – it lays down clean water and sucks up the dirty stuff all in one pass, which is pretty nice. It’s also eliminates the need for sweeping beforehand.

If you get the bot, it’s highly recommended that you also get a beacon or two, as this will allow you to tell the bot which sections of your floor are off limits, and help keep it quarantined to areas of your choosing. You wouldn’t want it on your carpet, after all – that might start a turf war between this bot and your Roomba.
PERFORMANCE AND USE

Unlike Roomba, which can be configured to run on a recurring schedule and operate on its own, Scooba requires direct interaction with you, the user, every time it’s deployed.

Why? Well, as it is a floor scrubber instead of a vacuum, the Scooba needs to have its reservoir filled with soap and water before every use. Obviously, this makes it slightly less convenient than the mostly-autonomous Roomba, but in our experience, setting this thing up isn’t nearly as tedious as busting out the mop and bucket and doing everything the old-fashioned way.

In terms of performance, the Scooba isn’t particularly fast at the job, but what it lacks in speed it makes up for in thoroughness. The bot can be set for either 20- or 40-minute cycles, and will clean your floor for that long regardless of the size of the room. This translates to multiple passes for most normal-sized rooms, but might mean missed spots if you’re cleaning a particularly wide area. For smaller rooms, this means the bot will likely make multiple passes over the same spots.

Scooba is outfitted with a slightly different version of iRobots cleaning software. It’s not entirely random and bouncy like a Roomba, but also not nearly as calculated and methodical as other robotic floor cleaners we’ve seen. When the cycle begins, the bot’s first move is to create a small, outwardly-expanding spiral. After it creates a spiral of a certain size, it suddenly switches gears and begins a much more Roomba-like pattern, bouncing around in a pseudo-random fashion until the floor is done. We did notice it making slight corrections to its path though, as well as some wall-following and mid-path corrections that we don’t recall seeing with Roomba.

To put it to the test, we set it loose in a handful of different environments – the concrete floors in our office lunch room, the laminate floor of our office kitchen, and even the grimy, disgusting faux wood-panel floors of my own house. Since we had no idea how much dirt was there to begin with, we just let the bot do its thing and pick up as much gunk as possible – the idea being that we’d give the collected wastewater a look when it was done to see how much it differed from the clear the clear tapwater we filled it with.

SunPower Unveils Silicon Valley Pilot Manufacturing Line for High Efficiency Solar Panels

World's leading solar cell technology researched, developed and tested in California


SAN JOSE, Calif., Aug. 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Solar technology design, manufacturing and installation methods have come a long way in just 20 years, and as a trailblazing solar energy company, SunPower has witnessed the trajectory first-hand. Globally, there is now 305 gigawatts (GW) of solar capacity, up from around 50 GW in 2010 and virtually nothing at the turn of the millennium.

Innovation is central to SunPower's DNA, and with years of experience, researchers have been emboldened to create new manufacturing technologies and processes while continuing to break solar panel efficiency records that fuel creative solar applications – from solar power racecars to airplanes. The nucleus of SunPower's technological solar panel expertise is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., on the SunPower Campus.

"We continue to make the world's best solar panels (for example: RENOGY SOLAR SUITCASE )

 with technology developed and tested right here in Silicon Valley," said Tom Werner, SunPower president and CEO. "These efforts result in domestic job creation, capital investments from our equipment manufacturers and dealers, and more affordable solar energy options for homes and businesses across the U.S. and around the world."

This summer, SunPower engineers began producing the company's latest generation of solar cells in a pilot production line installed in the heart of Silicon Valley. The research facility, which runs from silicon to panel, utilizes a revolutionary manufacturing approach. The cells extend on the leading X-Series technology which currently achieves a record 25 percent efficiency in mass production, further positioning SunPower on the cutting edge of innovation. The line, which has begun production, will ultimately ramp to producing cells and panels used in both residential and commercial applications. First planned customers include school districts interested in carport applications and residential rooftops. Construction and installation is slated for later this year.

SunPower has a long history of developing and ramping world-record breaking technologies in California and is investing even further to make solar cost-competitive with all U.S. power sources. The SunPower® Signature™ Black solar panels, which are researched, developed, and now also produced at SunPower's research facility, are being extensively tested to ensure it is the world's most reliable product, backed by SunPower's industry-leading 25-year Combined Power and Product Warranty.

The new pilot manufacturing location will enhance SunPower's ability to quickly and cost-effectively scale and supply panels to solar installations at homes, businesses and schools throughout the growing U.S. solar market.

Silicon Valley Research Facility Quick Facts
Over 100 people on-site at the research facility, arguably employing the world's best collection of solar experts.
Approximately $25 million invested in the facility within the past 12 months, demonstrating the commitment to innovation at the site.
Over 30 parts suppliers and manufacturers, which have headquarters in 33 U.S. cities across nine states.
o Research facility equipment includes several high-volume production-sized manufacturing tools and automation, and specialized testing equipment, sourced from Boulder, Colo., Hudsonville, Mich., and various parts of California, Massachusetts, Ohio, Texas, Illinois and elsewhere.

SunPower's Economic Footprint Across the Country
Over 1,000 people are employed in SunPower offices and related facilities in San Jose and Richmond, Calif., Austin, Texas, and elsewhere.
Over 12,000 people are indirectly employed by more than 515 independent SunPower dealers across 38 states.

Solar as an Affordable Clean Energy Source
Over the past decade, the cost of solar in general has dramatically reduced with scale by more than 50 percent. New manufacturing techniques employed in SunPower's Silicon Valley research facility aim to instill customer centricity by focusing on efficiency and performance of the panel while cutting overall cost to the consumer.

About SunPower
As one of the world's most innovative and sustainable energy companies, SunPower SPWRprovides a diverse group of customers with complete solar solutions and services. Residential customers, businesses, governments, schools and utilities around the globe rely on SunPower's more than 30 years of proven experience. From the first flip of the switch, SunPower delivers maximum value and superb performance throughout the long life of every solar system. Headquartered in Silicon Valley, SunPower has dedicated, customer-focused employees in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South America. For more information about how SunPower is changing the way our world is powered,
SunPower's Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements regarding future production and allocation plans. These forward-looking statements are based on our current assumptions, expectations, and beliefs and involve substantial risks and uncertainties that may cause results, performance, or achievement to materially differ from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to: regulatory changes, manufacturing challenges that could arise, and fluctuations or declines in the performance of our solar panels and other products and solutions. A detailed discussion of these factors and other risks that affect our business is included in filings we make with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) from time to time, including our most recent reports on Form 10-K and 10-Q, particularly under the heading "Risk Factors." Copies of these filings are available online from the SEC or on the SEC Filings section of our Investor Relations website at investors.sunpowercorp.com. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information currently available to us, and we assume no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in light of new information or future events.

Feel a Sudden Surge of Income With Time Tested Sidewalk Designs

Advertising has been considered an important element of a successful business enterprise, in fact, thousands of money is allotted for advertising purposes independently. However, with a little budget it is not possible for small- scale business guys to come up with this kind of business strategy. Such a simple fact, they've been able to come up with Manhattan sidewalk repair signs, which actually turn into a popular type of advertising nowadays. Apart from how it is is cost effective, it is readily maintained and it may even be set aside for future usage.

Moreover, these have been considered a backbone of each company, which might be an avenue for greater business productivity. Actually, most commercial institutions have its sidewalk repair contractors in Manhattan New York evidence to captivate different passersby to visit their company premises. With effective and versatile sign stands, you can finally market your own services and products for special events and other events.

Most manufacturers of these sort of signage have come up with elegant designs and styles to complement with the architectural designs of your construction. They have crafted an elegant but reasonably priced street signs to publicize your business and draw a lot of consumers. These are normally made of top quality materials that are durable and flexible enough to withstand the harsh weather conditions. Some of the quality materials that have been used to manufacture such kinds of signals are plastic, steel, and aluminum materials that are handcrafted to complement a huge array of designs. In addition, folding frame sidewalk repair contractor Manhattan are well suited to all those business premises that are located in highly urbanized areas where the spaces are quite confined to remain on.

Some of the favorite kinds of sidewalk repair Manhattan NY are the A-Frame indications, swinging signage, spinner DOT sidewalk violation Manhattan and dry erase message boards. The majority of them are made from heavy- duty plastic or steel, which may also be folded for greatest versatility and durability. With contemporary fashions that command attention, you will surely enjoy a tremendous increase in profit. A moving Manhattan sidewalk repair, on the other hand, provide ultimate mobility that's terrific for outdoor usage. However, if you want to have a more visual effect, a spinner type Manhattan sidewalk repair can be a better choice. You can easily grab, roll and transfer it to the direction you have desired or want perhaps. This sort of Manhattan sidewalk repair has wheels beneath the base making it more mobile compared with different varieties of road signs.

Really, with these various innovative sidewalk repair Manhattan signs, you can finally appreciate stylish and yet affordable ways to promote your product or services.

How to Find Visitation Programs for Child Services

How many methods in a residential area to help supervised visitation centers in crisis is usually acknowledged in a few scenarios - if the visitation centers finds them due to a need or should they household is searching for a way to provide others. The necessity for privacy in keeping the spots of the assets is understandable because so many of the women and kids stored in shelters are running from an abusive spouse or associate.

Unique solutions that may be furnished in your area by supervised visitation services promoting non-profits can include: housing help, appropriate knowledge, and advocacy for subjects of domestic assault, supervised visitation plans, therapy, and knowledge for subjects as well as their families, assistance in finding property, help for military families and secure trade programs for families. Some centers also provide a clearinghouse of info for other assistance applications that are available in the community.

If you're looking for a way to enable others that have lived through a painful event, there are numerous methods you can assist advocacy centers. You can donate your time, unwanted household products, office supplies, if not qualified supervised child services to the ones that are on the rolls as scenarios. You are able to adopt supervised child visitation services for the holidays and enjoy Santa for them.

For those that want to do more and make a real distinction, you're able to become a licensed volunteer boss for supervised visitation. Even though it could possibly be tough to know, your supervised visitation centers near me are very unwilling to take a guardian's visitation rights, even in the face area of supervised child centers neglect. In such cases, the parent often sees their kids in a supervised environment. The visits should be supervised and documented and there is a shortage of individuals that may do the appointments. You are able to search online or contact your local child custody services organization to find facilities that require volunteers and use these centers to help make the lives of the kids much simpler.

Following the sessions, the important points are often inserted into a log on a charitable software program that enables nonprofits businesses which are dealing with a number of clients, being able to track developments and advancement of their clients. The household courts tend to be involved in these situations and having a site for data is important. Sometimes the administrators are subpoenaed to go into court and admit, of course, if the correct records haven't been stored, it may be tough in order for them to give details about the instances themselves.

SOLAR FACTS ABOUT SOLAR FARMS IN NJ

Energy is a hot topic and these days you will hear more and more about renewable energy sources, clean energy sources ( for example: GOAL ZERO YETI 400 SOLAR GENERATOR KIT ) climate change, solar power, solar farms and related topics. Before we discuss the topic of a solar farm is is probably a good idea to consider some solar facts. We all depend on a large degree to non-renewable energy sources such as oil and gas. Whether you live in Hamilton, Middletown, Point Pleasant, Red Bank, Spring Lake or Toms River, NJ, you will use a certain amount of oil and gas.

However these traditional energy sources wont last forever and have negative impact on the environment. This means humankind is slowly being forced to consider other energy sources such as solar energy. Understanding some solar facts is important if you want to consider solar power as an alternative energy source. The sun produces vast amounts of energy and has done so for billions of years. Even though solar energy can be harvested to generate electricity, the sun only shines during the day and some areas don’t receive enough sunlight for effective application.

In order to generate energy from sunlight we use solar panels and towers. If follows a solar farm is just a large scale version of this concept. A solar farm could potentially be a sustainable land use project. An interesting solar fact is that in most cases solar panels on your roof or on a solar farm is not for your direct use. There are practical and financial reasons for this. One reason that solar power and consumption don’t synchronize well. So it makes more sense for solar power to go into the main grid. You effectively sell the solar power you generate back to the energy companies.

By installing solar panels you become an energy generator. This means you are both a consumer and a producer. You pay for the energy you use and you get paid for the energy you generate. So solar panels don’t have to be on your roof or even on your property. By putting solar panels on a farm you can generate more energy and make more money. There is more space on a farm which means panels to be mounted on motorised towers that can effectively track the sun and maximize energy output.

Why Business Blogs Shouldn't Be on BlogSpot.com

Disclaimer: HubSpot offers a business blogging engine as a component of our software package. But, this article is not about HubSpot. For the record, I’m a big fan of WordPress as an alternative for the tech savvy folks out there.

A couple of weeks ago, we moved Dave Kurlan’s blog “ Understanding The Sales Force ” off of Google’s Blogger product and over to HubSpot. Dave is an active blogger, runs a successful sales consulting practice here in the Boston area and is also the author of a book called “ Baseline Selling ”. [Side note: If you’re involved in sales or are running a company with a sales force, you should check out his blog].

In any case, in this process of moving Dave’s blog off of Google’s Blogger, I learned a lot. I am now even further convinced that most businesses should not be using the “yourcompany.blogspot.com” alternative for hosting a blog on Google.

Top Reasons Why Business Blogs Shouldn’t Be On BlogSpot.com


1. Google Doesn’t Need The Help: Lets assume you have a company website (you do have a company website , don’t you?). This website is probably on its own domain (example: yourcompany.com) By hosting your blog as a sub-domain on BlogSpot.com you’re basically depriving your primary website of any real search engine optimization . Instead, if you’re using blogspot.com, you’re kind of benefiting Google instead. Trust me, Google does not need your help to rank highly on its own search engine. Even if you don’t switch blogging platforms, please do yourself a favor and get your own “real” domain now. At least this way, if you decide to switch later, you won’t lose all the search engine optimization (SEO) that you’ve built up. See the next bullet for more details.

2. Domain Lock-In: Savvy technical people will tell you that the right way to move a website or blog from one domain to another is via what is called a “301 permanent redirect”. In lay person’s terms, what this means is that you setup a clean forwarding address from your old site to the new site. By using this approach, you don’t lose any of the search engine love you’ve pulled together. Guess what: Google does not let you do a 301 redirect from your old site to anywhere else if you’re using blogspot.com as your domain. Let me repeat this. If you currently have a blog that is something like mybusiness.blogspot.com and you build a ton of inbound links to the site, Google does not let you redirect that SEO value to a new site (like your company website). This is a Very Bad Thing. Not enough for me to call Google evil, but enough for me to at least think it.

3. Transferring Data Is Unreasonably Hard: Dave Kurlan (the guy whose blog we moved off of Blogger) is a prolific writer. He had over 130 articles authored on the Blogger platform. Clearly, we wanted to move his data over using an automated process. No problem, we thought, Google is nice enough to provide a programming interface to support this. In fact, they have multiple such APIs (application programming interfaces). As it turns out, neither of the versions of these interfaces that Google provides works completely. One version doesn’t let you migrate comments (an important part of many blogs). The other doesn’t let you move more than a few dozen articles – period. Basically, Google has seemingly made it intentionally difficult to migrate off of their platform. This is just annoying. We ended up writing a fair amount of custom code and jumping through a few hoops to get all of the data migrated over (which we finally did). But, this was much harder than it should have been, and we’re trained professionals (so please, don’t try this at home). If you’re not a programmer, chances are you won’t be able to do this yourself. It shouldn’t be that hard.

4. Mediocre Feature-Set: I just think Google’s blogging product (Blogger) is just not with the times when it comes to advanced functionality that is of value to today’s business bloggers . It doesn’t support things like article tagging, comment subscriptions and easy integration into other sites like Technorati. This is probably not such a bad thing for the millions of mainstream personal bloggers out there. But, if you’re a business blogger, and hope to be a power-blogger someday, I’d suggest that some of these missing features are important. Currently, I’m adding a new feature to HubSpot every week as my startup blog (http://OnStartups.com ) becomes more and more popular. OnStartups.com has over a reach of over 3,000 people a day and is now in the top 1% of blogs on the Internet – as ranked by Technorati. I’ve got a few more tricks up my sleeve that I think will push the state-of-the-art for business blogging. You’ll see them at first at OnStartups.com, followed shortly by the blogs of our early clients.

So, in summary, though Blogger is free – it’s not really free. The value of your time is much more important. If you’re looking to build a successful business blog that will help you find more clients and grow your business, you should find a professional blogging platform that is designed for your needs. HubSpot has one such offering (it’s a piece of what we do). But, if all you need is a blogging tool, we’d recommend WordPress. If I didn’t have maniacal control over the HubSpot software, I’d likely be using the WordPress product for my personal blog.

If you’re on BlogSpot.com right now and need help getting off, drop us a line. Even if you don’t pick HubSpot, we should be able to help a bit.

How to Create a Successful Business Blog in Minutes

Fact: it is obscenely easy to set up a business blog today and begin driving new, qualified traffic to your site soon.

Regular readers of HubSpot's blog are probably already experiencing the benefits of regular blogging, including harvesting the long tail of search traffic to drive incremental, high-quality leads to their site. If you're not already doing this, though, you can and you should be blogging for your business.

5 Steps to Starting a Successful Business Blog

1) Pick a blogging service . HubSpot, Wordpress, Blogger, Posterous, whatever - and start a blog. This will take no more than 5 minutes.

2) Host your blog on your main site . If you leave it on its original domain (i.e. mybusiness.wordpress.com), your domain won't be getting any of the SEO credit from your blogging efforts. Note that this change is typically a paid service, so be prepared to put some skin in the game. Contact your current developer, your cousin who's "good with computers", or do it yourself; just get your new blog set up on a subdomain or page of your main site.

3) Consider your ideal site visitors . They have a problem they want to solve that your business can help address. You probably write 20 emails a day about this problem. What would they search for in Google to solve that problem? Got it? That's your very first keyword.

4) Brainstorm keywords related to your business. Write them down! Concentrate on long tail keyword phrases 3-4 words long--if your business is in one specific geography, that's a great way to target your keyword phrases. You want to be choosing slightly more obscure keywords that are highly relevant to your business. More obscure = easier to rank for = easier to get to the front page of Google. Furthermore, obscure words will actually be more specific to your business and the types of products and services you provide. Both of these are key to driving quality traffic to your site.

5) Write your first blog post. Take note to un-salesify your language and try to educate the public for something related to your business. Remember that no one cares about your business until you can solve their problems. Keep all your posts educational, link to other resources online, and provide the very best value you can for your readership.
What's Next?

Keep going. The most important part of blogging for business is to do it regularly. Over time, this will generate new traffic to your site and get you found online. And if your blog is properly integrated for lead generation, you will start to generate new business relatively quickly.

In the case of Raul, he can use his iPad to write posts while waiting for his next fare. For you, maybe you can think up a post idea over a morning coffee, run or shower, scribble a few notes on the way to work, and devote a few minutes 3 times a week to blogging. Ultimately, making content creation a personal priority is the only way you'll accomplish your blogging goals. Take those 10 minutes to dream up your next post .

There's certainly an art to blogging, no doubt about it. But until you get started, you've got nothing but a mountain to climb. Get out there and start climbing--the reward is proven to be sweet.

How to Bake a Blog: Recipe for Business Blogging Success

As you cook Thanksgiving dinner today, watch how your hungry guests keep returning to the kitchen– drawn in by attractive, delicious-smelling food. Today, these hungry people are your family, but on your website they represent your visitors. You want to attract vistiors to your website with compelling content. Notice that as your family comes into your kitchen, they sniff it out, maybe even steal a bite. If this was your website, you’d offer the bite in exchange for a bit of information about the visitor and transform them into a lead.

                              

                              How to Bake a Delicious, Content-Filled Blog

INGREDIENTS

1 blogger (preferably someone passionate about content production)
1 RSS reader (set up and containing blogs related to your industry)
1 URL (with Typepad or Blogspot accounts removed and discarded)
Blog Analytics, installed
2 cups Social Media
1 cup SEO
1 Image, iconic and captivating
Blog Post Titles, Engaging
3-10 Meta Keywords, Researched
1 Meta Description containing 1 Keyword Phrase
Call-To-Action, Attractive and Mixed with a Compelling Offer
A whole lot of patience (don’t worry if you bake it, they will come)

(Optional) Team of passionate employees who foster a sense of content creation in your company

PREPARATION

1. Use your RSS reader to begin reading the blogs of other people in your industry. Be sure to comment, especially on posts interesting to your prospects, with meaningful insights and questions. Repeat this step continually while your blog bakes.

2. Begin writing posts that your prospects will find interesting. You can format your post in a variety of different ways, but make sure that you organize your thoughts in some way. People have a tendency to skim, so be sure to highlight important sections with a sub-title or organize your post into a list format. When completed, set blog post aside to cool.

3. Start thinking of photos for your blog post. It’s easy to get distracted searching for an image. Keep the process short by focusing on the theme of your post and using it as a keyword in an image search. You can make an image yourself (a chart or graph) or use Flickr’s Advanced Search to search for images based on tags people have used. Be sure to include alt-txt that contains important keywords when you add the image to your blog post.

4. Now it’s time to add an effective call-to-action to the end of your post. If you’d like you can prepare these ahead of time. Make sure your offer is compelling to people who may read your blog post.

5. Top off your blog post with an engaging title which will draw people into your site. It’s best if your title is also less or around 70 characters in length.

6. Return to your blog post and populate the keyword Meta data with appropriate keywords you’ve selected as low difficulty, but have a generous search volume (if you’re a Hubspot customer you can use Keyword Grader to compile and monitor your list of keywords).

7. Write a unique Meta description that does not include your blog title. Include 1 of your keyword phrases. You want to keep your Meta description less than 156 characters in length.

8. After proofreading your post, your blog post is now ready to share. Be sure to share your blog posts via your social media accounts such as Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. If you can, set up a tool that automatically posts your blog posts when they go live.

9. Your blog is now in the oven of the internet, baking. Repeat steps 1 through 8 once a week or more for the next few months, all the while using your Blog Analytics to discover who is visiting your blog posts. Check out your most popular blog posts and try to recreate your success in new posts. Analyze and repeat.