Mediaboss Marketing

The Lincoln County Commissioners agreed Tuesday to buy a license for a new software bundle for GIS mapping for the Lincoln County Regional Planning Commission.

The new community development specialist, Harold Spetla, made the request at the Aug. 15 meeting. The request was approved. The cost per year will be $2,600, and the new software will be much more adept at interfacing with other mapping software programs than the current system is, he said.

The LCRPC also made the county aware of a lower price for the orthoimagery project, a program that takes satellite images of the entire county. A 12-inch resolution for all of Lincoln County would cost $20,969, about $10,000 less than expected. Towns could ask for additional resolution for small costs to them if they needed it, or they would have access to the county images for free. The commissioners agreed to move forward on the 12-inch resolution package.

The LCRPC will also be getting its parking lots paved. The cost for the front and back lots will be $27,275, according to a bid by Midcoast Paving in Topsham. A top coat could be added in several years if needed.

The communications department announced that Maine has opted into a high speed network, the FirstNet project, at a national cost of $7 billion. Much of Maines high speed network infrastructure will be upgraded so that in an emergency, data, images and information can move from one agency to another quickly. Commissioners also signed off on contingency agreements with Knox and Waldo County communications in case Lincoln Countys communications system ever fails. This year, Oxford County Communications suffered a direct hit by lightning, and its contingency partners picked up their traffic while Oxford was getting new equipment to go back online. Sagadahoc County Sheriffs Department and the Brunswick Police Department are also considering joining the contingency agreement.

The Emergency Management Agency produced a new pamphlet to explain what the agency does. The agency does search and rescue, has a haz-mat team and an amateur radio team, and supervises towns emergency planning committees. The EMA also discussed resources that emergency shelters and warming stations could tap to meet the needs of people sheltering in them during a weather emergency. They are making a list of food banks and hot food providers such as schools and Meals on Wheels to distribute to the network of shelters to help them prepare for an emergency.

The jail is currently housing 19 inmates from Lincoln and 32 from Sagadahoc counties, with 119 diverted in Lincoln County. The remainder of the 153 inmates come from Waldo, Knox, Androscoggin and Cumberland counties and there is one federal inmate. The jail received a $294,870 check from the state for community corrections, but County Administrator Carrie Kipfer said it is believed some of that money was sent in error, and will likely be asked for by the state. Last years CCA disbursement was about $265,000, she said.

The Sheriffs Office needs some work done. Mold was found in the upper level offices, and was assessed at a total cost of $3,204. Bids for the remediation work are currently being obtained.

The county received notification from Seven Trees, a nonprofit which used to offer group home services in Lincoln County, that a $14,000 grant the county gave them several years ago is being returned, because the group homes are no longer offering services and the buildings have been sold. The commissioners agreed to accept the funds and hold them in a special account until they decide what to do with the money.

A large number of boxes from the basement law library are still lining the hallway. The books belong to the Lincoln County Bar Association, but no one seems to want the books, since most research is done online now, Kipfer said. She has been in contact with the Bar Association to get them to pick up the books, but said no firm date had yet been set for their removal. She said she favored storing them at the recycling center until the Bar Association can get them before the winter weather sets in. If they cannot collect them by then, she favors recycling the books, she said. The county does not currently have a license for Lexus-Nexus, an online law and public record search system, but Kipfer said there is a free edition the county should be able to use which would satisfy the requirement that the county maintain a law library.

A county-wide historic photo exhibit is on display throughout the courthouse. There will be a slideshow presentation of all the images on Sept. 20 at 6:30 p.m. in the Superior courtroom.

See the rest here:
Commissioners approve software for GIS mapping - Wiscasset Newspaper

EaseUS, in collaboration with Fossbytes, is announcing a free giveaway of various EaseUS products for Windows operating system.

EaseUS just turned 13 and this giveaway is being hosted as a way of giving back to users who have made EaseUS flourish all these years by using their products. Open to anyone, the free EaseUS productsincluded in the giveaway are:

EaseUS Free Giveaway

Once you visit the Anniversary Campaign page using the link mentioned above, you find a magic wheel. Clicking the same would provide you the license key and download link of any one of the products which are a part of the giveaway.

The AnniversaryCelebration allows you to win some cash as Paypal gift cards. All you need to do is make some great EaseUS anniversaryor product memes and submit them. The prize is decided on the basis of public votes on your meme.

If you are a regular reader at Fossbytes, you might haveseen our post about this file recovery software in the past. For a recap, salient features of the EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro include:

The recovery software isnt limited to English but tries to expandits reach to customers around the globe by including support for different languages.

Another advantage youll see while recovering files is that the data recovery software preserves the original folder hierarchy, which isnt a feature youll find in many recovery software. This makes it pretty easy to pin point the exact file you want to get back.

As per latest update, EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro comes with improved import/export quality for scan status and previewsupport for PPT, PPTX, and PDF file formats before recovery.

To know more about the data recovery software, you can take a look at our detailed post.

EaseUS Data Recovery Wizard Pro comes for both Windows and MacOS. The Windows version is availablefor $69.95 but you can get it for free as the part of the giveaway.

As a goodie of the 13th Anniversary Celebration, its available at a discounted price of $44.97.

The rest is here:
EaseUS Giveaway Win Paid Products For Free In Seconds - Fossbytes

Related content

(CNN) - Astronauts have always had to pack light. Luckily, when they've visited the moon or lived on the International Space Station, Earth is literally in sight. And if they had a medical issue or injury, home wouldn't be far away.

But for astronauts on future deep-space missions, like one to Mars, even a simple radio message might take up to 20 minutes to reach Earth. So how can they pack light and still bring all of the necessities, especially with an increased risk of injury during a six-month flight?

The answer could be what Dr. Julielynn Wong calls the "doctor's bag of the future": 3-D printing.

In January, Wong was the first to 3-D print a medical supply in space. Using a laser hand scan saved from the fitting process for space gloves, free software and a 3-D printer on the space station, she created a customized finger splint.

Hand injuries are common in astronauts. When they're in zero gravity, their hands and arms operate like their legs and feet since they grip and pull themselves from place to place rather than walking. Mallet finger injuries, which involve the tendon that straightens the end joint of fingers and thumbs, are the most common.

Finger splints may need to be worn for up to two months, coming off only once a day to clean the skin. Little holes in the splint allow the skin to breathe.

In addition to customizing the splints for the shape of astronauts' fingers, Wong arranged the holes into a star pattern.

Wong knew that the splints would work because in 2014, she and her colleagues printed 10 surgical instruments and tested them in a study against standard steel instruments. They worked equally well, but the 3-D ones could be printed in space -- or in rural and remote areas on Earth that lack access.

Wong combined her interests in public health and aerospace medicine -- for which she is dual board-certified -- to found 3D4MD, a company that 3-D prints medical supplies on-site wherever they are needed. Her "Medical Makers" around the world design medical tools and assistive devices, which can be created with free software and 3-D printers in libraries, clinics or someone's home.

The global community of innovators, patients and health care providers at 3D4MD has designed complex prosthetics for patients with missing or amputated limbs and simple solutions inspired by the needs of its own employees who have disabilities.

"We have hundreds of people across 10 countries crowdsourcing low-cost solutions to save lives, time and money," Wong said. "We have projects with humanitarian medical organizations like Doctors Without Borders to train workers on how to scan and 3-D print in the field."

This way, if medical equipment breaks in the field, Makers can design a digital fix for a part, ensure that it's printable and send it back in an email so the part may be printed on-site.

To help build the catalog of cheap, printable supplies, tools and devices, 3D4MD also hosts "make-a-thons" around the world. People of all ages, some who have never 3-D printed anything come together to brainstorm, design and create solutions to challenges that are presented.

Some of the items 3D4MD has designed and printed include simple solutions like a cupholder and bookstand that can be attached to a wheelchair as well as an insulin syringe handle that can be used by diabetes patients with limited use of their hands. The designs cost only a few dollars to make.

"We don't start designing solutions until we've met a patient or health care provider, because we have to understand their needs or challenges," Wong said. "We always ask them to take us through their day. And we want to empower patients to create the solutions they need the most."

The launch of the first 3-D printer to the space station in 2014 has inspired others with its potential, including a partnership between NASA and the American Society for Mechanical Engineers.

Together, they created Future Engineers, which issues two challenges a year to students from kindergarten to 12th grade to create 3-D designs for space.

Every challenge represents a real need that astronauts have identified, from tools and containers to food solutions and medical challenges that Mars astronauts may face. Experts judge the designs and interview with the finalists before declaring two winners, one under 13 and one over 13.

"These students are not only coming up with extremely innovative designs, but they're learning 3-D design skills that are imperative for the future of space and on Earth," said Deanne Bell, founder of Future Engineers.

The most recent challenge was to design a medical 3-D print that could be used for the journey to Mars. The two winning prints were a dual IV/syringe pump that overcomes the issue of zero gravity when administering IVs in space and a delivery device that astronauts can use to administer epinephrine and other drugs in self-treatment.

With 3-D printers showing up in classrooms across the country, students who may normally be turned off by math and science are realizing that they too can be engineers.

"It's extremely important to include the student aspect, because 3-D printing is a rapidly developing area, and we need skill sets to design functional parts that work," said Niki Werkheiser, NASA's In-space Manufacturing project manager. "Whether or not these kids go on to become engineers, and I think many of them will, seeing them feel that empowerment and controlling their destiny is extremely powerful, and those are the qualities we look for. So many of the problems we work through at NASA don't fit into a box."

Bell and Werkheiser, who work closely on Future Engineers, both wish they had had such opportunities when they were students.

"I was probably 18 before I held the first part in my hand that I designed on a computer," said Bell, a mechanical engineer. "These kids are making their ideas, printing and holding them and understanding the basics of engineering at a young age."

Werkheiser's department at NASA also works with universities and small businesses that are working on printable medical solutions for the future. Printable designs will be able to help astronauts with dental care, custom casts for fractures and sprains, sustainable tips for thermometers, vitamins, antibiotics, skin grafts and even food.

In turn, these devices can be used on Earth in remote areas that can't afford access to these items or types of care.

"So much of what we do at NASA is about making life better on Earth," Wekheiser said. "3-D printing evens the playing field so that you can create or make wherever you are."

Originally posted here:
The 'doctor's bag of the future' could be a 3-D printer - News8000.com - WKBT

Yesterday a video teaser from blockchain technology company Blockstream created waves of excitement among enthusiasts of both cryptocurrencies and space. Most participants speculated that Blockstream was about to implement the idea, promoted by Bitcoin developer Jeff Garzik (among others), of a satellite system that streams the Bitcoin blockchain to the whole planet from space. The speculations were, indeed, correct.

Today, the company is announcing Blockstream Satellite, a new service that broadcasts real-time Bitcoin blockchain data from satellites in space to almost everyone on the planet. Blockstream Satellite covers across two-thirds of the Earths land mass and, according to the company, additional coverage areas will soon come online to reach almost every person on the planet by the end of the year.

Bitcoin is a powerful and transformative internet native digital money that has blazed a trail of disruption, with its full potential yet to unfold. Because its permissionless, Bitcoin enables anyone to freely create new financial applications and other innovations that use the blockchain that havent been possible before, said Blockstream co-founder and CEO Adam Back.

Todays launch of Blockstream Satellite gives even more people on the planet the choice to participate in Bitcoin. With more users accessing the Bitcoin blockchain with the free broadcast from Blockstream Satellite, we expect the global reach to drive more adoption and use cases for Bitcoin, while strengthening the overall robustness of the network.

The Blockstream Satellite network currently consists of three geosynchronous satellites at various positions over Earth that cover four continents: Africa, Europe, South America and North America. Blockstream is leasing bandwidth on existing, commercial, geosynchronous satellites: Galaxy 18 (covering North America), Eutelsat 113 (covering South America) and two transponders on the Telstar 11N satellite (one covering Africa and one covering Europe).

Ground stations, called teleports, uplink the public Bitcoin blockchain data to the satellites in the network, which then broadcast the data to large areas across the globe. Additional satellites and teleports are being added to achieve worldwide coverage by the end of the year.

The Blockstream service is expected to be especially useful to people in remote regions of developing world with poor internet connectivity.

"When I first heard of Blockstream Satellite, I immediately recognized its great potential to bring Bitcoin to regions of the world where internet access is either unavailable or expensive, said Tim Akinbo, who runs the only bitcoin node in West Africa. Not to mention providing redundant access when internet access is temporarily unavailable."

Blockstream Satellite uses GNU Radio, an open-source software development platform for Software-Defined Radio (SDR), expected to reduce costs and streamline development by eliminating the need for specialized hardware. Blockstream Satellite utilizes the Fast Internet Bitcoin Relay Engine (FIBRE), an open-source protocol backed by several years of history operating and studying the Bitcoin Relay Network. Together, these open-source technologies power the Blockstream Satellite network enabling Blockstream to provide this free service reliably and cost effectively, noted the Blockstream press release.

Anyone can receive the signal with a small satellite dish (similar to a consumer satellite TV dish) and a USB SDR (software-defined radio) interface, notes the Blockstream Satellite FAQ. The total equipment cost for a user is only about $100. The software is free. The software interface is the open-source GNU Radio software, which is the receiver. GNU Radio will send data to the FIBRE protocol, which is the Bitcoin process and is where the blocks reside.

Read more:
Blockstream Satellite: Broadcasting Bitcoin from Space - Bitcoin Magazine

Target and Aldi are making moves to shore up their grocery delivery business.

Target said Monday that it would buy delivery logistics company Grand Junction to help it offer same-day delivery service to in-store shoppers. Software made by the San Francisco-based company connects retailers with about 700 delivery companies around the country that pick up items from stores or distribution centers and take them to customers.

Expanding delivery and making it faster have been key areas for retailers trying to attract convenience-seeking shoppers. Target and Walmart have adjusted their shipping programs as they try to lure online shoppers away from Amazon.

Target's move is aimed not at online shoppers, but at making buying an easier decision for in-store shoppers. The company has been working with Grand Junction to test same-day delivery at a New York store. Shoppers there can ask to have heavy bags, a sofa or anything else delivered that day for a fee, that's calculated based on time and location.

Target plans to expand the service to other New York locations this year, and then bring it to other major cities next year. The company said it eventually plans to use the software to offer faster deliveries for online orders.

The Target announcement comes one day after the German grocery chain Aldi Inc said is is partnering with Instacart Inc. to deliver groceries in three U.S. cities, a move that comes amid intense competition and disruption in the industry.

Aldi will launch a pilot starting the end of this month in Los Angeles, Atlanta and Dallas with the potential of expanding to more cities in the future.

The German retailer does not offer customers an option to shop on its own website now and the partnership is a way to test online grocery demand

"Grocery shopping online is a relatively small part of the business but it is continuing to grow," Aldi's Vice President of Corporate Buying, Scott Patton, told Reuters.

The Food Marketing Institute estimates online grocery spending during 2016-2025 will grow from 4.3 percent of the total U.S. food and beverage sales to as much as 20 percent, or more than $100 billion. Last year, online grocery sales were about $20.5 billion.

Here is the original post:
Target, Aldi make moves for grocery delivery - Chattanooga Times Free Press