Students Of Success

A will is a written document which gives instructions how and to whom the will maker (testator) wants to bequeath his/her property after death. An oral will can be made only by members of military and merchant navy in active service when they don’t have time to execute a written will due to exceptional conditions like war.

Any person above 18 with sound mental health can make a will. It must be dated and signed by the testator and certain number of witnesses, depending on the laws of the state. A hand written will, called ‘holographic will’, valid in 25 states, does not require witnesses.

Though preparing a basic will is very simple many people neglect to prepare one thinking that the end is far away. Should a catastrophe strike a court will decide how the property will be distributed.

The right time to prepare a will is when you are in full control of all your mental faculties. Though wills made on the death-bed are perfectly valid, there’s a greater possibility of it being contested by a disgruntled beneficiary on the grounds of your mental inconsistency.

You can modify the will through a codicil that adds/removes certain provisions from the original will. You can also replace the original will by preparing and executing a new will. Change in your marital status, birth of a child, death of a beneficiary, substantial alterations to property, change of law or your desire to change the beneficiaries may require altering of will.

It is not necessary to notarize the will or to file it in court. Just keeping the document in a secure place and making it accessible to your executor will do. However, signing of an affidavit before a notary public by you and your witnesses will simplify the court procedure should the validity of the will be challenged.

If the value of your property is below the estate tax exemption limits ($1.5m), a basic will is all you need. It should give details of the persons/organizations to whom/which you want to bequeath your property; guardian(s) to manage the property in case you have minor children, and the executor of will.

Preparing a basic will does not require much skill and can be done with some help. However, if you want to make elaborate arrangements for disposing of property, or if the property involved is considerable (and there is a possibility of the will being contested), you better seek professional help so that your beneficiaries won’t face problems after you are gone.

Estate Planning provides detailed information on Estate Planning, Estate Planning Attornies, Will Estate Planning, Estate Tax Planning and more. Estate Planning is affiliated with Filing Chapter 11 Bankruptcy.

It’s not easy to be a hardcore gamer. It’s hard. Wouldn’t it be easier if you had a job in the videogames business? Think about it: working for a software company, being able to play games during office hours, with people who share your passion. Free games, industry parties, lots of fun and good money.

Well, think again; working in the PC Games business is nothing like that. Chances are you’ll end up dealing with people who just care about the financial success of the company, with marketing executives who don’t give adamn whether the game is good or not because “We’ll put two-million bucks behind it and it’ll sell like donuts”, with programmers who cannot understand why an arcade-style racing game cannot have the intricacies of a complex simulator. Still, you’ll get some free games plus a decent salary.Still interested? Good.

The easiest way to get a chance to work in the videogames industry is to start as a game tester. Mind you - the job is actually tougher and less exciting than you think. While it is true that you’ll spend most of your day playing games, you must bear in mind that this means testing to death the same game again and again, since the earliest days of development until it’s finished, and this can get really boring.

The game tester starts working as soon as either the graphic engine or some of the AI routines are ready (and even earlier in some occasions: sometimes testers have to check the game design documents in order to make sure that there aren’t weaknesses in the game structure.) It means checking the graphics and the control system or testing the AI routines, moving around coloured dots (it’s often the case with sports games) or extremely unappealing chunks of graphics around the screen to check how the code reacts.

Reporting bugs is not an easy or exciting task either. You need to assess the exact circumstances (if any) of a bug taking place and its consequences on the game. More often than not this means playing the same bit of the game again and again and again until you are able to repeat the same bug whenever you want to (or better: whenever the programmers ask you to) or until you’re sure that it was a one-off bug, something which happens in situations which cannot be repeated.

If you don’t like PCs, you’ll probably find an absolute nightmare having to cope with all the compatibility issues (does the game work fine with all the graphic accelerator cards? And what about the sound cards? And the joypads/joysticks?) but you’ll get used to it in a matter of weeks. Other downsides of the job is that office hours can range from your usual 9-5 to a very stressful round-the-clock when you’re under deadlines and you don’t have any guarantee that you’ll be mentioned in the credits unless you’re one of the lead testers. (Let’s face it; you want your friends to know that YOU were part of the team who made that brilliant game, don’t you?) Put in the frustration coming from dealing with programmers and/or artists who don’t know what does make a good game (the industry has many such people…) and you’ll get an even worse picture of the job.

Being a game tester is not all that bad, though. It’s the perfect way to get into the biz for many different reasons: the first one and more obvious being that you’ll be constantly in touch with both the programmers and artists. In a few weeks’ time you’ll understand problems concerning polygons (polys, for friends…), frame-rate and its relationships with the responsiveness and precision of the control system, how to address RAM-related problems and much, much more. Hold on - let me make myself clear: you will NOT become a programmer but you will understand which compromises you must have in the game in order to have it work in its best possible form, given the capabilities of the system it is working on and the skills and talents of the developers.

Another obvious plus of the job is the money. In Europe, an internal tester is usually paid somewhere between US$15,000 to US$23,000, assuming he’s employed full-time. However, some companies have part-time testing jobs, so that you don’t have to leave school to be a tester.

The real highlight of being a game tester is that in many occasions you’ll be required to play an active role in the making of the game: rather than limiting your task to just testing existing code, sometimes testers are asked to suggest alternative solutions to problems in either playability or game structure. It often happens that, during the development stages, the game feels and plays differently from what it should according to the game design document. It could be the control system which is too complex, the physics model, the AI or any other element of the game which doesn’t work as well as it should. The testers’ main task is to flag any problems arising but they are often asked to give their precious input in order to improve the game.

It sometimes happens that the most critic and capable testers move onto design positions, which is a much more rewarding (both in terms of financial success and self-fulfilment) job with many more responsabilities. Another way to climb the ranks of the company is to become Quality Assurance Manager, supervising and directing the work of several testers for one or more titles. Therefore, starting as a game tester can take you to higher floors while making many interesting contacts in the industry. The perfect game tester can express himself quite well in both written and oral form, knows how to work in a team and know games inside out - both new and classic titles. Needless to say, to do this you must play a lot: explore all the possibilities of a title, do things the developers couldn’t think you would do (such as killing a friendly character, throwing away a useful item, going out of the track in a racing game or standing in particular areas where you’re not supposed to stay) and see what happens. Be curious while playing, and be critic.

If you have what it takes ring the bell; this industry needs you. Don’t let the first negative replies write the word END to your career in this industry. Keep trying until a door opens, then put your foot in. Start writing your cover letter now (keep it short, nobody likes lengthy cover letters)) and be ready for the interview. Sooner or later you’ll have your chance, so don’t waste it.

Mary works in US for a media company, occasionally writing for the biggest PC Games Reviews portal, and drinking too much coffee.

Quality motorcycle gear combines comfort, style, fit, durability, weather protection, and armor. The bottom line with equipment is, you WILL eventually fall, and when you do, you will most likely become very close friends with the pavement. So you need the “maximum impact and abrasion resistance” as possible.

Armor is extra padding sewn into the jacket or pants to cushion likely spots of impact. Road rash is the not so fun part about riding a motorcycle. It is painful and bloody, but impacts can cause serious and sometimes fatal internal damage. So shoulders, elbows, buttocks, and knees are spots that you want to be well protected, as they are the most common of impact points. In any serious crash it isn’t hard to get a bruise on all of these body locations. Other common regions of impact are the chest, back, and collar bone. So as you can see armor placement is crucial.

Material used for armor is another major concern. They are usually composites of plastic and foam. Simple plastic plates would slash through the material and expose you to injury, so they put hard plastic plates inside a thick layer of firm foam. Some garments also have built in spine protectors. If not, however, and you feel that you are not properly protected, jacket liners with armor pads are available for purchase, which are called “body guard jackets”.

For the most part, jackets off the rack consist of small, medium, large, and extra large. But there is more to a well fitting jacket than that. Your protection depends on how well your equipment fits. If you luck out and find a jacket that you like and fits well off the rack, you’re in business. But if you don’t you can order custom made leathers. There is 5 companies worldwide that can do your custom fit; Langlitz, Bates, Z Custom Leather, Vanson, and Aerostitch. But don’t expect to order up your jacket and have it in a week. Each company can only produce about 1600 custom jackets per year, so there is a waiting list as long as the dictionary. So make sure you place your order well before you need to ride, or you could be hooped.

Feel free to reprint this article as long as you keep the article, this caption and author biography in tact with all hyperlinks.

Tyler Brooker is the owner and operator of My Motorcycle Gear - www.my-motorcycle-gear.com, which is the best site on the internet for all motorcycle gear related information.

While many small companies only call in a local computer consulting business when something computer-related breaks, there’s a lot to be gained by forging a proactive, long-term relationship with a local computer consulting business in your area.

Consider Getting Advice from a Computer Consulting Business

If you need to get advice once-in-a-while on how your computers can be better utilized, or you have a specific computer-related problem that needs to be solved, a computer consulting business is generally the way to go.

However, if computer-systems and information technology (IT) are really important to your industry and your company, outsourcing your computer-related service needs to a local computer consulting business is often a much better solution than just piecemeal, ad-hoc usage of a computer consulting business.

Hiring a Computer Consultant

Many computer consulting businesses choose to specialize and end up becoming extremely valuable to their particular area or niche. In many cases, these kinds of computer consulting businesses can know almost as much about your industry and competitive challenges as you do.

So to help your company grow and to make sure it’s not being short-sighted with its computer-related needs, consider getting advice from a computer consulting business.

Wearing Lots of “Hats” is Fine… But Don’t Let These “Hats” Blind-Sight You

Sometimes small companies already have an idea of what their computer-related needs are when they enlist the help of an outside computer consulting business.

There are several advantages to bringing in an outside computer consulting business, as opposed to trying to limp along with someone internally who just wears the “hat” of the occasional computer person.

One of the most important reasons to bring in a computer consulting business though is that a computer consultant is someone who is an expert in his or her field. This means you can have access to an expert for a fraction of the cost it would take to hire that caliber of professional on a full time basis.

In almost all cases, a computer consultant like this can troubleshoot problem much faster and much more effectively than your internal employees.

A Fresh Computer Consultant Perspective

A computer consultant or computer consulting business can also being in a fresh perspective to your company.

It’s often really helpful to have a fresh set of eyes to look at your company and its IT infrastructure. Over time, non-technical small business owners and managers have a tendency to see the same things within their own companies. A good computer consultant or computer consulting business brings a new and fresh perspective into your situation and can help you truly visualize the forest through the trees.

How Computer Consulting Businesses Help

A good computer consulting business or computer consultant is prepared to do any number of things to help your company make the most out of any business or technology challenge it faces. This may include personal coaching, training for small and large groups of employees, and leading strategy-planning meetings with key people… almost as if that computer consultant were your part-time chief information officer (CIO).

The best computer consultants will not enter into your company with a preset plan, but rather will tailor a plan according to the specific needs of your company. A good computer consulting business will have computer consultants on their staff who can quickly find out what the needs of your company are and then come up with cost-effective solutions.

The Bottom Line

In this article, you’ve been introduced to the basics of why to hire a computer consulting business and what computer consulting businesses can do for your company.

Copyright MMI-MMVI, ComputerConsultingSecrets.com, All Worldwide Rights Reserved. {Attention Publishers: Live hyperlink in author resource box required for copyright compliance}

Joshua Feinberg has helped thousands of computer consultants get more steady, high-paying clients. Learn how you can too. Sign-up now for Joshua’s free Computer Consultants Secrets audio training at www.ComputerConsultantsSecrets.com/blog/

You probably know by now that where your website ranks in the
search engine rankings dramatically affects how many visitors
you have to your site. Did you also know that you can change
where your site is ranked by being proactive and getting as many
one way links to your site as possible? That is right, the more
one way links you have on the Web that point back to your
website the higher your site will be ranked. You are probably
thinking this is amazing information and just what you need to
get your site higher in the search engine rankings and more
traffic, but how do you go about getting one way links and why
would you prefer one way links as opposed to reciprocal links?

The answer is easy! All you need to do to get one way links is
to list your website with web directories or even buy one way
links in the form of advertising on other websites! It is really
easy to get as many one way links as you want to your website
with a small investment of time or even your advertising budget.
Many a web directory
will allow you to submit your information free and advertising a
one way link to your site on other websites is rather affordable
as well. So, getting those one way links is pretty easy after
all.

One Way Links are Just Better

Now, you might be wondering why you don’t want to trade links or
involve yourself in reciprocal linking. The answer is that one
way links are simply better and weighed more heavily when it
come to the search engines. Reciprocal links are in no way bad
and will not hurt your website rankings at all. In fact,
reciprocal links to help your site ranking to some extent.
However, if you are going to put in your time and money to
increasing your websites visibility then you will want to focus
on one way links. It takes the same amount of tome, sometimes
less, and you get the all important and heavier weighted one way
links that will make your website receive search engine rankings
you once only dreamed of.

So, start linking your website with website directories, buying
one way link advertising on other sites, and soon you will see
your website ranking with the big search engines soaring higher
than you ever imagined. Remember, the more links you have
whether they be in web directories or on other websites the
better it will be for your website so you should start working
on one way links today. As you watch your site increase in the
rankings you can keep submitting to more web directories and
buying more one way link advertisements and if your goal is to
be the number one ranked website on Google then you can do it
with a little bit of work and determination.

It’s not true that everything that has been said has already been written. Since that unfortunate axiom came into use, the whole universe has changed. Technology has changed, ideas have changed, and the mindsets of entire nations have changed.

The fact is that this is the perfect time to write an ebook. What the publishing industry needs are people who can tap into the world as it is today - innovative thinkers who can make the leap into the new millennium and figure out how to solve old problems in a new way. Ebooks are a new and powerful tool for original thinkers with fresh ideas to disseminate information to the millions of people who are struggling to figure out how to do a plethora of different things.

Let’s say you already have a brilliant idea, and the knowledge to back it up that will enable you to write an exceptional ebook. You may be sitting at your computer staring at a blank screen wondering, “Why? Why should I go through all the trouble of writing my ebook when it’s so impossible to get anything published these days?

Well, let me assure you that publishing an ebook is entirely different than publishing a book in print. Let’s look at the specifics of how the print and cyber publishing industry differ, and the many reasons why you should take the plunge and get your fingers tapping across those keyboards!

Submitting a print book to conventional publishing houses or to agents is similar to wearing a hair shirt 24/7. No matter how good your book actually is, or how many critique services and mentor writers have told you that “you’ve got what it takes,” your submitted manuscript keeps coming back to you as if it is a boomerang instead of a valuable mine of information.

Perhaps, in desperation, you’ve checked out self-publishing and found out just how expensive a venture it can be. Most “vanity presses” require minimal print runs of at least 500 copies, and even that amount will cost you thousands of dollars. Some presses’ minimal run starts at 1,000 to 2,000 copies. And that’s just for the printing and binding. Add in distribution, shipping, and promotional costs and - well, you do the math. Even if you wanted to go this route, you may not have that kind of money to risk.

Let’s say you already have an Internet business with a quality website and a quality product. An ebook is one of the most powerful ways to promote your business while educating people with the knowledge you already possess as a business owner of a specific product or service.

For example, let’s say that you’ve spent the last twenty-five years growing and training bonsai trees, and now you’re ready to share your knowledge and experience. An ebook is the perfect way to reach the largest audience of bonsai enthusiasts.

Ebooks will not only promote your business - they will help you make a name for yourself and your company, and establish you as an expert in your field. You may even find that you have enough to say to warrant a series of ebooks. Specific businesses are complicated and often require the different aspects to be divided in order for the reader to get the full story.

Perhaps your goals are more finely tuned in terms of the ebook scene. You may want to build a whole business around writing and publishing ebooks. Essentially, you want to start an e-business. You are thinking of setting up a website to promote and market your ebooks. Maybe you’re even thinking of producing an ezine.

One of the most prevalent reasons people read ebooks is to find information about how to turn their Internet businesses into a profit-making machine. And these people are looking to the writers of ebooks to provide them with new ideas and strategies because writers of ebooks are usually people who understand the new cyberspace world we now live in. Ebook writers are experts in Internet marketing campaigns and the strategies of promoting and distributing ebooks. The cyberspace community needs its ebooks to be successful so that more and more ebooks will be written.

You may want to create affiliate programs that will also market your ebook. Affiliates can be people or businesses worldwide that will all be working to sell your ebooks. Think about this? Do you see a formula for success here?

Figure out what your subject matter is, and then narrow it down. Your goal is to aim for specificity. Research what’s out there already, and try to find a void that your ebook might fill.

What about an ebook about a wedding cake business? Or an ebook about caring for elderly pets? How about the fine points of collecting ancient pottery?

You don’t have to have three masters degrees to write about your subject. People need advice that is easy to read and easily understood. Parents need advice for dealing with their teenagers. College students need to learn good study skills - quickly. The possibilities are endless.

After you’ve writtten your ebook

Getting your ebook out is going to be your focus once you’ve finished writing it, just as it is with print books. People will hesitate to buy any book from an author they’ve never heard of. Wouldn’t you?

The answer is simple: give it away! You will see profits in the form of promoting your own business and getting your name out. You will find affiliates who will ask you to place their links within your ebook, and these affiliates will in turn go out and make your name known. Almost every single famous ebook author has started out this way.

Another powerful tool to attract people to your ebook is to make it interactive. Invent something for them to do within the book rather than just producing pages that contain static text. Let your readers fill out questionnaires, forms, even crossword puzzles geared to testing their knowledge on a particular subject. Have your readers hit a link that will allow them to recommend your book to their friends and associates. Or include an actual order form so at the end of their reading journey, they can eagerly buy your product.

When people interact with books, they become a part of the world of that book. The fact is just as true for books in print as it is for ebooks.

That’s why ebooks are so essential. Not only do they provide a forum for people to learn and make sense of their own thoughts, but they can also serve to promote your business at the same time.

Jane runs the website www.home-industry.com - a work at home directory which regularly reviews and updates details of the latest internet home business ideas and opportunities.

To get your own money making website set up free visit: www.home-industry.com/pips.html

To receive a free email marketing course send a blank email to: home-industry@getresponse.com

I suspect most folks do not like to argue. I know, some people are really good at it, and some people seem to enjoy conflict. But the vast majority of us would rather not fight with the ones we love.

I am the type of person who wants to stick with a fight/argument/disagreement (pick your favorite term) until it is settled. I think if I keep after it, my logic and desires will surely prevail.

So I was very interested to learn about some research on arguing from The Gottman Institute in Seattle. In case you don’t know the Institute, or its founder John Gottman, it is a research center focused on couples and the ways they interact. The Gottman Institute has an apartment set up with microphones and cameras, where couples stay for the weekend. While they are there, their actions and interactions are recorded, then studied.

When people argue, they get anxious or upset, and their heart rate increases. The Gottman researchers found that if your heart rate is over 100 beats per minute, you cannot think flexibly, negotiate, or solve problems very well. So they suggest that couples take a break from each other and the issue - say 15 minutes or so - and come back together at a designated time to resolve the issue. This break allows your heart rate to go down and makes resolving problems easier. Couples that practice this “time out” technique have more successful resolutions.

So… folks like me who want to stick with the disagreement until it is worked out are actually being counter-productive. We need to step away, take a walk, water the plants, do the dishes, whatever works. Then, at an agreed time, come back together to work on the problem.

© 2006 Cynthia McKenna LPC, NCC - All Rights Reserved Worldwide

Cynthia McKenna LPC, NCC http://CynthiaMcKennaCounseling.com is a therapist and life-coach who helps people have more joy and peace in daily living. Cynthia works with clients throughout the country via phone and email. She also sees clients in her Texas Hill Country office.

Schedule and appointment, sign up for her e-newsletter, or request more information hereContact Cynthia McKenna

Check out Cynthia McKenna’s Blog: CounselingBlog

Thanks to technological advances and recent internet popularity it is now possible for anyone who has enough talent to produce a movie. The barriers that have long made movie production only available to the rich are now no longer. For less than a few thousand dollars you can get all the equipment that you need to film a movie. Of course, only a small number of rising actors actually make it to the big screens and movie theatres. But, with the right moves you can work your way up the ladder by showing off your talent, dedication, and ability when it comes to trying to do it all yourself. This can make for a very impressive resume and help you get your foot in the door as you struggle to separate yourself from the thousands of competitors in Hollywood.

Anyway, here’s the website idea. It’s an ideas to bring together actors and actresses. Make a website where you can join together with other rising stars to produce a movie together. On this website, you’ll want to simply post a movie idea and wait for others to contribute to the idea and apply for the different parts of the movie. This will require some effort and moderation on your part, but this idea could pay off big someday and make it all worthwhile. As your website gains attention and popularity, you can then monetize it with ads. But, while your site is growing keeps the ads off and make everything entirely free and out in the open. This is what I believe is the best way to start off a website as you can see from the other website ideas I have posted in the past. Writing unique content and having other’s contribute content to your website makes search engines happy. They like to see websites that are active and updated with content often.

If you try to make your website only viewable to registered user’s you loose out on all the free search engine traffic and promotion. Enough about that. Why don’t you go get started with this website idea. If you have any questions about this idea, please feel free to post your comments below. I look forward to comments on all my website ideas and encourage you to share your thoughts.

You can find more website ideas at my website: http://websiteideas.org

Joann Brooks is a web developer and freelance writer who like to write about website ideas. Visit http://www.websiteideas.org for more great website ideas.

The Chinese Government is rumored to distribute laptops to all its citizens in an attempt to nip over-population in the bud (or rather, seed). Ok, perhaps socialism hasn’t come along this far, but recent studies do indicate that laptop use may hurt sperm production in young adult males permanently.

What You Say?

It’s true, “teenage boys and young men may consider limiting their use of laptop computers on their laps,” quipped Yefim Sheynkin, the lead researcher of an interesting (though somewhat sparse, yuk yuk) study on the effects laptops have on scrotal temperatures and sperm counts. When a laptop is balanced on one’s knees, the user is forced to close their legs together, raising scrotal temperatures by an average of 2.1 degrees celsius (3.8 F). Internal laptop temperatures can soar to 70 degrees celsius (158 F). The result is higher scrotal temperatures in males by around 2.7 degrees celsius (4.86 F),
according to Sheynkin’s study on 29 brave male volunteers.

Someone Set Up Us the Bomb

Are you thinking what I’m thinking, that the US government (the same monster that somehow puts poisons in plane jetstreams to kill off the elderly) was behind the advent of the laptop computer in order to control population? If so, your medication might be just a placebo. Whatever the case, studies show that 1 degree celsius is the minimal difference for inhibited spermatogenisis (sperm production). Although damage is temporary in most cases, habitual and prolonged laptop use
might cause permanent damage. Sheynkin said: “The body needs to maintain a proper testicular
temperature for normal sperm production and development. We don’t know the exact frequency and
time of heat exposure capable of producing reversible or irreversible changes in spermatogenesis.”

You Have No Chance to Survive, Make Your Time

Ok, so as inconclusive as this study seems, it is an established truth that heat is bad for the
little guys. Not only this, but laptops are just plain uncomfortable. There is a solution out
there. I have come accross the Xpad Heatshield, a handy new item that shields your lap from
uncomfortable laptop heat and channels heat away quickly. Perhaps the most energy consuming device
in a laptop is the cooling fan. I have found that when I use my Xpad with my powerbook, the
battery life increases, probably by about 20% or so. Plus, I have heard that putting your laptop
on a soft surface (like a pillow) inhibits heat dissipation, damaging your laptop’s battery
permanently. Xpad protects our batteries, our posterity, and passively protests the government’s
evil conspiracies.

The Xpad is simple in design. It is a solid base with raised rubber pads (in the shape of an “X) that raise the laptop by a little less than an inch. It allows heat to escape quite easily while gripping your laptop firmly to the base. A pad on the bottom makes it comfortable for your lap.

Cameron Postelwait works in business development at Sewell Direct, carriers of the
Xpad Laptop Heatshield, and the
USB to Serial Adapter.

In the wake of the 9/11 tragedy, our nation’s leaders began to
realize the full extent of potential threats to our national
security that exist both internally and abroad. This newfound
realization has resulted in the prioritization of security
measures that are designed to circumvent catastrophic events of
this magnitude. In order to avoid future lapses of national
security and combine the resources and communication protocols
of various agencies, the Department of Homeland Security was
created.

The need for one U.S. government agency that could oversee the
administration of the many independent intelligence gathering
entities was apparent in the post 9/11 aftermath. Vital
information that was gathered through various investigative
sources was deemed inconsequential of its own merit. Putting
this information into the overall scope of events that led up to
the catastrophe of 9/11, it was apparent that the disaster might
have been avoided had some organization been able to put all the
warning signs together into one cohesive picture. In order for
that to become a feasible reality by which we could avoid future
tragedies, intelligence sharing and unilateral cooperation would
be necessary.

The creation of the Department of Homeland Security was
announced on September 20th, shortly after 9/11. Pennsylvania
governor Tom Ridge was appointed as director and was charged
with the task of coordinating the nation’s intelligence
gathering agencies and the overall efforts to prevent future
terrorist attacks. Since that time, a great deal of changes to
our nation’s intelligence community have taken place. New
positions have been created for the management of intelligence
resources. Additional U.S. intelligence agents have been trained
and are currently working in the field. Intelligence gathering
and reporting methods have been updated to reflect the growing
need for inter-agency cooperation.

In addition to creating new positions in intelligence and in the
IT, human resources and administrative sections of the
Department of Homeland Security, local and national law
enforcement and emergency management personnel have been trained
in emergency preparedness procedures designed for large scale
events such as those of September 11th.

Hopefully, the creation of the Department of Homeland Security
will ensure that we are never again faced with such a
devastating loss of life.