6 Unusual High-Paying Careers

by !=Linus=! | 8:58 AM in | comments (2)

American job titles and responsibilities are constantly morphing to suit the economic and cultural transitions of our madcap age. Euphemisms are often the way recruiters dress up old job titles to narrow the field to specialists. A "hash slinger" is now termed a "culinary resource professional." Kidding aside, today's workers are often forced by marketplace realities to undergo at least one rapid job change over their adult lives. Many enroll at online colleges and trade schools to garner fresh skills that fit their experience and previous training.

Some of these hot new careers you may have never heard of are "green-collar" jobs. These jobs are on the rise as the business world responds to dramatic increases in energy costs and environmental regulation. And while disposable income seems threatened by a roller-coaster economy, other new careers are springing up to suit those who have cash to spend.

Here are six hot career fields you may not have heard of:

Eco Tourism Director

Traditional hospitality careers are increasingly marching to the ecotourism drumbeat. According to the International Ecotourism Society, ecotourism is growing at three times the rate of traditional vacationing, increasing annually up to 30 percent. If you're just preparing for the field, seek an associate's degree in hospitality, travel, or tourism. If you're already aboard, why not train to manage a hotel, bed and breakfast, spa, or resort with a graduate degree in business or hospitality? The majority of lodging managers are self-employed professionals. Top earners in 2007 averaged $83,240 for the year.

Professional Hacker

Ever hear of a certified ethical hacker? That's the professional IT certification for a computer scientist that works as a security specialist, forensic investigator, or network defense architect for corporations, the government, and law enforcement agencies to help prevent hacking or to track down perpetrators. To get into the field, you'll need more than the hacking skills you tweaked together in your garage. Begin by earning a bachelor's degree in information technology or information technology. You can get additional online college training in network security. The top 50 percent of computer scientists earned between $97,970 and $123,900 in 2007.

Pet Psychologist

Don't be so shocked. Even Sparky sometimes needs help to keep from gnawing through the neighbor's bed of prized roses. Once the local vet has ruled out physical ailments that can contribute to rude pet behavior, people who love their animals may need to call in a trained, certified behaviorist or pet psychologist. As with human patients, pets can be analyzed and taught to act contrary to destructive impulses. There are even certified applied animal behaviorists. To get into the field, you'll need a master's or doctorate degree in psychology, preferably with additional work in zoology and animal behavior. Salaries vary greatly by locale, but can be upwards of $90,000 a year.

Conservation Consultant

There are companies who are greatly concerned with increasing energy efficiency. And there are those with a conscience, striving to reduce their carbon footprint. When Yahoo! decided to go carbon-neutral by 2007, they hired a director of energy strategy and climate change. Combine your thirst for conservation with an engineering degree to prepare for this thriving field. The U.S. Labor Department predicts a hefty 25 percent increase in environmental engineers during the 2006-2016 decade. In 2007, the top 50 percent earned between $70,000 and $106,000.

Fashion Consultant/Personal Shopper

Among those who care about their appearance, many are born with amazing taste; some have to work for it. fashion designand consultants help those who can afford personal attention to transform their image. You can be the one to consult on hair, makeup, and fashion--and then be the one to take your clients shopping. Get career training through an associate's or bachelor's degree program in fashion design. Top earners in the fashion design trades in 2007 took home $121,640 on average.

Mobile Experience Architect

The cool streaming videos and eye-popping CD covers that get delivered to the screens of millions of cell phones and PDAs each hour are designed to make you spend money. Information architects create the structure and mind-manipulating patterns (site maps) of each mobile delivery. You'll need to learn about marketing, strategy, and user testing through a degree program in computer science, Web design, or business. There's even an IT certification for professional mobile architects. Salaries range into six figures.

As our world rapidly evolves, it's no surprise that the work landscape is evolving as well. You can prepare for and keep up with the changes by updating your training and credentials.

As our world rapidly evolves, it’s no surprise that the work landscape is evolving as well. You can prepare for and keep up with the changes by updating your training and credentials.

One of the six high-flying jobs Yahoo! Hotjobs featured in its latest article is about designing content for mobile platform. Here is the full description. (with an eulogized version of the job title) In US it guarantees a six figure salary, apparently. Cannot be as high as that in the developing world, but something worth keeping an eye on.

Mobile Experience Architect

The cool streaming videos and eye-popping CD covers that get delivered to the screens of millions of cell phones and PDAs each hour are designed to make you spend money. Information architects create the structure and mind-manipulating patterns (site maps) of each mobile delivery. You’ll need to learn about marketing, strategy, and user testing through a degree program in computer science, Web design, or business. There’s even an IT certification for professional mobile architects. Salaries range into six figures.

Obama Shirtless Photos

by !=Linus=! | 6:30 AM in | comments (0)



Barack Obama was photographed shirtless while vacationing in Hawaii with his family. The 47-year-old president-elect who has tightly controlled press photographs of his family was caught on camera by a paparazzo who simply set up on a beach in Kailua and the photos in full view of Secret Service. The Obamas are spending Christmas in Hawaii.

Obama's well-defined physique won't be surprising to anyone familiar with his fitness schedule. He headed to the gym every morning before hitting the campaign trail during the election for 45 minutes every day alternating four days of weight training and two days of aerobics and treadmill. Obama is also known for his addiction to Honest Tea, a brand of organic teas, particularly the Black Forest Berry flavor. Perhaps his only unhealthy habit is occasional smoking which he has pledged to stop entirely

Michelle Obama, on the other hand, wore a modest black one-piece bathing suit while younger daughter Sasha went with a blue bikini.

The paparazzo who took the photos of Obama shirtless is said to be a freelance contractor for Bauer-Griffin, a paparazzi agency in California, and lives near the Obama vacation estate.

Santa Tracker 2008 Up and Running

by !=Linus=! | 6:12 AM in | comments (0)

NORTH POLE – If you’ve ever wondered where Santa is at or how soon he’s coming to your house, one online tool can give you a leg up on when the jolly old elf will arrive at your home.

Norad, and its predecessor the Continental Air Defense Command or CONAD, have tracked Santa on Christmas Eve for more than 50 years.
According to Norad’s Web site: “The tradition began in 1955 after a Colorado Springs-based Sears Roebuck & Co. advertisement for children to call Santa misprinted the telephone number. Instead of reaching Santa, the phone number put kids through to the CONAD Commander-in-Chief's operations "hotline." The Director of Operations at the time, Colonel Harry Shoup, had his staff check radar for indications of Santa making his way south from the North Pole. Children who called were given updates on his location, and a tradition was born.

“In 1958, the governments of Canada and the United States created a bi-national air defense command for North America called the North American Aerospace Defense Command, also known as NORAD. NORAD inherited the tradition of tracking Santa.

“Since that time, NORAD men, women, family and friends have selflessly volunteered their time to personally respond to Christmas Eve phone calls and emails from children. In addition, we now track Santa using the internet. Last year, millions of people who wanted to know Santa's whereabouts visited the NORAD Tracks Santa Web site.”

According to their Web site NORAD uses radar, satellites, Santa Cams and fighter jets to track Santa:

“Tracking Santa starts with the NORAD radar system called the North Warning System. This powerful radar system consists of 47 installations strung across the northern border of North America. On Christmas Eve, NORAD monitors the radar continuously for indications that Santa Claus has left the North Pole.

“The moment that radar indicates Santa has lifted off, we use our second detection system. Satellites positioned in geo-synchronous orbit at 22,300 miles from the Earth’s surface are equipped with infrared sensors which enable them to detect heat. Amazingly, Rudolph's bright red nose gives off an infrared signature which allow our satellites to detect Rudolph and Santa.

“The third tracking system is the Santa Cam network. We began using it in 1998, which is the year we put our Santa Tracking program on the internet. Santa Cams are ultra-cool, high-tech, high-speed digital cameras that are pre-positioned at many locations around the world. NORAD only uses these cameras once a year on Christmas Eve. The cameras capture images and videos of Santa and his reindeer as they make their journey around the world.

“The fourth system is made up of fighter jets. Canadian NORAD fighter pilots flying the CF-18 intercept and welcome Santa to North America. In the United States, American NORAD fighter pilots in either the F-15 or the F-16 get the thrill of flying alongside Santa and his famous reindeer: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner, Blitzen and, of course, Rudolph.


The site also features areas including a Kids’ Countdown and many other areas of interest.

To get the full effect of the site it is better viewed on Christmas Eve. On that night children can track Santa, see how many cookies he eats during his journey and more.


Download Soft : http://www.noradsanta.org/en/track3d.html

Orkut New Themes

by !=Linus=! | 11:30 AM in | comments (0)


But guess what. Members from India get first preference when it comes to testing out new changes. Same was the case when Orkut changed its theme to a new CSS layout long time back or when it introduced applications like Facebook.Its always the users from India who get to try out these changes first. Orkut knows which side its bread is buttered on.

Orkut is the number one application in countries like India. (Brazil is another). So if you are an Orkut user from India and you have the option available, go ahead and change the themes and rant about it to your friends.

I am in talks with some friends who work in Orkut. If you want this theme option available for your profile, leave your Orkut ID, this is the login you use, in comments section and if you are lucky, your account may be enabled with the themes feature for testing.

This particular project has been about 34 months in the making, but come tommorow the project would officially get released - Mozilla’s open source web browser Firefox 3.Which has amazing features in it.

As the company holds out on eager Firefox users until it is deemed software ready, as the time nears, excitement is reaching a fever pitch.

Mozilla is making the most out of its release date, including world-wide parties and the now infamous attempt at setting a new Guinness World Record for most software downloads in one day.

One thing that Mozilla is most proud of is the enhanced speed and efficiency of Firefox 3, claiming to be nine times faster than rival Microsoft’s Internet Explorer 7, and two to four times faster than previous version Firefox 2.

I tested this software quite a bit and I can’t say I noticed any change in the speed but then I (and most others) might have become accustomed to faster internet speeds of some time.

Either way, if like me you use Firefox and think have benefited from it and want to give something in return, download the latest copy of Firefox from their website (www.firefox.com) and help them create a world record that they have set out to achieve.

GPS Comes To Town

by !=Linus=! | 11:23 AM in | comments (0)


why GPS rocks

For the uninitiated, GPS is a technology that pinpoints the location of a person on a map. What one needs for this is a GPS-enabled device that can communicate directly with satellites , which do the actual pinpointing and then show the result on the device. So if you are using a GPS-enabled phone (say), you will be able to see yourself as a dot marked on a map of your present location.

And if you happen to have the right kind of software loaded on to your device, you could look up the most convenient way of travelling from one place to another-and even watch yourself doing so on the map! Add to that features like turn-by-turn instructions (in voice and text), information about traffic congestions as well as alternate routes, the ability to search for landmarks, and you can understand why GPS was considered invaluable for travellers who loved technology.

GPS had by and large been limited to special devices, from the likes of Garmin, that were targeted at travellers but this year has seen it also becoming a feature of high-end phones being launched in India.

The Nokia N95 and E90, the Asus P535, the BlackBerry 8800 and 8820, the HTC P3300-all have GPS in their tech specs. And even as this is being written, Nokia is preparing to launch the 6110, also called the Navigator, while Sony Ericsson is believed to be working on bundling a GPS accessory to boost sales of its P1i.

The rationale for integrating GPS with phones is simple: most business executives who buy high-end devices do tend to travel a lot, so they would not be averse to shelling out a few extra bucks for devices that tell them the way!

Not all roses

However, it would be naïve to assume that just having a GPS-enabled phone can solve one’s travelling blues. The truth is that GPS devices have their own headaches. For one, you need to be under an open sky to be able to get a signal from a satellite- it is difficult to use GPS in a room, and sometimes even in a moving vehicle!

There is also the matter of maps and related software. There is little sense in being able to find out where you are if your phone does not have maps loaded on it! And these often cost a pretty penny, if they do not come preloaded on the phone (which itself is pretty expensive!) .

Yes, there are free map options such as Google Maps but these have limited functionality. Google Maps, for instance, does not come with the ability to calculate routes or display traffic details for Indian cities.

It is hardly surprising that cellphone companies have begun to enter tie-ups with map providers (Nokia with Navteq, for instance) to ensure that their devices come preloaded with the right kind of maps.

Finally, there is the little matter of the two ‘b’s-battery and bandwidth . As it has to keep a constant communication with satellite, GPS can drain a normal phone battery, and if it has to keep downloading information from the internet (for live traffic or updated maps), it could end up adding a fair bit to one’s mobile bill too!

But for all its niggles, GPS seems set to become a part of mainstream cellphones in the coming days. Developers are working on coming out with software that makes the most of GPS for m-commerce-you can order something from a specific restaurant by clicking on it on a map-and even gaming (treasure hunts). As the technology becomes more popular, it is a fair chance that its price will dip too (currently, the cheapest GPS-enabled phone comes for around Rs 22,000). In fact, GPS is expected to be an integral part of Google’s much-hyped Android platform . And if that does not make it mainstream, nothing can!

It may be expensive and quirky at the moment, but GPS is well on its way to becoming an integral part of celldom.

Blackberry 7130G

by !=Linus=! | 11:13 AM in | comments (0)

Besides all the marketing propaganda, BlackBerry 7130g smart phones offers complete functionality and top-of-the-line features such as speakerphone, Bluetooth, SMS and MP3 ring tones. All this comes in a stylish, light weight package, the phone itself.

Using the phone, one can browse the net, view attachments and run third party applications faster than ever.

Below are some of the features of the phone which might entice you to lessen the weight of your bank account:

The BlackBerry Curve 7130g features complete functionality, including*:

  • Wireless email
  • Organiser
  • Browser
  • Phone
  • Corporate data access
  • SMS
  • MMS
  • Powered by a powerful processor and 64 MB of memory, smartphone lets you view attachments and graphics, browse the web and run applications effortlessly
  • Access up to 10 supported business and/or personal email accounts—in one inbox
    • View popular file formats (i.e. Word, Excel, Acrobat)
    • Use the QWERTY keyboard to find letters and numbers as you would on your computer
    • Large, dedicated Send, End and Mute keys, plus Convenience keys that let you choose the function
    • Provides loud, clear phone calls and intuitive call management features, including smart dialling, speed dialling and call forwarding
    • Go hands-free and make conference calls easy—the built-in speakerphone delivers excellent sound quality
    • Big, bright, high-resolution screen optimizes lighting levels for ideal viewing indoors or out
    • Combine text and images in one message with Multimedia Messaging Service
    • Assign specific polyphonic and MP3 ringtones to specific contacts
    • Make safer calls on the road with the hands-free headset and car kit
    • Exceptional battery performance
    • Quad-band network support on 850/900/1800/1900 GSM/GPRS and EDGE networks allows for international roaming between North America, Europe and Asia Pacific

Blackberry Apploader Brew

by !=Linus=! | 11:11 AM in | comments (0)

iPhones have been successfully unlocked and used by plenty. Now the users have Research In Motion’s (RIM) Blackberry in their sight.

A lot of Blackberry 8000 or 9000 users want to unlock their smart phones and are burning the internet looking for some software that will unlock their gadget.

Now this is not tried and tested but what I have heard on the grape vine is that there is indeed a free software available and called MFI Multiloader which promises to unleash your phones. What you have to do it download this almost 1GB file from some sort of torrent.

After you download it successfully, install it on your computer, run the Desktop manager, use it to upgrade the OS of the Blackberry, and as it promises, you are all set. After the completion of this set of exercise, your Blackberry will be ready to accept any SIM card.

Now for some checks and balances, you have to make sure that your vendor.xml file is purged from the Apploader directory after the Desktop Manager 4.7.0.32 is finished installing.

From what I hear, this is supposed to be ideal for Blackberry Storm users to unlock their phone, either - 9500 or 9530, and also including Pearl 8100, 8110, 8120, 8130, but wait there is more BlackBerry Curve 86300, 8310, 8320, and possibly the 8350i. Did I forget to mention Bold and Pearl Flip 8220.

But speed is critical here because as and when this method becomes popular, the company is going to pull a plug on this scheme. Also, I give no guarantee since I have not tried it but if you have, give your comments below and we can try and resolve your issue.


FLIR ATS (ex-Cedip, www.cedip-infrared.com) has changed its cameras range name to finalize its integration within the FLIR group. Indeed, since 2008 FLIR Systems, the world leader in design and manufacturing of infrared cameras, has become the majority shareholder of Cedip Infrared Systems, the French supplier of high performance infrared cameras & systems. The two specialists have joined forces in the manufacturing and marketing of cooled mid- and long-wave infrared cameras for the science, R&D and thermography markets.
As a first step, Cedip in becoming part of the FLIR group changed its name by FLIR ATS, FLIR Advanced Thermal Solutions. As a 2nd step, all Cedip/FLIR ATS products have been integrated into the FLIR ranges.

As a 3rd step, all FLIR ATS products names have been standardized with the FLIR Systems naming conventions. The FLIR ATS products being high-end solutions & corresponding to the high range of products, they have been renamed with the prefix SC, like Science, products for Science & R&D applications. Number models were allocated as follow:

SC2000 Series: Near infrared camera with extended wavelength from 0.8 µm to 2.5 µm.
SC5000 Series: High performance cameras for users who need simplicity and performance in industry. Its motorized focus allows installing them in deported or harsh environments.
SC7000 Series: Versatile very high performance cameras for advanced R&D users. Its wide diversity of detector configurations allows addressing any applications in academic and industrial researches.
Orion SC7000 Series: Cameras dedicated to multi-spectral analysis application where spectral imaging or speed is a must.
SC7900 VL Series: Unique large band spectral response camera with high sensitivity in the 8-12µm range. Find all these cameras & systems on www.cedip-infrared.com or www.flirthermography.com
FLIR ATS offers a wide range of high-performance infrared imaging cameras and systems incorporating the latest technology in optics, infrared focal plane array detectors, electronic hardware and software. Founded in 1989 FLIR ATS is today recognised as a leading supplier of high-end Infrared Imaging solutions for industry, R&D, medical and thermography applications around the world. For further details on the new names or on our IR systems, please contact FLIR ATS on telephone +33-1-6037-0100, email marketingATS@flir.fr or visit www.cedip-infrared.com / www.flirthermography.com


On Wednesday Sony launched a New Firmware upgrade 2.53 for the PlayStation which enables Full-screen flash video playback.The full-screen and 480p options are really very good but it will be better if you are watching it in full-screen Hulu on our laptop. Full-screen flash video for the browser seems like a very small upgrade.but this feature are highly desired by the users of PS3s for online video services like YouTube,etc..

This Full-screen flash video has a very nice image quality especially on big-screens. While the resolution looks very pretty when closely watched between the two screens and the motion on the PS3 looks like significantly worse with dropping frames.But there are few draw backs like it get hangs often when PS3 is running. Lets hope Sony offers another updates version to further improve flash video performance in Full-screen Mode.


Google releases the "World's Second Google Android-Powered Smartphone" in Australia and United States. This new Smartphone is called "The AGORA". This Smartphone is made by Australian Company Kogan...This Smatphone is now available at AUD $299 or 193.

Specifications: 2.5-inch TFT-LCD flat touch-sensitive screen with 262K QVGA (320 X 240 pixel) resolution; QWERTY keyboard with backlighting; Bluetooth 2.0 with Enhanced Data Rate; two-megapixel camera; GPS navigation; WIFI and 3G connectivity; microSD expansion slot; music player.

Dimensions: 108 mm x 64 mm x 14.8 mm

Weight: 130g

Battery: 1300 mAh lithium-ion

Operating Times: talk time is up to about 400 minutes while standby time is up to about 300 hours

Processor: 624 MHz

Memory: 256 MB ROM and 128 MB RAM

Supported ringtone formats: MIDI, MP3, WMA, AAC, WAV, PCM

Supported video formats: MPEG2 H263, H264, MPEG4, AVI

Viewable mail attachments: JPEG, GIF, WBMP, MIDI, AMR, MP3, WAV

Also features one-touch Google search; easy-to-use email with attachment support for images, videos, music and documents; customisable Home Screen; and instant access to Gmail, YouTube, Google Talk, Google Calendar, and Google Maps.

The Agora has a high end version, the Agora Pro. Only the Agora Pro has the camera, WIFI and GPS.

Expect no problem roaming because the Agora is quad-band (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz) and serves all 3G/HSDPA bands (850, 1900, 2100 MHz) as well.

The Agora and Agora Pro are now on pre-sale at the Kogan website for delivery in January.

Visa Black Card

by !=Linus=! | 1:46 PM in | comments (0)

From Today American Express and Centurion cards are going to have a new competitor known as Visa Black Card. Barclay's launched this new type of card today....But one thing different from the other 2 cards is that this card is made out of Carbon Graphite and it also includes similar benefits to the Centurion Card as Priority pass.... but this criteria is currently yet to be clarified more....

* Limited Membership (1% of U.S. Residents),
* 1% cash back on purchases or $1 = 1 points that can redeemed for travel anytime,
* 24-Hour Concierge Service,
* Exclusive Rewards Program,
* Luxury Gifts,
* Patent Pending Carbon Graphite,
* Annual Fee $495.