The cost of one digital hearing aid can range from $1700 to $4,750 at the retail level. The costs are no doubt high but let's take a look on why digital hearing aids have such a high price tag especially compared to their analog cousins. One of the reasons that digital hearing aids bring high prices is because of all the time that is invested into research and development. Another reason for the high price is that these devices contain miniaturized computer chips, which makes them more expensive. You can always expect to pay more when you are buying the latest electronic gadgets and hearing aids are no different unfortunately.
Don't worry though; deals on digital hearing aids are available to a thrifty shopper. Keep in mind that there is a lot of competition between hearing aid suppliers. Also, the internet is allowing people to get much better deal. It is easy to save money if you take your time and shop around.
We all know that hearing aids are insanely expensive. However, if you look around you will be able to find some low cost alternatives out there. The Cost of digital hearing aids is based on the brand and model of hearing aid and what features it has.
For those people that have already wear analog devices, an upgrade to a digital model will provide stunning sound quality in normal day to day situations. A drastic improvement in hearing of normal everyday sounds is just the start. Where digital hearing aids really earn their money is eliminating background noise. Adjustments can be made without having to mess with the volume control.
The more money you are willing to spend the more you'll be impressed with the detail and quality of the sounds you can hear. If you are willing to get into the high end of digital hearing aids, you will be totally impressed with the things you can hear. Users report that they can hear even the faintest noises, and perhaps the most talked about results are the way these high end models are able to eliminate all feedback. These high tech devices also have a directional microphone which can be directed at the users front which will eliminate any surrounding noises.
If you decide that a digital hearing aid is for you then consult an audiologist. The audiologist will run test to find the degree and cause of your hearing impairment. Digital hearing aids are programmable so don't be surprised if you have to return to the doctor's office a number of times to get the device tuned in just to your liking. It might take some patience on your part but the advantages are very much worth it. Hearing aids are expensive, but you should not cut corners with something as important as your hearing.
Best of luck!
Hearing Aid Styles
How To Clean Hearing Aids
Sunday, February 21, 2010
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Can an Alcoholic Ever Return to Social Drinking?
Can a person addicted to alcohol turn back the clock and return to social drinking?
Here is the difference between a social drinker and a drinker who has actually developed an addiction to alcohol:
Social Drinker
A social drinker drinks alcohol on occasion, but drinking does not continually occupy their thoughts. They can enjoy a drink or two and take it or leave it, not giving drinking another consideration. Leaving a half finished drink does not bother them even remotely. There are no negative consequences as a result of their drinking (other than possibly an isolated incident) causing them no problems overall. There is no loss of control or consequences related to their drinking. Family and friends have no reason to voice concern about the drinking patterns of a social drinker.
Problem Drinker or Alcoholic
It is inevitable that the use of alcohol will progress to the point where negative consequences begin to occur, such as a DUI or getting involved in other legal problems, possibly an assault charge. There is no question that alcohol was the offender, and a serious consequence occurred that was actually a personal and devastating compromise of the standards of the drinker. A night in jail for someone who, if it wasn't for alcohol, would never have seen the inside of a jail cell.
Drinking starts to occupy your thoughts more frequently now, looking forward to and constantly planning that next drink. Drinking is running interference with family obligations, social obligations, and work.
The problem drinker no longer possesses the ability to set limits on his or her drinking and adhere to them. This is a distinct difference from the social user who doesn't need any limits. When the alcoholic picks up a drink, he or she cannot guarantee the outcome. All bets are off.
Alcoholism and Alcohol Addiction
The primary characteristic of alcoholism is the loss of control over drinking. Therefore, an alcoholic would not be able to successfully return to controlled drinking based on the definition.
One of the dreams of an alcoholic is to be able to go back to social drinking. You would have to be an alcoholic to have that kind of dream. Social drinkers wouldn't think in those terms.
In addition to loss of control, there is an inevitable increase in tolerance, withdrawal, frequency and volume in regard to drinking. The hallmark characteristic is that an alcoholic cannot quit despite his or her most sincere efforts to do so, and continues to drink and continues to experience these devastating consequences.
Can an alcoholic regain control over his or her drinking? Unfortunately, the answer is and will always be no. In fact, many alcoholics will get some clean time in, but when they go back to drinking will either make up for lost time by drinking with a vengeance or start out drinking less for a very short period, but will be right back to the volume and frequency of drinking they were engaging in prior to their success in stopping for that short time. Most alcoholics will try to control their drinking many, many times in their drinking career, never reaching that much coveted title of social drinker.
One reason social drinking is no longer an option may be in no small part due to changes in the brain. There are significant differences between the brain scan of a normal person and a brain scan of an alcoholic.
Any addict's least favorite word is no. But unfortunately, in this case, once a person has become addicted to alcohol, the chances of them being able to return to normal drinking is probably one in a million, if that.
If you have a drinking problem and want help, there is an easier way:
http://HowIStoppedDrinking.org
Living with an alcoholic is very taxing on the non-drinker because it is so all-consuming and stressful, and wears tremendously on your self esteem. Visit http://www.livingwithanalcoholic.org for some dos and don'ts
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Going Green without Spending Green
We have this mistaken idea that to go green, we have to spend green dollars. Well, actually, you do not need to strain your budget just to adopt an eco-friendly lifestyle. In fact, you will be fattening up your wallets with these tips on going green without spending your green dollars. And trust us, these ways are easy, effective and convenient.
Reduce Food Waste
Your grocery bill may constitute more than 50 percent of your total household bills. Thus, any and all efforts to reduce food waste will add up to big benefits to your pockets and to the environment for many reasons. You can achieve this end by:
* Reducing your food consumption in terms of shopping for groceries.
* Using leftovers for new dishes and enforcing a no-dregs policy
* Planning meals in advance to avoid too many leftovers
Use Heaters Wisely
We are so dependent on hot water for many of our needs from washing our bodies to washing our dishes and clothes. Well, go green by choosing cold water for many activities in the house. Start by taking cold showers when the weather permits instead of hot tub baths. Then progress into using unheated tap water for washing your hands, dishes and clothes. Studies have shown that tap water is just as effective in killing germs as hot water. The trick is in washing your hands properly for 20 seconds, soaking the clothes for 30 minutes to remove stubborn dirt and washing off the dregs on the eating utensils before placing on a full dishwasher.
Unplug the Appliances
You can save as much as 10-15 percent of your electricity bill simply by unplugging the cords from their sockets when these are not in use. This is because so-called phantom electricity does not flow from the grid into your appliances. And speaking of appliances, you can save money by either buying ones with the Energy Star logo or ones that have been refurbished. Of course, make sure that the refurbished appliances are also energy-efficient. You ought to save money in the long run instead of sticking to your run-down appliances. However, do recycle said old appliances with the manufacturers or with the recycling centers.
Use Recycled Materials for Your Home
As much as possible, use recycled materials for your home. You can purchase scrap lumber from hardware stores, vintage wood and glass panels from garage sales and old houses, utensils and ornaments made of recycled materials from green stores and sites, to name a few options. You will often spend less on these items and yet get as much mileage as you possibly can from them. Better yet, you should adopt the motto of environmentalists everywhere - reduce, reuse and recycle. You will soon find that indeed being eco-friendly has its rewards for you and for your children's children.
Starting today, take a look around your home and see what else needs to be done to be as environmentally-friendly as possible.
Read about ways to start going green in the kitchen and more about the different ways to recycle.
Reduce Food Waste
Your grocery bill may constitute more than 50 percent of your total household bills. Thus, any and all efforts to reduce food waste will add up to big benefits to your pockets and to the environment for many reasons. You can achieve this end by:
* Reducing your food consumption in terms of shopping for groceries.
* Using leftovers for new dishes and enforcing a no-dregs policy
* Planning meals in advance to avoid too many leftovers
Use Heaters Wisely
We are so dependent on hot water for many of our needs from washing our bodies to washing our dishes and clothes. Well, go green by choosing cold water for many activities in the house. Start by taking cold showers when the weather permits instead of hot tub baths. Then progress into using unheated tap water for washing your hands, dishes and clothes. Studies have shown that tap water is just as effective in killing germs as hot water. The trick is in washing your hands properly for 20 seconds, soaking the clothes for 30 minutes to remove stubborn dirt and washing off the dregs on the eating utensils before placing on a full dishwasher.
Unplug the Appliances
You can save as much as 10-15 percent of your electricity bill simply by unplugging the cords from their sockets when these are not in use. This is because so-called phantom electricity does not flow from the grid into your appliances. And speaking of appliances, you can save money by either buying ones with the Energy Star logo or ones that have been refurbished. Of course, make sure that the refurbished appliances are also energy-efficient. You ought to save money in the long run instead of sticking to your run-down appliances. However, do recycle said old appliances with the manufacturers or with the recycling centers.
Use Recycled Materials for Your Home
As much as possible, use recycled materials for your home. You can purchase scrap lumber from hardware stores, vintage wood and glass panels from garage sales and old houses, utensils and ornaments made of recycled materials from green stores and sites, to name a few options. You will often spend less on these items and yet get as much mileage as you possibly can from them. Better yet, you should adopt the motto of environmentalists everywhere - reduce, reuse and recycle. You will soon find that indeed being eco-friendly has its rewards for you and for your children's children.
Starting today, take a look around your home and see what else needs to be done to be as environmentally-friendly as possible.
Read about ways to start going green in the kitchen and more about the different ways to recycle.
Choose A Backup Software For Your Data Center Disaster Recovery Plan
A data center stores all the programs, files, applications and other digital information that a business needs to have, so they may reasonably compete against businesses using the internet. If their files where destroyed, this would bring the companies production to a halt, possibly causing a crushing blow to its positive cash flow. This is why it's absolutely critical to invest time and money in a reliable data center disaster recovery plan.
If you are already convinced that you must protect your data, then the next question is what exactly are we supposed to look for in a data center disaster recovery plan anyway?
It does not matter if you are a huge multinational corporation or a new business just entering your fast growth phase. Every business needs a first rate computer backup system.
Computer backup systems are a part of data center disaster recovery plans because they play the major role of safeguarding the pertinent data that keeps your business alive and restoring that data if a computer hardware failure occurs. Because of the importance of its function, selecting the right computer backup program is critical to your data center's disaster recovery plan.
Listed below are several facts to consider during your search for the best computer backup system:
Protection: How many levels of safety does the program have? Does it have a proper administrative login procedure? Can it keep your files intact in its own "vault" so they cannot leak out, get misplaced, or become erased? Determining what the program's security system can and cannot do is vital in making a selection. The program you want to choose must be capable of top-rate security.
Ease of Access: Even though you're backed up files have to be secure, at the same time they should be easily accessible. This encourages frequent updates and simplifies documentation procedures. An accessible system boosts the businesses efficiency, allowing more time to work on other important issues and responsibilities.
Storage Space: Storage pace is always a big issue for online computer backups. Even a small mom and pop business can have an amazing amount of data that needs to be stored. It's vital to know all your storage options and the limitations of your online computer backups, so you can confirm if it can, in fact, handle all or your valuable data.
Ease of Use: It isn’t a must-have requirement, but an easy to understand and operate program is a big plus for a number of reasons. A simple but effective program will be operated, verified, backed up, and given quality control checks more often. This minimizes the risk of file recovery disaster and increases the likelihood of a full recovery from computer crashes.
Dependability: Another important point to look for is if the program can store and restore your data completely when asked too without having to jump through any hoops? You should make sure it is easy to restore your data.
Don’t include yourself as one of the many businesses that do not pay enough attention to their data center disaster recovery plans. Neglecting to check if your computer backup system is up to restoring a file recovery disaster is going to be a painful experience when you most need it.
At all times you have to remember that depending on which computer backup system you select, it will make or break your data center disaster recovery plans. So be sure to take your time and pick wisely.
Data Center Migration
Data center migration services
If you are already convinced that you must protect your data, then the next question is what exactly are we supposed to look for in a data center disaster recovery plan anyway?
It does not matter if you are a huge multinational corporation or a new business just entering your fast growth phase. Every business needs a first rate computer backup system.
Computer backup systems are a part of data center disaster recovery plans because they play the major role of safeguarding the pertinent data that keeps your business alive and restoring that data if a computer hardware failure occurs. Because of the importance of its function, selecting the right computer backup program is critical to your data center's disaster recovery plan.
Listed below are several facts to consider during your search for the best computer backup system:
Protection: How many levels of safety does the program have? Does it have a proper administrative login procedure? Can it keep your files intact in its own "vault" so they cannot leak out, get misplaced, or become erased? Determining what the program's security system can and cannot do is vital in making a selection. The program you want to choose must be capable of top-rate security.
Ease of Access: Even though you're backed up files have to be secure, at the same time they should be easily accessible. This encourages frequent updates and simplifies documentation procedures. An accessible system boosts the businesses efficiency, allowing more time to work on other important issues and responsibilities.
Storage Space: Storage pace is always a big issue for online computer backups. Even a small mom and pop business can have an amazing amount of data that needs to be stored. It's vital to know all your storage options and the limitations of your online computer backups, so you can confirm if it can, in fact, handle all or your valuable data.
Ease of Use: It isn’t a must-have requirement, but an easy to understand and operate program is a big plus for a number of reasons. A simple but effective program will be operated, verified, backed up, and given quality control checks more often. This minimizes the risk of file recovery disaster and increases the likelihood of a full recovery from computer crashes.
Dependability: Another important point to look for is if the program can store and restore your data completely when asked too without having to jump through any hoops? You should make sure it is easy to restore your data.
Don’t include yourself as one of the many businesses that do not pay enough attention to their data center disaster recovery plans. Neglecting to check if your computer backup system is up to restoring a file recovery disaster is going to be a painful experience when you most need it.
At all times you have to remember that depending on which computer backup system you select, it will make or break your data center disaster recovery plans. So be sure to take your time and pick wisely.
Data Center Migration
Data center migration services
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Economic Stimulus - Just How Much is a "Billion" Anyway?
When I was young I heard there were small handfuls of millionaires in the world. As far as I knew they all lived in Texas. I couldn't fathom a "million" dollars back then. As I got older I heard of a few billionaires, I always figured they were kings or sultans.
Now, scared and strapped Americans are hearing talk about billions upon billions. Our government recently approved a plan, signed into law that will spend $787 billion. The newscasters and folks on Wall Street say it's a lot of money. So just how much money is that anyway?
Most simpletons like me may have a hard time figuring out "just what is a billion?" Well, let's try to put this in perspective.
First, go find a whole bunch of one-hundred dollar bills. Start by placing them end to end, you can use tape if you need, but keep doing it over and over until you reach the amount of the stimulus package, let's say about $787 billion - but you can round up or down. When you're done, you'll find the row of hundreds is 745,000 miles long. It's a distance to the moon, back to earth and back to the moon. It would take a jet flying at 450 mph over sixty-nine days to cover the distance.
One billion seconds ago was the year 1978. Jimmy Carter was president and Queen's hit "We are the Champions" was number one on the billboard charts, "Garfield" made its comic debut and Roman Polanski made his getaway to Europe.
A billion teaspoons of water will fill two Olympic size pools, four and one-half Nimitz class aircraft carriers weigh one billion pounds, six states the size of Texas equal a billion acres, and, a baby born today will be nearly 32 years old in a billion seconds.
Wow, that really sounds like a lot of money! Now I'm really depressed.
All my articles are posted on my blog at: http://mywritingcoach.blogspot.com.
Get your Economic Stimulus Package Bill news at iTaxRebate.com
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Your Guide To Select An Online Nursing School
Nursing is a booming career field with tremendous career opportunities. Throughout the years, the field of nursing has brought millions and millions of people above the average paying jobs. The nursing career opportunities arise like the golden sun everyday and await all degree holders of nursing. With the high demand in nursing jobs, schools that offer nursing programs are growing rapid. And to ease the students to earn the nursing degree, more and more online nursing degree programs are available to enable the students to earn their nursing degree from anywhere and at their own pace.
Too many choices on online nursing degree programs may sometime make you hard to decide which one to choose. Here are a few factors to consider when select an online nursing school:
1. The Online Nursing School Is Accredited
When an online school is accredited, it means that it has passed or surpassed a set of nationally recognized standards for its teaching process. The accreditation of online nursing school is optional but it is important to secure for your brighter future in your nursing career path. Many employers are more opt to hire nurses from an accredited online nursing school. Another important factor to consider pursuing your nursing degree from an accredited online nursing school is credit transferable when you want to continue your education in the future.
2. The Lecturer-to-Students Ratio
Teacher-to-students ratio is important when come to the personal attention spend by each lecturer to his/her online students. You can check with the admission department on the average online student to a lecturer. With the lower teacher-to-students ratio, the more personal attention you receive from your lecturer. Most of online nursing degrees will require some hours of physical class, labs & clinical works, you will have a better opportunity to ask questions and learn more.
3. The Lecturer-to-Students Ratio
Students who graduate from nursing school are required to undergo an examination called NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure EXamination-Registered Nurse) before receiving licensure as a registered nurse in United States. You can check out the nursing schools average NCLEX-RN pass rate, it will be a good indicator to show whether the online nursing programs offered by that nursing school are inline with the state requirement in order to become a certified nurse. Of course, you will want to compare pass rates for the last decade to get a more comprehensive picture.
4. Clinical Assignment
Most of online nursing program will require you to complete you clinical assignment in hospital; if you have transportation difficulties or you are working while earning your online nursing degree, you may not flexible enough to travel for long distance; thus, in selecting your online nursing school, you might want to consider a online nursing school which can offer you to complete your clinical assignment at hospital near at your state or near to your home.
In Summary
The best way to make that final decision about an online nursing school is to know what you want. But you should also realize that you should be looking at the details of the online nursing program of your selected nursing school as hard as the school will be looking at your application for enrollment.
Online LPN Programs
Online LPN Nursing Programs
Too many choices on online nursing degree programs may sometime make you hard to decide which one to choose. Here are a few factors to consider when select an online nursing school:
1. The Online Nursing School Is Accredited
When an online school is accredited, it means that it has passed or surpassed a set of nationally recognized standards for its teaching process. The accreditation of online nursing school is optional but it is important to secure for your brighter future in your nursing career path. Many employers are more opt to hire nurses from an accredited online nursing school. Another important factor to consider pursuing your nursing degree from an accredited online nursing school is credit transferable when you want to continue your education in the future.
2. The Lecturer-to-Students Ratio
Teacher-to-students ratio is important when come to the personal attention spend by each lecturer to his/her online students. You can check with the admission department on the average online student to a lecturer. With the lower teacher-to-students ratio, the more personal attention you receive from your lecturer. Most of online nursing degrees will require some hours of physical class, labs & clinical works, you will have a better opportunity to ask questions and learn more.
3. The Lecturer-to-Students Ratio
Students who graduate from nursing school are required to undergo an examination called NCLEX-RN (National Council Licensure EXamination-Registered Nurse) before receiving licensure as a registered nurse in United States. You can check out the nursing schools average NCLEX-RN pass rate, it will be a good indicator to show whether the online nursing programs offered by that nursing school are inline with the state requirement in order to become a certified nurse. Of course, you will want to compare pass rates for the last decade to get a more comprehensive picture.
4. Clinical Assignment
Most of online nursing program will require you to complete you clinical assignment in hospital; if you have transportation difficulties or you are working while earning your online nursing degree, you may not flexible enough to travel for long distance; thus, in selecting your online nursing school, you might want to consider a online nursing school which can offer you to complete your clinical assignment at hospital near at your state or near to your home.
In Summary
The best way to make that final decision about an online nursing school is to know what you want. But you should also realize that you should be looking at the details of the online nursing program of your selected nursing school as hard as the school will be looking at your application for enrollment.
Online LPN Programs
Online LPN Nursing Programs
Monday, January 11, 2010
1,000 Song Searches: A Comparison of Music Searching with iTunes and Zune Marketplace
Being an iTunes user for several years, I never thought much about its search capabilities. Until, that is, I experienced the elegance of Zune software's search.
When searching for a song with iTunes, you enter a search term or two (example: "Van Morrison"), and press the Search button to see a list of matching results.
Simple enough. But if you spelled 'Morrison' wrong (with one r, perhaps, or two s's), iTunes won't return any hits. At best, if you're lucky, you'll see a "did you mean...?" message from iTunes.
And don't try partial searches, either. If you try to save time and avoid errors by entering "van mor", you likewise won't get any Van Morrison hits in your iTunes search results.
Another scenario: enter "Eddie Cochrane" as your search term, and iTunes returns no matches. Why? Because the artist you're looking for is Eddie Cochran... you have to lose the trailing e, otherwise iTunes won't help you.
iTunes search is simply unforgiving of typos or incomplete words, and returns only songs that are exact matches to your search terms.
Zune software, on the other hand, is much more forgiving, and much more effective as a tool for finding music. Most noticeably, it provides dynamic searching. As you enter your search terms, a filtered list of search results appears in the details pane. Every letter you press further filters the list - so as you spell your song name or artist name, you can see the results changing dynamically. You get immediate feedback on what you're looking for.
Because of the dynamic search, you can use partial spellings in your search. Enter "van mor", for example, and you'll see all Van Morrison songs appear as you key in the letters.
Zune software lets you mix and match partial search terms for artist and song name, too. This can be a very quick way to filter your results down to a desired song. Enter "van mor moon", and you'll get an idea of how quickly you can filter down to see Van Morrison's track Moondance.
Another useful trait of Marketplace search: it returns everything in that artist's catalog - even items that may not be available for download. This actually facilitates search - by providing a positive hit on your search terms. With iTunes, you have to scroll through search results to be sure you're not missing it, buried among the tribute albums and cover versions by other artists. Or, that you haven't missed it because of iTunes' lack of forgiveness about typos and partial search terms.
On the flip side: While iTunes search is primitive, it is responsive. Press enter, and the results come back faster than the dynamic search of Marketplace.
The benefits of Marketplace search really hit home to me recently during our Rock'n'Roll research, where I and a small team searched for 500 rock and roll songs in each of iTunes and Marketplace. The efficiencies of Zune's Marketplace really stood out in that research project.
Zune software may not be perfect, but when it comes to helping you find the music you want... it blows the doors off of iTunes.
Harvey Chute is webmaster of http://www.Zunerama.com, a Microsoft Zune resource center that provides one-stop for all things Zune, including Zune user forums, Zune specifications, documentation, FAQ, and a daily blog providing analysis and commentary on Zune news.
Bestel iTunes Gift Card.
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