Solar-generated electricity, long decried as too expensive to be practical, may have gotten a little closer to being competitive. The U.S. Senate approved its version of a bill that would extend income tax credits for the solar industry through 2016. More
Father of the Internet: ‘Web is Running Out of Addresses’
from Times of London
The world is about to run out of the Internet addresses that allow computers to identify each other and communicate, the man who invented the system has told The Times. Vint Cerf, the “Father of the Internet” and one of the world’s leading computer scientists, said that businesses and consumers needed to act now to switch to the next generation of net addresses. Unless preparations were made now, he said, some computers might not be able to go online and the connectivity of the Internet might be damaged. More
Cost Cutters: Reduce Shipping Costs
from The Wall Street Journal
As transportation costs continue to skyrocket, so too does the cost of shipping your business inventory and ordering supplies. According to a recent report by CIBC World Markets in Toronto, since 2000, rising fuel prices have tripled the amount it costs to ship a 40-foot, standard container from East Asia to the eastern seaboard of the U.S. CIBC economists predict that if oil hits US$200 a barrel, shipping costs will double from current levels. Tack on the fuel surcharges being levied by major delivery companies, such as FedEx, DHL and the United Parcel Service, and there's little doubt that business owners—from small Internet retailers to restaurateurs—are feeling the pinch. More
Companies Make Room for Baby
from The Christian Science Monitor
Between 2001 to 2003, approximately 25 percent of women left the workforce after having their first baby, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics released this year. Whenever expectant mothers leave the workplace, employers must scramble to fill their positions or redistribute their workloads to existing staff. But for an estimated 104 U.S. workplaces, the solution has been to bring the baby to work. Valley Credit Union has hosted 54 babies since its program began a decade ago. Currently, the office is hosting three babies with five more on the way. More
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Product Showcase: LogiSon Acoustic Network
 More than 70 percent of employees say they would be more productive if their workplace was quieter. The LogiSon Acoustic Network increases speech privacy and reduces disruptions by introducing a masking sound that makes conversations and noises more difficult, or impossible, to hear. It’s a cost-effective method of improving overall acoustic comfort. More info
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U.K. Offices Targeted to Go Green at Lunchtime
from RWM
U.K. businesses are being urged to get greener in the workplace by recycling their employees’ lunchtime food packaging waste. Companies will have the opportunity to recycle the tons of sandwich wrappers, soft drinks bottles and salad trays that are thrown in general waste bins every day. Paper and cardboard will also be collected. The campaign began on Sept. 22 and lasts for 12 weeks. Businesses in London, Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham will be sent leaflets with details of the new schemes. More
Work E-mail Use Creeps into Off Hours
from Globe & Mail
A study published by the Pew Internet and American Life Project shows that workers in general have mixed feelings about the increased use of e-mail and the Internet in the last few years. In a survey of 2,134 adults in March and April, 96 percent used e-mail, the Internet or cell phones. Of them, 80 percent said these technologies have improved their ability to do their jobs, and 58 percent said these tools have given them more control over when to work. But 46 percent also said these devices increase the demands that they work more hours, and 49 percent said that the technologies make it harder to disconnect from work when they should be off. More
Ocean Energy Gets New Push
from The New York Times
For years, technological visionaries have painted a seductive vision of using ocean tides and waves to produce power. They foresee large installations off the coast and in tidal estuaries that could provide as much as 10 percent of the U.S.’s electricity. But the technical difficulties of making such systems work are proving formidable. More
How to Make the Workplace More Generation Y Friendly
from ITworld
If Generation Y is teeming with young, techno-fluent recruits, they should be an easier generation to manage than the Baby Boomer generations. Right? Wrong. According to a January 2008 survey by Atlantic Associates, an IT staffing company, young IT employees pose the biggest challenge to their managers. Surprisingly, Generation X is the next hardest to manage, leaving the eldest generations as the easiest. More
Report: Big Jump in Growth, Profits Projected for Green Building Worldwide
from GreenerBuildings
A study of construction professionals around the world has found that the majority expect more than 60 percent of their projects will be focused on green building within the next five years. Environmentally friendly building currently accounts for more than 10 percent of domestic projects for almost a third of the respondents who participated in the study. It is the first to examine green building market trends and drivers on a global scale, according to McGraw-Hill Construction Analytics, which conducted the research and produced a report on the findings in partnership with the World Green Building Council. More
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To Retire Comfortable, It All Boils Down to Time
from USA Today
Everyone knows that soon-to-be retirees are in a bind today as they consider whether they have the financial security to make the leap. Shrinking nest eggs, nagging inflation, stagnant wages, vanishing pensions, dubious advice and runaway health care costs are among the obstacles that can block a retiree's escape route. More
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AgilQuest Corporation
 Most office systems end with hoteling, but that’s just where we get started. We’ll help you make your entire workplace as agile as your workforce. More |
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Solar-generated electricity, long decried as too expensive to be practical, may have gotten a little closer to being competitive. The U.S. Senate approved its version of a bill that would extend income tax credits for the solar industry through 2016. More
