John Francis -'s Articles

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Motorola Two Way Radios
The Basics of Motorola Two Way Radios

Motorola two way radios work almost like a cellular telephone in that they are used as a method of communication between people in different locations but there are a few major differences between the two way radio communication and telephone communication. The most noticeable difference between two way radio and telephone communication is that to the people talking on two way radios have to take turns talking -- this is called the 'ha...
Enhance Your Room With A Closet Door Mirror
Mirrors are a good addition to any room. They immediately make the room look larger, which is one reason you often see mirrored walls at restaurants and other places of business. Their light-reflecting properties brighten up a room. If you have a bedroom that needs brightening but you don't have any space, try a closet door mirror.

There are two ways to add mirrors to your closet door.You can buy a kit that allows you to add mirrors to your closet doors. This is a reasonab...
Shedding Some Light On Lantern History
Early lanterns were not decorative at all, but rather utilitarian only. They were primarily square shaped and their designs very plain. The only reason for their existence was to shield the flame of the candle from extinguishing due to wind or breeze. Most early lanterns were rudimentarily designed, and made from sheet iron or tinplate. These were cheap metals and it was rare to find any lanterns made from anything more costly. During the American Revolution, fore example, th...
The University Of Iowa
The University of Iowa is considered to be one of the best schools in the state and also in the surrounding area. The University of Iowa is located in the southeast part of the state, in a town called Iowa City. It is also located on the shores of the Iowa River. Iowa City is often listed in "best places to live" studies because of the great public schools, safe neighborhoods and educated population. Iowa City and the surrounding areas have a total population of about 90,000 ...
Volumetric Concrete Mixer
The volumetric concrete mixer is a special design that helps to pour concrete effectively and with efficiency. There are several different benefits to using this type of mixer if you are working on a project that requires concrete or cement. The process that is used through a volumetric mixer adds to proficiency for the process of laying concrete.

Usually, these mixers contain four different bins in them. Each of these will hold a different material that is needed for mixi...
Replacing Chandelier Parts
Chandeliers add an elegance and style to a room that no other lighting fixture can even come close to. It is not surprising that when a chandeleir gets old or broken that it is not just thrown away, but repaired. Replacing chandelier parts takes precision and careful shopping. One bad part and the whole chandeleir can lose it’s charm.

Usually when replacing parts on a chandelier, only some parts are being replaced. It is important to make sure that any new parts match the ...
Headset - No Longer Wired For Sound
Plantronics with its GN Netcom wireless headset creates the next generation of wireless headset and other products such as wireless amplifiers, and wireless headset telephone.

You can get a wireless headset that is completely without wires or one that requires a belt pack. The ones that are completely wire free are made up of a headset worn on your head that talks to a base unit that is attached to your telephone with no wire connections between your headset and your phone...
Tips For Buying A Bathroom Vanity
Your bathroom vanity is the only major piece of furniture you have in your bathroom. Whether you are building a new home and looking for that perfect vanity or replacing an old one, it is important to choose well. Your bathroom vanity will make a big difference in how your bathroom looks, and you will live with it for many years.

When choosing the parts for a bathroom vanity, you will find you have many options. Styles can be traditional or contemporary. There is a variey ...
Interesting Stamp Collecting Supply Items For Intermediate Collectors
When you have been collecting stamps for a while, you may begin getting more involved in identifying and evaluating your collection. You will likely have learned things that help you get a more detailed idea of what your collection holds. When you reach this point, there may be a stamp collecting supply that you need to purchase. You can find most of these supplies in a product book from a supply company. You can sometimes find them in hobby shops, although smaller hobby shop...
The Current Facts On Postage Stamps
Postage stamps are the proof that the proper fee has been paid to send a piece of correspondence. If a postage stamp is not present on a piece of mail being sent, the recipient becomes responsible for paying the postage due. If the recipient does not wish to pay the postage due, then the item is returned to the original sender.

Postage stamps can be purchased in a variety of ways. They can be purchased individually, in a book (usually 20) or in a larger roll, if a signific...
Making A Bedroom Useful With A Stanley Mirror Door
If you live in a home that was built between 1970 and the present, you probably deal with less than large bedrooms. Older homes tended to have large bedrooms with open ceilings. In the 70’s and still today homes are being built with small bedrooms. The whole idea is to give the family larger communal areas that they use more often. The thought sounds appealing, but trying to make your bedroom useful can be difficult. One simple way to make your bedroom seem a little larger is...
How Your Oil Paintings Can Flower
When you are producing flower landscape oil paintings, keep in mind the short canvas blend life of oil paints. If you are producing an oil painting of a flower landscape and you need to make a change that isn't immediately effective, the best thing to do is wipe it off with your paint rag and start over. This will work for the first 24 hours after your painting, as oil paintings take this long to dry. In fact, it's important not to make too thick a first coat or you'll never ...
Home Exercise Equipment Selection
Exercise equipment is usually a hot item especially just after the new year. Guilt and hope for the future often prompt newbie exercisers to spend huge amounts of money on equipment they probably will not use longer than 6 months. The biggest draw to home exercise equipment is the privacy that exercising in home provides. Last year alone 5 billion dollars was spent buy American Consumers just on exercise equipment alone. Needless to say the purchasing of exercise equipment is...
Unique Benefits Of Your Pager
With all the complicated and technologically exciting tools that we pretty much take for granted now, in our daily lives, why would anyone still want something as simple and basic as a pager?

The answer is exactly because it IS simple and basic. The beauty of the pager is that you can carry a very small item on your person that allows you to be reached at any time or place without having to stop what you are doing or needing to become engaged in telephonic conversation. Yo...
Cast Iron Cookware
How to Season and Care for Your Cast Iron Cookware

You have a skillet that came from your mom, and before that your grandma, and has now fallen into your hands. So how do you take care of it, use it, clean it, and get the best taste possible from it? I hope to answer some of those questions in this article.

I love my cast iron skillets, passed down from my Mom; I remember her using them to make delicious fried chicken dinners, cornbread to go with our Great Northern bea...
Chair Cushions
Choosing The Right Chair Cushions

Hard wooden kitchen and dining room chairs beg to be softened with chair cushions, but choosing chair cushions that don’t overwhelm your kitchen set isn’t easy. You can pick up a set of chair cushions for $5 at the local dollar store – but will they fit into your room’s décor – or detract from your style?

Face it – you get what you pay for. Cheap chair cushions have thinner padding, less durable fabric and shoddy workmanship. If you tak...
Using Presentation Folders For A More Professional Look
Using presentation folders for a more professional look in the business world can do amazing things for a business. Presenting something to a client that looks professional and organized will speak volumns about the buisness before the folder is even opened. Taking advantage of the many options of presentation folders allows almost any business, of any size and budget, to use presetnation folders to take their business to the next level.

The look that presentation folders ...
Going Wireless With Your Headphones
If you're looking for the latest in wireless headphones for your enjoyment and private listening, whether to TV, stereo, home entertainment such as theater, iTunes or Ipod, you might do well to look at the highly recommended Sennheiser RS 130 wireless headphones.

These state of the art wireless headphones provide an advanced communication via FM radio frequency. The result is clear sound with no background noise or static and nearly 500 feet of free movement. The headphone...
Reasons To Keep The Adhesive Packaging Tape Sticking Around
Adhesive packaging tape is one kind of tape that you will want to keep close at hand. Adhesive packaging tape is useful for many jobs around the house and office.

Planning a move? If you are moving and will be doing the packing yourself, make sure you have plenty of adhesive packaging tape. Nothing holds a box together as well as adhesive packaging tape. Moving companies use this product because it is strong and can be used to close a box that holds household or office ite...
2 Way Radios
Frequency Considerations for Recreational 2 Way Radios

If you are in the market for 2 way radios for personal use, you have an immediate and important choice to make: What radio frequency band do you require?

Frequency! 2 way radios obviously utilize 'wireless' communication methods so when using a 2 way radio you are transmitting and sending your message through the air -- the same air that is currently carrying television signals, commercial radio signals, Ham radio s...
Used Air Compressors
Used Air Compressors: The Best Places to Find a Great Deal

Buying a used air compressor is a lot like buying a used car. Air compressors can be as expensive as cars, and it’s tempting to try and get the best deal possible by buying a used machine. Unlike cars, though, the market for used air compressors is not as big. The technology for air compressors hasn’t changed much in the last decade, and air compressors last between 10 and 30 years depending on quality. Business ow...
Postage Rates Increase
E-mail has replaced the need to send a letter through the regular mail. Additionally, on-line banking, while not as widely understood or accepted as e-mail has decreased the amount of bills that are sent through the regular mail. The use of e-cards has also diminished the number of cards being sent through the regular mail for birthdays, holidays and even the “just because” types of cards.

All of the pieces of correspondence referenced above would have required postage to ...
A Tutorial To Pumps
Pumps are amazing mechanical devices and an important invention. They are used to move gas or liquid from one pressure are to another pressure area. They are used in a variety of ways from providing water to providing heat to providing energy. Pumps have been around since the 3rd century and are still going strong today.

There are two main categories of pumps: positive displacement pumps and dynamic pumps. Positive displacement pumps have little leakage as they used sealed...
The Hobby Of Stamp Collecting
Stamp collecting is a popular and rewarding hobby. If you are just starting out and would like to know where to start, here are some helpful tips.

It is said that the first rule of stamp collecting is to find a particular type of stamp you think you would like to collect and to take care of your collection. Some suggestions for types of stamps to collect are location of the stamp (i.e. country, state, etc.), stamp design, or a stamp for a particular season/holiday.

Some...
Using Mirrors To Open Up A Home
Many people are shocked when they first begin home shopping. Homes today are built smaller with compact rooms. The trend for building as many homes as possible in any given area is resulting in tiny rooms with little character. A homeowner however can use decorative pieces such as mirrors to help open up their space. If you are interesting in adding depth or openness to your home, consider using these tips.

If you have a rectangular or square room that seems a little too b...
Painting In Oils
If you've thought about doing oil paintings, here are some basics to get you started.

The first step in your production of oil paintings is to make sure that the area in which you are going to paint is well ventilated. You need a window or door that can be opened as you work, a good fan and a space that is fairly open so air is able to circulate.

If you are going to work on your oil paintings outside you'll have to be able to secure everything so the wind doesn't end up...
Your Way To Health Inside And Out With A Treadmills
Treadmills offers a great alternative to walking outside as well as much more versatile than outdoor walking especially in choosing your terrain and walking attributes. Treadmills are a great investment because they are easy to setup, and use. There is no special training when using a treadmill that might be necessary when using weight training equipment or other fitness machines. The price of treadmills is going to vary quite a bit. For a low end model of a treadmill the cos...
Concrete Mixers - Types Of Concrete Mixers
When you want to get a job done in your home or in the yard, it is important to have the right equipment. If you are building a foundation to a home, garage or shed, repairing a sidewalk, or repairing the side of the building, having the right type of concrete mixer can ensure that you will do a job in excellence. There are several tools and types of concrete mixers that can be used to ensure that your job gets done easier.

The first type of concrete mixer that you may wan...
Cushions - Update Your Sofa With New Cushions
Got an old sofa that’s still got years of hard wear left in it – but it’s looking a little tired and outdated? If your old sofa frame is still serviceable, but the upholstery is showing a little wear and tear, updating it could be just a matter of a few yards of fabric and some comfy new cushions. If you were smart enough to choose a sofa with a cushion back and seat, you can end up looking like you have a whole new couch by the time you’re finished. Here’s how to spiff up yo...
Tips For Bathroom Design
You might be building a home and designing an entirely new bathroom. Maybe you're remodeling and adding a new bathroom or changing an existing bathroom. In any case, you have a certain amount of room to work with. Here are some ideas.

First, list the items you absolutely need in your bathroom. This list includes, of course, the toilet and the sink. If it's a full bathroom, you'll need to decide on a bath and shower or a shower stall.

Next are the items you would like to...
Basics Of Binders
Binders are found in almost every office. There is a binder for every need and people understand the advantages binders offer over other organizing methods. Loose papers get lost, papers kept in folders get bent and unorganized, but papers in a binder are kept in great shape and in order. Binders also make for a professional appearance when presenting information to a client or business partner. Binders are an office staple that should not be ignored.

Binders come in vario...
Birthday Cards - A Brief History
Have you noticed just how large the card section at your local grocery store has become? Did you know that there are entire businesses devoted to the selling of cards? One of the biggest occasions is someone’s birthday, and the sheer volume of available cards leaves many a would-be customer somewhat breathless in the attempt to score just the right card for the occasion. The gambit of birthday cards runs from the cute and funny, to the raunchy and oblique. Yet, have you ever ...

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Sustainability Quotes

"Every man looks at his wood pile with a kind of affection"
- Henry David Thoreau

"Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do."
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"If you think education is expensive, try ignorance."
- Derek Bok