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FAQs
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How can one be a successful luxury real estate agent?
Ah yes.The lifestyle of the rich and famous. Fast cars. Fancy outfits.Little stone statues at the front of the entryway. The allure is undeniable.And for real estate agents, the chance to eat a slice of the luxury pie is an alluring prospect indeed. ...Especially if that slice comes in the form of a 3% commission off of a multi-million dollar listing. But how does a realtor establish themselves as a luxury agent in the first place?Well, it’s not easy. You can obtain a GREL Certification, for starters.This will walk you down the path of becoming a legitimate, certified luxury real estate agent. But regardless, one thing is certain,To deal with luxury real estate, an agent needs to buckle down.Here are a five powerful tips that could fast track your goals to becoming a Luxury real estate agent.#1 YOU NEED TO KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOINGBefore you even think of moving forward, ask yourself… do I know what I’m doing? There are many newbie real estate agents that jump from taking the test to becoming a luxury real estate agent.Unless you already have the background and experience in real estate, I strongly suggest you get some experience under your belt. That experience could help you avoid lawsuits and save you money.Simply taking 6 months to learn the ropes at a local real estate brokerage, while shadowing another successful luxury real estate agent, could be the difference in your failure or success. That extra experience will help you feel more confident when taking on a luxury listing and the mentor will help you develop the skills needed to be the greatest in your field.#2 YOU NEED TO LOOK THE PARTNormally we encourage real estate agents to relax and be themselves. Your clients will love you and appreciate your authenticity.Are you the laid back but trusted Realtor who wears jeans and flip flops every day? Show that in your marketing. Are you the young and modern Realtor with a focus on minimalism and technology? Show that in your marketing. I encourage agents to use their personality to market their businesses.However, when you are transitioning to luxury real estate, you need to figure out a way to make sure that your marketing and your style represents the luxury industry. Luxury real estate is a visual niche. The house, the car, the owners, the buyers and the agent all look the part.How to look like a luxury real estate agent? Here are some tipsPay for luxury branding – Make sure everything, from your website and business cards to your signs and advertising, is designed and printed to represent your luxury clientele.Dress to impress – Make sure your clothing is clean, pressed and tailored. First impressions go a long way when trying to win a listing. Just starting out? Purchase one or two neutral suits and multiple dress shirts/blouses. Keep them dry cleaned and wear those when meeting new clients or networking. The suits will be so neutral many won’t recognize you’ve worn it before. Switch up the blouses and/or dress shirts and you’ll always look professional and put together.Drive a nice car – It may sound vain, but in the luxury industry it is a necessity to make sure your car is nice, especially if you are driving luxury buyers around to look at homes. Your car should not only look nice but it should be clean and smell good as well. If you can't afford a luxury car, try Uber, a peer to peer taxi service, allows you to taxi luxury cars. Using Uber, you can sit in the back with your clients and they will get that luxury experience while going on walkthroughs.The only thing to look out for when using any taxi service is timing. This is why I don’t suggest using a taxi service when meeting with a seller unless you are paying them to wait for you outside. After presenting an amazing listing presentation you don’t want to be chilling around at a client’s house waiting for your ride.#3 YOU NEED TO UTILIZE THE LATEST IN REAL ESTATE TECHNOLOGYIf you want a luxury buyer to hire you as their agent or if you want to win a luxury listing, you need to show clients that you can provide them with the latest in real estate marketing and technology. Make sure you understand how to utilize the latest technology to find and market homes and that you can effectively combine that knowledge with traditional techniques.Remember, just having flashy tools isn’t enough. You need to know how to use them effectively to increase the client’s ROI.Technology Used by Luxury Real Estate AgentsElectronic signature softwareShowing feedback softwareInteractive yard signsBeautifully designed websites with powerful home search enginesActive social media and blogsCloud document storageVirtual phone numbersThe latest gadgets (Touch screen laptops, tablets, smartphones, etc.)#4 YOU NEED A LISTING PRESENTATION THAT WOWSTo win a luxury listing, you need to do more than click through a generic PowerPoint and pass out faded flyers and postcard examples. Instead – tweak your presentation to the property. Imagine the impression you’ll make when the seller sees a postcard with their house on it? And marketing that caters to their neighborhood and their current needs?Making those extra steps to personalize your listing presentation is worth the investment.Here are some key points to help you out.Pay for luxury branding – Make sure your listing presentation, listing package and examples are all professionally designed and printed to represent your luxury brand.Memorize your presentation – Although no two listing presentations will ever be the same, knowing the foundation of your presentation will be valuable. It will allow you to quickly and easily skip sections, answer questions without getting off-track and help you sound professional and knowledgeable about marketing real estate.Encourage participation – Get the sellers involved by allowing them to pretend to be buyers. Show them what happens when they text the number on the yard sign. Take them on a walk-through of their listings from your point of view. Luxury sellers are constantly being “sold” to. To get an edge, show them exactly why they should hire you. Actions speak louder than words.#5 YOU NEED TO SUPERCHARGE YOUR FOLLOW UPPotential clients searching for or selling traditional homes need basic follow-up strategies to convert them into clients. Those strategies include using the information collected in your CRM to send them email marketing, postcards and the occasional phone call.In retrospect, potential clients searching for or selling luxury homes need traditional follow-up combined with action to convert them into clients. Just sending a card that says happy birthday isn’t enough. For wealthy clients, sending gifts on birthdays and invitations to exclusive events in the area are key to establishing a healthy lead flow. Here are few tipsRemember the details – When you run into a potential luxury client, whether by chance or by a scheduled meeting, take notes and/or memorize the small details of their life. These small details include spouses, children, hobbies, vacation spots, etc. Make sure you put these things into your CRM and use these details to come up with innovative follow-up techniques.Use partner resources – Developing a lead funnel for luxury clients can be costly. This is why it is imperative to have partners that can provide discounts and resources to luxury amenities.The decision to buy and/or sell a luxury home isn’t an easy one. The real estate sales and lead cycle is already a long one – add in the luxury component and the lead cycle can be even longer. Don’t be discouraged if a potential client hasn’t responded after following up with them for longer than 3 months. Many times, they are busy, on vacation, or dealing with business. Unless they say “remove me from your list” keep marketing. You’ll be in the front of their minds when they are ready to hire a real estate professional.
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Which is the best which software for efficient process management?
You should be looking for a tool that is easy to adopt and incorporate to your workflow. Depending on your style of organisation some tools will work easier to adopt than others.The one I think is easiest to adopt is Azendoo - The work management platform for your team.This app helps you to stay up to date with all the tasks and work from all your team members, is an app that is focused on project and task management but with a collaborative approach, meaning that exchanging information, files and data is super easy and effective.The personalised feed where you can see all the updates of the subjects that concerns YOU has a facebook style, so just by scrolling down you will see all the information from all the projects, teams or clients that concern you.Key Features:Azendoo helps you in effective project planning via the following features:Task managementTask Assignment including public tasksCommenting on tasksTask views as Lists, Boards or CalendarsPersonal tasks listsConvert Email into tasksProject and task templatesReport customizationTeam and personalized discussionsApprovals and pollsNotifications and remindersGoal priorities and permissionsTime TrackingAnalytics
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Why has NASA not landed at the poles of Mars, or even sent the Curiosity rover there to sample the ice suspected to be there?
It is not lack of interest. The polar regions are of great interest, for instance the Martian dry ice geysers in Richardson crater, one of the most interesting dynamic processes on Mars and the polar regions also have astrobiological interest too. There are potential habitats there that might even have fresh liquid water within 20 cms of the surface of the ice - of all things to find on Mars with its near vacuum atmosphere.As far as I know the only suggested habitats that might have fresh water on Mars are in polar regions, a layer of fresh water only a few cms thick, 10 to 20 cms below the surface in transparent ice. Thin though that layer may be by Earth standards, it is of extraordinary interest on Mars where any fresh water on the surface would evaporate almost immediately. It is a process that happens beneath clear ice in Antarctica and models show it should happen in the Martian ice sheets too, so long as there is similarly clear ice there.The main potential habitats, which I’ll look at in detail in this answer, are:Flow like features in Richardson Crater that form after the Martian dry ice geysers have erupted (not the same as the ones in the northern hemisphere or the ones in Russell’s crater - there are three different similar looking features that form in different conditions - only the ones in Richardson Crater are of special interest for astrobiology)Liquid water forming around sun warmed grains in snow or icePerchlorate salts lying on layers of ice forms liquid water droplets in tens of minutesLiquid water can exist permanently below 600 meters of ice (100 meters of rock) kept warm by the heat of Mars itself, if it once forms, e.g. after an impactIce fumaroles can mask the heat signature of venting of hot moist gas and make good habitatsAnywhere there is clear ice in polar regions, then fresh liquid water can form at a depth of around 6.5 cms by the solid state greenhouse effect.So it’s exciting for astrobiology, also for geology too, but they are also habitats the Earth microbes could contaminate and by the Outer Space Treaty we have an obligation to prevent “harmful contamination” in the words of the treaty. It also just makes sense. If you are searching for native life on Mars, and most people agree that is one of our top science objectives there, the last thing you want to do is to just find life you brought there yourself.So, before we developed this modern understanding of the potential vulnerability of the polar regions to Earth microbes, NASA made two attempts, the Mars Polar Lander which crashed, and Phoenix which succeeded. However it was as a result of unexpected observations by Phoenix that scientists were lead to the realization that actually there could be habitats there for modern native Mars life - and so since then any landers sent there have to be sterilized to a high standard.We could not send Curiosity there, or a second copy of Phoenix either, because it is now not thought to be sterilized sufficiently. Hopefully it has not contaminated the region of Mars around it with Earth life, but I think the Phoenix landing site might be a great site to visit to get ground truth on how effective our planetary protection measures have been on Mars - but with an appropriately sterilized lander of course.WHY IT IS HARD TO STERILIZE TO THE LEVELS OF THE VIKING MISSIONS IN THE 1970SThe current “gold standard” for Mars is set by the Viking landers.Viking Lander being prepared for dry heat sterilization – this remains the "Gold standard" of present-day planetary protection.After preliminary cleaning similarly to the levels used for Curiosity, they were then heat-treated for 30 hours at 125 °CFive hours at 125 °C would be enough to reduce the population of microbes by ten, so this was enough for a millionfold reduction - that’s including enclosed parts of the spacecraft. It would still have a maximum of 30 spores and so several thousand dormant microbes as the spore count used undercounts the number present by a factor of a hundred or so. But in addition the numbers are reduced by the journey out there, the harsh conditions on Mars, and then a microbe would have to be pre-adapted to the conditions there to have a chance of surviving once there.They didn’t achieve certainty but to a high chance no microbe from Viking was able to replicate and spread on Mars.According to modern planetary protection rules then you could send a spacecraft sterilized like this to the Phoenix landing site.But the problem is that modern equipment is much more miniaturized than for Viking, and made up of thin layers only a few atoms thick and delicate materials including epoxy attachments. Even when space hardened, it tends to be more sensitive and so would not stand being baked in an oven for days like Viking. The components would come unglued and instruments also would go out of alignment.WE HAVE ALSO MADE GREAT PROGRESS IN HIGH TEMPERATURE INSTRUMENTS SINCE VIKINGIt’s not all bad news however, for heat sterilization. Since Viking, while commercial equipment for most purposes have got more sensitive to high temperatures, we have also had many advances in high temperature technology too. The commercial equipment is not built to withstand high temperatures not because it can’t be, but because it doesn’t need to be.High temperature electronics and instruments are used where they are needed and are more capable than in the 1970s. We have them for oil wells as they drill deeper to regions where the temperatures go above 200 C. For planes where they can reduce weight by putting sensors closer to the engines, and for electric cars for similar reasons.NASA has also been working for some time to develop a rover able to withstand Venus surface conditions and drive around and study the surface. With high temperatures, high pressures and sulfuric acid too. Very sterilizing for Earth life.In 2007 they developed a silicon chip capable of 17,000 hours of continuous operation at 500 °C.For their Venus rover, we need cameras to operate at high temperatures, we need mechanisms, we need instruments such as a Raman spectroscopy, we need communications and so on. In their 2010 study they thought all of those were possible for the future. Though they couldn’t build it yet, they saw a way to it as a future roadmap.If the aim is to signNow a high temperature for sterilization, the job may be easier to some extent, as the instruments don’t have to actually function at those high temperatures. They have to withstand being heated to high temperatures for a considerable period of time - but will then operate at normal temperatures.So, if you choose the right components for your lander / rover, we actually have the capability to go beyond what they could in the 1970s and I do think that if we went all out with a major program, as for the Venus rover - that we could design a 100% sterile lander in the near future. It would probably need to use RTGs for the power source - and perhaps also as the heat source for sterilization during the journey to Mars, as these have no problem working at high temperatures. Heat your lander at 500 C for six months on the voyage out to Mars and there would be no life left on it at all. Nothing viable. You can also use techniques like CO2 snow which could be done on the surface of Mars to remove even the dead organics from the outside of the lander.There is one plan already for a sterile probe to descend into the Europan ocean by Brian Wilcox.I think myself that designing a 100% sterile rover / lander should be a top priority. It would be expensive to start with, but well worth it.Once we have built the first one and developed the understanding we would have a basic design there that could be used to explore regions such as the subsurface oceans of Europa and Enceladus and the senstiive sites on Mars even if they have cms thick liquid water or more, and yet not have any concerns about introducing Earth life.The long term pay off would be huge.It would obviously take a lot of ingenuity for the astrobiologists, to redesign instruments to be able to be heat sterilized. They did however succeed for Viking, at the temperatures used there. With the Viking sterilization, tenfold reduction every 5 hours, at a dry heat of 125 °C, in theory you wouldn’t need to continue for that long to have pretty much 100% certainty that there is no life left at all.If anyone knows of any work on this apart from Brian Wilcox’s proposed mission, do say!CURRENT PLANETARY PROTECTION RULESAnyway the current rules are not as strict as that. But they do require a lander to be sterilized to Viking levels or higher if they target regions where there is ice within 5 meters of the surface. The reasoning is that a crash could end up melting the ice.So first here is a map of special regions as updated in 2016, but they also decided that even outside of those regions you need to do case by case studies before landing there.There Are Regions On Mars That It's Forbidden To ExplorePOTENTIAL FOR LIQUID WATER HABITATS IN THE POLAR REGIONS - CALCIUM PERCHLORATE SALTS IN LAYERS ON TOP OF ICEDespite what other answers say here, polar regions do have the potential for liquid water. Even fresh, not salty, water.First the Phoenix lander actually spotted droplets forming on its legs.Unfortunately, it wasn't equipped to analyse them but the leading theory is that these were droplets of salty water. They were observed to grow, merge, and then disappear, presumably as a result of falling off the legs.Nilton Renno, who was on the team for Phoenix and also runs the REM “weather station on Mars” for Curiosity was one of several who investigated various ways for thse droplets to form.He found that liquid water can form very quickly on salt / ice interfaces when the salt is on top of the ice. By “salt” there he means calcium perchlorate salts similar to the salts they found in the Phoenix site.Within a few tens of minutes this salt on top of ice formed droplets of liquid brines in Mars simulation experiments. This is striking as it could open large areas of Mars up as potential sites for microhabitats that life could exploit. The professor says"If we have ice, and then the salt on top of the ice, in a few tens of minutes liquid water forms. Our measurements clearly indicate that. And it's really a proof that liquid water forms at the conditions of the Phoenix landing site when this salt is in contact with the ice. "Based on the results of our experiment, we expect this soft ice that can liquefy perhaps a few days per year, perhaps a few hours a day, almost anywhere on Mars. So going from mid latitudes all the way to the polar regions." This is a small amount of liquid water. But for a bacteria, that would be a huge swimming pool - a little droplet of water is a huge amount of water for a bacteria. So, a small amount of water is enough for you to be able to create conditions for Mars to be habitable today'. And we believe this is possible in the shallow subsurface, and even the surface of the Mars polar region for a few hours per day during the spring."(transcript from 1:48 onwards)That's Nilton Renno, who lead the team of researchers. See also Martian salts must touch ice to make liquid water, study shows . He is a mainstream researcher in the field - a distinguished professor of atmospheric, oceanic and space sciences at Michigan University. For instance, amongst many honours, he received the 2013 NASA Group Achievement Award as member of the Curiosity Rover " for exceptional achievement defining the REMS scientific goals and requirements, developing the instrument suite and investigation, and operating REMS successfully on Mars" and has written many papers on topics such as possible habitats on the present day Mars surface.MOHLMANN’S FRESH WATER FORMING AROUND DUST GRAINS IN SNOW OR ICEThis is another suggested habitat for life in the Mars higher latitudes based on processes that happen in the Antarctic ice. Dust grains in the ice often produce tiny melt ponds around them in the heat of the summer sunshine. The dust grains absorb the heat (preferentially over the ice), and so heat up and melt the surrounding ice. Then this heat gets trapped because of the insulating effect of the solid state greenhouse effect, because ice traps heat radiation, so forming tiny melt ponds of a few millimeters thickness or more. This could happen on Mars too, so is another possible habitat with fresh water.It's just a few millimeters of fresh water, but that could be signNow on Mars. Another example of this process, then meteorites in Antarctica are often found associated with gypsum and other evaporates - minerals that can only form in the presence of liquid water and must have formed after they fell in Antarctica. Sometimes the researchers find capillary water, or thin films of water, and sometimes they even find evidence of a rather large meltwater pond which formed around the meteorite, or find the meteorites in depressions filled with refrozen ice.A similar process could be at work in the Martian icecaps too. This process could melt the ice for a few hours per day in the warmest days of summer, and melt a few mms of ice around each grain. Indeed, if I can venture a speculation of my own, perhaps just as in Antarctica, there could be larger melt ponds around meteorites embedded in the ice too - as Mars must have many meteorites embedded in the polar ice sheets.This could explain another puzzle. Particles of gypsum (the same material that is used to make plaster of paris) have been detected, first in the Olympia Undae dune fields that circle the northern polar ice cap of Mars, See this paper for details. Later on, they were detected in all areas where hydrated minerals have been detected, including sedimentary veneers over the North polar cap, dune fields within the polar ice cap, and the entire Circumpolar Dune Field. There's strong evidence that the gypsum originates from the interior of the ice cap. See this paper for details. Gypsum is a soft mineral that must have been formed close to where it has been discovered (or it would get eroded away by the winds) and as an evaporite mineral, it needs liquid water to form. Opportunity later found veins of gypsum in the equatorial regions, in 2011, a clear sign of flowing water on ancient Mars. But these polar deposits are more of a mystery because they are found in the dust dunes on Mars, so must be produced locally, but where?.Losiak, et al, modeled tiny micron scale dust grains of basalt (2-2 microns in diameter) exposed to full sunlight on the surface of the ice on the warmest days in summer, on the Northern polar ice cap. They found that these tiny dust grains were large enough to provide for five hours of melting which could melt six millimeters of ice below the grain. They say that with pressures close to the triple point, on windless days, you should get a signNow amount of melting. They speculate that this might possibly explain the deposits of gypsum in the polar regions. Could it have formed in a similar way to the gypsum that sometimes forms around Antarctic meteorites?Möhlmann did a similar calculation. This time he was looking at the possibility of liquid water forming inside snow on Mars. The snow would be exposed to the vacuum, but as the ice melted it would plug all the pores in the snow and eventually form a solid crust of ice on the snow, and so protect it from further evaporation. It would trap the heat as well and so encourage melting. This could happen anywhere between a few centimeters depth down to ten meters below the surface.THIN FILMS OF UNDERCOOLED WATER WRAPPED AROUND INDIVIDUAL MICROBESThis is an interesting suggestion by Möhlmann in an article in Cryobiology magazine, that life may be able to make use of thin film monolayers of the " ULI water" (Undercooled Liquid Interfacial water) wrapped around a microbe, even in tiny nanometer scale layers of liquid water only two monolayers thick."In view of Mars it should be mentioned, that there is water ice in the permanent polar caps. At mid- and low-latitudes, ice can form, at least temporarily, via adsorption and freezing in the soil. There, the adsorbed and frozen water overtakes the role of ice, as described above. So, ULI-water can be expected to, at least temporarily, exist also in martian mid- and low-latitudinal subsurface soil. A similar environment can be expected to exist in isolation heated parts of icy bodies in the asteroidal belt, and analogously in the internally heated icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn. It is thus a current and challenging question if ULI-water can act as supporting life in environments with temperatures clearly below 0 °C by delivering that water, which is necessary for metabolic processes, and by permitting transport processes of nutrients and waste. It is the aim of this paper to demonstrate the potential importance of ULI water in view of the possible biological relevance of nanometric undercooled liquid interfacial water."He cites research suggesting life can remain active in the presence of just two monolayers of water wrapped around a microbe.If there is just a small thermal gradient in the ice, of one degree centigrade per meter, then enough liquid water will form to fill a micrometer sized microbe once a month. Enough will form to fill it once a day if there is a locally steeper gradient of one degree centigrade per 10 cm. This can lead to a constant transport of fresh water to bring fresh nutrients to the microbe, and to remove wastes. The main question is whether this is a sufficient flow of water to sustain life. For more details of this intriguing idea, see his article.SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE FLOW-LIKE FEATURES - MAY INVOLVE FRESH WATER CMS THICK!There are two main types of these flow-like features. For a technical overview of them, see the Dune Dark Spots section in Nilton Renno's survey paper. These ones in the southern hemisphere which form in Richardson crater are particularly promising because all the current models involve liquid water in some form and what's more, in the models, these features start off as fresh water trapped under ice.The more interesting ones, for habitability, are in the south. The southern ice cap consists mainly of dry ice. It is colder, and higher up (at a higher altitude). It stretches as far as forty degrees from the pole in winter (so spanning over 4,700 km), but it reduces to just 300 km across in summer, Richardson's crater is 17.4 degrees from the south pole (that's over 1,000 km).So though the features resemble each other in appearance, the conditions in which they form are very different and not directly comparable. The southern hemisphere features from at much higher surface temperatures than the northern hemisphere features, and they appear late in spring, after the rapid disappearance of a vast and thick layer of dry ice that covered the entire southern polar region, and beyond. In the summer then surface temperatures at Richardson crater can actually get above the melting point of ice at times in daytime, as measured by the Thermal Emission Spectrometer on Mars Global Surveyor. (See figure 3 of this paper)..This map shows where the crater is. It is close to the south pole - this is an elevation map showing the location of Richardson crater in Google Mars, and I’ve trimmed it down to the southern hemisphere. You can see Olympus Mons as the obvious large mountain just right of middle, and Hellas Basin as the big depression middle left. Richardson crater is about half way between them and much further south.Here is a close up - see all those ripples of sand dunes on the crater floor?Link to this location on Google MarsWell it’s not the ripples themselves that are of special interest, Mars is covered in many sand dune fields like that planet wide. What interests us are some tiny dark spots that form on them which you can see if you look really closely from orbit.And, would you ever guess? Although it's one of the colder places on Mars, there's a possible habitat for life there in late spring? It is due to the "solid state greenhouse effect" which causes fresh water at 0°C to form below clear ice in Antarctica at a depth of up to a meter, even when surface conditions are bitterly cold.The Warm Seasonal Flows often hit the news (probable salty brines on sun facing slopes). But for some reason, the flow-like features in Richardson crater are only ever mentioned in papers by researchers who specialize in the study of possible habitats for life on Mars.I first learnt about them in the survey of potential habitats on Mars by Nilton Renno, who is an expert in surface conditions on Mars (amongst other things, he now runs the Curiosity weather station on Mars). You can read his survey paper here, Water and Brines on Mars: Current Evidence and Implications for MSL. The models I want to summarize here are described in his section 3.1.2 Dune Dark Spots and Flow-like Features under the sub heading "South Polar Region". But it's in techy language so let's unpack it and explain what it means. I will also go back to the papers he cited, and some later papers on the topic.In the case of Richardson's crater, both models involve liquid water in some form, and also potentially habitable liquid water. One of the two main models involves relatively thick layers of fresh water below optically clear water ice, up to tens of centimeters thick, and so is very promising for microhabitats. The other model involves microscopically thin layers of fresh water that join together to make a larger stream and pick up salts on the way out. That's very promising too. So let's now look at these two ideas in detail.First, early in the year, you get dry ice geysers - which we can’t image directly, but see the dark patches that form as a result and are pretty sure this is what happens:Geysers which erupt through thick sheets of dry ice on Mars. Clear dry ice acts as a solid version of the greenhouse effect, to warm layers at the bottom of the sheet. It is also insulating so helps keep the layers warm overnight. Dry ice of course at those pressures can't form a liquid, so it turns to a gas and then explosively erupts as a geyser. At least that's the generally accepted model to explain why dark spots suddenly form on the surface of sheets of dry ice near the poles in early spring on Mars.So that would be cool enough, to be able to observe them, video them and study them close up. I hope the rover would be equipped with the capability to take real time video. These geysers are widely known and many scientists would tell you how great it would be to look at them up close, and see them actually erupt.But most exciting is what happens later in the year, when it is getting too warm for the thick layers of dry ice needed for geysers. These layers of dry ice vanish rather quickly in spring. You would think that the dark spots that you get in the aftermath of the geysers would just sit there on the surface and gradually fade away ready to repeat the cycle next year. But no. Something very strange happens. Dark fingers being to form and creep down the surface as in this animation. Very quickly too (for Mars). I haven't been able to find a video for this, as the papers just use a sequence of stills, so I combined together some of the images myself into an animation to show the idea:Flow-like features on Dunes in Richardson Crater, Mars. - detail. This flow moves approximately 39 meters in 26 days between the last two frames in the sequenceAll the likely models for these features, to date, involve some form of water. Alternatives that one might try to use to model them might include a second ejection of material by the dry ice geyser, or dust deposition, but researchers think these are unlikely to produce the observed effects.SIMILAR LOOKING FEATURES NOT TO BE CONFUSEDThe Richardson crater flow-like features should not be confused with two rather similar looking features, the dark streaks in Russell crater, 55 degrees from the south pole (compared to 17.4 degrees for Richardson crater).These are braided, divide, recombine and cross each other's tracks. They flow down the slopes channeled by wind formed ridges in the dunes, and most distinctive of all, they are able to rush up over small features of up to two meters high and down the other side.These seem to be dry features associated with defrosting and small dust avalanches as they are episodic, moving rapidly at speeds of 2-4 meters per second like an avalanche. The authors call them "dark flows". For details see this paper.They also should not be confused with the Flow-like features in the Northern polar dunesThe two Martian ice caps are rather different. The northern cap is low lying, mainly ice, with a thin layer of dry ice that disappears in summer. The flow like features in the northern hemisphere form at 12.5 degrees from the pole at surface temperatures of about -90°C, which is low enough for dry ice to be stable on the surface. Their models involve either extremely cold salty brines or dry ice and sand. These features are far too cold to be habitable to Earth life and may not even involve liquid waterThey are easily confused because they are so similar in appearance, and because both are referred to as "flow like features".These are thought to form at much lower temperatures. Some of the models for these also involve liquid water but there are other hypotheses as well, some of them involving dust and ice slipping down the cliff faces.Perhaps one reason the Richardson crater flow-like features get so little attention is that it is easy to confuse them with these other features and assume they have been proved to be dust flows or to form at temperatures to low to be habitable.But they form in different conditions at different temperatures and the explanations used for these other features don’t work for them. Currently the only models for them involve fresh liquid water beneath the ice, either as layers cms thick, or as thin undercooled liquid water layers, then combining with salts to form the flows on the Martian surface.MORE ABOUT THESE FEATURES AND WHY THEY ARE SO INTERESTING FOR HABITABILITYSo, these southern hemisphere flow like features seem very promising. That’s not as surprising as you might think. The same thing happens in Antarctica - if you have clear ice, then you get a layer of pure water half a meter below the ice.The water is trapped by the ice so stays liquid. And what’s more, if they model it assuming clear ice like the ice in Antarctica they find that the ice there gets enough heat from the sun in the day to keep it liquid through the night to the next day so the layer can actually grow from one day to the next (ice is an excellent insulator). Also the Mars atmosphere is so thin that it doesn't matter at all that the air above the ice is very cold in these regions. The atmosphere is a near vacuum and works as a great insulator. Better in some ways than Antarctica.Inuit village, Ecoengineering, near Frobisher Bay on Baffin Island in the mid-19th century - ice and snow are very insulating on Earth or on Mars. Just as you can be snug and warm inside an igloo, a layer of fresh water can stay warm a few tens of cms below the surface, warmed by the sun every day beaming through th clear ice. The near vacuum of the Mars atmosphere helps if anything.Möhlmann's model is pretty clear (abstract here). If Mars has transparent ice like the ice in Antarctica, then it should have layers of liquid fresh water 5 - 10 cm below the surface and a couple of cm in vertical thickness in late spring to summer in this region. His model doesn't involve salt at all, so the water would be fresh water.The only question here is whether clear ice forms on Mars in Mars conditions and whether the ice is sufficiently insulating. We can’t tell that really from models, the only way is to go there and find out for ourselves.Blue wall of an Iceberg on Jökulsárlón, Iceland. On the Earth, Blue ice like this forms as a result of air bubbles squeezed out of glacier ice. This has the right optical and thermal properties to act as a solid state greenhouse, trapping a layer of liquid water that forms 0.1 to 1 meters below the surface. In Möhlmann's model, if ice with similar optical and thermal properties forms on Mars, it could form a layer of liquid water centimeters to decimeters thick, which would form 5 - 10 cm below the surface.In his model, first the ice forms a translucent layer - then as summer approaches, the solid state greenhouse effect raises the temperature of a layer below the surface to 0°C, so melting it.The melting layer is 5 to 10 cm below the surface. In the model, then the ice below the surface is first warmed up in the daytime sunshine, due to a greenhouse effect, the infrared radiation is trapped in the ice in much the same way that carbon dioxide traps heat to keep Earth warm. Then because the ice is so insulating, the heat is retained overnight, and the water remains liquid to the next day. To start with it would be only millimeters thick but over several days, gets to thicknesses of centimeters.He found that subsurface liquid water layers like this can form with surface temperatures as low as -56°C.CREATES POTENTIAL FOR FRESH LIQUID WATER FLOWING ON MARS!This should happen on Mars so long as it has ice with similar properties to Antarctic clear ice.If there is a layer of gravel or stone at just the right depth, the rock absorbs the infrared heat and that can speed up the process. In that case, a liquid layer can form within a single sol, and can evolve over several sols to be as much as several tens of centimeters in thickness. That is a huge amount of liquid water for the Mars surface.The fresh water of course can't flow across the surface of Mars in the near vacuum conditions, as it would either freeze back to ice, or evaporate into the atmosphere. But the idea is that as it spreads out, it then mixes with any salts also brought up by the geyser to produce salty brines which would then remain liquid at the much lower temperatures on the surface and flow beyond the edges to form the extending dark edges of the flow-like features.Later in the year, pressure can build up and cause formation of mini water geysers which may possibly explain the "white collars" that form around the flow-like features towards the end of the season - in their model this is the result of liquid water erupting in mini water geysers and then freezing as white pure water iceThis provides:A way for fresh water to be present on Mars at 0 °C, and to stay liquid under pressure, insulated from the surface conditions.5 to 10 cm below the surface, trapped by the ice above itDepending on conditions, the liquid layer is at least centimeters in thickness, and could be tens of centimeters in thickness.Initially of fresh water, at around 0°C.They mention a couple of caveats for their model, because the surface conditions on Mars at these locations is unknown. First it requires conditions for bare and optically transparent ice fields on Mars translucent to depths of several centimeters, and it's an open question whether this can happen, but there is nothing to rule it out either. Then, the other open question is whether their assumption of low thermal conductivity of the ice, preventing escape of the heat to the surface, is valid on Mars.The process works with blue ice on Earth - but we can't say yet what forms the ice actually takes in these Martian conditions. The authors don't go into any detail about this, but ordinary ice can take different forms even in near vacuum conditions. As an example of this, the ice at the poles of the Moon could be "fluffy ice""We do not know the physical characteristics of this ice—solid, dense ice, or “fairy castle”—snow-like ice would have similar radar properties. [then they give evidence that suggests fluffy ice is a possibility there] " (page 13 of Evidence for water ice on the moon: Results for anomalous polar)That's the main unknown in their model, whether the ice is blue ice like Antarctic ice, or takes some other form. The ice should at least be in the same hexagonal structure crystalline phase as ice is on Earth - Mars is close to the triple point in this ice phase diagramPhase diagram by Cmglee, wikipedia. Ice outside of Earth can be in many different phases. For instance in the outer solar system it is often so cold that it is in the very hard orthorhombic phase, where it behaves more like rock than what we think of as ice. However ice on Mars is likely to be in the Ih phase similar to Earth life. The Mars surface is close to the triple point of solid / liquid / vapour in this diagram. So, the ice is likely to be of the same type as the blue ice in Antarctica. Not likely to have bubbles of air in it. But it could still take a different forms. The model shows that Mars should have layers of liquid water ten to twenty centimeters below the surface if there are any areas of clear blue ice as in Antarctica.This solid state greenhouse effect process favours sun facing slopes (equator facing). Also, somewhat paradoxically, it favours higher latitudes, close to the poles, over lower latitudes, because it needs conditions where surface ice can form on Mars to thicknesses of tens of centimeters. (The examples at Richardson crater are at latitude -72°, longitude 179.4°, so only 18° from the south pole. There is no in situ data yet for these locations, of course, to test the hypothesis. Though some of the predictions for their model could be confirmed by satellite observations.ALTERNATIVE - THIN LAYERS OVER SURFACES MELTING AT WELL BELOW O CAnother model for these southern hemisphere features involves ULI water (Undercooled Liquid Interfacial water) which forms as a thin layer over surfaces and can melt at well below the usual melting point of ice. In Möhlmann's sandwich model, then the interfacial water layer forms on the surfaces of solar heated grains in the ice, which then flows together down the slope. Calculations of downward flow of water shows that several litres a day of water could be supplied to the seepage flows in this way.The idea then is that this ULI water would be the water source for liquid brines which then flow down the surface, mixing with dust, to form the features. That would still be interesting as you end up having flowing liquid water on Mars, several litres a day what’s more. Here is a paper from 2016 describing the idea.See also Möhlmann's paper The three types of liquid water in the surface of present MarsThose are the only two models so far. So it does seem very likely that there is liquid water here, and even with the interfacial liquid layers, the water starts off as fresh water beneath the ice, or possibly salty (in either model) if there are salt grains in the ice for the water to pick up. Either way the features start out as a flow of fresh water trapped beneath a layer of ice. This is one of the least publicized types of habitat on Mars, seldom mentioned outside the specialist literature. Yet in some ways it's one of the most interesting, if it exists, because of the potential for fresh water at 0 °C.This liquid water is hard to observe because the features are so small, beyond the resolution of CRISM. However, analysis of the larger spots, at around the spring equinox, produced a signal that just possibly could be liquid water, where the ice is in contact with the dark material of the dune spots." In the gray ring area the water ice 631 surrounds darker surface, where liquid interfacial water layer or brine (Möhlmann 2004, 632 2009, 2010) may form. We found no firm evidence for the presence of liquid water in near-IR 633 spectra, although linear unmixing results show that the data are not inconsistent with a 634 possible slight contribution (a few %) of liquid water in the dark core unit." page 26 of this paper.MORE WIDESPREAD LIQUID WATER AT DEPTH OF ABOUT 6.3 CM BELOW OPTICALLY CLEAR ICEMöhlmann has also suggested that his process could be a more widespread phenomenon in the Mars ice caps, not just associated with the geysers, as for Antarctica. Just more noticeable for the flow-like features because of the conditions in which it forms there.Liquid water could form at a depth of around 6.3 cm wherever there is optically clear ice on Mars in snow / ice packs, just as it does in Antarctica. In summer, it could form layers from centimeters to tens of centimeters in thickness.Results of Mohmann's modeling of the solid state greenhouse effect in clear ice on Mars. The plateaus show temperatures that get above the melting point of water regularly every Martian sol, at depths of about 6.3 cms. L here is 11.4 cm. Ice at this level will melt periodically, and especially in summer can stay liquid overnight, leading to subsurface liquid water in layers of from cms to tens of cms in thickness. This should happen on Mars not just in the flow-like Features of Richardson crater, but also, anywhere where there is optically clear ice.In another paper he writes "This liquid water can form in sufficient amounts to be relevant for macroscopic physical (rheology, erosion), for chemical, and eventually also for biological processes. "His models seem clear enough. The air temperature hardly matters, because the Mars air is so thin it's a near vacuum, insulating the ice, like a thermos flask. The only unknown here is whether Mars does have optically clear ice like this, which is common on Earth in cold conditions like this in Antarctica.Before I go on to the last couple of examples of possible habitats in the polar regions, let’s just revisit the Phoenix lander site. I think it would be a great place for a mission that’s both interesting for astrobiology and also for ground truth for planetary protection.LIFE IN ICE TOWERS HIDING VOLCANIC VENTSSo, this is another suggestion, that we could find habitats on Mars inside ice fumaroles. It's a nice idea, and perhaps ice fumaroles do form on Mars from time to time. So far we haven't found any on present day Mars. But it may well be worth keeping a look out for them, as it would be a very interesting habitat if we find one, or one of them starts to form, around a volcanic vent on Mars. If Mars does have any volcanic vents which vent water rich gases through a fumarole, they are likely to form ice towers like this, as happens in Antarctica.Let's look at the idea in some more detail. This photo shows an ice fumarole - an ice tower that forms around a vent of volcanic gases in the extremely cold conditions right near the top of Mount Erebus in Antarctica.+ One of the numerous Ice Fumaroles near the summit of Mount Erebus in Antarctica. If these also occur on Mars, they could provide a habitat for life, and would be extremely hard to spot from orbit due to the low external temperatures. Image credit Mount Erebus Volcano ObservatoryFor more photos of ice fumaroles see "Ice Towers and Caves of Mount Erebus",They were originally discovered by the Antarctic explorer Shackleton during his 1908 Nimrod expedition, when he and a few others set out to climb Mount Erebus.Photograph from Shackleton's Mount Erebus expedition with a fumarole in the backgroundHe described them like this."The ice fumaroles are specially remarkable. About fifty of these were visible to us on the track which we followed to and from the crater, and doubtless there were numbers that we did not see. These unique ice-mounds have resulted from the condensation of vapour around the orifices of the fumaroles. It is only under conditions of very low temperature that such structures could exist. No structures like them are known in any other part of the world."Ice caves form below the fumaroles, and these are especially interesting as a habitat for life.Entrance to Warren Cave on Mount Erebus. Credit Brian Hasebe. Volcanically heated, the temperatures inside their three study sites were 32, 52 and 64 degrees Fahrenheit (2,11 and 18 degrees Celsius), far warmer than the surroundings.These ice caves on Erebus are of especial interest for astrobiology, as analogues for habitats outside of Earth, because they are so biologically isolated. Most surface caves are influenced by human activities, or by organics from the surface brought in by animals (e.g. bats) or ground water. These caves at Erebus. are high altitude, yet accessible for study. There is almost no chance of them being affected by photosynthetic based organics, or of animals in a food chain based on photosynthetic life. Also there is no overlying soil to wash down into them.As described in this paper, these ice towers eventually collapse and then rebuild themselves, but though temporary features, they persist for decades. The air inside has 80% to 100% humidity, and up to 3% CO2, and some CO and H2, but almost no CH4 or H2S. Many of the caves are completely dark, so can't support photosynthesis. Organics can only come from the atmosphere, or from ice algae that grow on the surface in summer, which may eventually find their way into the caves through burial and melting. As a result most micro-organisms there are chemolithoautotrophic i.e. microbes that get all of their energy from chemical reactions with the rocks. They don't depend on any other lifeforms to survive. They survive using CO2 fixation and some may use CO oxidization for their metabolism. The main types of microbe found there are Chloroflexi and Acidobacteria.This makes them very interesting as an analogue for Mars habitats. If Mars is currently geologically active, then in such cold conditions, it may well have ice fumaroles around its vents, and if so they would be only a few degrees higher in temperature than the surrounding landscape and hard to spot from orbit. We haven't found these yet. The closest we have got so far is that the silica deposits in Home Plate which Spirit found, might have been formed by ancient fumaroles on Mars, (not necessarily ice fumaroles) though they could also have been formed by hot springs or geysers.This article Martian Hot Spots in NASA's Astrobiology magazine presents Hoffman's ideas. He explains that ice fumaroles on Mars could be up to 30 meters tall in its lower gravity and 10 to 30 meters in diameter, circular or oval in shape. So, potentially these things could grow to be huge on Mars, as high as a nine story high skyscraper, and potentially some of them could be as wide as they are high.He suggests searching for them on Mars from orbit, and he wondered if some temperature anomalies in Hellas Basin could be ice fumaroles. They wouldn't need to be in polar regions because the fumaroles themselves would bring large quantities of water vapour to the surface to keep replenishing the ice towers as they sublime away in the thing Mars atmosphere. They might be quite easy to spot as white circles or ovals, probably in permanently shadowed regions, and they would be slightly warmer than their surroundings. This shows one of his candidates.Daytime infrared from Odyssey IRAnomalous warmth in infrared at night as well on all nine infrared bands, so not a chemical signature.That candidate is in Hellas Planitia and is from 2003. Despite a search of high resolution visual images they were unable to find anything visual corresponding to them, they were only visible in infrared. But it shows the sort of thing they would be looking for. Lots of small dots around 10-30 meters in diameter each, clustered around a potential fracture. For details see their paper.The idea is that just as on Earth, volcanic action could bring water vapour and other gases from below. The water vapour, as in Antarctica, would freeze out to form these ice towers. If these environments do occur on Mars, they would provide a warm environment, high water vapor saturation, and some UV shielding. The ones we have on Earth don't have signNow amounts of liquid water. However, as they have close to 100% humidity inside, that doesn't matter. They sustain microbial communities of oligotrophs, i.e. micro-organisms that survive in environments that are very poor in nutrients. The same could be true of Mars.Though we haven't found ice fumaroles on Mars yet, we have found recently formed rootless cones, which are the results of explosive contact of lava with water or ice. This shows that ice (or water) and lava were in close proximity as recently as around ten million years ago.This shows rootless cones on Mars (to the left) and in Iceland. They are the locations of small explosions of steam, when lava surges over the surface over water or ice. These rootless cones on Mars formed around ten million years ago which shows that Mars has had ice and lava in close proximity very recently. They range in diameter from 20 meters to 300 meters.So, could there be other ways that volcanic processes on Mars produce habitats by interacting with ice, such as the ice fumaroles? From this 2007 paper:Hoffman and Kyle suggested the ice towers of Mt. Erebus as analogues of biological refuges on Mars. They combined the idea of still existing near surface ice deposits with the assumption that there is still some localized volcanic activity on Mars today.There are several examples from Mars that show a direct interaction between lava and ice in the geological history of Mars. The most obvious cases are the rootless cones seen in the northern lowlands. HRSC images show direct and violent interaction in the relatively recent geological history, for example at the scarps of Olympus Mons. Mars today is in relatively dormant phase, and any interactions which might be occurring today are presumably on a much less dynamic scale. Nevertheless, they may be driving local hydrothermal systems. Studying the geothermal processes in the first few tens to hundreds of meters below the surface of Mars today might thus uncover a wide variety of new habitats where biological activity may survive on this cold and dry planet.For more about this topic see Volcano-Ice Interaction as a Microbial Habitat on Earth and Mars. These ice fumaroles would be of great interest, but of course, being open to the surface, would easily be contaminated by Earth life from surface explorers or brought in to them through dust from the Martian storms.So far we've been looking at habitats deep below the surface of Mars, though perhaps connected to the surface. But what about habitats on the surface itself? They would make planetary protection even more of an issue, so it's important to look at the possibility. First we need to look at the question, is surface life possible there at all. Just a decade ago, most scientists (with the exception of Gilbert Levin) would have answered with a resounding "No". But that's all changed.There might also be habitats for native Mars life below the surface similar to lake Vostok in Antarctica - well within signNow of drilling. Searches so far have turned up a blank but they could still be there if the lakes are small up ot a few kilometers in size. They could be as close to the surface as only 100 meters deep below rock, or 600 meters deep below ice and remain liquid indefinitelyICE COVERED LAKES HABITABLE FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS AFTER LARGE IMPACTS - OR INDEFINITELYWhen comet Siding Spring was discovered in 2013, before they knew its trajectory well, there was a small chance that it could hit Mars. Calculations showed it could create a crater of many kilometers in diameter and perhaps a couple of kilometers deep. If a comet like that hit the martian polar regions or higher latitudes, away from the equator, it would create a temporary lake, which life could survive in.Artist's impression of Mars as seen from comet Siding Spring approaching the planet on 9th October 2014. It missed, by less than half the distance to our Moon. But sometimes comets will hit the Mars ice caps or higher latitudes. If that happens, it will create lakes and hydrothermal systems that last for thousands of years.These lakes can last for a surprisingly long time, insulated by the ice and heated from below by the rock. The models suggest that large craters of 100 - 200 km in diameter in the early solar system would have made lakes that stayed liquid for as long as one to ten million years. This happens even in cold conditions, so it is not limited to early Mars. A present day comet a few kilometers in diameter could form a crater 30 - 50 km in diameter and an underground hydrothermal system that remains liquid for thousands of years. The lake is kept heated by the melted rock from the initial impact in hydrothermal systems fed by water from deep underground.Also, there's another way to keep water liquid. Any ice deep enough below the surface, only 100 meters deep, can actually stay liquid indefinitely if covered by an insulating layer of gravel. There'd be enough heat from below, just from the heat of Mars itself and enough insulation above from the gravel, to keep the water permanently liquid. See section 2.2.3 of Niton Renno's article. This is also one theory for the Martian "dry gullies" that they formed through liquid water suddenly flowing out of a subsurface aquifer like this. This was the most popular theory for them at one point, though there are other explanations for them now.It's much harder to keep water liquid below ice, since rock is much more insulating than ice. It's especially hard for water to form below an ice sheet. If the ice cap was four to six kilometers deep, then you'd expect the base of it to be liquid water, melted from below just through the heat of Mars itself. Though Mars does have ice at both poles, its ice sheets aren't quite as deep as that. But it could still have liquid water at the base of its ice sheets, if there's localized geothermal heating from below.Also, if a lake formed, originally by geothermal melting or a meteorite impact, it's much easier to keep the lake liquid than it was to melt the water in the first place. In one model, then if a lake forms at a depth of over 600 meters below the ice (originally open to the surface) then it can remain liquid indefinitely from the heat flux from below, even without local geothermal heating.We'd be able to detect this water using ground penetrating radar because of the high radar contrast between water and ice or rock. MARSIS, the ground penetrating radar on ESA's Mars Express is our best instrument for the job. After several searches, it hasn't found anything yet. See page 191 of this paper. Their resolution isn't that great, however, around a kilometer.From the searches done to date, we can say with reasonable certainty that Mars doesn't seem to have an equivalent of our Lake Vostok (250 km by 50 km by 0.43 km deep) beneath its ice caps at present. It could however still have small subglacial lakes of up to a kilometer or so in diameter. They were looking for water liquid through geothermal heating, but their search would surely have found impact lakes too.So, Mars doesn't seem to have any large lakes created from impacts just now. Nor does it have any major lakes formed through geothermal activity below glaciers or ice caps, though it could have smaller lakes.So in short there are lots of exciting prospects to explore in the polar regions for astrobiologySo far we haven’t even made a start at looking for life there. Or anywhere on Mars except briefly in the 1970s with the Viking landers which produced ambiguous results and have never been followed up.See also myIs This Why We Haven't Found Life On Mars Yet? Value Of Actually LookingLet's Make Sure Astronauts Won't Extinguish Native Mars Life - To Jupiter's Callisto, Saturn's Titan And Beyond - Op EdModern Mars habitability - WikipediaTouch Mars? (book, around 2,000 pages, in a single web page, give it time to load) - this article is based mainly on sections of this bookRemoved section of this answer about the idea of using the Phoenix lander site to test planetary protection ideas - it was long enough anyway and that made it rather long :)
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What is ITR Form 2?
The income tax department has segregated the taxpayer based on their status, source of income , basis of income and other factors. Taxpayer having taxable income are required to file income tax return based on their incomes.ITR 2 is to be filed by individual or HUF (not having income from PGBP ) and not eligible to file ITR 1ITR 1 is to be filed by individual or HUF having total income upto Rs 50L from salary, 1 HP and other sources. Agriculture income should not exceed Rs 5000.ITR 2 can be downloaded and submitted on the income tax website . After successful filing an acknowledgement will be sent to your registered email id which can also be downloaded manually.There are certain category of people who can also submit the return offline.For AY 18–19 , the last day of filing ITR 2 is 31st July 2018 . If it is filed after the due date penalty under Section 234F will be levied.
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Which is the best software/tool for measuring employee engagement?
What is employee engagement?Engagement is an important HR variable in any organization, large or small. It is a workplace approach that aims to make employees feel more connected and committed to the organization. That, in turn, boosts employee’s enthusiasm to deliver their best each day.What is the need for employee engagement?An engaged employee leads to better business outcomes. But there is more. The more engaged employees feel, the more effort they put forward and the more likely they are to stay with the organization. As a result, here’s what the organization will receive:Higher emplo...
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What are some of the pragmatic solutions for preventing mass shootings in the US that both liberals and conservatives find mutua
For the benefit of people who don’t have a lot of time to read, I’m going to list a short version of my proposals in bullet points after this paragraph. However, if you have the time, I strongly suggest reading this answer in its entirety because it explains the proposals in fairly granular detail. The proposals are nuanced because gun control is a complicated issue when looked at objectively.Standardize on a process which flags individuals in the FBI’s Terrorist Screening Database for a delay in the background check process when said individuals try to buy a gun. During the three day delay period, the FBI has the opportunity to investigate and take legal action against the individuals if necessary.Create a secure electronic background check system which is available to the public so individuals selling firearms to residents of the same state can know whether it is safe to proceed with a transaction.Require membership in the Civilian Marksmanship Program for the purchase of semiautomatic centerfire weapons and centerfire magazines with more than ten rounds of capacity.Create a national permitting process for carrying concealed handguns which overrides state laws.The Gun Control Act of 1968 mandated that manufacturers and commercial sellers of firearms had to obtain a Federal Firearms License (FFL). This was done under the guise of regulating interstate commerce, trade which crosses state lines. The federal government is generally not allowed to regulate intrastate commerce, trade which remains entirely within a state. In 1994, the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act mandated that FFL holders had to perform a background check on any firearm transferred through the FFL to a individual who does not hold an FFL. In 1998, this process was streamlined into the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS).With that in mind, we’re going to look at how firearms are legally purchased currently so we can have a perspective on potential improvements to the process.When buying a gun through an FFL, buyers must fill out BAFTE form 4473. I strongly recommend readers view the form. Buyers must submit valid photo identification (usually a driver’s license) to the FFL holder to verify their identity and some of the information on their form 4473. There are three categories of firearm which can be bought through a standard FFL dealer: handguns, long guns (rifles and shotguns), and “other firearms”. Buyers must be 18 years of age to buy long guns and 21 years of age to buy handguns from an FFL. “Other firearms” are a weird category which includes receivers for firearms (which is generally the serialized portion of a firearm) or firearms which do not fit the legal definition of a handgun or long gun but are also not regulated by the National Firearms Act. If the “other firearm” can be made into a pistol, the buyer must be 21 years of age. After a buyer has completed their form 4473, the FFL holder calls NICS and relays the completed information to the FBI.Source: (NICS Process in Motion for the Gun Buyer Video Transcript)The FBI runs the information through the NICS database. If the buyer’s provided information has matches within the NICS database, this will generate a “hit”. At the moment, hits include indictments and convictions for felonies, indictments and convictions for domestic violence, indictments and convictions for other crimes which are punishable by one or more years of imprisonment, known fugitives, dishonorable discharges, adjudications which determined an individual to be mentally defective, restraining orders for children or intimate partners, renouncements of citizenship, unlawful users of controlled substances, illegal aliens, and resident aliens who do not meet very specific criteria.If no hits in the NICS database are generated, the FFL is told to “proceed” and the FFL may complete transferring the firearm at the business’s discretion. If the buyer’s provided information generates a hit, the call will be transferred to an FBI employee who will review the information and determine whether the hit matches the rest of the buyer’s provided information. If the hit is valid and the buyer is a prohibited purchaser, the FFL will be told to “deny” the transfer. If the FBI employee determines the hit is invalid, the FFL will be told to “proceed”. If the FBI employee can not immediately determine the validity of a hit, the FFL will be told to “delay” the transfer and the FBI will do more research to determine the validity of a hit. At this point, the FBI is allotted three business days to tell the FFL to “proceed” or “deny”. If those three business days pass without a final judgement, the FFL may proceed with the transfer at their discretion. The system is set up this way so the FBI can not delay a buyer they can not prove is a prohibited possessor of firearms indefinitely, essentially amounting to a denial without due process of law. Nevertheless, some FFL holders maintain a policy of not proceeding with transfers which have do not receive a definite “proceed”; that is the business’s prerogative.If at any point in this process the FFL holder or its employees believes a buyer is purchasing a firearm on behalf of another person, then the FFL will deny the transfer independent of any judgement made by the FBI. Purchasing a firearm on behalf of another person is illegal.Now what about “internet gun sales”?Websites in the business of selling firearms are legally required to acquire an FFL. Since the website which holds an FFL can not visually verify a buyer’s identity, this means the firearms they sell are legally required to be transferred to an FFL near the buyer. At the FFL which facilitates the transfer, the buyer will be required to complete a form 4473 and go through a background check as described above.On auction sites which deal with firearms, buyers and sellers who do not hold FFLs will submit the information of an FFL near each party and arrange for the firearm to be transferred. The seller’s FFL will ship the firearm to the buyer’s FFL and once again the buyer will complete a form 4473 and go through a background check.The final category would be classified websites which allow firearms to be posted for sale. These are essentially the 21st century equivalent of posting a classified advertisement in a newspaper. In these cases, a buyer contacts the seller who posted the advertisement and the two parties enter negotiations. If the buyer and seller legally reside within the same state and are able to meet face to face to conduct a transfer, the firearm in question may be legally bought under federal law without a background check being conducted provided the seller does not have reason to believe the buyer is a prohibited possessor. If any of those conditions are not met, or if state law prohibits intrastate commerce in this fashion, then FFL holders must once again be involved. These conditions apply to all private person to person sales. One noteworthy quirk, under federal law, persons between the ages of 18 and 21 are not prohibited from purchasing a handgun through a private sale. This is in fact one of the very few ways citizens in this age group can exercise their constitutional right to possess handguns.What about gun shows?If a person buys a firearm from an FFL participating in a gun show (this constitutes the majority of firearm sales at gun shows) then a 4473 is filled out as normal. If a person is buying a firearm from a private party, laws regarding private sales apply. Think of gun shows simply as a way for people who might be interested in buying or selling firearms to all be in the same place at the same time. There’s nothing sneaky or tricky about them, they literally happen in convention centers and on fairgrounds. Local police and BATFE agents are always present at gun shows.Now that we have all that basic information out of the way, we can talk about actual changes to federal law.First let’s take a look at prohibiting suspected terrorists from purchasing firearms. We can all agree we hate terrorists, but they still have due process rights. Fortunately, the FBI is in charge of both the Terrorist Screening Database (TSDB) and the NICS database. Prospective gun buyers with records that produce a match in the TSDB could generate a hit in the NICS database. The FBI could then investigate the hit and, assuming the hit actually matched the buyer in question, determine whether or not to tell the FFL to delay the transfer. Within the current three day delay window, the FBI could bring the case before a judge. Should the judge find probable cause, the transfer could be legally halted. At this point the buyer should be notified and be interviewed as part of the investigation. If charges are appropriate, the FBI can file charges in a timely manner. Otherwise, the suspect should be allowed to go about their business without further interference. That puts a lot of burden on the FBI, but it isn’t supposed to be easy to legally strip citizens’ rights in the United States. Remember, the burden of proof always lies upon the accuser, not the defendant.One rather common gun control proposal in the United States is that of universal background checks on all firearm sales, including private intrastate sales. On a practical level, compliance and enforcement of a universal background check would be very difficult without some kind of national firearm registry linking specific firearms to their owners. No national firearm registry exists for regular rifles, shotguns, or pistols at the moment and it’s actually illegal to create one because of the Firearm Owners Protection Act passed in 1986. There remains a visceral fear of a firearms registry among many conservatives; the concerned parties believe that all firearm registries are nothing more than a precursor to the total confiscation of all firearms. This belief is objectively refuted because numerous firearm registries in multiple US states and democratic countries as well as a national registry on firearms regulated by the National Firearms Act exist and have not been precursors to a total confiscation of all firearms. However, many conservatives latch onto the words of a select handful of extremist politicians who espouse a desire for confiscation as proof that confiscation is the inevitable result of all registries.With all that being said, what might be feasible as an alternative to a universal background check is creating an online version of form 4473 so the public could voluntarily conduct background checks without going to an FFL. This is actually something most gun owners want because, at the moment, there’s no way of conducting a background check for a private intrastate sale in most states without involving an FFL. Involving an FFL introduces a financial disincentive because FFLs are businesses and usually charge for their services. I’ll propose the best system I’ve thought of so far which allows for minimal fraud and abuse.First, create a secure electronic variant of the 4473. It should include the buyer and seller information along with contact information for both parties. Once the form is completed, a unique confirmation number is sent out to both parties using the provided contact information. Both parties enter their confirmation numbers, then the form is submitted to the FBI and run through the NICS database. A single transaction number is generated for the NICS check and provided to the buyer and seller. The parties then call a phone number for a NICS automated line and enter the transaction number along with their unique confirmation numbers. This transfers the call to a live operator who examines the results of the NICS check performed for the transaction. The operator then tells the seller to “proceed”, “delay”, or “deny” just as they would with an FFL.The idea behind the whole system is that it allows for an effective background check to be done while offering a reasonable measure of privacy for the buyer. Sure, somebody could abuse the system if they wanted to put in enough effort, but they wouldn’t get very much information. It also removes a financial disincentive; it only costs individuals time to do a check like this and the check and be performed virtually anywhere, not just at FFL locations.Now, let’s discuss assault weapons and magazines which hold more than ten rounds. The problem with the Federal Assault Weapons Ban of 1994 was that it didn’t do anything except drive up prices on the magazines and weapons described by the ban. There was no measurable impact on crime during the ten years the Assault Weapons Ban was in effect.Here is how assault weapons were defined in 1994:Semi-automatic rifles able to accept detachable magazines and two or more of the following:Folding or telescoping stockPistol gripBayonet mountFlash suppressor, or threaded barrel designed to accommodate oneGrenade launcher mountSemi-automatic pistols with detachable magazines and two or more of the following:Magazine that attaches outside the pistol gripThreaded barrel to attach barrel extender, flash suppressor, handgrip, or suppressorBarrel shroud safety feature that prevents burns to the operatorUnloaded weight of 50 oz (1.4 kg) or moreA semi-automatic version of a fully automatic firearm.Semi-automatic shotguns with two or more of the following:Folding or telescoping stockPistol gripDetachable magazine.All of those things are cosmetic features that can be designed around. In fact, they frequently were and are designed around. Even today in states with more stringent feature based assault weapon bans, like California, there exist so called “featureless” firearms which are perfectly legal and not objectively worse for killing people than assault weapons. Now we could try an assault weapon ban again and again have no impact on crime… or we could recognize that semiautomatic centerfire weapons are undeniably the arms of choice in a militia. Police and military forces all over the world use semiautomatic (or fully automatic) centerfire weapons almost exclusively. As such, it makes more sense to more stringently regulate all semiautomatic centerfire weapons, not just a certain subset with specific cosmetic features. At the same time, we can breathe new life into the militia concept described by the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution, even make the militia well regulated.In the United States, we currently have an organization called the Civilian Marksmanship Program, a federally chartered corporation whose purpose is:To instruct citizens of the United States in marksmanship;To promote practice and safety in the use of firearms;To conduct competitions in the use of firearms and to award trophies, prizes, badges, and other insignia to competitors.Among numerous other things, the CMP sells M1 Garand rifles. The Garand is a .30–06 semiautomatic battle rifle roughly twice as powerful as common AR-15 or Kalashnikov rifles. The Garand was the primary infantry rifle of the US military during the Second World War and the Korean War. The CMP literally sells them so people can practice target shooting with a weapon of war.Image by Curiosandrelics - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, File:M1-Garand-Rifle.jpg - Wikimedia CommonsLet’s take a look at eligibility requirements for the CMP:REQUIREMENTS FOR PURCHASEBy law, the CMP can sell surplus military firearms, ammunition, parts and other items only to members of CMP affiliated clubs who are also U.S. citizens, over 18 years of age and who are legally eligible to purchase a firearm.PROOF OF U.S. CITIZENSHIP:You must provide a copy of a U.S. birth certificate, passport, proof of naturalization, or any official government document (When using a military ID to prove citizenship, must be an E5 or above) that shows birth in the U.S. or states citizenship as U.S.PROOF OF AGE:You must provide proof of age. Usually proof of citizenship also provides proof of age. In those cases where it may not, a driver’s license is sufficient.MEMBERSHIP IN CMP AFFILIATED ORGANIZATION:You must provide a copy of your current membership card or other proof of membership. This requirement cannot be waived. The CMP currently has over 2,000 affiliated organizations located in many parts of the country. CMP Club Member Certification Form- If your CMP affiliated club does not issue individual membership cards, please have the club fill out the CMP Club Member Certification Form and return it with your order.Membership in many of these organizations costs $25.00 or less and can be accomplished online. A listing of affiliated organizations can be found by clicking on our Club Search web page at http://ct.thecmp.org/app/v1/inde.... If you have any difficulty in locating a club, please contact the CMP at 256-835-8455 or by emailing CMP Customer Service. We will find one for you. In addition to shooting clubs, the CMP also has several special affiliates. Membership in these organizations satisfies our requirement for purchase. These special affiliates include: Congressionally chartered veterans' organizations such as the VFW, AL, DAV, MCL, etc. U.S. Military services (active or reserves), National Guard, to include retirees. Professional 501(c)3 law enforcement organizations and associations such as the FOP, NAPO, NSA, etc. The Garand Collector's Association is a CMP Affiliated Club. You can download a Garand Collector's Association Application Form.Note: Club membership IS required for purchase of rifles, parts, and ammunition.Club membership is NOT required for instructional publications or videos or CMP memorabilia.MARKSMANSHIP OR OTHER FIREARMS RELATED ACTIVITY:You must provide proof of participation in a marksmanship related activity or otherwise show familiarity with the safe handling of firearms and range procedures. Your marksmanship related activity does not have to be with highpower rifles; it can be with smallbore rifles, pistols, air guns or shotguns. Proof of marksmanship participation can be provided by documenting any of the following:Current or past military service.Current or past law enforcement serviceParticipation in a rifle, pistol, air gun or shotgun competition (provide copy of results bulletin).Completion of a marksmanship clinic that included live fire training (provide a copy of the certificate of completion or a statement from the instructor).Distinguished, Instructor, or Coach status.Concealed Carry License.Firearms Owner Identification Cards that included live fire training. - FFL or C&R license.Completion of a Hunter Safety Course that included live fire training.Certification from range or club official or law enforcement officer witnessing shooting activity. Complete the CMP Marksmanship Form to signNow your range firing and the required marksmanship related activity for an individual to purchase from the CMP.No proof of marksmanship required if over age 60. Proof of club membership and citizenship required for all ages. NOTE: Proof of marksmanship activity is not required for purchase of ammunition, parts, publications or memorabilia.BE LEGALLY ELIGIBLE TO PURCHASE A FIREARM:The information you supply on your application will be submitted by the CMP to the FBI National Instant Criminal Check System (NICS) to verify you are not prohibited by Federal, State or Local law from acquiring or possessing a rifle. Your signature on the Purchaser Certification portion of the purchase application authorizes the CMP to initiate the NICS check and authorizes the FBI to inform CMP of the result. IMPORTANT: If your State or locality requires you to first obtain a license, permit, or Firearms Owner ID card in order to possess or receive a rifle, you must enclose a photocopy of your license, permit, or card with the application for purchase.As you can see, the CMP eligibility process is quite a bit more involved than the background check system we have now. It seems to have worked for keeping the powerful semiautomatic Garand rifles out of the hands of mass murderers. The last mass shooting on US soil that I know of which involved an M1 Garand was the Kent State massacre and that involved the Ohio National Guard shooting anti-war protesters, not civilians who were sold rifles through the CMP. I haven’t been able to find any records of crimes committed with guns sold through the CMP. I’m sure it has happened at one point in time or another, but the occurrence is so rare that there hasn’t been any documentation. My point is that the CMP has a really great track record in the United States for making sure guns don’t go to bad guys.Since the Assault Weapons Ban of 1994 didn’t have any measurable impacts on crime and the CMP has great results, I propose we extend the CMP eligibility requirements to all semiautomatic centerfire firearms and centerfire magazines with more than ten rounds of capacity. This means only people who meet the listed criteria will be able to buy the types of weapons most useful in a militia which are also the weapons we primarily see used in mass shootings from an FFL. The proposal also effectively introduces a mandatory training and basic competency requirement before individuals can purchase semiautomatic centerfire weapons from a gun store. The inclusion of CMP eligibility for the purchase of centerfire magazine over ten rounds creates a strong incentive for existing gun owners and individuals who purchase firearms through private intrastate sales to get training and join the CMP if they want easy access to centerfire magazines over ten rounds.The word centerfire is really important because there is another class of firearms which use rimfire cartridges.A collection of rimfire and centerfire cartridges, left to right: .22lr (rimfire), .22WMR (rimfire), .357 magnum (centerfire), .30–06 Springfield (centerfire), 12 gauge shotshell (centerfire)Rimfire cartridges aren’t very powerful; they’re mostly used for small game hunting and target shooting. Most countries allow ownership of semiautomatic rimfire rifles with only basic licensing; countries like Canada and the UK don’t even have restrictions on magazine capacity for rimfire rifles. Could they be used by a mass shooter? Sure, anything could, but semiautomatic rimfire firearms just aren’t a threat compared to semiautomatic centerfire firearms or even non-semiautomatic centerfire firearms. Wounds caused by bullets fired from rimfire cartridges are almost always less severe than wounds caused by bullets fired from centerfire cartridges. Very precise shot placement is required for rimfire weapons to instantly kill a person and mass shooters are unlikely to take the time to precisely place their shots.Seen above are four rimfire rifles made by Marlin.Regulating firearms in this way allows new gun owners to hunt, shoot targets, and defend themselves using semiautomatic rimfire or manually operated firearms. If new gun owners want easy access to semiautomatic centerfire firearms which are useful in a militia context, they can join the CMP, effectively becoming a member of a well regulated militia, after demonstrating themselves to be competent and well trained.I have some final thoughts on the CMP related proposal before moving on to the next topic. CMP eligibility introduces additional layers of human interaction between people and semiautomatic centerfire weapons and centerfire magazines over ten rounds. Barring major advances in mental healthcare and adjudication in the United States, layers of human interaction are the best way for red flags to be raised about somebody who might want to kill large numbers of people with a firearm. Additional layers of human interaction also introduce a larger hurdle for straw purchasers, people who buy firearms for people who can’t pass background checks because they’re ineligible to own firearms. Additional layers of human interaction make law enforcement investigations slightly easier as well.At the moment, laws, standards, and permits for carrying concealed handguns vary wildly. Some states have no requirements while other states functionally don’t allow anybody except police officers to carry handguns in any way. While the percentage of the US population which actually carries handguns regularly, concealed or openly, is relatively small, those who do carry handguns regularly can often face great legal peril for no particularly good reason when crossing state lines. At the same time, it would be good for the public to know that people carrying concealed handguns are actually competent and not a hazard to the public. In essence, a balance would be preferable to the extremes which currently exist.I propose creating an national permit for carrying concealed handguns in any state. Police officers already enjoy something similar to this. The permitting process should include a standardized class which can be taught by police officers or other qualified instructors. Before attending the class, applicants should undergo a background check. Among other things, the class should cover the legal use of deadly force, safe firearms handling practices, and conflict deescalation practices. Then applicants should be given a written test on the subjects. If the applicants pass, they should then undergo a practical handgun handling and shooting competency test. If applicants are able to both handle handguns safely and shoot accurately, they will then be issued a carry permit which is valid for a certain number of years; three to five years seems reasonable. If applicants fail either test then they go home without a permit and can retake the whole class the next time it is offered if they still wish to carry a concealed handgun.
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What are the best HR Automation tools?
While chatbots and AI are frequently talked about, there is more to HR automation than that. Automation doesn’t have to mean taking the “human” factor completely out of human resources. There are tools in hiring software, particularly, that are leveraging automation to, in fact, better candidate and employee engagement!Some automation can increase communication and personalization, if used correctly. Now, the “best” hiring automation tools are going to vary dependent on the company’s culture, budget, hiring needs, etc., but there are some tools and tactics in the field that I recommend checking out regardless of all that:ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) are software solutions designed to streamline and automate certain aspects of the hiring process so that you can pay closer attention to what matters and save time/resources along the way. Here are some examples:Use email templates that you can send in bulk but tweak to be personalized, keeping up with candidate engagement.Use a sourcing extension to auto-fill candidate data and facilitate employee referrals.Post to multiple job boards from one platform.Hire collaboratively, with automated employee performance reports, event scheduling, and team notesAs far as the future of automation in recruiting is concerned, I wouldn’t worry too much about the negative effects. There are going to be pros and cons to every innovation. However, HR is one field that is so people-centric, the talented recruitment professionals won’t stand for AI or automation taking away their jobs or replacing real candidate engagement. As long as you are well-equipped to do your recruitment job now with help from your team, automation can only assist that!
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Any pointers for a Reception desk software? Need kind of visitor management system,
How to Select and Download a Visitor Management SystemYou’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how you greet and process visitors to your workplace, and you’ve decided that an electronic visitor management system would be a good investment. Now it's time to put the plan in action. How do you go about selecting and downloading a visitor management system?Determine What You NeedThe first order of business when selecting a visitor management system is to determine your needs and wants are.Needs are the deal-breakers; if a visitor check-in app does not have a feature you have determined is a need, then you can confidently cross it off your list.Wants are the nice-to-have features that would make your process run more smoothly, or help make a great first impression, but aren’t requirements.Your organization may have many needs. You may need a system that scans ID and prints visitor badges. You may need something that runs on a particular platform, or that interfaces with your Contact Relationship Management (CRM) software.On the other hand, your organization may have only a list of wants. In this case, it is important to give the different features and benefits of a system more or less weight based on how important they are to you. To make it especially easy, you might use a decision tree or assign them a point value, as in this decision matrix.What to Look ForThere are many possible factors to consider when choosing a visitor management system.Commonly available, low-cost hardware: What kind of hardware does the visitor management system platform require? If you have to buy specialized equipment that costs a pretty penny, then it is probably not a good buy. Too much specialization translates into both high upfront costs, and difficulty in replacing parts and getting service down the road. It is also likely any components you wish to swap or upgrade will be expensive, too. Instead, you want hardware you can purchase easily and that won’t break the bank.Low Administrative Effort: You’ve probably been a part of a new software implementation, or a large programmatic change in your organization. You know that the effort needed to implement the new software can take days, weeks or even months or years. During this time, employees are tied up trying to input data, integrate software or otherwise are busy trying to make something function instead of doing their normal work. A modern visitor registration app should be both robust and simple enough that it takes minimal setup. You want it up and running quickly and smoothly.Customizable: What features do you need? If you don’t need ID badges, can you turn off or eliminate that feature? Can you add custom fields to the visitor sign-in app? Can you add graphics, text and images to match and show off your organization’s brand? Do you need visitors to eSign a non-disclosure agreement, and if so, can it be part of the registration process? A great visitor management system allows for this type of customization and more.White-labeled: You may not be familiar with the term “white label.” A white label product is is sold by a company without its brand in order for it to be re-branded by the company that ultimately sells or displays the product to the consumer or end-user. There are many benefits to using white label products. With a visitor management system, it may be important to you that your guests don’t see the brand of the visitor management system itself, only your graphics and text. Some electronic systems will show the software company’s logo, or a notification of some kind along the lines of “Powered by...” and the company name. If you want the visitor management system to be seamlessly integrated into your organization, check whether a product is white label, or can be made to be white label. You may also want to ask whether there is a fee for removing the creating company’s information.Various Notification Methods: One of the benefits to using an electronic visitor management system is that it can handle the sometimes tedious task of contacting the visitor’s host. When it is a receptionist’s job, the first step might be a phone call. When there is no answer, next comes a text or instant message, then an email and finally roaming the office. It can be nearly impossible to know in a large organization who prefers which notification type, and which notification is best in that particular situation. A great electronic visitor management system will allow your employees to enter their notification preferences (e.g. best phone number for texts (SMS), best number for voice calls, Slack, or Google Hangouts preferences, etc.) and prioritize them based on which is most likely to work. When a visitor checks in to meet that host, the visitor management system does all the contacting for them, leaving the receptionist to show them the best place to sit and where to get coffee.Research and Review Your OptionsOnce you know what your criteria are, it is time to start researching what visitor management system options are out there. Usually the steps to do so are as follows:Internet research: Start online. Nearly all your options will have a website you can explore to find a list of features of the system on offer. Use your Needs and Wants lists that you have already outlined to determine your top two or three choices.Get a Demo: Sometimes you just have to see the product in action to know whether it is right for you. Most companies offering software systems understand this and will gladly schedule a demonstration, either in person or virtually, for you to see how everything works.Ask about Pricing: Of course, as you are looking at all your systems and talking with salespeople, you will need to keep your budget in mind.Ask what is included in all the various packages. Are there up-charges for any features on your needs list? Will the price be fixed or can it change (and surprise you!) as your usage varies or the number of employees you have shifts up or down? (Pro tip: Many employees prefer text message notifications so make sure those are included in the plan you choose.)What are the licensing terms, e.g. monthly, yearly, etc? Do you get a reasonably discount for purchasing a longer subscription?Are any contracts to sign or long-term commitments?Are there different plans for different size organizations or number of check-in kiosks?Is there a cost to have the visitor management vendor help you customize it? What about customer support?Make Your Purchase and Get StartedCongratulations! You’ve found the visitor check-in kiosk that will best fit the needs and wants of your organization. Now it’s time to get the ball rolling to make it really work for you.Start a free trial: Most visitor registration products offer a free trial so you can test the software before committing to buying. Be weary of vendors that require a credit card in order to initiate a trial. If you must, put a reminder in your calendar to ensure you do not accidentally purchase an digital receptionist that is not a great fit for your workspace.Set up an account: Many visitor management system providers use the Software as a Service (often referred to as SaaS) model. This provides the benefit of not needing to deal with on-site servers, or worry about updates. If a visitor registration product is not SaaS, it is likely a legacy product. In order to start using SaaS software, you will need to setup an account. While most modern visitor management systems are apps that can be downloaded to any compatible device, however account setup is often done via a web browser rather than in the app.Customize: During the account setup phase, you may have the opportunity to start the customization of your app. You will likely select the fields you want to appear on your check-in form, upload and place any necessary graphics to brand the display as your own, and enter other important settings. This may include setting up a connection to your CRM, adding personnel notification settings, and uploading documents that are part of the registration process.Procure hardware: If you don’t already have the proper equipment to run the visitor management system, you will want to get that purchased, either with the company providing the software or through a third party. Determine the number of kiosks you need and purchase accordingly.Download the app: Once you have the devices in-hand, it is time to download the app from the app store. Find the app for the software you have selected and download it. You will need to do this on each device you plan to useLog in: Using the account you set up via the web browser, you will need to log into the app on each device.The Testing PhaseOnce you’ve done the upfront work of downloading and logging into the program, it is time to do some testing. Whenever you have new software, it is important to try some test runs to make sure it is doing what you want and expect.Test for visitor type: Test how the app handles for different types of visitors. Check in as someone delivering food to an employee, then as a state building inspector, then as a job candidate meeting the Vice President of Marketing. Was the form easy to fill out, or problematic and annoying? Did it have too many fields, or was it missing a crucial question? Did the proper form pop up for an electronic signature that was needed?Look for visual appeal: Did all the graphics appear properly, or were some stretched or cut off? Are the words spelled correctly? Did the colors look right on the screen? (If not, this could be a screen calibration problem and may require returning the hardware if it can’t be easily corrected.) Any changes you want to make to the visuals on the screen should be corrected prior to going live.Check for notifications: If the app offers automatic notifications, make sure they are working properly. Set up your own notification preferences and test it out by checking in a guest that is coming to see you. Are text messages, Slack notifications, email and phone calls all going through? If not, check to make sure all the contact information is entered properly. If it still isn’t working right, it is time to troubleshoot with the company to see what is going on.Go LiveWhen you’ve determined that the app is functioning the way you want, it is time to go live. In order for real visitors to use the app, you need to have a plan in place for making sure visitors are aware of the process.Place the visitor management system in the reception area: The placement should be quite prominent so it is difficult to miss. Signs that direct all visitors to check in can help signNowly, as can having a very visible label identifying the kiosk itself. Don’t tuck your kiosk back in a corner and rely on guests to find it themselves.Inform your employees: All your employees should be informed of the new check-in system. They, in turn, should set up their own contact profiles in the system so they will be notified when their guests arrive. They should also inform their guests in advance of what to expect so they can be properly prepared.Train your receptionists: Any receptionists or security guards that are stationed near the new visitor management system equipment should be trained on any company protocols. Depending on the organization, they may have certain tasks to perform in conjunction with the visitor management system. For instance, in some organizations they may simply be trained in the best way to direct visitors to the kiosk. In others, they may be required to check identification and make sure it matches the information entered into the system. They might be taught how to troubleshoot the system, print visitor badges, or walk a visitor through the registration process in case they have trouble.Conclusion: Download a Visitor Management System and Reap the RewardsNow that you’ve got everything in place and set up, you can start benefiting from the increased efficiency that having an electronic visitor management system brings. Your employees can rest assured that guests will be greeted and get registered in a timely manner. Your organization will be more secure by knowing who is in the building at all times. You can even start working to build relationships and improve your program offerings by analyzing the data compiled in your electronic visitor database.Choosing, downloading and implementing an electronic visitor management system doesn’t have to be a daunting process. The hardest part is knowing what you want and need. After that, the process for setting it up and getting it installed on your hardware is as easy as downloading the latest app to your phone. You’ll be ready to go in no time.Originally posted by Greetly visitor management system at How to Download a Visitor Management System. Reposted with permission.
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I want to file my income tax return, but I have no experience. How can I file ITR?
So How Do You Go About Doing ThisStep - 1 "Thought Is The Seed Of Action" Assimilate your thoughts and begin assembling all the relevant documents you need.Collect the Form 16 which contains information on your salaried income and the amount of tax deducted from your salary.Form 16A is a TDS Certificate which certifies the amount of TDS deducted. Over the course of a year you would have conducted a number of business transactions. You would need to collect this form from all the people who have deducted tax while making payments to you. This may be necessary if you have rented out your property.Collect and summarize all the bank account statements showing the necessary income and expenditure.If you have bought property you would require details of rent collected, if any municipal tax paid, and if this property is bought on a loan , the loan details and a copy of the certificate showing interest paid.All documents pertaining to sale and purchase of assets as well as the documents showing investments made and if necessary, prepare a profit and loss account before calculating the taxable income.Step - 2In life we are faced with a number of choices. Here we use decision making skills. This is basically making of the right choice when there are a number of choices to be made. Don’t we all fret when we have to make those difficult decisions in life? Career Oriented Decisions or decisions made in life threatening situations.Here we have to choose the right Income tax return form.ITR -1: Income from salary or pension, Family Pension, Income from agricultural activity. Income from one house or property, interest received (taxable/exempt).ITR -2 : Income from salary or pension, Income from house or property, Income from other sources and winning a lottery or a horserace.. Earning through short and long term capital gains.ITR -3 : This is used by an individual who is a partner in a firm. Here he gains income through interest, salary, bonus, commission, remuneration received from the firm or by virtue of being a partner in the firm.ITR -4 : This is applicable both to individuals and HUF who carry out a business or a professional activity in addition to having sources of income applicable to ITR -3.ITR -V : This is basically a verification form for the taxpayers which serves as an acknowledgement form.Step - 3 Here you can file your returns physically or electronically. Take a print out of the respective ITR Form along with acknowledgment form ITR-V and file it with the income tax officer.E-Filling Of Income Tax ReturnsThis is a process of electronically submitting the income tax returns to the Income tax department.Manual Calculation : Those that allow you to enter the income tax data but do not calculate the income tax and tax refunds.Automatic Calculation : Those that allow you to enter the income tax data and automatically calculate the income tax and tax refunds.Signing The Income Tax Returns : An ITR is an important document and must be signed manually or digitally.How Is It DoneFirstly select the form that is suitable for you, say if you are a Doctor with your own clinic ITR-4 will apply to you.Download the form and fill up all the relevant details regarding income, losses and do it offline. Once you are done you must validate these by clicking on the "Check Form" Button.Once you have filled this form offline proceed to generate an XML file out of it by clicking on Export To Excel.If you are e-filing your returns for the first time you need to register yourself creating a user id and a password on the website https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in. Use your user id and password and log unto the portal. Browse and select your offline XML file and upload it on the site .Now you will have to attach the digital signature and file your returns.Remember to print The ITR –V an acknowledgement slip which is generated after filing the income tax returns online.Benefits Of Using The E-filing RouteUnder this method tax returns can be calculated and processed very fast and refund claims are processed very quickly.A very high degree of accuracy is obtained.These returns can be filed from anywhere and at anytime providing for great flexibility , speed , time boundaries and geographical boundaries are not a factor.Easy access to data and storage of all relevant data and documents for future use.Remember those long queues at the Income Tax department when you had to file your returns. All these hassles are removed through the e-filing process.What Happens If I Could Not File My Returns On Time?Let us consider the case where you have already paid all your taxes before March 31st 2011.but could not file the returns within the due date. Here for the financial year of 2010-2011 returns can be filed before March 31st 2013.However you might incur a penalty if the returns are furnished after March 31st 2012. Here let us consider that you did not get that income tax refund because your tax returns were filed incorrectly. We would like to revise these returns. The following cases show us how to file the revised returns.Steps To File Revised ReturnsOpen the Excel file in which you have filled original return.Enable Macros.Update and Do the necessary corrections.Mention the return as a revised returnHere we have Section 139 (5) for omissions or wrong statements.Fill the acknowledgement and the date of original ITR-V downloaded after filing of the original return.Click compute tax again .Validate each sheet .Generate a new XML file and upload it on the Income Tax India e-filing site after loging into the portal using our earlier generated user name and password found during the original e-filing.Download revised ITR-V and sign it.Send Old and New ITR-V to the CPC Bangalore Office at Electronic City.When Must You File The Revised Returns?Pan Number is incorrect.Gender is filled incorrectlyResidential Status is wrong.TDS Details are incorrectIncorrect bank details or an incorrect MICR CodeIncorrect advance tax and self assessment tax deposit details.visit : Financial Advice : Life, Health, Auto Insurancefor more information and we also have a handy income tax calculator :http://indianmoney.com/tax-plann...Hope this helps you.....or even you can give us a missed call for further help....
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