We asked and invited Kevin Boer from 3 Oceans Real Estate to post a guest blog. Here’s his article.

Clients and friends often ask me if it really makes financial sense to buy a home instead of just continuing to rent. It’s a fair question in a high-priced market like ours, especially since, over the last few years, housing prices have risen dramatically, while rents have stayed flat.The standard (self-serving) industry answer to the buy vs. rent question is, “It always makes more financial sense to buy because, ah, prices always go up, and, ah, oh yeah, don’t forget about the great tax deductions!”

There has to be a less fluffy answer to that question, and I think it boils down to your beliefs on two key issues:

1. How long do you believe you’ll be in the home you’re considering buying?
2. During that time frame, what do you believe will be the average annual property appreciation rate with Providence furnished rentals?

At a gut level, this makes sense. If you’re going to be in the home for only 1 year, and you think the property will only appreciate 3%, then you’re probably better off renting for that year. On the other hand, if you’re going to be there for 20 years, and you think the appreciation rate will be 10% per year, it’s obviously a slam dunk to buy. But what about in less obvious cases? 5 years, and 6% appreciation? 3 years and 5%? 7 years and 3%?

I’m an Excel nut, and I’ve built a gajillion financial models in a previous life, so I thought I’d create a model to help decide the buy vs. rent issue, using the two questions above as variables. Making a number of other assumptions (which I’ll outline in future posts), you come up with the following graph.

Here’s how to read the graph: Find the single point that represents your beliefs about questions 1 and 2. (ie. if you think you’ll be in your home 5 years, and property will appreciate 6% per year during that time, find 5 on the horizontal axis, and go up to the level of 6% on the vertical axis.)

Hosted email archiving solutions Smarsh solutions for classification and supervision efficiency, data-leak prevention and e mail encryption were created to integrate with all the Smarsh e mail archiving platform. All companies inside the integrated suite are centrally administrated as a result of the Smarsh Management Console. Permissioned administrators can evaluation electronic communication, implement classification, data-leak prevention and encryption policies, and analyze the effectiveness of enforcement procedures through complete and customizable reporting.

Capture

E-mail targeted traffic is captured immediately on the mail server, ensuring that any message sent to, from, or inside of clients’ domains are going to be archived and processed.

• Versatile integration | The exceptional Smarsh architecture is platform-agnostic and integrates with on-premise (Microsoft Exchange archiving, Lotus, Novell, and so forth.) and SaaS (Google Apps Premier, for example) messaging platforms. Journaling could be the major capture process for archiving e-mail, but Smarsh supports a number of indicates of capture.
• Real-time processing | Messages and attachments are delivered and processed inside the e-mail archive quickly.
• Header data/metadata | Complete header information and metadata (such as message date and time, IP addresses for all server hops, varieties of servers, and so on.) from every single message is captured, indexed and preserved. Additionally, all metadata made by message overview activity within the Smarsh Management Console can also be stored in a read-only format for subsequent evidentiary auditing.
• Import legacy email | Leverage Smarsh client data management resources and migrate legacy data into 1 platform, creating a consolidated email archive for speedy retrieval and critique.

Back to top rated Preserve

• Client messages and attachments are often readily accessible through the web-based Smarsh Management Console. They by no means go off-line (unless specified by the client).
• Redundant information centers | E mail and electronic messages and attachments are preserved within the redundant, geographically-dispersed Smarsh data centers and burned to WORM (write after, study several) optical storage.
• Retention policies | Messages are retained in accordance with client retention policies (and active legal holds).

Back to leading Search

Administrators can search across their e mail archive and electronic message archives based on practically any criteria, either ad-hoc or on a steady, systematic basis.

• Robust field search | Smarsh indexes the whole electronic message, and enables search by Boolean combinations of practically just about every related field, including: text/HTML physique, topic, sender, recipient (including CC, BCC & distribution lists), message date and time, headers (such as IP address), attachment type, attachment name, attachment contents (for approximately 400 file varieties).
• Saved searches | Save search criteria and repeat searches for convenience, consistency and evidence of policy enforcement.
• E-discovery searches | Run robust ad-hoc discovery searches for one-time instances.
• Support for several lexicon lists | Clients can customize company-approved lexicons of keywords/phrases for search and/or start with a default list provided by Smarsh.
• Numerous e-mail addresses, aliases | Search traffic of an unlimited number of e mail addresses per employee.
• Immediate search results | When the desired emails have been identified in the archive’s search page, they can be immediately viewed online, downloaded directly to a PC, or encrypted and copied to portable electronic media.
• Personal archive access | End-users may access their personal e-mail archive securely from any web browser, mobile device, or an integrated email client plug-in, and they can search their own archives according to a variety of criteria including keywords, sender, recipient, date range etc. After messages have been located, users can drag and drop messages, restoring them to their live mailbox (with original timestamp), download, forward, reply, file (tag) and more. End users also have access to customizable saved searches and other tools to conveniently provide access to historical messages.

Back to top Supervise

Your supervision procedures are not on the mercy of inflexible technology. Customize your firm’s supervision expor serience for optimal efficiency in message evaluation and effectiveness in identifying and mitigating risk.

• Hierarchy structure | Permission-based review hierarchy can be configured to model the assessment structure of your organization. Administrators can assign message supervision roles/authorities to specific users and groups, and grant the appropriate level of access/functionality to them. Smarsh can grant temporary permissions or access to compliance consultants, outside legal counsel or other individuals.
• Run saved searches | Execute evaluation procedures with regularly scheduled saved searches.
• Flexible search options | Match search type (random percent, risk score, keywords or phrases) to risk profile.
• Contextual assessment | Track chains of emails from several individuals.
• Complete audit trail | Every single administrator session and action taken throughout the entire lifecycle of a message is documented within the Smarsh Management Console.
• Take action on messages | Reviewers have the ability to annotate, flag, open/close or escalate messages. All actions are logged and the subsequent metadata is indexed and searchable.
• Reporting Center | Produce analytics reports on corporate e mail usage, system audit history and message archive information. Demonstrate policy enforcement and ensure accountability among numerous managers responsible for message assessment. Reports can be customized.

Back to top Produce

Administrators can retrieve and produce as many messages as necessary, in original type, on demand.

• Production options | Messages can be securely downloaded to a PC or encrypted and saved to a portable media device. This can be utilized for real-time access to information during an investigation or examination, or to restore data for disaster recovery purposes.
• Flexible e-discovery export | Export message data in popular e-discovery vendor “load file” formats (and the Electronic Discovery Reference Model (EDRM) XML Interchange Format Schema) and transfer it directly to document overview and processing systems.
• Monthly DVD service | As part of its service package, Smarsh delivers monthly copies of client information through encrypted DVD.

How it Works
E mail targeted visitors is captured immediately in the mail server, ensuring that any message sent to, from, or within clients’ domains is going to be archived and processed by Smarsh software. Smarsh supports numerous message capture methods but primarily employs the journaling function for e-mail archiving, standard on most mail servers. Unlike other POP connectors or a local journal, journaling directly and instantly to offsite Smarsh e-mail archive servers ensures that:

• all emails and attachments are instantaneously placed inside the e-mail archive,
• the archive can be used for disaster recovery purposes as all messages are immediately saved offsite, functioning as e mail backup,
• there is NO window of opportunity for employees or administrators to tamper with messages before they are sent to the archive.

Captured messages are placed in an archive mailbox using SMTP delivery (secured by TLS encryption or a VPN tunnel). This mailbox is exceptional to every client to avoid any commingling of messages. Next, our proprietary archiving software retrieves these messages from the e-mail archive mailbox and:

• scans new messages for keyword, phrase or rule violations established by the customer,
• indexes each and every message and attachments using a full-text index/catalog to permit searches in our internet applications,
• stores duplicate working copies of attachments and e-mail files to a redundant file server/storage network to facilitate immediate access to message files and attachments within the Smarsh Management Console,
• replicates archived messages to remote information centers,
• creates an MD5 hash which can be used for subsequent certification and verification that the message has not been altered,
• burns messages to WORM optical storage for regualtory compliance.

The Benefits of the Smarsh Cloud Model Security & Privacy

You normally maintain ownership and control of your data. Multiple physical, procedural and technical safeguards are in place to protect and limit access to your information. Smarsh information centers are redundant, geographically-dispersed and SAS 70 (Type II) audited. All systems are protected by multi-tiered firewalls and proactively monitored within the Smarsh Network Operations Center. Encrypted access to your data is granted only to your firm’s approved system administrators.
Performance

• Free up storage capacity | Forrester Research survey information indicates that storage capacity requirements are growing between 20 and 40 percent every single year.1 By “off-loading” data, your company can free up valuable storage space and optimize server performance. Remove content from your messaging server and migrate it to an archiving platform.
• Global availability | Complete platform functionality is available securely 24-7 through the Internet.
• Search and produce information quickly | Smarsh offers the storage, database and indexing expertise to ensure optimal search and retrieval times, even as the volume of your archive grows.
• Seamless updates | Rather than waiting for the release and installation of your software’s next version, Smarsh platform updates are introduced regularly.

Deployment

• Speedy on-boarding | Your firm can be up and running on the Smarsh platform in days or weeks rather than a long-term phased timeline. With its diverse and growing client base, Smarsh has encountered a variety of system integration scenarios and manages the deployment process for you.
• Versatile integration | The special Smarsh architecture is platform-agnostic and integrates with on-premise (Microsoft Exchange, Lotus, Novell, etc.) and SaaS (Google Apps Premier, for instance) messaging platforms.

Cost

• Predictable pricing | Smarsh does not charge for storage or disk space, significantly reducing costs for traditional e mail backup. Pricing is predictable, easy to budget and does not require large capital expenditures.
• No software/hardware to maintain | Smarsh manages all hardware and software within its data centers, and upgrades are automatic and included as part of the managed service.
• Minimized internal IT operating burden | Maintain access and ownership of all of your information, and liberate your IT team to focus on core competencies.

Stiff Competition

Online play can be an unforgiving platform. Set in the same map as battle-tested veterans, veritable newbies will often have little recourse but to take the endless beatings and kills. A hack, in such instances, can prove a lifesaver – allowing you to enjoy more of the game even with lesser skills than the rest of the participants.

The competitive nature of online play, coupled with reputation-building for individual players, teams and clans, have made hacks a frequently employed aspect of multiplayer shooters.

Game Code Modification

Modifying game code is a common way to implement cheats and hacks, either by reverse-engineering the software binaries or editing the game data. Many wallhacks and maphacks are implemented this way. Some hacks take another route and alter the game state while it runs in the memory.

Graphics Driver-Based Hacks

Some hacks work by hijacking the control to the graphics card API which renders objects and models in the game. Using data from it, the hack can determine locations, barriers and other pertinent information that can be used to target opponents for aimbots and identify hiding competitors. Additional driver modifications such as disabling depth checking can be used to create wallhacks.

Types Of Hacks

Numerous kinds of hacks and cheating mechanisms exist for first-person shooter multiplayer games, the most popular of which consist of:

Aimbots

These hacks are some of the most common found during online play, allowing a competitor undue assistance in acquiring targets. Most aimbots work by either offering an auto-aim facility, paving the way for accurate shots, or adding visual enhancements like crosshairs or a custom aimpoint for a better line of sight. Some aimbots are combined with triggerbots that automatically unload fire on opponents after securing aim.

Wallhacking

Wallhacks, for the most part, consist of adjustments to allow players to see through solid objects in the game – walls, vehicles and similar non-transparent textures. Some wallhacks allow players to spot objects and opponents well outside their normal line of sight, transcending physical objects, barriers and distances. A type of wallhack known as Whitewalls removes all types of colors and textures on walls, making it easy to spot opponents amidst busy scenes.

ESP

Some ESP skills like finding opponents across the map can be considered variants of wallhacking. Most ESP hacks though are designed to provide insights about your opponents that are otherwise unavailable. Such information can include damage levels, weapons, ammo and many more.

INSURED: A person or corporation who is protected by the insurance company in the case of damage and loss!

NAMED INSURED: The person, corporation, or firm on the name of which insurance is taken! There may be other insured persons as well within a policy which are not named but are protected under some circumstances.

ADDITIONAL INSURED: Individuals or an entity which are not directly insured under the policy but the same provides certain degree of protection for them. Provision of ‘additional insured’ by a policy holder may be due to a close relationship between them, for example the insured persons of a company or club members.

CO-INSURANCE: Two or more people or insurance companies share one insurance policy. The insurer directly pays to each insured their respective share of loss.

PREMIUM: it’s the amount of money which an insured pays directly to the insurer for insurance coverage.

DEDUCTIBLE: It’s the amount insured person must pay to the insurer before they begin to pay the covered loss. It is similar to self-insured retention (SIR). The liability of insurer begins with the exhaustion of deductible.

SELF INSURED RETENTION: It’s similar as above but the insured person is responsible for payment of all legal fees incurred.

POLICY LIMIT: The maximum amount for which insurance is done, i.e., the max amount an insurance company is liable to pay the insured in case of any loss.

FIRST PARTY INSURANCE: Insurance applicable for the insured’s own property or person. It only covers insurance to insured’s own property from whatever the causes specified in the policy. For example Builders Risk Insurance – insurance for the loss of rigs or vessels during the course of construction! It only involves the insurer, the owner of rigs and the contractor holding financial interest in the rigs.

THIRD PARTY INSURANCE: A liability insurance which covers the negligent acts of the insured person against the claims from a third party. For e.g., a third party insurance of a car ensures the liability of any person having a loss due to the car.

NEGLIGENCE: Not taking reasonable care. It’s an act which a reasonable person will not do or to be precise, an act which a reasonable person will not do under the similar circumstances. It is the ‘legal cause’ of damage and it directly or in continuous sequence produces such damage. So that it can say that the damage would not have occurred if not for the negligence.

WILLFUL MISCONDUCT: An act of producing damage with the knowledge of the fact that the act will produce damage and is a potential cause to injury.

MANUFACTURING DEFECT: even after all the possible care, if a defect appears in a manufactured product, it is called manufacturing defect.

Getting to know all these terms made my journey through complicated documents of insurance companies very easy. Hope it will work the same way for you as well.