How Has Technology Changed the Manufacturing Industry?

The ongoing developments of technology have changed multiple industries, and possibly none more so than manufacturing. Over the years, each new machine and AI discovery has been implemented into factories all around the globe, allowing processes to move faster, more efficiently, and at a lower cost. Want to learn more? Here is how technology has changed the manufacturing industry.

A Faster Service

With technology constantly improving machines, the amount of time the manufacturing processes take has greatly lowered. There are plenty of brilliant machines designed for increased productivity on the market, including ones like a speedy engraving machine, which ensures both quality and efficiency.

Automation is another way technology has contributed to a speedier manufacturing service. When systems are automated, production capacity is increased, allowing manufacturers to produce more in less time. Combine that with the ease of communications brought on by software tools, and you have a manufacturing company that wastes no time at all.

Fewer Errors

Technology has allowed near-perfect precision in machinery alongside less reliance on manual labor, and as a result, errors are now fewer and far between. On top of that, AI can predict upcoming malfunctions through its data, meaning sensors can alert staff before it even happens. With all the errors that are caught early through tech, both time and material are saved.

Greener Practices

The manufacturing industry contributes to much of the earth’s pollution. Luckily, technological developments have helped manufacturing companies switch to greener practices. For starters, automation and digital communications mean factories don’t have to use as much paper, contributing to less waste overall. As well as that, with AI detecting possible errors, manufacturers don’t have to waste as many materials and energy on faulty results.

Better Communications

Technology has improved communication for all industries, including manufacturing. Through communication software, staff can now communicate from across the shop floor without interruption. It’s not just communications between staff that have improved, either. With the Internet of Things, machines are better at communicating with each other, meaning if there is a machine malfunction, staff will know straight away.

Easier Maintenance

Maintenance is essential in the manufacturing industry. Without it, more errors are made, and more money gets spent on replacements. In the past, maintenance took a lot of the manufacturing team’s time, but now, with automation alerting staff when there is a malfunction, maintenance is much more streamlined.

Understanding Target Market

Through analyzing AI data, manufacturing companies now have a better idea of who their customer is and exactly what they are looking for. With such data, they can then make their marketing strategies more targeted for better results overall.

More Profitability

All in all, the developments in technology, including automation, AI, and machinery, have ensured that the manufacturing industry is much more profitable. It has led to mass production that can remain high in quality but still produce far more than before.

Who knows where technology will take the manufacturing industry next? With constant new developments, manufacturing is only going to become more streamlined and profitable over the years.

How To Get More Subscribers On YouTube: 10 Practical Ways

For the legions of YouTube content creators all competing for attention, the art of attracting more subscribers often feels complicated and mysterious. Successful accounts usually make great videos, but quality alone is rarely enough to reach influencer status.

In this article, we take a look at ten proven and practical ways to get more subscribers on YouTube. Want to buy cheap subscribers and become famous? Read on to find out how to make it happen.

Ask & Receive

One thing that most successful videos do? They ask their viewers to subscribe. You may notice that a lot of your content receives more likes, comments, and views than it does new subscribers. Mysterious? Not necessarily.

Keep in mind that about 5 billion YouTube views take place every day—enough to cover more than half the planet.

The people behind these views are often in channel surfer mode, moving from one video to the next without giving the process much thought. You can get their attention simply by asking them to subscribe at the end of your videos. If they liked your content, this might work!

Take the Marvel Approach

End credit scenes have become a staple of the Marvel Universe, training the audience to sit through endless credits to get a few precious seconds of “secret” content. Your videos won’t have the benefit of a billion-dollar budget and a cast of Hollywood heartthrobs, but they can build anticipation in much the same way.

As you end your video, take a moment to tease what is coming next. This could mean sharing compelling views seconds or even declaring your intention to make new content. Just remember that presentation matters. Your tease needs to be clear enough to hook your audience.

Keep A Community-Driven Mind Set

Another great, though gradual, way to foster a list of subscribers is to interact with your audience. Respond to comments. Be funny, be civil, be present. Not only will a channel with communal aspects draw new subscribers in, but it will also keep your original roster of subscribers thriving.

About 500 hours of content is uploaded to YouTube every minute. You can make sure yours stands out by offering more than just “another video.” People may come for the cat video, but they will stay for the fellowship.

Be Bingeable

For many people, getting on to YouTube isn’t about watching just one video, but many. If your channel is a one-hit-wonder, featuring the occasional good upload but nothing that ties all of the videos together, you may struggle.

Think not just about individual uploads but about playlists, and you might do much better. For example, if you run a cooking channel, you might include a video about beating egg whites into stiff peaks. You might then follow that video on a playlist with another video that contains stiff egg whites in the recipe. Next might be a good dish or dessert.

Good playlists follow a logical pattern that keeps the audience watching.

Arrange Your Content Intelligently

Oddly, the majority of web viewers spend most of their time looking at the left-hand side of the screen. While there is no obvious explanation for why this is, it does serve as a helpful way for you to maximize the effectiveness of your channel layout.

As you arrange your videos on your YouTube homepage, think about ordering your content in such a way that the most compelling uploads are the easiest for potential viewers to spot. Unable to distinguish in such a way? No problem. Your existing audience already has. Make your most popular videos as viewer-facing as possible, and you’ll draw more people in.

Time Your Uploads

Did you know that most people are on the internet in the mornings and afternoons? The pattern likely mimics (at least to an extent) the typical school and work hours, showing that people gravitate towards YouTube during their time off.

Whatever the reason, timing your uploads to make them sync up with when people are most likely to be at their screens will help your content reach a broader audience. To this end, YouTube analytics maybe your best friend. Averages are great, but analytic software can offer a much more precise idea of when people tend to view your content.

Be Regular

The Simpsons wouldn’t be going on its thirtieth season if no one ever knew what time it would be on. Can you imagine a television show airing on Tuesday night one week, Friday morning the next, followed by Saturday around noon? No one would ever know when to park themselves on the couch, and the show would fail.

The same can be said of YouTube. While streaming is obviously a little different than watching network television, the fact remains that if people don’t know when your content will be uploaded, they will probably stop paying attention eventually. Being consistent with your uploads makes it much easier for subscribers and potential subscribers alike to find your stuff.

Networking

If you’re like most content creators, you probably have not just a YouTube account but also memberships with all of the major social media platforms. It’s essential to use those other accounts to draw traffic to your videos.

Fire off a tweet every time a new video goes live. Interact with your fans, post regularly, and make yourself accessible. The more visible you are online, the more views, and eventually, subscribers, you will get.

Tags

YouTube, like all social media, thrives on tags and descriptions. The words you choose to accompany your uploads will have a considerable influence both on who finds your content and on what they think of it when it comes to their attention. Be mindful, be clever, be accurate in how you represent your uploads—tags matter.

Buy Subscribers

Last but not least, buy some subscribers. While paying for your audience is somewhat taboo in the internet world, it’s actually a highly effective marketing technique that many content creators take advantage of.

Buying from responsible vendors is a safe and dependable way to maximize the value of your channel in the eyes of the YouTube algorithm.

Remember that YouTube prioritizes showcasing content that already has the appearance of being famous. By purchasing subscribers, you make sure your content gets seen by real potential subscribers.

You also just make your content more appealing to your potential audience.

If there are two similar channels out there, most people are going to choose the one that has the most subscribers. By purchasing some, you ensure that this will be you.

Making a Career Out of a Hobby in Engineering

Engineering is one of the areas in your life that you really enjoy. Taking on new projects, getting them working, and then getting them operating as they should is what you are passionate about. For as long as you can remember, you have been passionate and interested in engineering, but have you ever thought seriously about turning it into a career? Engineering careers, whether in the consumer sector or in the B2B sector, are highly sought-after roles. Getting qualified and developing your skills along the way is important to make the transition from hobby to career, but what else should you be thinking about?

Turning Your Passion into a Career

When you turn your passion, or your hobby, into a career, it can feel fantastic, but it can also feel like a time that is filled with self-doubt and worry. Worrying that you have the right skills and knowledge base to carry out projects and ensuring that you see projects through are probably two of your main concerns right now. When engineering is a hobby, you have no real-time limits or pressures to perform. You have your free time to fiddle and change bits of a new machine or piece of equipment you are working on. You also don’t have to worry about having the right skills or knowledge as nobody is judging you or even watching over you, so if you make a mistake, then you don’t need to worry, as who is there?

However, when you turn your passion into a career, you have a new set of worries and concerns. Of course, over time, these will disappear, but, to begin with, they can feel all-consuming. So, just how can you make the transition from hobby to career as easy as possible? Well, to begin with, you need to remember your passion at the heart of everything you do. Yes, your engineer feats will be judged, and, yes, you will have time pressures and deadlines to adhere to. However, if you maintain your passion through every project you undertake, you will make the transition from hobby to career success and relatively easy. Removing unnecessary pressure and stress will be beneficial to you, and it will ensure that you still remain passionate about every project you undertake.

Going About Things the Right Way

Just like when you start a new project or test, there is a right way to go about things and an incorrect way to go. When you start out on the road to a career in engineering, it is crucial that you go the right way. The right way involves gaining more experience, and it also involves studying and getting qualified. Yes, you might have been working on projects and plans since you were little, but as good as being self-taught is, it is not always what future or potential employers want from you. When you commit to studying an engineering degree, you learn new ways to begin and undertake projects, and you also learn about industry standards.

If you do not commit to getting a formal education, then you may struggle to land and even secure a job in engineering, simply because there are industry standards that need following, and if testing, production or manufacturing, veers off from these industry standards, results could be different, and your employees or the ones who have commissioned your project could be left in a difficult position, especially if you have not followed the correct procedures and rules. Going about things the right way or in the correct manner may feel different for you, but if you commit to studying and you commit to learning in a structured environment, then you should have no trouble adapting your styles and ways of working.

Studying and Getting Qualified

When it comes to studying and getting suitably qualified, it is important to weigh up all of your options. You need to begin by looking at reputable and respected universities, and then you need to establish just what you would like to get qualified in and why? Choosing the right educational institute or university is crucial. You want to ensure that you are getting an education that is valued and also respected. A university with an outstanding reputation and one that provides flexible learning opportunities would be the best route for you to take. As where you study is just as important as what you study, it is of paramount importance that you take your time to choose the correct establishment for you and your requirements. Weighing up the pros and cons for a select number of universities will allow you to narrow down your list significantly.

Just as you have taken a methodical approach to choose a university, it is also crucial that you take a methodical approach in establishing what you want to study. So, what area of engineering are you looking to be part of when you finish studying? Do you want to be within the developing stage, or would you prefer to be in the operations department? For example, if you want to be in the operations department or area, then you will need to study a suitable degree, such as an operations management degree because this will provide you with all of the information, and knowledge you need to carry out the role successful. If you do not study for a degree that is related or even relatable to what you want to do, then you will struggle to land the job you want, and you will struggle to get the satisfaction out of any role you undertake.

Having a Plan of Action

Once you have decided which university you want to study at and you have decided which degree to pursue, you must now formulate a plan of action that will help you get the career you want. Without a plan of action, you may find it difficult to find a job with a company you want, and, as a result, you may have to settle for something less than you deserve. So, to begin with, your plan of action needs to have a timescale. If you are working on an infinite timescale, then you will find that you will never apply yourself as well as you can! So, aim for a 3-4 year timescale, and this way, you have ample time to complete your studies, and you have enough time to start seeking out opportunities.

As well as planning out your studies, you also need to have an action plan for gaining some experience. To gain suitable and relevant experience, you need to get some suitable and valuable work experience. When it comes to finding suitable work experience, it is worth looking both local, and further afield at engineering, and manufacturing businesses. Gaining work experience, even if it is irregular and just a few hours here and there will benefit you and will help you in the long term. Learning how engineering businesses operate and function is crucial so that you can understand how your future role fits into everything that happens, perhaps on a daily or weekly basis.

The Growing Demand for Engineers

Engineering has shortages, and it has demand, and these are unfortunately widespread. As older engineers are retiring, there are not enough suitably qualified or experienced engineers to take over, and this then leads to huge gaps within the workforce. Skills shortages, and shortages within minority groups, such as female engineers, mean that engineers are always in high demand. Building up your experience and your knowledge is crucial because experienced engineers will command more interest, and in return, you will be well remunerated and compensated. As businesses and industries change how they work and how they operate, the demand for engineers will continue to grow.

Due to the demands for engineers, businesses do compete, and they will compete for you once you have the correct qualification and education under your belt. Jumping at the first opportunity that comes your way is often not very beneficial, and this is important to remember, especially in an industry where they are shouting out for new people. Evaluating every opportunity on offer and selecting the right one for you that matches your views and your ways of working is crucial. Remember that being in demand within an industry can, unfortunately, come with its downsides, and one of these can be located. There are opportunities available all across the country and even across the world, but that does not mean that there will be a suitable vacancy available for you near to your preferred location. You may have to travel where the work is, and this is something that you should start planning for and preparing for as soon as possible. Planning and preparation will make it more comfortable and more enjoyable.

Changing Your Mindset

It can be difficult to change your mindset and to change your way of thinking, especially if you have been used to doing things in a certain manner for a period of time. However, when you are approaching new opportunities and you are putting your skillset to use every day, you must ensure that your mindset matches that of the company or business you are working for. If your mindset is different, or if it is not in line with how your employers want to proceed in the future, then you can struggle to hold down a suitable position. A positive mindset, and a mindset that is highly adaptable, is one that you should look at adopting, and although this might be a bit of an alien concept to you right now, you will see just how important a collaborative and cohesive mindset is amongst employees, and employers, especially when undertaking new projects and assignments.

Attributes and Skills of Good Engineers

Of course, all engineers are different, and they are all individuals. However, they all share a lot of attributes and skills which make them good engineers. So, do you share any of these attributes?

  • Creativity - You have to be creative to solve a problem or to put your plans and ideas into action. If you cannot think creatively, then you cannot see a solution or a resolution to a problem, and this could be a sticking point,
  • Positivity – A positive mindset and a positive approach to working are crucial. If you cannot maintain a positive mindset or approach, then you can struggle to get the answers and solutions you need, and you can end up letting your frustrations stop you and even hold you back from achieving what you know you are capable of.
  • Critical Thinking – Thinking quickly and applying critical thinking to those highly stressful times and situations is essential. Being able to think clearly, even in times of pressure and stress will help you solve problems and find a solution quickly.

Don’t panic if you do not have the time to change and tweak how you handle or approach situations, and you have time to adopt the correct mindset.

Seeking Out Opportunities

Now you have evaluated your skills and your attributes, and you have a strong and solid education behind you, it is time now to start seeking out opportunities. Finding new work placements and opportunities can be easy if you adopt the right mindset. When you are starting out and you are looking for new opportunities, you need to be open to working in different locations, and you even need to be open to working on short-term projects to build up experience. Finding opportunities online, approaching companies and businesses offline, and even signing up for job agencies will help you to get work that suits you. You may need to make compromises when you start out, and as you are building up your experience and connections, but if you persist, and if you remain open and flexible, then you should have no trouble in landing a position that suits you and that allows you to turn your passion and hobby into a career.

An Overview of Content Scraping Protection

Do you care about SEO? Then you must protect your content from scrapping. You can lose the competitive advantage and revenues to content scraping. Google can penalize you if they detect that your content is plagiarized. You can incur losses in your website traffic up to 99%. Since content is the primary driver of traffic and sales, protecting it from scrapping and others increases your sales and boost your SEO. Content scraping is carried out by bots called scrappers controlled and commanded by a cybercriminal. Scrapper bots repurpose the scrapped content to malicious actions. These actions include copyright violation, duplicating the content to an attacker’s website, and stealing organic traffic. To understand how to protect yourself from scrapping, let us first understand how the bots scrape content.

How is content scrapped?

A scrapper bot sends a sequence of HTTP GET requests to a web server. It then copies all the information sent in response and saves it. It repeatedly does this until all the content has been scrapped.

Scrappers can use JavaScript to download gated content or fill out every form on a website. The automation in browser programs and APIs allow the automated bots to interact with online infrastructures as they apply the traditional web browser techniques. They effectively trick the computer into thinking that the user accessing the content is a human.

The last way that content may be scrapped is by the actual user. They can decide to go through all your content and copy what they find useful or everything within a website. Unlike bots that do this in a matter of seconds, human beings can take days or hours exposing themselves to the risk of detection.

Why do scrappers steal your content?

There are various motives that an attacker may have to scrape your website content. The baseline is that scrappers can monetize your content or generate more traffic to them. Below are the main reasons for content scraping?

To generate leads

When an attacker is part of a small community and wants to seem like leaders in their field, they result in scrapping related content. When you search for an established company, you end up on their site because they have scrapped its content. This is called lead generation. It is common in legal practice and upcoming businesses.

Advertising revenue

Other people may have good intentions, like creating a knowledge hub—a one-stop place for users in a specific field. When you catch them in action, the reply is that they were doing it for the good of the community.

Commissions from affiliate marketing

Some other attackers use your content to make a few extra dollars through affiliate marketing. They combine the scrapped content with driving search engine traffic to their websites. These websites are usually used to promote certain products.

Techniques for content scraping protection

Content is at the heart of any online business. Therefore, you need to take proper care. By adopting measures to protect the content, you protect your business from the related risks and defend the reputation of your brand. When scraped, they post your content elsewhere. Among the other ways, Really Simple Syndication (RSS) is the most commonly used scrapping method. With all the risks and disadvantages of content scrapping in mind, you must take adequate measures to protect your website. Below are some of such measures.

Limiting the access to a post

Many websites allow uninhibited access to articles and website posts to ensure that society is well informed. Unfortunately, the scrapping bots and attackers take this opportunity to scrape the data. By allowing access to only a few lines or paragraphs, you ensure the attacker has bits of information that they cannot use. This frustrates them as attackers as they cannot use your quality content. To access the rest of the content, you can ask a user to create an account and log in or subscribe by paying cash. These methods will help identify if the user is a bot or an actual human being while protecting your content from scrappers. If it is a bot, they will not pay the cash but may create the account and log in. Therefore, it is advisable to implement the two measures together.

Protection by using the CAPTCHA

A CAPTCHA is a Turing test designed to tell between humans and bots. They are easy enough that any average human can answer while remaining complicated for the other computers and computer programs like bots to fill. A CAPTCHA can help you protect content scrapping by blocking the suspicious bot areas. They come in various forms, including invisible CAPTCHA, confident CAPTCHA, math problems, entering the characters on the screen, honeypot CAPTCHA, among other CAPTCHA solutions. While security researchers hint they are ineffective in protecting your content from malicious bot actions, they also advise that it is better to have them installed. The only limitation of various CAPTCHA implementations is that they influence a user’s experience negatively.

Protection through traffic monitoring

Through monitoring traffic, you can ensure that all the traffic comes from legitimate sources. If any originates from a suspicious source, you can take measures to investigate and eradicate them. Besides helping you protect your content from scrapping, traffic monitoring helps identify other issues that may pose a threat to your content. They include a denial of service, account takeovers, and scalping. In this method, you can identify the sources and block them. These block any further encroachment of your content by these scrappers.

Adding links to your content

To save your content from scrapers, you can add links within it. This is an easier way to protect your content. When a scrapper copies the content, they leave the links intact. While this protects it, linking the keywords makes your content more engaging to the users. Plugins that enable customizations in RSS feeds, and HTML codes can accomplish this. This ensures that when the attacker posts your content on their website, users get redirected to your site when they click the content and keywords.

Rate limiting

Bots browse the web pages incredibly fast. Because they have to complete the actions first before they are detected, they leverage speed as one option to remain invisible.

Therefore, they can access over 50 pages in seconds. The number of incoming requests when such an activity is detected can help protect your content from scrapping. Besides scrapping protection, limiting the access rates can also prevent a more DDoS attack.

Protecting your content using a bot management solution

Because the attackers use modern techniques when developing the scrapping bots, you also have to match the response by bringing the big guns. Bot management solutions are sophisticated modern utilities that also use modern methods to ensure the safety of your content from bot activities. They differentiate the legitimate bot from a malicious one and take measures to ensure your website, mobile application, or API’s security is fortified. Such solutions like DataDome analyze every request to an API, website, or Mobile application for various bot activities in real-time. When they detect a threat, they use all measures to protect and safeguard the integrity of your content. Besides content scrapping protection, DataDome protects you from other OWASP Automated Threats (OAT).

Other measures include; setting Google alerts when a person tries to copy your content, embedding the content into a media and regularly changing the HTML markup.

Conclusion

Bot developers devise new ways and tricks to develop stealthy bots that are more efficient daily. Therefore, the risks associated with bot activity will not go away in a jiffy. It is for this reason that you need to put mechanisms to protect your content from scrapping. Though no one technique guarantees 100% safety, using a bot solution like DataDome gives better results because it is a real-time tool for bot management.

Skills & Attributes Needed In Engineering

If you are planning on a career as an engineer, it is important that you are aware of the various skills and attributes that employers look for. This is a terrific field to work in with highly rewarding and valuable work, high earning potential, and great job opportunities, but this is also one of the more challenging industries to crack, and there are many skills and attributes that are required. These are skills and attributes that can be developed, though, so if you lack in any, then you should be able to find ways to develop and improve. Read on to discover the skills and attributes that employers are looking for in engineering.

Hard Skills

Obviously, hard skills are essential in a field that is so technical. The hard skills that you need will depend on the field of engineering that you are entering but could include skills such as:

  • Programming
  • Computer science
  • Statistics
  • Structural analysis
  • Data modeling
  • System design and analysis

These are hard skills that you can learn in school or teach yourself. These are hard skills that need to be strong skills, so you need to really focus on these areas and ensure that you have a high level of knowledge when looking to enter the field.

Problem-Solving

Engineering is, essentially, problem-solving, so it is vital that you are able to assess situations, determine problems and find the best solutions. There are many issues and problems that can arise during a project, so employers will want to see that you are able to solve problems effectively and efficiently. You can develop your critical thinking skills to become a better problem-solver and find the best solutions to issues that you might face.

Teamwork

Engineering is all about teamwork, so you need to be able to work with others and understand the importance of playing your role. Engineers rarely work alone, and you will usually be working with colleagues and other professionals, so it is important that you are a team player and a strong communicator in order to find success and to stand out to employers.

Communication Skills

Leading on from this, engineers need to have strong communication skills, and this is sometimes an overlooked aspect. Having hard skills is vital, but you will not get very far if you are not a good communicator as you will constantly be talking to people throughout the day. You need to be able to listen to the needs of the client, clearly present your ideas, work as part of a team and also be capable of leading on projects.

Additionally, having good communication skills will help you to develop a positive reputation and form strong relationships. As with any industry, this is crucial for getting ahead and finding new opportunities. It is true that some people are better communicators than others, but it is possible to improve your communication skills with research and practice, and this should improve your life in many ways.

Project Management

You also need to be able to manage projects if you want to rise to leadership positions in engineering. This will involve managing teams and integrating external professionals while delivering projects on time and within the pre-agreed budget. Project management is a difficult skill to master, which is why many aspiring engineers find it useful to take project management training. For engineers, Six Sigma training is popular and will help to develop the project management skills that you need to find success in engineering.

Innovation

In order to find success in engineering, you need to be innovative and creative. Engineering is always about improving and making things better, so you need to be able to innovate and use creativity to constantly be improving and coming up with the best solutions. In order to be innovative, you need to think outside of the box, stay current with technology, continue to learn, and constantly push yourself to think bigger.

Attention To Detail

Engineers need to be able to see the big picture and be innovative, but you also need to have excellent attention to detail. It is often the small things that matter in engineering, as a slight miscalculation can cause the whole project to fail, and this could even cost lives. This is why you need to be meticulous in your work and take pride in your attention to detail. In order to be meticulous in your work, you need to have high concentration levels and be able to focus intensely. This also means that you need to know how to disconnect from work, recharge your batteries and unwind so that you can give it your all each day.

Engineering Management

If you have aspirations of climbing the ladder and rising to leadership positions, you need to have specialist engineering and management skills that will help you to lead teams, deliver projects and run a profitable business. You can get a master's in engineering management at established schools like the University of Ottawa, and this will teach you all that you need to know to excel in engineering management. You will learn about key aspects such as budgeting and finance, people management, leadership, product innovation management, AI-driven decision making, and operations management, just as a few examples.

You can also earn a masters in engineering management entirely online. This can make it easier for people to fit into their lifestyle and allows you to start using what you learn straight away to stand out and start to climb the ladders.

Committed

Engineering does not work that you can succeed with if you are not committed. With engineering projects, you may have to spend long periods of time away from home and be on call 24/7, so it will inevitably have a big impact on your lifestyle. This means that you need to be committed to the cause and willing to put your job first. Working as an engineer will have an impact on your personal life, but it is also working that is hugely rewarding and can be lucrative, so this is something that you will need to weigh up. While it can be demanding, you may also benefit from quieter periods where you can spend much more time at home and with loved ones too.

Resilience

Another part of the job that you need to be prepared for is setbacks. When you are working on a major project with lots of moving parts, it is inevitable that there will be setbacks along the way. This can be incredibly frustrating, so you need to be resilient in order to not allow these setbacks to put you off and so that you can simply continue working and find the best solution to keep the project moving forwards at all times.

Pressure-Management

Leading on from this, you also need to be able to handle pressure and be able to work to a high standard in stressful situations. Working on large projects involving lots of money and tight deadlines creates tense working conditions, and you will have people breathing down your neck, so you need to be able to handle this and prove yourself to be reliable under stress. This is something that is developed with experience, but you can also develop your abilities to work under pressure by improving your work ethic, setting yourself targets, and breaking tasks down into smaller tasks.

Commitment To Learning

Even with a master’s in engineering management, there is still a lot to learn, and you need to be committed to learning in order to find success as an engineer. This is because this is a field that is constantly going through change, so you need to be able to stay current and up to date with the latest trends and technological developments. You can do this by attending industry events, networking, reading publications, taking further courses, engineering blogs and podcasts, and research.

Positive Mindset

Finally, you will need a positive mindset if you want to be an engineer. You will be facing a lot of negativity in your work with setbacks, stressful working conditions, and tight deadlines, so you need to be able to maintain a positive mindset and this is something that employers will always be looking for. Those with a positive mindset will be able to stay motivated, work to a high standard each day and help to lift the overall atmosphere. Crucially, to have a positive mindset, you need to be able to lead a healthy lifestyle, switch off after work and find ways to enjoy yourself. Having a positive mindset also requires being in the right job, so if you find that you are not happy in your work, then you may want to consider a change.

These are the main skills and attributes that are needed to find success in engineering. If you do not possess these, they can be developed, and it is worth the effort as this will help you to stand out to employers and find work.

How to Avoid WordPress Security Issues

If you own a WordPress website, you probably understand the importance of WordPress security. Keeping your website secure is necessary as it helps keep attackers and hackers away. Just like you would not leave your valuable assets exposed to thieves, you should safeguard your WordPress with the same security level.

Essentially, WordPress developers are constantly working towards preventing any potential hacking. But that's not enough to keep your website secure. You need to apply other measures to safeguard your site.

In this article, we will discuss ways of improving your WordPress website security;

Add WordPress security plugins 

Security is key in running a website. There are various plugins to enhance your site security. These include Wordfence, Shield Security, iThemes, and Sucuri. WordPress security plugins have a lot of features to meet your security needs. These are features such as WordPress firewall, File changelogs, strong password generator, IP and User blacklisting, Force password to expire, and more.

Scan your site for malware 

If you've started experiencing low traffic in your website or you are dealing with weird performance issues, or you can detect suspicious behavior, you should check your website for malware.  It is recommended that you do a malware scan regularly, even if everything seems fine.

Keep in mind that some hacks breach your data anonymously. So, you may not even know that malicious activity is happening until extreme damage is done. It may reach the extent of Google pulling down your site from the search results due to security issues. You might even get blacklisted and suffer a huge loss. This explains why it's crucial to scan the website for malware often.

Pick a reliable hosting provider 

Server security is crucial as it helps protect your website from malware and hackers. So, it's essential that you pick a reliable hosting provider who understands website security's importance. The best company understands many things concerning WordPress security. They also have safety systems and offer prompt and dependable support in case anything unexpected happens. A good hosting provider offers the following;

  • Server-level firewalls
  • DDoS protection
  • Malware scanning
  • Backups
  • Latest OS (Operating System), hardware and software, and more.

Secure your website with superb credentials 

Hackers apply hacking techniques such as Brute force attacks because they are easy to implement. Anyone with little tech knowledge can execute a brute force attack with basic hacking tools. Other than that, executing a Brute force attack is effortless since most website owners use extremely weak admin passwords. For instance, most people love to use passwords such as '12345….' Among others that are easy to guess. This makes your website prone to attack. So, having a strong credential is a plus as it will secure your WordPress site from brute force attacks. A good password has characters such as &%$" £ and more.

Update your Themes, Plugins, and WP

WordPress websites release frequent updates with new features, enhancements, bug fixes, and security patches. The updates also enhance the feel and look of your website, not to mention that they improve functionality and stability. The updates also help seal website vulnerability.

Use 2-factor authentication 

2-factor authentication is a prominent security technique that helps safeguard online accounts. It's a protection process involving two steps. The first step entails entering your username and password, while the second requires you to provide a verification code sent to your email or phone.

Surprising Technology In Top Mattresses

When you think of the technology that's changed a lot over the past few years, your phone may be the first thing that comes to mind. After that, you might consider your vehicle, laptop, tablet or television. Your mattress is unlikely to be in your list of the top five or even 10 things that use a lot of innovation. However, it's true that new mattresses incorporate a great deal of research and technology. Today's mattresses are entirely different from those made just a decade ago. Here are a few of the types of technology that top mattresses use.

Sleep Research

When mattress manufacturers develop new products, they turn to sleep medicine physicians and sleep science to drive their decisions. New technology for performing sleep studies, tracking movement and monitoring the quantity and quality of sleep is helping mattress companies update their products. New information about sleep habits, cycles and quality ensures that the mattress you get will help you fall asleep and stay asleep. The right mattress also helps ensure that you wake up feeling well-rested.

Coils

Coils in mattresses aren't a new thing. They became common in the early 1900s. Over the past 100 years, the coils have changed. They're separated and enclosed. Some mattress manufacturers are even using nanotechnology. Today's coil mattresses are more complicated than those that were produced 10 years ago. When you choose a coil mattress today, you can expect motion isolation, more support and less noise when you move. The coil, like the rest of the mattress, really comes into its own when it's paired with other components.

Copper Infusion

Why would you want a copper-infused mattress, and what could possibly be the advantage? Well, copper has several sleeping advantages, such as breathability. It's no secret that many individuals (especially those who reside in hot climates) have difficulty sleeping because their mattresses can't keep up with the amount of air required to remove heat from the body. A layer consisting of a copper infusion will make heat transfer easier and manage your body temperature while you sleep, allowing you to rest like a baby all night long. Ideal for battling sleep sweats.

Organic Materials

A growing proportion of people are concerned about the chemicals to which they are exposed. Customers want mattresses that don't have as many chemicals. When an item releases chemicals, it's called off-gassing. Organic mattresses don't off-gas. Some mattresses are certified by independent organizations. The certifications include free of volatile organic compounds and 100% organic.

For example, the OEKO TEX Standard 100 Certification is for mattresses that contain no harmful chemicals. Mattresses with this certification don't off-gas. Some mattresses are made of soybeans, and others use recycled wool and cotton. Choosing an environmentally friendly mattress will help you feel confident that you're doing your part to protect the environment and conserve natural resources.

Sleep Sensor Technology

Have you ever questioned how good of a night's sleep you were getting? Many people ask for sleep studies to assess their average nightly sleep quality and quantity, but some mattresses now come with sleep sensor technology that can provide the same data without requiring you to depart from home. The breathing, heart rate, and the number of times you get out of bed are all tracked by these mattresses. Advanced beds with this technology can accurately tell you how many hours of excellent sleep you received on any particular night.

Mattress Covers

While a mattress cover is technically separate from a mattress, it is an important part of your bedding. The mattress covers protect the mattress. They keep shed skin cells, sweat and oils out of the mattress's fabric. Mattress covers prevent dust mites from infesting your bed. If you're allergic to dust or dust mites, a mattress protector is essential. Mattress covers also reduce stains caused by sweating. Your mattress will last longer and smell better if you get a cover for it.

Bamboo is one of the softest fabrics that exist. It's also a good insulator and highly breathable. A bamboo mattress cover will keep your bed clean and comfortable. The fibers in a bamboo mattress are woven to prevent tearing, even with repeated washing or use of an iron on it.

Foam Materials

Foam is a relative newcomer to mattresses. However, memory foam mattresses have become increasingly popular in the last two decades, accounting for around 20% of all beds sold.

There are different types of foams used in today's mattresses. You may prefer a plant-based foam for environmental and health reasons. There are also synthetic foams, which may be a good option if you have certain allergies. Keep in mind that foam traps heat. If you get hot while you sleep, be sure to pick a mattress that has a gel layer on top of the foam layer. The gel moves heat away from your body. The result is a more even temperature across your skin and the surface of your bed.

Ikea recently introduced a new memory foam mattress to the market that includes cooling gels and graphite. It has been met with both overwhelmingly positive reviews as well as concerns from consumers who have experienced issues with it.

Air/Number

Air/number technology is also a newer innovation. This technology allows you to control how firm your mattress is. With a remote or an app, you adjust how much air fills the spaces of the foam. More air results in a firmer bed. Large air/number mattresses allow each side of the bed to be set to a different firmness level. Choose this option if you have a sleep partner whose mattress firmness preferences are different from yours. An air/number mattress is also an excellent choice if you have a chronic pain condition that periodically flares, such as arthritis.

New technology will continue to advance mattresses. Each mattress manufacturer is incorporating this information and changing its materials, construction and techniques in order to improve upon its products. You benefit from this technology-driven innovation. The use of technology in mattress development will continue, and consumer demand for more features will hasten the pace of these beneficial changes. Choosing one of these new mattresses may help you sleep better and feel relaxed, rested and energetic when you wake up in the morning.

12 Tips to Make Your Beginner Designs Stand Out

Graphic design is an exciting field. It may seem daunting as you begin to create your own images, but becoming a graphic designer is just like learning a new language - you start with simple words and phrases and gradually build your way up to more complex topics.

Studying graphic design can be a lot of work, especially if you haven’t had any prior experience in it before. It can be pretty overwhelming at times to handle, but don’t worry - we can ease your load a little bit! With this website, you can hire a professional paper writer to help you! You can get professional 24/7 help with any paper topic at an affordable price - and a free plagiarism report, too! Make sure to check them out and save your precious time for more important tasks!

1. Experiment with fonts

Fonts can make your titles look more prominent, your body text looks bolder, and better still, they can make your images look more immersive! They're tools in a designer's arsenal and should be used creatively rather than strictly for aesthetics.

Fonts are powerful tools in the hands of an effective artist! They can help communicate your ideas constructively and suggest alternatives. A particularly useful typeface can help you make your points clearer and more persuasive, as well as give off an emotion you desire.

2. Go big or go home

When starting out, many beginners make a mistake by getting too focused on the details. This usually leads to something less than stellar. It is easier to create a simple but effective art than a complex but ineffective one.

If you want to become a top visual artist, you need to handle large objects and elements in your art effectively. Sometimes, the most important thing is that you use your eyes and not your brain. Tools like Instagram story viewer can also provide a fresh perspective by helping you analyze how your visuals are received in real-time, offering inspiration for refining your designs.

3. Use contrasting colors

Colors can be used in many ways when it comes to creating. Since color can affect the mood of an image or presence, it’s essential to use colors that will stand out against the background.

A Black and white palette is also an excellent way to communicate a message or emphasize a certain point. Although there are many ways to use colors in art, one very effective way is by contrasting them using different hues. As an example, two different hues can be used in one design to convey entirely different messages!

4. Sketch your ideas

When starting out as a graphic artist, it can be helpful to think that the most powerful tools are pencil and paper. Make a fresh start by drawing with markers and practicing drawing in perspective before moving on to larger, more complex pieces.

Playing around with perspective and shape reminds you that whatever you draw will ultimately be a manifestation of your creative process.

5. Use consistent images

When you’re a beginner, it is easy to get carried away by the many choices available. It is tempting to look through each image type and decide which is the best option. You can do that, of course, but keep one thing in mind - consistency is key in choosing images!

While there are many different types of images available, follow a few simple guidelines when selecting them. Make sure they’re of the similar:

  • Color palette
  • Size
  • Feel
  • Motif
  • Style

6. Be consistent in general

When starting your graphic design, you will need a lot of visual tools. But choosing the best is not so simple. You should try to understand how colors, lines, and shapes work together and try new techniques to get more varied and exciting patterns. Playing around and experimenting is always a way to go!

But keep one thing in mind - try to be as consistent as possible. That doesn’t mean not having variety; it means giving structure to your work.

Summary? Be consistent with your fonts, images, paragraphs, and overall style!

7. Use symmetry and balance

For a graphic artist, the difference between good art and great art can often be found in the subtlety of a line or the balance between colors and letters. Symmetry refers to how similar two elements are in shape, size, and color, and balance indicates that different parts of an object or image are in harmony with each other.

Implementing both in your artistry is essential - they give off a professional vibe. And not to mention, humans are wired to love symmetry; use it to your advantage!

8. Get inspired by the best designers out there

Graphic design is an ever-changing field that offers endless opportunities for those willing to put in the hard work. Each new designer presents their own style, method, and inspiration!

Learning from them will allow you to follow their lead as they break new ground in their own unique way. As you become more experienced and gain knowledge about the industry, you’ll become an artist others will look up to!

9. Implement shadows

Shade and light are an essential part of any art. They help direct the viewers’ attention where you need it to be. They also play an important role in gradients, color palettes, and texture.

Shadows are one of those magic features of light that can make your pictures look much more vivid. They help draw your eye from one part of the picture to another and create a sense of depth and atmosphere. They add dimension and clarity without adding much bulk or distracting from the main composition. Learn how to use them effectively and see the difference for yourself.

10. Start with a flat design

It may not be what you wanted initially, but once you get used to it, you'll find its strength is in its simplicity. It's always been easier for artists to get started with flat design because there are fewer rules to follow. You can still create beautiful things, but you need to think more logically and strategically to do them well!

Before choosing your first program, it’s a good idea to learn about flat design. Flat is easy to follow and understand - since there are no complicated rules or guidelines to follow, it can be a great way to gain confidence in your artistic abilities!

11. Keep it simple

The most powerful graphic design beginner tips are all about keeping things simple. Ensure that the colors you use are complementary, that the shapes are consistent, and that all the elements in your art fit together seamlessly.

The more complicated an artwork becomes, the harder it is to make and relate to it. With too many options, it's easy to get distracted - so choose one basic graphic design technique in a project and try to stick with it! Keep adding details only when they’re more than necessary, and make sure those details really do make a difference.

12. Practice, practice, practice!

Learn by doing. When you practice a skill, you become better at it. Even if you don’t have formal art training, you can go and practice on your own! See how many resources are available to help you learn more about graphic design and keep growing!

Becoming a master designer takes time and practice. Arm yourself with patience and persistence - they’ll lead you to places you’ve never been before!

The wrap-up

Graphic design is the art and science of visual communication. Always looking to push the boundaries of what is possible, graphic designers create visuals to engage with their audience. Their work expresses their ideas through form and color, and their goal is to communicate something through their work that has not been said before.

If you’re a beginner designer, realize that the world is patiently waiting for you! By implementing some of these steps, you’ll be recognized as a successful, brilliant artist, others will look up to with admiration!

How to Become a Licensed Residential Architect?

Designing homes and landscapes is a dream job for many individuals, but the challenges of becoming a licensed architect often stand in the way of this dream. To become a licensed architect, you’ll need to be willing to put in a lot of hard work throughout the education and apprenticeship stages of certification and study extensively for the ARE accreditation exam. Once certified, many individuals choose to work for a residential architectural firm to design custom homes and assist with planning remodeling projects.

There are many education and experience requirements involved with qualifying for the ARE exam and becoming a residential architect. In this article, we’ll go over the details for each of these requirements and answer some of your questions regarding this profession. To successfully complete these requirements and receive accreditation, prospective architects will need dedication, attention to detail, and advanced problem-solving skills.

What Does a Residential Architect Do?

A residential architect plans and designs buildings that will serve as residences. The assistance of a residential architect is a necessity for building new homes, condominiums, and apartment buildings. Individuals interested in custom homes will often consult with a residential architect directly, to discuss how their new space will accommodate their needs and lifestyle.  However, the property owner or construction company will reach out to or directly hire a residential architect for many projects. Most residential architects work with a team in a firm or dedicated office within a construction company.

What Level of Salary is Available as an Architect?

Becoming a licensed architect requires many years of experience and education, which means architects are generally in frequent demand. According to learn.org, the median salary for residential architects is approximately $80,000 a year. This salary varies based on the hiring company and the type of consultation for which the architect is available. Many architects are self-employed therefore will have a fluctuating yearly income.

What Skills Do I Need To Work as an Architect?

Drawing and CADD (Computer-Aided Drawing and Drafting) are essential technical skills for working as an architect. However, a considerable portion of this career lies away from the drafting table. Meeting with clients and project managers is essential throughout the lifespan of a project and so requires strong interpersonal and communication skills. Many architects also spend a great deal of time traveling to project sites and overseeing construction or meeting with vendors.

Education Requirements

Beginning a career in architecture requires completing a bachelor’s or master’s degree in architecture accredited by the NAAB (National Architectural Accrediting Board). There are many degree programs available through liberal arts and design schools that are notably not accredited- it’s important to check in with the university or school to ask about their accreditation beforehand. The educational institution hosting the degree must maintain its NAAB certification throughout the duration of your studies.

Accredited bachelor’s degree programs typically span five years and cover all aspects of project management, environmental planning, and design technology. Throughout these programs, students will assemble portfolios and present projects for professional review to showcase their work. Architecture master’s degree programs cover many of the same topics as the bachelor’s degree and work well for students who picked a different undergraduate major. However, many architecture bachelor’s degree students will choose to take on the master’s degree in addition to their prior education.

Students wishing to proceed with a career in architecture will ultimately need to complete either the accredited bachelor’s degree program or the accredited master’s degree program. Doctorate-level studies are available but focus more on the academic field associated with architecture rather than the licensing process.

Experience Requirements

After completing the educational requirements associated with becoming a licensed architect, you’ll need to gather architectural experience through NCARB (National Council of Architectural Registration Boards). The NCARB organizes a program called the AXP, which stands for Architectural Experience Program.

The AXP targets a number of specific proficiencies (96, to be exact) and requires a total of 3,740 hours across all disciplines. The experience component of earning your architectural license will take, at a minimum, around two years. Previously, this hours requirement was much higher- 5,600 hours were required through the IDP (Intern Development Program), which typically needed an extra year or two of work to complete.

Architects will need to log their hours for the experience component according to specific AXP guidelines. Non-licensed architects can bypass part of this component with a portfolio displaying architectural competencies across the 96 AXP task areas. You can read more about AXP guidelines here. The experience required for an architectural license is essentially an apprenticeship or internship that will give candidates a look into how architectural firms and offices operate.

Exam Requirements

Once a licensed architect candidate has completed an accredited education program and the AXP experience requirements, they will be eligible to take the ARE (Architect Registration Examination). The exam is divided into six parts, each of which focuses on a specific architectural discipline. These exam portions are as follows: Practice Management, Project Management, Programming and Analysis, Project Planning and Design, Project Development and Documentation, and Construction and Evaluation.

Prospective candidates for licensure will need to study extensively for several months before the exam, which typically occurs in the fall. Many architects will need to take the exam several times, though it is important to know that each full exam attempt currently costs around $1500. Examination is the final step in becoming an officially licensed architect. You will need to renew your license every few years, though you won’t need to take the ARE again once you’ve passed.

Conclusion

Becoming a licensed architect requires many years of hard work and determination but can lead to a fulfilling career with many opportunities to build residential and commercial spaces. The residential architecture field is growing steadily as many cities and urban areas expand to accommodate a growing population. To learn more about this field of work, speak with an experienced residential architect today and ask about their journey towards designing homes and commercial spaces.

Do You Need a Dedicated Server? 

If you’re hosting a website, eCommerce business, or even just the latest online game with your friends, you know that performance, reliability, and security matter. To take your web hosting to the next level, consider what a dedicated server could do for you. With full access to your own web server, you’ll have more control and better performance from your hosting service. What’s not to love about that?

But how do you know when you really need a dedicated server? Many smaller websites can perform just fine without one, but for larger sites and businesses, the benefits quickly become apparent. Here, we’re taking a closer look at dedicated servers and what they can offer for your online experience. We provide some key information about dedicated servers to help you determine if you need one for your hosting.

What is a Dedicated Server?

If you’ve just started a website or an eCommerce company, you probably went with a cheaper web hosting option. This just makes sense. For smaller websites and online businesses, you most likely don’t need the power and capabilities of a dedicated server or the more costly hosting options out there. However, as your site grows in terms of traffic, bandwidth, and storage requirements, you may find that your previous hosting methods simply aren’t cutting it anymore for what you need.

This is when you should look into a dedicated server. When you’re hosted from a dedicated server, this essentially means that you have an entire server to yourself, enabling you to take advantage of the server’s full capacities and power. At this point, some might opt for a virtual private server (VPS). A VPS is still an upgrade from a shared server, but it doesn’t give you your own server. Rather, a VPS provides you exclusive space on a server that may still be shared with other web owners. While this option may come at a cheaper cost, it simply can’t match the benefits, security, and full capability of having your own dedicated server.

Benefits of a Dedicated Server

In comparison to traditional hosting options, there are quite a few benefits to hosting your site, eCommerce business, or online gaming experience from a dedicated server. Here’s a look at some of the top benefits that might convince you that you need to make the upgrade to a dedicated server.

  1. Exclusive server usage: when you really break it down, do any of us want to share our server capabilities? Exclusive server access is one of the primary benefits of using a dedicated server for your hosting needs. You’ll receive all the disk space, bandwidth, RAM, and storage for your website and hosting needs. A dedicated server also offers root access. This can be incredibly important because it allows you to configure specific settings and add or remove access for other users. If you want complete control over your web hosting, a dedicated server is a way to achieve this.
  2. Better security: especially true for those hosting an eCommerce site, web security is critical to ensure customers will shop with you again. With web hacking on the rise, the security of your site needs to be a top priority to protect yourself and the personal information of your customers. The infrastructure of a dedicated server incorporates 24/7 web monitoring and firewalls so that you can rest easy knowing your data and information are secure. Dedicated servers also offer an unmatched level of customization so that you can find the security measures you need.
  3. Better performance: when it comes to web hosting, you shouldn’t ever have to sacrifice performance. Even if you’re just online gaming with friends, slow load times and lag can quickly ruin your favorite game and your entire online experience. For eCommerce companies, poor performance translates to fewer sales. Dedicated servers provide access to the best performance in the industry with unmatched RAM, memory, and faster page loading speeds. Take your web hosting to the next level with the power of a dedicated server.
  4. Reliable web hosting: whether you’re hosting a website or an online game, there’s nothing worse than a sudden server crash. A server crash can keep your site down for an extended period of time, and if this becomes a frequent occurrence, hurt the overall reputation of your site and your business. Reliability is one of the most important benefits of using a dedicated server. With a dedicated server at your disposal, crashes become far less likely, and with additional resources available for your hosting needs, the server will perform even during times of high traffic. More bandwidth also gives you more capabilities to expand the potential of your online gameplay and your site.

Do you need a Dedicated Server?

While the benefits of a dedicated server are quite clear by now, this doesn’t mean this technology is necessary for everyone. A dedicated server, as expected, comes with higher costs, which means that you may not want to make this upgrade unless you actually need it. But as your website or eCommerce business grows, you should also factor in the risks of having a website that fails to perform. In the long run, this could hurt more than the upfront costs of having your own dedicated server.

Conclusion

The right web hosting is essential for the success of any website or eCommerce company. Web hosting is essentially the engine behind your site, providing RAM, memory, speed, and performance for all your users. While shared hosting may work fine for smaller sites, as you grow you may find that you simply need more. If this sounds like your situation, a dedicated server could be the answer for you.

Dedicated servers provide exclusive access to a server for your site or online gaming experience. With better performance, faster loading speed, enhanced security, and customizable options, a dedicated server can transform your hosting experience and take your website to the next level. To make the jump, check out a dedicated server provider today.

Syed Zain Nasir

I am Syed Zain Nasir, the founder of <a href=https://www.TheEngineeringProjects.com/>The Engineering Projects</a> (TEP). I am a programmer since 2009 before that I just search things, make small projects and now I am sharing my knowledge through this platform.I also work as a freelancer and did many projects related to programming and electrical circuitry. <a href=https://plus.google.com/+SyedZainNasir/>My Google Profile+</a>

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Syed Zain Nasir