Rather than writing a custom Particle class and applying forces to them individually (as in my previous particle post), all I need to do is create a ParticleSystem instance, add forces as desired (none in this case), and Traer does the rest.

In this example, I continuously add particles in the center with random velocities, and continuously remove them when they’ve grown old. The particle.age() property also controls the size and transparency of each particle, which is simply an ellipse with a teal-ish fill. The moon is a PNG placed in the center. For a final touch, I use the built-in camera() function to zoom in an out, controlled by a Sine wave.

float force = planet.mass * particle.mass / distanceSquared;

(Thanks Keith Peters!)

Particles are regenerated if they begin shooting off into space. Near the end of the animation, I decrease the center planet’s mass until it becomes negative, changing gravity into repulsion…

These words, penned over 200 years ago in the Declaration of Independence are just as true now as they were then. As sales professionals we sometimes tend to trample on these unalienable rights of our prospects and customers without even knowing.

Ari Galper, a highly acclaimed International Sales Trainer and Coach, and an expert in human communication has discovered that sales professionals need a bold shift in their mindset from traditional sales thinking that creates undue pressure and discomfort for our prospects and clients. This led to the creation of Unlock the Game, a highly successful sales training program.  This new mindset also led Ari to create his own Declaration of Sales Independence.

I would encourage every sales professional out there to place a printed copy of this Declaration in their cubicle, desk area or office. Let’s make a personal promise to the world as sales professionals and demonstrate that Selling is indeed a noble profession.

But the iphone is more than just a phone. It is a tool for effectively and efficiently managing the complex demands that span every facet of our hectic lives. It’s a way of life. That’s right, a culture - the iculture.

At ArcStone, we have embraced the iculture and bask in its glory on a daily basis. Almost half of the employees have iphones and they constantly rave about them.

Nick Longtin, a connoisseur of Indian cuisine once commented, “I love Tandori chicken. I bet you can even Tandori a shoe and it would taste great.” The idea Mr. Longtin is espousing here is that anything (edible or not) preceded by Tandori gives it major credibility. This same analogy carries over to the letter “i.” Placing i in front of mundane words like phone and culture give these words a whole new meaning. To illustrate this concept, let’s delve deeper into the linguistic significance of the letter i.

I  is the ninth letter of the greek alphabet, called iota. As we all know, the word iota in modern English is a noun meaning the smallest amount or part imaginable. It stands to reason that the idea behind the iphone was to enable users to achieve maximum efficiency with the smallest amount of effort.  It is no surprise that then that it combines three products in one: a phone, an ipod and a breakthrough internet device.

In the fast paced society and culture we live in, where time is of the essence, we expect everything microwaved and ready for consumption or use with minimal effort. The iphone helps to achieve this delicate balance between speed and accuracy which results in huge time savings.

The next time you hear the words iphone, iway or iculture remember that it’s an invitation to live life by design and not from crisis to crisis.

Although everyone is on the green bandwagon now, ArcStone is no Johnny-come-lately. We have been striving to lessen our environmental footprint for years, and encouraging customers to do the same.

With Wonderfile we help clients convert paper processes to electronic ones. Clients benefit from increased productivity, safer backups, effortless file sharing, and when a virtual document gets deleted it doesn’t end up in a landfill.

E-Brochure lets customers dump paper mailings for a superior electronic equivalent. Not only does electronic mail save paper (and trees), it does things paper can’t, like tell you how many people actually read your message and followed up on it.

We work with a lot of professional associations, many of which used to offer printed member directories. With AMO members can search the directory on-line and on demand. No more waiting for next years updated version, printing thousands of copies, and shipping them across the country.

To learn more about ArcStone’s role in the green revolution see our other green blog posts and visit ArcStone.com for more information.

(This message was made from 100% post-consumer HTML)

This “flexibility” has been an ongoing experiment. Despite my best intentions and knowing that it benefits everyone from employee to customer – it still occasionally annoys me.

As a manager I frequently need to have short status / update conversations with my fellow ArcStonians. The flexible work schedule sometimes gets in my way and forces me/us to be slower to respond than I would like. I think this is a common feeling for those in management roles over here.

A couple of days ago my frustration level hit a peak and I sent a long, whiney email to the entire office, ranting about needing better communication and consistency so that we can work together more efficiently.

I asked for feedback and help from people and yea, verily yea, I got it.

Over the last few days I’ve been able to reflect, collect, and review the responses from my coworkers. I’ve compiled a partial list below and thought I’d share our efforts with the world. Hopefully they will be of use…

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Not that we weren’t green before, it’s just that our past policy was implicit and somewhat lazy. It’s past time to make it explicit and clear to everyone who works here or comes in contact with us.

So please forgive me for jumping on the green hybrid bandwagon, but it’s truly too important to remain complacent and do nothing. Imagine if every business did this. With enough critical mass, I’m sure we’d make an impact.

It starts with one household and one business at a time. As Lisa (my bride) so eloquently put it yesterday, “Action creates clarity.” We’ll clearly see results only if we act and adjust accordingly.

It’s time to act now - here’s the public unveiling of ArcStone’s First Greenification Agenda…

(I’ve written this in mostly general terms so others can copy and paste and use it themselves - ArcStone is following these guidelines and we will adjust as required and get feedback.)

1. Buy REC Offsets - Determine the amount of energy used within the last year. Here’s a calculator that can be applied for business (most seem to be for households). ArcStone generates approximately 103,000 pounds of CO2 per year. So we purchased RECs - Renewable Energy Credit) to offset our usage. View our certificate.
2. Consciously Consume - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

   Reduce
   - No paper plates, plastic forks, wax paper cups, etc.
   - Buy in bulk when applicable.
   - Favor local products with less packaging purchased from green suppliers.
   - Print only when necessary.

   Reuse
   - Sell and/or donate old office equipment.
   - Reuse draft paper printed on one side - set-up a station for this by each printer.

   Recycle
   - Black personal cans for trash - green for recyclables.
   - If there’s no recycling pick-up where you are - sponsor it (ArcStone is doing it for our building - good PR).
   - Dispose of waste / electronics properly.

3. Conserve Electricity / Gas - Use common sense. Turn on lights only as needed. Plug everything into power strips and turn off power strips when leaving the office. Program the adjustable thermostat, if you don’t have one, install one.
4. Encourage Sensible Commuting - Allow employees to telecommute as sensible. We typically allow non-support staff to telecommute two - three days a week. Encourage car pooling, mass transit, and muscle power alternatives for the work commute - at ArcStone green commuters (at least 3 / 5 day per week green commuting average) get earth day off and other special treats.
5. Meet Virtually with Clients / Vendors when Possible - Subscribe to an online virtual meeting platform and learn it well. We currently use - Adobe’s Acrobat Connect Pro which doesn’t require a software download for meeting guests. We like it.
6. Use Good Cleaning Supplies - Don’t buy cleaners with nasty chemicals - there’s really no reason for it. I like to ahere to the rule - if you can’t pronounce it, don’t buy it.

I consider this a draft of a living document - please feel free to comment and make suggestions….

Click the photo to see the slideshow in action, using recent photos from Montana and Yellowstone, or read on to learn more …

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