Webtalk and SKGnet are proud to support the NES Arnold Art Competition on kids101-art.
So much has happened since the kids101-art Gallery has held it's last art competition. Are you ready to participate in the NES Arnold Art Competition?
We now have over 11,000 original pieces of art displayed in the gallery created by children; and we now display art work from children from all over the world. 
You can recognise your pupils' creative work by entering their artwork into the NES Arnold online competition, simply choose the most relevant category for your class.
Key Stage (including reception), Key Stage 2, Key Stage 3, Key Stage 4
Two prizes will be awarded for each category:
1st Prize - The artwork that receives the most votes in the gallery will be awarded £50 of resources for their classroom
2nd Prize - The artwork that is deemed by the panel of judges to be highly creative will be awarded £25 of resources for their classroom
Certificate - EVERY pupil entered in this competition will be awarded a Certificate of Participation - no one is left out!
You are free to choose the topic and medium (e.g. drawing, painting, sculpture, etc) you would like to use to create your artwork, so it's up to you!
Let everyone in your class be creative; remember the more entries that you submit, the better your class' chance of winning a prize!
How to enter:
Step 1: Visit www.kids101-art.co.uk
Step 2: Click on NES Arnold Competition
Step 3: Click on Entry Form
Step 4: Fill in your details and upload your images
Step 5: View your images online - your images will appear in the gallery after they have been approved (no more than 24 hours after submitted)
Over the past few months, I have had the privilege of presenting the facts on sustainable computing to many different organisations and groups. Although I have always been aware of the detrimental effect that computers can have on the environment, it wasn't until I was asked to prepare this first presentation back in April this year that I fully understood the impact and severity.
Most of us live in a world of consumerism and to be fair a successful business is depenent on our appetite to consume. It's a vicious circle. By consuming more, we keep manufacturers in business, which creates more jobs, which gives us more income to spend on consuming more. It's not bad, it's reality.
But what do we mean by 'Sustainability'? It's simply living within the planet's means to support this and future generations.
Reasons for making environmental improvements
It is a common perception that business will only make environmental improvements if they can see a commercial benefit.
However, almost 2/3 (64%) of UK businesses surveyed by the Environment Agency in 2005 had taken some action to address their environmental performance and they did so out of a general concern for the environment.
Interestingly, the smallest businesses in the UK were most likely to be motivated by general concern for the environment but were far less likely to be driven by legislative pressure or commercial benefits.
The 2005 survey found that there was a low level of legislative awareness amongst businesses in the UK, with only 14% able to name any environmental legislation unprompted. (The Waste Management Licensing Regulations were most commonly mentioned – such as the WEEE Directive.)
This doesn't mean that businesses in the UK are unaware of their legal obligations, it simply means that they will be aware of the legal obligations for their specific industry, for example restaurant owners will be aware of of the legislation for running a restaurant, meanwhile, a computer company will be aware of the WEEE directive, and so on.
Although everyone will agree that computers are integral in every day life and in every business today, there is a signficant discrepancy as to what the effect that computers have on the environment.
The facts:
1. Running IT around the globe consumes 4 to 5% of global energy. That's energy used to manufacture, distribute, run the technology, cool the technology, etc. This consumption generates over 1,000,000,000 tonnes of CO2 - equivalent to twice the entire global airline industry.
2. To manufacture a PC or Laptop, you need to consumer 200 times its weight in raw materials.
3. It requires more than 700 compounds to make a computer. Many of them are toxic.
4. According to the BASEL ACTION NETWORK, more than 170,000 PCs became obsolete EVERY DAY in the USA alone.
5. It is estimated that Microsoft's new operating system, VISTA will obsolete over 50% of today's computers.
In my next blog, I will cover what we can do to achieve sustainable computing.
Is giving your local council a blank cheque to tax your business to improve local infrastructures acceptable?
Probably not, but that is what may happen if a proposal tabled by MPs last week is taken to parliament.
Another exciting article from MarketingProfs to stimulate your blogging experience.
Most bloggers want more than Warhol's prophesy, me included. We want our blogs, our ideas to be widely circulated and to infuse meaning into today's conversation.
But there is a healthy respect and fear-factor surrounding the blogosphere. Several marketing and advertising executives have told me they are scared stiff about blogging. I have to admit there have been times like that for me—and I have some background in online community building. So I came up with some baby steps.
There are many pearls of wisdom to be found on the internet. For the past few months, I have been going to a site in the USA called MarketingProfs Today. They have a very large and very eclectic collection of advice for online marketing. I was partcularly intrigued by 'Eight Easy Ways to Grow Your Blog', which focuses on using your blog in business.
Eight Easy Ways to Grow Your Blog
by Mack Collier
The social media landscape over the last year or so has changed dramatically. Companies that were once skeptical about tools such as blogs are now blogging or considering starting one. Unfortunately, many companies that do so still have little idea of how to grow their blog into an integral part of their marketing efforts.
However, every company can take some easy step to grow its blog. Many companies don't have the knowledge or the resources to implement elaborate technical measures to boost their blog's status and instead need no-nonsense ideas that every writer can use every day.
This article will outline eight easy steps that bloggers can take to grow their blog's readership.
Electronic products such as computers, games consoles, microwaves, refridgerators, and washing machines are the fastest forms of waste being produced in Europe.
This much awaited law means that manufacturers have to fund recycling schemes, while retailers must offer take-back services to customers.
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive requires 4kg of electronic waste to be recycled per person.
As of the 1st July, the much delayed law that makes the manufacturers responsible for the cost of recycling electronic waste is now in place. Under the legislation, retailers selling electrical goods are obliged to offer customers a free in-store take-back service on a "like for like" basis, or help fund the expansion of a network of WEEE collection points. There are no exemptions to this law. This means that if you purchase a cooker at Currys, then Currys will arrange to take back your old cooker. The retailers are likely to return the electronic waste to managed disposal sites that will be monitored by local authorities.
The WEEE Directive forces the producers of electronic products to join at least one of thirty seven 'Producer Compliance Schemes' to ensure that whatever they manufacture and put into the retail channel is recorded, monitored and the equivalent waste value is charged against the producer.
What does this mean to you and me?
First, the larger manufacturers who need to comply with the legislation need to hire a Compliance Manager - this will cost. Then they will need to fund the various disposal sites - this will cost. Then the manufacturers will need to report on what they collect and how they 'dispose' of the electronic waste - this will cost.
The costs will need to be met some how. Will it be you and me paying for this new legislation? I believe that we will be.
The practical question is, should we? Yes, we should. Landfills are becoming significant man-made mountains of rubbish and we all know that electronic waste is not biodegradeable. So, if we are not disposing of our electronic waste responsibily, then we should pay the manufacturers to take their goods back.
Now we just need a similar European legislation on packaging - forcing producers to take back their packaging will incentivise them to reduce it at all costs.
A few years ago, the folks at PC World Business developed a sub-brand called PC World Education in order to focus on the needs of the education market.
In order to understand the market, they established a 'Teacher's Panel' who wrote articles and provided advice on how IT products could be used in the classroom.
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With the proliferation of blogs, forums, and web sites, you would think that everyone understands the simple concept of Copyright. But you would be wrong!
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As a result of the blog posted in December 2006, I've been asked to update this blog on complying with changes to the Companys Act 1985.
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Gone are the days of being a company director where it is all perks and no responsibilities. As of 6 April 2007, a new charter of "Duties" for directors comes into force with the Companies Act 2006.
This list is just the start of what you need to know. Please make sure that you understand what is expected of you as a director.
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In my day-to-day work, I encounter many interesting things to ponder over, but the one thing that keeps cropping up the most is about protecting a website. Many individuals and organisations want to copyright their online creation, their electronic IP, their website.
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When surfing the web today, you will find that there are millions of web sites that appear to be totally unfinished or worse, are so poorly planned that they will never work properly. Check your site.... does it leave this impression with surfers?
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Have you ever looked at a website and thought, "that's a great idea!" or "I wish that I had thought of that!"? Many people do!
But unfortunately, there are also many people who do something about it - such as copy your content, your design, or even your entire site. How can you protect yourself?
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The Blog Warehouse blogs are automatically engineered into RSS reader formats for anyone to pick up and read. Technology - RSS Feeds are nothing more than a file created from the information generated that contains specific information. Users have to collect that file to read it.
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Business blogs are now main stream in corporate communication. But how do you use them as a business or marketing tool?
What do you need to know?
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