Arizona Bans Karma--Seriously.

Since the dark days of the attacks on America by radical, Islamic terrorists on September 11th 2001, there has been a growing intolerance here for non-Judeo-Christian religions. This has, unfortunately, been mostly aimed at the American-Muslim community in a misguided attempt to combat radical Islam.

Unfortunately, there are numerous people in America who can't seem to make a distinction between an Islamic terrorist and an Islamic moderate practicing their religion freely as allowed under the American Constitution. But I digress. One of the targets of the this fear of anything Islamic has come in the form of a wide-spread paranoia of Sharia law.

In brief, Sharia law is law based on the Islamic holy book, the Qur'an (koran). The Islamophobia is so rampant in America these days that states have taken to banning Sharia law in a preemptive move to prevent such law from taking root. This is occurring despite no movement to impose or establish Sharia law in America. The silliness of it all is that such moves by these states are a waste of time since the American Constitution supersedes any other form of law within America!!

But the politicians of Arizona didn't stop there. They wanted to make sure ALL non-Christian religious beliefs would have no influence in Arizona state law. This included banning karma, which I didn't even know was possible considering karma is basically the idea of, "cause and effect" or causality. So, in one sense, by banning karma, these politicians are essentially trying to ban the scientific law of cause and effect. They seriously banned karma within the state of Arizona, which for a Buddhist is all rather odd considering karma isn't really a form of law to base a government around, but rather a natural consequence of our actions. I'm not angry or offended by their attempt to ban karma but I am certainly amused by it all!! It makes me laugh because banning karma is like banning gravity.

However, what I do take seriously is the generalized intolerance of anything that's not Christian or of Anglo-Saxon cultural origin. The last thing we need in this already complicated world of suffering is additional reasons to divide ourselves and fuel hatred. It truly makes my heart ache to see such narrow-minded thinking in my country, which has often been the example of tolerance in the world.

~Peace to all beings~

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Adobe Premiere: The Basics Pt 1

A look at how to use Adobe Premiere CS3. this WILL get you to be know how to edit/create movies and the options within this program. I hope you if you watch these 2 part video you will have an idea on how to do things within Premiere. (Original File) from Premiere was 2.2 Gig but converted it to 30Mb so sorry for the loss of quality.

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How to Use Motion Tracking – Adobe Premiere Elements 8

How to use motion tracking in Adobe Premiere Elements 8. This video will show you how to use the tool to create quick motion tracking without having to use keyframing. It can be used to track any subject or part of a subject in your videos. This tool helps you make nice effects with clip art, videos, photos, or text.
Video Rating: 5 / 5





This video will show you how to make a lightsabre in Adobe Premiere Elements 8. It also shows you how to make lightning shoot from your hand. It is a great demo with effects and sound.

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Adobe Premiere Pro CS4 Essential Training DVD Part 10/60

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Premiere Pro CS5 Ultra Key Sample Footage

Sample footage produced by the Adobe Premiere CS5 Ultra Key. This footage was produced with Panasonic AVCCAM footage (HMC150) edited “RAW” in Premiere Pro CS5. No rendering was required during editing, it played in real time on the timeline, and Premiere exported this seven or so minutes of keyed footage in less than fifteen minutes. Meaning — it took longer to upload this to YouTube than it did to encode it.
Video Rating: 0 / 5






It’s no secret that two of the biggest enhancements in CS5 are the Mercury Engine and the new metadata workflow. What is surprising is how much faster CS5 previews and renders, especially when editing H.264 based formats (like AVCHD or footage from the Canon EOS 7D) or encoding to H.264 formats. This webinar will quantify these performance enhancements using real world projects and detail the optimal CPU, OS, RAM and graphics card configuration. If you produce script-based productions, and value metadata in the production and output pipeline, you’ll really appreciate the script to screen workflow that Adobe created in CS5, including the new Adobe Story, a script development tool, the enhanced Adobe OnLocation, for shot list creation and metadata collection during the shoot, to Premiere Pro for editing and out to Flash. There’s even a new time-based workflow for automatically matching OnLocation placeholder shots with clips shot with a non-tethered camera. In addition, there are several critical new features in Premiere Pro, SoundBooth and Adobe Media Encoder, like the Ultra Chromakey effect from Serious Magic, now a GPU accelerated effect in Premiere Pro. You’ll read a bunch of hype about the new release, this webinar will lay the new features out for you and tell you the investment in hardware and software that you’ll need to fully leverage them. If you’re considering upgrading from CS3 or CS4, you’ll find this 90 minutes very informative and worthwhile.

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Buddhism and Valentines Day.

This year the average American will spend $116 on Valentine's Day, which is a holiday in honor of love. In years past, I have boycotted Valentine's Day because of it's commercialism but this year I have decided to focus on the love aspect while discarding the consumerism that clouds this day dedicated to love. In honor of the true meaning of love, I would like to share several quotes from Buddhist thinkers on the subject. First, it is important to understand what true love is about.

Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh teaches that true love, is love that is given freely and unconditionally without expecting reward in return. Love that hinges upon the other person doing everything we like or want of them is not true love, but rather based on attachment, conditions and control.

But, one can not discuss love and Buddhism without mentioning the Metta Sutta or Sutra, which is claimed to have been spoken by Buddha, himself. I am not going to quote the full sutra here, but if you want to read it in its entirely, then click here:

Let none deceive another, Or despise any being in any state. Let none through anger or ill-will wish harm upon another. Even as a mother protects with her life, her child, her only child, so with a boundless heart should one cherish all living beings: radiating kindness over the entire world spreading upwards to the skies, and downwards to the depths; outwards and unbounded, freed from hatred and ill-will. Whether standing or walking, seated or lying down, free from drowsiness, one should sustain this recollection. This is said to be the sublime abiding. By not holding to fixed views, the pure-hearted one, having clarity of vision, being freed from all sense desires, is not born again into this world.

Many people today look to His Holiness the Dalai Lama for inspiration and wisdom. So, I added a quote from him on the matter of love, it's importance and power:

If there is love, there is hope that one may have real families, real brotherhood, real equanimity, real peace. If the love within your mind is lost and you see other beings as enemies, then no matter how much knowledge or education or material comfort you have, only suffering and confusion will ensue" -His Holiness the Dalai Lama from 'The little book of Buddhism'

It is my hope that you find love today and always. If you do not feel love from others then perhaps it's first important to focus upon loving yourself. It's hard to accept or believe true love when it presents itself to us if we don't accept that we deserve to be loved. And, I want all who read this to know that I deeply love you and care about you all; and hope that this day and many others will find you filled with that love as well.

You are not alone--imagine the world-wide sangha all coming together to acknowledge your worth and importance with a collective hug; feel the compassion and acceptance coursing from our hearts and veins into yours. But, don't forget to pass that love on to someone else!! May you we all soon be free from selfishness, hatred and self-loathing. These are all delusions that keep us from feeling the ever present love that is essential to a life without suffering in this universe.

~Peace to all beings~

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Interview with an American Buddhist Soldier Serving in Afghanistan. Part II.

And, now, the second half of my inteview with American Buddhist Lieutenant Hunnewell who is currently serving in the U.S. military in the war in Afghanistan (to read the first half of the interview, click on this sentence):

4). How do your other soldiers feel about your Buddhist practice?

On occasion I will receive questions about what the Buddhist practice entails and am increasingly receiving questions pertaining to the subjects of meditation and mindfulness. The Army is educating Soldiers more and more about the practice of meditation in order to assist Soldiers with the stressors of combat.

5). What tradition of Buddhism do you practice. Or, do you practice your own version?
I practice in the Mahayana Buddhist tradition and am looking to join a sangha upon return home that follow the practices of Plum Village and Thich Nhat Han.

And, lastly...

6). Is there anything special that we in the Buddhist community can do to help the soldiers, and you in particular? Are they things we could send you to help you practice your faith? Or, any personal items that would improve your time there? Any books?

The Buddhist community could assist with the creation of a Buddhist Field Guide for members of the military which is being created in conjunction with a Buddhist Chaplain from the Navy. The information can be found on www.buddhistmilitarysangha.blogspot.com.

I have an amazing support network with consistent care packages from my wife, who continues to mail me packages even though she is a little over eight months pregnant. We are expecting our first child. I am very much interested in reading the following works from Thich Nhat Han “Savior”, “Chanting From the Heart: Buddhist Ceremonies and Daily Practices”, and “Being Peace”.

PHOTO CREDIT: Ancient Buddha statue in Afghanistan.

~Peace to all beings~

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Vary changes to speed or direction with Time Remapping

Vary change to clip speed

Move an unsplit speed keyframe

Move a split speed keyframe

Play a clip backward, then forward

Remove the Time Remapping effect

You can speed up, slow down, play backward, or freeze video portions of a clip using the Time Remapping effect. Using speed keyframes, you can change speed numerous times within the same clip. Take a clip of a man walking, for example. You can show him moving forward quickly, slowing suddenly, stopping mid-step, and even walking backward, before resuming his forward motion. Unlike Clip Speed/Duration which applies a constant speed across the entire clip, Time Remapping allows you to vary the speed throughout the clip. Also, you can ease in or ease out speed changes.

You can apply time remapping only to instances of clips in a Timeline panel, not to master clips.

When you vary the speed of a clip with linked audio and video, the audio remains linked to the video, but remains at 100% speed. The audio does not remain synchronized with the video.

You create variable speed changes by applying speed keyframes. You can apply speed keyframes in the Effect Controls panel, or in a clip in a Timeline panel. Applying speed keyframes in either location is like keyframing Motion, Opacity, or any other keyframe effect, with one notable difference: a speed keyframe can be split to create a transition between two different playback speeds. When first applied to a track item, any change in playback speed on either side of a speed keyframe is instantaneous at that frame. When the speed keyframe is dragged apart and spread out beyond one frame, the halves form a speed change transition. Here, you can apply linear or smooth curves to ease in or ease out the change between playback speeds. See the video tutorial, Variable Speed Changes, at www.adobe.com/go/vid0235, or the video tutorial, Time Remapping In Premiere Pro CS3, on the Creative COW website.



Footage is displayed at constant speed in one direction.


Time-remapping distorts time for range of frames within clip.
Note: It is best to apply time remapping controls to a clip in its own video track, or at least one not followed immediately by other clips. Slowing any portion of a clip makes the duration of that clip longer. If a second clip immediately follows the lengthened clip in the video track, the lengthened clip is automatically trimmed where the second clip begins. To recover the frames trimmed from the lengthened clip, click the Track Select tool, Then Shift-drag the second clip toward the right to make room. All clips lying to the right move to the right. Click the Selection Tool, then drag the right edge of the lengthened clip to the right, exposing its trimmed frames.
Vary change to clip speed

1. In a Timeline panel, click the Clip Effect menu and choose Time Remapping > Speed. (The Clip Effect menu appears next to the filename of every clip in a video track. Zoom in, if necessary, to make enough room in the clip to display the menu.)

A horizontal rubber band that controls the speed of the clip appears across the center of the clip. The clip is shaded in contrasting colors above and below the 100% speed demarcation. A white speed-control track appears in the upper portion of the clip, just below the clip title bar.

Choosing Time Remapping > Speed from a video effect control

2. Ctrl-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) at least one point on the rubber band to set a keyframe. Speed keyframes appear near the top of the clip, above the rubber band in the white speed-control track. Speed keyframes can be split in half, acting as two keyframes for marking the beginning and end of a speed-change transition. Adjustment handles also appear on the rubber band, in the middle of the speed-change transition.

Moving a speed keyframe up or down. Note its separable halves.
A. Speed keyframeB. Rubber band
3. Do one of the following:

Drag the rubber band on either side of the speed keyframe up or down to increase or decrease the playback speed of that portion. (Optional) Press Shift while dragging to limit the speed change values to 5% increments.

Shift-drag the speed keyframe to the left or right to change the speed of the portion to the left of the speed keyframe.

Both the speed and duration of the segment change. Speeding up a segment of a clip makes the segment shorter, and slowing down a segment makes it longer.
(Optional) To create a speed transition, drag the right half of the speed keyframe to the right, or the left half to the left.

A gray area appears between the halves of the speed keyframe, indicating the length of the speed transition. The rubber band forms a ramp between the two halves, indicating a gradual change in speed occurring between them. A blue curve control appears in the gray area.

Blue curve control in gray area between halves of a speed keyframe

4. (Optional) To change the acceleration or deceleration of the speed change, drag either of the handles on the curve control.

The change of speed eases in or eases out according to the curvature of the speed ramp.

Dragging a curve control handle to ease in a speed change

5. (Optional) To revert a transition speed change, select the unwanted half of the speed keyframe, and press Delete.
Note: Speed and Velocity values for the Time Remapping effect are shown in the Effect Controls panel for reference only. You cannot edit these values directly there.
Move an unsplit speed keyframe
In a Timeline, Alt-click (Windows) or Option-click (Mac OS) the unsplit speed keyframe, and drag it into its new position.
Move a split speed keyframe
In the white control track area of the clip, drag the grey-shaded area of the speed transition into its new position.
Play a clip backward, then forward
In a Timeline panel, click the Clip Effect menu and choose Time Remapping > Speed. (The Clip Effect menu appears next to the filename of every clip in a video track. Zoom in, if necessary, to make enough room in the clip to display the menu.)

A horizontal rubber band that controls the speed of the clip appears across the center of the clip. The clip is shaded in contrasting colors above and below the 100% speed demarcation. A white speed control track appears in the upper portion of the clip, just below the clip title bar.
Ctrl-click (Windows) or Command-click (Mac OS) on the rubber band to create a speed keyframe .
Ctrl-drag (Windows) or Command-drag (Mac OS) a speed keyframe (both halves) to the place where you want the backward motion to end. A tool tip shows the speed as a negative percentage of the original speed. The Program monitor displays two panes: the static frame where you initiated the drag, and a dynamically updating frame that reverse playback returns to before switching to forward speed. When you release the mouse button to end the drag, an additional segment is added for the forward playback portion. The new segment has the same duration as the segment you created. An additional speed keyframe is placed at the end of this second segment. Left-pointing angle brackets appear in the speed-control track, indicating the section of the clip playing in reverse.
The segment plays backward at full speed from the first keyframe to the second. Then, it plays forward at full speed from the second to the third keyframe. Finally, it returns to the frame at which the backward motion began. This effect is called a palindrome reverse.
You can create a segment that plays in reverse and doesn't return to forward playback. Use the Razor tool or the Trim tool to remove the segment of the clip with the forward playback section.

Keyframes, left-pointing angle brackets, and rubber band in a palindrome reverse
6. (Optional) You can create a speed transition for any part of the change in direction. Drag the right half of a speed keyframe to the right, or the left half to the left.

A gray area appears between the halves of the speed keyframe, indicating the length of the speed transition. The rubber band forms a ramp between the two halves, indicating a gradual change in speed occurring between them. A blue curve control appears in the gray area.

Blue curve control in gray area between the halves of a speed keyframe

(Optional) To change the acceleration or deceleration of any part of the directional change, drag either of the handles on the curve control.

The change of speed eases in or eases out according to the curvature of the speed ramp.

Dragging a curve control handle to ease in a speed change

Remove the Time Remapping effect

You cannot toggle the Time Remapping effect on and off like other effects. Enabling and disabling Time Remapping affects the duration of the clip instance in a Timeline. In effect, Time Remapping performs an edit. However, you can use the Toggle Animation control in the Effect Controls panel.
Click the Effect Controls tab to make this panel active.
Click the triangle next to Time Remapping to open it.
Click the Toggle Animation button next to the word Speed, to set it to the off position.

This action deletes any existing speed keyframes, and disables Time Remapping for the selected clip.
Note: To re-enable Time Remapping, click the Toggle Animation button back to the on position. You cannot use Time Remapping with this button in the off position.

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Membagi Side Bar Menjadi 2 Kolom

Artikel membagi sidebar blogspot menjadi 2 kolom ini sebenarnya sudah banyak sobat blogger yang menulis di blognya namun berhubung ada sobat pengunjung blog Belajar Ilmu Komputer yang menanyakan maka saya juga ikutan menulis cara membagi sidebar menjadi 2 kolom ini agar pengunjung blog BIK Pemula ini tidak susah mencari lagi kesana-kemari.



Membagi sidebar menjadi dua kolom atau dengan kata

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Color Correction Tutorial – Adobe Premiere Elements

Here is my updated version on a Color Correction Tutorial in Adobe Premiere Elements (7.0). My Personal Channel: www.youtube.com Twitter: www.twitter.com

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Reverse Video Tutorial

Using adobe Premiere for editing your video

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Interview with an American Buddhist Soldier Serving in Afghanistan.

(Above: 1st Lt. Stephen J. Hunnewell)

Recently I was given the opportunity and honor to interview Buddhist Soldier and two-time Bronze Star Medal recipient, 1st Lt. Stephen J. Hunnewell, who is currently serving with the U.S. Army in Afghanistan. I just first want to say how wonderful it is to know that there are Buddhists in the military. It is my hope that the calming teachings of Buddhism are helping the soldier deal with the stresses of combat.

I was humbled to be able to interview such a unique and courageous individual. As a Buddhist, I find war a particularly vicious extension of suffering that causes deeps wounds of the spirit and body. Yet, I am also a realist and understand that sometimes such abhorrent measures are unfortunately necessary to protect the innocent and maintain a semblence of humanity. Otherwise, the merchants of endless suffering pour forth rivers of blood that is unabated. That is an ugly picture to paint, to be sure. However, it is necessary that we Buddhist realize that we don't live in a Utopian world. It would be nice to believe that ending war on Earth is possible but, so long as there is attachment to power, greed and hatred, it will exist.

This doesn't mean that we shouldn't do everything in our power to reduce violence, war and bloodshed. We can also pressure our leaders to ensure that we will only go to war when all other methods of settling disputes has been thoroughly exhausted. It also means that we conduct war in a way that lessens innocent casualties and utilizes non-violent methods to bring an end to hostilities. Lieutenant Hunnewell is engaged in such non-violent projects within the Afghanistan war-zone and we are thankful for his sacrifice, work and inspiration.

As a Civil Affairs Team Leader, Hunnewell is responsible for overseeing a three Soldier team whose primary objective is to advise local Afghan officials on the implementation of productive governance processes and assist them in forming meaningful connections with the local population and ensuring they are properly serving the citizens which they represent.

So, now that you know his role better; lets proceed to the interview, shall we?

1). How do you maintain your Buddhist practice while out in the field?

I make a concerted effort each day to take some personal time for reflection and meditation. I am lucky in that where I live now I have my own personal space, wood walls separate myself and other Soldiers, and I am able to meditate whenever I am at the Combat Outpost. I spent the majority of this deployment living amongst the Afghan people and when I was living with them I usually woke-up before dawn, sat outside, and centered myself.

2). There are so many great and historic Buddhist sites in Afghanistan. How do you feel about the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas by the Taliban in Afghanistan?

The destruction the Bamiyan Buddhas is not only a great loss to Buddhists, but to all humanity. The sites were works of art and pieces of history which we have all been robbed of. Currently, the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) is assisting the Chinese government in excavating the ancient site of Meys Aynak in Logar province.

3). How has your Buddhist practice helped you reach out to the Afghan people and communicate with them on the same level?

With regards to the reintegration process and conducting negotiations and mediations my practice has helped me tremendously. A short story; I was conducting a civic negotiation with local farmers in the Pech Valley, Kunar province, which is the most violent area in eastern Afghanistan and where the majority of my accumulated 18 months of service in Afghanistan has been spent. I was accompanied by a representative from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). We were assisting GIRoA officials in engaging local farmers in order to educate them on diversifying their crops to produce more nutrient dense feed for themselves and their animals as well as to deny the insurgents fields to hide and stage ambushes in. The farmers were very stubborn and would not listen to the government officials or the USDA representative and I.

I continued to engage in calm negotiations and eventually the farmers were convinced that diversifying the crops was not only good for them and their animals but also in the best interest of the coalition forces (CF) and the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF). The representative from the USDA then said to me, “Wow! You have a tremendous amount of patience with these people.”

I feel that my practice helps me to enter a situation with a beginners mind. I try to see the world from their view and not bring in preconceived notions. How would an Idaho potato farmer react to someone trying to tell them to grow blueberries? The people of the valley have grown corn for thousands of years and it had worked for them, why change? The operation, which was dubbed “Operation Crop Diversification”, resulted in over 1000 farmers in the valley diversifying their crops with the help of government subsistence and no attacks from the fields on both CF and ANSF.

Furthermore, I have engaged with insurgent leaders within days of being personally attacked by their troops and possibly themselves. A few of the incidents resulted in serious injuries and the loss of life, which harmed me as well. But I would continue to engage them in civil discourse in order to give hope to the reintegration process. Many times groups and individuals have been fighting due to a feeling of being wronged and many times they only want to have their grievances heard...

(...to be continued tomorrow).

~Peace to all beings~

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Cara Membuat Langganan Artikel Melalui Email di Blog

Langganan artikel biasanya dikenal dengan subscribe yang mana setiap pengunjung memasukan alamat email ke blog seseorang guna mendapatkan update artikel terbaru sehingga tidak ketinggalan informasi yang ada pada blog tersebut.



Artikel ini sebenarnya sudah banyak diposting oleh rekan-rekan blogger yang lain dan dianggap sudah jadul namun tidak ada salahkan saya tulis kembali caranya disini

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Colorado Town Allows Funeral Pyre Cremation.

CRESTONE, Colo. -- Belinda Ellis' farewell went as she wanted. One by one, her family placed juniper boughs and logs about her body, covered in red cloth atop a rectangular steel grate inside a brick-lined hearth. With a torch, her husband lit the fire that consumed her, sending billows of smoke into the blue-gray sky of dawn. The outdoor funeral pyre in this southern Colorado mountain town is unique. Funeral and cremation industry officials say they are unaware of any other place in the nation that conducts open-air cremations for people regardless of religion. A Buddhist temple in Red Feather Lakes, Colo., conducts a few funeral pyres, but only for its members. (Article by Ivan Moreno of the Associated Press)

James: I have long told family and close friends that my wishes upon death are to have my body cremated and the ashes spread through the four elements of nature: earth, fire, air and water. It is my hope that those ashes will be of benefit to the natural world that made this current life possible. It is a good reminder of the impermanence of life, and a powerful, visual aid to help us let go of the deceased. It seems as though it would help loved ones accept the reality of the death easier than dressing them in fancy clothes and applying make-up as though they are off to a party, rather than no longer alive. I feel that sealing that costumed corpse into a box, to bury in the ground, frozen in time, seems like it often makes the suffering of those left behind more painfully drawn out; leaving them lost to the enslavement of denial.

So, I am pleased to see my home state of Colorado taking the lead on allowing cremation by funeral pyre; especially when you consider the growing Buddhist population here who tend to favor cremation. I like the visual impact of it because so much of the death process in the West is hidden from view--even the current manner of cremating remains occurs behind closed doors. It seems very natural and fittingly appropriate for family and friends to be active participants in the disposal of the body. I don't think there is anything wrong with burying your family in the ground, if that's your style. However, I don't see why there should be laws outlawing cremation by funeral pyre if the proper regulations, authorities and guidelines are established. As well as a location deemed safe and sanitary for such a ceremony.

~Peace to all beings~

PHOTO: Cremation by funeral pyre in Crestone, Colorado, USA by Ivan Moreno for the Associated Press.

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