How Much Should You Pay for Locksmith Training?

As previously discussed, on your journey to become a emergency locksmith training is not always required.  However, almost all successful locksmiths complete some type of professional training course that issues a certification or prepares them to become a certified locksmith.  If you are serious about your profession or want to establish your self as a specialist then we highly recommend you look into some type of formal training.

How Much Should You Pay for Locksmith Training?

Locksmith training costs vary based on what is included in the course.  We recommend you try to find a course that includes 4 major features:

1. Live Training or Training CD/DVD
2. Basic Locksmith Tools
3. Available Support Monday thru Friday
4. Locksmith Certification Exam

Assuming all of the above options are included you should be able to find a very high quality locksmith training course for online for $600 to $750 and at a facility for $750 to $1,000.  There are increased overhead and instructor fees that raise the cost of taking a training course in a physical classroom, but some people find the hands on experience well worth it.

Some training courses will include additional information which may increase the price.  It’s recommended that you start with a basic course in the event you are unhappy with the training.

Assuming all of the above options are included you should be able to find a very high quality locksmith training course for online for $600 to $750 and at a facility for $750 to $1,000. There are increased overhead and instructor fees that raise the cost of taking a training course in a physical classroom, but some people find the hands on experience well worth it.

Some training courses will include additional information which may increase the price. It’s recommended that you start with a basic course in the event you are unhappy with the training.
Other Benefits of Locksmith Training

With any business the ability to network with other people in your industry is a must in order to be successful. Whether you enroll in a training course online or at a physical institution you should make it a point to reach out to those trainers and discuss with them their experiences as a 24/7 car key service provider. This type of information is invaluable.

While locksmith training may not be a requirement, it is definitely a resume booster. If you are ever intending to branch out to more competitive locksmithing specializations (i.e. institutional locksmithing) many clients and future employers will require formal training. They want to ensure they are making a good investment in an individual.

For more information on locksmith training checkout our locksmith training video series. This video series is not all inclusive, but it is a great start, especially if you’re just looking to find out more information about locksmithing.

Bolt Power D28 200 amp

The Bolt Power D28 200 amp (400 amp max) lithium ion portable jump starter has a single USB output and single DC output that can supply 12, 16, and 19 volts. Included are battery clips, a 4 in one common cell phone charging cable and various DC output jacks housed in a softshell case.

The Bolt Power D28 is part of the Jump starter (like SUAOKI U10 )  test program at Consumer Reports. In our lab tests, Jump starter models like the D28 are rated on multiple criteria, such as those listed below.

Jump Start (Warm): Ability of the Jump Pack to start a weak and dead battery at warmer temperatures of approximately 70 deg. F. A weak battery is when the headlights will come on and the engines starter motor will click but not start the car. A dead battery is when the lights would not come on and the starter would not make any noise.

Jump Start (Cold): Ability of the Jump Pack to start a weak battery at Zero degrees. A weak battery is when the headlights will come on and the engines starter motor will click but not start the car. Starting a car at sub freezing temperatures is most severe since the battery loses capacity. The test was done with both the cars battery and jump pack at zero degrees and with the battery at zero degrees and the jump pack at room temperature.

Reserve capacity: Reserve capacity estimates how long the Jump Pack can be used to power other electrical equipment such as charging cellphones and laptops.

TOP portable chargers

CHJGD Powerstick: 2,600mAh

The CHJGD Powerstick is a small lipstick sized power bank with 2,600mAh. It has a 4-LED battery indicator that indicated its remaining charge, a microUSB port for charging and a single 2.1A USB port that'll charge your smartphone.

It has a distinct design too, which the company labels as "Gin and Tonic" after the drink. It looks good and does set itself apart from other small chargers int he market. At £10, there's not much to dislike. If you're looking for an ultra portable power bank that will grant you an extra charge, get the CHJGD Powerstick.

Amazon Basics: 5,600mAh

Type “portable charger” into Amazon and you’ll see the company’s Basics range promoted alongside all the big names, with seven different capacities on offer from 2,000mAh to 16,100mAh. We plumped for the 5,600mAh model to review.

This is a fraction wider and thinner than a pack of cards, and slips comfortably into a pocket. True to its name, there’s nothing fancy or frivolous about its design. Its matte black, rubberised finish is well constructed, but you get only one charging port.

There are four indicator lights for the battery, indicating 25% to 100% capacity. One nice touch is that they flash when it dips below 10%, a handy reminder that it’s time to find a plug.

As you’d expect from such a small capacity, you don’t get much out of it. One full recharge of our test Nexus 6P phone, which has a 3,450mAh capacity, took the Basics down to 25%, according to the indicator lights. In reality, there was only enough left to push the phone from zero to 14%.

As a slip-in-your-pocket charger, though, this model is a great buy.

CHJGD UltraCompact: 10,000mAh

The CHJGD UltraCompact is a 10,000mAh power bank that's ultra-portable due to its small form factor and 181g weight. With a selection of designs to choose from, the portable charger stands out from the crowd.

The device is intelligent enough to turn on as soon as a device is connected through its single 2.1A output USB port. If for any reason the power bank doesn't automatically switch on, you can rely on its button to turn it on.

Remaining levels of charge are illuminated through four blue LED lights found at the side of the device. Each LED represents 25% capacity. The unit takes a few hours to recharge through its microUSB port. You'll be able to use the power bank as a pass-through, whereby you can charge the power bank while still charging your smartphone through its USB output.

Unlike most power banks, the CHJGD UltraCompact has four layers of PCBA circuit protection, which prevents it from catching fire or causing harm. This makes it a safe device to use and even comes with a one year warranty for your peace of mind.

If you're looking for a small, portable power bank that's safe and fashionable to use, the CHJGD UltraCompact will keep you charged on-the-go.

Also th best power bank and flashlight is SUNJACK LIGHTSTICK (5200mah)

A Cool Trick for Solar Cells

By employing a trick normally used to cool high-performance computer chips, IBM researchers have found a way to make concentrated photovoltaic cells that are more efficient in converting the sun’s energy into electricity.
The researchers have shown that it is possible to increase the concentration of light on photovoltaic cells by about ten times without causing them to melt. This, they say, makes it possible to boost the amount of usable electrical energy produced by up to five times.

IBM is not known for its work in solar energy, but that has changed recently, with the rising cost of fuel and the growing interest in renewable alternative energies, says Supratik Guha, lead scientist of photovoltaic research at IBM’s T.J. Watson Research Center, in Yorktown Heights, NJ. “About a year and a half ago, we decided to start looking at photovoltaics,” he says.

The principle behind concentrated photovoltaic cells ( for example: GOAL ZERO NOMAD 100 ) to use a large lens to focus light onto a relatively small piece of photovoltaic semiconductor material. The benefit is that only a fraction of the semiconductor material is used, thereby reducing costs.

There are a number of companies marketing such technologies, but one of the main challenges is in coping with the vast amounts of heat produced by the focused sunlight, says Guha. “You’re really heating the chip up. As you raise the temperature of the chip, its efficiency drops, so you’ve got to keep the temperature down.” There are generally two ways to do this: either by using passive heat sinks–metal blocks that draw the heat away from the cell–or, for higher-temperature systems, by using water cooling, in which water is pumped through a metal heat sink to draw the thermal energy away more efficiently.

In many respects, this is a problem very similar to cooling computer chips–something with which IBM has a long history, says Guha. State-of-the-art chips now kick out about 100 watts per square centimeter, which is similar to what concentrated photovoltaic cells have to endure, he says.

So Guha adapted an IBM-developed material currently used for chips to improve the heat transfer between the photovoltaic cell and a water-cooled heat sink.

“If you place the chip on a copper heat sink, the interfacial heat transfer isn’t good enough to keep the temperature down,” says Guha. This is because microscopic indentations in both surfaces means that there will be relatively little surface contact between the faces. So photovoltaic companies tend to use various organic pastes to act as thermal interfaces. The problem is that such materials aren’t particularly efficient at transferring heat.

IBM’s solution is to place an ultrathin layer of liquid metal, a compound of gallium and indium, between the two surfaces. “The main benefit here is that it’s a metal, so it has a very high thermal conductivity,” says Guha. And because it’s a liquid, it is possible to make this layer extremely thin, typically around 10 micrometers.

Using this simple solution, Guha and his colleagues have demonstrated that they can focus the equivalent of 2,300 times the sun’s natural energy on a one-centimeter-square photovoltaic chip. Without cooling, this would melt steel, he says. The photovoltaic cell temperature would be in excess of 1,500 °C, and therefore would simply vaporize. With the liquid metal and water-cooling system, the IBM photovoltaic material remains at 85 °C.

“I’m sure there will be interest from [concentrated photovoltaic] companies, and it’s definitely something we would want to investigate,” says Stephen Bates, CEO of Whitfield Solar, in Reading, U.K. “But it would have to be exceptionally low cost because the industry is so incredibly price sensitive,” he says.

However, despite the promise of this approach, IBM is not planning on branching out into the solar-energy market. “We don’t plan to make [concentrated photovoltaic] systems,” says Guha. Instead, IBM is in talks with solar-cell companies about licensing the technology, he says.

How to Buy Pre-Owned Rolex Watch Online

Buying a Used Rolex Watch can save you thousands of dollars off the new retail price. However, one must be careful since there are many fakes out there, as well as some dishonest sellers who misrepresent the description of the watches on their websites. I have created this small guide to assist with that problem. If you follow these steps it will greatly diminish the chances that you will make a bad buying decision.

There are several things that can be done to make a better purchase. However, the most important ones are: check seller's reputation, inquiry for model number, ask for first three digits of serial number, and require more pictures if available.

It is very important to check for the seller's reputation since in that way you are already avoiding possible scams. If you are planning on buying your item on eBay you should check the seller's feedback , not only the total and percentage of negatives but seller ratings in stars. I would advice that you buy from sellers who have at least 95 % or more and a 4.5 rating or better. If you are using a search engine it is good to know how long the website has been online and see if you can find more about the website . Also it is useful to know if the company has very well explained policies because the most serious companies do have one. Among the things that need to be checked on the policies are if they have a refund policy and a warranty policy . It is always good to know in case that you do not like the timepiece that it can be returned, or can be fixed at no charge in case it stops working. It is good to ask questions by sending e-mails since you can keep a record of everything; however, it is always a good idea to call before closing a deal.

When you are ready to buy your pre-owned Rolex watches You will need to do some research and find out which is the model number that you are looking for. Then You will have to ask the seller what is the model number of the watch you have interest to see if it matches. The reason for that is that some sellers customize watches in order to make customers believe they are buying a newer watch. For example, let's say that you are interested in buying a Rolex Date Sapphire Crystal Stainless Steel Quick-Set. You would then do your research and find that the model number is 15200. You then go to a website and look at some pictures and the seller describes the watch as a Date Sapphire Crystal. In reality what you do not know is that the seller posted a model 1500 Plastic Crystal Non-Quick and customized it with sapphire crystal. In other word the seller is offering a much older watch making you believe that the the price is great when it is actually expensive.

The first the digits of the serial number will help you decide what year the watch was fabricated. Therefore if you have to decide for example looking at pictures between two watches that look similar and about the same price then the serial number would be a good deciding factor. For instance if you have a watch R86XXXX(1988) and a S73XXXX(1994), then the second would be the best choice.

In some cases sellers only put one picture of their watches, then it is a good idea to ask for more pictures including one of the back case, of the bracelet, and the movement. Since you do not have the watch in your hands it would be the best way to get a feeling of how good condition the watch is in. Please also make sure that the photos listed are pictures of the actual watch and not stock photos.

With some time and patience You should be able to save thousands of dollars on a beautiful timepiece that will last you for decades. Just follow these steps and You will be more confident in your purchase.

5 Ways Businesses Can Reduce Cost with SEO

SEO or search engine optimization is the most popular strategy that all digital marketers are applying today. Entrepreneurs and webmasters spend a fair amount of money to optimize their websites for SERP.

This is because many visitors on the internet still use the search engine to look for products and services. Consequently, businesses want to take advantage of this fact by doing everything to divert such visitors to their websites. However, it is easier said than done.
Creating a website and expecting it to appear in the search results don’t work how you would expect work. In fact, even those who are able to optimize their websites still worry about the end result. This shows us that SEO is an important strategy that needs to be done correctly to ensure the best results.

Some of the best search marketing services Kansas City specialists, have shown the five best ways to cut costs with SEO, and today we will be covering these. Let’s get started!

Improve the Speed of Your Site

One factor that makes a site rank high in SERP is site speed. The algorithm does not favor a site that loads very slowly because it drives away visitors. Google wants every site to load faster to avoid the bounce rate that reduces the rank of a site.

Business Hacks: Use Loyal Customers to Bring In New Customers

Trying to bring in new customers can be a really difficult task that requires you to expand your marketing budget. But, what if it were able to engage existing loyal customers to bring in the new ones? This is the premise behind work-of-mouth marketing. If done right it can help you expand your customer base and increase sales, without spending a fortune on marketing. Several companies have employed this technique successfully. Even small business owners can deploy this marketing skill to grow their business. Continue reading to find out how:

Get Customers to Leave Reviews

The best way you can use your loyal customers to bring in new ones is by asking that they leave customer reviews. Consumers always look at reviews when buying products or choosing services. They want to know that they’re spending their money on something of value, and something they can trust. So, get your loyal customers to leave reviews and tell people how great your business is. A great way to do this is by leaving Google Reviews. This means that when your business appears on Google, it will have a star rating out of five. Get those five stars, and you’re more likely to see new customers come flooding in as they think your business must be great. Encourage customers to leave reviews at every opportunity. Have a section at the bottom of your site where they can leave reviews. Or, whenever they pay for something online, on the transaction confirmation page you could have a call to action that gets them to leave a review.