A few nice free legal forms images I found:

Velib station


Image by austinevan
Paris Vélib Service (Vélib is short for “Velo Liberte” or “Bike Freedom”) is a city-wide bike rental service. With plans for 20,600 bicycles available on 1,451 stations, it is the largest bicycle rental project in the world.

See more info at www.en.velib.paris.fr/

I place my notes, tips, tricks on Velib on my Veliblog: velibobsession.blogspot.com

Renting a Velib bike

These bikes are fun to rent and ride but, depending on how long you are in Paris, you may just want to buy a bike and lock it up outside where you are staying. I love the Velib system but it is more appropriate for short-term point-to-point transportation. If you’re in Paris for more than a few weeks it may be more useful to buy a 100 euro bike at Decathalon (along with a good lock). Buying a bike is also better if you plan to ride more than just 30 minutes each time. Having said that I still like this system and use it often to get from place to place more quickly.

UPDATE (25 October 2007): The system now accepts American Express and JCB cards that do not have the EU smart chips! Good news for visitors that do not have an EU bank card.

UPDATE (28 October 2007): Be VERY careful out there… I’m sad to write that the the first fatility involving a Velib bicycle occurred on 18 October in the 13th arrondissement. This is first fatility since the service started July 15 2007. Marthe Coppel-Batsch, 59, a prominent Psychologist and Psychoanalyst, was struck by a truck near the corner of Boulevard de la Bastille and quai de la Rapée. The accident was caused when the driver of the truck could not see the bicyclist due to the "blind spot".

While the majority of Paris bike lanes are dedicated to bikes, there remains many that are shared between bikes, taxis, and buses. Riding in these shared lanes is tricky and I’ve found myself having to compete for space with very large vehicles that do not always see the bike riders well if at all. Bike helmets are not required nor used in Paris and perhaps they may catch on as there have 4 fatalities now involving bicyclists each year. www.liberation.fr/actualite/societe/285982.FR.php

UPDATE: With the transit strike over, bikes are now being repaired more quickly…

The French transit strike increased ridership but conversely resulted in many bikes not getting repaired. Twice while going to rent a Velib I found many bikes in the stands that were broken. The strike made transporting the bikes to the repair depots difficult resulting in many broken bikes being left in the stands.

So, WATCH OUT for flat tires, broken chains, bent wheels, etc.

The interface is a bit confusing… but it works (eventually) and you can rent a nice bike very cheaply.

Paris Vélib Service (Vélib is short for “Velo Liberte” or “Bike Freedom”) is a city-wide bike rental service. With plans for 20,600 bicycles available on 1,451 stations, it is the largest bicycle rental project in the world.

THE BIKES

The sturdy grey bikes come with a metal basket on the handlebars and are heavier than standard bicycles, built to withstand heavy use. In line with the program’s green image, Vélib‘ maintenance staff get around town on 130 electrically assisted bicycles. A barge with 12 stops along the Seine will pick up bikes in need of major repairs. Cleaning staff drive electric vehicles and use rain collected on the roofs of JCDecaux offices

Shimano (brake systems)
Prowheel (core hardware)
Nexus (gear shifts, cables, etc)

The bikes are 3 speed “roadster”-type bikes.

I had some luck as when I arrived at the Jaures station as there was a ratp truck unloading new bikes. I spoke to the RATP employees and found out there are currently about 13,000 bikes in place right now with plans to have 20,600 by the end of the summer in 1,451 stations. The bikes just arrived a few days ago (on the 15th of July – right after bastille).

I walked down to the Jaures Vélib station and rented one! It’s a pretty cool bike; a bit particular looking but no one seems to mind riding them. I road it about 30 minutes and it did well. It’s not meant for comfort so watch out for bumps in the road and cobblestones. It has 3 speeds so is fairly flexible. It also has lots of illumination so seems fairly safe at night (I’ll try it tonight and see how it goes).

You have to buy a Vélib pass first:

Daily card is 1 euro
Weekly card is 7 euros
1 YEAR is 29 euros

To get the 1 year card you have to go online and sign up and get an “abonnement”. Most people visiting Paris will probably want to just get a bike for 7 days then check it in/out as needed over the 7 days.

UPDATE: I’ve found that I can get the Velib yearlong form online and link it to my metro pass by mailing in the form (along with a check for 29 euros and an authorization for 150 euros) to the Velib HQ outside Paris. Once this is done I can much more easily get a bike by just passing my navigo card over the sensor! The process to get the Navigo metro card linked to the Velib system is lengthy and requires several forms to be filled out (very very French).

The three choices do involve a 150 Euro “deposit”. That is, if you don’t return the bike within a certain amount of time you will be charged 150 euros.

There is a 13 point legal summary that you must accept to obtain a Vélib pass (one of the annoying features is having to read through the entire legal acceptance form on a small screen) NOTE: I have since found that you can "skip" the entire text. Another issue is that when you pay with a bank card you have to switch to a different interface screen. The Main interface (a color plasma screen) for the details of the bike pass then the smaller LCD screen for the details of your bank card. But, it’s very similar to the RATP and SNCF machines used to get metro and train tickets (at least in the complexity of the user interface).

To get the 1 year card you have to go online and sign up and get an “abonnement”. Most people visiting Paris will probably want to just get a bike for 7 days then check it in/out as needed over the 7 days.

Either of the three choices do involve a 150 Euro “deposit”. That is, if you don’t return the bike within a certain amount of time you will be charged 150 euros.

The first two options can be done right at the Vélib station. There’s not a person there so you have to use the interface.

Payment:

You can use French bank card and it looks like most ATM cards will work as well. I tried using my navigo and it worked great! I also used my Bank Card and it worked also. You can also use your navigo card (your metro pass which you can obtain free from www.navigo.fr/ – you’ll need to upload a photo and provide a French address – use the address you will be staying at even if it’s a hotel; the navigo card will arrive in a few days so do this before you leave)

UPDATE: The Velib system now accepts American Express and JCB cards that do not have smart chips! Good news for foreign visitors who don’t have an EU smart card…

Language:

The interface says it’s in French, German, English but these languages don’t work yet (I guess they have not translated the interface so these buttons don’t do anything). So, you’ll need to read French but it’s not that hard and there are always people around willing to help. The RATP employees say there are plans to include other languages (up to but right now there are only 3 (and only French is actually working right now!).

UPDATE: During the 2nd week the interface was updated and is now working in English, Spanish, and French.

Once you receive an abonnement card you will have to select a PIN (code secret) that will allow you to use your card in other stations.

Once you process a payment, you select the stall number, then go push the button on the stall corresponding to the bike you selected. Then you just go ride off into the sunset! Then return the bike at any other station.

Once you have the pass and bike you are charged based on how long you ride it – simple. If you check out a bike and ride it for less than an hour and a half it’s free! But if you ride it longer you have to pay – A supplement of 1 euro will be charged for an additional half-hour, 2 euros for another 30-minutes and 4 euros for every addition half-hour after that.

Don’t forget to push the button on the stall to get your bike! I don’t know how many people I’ve seen try to “swipe” the paper bike ticket on the navigo interface!

SECURITY

The bikes come with a cable lock. This is passed around a pole or other object then connects into the frame of the bike. There is a small key that will release once the cable lock is snapped into place. I’ve had a little bit of trouble at first then realized that after clicking one end of the cable in place, to unlock it, you must also push the cable connector in a bit further to get the key to release. It’s not the thickest cable and so I prefer to keep the bike in sight when locked (if possible). Theft is not yet a serious problem for the program but it does happen. If you happen to lose the key, call the emergency number listed on the bike (01 30 79 79 30) and someone will come unlock the bike for you.

RETURN

To return the bike just put it into one of the stalls. Make sure the slot is engaged. It will "click" into the slot, the light will go "yellow" then to "green" about 5 seconds later when the RFID system recognizes your bike as being returned.

If there are problems you can call Vélib’s emergency number: 01 30 79 79 30. This number is also printed on the bike’s handle-bar.

JCDecaux

JCDecaux sponsors the project in exchange for advertising rights in Paris. JCDecaux is Europe’s largest outdoor advertising company. Like a similar scheme in Lyon, where 10 percent of the city’s population has a subscription to the local sharing scheme, Vélib is operated by outdoor advertising giant JCDecaux, which is footing the bill in exchange for exclusive rights to 1,628 Paris billboards.

UPDATE: I’ve been renting one 2 or 3 times a week and it seems to work well so far. Theft has not been a huge problem so far but it does happen. The bikes come with a lock but it is not a substantial one and is easily cut. When I stop to eat somewhere I lock it up but keep it in sight. Right now they program is regarded with some pride by parisians so it seems including the appropriate marketing and presentation has some benefits. For example, the program was marketed outside of normal medial channels (outside of France). The support infrastructure is also highly visible with specialized electric vehicles, boats, and even uniforms for the maintenance personnel. This makes sense though given that the company financing it is JCDecaux (Europe’s largest outdoor advertising firm).

The UI terminals: These are two-sided. One side is the main UI for renting a bike, the other is a map and a smaller interface for obtaining the balance on your bike by entering the ticket number.

There have been glitches:

1. Terminal’s are sometimes offline so no way to get a bike
2. There are bikes available but the terminal doesn’t know this (RFID system goes down sometimes) so it sends you to an interface to find another Velib station.
3. Sometimes the terminals will be rebooted remotely and will be unavailable for about 5 minutes while it reboots.

The UI is based on windows VB script and runs on the Windows XP embedded OS. The BIOS is Phoenix 1.14. The hardware is a 1.3Ghz Pentium III with 500MB memory.

Porsche Concours d’Elegance 2008, Muscat-Sultanate of Oman


Image by Elvis John Ferrao
Porsche 911 GT3RS….more info here www.porsche.com/usa/models/911/911-gt3-rs/

Pronunciation of "Porsche":
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Porsche", a German proper name, is correctly pronounced PORSH-uh.
Some tend to over-vocalize the e, which results in Por-SCHA. Others mistakenly treat the e as silent, a pronunciation rule that applies to most words in English and French, but not in German, producing the monosyllabic porsh. The most common pronunciation used in the United States is porsh. The correct pronunciation of "Porsche"

"Porsche"

Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, often shortened to Porsche AG, or just Porsche, is a German manufacturer of automobiles majority owned by the Austrian Porsche and Piëch families. It was founded in 1931 by Ferdinand Porsche, an Austro-Hungarian engineer, born in Maffersdorf (Vratislavice), Bohemia (now part of the Czech Republic) who also designed the first Volkswagen. The company is headquartered in Zuffenhausen, a city district of Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. They currently produce 911 (997), Boxster, and Cayman sports cars and Cayenne sport utility vehicles.

Reputation:
In a May 2006 survey, Porsche was awarded the title of the most prestigious automobile brand by Luxury Institute, New York; it questioned more than 500 households with a gross annual income of at least US 0,000 and a net worth of at least US 0,000. The current Porsche lineup includes sports cars from the Boxster roadster to their most famous product, the 911. The Cayman is a hard top car similar to the Boxster in a slightly higher price range. The Cayenne is Porsche’s mid-size luxury SUV. The Carrera GT supercar was phased out in May 2006. Future plans include a high performance luxury saloon/sedan, the Panamera.

Porsche was awarded the 2006 J.D. Power and Associates award for highest Nameplate Initial Quality Study (IQS) of automobile brands.

As a company, Porsche is known for weathering changing market conditions with great financial stability, while retaining most production in Germany during an age when most other German car manufacturers have moved at least parts of their production to Eastern Europe or overseas. The headquarters and main factory are still in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, but the Cayenne (and formerly the Carrera GT) is manufactured in Leipzig, Germany, the SUV also in Bratislava, Slovakia. Most Boxster and Cayman production is outsourced to Valmet Automotive in Finland. The company has been highly successful in recent times, and indeed claims to have the highest profit per unit sold of any car company in the world, although its total profits are significantly lower than Toyota’s.

Porsche has for many years offered consultancy services to various other car manufacturers. Studebaker, SEAT, Daewoo, Subaru and Yugo have consulted Porsche on engineering for their cars or engines. The Lada Samara was partly developed by Porsche in 1984. Porsche also helped Harley-Davidson design their new engine in their newer V-Rod motorcycle

Competitors:
In racing, Porsche’s main rival has traditionally been Ferrari, though their production vehicles appeal to quite different personalities, if similar demographics. The rivalry is therefore primarily because of both companies’ storied racing heritage and the fact that some of their vehicles are of comparable performance. Porsche has a reputation for offering equal or higher performing cars than the more expensive Ferrari models, while overall Ferrari sells far fewer cars at much higher prices (for example, there are no Ferraris under US 0,000, while several Porsches are priced below that figure).

In the daily-driver marketplace, Porsche’s traditional rivals are its fellow German automakers Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW (the Boxster competes directly with the BMW Z4 and the Mercedes-Benz SLK, for instance), as well as Lotus, Jaguar, and Maserati. Ferrari, on the other hand, competes more directly with firms such as Lamborghini, Bugatti and Aston Martin.

History:
Professor Ferdinand Porsche initially started the company called "Dr. ing. h. c. F. Porsche GmbH" in 1931, with main offices at Königstrasse in the center of Stuttgart. The company offered motor vehicle development work and consulting, and did not initially build any cars under its own name. One of the first assignments the new company received was from the German government to design a car for the people, a "Volkswagen" in German.

The first Porsche, the Porsche 64, was developed in 1939 using many components from the Volkswagen Beetle.

Ferdinand Porsche’s son, Ferry Porsche, decided to build his own car because he could not find an existing one that he would buy. The first models of what was to become the 356 were built in a small workshop in Gmünd, Austria and had aluminum bodywork. The prototype car was shown to German auto dealers, and when pre-orders reached a set threshold, production was begun. Many regard the 356 as the first Porsche simply because it was the first model sold by the fledgling company. Porsche commissioned Zuffenhausen-based company Reutter Carosseri, which had previously collaborated with Porsche on Volkswagen Beetle prototypes, to produce the 356′s steel body. Porsche constructed an assembly plant across the street from Reutter Carosseri; that assembly plant is now known as Porschestrasse. The 356 was road certified in 1948.

Not long afterwards, on January 30, 1951, Ferdinand Porsche died from complications following a stroke.

In post-war Germany parts were generally in short supply, so the 356 automobile used components from the Volkswagen Beetle including its engine, gearbox, and suspension. The 356, however, had several evolutionary stages, A, B, and C, while in production and many VW parts were replaced by Porsche-made parts. The last 356s were powered by entirely Porsche-designed engines. The sleek bodywork was designed by Erwin Komenda who also had designed the body of the Beetle. Porsche’s signature designs have, from the beginning, featured air-cooled rear-engine configurations (like the Beetle), rare for other car manufacturers, but producing automobiles that are very well balanced.

In 1964, after some success in motor-racing, namely with the Porsche 550 Spyder, the company launched the Porsche 911 another air-cooled, rear-engined sports car, this time with a 6-cylinder "boxer" engine. The team to lay out the body shell design was led by Ferry Porsche’s eldest son, Ferdinand Alexander Porsche (F. A.). The design phase for the 911 caused internal problems with Erwin Komenda who led the body design department until then. F. A. Porsche complained Komenda made changes to the design not being approved by him. Company leader Ferry Porsche took his son’s drawings to neighbouring body shell manufacturer Reuter bringing the design to the 1963 state. Reuter’s workshop was later acquired by Porsche (so-called Werk II). Afterward Reuter became a seat manufacturer, today known as Keiper-Recaro.

The design group gave sequential numbers to every project (356, 550, etc) but the designated 901 nomenclature contravened Peugeot’s copyrights on all ‘x0x’ names, so it was adjusted to 911. Racing models adhered to the "correct" numbering sequence: 904, 906, 908. The 911 has become Porsche’s most well-known model, successful on the race-track, in rallies, and in terms of sales. Far more than any other model, the Porsche brand is defined by the 911. It remains in production; however, after several generations of revision, current-model 911s share only the basic mechanical concept of a rear-engined, six-cylinder coupe, and basic styling cues with the original car. A cost-reduced model with the same body, but 356-derived running gear (including its four-cylinder engine), was sold as the 912.

In 1972 the company’s legal form was changed from limited partnership to public limited company (AG in German), because Ferry Porsche and his sister, Louise Piëch, felt their generation members did not team up well. This led to the foundation of an executive board whose members came from outside the Porsche family, and a supervisory board consisting mostly of family members. With this change, no family members were in operational charge of the company. F. A. Porsche founded his own design company, Porsche Design, which is renowned for exclusive sunglasses, watches, furniture, and many other luxury articles. Ferdinand Piëch, who was responsible for mechanical development of Porsche’s serial and racing cars, formed his own engineering bureau and developed a 5-cylinder-inline diesel engine for Mercedes-Benz. A short time later he moved to Audi and pursued his career through the entire company, up to and including, the Volkswagen Group boards.

The first CEO of Porsche AG was Dr. Ernst Fuhrmann who had been working in Porsche’s engine development. Fuhrmann was responsible for the so-called Fuhrmann-engine used in the 356 Carrera models, as well as the 550 Spyder, having four over-head camshafts instead of a central camshaft as in the Volkswagen-derived serial engines. He planned to cease the 911 during the 70s and replace it with the V8-front engined grand sportswagon 928. As we know today the 911 outlived the 928 by far. Fuhrmann was replaced in the early 80s by Peter W. Schutz, an American manager and self-proclaimed 911 aficionado. He was replaced in 1988 by the former manager of German computer company Nixdorf Computer AG, Arno Bohn, who made some costly miscalculations that led to his dismissal soon after, along with that of the development director, Dr. Ulrich Bez, who was formerly responsible for BMW’s Z1 model and today is CEO of Aston Martin.

In 1990, Porsche drew up a memorandum of understanding with Toyota to learn and benefit from Japanese production methods. Currently Toyota is assisting Porsche with hybrid technology, rumored to be making its way into a Hybrid Cayenne SUV, as well as the upcoming four-door coupe, the Panamera.

Following the dismissal of Bohn, an interim CEO was appointed, longtime Porsche employee, Heinz Branitzki, who served in that position until Dr. Wendelin Wiedeking became CEO in 1993. Wiedeking took over the chairmanship of the board at a time when Porsche appeared vulnerable to a takeover by a larger company. During his long tenure, Wiedeking has transformed Porsche into a very efficient and profitable company.

Ferdinand Porsche’s grandson, Ferdinand Piëch, was chairman and CEO of the Volkswagen Group from 1993 to 2002. Today he is chairman of the supervisory board. With 12.8 per cent of the Porsche voting shares, he also remains the second largest individual shareholder of Porsche AG after his cousin, F. A. Porsche, (13.6 per cent).

Porsche’s 2002 introduction of the Cayenne also marked the unveiling of a new production facility in Leipzig, Saxony, which once accounted for nearly half of Porsche’s annual output. The Cayenne Turbo S has the second most powerful production engine in Porsche’s history, with the most powerful belonging to the Carrera GT.

In 2004, production of the 605 horsepower (451 kW) Carrera GT commenced in Leipzig, and at EUR 450,000 (0,000 in the United States) it was the most expensive production model Porsche ever built.

As of 2005, the extended Porsche and Piech families controlled all of Porsche AG’s voting shares. In early October 2005 the company announced acquisition of an 18.53% stake in Volkswagen AG and disclosed intentions to acquire additional VW shares in the future. As of June 2006, the Porsche AG stake in Volkswagen had risen to 25.1%, giving Porsche a blocking minority, whereby Porsche can veto large corporate decisions undertaken by VW.

In mid-2006, after years of the Boxster (and later the Cayenne) as the dominant Porsche in North America, the 911 regained its position as Porsche’s backbone in the region. The Cayenne and 911 have cycled as the top-selling model since. In Germany the 911 clearly outsells the Boxster/Cayman and Cayenne.

"Concours d’Elegance"
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A Concours d’Elegance (from French meaning a competition of elegance) is a competition between automobile owners to be judged on the appearance of their automobiles. These are commonly held at auto shows or after racing competition. Notable Concours d’Elegances include Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Hillsborough Concours d’Elegance, Meadow Brook Concours d’Elegance, Villa d’Este Concours d’Elegance, Louis Vuitton Bagatelle Concours d’Elegance, Forest Grove Concours d’Elegance, Scarsdale Concours d’Elegance, Hilton Head Concours d’Elegance & Motoring Festival and Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance.

Numerous local organizations sponsor ‘Concours’ events; traditionally vehicle judging at a Concours d’Elegance is much more demanding than that of a neighborhood or general car show. Trained judges examine the vehicle thoroughly and in its entirety and rate each and every component. Only those vehicles that are judged perfect (or very nearly so) in every way are considered trophy class.

Often the competitiveness of a Concours d’Elegance forces restoration of a vehicle to surpass ‘mint’ condition. Mint condition would be the state of the vehicle when it originally left the factory. Concours-quality cars are often given upholstery, paint, chrome (or nickel) plating and mechanical restoration far exceeding that of the car when new.

All too frequently Concours d’Elegance quality cars are not driven, except for short distances from their trailers to the show fields. They are not intended to be used as daily drivers and are often not seen outside of museums or private collections. Even after driving only the short distance to the show field, the car is ‘staged’; errant bits of dirt or pebbles removed from the tire treads, bits of grass or mud wiped from the under-carriage, and the vehicle is constantly maintained, and frequently dusted to keep the absolutely flawless appearance while on display.

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53.365 – Again With The Free Wall


Image by Slightlynorth
365 Days – Day 53

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I think the free wall is my form of "phoning it in". I went by today and noticed some fretty major changes. A couple of pieces that have been around for many months have finally been covered. I was also surprised to find a new Parskid piece.