Old Navy is an American clothing brand as well as a chain of stores owned by Gap, Inc., with corporate operations in San Francisco and San Bruno, California. It is one of the first major corporations to house headquarters in the new Mission Bay district of San Francisco.

Gap, Inc. was run by President and CEO Paul Pressler from September 2002 through January 22, 2007. Robert J. Fisher served as Interim Chief Executive Officer commencing January 22, 2007. Glenn Murphy is the current CEO of Gap, Inc. The President of Old Navy is Tom Wyatt.

Old Navy opened its first stores in Colma, San Leandro and Pittsburg in northern California in 1994. These first three stores were originally constructed as Gap Warehouse stores. The size and scale of the stores were larger and more diverse than any stores opened by the company before. Within the first year of existence, Old Navy opened 57 stores. As of 2007, Old Navy has more than 1,000 stores in the United States and Canada. The largest Old Navy stores are its flagship stores, located in New York City, the Mall of America, Seattle, Chicago and San Francisco. The largest of these is located on Market Street in San Francisco.

In 1994, the creator of Old Navy, Inc., Ken Rapp and the CEO were visiting Paris, France and came upon a cafe distinctly named Old Navy Cafe and it struck a chord with them. (The Old Navy official site says, "Old Navy was named after a cafe in Paris.") In 1999, Old Navy expanded its franchise to 6 locations in Puerto Rico. In 2001, Old Navy opened 12 stores in the Greater Toronto Area in Ontario, Canada. Furthermore, in 2004, 7 stores were opened in the Quebec (including 6 in the Montreal Area). Old Navy has since opened several more stores in Ontario, and the rest of Canada.

Around 2005, Old Navy's then-president Dawn Robertson planned to give Old Navy a more "high fashion feel" to keep up with Hollister Co. and American Eagle Outfitters, whom she saw as competitors. A new logo was introduced and several stores were built or remodeled to reflect the "New Old Navy." One of the newly built stores in St. Petersburg, Florida cost roughly $5 million USD to develop. These stores, from a design stand-point, were boutique in nature, featuring green building materials, rock gardens, large murals and posters, as well as many mirrored and silver accents, unlike the traditional industrial warehouse feel most locations possess. Also, advertisements began to be created in-house, though they lacked the original kitschy and humorous feel, rather having a high fashion and feminine directive.

These stores did not fare well, proving to be a very poor investment, and Robertson was asked to leave the company. During this cycle of change (during 2008) the original logo was reinstated and the company began to refocus on its fun and family oriented attitude it had originally been popular for. The time period in which the change existed is often referred to as "New Navy."

Old Navy's target market largely consists of price conscious though still fashion oriented teens to adults. The clothing is more affordable than its other Gap, Inc., counterparts. Old Navy's stores contain specialized sections for infants, boys, girls, men, and women. Most recently, Old Navy launched a re-worked line of denim for women sizes 0 to 20, men's re-worked denim and released the new line in fall 2008. In addition to clothing, Old Navy also sells a variety of accessories such as shoes, handbags, toys, hats, and sunglasses, along with a line of clothing and toys for dogs.

For many years, Old Navy has attempted to put out a product a year that focuses on attempting to catch on, some more successful than others. The products that stand out are the Tech Vest, Flip Flops, and the Performance Fleece.

Flagship stores also have "collection" business clothes for women, plus size and maternity sections. As of summer 2007 however, plus-size clothing is only available online and has been pulled from all stores. Online sales have proceeded to flourish after being offered exclusively online. Previously, Old Navy attempted to launch a bath and body line, called ONbody (Obsessively Natural), but dropped the effort after only a few months.

Old Navy informally bills itself as an all-American brand, despite producing most of its clothes outside the United States. The chain releases a shirt every summer emblazoned with an American flag. Each year's shirt features a slightly altered flag graphic with the year listed underneath. Alternatively, they also offer shirts with the Puerto Rican flag on them. In its Canadian stores, a similar shirt with the Canadian flag is sold. Likewise they frequently release additional holiday shirts including, but not limited to: Thanksgiving, Halloween, Valentine's Day, and for 2009 Groundhog Day.

The most notable aspect of Old Navy's television advertisements is their kitschy, satirical and tone toward a retro time period, vaguely between 1940 and 1967. In sharp contrast to the Gap's advertisements, Old Navy's feature chipper family members sporting their clothing line while engaging in wholesome family activities, such as barbecuing. A common tagline used in their campaigns is " [insert clothing article here] for the whole family!"

Old Navy sponsored a part of AT&T Park in San Francisco called the Old Navy Splash Landing, part of the right-field wall. One particular element was an large tin mechanical man named Rusty, a 1920's era style ballplayer figure. Old Navy ended the sponsorship in 2006.

Old Navy is also known for its advertising campaigns featuring celebrities such as Molly Sims, Morgan Fairchild, Joan Collins, Fran Drescher, Vanessa Anne Hudgens, Kristin Chenoweth, The Village People, Rupaul, and Lil' Kim, and Lights. Another popular spokesperson was former Vogue editor Carrie Donovan, who often appeared in ads with company "spokesdog," Magic. According to Gap, Inc., Magic, an Airedale terrier mix, was rescued from the streets of San Jose. Magic remains an informal mascot of the company, though Donovan has since died. Many of the Old Navy television commercials featured voiceovers by Bill Wendell of the David Letterman show.

Old Navy started a contest in June 2006 to choose a new mascot dog to replace Magic through a nationwide search contest. Paco, a male from Venice Beach, California (owned by Olivia Wilde and Tao Ruspoli, was announced as the new Old Navy mascot on July 23, 2006.

Jeffersons stars Isabel Sanford and Sherman Hemsley appeared in a number of Old Navy television commercials in the late 1990s and early 2000s until Sanford died.

The soundtracks played at Old Navy feature up-beat, modern music. Songs are mostly current, include remixes and indie beats, as well as upbeat pop and R&B/Hip Hop records.

In 2007, Old Navy's advertising was brought back in-house, and its television campaign began to make the transition from kitsch, to a more modern sensibility, highlighting seasonal product news. With the relaunch of their denim fits in fall, the advertising took on a sexier, more female-centric tone, and began using lesser known musical artists. The sweater spot in September was credited with launching the career of Ingrid Michaelson, an unsigned artist found by Old Navy's marketing creative director, Landis Smithers, on Myspace. Landis Smithers left Old Navy in 2008 as Old Navy began to move its focus away from modern fashion and back to the brand's kitschy, fun, family-oriented roots.

In spring of 2008, Old Navy started its brand relaunch with a new episodic television campaign, leveraging long-form stories online, then sixties and thirties on air. The campaign featured the music of Lights, another unsigned artist, and provides story arcs of modern romances that span the entire season. The campaign leveraged Old Navy's new strategy of monthly "fast fashion" news, something that started with its commitment to a faster product pipeline, and a deeper focus on more modern, relevant product in stores.

A recurring song (and artist) used by Old Navy, "World Go 'Round" by Australian rock/pop/dance band Rogue Traders, has been featured in TV spots, promos, and in-store soundtracks. "World Go 'Round," "Watching You," and "Believer," all from the 2005 album Here Come the Drums, were originally used as part of the summer 2007 Summerland campaign, but they have also been included in more recent ads.

In 2009, Old Navy hired advertising agency Crispin Porter + Bogusky to create a new advertising campaign. Also, the old logo was revived in 2009 after the new logo ended. The team came up with Old Navy's current advertising campaign that stars mannequins (Kelly, Heather, Amy, Eva, Michelle, Wesley, Josh, Christopher, Kimmy, Natalie, Rita, Maggi, and Barker the dog) who carry the title "Supermodelquins." To promote their new campaign the company also created a new website, OldNavyWeekly.com. These ads have received mixed reviews.

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In any business setting, there must be leaders as well as managers. But are these the same people? Not necessarily. There are leaders who arc good managers and there are managers who arc good leaders, but usually neither case is the norm. In health care, this is especially important to recognize because of the need for both. Health care is unique in that it is a service industry that depends on a large number of highly trained personnel as well as trade workers. Whatever the setting, be it a hospital, a long-term care facility, an ambulatory care center, a medical device company, an insurance company, or some other healthcare sector, leaders as well as managers are needed to keep the organization moving in a forward direction and at the same time maintain current operations. This is done by leading and managing its people.

Leaders usually take a focus that is more external, whereas the focus of managers is more internal. Even though they need to be sure their health-care facility is operating properly, leaders tend to spend the majority of their time communicating and aligning with outside groups that can benefit (partners, community, vendors) or influence (government, public agencies, media) their organizations. There is crossover between leaders and managers across the various areas even though a distinction remains for certain duties and responsibilities.

Usually the top person in the organization (e.g., Chief Executive Officer, Administrator, Director) has full and ultimate accountability. There are several managers reporting to this person, all of whom have various functional responsibilities (e.g., Chief Nursing Officer, Physician Director, Information Officer). These managers can certainly be leaders in their own areas but their focus will be more internal within the organizations operations.

Leaders have a particular set of competencies that are more forward thinking than managers. Leaders need to set a direction for the organization. They need to be able to motivate their employees, as well as other stakeholders, so that the business continues to exist and hopefully thrive in periods of change. No industry is as dynamic as health care with rapid change occurring due to the complexity of the system and government regulations. Leaders are needed to keep the entity on course and to maneuver around obstacles that come in its way, like a captain commanding his ship at sea. Managers must tend to the business at hand and make sure the staff is following proper procedures. They need a different set of competencies.

FOLLOWERSHIP

For every leader there must be a follower. Leaders must have someone they can lead in order to accomplish what they set out to do. Not everyone can be a leader nor should be one. Leaders should have certain recognizable traits that will help them take charge, but also followers must have a willingness to be led as well as the ability to do the task requested. True leaders inspire commitment from dedicated people.

Atchison (2003) wrote about this process in his book, Followership. He describes followership as complementary to leadership and recommends that it be recognized as a necessary component for an effective leader. A self-absorbed administrator will not make a good leader. A true leader will recognize the importance of getting respect, not simply compliance, from the people who follow. It is one thing to have people do what you say, but to have someone want to do it is another thing. The leader who understands this is on the way to greatness and will create a much more meaningful work environment. As Atchison says, "An executive title without followers has an illusion of power. These tided executives create a workplace without a soul."

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A small business is a business that is privately owned and operated, with a small number of employees and relatively low volume of sales. Small businesses are normally privately owned corporations, partnerships, or sole proprietorships. The legal definition of "small" varies by country and by industry, ranging from fewer than 15 employees under the Australian Fair Work Act 2009, 50 employees in the European Union, and fewer than 500 employees to qualify for many U.S. Small Business Administration programs. Small businesses can also be classified according to other methods such as sales, assets, or net profits.

Small businesses are common in many countries, depending on the economic system in operation. Typical examples include: convenience stores, other small shops (such as a bakery or delicatessen), hairdressers, tradesmen, lawyers, accountants, restaurants, guest houses, photographers, small-scale manufacturing, and online business, such as web design and programming, etc.

The legal definition of "small" varies by country and by industry. In the United States the Small Business Administration establishes small business size standards on an industry-by-industry basis, but generally specifies a small business as having fewer than 500 employees for manufacturing businesses and less than $7 million in annual receipts for most nonmanufacturing businesses. The definition can vary by circumstance – for example, a small business having fewer than 25 full-time equivalent employees with average annual wages below $50,000 qualifies for a tax credit under the healthcare reform bill Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

In the European Union, a small business generally has under 50 employees. However, in Australia, a small business is defined by the Fair Work Act 2009 as one with fewer than 15 employees. By comparison, a medium sized business or mid-sized business has under 500 employees in the US, 250 in the European Union and fewer than 200 in Australia.

In addition to number of employees, other methods used to classify small companies include annual sales (turnover), value of assets and net profit (balance sheet), alone or in a mixed definition. These criteria are followed by the European Union, for instance (headcount, turnover and balance sheet totals). Small businesses are usually not dominant in their field of operation.

A small business can be started at a very low cost and on a part-time basis. Small business is also well suited to internet marketing because it can easily serve specialized niches, something that would have been more difficult prior to the internet revolution which began in the late 1990s. Adapting to change is crucial in business and particularly small business; not being tied to any bureaucratic inertia, it is typically easier to respond to the marketplace quickly. Small business proprietors tend to be intimate with their customers and clients which results in greater accountability and maturity.

Independence is another advantage of owning a small business. One survey of small business owners showed that 38% of those who left their jobs at other companies said their main reason for leaving was that they wanted to be their own bosses. Freedom to operate independently is a reward for small business owners. In addition, many people desire to make their own decisions, take their own risks, and reap the rewards of their efforts. Small business owners have the satisfaction of making their own decisions within the constraints imposed by economic and other environmental factors. However, entrepreneurs have to work very long hours and understand that ultimately their customers are their bosses.

Several organizations, in the United States, also provide help for the small business sector, such as the Internal Revenue Service's Small Business and Self-Employed One-Stop Resource.

Small businesses often face a variety of problems related to their size. A frequent cause of bankruptcy is undercapitalization. This is often a result of poor planning rather than economic conditions - it is common rule of thumb that the entrepreneur should have access to a sum of money at least equal to the projected revenue for the first year of business in addition to his anticipated expenses. For example, if the prospective owner thinks that he will generate $100,000 in revenues in the first year with $150,000 in start-up expenses, then he should have no less than $250,000 available. Failure to provide this level of funding for the company could leave the owner liable for all of the company's debt should he end up in bankruptcy court, under the theory of undercapitalization.

In addition to ensuring that the business has enough capital, the small business owner must also be mindful of contribution margin (sales minus variable costs). To break even, the business must be able to reach a level of sales where the contribution margin equals fixed costs. When they first start out, many small business owners underprice their products to a point where even at their maximum capacity, it would be impossible to break even. Cost controls or price increases often resolve this problem.

Another problem for many small businesses is termed the 'Entrepreneurial Myth' or E-Myth. The mythic assumption is that an expert in a given technical field will also be expert at running that kind of business. Additional business management skills are needed to keep a business running smoothly.

Still another problem for many small businesses is the capacity of much larger businesses to influence or sometimes determine their chances for success.

Being a successful business person, one has to go through mistakes and problems and try to learn from them. Business people know and realize that a mistake is only really a mistake if you don't learn from it, which will make you prone to doing it again. Otherwise when you learn from it, it makes you a better business person. You will never forget what you learned from a mistake and how it made you a better person.

Finding new customers is the major challenge for Small business owners. Small businesses typically find themselves strapped for time but in order to create a continual stream of new business, they must work on marketing their business every day.

Common marketing techniques for small business include networking, word of mouth, customer referrals, yellow pages directories, television, radio, outdoor (roadside billboards), print, email marketing, and internet. Electronic media like TV can be quite expensive and is normally intended to create awareness of a product or service.

Many small business owners find internet marketing more affordable. Google AdWords and Yahoo! Search Marketing are two popular options of getting small business products or services in front of motivated Web searchers. Successful online small business marketers are also adept at utilizing the most relevant keywords in their site content. Advertising on niche sites can also be effective, but with the long tail of the internet, it can be time intensive to advertise on enough sites to garner an effective reach.

Creating a business Web site has become increasingly affordable with many do-it-yourself programs now available for beginners. A Web site can provide significant marketing exposure for small businesses when marketed through the Internet and other channels. Some popular services are WordPress, Joomla and Squarespace.

Social media has proven to be very useful in gaining additional exposure for many small businesses. Many small business owners use Facebook and Twitter as a way to reach out to their loyal customers to give them news about specials of the day or special coupons and generate repeat business. The relational nature of social media, along with its immediacy and 24-hour presence lend intimacy to the relationship small businesses can have with their customers, while making it more efficient for them to communicate with greater numbers. Facebook ads are also a very cost-effective way for small businesses to reach a targeted audience with a very specific message.

In addition to the social networking sites, blogs have become a highly effective way for small businesses to position themselves as experts on issues that are important to their customers. This can be done with a proprietary blog and/or by using a backlink strategy wherein the marketer comments on other blogs and leaves a link to the small business' own Web site.

A solid public relations strategy that utilizes speaking engagements, press releases, feature stories, events and sponsorships can also be a very cost-effective way to build a loyal following for a small business.

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A credit card is a small plastic card issued to users as a system of payment. It allows its holder to buy goods and services based on the holder's promise to pay for these goods and services. The issuer of the card creates a revolving account and grants a line of credit to the consumer (or the user) from which the user can borrow money for payment to a merchant or as a cash advance to the user.

A credit card is different from a charge card: a charge card requires the balance to be paid in full each month. In contrast, credit cards allow the consumers a continuing balance of debt, subject to interest being charged. A credit card also differs from a cash card, which can be used like currency by the owner of the card. Most credit cards are issued by banks or credit unions, and are the shape and size specified by the ISO/IEC 7810 standard as ID-1. This is defined as 85.60 × 53.98 mm (3.370 × 2.125 in) (3 3/8 × 2 1/8 in) in size.

Credit cards are issued by a credit card issuer, such as a bank or credit union, after an account has been approved by the credit provider, after which cardholders can use it to make purchases at merchants accepting that card. Merchants often advertise which cards they accept by displaying acceptance marks – generally derived from logos – or may communicate this orally, as in "Credit cards are fine" (implicitly meaning "major brands"), "We take (brands X, Y, and Z)", or "We don't take credit cards".

When a purchase is made, the credit card user agrees to pay the card issuer. The cardholder indicates consent to pay by signing a receipt with a record of the card details and indicating the amount to be paid or by entering a personal identification number (PIN). Also, many merchants now accept verbal authorizations via telephone and electronic authorization using the Internet, known as a card not present transaction (CNP).

Electronic verification systems allow merchants to verify in a few seconds that the card is valid and the credit card customer has sufficient credit to cover the purchase, allowing the verification to happen at time of purchase. The verification is performed using a credit card payment terminal or point-of-sale (POS) system with a communications link to the merchant's acquiring bank. Data from the card is obtained from a magnetic stripe or chip on the card; the latter system is called Chip and PIN in the United Kingdom and Ireland, and is implemented as an EMV card.

For card not present transactions where the card is not shown (e.g., e-commerce, mail order, and telephone sales), merchants additionally verify that the customer is in physical possession of the card and is the authorized user by asking for additional information such as the security code printed on the back of the card, date of expiry, and billing address.

Each month, the credit card user is sent a statement indicating the purchases undertaken with the card, any outstanding fees, and the total amount owed. After receiving the statement, the cardholder may dispute any charges that he or she thinks are incorrect (see 15 U.S.C. § 1643, which limits cardholder liability for unauthorized use of a credit card to $50, and the Fair Credit Billing Act for details of the US regulations). Otherwise, the cardholder must pay a defined minimum proportion of the bill by a due date, or may choose to pay a higher amount up to the entire amount owed. The credit issuer charges interest on the amount owed if the balance is not paid in full (typically at a much higher rate than most other forms of debt). In addition, if the credit card user fails to make at least the minimum payment by the due date, the issuer may impose a "late fee" and/or other penalties on the user. To help mitigate this, some financial institutions can arrange for automatic payments to be deducted from the user's bank accounts, thus avoiding such penalties altogether as long as the cardholder has sufficient funds.

Credit card advertising regulations include the Schumer box disclosure requirements. A large fraction of junk mail consists of credit card offers created from lists provided by the major credit reporting agencies. In the United States, the three major US credit bureaus (Equifax, TransUnion and Experian) allow consumers to opt out from related credit card solicitation offers via its Opt Out Pre Screen program.

Credit card issuers usually waive interest charges if the balance is paid in full each month, but typically will charge full interest on the entire outstanding balance from the date of each purchase if the total balance is not paid.

For example, if a user had a $1,000 transaction and repaid it in full within this grace period, there would be no interest charged. If, however, even $1.00 of the total amount remained unpaid, interest would be charged on the $1,000 from the date of purchase until the payment is received. The precise manner in which interest is charged is usually detailed in a cardholder agreement which may be summarized on the back of the monthly statement. The general calculation formula most financial institutions use to determine the amount of interest to be charged is APR/100 x ADB/365 x number of days revolved. Take the annual percentage rate (APR) and divide by 100 then multiply to the amount of the average daily balance (ADB) divided by 365 and then take this total and multiply by the total number of days the amount revolved before payment was made on the account. Financial institutions refer to interest charged back to the original time of the transaction and up to the time a payment was made, if not in full, as RRFC or residual retail finance charge. Thus after an amount has revolved and a payment has been made, the user of the card will still receive interest charges on their statement after paying the next statement in full (in fact the statement may only have a charge for interest that collected up until the date the full balance was paid, i.e. when the balance stopped revolving).

The credit card may simply serve as a form of revolving credit, or it may become a complicated financial instrument with multiple balance segments each at a different interest rate, possibly with a single umbrella credit limit, or with separate credit limits applicable to the various balance segments. Usually this compartmentalization is the result of special incentive offers from the issuing bank, to encourage balance transfers from cards of other issuers. In the event that several interest rates apply to various balance segments, payment allocation is generally at the discretion of the issuing bank, and payments will therefore usually be allocated towards the lowest rate balances until paid in full before any money is paid towards higher rate balances. Interest rates can vary considerably from card to card, and the interest rate on a particular card may jump dramatically if the card user is late with a payment on that card or any other credit instrument, or even if the issuing bank decides to raise its revenue.

The main benefit to each customer is convenience. Compared to debit cards and cheques, a credit card allows small short-term loans to be quickly made to a customer who need not calculate a balance remaining before every transaction, provided the total charges do not exceed the maximum credit line for the card. Credit cards also provide more fraud protection than debit cards. In the UK for example, the bank is jointly liable with the merchant for purchases of defective products over £100.

Many credit cards offer rewards and benefits packages, such as offering enhanced product warranties at no cost, free loss/damage coverage on new purchases, and points which may be redeemed for cash, products, or airline tickets. Additionally, carrying a credit card may be a convenience to some customers as it eliminates the need to carry any cash for most purposes.

A secured credit card is a type of credit card secured by a deposit account owned by the cardholder. Typically, the cardholder must deposit between 100% and 200% of the total amount of credit desired. Thus if the cardholder puts down $1000, they will be given credit in the range of $500–$1000. In some cases, credit card issuers will offer incentives even on their secured card portfolios. In these cases, the deposit required may be significantly less than the required credit limit, and can be as low as 10% of the desired credit limit. This deposit is held in a special savings account. Credit card issuers offer this because they have noticed that delinquencies were notably reduced when the customer perceives something to lose if the balance is not repaid.

The cardholder of a secured credit card is still expected to make regular payments, as with a regular credit card, but should they default on a payment, the card issuer has the option of recovering the cost of the purchases paid to the merchants out of the deposit. The advantage of the secured card for an individual with negative or no credit history is that most companies report regularly to the major credit bureaus. This allows for building of positive credit history.

Although the deposit is in the hands of the credit card issuer as security in the event of default by the consumer, the deposit will not be debited simply for missing one or two payments. Usually the deposit is only used as an offset when the account is closed, either at the request of the customer or due to severe delinquency (150 to 180 days). This means that an account which is less than 150 days delinquent will continue to accrue interest and fees, and could result in a balance which is much higher than the actual credit limit on the card. In these cases the total debt may far exceed the original deposit and the cardholder not only forfeits their deposit but is left with an additional debt.

Most of these conditions are usually described in a cardholder agreement which the cardholder signs when their account is opened.

Secured credit cards are an option to allow a person with a poor credit history or no credit history to have a credit card which might not otherwise be available. They are often offered as a means of rebuilding one's credit. Fees and service charges for secured credit cards often exceed those charged for ordinary non-secured credit cards, however, for people in certain situations, (for example, after charging off on other credit cards, or people with a long history of delinquency on various forms of debt), secured cards are almost always more expensive then unsecured credit cards.

Credit card security relies on the physical security of the plastic card as well as the privacy of the credit card number. Therefore, whenever a person other than the card owner has access to the card or its number, security is potentially compromised. Once, merchants would often accept credit card numbers without additional verification for mail order purchases. It's now common practice to only ship to confirmed addresses as a security measure to minimise fraudulent purchases. Some merchants will accept a credit card number for in-store purchases, whereupon access to the number allows easy fraud, but many require the card itself to be present, and require a signature. A lost or stolen card can be cancelled, and if this is done quickly, will greatly limit the fraud that can take place in this way. European banks can require a cardholder's security PIN be entered for in-person purchases with the card.

The goal of the credit card companies is not to eliminate fraud, but to "reduce it to manageable levels". This implies that high-cost low-return fraud prevention measures will not be used if their cost exceeds the potential gains from fraud reduction - as would be expected from organisations whose goal is profit maximisation.

Internet fraud may be by claiming a chargeback which is not justified ("friendly fraud"), or carried out by the use of credit card information which can be stolen in many ways, the simplest being copying information from retailers, either online or offline. Despite efforts to improve security for remote purchases using credit cards, security breaches are usually the result of poor practice by merchants. For example, a website that safely uses SSL to encrypt card data from a client may then email the data, unencrypted, from the webserver to the merchant; or the merchant may store unencrypted details in a way that allows them to be accessed over the Internet or by a rogue employee; unencrypted card details are always a security risk. Even encryption data may be cracked.

Controlled Payment Numbers which are used by various banks such as Citibank (Virtual Account Numbers), Discover (Secure Online Account Numbers, Bank of America (Shop Safe), 5 banks using eCarte Bleue and CMB's Virtualis in France, and Swedbank of Sweden's eKort product are another option for protecting against credit card fraud. These are generally one-time use numbers that front one's actual account (debit/credit) number, and are generated as one shops on-line. They can be valid for a relatively short time, for the actual amount of the purchase, or for a price limit set by the user. Their use can be limited to one merchant. If the number given to the merchant is compromised, it will be rejected if an attempt is made to use it again.

A similar system of controls can be used on physical cards. Technology provides the option for banks to support many other controls too that can be turned on and off and varied by the credit card owner in real time as circumstances change (i.e., they can change temporal, numerical, geographical and many other parameters on their primary and subsidiary cards). Apart from the obvious benefits of such controls: from a security perspective this means that a customer can have a Chip and PIN card secured for the real world, and limited for use in the home country. In this eventuality a thief stealing the details will be prevented from using these overseas in non chip and pin (EMV) countries. Similarly the real card can be restricted from use on-line so that stolen details will be declined if this tried. Then when card users shop online they can use virtual account numbers. In both circumstances an alert system can be built in notifying a user that a fraudulent attempt has been made which breaches their parameters, and can provide data on this in real time. This is the optimal method of security for credit cards, as it provides very high levels of security, control and awareness in the real and virtual world.

Additionally, there are security features present on the physical card itself in order to prevent counterfeiting. For example, most modern credit cards have a watermark that will fluoresce under ultraviolet light. A Visa card has a letter V superimposed over the regular Visa logo and a Mastercard has the letters MC across the front of the card. Older Visa cards have a bald eagle or dove across the front. In the aforementioned cases, the security features are only visible under ultraviolet light and are invisible in normal light.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and U.S. Postal Inspection Service are responsible for prosecuting criminals who engage in credit card fraud in the United States, but they do not have the resources to pursue all criminals. In general, federal officials only prosecute cases exceeding US$5,000. Three improvements to card security have been introduced to the more common credit card networks but none has proven to help reduce credit card fraud so far. First, the on-line verification system used by merchants is being enhanced to require a 4 digit Personal Identification Number (PIN) known only to the card holder. Second, the cards themselves are being replaced with similar-looking tamper-resistant smart cards which are intended to make forgery more difficult. The majority of smart card (IC card) based credit cards comply with the EMV (Europay MasterCard Visa) standard. Third, an additional 3 or 4 digit Card Security Code (CSC) is now present on the back of most cards, for use in card not present transactions. Stakeholders at all levels in electronic payment have recognized the need to develop consistent global standards for security that account for and integrate both current and emerging security technologies. They have begun to address these needs through organizations such as PCI DSS and the Secure POS Vendor Alliance.

Code 10 calls are made when merchants are suspicious about accepting a credit card.

The operator then asks the merchant a series of YES or NO questions to find out whether the merchant is suspicious of the card or the cardholder. The merchant may be asked to retain the card if it is safe to do so.

Many credit cards can also be used in an ATM to withdraw money against the credit limit extended to the card, but many card issuers charge interest on cash advances before they do so on purchases. The interest on cash advances is commonly charged from the date the withdrawal is made, rather than the monthly billing date. Many card issuers levy a commission for cash withdrawals, even if the ATM belongs to the same bank as the card issuer. Merchants do not offer cashback on credit card transactions because they would pay a percentage commission of the additional cash amount to their bank or merchant services provider, thereby making it uneconomical.

Many credit card companies will also, when applying payments to a card, do so at the end of a billing cycle, and apply those payments to everything before cash advances. For this reason, many consumers have large cash balances, which have no grace period and incur interest at a rate that is (usually) higher than the purchase rate, and will carry those balance for years, even if they pay off their statement balance each month.

Credit cards are a risky way for entrepreneurs to acquire capital for their start ups when more conventional financing is unavailable. It's widely reported that Len Bosack and Sandy Lerner used personal credit cards to start Cisco Systems. It is rumoured that Larry Page and Sergey Brin's start up of Google was financed by credit cards to buy the necessary computers and office equipment, more specifically "a terabyte of hard disks". Similarly, filmmaker Robert Townsend financed part of Hollywood Shuffle using credit cards. Director Kevin Smith funded Clerks in part by maxing out several credit cards. Actor Richard Hatch also financed his production of Battlestar Galactica: The Second Coming partly through his credit cards. Famed hedge fund manager Bruce Kovner began his career (and, later on, his firm Caxton Associates) in financial markets by borrowing from his credit card. UK entrepreneur James Caan (as seen on Dragon's Den) financed his first business using several credit cards.

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Barclays

Barclays PLC is a global financial services company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. As of 2010 it was the world's 10th-largest banking and financial services group and 21st-largest company according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine. It has operations in over 50 countries and territories across Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and South America and around 48 million customers. As of 30 June 2010 it had total assets of €1.94 trillion, the third-largest of any bank worldwide (after BNP Paribas and HSBC).

Barclays is a universal bank and is organised within two business 'clusters': Corporate & Investment Banking and Wealth Management, and Global Retail Banking. The Corporate & Investment Banking and Wealth Management cluster comprises three business units: Barclays Capital (investment banking), Barclays Corporate (commercial banking) and Barclays Wealth (wealth management). The Global Retail Banking cluster comprises four business units: Barclaycard (credit card and loan provision), Barclays Africa, UK Retail Banking and Western Europe Retail Banking.

Its primary listing is on the London Stock Exchange and it is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. It has a secondary listing on the New York Stock Exchange.

This bank traces its origins back to 1690 when John Freame and Thomas Gould started trading as goldsmith bankers in Lombard Street, London. The name "Barclays" became associated with the business in 1736, when James Barclay, son-in-law of John Freame, one of the founders, became a partner in the business. In 1728, the bank moved to 54 Lombard Street, which was identified by the 'Sign of the Black Spread Eagle', over the years becoming a core part of the bank's identity.

In 1776 the firm was styled "Barclay, Bevan and Bening" and so remained until 1785, when another partner, John Tritton, who had married a Barclay, was admitted, and the business then became "Barclay, Bevan, Barclay and Tritton".

In 1896 several banks in London and the English provinces, notably Backhouse's Bank of Darlington and Gurney's Bank of Norwich, united under the banner of Barclays and Co., a joint-stock bank. Between 1905 and 1916 Barclays extended its branch network by making acquisitions of small English banks.

Further expansion followed in 1918 when Barclays amalgamated with the London, Provincial and South Western Bank and in 1919 when the British Linen Bank was acquired by Barclays Bank, although the British Linen Bank retained a separate board of directors and continued to issue its own bank notes (see Banknotes of the pound sterling). Then in 1924 the planned takeover of National Bank of Kingston reached near-completion but was halted three days before finalisation.

In 1965, Barclays established a US affiliate, Barclays Bank of California in San Francisco.

Barclaycard, the first credit card in the UK, was launched in 1966 and in 1967, Barclays unveiled the world's first ATM cash machine at Enfield, north London. British actor Reg Varney was the first one to use the ATM.

In 1969, the planned merger with Martins Bank and Lloyds Bank was blocked by the Mergers and Monopolies Commission but the acquisition of Martins Bank on its own was allowed. Also that year the British Linen Bank subsidiary was sold to the Bank of Scotland in exchange for a 25% stake, a transaction that became effective from March 1971.

In 1974, following the secondary banking crash, Barclays purchased Mercantile Credit Company.

In 1980, Barclays Bank International expanded its business to include commercial credit and took over American Credit Corporation, renaming it BarclaysAmerican.

Barclays became the first bank to re-open branches on Saturday mornings in 1982, twenty years after the practice ended. Two years later, in 1984, Barclays posted record profits.

The following year Barclays Bank and Barclays Bank International merged: as part of the corporate reorganisation, the former Barclays Bank PLC became a group holding company, renamed as Barclays PLC and UK retail banking was integrated under the former BBI, and renamed Barclays Bank PLC.

In 1985, Barclays introduced Connect, the first debit card in the United Kingdom. The Connect brand was used on all Barclays debit cards until July 2010.

The year 2000 saw the acquisition of Woolwich plc (formerly the Woolwich Building Society). Then in 2001 Barclays closed 171 branches in the UK, many of them in rural communities: Barclays called itself "THE BIG BANK" but this name was quickly given a low profile after a series of embarrassing PR stunts.

In 2003, Barclays bought the American credit card company Juniper Bank from CIBC, re-branding it as "Barclays Bank Delaware". The same year saw the acquisition of Banco Zaragozano, the 11th Spanish bank.

Barclays took over sponsorship of the Premier League from Barclaycard in 2004. In May 2005 Barclays moved its group headquarters from Lombard Street in the City of London to One Churchill Place in Canary Wharf. Also in 2005 Barclays sealed a £2.6bn takeover of Absa Group Limited, South Africa's largest retail bank, acquiring a 54% stake on 27 July 2005.

Then in 2006, Barclays purchased the HomEq Servicing Corporation for $469 million in cash from Wachovia Corp. That year also saw the acquisition of the financial website Comparetheloan and Barclays announcing plans to rebrand Woolwich branches as Barclays, migrating Woolwich customers onto Barclays accounts and migrating back-office processes onto Barclays systems – the Woolwich brand was to be used for Barclays mortgages.

In January 2007, Barclays announced that it has purchased the naming rights to the Barclays Center, a proposed 18,000-seat arena in Brooklyn, New York, where the New Jersey Nets planned to relocate. Barclays cancelled its secondary listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in 2008.

On 30 August 2007, Barclays was forced to borrow £1.6bn ($3.2bn) from the Bank of England sterling standby facility. This is made available as a last-resort when banks are unable to settle their debts to other banks at the end of daily trading. Despite rumours about liquidity at Barclays, the loan was necessary due to a technical problem with their computerised settlement network. A Barclays spokesman was quoted as saying "There are no liquidity issues in the U.K markets. Barclays itself is flush with liquidity."

On 9 November 2007, Barclays shares dropped 9% and were even temporarily suspended for a short period of time, due to rumours of a £4.8bn ($10bn) exposure to bad debts in the US. However, a Barclays spokesman denied the rumours. Subsequent write-downs at the bank were announced to be £1 billion ($1.9 billion), much less than feared.

In July 2008, Barclays attempted to raise £4.5bn through a non-traditional rights issue to shore up its weakened Tier 1 capital ratio, which involved a rights offer to existing shareholders and the sale of a stake to Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation. Only 19% of shareholders took up their rights leaving investors China Development Bank and Qatar Investment Authority with increased holdings in the bank.

In 2008, Barclays bought the credit card brand Goldfish for $70 million gaining 1.7 million customers, and $3.9 billion in receivables. Barclays also bought a controlling stake in the Russian retail bank Expobank for $745 million. Later in the year Barclays commenced its Pakistan operations with initial funding of $100 million.

Reuters later reported that the British government would inject £40 billion ($69 billion) into three banks including Barclays, which might seek over £7 billion. Barclays later confirmed that it rejected the Government’s offer and would instead raise £6.5 billion of new capital (£2 billion by cancellation of dividend and £4.5 billion from private investors).

In January 2009, the press reported that further capital may be required and that while the government might be willing to fund this, it may be unable to do so because the previous capital investment from the Qatari state was subject to a proviso that no third party might put in further money without the Qataris receiving compensation at the value the shares had commanded in October 2008.

In March 2009, it was reported that in 2008, Barclays received billions of dollars from its insurance arrangements with AIG, including $8.5bn from funds provided by the United States to bail out AIG.

On 12 June 2009, Barclays sold its Global Investors unit, which includes its exchange traded fund business, iShares, to BlackRock for $13.5bn.

Standard Life sold Standard Life Bank plc to Barclays plc in October 2009. The sale completed on 1 January 2010.

On 11 November 2009, Barclays and First Data, a global technology provider of information commerce, have entered into a agreement according to which Barclays will migrate a range of card portfolios to First Data's issuing and consumer finance platform.

Barclays is a member of the Global ATM Alliance, a joint venture of several major international banks that allows customers of the banks to use their ATM card or check card at another bank within the Global ATM Alliance with no ATM access fees when traveling internationally. Other participating banks are Bank of America (United States), BNP Paribas (France), UkrSibbank (Ukraine), China Construction Bank (China), Deutsche Bank (Germany), Santander Serfin (Mexico), Scotiabank (Canada) and Westpac (Australia and New Zealand).

Barclays is headed by Marcus Agius, the Group Chairman, who joined the Board on 1 September 2006 and succeeded Matthew Barrett as Chairman from 1 January 2007. Agius is also the senior executive Director of the BBC and was formerly Chairman of BAA PLC, Chairman of Lazard in London and a Deputy Chairman of Lazard LLC until 31 December 2006.

Reporting directly to the Group Chairman is Robert Diamond, the Group Chief Executive, who is responsible for the strategic direction and planning of all Barclays operations. Varley was appointed to the role in September 2004 prior to which he served as Deputy Chief Executive (January–September 2004) and Group Finance Director (2000–2003).

In November 2009, John Varley realigned Barclays' businesses into Global Retail Banking and Corporate and Investment Banking and Wealth Management. Global Retail Banking comprises UK Retail Banking, Barclaycard, the retail operations in Western Europe and Emerging Markets businesses, and retail operations and technology. Corporate and Investment Banking and Wealth Management comprises Barclays Capital, Barclays Commercial Bank and Barclays Wealth. This resulted in certain changes to the leadership team and an expansion of the Group Executive Committee (ExCo).

Since 2004, Barclays has sponsored the Premier League and, from 2006, the Churchill Cup. Barclays also sponsored The Football League from 1987 until 1993, succeeding Today newspaper and being replaced by Endsleigh Insurance. It also sponsored the 2008 Dubai Tennis Championships. In 2009 it became the official sponsor of the ATP World Tour Finals.

Barclays is a major sponsor of professional golf tournaments worldwide, the Barclays Scottish Open on the PGA European Tour at Loch Lomond since 2002, the Barclays Classic on the PGA Tour from 2005–2006, which became The Barclays in 2007, the first of four playoff tournaments for the FedEx Cup, and since 2006 Barclays has been title sponsor to the Singapore Open, the richest national open in Asia, and since 2009 has been co-sanctioned with the European Tour. Barclays also sponsors PGA Tour star Phil Mickelson and European Tour player Darren Clarke.

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A shirt is a cloth garment for the upper body. Originally an undergarment worn exclusively by men, it has become, in American English, a catch-all term for almost any upper-body garment other than outerwear such as sweaters, coats, jackets, or undergarments such as bras, vests or base layers. In British English, a shirt is more specifically a garment with a collar, sleeves with cuffs and a full vertical opening with buttons or snaps. (North Americans would call that a "dress shirt", a specific type of "collared shirt"). A shirt can also be worn with a necktie under the shirt collar.

The world's oldest preserved garment, discovered by Flinders Petrie, is a "highly sophisticated" linen shirt from a First Dynasty Egyptian tomb at Tarkan, ca. 3000B.C. : "the shoulders and sleeves have been finely pleated to give form-fitting trimness while allowing the wearer room to move. The small fringe formed during weaving along one edge of the cloth has been placed by the designer to decorate the neck opening and side seam." 

The shirt was an item of men's underwear until the twentieth century. Although the woman's chemise was a closely related garment to the man's, it is the man's garment that became the modern shirt. In the Middle Ages it was a plain, undyed garment worn next to the skin and under regular garments. In medieval artworks, the shirt is only visible (uncovered) on humble characters, such as shepherds, prisoners, and penitents. In the seventeenth century men's shirts were allowed to show, with much the same erotic import as visible underwear today. In the eighteenth century, instead of underpants, men "relied on the long tails of shirts ... to serve the function of drawers. Eighteenth century costume historian Joseph Strutt believed that men who did not wear shirts to bed were indecent. Even as late as 1879, a visible shirt with nothing over it was considered improper. 

The shirt sometimes had frills at the neck or cuffs. In the sixteenth century, men's shirts often had embroidery, and sometimes frills or lace at the neck and cuffs, and through the eighteenth century long neck frills, or jabots, were fashionable. Colored shirts began to appear in the early nineteenth century, as can be seen in the paintings of George Caleb Bingham. They were considered casual wear, for lower class workers only, until the twentieth century. For a gentleman, "to wear a sky-blue shirt was unthinkable in 1860 but had become standard by 1920 and, in 1980, constituted the most commonplace event." 

European and American women began wearing shirts in 1860, when the Garibaldi shirt, a red shirt as worn by the freedom fighters under Giuseppe Garibaldi,[11] was popularized by Empress Eugénie of France. At the end of the 19th century, the Century Dictionary described an ordinary shirt as "of cotton, with linen bosom, wristbands and cuffs prepared for stiffening with starch, the collar and wristbands being usually separate and adjustable".

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Garmin

Garmin Ltd., incorporated in Schaffhausen, Switzerland, is the parent company of a group of companies founded in 1989 by Gary Burrell and Min Kao (hence the name GarMin), that develops consumer, aviation, and marine technologies for the Global Positioning System. Its subsidiary Garmin International, Inc. serves as headquarters for the Garmin Limited companies and is located in Olathe, Kansas, which is located in the Kansas City Metropolitan Area in the United States. The largest operating subsidiary and primary production facility of Garmin Limited is Garmin (Asia) Corporation, located in Sijhih City, Taiwan, a suburb of Taipei.

By 1995 Garmin’s sales had reached $105 million, and had achieved a profit of $23 million. By 1999 sales had reached $233 million and profit of $64 million. Garmin reported a 2006 total revenue of $1.77 billion, up 73 percent from $1.03 billion in 2005.

By 1999 the company’s products had captured about half of the North American market share of GPS receivers used in marine and outdoor recreation markets, according to a market study conducted by Frost and Sullivan. Its own internal estimates showed that its aviation retrofit products had 59% market share, and that its portable aviation GPS products had 76% of the market.

Burrell retired in 2003 as Garmin’s Chief Executive Officer and in 2004 retired as Chairman of its Board of Directors. He is now Chairman Emeritus. Kao became CEO in 2003, and Chairman in 2004.

In 2005 Forbes Magazine estimated Kao’s net worth at $1.5 billion. He has donated $17.5 million to the University of Tennessee. The same year Forbes estimated Burrell’s net worth as $940 million.

By 2000 Garmin had sold three million GPS devices, and was producing 50 different models. Its products were sold in 100 countries and carried by 2,500 independent distributors. As of 22 August 2000, the company held 35 patents on GPS technology. By the end of June 2000, the company employed 1,205 people: 541 in the United States, 635 in Taiwan, and 29 in the United Kingdom.

The company began public trading on NASDAQ on 8 December 2000. At that time Burrell owned 19,911,155 shares. Kao owned 20,352,803 shares. Together their holdings accounted for 45 percent of the stock in Garmin. Kao’s brother, Ruey-Jeng Kao, an attorney in Taipei, owned another 7,984,109 shares, which when combined with Burrell’s and Kao’s shares constituted 54.22 percent of the shares outstanding.

In August 2003 Garmin completed acquisition of UPS Aviation Technologies, Inc., a subsidiary of United Parcel Service, Inc., expanding its product line of panel-mounted GPS/NAV/COMM units and integrated cockpit systems for private and commercial aircraft. The acquired company changed its name to Garmin AT, Inc. and continued operations as a wholly owned subsidiary of Garmin International, Inc.

Garmin has acquired Dynastream Innovations, EME Tec Sat SAS (EME), and Digital Cyclone. Dynastream, located in Cochrane, Alberta, Canada, is a leader in the field of personal monitoring technology (ANT+) — such as foot pods and heart rate monitors for sports and fitness products — and is also a leading provider of ultra-low-power and low-cost wireless connectivity solutions for a wide range of applications (ANT). EME Tec Sat SAS (EME) is the distributor of Garmin's consumer products in France; following the acquisition, EME will change its name to Garmin France SAS. Digital Cyclone Inc (DCI), located in Chanhassen, Minnesota, provides mobile weather solutions for consumers, pilots, and outdoor enthusiasts. Garmin also bought Nautamatic Marine Systems, an Oregon-based company that makes autopilot systems for boats.

The company’s first product was the GPS 100, a panel-mounted GPS receiver aimed at the marine market, priced at $2,500. It debuted at the 1990 International Marine Technology Exposition in Chicago. The product was an instant hit and generated a backlog of orders for 5,000 units. In response to the demand thus created, Kao traveled (January 1991) to Taipei to set up manufacturing facilities.

Another early product, a handheld GPS receiver, proved popular with military personnel serving in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia during the 1991 Gulf War. In the early 2000s, Garmin launched a series of personal GPS devices aimed at recreational runners called the Forerunner. A similar wrist-worn GPS device with two dimensional GPS tracking and waypoint projection called the Garmin Foretrex is popular among day hikers, off-road mountain bikers, and sailboat racers.

A late-model Garmin eTrex H showing a solid fix from multiple satellites.

One of the most popular of the Garmin handheld GPS receivers, the compact eTrex series, was introduced in 1998. Within the eTrex line are several models packaging several different features and options. The original eTrex, commonly nicknamed "eTrex Yellow", was a sensation when it first appeared, as it offered a lightweight (5.3 oz/150 g), waterproof, palm-sized 12-channel GPS receiver to backpackers, hikers, and others afoot in remote areas, along with a battery life of up to 22 hours on just two AA-size batteries. The eTrex 'Yellow' was replaced in 2007 by the eTrex H, which added a high-sensitivity receiver. Other more advanced eTrex models include the Summit, Venture, Legend, and Vista, each with various additional features such as WAAS, altimeter, digital compass, city database, and highway maps. Many models come in color and expandable-memory versions.

The Geko series is a later compact line of handheld GPS receivers aimed at the budget or lightweight hiking market.

In 2004 Garmin introduced its 60C line of handheld GPS mapping receivers, featuring increased sensitivity and storage capacity along with a battery life of up to 30 hours in battery-save mode. This was followed by the 60Cx and 60CSx with improved color map displays. The 60Cx and 60CSx have been used as primary navigational tools on several adventure and exploration trips to remote areas around the world, including a rafting expedition down the entirety of the Amazon River in 2008.

With the GTM-11, GTM 20 and GTM 25, a Garmin GPS device receives and uses Traffic Message Channel (TMC) information. Also, some Garmin nüvi (1690, 1490T, 1450T, 1390T, 1390, 1350, 1260, 1250 and 265WT, 265T, 265W, 265, 255w and 255) comes with an integrated TMC receiver.

In October 2005, Garmin released the StreetPilot i-Series, compact GPS navigators which come in three models, i2, i3, i5. The i2 has a monochrome display, and maps need to be loaded on a Transflash card. The i3 is similar to the i2, except it has a color screen. The i5 has a color screen and the maps come preprogrammed into the device. More advanced versions of the StreetPilot include the c-Series, some of which sport large colour touchscreens, FM traffic notifications, support for weather and information updates from MSN Direct, and Bluetooth support.

In October 2006, Garmin began shipping the nüvi 660, a pocketsize widescreen successor to their nüvi 300 series. The 660 added bluetooth, FM transmitter, enhanced screen brightness and screen size, all in a small "flat" size.

Additionally, Garmin's Zumo line is designed specifically for motorcycles. The Zumo 550 and StreetPilot 2610 with slightly different feature sets have been marketed as an OEM offering by BMW for their motorcycles as the BMW Zumo and BMW Navigator III.

Lately Garmin has released its 1000's series which includes the 1690 which incorporates the ability to use Google Local Search to have more up to date Points of Interest and has the ability tap into the 3G network. Garmin has furthered its technology in this field to make one of the thinnest models in the 3700 series as well.

Garmin expanded its presence in the aviation market in 2003 through acquisition of UPS Aviation Technologies, thereby acquiring the latter's II Morrow Apollo line of aircraft MFD/GPS/NAV/COMM units, complementing its existing aviation product line. II Morrow was founded in Salem, Oregon in 1982 as a manufacturer of LORAN C Marine and General Aviation products. In 1982 their first true aircraft navigator, the 602 LORAN C receiver permitted point to point navigation. A good examples of their popular LORAN units are the Apollo II 616B Aviation LORAN panel mount (1886) and the II Morrow Apollo 604 Loran Navigator (1987). One of their more popular early GPS units was IImorrow's Apollo 820 GPS Flybuddy which was shipping in 1991. In 1986, United Parcel Service (UPS) purchased the company to expand the use of electronic technology in the package delivery and tracking business. (Some claim that this departure from the General Aviation marketplace, really enabled Garmin, and gave them a vacuum to fill)

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Sunglasses

Sunglasses or sun glasses are a form of protective eyewear designed primarily to prevent bright sunlight and high-energy visible light from damaging or discomforting the eyes. They also help cancel out harmful UV rays from the sun. They can sometimes also function as a visual aid, as variously termed spectacles or glasses exist, featuring lenses that are colored, polarized or darkened. In the early 20th century they were also known as sun cheaters (cheaters being an American slang term for glasses).

Many people find direct sunlight too bright for comfort during outdoor activities. Healthcare professionals recommend eye protection whenever the sun comes out to protect the eyes from ultraviolet radiation (UV) and blue light, which can cause several serious eye problems. Sunglasses have long been associated with celebrities and film actors primarily from a desire to mask their identity. Since the 1940s sunglasses have been popular as a fashion accessory, especially on the beach.

In prehistoric and historic time, Inuit peoples wore flattened walrus ivory "glasses," looking through narrow slits to block harmful reflected rays of the sun.

It is said that the Roman emperor Nero liked to watch gladiator fights with emeralds. These, however, appear to have worked rather like mirrors. Sunglasses made from flat panes of smoky quartz which offered no corrective powers but did protect the eyes from glare were used in China in the 12th century or possibly earlier. Ancient documents describe the use of such crystal sunglasses by judges in ancient Chinese courts to conceal their facial expressions while questioning witnesses.

James Ayscough began experimenting with tinted lenses in spectacles in the mid-18th century, around 1752. These were not "sunglasses" as such; Ayscough believed blue- or green-tinted glass could correct for specific vision impairments. Protection from the Sun's rays was not a concern for him.

Yellow/amber and brown-tinted spectacles were also a commonly-prescribed item for people with syphilis in the 19th and early 20th centuries because sensitivity to light was one of the symptoms of the disease.

In the early 1900s, the use of sunglasses started to become more widespread, especially among stars of movies. It is commonly believed that this was to avoid recognition by fans, but an alternative reason sometimes given is that they often had red eyes from the powerful arc lamps that were needed due to the extremely slow speed film stocks used. The stereotype persisted long after improvements in film quality and the introduction of ultraviolet filters had eliminated this problem. Inexpensive mass-produced sunglasses were introduced to America by Sam Foster in 1929. Foster found a ready market on the beaches of Atlantic City, New Jersey, where he began selling sunglasses under the name Foster Grant from a Woolworth on the Boardwalk.

Polaroid

Polarized sunglasses first became available in 1936, when Edwin H. Land began experimenting with making lenses with his patented Polaroid filter.

Sunglasses can improve visual comfort and visual clarity by protecting the eye from glare.

Various types of disposable sunglasses are dispensed to patients after receiving mydriatic eye drops during eye examinations.

The lenses of polarized sunglasses reduce glare reflected at some angles off shiny non-metallic surfaces such as water. They are popular among fishermen because they allow wearers to see into water when normally only glare would be seen.

Sunglasses offer protection against excessive exposure to light, including its visible and invisible components.

The most widespread protection is against ultraviolet radiation, which can cause short-term and long-term ocular problems such as photokeratitis, snow blindness, cataracts, pterygium, and various forms of eye cancer. Medical experts advise the public on the importance of wearing sunglasses to protect the eyes from UV; for adequate protection, experts recommend sunglasses that reflect or filter out 99-100 % of UVA and UVB light, with wavelengths up to 400 nm. Sunglasses which meet this requirement are often labeled as "UV400." This is slightly more protection than the widely used standard of the European Union (see below), which requires that 95 % of the radiation up to only 380 nm must be reflected or filtered out. Sunglasses are not sufficient to protect the eyes against permanent harm from looking directly at the Sun, even during a solar eclipse.

More recently, high-energy visible light (HEV) has been implicated as a cause of age-related macular degeneration; before, debates had already existed as to whether "blue blocking" or amber tinted lenses may have a protective effect. Some manufacturers already design to block blue light; the insurance company Suva, which covers most Swiss employees, asked eye experts around Charlotte Remé (ETH Zürich) to develop norms for blue blocking, leading to a recommended minimum of 95% of the blue light. Sunglasses are especially important for children, as their ocular lenses are thought to transmit far more HEV light than adults (lenses "yellow" with age).

There has been some speculation that sunglasses actually promote skin cancer. This is due to the eyes being tricked into producing less melanocyte-stimulating hormone in the body.

The only way to assess the protection of sunglasses is to have the lenses measured, either by the manufacturer or by a properly equipped optician. Several standards for sunglasses (see below) allow a general classification of the UV protection (but not the blue light protection), and manufacturers often indicate simply that the sunglasses meet the requirements of a specific standard rather than publish the exact figures.

The only "visible" quality test for sunglasses is their fit. The lenses should fit close enough to the face that only very little "stray light" can reach the eye from their sides, or from above or below, but not so close that the eyelashes smear the lenses. To protect against "stray light" from the sides, the lenses should fit close enough to the temples and/or merge into broad temple arms or leather blinders.

While non-tinted glasses are very rarely worn without the practical purpose of correcting eyesight or protecting one's eyes, sunglasses have become popular for several further reasons, and are sometimes worn even indoors or at night.

Sunglasses can be worn to hide one's eyes. They can make eye contact impossible, which can be intimidating to those not wearing sunglasses; the avoided eye contact can also demonstrate the wearer's detachment, which is considered desirable ("cool") in some circles. Eye contact can be avoided even more effectively by using mirrored sunglasses. Sunglasses can also be used to hide emotions; this can range from hiding blinking to hiding weeping and its resulting red eyes. In all cases, hiding one's eyes has implications for nonverbal communication.

Fashion trends can be another reason for wearing sunglasses, particularly designer sunglasses. Sunglasses of particular shapes may be in vogue as a fashion accessory. Fashion trends can also draw on the "cool" image of sunglasses.

People may also wear sunglasses to hide an abnormal appearance of their eyes. This can be true for people with severe visual impairment, such as the blind, who may wear sunglasses to avoid making others uncomfortable. The assumption is that it may be more comfortable for another person not to see the hidden eyes rather than see abnormal eyes or eyes which seem to look in the wrong direction. People may also wear sunglasses to hide dilated or contracted pupils, bloodshot eyes due to drug use, recent physical abuse (such as a black eye), exophthalmos (bulging eyes), a cataract, or eyes which jerk uncontrollably (nystagmus).

Frames are generally made of plastic, nylon, a metal or a metal alloy. Nylon frames are usually used in sports because they are lightweight and flexible. They are able to bend slightly and return to their original shape instead of breaking when pressure is applied to them. This flex can also help the glasses grip better on the wearer's face. Metal frames are usually more rigid than nylon frames, thus they can be more easily damaged when the wearer participates in sport activities, but this is not to say that they cannot be used for such activities. Because metal frames are more rigid, some models have spring loaded hinges to help them grip the wearer's face better. The end of the resting hook and the bridge over the nose can be textured or have rubber or plastic material to improve hold. The ends of the resting hook are usually curved so that they wrap around the ear; however, some models have straight resting hooks. Oakley, for example, has straight resting hooks on all their glasses, preferring to call them "earstems".

Frames can be made to hold the lenses in several different ways. There are three common styles: full frame, half frame, and frameless. Full frame glasses have the frame go all around the lenses. Half frames go around only half the lens; typically the frames attach to the top of the lenses and on the side near the top. Frameless glasses have no frame around the lenses and the ear stems are attached directly to the lenses. There are two styles of frameless glasses: those that have a piece of frame material connecting the two lenses, and those that are a single lens with ear stems on each side.

Some sports-optimized sunglasses have interchangeable lens options. Lenses can be easily removed and swapped for a different lens, usually of a different colour. The purpose is to allow the wearer to easily change lenses when light conditions or activities change. The reasons are that the cost of a set of lenses is less than the cost of a separate pair of glasses, and carrying extra lenses is less bulky than carrying multiple pairs of glasses. It also allows easy replacement of a set of lenses if they are damaged. The most common type of sunglasses with interchangeable lenses has a single lens or shield that covers both eyes. Styles that use two lenses also exist, but are less common.

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A surfboard is an elongated platform used in the sport of surfing. They are relatively light, but strong enough to support an individual standing on them while riding a breaking wave. They were invented in Hawaii, where they were known as papa he‘e nalu in the Hawaiian language, usually made of wood from local trees, such as koa, and were often over 15 feet (5 m) in length and extremely heavy. Major advances over the years include the addition of one or more fins on the bottom rear of the board to improve directional stability, and numerous improvements in materials and shape.

Modern surfboards are made of polyurethane or polystyrene foam covered with layers of fiberglass, cloth and polyester or epoxy resin. The result is a light and strong surfboard that is buoyant and maneuverable. Recent developments in surfboard technology have included the use of carbon fiber. Longboards, as the name suggests, are longer (often 8 ft/2.4 m or more), and are also thicker and wider, with a more rounded nose than a shortboard, making them stable and buoyant. Shortboards are shorter (5–7 ft/1.5–2.1 m), thinner, and have a more pointed nose. They are not as wide as longboards and are typically more maneuverable. Other variants include guns, longboard guns, olos, fun-boards, fish, eggs, bonzers, quads, tow-boards, and hydrofoils.

Surfboards are usually constructed using polyurethane foam. They are made stronger with one or more small pieces of wood, called a stringer, going down the middle of the board. The foam is molded into a "blank", in the rough shape of a surfboard.[3] Once the blanks have been made they are given to shapers. Shapers then cut, plane, and sand the board to its specifications. Finally, the board is covered in one or more layers of fiberglass cloth and resin. It is during this stage that the fins, or boxes for removable fins, are put on and the leash plug is installed. Another method of making boards is using epoxy resin and polystyrene foam, instead of polyester resin and polyurethane foam. In recent years, surfboards made out of balsa and a polystyrene core are becoming more popular. Even solid balsa surfboards are available.

Although foam boards are usually shaped by hand, the use of machines to shape them has become more popular over the years. Modern technology has made its way into surfboard production as well. Vacuum forming and modern sandwich construction techniques borrowed from other industries have become more common in the industry. Many surfers have switched to riding sandwich-construction, epoxy boards. These boards have become especially popular with beginner surfers as they provide, in most cases, a cheaper entry level surfboard as well as a more durable and resistant one.

The history of using balsa as a material for surfboard making goes back to the Hawaiians but really hits off in the late 1930s. Being light and strong, balsa wood was long considered a perfect material for surfboards. However, shapers could not use this fragile wood to make entire surfboards until after WW2 when fiberglass was invented.

The advantages of balsa wood boards is that they are a lot lighter, more buoyant and therefore easier to handle. These boards did have some disadvantages, however, because they were not as sturdy as the solid redwood. They are currently favoured by surfers and collectors because they are more durable than a regular surfboard, environmentally friendly and have a beautiful look.

A switch back to using wood after the foam revolution in the 1950's, hollow wooden surfboards are made of wood and epoxy. They specifically have no foam in their construction. (boards made with foam and wood are commonly known as compsands or veneer boards) Various construction methods are used to hollow the inside of the surfboard and lighten the weight of the completed board. Generally a hollow wood surfboard is 30% to 300% heavier than a standard foam and resin surfboard. The main inspiration apart from beauty, is to turn to a more environmentally friendly method which uses fast growing plantation wood such as Paulownia, Cedar, Spruce, Redwood, and of course Balsa.

The current methods descended from the 1930's Tom Blake paddleboarding method which favors a central stringer, with individually shaped transverse ribs, covered with a skin and lastly, rails which are then shaped. A modern interpretation of Tom Blakes work is the perimeter stringer method used by some manufacturers utilizing laminated rails as stringers, which are connected with a series of plywood ribs. This skeleton is subsequently sheathed with 5mm thick wood strips, forming a fast hollow board with better flex properties.

The parallel profile system developed by Roy Stewart is developed from cold molded (double diagonal) boat building and uses at least four layers laminated over a male mold into a curved blank, including enough wood for rails, which are then shaped. The chambering method as used by follows a system whereby planks of paulownia are selected and the rocker of the board is cut into each. The planks are then chambered to reduce weight and then bonded together to form a hollow, or "chambered" blank which is then shaped.

Many types of boards are made using any of the different construction methods, the variation of type dependent in some cases on the use for which the board is designed.

Since the late 1960s, when Gordon Clark found the optimum formulation of urethane foam, many of the surfboards in common use have been of the shortboard variety between 6 feet and 7 feet in length, with a pointed nose and a rounded or squarish tail, typically with three skegs (fins) but sometimes with two or as many as five. Surfers generally find a shortboard very quick to maneuver compared with other types of surfboards, but because of a lack of flotation due to the smaller size, harder to catch waves with, often requiring steeper, larger and more powerful waves and very late takeoffs, where the surfer catches the wave at the critical moment before it breaks.

A bonzer is a variety of surfboard created by the Campbell Brothers with three or five fins with double concave channels. The manufacturer claims that these channels create a venturi effect which guides the water off of the surface of the board through a narrowed passage.

The surfboard fin is a stabilizing rudder fixed to the rear of the surfboard to prevent it from sliding sideways. In the early days, surfers would stabilize the board by hanging the toes of their back foot over the edge of the board and would steer by putting their foot in the water. The innovation of a skeg in 1936 — by either or both of Woody "Spider" Brown or Tom Blake — revolutionized surfing, allowing surfers to direct the board's momentum and providing more balance whilst turning.

The template of the modern surfboard fin was developed by George Greenough in the 1960s. The single fin changed little until the late 70's, when a second was added and popularised by Australian Mark Richards. The new twin fin set up allowed much more flowing carves to be performed. Mark Richards dominated the world competitive scene from 1979 to 1983. In 1981 another Australian was developing another set up which would again change the face of surfing. His name was Simon Anderson and by attaching a third fin, positioned centrally behind the twin fins, he created the thruster set up. Today, most surfboards still use the same arrangement with its popularity arising from the combined ability for carving turns and providing control and drive.

Tunnel fins were invented in the 60's by Richard Deese, and were found on longboards by multiple manufacturers of that era, including Dewey Weber. Bob Bolen, A.K.A. 'the Greek', patented the "Turbo Tunnel" in the late 1990s. Since the mid 90's half tunnel fins have mainly been used on very long hollow wooden surfboards.

Bullet Fins were invented in the 2005 by Ron Pettibone to increase surfboard hull planing and rail-to-rail transition speed. The patent-pending fins are based on 50 years of hydrodynamic research on the bulbous bow hull design. Just as with the bow of a ship, the traditional surfboard fin creates a wave as it displaces the water in its path. The resulting turbulence places drag on the surfboard. The bulb of the Bullet Fin reduces this drag by creating a new (primary) fin wave in front of the original (secondary) wave. This new bulb wave is designed to be nearly 180 degrees out of phase with the original fin wave to subtract its turbulence thus reducing fin drag.

Winged fins are another type of surfboard fin, the genesis of which was America's Cup sailboat design. The Starfin was designed in the 1980s by the America's Cup yacht designer, Ben Lexcen, who had designed the winged keel for the America's Cup boat, Australia II. The small thruster-sized fin, the RedTip 3D is manufactured by FCS.

Fins with winglets -- tiny wings -- were invented in 2005. The purpose of winglets, as in airplane design, is to increase lift (horizontal turning force in the case of surfboard fins) while reducing drag, by reducing the fin-tip vortex.

Fins with a camber have an asymmetrical profile. In windsurfing camber is used to increase the lift to drag ratio of the fin and to minimise cavitation and the risk of spin-out. In particular windsurfers trying to improve speed records use camber fins, as the maximum performance is required on one down-wind course direction. As the camber is fixed to one side, performance when sailing in one direction is improved but performance in the other way is deteriorated.

Fins with self adjusting camber offer the improved qualities in both port side and starboard side sailing directions.

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