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Saturday, November 15, 2008

California Hiking - you will want to go every weekend!

By Penelope SanMateo

Hiking in California during certain times of the year is so fabulous that you will want to go all the time. You may want to take a weekend or maybe a whole week to see the different places to go. There is hiking available around rivers, glaciers, deserts, the coastline and in the grasslands. Take your pick.

Heading out to Mount Tallac will bring you to the 9.4 mile round trip hike at an elevation of 9,735 ft at the summit. It has a gain of 3,255 ft during the hike so be prepared with lots of water and very good shoes and gear. It is probably one of the best trails in the Lake Tahoe region with views from the summit so stunning to your senses that you will be hard pressed to capture pictures that will be as beautiful as what your eyes see. This trial is both wooded and mountainous. You will pass two lakes on the hike. Part of the trail is a steep climb up the switchbacks and when you reach the saddle of the mountain be ready for it to become exposed and very hot!

The hike to Upper Yosemite Falls is 7.2 miles round trip. The elevation at the summit is 6,526 ft and an elevation gain of 2,700 ft. You will want to do this hike from May to jUly when the waterfall is at its full force and most beautiful. You will hike through switchbacks in the forested area before coming to the flat area with your first view of the falls. Enjoy the mist from the falls as you get closer to it. You will face another set of switchbacks before reaching the summit. These are the most difficult and very steep so if you aren't in good physical condition you will want to pass on this part.

Let's switch areas and go to Mosaic Canyon and look at the hike that is available there. The trail is just 2.5 miles round trip. It is best to take this one from December to March to avoid the extreme heat of the desert. Be sure to bring plenty of water, you'll need it. While hiking on the mountains is fabulous so is canyon hiking. The canyon formations are beautiful. You may even see some desert life on your hike. This is the hottest place in the US so be sure to pack in lots of water..regardless of the time of year.

Back to the mountains and this time it's the really high hike. Prepare for Mt. Shasta, the most challenging trail in California. The trial is 12 miles round trip and the summit is 14,179 ft with an elevation gain of 7,259 ft. You will work on this trail to see the beauty. The time to plan this hike is from May to mid July due to the unpredictable weather in the spring and the lava rocks and rolling boulders that come crashing down the mountain after the snow melt in the summer. Not only is this more than a hike, you will have issues with altitude sicknes if you are not careful so make sure you go with a partner for safety and practical reasons. Read all you can about this hike before you begin, it's not one for the faint of heart.

Going on a hike on Mt. Shasta will provide you with a different view and challenge. You will need sunscreen, sunglasses, an ice axe and shelter. Since you won't have much warning if the weather is going to turn on you take the shelter to offer protection when, and if, you need it. Bring along your crampons, helmet, summit pass, and winter boots and wear extra layers of cloths, and again, plenty of water. The snow around Helen's Lake is contaminated by human and animal urine so don't plan on drinking melted snow or ice...nasty!

The 16 mile round trip hike of Half Dome has an elevation gain of 4,800 ft. It reaches the summit of 8,842 ft. This hike is best between late May and early October. It is a difficult hike which brings people from all around the world to Yosemite National Park. If you aren't in excellent physical shape with lots of hiking and climbing experience behind you don't attempt this climb. The switchbacks are rocky and many ankles are injured here so be super careful. When you reach Nevada Falls you are at the halfway point of the climb. Here you should take the time to assess your strengths and skills to see if you are prepared to continue on. The climb gets tougher so be ready. Not only is the climb tough but the altitude change will require some adjustment of your body so give it a little while. Rest, and then go on. The continuation is very steep, excruciatingly long to reach the back of Half Dome rock. Your body is continually assaulted on the switchbacks during this phase. The Half Dome cables will fill you with shock and fear, they should! Now, assess your ability to continue on and if you are sure you are willing, the success of the climb will give you stunning views of Yosemite Valley below. This hike is only for those that are in good, if not superior, physical condition. If you aren't then don't do this one. There are many other trails that will better fit your ability.

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Best way to copy protected DVDs

By Ethan Hunter

DVDs have a high storage capacity. No wonder, DVDs are used by individuals and companies to store large amounts of data. They have gained a dominant position in the field of Information technology. Since the data stored in DVDs is private property, the companies try to create a copy protection to safeguard against piracy and other illegal usages. The producers and the manufacturers protect the content of the disc in order to make profit from the copyright DVDs. But, there are some unauthorized people who make duplications of these DVDs by using CSS keys.

There are a number of software now available in the market that make the process of copying protected DVDs much easier than you would have thought. Even the programs such as shareware and freeware can help you make copies of protected DVDs. These are freely available on the net. They have a way of circumventing the encryption and can copy protected DVDs easily.

Thus, the first and most important part of copying protected DVDs is to have an efficient software program, such as CCS. This software program is capable of copying the protected DVDs no matter what the protective measures built in the DVD. Alternatively, you can check DVD43, which is a free program for decrypting and duplicating the protected DVDs. It has been used for copying different kinds of movies and its performance has been very good. Version 3.9.0 comes free of cost; and if you want to know how to copy protected DVDs, you can even download the link from the site.

Another advantage of this program is that it is easy to install and easy to use. The program works in the background to decrypt the movies on a fly. The process of using the decrypted file is easy enough. All you need to do is to put in the DVD whose copy you want to make and let DVD43 detect it. Then, you begin with copying the DVD with your software.

DVD Shrink is another program that is more commonly used to copy protected DVDs. DVD shrink is a freeware, which can be used along with other software programs for DVD burning. It has the capacity to shrink the data of the original DVD to fit it into the blank disc which has less space. One of the latest versions of this freeware is 3.2.0.15.

Apart from DVD shrink, there is another very popular software program known as the DVD decrypter. This program enables you to know how to copy protected DVDs and record the images to the disc. This software is also free and can be downloaded from the website.

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