The Known Universe

Anyone who knows me moderately well will know I'm kinda a geek when it comes to science, science fiction and the universe. Basically I am fascinated by what we know and more importantly DON'T know about our existence. Without getting into a deep philosophical debate, I'd just like to share this wonderful animation, outlining the perspective of the SCALE of our universe. It made me feel absolutely insignificant, and amazed.

Check it out!




Ben Sage, Sales Representative. http://www.bensage.com http://www.oxfordcountyhomes.ca Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON

Blackberry Bold (my communication weapon of choice) mixes Pleasure with Business

Reprinted from The Globe and Mail

A lot of folks like to pick on the Blackberry because it isn't as much fun as the iPhone. There's a sense among some that one Android phone, for example, will differ from another, but a Blackberry is still, at the end of the day, just a Blackberry.

But there's a reason so many people lose their minds once they're separated from their Blackberrys – what RIM's device does, it does really well. And the new Bold 9700 might just be the best Blackberry we've ever seen. There are no great departures from the traditional model, sure, but the Bold still looks tremendous. RIM is slowly trying to make the phone sexier for the average consumer, but they'll be damned if they sacrifice the no-nonsense business capabilities of the Blackberry in the process.

Ups: This is one mighty fine-looking Blackberry. The keyboard has been compressed somewhat from previous iterations, and yet manages to provide a better typing experience than any other phone we tested. RIM has replaced the trackball – which we often broke on previous versions – with a sort of flat track pad. This comes in mighty handy when web browsing. Anyone who has tried to use the trackball to browse the web on a Blackberry knows how frustrating an experience it is to find yourself maniacally skipping from one link to the next. In the Bold, you control a mouse with the track pad, giving you much better control of where you want to go on a page. Web browsing still isn't nearly as good as on the iPhone or the top-end Android phones, but it's far better than it used to be on a Blackberry.

RIM makes few changes to its traditional user interface with the Bold. The home screen contains some of the most-often used functions, such as the mailbox and the calendar. Touch the menu button, and you're transported to the full slew of options. Essentially, the learning curve for anyone who has ever used a Blackberry before will be about 10 seconds long.

Downs: There are no monumental changes here, just a really good version of a well-known smart phone. The Blackberry may still do typing and push email better than any other phone, but it's no longer the only product offering such functions as push email. The non-core functions, such as the media player and the camera, aren't as good as many other phones, especially those with a similar price tag. RIM's Blackberry app market is substantially larger than some of its competitors, such as Palm, but still lags far behind the iPhone.

Ben Sage, Sales Representative. http://www.bensage.com http://www.oxfordcountyhomes.ca Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON

Hey CRTC - Don't let monopolies squeeze out the little guy!!

MTS, small ISP take internet fight with Bell to court

Reprinted courtesy of CBC NEWS

MTS Allstream and independent broadband provider Acanac are asking a court to overturn a CRTC decision that grants Bell Canada the right to impose new internet charges on wholesale customers.

The companies, respectively based in Winnipeg and Toronto, have filed a notice of motion with the Federal Court of Appeal that says the regulator made an "error of law" by allowing Bell to go ahead with its usage-based billing plan.

Under the plan, Bell will institute new charges on wholesale customers — companies that rent parts of its network to provide their own internet services, including MTS and Acanac — based on their monthly bandwidth consumption. Bell will set each end user's monthly allowance, then charge extra for every gigabyte above the limit.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission provisionally approved the usage-based billing plan in early August. A few weeks later, the regulator asked Bell to justify the prices it intends to charge.

In their filing, MTS and Acanac say the CRTC is bound by the Telecommunications Act to ensure that rates for services it regulates are just and reasonable at all times. But since Bell doesn't have to pay itself those rates, the filing says, they are in fact unfair.

"Nowhere [in the order] is there any indication that the commission considered a usage-based charge to be just and reasonable and if it did, what evidence on the record it considered in coming to such a conclusion," court documents say.

Jacqueline Michelis, a spokesperson for Bell, said the regulator made the right decision.

"There is no error in law that would justify the court granting leave," she said.

Companies are able to file appeals with the courts over CRTC decisions if they believe the regulator has made an error in law, or if it has acted outside of its jurisdiction.

MTS and Acanac are part of a campaign started last week to overturn another CRTC decision, which limits wholesale competitors' access to the broadband infrastructure owned by the likes of Bell and Telus. MTS is looking to have that decision, which the CRTC made last December, overturned by cabinet.

The Coalition for Competitive Broadband seeks to muster public support for the appeal, which cabinet must act on by Dec. 11. The government can overturn the CRTC's decision, and send it back to the regulator for a review, or reject the appeal.

Industry analysts have said the access ruling and the usage-based billing decision have left MTS, which sells internet service to businesses across Canada, and smaller wholesale ISPs fighting for their lives.

Ben Sage, Sales Representative. Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON

Housing affordability improves, RBC says

Reprinted courtesy of cbcnews.ca

It's becoming easier to carry the costs of home ownership in Canada, but a survey by RBC Economics on housing affordability suggests this may be as good as it's going to get.

Home ownership became more affordable in the second quarter, the bank said Wednesday. It was the fifth straight quarter that the measure improved, it said.

"The national home affordability level has been restored to pre-housing boom levels," senior RBC economist Robert Hogue said in a statement.

But he warned that consumers shouldn't expect affordability to improve much more.

"The recuperative phase of the affordability cycle seems to be drawing to a close, with housing prices firming up in many parts of the country, and mortgage rates no longer trending downward," Hogue said.

Most banks lowered their mortgage rates in the last week, reversing this summer's earlier rate hike. A five-year fixed closed mortgage can now be obtained at 4.19 per cent at many banks and as little as 3.99 per cent at a few smaller financial institutions.

The RBC affordability study measures the percentage of pre-tax household income needed to service the costs of buying a home (mortgage payments, utilities and property taxes).

Housing affordability - bungalow
City	Q2/09 (% of pretax income needed)	Q2/08
Vancouver	63.4	76.8
Calgary	35.7	46.2
Edmonton	33.8	41.8
Toronto	46.5	54.2
Ottawa	38.6	42.4
Montreal	37.3	41.4
CANADA	39.1	45.4
Source: RBC Economics

The study found that it took an average of 39.1 per cent of income to pay for a detached bungalow in the three months ending in June — down from 39.7 per cent in the first quarter.

The priciest market continued to be Vancouver, where it took 63.4 per cent of pre-tax income to service a bungalow purchase.

Nationally, the RBC study found that affordability also improved for two-storey homes, townhouses and condos.

Despite predictions that home affordability is levelling off, RBC economists say the recent bounce-back in the housing market is not likely to wane any time soon.

"Supply of properties for sale is dropping as demand bounces back, which is working to heat up prices again in many parts of the country," RBC's Hogue said.

Figures from the Canadian Real Estate Association showed that 50,270 homes changed hands in July via MLS — a record for any July.

The average residential resale price rose 7.6 per cent from a year ago to $326,832.

First Time Home Buyers - What a GREAT time to buy!!

Are you thinking about buying your first home? Has the recent recession reduced home prices to the point that you're considering diving into the world of home ownership?

Now is DEFINITELY the time to act.

Contact me right now to find out how I walk buyers through the entire process of buying their first home, from the very first private showing, all the way through to personal pizza delivery on moving day, I will be with you every step of the way.

Here are only some valuable areas I can provide assistance:

Introduce you to a mortgage specialist. A friendly person, who will meet you in your home on your own terms to discuss your plans, and get a pre-approval.

Arrange private showings on listings that we select together. Ride in my car, if you want. I keep it running well and its (normally) very clean!

Benefit from my knowledge of Woodstock. Where will my kids go to school? Where can I find the best ice cream in town? Who does the fastest oil changes?

Assist through the process of making an agreement to purchase. Negotiating a purchase price that works for your budget, drafting conditions to protect you and your future investment, advising on aligning dates that work for you.

Recommending professional tradespeople to perform any services that you might require. As a real estate agent, a homeowner, and an investment property owner, I meet and use lots of Home inspectors, mortgage specialists, insurance agents, movers, cleaning services, plumbers, electricians, property maintenance, etc.

Show you how you can maximize your purchase and get thousands of dollars in government rebates for home renovations, deduct thousands of dollars from your income taxes, pay no land transfer tax, cash in your RRSP's tax free towards your downpayment, and benefit from historically low interest rates.

Respond very quickly to any requests you make. By embracing technology, I am equipped to receive your email, text message, and voicemail requests instantly and endeavour to always respond as soon as possible. Even if it's as quick as "Hey Bill, I got your Message. I'm on the 14th hole. I will respond to it as soon as I return to the office!"

So with property prices down, and rent steady or increasing, why not take the plunge? I go above and beyond with every step. Take advantage of what I'm offering today!

Call me - 519-536-7535 ext 487