In other IS news - Swiss man on trial for fighting AGAINST IS!

Johan Cosar went to Syria not to fight for the Islamic State group, but against them. Now, the former Swiss army officer is facing a military tribunal back home.

He is charged with joining a foreign army and thus undermining Switzerland's neutrality and security.

Mr Cosar makes no attempt to hide his actions and remains proud of them.

"The law forbids fighting for a foreign force," an army spokeswoman said. "Who that force actually is, is irrelevant."

Mr Cosar was born in Switzerland, and is a Swiss citizen. But his grandparents have Syrian roots, and the Cosar family are members of the Syriac Christian community.

God Bless you Johan. I pray that any and all charges against you are soon dropped, and you can be a free man shortly. Thank you for your fight & leadership against this evil threat. Unlike some other people I could mention...

"And maybe just remind the few, if ill of us they speak, That we are all that stands between the monsters and the weak."

www.bbc.co.uk

59 Club: ride-out & Blessing Service at St Paul's Cathedral. Saturday 4th May 2019

Come and  celebrate the 60th anniversary of the 59 Club and join one of two special rides to St Paul’s Cathedral in central London on Saturday 4th May 2019.

All are welcome to celebrate the 59 Club, its Diamond anniversary, motorcycling and, together with special guests, are invited to attend a Service and Blessing at 5pm in the City of London’s iconic landmark.

The two separate Ride-Outs to the city on Saturday 4th May are from:

A) All Saints Church

Uxbridge Road

London TW13 5EE

Meet From 1.30pm, Depart 2.30pm

B) Ace Cafe London

North Circular Road

London NW10 7UD

Meet From 2pm, Depart 3pm

Click here to download the flyer for this event from Facebook

Samsung Galaxy Fold: a very cool smartphone that morphs into a tablet

Samsung kicked off its Galaxy Unpacked 2019 event at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco with the biggest news first - its foldable smartphone. Called the Galaxy Fold, the smartphone/tablet hybrid sports dual screens: one that folds in half like a notebook, and another that works just like any other. Samsung says the Galaxy Fold is defining “a new mobile category.”

The roughly 200-gram Galaxy Fold flips open in portrait orientation, and the inside is coated with a film that gives it a photopaper-like appearance. It’s got a protective polymer consisting of a cover window, a shock-absorbent film, and a polarizer that’s 45 percent slimmer than the company’s previous thinnest, along with a flexible layer and backplane. Samsung says the tech — dubbed Infinity Flex Display — took seven years to develop.

Thanks to a highly durable adhesive and a “sophisticated” hinge system with interlocking gears, the Fold’s 7.3-inch QXGA+ Dynamic AMOLED (4.2:3) primary screen can undergo “hundreds of thousands” of flexes without sustaining any sort of damage, Samsung says. The 4.6-inch HD+ Super AMOLED (21:9) cover screen purposefully doesn’t bend — it puts apps at your fingertips when the Fold’s folded in half.

The Fold packs a speaker tuned by AKG Acoustics and a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, and comes in four colours: black, silver, green, and blue. You can personalize the hinge color, too, if you choose.

It’s available in both an LTE and 5G version, starting at an eye-popping $1,980. April 26 is the launch date.

www.venturebeat.com

40acts - give generously during Lent

How can 40acts help me during Lent? Lent is one of the most important times of year for many Christians around the world, particularly those within the Anglican, Catholic and Orthodox traditions, held at a similar level of importance to Advent – the build up to Christmas.

Different people observe Lent in different ways, though by and large most people do this by giving something up for Lent. Whether you’re intending to give up chocolate, fast food, alcohol, or the Internet, 40acts encourages you to do something generous during Lent, too. You can sign up to take the challenge here.

As well as our group resources for families, churches, small groups, schools and youth groups, we also have a whole host of prayers for Lent that you can read, as well as a list of Lent prayers for children. In order to help your children better understand this wholly significant time of year we also have a section of our website entirely dedicated to facts about Lent, from the different days of Lent to what days like Ash Wednesday mean to the wider community.

If you need any help or guidance through Lent this year, sign up for 40acts, and do Lent generously.

www.40acts.org.uk

Windows 7: you need SHA-2 support - or no more Windows updates after July 2019!

To protect your security, Windows operating system updates are dual-signed using both the SHA-1 and SHA-2 hash algorithms to authenticate that updates come directly from Microsoft and were not tampered with during delivery. Due to weaknesses in the SHA-1 algorithm and to align to industry standards Microsoft will only sign Windows updates using the more secure SHA-2 algorithm exclusively.

Customers running legacy OS versions (Windows 7 SP1, Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 SP2) will be required to have SHA-2 code signing support installed on their devices by July 2019. Any devices without SHA-2 support will not be offered Windows updates after July 2019. To help prepare you for this change, we will release support for SHA-2 signing in 2019. Some older versions of Windows Server Update Services (WSUS) will also receive SHA-2 support to properly deliver SHA-2 signed updates.

However, even if you have SHA-2 code-signing installed, there isn't much time left! Windows 7, service pack 1 - End Of Support: 14th January 2020. Now is the time to start planning for an upgrade to your computer or a to obtain a replacement system.

www.microsoft.com

Get 50% off your 1st order at Amazon Business!

What is Amazon Business?

Amazon Business is changing the way companies buy supplies. For most small businesses, buying supplies can be time-consuming and frustrating. Finding the best product at the best price with the most convenient payment terms can be a challenge, especially when they have other tasks that need to be completed. Amazon Business is the solution and brings big benefits to businesses of all sizes and industries. 

How does Amazon Business work?

Amazon Business is a business-to-business marketplace that combines selection, convenience and the value customers around the world have come to know and love from Amazon, with additional business-specific features including bulk pricing, Pay by Invoice*, downloadable VAT invoices and spend management tools. In this marketplace, multiple sellers compete for purchases on common stock keeping units (SKUs) on the most favorable terms for customers. It’s like a “reverse auction” where customers save time, money and hassle in the process. 

Choice, value and convenience: Amazon Business simplifies the entire purchasing process for businesses by helping them find, compare and order exactly what they need with fast, reliable shipping and flexible payment options. It’s a shopping experience Amazon customers will instantly recognise and understand. 

Helpful purchasing tools: Amazon Business gives users access to helpful purchasing controls that can ensure that only authorised purchases are made, together with tools to integrate with their existing purchasing system and provide detailed purchasing analytics.

Free accounts: Unlike warehouse clubs or subscription-based online retailers, Amazon Business accounts are free, even for companies with multiple authorised purchasers. Once registered, those with accounts are able to search hundreds of millions of products in the Amazon Business inventory, where multiple sellers can compete for their purchase.

Until 14 May, customers registering via this link will benefit from 50% off their first purchase of up to £100 on Amazon Business in addition to the great prices in the Fiscal Year End Sale during March 2019.

www.amazon.co.uk

Work from home - a good fit for your business?

Remote work used to be a trend, but it is quickly becoming the norm. According to research, companies that support remote work have a 25 percent higher retention rate than companies that don’t. More and more people have seen the benefits of telecommuting and now want it as an option in their workplace.

In this eBook, you'll learn nine essential tips for effectively managing a remote team, including how to:

• Establish habits of easy daily reporting on the status of projects.
• Support connectedness with video meetings, offsite retreats, and chat groups.
• Measure metrics like engagement, satisfaction, and customer feedback to set a standard for success.

Download the full eBook today to see how you can foster a successful work-from-anywhere culture.

www.microsoft.com