internet

2015/9.2, September 23 — Overflowing Consequences, Heater Talk, Small-Site Potential and more
THE ESSENTIAL E-NEWSLETTER FOR WATERSHAPE DESIGNERS, ENGINEERS AND BUILDERS September 23, 2015 www.watershapes.com FEATURE ARTICLE…
Sound and Motion
Making the transition from printed magazine to digital newsletter has been interesting, to say the least.   I never thought I’d even think something like this, but there are so many advantages to the “new media” approach that I wouldn’t even consider doubling back to ink and paper at this point. One limitation that always bothered me in print, for example, was the fact that my art director and I had to select from among so many nice, wonderful, big photographs and crunch them down into tiny spaces.  To be sure, we balanced the small ones with lots of large ones, but I can’t think of too many features in which I didn’t wish for extra
Keeping Control
‘As watershape designs have become more creative, more competitive and ultimately more valuable to our clients than we once were, it’s natural that we have started paying more attention to protecting our output.’ That’s how Brian Van Bower began in his July 2008 Aqua Culture column.  He continued:  ‘This is indeed a large and important issue for many people in our business, virtually to the point where watershapers are now facing the same sorts of concerns that have preoccupied architects and landscape architects for decades.  And we’ve caught up with our colleagues at
WaterShapes.com Resource Directory
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Direct Access
More than ever, the Internet is shaping the way we communicate and run our businesses.  As I’ve mentioned previously, this why we’ve been working for a year now to enhance watershapes.com, backing the magazine up with resources and features designed to give you
On a Wire
Several years back, I was in a seminar at the International Pool & Spa Expo when the instructor asked everyone who had an e-mail address to raise a hand. Way back then - it was in the late 1980s or perhaps even the early '90s - using the Internet for communication was a brand-new concept to most people and there were only a few people in the room who lifted an arm.  I wasn't one of them, and at that point I had no idea that e-mail and Web sites would ever become such an integral part of my life. At that time, in fact, I didn't think I'd ever need an e-mail address.  After all, I
Keeping Control
As watershape designs have become more creative, more competitive and ultimately more valuable to our clients than they once were, it’s natural that we have started paying more attention to protecting our output – what some call our “intellectual property.” This is indeed a large and important issue for many people in our business, virtually to the point where watershapers are now facing the same sorts of concerns that have preoccupied architects and landscape architects for decades.  And we’ve caught up with our colleagues at a bad time:  With technology being what it is now, the opportunities for
Protecting Forms
An important and complex factor in any business is the daily paperwork required to function properly. A couple of years ago I decided to bring all the paperwork, forms and filing practices for our business up to legal speed, so I enrolled in a class on Mechanic's Lien laws and processes.  The class was run by a law firm, and the first thing they said was that everyone is intimidated by forms and make it all too complicated. They advised us to