Life Abroad ~ #VPN Apk

13 Jun

I’ve found in my experience that most VPNs are a pain in the neck to download in certain places.  If the websites are blocked, down, not responding (ehhm Astrill ehhm not naming names), it’s frustrating trying to figure out how to download it. Or WORSE! The new updated version crashes and you need to go backwards to an old edition but the website dropped it.  

ANNOYING!

So I’m providing links to the APKs here for the three I am familiar with Astrill, Ivacy, and Vypr.  Please note that I am NOT a computer wizard — I just let you know what worked for me.  So I cannot vouch for the security of any of these websites. I used them all on my phone to download the APKs and nothing died or crashed. That’s the best I can give you for advice on how secure these links are. 🙂   All of these websites are accessible in most locations where the VPN sites are blocked – for now. 

  • Astrill 1 | Astrill 2

  • Vypr 1 | Vypr 2

    • Still has that issue where you need access to the website to install the file.  For example, in China you need a vpn on in order to install Vypr. You can borrow a friends VPN wifi, but just know this is a problem. 

  • Ivacy 1 | Ivacy 2 

    • Very nice in that I have NEVER had problems with their website, VPN on or not. 🙂  So you could try going to their website
    • Minor problem for phone downloads – If you choose “download for android” it sends you to Google Play (which may or may not be available in your region).

For those of you who are unfamiliar with APKs, here is a short explanation 🙂 

Normally when you start using a software program (like Microsoft Office, VPNs, Facebook apps), you follow a process. 

  1. You go to the APP store or the Staples store and buy the software.
  2. You click the file and say “download.” That puts the file (software) on your device (computer, phone, etc). 
  3. Once you have the file on your device, you “install it” (make it run).  You click yes to a lot of buttons, agree to follow terms and conditions, and watch it load.
  4. After installing, it asks “do you want to open this software” and off you go using your new tool. 

But what happens when the app isn’t on the app store. Or it isn’t available in Staples. Or the website is broken?  How do you get that file downloaded to your device? 

This is where APKs come in — APK are just the download “file” you need for step 2.  Only instead of getting it from an APP store or the website, you went to a 3rd party online and downloaded it.  

So here’s the new process. . . 

  1. Go to the APK website above or your own link
  2. Download the file they offer.
  3. Do steps 3 and 4 as usual!

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#Chocolate Heaven – Baker&Spice

12 Jun

Beautiful, Peaceful #cafe in the heart of #Beijing! 

Had to visit the US Embassy (a mess – the guards don’t speak English and sent me through the mile long Chinese line getting VISAs.  The head guy found out and came to get me 😜 Soaking Wet!💦Gave them my appoinment sheet and it crumbled😂  Anyway, now just waiting before I brave the 1hr subway to the #train.  

Stopped at Baker & Spice here at Liangmaqiao station.  The #food is delicious!  So many choices and #bread loaves!  Got my mom a Walnut Bread and me a#Chocolate #cupcake.  The cupcake top inside was a surprise – completely filled with chocolate mousse!!!  So delicious!!! 🍴

Go to Liangmaqiao Station, ExitB. It’s right there. 

The Grand Summit

Club Building, 19 Dongfang Donglu

东方东路19号外交公寓B区会所

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Managerial #Economics ~ Understanding #MRTS the Fun Way!

12 Jun

As always, this lesson is not intended to be professional advice. This is simply lesson material for ESL students in a Managerial Economics and Finance class. Posted here for their use or for helping other students.

PART 1 – Key Words

  1. Quantity (量) ~ How many products = Q (# of  🚗)
  2. Labor (员工) ~ The Number of Workers = L (👱)
  3. Capital (资金) ~ The Money ($$) we need = K (💲)
  4. Change (变化) ~ How much did the # change? = Δ(🔺)
  5. Marginal (边际成本) ~ Result if you add ONE MORE (+1) Q
  6. Rate (比率) ~ Ratio
  7. Substitution (取代) ~ XK = 1L (Substitution asks “what is X?”)
  8. Input (输入) ~ All the resources you put into a product. 
    1. Ice Cream 🍦has many inputs:
      1. Milk🥛
      2. Eggs🍳
      3. Sugar
      4. Ice
      5. Salt
      6. Chocolate Sauce
  9. Output (产量) ~ The product you create 
    1. Ice Cream 🍨🍦is the output!

Part 2 – The Relationship Between L, K, and Q

Every product (产量) can have lots of inputs (输入), just like the Ice Cream 🍦 or a Car 🚗.  

Input + Input + Input + Input = Output (🚗)

But in our class, we focus on TWO inputs: Labor (👱) and Money (💲)

👱+💲=🚗
Labor (👱) + Money (💲) = Quantity (🚗)
L (👱)+ K (💲)= Q(🚗)

Example: 
Justin sells 200 cars 🚗every day. Not 201 cars. Not 199 cars. He sells EXACTLY 200 cars 🚗every day. 

L (👱) + K (💲) = 200 cars (🚗)

Justin knows that in ONE DAY🔆:

  • 1 worker 👱 can create 50% of a car 🚗~ 2 workers 👱👱can create 100% of a car 🚗(one car)
    • 1L = 0.5Q 🚗
    • 2L = 1Q 🚗
  • $5 💲 can pay for 20% of a car 🚗~ $25 💲can pay for 100% of a car 🚗(one car)
    • 1K = 0.2Q 🚗
    • 5K = 1Q 🚗

Rule #1 ~ If L ⬆ and K ⬆, then the # of 🚗 cars will also ⬆

Rule #2 ~ If L ⬇ and K ⬇, then the # of 🚗 cars will also ⬇

Rule #3 ~ If L ⬇  and the # of 🚗 cars is still 200 (stay the same), K must ⬆

Rule #4 ~ If K ⬇  and the # of 🚗 cars is still 200 (stay the same), L must ⬆

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Today, Justin looks 🤔at his Money 💲and is NOT happy😭. He thinks he spends TOO MUCH money😡!  He wants to buy a new bicycle🚲, so he decides to SAVE $100 💲

This means today:

👱L + (💲K – 💲100K) = ? Q🚗

WHAT IS THE NEW Q (number of cars🚗) that Justin Makes Today?

Day 1 (Yesterday): 👱L + 💲K = 🚗200Q

Day 2 (Today): 👱L + (💲K – 💲100K) = 🚗200Q – all the 🚗cars $100K would pay for. 

Remember!  💲1K = 🚗0.20Q (one dollar pays for 0.20 cars in a day)

If Justin does not spend $100 today, he will lose the money for 20 cars! 

1K = 0.20 cars
💲-100K = -20 cars🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗🚗

ANSWER: Justin makes 180 cars today!

L + (K – 100K) = 200 cars – 20 cars 
= 180 cars🚗

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OK?!?🤔

NO!!!  😡Remember –> “Justin sells 200 cars 🚗every day. Not 201 cars. Not 199 cars. He sells EXACTLY 200 cars every day. ”  

PROBLEM:  How can Justin still make and sell 200 cars tomorrow if he still saves the $100 (-100K) as today.

Rule #4 ~ If 💲K ⬇  and the # of 🚗 cars is 200 (the same), 👱L must ⬆

 

QUESTION: HOW MUCH should 👱L  go up (⬆)?  

  • Step 1 ~ How many extra cars 🚗does Justin need to make? ~ Justin can make 180 cars right now if he saves $100 (-100K) but L stays the same as yesterday.  

200 🚗 – 180 🚗= 20🚗
Justin needs to make 👱L ⬆ enough to make 20 extra cars🚗 tomorrow.

  • Step 2 ~ How much L does Justin have to add (+) to make 20 more cars tomorrow?

?L + (K – 100K) = 200Q

Remember,

👱1L = 0.5Q 🚗 | 👱👱2L = 1Q 🚗
20Q 🚗= 40L

ANSWER: Justin will have to hire 40 workers (+40L) in order to make 20 more cars tomorrow.

👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫👫

FINAL SOLUTION

*Substitution = Adding L to Decrease K

(👱L + 👱40L) + (💲K – 💲100K) = 200 Q (🚗)

Part 3 ~ MRTS

MRTS = Marginal Rate of Technical Substitution

 CodeCogsEqn.gif

Go Back to Part 2.

  • 🔺K💲
    • Yesterday, Justin had K💲
    • Tomorrow, Justin has -100K💲
    • 🔺K = -100K💲
  • 🔺L👱
    • Yesterday, Justin had L👱
    • Tomorrow, Justin has +40L👱
    • 🔺L = +40L👱

CodeCogsEqn.gif

CodeCogsEqn (2).gif

CodeCogsEqn (3).gif

MRTS = 5K : 2L |5💲 : 2👫

This just tells us:

  1. For every 2 👫workers Justin has, he spends $5💲💲💲💲💲.
  2. For every 1 👱worker Just has, he spends $2.50💲💲½
  3. If Justin wants to hire 1 worker (+1L) , he will save $2.50 (-2.50K)
  4. I Justin wants to save $40 (-40K), he must hire 16 workers (+16L)

MRTS shows how much L👱 can be a substitute for K💲!

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#Emoji Economics

10 Jun

Lol – explaining MRTS and upper level economics theories to a student via emoji and wechat messenger. 😂 

The ways we adapt to the ESL academic class!

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#Jealous Eyes ~ Sharpened Emerald Stones

8 Jun

“The jealous are troublesome to others, but a torment to themselves.”

by William Penn

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#Fructis – an #International Brand

8 Jun

International Business at its best! We’ve got English, Russian, German/Dutch, Spanish, Italian. . . But sadly for a Chinese website, no #Chinese! 

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#TBT – #China Style

6 Jun

This is how we do homecoming in China! We go WAY back to the ancient alumni era 😜

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Art I Love ~ 古风美人

6 Jun
〔 作者' benazir feiya 〕 古风美人 °

By Benazir Feiya via Duitang

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Life in China ~ #Ivacy #VPN

5 Jun

Image result for Ivacy

Hey guys!  I’m about to test out a new VPN called Ivacy.  I’m curious to see how it works. I’m downloading it today, and I’ll put it through it’s paces. Then I’ll let you all know how it goes!  Can’t wait to see how it compares to Vypr and Astrill!  I’ll also be posting a 2017 update on Vypr in the next couple weeks! 

So much going on in the VPN department!  Exciting! 

*yes, I am a nerd – these things excite me 😛

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#Business in #China ~ #Contracts

4 Jun

One of the problems I repeatedly encounter in China is the fact that they view contracts as “guidelines rather than actual rules.” The American business system and legal system interprets a contract as law — If you agreed to it, you MUST do it. The Chinese professionals I have worked with interpret contracts as “this is what we think might work, but it’s always open to reinterpretation and change later.” One year I was actually told (after completing all of the required work) “Oh, well, what we said was really just too excessive so we’ve decided not to pay you that.”

This is a VERY big problem and a huge source of discord between the Chinese and foreign workers. Americans are expecting things by the book, but in China you need adaptability. On the other hand, the Chinese are promising more than they deliver and breaking promises. If you are considering working in an American-Chinese business or teaching atmosphere, I highly recommend you discuss this issue before signing contracts. Talk to the other side and verify how they view a contract — law or general guideline. Find a way to agree on what will be included and then keep the promises you do agree to.

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