#parts 6 and 7 are kind of mixed bags for me- some abilities are cool and others just got weird

[shoechoe]

Ghiaccio's White Album is probably a really convenient Stand to have around with Grateful Dead. I imagine he could keep the rest of the group from aging so it can specifically kill the target while keeping the members of La Squadra safe from harm's way. (I kinda wonder what the Grateful Dead fight would've looked like with Ghiaccio there or what missions would look like with him and Prosciutto paired up instead. There would be no need for the freakout over losing ice cubes and Bruno's group would probably try to use the freezing ability as refuge only for Ghiaccio to go "Ha! No, sucker!" and reverse the effect or just start freezing them to death or something)

#rambles #short posts #i complain about VA's writing a lot but i will say i genuinely enjoy the stand abilities and fights (besides the final fight but yknow) #stand abilities evolve a lot throughout the series. in part 3 they were very simplistic and kind of dull/forgettable #you can tell the series was still working out stand logic and what it wanted to do with them #parts 6 and 7 are kind of mixed bags for me- some abilities are cool and others just got weird #(complicated abilities can make for cool fights but IMO if you need several pages of exposition to make the power sensical... #it's probably not a very good power) #and i'd say part 8 missed more than it hit when it came to stands. some of them were cool but others were overly complex to the point- #-of looping back around to being boring and just making me want to skim the fight to the end #but parts 4 & 5 hit a sweet spot of just unique enough to be very jojo and make for some cool fights but also understandable and fun #i remember when i first watched part 5 and thought ''cool!!'' to myself when i saw the abilities and how they were used #you did have the whole problem with king crimson being confusing and all but that's not really a problem with the ability itself #more the fact that it was hard to communicate its ability via manga format which i could do a whole ramble about tbh sdjfksld #though some descriptions of KC get contradictory to how it behaves in-universe which is annoying #and also it was too powerful for the characters to defeat which is why the requiem stuff had to happen which is really annoying #but umm i digress

[alynnl]

actually I want to know your thoughts on Legend of Dragoon too. And throw in Legend of Legaia while you're at it!

Oh my. It's been ages since I originally played either one but I'll answer to the best of my ability.

For Legend of Dragoon -

Favorite thing about that game: The dragoon spirits and their different abilities. Each one had different uses in battle and then there was the elemental rock, paper, scissors that led a player to target weaknesses, which is a JRPG staple. Also I thought the dragoon armor designs were cool.

Least favorite thing about that game: I guess it's the fact that I saw the whole deal with Shana coming from a mile away. I recognize both the childhood friend romance and the "person being key to a world ending event" tropes being key parts of storytelling in its time but I don't know. The whole "People as objects" (it's almost always female characters!) - puts me off.

Favorite character in that game: Albert, my man! I will admit to my younger self (14-15 years old) having a crush on him, but all in all he's just a decent person. He wants to be a good king and help others, and he's willing to pick up a lance and do the fighting himself if that's what it takes. Also I liked his bromance with Lavitz quite a lot.

Would I recommend it? Why? I don't know if I could recommend it now. The actual hardware to play it would be hard to come by, and I think a lot of the writing and the mistranslation would date this game quite a bit. But it does remain a fond memory of its time.

Free space to go off about something! Can Legend of Dragoon get a remaster? A remake? Something to bring it into the 2020s? I feel like it's becoming a bit of lost media at this point and it's kind of a shame! I'd like to experience it again with fresh eyes and a new perspective as an adult, but at the moment it's not possible!

Rating out of 10: 6/10. I don't remember hating it at the very least. Some of the characters and plot points were enjoyable but others I could take or leave. It's a mixed bag, but I still think this game is worth something because I do remember it well over two decades later!

For Legend of Legaia -

Favorite thing about that game: I liked the combos that you put in. It's similar to a fighting game (but you're not putting in the Konami code!) It was interesting finding out the different moves you could use, and even better when you added the Seru into the mix. Gameplay wise Legaia was very fun.

Least favorite thing about that game: Some of the battles are tough, especially in early game. You really have to be on your toes all the time if you want to win. This was a game in the era where they did not hold your hand, and it shows.

Favorite character in that game: Noa. I love her first meeting and then finding out her origin story later. And I also like her fighting spirit. She might have a simple understanding of the world because she was literally raised by a wolf/Seru, but she does come to know what love is and she wants to fight for it! I respect her writing for that.

Would I recommend it? Why? For the same reason as Dragoon, I can't recommend it solely because it's so hard to find now! But if money and hardware were no object, I would say go for it? The world building is solid, the storytelling simple but enjoyable and the music is quite nice.

Free space to go off about something! Same as Dragoon above but... can we somehow bring this game to modern hardware? I think that it would be a good addition to other classic JRPG collections that are included on consoles like the Nintendo Switch and the Playstation 4. I know I would definitely play it again if I had the chance.

Rating out of 10: 7/10! Cool world building, nice imagery, and gameplay that shakes up the JRPG formula. I also like the fact there's only three main playable characters, since it gives each of them more than enough screentime and development. (Even silent protagonist Vaan is enjoyable!)

#replied #send a game ask #Legend of Dragoon #Legend of Legaia #90s era RPGs

[wonderfulworldofmichaelford]

Psycho Analysis: Hol Horse

(WARNING! This analysis contains SPOILERS!)

So last year I thought it was a good idea to try and review all of the enemy Stand users in Stardust Crusaders in a totally random order. The results were… mixed. Some of them I think came out okay, but others? Not so much. One of them was just an entire backhanded attack against some guy who decided to say “No one likes your analyses” because I think ProJared was a creep. It was, quite frankly, a mess, and I never bothered to revisit it and never thought I would, even though I still hadn’t covered the glorious, wonderful human being who is Hol Horse.

Well, now, after playing Heritage for the Future and All-Star Battle as well as just becoming a bit more knowledgeable on JJBA, I’ve decided to not only give Hol Horse his dues, but also at least briefly go back over or cover the other Stand users and give them a rating or an updated rating, as the case may be. So buckle in, this is gonna be a long one, and it’s all gonna start with everyone’s favorite incompetent henchman.

Hol Horse is probably one of the most amazing characters Araki has ever created. Hol Horse is in possession of a powerful Stand, The Emperor, which is literally a magical gun that fires bullets he can control the trajectory of. By all accounts, Hol Horse should be the single most dangerous foe that the Crusaders face, more than even Vanilla Ice. This guy should be able to shoot them all dead without a second thought! There’s just one tiny little caveat:

Hol Horse is a fucking moron.

This man is cowardly, incompetent, and just the punching bag of cruel misfortune as all his plans constantly go awry and he is constantly knocked on his ass. And yet, Hol Horse is still the most beloved enemy Stand User of Stardust Crusaders, and it’s not hard to see why. Because despite all of his bumbling, Hol Horse just oozes a sort of cool you just don’t see every day.

(For best results, listen to this the whole time while reading the following).

Motivation/Goals: Hol Horse is one of the few henchmen of DIO who is motivated purely by his own greed… at least, at first. Eventually he has his ass handed to him one too many times, and he decides to try and assassinate DIO. This goes about as well as you’d expect, and Hol Horse – not just part of it, the ENTIRE Horse – is so scared out of his mind that he decides, yep, loyalty to DIO is the way to go! It doesn’t work out, but hey, he tried, right?

Performance: Imami Williams gives Hol Horse that raspy, American charm he needs in the anime adaptation. With his voice and the animation combined, we get to see our favorite smarmy sharpshooter who can’t shoot for shit shoot his shot and miss every time, and it is simply glorious.

Final Fate: Hol Horse kidnaps Boingo and forces him to work with him to finally get his revenge! With the prophetic skills of Thoth and the raw damage that can be done with Emperor, there’s no way they could lose! And yet, as is always the case with Thoth, things go horrendously awry and Hol Horse, despite having the ability to control the trajectory of his bullets, ends up shooting himself and knocking him out of part 3 for good.

Best Scene: Really, just the entirety of the episodes where he teams up with Boingo, especially when he tries holding up Polnareff. Considering what comes after and what came before it, it’s just the dose of lighthearted fun needed before you watch all of your favorite characters get brutally murdered by DIO and Vanilla Ice,. 

Best Quote: There is only one line it could be, and it’s Hol Horse’s response to Thoth’s suggestion he kick a woman in the neck: “Listen, Boingo... I am the nicest man in the world. I have girlfriends everywhere. I might lie to a woman, but I'll never hit them! It doesn't matter how ugly they are! Because I respect women!”

That’s right, everyone. Hol Horse drinks Respect Women Juice.

Final Thoughts & Score: Hol Horse is simply astounding. The character is such a colossal screwup that he shouldn’t be as good as he is… yet he is. The dude is gifted with the most incredible power imaginable, and yet somehow he is never able to do a goddamn thing with that power! You control where the bullets go, dude! How can you not hit anything?! It’s interesting how his cowardice and lack of motivation makes him a perfect representation of the inverted Emperor tarot card, but hey, tarot motifs are par for the course with the Stand users.

But there’s something charming to how pathetic Hol Horse is. He’s always plying second banana, he’s a dirty coward who turns tail and runs when things aren’t looking good for him, he never wins a single battle, he didn’t even kill the one guy it seemed like he killed… but throughout it all he still has this sort of smarmy charisma to him that makes him impossible to hate. It’s no wonder this guy has girls all over the world, because he is a world-class charmer. There’s also how Hol Horse is just a character who really, really lives by his own personal philosophy – that is to say, he always likes to be #2, never going into a fight without backup. It’s kind of refreshing to see him always stick by this, even to his own detriment; it’s hard to hate a man who’s principled to that degree. And, of course, this man respects women. Good on him.

It helps that Hol Horse’s inexplicable popularity has led to him getting his time to shine in outside media. Heritage for the Future has two versions of him, his regular form and one that partners him with Boingo, and in skilled hands his Emperor finally gets to live up to its deadly potential. And he’s no slouch in his return appearance in All-Star Battle, and what’s more impressive is in that game he is part of the base roster while Joseph and Iggy, two of the main heroes, are relegated to DLC! You heard me right: the bumbling cowboy who did not win a single fight or even come close to it and spent a lot of time shooting himself managed to beat out out two iconic heroes from the same part onto the roster! Horsey Man must be doing something right.

As this video shows, Hol Horse is one of the most influential characters in the JJBA franchise, having helped to shape the franchise going forward and helped to inspire the traits that made beloved characters like Guido Mista, Gyro Zeppeli, and Yoshikage Kira as legendary as they are. Hell, Hol Horse is just so awesome he almost got to be a protagonist, but Araki decided that Horsey was too similar to my favorite big-titty Frenchman, Polnareff. This means Hol Horse never got his time to shine as a hero, and so stayed a villain til the end… but hey, can he really be that sad if he gets a 10/10 on Psycho Analysis?

Actually, maybe he wouldn’t like that. He likes to play second fiddle to others, after all. But I guess that’s just the curse with these JoJo villains who want to not stand out; they always end up being the best and most memorable characters.

Anyway, now that we’ve got the best of the best out of the way, it’s time for...

Psycho Analysis: DIO’s Other Henchmen

I’m just gonna give my brief thoughts on these guys. Most of them are pretty one-note oneshots, but there are a few who rise above that and manage to be something else entirely. These guys were a learning experience for Araki, and his enemy Stand users of the week definitely improved with later parts, with Vento Aureo really cranking it up to 11. 

But for now, we’re stuck with these guys.

Gray Fly: I actually stand by my opinion from my original review of him; he’s nothing incredibly memorable, but he’s a solid start to the adventure and he is directly responsible for diverting the journey onto the course it ended up going on. Without him, things would have likely played out far differently. A 5/10 is still a good score for him.

Fake Captain Tenille: He actually gets bumped down to a 2/10, due to my changes in how things are scored. He’s not amusing enough to be in the “So bad it’s good” category of the other 3s, he’s just really lame and forgettable, and he still somehow manages to lose when he has the advantage. What a dweeb.

Forever: If you think the monkey boat fight is dropping in score, you’re mistaken. Forever remains at an 8/10 for being such a delightfully weird curveball that helps set the tone for the franchise to follow.

Devo: One of the weirder playable character choices from Heritage for the Future, and certainly not one I like too much; he’s also a random event that is pretty useful in All-Star Battle’s online campaign, so that’s a good mark for him. If nothing else, he gave a good showing of Polnareff’s skills when under pressure, so… yeah. I think a 5/10 is good enough.

Rubber Soul: This review I regret because I was backhandedly responding to that guy who weirdly decided to bring up my distaste for ProJared in a review of Arabia Fats and Kenny G. I do mostly stand by what I said; Rubber Soul is one of the more amusing minor foes, if only because of his ridiculous performance as Kakyoin. Still, it really sucks he was just a clone character in Heritage for the Future… put he gets points for  having the iconic cherry-licking as a taunt. 6/10 is where he remains.

J. Geil: Again, my opinion hasn’t changed: J. Geil is a mountain of wasted potential, but at the very least he makes for a good antagonist for his brief appearance and hey, he’s the one who helped bring us the beautiful hunk of man that is Hol Horse, so I’d feel bad giving him less than a 7/10.

Nena: I honestly think Nena is one of the most boring Stand users of the part, which is sad because her episode gives Joseph the spotlight. She’s just really gross and uninteresting, and you’ll likely forget her after her episode is over. 2/10.

ZZ: ZZ is not particularly great, and his design is just there to be a joke, but it’s hard to totally hate a guy who manages to roll references to Christine, Duel, and the album cover for Eliminator by his namesake into one. I think he’s more of a 4/10, but probably on the higher end there. He’s not great, but he has enough going for him to keep me from hating him.

Enya: So if I thought that J. Geil was a waste of potential, I feel this even more so for his mother Enya. Despite being hyped up as this big, intimidating right-hand woman to DIO early on, she gets one appearance where her Stand is defeated by Star Platinum pulling a power out his ass and then is unceremoniously killed by Steely Dan of all people. I will give her this: her interactions with Polnareff are absolutely hilarious. But when all you have going for is some jokes, don’t be surprised when you end up with a 6/10, which you’re pretty much only getting because even despite the mountains of wasted potential you’re really not that bad.

She do be looking hot in the OVA tho.

Steely Dan: My opinion is unchanged; he’s a solid 7/10 oneshot douchebag. Nothing more, nothing less. His level in the PS1 game seriously blows, though.

Arabia Fats: I was too hard on this guy. While I meant everything I said, and his episode is boring filler, does it really make him a bottom of the barrel all-time worst villain? No. It just makes him a crappy joke character. 2/10.

Mannish Boy: I regret not getting to this guy last time, because aside from Forever he’s probably one of the most insane Stand user of the part, seeing as he is an infant. Like, he’s just an evil baby who can kill people in their dreams. And he gets defeated by being force fed his own crap. Much like Forever, it’s fun to speculate where exactly DIO found this guy; did he just go to a nursery and start jabbing babies with the Stand arrow? Did he meet this guy at a Cairo night club? What exactly is Mannish Boy’s origin? He’s just so utterly and hilariously inexplicable. He’s definitely a 7/10; he doesn’t quite have the shock factor that Forever did before him, but let’s not pretend an evil talking baby Stand user isn’t one hell of a weird twist.

Cameo: This guy really lives up to his name; his Stand is the one that gets the most screentime, with the actual Stand user being relegated to a – you guessed it – cameo appearance at the end of the fight. Thankfully, his Stand is an enjoyable take on jerkass genies and gives a pretty sad and disturbing episode that not only features my man Polnareff, but also marks the point where Avdol returns and brings “Hell 2 U!” I think he deserves at least a 7/10, even if this is mainly for Judgment. Still, a Stand is a representation of the user’s soul, so I think it works out.

Here’s the Stand:

And here’s the man behind it:

Midler: Midler is one of the single most interesting characters from the pre-Egypt half of Stardust Crusaders, and is the point where Stand users really started to get interesting. Her Stand, High Priestess, has a really funky and unique design, and her battle serves as the final roadblock before the Crusaders arrive in Egypt. Despite never appearing onscreen, with only her unconscious body being shown at the end of the fight in a way that obscures her, she got to appear in Heritage for the Future with an awesome sexy belly dancer design and a badass moveset that makes her a really fun character to play as. Taking everything into account, I think she just barely scrapes into the bottom of the 8/10 pool, though really this is mainly for her playable appearance.

N’Doul: My opinions really haven’t changed on him. He’s still an 8/10.

Oingo & Boingo: These guys are, in a word, hilarious. In between the grueling, brutal fight with N’Doul and the later fights in the part, these guys bring some much needed levity to the proceedings. Oingo gets an entire episode where he just completely bumbles about as he attempts to impersonate Jotaro to assassinate the Crusaders, failing at every turn and only managing to blow himself up in the end. Boingo fares a little better, eventually getting roped in to Hol Horse’s scheme to get some revenge, which leads to one of the funniest episodes of the entire series as Hol Horse and Oingo hold up Polnareff. I think they collectively get an 8/10 for being two of the funniest Stand users in the part. They even get their own unique end credits in the anime (with Hol Horse joining in on the fun when he teams up with Boingo)!

Anubis: Again, my opinion is unchanged, though I must say him having technically three playable appearances in Heritage for the Future does make me have at least a little more fondness for him. Black Polnareff, Chaka, and Khan are all amusing characters to play as and all have some awesome theme music. Introducing the concept of Stands being able to exist independently of their Original user is pretty neat, as well as the idea of a Stand that can switch users like it does. 7/10 is still what I’d give it, but I think that it’s pretty telling that this is probably the “weakest” character in the Egypt arcs in terms of being a villain, and yet he’s still pretty cool.

Mariah: Completely unchanged. She still deserves an 8/10, because her episode is hilarious, her playable appearance in Heritage for the Future is a blast, and she’s just really frikkin’ hot. I’m not gonna lie, she’s probably my second favorite enemy Stand user out of the Egyptian ones. I may or may not want her to step on me.

Alessi: I’m going to be honest here: Alessi is my favorite of the Egyptian Stand users. He’s an ax crazy coward with pedophile undertones who is just an utterly demented and sick individual with a seriously intriguing Stand that de-ages its victims. It’s a damn shame he never crossed paths with Joseph and de-aged him, but when he’s just such a hilarious and hateable lunatic with an incredibly fun playable appearance in Heritage for the Future (complete with awesomely creepy theme music!) it’s hard for me to give Alessi anything less than a 9/10. Attaboy!

Daniel J. D’Arby: My opinion is honestly unchanged, but I think I’d bump him down to an 8/10.

Pet Shop: Again, unchanged really. It’s hard to give a character as busted as he is in Heritage for the Future anything less than a 9/10 any way you slice it.

Telence T. D’Arby: Opinion unchanged, 8/10. I don’t have much else to say here, besides Xander Mobus rocks.

Kenny G: See Arabia Fats above. I got irrationally mad over a dumb joke character. He’s not going above a 2/10, but he’s not worth really getting mad about.

Vanilla Ice: I still think he’s the only enemy Stand user besides Hol Horse who deserves his 10/10. My opinion of him remains unchanged, but I would like to say he’s easily one of my favorite characters to play as in All-Star Battle.

Nukesaku: Ok, he’s not an enemy Stand user, he’s just some weird vampire… zombie… thing. Still, I feel he’s at least worth briefly mentioning, if only because he’s probably the only easily-defeated joke villain Araki did from the first three parts who is particularly memorable. Wired Beck and Doobie are really not all that memorable, but Nukesaku at least elicits a few chuckles – he even gets cameos in Heritage for the Future as well as getting to be a stage hazard in All-Star Battle. For what he is, I think he deserves a 5/10.

And with all these enemies taken care of, that just leaves one more Stand user to talk about.. one whose Psycho Analysis has been sitting in my drafts for a year now...

#Psycho Analysis #Hol Horse #JoJo's Bizarre Adventure #Stardust Crusaders #Imami Williams

[kokichi-and-co-imagine-blog]

To everyone: what would your Pokemon teams be and why?

Oh good god.

Well… this is going to get complicated. At least from me.

Let’s start with assuming no legendary Pokemon. Makes life a bit easier. Of course only a bit.

So… first off a lot of this depends on generation and limit. If you’re asking for a full team that I would have with rotations and stuff, we’re looking at… probably close to 10 full teams of 6, maybe even more.

In my defense, I’m a major Pokemon fan and I really really like a lot of them.

Of course, if we’re going to cut down the team to a more manageable six which can be from any region/gen, but only one from each region/gen to keep things interesting and varied… well, it would depend on a lot of things, including mood and such, so if one were to ask me this question again it would likely change. But, here would be, as I feel right now, the team I would use if I was limited to only six, one per region/gen.

1: Lucario. I’ve been a fan of this guy for so so long, ever since it was first introduced. I loved Lucario and the mystery of Mew as a kid (still kinda do). The whole concept behind aura is amazing. One’s spiritual energy/life force/ soul being utilized in combat? Being able to sense others and see without seeing? So awesome. Lucario is just SO. FREAKING. COOL. It’s design is wonderful as well. Jackel/Anubis? Yes please. Plus, I’ve been maining Lucario in Smash Bros. ever since Brawl. You better believe it’s making my team.

2: Tyranitar. Is it probably the weakest pseudo legendary when it comes to typing? Yes. Do I care? No. Tyranitar is BA. First, it’s one of the only two pseudo’s to not be a dragon. Yes, 8 regions, 9 pseudo’s, and only 2 are not dragons. Don’t get me wrong, I love me some dragons. But… variety would be nice, you know? But yeah, not a dragon, still awesome. It’s Godzilla for crying out loud! Plus, its design is just so good. It’s simple but perfect. It’s a giant Lizard creature that could fell mountains. It doesn’t need to be complicated, and is perfectly awe-inspiring and terrifying without being complicated. I also used a Tyranitar in my Ultra Sun playthrough, a male one named Typhon, Man was he fun to use.

3: Golisopod. Listen, if a Pokemon is good enough for YOUR BOI GUZMA to use it on his team, you know it’s a good pokemon. It’s the Alola take on Gyarados and Milotic (weak pathetic first stage with few moves  and while those two do have a slightly higher BST, that ain’t enough to keep my boy Golisopod down. Golisopod’s design is just so good. An Isopod mixed with a Samurai? Sign me right up thank you. It mixes the creepy crawly aesthetic of the bug type with the strong proud samurai perfectly and I love it. And yeah, sure Emergency Exit can be kind of annoying, but it allows you a second usage of First Impression. That is worth it. Also, it’s shiny is dope.

4: Toxtricity. Part of building a team means keeping in mind type composition. I love Grimmsnarl dearly and equally, if not more so, but I already have one Dark-type on the team, so Toxtricity manages to bag this spot. At least, for now considering my current mood. Ask me again tomorrow, or even in an hour, my answer may very well change. Anyway, Toxtricity itself. When I fist saw the design, I wasn’t entirely sure how I felt. It was… interesting to say the least, but I couldn’t figure out what I was looking at, or what it was supposed to be. But after some more time with it, learning more about it and using one I can say that Toxtricity is easily one of my new favorites. Quite possibly my absolute fave from Gen 8. A punk lizard that plays music? Rock/Metal? HECK. YES. The form change is also pretty nice. The stats don’t change between the two, but I honestly like it that way. Just the idea that more energetic natures would have an ‘Amped Up’ form based on an electric guitar while the more mellow natures would have a ‘Lowkey’ one based on a bass is ingenious. Same with the movepool changes. It makes sense that the different forms with their different music preference would have different moves. (My personal fave is the Amped Up, especially with its shiny colors.) Plus, an electric posion type? SO. COOL. Who cares about 4x weak to earthquake, this thing is boss! And Punk Rock is an amazing ability.

5: Flygon. Man oh man was Flygon treated poorly. Added in Gen 3 as a solid pokemon, but with a better attack stat than a special attack one. True, not bad in it of itself but before the Special/Physical split, ALL Dragon-type moves were special. Meaning Dragon Claw, a solid dragon type move back in Gen 3, wasn’t yet a physical move. And Outrage wasn’t even something Flygon could learn yet (it wouldn’t be until Gen 7 that it became a TM). Then came gen 4. Now, I love gen 4. I truly do. It is by far my favorite Gen. And it did do something very good for Flygon. It gave the special/physical split, allowing some Dragon type moves to now be physical as well. But you know what else came along? Garchomp. Honestly, I like Garchomp, I do. But suddenly here we are with a new Dragon/Ground type that is a pseudo-legendary? My poor poor Flygon. And it didn’t get any better. I mean seriously, give Mewtwo and Charizard two megas but none to Flygon? WHILE GIVING ONE TO GARCHOMP WHO DIDN’T NEED IT AND WAS ITS BIGGEST COMPETITION?! Why Game Freak? Why?Anyway, mini-rant aside, I love Flygon. The design is incredible. The line is based on an antlion and is so cool. That sweet green design and the little lenses over the eyes? Perfect, just perfect. Plus, it has some sweet lore. Appearing in sandstorms with haunting music coming from its wings? Yes please. Beautiful pokemon that was done such disservices. It’s a shame really. With Megas gone, Flygon will likely never get that final boost it needs. Though considering it is in Galar while Garchomp isn’t… maybe Flygon will have a chance to shine again. (A shame though that it will never get to have a type change to Bug Dragon. Would be sick.) Regardless of the future though, Flygon will always have a place in my heart, and in my team. 

6: Zoroark. Yeah, I know what I said about team composition above with Toxtricity and Grimmsnarl. But  I also pointed out mood has a lot to do with it. Anyway, for Zoroark itself. Like Lucario, I’veb een a fan for so long, ever since it was first introduced. It’s kinda funny in a way. Zoroark acts as the perfect yin to Lucario’s yang. Lucario uses aura to sense things and to see, Zoroark is the maser of illusions. In it of itself, this illusion business is awesome, but add in how it counters Lucario and it works just so well. Typing as well, Lucario is a fighting steel, the type you’d think of for a chivalrous paladin of justice and truth, while Zoroark is dark (evil type in Japan), perfect for a sly illusion master. Of course, it’s not just dualism with Lucario. The line is just so amazing itself. Clearly drawing from Kitsune, Zoroark is a sly fox that is able to not just use illusions, but masters them to the point of being able to create solid constructs out of them (see the anime). It is just so cool, how can I not love it? Also, like Tyranitar before it, I used a female one named Vixen in my Ultra Sun playthrough and it was a delight. 

Anyway, that would be my team. You know, assuming all the limitations I put on myself and my mood at this moment. But if you guys enjoyed this and want to know more about my favorite pokemon, please let me know. I’m always happy and excited to talk about Pokemon.

Anyway, going to hand this over to the other mods. I’ve been monopolizing this ask for too long.

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

Ooo!! This’ll be fun to answer! Cause, well, I love Pokémon!!!

But, forgive me for this; I haven’t played any of the games.

So im just saying my favorite characters!!!

1: Glacieon, I really, really like glacieons and have always loved ice type Pokémon. Mainly because I really like the cold. Like; really, really, like the cold. I also really like her attacks, their cool!!! (Pun intended)

2: Furret. Absolutely furret, I never knew why I liked furret, but. I’m just gonna blame it on me really liking Ferrets and cause I honestly have really liked normal types for some reason.

3: Vulpix (either one), I really like any fire type Pokémon mainly because I’ve always just had a very weird interest in fire and because vulpix can be either a fire or ice Pokémon I love that about them. And they remind me of a bunch of irl animals that I love!!

4: Smom , I LOVE THOSE LIL ICE BABEYS SO MUCH!?!? They are so cute-!? I JUST LOVE THEM SO MUCH???! They are all my children and I want to adopt them all, and I will. No one can stop me………except maybe the other mods-

5: Sylveon, absolutely. I always have such an attachment even with digital animals, so I absolutely would give my eevee enough attention and love for them to evolve into sylveon. Honestly, it’d end up be accidental, but, I still really love Sylveon, and wouldn’t care if I got more than one of them-

6: Flareon, listen- I just love eevees okay-? I love them all so so much, and would lay down my life for each and every one of them. Just 💞💞💕💖💓💖💝💞💖💕💝💓💕💞💖💞💖💝💘💖💕💕💞

——————————————————————————

Ah, I bet you missed hearing from me! No worries, I’ll tell you my pokemon team, even if it’s not particularly exciting.

First off, a Pachirisu is a must for my team. I’ve always loved how hyper it can be and the mishaps it would cause. Plus, c’mon- who doesn’t like its color scheme?

I’d also incorporate Chimchar to my team. I’ve always had a soft spot for Chimchar, since it was my first ever starter and I leveled mine all the way up to 100 in my Pokemon Platinum playthrough.

Yamper definitely had my heart the moment I saw it! I have a really strong love for dogs, and its addition to the game got me so excited!! Kirigiri can vouch for me on that one.

Growlithe is also integral to me. When my dog was a puppy, I used to jokingly call her a growlithe. I don’t think I still have pictures, but I even got her a floof for halloween once so she could be in a costume with me. Also... Arcanine is seriously badass.

Wooloo is super cute too! I love that it rolls away from its problems, and I, too, wish to do that. Plus the braids immediately reminded me of Peko, so I was super soft for it the moment it was revealed.

Finally, I’ll add my favorite Eeveelution to the team: Glaceon! Something about its sleek design always made me happy, and the way its fur sharpens as defense is super interesting!

(If legendaries were allowed on the team, I would’ve added either Giratina or Shaymin. They’re my favorites.

#Mod Makoto #Mod Ibuki #Mod Kokichi #Mod ask #Pokemon #Pokemon Preferences #Pokemon team #UwU #Thanks for the ask! #Ask

[monkey-network]

Good Stuff ~ Stray Thoughts: School Raze {MLP}

*sigh* Well, it’s the end of season 8 *loading gun shells* had some bad episodes here and there but it wasn’t that bad. But now, it’ll be a bit sad that I gotta say goodbye for now... *cocks shotgun* Roll it.

That’s Close enough

PART 1 (Tartarus’ Door)

Derpy! Aww, it’s a wonderful thing that you’re the first pony we get to see. Man I can’t see this going wrong in any-- *sees Cozy Glow*....I think I’m gonna hurl.

Ooh, I like the new rainbow haired background pony. Having some muted colors for her mane with a nice pink for the body. Easy, yet unique pony design I’ve seen in a bit

“Friendship Assistant“ Short for “Pastor’s kiss ass”

Silver Stream likes crosswords? That... doesn’t feel out of place for her

Wait, how do you keep saddle bags on as a pegasus? Wouldn’t they be blocking their... ability to fly?

Rainbow’s loyalty is as bold as how she dresses in style

One look into Cloudsdale and I’m seeing fake news. Storm clouds can’t survive in altitudes higher than the regular clouds. We gotta drain the swamp in the Rainbow factory

Glim Glam being the rock as usual. Though it begs the question, if you’re standing on something and you don’t have wings, will you still fall?

Not scared to immediately being proven wrong. That’s the warrior’s way

And why is Yona falling to her death the scene before the intro? Not COOL, show! 

Also, it’s a wonder, right? A character’s gonna die? Turn on the happy music.

How Ocellus was able to catch the admittedly heavy yak is something else

Man, characters can get over trauma pretty easy

OH NO, magical erectile dysfunction

Nothing to worry about? One (best yak) nearly became a pancake, Twilight, you taking this pretty easily.

I agree with Glimmy’s memeface, that was uncalled for, Twily

Snap, Ms. Glimmer

Yeesh, Rarity, you did that to yourself

Tirek? My my, best villain making a return?

That was gross. Thank you, Spike.

Why do potions need magic? It’s juice mixing.

3 DAYS?!

Wait, why do the others wanna go? Why not-- nevermind, it’s safe

Friends, pack your bags. We’re going to hell!

Surviving Discord’s shit is a bar you really gotta cross to challenge anything

Cozy, go dry yourself off

I smell a sabotage, and I’m glad the student 6 pick up on the child’s bullshit

That was casually speciest, Cozy

YONAAAAA! Standing up for her fellow dragon! Though, I gotta agree with Gallus. Who protests with homework?!

Cozy, I had enough of your shit

Huh, they’re already regretting the trip to hell. Wimps

So is the school an all day school? There’s a night school, so what?

Head Mare? More like Head Ass

Wow, ponies can be a-holes

Uhhh, Darla, why’d you leave the villainy open?

That was certainly a convenient yet useless artifact

Ah good, Pinkie was gonna sacrifice herself for the greater good

Okay, I want a book cataloging these animals of Tartarus

OH NO, racist allegory pony is back!

Cerberus!! Oh, I always wanted one.

TIREK! Good seeing ya

rerorerorerorerorerorerorerorerorerorero~

Oh, you didn’t think of this, did you ponies?

Come on, I’ve seen Kiwi farms eavesdrop better

Actually, nature would’ve killed off ponies if the other animals had their way

They’re college students, racist allegory pony, what the fuck would they want with magic?

Glad you’re standing for your fellow pony, Sandbar,

We got a “What in Tarnation?” folks. Giddyup

Wait, what revenge? You literally have no part in this.

Also, Pen pals with a demon. I think there’s an anime for that.

Cozy Glow was pen pals with Tirek? Gasp.

My god, Glim Glam! Wait, would that mean she’s gonna die in that orb or absorb the magic of that orb?

What realm? Why not just absorb the magic? You’ll practically have the infinity stones’ power in your hooves

Also, I like the 3D scene they did here. That is the best scene of this show period

“Friendship is Power“ Well... I mean-- you’re not THAT wrong.

For a future Empress of Friendship, you sure picked the right tape for making that crown, you cheeky ass clod

TO BE CONTINUED (after a commercial break)

Part 2 (Infinpony Crisis)

I just love when all shit is about to go down, then HAPPY INTRO TIME

Come on, Spike, this is no time for semantics

So that was the plan? Draining the magic to give Tirek some company? There’s GOT to be more to this plan.

Good job, Rainbow, you did them proud

Twilight, I know it’s not gonna work, but I am intrigued

We need to build a wall around Equestria, and make the dragons pay for it

Well you have a point, racist allegory pony, Twilight has caught the idiot flu over this season

JESUS CHRIST, it’s the hands of the damned!

You just now remembered your other friends, Sandbar?

Nice hostage room. Oh yeah, have ya’ll tried the window?

Also, have I mentioned Yona being the best? (MANY TIMES) Well it’s true. I’m glad she has undoubted trust in her friends

Okay, you get a brownie point for that line, Mayo pony

Also, nice crowbar

Also, 3rd best moment from Yona. Though I do not ship her and Sandbar. Gross.

Honestly, racist allegory pony is the most annoying part of this story

Alright, Cozy. I’ll cut ya some slack for shutting him down like that.

Oh no, they’re gonna throw him in the hot box

I’m glad ponies are easily impressionable enough to agree to chain bondage

This little girl has a fucking skull. What?

So... let me get this straight Cozy, you cotton candy headed nut, your plan is to run the school to get more friends. More friends equaling more power over Equestria, I suppose by having influence over the public for being such a kiss ass? When there is a goddamn castle right next to the school with everything a pony might want, need, in taking over the world. In addition to dropping all magic to another realm to keep the mane six in hell with Tirek, because you can’t think of owning the magic yourself?

Holy shit, this is the most unnecessarily convoluted plan in the history of the show. I thought Starlight did worse, but no.

Gloating wouldn’t ease that L of yours, racist allegory pony

Yona, never change. You are a highlight of this episode

Also, consider yourself redeemed, racist allegory pony

Good job, Tirek. You now have prison mates.

Wow, who knew Pinkie was more of a villain than a literal demon?

Okay, that was funny. You get another point, Cozy

*shudders* Finals.

Wait, how did you get all those pony down there, Darla?

Open the door, get on the floor, pony up on the dinosaur

How would they know it was the third day?

Tell her off, Gallus! Second best character

As much as this is quite a climax, I am not liking those ghost hands

The tree of EHARMONY, back at it again with the deus ex machina!

Okay, so Yona is honesty, Silver’s laughter, Smolder’s loyalty, Gallus is generosity, Sandbar’s kindness, and Ocellus is magic? Makes a bit of sense.

And that’s why Yona is best. She’s everything Applejack isn’t

Everybody duck, it’s explosion time

By the tools of Equestria... WE HAVE THE POWERRRRRRRR!

Pretty lights

Haha, and Tirek failed

Come on, Glim Glam, nothing wrong with a Yak hug

Ah, Cozy *rubs hands* you survived.

Alright, real talk.... Cozy, you fucking clod. Not only were you never convincing, not only was your plan remarkably crazier than Starlight’s of all ponies, not only was your motive behind this the 3rd dumbest I’ve ever heard from this series, but my god, you have failed to realize that what you tried to do was never gonna work in any fashion soon as the public thought for themselves. At least Starlight had her magic and charm to fool her town before the jig was up, YOU relied on sheer ignorance to hopefully get whatever it was you wanted. *chuckles* You make Frank Underwood look like a saint, you curly headed nutcase.

And you think you were gonna make friends somewhere else after you literally threatened to wipe away all magic? Bravo, show, you made me chortle harder than I imagined.

“Oh no, my tiny wings can’t outrun the law”

Well you say that, Neighsay, but Twilight really isn’t suitable for running a school. I think the season proved that pretty well.

It’s only been one semest- fuck off, show, it should’ve been well over a semester!

Though this might mean more student 6, which means more Yona. I’m down with that!! *BANG BANG*

What does he think friendship is, a currency? Who wrote this?

Thank you, CMC, you did your part

“Oh my god, they put a child in hell?“ Well, she did try to erase magic, as well as send 7 characters to their potential deaths and trap 7 more characters in the same hell. Compared to the other villains we’ve had, she genuinely pulled worse. So really, I’m indifferent about it, especially when I don’t... like her or care about her.

But she’ll be back?! *deep groan* I guess with Yona being around, there has to be an equivalent exchange somewhat. Plus we don’t know her origins so I guess it’s reasonable. Bad way to end the season, show.

But you know what? This was all fun. Won’t deny that.

So, woof, moral of the story? Well, just because you have friends, doesn’t mean you’ll have power because of it. The same way having followers, subscribers, whatever, doesn’t mean you're a permanent influence over them. Real friends give you power, power that you can use for the good of yourself as well as others. Your real friends give you the wholeness that you might’ve never been able to discover yourself, whether it be with wisdom or with laughter. “The more the merrier” is not a wrong idea to have, but quality should come before quantity, if that make sense.

MY LITTLE PONY: Friendship is Strengthening Your Pact

~See Ya Next Season~

#school raze #my little pony #mlp #friendship is magic #mlp season 8 #cartoons #thoughts #Good Stuff #great finale

[fastpcba15]

The growth history of technicians who have been engaged in SMT work for 10 years

In the blink of an eye, I have been engaged in the SMT industry for nearly 10 years, from a young man in his early 20s to an elderly working man in his 30s! For the SMT industry, I have a sense of belonging to SMTHOME. I once invested in this industry with high enthusiasm. I once imagined that I could carry a bag and go to various factories to repair equipment and become a manufacturer. What a happiness and pride; How to forget about an equipment problem; once madly reading through various craft magazines and craft books; once used the pleasure of mastering knowledge to solve one craft problem; once after the financial crisis, there was a manpower crisis, and the efforts made for it .

In the past ten years, there have been gains and omissions, joys and sorrows. Pack up and get back on the road! It was 2001. NOKIA 8210/8250 mobile phones were very popular (now many people probably forget NOKIA), hehe I just bought it yesterday. IPONE4S. At that time, I had just graduated from the technical secondary school and I was going back to Nanjing, because many of my classmates came to work in Suzhou. I thought it was fun. I also passed an interview at the school and passed an interview with an EMS company in the park, and started my future life! On October 15, 2001, I remember this day as clearly as my birthday. I came to an EMS company in the park to report that I lived in a 3-bedroom house rented by 8 classmates. The TV was playing 24 hours a day. At that time, it was just in time for the top ten in Asia. At the end of the move, the TV (peacock brand) was broken and the landlord lost 50 RMB. The conditions are naturally more difficult, and I still have a very happy time in retrospect! (Because of simplicity and joy from the heart!) After entering the company, I was assigned to the plug-in line. At that time, I was very happy. The reason is simple: my station is to print labels for PHS, and I use Fujitsu notebooks. The notebook is very advanced for me! This situation didn't last long. The dot-com bubble crisis came, and orders for production lines dropped sharply and were often turned off. Fortunately, the line leader (female) was kind to me and lent me a BB calling machine so that I could be notified at any time to go to work. Within a few months, due to the poor business in the workshop, I still had a group of classmates assigned to another SMT workshop. An episode made me almost surpassing the SMT industry! At that time, I was assigned to SMT together with another classmate. -Line 4 (remember that there is an SMT template frame behind the machine), I was sent to the warehouse preparation area! It seemed that I was going to be a material clerk. Later, an SMT supervisor saw that I was thinner than my classmate (My weight at that time: 120 kg, and now I am far overweight!), I felt it was suitable for learning SMT equipment and I entered SMT industry.

Later, the SMT supervisor promoted me again, and said to him here: Thank you! (Sometimes people need to meet your noble person!) At first, I had a master who taught me (FUJI, Universal Equipment), I seem to be stupid and belong to the kind of slower progress. The line I have online is long It's a man, who pushes me every day, making my life very sad! Haha, I later asked a few classmates to take advantage of him to come back online at night, beat him up, and then invited him to a meal. I spent more than a year in the production line without knowing it. (It's cool to think about beating people!) As soon as the SARS period came in 2003, I paid attention to how many people died and whether there were any cases of infection in this city! At that time, we had to take our body temperature at work. A colleague jogged at work. Once the temperature was exceeded, he took 10 days of paid vacation! (That was really a special period) Someone in the workshop was wearing a mask! At that time, I remembered a slogan: unite together to fight SARS! I was promoted to a technician in May 2003 and I was very excited for a day! (It was still promoted by the SMT supervisor in front) But it didn't take long to find out that it was SMT equipment maintenance, not with wires, and I was a bit lost! It is also the equipment maintenance experience that makes me engage in equipment maintenance or equipment management in the future, and have more feelings and awareness than others! During that period of equipment maintenance, we had maintenance plans almost every day, and we were very tired! Since then, I have gradually read various equipment materials, such as DEK265: I go home at night to check circuit diagrams, adjust the equipment (fortunately, my major is electronics, and I have learned well), and I use idle equipment during the day to compare related circuits and Parts, just like that I am lurking and learning! At this time, I am already the leader of the maintenance team, taking advantage of all equipment maintenance opportunities (including manufacturer maintenance) to learn! Generally, no one wants to spend time on repairing edge equipment such as SMT track and plate washer in our place, but I am very enthusiastic about repairing. These experiences made my equipment maintenance ability very extensive and not limited to a certain type of equipment. My ability has reached the level of workshop SMT equipment engineering! (Similar to how to master equipment maintenance as soon as possible, I had a lesson before).

At the beginning of 2005, I was promoted to be an SMT engineer in charge of repairing the equipment in the workshop (more than 3 years since I joined the company!). I attach great importance to every failure of the equipment, even if someone else fixes it, I will research it thoroughly. Since then, my equipment capabilities have become more and more proficient and more accessible, and I am having a very happy life! (Actually, the upper-level struggle is very fierce, I only pay attention to my equipment!) It was also this year that I got married and bought a house, and I was under great pressure! ! ! On April 10, 2006, I left my first company. Very reluctant, in fact, I really miss it! On the last day of the trip, I took a picture of my usual toolbox (hex wrench, multimeter, gauge, etc.) and took a picture (I have a chance to upload!), and bid farewell to my colleagues one by one! My second company is an SMT equipment agent (well-known in the industry), which fulfills my two goals: 1. To be an equipment maintenance agent and to walk the world with tools; 2. Get married and live under pressure. The salary has gone up!

It didn’t take long for me to work as an agent, and I discovered that repairing equipment is not my pursuit! (Many things look beautiful, but not after you get in touch with them) Leave the equipment agent to consider:

1. I have been a senior equipment maintenance engineer for more than 5 years, just like that, I will be a certain kind of machine; 2. In the future, the agent status will be lower and lower, and special maintenance equipment will not be as popular as in the early days; 3. For manufacturers in the future, agents are not whether they can repair the equipment, but the key is whether they can bring added value to the factory---for example: equipment capacity optimization experience; equipment efficient management; equipment asset operation, etc.! In addition, I just had a child at that time, and it was inconvenient to travel frequently! (If I am now, I guess I would have to go on a business trip to work! Haha!) I have been working in an agent for nearly a year, I have learned a lot from it and I have a more comprehensive understanding of the equipment! I also got acquainted with many industry experts!

Thank you for that time, thank you for that experience! At the beginning of 2007, I joined a European SMT company responsible for SMT equipment. I learned a lot about equipment, craftsmanship, handling and handling of things there! In fact, there are more mixed ones than mine, my colleagues and friends! Maybe in the last 5 years, there has been little momentum, little development, and we have stayed in place! Perhaps compared to the old dicks at the same time, I have not put down my tools on the front line, repaired, maintained, adjusted, analyzed and solved process problems by myself, and the combat effectiveness has been maintained, perhaps only for the emotion of SMT! (A bit silly Come on!!!) Let’s talk about the European company that I entered at the end of 2006 (10/7). I just joined as an equipment engineer. (Thanks to the factory manager who recruited me!) It is a small-scale enterprise, and the total line body is about 5 lines. I really wanted to leave after I went there for about a month, and I felt like I was in the wrong job! (Unexpectedly, it will last for 6 years)

the reason: 1. The whole factory does not seem to have much planning, and the production site is rather messy; 2. The equipment is quite old; 3. I just went there and nobody paid any attention to me, and I felt very depressed; 4. It turns out that technicians and assistant engineers don't want me to come, you know! It caused me a lot of trouble, think about how a person from an agent can be so angry! (At that time, I was stupid and couldn't see some things clearly) I was suffering from the two-month trial period, but the annual prize was not given to me and I was not rated.

I had a firm belief at the time: if I can't handle these people, how can I have confidence in these devices in the future! The technician made trouble for me (the technician and I are not managed by the same boss!), and reported a small problem. I was a big fan at the time. I believe in my technical strength. If there is a problem, the key is that the equipment has been maintained for at least one year. Like CP6-holder, the card is very dead, so it is proposed to carry out maintenance immediately. Otherwise, these soft faults cause downtime and loss every day. It was originally well maintained, but it went to the factory manager! (Really funny!) The technician insists that there is no way to disassemble the holder without a special fixture. My insistence is that the situation is urgent now and the production task is tight. The equipment must be maintained and adjusted as soon as possible, rather than delayed. I said that there is a way to clean the holder without disassembling it, and the technician still insists stubbornly that this will damage the parts and so on! In the end, I said yes, stand beside me and see if I have taken care of it! In this way, I gradually did basic maintenance of the SMT equipment, and I gradually became familiar with the condition of the equipment here, and gradually the soft failures of similar equipment were reduced! In fact, the first half of my visit was not good, and the boss didn’t think of me very well! I have gradually gained the recognition and trust of upper-level managers just by taking things seriously and studying regardless of specialization. (A lot of things require time running and your persistence!)

After experiencing the heavy snow in early 2007 (does anyone remember?) I took a lot of snow scene photos with my newborn son and wife in our hometown. Thinking about time is really a killer. (My son will report to the first grade in a few days. I hope that he can overcome himself in the future and keep moving forward! Learning smoothly!) In May 2007, the technicians who sang against me were gone. . I also recruited technicians again, so I'm naturally obedient! I gradually entered the role and started to manage the daily production, equipment, and process of SMT. At the end of the year, I was promoted to equipment supervisor. I would like to thank my manager for giving me trust and growth! A lot of things also happened in 2007, such as: new equipment purchases, replacement storms, etc.! ------Sometimes you have to stick to it! This is a question of professionalism! In an instant, the freezing disaster in early 2008, no one has forgotten it! (It takes me 3 hours to commute to and from get off work every day, so the road is not easy!)

Remember the photos of the armed police soldiers at Guangzhou Railway Station? It’s touching! I heard about the Sichuan earthquake in the factory on May 12, 2008, and I thought it was nothing! As soon as I turned on the TV when I went home, I was anxious. I don’t know the situation of Beichuan, Beichuan and Beichuan? At that time, I felt that the hearts of the people of the whole country had reached Sichuan, Beichuan, and Yingxiu Town! The most talked about topic at work is the Wenchuan earthquake! It was also during that time that the Olympic flame was robbed in Europe. The overseas post-80s have come forward. Who said that the post-80s are Jiaodi’s only-child generation. As a post-80s generation, I am determined to stand up for it! Nowadays, many of us have entered a new year, life is confused, and pressure makes our generation feel that we can't be charming! The Olympics kicked off on August 8, 2008. I remember that I had an appointment with my classmates at the school. See you at the opening of the Olympics in Beijing. Haha! The opening ceremony was too dreamy, unparalleled and no exaggeration! It seems that we are hosting the Olympics more glamorously than the London Olympics. In September 2008, the foreigner boss bought some FUJI equipment from abroad. About a month later, Lehman in the United States went bankrupt! The US subprime mortgage crisis has come, and it seems that the global economy is still in a downturn.

Our company went on to lay off people, so naturally I am not among them (I am already the main player). The production line is basically laid off at a rate of 50%, and my SMT operators have basically been laid off! (For the subsequent year-long production turmoil planted hidden dangers) By April 2009, our production gradually increased, but the people are gone, the key is that many skilled and old employees including technicians are missing. During this period, recruitment, training, resignation, and re-recruitment fell into such a vicious circle. I had to work overtime until 8 o'clock every day. At that time, equipment was no longer my focus, but people, people, and people! In this way, we continue to evaporate. Under the manager's plan, we gradually established a training mechanism and a skill assessment mechanism. Problems such as declining output, poor quality, and inability to recruit personnel broke out this year, and it was this year of training that made me more comprehensive in SMT, and I became more calm and confident in dealing with difficulties in future work! Everything has basically stabilized in 2010, and I gradually turned to the craft field. In fact, I have been doing it before, but I have spent a lot of time in it since 2010. Looking at materials science and engineering mechanics, these basic process theories require knowledge, including various professional journals in the industry, foreign technology frontiers, process paper analysis papers, failure analysis, etc. Participating in special lectures held by various experts, encountering process problems in combination with my actual work, and being familiar with IPC related technical specifications and recommendations, gradually I have a considerable ability to analyze problems independently! Until now, I am still fighting on the front line of SMT, but I have a more comprehensive understanding and views on SMT!

In the blink of an eye, it is only ten years. The development of SMT in mainland China has gradually changed from a high-tech, high-input, high-paying industry to a mature technology, low threshold input, and no competitive salary! Whether SMT new dicks or old dicks like me, everyone is thinking about their future. In fact, no matter whether you will continue to work in the SMT industry in the future (I saw many people have fled!), as long as we are still in this industry, we must have a perseverance mentality and we will gain!

#PCB manufacturing #SMT #pcb assembly #pcb board #automotive pcb market

[champagnetravels]

Mustang

Ok so I’m going to preface this post with a completely non-exaggerated claim that the two weeks I spent on excursion in the mountains are quite possibly the best 2 consecutive weeks I’ve had in my entire life. There was not a moment that I was not enjoying myself and from start to finish I was just amazed and happy and having a fantastic time! I haven’t had such a sustained good time in a long time and I am truly not exaggerating or being sarcastic. It was bomb. I felt the most like myself that I have in a while and was just consistently so happy!

So we started with a quick 8 hour bus drive from Kathmandu to a Tibetan settlement in Pokhara, a city basically at the base of all the mountains. We stayed with a family for one night and let me tell you this was a great start. I was with another girl from SIT, Grace, and our ama la and acha la. They were the nicest people ever and we all just really clicked and had a great time together. We made plans to make momos together when we came back through Pokhara at the end of the excursion (spoiler alert: Grace and I got put into a different family but came back) and they talked to us for a long time after dinner. Ugh, love them.

We left Pokhara around 5:30 A.M. to go to the airport for 6:30 and 7:00 flights. The flights were so early because these planes only fly in the morning because it’s way too windy in the afternoon and they are TINY PLANES that fly literally through the mountains. We had to have two flights because the planes only hold 16 people and we watched them take off and fly through a tiny valley. Wild. I was not nervous at all, I was actually really excited. And then we went onto the tarmac and I watched them unload the bags from the previous flight, load our bags, and refill the fuel and I was like oh my god I’m about to get on a tiny plane in the mountains I may die. But I didn’t die. And it was actually an incredible flight. I could see into the cockpit from my seat so I basically watched two men fly a plane and I had the best views of mountains you could ever imagine. We flew threw the deepest gorge in the world (I think?) and ugh it was just beautiful. And since everyone around me was super nervous I got a window seat so that’s a win. Also, this plane had the smoothest landing I have ever experienced. But yea, the tiny planes just go back and forth from Pokhara to Jomosom all morning long because the flight is only 20 minutes but it’s an 8 hour bus/jeep ride. 

When we got off the plane in Jomosom a lot of us, including me, almost cried. Right behind the airport (which is literally a single road where tiny planes land) was a huge, snowy mountain. We’ve heard many myths about snowy mountains of Nepal but these pesky things called smog and climate change shield them from the Kathmandu Valley. So we were all pretty excited. We hied around a bit and hung out at the hotel literally just looking at the mountain it was so nice to see nature and not be in a dusty city. Jomosom is also only one road so every single place you go has a view of the mountains. 

We only stayed in Jomosm for one night and then the next day we walked for a few hours up to Kagbeni. We walked through a river bed which was pretty cool and we were just surrounded by mountains on the walk. I also did not realize that the mountains in Lower Mustang were desert mountains but there were no trees or anything. Just more dust and rocks. Still pretty though. In Kagbeni we had lunch at this place called YacDonalds. Ok so people in Nepal are obsessed with yaks or they think (and are right) that tourists are obsessed with yaks because there is yak propoganda EVERYWHERE. But yea this place was a spin off of McDonald’s which was honestly a hilarious and good move on their part. Here I had one of the best lunches I’ve had since coming to Nepal: the YacDonalds Happy Meal. It was a burger made of yak meat with mayo and cheese on it served with fries and cole slaw. MMMMMMMM! It was so so so good and that definitely could have been because I haven’t had that much protein in one meal since getting here. Ugh it was so good. Side note: I showered here. Keep this in mind as you read.

After Kagbeni we went up to Muktinath which was just MORE snowy mountains and made everyone so happy. I went on a little hike up to a statue of Guru Rinpoche, the guy who is said to have brought Buddhism to Tibet and killed/tamed all the demons that were living in the mountains. He’s as present in Tibetan Buddhism/temples as Buddha. But from there it was just panoramic views of mountains. It was one of the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen and made me feel very very small and very very excited to explore the world. We had another dank (which means REALL GOOD) lunch here as well at a Bob Marley themed restaurant which was super random. But we had pizza!!!! Some was veggie, some was chicken, and some was yak and I ate a lot of all of it. I was v hungry and selfish during this meal oops. After lunch we went up to this famous Hindu temple, Muktinath Temple, where there were these two big pools of water and 108 taps of water behind them. People were walking through the pools and then running under the taps. Apparently, Hindu pilgrims do this three times and it’s supposed to bring good health I believe. I just put my hands under all of the taps but a few SIT students did the full dunk-and-run. Also, it was freezing here idk why they did that I had to put on another pair of pants just to go to dinner.

The next day we were split into groups of three students to be sent to different villages for a three day homestay. I was originally supposed to walk back down near Kagbeni into a town that was technically Upper Mustang where you can’t go without a permit. There was a girl who was really sick though and needed to go down in altitude so they asked me if I could switch with her and stay up in the mountains. Silly me, I was bummed that I couldn’t go into ~technically~ Upper Mustang but this switch was probably the best thing that could have happened. My group in the original village was kinda random and idk if I would have had as much fun as I did with the group I ended up with. 

So I went to the village Jharkot which was only about a half hour walk away from Muktinath. We walked partly on the main road and then we took a detour to get a closer look at some yaks. This was fun until one of them decided that it didn’t want us looking at it anymore and kinda almost maybe charged at us a little bit. We were safe though one of the co-researchers (local Mustangis helping us with translating and such) was handling it. My group walked with one other group which also had really cool people in it and we learned that they were super close to us. They stayed for a little while and drank this juice that was actually amazing. It’s called seabuckthorn juice and it was served hot OMG it was so good I don’t know if you can get it anywhere else. But while they were hanging in our village these guys came up to practice archery and they let us use their bow. I was not great but not the worst of all of us which made me feel good. Then these guys practiced for so long right outside of my homestay in a field and we just watched them. For this excursion we all had to do research on something for a paper and I was originally going to research marriage practices but while watching the archery I decided to do something completely random and different and decided to study archery. I learned that Mustangi/Himalayan archery is pretty famous for being really good and there are festivals and competitions all over the villages throughout the Spring. Also, at these festivals there has to be a male representative of each family that’s in the village at the time of the festival competing or else they get fined. It was pretty cool and there was a lot more to it than you would expect. I have to write a paper on it so if you’re interested I can send you more ; )

But yea so in Jharkot I was with two other SIT students - Grace and Keller - our co-researcher Babu and an SIT staff member, Nyima Dorjee. They offered to split us up for more room but we were like lol no we want to all be together this is scary so we all slept in the same room together. Our house was basically a mud building with wooden slats for a roof and it had two rooms. One room had a stove and some low seats/couches and the other room had 4 beds. So the five of us plus ama la spread out amongst those two rooms. For breakfast, we sat on a little porch area which was also where the bathroom was. But it had an incredible view of the mountains so breakfast was something that I really looked forward to. And Dorjee let us sleep in (until 8) so that was super nice. So back to breakfast. We ate tsampa for breakfast. Tsampa is barley flour and you mix it with tea, butter, sugar, and, if you’re feeling crazy, a bit of yak cheese. It was so. Good. I love tsampa. It was kind of like oatmeal but thicker and it really filled you up. Me and Keller and Grace were super into the tsampa. Then everyday, and I mean everyday of the rest of this excursion, we had dal bhat for lunch which is rice with like a lentil soup/sauce on it. I like dal bhat but I can only eat so many mountains of white rice man. It was wild. For dinner it would be absolutely freezing because it got so cold at night so we would all huddle by the stove and eat whatever ama la gave us. 

So this portion was actually just the best part of this entire semester I think. Grace and Keller are amazing people so that was just so fun. We talked about so much stuff and just had so much fun together. Then Babu was a riot. I think he just wasn’t cinfident in his English abilities so to compensate he just acted so freaking strange but it was so funny. Then Dorjee is just the man. He’s an anthropologist and so cool he just has a really interesting perspective on the world and having him there made a huge difference. He actually made us work which Babu did not but we also got the chance to get to know him as a human which was fun.

During the days in Jharkot we would wander around our village and the surrounding ones. We met this one guy who I talked to for so long about archery and he took us all around the village and into his grandparents old house which was so cool. He said that he had never shown a tourist his house, only his close Nepali friends. But he showed us the prayer room in his house that had all these antiques in it like old bows and arrows and daggers and tea sets. It was actually so cool. We also hiked down to the river and then up the other side to another village where people were staying and went to an archery festival that was happening for the start of Spring (the one where there has to be a male representative from each family). We watched that for a while and it was so cool. They would shoot and everyone would yell “So so so so so” which meant good luck and was kind of a prayer like oh I hope you do well. Then they would take a break and drink chang, homemade rice beer, and do it all over again for a few rounds. That night when we got back to Jharkot me, Grace, Babu, and Keller had a dance party on our porch for like 2 hours and it was so fun. I was so relaxed and content and could have honestly stayed there forever. This was the best excursion. And I learned a Tibetan pop song called Phur (which means Fly in English) and it is actually the best song ever (if you’re interested, it’s on my spotify and I will try to post a link to youtube if I can figure that out). Apparently the lyrics mean if you’re not speaking out and using your voice then your life is a waste (hint hint it’s about Tibet). 

After our three days in Jharkot we had to rejoin with the rest of the group in a Tibetan settlement in Tserok (with a quick lunch stop in Jomosom). This settlement was right by the river so I spent the afternoon by the river just hanging out. The second day in Tserok I went on a hike/walk through a forest to another town that had a bomb bakery. The walk was actually the highlight though it was so beautiful and it felt so good to be around trees! Trees! With mountains in the background that looked fake! Incredible! We were waiting for a bus to take us back to Tserok because we were all feeling lazy but it never came so we had to ask the owner of the bakery to give us a ride back in his jeep. Which he charged us $20 and that may not seem like a lot for 7 people and taking a man away from his business but in this country that’s a lot of freaking money. I haven’t spent more than $16 at one time and that has only happened once. So we were pretty salty about that but it had to be done because it was getting late. Note: The closest I have come at this point to a shower is dunking my head in the river in Jomosom.

Everyone had dinner at 6:30 so that we could make it to the cultural show that the settlement put on for us. This was basically just a bunch of dance performances which would have been great if a) we weren’t all really tired and b) the awful sound quality music wasn’t blasting through the speakers at full volume. It was really hard to not cover your ears because Tibetan music is very screechy. After the performances though they just played Tibetan and Nepali pop music (a.k.a. Phur) and we all danced. It was v fun but I was so dead and had to leave to go to bed.

The next day we went to Marpha which is famous for its apples and had lunch. And cake because it was Grace’s birthday! Woo cake! Marpha was nice but it was just the touristy version of where we had all been for a week so it wasn’t super exciting. From Marpha we hiked up to this lake that was supposed to be on the way as we walked toward Jomosom. But then when we got up there it started aggressively raining and hailing so we sat in a little tea house and waited for jeeps to come get us. The lake was really pretty though, the water was a really cool light greenish blue and, of course, there were mountains everywhere. Note: I took a rushed and not very satisfying bucket shower in Jomosom.

We ended the excursion with another night in Pokhara. This is where Grace and I got swtiched and we were not happy about it because we were supposed to make momos with ama la. But we made momos with new ama la and also visited old ama la who made us eat some of her momos as well because apparently 12 momos at your own home is just not enough. (momos are basically dumplings). In the afternoon, before dinner, I walked to the big lake in Pokhara and rented a row boat for an hour with people and it was so much fun. It reminded me of Coventry which made me a tad homesick but also excited for the summer and also comfortable. I was in my element. Then we went back and had momos and visited old ama la. 

The excursion technically ended the next day but nearly everyone decided to extend it and stay in the city of Pokhara for Friday and Saturday nights and go back to Kathmandu on Sunday instead. This was a great choice all around. We had some incredible food which came just in time because I was about to go nuts from eating dal bhat everyday and we went out to dance and hang at night which was so much fun! I have to admit the 8 hour bus ride back to Kathmandu kind of sucked but that was the only bad part of this experience. Note: Took a HOT SHOWER FROM A SHOWER HEAD in Pokhara and it was divine. 

Well, idk if that post made much sense and I’m not sure if i fully got across just how incredible it was but that’s a wrap. 

[rochesterseoexperts]

LinkedIn’s New Lead Gen Forms vs. Facebook Lead Ads | WordStream

See on Scoop.it - Lead Generation Experts 315-926-5034

Late last year I wrote a blog post on the 5 questions advertisers should ask themselves each quarter[1]. In it, I suggested seeking opportunities on new networks. Facebook and Bing? No brainers. Twitter? Eh. But LinkedIn? My feelings were, uh, strong…   A certain unicorn-hunting Thought Leader™ might have had similar feelings[2]…   Today the fourth item can be crossed off Larry’s list. Today, I come to you a changed man, a man convinced that symphonic arthropods aren’t all Reid Hoffman and Co. have going for them (ad-wise, at least). Why the change of heart? LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms[3]. What’s a LinkedIn Lead Gen Form? Per LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms are “a new solution that helps you drive even more high-quality leads from your Sponsored Content campaigns by removing the main barrier to mobile conversion: making someone complete a clunky contact form on a smartphone.” Per me, they might be LinkedIn’s route to viability as an ad platform.   Prior to, oh, about yesterday, LinkedIn sponsored content was clunky and overpriced, making it damn near impossible to leverage the social network’s robust business-centric targeting. It sucked. Today? Less so. These new lead ads are a push towards capturing valuable information from almost half a billion potential prospects[4] on the devices they use most: their phones. LinkedIn has removed two major barriers to conversion that businesses advertising on mobile devices face: Mobile landing page experience Completing a form using nothing but thumbs Now, when a targeted LinkedIn user clicks the new “Sign up” button on a piece of your sponsored content, they’re brought to a (mostly) pre-populated lead form. LinkedIn pulls pertinent data right from a prospect’s probably-up-to-date personal page, ensuring accurate contact information. From there, you can either share content with a prospect (now a bona fide lead) or direct them to your website. No typographic errors attributable to meaty digits. No dummy demo accounts. No Eastern European spam bots. Just leads, baby. Over on Facebook, many advertisers have already found success using lead ads[5]; it stands to reason that LinkedIn’s Lead Gen Forms will be a boon for advertisers, too. Let’s take a closer look at some of the key factors in determining whether LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms are right for your business. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form UX The general look and feel of LinkedIn’s lead ads is very much comparable to their Facebook equivalent. From a prospect’s perspective, the ad flows seamlessly from your piece of sponsored content to a mostly pre-populated form and then to a thank you page. The fact that so much pertinent lead information can be pulled directly from LinkedIn profile pages makes the experience seamless for prospects. Lead gen forms cannot exceed seven questions, so even if there’s information a prospect needs to input manually, doing so isn’t as cumbersome as it could be. It’s also worth mentioning that prospects can edit pre-populated contact information (email address and phone number) if those pulled from their LinkedIn profile are no longer valid.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? At first glance, LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms have two steps fewer than Facebook lead ads.   The lack of a terms and conditions page makes LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms a bit quicker to complete, but the difference seems negligible. Finally, the autocompletion of key contact information, shared by both platforms, makes conversion easier on a mobile device. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form ROI TBD… for now. We haven’t run them yet, but per LinkedIn, “Ninety percent of the 50 customers surveyed from our pilot beat their cost-per-lead (CPL) goals. They also saw lower CPLs with Lead Gen Forms compared to their standard Sponsored Content campaigns.”   Now, this statement makes it seem as though lead gen forms are exceptionally effective. In reality, they’re probably not quite as good as LinkedIn is touting (yet). Based on my limited experience, standard Sponsored Content has not proven particularly effective; beating CPL goals associated with the format is nothing to slouch at, but improving upon something mediocre doesn’t necessarily mean extraordinary value or results. Try ‘em out, but tread lightly. How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Lead gen forms on Facebook are a mixed bag and largely depend on your vertical and the targeting methods you’re using. I’ve seen accounts that attempt to use lead ads at the top of the funnel and they bring in a ton of unqualified leads. This gets expensive real quick. Conversely, as a mid-funnel and pre-close tool (used in a remarketing campaign to encourage a nurtured lead to book a demo) Facebook lead ads are straight fire. I imagine LinkedIn will function similarly; that being said, since there are probably less spam accounts on LinkedIn than Facebook, and the targeting options all but ensure some semblance of professional interest, Lead Gen Forms could have a bigger impact on top of funnel campaigns. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Lead Quality Here’s where I think LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms will make their mark. LinkedIn is unique among social networks in that advertisers can leverage mounds of professional data that’s (usually) up to date.  The profile stewardship exhibited by most members ensure that the lead data captured by advertisers is up-to-date (much less likely to be a fake email address or phone number), creating better informed, easier-to-convert sales opportunities.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Facebook is valuable to advertisers because everyone and their mother uses it. LinkedIn’s user base is much smaller than Facebook’s (just under half a billion), but now that lead gen forms are available to advertisers, their cost combined with the amount of profession-based targeting information available should make it the perfect channel for B2B marketers. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Measurability The two most important KPIs you can track within the LinkedIn UI are CPL and form fill rate. And since there’s no need for a prospect to visit your website on their path to conversion, there’s no need for any kind of tricky tracking code implementation on your part.   Per LinkedIn, the internal reporting tools allow advertisers to “track key metrics like CPL, form fill rate, and other important data points to measure the value you're getting from your ad spend. In the near future, we’ll also include demographic reports that show the exact number of leads you're getting from specific audience segments.” That last part gets me especially excited, since this demographic information has the potential to improve performance on other channels, too. How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? LinkedIn and Facebook both have a lot to learn from Google when it comes to measurability. While both platforms have made strides of late and they both offer more robust targeting options than AdWords, the extent to which you can measure things like attribution and other advanced metrics still lags behind. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Manageability Per LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms are already compatible with Zapier and Driftrock. If you use either of these systems for marketing automation, LinkedIn leads will pull into your existing CRM in real-time.   There are plans to offer integrations with Marketo, Microsoft Dynamic 3654, and Oracle Eloqua, too. Stay tuned.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Just like Facebook, if you use a non-compatible CRM and don’t have a team of developers who can work with the LinkedIn API, you can still harvest magical, delicious, top-shelf leads. All you need to do is download the CSV file containing your lead. Just don’t forget to check in frequently; doing so would allow those scorching hot prospects to cool off or worse, stumble upon your competitors. Also worth noting: LinkedIn’s launch article alludes to their giving advertisers the ability to include Lead Gen Forms in sponsored InMail campaigns for both mobile and desktop later this year. This should take another step towards relevance for B2B marketers. About the Author Allen Finn is a content marketing specialist and the reigning fantasy football champion at WordStream. He enjoys couth menswear, dank eats, and the dulcet tones of the Wu-Tang Clan. If you know what's good for you, you'll follow him on LinkedIn[6] and Twitter[7]. References^ 5 questions advertisers should ask themselves each quarter (www.wordstream.com)^ similar feelings (www.wordstream.com)^ LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms (business.linkedin.com)^ potential prospects (www.wordstream.com)^ success using lead ads (www.wordstream.com)^ LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com)^ Twitter (twitter.com)

Andrew Wroblewski's insight:

http://yourprofitweb.com

[manhattanseo]

LinkedIn’s New Lead Gen Forms vs. Facebook Lead Ads | WordStream

See on Scoop.it - Lead Generation Experts 315-926-5034

Late last year I wrote a blog post on the 5 questions advertisers should ask themselves each quarter[1]. In it, I suggested seeking opportunities on new networks. Facebook and Bing? No brainers. Twitter? Eh. But LinkedIn? My feelings were, uh, strong…   A certain unicorn-hunting Thought Leader™ might have had similar feelings[2]…   Today the fourth item can be crossed off Larry’s list. Today, I come to you a changed man, a man convinced that symphonic arthropods aren’t all Reid Hoffman and Co. have going for them (ad-wise, at least). Why the change of heart? LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms[3]. What’s a LinkedIn Lead Gen Form? Per LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms are “a new solution that helps you drive even more high-quality leads from your Sponsored Content campaigns by removing the main barrier to mobile conversion: making someone complete a clunky contact form on a smartphone.” Per me, they might be LinkedIn’s route to viability as an ad platform.   Prior to, oh, about yesterday, LinkedIn sponsored content was clunky and overpriced, making it damn near impossible to leverage the social network’s robust business-centric targeting. It sucked. Today? Less so. These new lead ads are a push towards capturing valuable information from almost half a billion potential prospects[4] on the devices they use most: their phones. LinkedIn has removed two major barriers to conversion that businesses advertising on mobile devices face: Mobile landing page experience Completing a form using nothing but thumbs Now, when a targeted LinkedIn user clicks the new “Sign up” button on a piece of your sponsored content, they’re brought to a (mostly) pre-populated lead form. LinkedIn pulls pertinent data right from a prospect’s probably-up-to-date personal page, ensuring accurate contact information. From there, you can either share content with a prospect (now a bona fide lead) or direct them to your website. No typographic errors attributable to meaty digits. No dummy demo accounts. No Eastern European spam bots. Just leads, baby. Over on Facebook, many advertisers have already found success using lead ads[5]; it stands to reason that LinkedIn’s Lead Gen Forms will be a boon for advertisers, too. Let’s take a closer look at some of the key factors in determining whether LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms are right for your business. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form UX The general look and feel of LinkedIn’s lead ads is very much comparable to their Facebook equivalent. From a prospect’s perspective, the ad flows seamlessly from your piece of sponsored content to a mostly pre-populated form and then to a thank you page. The fact that so much pertinent lead information can be pulled directly from LinkedIn profile pages makes the experience seamless for prospects. Lead gen forms cannot exceed seven questions, so even if there’s information a prospect needs to input manually, doing so isn’t as cumbersome as it could be. It’s also worth mentioning that prospects can edit pre-populated contact information (email address and phone number) if those pulled from their LinkedIn profile are no longer valid.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? At first glance, LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms have two steps fewer than Facebook lead ads.   The lack of a terms and conditions page makes LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms a bit quicker to complete, but the difference seems negligible. Finally, the autocompletion of key contact information, shared by both platforms, makes conversion easier on a mobile device. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form ROI TBD… for now. We haven’t run them yet, but per LinkedIn, “Ninety percent of the 50 customers surveyed from our pilot beat their cost-per-lead (CPL) goals. They also saw lower CPLs with Lead Gen Forms compared to their standard Sponsored Content campaigns.”   Now, this statement makes it seem as though lead gen forms are exceptionally effective. In reality, they’re probably not quite as good as LinkedIn is touting (yet). Based on my limited experience, standard Sponsored Content has not proven particularly effective; beating CPL goals associated with the format is nothing to slouch at, but improving upon something mediocre doesn’t necessarily mean extraordinary value or results. Try ‘em out, but tread lightly. How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Lead gen forms on Facebook are a mixed bag and largely depend on your vertical and the targeting methods you’re using. I’ve seen accounts that attempt to use lead ads at the top of the funnel and they bring in a ton of unqualified leads. This gets expensive real quick. Conversely, as a mid-funnel and pre-close tool (used in a remarketing campaign to encourage a nurtured lead to book a demo) Facebook lead ads are straight fire. I imagine LinkedIn will function similarly; that being said, since there are probably less spam accounts on LinkedIn than Facebook, and the targeting options all but ensure some semblance of professional interest, Lead Gen Forms could have a bigger impact on top of funnel campaigns. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Lead Quality Here’s where I think LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms will make their mark. LinkedIn is unique among social networks in that advertisers can leverage mounds of professional data that’s (usually) up to date.  The profile stewardship exhibited by most members ensure that the lead data captured by advertisers is up-to-date (much less likely to be a fake email address or phone number), creating better informed, easier-to-convert sales opportunities.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Facebook is valuable to advertisers because everyone and their mother uses it. LinkedIn’s user base is much smaller than Facebook’s (just under half a billion), but now that lead gen forms are available to advertisers, their cost combined with the amount of profession-based targeting information available should make it the perfect channel for B2B marketers. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Measurability The two most important KPIs you can track within the LinkedIn UI are CPL and form fill rate. And since there’s no need for a prospect to visit your website on their path to conversion, there’s no need for any kind of tricky tracking code implementation on your part.   Per LinkedIn, the internal reporting tools allow advertisers to “track key metrics like CPL, form fill rate, and other important data points to measure the value you're getting from your ad spend. In the near future, we’ll also include demographic reports that show the exact number of leads you're getting from specific audience segments.” That last part gets me especially excited, since this demographic information has the potential to improve performance on other channels, too. How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? LinkedIn and Facebook both have a lot to learn from Google when it comes to measurability. While both platforms have made strides of late and they both offer more robust targeting options than AdWords, the extent to which you can measure things like attribution and other advanced metrics still lags behind. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Manageability Per LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms are already compatible with Zapier and Driftrock. If you use either of these systems for marketing automation, LinkedIn leads will pull into your existing CRM in real-time.   There are plans to offer integrations with Marketo, Microsoft Dynamic 3654, and Oracle Eloqua, too. Stay tuned.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Just like Facebook, if you use a non-compatible CRM and don’t have a team of developers who can work with the LinkedIn API, you can still harvest magical, delicious, top-shelf leads. All you need to do is download the CSV file containing your lead. Just don’t forget to check in frequently; doing so would allow those scorching hot prospects to cool off or worse, stumble upon your competitors. Also worth noting: LinkedIn’s launch article alludes to their giving advertisers the ability to include Lead Gen Forms in sponsored InMail campaigns for both mobile and desktop later this year. This should take another step towards relevance for B2B marketers. About the Author Allen Finn is a content marketing specialist and the reigning fantasy football champion at WordStream. He enjoys couth menswear, dank eats, and the dulcet tones of the Wu-Tang Clan. If you know what's good for you, you'll follow him on LinkedIn[6] and Twitter[7]. References^ 5 questions advertisers should ask themselves each quarter (www.wordstream.com)^ similar feelings (www.wordstream.com)^ LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms (business.linkedin.com)^ potential prospects (www.wordstream.com)^ success using lead ads (www.wordstream.com)^ LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com)^ Twitter (twitter.com)

Andrew Wroblewski's insight:

http://yourprofitweb.com

[syracuseseo]

LinkedIn’s New Lead Gen Forms vs. Facebook Lead Ads | WordStream

See on Scoop.it - Lead Generation Experts 315-926-5034

Late last year I wrote a blog post on the 5 questions advertisers should ask themselves each quarter[1]. In it, I suggested seeking opportunities on new networks. Facebook and Bing? No brainers. Twitter? Eh. But LinkedIn? My feelings were, uh, strong…   A certain unicorn-hunting Thought Leader™ might have had similar feelings[2]…   Today the fourth item can be crossed off Larry’s list. Today, I come to you a changed man, a man convinced that symphonic arthropods aren’t all Reid Hoffman and Co. have going for them (ad-wise, at least). Why the change of heart? LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms[3]. What’s a LinkedIn Lead Gen Form? Per LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms are “a new solution that helps you drive even more high-quality leads from your Sponsored Content campaigns by removing the main barrier to mobile conversion: making someone complete a clunky contact form on a smartphone.” Per me, they might be LinkedIn’s route to viability as an ad platform.   Prior to, oh, about yesterday, LinkedIn sponsored content was clunky and overpriced, making it damn near impossible to leverage the social network’s robust business-centric targeting. It sucked. Today? Less so. These new lead ads are a push towards capturing valuable information from almost half a billion potential prospects[4] on the devices they use most: their phones. LinkedIn has removed two major barriers to conversion that businesses advertising on mobile devices face: Mobile landing page experience Completing a form using nothing but thumbs Now, when a targeted LinkedIn user clicks the new “Sign up” button on a piece of your sponsored content, they’re brought to a (mostly) pre-populated lead form. LinkedIn pulls pertinent data right from a prospect’s probably-up-to-date personal page, ensuring accurate contact information. From there, you can either share content with a prospect (now a bona fide lead) or direct them to your website. No typographic errors attributable to meaty digits. No dummy demo accounts. No Eastern European spam bots. Just leads, baby. Over on Facebook, many advertisers have already found success using lead ads[5]; it stands to reason that LinkedIn’s Lead Gen Forms will be a boon for advertisers, too. Let’s take a closer look at some of the key factors in determining whether LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms are right for your business. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form UX The general look and feel of LinkedIn’s lead ads is very much comparable to their Facebook equivalent. From a prospect’s perspective, the ad flows seamlessly from your piece of sponsored content to a mostly pre-populated form and then to a thank you page. The fact that so much pertinent lead information can be pulled directly from LinkedIn profile pages makes the experience seamless for prospects. Lead gen forms cannot exceed seven questions, so even if there’s information a prospect needs to input manually, doing so isn’t as cumbersome as it could be. It’s also worth mentioning that prospects can edit pre-populated contact information (email address and phone number) if those pulled from their LinkedIn profile are no longer valid.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? At first glance, LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms have two steps fewer than Facebook lead ads.   The lack of a terms and conditions page makes LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms a bit quicker to complete, but the difference seems negligible. Finally, the autocompletion of key contact information, shared by both platforms, makes conversion easier on a mobile device. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form ROI TBD… for now. We haven’t run them yet, but per LinkedIn, “Ninety percent of the 50 customers surveyed from our pilot beat their cost-per-lead (CPL) goals. They also saw lower CPLs with Lead Gen Forms compared to their standard Sponsored Content campaigns.”   Now, this statement makes it seem as though lead gen forms are exceptionally effective. In reality, they’re probably not quite as good as LinkedIn is touting (yet). Based on my limited experience, standard Sponsored Content has not proven particularly effective; beating CPL goals associated with the format is nothing to slouch at, but improving upon something mediocre doesn’t necessarily mean extraordinary value or results. Try ‘em out, but tread lightly. How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Lead gen forms on Facebook are a mixed bag and largely depend on your vertical and the targeting methods you’re using. I’ve seen accounts that attempt to use lead ads at the top of the funnel and they bring in a ton of unqualified leads. This gets expensive real quick. Conversely, as a mid-funnel and pre-close tool (used in a remarketing campaign to encourage a nurtured lead to book a demo) Facebook lead ads are straight fire. I imagine LinkedIn will function similarly; that being said, since there are probably less spam accounts on LinkedIn than Facebook, and the targeting options all but ensure some semblance of professional interest, Lead Gen Forms could have a bigger impact on top of funnel campaigns. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Lead Quality Here’s where I think LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms will make their mark. LinkedIn is unique among social networks in that advertisers can leverage mounds of professional data that’s (usually) up to date.  The profile stewardship exhibited by most members ensure that the lead data captured by advertisers is up-to-date (much less likely to be a fake email address or phone number), creating better informed, easier-to-convert sales opportunities.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Facebook is valuable to advertisers because everyone and their mother uses it. LinkedIn’s user base is much smaller than Facebook’s (just under half a billion), but now that lead gen forms are available to advertisers, their cost combined with the amount of profession-based targeting information available should make it the perfect channel for B2B marketers. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Measurability The two most important KPIs you can track within the LinkedIn UI are CPL and form fill rate. And since there’s no need for a prospect to visit your website on their path to conversion, there’s no need for any kind of tricky tracking code implementation on your part.   Per LinkedIn, the internal reporting tools allow advertisers to “track key metrics like CPL, form fill rate, and other important data points to measure the value you're getting from your ad spend. In the near future, we’ll also include demographic reports that show the exact number of leads you're getting from specific audience segments.” That last part gets me especially excited, since this demographic information has the potential to improve performance on other channels, too. How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? LinkedIn and Facebook both have a lot to learn from Google when it comes to measurability. While both platforms have made strides of late and they both offer more robust targeting options than AdWords, the extent to which you can measure things like attribution and other advanced metrics still lags behind. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Manageability Per LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms are already compatible with Zapier and Driftrock. If you use either of these systems for marketing automation, LinkedIn leads will pull into your existing CRM in real-time.   There are plans to offer integrations with Marketo, Microsoft Dynamic 3654, and Oracle Eloqua, too. Stay tuned.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Just like Facebook, if you use a non-compatible CRM and don’t have a team of developers who can work with the LinkedIn API, you can still harvest magical, delicious, top-shelf leads. All you need to do is download the CSV file containing your lead. Just don’t forget to check in frequently; doing so would allow those scorching hot prospects to cool off or worse, stumble upon your competitors. Also worth noting: LinkedIn’s launch article alludes to their giving advertisers the ability to include Lead Gen Forms in sponsored InMail campaigns for both mobile and desktop later this year. This should take another step towards relevance for B2B marketers. About the Author Allen Finn is a content marketing specialist and the reigning fantasy football champion at WordStream. He enjoys couth menswear, dank eats, and the dulcet tones of the Wu-Tang Clan. If you know what's good for you, you'll follow him on LinkedIn[6] and Twitter[7]. References^ 5 questions advertisers should ask themselves each quarter (www.wordstream.com)^ similar feelings (www.wordstream.com)^ LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms (business.linkedin.com)^ potential prospects (www.wordstream.com)^ success using lead ads (www.wordstream.com)^ LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com)^ Twitter (twitter.com)

Andrew Wroblewski's insight:

http://yourprofitweb.com

[buffaloseoexperts]

LinkedIn’s New Lead Gen Forms vs. Facebook Lead Ads | WordStream

See on Scoop.it - Lead Generation Experts 315-926-5034

Late last year I wrote a blog post on the 5 questions advertisers should ask themselves each quarter[1]. In it, I suggested seeking opportunities on new networks. Facebook and Bing? No brainers. Twitter? Eh. But LinkedIn? My feelings were, uh, strong…   A certain unicorn-hunting Thought Leader™ might have had similar feelings[2]…   Today the fourth item can be crossed off Larry’s list. Today, I come to you a changed man, a man convinced that symphonic arthropods aren’t all Reid Hoffman and Co. have going for them (ad-wise, at least). Why the change of heart? LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms[3]. What’s a LinkedIn Lead Gen Form? Per LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms are “a new solution that helps you drive even more high-quality leads from your Sponsored Content campaigns by removing the main barrier to mobile conversion: making someone complete a clunky contact form on a smartphone.” Per me, they might be LinkedIn’s route to viability as an ad platform.   Prior to, oh, about yesterday, LinkedIn sponsored content was clunky and overpriced, making it damn near impossible to leverage the social network’s robust business-centric targeting. It sucked. Today? Less so. These new lead ads are a push towards capturing valuable information from almost half a billion potential prospects[4] on the devices they use most: their phones. LinkedIn has removed two major barriers to conversion that businesses advertising on mobile devices face: Mobile landing page experience Completing a form using nothing but thumbs Now, when a targeted LinkedIn user clicks the new “Sign up” button on a piece of your sponsored content, they’re brought to a (mostly) pre-populated lead form. LinkedIn pulls pertinent data right from a prospect’s probably-up-to-date personal page, ensuring accurate contact information. From there, you can either share content with a prospect (now a bona fide lead) or direct them to your website. No typographic errors attributable to meaty digits. No dummy demo accounts. No Eastern European spam bots. Just leads, baby. Over on Facebook, many advertisers have already found success using lead ads[5]; it stands to reason that LinkedIn’s Lead Gen Forms will be a boon for advertisers, too. Let’s take a closer look at some of the key factors in determining whether LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms are right for your business. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form UX The general look and feel of LinkedIn’s lead ads is very much comparable to their Facebook equivalent. From a prospect’s perspective, the ad flows seamlessly from your piece of sponsored content to a mostly pre-populated form and then to a thank you page. The fact that so much pertinent lead information can be pulled directly from LinkedIn profile pages makes the experience seamless for prospects. Lead gen forms cannot exceed seven questions, so even if there’s information a prospect needs to input manually, doing so isn’t as cumbersome as it could be. It’s also worth mentioning that prospects can edit pre-populated contact information (email address and phone number) if those pulled from their LinkedIn profile are no longer valid.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? At first glance, LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms have two steps fewer than Facebook lead ads.   The lack of a terms and conditions page makes LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms a bit quicker to complete, but the difference seems negligible. Finally, the autocompletion of key contact information, shared by both platforms, makes conversion easier on a mobile device. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form ROI TBD… for now. We haven’t run them yet, but per LinkedIn, “Ninety percent of the 50 customers surveyed from our pilot beat their cost-per-lead (CPL) goals. They also saw lower CPLs with Lead Gen Forms compared to their standard Sponsored Content campaigns.”   Now, this statement makes it seem as though lead gen forms are exceptionally effective. In reality, they’re probably not quite as good as LinkedIn is touting (yet). Based on my limited experience, standard Sponsored Content has not proven particularly effective; beating CPL goals associated with the format is nothing to slouch at, but improving upon something mediocre doesn’t necessarily mean extraordinary value or results. Try ‘em out, but tread lightly. How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Lead gen forms on Facebook are a mixed bag and largely depend on your vertical and the targeting methods you’re using. I’ve seen accounts that attempt to use lead ads at the top of the funnel and they bring in a ton of unqualified leads. This gets expensive real quick. Conversely, as a mid-funnel and pre-close tool (used in a remarketing campaign to encourage a nurtured lead to book a demo) Facebook lead ads are straight fire. I imagine LinkedIn will function similarly; that being said, since there are probably less spam accounts on LinkedIn than Facebook, and the targeting options all but ensure some semblance of professional interest, Lead Gen Forms could have a bigger impact on top of funnel campaigns. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Lead Quality Here’s where I think LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms will make their mark. LinkedIn is unique among social networks in that advertisers can leverage mounds of professional data that’s (usually) up to date.  The profile stewardship exhibited by most members ensure that the lead data captured by advertisers is up-to-date (much less likely to be a fake email address or phone number), creating better informed, easier-to-convert sales opportunities.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Facebook is valuable to advertisers because everyone and their mother uses it. LinkedIn’s user base is much smaller than Facebook’s (just under half a billion), but now that lead gen forms are available to advertisers, their cost combined with the amount of profession-based targeting information available should make it the perfect channel for B2B marketers. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Measurability The two most important KPIs you can track within the LinkedIn UI are CPL and form fill rate. And since there’s no need for a prospect to visit your website on their path to conversion, there’s no need for any kind of tricky tracking code implementation on your part.   Per LinkedIn, the internal reporting tools allow advertisers to “track key metrics like CPL, form fill rate, and other important data points to measure the value you're getting from your ad spend. In the near future, we’ll also include demographic reports that show the exact number of leads you're getting from specific audience segments.” That last part gets me especially excited, since this demographic information has the potential to improve performance on other channels, too. How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? LinkedIn and Facebook both have a lot to learn from Google when it comes to measurability. While both platforms have made strides of late and they both offer more robust targeting options than AdWords, the extent to which you can measure things like attribution and other advanced metrics still lags behind. LinkedIn Lead Gen Form Manageability Per LinkedIn, Lead Gen Forms are already compatible with Zapier and Driftrock. If you use either of these systems for marketing automation, LinkedIn leads will pull into your existing CRM in real-time.   There are plans to offer integrations with Marketo, Microsoft Dynamic 3654, and Oracle Eloqua, too. Stay tuned.   How does it compare to Facebook Lead Ads? Just like Facebook, if you use a non-compatible CRM and don’t have a team of developers who can work with the LinkedIn API, you can still harvest magical, delicious, top-shelf leads. All you need to do is download the CSV file containing your lead. Just don’t forget to check in frequently; doing so would allow those scorching hot prospects to cool off or worse, stumble upon your competitors. Also worth noting: LinkedIn’s launch article alludes to their giving advertisers the ability to include Lead Gen Forms in sponsored InMail campaigns for both mobile and desktop later this year. This should take another step towards relevance for B2B marketers. About the Author Allen Finn is a content marketing specialist and the reigning fantasy football champion at WordStream. He enjoys couth menswear, dank eats, and the dulcet tones of the Wu-Tang Clan. If you know what's good for you, you'll follow him on LinkedIn[6] and Twitter[7]. References^ 5 questions advertisers should ask themselves each quarter (www.wordstream.com)^ similar feelings (www.wordstream.com)^ LinkedIn Lead Gen Forms (business.linkedin.com)^ potential prospects (www.wordstream.com)^ success using lead ads (www.wordstream.com)^ LinkedIn (www.linkedin.com)^ Twitter (twitter.com)

Andrew Wroblewski's insight:

http://yourprofitweb.com