Life

OnInformation'sconsumption,

andthecreationofabetterlife.

DavidBerti
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Disclaimer
Althoughtheauthorhasmadeeveryreasonableattemptto achievecompleteaccuracyofthecontentinthisGuide,he assumesnoresponsibilityforerrorsoromissions.Also,you shouldusethisinformationatyourownrisk.Yourparticular situationmaynotbeexactlysuitedtotheexamplesillustrated here;usetheinformationandtherecommendationsaccordingly toyourpersonalexperienceandcondition.Finally,useyour head.NothinginthisGuideisintendedtoreplacecommon sense,legal,medicalorotherprofessionaladvice,andismeant toinformandentertainthereader.

License

LifebyDavidBertiislicensedunderaCreativeCommons AttributionNonCommercialNoDerivs3.0UnportedLicense. Youarefreetodownload,copyandsharethisstoryfornon commercialpurposes.Formoreinformationorotherversions andtranslations,pleasegoto:Ubuntulook.blogspot.com

Credits
CoverimageisBlackDroidGlossyAbstractbyxsylus,auserof droidforums.net

Contents

Disclaimer License Credits Whythis? Warning! 1:Simplecomputerinterface 2:Clutterfreesociallife 3:Findingtheequilibrium 4:Blogging,theminimalistway 5:Canyoutellwhatisgoodfromwhatisbad? 6:Choosecounterculture 7:Givingtheformashape 8:Puttingitalltogether 9:Conclusions

Whythis?
I'vereadposts,articlesandbooksofhundredsofpageswith nousefulcontenttoomanytimes.Imean,itiscertainly importanttolearn;buttoputideasintopracticeisa completelydifferentquestion.Andwell,sometimes, nowadays'culturetellsusthatitisgoodforustopayfor information.Ireallydontthinkso.Whatweshouldpayfor, instead,isthetimeandeffortacreativepersonputsinto whattheycreate.Thewebhasgivenustheopportunityto shareanysortofinformation.Offeringfreeknowledgeto peopleiswhatwillletusrethinkknowledgeandculture. Followingtheideasofmanyminimalistblogsandinspiring bloggers,thisguideisafreeresourceforeveryonetoenjoy andputintopractice.Simplestraightforwardlanguageis usedtomakeconceptseasytounderstandandtoapplyin reallife. Internetmakesthesharingofvaluableinformationeasy.It's timetotakeadvantageofit!Thetipsyoucanfindherein derivefromtheexperienceofanaverageuserwhohasbeen studying,applyinghimselfandresearchingoverthenet, lookingforusefulinformation.

Warning!
Thisfreecontentisusefulforbeginnersaswellasadvanced usersoftechnology;itishighlysuggestedtoeveryone interestedinwakingupinreality.Itcan(should?)beread by99.99%oftheworldpopulation! Thisisasimpleguideforeveryonetofollow.Itwillgiveus suggestionsandenlightenus. Remembertoputtheconceptsyoufindinhereintopractice. Lifeisaction;itispractice.Itisreachingconstance,not strivingforperfection.Act,getinvolvedinnewactivities, stayhealthyandfit,getridofeverythingunnecessary clutter.Ifwehaveonelife,wearemeanttoliveit concretely.

Areyoureadytoliveit?

1:Simplecomputerinterface
Thisisafreeebook,meanttobeavaluablepieceof informationtoguideyoutowardsabettermoreenjoyable life.Computershavebecomemoreandmoreimportantin ourdaytodaylifeandtheirinfluencehasnowbecome tangible,causingourperceptiontobetransformedbythese tools. Obviously,thewayweseetheworldishighlyinfluencedby thetimewespenddoingthingsandreadingabout something.Here,the"things"and"something"arewords usedtospecifyourpassionsandhobbies.Everypartofour personalityisdefinedonthebasisofdaytoday communicationwiththeouterworld.Thefoundationofour perceptionisbuiltonstrictlypersonalandinnerbehavioral patterns,suchaslinguistichabits,thelanguagesweuseto shareourthoughtsandconsumeinformationandthekind ofinformationweconsume.Everysingleaspectandinterest inourlifeiscrucialtoourgeneralwellbeingandinner coherence. Sincecomputinganimportantpartofourlife,weshould treatcomputingwithcareanddeepenourunderstanding andknowledgeaboutit.Ourpersonalityisalsodefinedby thewaywemanagetocarryouteachtaskofourday.The sameconceptappliesto"computing".Thewaywecompute
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speaksvolumesaboutthewaywemanageourlives;about thestuffwelovedoingandthethingswe'refondof.Also, thewayweadministrateourcomputerreflectstheinner orderofourmind. Ifwehaveaclutteredmind(thatis,bynotdetaching completelyfromourpast;etc.),mostprobablyour computingwillbeclutteredtoo.Thatistosay,inthe technologyera,evenifwedigitizemostofourpapers, documents,music,videos,tapes,andthelikewestillhave clutter.Theclutterwe'relookingatisnotphysicalclutter, butadigital. Andyep,computinginaclutteredenvironmentcanbe painful.Especiallyinregardstoourabilitytomaintain concentrationforlongperiodsoftime.Inordertomakeour computerusable,weshouldfirstbeabletodefine: 1. whatisdistractingus; 2. ifitispossibletofindabetter,lessdistracting alternative; 3. ifitispossibletopermanentlydeleteacertainitem fromourinterface. Clutterfreecomputinginterfacesarequiteeasytofind, especiallyinthisdayandage.Duringthelastdecades, computerdesktopdesignhasacquiredwidespreadfame. Thankstothedevelopmentofopensourcecommunities,we havetheopportunitytotryoutwhatthedesktop environmentisandfeelwhatworksbestforourselves.
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Linuxminimalistwindowmanagersyoucouldcheckout: subtle ratpoison ice3 Needlesstosay,ifyouwantasimplercomputingexperience youshouldrelyonfreesoftware,openmusicanddocument formats:opencomputingatitsbest. Linuxdistributionsareeasytofind,installandthey practicallybringyouroldcomputertoanewlife.Havinga bettercomputingexperiencemeansthatwecanuseour machinewithoutthehasslesofsubscriptions,product registrationsandsoon. Youcanalsoworkonthecloudordigitizeeverysingle physicalmediayouhavelayingaroundinyourhouse.

2:Clutterfreesociallife
It'sinevitable.Youareconstantlygearedtowardssociety. Communicationisoneofhumans'mostimportantneeds. Thisiswhyitfeelsfantasticstayingupthere,intheweb, whilechitchattingwithourfriendsandcolleagues.Whenit allcomesdowntoaskingforhelporsharingideas,social networkscanseemreallyusefultous.Theycouldbe importantforourwork,ourblog,oursite,ourcareerand anyotheraspectofourhyperconnectedlife.Nonetheless, theflowofinformationwereceivecanbecome overwhelmingandenglobateusinthe"socialmediadance", asMattMadeirofromThreenewleavesputsit.Then,itis necessarytoreestablishasaner,healthier,valuecentered relationshipwithtechnology. Howtheheckdowedoit? Let'ssayyouhavelotsofaccounts(don'tcheat,everybody does!:))andyouwanttogetridofthoseyouhaveused onceinalifetime.Whatwouldyoudo,then? 1. getridofunnecessaryfeedsandinformation 2. purgeuselesssubscriptionsfromyourRSSfeedor email 3. unifyyourdigitallifeinasingleaccount 4. trackthoseservicesyouspendmostofyourtimeon; thencutbackonthem.
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5. cutbackontheinformationyouconsume 6. consumemorevaluableinformation "Valuableinformation"isinformation,piecesofknowledge, articles,posts,videos,movies,shows,interestingvlogs, blogsandmusicwhichaddsvaluetoourlives.Ithelpsusin ourlives,lettingusdevelopanewperspectiveaboutthings; developingourinnerselfandtherelationshipwehavewith otherhumanbeings.Itiscontentwhichaddsvaluetoour persona,aswellastotherealityinwhichwelive.

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3:Findinganequilibrium
InthebigWorldWideWhirlpoolitishardtofindabalance. Especiallyifwe'restillstuckonphilosophicalquestions withoutgivinganswers.See,theNetneedsanswers,action, actingonourpartandincollaborationwithothers.After all,communityandcollaborationarethesinequanonofthe internetreality. Areweexpectedtofindabalance?Idon'tthinkso.Atleast, Idon'tthinkmonopoliesarewillingtogiveawaytheir powerforsomerealworlddemocracy.Whatarewe expectedtodo?Webservicesgrowandkeepprospering becausetheirusersareconnectingtothem.It'saprettyeasy equation.Internetmediasandservicesliveordie, dependingontheiraudiences.WhatIpersonallydon't understandiswhatcausestherealneedforpower, technologyperformance,digitaldivideandevolutionina worldinwhichthereshouldbeenoughknowledgetobe wiseenough.Generationaftergenerationwehavebeen taughtthatthingsgothewaytheyneedtogo.Doesthis makesense?Idon'tthinkso.Ifthismakessenseina societalsense,thereisagoodpossibilitythat,atan individuallevel,thisiscompletenonsense. Complicationneedsmorecomplexitytobesimplified.This isthebaretruth.Theonlywaytofindabalanceistoavoid creatingcomplications:shutthetechnologyoffandboot yourlife,checkingitsHighPriority.
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4:Blogging,theminimalistway
Bloggersaregoingtochangetheworld.Well,theyalready changeditforgood(sometimes).Throughblogs'boomwe haveseenariseincommunicationandideasharing.Great ideas,innovativeandrevolutionaryideashavebecomea reality(widespread!);wehavehadtheopportunitytospeak ourmindswiththewholeworld.Whatcanwedonow? Bloginaminimalistway.Andyouknowwhat?Inthisexact moment,the80%ofthetotalblogshostedontheWhirlpool arecompletelyunused. Onceuponatime,intheninetieswehadaperiodinwhich bloggingwasasocialtendency.Itwasfashion.Now,writing isanecessityforsomeone;apassionforothers.Inanycase, wearenotourblog,butourthoughtsareworthspreading. Livinginasuperbloatedsocietymeanswecanfind complexityinanysingleplaceofourlife.Sidesofourlife arecompletelyfilledwithnonsense,difficultthings, absurdityandsimilarjunk. Canwebethedifference?Yes. Canwemakethedifference?Yep. Canwemakethedifference,bycomplicatingourlives? Nope. Thisiswhystartingfromscratchagainisthenewcommon factorbetweenthosebloggerswhosucceedandthosewho donot.Ifwestaywherewearewithoutmoving,there'sno needforourwritingsandthoughtstoemerge.Thisiswhat
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goodol'Darwinwouldhavetechnicallycallednatural selection,Ithink. Goingminimalistwithourblogsmeansdepuratingour languagefromexcessivelydetailedandcompletely meaninglesssentences.Pressthatdamnperiodbutton,once andforall.Weneedsimplicity.Weneedconcisephrasesthat areeasytounderstand.Somethingtomovethe consciousnessoftheworld. Thecreationoflifechangingcontentisuptous. Thecreationofinspiringcontentisuptous. Thecreationoftheconceptswhichmakeusthinktwiceis, again,uptous. Wannamakethedifference?Startwithexpressionof ourselves. Simplifyourcommunicationstyle;removeexcessive materialfromthethingswesendtoourlisteners(or readers,orwhoevertheyare). Ifwecanexpressaconceptin5words,whyuse20? That'sthewholepoint.

Takingactionisnotforeveryone.Sometimes,thosewho takeactionarenotawareofwhattheydo.NeitheramI, sometimes.

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Ifwewanttogetbetteratlivingourlivesandenhancing theworldwelivein,wefirsthavetoreestablishcontact witherror,withwhat'swrongandbadforus. Whenwehavevaluestoguideus,wecanfinallyconsider ourhumanitytobecomplete.Inreachingasenseofour humanity,weinevitablyliveincontactwithwhat'sreal, valuableandgood.Goodvaluesalwaysleadustoestablish avirtuouscycleinourdaytodaylife. Wechangetheperceptionofouractions; webetterunderstandthemeaningofthings; weunderstandwhysomethingshappen weunderstandwhywedon'tneedtotakeourlivesso seriously; weunderstandwedon'tneedanexplanation;wedon'tneed it.

RememberWeareacause,notaneffect.

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5: Can you tell what is good from what is bad?

Minimalismistheresultoftheparameterswechoosetobe thedefaultactivitiesandhobbiesofourlifestyles.Toput everythingintopractice,weneedasolidbaseinwhichour thoughtscanleadusstraighttowardsthelifewedeserve. Startreading,forexample.Readingisoneofthemost importantactivitieswecouldeverbringintoourlives becauseittakespracticallynotimeorefforttofocusona goodbook.Anotherproaboutthechoiceoftakingon readingisthatreadingnicethingscantotallychangeyour life.Remembertomakebannedbooksabigpartofyour personallibrary.I'msureyouwillunderstandwhy,sooneror later.Ditchthatbrandnewnovelandstartreadingthese people: DavidIcke LeoBabauta EverettBogue CharlesBukowski ChuckPalahniuk JohnNguyen NoamChomsky ChrisGuillebeau RichardDawkins SethGodin VancePackard (Myself!)

Discovernewthingsinourlives.Thereismuchmorethan thesimpletelevisionwatchingorhifihometheatersystem. Discovernewmusic,developtasteinthisbeautifulart. Startlisteningtodifferentgenresofmusic;learntoplaya newinstrument.Dosomethinggreatwithourlives.Lifeis notboring.Ifwehaveaboringlife,it'sbecauseweare

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boring.Thechoiceisalwaysuptous.Liveit,makeitor leaveitmentality;helpsomeonedosomething;discover newpassions,startwatchingmovies;startpracticinganew sport;takepartinachallenge;travelalot;thewaywe want,whereverwewant. Findalternativemethodsonhowtoliveourlives.Mostof thereallyvaluablecontentoverthenetandovertheworld isfree.Completelyfree:justlikethisebook. Livingfreeisnotimpossible.Wearenotdreamingwhen we'rewonderingifwecouldeverbefreefromwhatwe own.Wecanbefree.Societyisresponsibleforallofthis. Thewaywethink,thewaywearetoldtoviewtheworld. Entertainment,religion,socialstructuresandhierarchyare bigconstructsmadebysocietytomakepeoplesocial. Socialnetworksarecreatedtomakepeoplefeelnormal, social,friendly.Butthisnormalityisnotperceivedby society;byothers.Itisuptotheusertoconformtowhat societyretainstobegood.Inthisway,afterhavingbeen brainwashedduringthespanofourlives,weneedtofinda shelterinaconstructwhichisperfectlycreatedbysociety forus. Theaimofsocietyistogivepeopleaplacetoconformand belong.Aspartsofasociety,we,thecitizensandusers,have awelldefinedplaceinthesocialhierarchy.Thisiswhere everysortofdefinition,biasandracismcomesout.political party,ideals,religion,race,etc. Societyletsusbeoriginal(respectingthetermsofits contract).Itgivesuscategoriesinwhichwecanfind
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ourselves.Areyouaworker?AreyouaCEO?Areyoua freelancejournalist?Thesearecategories,thesearethe matrixinwhichweconstantlylive.Obviously,termslike thematrix,oranyotherkindofphilosophicalstuff,when worldwidespreadbyentertainment,becomemeaningless words,becausetheylosetheirdepthandmeaning. Therealmatrixistheonewe'resetinduringoursocietal life.Thematrixisalsoamovieserieswhichhashighlighted importantconceptsofhumanlife.Howcanwerecognize theimportanttermsweneedtoknow?Thosewhichseem deep,goodsounding,withanimportantauraaroundthem. Wecouldliveincompleteidlenessbecause,ifweletit, societalhierarchywilltakecareofourlives.Obviously,we payforthis,everysingleday.That'swhytakingonnew activitiesisausefulkeyforustocorrectlyreadsociety. Societallivingoffersusanapparentlyfreewaytoliveinthe worldwithotherindividualswhoaresimilartous.The basicassumptionisthatweneveraskourselveswhy,how, whatorwhen.Yes,societyalsoteachesusthatthese questionsmustbeaskedinmaths,history,literature.Thisis totalBS. WhenwehearsomethinglikeWehaveareallygood scholarsystem,itmeansthatsocietalbrainwashingisdoing well! Thecultureweareofferedistotalcrapbecausethemoreit keepsusawayfromaskingourselveswhat'sthepointof things,themoresocietywillcontroltherealityinwhichwe live.Thepointofallthisstuffisperception.
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Societygivesusfreeeyesfromwhichwecanreadtheworld. Wedon'thavetolive;wecanalsospendourwholelives watchingtelevisionandmakeitthinkforus. Haveyouevernoticedthatbooksandmaterialaboutinner self,hypnosis,magicstuff,isalwaystakenwithapinchof saltbymostpeople?Haveyouevernoticedthatbooks, audiobooksordvdsabouttopicslikethese,comparedto normalentertainmentandmediastuff,havemuchhigher prices? Thisisbecausepeoplehavetostayawayfromthem.And themorewidespreadstuffisusuallythelesseffectiveand indepthdiscoursetowardstheachievementofanew, concretereality.Let'stakeChomsky,VancePackard,David IckeandRichardDawkins,forexample:wewillfindtheir workstobequitehighpricedcomparedtoallthecrapwe findinstores.What'sthereason?Mmm...Iknowyou've guesseditright:)

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6:Choosecounterculture
Howdowegettominimalism?Deletingthesurplusand startingfromscratch.Whataboutourknowledge?What abouttheresultsofthelastfootballmatch?Gone.Itisall gonenow.Gone.Again,itisgone.Theexactmomentin whichwehavereadthetitleofthisparagraphitis completelyGONE.Andyouknowwhat?Minimalismiswhat makesyouliveintheNow.Forgetallthecultureyou've beenfedwith;forgetmaths,geometry,themilkywayand thelasttimeyouhadyourhaircut.Allgoes;everything passesbyandwereallyhavenothingtosupportourselvesin thetimeofneed.Idon'tcareaboutthat.Andneithershould you.Ifyoubelieve,letcounterculturebeyournewreligion. Themechanismoftimeisinthemind.Knowledgeresidesin themindaswell.Ourfears,ourculture,ourvisionoflife andthetimespentstudyingforsomething,orworkingona project.Gone.Thereisnothingleftexceptfortheresult,the action,themotion.Thecultureyouhavebeenaccustomed to,tossitimmediately.Itstoxicityforwhatweareandwhat wethinkisenormous.Minimalismisallaboutgettinga balancebetweenwhat'srealandwhat'sgood.Knowledgeis notreal,soitcannotbetotallyculture.Uselessknowledgeis bad.Weareaccustomedtostudyingandcopingwith subjectswearenotcomfortablewith.Intheeraofdigital communicationwearestudying17thcenturyliterature. Boringanduseless. Ifweweretaughthowtolivebetter,thisworldwouldbea wonderfulplaceforeverybody.
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7: Giving the form a shape

Livingaccordingtoourrulescanbeasimportantascreating asetofmoralvalueswhichreflectsourinnerselves.Itis reallyusefultocreatearealityinwhichourvaluesreflect ourconditionandouraspirations.Thatiswhyyoushould startthinkingbig. Thinkingbigcanbeextremelyhealthy,especiallyifour mentalityhasalwaysbroughtustowardstheachievement ofamazinggoals.Logically,thinkingbigcanbeusefulifour maingoalisto"livebig". Livebigbydoingthingsyouwouldhaveneverexpectedto do;dothoseactivitiesyouhavealwayswantedtodo;Let's sayhockeyisyourpassion.Well,goforit.Startplayingit. Watchit,learnfromit;everythingcanteachussomething; Challengeyourselftothelimits;pushyourselftowardsnew goalsandformofexpression.Experimentallanguage, music.Experimentalart.Thisisamatterof experimentation. Dosomethingwrong.Makemistakes.It'sgreattomake mistakes.Goforwhatyoubelievetoberight.Become accustomedtochoices:theyarenotrightorwrong.They're justchoices.They'rerightforsomepeople.They'rewrong forothers.Youhavethepowertochoose.So,whydon'tyou giveatry?

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Dowhateveryouwant.Writeanovel.Startablog.Writea bookin7days.Writeanebook.Gettoknowsomeone special.Meetnewpeople.Designthelivingroomofyour dreams;wakeupearlier;getmoreworkdone.Start teachingwhatyouknow.Shareyourknowledge.Givetalk. Startspeakinginpublic.Trysomethingnewforyou.Give valuetopeople. Givevaluetoyourlife.

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8: Putting it all together

Takeapenandapieceofpaper.Wecanestablishasetof moralvaluesbycreatingalistofpointsinwhichweinclude alltheaspectsofourliveswewouldliketomanagebetter. Weshouldalsoaddlotsofincredibleambitionswewould liketoaccomplish.Andwheneverythingisjotteddown,we understandthatnothingisreallyimpossible.Aswechange ourthinking,exceptionscanbecomeordinarystuff:it'sjust amatterofexpectationsandthinking. Thatiswhythinkingbigcanreallyhelpuswiththe achievementofwhatwereallywantinlife.Ata subconsciouslevel,repetitioncanmakethedifference betweenthosewhoknowaconceptandthenimmediately forgetitandthosewholearnsomethingusefulandputit intoaction.Paradoxically,let'sstopjudgingtherealitywe see,andourrealitywillstarttodevelop; Ourabilitytofocuswillimprove;ourvisionofthewhole worldwillachievedensity:wewillbeabletoseethrough thethinlayersoftherealityweperceive. Thewaywewantourlivestobeisthewayinwhichwe imaginethemonourminds. Reality,afterall,isjustamatterofperception.Themain interpreterofourlivesareourminds.Themindseesand linkseverythingwelookat,onthebasisofourpersonal knowledgeandourpersonalexperience.Ourmind
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determinestheframeofourwholeexperience.Ourlifeisan enormousconstructofframes;everyframeispartly differentfromthepreviousone;andatthesametimeit containsaportionofinformationderivingfromourpast mindframes. Iftheperceptionofrealityiswhatmakesusunderstand what'sgoingoninourlife,howcanweimproveour perception?

1.

Easyanswer:bycreatinganewsetofrulesandframes: thatistosay,moralvalues;ideasworthliving. Difficultanswer:putlastparagraph'sideasinto practice!Let'sseehoweasyitis!

2.

Moralvaluescanbefoundintheliteratureweread;the movieswewatch;thebooksweread;theanalysisofour dailylifeandotherlittlethings.Doyouneedamore straightforwardanswer? Detachfromourgoalsandthosematerialpossessionswe constantlyourselveswith. Inthenextpage,youcanfindalistofimportantconcepts.I suggestyoutoprintthem,andreadthemeveryday,from nowon.Theyaretheessentialsofyourlife:thelifeyou're meanttobeliving;thelifeyou'vebeengiven.

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Letgo. SpeakLess. Enjoylifemore. Dosomethingwithanintention. Letuselessconceptsgo,lettinggreatstuffstay. Gowiththeflow. Lettruthspeakforitself. Staytrue. Beyourself. Stayreal. Beyourbestself. Makeyourlifethebestyouwouldhaveeverlived. Bethepersonyouwanttoseearound. LetthenewYouinspireothers Letothershelpyoutochangetheworld Letthemhelpyoumakeyourlifebetter. Makethisworldabetterplace.

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9:Conclusion
So,thisisit.It'swonderfultoseeyouhere.Thisebookhas beenwritteninjust3days.Itscontentisprettydense,and youwillprobablyneedtoreaditagain,inordertofully grasptheconceptsitcontains.Thisisfree,important content,availableforyoutograsp,enjoyandsharewiththe wholeworld.Ijustwantyoutodome4big,bigfavours:
1.

Emailthesepagestoeveryoneyouknow:your friends,family,colleagues,whoever;
2. 3.

Shareitonsocialnetworks,

Discussaboutitinforumsorvideoblogs,
4.

Keepitscontentaliveinyourmind.

Iwouldalsolovetohearfromyou;whatyourimpressions abouttheguideare;whatwouldyousuggesttoadd,ifyou wanttomeetup,ifyoujustwanttoaskmesomethingor getinvolvedinacollaborationforanew,densefreeebook! Reachmeatlogicalimpression[at]gmail[dot]com. Youcanalsosubscribetomyblog,toreceiveanewarticle everyweekorstayuptodatewithmytalks,and participate! Iwishyouallthebest,becauseyoureallydeserveit. David
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