If your business is built around the creation of a product, managing the manufacture of that item dictates the degree of success your business enjoys. Understanding a variety of production management techniques gives you a toolbox for approaching bottlenecks and improvements. Even if you run a small business, understanding methodologies used by major manufacturers may benefit your company.

KiCAD has a rightfully earned image problem regarding beginners. The shiny new version 5 has improved things (and we’re very excited for v6!) but the tool is a bit obtuse even when coming from a electronics design background, so we’re always excited to see new learning material. [Mike Watts] is the latest to join the esteemed group of people willing to export their knowledge with his KiCAD tutorial series on GitHub that takes the aspiring user from schematic through fab and assembly.

The tutorial is focused around the process of creating a development board for the dimuitive Microchip née Atmel ATSAMD10 Cortex M0 ARM CPU. It opens by asking the reader to create a schematic and proceeds to teach by directing them to perform certain actions then explaining what’s going on and which shortcuts can accelerate things. This method continues through layout, manufacturing, and assembly.

Of note is that when defining the board outline [Mike] describes how to use OpenSCAD to parametrically define it; a neat micro-tutorial on using the two great tools to compliment each other. We also love that upon successful completion of the tutorial series the user will have developed a tiny but useful development board that can be assembled for about $3 in single quantities!

As with all open source work, if you have quibbles or want to contribute open a pull request and supply [Mike] a hand!

When I first started my clinical training as a psychologist, some of the first techniques I learned were relaxation exercises. These are concrete, specific behaviors that clients can use to reduce the symptoms of anxiety. Relaxation exercises often target physical symptoms of anxiety such as hyperventilating and muscle tension but can also help with emotional symptoms such as panic and nervousness. One interesting debate has been whether to use relaxation exercises for anxiety or whether they can be counterproductive.

Let’s start with a few examples of relaxation exercises. The most common technique is probably diaphragm breathing, also called belly breathing or deep breathing. Diaphragm breathing has clients breathe using more of their diaphragm, the big muscle that helps the lungs move air in and out of the body. One version of this technique has clients put a hand on their chest and the other on their stomach and try to breathe so that the hand on the chest does not move (or moves minimally) and the hand on the stomach moves more. Diaphragm breathing helps prevent hyperventilating and the other symptoms that go with it such as dizziness. Another technique, one that was a mainstay of my training, is progressive muscle relaxation or PMR. PMR has the client progressively tense and relax different muscle groups until all their muscles are relaxed. Depending on how the muscles are grouped, PMR can take 10 to 30 minutes. Clients will often use a recording to guide them through the muscle groups. Other relaxation techniques include imagery and even some forms of meditation.

Initially, it can seem like relaxation techniques should be great for anxiety because they reduce anxiety. Reducing anxiety, though, might not always be helpful. I’ve written before about how anxiety is a normal part of life and trying to reduce normal levels of anxiety can be counterproductive. If relaxation techniques are being used to avoid anxiety instead of facing it, then they can be unhelpful. Another situation in which relaxation exercises might not help is during exposure therapy. In exposure therapy, a client gradually faces situations that cause anxiety so they can gain experience showing that they are able to cope with the situation and the anxiety. If relaxation exercises are used too much in exposure therapy to the point that the client does not feel anxiety, then it can cancel out the exposure exercise. Situations with mild to moderate levels of anxiety might not need relaxation exercises.

Relaxation exercises still have many uses. For someone experiencing a high level of anxiety, these techniques can help reduce the anxiety to a more manageable level. For people trying exposure therapy but who have a high level of anxiety even for beginning levels of exposure, relaxation techniques can be extremely helpful so they can get started on facing those feared situations. The key is not necessarily using a specific technique but rather finding one that works for you.

As with any specific therapy technique including relaxation exercises, always check with your mental health provider first. You might have to try several different techniques before you find one that works for you. And you might have to try using relaxation exercises in several different situations before figuring out when it helps you and when it does not help.

The completion of the acquisition comes just a month after the passing of Gerald Cohen, Information Builders’ founder and former CEO.

TIBCO Software has completed its acquisition of business analytics software pioneer Information Builders, the company said Tuesday, and has begun integrating the two companies’ operations and product lines.

TIBCO and Information Builders announced the acquisition deal on Oct. 22 without disclosing the acquisition price.

News of the completion of the acquisition comes one month after the Dec. 3 death of Gerald Cohen, Information Builders’ founder, co-owner and long-time CEO. Cohen stepped aside as CEO in January 2019 when the company named chief operating officer Frank Vella as the new CEO.

[Related: TIBCO CEO Streetman On Information Builders Acquisition, Opportunities for Partners]

“We‘re excited to recognize the exceptional technology and great reputation built by IBI, and we look forward to providing our existing and future customers with an even broader range of innovative, data-driven solutions to support faster, smarter digital transformations,” said TIBCO CEO Dan Streetman (pictured), in a statement.

TIBCO said the formal integration of Information Builders, headquartered in New York, with TIBCO began after Information Builders closed its financial year on Dec. 31, 2020.

TIBCO “will focus on business alignment and resource mapping for the ongoing health and support of its expanded customer base and worldwide partner network,” the company said of the integration work.

TIBCO, based in Palo Alto, Calif., did not disclose additional details about its plans for integrating Information Builders’ operations or its workforce with its own. The company, for example, has not said whether Vella will have a role at TIBCO.

TIBCO plans to add Information Builders’ flagship WebFOCUS business analytics and reporting platform to its product lineup and enrich its Hyperconverged Analytics business analytics strategy. Information Builders’ data quality, preparation and integration products are being added to the TIBCO Any Data Hub and TIBCO Responsive Application Mesh strategies.

The company will also market its own software, including the Spotfire analytical visualization and Cloud Integration offerings, to Information Builders’ customer base.

“This represents a significant opportunity for TIBCO and IBI as customers strive to become data-first enterprises. There is tremendous potential for any platform that can integrate and manage data to create intelligent workflows for employees, partners, and customers,” said Howard Dresner, chief research officer at Dresner Advisory Services, in the TIBCO statement.

Tibco, which is owned by Vista Equity Partners, has made some 30 acquisitions throughout its history, but the company said Information Builders is the company’s biggest.

The acquisition deal follows reports earlier this year that IBI was up for sale by owner and long-time CEO Gerald Cohen and minority investor Goldman Sachs.

Tibco Software, already a significant player in the business analytics and data management software arena, is acquiring Information Builders Inc., a pioneer and long-time player in the business analytics market, the companies announced Thursday.

The companies did not disclose the financial details of the acquisition deal. Tibco, which has made a series of acquisitions in latest years, said the IBI acquisition is the largest in its history. Both companies are privately held.

The acquisition follows reports in August that IBI had begun looking for a buyer with Goldman Sachs Private Capital, which acquired a minority stake in IBI in 2017, leading the process.

[Related: The Big Data 100 2020]

“Data-driven insight is more critical than ever. With the acquisition of IBI, we gain access to a broader set of analytics and technology, greatly enhancing our ability to help the world’s leading organizations solve their most complex data problems,” said Dan Streetman, TIBCO CEO, in a statement. “The blend of our two companies, with strong and complementary capabilities, will further unlock the potential of real-time data for making faster, smarter decisions.”

IBI, founded in 1975, is one of the long-time pioneers in the business analytics and reporting software space. With its flagship WebFocus platform, the New York-based company offers tools for visualization and reporting, and for distributed, embedded, augmented and federated analytics.

IBI also offers a line of data management software including data preparation, integration, quality and governance tools.

IBI has been owned throughout its history by founder, chairman and onetime CEO Gerald Cohen, aside from the Goldman Sachs minority stake. In January 2019 he stepped aside from the CEO post when the company named chief operating officer Frank Vella as the new CEO. Vella was hired as COO in November 2017 with a plan to eventually take over the CEO job.

In June, at the company’s Virtual Summit 2020, IBI unveiled a broad company makeover that included a cloud-first product development roadmap as well as new products, expanded customer and partner support services, and new branding and go-to-market plans.

“We founded Information Builders with a vision of a new business intelligence product that would enable non-programmers to build their own reporting applications,” Cohen said in the statement announcing the acquisition. “We are proud of what IBI has accomplished in over four decades of innovation, and it is a privilege to join forces with a company that cares about its customers as much as we do. I am looking forward to a very bright future for our solutions, our team, and especially our customers.”

Tibco, based in Palo Alto, Calif., has been expanding its presence in the business analytics and data management space with a steady stream of acquisitions over the years. The company’s first real entrance into business analytics came with its 2007 acquisition of data visualization software company Spotfire, followed by acquisitions of StreamBase Software in 2013, Jaspersoft in 2014 and Alpine Data Labs in 2017.

On the data management front the company’s acquisitions have included LogLogic in 2012, Cisco’s Data Virtualization business in 2017, Orchestra Networks in 2018 and SnappyData last year. Tibco also markets a line of application integration and API management software.

Both IBI and Tibco have active channel partner programs, the latter with its Acceleration Partner Program that includes VARs, solution providers, system integrators and cloud providers. The company also works with OEM and ISV partners.

Tibco said the IBI acquisition is the biggest in its 20-plus year history. The company said the addition of IBI’s analytics and data management products to its technology portfolio “will augment Tibco’s Connected Intelligence platform” to more deeply address customers’ end-to-end data management and business analytics needs.

Tibco specifically said IBI’s data quality, preparation and integration products will support the Tibco Any Data Hub (data unification) and Responsive Application Mesh (application architecture) product strategies, while WebFocus will enrich Tibco’s Hyperconverged Analytics (business analytics) strategy.

Tibco, which is owned by Vista Equity Partners, said it expects to complete the acquisition during the first quarter of its fiscal 2021, subject to customary conditions and certain regulatory approvals.

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What are Investment Strategies?

Best Investing Strategies: Growth Investing

Understand and Use the Priority of Money

Understand the Risks and Benefits of a Major Asset

How to Invest Your Savings for Short-Term or Long-Term Goals

Top 10 Strategies for Investing

1. Bring Balance Into Your Financial Plan

2. Invest in What You Understand

3. Start Investing as Early as Possible

4. Add a 401(k) Match to Your Mix

5. Set Up and Stick with Sound Cash Flow Management

6. Separate Emotions from Objectives

7. Turn Discretionary Spending Into Investing

8. Put Investments and Cash Reserves in Separate Buckets

9. Make Stocks a Cornerstone of Your Strategy

10. Diversify for a Smoother Ride

Principles of Investment Strategies

Long-Term Goals vs. Short-Term Goals

Active vs. Passive Investing Strategies

Low-Risk vs. High-Risk Investing Strategies

All-in on Financial Responsibility

Frequently Asked Questions