![]() ![]() Of course, it’s a different story if your players want that kind of challenge. As I mentioned earlier, starting at level 3 might actually be a better call than starting at level 1 because of that. Many of these instances are towards the beginning of the adventure. A few moments, in particular, aren’t even pretending to be fair! Much of it is beginner-friendly, but there are also several instances and areas where the difficulty greatly spikes. DifficultyĬurse of Strahd is best as an adventure for more intermediate players. I particularly enjoy running the swamps of Berez in Curse of Strahd. All roads will inevitably lead back to Strahd and Castle Ravenloft. ![]() It encourages exploration from the players but sets clear enough boundaries that you won’t find the campaign hopelessly derailed. ![]() Personally, I think this sandbox-style design works great. The players have goals and there are hooks/plots in each significant location within the sandbox, but how the party experiences Barovia is ultimately up to them. However, on the plus side, the mists form the edges of the sandbox that is Barovia. With no chance of escaping through the mists that surround Barovia, this once vibrant valley has turned cold and stagnant. The inhabitants of this land are similarly grim. There’s a constant sadness and despair over the entire valley. The land of Barovia itself is bleak and gray. Some parts of the adventure will see the party scaling mountains while others will see them trudging through swamps, delving into ancient dungeons, or making their way through towns. SettingĬurse of Strahd takes place entirely in Barovia, a Domain of Dread within Ravenloft.īarovia itself is a large valley with many different features. When the party is ready, they can progress into Castle Ravenloft for the ultimate showdown with their host. Much of the campaign will see the party exploring Barovia as they attempt to make allies and find the sacred items necessary to put an end to Strahd. If they ever wish to return home, they will need to slay the vampire Strahd Von Zarovich. However, the mists block any effort to leave this land. The party’s goal is simple: escape Barovia. In any situation, however, the party passes through the mists into Strahd’s domain. Of course, you’re free to also come up with your own hook. In either case, the mists envelop the party who find themselves in the land of Barovia. Other hook options include being attacked by werewolves and chasing them into the forest or falling asleep by the campfire listening to the tale of a traveler and waking up in Barovia. As they travel towards the quest, they find themselves consumed by the mists that transport them to Strahd’s domain. The party might receive a letter: a plea for help from messenger’s master in Barovia. There are several hooks that can be used to kick off your Curse of Strahd adventure. Cue the creepy organ music! It’s Strahd time! Plot Hooks and Goals There are plenty of spoilers elsewhere online, but you’re doing yourself a massive disservice if you go looking for them! Curse of Strahd leans heavily on horror tropes but it does so in a way that’s fun and compelling to experience. In trying to keep this review as spoiler-free as possible, let’s go over the broad strokes of the adventure. While there have been other adventures that feature horror themes, Curse of Strahd still stands as the definitive horror adventure for 5e to date. In fact, considering the nature of the enemies in this adventure, that’s probably a better call unless your table is ready for a “meat grinder” experience in the early levels! (We’ll get back to this in just a moment.) Honestly, you can even start at level 3 and be perfectly fine. The Curse of Strahd adventure module will take players from level 1 through level 10. Unlike the original, however, Curse of Strahd opens up the land of Barovia for players to explore throughout their adventure. It’s based on the classic Ravenloft module from the early 80s which is, in itself, a classic adventure that is near and dear to the hearts of many players from the AD&D days. Vampires, werewolves, zombies, evil witches, and more fill the adventure. Conclusion – Reviewing Curse of Strahd 5e What is Curse of Strahd?Ĭurse of Strahd is an adventure for D&D 5e featuring strong gothic horror themes. ![]()
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![]() ![]() ![]() Here is a brief summary of the findings:Ĭure53’s complete report is available on their website. TunnelBear is one of the few VPN providers to undergo a third-party security audit. It is important to remember to enable VigilantBear (the leak protection feature) to be protected against data leaks. The TunnelBear Mac OS client also did not have any leaks in my tests. I did not find any IP address leaks or DNS leaks with the TunnelBear client. Here you can see the leak test results when connected to a TunnelBear server in Norway: Everything worked well without any leaks to report. I ran both the Windows and Mac OS apps through a round of VPN tests to check for leaks and problems. This feature acts as a kill switch to block traffic when there is no active VPN connection and can be activated directly within the VPN application. TunnelBear offers a basic leak protection option which is called VigilantBear. If you compare WireGuard vs OpenVPN, the speeds are usually much better with WireGuard. This is a relatively new protocol that provides very fast speeds along with upgraded security and encryption over legacy protocols. No WireGuard support with TunnelBearĪt the time of this review, TunnelBear does not support the WireGuard VPN protocol. OpenVPN is open source, but it requires the use of a third-party client and is more CPU-intensive. IKEv2 can be used natively on various devices (no app required) and runs with less CPU, but it is also not open source. Both OpenVPN and IKEv2 are secure and reliable VPN protocols. The IKEv2 protocol can be used with iOS and Windows as well. TunnelBear offers good data encryption using the 256-bit AES OpenVPN for Windows, Mac OS, and Android. We discuss this topic more in our post on the best VPN for Chrome. There are also a few other VPNs that offer browser extensions, including VPN.ac, ExpressVPN, and also NordVPN and CyberGhost. In this case, you can simply control the desktop VPN client through the browser. In other cases, such as with ExpressVPN, the browser extension just extends the VPN desktop client into the browser for easier functionality. In some cases, such as with TunnelBear, the browser extension acts as an additional proxy for the browser itself, changing the IP address and DNS requests within the browser. That was all from our side, if we think we missed on something don’t retrain to comment below.Many VPNs now offer browser extensions. As already mentioned VPN will just shift your identity to another IP but Point 1 still holds up. Try not to upload/download any illegal stuff using VPN.Quality of Service: Even though watching Netflix out from an unsupported location was the premier reason to use VPN services, It must be noted that VPNs are too bad at it as they completely break how the content delivery networks operate which might make your Netflix experience a low-resolution one.So even though your data is encrypted and even the ISP would not know, but you still expose your details to the VPN provider. They actually shift the traffic from your location to another one. False Security: Though the VPNs are a secure way to teleport your data there still lies a ‘but’.Some * points to keep in mind while using VPNs: If it is prone to contain sensitive information. But we also recommend you to use it while you are connected to any public network to protect the data being sent over the network. Well the VPN application is not only used when you need to browse the geo-restricted content. Click on the TunnelBear extension button present in the Chrome Bar and click on the country to change it. Latest TunnelBear Torrent is a very easy and easy-to-use interface that has two buttons that resemble the controls of a television.Īlso, you can even select the country you want to tunnel through as depicted. And it can extend as well but you have to pay for it. NOTE: Though TunnelBear is free but it has a particular browsing limit (250mb per month) for this service. Viola! Here you are browsing, no wait tunneling :P privately. Since this is your first encounter with TunnelBear, make an account to use the VPN service through it. Step 1: Reach out for chrome extension here. Following a simple step-wise description to use the TunnelBear VPN service. ![]() ![]() Patients with chronic insomnia usually have accompanying daytime impairment of cognition, mood, or performance that impacts not only the patient and his family, but also affects friends, coworkers, and caretakers. Despite these high prevalence rates, evidence suggests that insomnia is mostly under-recognized, under-diagnosed, and under-treated, with the condition continuing to remain persistent in 50–85% of individuals over follow-up intervals of one to several years.Ĭhronic insomnia represents a more complex condition than acute transient insomnia. About 30% of all adults complain of occasional insomnia and 10% of chronic insomnia, of whom 40% may have a psychiatric illness. The prevalence, however, ranges from 10 to 15% among the general population, with higher rates seen among divorced, separated, or widowed people, older ages, female gender, White population, and in the presence of co-morbid medical or psychiatric illness. Various studies have noted insomnia to be quite a common condition with symptoms present in about 33–50% of the adult population. The presenting complaints are often that of difficulties falling asleep in spite of being in bed, waking up often during the night and having trouble going back to sleep, waking up too early in the morning or having an unrefreshing sleep. Being the first psychosomatic disorder to be described by Johann Heinroth in 1818, insomnia clinically presents as a subjective perception of dissatisfaction with the amount and/or quality of the sleep. ![]() It is a disorder characterized by inability to sleep or a total lack of sleep. The word "insomnia' originates from the Latin "in" (no) and "somnus" (sleep). However, adequate trials of combined behavior therapy and pharmacotherapy are the best course of management. Among pharmacotherapeutic agents, non-benzodiazepine hypnotics are the first line of management followed by benzodiazepines, amitryptiline and antihistaminics. Non-pharmacologic strategies such as stimulus control therapy and relaxation and cognitive therapies have the best effect sizes followed by sleep restriction, paradoxical intention and sleep hygiene education which have modest to less than modest effect sizes. To initiate treatment, it is necessary to define it and differentiate it from other co-morbid psychiatric disorders. There are several strategies to manage chronic insomnia. A computerized search on PubMed carried from 1980 to January 2009 led to the summarization of the results. ![]() This article aims to review the operational definitions and management of chronic insomnia. Yet this condition is still under-recognized, under-diagnosed, and under-treated. Insomnia is a disorder characterized by inability to sleep or a total lack of sleep, prevalence of which ranges from 10 to 15% among the general population with increased rates seen among older ages, female gender, White population and presence of medical or psychiatric illness. ![]() ![]() ![]() That makes installing a motion-sensor light or sprinkler an excellent way to ensure the intruders will move on to someplace else. Bears typically try to avoid humans and will save their scavenging for nighttime. Once it’s good to go, you can hang your feeder from it, using a pole fitted with a hook to place it and take it down to fill.Īt The Bird Store & More, we help you take your bear-proof bird feeder pole to the next level with additional things to deter these pests. If it seems like overkill, remember that we’re talking about a 400-pound animal. You’ll then pack the space around it with cement. We recommend digging a hole that is at least 42 inches deep. You’ll also need to set the pole fairly deep in the ground. The other thing to consider is the strength of the pole. Our pole is 4 inches in diameter to ensure that it’s tough enough for the job. The distance from other trees or buildings still applies. Instead of 5 feet, we’re talking at least 10–12 feet high. With bears, you’ll have to make some adjustments. That means situating your feeder so that it’s 5 feet high, 7 feet from any potential launching pads, and 9 feet below any overhanging branches. If you’ve had problems with squirrels, you’re probably familiar with the so-called 5-7-9 rule. It has to be tall enough to keep the feeder out of the bear’s reach. The pole is equipped with 5 hooks and the feeders can be easily reached with an extension pole with a handy hook. The result is no broken feeders, bent poles or unhappy people. With a tall heavy grade steel pole, the bear can't bend the pole or reach the feeders. Our bear proof bird feeder pole (pictured above), has worked well to ward off those pesky bears. They’re also tall when they get on their hind legs. They must also have the proper installation to prevent the intruder from tipping over the pole. The best products are sturdy and able to withstand the strength of a hungry and determined bear. One effective solution that will allow you to keep feeding your feathered friends is a bear-proof, bird feeder pole. Unfortunately, that’s when the birds need supplemental food the most, too. ![]() They often resort to taking down their feeders during late winter when bears are more likely to be on the hunt for an easy meal. Many people just throw in the towel when it comes to a bear problem. Therefore, the best solution is prevention. Animals that get used to people are more likely to get killed, whether by a vehicle or conservation police officer. The worse part is that a female may teach her young to do the same thing, creating a vicious cycle of destruction and conflict. They present a safety risk to you, your family, and your pets. It isn’t as much as the damage that bears can do. It doesn’t help if other things are attracting them, such as accessible garbage cans, outdoor pet food bowls, or a filled composter. They go for the low-hanging fruit to conserve energy. ![]() Bears aren’t much different from other wildlife-or people. Unfortunately, the bears notice your efforts, too. Perhaps, you have a birdbath in your yard. Part of the problem with feeding birds is that you’re putting out the welcome mat to attract them. That’s what makes a bear-proof bird feeder pole a must-have. They also have a keen sense of smell and will eat just about anything they can find, including the birdseed you put in your feeder. It is highly intelligent and can remember things well. We’re talking about an animal that can get 400 pounds or more. It doesn’t matter if you’re talking about Black Bears or Grizzlies. That’s part of what makes bears at your bird feeders so frustrating. It’s also necessary, given that over one-third of North American species are at risk of extinction. It’s pleasurable, knowing that you’re benefiting wildlife. Feeding birds is a popular pastime, with annual sales expected to reach over $2 billion in the United States. SEE BELOW FOR FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS AND VIDEO LINKSĭo you enjoy feeding the birds? Have the bears in your area ruined that experience by destroying your feeders and poles? Unfortunately, we have built our homes in the bear's backyard and now they want to enjoy what we have to offer. Call for details and pickup/shipping options. $1199.00 (plus tax & shipping if applicable) Kit Includes: 15' x 4" 3 piece galvanized steel pole with cap, 5 hooks, and squirrel baffle.Īccessory hooks available at additional cost. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() While it’s not as robust as Ulysses or Scrivener, it’s not trying to be.Īs far as desktop notes apps go, I feel like the Bear writing app is much stronger than most. It’s Mac-only, but if that’s not a deterrent, it’s just as fast and pleasant as the mobile app. The desktop app for Bear is pretty sweet. I used the free version for a long time before I upgraded for the sync. But if you want sync, export, and theming, you will need to drop $1.49 a month or $14.99 a year-which is cheaper than most other premium notes apps. That said, the app is totally free for all the base features. I’ve been seriously thinking of swapping back to Android lately, and missing out on Bear and Ulysses is a big check in the Apple column. Like many design, dev, and writing tools these days, Bear is only available for Mac and iOS. Everybody’s Got a PriceĪnd in Bear’s case, that cost is the Apple tax. I can’t say that for very many pieces of software at all. I have yet to be frustrated by this app, and I use it a bunch. The quickness of the sync and the app itself really highlight the devs’ focus on making the entire experience of using the software pleasant. It’s really helpful when I’m having to write between errands because it really is seamless to move from one device to the other. The sync works perfectly, and I’ve never had it not match up. The feature that really makes this note phenomenal is the sync between mobile and desktop. I mean, we’re all probably doing that every day, anyway.Īdditionally, you can make to-do lists (which are great for writers who need to track ideas and topics already covered in the article as you write it), and they just implemented an Apple Watch app that has voice recording and task management. You have to go that extra step to get it into WordPress, which is okay. No WordPress integration-HTML and markdown exports, sure, but not directly to WP. ![]() You won’t find a lot of advanced features here. While I do use the Bear writing app for an almost-full word processor, the developers made it to be a note-taking app. Or as my writing professors would say, it makes me mindful of my word choice. The downside is that if you are as flippant in tone as I am, and you use hashtags in your writing…your organization goes right down the drain. I’ve got a PHP hashtag, JavaScript, This Week in WordPress, and more. This is great for folks like me who need to keep things sorted. You type a hashtag, and Bear starts a new group in your menu of all notes you’ve used it in. I use them all the time, and Bear has integrated hashtagging into its core functionality. The app icon can change based on the theme, too. Some themes are bright and garish, others are subdued. But maybe that’s because I’m a Halloween junkie. You can also choose multiple themes for the app, so if you’re not a fan of the white background with black text, you’re not stuck with it. I am now spoiled by having absolutely zero input delay. ![]() Writing in Ghost is a delight, but it doesn’t have the features and slickness.Ĭompared to Bear, most other writing apps and programs feel bloated and clunky. I’m terms of text editors and word processors, Bear is at the head of the pack (or head of the sloth, if you’re really being technical). (Their choice of Avenir Next as the default font is genius to me. They use the word beautiful a lot and for good reason. So just hitting the little i in the Top-right corner, you get all that and export options, too.īear makes a big deal about being well designed. I want to keep an eye on my word count for flow and structure, paragraphs for readability, and like I said on the This Week in WordPress stream a while back, reading time is an incredibly useful UX tool. I have been able to plan out image-heavy articles in Bear just as easily as I have in the desktop versions of Google Docs or MS Word. That may not seem like much, but in other editors, the images may not show up in-line. Just press the play button on the video below to see just how easy it is. It’s a really useful feature that works so much better than in other mobile editors. You can add images directly to your notes in Bear. Loading feels almost exactly like hitting the link for a Google AMP article. There is zero lag, no delay in responsiveness, and you never feel as though you’re being held back by the software. I’m on an iPhone 7 Plus, and things are generally pretty snappy, but Bear really zooms past most apps. My absolute favorite thing about the Bear writing app is how quick it is. Hit B, for instance, and Bear gives you two asterisks around your text. Bear gives you a toolbar that automatically adds in the formatting for you. If you don’t know markdown, though, it’s okay. (And score to WordPress users, Jetpack lets you import markdown and converts it for you.) It’s quick, functional, and totally compatible with pretty much everything. Like many mobile text editors these days, the Bear writing app lets you compose in markdown. ![]() ![]() ![]() After Chiyo spots her in a passionate clinch with a man, Mother berates Hatsumomo with, “Do you think a geisha is free to love? Never!” Her one weakness is men, with whom she lustily consorts in ways inappropriate to her highly defined role in life. Exceptionally beautiful, she is also arrogant and tempestuous - a diva among geisha, who gives Chiyo a hard time from the outset. Ruling the roost at the cramped compound is Hatsumomo (Gong Li). Nine-year-old Chiyo (Suzuka Ohgo), who has unusual deep gray eyes, is retained to join another girl, Pumpkin, doing menial tasks with the prospect of one day being trained to be a geisha. ![]() In fact, this narration (by Shizuko Hoshi) helps the picture make it over the tricky language hurdle by serving as a graceful English-lingo bridge between a childhood prologue, which is performed in Japanese, and subsequent action in which two sisters from a remote fishing village, their mother dying, are sent by an elderly father to live in bustling Gion district of Kyoto.Įvaluated for suitability at an okiya - or geisha household - by an imperious woman known as Mother (a fabulously crusty Kaori Momoi), the older sister is turned away. Hewing faithfully to the general lines, if not all the specifics, of the 1997 novel, script by Robin Swicord boasts a well-carpentered three-act structure framed by sensitive narration in which the mature geisha Sayuri looks back on her life and a world quickly disappearing. Outside of Asia, most viewers could care less, and there’s no denying that you don’t want to take your eyes off these actresses for a second. There are arguments to be made on both sides, but this is more a fable than a realistic picture, and Asian audiences for decades have accommodated generalized “oriental” casting in Hollywood pics. 10, the day after its domestic release, and where Gong and Zhang are exceptionally popular. Issue also leaves open the question of audience response in Japan, where the film opens Dec. From a filmmaking point of view, this is a work that the old Hollywood moguls themselves would have been proud to present.ĭespite its refined nature, “Geisha” is mainstream rather than highbrow fare, and reception among the intelligentsia may be negatively affected by the casting of famous Chinese thesps Ziyi Zhang, Michelle Yeoh and Gong Li as the three celebrated pre-WWII Japanese geisha, no matter how good they are in the picture. On a picture exec producer Steven Spielberg long intended to direct himself, Rob Marshall follows his smash “Chicago” debut with a consummate piece of traditional studio craftsmanship that bespeaks fastidious planning and execution in all departments. ![]() ![]() ![]() Click on Apply and then on OK to save the change. In the Properties window, go to the Compatibility tab and select the Run this program as an administrator option. If you can’t find the file, type Java in the search box, right-click the Java icon, and select Open file location. ![]() Right-click the Java executable file and select Properties. Here you can follow the steps below to run the program with admin rights. The “failed to create Java Virtual Machine” error can occur due to insufficient admin rights. Once done, restart the program and check if the Java Virtual Machine launcher error Minecraft disappears. Click on OK in the Environment Variables window. This will increase RAM allocation to 512 megabytes for Java. Input _JAVA_OPTIONS in the Variable name box, and then input –Xmx512M in the Variable value box and click on OK to save the change. Click on New under the System variables window. Step 2. In the pop-up window, navigate to the Advanced tab and click on Environment Variables. Step 1. Type system variable in the Search box and select Edit the system environment variables from the Best match. Many users reported that Minecraft could not create the Java Virtual Machine error can be resolved by adding a new system variable for Java. You can try them in order until the JVM error gets fixed. How to fix the Java Virtual Machine launcher errors? Here we summarize some effective fixes. Read More How to Fix the Java Virtual Machine Launcher Error There are different possible reasons behind the Minecraft could not create the Java Virtual Machine error, such as insufficient permissions, corrupt/missing Java components, and incompatibility issues. The error usually indicates that your computer cannot read or understand the bytecode you’re trying to execute. It’s so annoying that the failed to create the Java Virtual Machine error will prevent you from opening the Java-based software. However, I woke up this morning to find that when I run any of my projects in eclipse, I receive this error: Java Virtual Machine Launcher- Error: could not open C:Program FilesJavajre1.8.0_60libamd6jvm.cfgĪfter analyzing extensive user reports, the Java Virtual Machine launcher errors mainly occurs when running in Eclipse and Minecraft. Last night, everything was working fine, as far as I know, nothing at all has changed on my pc since then. I’m having an issue with the eclipse JVM launcher. Here’s a user who encountered the Java Virtual Machine launcher error in Eclipse. Without the JVM, Java programs won’t run properly. Java Virtual Machine, also known as JVM, is a virtual environment that allows a computer to run Java programs written in other programming languages that are translated to Java bytecode. What Does Java Virtual Machine Launcher Error Mean How to Fix the Java Virtual Machine Launcher Error.What Does Java Virtual Machine Launcher Error Mean.This post of MiniTool explores several proven ways to fix the JVM launcher error. A lot of users encounter the Java Virtual Machine launcher error when running some Java programs like Minecraft and Eclipse. ![]() ![]() ![]() If your argument held true, Apple would deserve a cut of all profits Fortnite made on any platform since there are so many people who found Fortnite through the app store. ![]() In your example, it would be like Apple suing Epic because PC Fortnite players weren't paying Apple when they bought Vbucks on the PC. If a player buys through another platform, they do not. If someone buys through Steam, they get their cut. It's just another argument (aside from some MTX activating an unrequested subscription and what other players are dissatisfied with in this form) AGAINST buying anything from this developer. It is Valve's problem after all, but doing so seems very unethical to me. Not sure about this issue being a legal one - depends on conditions of their agreement. If this is a legal issue in some way, please enlighten us.Īcquiring player through Steam and charging them directly. We originally launched the game through our website, Steam came later on.Īs stated by other members here already, Steam is not something like the universal owner of all games, but rather one platform of many that you can purchase games through. Hey all It's time to delve back into Albion Online development and show you just what we mean when we say Albion Online is the first true cross-platform MMO In this video, we've gathered all of our office hardware together to bring you a step-by-step look at how Albion Online runs on differ. You can download it through steam, app store, google play or through our native website, and depending on which platform you use you also buy through that platform and you pay slightly different prices depending on the share that that platform takes for each purchase. ![]() ![]() Whether you prefer PC or mobile, one account lets you play on all platforms. Steam is just one of many platforms that we offer our game on. CROSS-PLATFORM PLAY: Albion Online is a true cross-platform MMO experience. You choose how you want your adventure in Albion to continue.To clarify on this, this has nothing to do with "scamming" and revenge.Ĭross-platform - Albion Online is the first truly cross-platform MMO experience, available for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS and Android, with all players on one master server in one massive, sprawling world. However, her devoted Disciples walk the earth still, bearing her standard in the name of evil, devastation. In Albion Online, you are what you wear!ĭisciples Of Morgana - Once an immensely powerful sorcerer, Morgana diminished after a cataclysmic battle with Merlin at the end of the Great War. Since its launch, the game has prioritized connecting players across different platforms, ensuring a seamless gaming experience for all. There are no classes in Albion Online, which means no restrictions on what you can equip. No Classes - No Restrictions - Forget what you know from other MMOs. Player Housing - Buy your home, then furnish and decorate it to suit your own personal style! Beds, tables, trophies, chests… the list goes on! And these items aren't just there for aesthetic effect – how you decorate will have a direct influence on your character! Claim yours, then expand your empire and protect it from invaders! Guild Warfare - You can conquer the vast world of Albion for yourself! Territories mean shelter from the dangers of the wilderness, and room to build villages and gather precious resources. But be on your guard - you won’t be the only one looking for them! Search far and wide to find the very rarest, most prized materials. The Ultimate in Crafting - To erect the greatest cities and smith the most deadly weapons requires resources, and plenty of them. It is also the first true cross-platform MMO, running on different systems such as Windows, Mac, iOS and Android at the same time and in the same stunning world! Albion Online Key Features Albion Online is a free-to-play medieval sandbox MMORPG. ![]() ![]() It’s the thing I’m using the most when I load up Garageband on my computer. These days, Blue Cat Audio’s Axe Pack from Plugin Boutique is my favorite thing to play with.
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