Wednesday, December 22, 2021

Trainer - Ihsan Alrishesh - Project Management Professional | ecadema it's time

Ihsan Alrisheh

ABOUT THE TRAINER

Innovative and enthusiastic Technologist with experience providing IT services, Problem Solving analysis and strategic planning. Consistently successful in providing advice to executive level management and principal officers. Demonstrate strength in implementing strategies and tactics to accomplish IT objectives and organizational goals. For more info you can view my linkedin profile, https://www.linkedin.com/in/ihsan-alrisheh/

EDUCATION

  • Microsoft 365 Certified Fundamentals
  • Microsoft Certified Azure Fundamentals

EXPERIENCE

  • Solutions Architect at Fairfax Water
  • O&M Team Lead at ManTech International

Attend Work Shope

https://www.ecadema.com/workshop-list

Monday, November 1, 2021

Looking for tech companies to apply to within the US.

Please add to this list: Abacus Technology Corporation Amtex Systems Apple AT&T Avanade Inc CACI Calibre Systems CDW Cerner CGI Group Charter Communications Cognizant Technology Solutions Comcast Cox Communications Cubic Corporation DCS Corporation Dish Network Disney Envision Facebook Fiserv Frontier Communications Go Daddy Google HCL Americas Honeywell Inficare Technologies Infosys Intelliswift Software Iron Mountain Mantech Microsoft Mindtree LTD Mitre NCI Information Systems NTT Data, Inc.
Oracle Osi Engineering Paramount Software Pearson Perficient Pioneer Data Systems RMS Computer Corporation Salesforce SAP Serco Sirius Computer Solutions Sprint Corporation Systems Technology Group (STG) Tech Mahindra T-Mobile Unisys Wipro Workday Inc Verizon Viva USA VMware VSolvit Xoriant Zayo Group

Tuesday, August 17, 2021

Tuesday, July 27, 2021

Mantech Vs Booz Allen Hamilton

I have been a developer for 3+ years now. I’m currently on bench at BAH for 2 months as a new hire. First, I was waiting on clearance. I got my clearance and now they are saying there are no developer roles available on the project. They ask me to join the project as an analyst. I was pretty upset about it and apparently this is normal at BAH.

I got an offer at Mantech and it’s for a developer role. I was so excited to work at BAH. Should I stay with BAH as an analyst or leave BAH for Mantech?

Monday, July 12, 2021

Mantech ISSO

Hello everyone, I just got a job offer at Mantech as an ISSO 1. The pay is 30k more than what I'm getting paid but they are losing the contract in December to general dynamics. Are they known to fire employees? I don't know if I should jump ship just to make that amount of money and than possible lose a job. Help please.

Monday, June 28, 2021

ManTech or Northrup Gruman?

Hello folks! Quick question for you all. I'm considering 2 IT job offers between ManTech and Northrup Gruman. Can any of my fellow Gov't Contractors give me some feedback/opinions on which company you like better?

Wednesday, May 26, 2021

Measuring low side current and voltage with a panel meter.

Hi! I made a dual tracking supply and everything is done except the measuring part. The high side measurement isn't a problem, but I'm kind of stuck on the low side. The panel meters I have are like these. Do you guys have any tips?

I have 2 variable channels (positive and negative) and a +-12V channels, but the transformer has a third winding and I probably can use it, if a separate power line is required

Tuesday, May 25, 2021

[Hiring] Telecommunications Engineer - Annapolis, MD and Colorado Springs, CO

Hi Everyone!

I am a recruiter with ManTech International. We are a Mid-Sized Government Contracting firm with around 10,000 employees across the globe. We are looking for a Telecommunication Engineer to work on-site in Annapolis, MD or Colorado Springs, CO. Please find the job description below. In regards to compensation we are flexible and open to negotiate. Based on Market trends we are looking for someone in the $120k-$160k range. We can offer relocation assistance and/or a sign on bonus. This program is supporting the TSA and will require a DHS Suitability Clearance. Please let me know if you have any questions. If interested, please send your resume and questions to

james.granum@mantech.com

Become an integral part of a diverse team while working at an Industry Leading Organization, where our employees come first.  At ManTech, you will help protect our national security while working on innovative projects that offer opportunities for advancement.

Currently, ManTech is seeking a motivated, career and customer-oriented Telecommunications Engineer to join our team in Colorado Springs, CO or Annapolis, MD. This position supports an IT operations environment. You should expect to support work during the evenings, on the weekends, and you may be included in an on-call rotation for after-hours support.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Operate and maintain telecommunication system to include Linux operating system, windows server operating system, and Avaya PBX hardware/software
  • Support the operations of telephony applications, including call management, workforce/schedule management, and call recording
  • Interface with government and commercial stakeholders to meet project and operational requirements
  • Implement patches and other configuration changes necessary to resolve security vulnerabilities
  • Conduct capacity analysis, develop applicable reports for capacity management and bandwidth, and provide recommendations for all devices and services
  • May require on-call support to resolve system outage or to conduct planned/unplanned system maintenance to minimize impact to customers

Required Qualifications:

  • Possession of or the ability to obtain a Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA) certification
  • A minimum of five (5) years of Microsoft Windows Server experience
  • A minimum of three (3) years of relevant experience
  • A minimum of one (1) year of Linux experience
  • Experience with Avaya PBX

Desired Qualifications:

  • A Bachelor’s degree
  • Experience with telephony to include PSTN, digital, and VOIP

Security Clearance Requirements:

  • U.S. Citizenship and ability to obtain a Public Trust
  • Ability to obtain agency Suitability

Physical Requirements:

  • The person in this position must be able to remain in a stationary position 50% of the time. Occasionally move about inside the office to access file cabinets, office machinery, or to communicate with co-workers, management, and customers, via email, phone, and or virtual communication, which may involve delivering presentations.

Sunday, May 2, 2021

I've collected 15 remote jobs, tech + non-tech

  • Customer Service Representative \)link\)
    SelfDecode · USA
    sales-marketing, customer-service

  • Digital Data Analyst \)link\)
    IDEAL INDUSTRIES, INC · USA
    tech, data-analyst, lead-generation, ab-testing, google-analytics, social-media

  • JavaScript React Frontend Web Engineer \)link\)
    OSI Engineering, Inc. · USA
    engineering, javascript, react, nodejs, architecture, express, front-end

  • ServiceNow Developer \)link\)
    The Squires Group, Inc · USA
    engineering, javascript, angularjs, bootstrap, html

  • Director of Product, Pentester and Employee Experience \)link\)
    Cobalt · Remote
    engineering, full_time, strategy, vulnerabilities, remote-anywhere

  • Quality Assurance Engineer \)link\)
    ManTech · USA
    engineering, qa, javascript, java, oracle, aws, csharp, react, angularjs, dotnet

  • Instructional Designer \)link\)
    Boclips · USA Only
    n-a, all-others, contract

  • Community Manager \)link\)
    TIMBY (This is My Backyard) · Quebec, CA
    tech, non-tech

  • AWS Infrastructure Engineer \)link\)
    Tutuka · Dubai, UAE
    engineering, full-time, devops-and-sysadmin, anywhere-100-remote-only

  • Software Engineer, Product \)link\)
    Fleetio · USA
    engineering, javascript, ruby-on-rails, css, ruby, react, postgresql, html, typescript

  • Growth Marketing + Community Manager \)link\)
    wiseful · USA
    sales-marketing, social-media

  • Senior Security Engineer, Infrastructure Security \)link\)
    PagerDuty Inc. · Remote US/Canada
    engineering, full_time, automation, ids, incident-response, python, ruby, siem, vulnerability-management, north-america, remote-anywhere

  • Forester \)link\)
    Northwest Natural Resource Group · Washington, US
    sales-marketing, non-tech

  • Wordpress web developer consultant \)link\)
    Puente Human Rights Movement · Arizona, US
    engineering

  • Product Designer \)link\)
    Trust & Will · USA
    design, product-design, user-interface, user-experience

Hello friends! These are the open remote positions I've found that were published today. See you tomorrow! Bleep blop 🤖

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

Crafty Battery Replacement

Hi Guys. I have looked into all the threads and videos covering this topic. Need to replace my Crafty's battery and ideally introduce a higher capacity batt into the device.

My question is regarding Maximum Continuous Discharge Current for the battery. I see that the original is rated for 10A Continuous, but all that is available in my country are 20A batteries. Would using a 20A battery as replacement cause the device not to work or cause any issues in general?

Battery in question: https://www.mantech.co.za/ProductInfo.aspx?Item=15M0455 SAMSUNG LI-ION 3V6 3000mAHr W/ TAGS

Any insights appreciated!

Tuesday, March 23, 2021

Autonomous ships Market Insights, Share, Trends, Future Scope Analysis, Forecast 2026

Global Autonomous ships Market was valued at US$ 6.5Bn in 2017 and is expected to reach US$ 14.2Bn by 2026, at a CAGR of 10.26% during a forecast period.

Due are increasing seaborne trade. Rising in ship-to-ship and ship-to-shore communication and connectivity, rising demand for security from natural threats in sea. These technologies are being pursued most vigorously by the nuclear-armed nations and factors to impact more on the growth of Autonomous ships Market.

Based on the Application, Commercial segment is expected to hold the largest share in the market during the forecast period. Trends illustrate two sides of the same coin: as ships get bigger and companies aim at achieving economies of scale. Rising tourist and rising income are some effects in this segment growth, Changes in policymakers to support technological advances and cost savings. The report reveals, the top 10 liner shipping companies operated more than 61 per cent of the global container fleet. UNCTAD argues that it is a positive development for the revival of global trade because there is no shortage of carrying capacity and the cost of trade continues to decline in the long term. for example through economies Greece remained the leading ship-owning country, with Greek companies accounting for more than 16 per cent of the world industry, followed by companies from Japan, China, Germany and Singapore. In Autonomy, Fully Autonomous is also expected to lead the market growth.

Sample Copy of This Report:https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/sample/4030

The report provides details list of drivers and restraints of the market, which are influencing the market growth.

Major driving factors of the autonomous ships are increased continuous global connectivity, benefit from a remote operator̢۪s assistance, self-drive facilities, increase in the requirement of line fit for autonomous ships, eliminating the approximate 80% of maritime accidents attributed to human error as well as contribute to greater efficiency. Casualty losses, adverse weather conditions and criminal activities. Advances in sensor technology, retrofitting and renovation of old technology, data analytics and bandwidth to shore are fundamentally changing the way shipping works will create more opportunity in autonomous ships market. Fully autonomous unmanned ocean-going ships could be around by 2035. Natural Calamities and huge investment cost will act as a restraint to the market.

In terms of region, Europe is expected to hold the largest share in the market during the forecast period owing to increased security expenses, changing and developing technology, the expansion of economies and the rise in population in Asia also demanding more. Asian governments are increasing their defense spending at quite a higher rate, they are mainly doing this commensurately with their economic growth, increasing of Military & Security fields expenditures, more-intense competition are key factors for growth, Unmanned Cargo Ship Development Alliance has been set up in China – also including overseas partners ABS, R-R and Wartsila – which plans to deliver an unmanned cargo ship by October 2021. 

Get Full Access Report Summary Buy Now :https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/checkout/4030/Single

The report includes a detailed study of Porter̢۪s Five Forces model to analyze the different factors affecting the growth of the market. Moreover, the study also covers a market attractiveness analysis, brand portfolio expansion, mergers, collaborations, joint ventures, acquisitions, PESTLE analysis, Value Chain Analysis, and SWOT analysis.

Scope of the Report for Autonomous ships Market

Global Autonomous ships Market, by Autonomy
Fully Autonomous
Partial Autonomous

Global Autonomous ships Market, by Application
Commercial
Defence

Global Autonomous ships Market, by Solution
Systems
Software
Structures

Request for Report Discount :https://www.trendsmarketresearch.com/report/discount/4030

Global Autonomous ships Market, by Region
North America
Europe
Asia Pacific
Middle East & Africa
South America

Key Players Operating in Autonomous ships Market
GenCorp ATC
One Network Enterprises
ManTech International
Claxton Logistics
Minrav Holdings Ltd.
AECOM
KBR
Fluor Corporation
ANHAM
Klinge Corporation
DynCorp International
Lockheed Martin
ASELSAN A.S.
Honeywell
ANHAM
FedEx Supply Chain
American International Contractors

About Us

Trends Market Research has the distinguished objective of providing the optimal quality market research reports to clients. Our market research studies by products, services, applications, technologies, end users, and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enable our clients to know more, see more, and do more, which further help answer the important questions you have about the industry. Our Research Analysts are eager to share their knowledge and assist you in making strategic decisions and to lead you company toward a greater endeavour. We bridge the gap between our clients and their clients by identifying and decoding just the target group, while generating leads with the highest accuracy.

Why select TMR

Trends Market Research can assist you with identifying the key opportunities to boost your business growth exponentially. We have a diligent team of analysts specialized in specific industries to assist you with your mission and vision for the future. From market reports to customer service to our internal mechanism, we live by quality and pour our heart and soul into maintaining it.

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Friday, March 12, 2021

Software as a service, space as a service - NSH

NSH - NavSight Holdings, Inc. - $10.49

NSH/WS $1.90

Shares Out: 23M

Why I invested: Data mining, data synthesis, and space arena - this is just the type of stock Cathie Woods would invest in, and when she buys, millions will follow. Her 'space ark' ETF will be disclosed by the end of the month, I wanted to get in before that.

The company is forecasting revenue from the European Space Agency will be worth $2.7 billion over 25 years, and they expect to harvest much of that with their connections, not to mention the American opportunities. They already have satellites in space, they already have revenue (23M in 2020). They have a constellation of over 100 satellites. Spire Global said in its press release it's pioneering the space-as-a-service business model. Spire Global is offering fast, scalable and reliable access to space at a fraction of the cost and time, according to its presentation. The company’s satellites take three to six months from design to launch versus 12 months for competitors.

The leadership of this SPAC is dominated by multiple people who have spent their careers working in national security as well as providing differentiated expertise and technology to U.S. government customers in support of their national security, intelligence, and defense missions. They have worked at top government agencies in this area including the NSA, have grown businesses in the space and have invested in many others. In doing this, they obviously have developed an extensive network of contacts and relationships which will provide substantial sources of acquisition opportunities. My guess is that this will be in the cybersecurity space based on the leadership’s past experience. I have little doubt that they won’t find an ideal target as this is such a niche market that other SPACs are not targeting and the management team has so much experience in it.

IPOSize: $230M

Target: US government national security, intelligence and defense vendors in the tech space.

Companies that:

  • Are differentiated expertise and technology to U.S. government customers in support of their national security, intelligence and defense missions.
  • Have a defensible market position, possess a track record of maintaining and growing long-term customer relationships, and derive a majority of their revenue from prime contracts;
  • Hold positions on large multi-year IDIQ (indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity) contracts and programs, and/or possess proprietary technology and and/or can deliver specialized capabilities;
  • Have sole source positions on high priority and well-funded contracts and/or programs that can result in above average profitability margins;

Leadership:

Robert A. Coleman

  • Founder, CEO and President of Integrated Data Systems Corporation, acquired by ManTech (defence contracting).
  • Co-founder of Six3 Systems, Inc (cybersecurity, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance services and technology to the Intelligence Community and the Department of Defense).
  • Former senior positions with Raytheon, SAIC and the Office of the White House.
  • Advisory board member of the National Defense Industrial Association.
  • Board member of BlackHorse Solutions (digital security), and Lookingglass Cyber Solutions (cyber security).

William P. Crowell

  • Former Deputy Director of National Security Agency.
  • Former Chairman of Broadware Technologies (Video surveillance software company).
  • Former Director ArcSight, Inc (public security), Six3 Systems, AirPatrol Corporation (information security), Fixmo, Inc (mobile device security), SafeNet, Inc (encryption, data protection, and authentication solutions company).
  • Former President and CEO Cylink Corporation (e-business security solutions).

Ambassador Henry A. Crumpton

  • Partner at AIM13 CVP (Venture capital firm focused on investing in emerging technologies, especially in the defense, national security and intelligence domains).
    • Invested in Trinity Cyber (Cybersecurity), Whitefox (Drone airspace security), Allied Bioscience (Antimicrobial coatings).
  • Former Deputy Chief (Operations)Counterterrorism Center, Chief of the National Resources Division at CIA.
  • Former Deputy Chief of the International Terrorism Operations at FBI.
  • Former Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the U.S. Department of State.

Gilman Louie

  • Chairman of Lookingglass Cyber Solutions, Inc. (Cybersecurity).
  • Founder and former CEO of In-Q-Tel (CIA venture capital fund).
  • Board of directors, Maxar (Space technology).
  • Former Committee on Persistent Forecasting of Disruptive Technologies for the National Academies and member of the Markle Foundation Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.
  • The person who licensed Tetris.

Jack Pearlstein

  • Involved with 40 acquisitions, mergers and divestitures.
  • Former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Cision (software and services to public relations and marketing communications professionals).
  • Former CFO of multiple tech/software companies.

thanks to user SolarFlareBeAware for his research.

Tuesday, March 9, 2021

Update - Government Contractor Stocks 2021

Following up on an earlier post where I was doing research into government contractors to look for buying opportunities.

I thought I'd share a refined list of the top 100 contractors.

This list is:

  1. Based on a list of 2019 government contractors.
  2. Ranked by $ amount of the contracts they had.
  3. Publicly traded companies only.

Format is: COMPANY NAME/sector/stockticker/valuation (FV = fair value, UV = undervalued, OV = overvalued). Undervalued stocks are in bold.

Valuations are based on my own cursory research and are specific to this date and time (March 9th, 7pm EST)

LOCKHEED MARTIN Areospace/defense LMT - UV

BOEING Areospace/defense BA - OV

GENERAL DYNAMICS Areospace/defense GD - UV

RAYTHEON COMPANY Weapons/Commercial Electronics RTX - FV

NORTHROP GRUMMAN World’s Larges Weapons Manufacturer NOC - UV

MCKESSON CORP Medical/Pharma/Medical Tech – MCK - UV

HUNTINGTON INGALLS Largest Military Shipbuilder HII - OV

LEIDOS HOLDINGS Infotech/biomedical/aerospace LDOS – FV

L3HARRIS TECHNOLOGIES Communication/Space/Military Tech – LHX - UV

HUMANA INC For-profit Health Insurance Company HUM - UV

HONEYWELL Tech (also a consumer company) – HON - FV

BAE SYSTEMS British Arms/Security Company – BAESY - UV

FLUOR CORPORATION Engineering/Constuction – FLR - OV

BOOZ ALLEN HAMILTON HOLDING Infotech/Management – BAH - UV

AECOM Multinational Engineering – ACM - FV

SCIENCE APPLICATIONS INTERNATIONAL Infotech/Government Services – SAIC - UV

GENERAL ELECTRIC COMPANY Electronics/Engineering/Tech – GE - OV

GENERAL ATOMIC TECHNOLOGIES Research (focused on nuclear fission) – GLATF - OV

JACOBS ENGINEERING Engineering/Tech Services – J = OV

CENTENE CORP Healthcare – CNC - UV

KBR INC Engineering/Construction – KBR - FV

OSHKOSH CORP Trucks/Military Equipment Manufacturer – OSK - UV

CACI INTERNATIONAL INC Infotech (including for Homeland Security) – CACI - FV

PERSPECTA Infotech – just acquired Veritas – PRSP - OV

AMERISOURCEBERGEN Drug Wholesaler – ABC - UV

ACCENTURE INC Professional Services – ACN - FV

TEXTRON INC Manufacturer Planes and Vehicles – TXT - OV

LEONARDO SPA Aerospace (Italian based Company) – FINMF - OV

MERCK & CO Pharma – MRK - UV

AUSTAL LTD Shipbuilding (Australian Based) – AUTLF - OV

PAE HOLDING CORP Defense Contractor – PAE - UV

CDW CORP Tech – also for education – CDW - OV

IBM – Tech (obviously) – IBM - UV

PARSONS CORP Defense/Intelligence -PSN - FV

VECTRUS INC Defence Contractor – VEC - UV

DELL TECHNOLOGIES INC Tech (obviously) – DELL - FV

PFIZER INC (Pharma) – PFE - UV

MANTECH INTERNATIONAL Infotech – MANT - FV

FEDEX Delivery Services – FDX - UV

GLAXOSMITHKLINE Pharma – GSK - UV

ROLLS-ROYCE Power systems for aviation – RYCEF - OV

VERIZON Telecom – VZ - UV

AT&T Telecom – T - FV

SERCO GROUP PLC Multinational Government Contracts – SECCF - OV

MICROSOFT CORP Tech – MSFT - UV

CERNER GOVERNMENT SERVICES INC Health IT – CERN - FV

EMERGENT BIOSOLUTIONS INC Bio/Pharma – EBS - UV

TETRA TECH INC Consulting/Engineering – TTEK – Fair Value

ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC Oil and Gas – RDS.B - OV

CARDINAL HEALTH INC Healthcare (14th highest revenue generating company in U.S. – CAH - UV

SANOFI Pharma (based in France) – SNY - FV

BP PLC Oil and gas – BP - FV

UNISYS CORP IT tech – UIS - OV

SECURITAS Security Firm – SCTBF - OV

GREAT LAKES DREDGE & DOCK CORP Dredging and Land Reclamation GLDD) - UV

GEO GROUP INC, Prison/Mental Health Facility Real Estate – GEO - UV

INSIGHT ENTERPRISES INC IT - NSIT - UV

If/when I take any positions in companies on this list, I will be focused on the ones that involve infrastructure (Biden's been vocal about that), 5G and pharma.

Ethically, I'm not interested in weapons, prisons, military-focused companies (which shortens the list to):

LOCKHEED MARTIN Areospace/defense LMT - UV

GENERAL DYNAMICS Areospace/defense GD - UV

MCKESSON CORP Medical/Pharma/Medical Tech – MCK - UV

L3HARRIS TECHNOLOGIES Communication/Space/Military Tech – LHX - UV

HUMANA INC For-profit Health Insurance Company HUM - UV

BOOZ ALLEN HAMILTON HOLDING Infotech/Management – BAH - UV

SCIENCE APPLICATIONS INTERNATIONAL Infotech/Government Services – SAIC - UV

CENTENE CORP Healthcare – CNC - UV

AMERISOURCEBERGEN Drug Wholesaler – ABC - UV

MERCK & CO Pharma – MRK - UV

IBM – Tech (obviously) – IBM - UV

PFIZER INC (Pharma) – PFE - UV

FEDEX Delivery Services – FDX - UV

GLAXOSMITHKLINE Pharma – GSK - UV

VERIZON Telecom – VZ - UV

MICROSOFT CORP Tech – MSFT - UV

EMERGENT BIOSOLUTIONS INC Bio/Pharma – EBS - UV

CARDINAL HEALTH INC Healthcare (14th highest revenue generating company in U.S. – CAH - UV

GREAT LAKES DREDGE & DOCK CORP Dredging and Land Reclamation GLDD) - UV

INSIGHT ENTERPRISES INC IT - NSIT - UV

Monday, March 8, 2021

Making The National Guard Look Super Duper Professional.

FOB Orgun-e, East Paktika, Afghanistan, 2009.

We were outside of the wire, but still inside of a pretty safe area.

We had a crew-served weapons range on the west-ish side of our base, where we could run our MK-19's and .50 cal's, 240's, SAW's, and fuck around with our 203's. All with live ammunition. This was a good thing, because occasionally we had some minor rebuilds on the big guns, specifically the Mark 19, specifically my Mark 19 that kept eating its own guts, and we needed to be able to go out and test them. We didn't always have a lot of downtime, but weapons being in proper working order was one of the things that was a priority.

Trucks not running so great? Eh, if it's working, and ManTech (maintenance contractors) is willing to sign off on it, it's mission capable. Guns running funkily? Test 'em at the range.

So we were on our way back into the FOB from the range. For whatever reason I was TC'ing the LT's truck. Most trucks only had one radio in them, except for the Lieutenant's and the Platoon Sergeant's. I was the LT's gunner and the NCOIC of his vehicle. He was probably in a meeting or who knows, but the important part is that we had two radios. One set to our platoon internal net (radio channel), and one on the Command Net. The Command Net was all base radio traffic, and was manned at essentially the headquarters of our FOB, probably on a speaker rather than a handmike, and probably at a volume where anyone nearby could hear said traffic. Guaranteed the base Commander was nearby, and everybody else populating the "headshed".

Did I mention we were National Guard? We were supporting elements of the 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, and even though we'd proved ourselves by this point in time, I knew what they thought of us. I'd been active duty Airborne once, and I remember my thoughts on the Legs in Iraq, let alone the Nasty Girls we had to deal with from time to time.

So, we were rolling back in to the FOB, approaching the rear gate, and my gunner lost a pen flare. Pen flares are what they sound like. It's a little launcher that launches tiny cute little flares. You load one in the end of your launcher, point it like an angry teacher or a wizard with a magic wand, pull the knob back and let it go, and a flare goes sailing out the front end. We used them for escalation of force. If a car was being weird you'd get all yelly at them and if the didn't slow down you'd lob a pen flare at them before firing warning shots. Usually they'd swerve around like crazy and then stop. I never had to fire any warning shots. I think the pen flares were probably pretty scary looking when they were flying at you. Much more visible than even a tracer, and totally harmless.

So, we were rolling back in to the FOB and I'm guessing I was on the Battalion net to let them know we were rolling back into the FOB. One of my dudes, solid dude, was in the turret and had his pen-fucking-flare-launcher loaded and unsecured. There's no safety on them, it's just a tube with a spring and a firing pin. It's like an old revolver, if you drop it hard enough it goes bang.

We were not expecting it. It fell into the truck and went off. Inside of an armored vehicle. There was nowhere for it to go.

POP

ZIP

ZERP

SWOOSH

FRIZZLE

FRY

SWISHHHH........

The interior of our vic was immediately filled with acrid smoke from a small rocket of a flare bouncing and skipping around inside of it, cussing, and confusion.

Over our internal comm's, an open channel inside the vehicle...

"Goddam! What the fuckin fuck?"

"Motherfucker!"

"Fuck. Sorry."

"Goddamnit, Bash! That you?"

"Yeah, sorry."

"What the fuck, dude! Everybody okay?"

And then the platoon internal radio traffic, because our lead truck had just 'popped' and smoke was coming out of the cuppola.

"RG-One, you guys good?"

And...I thumbed my push to talk, "Yeah, we're good. Fuckin' Bash Brother just lit off a goddamned pen-flare inside the vic. We're good."

Except I was on the Battalion net.

"Last Station, Chicken Seven-One, say again."

Fuck...Me....

"Chicken Seven-One, disregard all last. We're having hot-mike issues."

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Expect Palantir to dip further

![Image](https://vhinny-public-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/img/3f4d1c50-159e-49eb-a601-783cb7824833)

Shares of Palantir dropped about 11% in Tuesday's trading session after the company posted an unexpected loss in its Q4 2020 quarterly report. This is the stock’s worst performance since December 2nd. The stock has slid by as much as 12% in the last week.

The data analytics company reported a per-share loss of 8 cents, though revenue of $322 million topped analyst expectations of $300.7 million. Palantir said it closed 21 deals worth at least $5 million in total contract value during the three months ended Dec. 31. Palantir said it expects to earn $4 billion in revenue in 2025.

The tight-lipped data analytics company debuted through a direct listing on the New York Stock Exchange in September with much fanfare as investors were understandably excited about the company's prospects. Shares of the company have performed remarkably well during its short time as a public company, rallying by as much as 176% since its market debut.

However, at this point, it would be natural to question whether the share price has gotten ahead of the business projections.

Trading above its valuation

The company expects to generate $1.07 billion to $1.072 bn in revenue in 2020. Assuming that forecast bears out, the market is currently valuing the company at about 45 times sales. This makes the company seem overvalued, especially when compared with IT-focused government contractors such as Booz Allen Hamilton, ManTech International, and Leidos Holdings.

Government-centered business

Secondly, Palantir has built its business mainly on lucrative government deals for its data analytics software, including ICE. The company has been more willing to work with government agencies than other California-based tech companies. 56% of its revenue in Q3 came from its government segment, which has grown faster than its commercial business. Given the pace of government contracting and its retail offerings' slow rollout, it may take years for Palantir's business to justify its current lofty multiple.

High short interest on the stock.

Thirdly, the stock is one of the heavily shorted stocks in the market. The current short volume ratio stands at about 18%. This means that many investors are not really optimistic about the company and its current valuation.

Conclusion

Palantir has amazing and unique tech and has the potential to grow into a much larger business, but the combination of these factors further conscript the price action of the stock. Based on this, we expect Palantir shares to fall further, or at least trade within a narrow range. The litmus test will be the company's Q1 2021 report. If the company is unable to beat analysts’ expectations. We may expect its prices to crater.

Thanks for reading!

Checkout bullticker's page for more.

Monday, February 8, 2021

Is a Strategic Investment in eMagin by Intel imminent?

12/2016 ManTech -

eMagin - Established capability of on-shore foundry for advanced backplane wafers for OLED deposition

page 22 - https://www.dodmantech.com/JDMTP/Files/2016_ManTech_Brochure.pdf

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1/5/2018 eMagin US based chipmaker PR -

Separately, the Company announced an agreement with a U.S.-based chipmaker to support scaling of mass production for the consumer AR and VR markets*. This agreement will provide supply chain development assistance for eMagin to enable prototype and mass production of OLED microdisplays. As part of this agreement, eMagin’s partner will provide raw materials sourcing support necessary for scaling to mass production while helping the Company meet the cost requirements of high volume consumer segment original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”).*

https://www.emagin.com/investors/press-releases/news-2018/163-emagin-to-demonstrate-their-highest-brightness-2k-oled-displays-at-ces

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5/2018 - SID Display Week 2018 Session 40

eMagin Chair w/ Intel presenting -

OLED AR/VR OLEDs ; Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality

Wednesday, May 23 / 03:30 PM - 04:50 PM / Room 502B

Chair: Tariq Ali, EMagin Corporation***,*** Hopewell Junction, NY US

Co-Chair: Jang Hyuk Kwon, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, South Korea

40.1 - Invited Paper: Next Generation Virtual Reality Displays: Challenges and Opportunities (3:30 PM - 3:50 PM)

Kunjal Parikh, Jim Zhuang, Kim Pallister Intel Corp. Santa Clara CA US

Jun Jiang, Marshall Smith Intel Santa Clara CA US

High ppi compact form factor requirement is being described using micro-display as key enabler.The trade-off between FOV, size and scalability to meet price targets will be discussed. Overview of system impact using novel display design with Intel’s key technologies will be presented to give holistic view about product vision.

Packed crowd -

https://twitter.com/LEXOS_lab/status/999424459898470401

Atendee SilkyZen states "Intel is going to be the production partner for eMagin" -

SilkyZen

Well, really surprised that after the Intel presentation this didn't move much more, really strange.

At about 3:30pm PT yesterday the Intel guy opened the OLED in AR/VR session with the comment along the lines that they see OLED microdisplays as the future display engine tech for AR/VR, followed by "here is an example from our technology partner Emagin", either I misheard or Intel is going to be the production partner for Emagin.

SilkyZen

the OLED AR/VR session at the SID display week.....

http://aceofsp.blogspot.com/2018/06/and-we-have-contemporaneous_19.html

Slide presentation w/eMagin on slide #7 (also note Metalenz on slide 10)

https://imgur.com/5YZHIuT

https://imgur.com/kT38aVC

https://imgur.com/4YcxPVK

https://imgur.com/V0cRBXb

https://imgur.com/RUZ5XlZ

https://imgur.com/osZ0hGM

https://imgur.com/6mJn2RZ Micro-OLED Revolutionizes VR - eMagin

https://imgur.com/uxT5DPB Visual Acuity Matters

https://imgur.com/H7mhtO8 Key Challenges - Size & FOV

https://imgur.com/jF32BfD Optics - Key to Disruption - Metalenz

https://imgur.com/cHrv9S1

https://imgur.com/tV8UKqz

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1/28/2021 Intel Divests from Vuzix giving them $67m in capital to reinvest -

Vuzix Co. (NASDAQ:VUZI) major shareholder Corp Intel sold 4,962,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $11.51, for a total value of $57,119,526.00.

https://rivertonroll.com/news/2021/01/31/vuzix-co-nasdaqvuzi-major-shareholder-corp-intel-sells-4962600-shares.html

On January 28, 2021, the Purchaser converted all of its shares of Series A Preferred Stock into 4,962,600 shares of Common Stock. The shares of Series A Preferred were retired and cannot be reissued. On the same date, the Company and the Purchaser entered into a Dividend Settlement Agreement pursuant to which the Purchaser agreed to accept $10,000,000 in cash in full payment of all accrued Series A Preferred Stock dividends in the approximate amount of $10,800,000.

https://www.sec.gov/ix?doc=/Archives/edgar/data/1463972/000110465921009458/tm214710-2_8k.htm

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1/28/2021 Intel publishes patent app for metalens

DISPLAY DEVICE HAVING INTEGRATED METAMATERIAL LENS

  1. The augmented reality device of claim 1, wherein the emissive display element comprises one of a light emitting diode, an organic light emitting diode, or a vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser.

[0002] Augmented reality device technology, including augmented reality headsets and the like, is an area of emerging interest. For such devices, it may be desirable to have a display device that provides red-green-blue (RGB) colors (e.g., full color) in a compact package with high brightness, collimated light, high contrast, low power, and low manufacturing costs to provide high quality products for users.

[0033] As discussed, FIG. 2A illustrates an augmented reality system implementing a micro-display with an integrated metamaterial lens

http://appft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO2&Sect2=HITOFF&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsearch-bool.html&r=1&f=G&l=50&co1=AND&d=PG01&s1=20210026248&OS=20210026248&RS=20210026248

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2/4/2021 Intel Invests in Metalenz -

Metalenz made its plans public today and announced $10 million in investment from Intel Capital, 3M Ventures, Applied Ventures, and TDK Ventures, among others.

https://otd.harvard.edu/news/harvards-metalens-technology-enters-commercial-development

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1/27 - 2/5/2021 eMagin Majority Shareholder Stillwater reduces ownership below 10% of outstanding common .

Filing 1/27/2021 -

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1046995/000090571821000098/xslF345X03/emagincorp_fm4jan252021.xml

Filing 2/5/2021 -

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1046995/000090571821000134/xslF345X03/emagincorp_fm4feb32021.xml

400565 + 1283501 + 4250000 + 783325 = 6,717,391 common shares still owned

6,717,391 / 67.5m outstanding

= 9.95 % ownership

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1/28/2021 eMagin Majority Shareholder Stillwater seeks valuation of outstanding Preferred Shares

The Series B Preferred Stock, when issued, was convertible into Common Stock at a conversion price of $0.75 per Share (the “Original Conversion Price”). Based on information disclosed in the Issuer’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 12, 2020, there were 67,499,602 Shares deemed issued and outstanding as of October 31, 2020 and 7,545,333 shares of Common Stock issuable upon the conversion of the Series B Preferred Stock. The Shares and ownership reported in this Amendment No. 18 reflect the Original Conversion Price; however, Stillwater and Ginola are currently reviewing all sales and issuances by the Issuer. Such review could result in a lower conversion price resulting in additional shares of Common Stock issuable pursuant to the Conversion of the Series B Preferred Stock. Stillwater and Ginola believe the conversion ratio is not greater than $0.50, due to the Issuer’s offering of Common Stock to an institutional investor at $0.50 per share on April 11, 2019, as reported in the Issuer’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 12, 2019. In addition, on January 27, 2021 the Issuer communicated to Stillwater that the conversion price is likely less than $0.50, due to certain sales of Common Stock at lower prices under the equity program created pursuant to the At The Market Offering Agreement dated November 22, 2019, as amended, by and between eMagin Corporation and H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC. Stillwater and Ginola have requested clarification from the Issuer regarding the applicable conversion price for the Series B Preferred but have not received any further information as of the time of filing this report. 

https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1046995/000090571821000096/emagincorp_sc13da18jan252021.htm

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Intel clearly has eMagin in its sights as evidenced by the SID Display Week 2018 Session 40 presentation with (eMagin) micro OLED as a "key enabler" to AR/VR . Intel's interest also extends to complementary Optics company Metalenz .

The capital structures look to be rearranging with Intel's divestment of Vuzix and subsequent investment in Metalenz . At the same time eMagin's Majority Shareholder adjusted their investment in eMagin to less than 10% of outstanding common shares and seeks clarification of Preferred valuation .

Saturday, January 9, 2021

NavSight Holdings (NSH) - Near NAV SPAC Targeting Company Similar to Palantir

Good day fellow SPAC investors. I am back with another company trading close to Nav that I think has immense potential to find the next Palantir. I am hoping to generate some discussion around this and get others thoughts on this company. As always, I am by no means an expert, so do your own due diligence.

NSH - NavSight Holdings, Inc. - 10.21

Why I invested: The leadership of this SPAC is dominated by multiple people who have spent their careers working in national security as well as providing differentiated expertise and technology to U.S. government customers in support of their national security, intelligence, and defense missions.They have worked at top government agencies in this area including the NSA, have grown businesses in the space and have invested in many others. In doing this, they obviously have developed an extensive network of contacts and relationships which will provide substantial sources of acquisition opportunities. They should have a lot of insight into finding an ideal SPAC that will hopefully be successful and provide a great return to investors. For me, this is a company that could invest in the next Palantir and I am hopeful that it will be something that I can hold long after the merger. My guess is that this will be in the cybersecurity space based on the leadership’s past experience. I have little doubt that they won’t find an ideal target as this is such a niche market that other SPACs are not targeting and the management team has so much experience in it.

IPOSize: $230M

Target: US government national security, intelligence and defence vendors in the tech space.

Companies that:

  • Are differentiated expertise and technology to U.S. government customers in support of their national security, intelligence and defense missions.
  • Have a defensible market position, possess a track record of maintaining and growing long-term customer relationships, and derive a majority of their revenue from prime contracts;
  • Hold positions on large multi-year IDIQ (indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity) contracts and programs, and/or possess proprietary technology and and/or can deliver specialized capabilities;
  • Have sole source positions on high priority and well-funded contracts and/or programs that can result in above average profitability margins;

Leadership:

Robert A. Coleman

  • Founder, CEO and President of Integrated Data Systems Corporation, acquired by ManTech (defence contracting).
  • Co-founder of Six3 Systems, Inc (cybersecurity, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance services and technology to the Intelligence Community and the Department of Defense).
  • Former senior positions with Raytheon, SAIC and the Office of the White House.
  • Advisory board member of the National Defense Industrial Association.
  • Board member of BlackHorse Solutions (digital security), and Lookingglass Cyber Solutions (cyber security).

William P. Crowell

  • Former Deputy Director of National Security Agency.
  • Former Chairman of Broadware Technologies (Video surveillance software company).
  • Former Director ArcSight, Inc (public security), Six3 Systems, AirPatrol Corporation (information security), Fixmo, Inc (mobile device security), SafeNet, Inc (encryption, data protection, and authentication solutions company).
  • Former President and CEO Cylink Corporation (e-business security solutions).

Ambassador Henry A. Crumpton

  • Partner at AIM13 CVP (Venture capital firm focused on investing in emerging technologies, especially in the defense, national security and intelligence domains).
    • Invested in Trinity Cyber (Cybersecurity), Whitefox (Drone airspace security), Allied Bioscience (Antimicrobial coatings).
  • Former Deputy Chief (Operations)Counterterrorism Center, Chief of the National Resources Division at CIA.
  • Former Deputy Chief of the International Terrorism Operations at FBI.
  • Former Coordinator for Counterterrorism at the U.S. Department of State.

Gilman Louie

  • Chairman of Lookingglass Cyber Solutions, Inc. (Cybersecurity).
  • Founder and former CEO of In-Q-Tel (CIA venture capital fund).
  • Board of directors, Maxar (Space technology).
  • Former Committee on Persistent Forecasting of Disruptive Technologies for the National Academies and member of the Markle Foundation Task Force on National Security in the Information Age.
  • The person who licensed Tetris.

Jack Pearlstein

  • Involved with 40 acquisitions, mergers and divestitures.
  • Former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Cision (software and services to public relations and marketing communications professionals).
  • Former CFO of multiple tech/software companies.

Friday, January 1, 2021

Any experience with Mantech Lasertech Desktop Co2 laser? Or with Mantech?

Hi everyone, I’m considering purchasing the Mantech Lasertech Desktop Co2 laser later this month and there is currently a 3 month waiting period in the UK for it. Before I commit does anyone have any experience with this company or with this laser? I like that it’s a UK based company, so I wouldn’t have to import it and they appear to have good customer support. They also give you training on the machine, when they install it. I want to use it for a mix of glass etching (they have a rotary axis included) and small wood signs.

Any response would be greatly appreciated.