Monthly Archives: September 2013

Programming

NHL Centre Ice

If the best game you can name is the good ol’ hockey game, and the best team you can name is from out of your region, then NHL Centre Ice might just be for you.

NHL Centre Ice is the ideal package for those who want to watch “out-of-market” hockey games. For example, if you live in Winnipeg, but you root for the Ottawa Senators, this would be considered an “out-of-market” game. This means you wouldn’t normally receive the game, which could make you a very sad Senators’ fan. Subscribing to NHL Centre Ice would help prevent this from happening (as long as your favourite team wins), providing you with 15 HD channels of goals, shutouts, and hat tricks. That’s up to 40 games per week!

This great package is available for $30.14 (taxes extra) per month for the duration of the regular NHL season. Wondering what you’ll need to enjoy all of the action? You will need a 600-series receiver (the HDDSR 600, HDDSR 605, or HDPVR 630), as well as an updated xKu LNBF installed on your dish. If you’re not sure what kind of equipment you have, follow the instructions here to find out. If you need any upgrades, contact us for more information.

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Bonus: Stompin’ Tom Connors – The Hockey Song

 

Fun Facts

100 Kilometers for Children’s Wish

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Sicotte reaching the finish line alongside his family

Philippe Sicotte, the Eastern Regional Manager at Shaw Direct, isn’t afraid of challenges. For the second time in two years, he ran to raise money for a cause close to his heart: the Children’s Wish Foundation. Sicotte ran 80 kilometers last year for the organization whose goal is to deliver dreams to children who have a life-threatening illness. This video, prepared by his son last year (in French), will take you through the 10 hour 47 minute journey through which he raised over $6,000 for Children’s Wish. This year, Sicotte challenged himself in running the approximate distance of two and half marathons, 100 kms, and to raise $10,000 in donations. Leaving from Chambly, QC very early Saturday towards Longueuil, weather wasn’t on the runner’s side. Finishing his run in 13 hours and 45 minutes, he arrived at the Marie-Victorin Park, welcomed by his supporters.  Several members of his family followed him along, his dad for instance, running the last kilometer by his side.

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Shaw Bear having some fun with the DJ!

Since its creation in 1984, Children’s Wish has made the wishes of over 20,000 children come true. The organization reports that the more popular wishes are travel, entertainment centers, computer systems and meeting celebrities. They explain that for the children, accomplishing these dreams have a remarkable effect on the healing process. Sicotte, who is quite involved with the organization, mentions how much work is done by them and the incredible reach they have.

Sicotte’s goal is to raise enough money to cover the average cost of one wish. Donations are of course accepted all year long – here’s a link to their website if you would like to do so. Prefer giving directly towards Sicotte’s fundraiser? Just click here to access the website (in French) or contact us directly and we will give you more detail on how you can help.

Community engagement is very important for Shaw Direct. The company was indeed very involved throughout this event. The team in Montreal also organized a fundraiser barbecue the week before Sicotte’s run, where $1,533 was raised and added to the total donation. Here is a link to an interview that was done by Global News. Congrats to everyone that was involved in making this fundraiser a success, and especially to Sicotte, who, for another year, has shown incredible courage and perseverance.

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*Marie Michelle P.
Fun Facts

Talk Like a Pirate Day

Avast, me hearties! ‘Tis Parley Akin ta a Matey Day. Arr! Here’s a wee chart fer ye land lubbers ta abide by so ye can parley proper this day.

Translation: Attention, my friends! It’s Talk Like a Pirate Day. Yay! Here’s a short guide for you land dwellers so you can converse properly today.

Key Pirate Phrases:

Ahoy: Hello

Arr!: A multi-purpose exclamation

Avast: Stop, or attention

Aye: Yes

Hearties: Friends

Land lubbers: One who loves solid land, or land dwellers

Matey: Associate, or fellow pirate

Me: My

Parley: Converse, or talk

Run a rig: To play a trick

Scallywag: Scoundrel

Ye: You

Pirate Speak Example: Ahoy, me hearties! Let’s parley about running a rig on the land lubbers. Arr! (Hello, my friends! Let’s talk about playing a trick on the land dwellers. Haha!)

If you’re ready for the full Talk Like a Pirate Day experience, Facebook has you covered. Did you know you can change your Facebook language to Pirate? Here’s how:

  • Click on the settings icon along the top bar of your page, then click on “Account Settings.”
  • You’ll now be on the “General Account Settings” page. From here, find the line that says “Language,” and click on “Edit.”
  • Scroll through until you find “English (Pirate),” and click on it. Once this is selected, click on the “Save Changes” button.

When you’re ready to switch back from Pirate:

  • Click on the settings icon along the top bar, and then click on “Ye Ship’s Rigging.”
  • Once on the “General Account Settings” page, find the line that says “Tongue,” and click on “Mend th’ sails.”
  • Scroll through until you find your regular language option, and click on it. Once this is selected, click on the “Stow Changes” button.

*rg (*Arr-g)

Apps

NFL Sunday Ticket Deluxe

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For the ultimate football fan, check out the NFL Sunday Ticket Deluxe package from Shaw Direct! You can enjoy up to 14 games every Sunday for the entire regular NFL season, plus you’ll get access to RedZone HD, NFL Sunday Ticket Online, and the Shaw Go NFL Sunday Ticket app!

This year, we’re thrilled to announce that we are carrying 14 HD channels for NFL Sunday Ticket, which means you can catch all of the action so clearly, you might think you’re actually there.

RedZone HD is a channel produced by the NFL Network, which keeps fans up-to-date in real time. It switches from game to game as soon as a team goes inside of the 20-yard line (or, the “redzone”), so you can catch the most crucial plays as they happen.

NFL Sunday Ticket Online allows you to watch your favourite teams, regardless of where you are as long as you have a computer and Internet access. You will get all games in HD, full DVR controls, picture-in-picture viewing, player statistics, and more. You just need to ask for an access code when you subscribe to NFL Sunday Ticket, and then register for an account through the NFL’s website.

Not at home, and don’t have access to a computer? No problem; the Shaw Go NFL Sunday Ticket app has you covered. If you have an iPad or Android device, you’ll still be able to enjoy every play.

You’ll receive all of this for $50.24 (taxes extra) per month for the full NFL season. Wondering what you’ll need to enjoy this great package? You will need a 600-series receiver (the HDDSR 600, HDDSR 605, or HDPVR 630), as well as an updated xKu LNBF installed on your dish. If you’re not sure what kind of equipment you have, follow the instructions here to find out. If you need any upgrades, contact us for more information.

*rg

Fun Facts

Ten Facts About the Baikonur Cosmodrome

It’s been nearly five months since the successful launch of Anik G1 from Kazakhstan. We think this was a very proud moment in the history of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, but there are plenty of other neat things to know about it. Here are some notable facts about the Baikonur Cosmodrome:

1. The Baikonur Cosmodrome was founded in 1955.

2. Sputnik, the first artificial satellite to orbit Earth was launched from here on October 4, 1957.

3. Yuri Gagarin became the first man in space on April 12, 1963. He completed a successful orbit of the Earth in a Vostok 3KA spacecraft (Vostok 1). The launchpad is now known as “Gagarin’s Start.”

4. Valentina Tereshkova followed Gagarin shortly afterwards, becoming the first woman in Space on June 16, 1963 in Vostok 6.

5. The first piece of the International Space Station (called Zarya) was launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome on November 20, 1998. The main component of the Russian section of the ISS (Zvezda) was later launched on July 12, 2000.

6. A town named Leninsk was built around the Cosmodrome to provide housing, schools, and other amenities to those who worked there. Leninsk was renamed to Baikonur in 1995.

7. Baikonur is home to the world’s largest industrial railway, which is used to transport spacecraft and other parts required through all stages of launch preparation. The railway is 1524 mm gauge (also known as “Russian gauge”), which means that there is 1,524 mm – five feet – between the wheels on the train cars.

8. The Cosmodrome takes up more than 14,000 square kilometres, stretching 160 kilometres east-to-west, and 88 kilometres north-to-south.

9. The Russian government leases the land that the Baikonur Cosmodrome is situated on land in Kazakhstan for a fixed rate of $115 million USD per year. The agreement lasts until 2050, although Russia is in the process of building the Vostochny Cosmodrome to reduce dependency on Baikonur; construction is slated for completion in 2018.

10. Czechoslovakia, Poland, India, and France were among the countries that began developing their space programs at the Baikonur Cosmodrome under the Interkosmos Program.

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