It will update all records on the table: table_name and set a random 4 digit PIN between 1,000 and 9,999 on the column `column_pin`.

UPDATE `table_name` SET `column_pin` = FLOOR( 1000 + ( RAND( ) *8999 ) ) ;

I hope this was helpful to you.

The value of social media in recruitment

Candidates would normally research about a company and prepare themselves before attending a job interview. However, with the emergence and popularity of social media sites, recruiters can also do the same before calling candidates for job interviews!

Every day, new users sign up on the three main social media sites we know today – namely, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn which have over 975 million combined user accounts. The people using these social media websites sign up with their personal information as mandatory; optionally include their employment history and periodically post updates on what they’ve been doing.

For recruiters, LinkedIn is good for direct recruitment because it is business related, a social media website specifically for professionals. Recruiters are able to search for potential candidates using the search tool in their account and be able to search by keyword, location, job title, industry and language. Premium user accounts can also search by interest, function, years of experience as well as how long they’ve been at their current employer.

So what should recruiters be looking for anyway? Your candidate should have a complete profile, a picture, interests, hobbies and other information related outside of their work as well as some genuine recommendations from colleagues and managers.

Facebook and Twitter, although not specifically for recruitment, does provide additional information about the candidates that they wouldn’t normally share on their LinkedIn profiles. The information shared on Facebook and Twitter allows recruiters to do background checks as well as determine cultural fit of candidates.

In addition to direct recruiting, screening and background checking, social media can also be used for advertising job vacancies on official company pages. Recruiters can post in updates of their job vacancies for candidates to look at. A feature not to miss is careers under your LinkedIn company page which allows you to post your jobs. And, last but not least, using advertising platforms provided within the social media sites.

While social media is not a replacement for local job portals, newspaper advertising or recruitment agencies, it does provide recruiters alternatives to cast a wider net for their candidate applications.

Are you already using social media to source, screen and check references of potential employees? If not, do you see yourself using social media to fill your next vacancy? Do you think it would help your organization find the right candidate?

To vote your opinion, follow the link below:

Which Internet Service Provider (ISP) do you use in Dar es Salaam / Tanzania?

"Fu bu guo san dai"

• Literally: Wealth does not pass three generations.
• Meaning: It's rare that the wealth of a family can last for three generations (the 2nd may see the value of hard work, but the 3rd forgets it).
• Explanation: In business, the first generation works extremely hard, so that the second generation reaps the benefits. By the time the third generation arrives, the wealth is squandered.

Source: http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Chinese_proverbs

"Its kind of fun to do the impossible."
- Walt Disney

Special thanks to Ali Shariff of Double Click Consulting for the above link.

The bad news is that the tutorial went off-air and I am unable to find it. If you happen to have a copy, please email it to me and if I do manage to find it, I will make a point to update this post.

However, the good news is that I have the zip archive with the scripts. Click on the link below to download.

Download PHP / MySQL eCards Tutorial

"You do not get great handwriting if you do not start scribbling"
- By Mohsin Sumar

Mohsin handing T-Shirt of "Extreme #1" to the Goalkeeper of Veterani Sports Club - Gezaulole, Kigamboni, Dar es Salaam on 21st May 2010.

Earlier this month, on the 21st May 2010 - Extreme Web Technologies sponsored a local football club called Veterani Sports Club in Gezaulole, Kigamboni, Dar es Salaam.

We sponsored new jerseys, shirts, shorts, socks, goalkeepers gloves, referee uniforms, accessories and most important of all - footballs.

You can see me handing over T-Shirt of "EXTREME #1" in the photo on the right.

Click here to see more photos of this event in Extreme Web Technologies Facebook Page.

After quite sometime trying to fix this, I stumbled across the following knowledge base article on Microsoft Support site: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929658

The fix is really simple; all you need to do is log in as Administrator and run the following command:-

powercfg /hibernate on

You'll now be able to hibernate again. I'm going to do just that right now!