Above is an interactive that I did which allows you to go through the voting process in Broward and Palm Beach counties. New optical scan machines will be used in Florida this year, but the machines and ballots do not all look the same.

There always seems to be some kind of voting process issue surrounding election day. Use this simulator to help prepare yourself for voting day so that there will hopefully be no confusion this year.

Also, check out our elections page to view other helpful information and articles about voting and the candidates.

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The Olympics is just around the corner. Athletes from around the world will test their skills in Beijing. But with all the excitement surrounding the games, China's relationship with Tibet has become a big issue. Protests have sprung up around the world and human rights leaders and journalists have been detained.

The News Illustrated takes a look at the history behind the conflict. You can download it here.

You can find out more at freetibet.org.

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Now that the death penalty has started up again in Florida, here is a glance at past executions and some of those who are on death row. For more, visit the Florida Department of Corrections.

Here are two men on death row. They are from Broward and Palm Beach Counties. Click on them to learn more. To search for others, click here.

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Learn more about amendments and past constitutions. Read on.


PAST CONSTITUTIONS
The 1885 Constitution, pictured above, was the fifth constitution in Florida. The Florida's Early Constitutions site at the Florida State Archives has info on all of them, including scans of the original documents. Image courtesy of the State Archives of Florida.

UPDATE: DOWNLOAD THE GRAPHIC My News Illustrated page in Sunday's South Florida Sun-Sentinel discusses different ways initiatives can be made and key amendments in the Florida constitution. In case you missed it you can download the pdf.

SEARCH INITIATIVES FROM 1978
The Division of Election's database has information on initiatives including vote totals for those that made it to ballot.

READ AMENDMENTS FROM THE 1838 CONSTITUTION
The Florida's Constitutions: The Documentary History, within the Florida State University, has constitutional amendments and revisions from 1838 to 1998.

READ THE CURRENT CONSTITUTION
The Florida Legislature has the full content online.

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Now that the presidential horse race between McCain and Obama is under way, it's time to get yourself on over to Pollster. Yeah, Yeah, we know...

Don't polls have a huge margin of error? Sort of.

Don't polls talk to ridiculously small groups of people? Not really.

How do I know which poll is right? You can't know for sure, but Pollster can help...

Pollster simplifies things by charting results from many polls to show a general trend. It doesn't make them right. It just makes a lot of sense.

Here are two examples:

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Governor Crist flipped on drilling oil off Florida's coast. Here is a map of the current Florida buffer zone in the Gulf of Mexico.

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So we're trying something new. We're offering up some of our graphics as widgets you can add to your web site, Facebook, MySpace, etc. First one out of the gate is a small version of the Crist-O-Meter, a graphic we posted a little while back. Editors monitor news stories and update Charlie's chances of being McCain's running mate.

To get it, click on the "get and share" button on the bottom of the graphic. All the necessary code will be provided.

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The HBO movie Recount premiers this weekend.

We expected to find a better explainer of the infamous Palm Beach County Butterfly Ballot on their Web site but didn't. Fortunately for you, we reproduced the actual ballot back in 2000 to let readers see if they would have voted correctly. Try it out, if you dare.

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Who said politics can't be fun? Our Crist-O-Meter, an idea from Managing Editor Sharon Rosenhause, ranks Chuck's likelihood of becoming McCain's running mate. It's updated by Sun-Sentinel editors based on breaking news.

Is he getting closer to snagging the job? The Crist-O-Meter will let you know when his fortunes change!

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May 3rd was a disasterous day for Myanmar. Cyclone Nargis has left over 43,000 dead and over 27,000 are still missing. The strict military rulers are not making things easy. Borders closed off to the relief efforts and aid organizations are still waiting for visas.

Look for my News Illustrated page this Sunday in the Sun-Sentinel to learn about the country's troubled history.

Also check out United Nations to get more info or if you want to pitch in and help out, Red Cross is taking donations.

Photo: AFP/Getty Images

UPDATE: The cyclone's official death toll has surpassed 78,000 with another 56,000 missing. The United Nations continue to pressure the govenment to let in more aid workers. Survivors are in great need for help as they are faced with diseases and malnutrition.

In case you missed Sunday's Sun-Sentinel, you can download my News Illustrated page.

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May 1 is Holocaust Remembrance Day, which is a national day of commemoration to remember the World War II victims. The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C. is responsible for leading the country in the May memorial, and they even have a handy calendar that marks every holiday until 2016. However, this is not to be confused with the international holiday that is celebrated in January, with yearly events organized by the United Nations.

So to commemorate, I'm offering you a copy of the 2005 News Illustrated page I worked on to coincide with a special project about 13 Holocaust survivors who live in South Florida and shared their survival stories. My full-page graphic shows where the concentration camps were located and the number of survivors after the war.

Also, we ran a four-week series a few months later on the history and future of Israel and even put together a multimedia package that encompasses both series. This includes audio of the powerful stories told by the 13 Holocaust survivors themselves.

And since the 60th anniversary of Israel's statehood is coming up on May 14, check out our special coverage in this Sunday's Outlook section. The same reporter, Tim Collie, who did the Survivors and Judaism series, interviewed local veterans of the Israeli War of Independence. And I built a News Illustrated that shows how Israel fought six Arab armies to claim most of the land they have today.

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Hello and welcome to one of the Sun-Sentinel's newest blogs. Rather than bore you with who we are and why we're here (check About This Blog if you really want to know), here's some examples of what we do and what you can expect.

You may have seen the Florida property tax calculator before. We struggled to explain how portability would affect individuals (including us — we have homes, too). So Karsten Ivey built a calculator to figure it out. It made his brain bleed a little, but the end result is simple to use and informative.

Some graphics just work better when you can play with the information. This Lake Okeechobee water level graphic lets you scroll on a timeline and watch lake levels change.

A Broward County and Palm Beach County home foreclosures graphic lets you investigate detailed information in your neighborhood. Go ahead, we'll wait.

You're back? Excellent! Did watch you the lunar eclipse in February? Well, we produced a total lunar eclipse graphic to help you plan your viewing.

Political junkie? We have you covered. We built a Florida primary election results map for the January primary. It updated every two minutes on election night. Look for more of these in November.

But we're not afraid to have fun.

Are you a snowbird? Did you come down and forget to leave? Well, we know there are somethings you can't help but miss. So check out our South Florida snowman builder. It's good for what ails you.

Or check out our Paper Airplane Garage. That's right, we actually got paid to play with paper airplanes so that you could too. Choose from several different models, customize their appearance then print them out and build 'em.

Well, now you've got an idea of the things we do.

Be sure to let us know what you think. And give us your ideas and requests. We'll try to so something with the best of them.

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