Note 9 - Long-Term Investments (Detail) - Summary of Long-Term Investments (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Cost method
	$ 15,530,000	$ 15,939,000
Etrend [Member]
Available-for-sale securities – noncurrent
Available For Sale - Noncurrent	943,000	791,000
Total [Member]
Available-for-sale securities – noncurrent
Available For Sale - Noncurrent	943,000	791,000
Sigurd Cayman [Member]
Cost method
Cost Method Investments	7,200,000	7,200,000
X-FAB [Member]
Cost method
Cost Method Investments	4,968,000	4,968,000
PVEF [Member]
Cost method
Cost Method Investments	497,000	942,000
GEM [Member]
Cost method
Cost Method Investments	78,000	78,000
EMC [Member]
Cost method
Cost Method Investments	1,844,000	1,960,000
Total Cost Method Investments [Member]
Cost method
	14,587,000	15,148,000
Total Long Term Investments [Member]
Available-for-sale securities – noncurrent
Available For Sale - Noncurrent	$ 15,530,000	$ 15,939,000

Investments in debt and equity securities which are categorized neither as held-to-maturity nor trading and which are intended to be sold or mature more than one year from the balance sheet date or operating cycle, if longer. Such securities are reported at fair value; unrealized gains (losses) related to Available-for-sale Securities are excluded from earnings and reported in a separate component of shareholders' equity (other comprehensive income), unless the Available-for-sale security is designated as a hedge or is determined to have had an other than temporary decline in fair value below its amortized cost basis. All or a portion of the unrealized holding gain (loss) of an Available-for-sale security that is designated as being hedged in a fair value hedge is recognized in earnings during the period of the hedge, as are other than temporary declines in fair value below the cost basis for investments in equity securities and debt securities that an entity intends to sell or it is more likely than not that it will be required to sell before the recovery of its amortized cost basis. Other than temporary declines in fair value below the cost basis for debt securities categorized as Available-for-sale that an entity does not intend to sell and for which it is not more likely than not that the entity will be required to sell before the recovery of its amortized cost basis are bifurcated into credit losses and losses related to all other factors. Other than temporary declines in fair value below cost basis related to credit losses are recognized in earnings, and losses related to all other factors are recognized in other comprehensive income.

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+ Details

- Definition

This item represents the aggregate carrying amount of all cost-method investments as reported on or included in the balance sheet. The original cost of the investments may differ from the aggregate carrying amount disclosed due to various adjustments such as: (i) dividends received in excess of earnings after the date of investment that are considered a return of investment and therefore recorded as reductions to cost of the investment, or (ii) a series of operating losses of an investee or other factors which may indicate that a decrease in value of the investment has occurred which is other than temporary and accordingly such decrease in value has been recognized.

+ References

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