In Thailand I use 3G CDMA service from CAT (Communications Authority of Thailand) and I have become spoiled by the flexibility in movement and speed it provides. There were a couple of days in my hotel apartment in China the hotel’s internet stopped working. Somehow it was apparently acceptable that the internet in a business hotel could be down for a week without any other methods of connection being provided. My 3G connection in Thailand almost never goes down. I love my 3G.
Archive for the ‘Tech’ Category
I Need 3G
Thursday, January 14th, 2010Professional Blogger
Friday, September 9th, 2005I’m trying to expand my professional bogging career and have recently started contributing to the Multilingual Search blog about e-marketing from a global perspective, especially as it relates to SEO in languages other than English. I’m a native English speaker and I’m ashamed (well, not really) to only speak English, but hopefully I’ll still have some useful contributions to make on e-marketing in Thailand.
My first post: Briding the mobile gap in Thailand
plog Gone; wordpress In & a New Hosting Provider
Saturday, March 5th, 2005Visitors to my blog may have noticed I changed the format and the underlying software for my weblog from plog to wordpress. While I am satisfied with plog, wordpress is simply better with a stronger community of users. Both pieces of software are open source (and free) and written in PHP with a MySQL backend. The feature I enjoy most about wordpress: the ability to assign a post to multiple categories/tags.
Also since I was switching blog systems, I decided it was time to switch hosting providers. Originally I was with Rackshack.net (aka ev1servers.net) and like plog, I have no real complaits. I switched mostly because my internet activities no longer supported a dedicated server and at $99/month (although a deal in the dedicated hosting industry) it was priced at 1.5 times the amount I paid in rent per month in Thailand. Anyway, now I?m with linode.com and they offer a unique VPS hosting package that any get-your-hands-dirty-system-admin should look at.
Of course non-computer users can always create their own blog with Google?s blogger.com with 10x less effort.
Visas, Pocket PCs, & Extended-Travel
Saturday, September 4th, 2004Pre-planning sucks! My trusty Rough Guide travel book tells me I need a visa for travel to China, Laos, and Vietnam. Visas are really annoying and do much to deter travelers. I can get a 15-day tourist visa on entry into Laos for $30USD entering from Thailand (but only via Vientiane and Nong Khai). However for the same visa entering from Vietnam would cost me $20USD more plus several processing days. Making matters even more complex, I could probably enter with a visit visa which allows an extendable 30-day stay for $6USD from the Laosian Embassy in Bangkok. My advice to developing countries looking for supplemental tourist income: DROP THE VISAS!
I had considered bringing a Pocket PC device along on my travels but I think instead it?s going to be replaced with my laptop, since I intend on spending longer periods of time in certain areas. Pocket PC devices do however have potential for backpackers, although I have yet to encounter a backpacker who has carried one. Imagine a handheld device with integrated speech recognition and speakerphone that can seamlessly translate phrases from one language to another. Searching for ?PDA Translator? in google comes up with several software vendors trying to accomplish this, however processing power and storage capabilities for most PDAs still aren?t quite there. Other travel technology I use religiously: Noise-Canceling Ear Plugs (for long airplane rides), Garmin GPS, and a GSM Cell Phone?the rest of my suitcase is pretty low tech.
My travel buddy who was ditching out on me to interview for a cushy civil servant job, has decided he will in fact join me but only for 3 weeks. This leaves me too much free time to wonder around Southeast Asia, so I?ve contemplating volunteering in the area. Anyway, more information is to come but I?m looking for rural underprivileged youth volunteer work.
Pictures, Photo Mosaics, and Pools that are Too Long
Thursday, August 12th, 2004It?s been a while but I added several new photos to my collection of online pictures (click the link to the left). It?s a good way to backup priceless memories.
I also decided my blog page was too colorless, so I created a photo mosaic with the digital pictures I had on my computer using a freeware program called AndreaMosaic. I like how it came out. You can click on it, to see a full 1.5MB capture and be able to make out the individual photos that make up the mosaic.
I went swimming for the first time at Titlow Pool, the only outdoor Olympic sized pool in Tacoma. It was a sunny day and I went more for the tan rather than the workout. 50m is way too lengthy for me but for the $3.00 admittance fee, I?m satisfied with my tan.
Summer Learning & Geek Tech Goes Traditional
Friday, August 6th, 2004I think I?m finally getting a grasp on VB.net (programming). I had tried before, for various programs I needed to make but simply never fully understood Object Oriented Programming or the .NET structure. Prior I had a bad habit of becoming frustrated and simply purchasing programs from RentACoder.com. RentACoder is great and facilitates programming outsourcing for ridiculous prices but ultimately too much control is lost. As a business thinker and a programmer I see the difficulties in getting a program done exactly the way you want it, by someone else. Anyway, it took a summer of too much free time, really expensive books, and a desire to finally figure out VB.net.
I ordered my parents a VoIP (Voice Over IP, for you non-techie folks) phone and had a chance to test it out. I had experimented with VoIP technology way back in the day with Net2Phone and other similar products only to be unimpressed. Today?s mainstream VoIP carriers really have it down. The call quality including delay, dropped calls, and overall voice quality are all comparable to a normal telephone. The international rates are great (important only because I?ll be traveling soon) but really I just needed an excuse to pay for a new toy. The adapter actually isn?t much of a toy but connects directly to your internet connection (without a computer) and then onto your traditional phone system. A year ago Cisco was selling a VoIP adapter in the $100 range but prices have come down. I signed up through BroadVox Direct for a $40 signup fee (including adapter and activation fee) plus $12.95/mo and I am satisfied.
There was an article a while ago in Business 2.0 about a company called ZipRealty. Essentially they are a non-commission based real estate agent with dramatic price savings and tech savvy tools. The full access to MLS listings and past sales data is invaluable when value hunting for a property. Definitely check it out if you are buying or selling a home.
My experience
Thursday, May 20th, 2004Problem fixed! plog is this awesome php/sql based blogging software, but apparently it needs at least one post in each section to activate the personalized template. Anyway, problem solved.
I recently (last Sunday) graduated with a Business degree from the University of Puget Sound. Hopefully, I’ll get a professional resume online soon (see the link on the left), but in the mean time, I have extensive knowledge/experience in the Computer/Internet Technology fields. I Started using the internet back in the 6th grade when 2400 baud modems were the norm and version 1.0 of Netscape Navigator was still in beta. Since then I’ve participated in several traditional corporate internships and have also remained self-employed. I’ve been successful with the internet domain gold rush, web and computer programming, and many affiliate/search engine ventures. However, I consider myself more of an internet consultant rather than a hardcore programmer.
If you know of a job, please let me know. Otherwise I might just have to spend the rest of my life traveling 
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First time blogger…
Wednesday, May 5th, 2004So after about twenty minutes of tinkering with the installation of this blog software, I’m off and blogging; truly impressive. I’m done with school and have a lot of time on my hands, so with any luck I’ll be able to keep this blog updated with things that interest me. Toss me an email if you have a chance. blog@matthewfong.com