Wiretapped Delusions

MSM

2008-10-02T22:40:00.003+08:00

For months now and perhaps to the detriment of my bar preparations, I have become an avid observer of the 2008 US Presidential Elections. In the beginning of the primary campaign, I was glued to CNN, MSNBC, BBC and miscellaneous American real and faux news shows (Good Morning America, Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Colbert Report). As I grew frustrated with the lack of in depth news coverage of my favorite candidate and the silly nonstop rhetorical questions posed by reporters, I turned to the Internet for my daily fix of cold hard facts and tidbits.

To my great amazement, there are hundreds of blogs and news sites catered to political addicts like me. So I squeed in happiness and changed my homepage to Daily Kos and Huffington Post where I am finally content. Now whenever I seek my news, I reach for my mouse first, remote control second and the newspaper last.

In this internet information age, the connected reader has only one use for the daily newspaper: to wrap fish with and perhaps to wipe out those streaks from your window glass. News items published in your daily newspaper is usually 24 hours behind online news.

Cable and local tv news shows (dubbed mainstream media by bloggers) are suspect. Recall the reason that drove me to the net was the paucity of news coverage of my favorite candidate and what I have found on the net was not only the information I sought but the knowledge that mainstream media can be biased in their presentation of news. Sometimes, they are so biased they won't even cover certain news.

Online news community is not only the freshest (news are often broken by those enterprising bloggers digging for answers because they are not content to issue rhetorical questions.) but also offers the most variety. Like MSM, new media can be biased but unlike MSM, you can get both sides of the story from two opposing views and decide your own opinions based on the most complete facts you can browse.

Call for Graphic Health Warning on Cigarettes in the Philippines

2007-10-11T10:15:00.000+08:00

Dear readers,

Please sign this petition I authored. I really need your help in getting this message out. I will be eternally grateful.

-rax

===============

Sign now.

http://www.PetitionOnline.com/ghwphil/

* Over 30 M Filipinos will suffer debilitating diseases and painful deaths due to smoking. Another 30 M Filipinos will suffer the same due to second hand smoke.

* 40 of the chemicals in cigarette smoke are carcinogens, like carbon monoxide, butane (used as lighter fluid), cyanide and formaldehyde, arsenic (rat poison), and ammonia (toilet cleaner). Ads do not disclose this.

Right now the textual health warnings for tobacco products cannot be understood or appreciated by the Filipino people. Other countries have recognized this and have since used picture based warnings in order to warn their citizens of the hazards of smoking. Statistics will show that such method is effective as it has significantly improved the overall health of their citizens.

The Filipino people have a right to life and health just as much as other citizens. They have the right to a better if not the best method to warn them of the danger inherent in smoking. The text warning right now is STILL NOT ENOUGH. Many are still smoking and dying while the young ones are curiously taking up the habit not knowing its effects, creating a vicious cycle of death that could be prevented through the use of picture based health warning that is universally understood by the people, especially the many who cannot read and understand.

Sign now. Because a picture can save millions of lives.

http://www.PetitionOnline.com/ghwphil

==========================

Spam and viral marketing.

2007-03-26T11:33:00.001+08:00

"I assume you are on the Internet. If you are not, then pardon my French, but vous êtes un big loser. Today EVERYBODY is on the Internet, including the primitive Mud People of the Amazon rain forest. In the old days, when the Mud People needed food, they had to manually throw spears at wild boars; whereas today they simply get on the Internet, go to www.spear-a-boar.com and click their mouse a few times (the Mud People use actual mice). Within three business days, a large box is delivered to them by a UPS driver, whom they eat."

~Dave Barry

Last week a friend sent me an spam email. One of those "send to x no. of people and win lots of stuff" emails. It made me laugh. When I was new to the net, I also fell into the bad habit of perpetuating CHAIN MAILS. Now that I am older and wiser, all such email are destroyed (thanks to that nifty SPAM button in Yahoo!mail). Anyway, her email reminded me of that phenomenon called VIRAL MARKETING.

Like that chain email, VIRAL MARKETING uses social networks to perpetuate a single message by infecting the receiver to believe the message and pass it further along. Basically, viral marketing is your simple word-of-mouth advertising, only it's all done online. Its usually resorted to by those who cannot afford expensive conventional advertisements.

Viral marketing works unusually well or primarily because of the Internet, which is basically one-giant social network where everyone has something to say. The ease of communication and passing a message to another is only getting better and better. In the past, viral marketing utilized text-only newsgroups and emails. Now, messages are not only text, they may include pictures, interactive games and videos. It's amazing really how webtechnology can do nowadays but then I realize, viral marketing hasn't change. Its still using the same formula it did a decade ago. Only the mode and form has changed.

Whatever form it takes, it is undeniable that viral marketing flourishes where there are people communicating. It's a symbiotic relationship, I think. Those who utilize viral marketing are getting to promote their product to a large number of people. Conversely, consumers can form groups to "demand" for the product they want.

Some articles on Viral Marketing you might find interesting

Viral Marketing at DFJ
GoViral - its a seeding agency. I just like the glittering maps on their site. :)
Boreme - Check out their viral competitions.

lonelysatur67@youtube

2007-03-16T13:56:00.000+08:00

Who says old Satur ain't cool? He can run but he can't hide?

Hiding no more and looking cool, party-list representative Satur Ocampo has surfaced --on a video posted in YouTube.

The Inquirer news dated March 16, 2007 says "the video of Ocampo was posted on the newly created Bayan Muna YouTube channel, http://youtube.com/bayanmunadotnet, at around 2:30 a.m. Thursday, roughly the same time a subcommittee of the US Senate foreign relations committee began hearings in Washington DC on the killings that human rights groups say have claimed more than 830 lives since 2001, when President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo came to power."

The video was taken at an undisclosed place "using an N80 mobile phone lent to Bayan Muna by an administration ally."

The government may try to search for Satur's Friendster account, if any, and check on his location.

Online Office

2007-03-16T13:21:00.000+08:00

I've heard of Barack Obama's plan to seek nomination of the Democrats in 2008 presidential elections against fellow Democrat and more popular nominee Hillary Clinton months ago. Both of them are gunning for the first: Obama as the first black president, while Clinton as the first lady president.

Both of them are good presidential timbers and that is good news to the Democrats who have just defeated the Republicans in Congress and have wrested majority seats. As to who of the two hopefuls should wrest the Democrat primaries is early to tell now.

But I came across of Barack Obama's online office. It's http://obama.senate.gov/. I'm not sure if Clinton or other politicians do have one, but my knowing of such kind of an office first from Obama creates a good impression for the guy, that he is being accountable to his people at all times.

Indeed, halls of power are not spared by the pervasive reach of information technology. For politicians and public servants, an online office is a good idea, which should not mean, however, that the actual and physical office should be abandoned.

Good job, Barack Obama. And Senator Salonga likes Barack, too.

Real Life Consequences of Anonymous Online Attacks

2007-03-11T22:32:00.001+08:00

“There is a powerful tension in our relationship to technology. We are excited by egalitarianism and anonymity, but we constantly fight for our identity.” ~ David Owens

The Washington Post featured an article last week,"Harsh Words Die Hard on the Web: Law Students Feel Lasting Effects of Anonymous Attacks" about a group of female law student targeted by malicious anonymous posters in an online forum.

One of the victim discovered the site when she investigated (i.e. Googled her name) why no one is hiring her despite her excellent academic performance. She found that participants of the forum had posted her name and pictures (taken from her Facebook pages), threatened physical and sexual violence, pretended to be her, ridiculed and objectified her. She was not alone. Dozens of other female law students were also similarly treated.

The forum, Law section in AutoAdmit.com (also uses the domain name xoxohth.com) is run by a 3rd year law student and an insurance agent. The forum owners defends their decision not to moderate or censor the the defamatory, sexist and racist posts of their users on First Amendment and freedom of expression.

Responsible moderators of such forums and other community blogs should, as an unwritten rule of netiquette, make sure that their members behave. It is ridiculous that a 3rd year law student would not know that there are limitations to the 1st Amendment such as hate speech, threats, obscenity, etc. These limitations also apply to online speech, even anonymous commenters. The offensive statements in the forum about these female law students could constitute defamation and the authors of these comments would be liable legally.

The fact that these particular statements were made anonymously may hinder or make it difficult for the victims to sue the individual posters. However, there is a recent decision by a Philadelphia judge ruling that "defamatory and libelous speech enjoys no constitutional protection."

That case which is strikingly analogous to our female law students' dilemna, Klehr Harrison Harvey Branzburg & Ellers v. JPA Development Inc., the Philadelphia judge ordered the owner of the website to turn over the identities of the anonymous authors of comments that allegedly defamed a Philadelphia law firm.

While it may be difficult, the victims or the targets of the attacks could bring a defamation suit, not unlike the suit against Don'tDateHimGirl.com.

In any case, it just shows that the owners of the Autoadmit discussion board are or have bad moderators who clearly don't understand netiquette and the dynamics of anonymous posting.

1. It is internet culture that moderators have absolute control over what is being posted in their turf. They can delete posts that do not follow the rules or violate the standards they have set. Responsible moderators do remove abusive posts.

2. Free speech refute free speech. While this might work for off-web speech, the moderator is just asking for a flame war. This deluge of speech will not guarantee what the courts would call a "meaningful exchange of ideas".

3. Anonymous posters should not be given credit or taken seriously. These are most likely trolls and sockpuppets who want to wank, spam or start a flame in your forum. If they are speaking the truth, they will post it under their own name.

Lastly, I completely agree with Atty. Eric Eden that "on the internet...abnormal behavior is the status quo." Moderators should take that into account on how they control and supervise their participants. Bloggers/commenters, anonymous or not should know/remember that there are legal consequences of abusing or harrassing someone online. Anonymity does not equal complete abdication of the law.

The Internet has made world wide, instantaneous communication easy. The average user now has the power to be heard by hundreds or even thousands of other users, but in terms of libel and defamation, the Net is not a new world of freedom. The reality is that libel and defamation laws are enforceable in the virtual world just like they are in the real world. ~Eric Eden

The zugunruhe of politicians

2007-03-11T17:52:00.000+08:00

"When a change comes, some species feel the urge to migrate, they call it zugunruhe. "A pull of the soul to a far off place," following a scent in the wind, a star in the sky. The ancient message comes calling the kindred to take flight and gather together. Only then they can hope to survive the cruel season to come."

-"from Heroes", episode 5

Zugunruhe is a scientific term used to describe the migratory drive in animals, especially birds. The instinct for survival is an innate characteristic which all living beings share. Now we also see this behavior at play in the political arena. Politicians agree that election campaigning is a media war. These months will see that coming war as the May 2007 Elections looms near... and that has caused the zugunruhe of politicians to a new battlefield: the INTERNET.

Senatorial candidate and House minority leader Francis “Chiz” Escudero has migrated to the World Wide Web for his campaign. According to GMA7, he is the first Filipino senatorial candidate to use live Internet technology to explain his platform of government.

He has already launched his official website and FRIENDSTER account [hats off to him... Friendster is probably the most widely visited site by Filipinos with over 5 Million users. His first account is already full, by the way, so he made another one...with already a friend count of 740.]

Escudero said:

“The Internet is the best way to reach people outside the country and share ideas with them in real time. Through this technology, I hope to hear what is on their minds. I am ready to answer questions they raise and explain my stand on issues relevant to my candidacy.”

Already more politicians are hopping on the internet bandwagon, after all it does level the playing field since the internet and its innovations, like blogs and podcasting, can be availed of without spending as much resources as one would normally spend on traditional campaigning.

According to the rules of the Commission on Elections and the Fair Elections Act, national candidates are limited to 120 minutes of television broadcasting time, and 180 minutes for radio. Asked whether these rules allow the poll body to regulate political advertisements appearing on the Internet, Comelec chairman Benjamin Abalos replied: " How can we control that? We have no jurisdiction [on the Internet]."

As usual, the law is slow on its feet, it has yet to catch up with this technological evolutions. But how does one regulate political advertising on the internet without bashing heads with Constitutional issues, like freedom of speech. I feel this is just the beginning. But as early as now, one can hear the warhorn sound in the distance...

"Evolution is imperfect and often a violent process. A battle between what exists and what is yet to be born. Amidst these birth pains, morality loses its meaning, the question of good and evil reduced to one simple choice: survive or perish."

-from "Heroes", episode6

Gone to the dogs

2007-03-02T22:50:00.000+08:00

The war against piracy has literally "gone to the dogs."

Meet Flo and Lucky, two black labradors, who are 'specially trained' to sniff out pirated dvds in London. This was the brain-child of allies The Federation Against Copyright Theft (FACT), express delivery company FedEx and HM Revenue & Customs to combat the problem of dvd piracy, according to a press release last year from the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America).

Supposedly they are trained to find large shipments of optical discs that may be located in boxes, envelopes or other packaging, as well as discs concealed amongst other goods which could be sold illegally. They've been put to work in the Stansted Airport in the United Kingdom.

Of course, its physically impossible for them to distinguish between pirated DVDs, perfectly legal original ones and even legally copied ones. (Details they've overlooked)

Of course, it is already accepted practice that dogs be deployed to sniff out contraband like drugs, chemicals, bombs etc. in airports. That's understandable. The Supreme Court has ruled that airport searches are permissible. The search is made pursuant to routine airport security procedure, which is allowed under Section 9 of Republic Act No. 6235 reading as follows:

SEC. 9. Every ticket issued to a passenger by the airline or air carrier concerned shall contain among others the following condition printed thereon: "Holder hereof and his hand-carried luggage(s) are subject to search for , and seizure of, prohibited materials or substances. Holder refusing to be searched shall not be allowed to board the aircraft," which shall constitute a part of the contract between the passenger and the air carrier.

That's understandable since the contraband have a unique smell. In this case, the dogs sniff out the optical discs. It is impossible to sniff out the DATA. Simply because of its nature... it's incorporeal. It would be reasonable if the discs look physically/extrinsically like pirated dvds. Then it would be no different than a regular airport/customs security procedure. But what about personal dvds, of pictures, home movies... those with no apparent labeling. Or maybe personal labeling. Once the dogs find them, will they check each and every disc's content? Time consuming not to mention ineffective.

Wouldn't that constitute a fishing expedition under the guise of 'stop and frisk' and 'customs' exceptions? So the dogs just find any package, box, luggage carrying any optical disc and only after do they check the content? Or maybe there is a presumption that one automatically consents to a search whenever one ships a box...

From what I can recall, searches and seizures without warrants are permissible in cases where the objective is reasonable. I am having trouble finding the "reasonable" in this dog-deal. Permissible presumes that they are in fact effective. A useless search can never be reasonable. I can only imagine the time consumed in checking each and every file in an optical disc found, and classify it under legal original, legal copy or illegal copy... A function only a human can perform.

Anyhow it can be argued either way. On the other hand, at least the dogs can't be bribed. Can't say the same for some customs/airport officials... *shakes head*

whatever... the dogs are still adorable.

Webcelebrity

2007-02-22T00:25:00.000+08:00

A couple of months ago, Forbes.com posted a “list of the biggest, brightest and most influential people on the Internet” which it dubbed as the Web Celeb 25. Unsurprisingly, with the exception of the No.1 Web Celeb, almost all of these “people” are bloggers.

The No.1 Web Celeb, Lonelygirl15 may be considered both as an aberration and as the template of things to come.

So who is this Lonelygirl15? The term “people” was rather loosely used on her, so were the words “biggest”, “brightest” and “most influential”. In all likelihood, you probably haven’t even heard of her. Lonelygirl15 gained much of her web following and subsequent web-infamy by publishing her video diaries on YouTube. She was later on unmasked as an actress paid to play a role of a 15 year old girl. (See entry on Lonelygirl15 in Wikipedia)

Who was the Web Celeb? Was it the 15-year old girl who gained a large fanbase in YouTube or the actress who duped them all?

I’d like to think that if she had been real, Lonelygirl15 would have been a legitimate Web Celebrity. She wouldn’t have been ranked No.1 and probably not in the top 25, but still famous in her own niche of the Internet. I believe it was the expose and ensuing online wank just made her more Internet-famous and contributed to her rise in the ranks among other Web Celebs. It is doubtful she would make the list next year now that her 15 minutes of fame are over.

Lonelygirl15 is an aberration because unlike the other top webcelebrities, Lonelygirl15 was a character or in blogger’s lingo – a sockpuppet. She certainly differed from the other 24 webcelebs. Those were real people whose Internet fame flowed from the credibility they had built over years of online presence and the trust they commanded from their online following. These people are not just famous for the sake of fame or incredulous uproar from betrayed fans, they are famous because they make an impact in the consciousness of their followers/readers/fans, in the industry they work in and even in the real world.

Notwithstanding her infamy, Lonelygirl15 is the first truly successful video blogger to become Internet-famous. For now WebCelebs primarily write blogs, not star in them. However with the rise of video technologies, Forbes predicted that Internet fame may soon be dominated by the video-bloggers.

This is an intriguing probability since most of the top blogs already incorporate some form of video-blogging in addition to written articles. It would certainly change the dynamics if traditional movie star good looks and charisma are added as a criterion for becoming a Web Celeb. Pity, I rather like and admire these Web Celebs, ordinary looking men and women who become famous on the basis of their blog's content and on their personality rather than on their looks.

According to Friendster

2007-01-18T01:05:00.000+08:00

Five years or so after its invention, I see Friendster as one of the greatest social cyber tools created in this millennium.

Before, and even now, it has been text messaging. Texting allows us to communicate every hour, every minute even to friends and family members who are far away from us. That may not be interesting now—simply because we are used to it. But those who were born before the SMS technology really finds the contrast striking. When I was in first year college in 1996, there was no SMS yet. Neither were there the basic phone cards. Separated from my family who’s in Mindanao, I have to communicate with them by going to PLDT or PT&T booths which were stationed outside of UP, which means going through the hassle of commuting, lining up and all—just to communicate with them. And if it doesn’t work, then there was snail mail. But with the advent of SMS phones, our lives were drastically changed in terms of social interaction.

Fast forward 2002, Friendster was invented. It was an attractive idea—you can post pictures, write about yourself and check on others’ updates regularly. Its most important feature is checking on long-lost friends and acquaintances, or someone you’d like to know, by the expedient of typing their names. If you are a new user, I think there is this initial dilemma whether to broadcast to the whole world who you are and what you look like. But that hesitation is immediately swept by the Friendster bandwagon. More and more people have joined it especially with its constantly advancing features.

With these, Friendster has become an authority in terms of news and updates of friends. No need to talk or chat, which may be cumbersome if you could not ask the proper questions. All you have to do is click or search on a friend’s profile and there you have him or her—including his or her new acquisitions, civil status, boyfriend or girlfriend, state of mind (shoutout), hairstyle, places visited, etc. Hence, nowadays if someone asks how another is doing, there is an easy answer. And the source: Friendster.

The downside I see however is that social interaction has become passive. The tendency is that people do not communicate as often as before because personal updates are already available online. The personal touch of talking and conversing is lost because Friendster gives a blanket security with its daily friends update.

That is not a problem, however, if only people maintain how they used to interact. There is still no substitute to talking and chatting in person with friends up to the wee hours over some bottles of beer or drink. There is still no substitute to sending a handwritten letter, seeing the slants, emphasis and expressions the handwriting brings, with a fragrance and personalized sticker on it.

Technology is important but humanity shouldn’t be lost in the process. Lest we forget, we are still humans who constantly deal with feelings and emotions. Getting into Friendster is a good idea but having a friend is bliss.

Nokia watch out...

2007-01-10T23:23:00.000+08:00

There are smart phones and then there is the super-smart phone Apple and Steve Jobs just unveiled to the world last Tuesday (Jan 9).

The launch has ended 8 years of speculations and rumors and it sounds very promising indeed. I got excited just reading the transcript of Steve Jobs's presentation.

The iPhone combines three products into one simple, elegant and beautiful package: an ipod, a phone and an internet communicator. The UI is not new but still revolutionary, it's completely touch screen interface - no more plastic keypads! It has wifi and bluetooth and a camera, too! You can watch your favorite movie or tv show with it, browse the internet and check your email. A quadband phone with 5 hour talk-time, it will be out by June 2007 in the US and by 2008 in Asia.

I can't wait for the reactions of the leading mobile phone manufacturers like Nokia, Samsung, etc. As more and more cellphone models are released in different shapes, sizes and dizzying features, the competition has become very sharp to produce a product that will stand out from the rest. Apple looks to be entering the industry with a bang, offering both mobile phone functionality with desktop functionality. And in this age of CONVERGENCE, that makes a winning product.

Going paperless

2007-01-03T15:22:00.000+08:00

Happy new year everyone! As usual, I finished my cleaning frenzy a few hours before the start of the new year (out with old and in with the new routine). As I waited for the people from the junk shop to come over and haul my discarded things, I noticed that the amount of paper I wasted came up to hip high piles (duh... im a law student). The picture is only last sem's readings plus miscellaneous drafts from OLA work. (By the way, I throw these out since I'm highly allergic to dust and the photocopy ink, a health hazard for me and also for those poor trees.)

I really think that not only the government but also schools should start going paperless. Law schools in particular. I'm glad that lex libris and elibrary has come out with student editions, but unfortunately the price does not fit an ordinary student's budget. So people like me, although allergic to dust magnets and photocopy ink, have to endure the skin rashes just to be able to comply with the daily reading assignments we have. Fortunately, our infotech class lets me take a breather from my antihistamines by having the readings online. (my GRATITUDE, sirs)

The change will come eventually I suppose. Our government has already jumped on the paperless bandwagon and even our own Supreme Court has taken an interest in this matter ever since the Regional Judicial symposium last July 2006 which was held in Singapore. The Supreme Court of Singapore has advocated the use of "paperless courts"” where parties could submit their pleas electronically and have their cases calendared likewise.

Some cool stuff about Singapore's Supreme Court (I wish we have this soon)

1. From the entrance to the lobby you can check the schedule of hearings from a computer screen,

2. In the bistro, you can while away time in a bar while waiting for your case to be called through SMS. (I love this one, no loitering outside courts or being stared at by detainees)

3. ATM inside the Supreme Court where you can pay your bills, access your banking accounts, and plead guilty to a traffic violation and pay the corresponding fine.

This kind of ambiance is something that will surely make the practice of law and judicial work an enjoyable experience. And in turn, hopefully these new developments will spill over to law schools and make our stay in law school errr... healthier.

So guys, lets help out with the paperless advocacy, if not for the reasons above, then think about all those trees we're killing and the boxes of files in OLA that we have to literally dig through in order to get the right file. :)

Paypal in the Philippines

2006-12-04T10:26:00.000+08:00

Online trading sites like Ebay Philippines, Buyandsell and Tipidpc are indicative of the growing popularity of online trading in the Philippines. At the ease of a mouse click or two, an enterprising Filipino only need to post the item he wants to sell or to browse among the items posted to select what he wants to buy, all without leaving the comfort of his home or office.

Within these forums, buyers and sellers are not limited by their geographical locations since they can choose from a variety of freight forwarders such as LBC, Fedex, Aboitiz 2Go or even Philippine postal system to send their goods to distant buyers. So infrastructure-wise, the major primary barrier for online traders is really finding a reliable and relatively inexpensive payment system. Lacking such a system, the websites and forums already available become useful only for window shopping.

Locally, online sellers and buyers can hook up and finalize their terms in cyberspace before consummating the sale in RL (real life). Payments are made by tendering cash personally or depositing it in the seller’s bank account. Recently, the major wireless telecom corporations like Globe and Smart have entered the electronic cash/money remittance business to the advantage and delight of our cyber entrepreneurs.

These local payment schemes work very well to both parties’ mutual satisfaction within our own borders. They are relatively easy to use, reliable and widely available to Filipinos. Unfortunately, they won’t work as well when one party is abroad.

Alternatives that can work for international sales such as merchant accounts and bank transfers are too expensive for small and infrequent transactions. Also, Westerners prefer doing everything, from selecting to paying for their purchases, online. They do not have the inclination or patience to select their online purchases, log off and find the nearest Western Union branch to send their payment. The best payment scheme then for international online transactions is an inexpensive online payment system.

Not surprisingly, among US and European cyberconsumers, PayPal is the most popular and most widely used online payment service. If a Filipino seller wants to tap into this market, it is almost imperative that one must have a Paypal account because it is difficult to get these consumers to switch to another online payment system or to use a payment system outside of cyberspace.

Realizing this and loudly proclaiming that having a Paypal account will save our economy, some of our kababayan have campaigned extensively and petitioned Paypal to let Filipinos open Paypal accounts and it is perhaps due to their efforts that just a little over a month ago, Paypal opened its business to Filipinos. This would have been great news until you realize that what they asked for and what Paypal gave us were two different things.

They asked for an online payment system because they wanted to sell their goods and services to non-Filipinos. What Paypal gave us is limited functionality. We can send money but we can’t receive it or withdraw it from Paypal. Even then, the amount we can send through a Paypal account is limited to a predetermined amount. If you want to send more, you will have to upgrade your account for a fee.

To some this is a strong message from Paypal that the Philippines is too much of a credit-risk to allow full functionality. They blame Paypal’s reluctance on our weak banking system, ineffective anti-money laundering laws or to widespread credit-card fraud in the country. It is a disappointment to those who have pinned their hopes of accessing Internet commerce on Paypal.

All these may be true of the Philippines, yet it is possible that the reason for this is that Paypal itself does not have the capacity to fully operate beyond accessing its users’ US bank and credit card accounts. If so, this is an inherent limitation to Paypal. After all, many foreign banks and financial institutions are doing business here. For example, Western Union has opened so many branches, one cannot be faulted to think that business here is good despite the alleged Philippine shortcomings.

Let us look instead at this “setback” as an opportunity to truly understand how Paypal works or don’t work. For all its advantages, Paypal is not without its detractors and faults. Just last year, Forbes listed as one of the top corporate hate website, paypalsucks.com. The company is also beset with a backlog of hundred of thousands of customer complaints and notoriously known for its bad customer service. It is not a bank and therefore, not regulated as one. Its terms of service (TOS) is not only lengthy and complicated, but also may be amended by the company at any time. Paypal accounts are vulnerable to phishing and spoofing scams. These are just some of the problems experienced by past and current Paypal users.

While I agree that having a Paypal account would probably stimulate Filipino cybercommerce with non-Filipinos, we should not be blinded by the prospect of online profits and overlook the bad side of Paypal. It might be an inexpensive online payment scheme but it is far from perfect.

Business is still business notwithstanding the medium. A good businessman, whether in real or cyber space, should always assess the pros and cons of his decisions and choices to protect his interests. He should embark on his enterprise with a full knowledge of the risks he is facing and preparing for them adequately or perhaps, find another road to take because he finds that the risks of the journey may not be worth the gain.

Live Stats

2006-12-03T14:10:00.000+08:00

Halftime through the battle of the Los Angeles Teams—the Lakers versus the Clippers. In their first encounter this season weeks ago, the Lakers won. Now, the Lakers lead at halftime, 47-39. Go Lakers! Go Kobe! (I’ll just make a blog for Kobe next time around, especially with his 30-point, 9-9 field goal, 10-10 free throw third quarter bonanza in their win two days ago against Utah, team with NBA’s best record at present.)

Third quarter has started. Lakers still at helm, 51-45. Three Lakers are now in double figures. No way! Clippers’ Elton Brand just made a tip shot. Looks like my Lakers are up for a good fight. Okay, let me just finish this blog.

But no. I’m not watching Basketball TV. I’m seeing the play-by-play account at NBA Live Stats. It’s internet. Internet is my new TV. It may not be the substitute for TV’s actual footage since Live Stats only gives you “textual” footage. But this is much better than nothing. In fact, better than cable TV because Live Stats is, as the name goes, Live. (Well, I live in Ipil, a state dormitory, and although our House Council, which I head, can afford cable connection, our problem is how do we reconcile 300 preferences? We better simplify it to the Kapuso-Kapamilya debate.:))

Yes, Live Stats. Thanks God, Lakers still leading, 69-64. And Live Stats is not only about play-by-play account. As the name says, it’s about stats—the rebounds, assists, turnovers, steals, time left, point and percentages per player and as a team. It really gives you a better view of what’s going on in the game.

So the counter-argument: there’s really no substitute for the visual? Then check after the game the highlights in video—also for free. There you see the flashy moves, the acrobatic shots, the no-look passes, the emotions, and if you’re a Laker fan, Jack Nicholson’s pensive and sarcastic you-can’t-handle-the truth mood. You really want the whole game? I think Google sells them, especially big games (81-point game of Kobe comes to mind). I’m not sure though of the price, haven’t tried buying one. Or you may also subscribe to Listen Live, also for a fee.

The drama is the same. You make the same yell, shout, clenched fist and victorious jump in front of your PC like you were watching it on TV. You can access it everywhere, anytime you want it, unlike cable TV which only shows one or two chosen games per day. With internet, you can access games of all teams of NBA all day long.

And one good thing. I can do other things while watching Live Stats. I didn’t even know I have made a mouthful in this blog—and am about to wrap it up. In the same way, that Kobe and the Lakers are making finishing touches in their apparent win against the Clippers—93-83 with 17 seconds left! This is over.

Let the games begin

2006-11-23T10:16:00.000+08:00

For as long as I can remember, I've always been told that my head was up in the clouds. I enjoyed fairy tales as a child, imagining myself as a knight in shining armor slaying dragons and basilisks (I was not the damsel in distress). My imagination didn't stop after I graduated high school, as I grew older, I devoured thicker fantasy novels, like Tolkien and Robert Jordan. In college I was introduced to the world of tabletop RPG like Dungeons and Dragons, Vampires and Pirates. I found friends who shared the same interests and so I grew from a daydreamer to a normal social college girl (though it may have been a geeky social circle).

Little did I know that the internet was the next step in turning my fantasy world into reality. My alter ego went to law school, finally answering the demands of reality, but in those rare moments where I was able to relax from the rigors of studying, I discovered the virtual world of online gaming. Little by little online games mushroomed all over the Philippines. The old school chatting and challenging Starcraft and Warcraft battles bred online WORLDS of Ragnarok, Tantra, MU, Final Fantasy IX. My head was spinning. I was hooked.

An online Role Playing Game (RPG) is a game type where several (typically several thousand) players act simultaneously in the same server based world. It's basically a graphically illustrated MUD --Multi User Dungeon: text based, role playing games which are played over a telnet connection. So instead of sitting with your friends with a cup of dice, all you need is a computer and you're all set to walk or gallop into the new world. Traveling at the speed of a click of a mouse, one can interact with other players from across the globe to trade weapons and amulets etc.

Whether they take the form of games, social spaces, or educational environments, virtual worlds are now truly global in scope. The popularity of virtual worlds in Asia is phenomenal. From Thailand and Malaysia to Indonesia and the Philippines, the Asia Pacific region's on-line gaming market generated approximately $1.4 billion in annual revenues last year – a figure that is expected to reach $3.6 billion by the end of the decade. By creating an alternate world online, territorial boundaries disappear and cultures collide, which without regulation, is a sure recipe for controversies.

To give an example, some of the controversies are related to intellectual property, real-money transfer, gaming as political speech, time-limit addiction laws and the policing of Internet cafes. I've experienced people trying to sell their online weapons and armors for real money. So people meet up in malls to trade characters with real money. This is a scam waiting to happen, if it hasn't already. I've also seen a bit of racial profiling where Western players refuse to deal with Chinese players, discriminating them based on language skills.

In short, this area of the internet has so much potential to turn into a truly global civil society, not only is it a gaming world where you kill monsters for experience points, it is an interactive world with real human relations which opens the doors to the free exchange of ideas... or not. For now, I see that regulation is very much needed in order for this new world to flourish and benefit the human race in the long run. Later, I will be blogging on more specific issues relating to the virtual gaming worlds in addition to our assignments. But for now...

LET THE GAMES BEGIN.