internet users in the philippines reach 11.8 m

internet users in the philippines reach 11.8 million last year (2004) according to research firm idc. and according to our own philippine internet commerce society (pics) they are confident that internet users will reach 20 million in 2007. click here to read the news from inq7.net.

how much is that in terms of percentage penetration? estimated 2005 population of the philippines is 84,174,092. taking percentage penetration of 11.8 million to the 2005 estimated population, it's only 14 percent.

but if we take account the data from internet usage world stats particularly the rest of asia, philippines has internet users of only 7.82 million with a percentage penetration of 9.3%. refer to the table below of top 5 asean countries with internet usage penetration.

either one of the two is correct, 11.8 million from idc and pics or the data from internet usage world stats, still internet doesn't really penetrate in most part of the country. and this proves digital divide weight more on non-internet users.

thus internet make a big role in helping boost economy? i think it is, based from the top 24 countries with highest penetration rate, the 24 countries listed are industrialized nations. ict takes a bigger part in boosting economy. and for this, government should act and take more initiative in investing more on ict from training or education to infrastructures.

this is the only way we can compete to the rest of countries.

happy brithday brad tawi

well... just to extend you my warmest greetings in this important day of your life... happy birthday bro!!! ohhh... you have same birthday with vincent van gogh...

my brother with his girlfriend, sandy

new rules on voip set to release

click here to read news from inq7.net.

P8.50 minimum fare

click here to read news from inq7.net.

what is politics?

a little boy goes to his dad and asks, "what is politics?"

dad says, "well son, let me try to explain it this way: i am the head of the family, so call me the president. your mother is the administrator of the money, so we call her the government. we are here to take care of your needs, so we will call you the people. the nanny, we will consider her the working class and your baby brother, we will call him the future. now think about that and see if it makes sense."

so the little boy goes off to bed thinking about what dad has said. later that night, he hears his baby brother crying, so he gets up to check on him. he finds that the baby has severely soiled his diaper. so, the little boy goes to his parent's room and finds his mother sound asleep.

not wanting to wake her, he goes to the nanny's room. finding the door locked, he peeks in the keyhole and sees his father in bed with the nanny.

he gives up and goes back to bed.

the next morning, the little boy says to his father, "dad, i think understand the concept of politics now."

the father says, "good, son, tell me in your own words what you think politics is all about."

the little boy replies, "the president is screwing the working class while the government is sound asleep. the people are being ignored and the future is in deep shit."

quezon province

caught in the net

caught in the net (holy week, quezon province)

a penny apiece

cut a big circle out of a sheet of paper. place seven pennies on the paper circle as follows:

1. place six pennies, evenly spaced, around the outer edge of the circle. label the top penny "a," and the others, "b," "c," "d," "e," and "f," going clockwise around the circle.
2. place one penny in the middle of the circle. Label it "g."

now divide the circle into sections by drawing three straight lines so that there is only one penny in each section.

holy week '05

sampaloc, quezon province

holy week in quezon province

this day (holy thursday) and tomorrow (good friday) will be holiday that means i can sleep all i want and finish "the bear and the dragon" by tom clancy. but i think 4 days of nothing to do will be pretty boring and manila city maybe boring this holy week [lots of people will be going home to their provinces]. also lots and lots of commercial establishments will be closed, so no movies and mall-ing till friday.

to make out of it, i will be with some friends [ome our host and his gf, susan and maybe countless others i don't know] this holy week in quezon province. i wonder if the culture of the people in this place is the same as what i'm accustomed to.

well they promise me to experience some native booze they have their and to go swimming i think in a creek. and also make a side trip they call it mauban to go swimming in a beach.

maybe this will be a different experience for me here, but i do really prefer to go to nasugbu or matabungkay in batangas. nah... maybe next year perhaps.

ciao!!!

the bear and the dragon

time and again, tom clancy's novels have been praised not only for their big-scale drama and propulsive narrative drive, but for their cutting-edge prescience in predicting future events. in the bear and the dragon, the future is very near at hand indeed.

newly elected in his own right, jack ryan has found that being president has gotten no easier. domestic pitfalls await him at every turn, there's a revolution in liberia, the asian economy is going down the tubes, and now, in moscow, someone may have tried to take out the chairman of the svr - the former kgb - with a rocket-propelled grenade. things are unstable enough in russia without high-level assassination, but even more disturbing may be the identities of the assassins. were they political enemies, the russian mafia, disaffected former kgb? or, ryan wonders, is something far more dangerous at work here.

ryan is right. for even while he dispatches his most trusted eyes and ears, including black ops specialist john clark, to find out the truth of the matter, forces in china are moving ahead with a plan of truly audacious proportions. if they succeed, the world as we know it will never look the same. if they fail--the consequences will be unspeakable.

sex benefits

quick quiz: would you rather run 75 miles or have sex three times per week for a year? research shows that both activities burn the same number of calories. (7,500 to be exact).

more and more studies are showing increased emotional and physical benefits from frequent safe sex. listed below are 10 health benefits from sex.

1. sex is a beauty treatment. scientific tests find that when women make love they produce amounts of the hormone estrogen, which makes hair shine and skin smooth.
2. gentle, relaxed lovemaking reduces your chances of suffering dermatitis, skin rashes and blemishes. the sweat produced cleanses the pores and makes your skin glow.
3. lovemaking can burn up those calories you piled on during that romantic dinner.
4. sex is one of the safest sports you can take up. it stretches and tones up just about every muscle in the body. it's more enjoyable than swimming 20 laps, and you don't need special sneakers!
5. sex is an instant cure for mild depression. it releases endorphins into the bloodstream, producing a sense of euphoria and leaving you with a feeling of well-being.
6. the more sex you have, the more you will be offered. the sexually active body gives off greater quantities of chemicals called pheromones. these subtle sex perfumes drive the opposite sex crazy!
7. sex is the safest tranquilizer in the world. it is 10 times more effective than valium.
8. kissing each day will keep the dentist away. kissing encourages saliva to wash food from the teeth and lowers the level of the acid that causes decay, preventing plaque build-up.
9. sex actually relieves headaches. a lovemaking session can release the tension that restricts blood vessels in the brain.
10. a lot of lovemaking can unblock a stuffy nose. sex is a natural antihistamine. it can help combat asthma and hay fever.

panaad

nothing to do this holy week? if your not tight with financial, why not explore camiguin island this holy week and experience the different observance of holy week in the pear shape island. aside from the vast sceneries you can see in the island you can also enjoy the hospitability of the camiguingnons [which offer free juice, coffee, buko and lunch]. experience what panaad well bring to your life in the whole year when you finish it.

panaad is simply from visayan dialect "saad" meaning a vow, its is a catholic devotion, practiced annually [every holy week] in camiguin island. it isn't a passion of christ scence but simply a vow to walk in the entire island.

devotees keep their vow to be with the Christ in His suffering by walking the entire 64-kilometer stretch of camiguin's circumferential road mostly on holy thursday and good friday, followed by an arduous uphill trek to the crater of extinct mt. volcan. depending in your vigor, strength and will, you can finish the entire 64+ kilometer within 1 to 1.5 days.

the side trip to mt. volcan or station of the cross is an act of penitence. here you can see life size statues of the 14 stations of the cross from Jesus is condemn to death to His ressurection. from the top most of the stations, you can see here the great cross which a symbol of the sunken cemetery which sunk when mt. volcan erupts in 1871. and not far from the sunken cemetery an old church [ruins of gulob church] can be seen.

it's a promise you will experience a different you spiritually when you finish your vow, don't mind the aches and fatigue [you can washed it if you will make a side trip at ardent hot spring]. no wonder their are lots of people making this vow annually.

and with this message of salvation, devotees swear they have found a renewed sense of spirituality every year, on their own piece of heaven here on earth in the island-paradise called camiguin.

divorce

divorce in the philippines, a possible? a certain representative of gabriela women's party proposed a divorce law [hb4016] known as "pinoy-style" divorce.

the family code of the philippines provides for a legal separation or annulment, due to "psychological incapacity", of a marriage, but not divorce.

under current law, legal separation does not nullify the couple’s marriage and neither can they remarry.

an annulment allows a separated couple to remarry but it has stringent requirements, is costly and takes a long time before it can be granted.

an annulment can be used to void marriages if both husband and wife decide to separate ways for a vast of complex reasons. the annulment law is so complex and very very expensive. thus many filipinos are resolving their separation in their own ways not on legal means.

the catholic church is the very first to opposed the divorce bill, regarding it as "anti-women". but their are lots of womens group in our country points that the catholic church's view on divorce is outdated and out of step with the realities of life in the 21st century.

their are also lots of catholic nation [chile, ireland and spain] who are already legalizing divorce. last year chile, after a bitter eight year fight by the catholic church, managed to overturn a 120-year-old ban on divorce. ireland, another staunch catholic nation, legalised divorce in 1997 while spain managed to change its law in 1981.

legal annulments are very costly and women who can afford it go down that road. the range of cost for filing one is between php50,000 to php100,000 and on top of that, you have the expensive psychologist reports.

but this is not an avenue open to the vast majority of people in the Philippines because they simply do not have the money.

whether this bill succeeds or not, there will be others. The point is divorce is still a work in progress in this country.

new sun cellular 24/7 service

a new unlimited text plan is added to 24/7 services of sun cellular. with these new plan added, customers now have more choices to suit their needs. with 24/7 call and text unlimited you can enjoy unlimited local sun to sun call and texts while with the new 24/7 text unlimited you can enjoy unlimited local sun to sun texts anytime and anywhere.

for php150 sun cellular subscribers will enjoy the new 24/7 text unlimited service for one month and php50 for seven days.

although sun cellular raises its rates for the call and text unlimited plans in a bid to recover investments, its still the best choice ever with smart and globe joining the unlimited party. globe telecom through touch mobile brand offer todo tawag text and smart offers 258 promo [riding over sun cellular’s 24/7]. with these unlimited services from 3 different operators, customers can now compare whose services is better for them.

the new price for the 30 days call and text unlimited will be php350 from its current php250 per month and the php100 call and text unlimited will be cut to seven days from a previous 10 days.

so now that globe telecoms and smart communications join the party, sun cellular maybe is not in position for the unlimited throne. i will post any other day the different price scheme of the 3 networks of which will give the best price for the unlimited party.

for more information about the new 24/7 text unlimited and other call and text unlimited services click here.

connecting the unconnected

thanks to the emerging market handset (emh) program launched by the gsma [or gsm association], a brand new ultra-low cost mobile phone will be soon available to our poor countrymen. the price is roughly php2,200.00 (or us$40.00).

telecommunications for now is considered as one of the basic needs for all. but due to the highly priced handset, majority of the populations in most of the developing countries don’t have access to it. with this emh program it will help not only the masses in our country but to all developing countries.

this program was launched to extend the benefits of telecommunications to low income groups in the different regions like thailand, india, philippines, bangladesh, kazakhstan, pakistan, russia, ukraine, africa, middle east and turkey.

according to the gsma, in 80% of the world’s population with wireless coverage, only 20% uses the mobile services. from their own research, they identified the handset cost as the biggest barrier to mobile communications affordability in emerging markets. the objective is to produced the first low cost phones [at us$40.00] and paving the way to produced the new ultra-low cost phones at us$30.00 [php 1,650.00].

the motorola company [which bested the other 17 handset manufacturers] is tasked to mass produced and supply the [motorola c114] phone for the emh program. although, there’s no picture and specifications yet of the motorola c114, you can view a picture of the motorola c117 in gsma emh program website. if this is not actually the design of the c114 maybe their will be a slight difference.

shipments of the ultra-lo cost mobile phones are targeted at second quarter with an initial 6 million handsets for the first six months. the handsets will be offered by the networks with whom the gsma originally partnered. however, the organization hopes to bring other, similar operators on board to help boost volumes and lower costs sufficiently to bring down the handset's cost to us$30.

sony ericsson w800i

sony ericsson enters the mobile music market with the announcement of the w800i, the first walkman mobile phone. it will now be possible to listen to music, handle phone calls and take great pictures and video, all in one device and with no compromise on quality. the sony ericsson w800i is the first product to combine a mobile phone with, a high quality digital music player.

the w800i comes with quality stereo headphones and it is compatible with industry mp3 and aac music file formats. the storage capacity is also good as the supplied 512mb memory stick dou provides capacity around 150 music tracks. the supplied disk2phone software enables the quick and convenient transfer of music cds onto the phone via a pc.

the w800i’s intuitive interface makes it a breeze to use the music player and the functionality of the phone, music player and camera are carefully integrated. when listening to music, incoming calls ring trough the stereo headphones. if the user chooses to take a call the music is paused for a call. the player and phone can be used independently of each other [the user can switch the phone off for a plane journey or for a long trip while still enjoying the music player]. Or you can enjoy the fm radio, aside from the music player.

sony ericsson claims that its battery life lasts for up to 15 hours if the phone is switched on or up to 30 hours if it isn’t. although weighing in at less 100g, the w800i also offers a 2 megapixel camera complete with autofocus, picture light, active lens cover and digital still camera interface, so great photos can be taken in a variety of conditions.

The new w800i can be describe as an evolution of sony ericsson t630. the w800i will also be available with w800c in china. For a complete list of the specification click here and for t630 and k700i comparison click here.

nothing much...

yeah... nothin' much today... but i just wanna thanks yammie and fred sanchez for linking my blogspot in their blogsites... thanks to you guys... no work today and tommorrow, that makes life boring at weekends... but i do think work will be busy next week because of the new promo of smart communications.

anyway, maybe i can finish reading the two national geographic old issues i bought last week this weekend and at least read half of the jack ryan series by tom clancy [the bear and the dragon].

and also, i fogot to thanks my brother... thanks for the solution, my answer in the volume is correct while i do have quiet miscalculated the surface area [thanks kaayo brad...].

until next week......... see yah........ ciao!(",)

cassava poisoning

27 students in mabini, bohol died and more than 60 are in the hospital after eating fried cassava with caramelized sugar [cyanide eyed in bohol poisoning]. the students suffered major stomach cramps and vomiting a lot after eating the said cassava native delicacies. state of calamity is decalred in the stricken area.

cassava or balanghoy/bulanghoy [in visayan dialect] or kamoteng kahoy [in tagalog] is the third most important food in tropical countries. mostly widely grown in all agricultural lands in our country because it doesn’t need as much attention as any other rootcrops. in fact it can grow well even in poor soils and needs relatively little water to survive.

its economical value cannot be disregard aside from being considered as staple food during lean and typhoon months. cassava can be processed into starch, noodles, seasoning and sweets. it is also used as a substitute in the processing of animal food. it can also be made into pellets, chips and pearl. the chips can be used for alcohol production. it is also now used to produce biodegradable plastics and some medical, horticultural and sporting good products.

it’s not actually new to me that cassava can be a poisonous plant. when i was a just a kid, two of my friends died because of eating [grilled] not to well cooked cassava. since that, my mother remind not to eat grilled cassava and if we buy cassava native delicacies to check if its well done. and it’s good if its overly cooked she said.

i didn’t know then why cassava could be poisonous, not until today. this is not actually taught in school not even in our chemistry class.

cassava roots and leaves of poorly processed cassava plants contain a substance that, when eaten, can trigger the production of cyanide. an unprocessed cassava plant contains potentially toxic levels of cyanogens called linamarin. actually cassava contains two cyanogens substance, the other one is lotaustralin. since linamarin accounts more percentage of 80%, linamarin is susceptible to be more toxic.

linamarin protects cassava from being eaten by insects or animals. cassava leaves contains more linamarin than roots. this cyanogens substance is important in the transport of nitrogen from cassava leaves to its roots in young plants. so linamarin is transported from the leaves to the roots early in a plant’s life which makes also the roots to contain the cyanogens substance.

the proper processing of cassava – drying, soaking in water, rinsing or baking – effectively reduces casssava’s linamarin content. cyanide forms when cassava is processed. but the toxin is volatile and is released into the air, rather than remaining in the food. correct processing methods ensure that the cyanogens content in cassava plants will be within acceptable range.

linamarin is converted to cyanide when eaten, it has been reported that linamarin is enzymatically converted to cyanide by bacteria in the intestine, and this is absorbed into the blood and then damages neural cells which results death.

but the human body has a natural ability to detoxify small quantities of cyanide, and there is normally a small amount of cyanide and its breakdown products in the body as a result of everyday activities. these activities may include the metabolism of vitamin b12, eating foods naturally containing cyanide (lima beans, coffee, cassava and table salt), exposure to automobile exhaust and smoking cigarettes. in some form, we are exposed to low levels of natural and manmade cyanide everyday without direct major risk to our health.

unemployment!!!

this is the first word that hit me when i read today’s headline of manila bulletin [3 m student graduating]. of the 3 million graduates this year, 437,000 will be from college[not counting the technical-vocational graduates estimated at 800,000 this year].

wow! another million of newly graduates will be added to 5 million unemployed filipinos.

comparing with other regions, ours is the highest which stood almost at 12%. thailand and malaysia tend to drop theirs while ours continue to rise at a significant rate.

of course there are lots of factors involve, from, to economy, to government initiatives, to research development and others that tend to become a domino effect of problems.

whew!!! what a problem…

my 1st blog

now at last i have my own blog site. now i can post and let others read my angst, views and other commentaries or whatever come to my tiny brain. special thanks to yammie girl [thanks yammie girl!]. just extend my regards to faye. also thanks for the pictures [i just have time lately to reminisce the honor of having u my two beautiful angels]. wait for my other post next time. hehehehehe…. ciao(",)