Journals
Tuesday,Oct 2 2007, 08:00:13 AMYES! THE FILIPINO CAN
MICROSOFT TRIED out and liked an open source software technology developed by a Filipino company - D3 Systems Inc. The software, Yeh Ba*, is an instant messaging and short messaging system (SMS) service that will be fitted in to Microsoft Outlook to interact with users with mobile phone users using instant messaging or SMS and vice versa, according to Roger Delgado, vice president for technical operations of D3.
Bill Hiff, general manager for platform strategy of Microsoft from their Richmond, Washington headquarters, visited recently the Philippines last June to look to forging deals with local software companies that are using open source technologies to develop applications for the Windows platform in an effort to strengthen ties with the “open source community” and inked the deal with D3 Systems Inc. instead.
Wilfredo de la Cruz, president of D3 Systems, said the deal between D3 and Microsoft involves no direct investment from both companies and revenues will be generated through Microsoft's use of the company's “system gateway”.
Yeh Ba* works on other existing instant mobile messaging platforms currently in use in the market and is being tested upon at the National Computer Center laboratories and D3 had been actively looking for partners outside the Philippines. It has been downloaded and used in countries like India, Bangladesh and Brunei a month after the software was made available on the Internet last December 2005.
Document done in OpenOffice 2.1 Writer, Trebuchet MS, font size 12.
Tuesday,Sep 18 2007, 01:30:55 AMYES! CEBU'S INMATES CAN DANCE!
INMATES HAVE BEEN, in the past, associated with prison riots, daring break-outs and mass jailbreaks; but here in Cebu, the Philippines, inmates have not been giving headaches to their jail guards lately. In fact, they gave their guardians a perfect sense of security by being "good" inmates, in the most literal sense of the word, in a province-owned and operated prison facility that is the CPDRC or the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center, which is located in the hills of Barangay Kalunasan in Cebu City. Jail wardens of other prison facilities must be green with envy of why CPDRC was able to achieve such relative penal peace with regards to managing their "boarders". Just an out-of-the-box creativity and artistry, a little freedom of movement and some incentive package have made our Cebuano inmates famous when it was featured in the Internet showing them in a mass workout of dancing artistry that is way beyond their toughie character and macho image. Their videos were the most watched when it was featured at YouTube recently and you would not miss it for it is highlighted in ORANGE with a white letter P at the back. So enjoy it while you can: THRILLER RADIO GA GA JUMBO HOTDOG ALGORITHM MARCH Believe you me, I once worked as a jail guard of CPDRC when it was located yet at M.J. Cuenco Avenue, also in Cebu City. From February 1989 up to September 1990 I cradled a Winchester 12-gauge shotgun walking my rounds on the prison wall's catwalks from tower guardhouse to tower guardhouse, be it day, night or graveyard shift. There was a shaky truce then between us and the inmates then who were greatly politicized and influenced by inmates who have criminal cases against the state, particularly of subversion and of rebellion, and aggravated, by the fact, that they were detained in an old facility good for 250 inmates when their total population then was swelling to about 1,500. Thanks to that newer, bigger and more modern facility at Kalunasan, CPDRC administration are experiencing better days ahead. Even the good reviews at YouTube. What will their next dance move be?
Document done in AbiWord 2.4, Trebuchet MS font, size 12.
Wednesday,Aug 1 2007, 03:39:24 AMMOUNT MANUNGGAL: An Epitome of an Ailing Mother
I have climbed Mount Manunggal six times. First on September 26, 1992. The last on July 14, 2005. While climbing Manunggal is very hard as it is quite steep, what made it harder is it has no forest cover along its trail. Deforestation is quite obvious as lands which used to abound with forests are now utilized to grow ginger, garlic, onions, cabbage, eggplants, etc., etc. They say that this part of the area is called the Central Cebu National Park, but, I say, it is the Central Cebu National Farm. Slash-and-burn farming left its mark on the earth as stumps of burnt-out trees are left like tombstones to remind as of man's indifference to his environment.
As always, we start down from Tagba-o in Barangay Tabunan, where we crossed a river that divides Cebu City from the town of Balamban whence Mt. Manunggal is a part of. From the river it was steep climbing all the way. Although Manunggal is only 3,009 feet above sea level, my club, the Cebu Mountaineering Society (CeMS), considered and rated it to be a major climb. The heat of the sun made it harder for want of trees and the trail is slippery and wet caused by the ever-present dew brought in by fogs. With a heavy backpack you can negotiate Manunggal from the river up to the campsite in about four to seven hours, depending upon your physical fitness and area familiarity. Returning to Tagba-o is quite easy: you could walk or run downhill (provided you have strong and arthritic-free knees) and with a lighter pack it's over in two hours. In all, Manunggal is a good training site to prepare for harder major climbs outside Cebu.
Mount Manunggal is known for being the crash site of the presidential plane, Pinatubo, which crashed on its shoulder killing instantly the dear President Ramon Magsaysay and eighteen others on March 17, 1957. A monument honoring Pres. Magsaysay stands at the crash site, which, incidentally, is the present main camping area for mountaineers. A shrine was also made to house the relic of the Pinatubo – the plane's main engine block. Later, a chapel was built by the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) for their outreach project. One good reason why Manunggal is attractive to climbers is the presence of a very cool spring which never falters in water volume, come drought or El Niño.
On my second climb on March 1993, many mountaineers converged there on the occasion of Pres. Magsaysay's death anniversary and I felt in high spirits due to a show of solidarity and presence of the same kindred souls like I do. I got to know and made friends with climbers from other clubs. We lit a big bonfire as different groups presented different entertainment presentations. It was very memorable.
A year later, we climbed Manunggal in the dead of night knowing that by day the trails will be full of people and very muddy and slippery caused by too many stomping feet. Familiarity with the trails of Manunggal had given us an advantage in doing a night trek. But by day, we observed, too many people had climbed up and many people are still coming. It was an unusual crowd and an air of a fiesta lent the air as people not belonging to any mountaineering group began to destroy vegetation they see, throwing at will plastic and other garbage around. What made it worse is that a lot of plastic were carried off by the breeze and scattered in different directions! I saw many hogs, goats and hens being brought up to be slaughtered later, but, one pig I saw escaped from its leash and ran downhill so fast leaving its caretakers stumbling in its wake. Amused but disgusted at the same time, we folded our tents after lunch and went downhill for home to protest against the organizers who were promoting that year's climb. Never again that I and CeMS would participate in any activity that would destroy or neglect the beauty of our mountains.
All my other climbs at Manunggal were done not on the occasion of the Pres. Magsaysay death anniversary anymore and, once, on December 27, 1995 I made a solo ascent there and I felt peace with myself and the world. My last climb was with a group of unarmed policemen on training. We started from the trans-central highway in Barangay Gaas, Balamban where we passed by Pingis waterfall, then a boulder-filled river before climbing up. I saw now a different Manunggal. The monument, the relic and the chapel are still there, but, they have “neighbors” now. Shanties have sprouted selling their wares. The ever-flowing spring is now boxed inside a concrete and water pipes protrude like an octopus' arms to irrigate the farms below. Oh, a row of outhouses are built near the spring. Too many structures built have despoiled the sanctity that is Manunggal. On the other side of the mountain's shoulder, a DENR (Department of Natural & Environment Resources) station, a visitor's lodge and several huts were erected for purposes of maintaining the government's reforestation project and to house VIPs every time the commemoration of Pres. Magsaysay's death is held every year. It is also that time the mountain's ecosystem croaked and groaned through many agonizing moments as a sheer number of ecologically-ignorant people converge to make fun of the environment leaving piles of uncollected garbage and bending and distorting every blade of grass or leaf and branch. A road now connects Mount Manunggal (making it more accessible to these kind of people) from the trans-central highway and it is all of twelve kilometers or so in length, one-third of which is concreted. We exited through this road and I bade goodbye to my dear old Mount Manunggal one last time praying that the government's reforestation effort would cover all of the unabated intrusions, the shameless activities and unrestricted development that we have effected upon one of the homes of the rare and endemic bird – the Cebu flowerpecker.
Nearby is Mount Mauyog, almost equal or higher in altitude, but still unspoilt. Very few have camped there and that will be my future camping destination. On my way to Mauyog I will pass by Manunggal and, maybe, give her a kiss accorded to that of a mother. An ailing mother. I will be still around to watch over her concerns and complaints and give her a voice for all the world to hear.
Epilogue:
Yet despite man's indifference towards his environment there is always a thin ray of light that gives hope to protect the environment from wanton exploitation and nerve-numbing development. A few voices will start that fire and ignites them into something productive. It takes only a few bold steps to make it roll against a brick wall of dissenr coming from people having interests in that area of concern. I salute the Honorable Eduardo R. Gullas, Cebu 1st District Representative, for doing something to protect our watershed (of which Mount Manunggal is part of) by sponsoring a bill known as the “Central Cebu Protected Landscape” in the Philippine House of Congress which was then enacted into a law. It shall now be unlawful to develop Cebu's watershed area composing the Central Cebu National Park, the Sudlon National Park, the Kotkot-Lusaran-Mananga river system, the Buhisan, Mananga and Lusaran watershed. Although it doesn't bar people from coming to an fro in sheer numbers that create an ecological impact on Cebu's mountain areas, especially in the Central Cebu Mountain Range, but it does put a stop to all those development that is now starting at its fringes. At least, in this lifetime I lived to see something that ensures the survival of our children and their children's children.
This author writes a blog for mountaineering at Cebu Mountaineering Society website and at RiversideCROSSings.
This document is done in OpenOffice 2.1 Writer using Trebuchet MS font with size #12.
Monday,Jul 2 2007, 04:00:14 AMBE AN ADVOCATE OF A GUNLESS SOCIETY!
It is once said in the 19th century: that the gunpowder is the devil's most destructive invention ever and that guns were the offspring of this vile instrument of death. Ever since Samuel Colt created and mass-produced the first sophisticated weapon in the world in 1860, there had been far more many mortalities of humans and animals alike in a short span of roughly a hundred and fifty years when modern guns, cannons, bombs and similar contraptions were used than those that happened in and around 2,000 years of human aggression history. It tamed the wild West, participated in two world wars and aided in numerous pockets of conflict and ethnic cleansing. Surely, you wouldn't feel secure having people around you toting guns, would you? And, conversely, you do feel secure having a gun with you, don't you?. What for? Protection? Or empowerment of your ego? Human nature, whether we like it or not, are prone to fits of aggression and that impulsive behavior associated with the greed for more power, territory and domination. Guns are a commodity which everyone has access to nowadays provided you have the moolah to procure one. In the process, every one individual is assumed to own a gun, legit or not, it doesn't matter at all how they use it for their own benefit or ends. Society has never been so unsafe as before and the authorities, with prodding from middlemen and from gun lobbyists, have tolerated the proliferation of controlled and loose firearms in the guise of the constitutional “right to bear arms” (as if we lived in a medieval age) and for profit. Big profits, of course!
You don't need special skills now how to blow away to smithereens your perceived enemy. Hide behind a corner, just close one eye and squeeze the trigger. Effortless. Clean. Masterful. Forget the sound effects and ignore the stench of burnt cordite. It comes with the package. If you miss once, you have five or more chances and, surely, your prey could not outrun the ballistics you let loose at 400 feet per second? You liked it the first time and you crave for more. More blood, that is. Go make an enemy of your wife, your mother-in-law or your school teacher or whomever you think is a threat. Choose your targets well. Master your firing position. I just could not imagine, in the end, your bullet will come back full circle at you as you take aim at your own mouth in a fit of self-annihilation. Well, it happened at Columbine High. At Virginia Tech. In the Middle East, they do it much grander and with more public participation. By dying as “martyrs” with bombs strapped to them.
Legitimate gun owners have been carping about gun ethics and responsible ownership. Rubbish. Ethics apply only to them as they see fit that benefited them – as a tool to skip around gun-control laws. I don't see any reason perfecting your craft for years just by shooting at cardboard targets that don't shoot back. Obviously, behind that hobby of a pistol-shooting enthusiast, is a primeval instinct of aggression that is veiled and unharnessed yet, but, in due time, as opportunity would permit, would use that honed skill against a hostile adversary in a traffic snarl or against an unwelcome intruder of property or home. The urge for the first kill is first and foremost of every gun holder's mind.
Firearms or guns, if by chance be allowed of use to, should be limited only to those who composed the tactical units of the police and the military and should be strictly monitored and accounted for. Not only that, they should pass regular and strict neuro-psychiatric tests and other behavioral evaluations. In this way, it is understood that these individuals are highly-trained and competent in the use of guns and its derivatives and, therefore, will give the assurance that they are fit to carry weapons. Private individuals who opted to pursue the privilege of possessing licensed firearms should be screened tightly and strictly, limited to possess only short firearms of a firepower not exceeding caliber .32 (Magnum .22 is not included) and inside residences only for a period of one (1) year. He or she has the option to re-apply. The permit to carry guns outside residence should be discouraged and rebuked. Criteria for issuance of gun permits should be evaluated to the following: threats to life, retired military or police personnel, personal or VIP security personnel, corporate and bank security, local executives tasked to enforce the laws and to those persons who administer areas or territories which have no assigned police or military personnel. Special transit permits is accorded to those who comprise the national shooting team and legitimate gun club members. It is important to note that private vehicles should not be made as an extension of one's home which many gun holders have found it convenient as loopholes against gun control statutes. Collection of guns as a hobby should be considered unlawful despite being defanged of firing pins and other mechanisms and it is not advisable either to display guns in a museum or the like for it promotes a culture of violence. Ditto with staging of gun shows.
Bearing firearms is not a right but a privilege that can be stripped of anytime.
It is interesting to note that here in the Philippines, one man has the courage to advocate for a Gunless Society despite the sheer number of oppositors and the threats he received while waging this unpopular campaign. He is Nandy Pacheco. I never met him but I heard of him. I only lent and add my voice to his, hoping some of us can make a difference with the advocacy of a gunless society in this gun-crazy country.
And lastly, “There's no honor killing people using guns. It's a cowardly thing.” (from the movie, The Hunted).
Friday,Jun 8 2007, 11:46:27 AMA COPY OF MY LETTER TO ATTY. ALONSO
June 6, 2007
ATTY TOMAS V ALONSO
Brotherhood of Christian Businessmen and Professionals
Central Cebu Chapter
Cebu City
Sir:
Remember my previous email where you were not able to open an attached document having a “.odt” extension? Well, in your computer's case, it is unsupported, and you have to install a software called OpenOffice which is quite compatible with Microsoft Office or Windows. The beautiful thing about OpenOffice is – it is free! Developed by Sun Microsystems as an office application suite, OpenOffice version 2.2 could be accessed and downloaded freely from http://openoffice.org and from there you could install all its mere 111 Mb size in your workstation PC or laptop drive C. But the good thing about the documents made from OpenOffice is it is light on your “work disk space” and, thus, compensate for what space you surrendered to accommodate it in your system. For example: A one page document done in MS Word would create around 24-31 Kb but with Ooo Writer you could only create about 11-13 Kb of space; for two pages it would be about 45 Kb as against around 18 Kb; and so on, with the space-saving trend favoring “*.odt” documents. Ditto with the spreadsheets – MS Excel (.xls) as against Ooo Calc (.ods). May I explain this graphically. I downloaded the Book of Psalms from Claretian Publications having a size of 512 Kb but when I converted it to an OpenOffice document I was able to downsize it to 123 Kb, thus, saving me 389 Kb of disk space for other uses.
Another feature which OpenOffice is very useful with is it's very rapid flexibility to convert to Microsoft and Adobe documents. Just click on the “SAVE AS” option on the FILE menu and you can change a “.odt” and a “.ods” into a “.doc” and a “.xls” or both into a “.pdf” file. Vice versa, you could convert Microsoft into an OpenOffice document by right-clicking the document icon where a window will pop up and choose the "Open with" options and click OpenOffice.org..
Why I am telling you this? It's because I am advocating for the spreading of free and open source software (FOSS) use. Downloading. installing, copying and re-distributing of open source softwares are encouraged without the hassles of copyright infringements that are quite common with commercial softwares. Microsoft Windows might be a good operating system and very user friendly but prone to frequent system crashes and virus attack and quite expensive to install and maintain. With the advent of FOSS I was able to look somewhere else and able to choose this freeware which was not possible to me, 4 or 5 years ago. Here in Kerygma Books & Hymns, I do all office documentations in an OpenOffice environment and, hopefully, for the next month or so, I would switch from Windows to either Ubuntu Linux or Solaris 10. Definitely, FOSS is a good alternative to third-world country users, like the Philippines and quite so. May God bless you!
-Jing
