Live Video Stream form the “No To Con-Ass” Rally in Ayala

To put the proposed Live Streaming via Mobile Phone technology to a test, I’ll be broadcasting a LIVE video stream from Ayala Avenue today (this afternoon) at around 5:00 P.M. or thereabouts (I’ll either Tweet or Plurk about it when we start so follow me via Twitter or Plurk already). Video will stream on the screen below (replacing the place holder video) so stay tuned!

Will Smart’s HSDPA signal deliver? Will my battery last long enough? Will the sound be audible? Let’s know firsthand, later today.

We’ll see you on the streets of Ayala! No to Con-Ass!

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Broadcasting Live Mobile Video Streams during the 2010 Elections

There’s this technology that I’ve seen AJ Matela do several times during events: broadcast a live video stream using only his mobile phone. It is this great development on mobile technology that actually inspired this plurk (sorry, my plurk timeline is currently set to private and for contacts only):

My excitement level in sharing the idea ate some grammar and coherence right there but you get the drift, right? What the more than 100 comments that plurk generated in less than an hour did prove that everyone got fired up by either buying, enhancing, testing by contradicting, or raising concerns over the idea.

Simply put, we can harness the technology available to almost all 3G-network (3G capable) mobile phone user in the country if it is utilized to transmit a live broadcast/video feed from the precincts (in real time) during the May 2010 election period. The video streams are subsequently archived in uStream should there be a need to pull out a reference (in the event that concerns are raised versus the propriety of the vote tally, for one). Brilliant, yes, but how do we go about doing the streaming/transmission? Good thing AJ himself shared his wisdom with the following replies in that same plurk (posted above):

I use both Ustream.tv and Qik.com. You can download (the software from Qik.com) direct into your phone or via the internet. The software (for both Ustream and Qik) may or may not be available for your phone (they have a list of compatible phones). With Qik, you can sync it with your Twitter (bleck) account so it will tweet automatically as you start streaming. You can sync Qik with your: Twitter, Blogger, Tumblr, and even your WordPress blog! Both Ustream and Qik can also be synced with your Facebook account. Gusto niyo ng live seminar-workshop on Mobile Livestreaming? hehe

Exciting, yes? If this info is disseminated to everybody, think about what each of us can potentially contribute to meeting the objective of seeing to it that we don’t get robbed of our votes. The possibility of a broadcaster lurking somewhere in the precinct area should keep cheats on their toes.

Of course, if the full automation/computerization of votes do happen, there’s no more canvassing (the manual tally/count) to broadcast but I’m sure we can think of something worthwhile to use this technology on during the count.

The first step to making this idea known is via this blog. We will need all the help we can get if we want to make things happen so please do not hesitate to spread the word to people who may be interested to help. We’ll also be taking this matter up later today (Saturday) with the PPCRV (wish us luck!).

Do stay tuned for future developments regarding this initiative.

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“Walk the Green Mile” and Ipanema’s latest Gisele Bündchen line

For the women, buy any one from Ipanema’s Gisele Bündchen (GB) Seeds line of flip-flops or sandals and you automatically get the chance to actually do the environment some good. See photos below from the GB Seeds line launch to get a feel of how durable and attractive these slippers and sandals are. I mean, those ballerinas did dance and jump using them, right? If that’s too lame an excuse, IMHO those sandals would look mighty good on women’s feet. Take a look at them. (more…)

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Run for the Environment on December 6!

Unlike other marathons where you should pay to be registered and join, for this race, all you have to do is recycle your old and useless (read: brokenated LOL) mobile phones, chargers, or batteries and you’re in! I’ve several lying around and I don’t know where to throw it in. Or who to throw it at. If like me, you’ve had several of your phones stolen and the accessories that came with it, lying around in your bedroom, does nothing but give you nostalgia of the sad sad occurence and contribute to your clutter, then it’s time to throw those bad vibes away and move on. Or, should I say, run along. I know several who can relate to this stigma. Drama mode much?

Moving on.

Save the date: 

“Be part of Recycle Your Phone and Run on December 6, 2008 at the Bonifacio Global City. Just drop your old phones, patteries, chargers or accessories of any brand in the bins provided onsite to participate. The registration for this 3k and 5k run begins at 5:00am. Simply go to the booth located at 9th Street near the NBC Tent.

The event serves to kick of Nokia‘s E-cycling campaign. For every kilo of raw meterials collected, Nokia will make a donation to Bantay Kalikasan for the continued rehabilitation of the La Mesa Watershed.”

Besides, running is a real good exercise. Let’s do this!

Click on the image above for a larger view.

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An Epiphany and an Advocacy

Life would be so much easier if I were to hold office somewhere north rather than the Makati CBD. The realization came when I rode the MRT at around 8 this morning on my way to the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKI) office along East Avenue in QC. I was pre-conditioned for a chaotic ride but got to sit the moment I boarded a random train car. No kidding! This being a first in my long history of riding the MRT, the convenience somewhat made the day lighter.

The rest of my Thursday morning only went better when I finally got to the NKI and played kuya to several kids at the Kythe Center in the Outpatient Building of the compound. One great thing about this experience, which feels totally new each time I visit a Kythe Center, is we start off as strangers to these children during the getting-to-know-your-new-ate-and-kuya phase and once we start doing an activity together, we bond with the children so fast that I find myself thinking, shit, I wish I could spend some more time with them. Seriously.

One kid, Christian he said his name was, was there to accompany his sister who was undergoing treatment. At first I thought he was the shy patient because he was not as interactive as the others. He got a coloring page with Ben 10 characters on it and went to give their skins a liberal coating of brown.

"Pinoy ba yang mga yan, G-Boy?"

"Christian!"

"Anong Christian?"

"Pangalan ko, Christian! Hindi G-Boy!"

"Eh! Sabi nitong kasama mo..."

"Hindi nya alam pangalan ko, imbento!"

LOL

Turns out, he skipped school this once to be with his patient/sister, who during the time of introduction was already with the doctor undergoing routine medical check-up. 

After coloring, I took out several reams of colored paper and handed them to all the kids and volunteers for the next activity: Origami. We all made a Samurai Warrior’s Helmet (if you wish to replicate this activity, bring newspapers because the colored paper we had resulted to a “helmet” so small, it made us all look stupid when we wore them during the photo session that followed). Afterwards, some kids heard stories from other volunteers. Others were called in for their turn at a check-up. Several took to coloring, again. I was getting uneasy, sensing that some of them are already getting bored and restless. 

Then, an idea hit me!

“BA and Christian, I’ll teach you how to take photos… and videos!”

Icing on the cake! I bet it was the most radical tutorial those kids ever got from a seasonal volunteer. Just look at that smile on the kid’s face. I can’t show the photos I got of all the children here because that would require premission from their parents. A little respect goes a long way.

Much later, I listened to the children let out a hearty laugh while they were previewing the video I took of them taking photos of each other. Hearing their simultaneous outbursts of joy validated why I was there that day, when three hours before that time, I could hardly draw out a decent reply from them with my questions. 

This kind of experience never fail to make me want to come back each time.

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Fake Adidas Pilipinas track jackets from the Internet

The Philippine-Flag-design inspired Adidas Track Jacket has been decommissioned for a reason so it came as a great surprise when ads on sulit.com and several other similar sites came out of this one seller offering a number (with sizes, mind you) going for the same hefty price tag. What? No mark-up considering its rarity? Hmmm…. somthing’s amis.

Would you pay P4,500.00 for a jacket that you find upon close inspection to be fake? What if I didn’t know how to tell the difference? What if I hadn’t tried wearing an original once before? What if I was too excited to pay close attention?

Irvin and I were supposed to get two, one for each of us, from this dude who for this post we’ll name “Koya.” In August, while Irvin is in the US, he requested his friend (uuuuuy!) Samie to get in touch with me so we both can meet up with this Koya character to bind the purchase. I was exited because I wanted to get one badly for the longest time. It was a good thing that Koya was confident enough to let me eye the merchandise before making me pay for them. Originally, the seller wanted to meet me along the Enterprise walkway at 6PM, a busy time on a not-so-well-lit place. I objected because not only would I like to see the jacket, I also wanted to try it on. After some more haggling via SMS, we agreed to reset the meet at an earlier different date. 

We met a day prior that of the original rendezvous at the ground floor of his work place in one of the buildings along Ayala. The moment I took the jacket out of it’s plastic covering, it already felt wrong. I tried it on, looked at my reflection from the mirror-like outer finish of the ground floor elevator door (LOLOLOLOLOL, I mentioned elevator), and saw a ghastly formed jacket nobody in their right mind would pay P500 for.

It felt cheap.

I told Koya my observation which he naturally defended. He said his supplier also claimed its authenticity and that we were all “victims” in this. 

I told Koya I’m sorry but I won’t get one. Samie, on the other hand, said she’ll take Irvin’s despite all of this because they had already been paid in advance, fearing that she can’t anymore demand for a refund. The next day, after finding out what happened, Irvin contacted Koya saying he will be sending Samie over to return the jacket and that he will be asking for his money back. Koya obliged knowing full well that a lot of people would still kill to get one, anyway.

We nearly got conned and as vengeance, here are photos showing details of the fake jacket. I took these before Samie returned what she got for Irvin.

It’s payback time (insert evil laugh here). We all should not patronize this way of doing business. As your reference, here are clear photos of the fake marchandise for you to look at. Buying them will probably make you want to kick yourself in the face because they are not worth the price tag of the original.

Read Irvin’s post regarding his experience here (with actual links where the fakes are being sold on the internet. SURE WIN!!!).

Please spread the word. Be warned. Don’t get conned!

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