by: Vincent Ryan Ong

How do you see yourself in 15 years? What is your goal in life? The most common answer to these questions is “success”. From the moment I learned the word, it has been on top of my wish list. But how does one measure success? I, for one, have my own perception and gauge of success. However, that only applies to me. Different people have differing views and concepts of success. I might consider myself successful if I am earning more or less Php 50,000.00 a month, but that would not be the case with other people. Php 50,000.00 might only be pocket change for them.

Have you ever wondered what success really is? You might concede to the fact that that is something which only needs a person’s common sense, but without meditating on it, you would surely have a hard time explaining it. I have tried to capture its essence and this is my meditation.

At first glance, there seems to exists only 2 kinds of human beings in this world: The successful and the unsuccessful. But I want to look deeper at the scenario. Is it necessary for “unsuccessful” to coexist with “successful”? I have then realized that this is only a matter of one’s personality. If I am to assume the optimistic role, I would see success in every action and outcome of everything. I might get 2 out of 100 in a test and still consider myself successful for learning a valuable lesson. On the pessimist’s standpoint though, getting 100 out of 100 in the same exam might be frustrating because he/she had an erasure, but of course, that’s an overstatement. Therefore, I, being optimistic at one time and pessimistic at another, cannot rely on my own measurement for success. But, if I cannot use my own measurement and others’ due to differences, how then would I know if I am successful or not? I won’t. I need not know if success is at hand or not. I just have to assume that it is not here to make sure that my goal remains a goal and not a conquered territory.

This might seem a lot like Sisyphus’ Labor in Albert Camus’ “The Myth of Sisyphus”. Sisyphus is a person condemned through eternity to push a boulder to the top of a mountain only to see it fall back time and time again. However, though somewhat similar, I need not fail every time I am about to succeed. I would just have to strive harder each day with the thought that my goal is too far away to be reached. This is neither optimism nor pessimism. Conditioning of the mind is a more precise way to describe it.

If we make it the other way around, where success can be found in every corner of my life, then success loses its essence. For how would I treasure something that is abundant in this world. Isn’t it the rare entities that are considered priceless and more valuable? Would you give more value to a paper than a diamond? Of course not!

So a final question remains. When will I know if I have succeeded or not? This is a good question, but I have to admit that I am as lost as you are. I have a hunch though, I think the answer is the same as that of “How would I know if I am successful or not?”, which is, “I won’t”.

by: Nerbie

I’m not a good writer in anyway. I try to write once in a while but then after making several articles I still don’t consider myself as a good writer.

What I do like doing is expressing my ideas through my blog. For the sake of those people who might be reading this article let me give you a little intro to what blogging is. A blog is an online diary that can be open for all to see or if you are not that at ease for public viewing just make it private. Although making it private losses most of its essence. I’d say blogging is a way for people to express themselves. Like me, you don’t need to be a writer or a journalist in order to write about something or anything that you can think of. If you want to express something just blog it!

With the phenomenon of the blog, some people see it as a way that leads to a new set of opportunities. Do you think its possible to start something new for the blogger communities? I might not be the right person to make any write up about the business opportunities that can be made in through blogging but I think I do have a few ideas that you can try out.

1. Blog Installers: This could be a way for techie’s to earn few bucks. If you are familiar with server paths, modules, permission, ftp’s and other scripts related configurations, I guess you could function as a good support for the installation of blog programs.

2. Blog Theme/Templates: Are you good in web design? Or even in web lay outing? Are you familiar with those blog programs that most people uses for blogging? Well, this is an opportunity for you. As long as you know how to change those templates then you are in.

3. Intranet Blog: If you are a programmer, you might want to create your own version of a blog program that you can sell to companies as an alternative option for communication within the Intranet.

4. Tie-up’s with Web Hosts: If you have the time and the know how, then you got to talk to those web hosting companies and ask for a possible tie-up. You can offer to provide the support for clients who want to put up a weblog site

Above are just few of those blog business opportunities I can think of. Maybe it is not yet that common at of this writing but I do believe if the phenomenon of blog will continue to penetrate the internet and its users it can be consider an achievable new set of business opportunities.

by: Jin-Qua

I remember how my mother used to get really mad at me every time I would listen to my cassette player as it blared out the intro of Welcome to the Jungle. I was in high school then and it became a daily ritual of mine to listen devotedly to my favorite album: Appetite for Destruction. Guns and Roses was the coolest and most honored band (they still are to some) at the time. To me Guns ranked first while Metallica and Bon Jovi ranked second and third respectively. But then most of our teachers regarded glamour rock as the devil’s music. Take GnR; the heavy guitars of Slash, the relentless thumping of the drums, the flirty voice of Axl Rose and the suggestive lyric’s of their songs, they all contributed in the myth that Satan came up from hell to spread his evil message through glam rock. One pious classmate of mine even said that Axl was the devil’s disciple because the letters of his name can be rearranged to spell “oral sex”. I told her that it’s all a coincidence although I did check and Axl Rose could indeed be used to spell oral sex. Oooh, scary.

Ever since high school, I never thought about glam rock, although I would sometimes find myself singing Metallica’s “Battery” when I commute to work. It was at a bar, two weeks ago, that I learned to fully retrace my musical roots.

I was with my friends when we found ourselves heading into a nice cheap tavern that was sparsely filled. We ordered some drinks and a few dishes of pulutan. At the time, it seemed that it was going to be a dull dull night. Then, we all unexpectedly heard the beginnings of a song that was long since forgotten. We heard the haunting whistle intro of Patience, an old GnR cover from way way back. That was enough to pick up the night. Patience was followed by Enter Sandman, Master of Puppets, Welcome to the Jungle, Rocket Queen, Blaze of Glory and to all our amusement, Doctor Feel good and Warrant’s one and only oldie but goodie Cherry Pie. Alcohol consumption doubled its pace with each intro of a classic glam rock song. It was a fun night. Its good that even after almost a decade that we all still remembered how good music was back then.

After the glam rock medley, the music was changed into a more modern format of the alternative genre. Linkin Park, Korn and Limp Bizkit became the regular fare. I don’t know under what classification these songs fall under, but I’m sure, a decade down the line, a group of friends will find themselves in a cheap bar drinking booze and reliving their high school days while singing with their very own Axl Rose.

by: Kropek Muncher

I didn’t really understand how it all happened and up to now, I’m still wondering why we grew from 20 to 4. Back when we were all freshmen, our barkada stood at a 20 strong group of mixed individuals. We all knew each other on some close level and we all went to the malls as one big happy family.

But now, only four are left, at least in my barkada. We all somehow drifted apart with each passing year. Some shifted courses, others found other friends in other courses while others banded together to form separate groups. Maybe it was inevitable. After all, is there such a thing as a 20-person barkada? But then I can’t help but miss the many things we all did. When we were all freshmen, we all went to Tagaytay as one group and we had a lot of fun just walking around the place. We went from this small zoo to a place called the Palace in the Sky. It was truly a memorable experience.

Group projects were made easy by the whole barkada. If someone needed something, someone in the barkada was bound to have it. If one needed a tutor in Math, English, and Chemistry or on any subject, then the barkada was the place to seek help. There was even a person who would always volunteer his dorm to any barkada mate who wanted overnight accommodations near the school.

But mind you, having a big barkada isnt easy. The biggest hitch that I discovered came every time lunch period would come along. Looking for a resto that had 20 free seats with food that will please 20 hungry mouths was a bit of a challenge. Oddly enough, despite the lunch time rush hour, we’d still find places to eat although like I said, it took us some 15 to 30 minutes of walking around in and out of the campus before we could settle down.

I miss my old barkada but then I’m currently happy with whom I’m with now. Having four close friends is fine. We get to share secrets and the relationship is much much closer. I just hope that when I see any of my old pals, say after 10 years after graduation, that they would spend time with me reminiscing on how fun and grand everything was, back when we were all freshmen.

To my old buddies: John, Harvey, Christine, Small Ryan, Big Ryan, Ish, Judith, Vanessa, Ellen, Stevey, Oscar, Wang, Mickey, Vincent, Arnold, Jerohm, Tanya, Marge, Jake and Dennis; May you guys attain your dreams after graduation.

by: yuga

I’m not really fond of texting. For every 10 text messages sent to me, I answer perhaps one or two of them (assuming they really require urgent answering). Otherwise, I’d call them up or pop them up over YM or MSN. This could be one of the reasons why I can’t text fast enough and am not infected by the texting shortcuts that are an utter disgrace to grammar. Well, that’s another story altogether.

What I’m more concerned about is the notorious exploitation of SMS technology to spread the habit of gambling, even amongst the young texters. Surely, most if not all of you have had joined in one time or another any of these SMS promos where you get to win prizes like cell phones or cash just by sending text messages to a certain number (usually short, 3 to 5 digit numbers) provided by the telcos. To add to that, the more you send them, the more your chances of winning the pot.

Unbeknownst to the participants of these promotions or contests, they are already a part of a multi-million high-tech gambling empire. Let’s face it, these texting games or contests are more or less under the principle of chance and therefore can be considered gambling. One may not notice it primarily because it does not entail very large sum of money like the mega lotto or other lotto’s sponsored by PCSO or PAGCOR.

If some of you may have remembered STL (Small Time Lottery) almost a decade ago, this texting contest fad is more or less akin to that. Spending one or two pesos for a chance of winning a couple thousand bucks is very appealing indeed. It’s not even that noticeable since you’re only sending out text messages and not 2-peso coins.

What is more surprising is that this trend has become very much alive and thriving in all forms and manner.

I once stopped by a local 7-11 store to buy soda and something to munch and the store had a texting promo for their anniversary where you could win a brand new car - all just by texting them your receipt number. A year ago, when they’re still using tambiolos, they’d only get increased sales and patronage in exchange for the prizes given away. Today, they also get revenues from profit-sharing schemes with the telcos. Very creative, indeed. Tempting, but I didn’t even bother sending a single text message.

Time and again, we Filipinos have proven that any new technology can be harnessed and turn into profitable businesses. With the Philippines becoming Asia’s texting capital in a short span of time, it is a lucrative venture to go into business using your own mobile cell phone. What more with over 12 million potential customers ready to grab that chance to win the lotto. The government should really take a good look at this before things get out of proportion.

Haven’t you noticed all local TV channels are full of “text-this-and-text-that” allusions nowadays? How about you? Ready to part with your hard-earned peso?

by : yuga

You might be saying that I’ve gone bonkers by comparing two games of entirely different genres. It’s like comparing apples to oranges, one might add. Hold on a bit and read a little more so you’ll understand why I pegged them that way.

WarCraft3 is a strategy game while CounterStrike is RPG. That’s a clear distinction. However, if you’ve played both games adequately you will notice that they have more similarities than differences - one reason why I’m comparing them here.

Both games require good to excellent hand-and-eye coordination (CS requires a little bit more though I think). They need the players to be alert and mindful of their enemies, may it be against the game AI’s or other players over the network or internet. They also have one major objective - killing the enemies and garnering high score stats.

So why am I comparing them, you ask? Well, I have a theory in mind. WarCraft and CounterStrike has an inherit ability to influence psychological and emotional empathy. This emphatic trait is attributed to psychological response of the players towards the game and the character units itself.

Sounds weird? Here’s more. In comparison, males are more responsive to CounterStrike while females are to WarCraft.

Males tend to be more emotionally violent and are more connected to their character or role they are playing. This is exhibited by extreme tactical behaviors in males during encounters. The more hostile or aggressive males tend to relate more with the Terrorist group while the docile players engage in passive and less aggressive tactics under the Counter-Terrorist group. Additionally, males become more vocal where verbal attacks or cursing supplements their tactical scheme. Consequently, players become more coordinated and shows above average support system which brings loyalty and bonding.

On the contrary, females show various unique perceptual affiliation with characters in WarCraft 3. They become more defensive and less confrontational, something the females rarely exhibit in the real social world. Emphatic behavior towards the character units is also strong. This is commonly observed when the units are Human race. Intense passion associated with main characters such as Heroes are also prevalent during battles and confrontation. This results to loss of focus on the entire army which is shifted to a single unit. Escapism (teleporting units back to base) is also predominant on surprise attacks.

These are mere observations only and are not entirely supported by psychological studies or research. To cite some instances, a number of my male friends who tried playing CS found themselves cursing all throughout the game when in fact they rarely curse in their entire life. Likewise, the men tend to throw cuss words to their opponents indiscriminately.

On the contrary, the ladies experience occasional delusions with WarCraft characters. This is coupled with in-fight dreams. One lady player remembers battling Forest Trolls in her dream, glimpsed an Archmage crossing the street while driving and seeing the Brilliance Aura right where I stand. They also have lapses and tend to talk in WarCraft terms. For instance, the girl was asked to accompany a friend to the mall and she mentioned “i-right-click mo” instead of “samahan mo”.

These might be isolated cases but the trend is pretty much comparable. I will not delve into the human psyche any deeper but if you too have any experience of some sort with these games, send me a note.