by admin | Nov 21, 2015 | Tech Talk
By Jerome Auza
In 2005, I purchased components to build one of the computers I used as a server at Auza.Net. This computer has served the company for more than 10 years. It finally refused to power up on November 21, 2015.
From all of the computers I have used, this was the longest operating computer ever. I haven’t replaced any component during this period. Most of the time it is running 24/7. At one point, the CPU fan stopped working so I had to put a USB powered external fan to cool the CPU.
In July 8, 2007, it powered the first ever real-time worldwide broadcast of DYRD-AM via its website www.dyrdam.com. Several months later, it also powered the data capture of the Textklamo service of the same station.
Dusty and crippled beyond repair, I removed the CPU from the server rack, gave it a final check before I hugged it goodbye. Well, I didn’t really hug it but it’s the thought that counts, right?
In its 10 years of operation, I hardly had to do any maintenance. It has streamed a few years worth of broadcast of DYRD-AM. It has processed thousands of TxtKlamo messages. It has drawn for me thousands of monitoring charts.
This is even more proof of the stability of the Linux operating system. The only times it would shutdown is when I am not able to run the generator in time before the UPS runs out of reserved power.
Goodbye computer with local IP address 192.168.15.23. You will be missed.
by admin | Nov 21, 2015 | Headlines
By Jerome Auza
What would you say when you are on stage with US President Barack Obama and Alibaba CEO Jack Ma in front of the leaders of 21 nations and global corporations?
Engineer Aisa Mijeno of SALt.PH had this opportunity on November 18, 2015 during the APEC Summit in Manila. SALt.PH is a Philippine startup company that developed a lamp that generates power using salt water as the electrolyte for the lamp’s galvanic cells. She was invited by the White House to be at the APEC panel moderated by Obama himself.
Obama played matchmaker for Mijeno and Ma. Mijeno’s company has been looking for financial support for the mass production of the SALt lamps while Ma has signified its support for small companies.
SALt is a recipient of numerous local and international awards. Mijeno’s appearance at the APEC Summit on November 18, 2015 was the latest and perhaps the most high profile international exposure for her company. His brother Raphael Mijeno is the co-founder of SALt.
The company is one of the startups supported by Ideaspace Philippines and since their completion of the startup program at Ideaspace, they have reaped several awards. They have been featured in numerous online magazines and newspapers as well as on TV.
The concept of using saline solution as electrolyte in a galvanic cell is not new. The galvanic cell is the basis for most of the batteries we use. However, SALt’s innovation is that they have made the lamp easy to use and maintain. Its electronics drive LED bulbs to produce light. It can also charge mobile devices through its built-in USB port.
They have designed it such that it can be mass produced and sold at a price that is affordable. The target market are communities that do not have electricity.
A glass of water and 2 tablespoons of salt can produce light for 8 hours. Sea water may be used also. A properly maintained SALt lamp will need a replacement of its metal plates every six months in order to continue producing light.
The inspiration to develop the lamp came to Mijeno when she was working with a community up in the mountains of Kalinga. The tribes have to go to the town a few times a week to get kerosene to be used as fuel for their lamps. Not only was this very inconvenient and expensive for them, the kerosine lamps are also fire hazards.
U.S. President Barack Obama (center), poses for a photograph with Alibaba billionaire Jack Ma and Aisa Mijeno, an engineer and social worker, at the APEC CEO Summit in Manila on Nov. 18, 2015.
Photographer: Seong Joon Cho/Bloomberg
Caption from Bloomberg.com
by admin | Nov 20, 2015 | National News
By: Ben Emata
One thing beautiful with the holding of the Asian Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) is that all the 21 nations who attended were united in their fight against terrorism and poverty. The subject matter may not be the main issue during the meeting but because of the Paris incident, the same did not escape the pronouncement of world leaders to deal on the problem. Terrorism is a serious thing in a modern civilization that should not be ignored. No one knows when and where the terrorists will strike next until they hit the media with scores of lives lost. It is so much of treachery.
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The Philippines is third, repeat THIRD poorest country of the participants in the APEC meeting according to the World Bank. First is Vietnam closely followed by Papua, New Guinea. I cannot disagree on this finding but they should have searched that we have dozens of politicians who are super wealthy and owners of real estates in foreign lands. We simply call this thing hidden wealth or assets invested in foreign countries.
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In North Korea, three women who merely watched a TV show of South Korea were executed. In the same country, three young college students were also killed because they watched pornography on TV. I wish the North Korean leaders watch live show of sex exhibitions in Pasay City and elsewhere for a cheap amount for entrance. Oh yeah I remember an uncle of its president was executed because he differed in opinions with the ruler. If only our drug lords live in that country, I can see we will have no problem with addictions and crimes connected therewith.
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There seems to be a double standard of justice in our country. In Jolo, the Abbu Sayaf beheads their kidnapped victims who could not meet the ransom money worth millions in a certain period. Proof to this, a Malaysian-Chinese who was kidnapped a while ago was reunited with his head hours later after he was beheaded. To the kidnappers’ law, it is death sentence. But since our government does not have the death penalty, we embrace the criminals and crimes the reason why so many of the underworld characters like to be behind bars. For instance a suspect rapes a girl and murder her later only get the maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Surely it is a mockery of justice or if not, what is it?
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Demonstrators during the APEC meet have become so violent they fought the policemen. Many were injured but the problm some of them just did not know what they were doing of, and for whom? Demonstrations or rallies are becoming wild and uncontrollable, a thing we must ponder what to do to prevent similar incidents in the future. While we honor the exercise of freedom, we certainly hit abuses committed in doing it.
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Now that the Court of Appeals has ordered that Mayor Oscar Moreno is the city mayor of Cagayan de Oro, I urge the residents and other politicians to set aside bickering and intrigues and let the city government function well. If we really enjoy politics in action, let us wait for next year’s election and see how things go on legally. Supporters of politicians who left their homes to participate in the actions better go home now and rest.
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I wish our TV program producers try to improve their shows/dramas because these items reach the American continent and other places via the modern technologies and cable in Europe and Canada where they meet stiff competitions. Some of these programs ended in heavy criticisms. You know how some Filipinos open their mouths when they despise something. BEN EMATA Bennex News Service
by admin | Nov 20, 2015 | Headlines, National News
By: Ben Emata
I am very apprehensive that the reclamation project being undertaken by China in the disputed territory could trigger a big conflict that would involve military strengths and participation of powerful nations. As we see Pres. Obama when he visited our country for the APEC meet, told Pres. Aquino of his concern of the China’s work in the territory that is clearly under dispute by and among Asian nations. Obama even urged China to stop its reclamation program around the territory which the latter responded by saying boldly no country around the world could tell them such thing. In this simple exchange of words, it is obvious that China is bent on working on the island that does not belonged to it.
With the words of Obama, he also gave two battleships to the Philippines to bolster its patrol in the ares. Likewise, the American president also gave assistance to other Asian countries like Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam, etc. who also have similar claims to the islands. Tensions that existed between the two giants for sometimes now utterly grew bigger and could trigger wildly unless restraint by cooler heads. I am just hoping such scenario would not take place and that cordial relationship around the world would prevail.
Judging from the situations, I could see the stubborn behavior of China to settle the dispute by way of diplomacy. Earlier, it rejected the arbitration move initiated by our country in the UN tribunal making it more complicated. I could see the ground for its refusal to settle matter peacefully – – is the fact that China is so far away from the site of controversy, more than a thousand nautical miles to be more specific while it is so near to Palawan. To make the story short, China could lose in any friendly discussion insofar as the issue of ownership is concerned.
I am very much involved in the situation because it involved our country and people and that I always hope for friendship and peace. China once declared that the Philippines is the troublemaker in the region. I was laughing of the malicious insinuation since our country is so small and poor and could not possibly make even a sound oif sort. If there exist a matter of bullying, the same could be done by China considering its strength and influence in the area.
It is very fortunate that our country has never been a problem in the region. We had been a good neighbor and we exist peacefully with one another. We admit we have so many problems with our people insofar as existence and opportunities are concerned but we kept them unto ourselves with pride and honor. We never claimed to have stood higher than our friends but instead humbly accept our position with pride. Our system of government calls for consultation and acts of congress for support and never by ourselves.
We trust into the hands of our maker and our friends our position hoping China would understand us much better and treat us on the same level. We just want respect on our sovereignty, tradition and culture from everybody. We want peace in and around us and maintain good relationship with everybody. Friendship cannot be derived from misunderstanding and disrespect but by good relationship in a cool environment., We hope this will be the case. BEN EMATA Bennex News Service.
by admin | Nov 20, 2015 | Opinion
By: Ben Emata
After several decades of observing hundreds of rallies and/or demonstrations in our country, I still could hardly comprehend how are things go around among the people who are quick to come into groups in a very short notice. They come from nowhere, from within the cities, from the markets, from the hills or somewhere from the rainbows. There are no truckloads of people much less ships, trains or planes that could take them to one point to form a large crowd angrily shouting slogan and battle cry like “get out Americans”, “Ibagsak”, “to hell”, “Resign so and so”, everything under the sun, etc. etc.
When the government law enforcers kill the kidnapper/murderers, they come to the streets and shout “violation of human rights” and “murder”. When our soldiers kill the rebels, again they are grouped instantly and they denounce the killings but when our soldiers are killed by the dozens, they are quiet and nowhere to be found – – maybe laughing. Certainly, I am not saying this is unfair to our military but if it is not, then a better term should be in hand for such incident. I even suspect these same rally professionals were the same groups that caused the driving out of the American military bases in Subic and Clarkfields. Now China is threatening us on the matter of the disputed seas in the Spratleys and we start to miss the strength of America.
I am truly astonished beyond imagination how these rallyists could come out in so short a time to denounce or condemn things that are good for the general public at times. The APEC summit now in our country which could bring benefits for us had been subjected to negative rallies, condemnation or whatever. Some of these people just do not assess or evaluate the situation and blindly go into actions. This result to unfairness and plain ignorance if not stupidity.
It sometimes appear that our, country is governed by demonstrations as it listens to its demands or anything they could forcefully ask. Of course, I understand that rallies are allowed in our Constitution as a way to express ourselves or show our grievance against the system but sometimes it is irritating because of its frequency that result in excessive monotony. The worse things is some of the participants in the mass action destroy public property, plants and ornaments in public places and other things that make us sorry. Further, some of these rallies are organized not for public interest but for the purpose of putting up nothing but just disturbance. No positive result just negative undertaking.
As far as I can remember, there were no rallies in our country many years ago. This was unknown and unheard until the matter took place in America on the issue of racism which was tolerable and acceptable. Today, I could hardly hear of rallies in the continent and elsewhere in European states as well as in Canada and other places. It was quickly copied by our compatriots but the sad thing is we do it almost every week and without good reason. To many people, it is a nuisance. Mendiola Street near Malacanang has become the permanent site of actions. Sometimes I think there is business behind some of these rallies – – I mean some institutions or foreign interests spend for the purpose.
And because we look at them as an exercise of a freedom, we just leave them without even asking the groups their real intentions. It is detrimental to public safety, a nuisance and plain irritating. I urge the government to put up some kind of resistance and at least require the groups to explain their objectives and what good they can bring to the public before they grab a microphone and shout. Absolutely, freedom is beautiful if exercised well in accordance to law but if adulterated by dirty and bad motives, it becomes a non-sense action that must be prevented.
We don’t have to wake up someday to realize that some of those noises in the streets are prelude to catastrophe or devastation of our nation. That some of these supposed actions are designed to create confusion and divide the citizens that would eventually destroy our integrity and honor. These early, we should be alert and try to see through the hole of a needle what is behind around us. We should be aware that things have changed and some people far from us are out to disturb our sovereignty and honor by introducing things unknown to us. BEN EMATA Bennex News Service
