Lessons from JV Rufino on Blogging

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 30th, 2007

I learned something new yesterday, having had time to drop by the Inquirer.net office for a quick meeting. To reference Inquirer.net‘s EIC, he always wanted a quotable quote about how bloggers can learn something from media folk. I don’t remember the exact wording but it goes something like:

Bloggers can learn a lot from news media. What readers want is a predictable pattern when it comes to new content. Therefore, blogging should not be diarrhea or constipation. It should not be too much or too little. As long as there is a pattern, you will get more readers.

And this is true. A lot of bloggers can get bitten by the “blogging bug” and churn out a non-characteristic number of posts which goes against his or her posting routine. A blogger who does five or six posts a week may, all of a sudden churn out ten because “a lot more had happened” that was worth writing about.

The best way to temper this phenomenon wold be to schedule posts at least one hour apart so that Google has an easier time indexing your posts. I also figure that two posts per day for personal blogs can be the maximum you should do as you also need to get a life.

Sinulog 2007 Pictures

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 29th, 2007

We walked and walked and walked and walked. tirelessly we trudged along what was the distance from Ayala Avenue to Guadalupe taking photos and dancing to the rhythm of each group of presentors.

This was the first time I’ve ever done guerilla shooting. Pretending we were media and crossing the roads, trying to catch those short and priceless moments of the dancers, and sweating under the heat of the 3PM sun.

You can view all of the pictures at the gallery.

What Happened at the Blog Party 2007 Stays at the Blog Party 2007

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 28th, 2007

Well not really. Considering it was a blogger party so obviously there was just too much booze, sex and several acts of frivolities going round.

Just kidding. The nature of a party for bloggers means that everyone blogs about it after, so no secrets here, really!

You can view the pictures I took here. It was also my first dry run of the Speedlite 580EX I recently bought. Again, check out my gallery for the pics.

A lot of people asked about why the need for all the technorai tagging and other hassles to become part of this event. Well the short and sincere answer is that – this was to satisfy two things: (1) this event was obviously an “experiment” being the fitst party we organized. As a sponsor and member of the organizing committee I can tell you that we have had no prior experience in events organizing.
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Jeremy Wright Says Hi to Filipino Bloggers

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 27th, 2007

Over at the blog parteeh, b5media CEO Jeremy Wright says hello. b5media is one of the bigger sponsors for the event having shelled out an equivalent of P12,500.00 for goodies.

If your browser refreshed and you’re seeing this post, then you probably missed the parteh!

Just Bought: Canon Speedlite 580EX

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 26th, 2007

You know I would really like to thank all my photographer friends who have been encouraging me to shoot more and more – and thus invest a little bit more into this hobby. To mind come friends like Elber, Anton, Jed and Markku.

And so yesterday I got myself a Canon Speedlite 580EX from Mayer (Hidalgo) delivered to the house.

I posted some shots taken with this with some help from Elber (behind model) and Knox (model).

How to Make House Blend Iced Tea

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 26th, 2007

Shooting for a food and beverage magazine has its perks. Aside from being able to binge after (hurriedly) shooting food, you get to meet a lot of interesting foodies and chefs who can teach you a lot about the F&B industry. So with slight hesitation to stray from my blog’s main niche (although I did get this from a food magazine shoot so it counts), I write this post.

Today I shall impart some “matter of fact” knowledge about house iced tea served in different establishments. Apparently the recipe for house blend iced tea in a good number of hotels and country clubs is no secret. It is simply a mixture of the following ingredients:

Two Parts Sunquick Orange
One Part Sunquick Lemon
brewed Lipton Tea Bags

The blend differs with the mixture of the three ingredients. The magic formula is two parts orange and one part lemon and mix these with the brewed Lipton tea bags. Aaand that’s it!

On Indefinite Blog Leave

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 26th, 2007

This may come as a surprise for most of you considering that the Blog Parteeh is already tomorrow.

A recent turn of events has led me to take a temporary blog leave for an indefinite period of time. These series of events has left me with little choice but to heed other priorities that may take me away from blogging.

I will still be around – you know how to reach me. Cellphone and email will do, but I doubt I will be able to answer your important calls within the next 8 months.
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When Paperwork Gets Piled Up

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 25th, 2007

One of the biggest impediments to deal with when coming back from a vacation is the piled up paperwork. In the old days, this was usually piled onto your desk’s “in tray” but because of the digital revolution, everything – all 300+ emails are now piled into my email server.

And it sucks too because I never made any contingency to separate work mail from personal mail as my work mail gets forwarded to my personal account.

Ironic also, because that Getting Things Done book I bought is gathering cobwebs on my table too. Time for a change I guess (yeah right!)

Food and Beverage Destination: Pampanga, Philippines

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 23rd, 2007

One of the best perks about the publishing industry is when you’re sent off to cover items that your magazine features. It just so happens that I’m shooting for a food magazine tomorrow till Wednesday or Thursday – and this usually means a gastronomic delight after every shoot!

If you’re doing the a magazine on F&B, you tend to attend less events, but you’re always surrounded by food, glorious food!

Proposition:

If tech journalist A needs to return the iPod after he has reviewed it, does it mean that food critic A should spit out the creme brule after he has sampled it?

Food, glorious food!

A Bugged Life Sponsors Blog Parteh 2007

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 22nd, 2007

My site, A Bugged Life is sponsoring the oh so l33t Blog Parteh 2007. I have set my sights on an event like this for the longest time – with most of the reasoning to be unveiled during the actual event itself.

If you want to be part of Philippine Internet history, then here’s how to join.

The Blog Parteeh! 2007 is the largest Philippine Blogger Meet-up ever and you don’t wanna miss out on this one:

What: Blog Parteeh! 2007
When: January 27, 2007 2:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Where:
6th Floor (Poolside Area)
Classica Tower 2 Condominium
HV dela Costa St., Salcedo Village,
Makati City 1200

The 8 PM end time is really there to mark the end of the “formal blog meet.” Drinks afterwards till the whee hours of the morning. If you want a map of the area, then click here for the full post.

Two Book Recommendations

Posted by Jayvee Fernandez at January 20th, 2007

I’m currently reading the following books and would like to recommend them to you. There’s a sale at PowerBooks for those of you who have been putting off book buying. The sale is 20% off on all foreign titles.

Jasper Fforde | The Fourth Bear
Fforde is a literary genius, combining the absurd with well thought out plots. You can visit his site for more details. In this book, investigative reporter Goldilocks is led through a murder case involving the gruesome Gingerbread Man. The trail leads to the Three Bears who live in the solitude of the woods. But all is not what it seems when the bears’ porridge are at disparate temperatures given that they were all poured simultaneously.

Chris Anderson | The Long Tail
WIRED Mag’s EIC writes about the trendy phenomenon that is taking over blogging, communities, and business: niched markets. You’ve probably heard of this book before, but anyone who’s anybody in the business world should read this work. It also further proves that people from WIRED Magazine can write really really long pieces.