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Mostly Everything

And so winging it yielded the most interesting results

My former professor taught one of the most important acts in teaching craft and that was the art of “winging it.” It really meant not having a plan for the next hour and a half in class but since there was a lot of familiarity with the subject, “winging it” often yielded the best results in getting the message through. I guess the best plan, at most times, was to not have one.

This note comes in a dialogue of many levels but one has to stand out and that message, I feel, should be one of thanks. It’s been a blast working with Jeremy and the rest of b5media as CE for the technology channel (special mention goes to CJ – yes you Christina Jones, for being hands down one of the most amazing people I’ve ever met in my 27 years of existence). I stepped down a few days before the Philippine Blog Awards (the channel is in good hands with Kori) and have now abandoned myself to the reckless tapping of the keyboard to stick to writing for the network, which in 2005 retrospect is something I miss doing.

It was one of the most interesting one and a half years of my career in the blogging industry and now that the training wheels are off, I’m here to venture forth to concentrate on things with a stronger local impact – there’s of course this little surprise here, an advocacy there, and the academe, plus a few more surprises up my sleeve in the coming months.

I still remember Anton talking to me about my “career plans” in the first quarter of the year as we were sneaking out from an event, and I remember giving vague answers to our discussion; but what stood out were answers that had more to do with local results and doing things that had my whole heart on the line. But yeah, the answers were still vague.

I mean, what can I do? I’m just winging it baby.

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Mostly Everything

Nokia to launch “Comes with Music” soon?

Phones come cheap because the price of the unit is subsidized by the telco (they make up with the monthly plans). In the same light, digital music will now come free (hopefully!) because the cost will be subsidized by the price of the phone.

Reuters has an interestingly new article on the Nokia’s new Comes with Music offering (apart from their new touch screen phone):

I heard about Nokia’s Comes with Music plans during a dinner meet up with some of the online tech media a few months ago. Not a lot of details were released but the plan to go for a subscription-based model isn’t new. It just hasn’t been implemented on a wide scale yet (the only guys I know doing this is the Microsoft Zune online community for a price of a CD a month – unlimited song downloads!).

Nokia’s package will differ from others on the market as users can keep all the music they have downloaded during the 12 month subscription period. There are no charges for tracks downloaded, since the cost is bundled to the phone price.

“‘Comes with Music’ could potentially bring free music to millions of consumers, radically changing the music industry, and offering a significant threat to Apple’s dominance,” Strategy Analytics’ David MacQueen said in a research report.

“In a market where price and selection are so much more important than brand to consumers, Apple cannot count on retaining users when competing with an offering which seems free to the end user,” MacQueen said.

I think it’s come to that point where everyone in the market already has a phone, and changing mobiles every 3 months is turning to be a logistical nightmare. So even if Nokia has still been steady with the phones, entering these new avenues (games, music, maps, photo sharing) via Ovi will definitely peak interest.

What I really want to say is filled with irony: The key to keeping your customers is to not make anything exclusive. This isn’t the 1970’s anymore. Great job to Nokia for going pro-consumer!

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How does it feel to be Robi Domingo?

I wonder how he feels — from smart cars to Katipunan to Cagayan de Oro, Robi Domingo’s face is plastered across the local flora and fauna. Robi Domingo, from Pinoy Big Brother fame, is Nokia’s latest brand endorser for the youth segment (that’s the Nokia 7210 Supernova and Nokia 2680).

If that were you all over Manila, how would you feel? 🙂

(No I’m not trying to make fun of him. It’s more like …. wow! What a leap from housemate to nationwide poster boy!)

More photos after the jump.

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Backstage Photos with Chicane in Manila

Had the very rare chance to spend some time backstage with Chicane. I think this is their third time in Manila, but this was the very first time for me to see them live at the World Trade Center. People often mistake Chicane for a DJ when in fact they are a band of four (at least for this tour) – drums, vocals, guitar and keyboards / programming.

Despite the many sound f*** ups (I’ve never seen a concert go on dead air twice on the same night!), this was one of the best live shows I’ve ever experienced. It wasn’t Chicane’s fault for the sound system. The guys from Big Fish said that their equipment was being harassed by dust particles *shrug*. Sucks that the technical glitch happened while they were playing Offshore. Seriously, this could have been one of the best concerts I attended if not for the sound system! It’s a huge blow to the sponsors.

A huge thanks to Nikka from Nokia for scoring us tickets. I was with fellow “Chicanenees” Rico, Jane and Christian, Phoebe (who manged to score an interview with vocalist Natasha Brocklebanks!), Helga and Rockstar Fritz.

If you wish to grab these photos, feel free to do so. I’d just appreciate a photo credit. That’s not a lot to ask for since these photos aren’t even watermarked. More photos after the jump.

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Mostly Everything

Unboxing Warhammer Online Collector’s Edition

A bit late, but here are some photos of the Warhammer Collector’s Edition box set. If you’re a fan of the Warhammer lore, the graphic novel (blue) Prelude to War will not disappoint as it tackles the back story of Grumlok and Gazbag as pawns of the Dark Elves and the rallying of the Dwarven engineers. Alongside this, The Art of Warhammer Online (red) is fabulously done, bringing a fantasy themed coffee table book to round out the other magazines you have on display.

More photos after the break…