Do you have to be John Grisham to succeed at Blogging?

There are many articles on the net about successful blogging and there is a never ending stream of new recruits entering the blogsophere.

These new adopters eagerly search the how to pages of other bloggers in an effort to become a successful blogger.

The blogging craze and the competitive arena that it has become have bloggers scratching their heads in an effort to make their new venture a success.

For some, success as is defined as the tangible legacy of their cathartic journey.

This group seeks nothing more than to record their life and thoughts. They have no financial or political agenda other than their desire for self fulfillment.

As the internet evolves and socially engineered software becomes more streamlined, diarists have also evolved and for some, blogging has become their ticket to a new vocation and financial independence.
Blogs that have a high amount of visitors are able to monetize their web pages to an extent where the authors are able to generate enough income to derive a part time or full time living from their input.
For those desiring more than to see their diary online, the challenge exists to create content that satisfies their own literary standards but at the same time achieves populous standing.

The race to stand out from the blogging crowd has seen a multitude of online tutorials, e-books, educational courses, marketing plans and get rich easy programs bombard the web.

We no longer take much interest unless the author has something unique to offer us.

I have two friends who have their own web sites and self publish for a living.
One has an article archive of 17,000 posts and the other has an archive of 14000 posts.
One has been blogging for seven years and it took him five years before he was able to derive full time income.
The other was well established in his field before he became a self publisher.
He had a list of high profile contacts that provided exclusive information and this enabled him to establish his web site as a respected source of news in his field.

Their sites and interests are quite different but they both agree on one point.

There is no easy way to be successful. Content is king. If you desire success then you have to compile a body of works that has is both popular and voluminous. Be a John Grisham of your genre. Write all the time and learn to write what people want o read.
Quality, quantity and marketability are the key factors that never change.
I recently printed out all my articles and stuck the pages on the bookshelf behind my desk.
The small file looked so inconsequential next to the volumes of my favorite authors.
Like the rest of you, I have my work cut out for me too.

Is Amazon a godsend for publishers?

Publishers have entertained a rocky relationship with Google Adsense for the last few years.
Google has confused and frustrated us with their confusing rules handed out to advertisers and publishers.

Frustrated web site owners have endured lower click revenues, convoluted service terms and irrelevant advertising content in order to make a success of being a Google Adsense publisher.

In spite of its shortcomings Google has far outflanked the competition for advertising space.

Unlike the most of the competition, Google has won the minds of publishers with its "get paid for clicks" program.
Lately business for Google's Adsense program has reached
a plateau. Site visitors are clicking less. Google advertising revenue is flat.
Publishers are looking around for a new advertising revenue earner.

I recently joined Amazon as an affiliate.
Amazon is different to Adsense because visitors to your site have to buy something from Amazon in order for you to earn money.
Browsing an ad for further information and then closing the page will not earn you any money.
The task at hand may appear daunting but further examination reveals Amazon is a creative advertising tool that puts control of creativity in the hands of the publisher.
A few days ago I posted a niche article on Filipino music.
I was able to use one of Amazon’s ready made widgets to list a few of the CDs recorded by Filipino artists.
This widget brightens up the post and is totally relevant to the topic.
One of the most exciting aspects of Amazon is that you can enter the ad inside your actual post. The ad then appears only for that post which makes it ideal for Blogs. This is quite a different approach to Adsense where the ads appear on the side of all the pages.

What Are You Going To Do When The Recession Hits?

If it is not here already then it is on the way. I am talking about the world recession that is going to put a nasty dent in our lifestyle.

I am talking about the recession that will engulf our lives and threaten to repossess our mortgaged homes.

Share markets are tumbling. Blue chip businesses are still just hinting about what is to come.

An ill wind is brooding discontent. The leaves on the trees tremor in nervous anticipation.

How will you insulate your life against the wolf approaching the doorstep?

If you are reading this then you are already into blogging or reading blogs, or you are steeped into the digital world in some manner.

How will you survive the lifestyle change the next era will usher in?

When the cash reserves dissipate how will you improvise?

I will bury my woes by sinking further into the surreal world of my notebook pc.

As cash strapped citizen I will look for a better life in virtual games such as “Second Life”.

I will stuff my sinking share portfolio documents into the bottom drawer of my wardrobe and cover them with the happier colors of my sports socks.

I will become a superhero in the game of “Crysis” and use my powerful weapons to fight virus toting aliens who seek to take over our imminently recessionary world.
My world will be imaginary where reality is blurred.
Only the online world will exist and it will wash away the harshness

When the winds of discontent once again turn and leave us to return to affluence, I will once again draw the curtains across and gaze upon the new opportunities that await us.

Why I like Filipino Music.

It seems that my ipod is always playing Filipino music these days.

Whenever I visit a new country, I pick up a couple of CDs featuring local talent. I have done this all of my traveling life because as a music lover I am always searching for new and inspiring music.
In most cases these purchases get a couple of plays and then sit on the shelf gathering dust.
I think it is quite difficult to enjoy music that is foreign sounding to one who is not used to new rhythms and languages.
Folk instruments can sound harsh and untrained to ears that have never heard them before.
I find difficulty appreciating music from Thailand, Cambodia and The Middle East but that is not to say that that they don’t have fine musical heritages.
As an Australian my musical tastes have been always steeped into blues, country and jazz genres but Filipino music has somehow penetrated my senses and it ranks among my favorites.

My first encounter with Pinoy music was ten years ago. .I was holidaying in The Philippines in a place called Puerto Galera.
At night I switched on the radio to listen to the local talent.

The first song that made an impression on me was Halik by a band called Aegis. They were just starting their career and were storming up the charts.

I remembered the name and when I mentioned the band to a vendor, he produced a copy of the album on a cassette for me to purchase. That cassette got played to death over the years, right up until the time I replaced it with the CD version.

In 1998 I never really knew much about the band only that they were an all female rock band except for one member.
Their voices were fantastic and that’s all that I knew about them.

About a year ago I decided to look them up on youtube and I found a few videos featuring Aegis.
Damn it. They were so good and funny. I made up my find to see them next time I was in Manila.
I got in contact with their manager who gave me their gig dates and when I arrived in Manila I ventured out to the outer suburb of Las Pinas to see one of their shows.
They did not disappoint. Comedy clubs may seem like an unlikely choice of venues for a rock band but it was worth waiting around till they came on at midnight.

Before I forget here is a link to my Filipino Music Blog http://walletss.blogspot.com/

To be continued.

Self Censorship. Is It Necessary Sometimes?

A few years ago the responsibility for publishing and censorship rested with the mainstream media of newspapers, radio and television.
In a world where any one of us can publish to the masses, these responsibilities have been passed to us.

There are times when we want to express our thoughts and honest opinions on a particular topic that we have very definite opinions on.

The writer wants to be honest and to the point with his readers, but in certain instances the topic is explosive and embroiled in controversy.
At the least this honesty can offend others and at the worst it can lead to an escalation into violence.

I recently was involved in an online discussion where I put forward some rather forthright views on a particular topic. This topic concerned a country where I had spent some time and formed an opinion on.
Problems occurred when my comments aroused the ire of the Filipinos who were reading my posts.
My posts concerned my views on corruptive forces plaguing the Philippines.

I found myself shouted down because according to the contributors to the discussion, no foreigner could point the finger at the weaknesses and failings of their country unless he had experienced the hardships as an inhabitant.

I went to great lengths to explain that my posts were based on my own observations and experiences.
The overwhelming response from readers was that I should consider the ramifications of what I write.
I am the first one to admit that I tend to focus on the negative because it makes for interesting reading.

Do I have a responsibility to balance negative comments with the positive?

On one side I had my personal experiences and observations and on the other side I had the responsibility of not portraying The Philippines in a bad light. The fact is that I enjoy my time there and portraying the Philippines as a “no go” country to visit was not my intention.

It seems that there is a rule that foreigners do not have the right to criticize, and Filipinos simply do not like foreigners to make judgments.
Perhaps they are right?
The fact is that negative posts affect the standing of their country in international eyes and that the writer should consider the big picture.
Although my rantings would hardly cause ripples on a large scale, I can see that sometimes the enticement of writing something controversial should be balanced against the harm a foreigner can cause to industries such as tourism and international labor markets.

Internet Explorer Sucks Big Tme. Internet Explorer 8 Released.

I have been working hard on my Blog for the last three months and I don't have much time to waste with software that wastes my time.
Sadly Microsoft's browser Internet Explorer is doing just that and consequently I have now more or less switched to Firefox.

Microsoft's standards have slipped since Bill Gates lost interest in the company and Internet Explorer now languishes behind Firefox in terms of functionality.

It was only yesterday that I decided to make Firefox my default browser.

Currently I am spending all my spare time updating and promoting my Blog. There are a couple of sites that I spend hours on each day. One is entrecard and the other is twitter.
These are cutting edge sites and Internet Explorer cannot accommodate them.
The back button does not work on either of these two sites.

Hey Microsoft guys. .Have you fallen asleep?
Don’t expect any good reviews if you can’t fix your problems.

I remember downloading Internet Explorer 7 some time ago but it was so buggy that I had to reinstall Internet Explorer 6.
Apparently Microsoft is beginning to understand the depth of their problems because they have released Internet Explorer 8.
This browser has a compatibility mode. It seems a bit amateurish for Microsoft to have to have this feature at all.

Too Many Faulty Xbox Consoles

Last week I found myself with some extra cash in my pocket and decided to finally buy an Xbox gaming console.

There was a special advertised by Dick Smith superstores where the Xbox was packaged with a game and a power pack.

I had been holding off buying till a good deal came along.

The advertised package sounded tempting so I drove down to the nearest store branch and told the salesman what I wanted to buy.

The salesman checked the stock levels on the computer and went to retrieve one from the stock room.

He returned shortly and informed me that there were four units in stock but they were all faulty and had been returned by customers

When I asked if the Xbox 360 had a lot of store returns, he told me that they get lots of returns of faulty Xboxes.

I went back and did some more research on the internet and found similar comments from an EB Games manager who admitted that Xbox consoles had a much more hardware problems than Nintendo or Playstation.

The reason has now become clear. Microsoft does not own anything in the console.

Unlike Sony and Nintendo, where everything is 100% Sony and Nintendo respectively, the Xbox is a hodgepodge of different manufacturers bundled into a package that suffers from hardware compatibility issues.

Having heard these admissions from stores who have first hand knowledge, I decided that my six hundred bucks deserves better and I will hold off and buy a Sony Playstation or Nintendo wii as soon as a good deal comes along.

The Culture Of Corruption

“Why do you think the culture of corruption is so endemic in Philippine society? Is it because of poverty? Is it a Filipino culture?”



The culture of corruption is strong in other Asian countries not just The Philippines.

The cruel reality is that even though corruption is prevalent in countries such as Thailand and Vietnam, their economies and standards of living are advancing at a rapid rate.
The Philippines is not faring well under the same constraints.

The Marcos era has passed and yet somehow the people have been duped into falling once again for similar models. Estrada has come and gone. He is now free.
It seems Arroyo did a tradeoff with him for her power grab.
It still amazes me that Imelda Marcos is free.
The world outside The Philippines does not comprehend how a wicked and unrepentant first lady can be a free person after all that has transpired.

Poverty will always breed some degree of corruption. The only way to stem corruption at least among the lesser power brokers is to improve social resources.
This can’t be done if there is no money for social welfare and a turnaround is not going to happen any time soon.

There will have to come a point when revisionists see PP1 and PP2 as failures.

The way things are deteriorating PP3 is a forgone conclusion.
PP3 must see a complete restructuring of the administration. It must breed transparency and accountability.
No ifs and no buts.

MBK Department Store Bangkok. Be Careful of Being Ripped Off.

Some things never change. I remember years ago when Hong Kong was a great place to shop for electronics.
Vendors had a reputation for being cagey when dealing with tourists shopping for electronic bargains.
It seems similar practices still exist today and I found evidence of this at another famous shopping area in Bangkok.
MBK is a huge mall in central Bangkok that is well frequented by tourists.
The fourth floor of MBK is devoted to electronics and mobile phones.

At first glance everything seems fine. As you walk past the vendors and inquire about the products on your short list, you think you have found some bargains.
Prices of well known brand names are much cheaper here than in other places.
Well at least that is what you think until you return to one of the vendors who quoted you a really low price on that mp3 player.

You take out your wallet and are ready to handover your hard earned money and just before you hand it to the vendor, you ask to check the contents of the box.
When the box is opened you notice there is no charger or manual inside.


You think that maybe the vendor forgot to put the manual and charger back in the box but no.
The vendor tells you that if you want the manual and charger you will have to pay extra.
Your bargain has just gone down the drain.
You argue that the charger and manual are part of the product but the vendor slyly shakes his head
Be careful of vendors at MBK. If they can get you to hand over your cash before you check the exact contents, you will find yourself ripped off.
Not every vendor in MBK is dishonest but many will take advantage of you if you drop your guard.

Pinoys Fighting Corruption

Ok Pinoys. Let’s be realistic. You will not succeed in stamping out corruption by changing one corrupt administration for another.
I am trying to use some lateral thinking.

Why focus on the top hierarchy when corruption can be seen so easily in the lower echelons?

When do pretexts of being business minded give way to the realization that each one of us plays out his part in the grand scheme of corruption?

When does a bible reading Pinoy who is in a privileged position stop kidding himself into believing that god would understand he is only trying to survive?

What about when a schoolteacher complains about the administration but at the same time accepts bribes to give good marks?

What about when a policeman pulls up a taxi driver for a farcical on the spot fine and still wears his uniform with pride?
It is up to every single person to disentangle himself from the web before pointing the finger.
Corruption is only relative to positioning of power. The only difference between the above examples and The Philippine administration is the price.

Until Filipinos can resist the lure of ill-gotten rewards, even in the face of poverty, there will never ever be a better Philippines.

Airlines Ripping Off Customers.

I am getting a bit tired of the bad service I am getting from the airlines.
It is one thing to be penalized for mucking them around at the last minute, but why should a customer be penalized for mistakes that the airlines make?

Mileage Points, Frequent Flyer Points or whatever you want to call them is something that is earned by travelers and is not a gift or favor from the airlines.
I am a member of three frequent flyer schemes and have had arguments with two of them.

The first was with Thai Air. I was peeved when I found I was not credited some miles that were omitted from my account.
When I received the statement and noticed that miles were not credited for one of my trips, I rang them and was told that I had to send in my two boarding passes with a letter.

I informed them that I still had a copy of my ticket but only one boarding pass could be found but they refused to give me the full points credit.
Begrudgingly I accepted their decision and as luck would have it I later found the missing boarding pass and contacted Thai Air to claim the missing points.

They told me that it was too late to do anything about it.
I don’t why they felt the need to cheat me. As far as I was concerned I had sufficient proof but they preferred to deny me rather than offer me fair service.
I have never flown with them since.

More recently, I have experienced problems with Philippine Airlines.
Upon checking my online statement I noticed that they had also forgotten to credit me with some miles. I went through my file box and dug out the copy of the electronic ticket pertaining to that date.
I rang Philippine Airlines thinking all that was needed was for me to quote my ticket number to them and the missing miles would be updated on the phone.

According to the voice on the phone, this was not possible.
Instead I was advised to use the online facility to claim the points. I filled in all the missing spaces and then clicked return and promptly got an email from Mabuhay Miles.
The mail said that the online submission was not successful and I would have to print out a form and send it off to them, enclosing all copies of ticket and boarding passes.

At this stage I have located the copy of the ticket and three of the four required boarding passes. One boarding pass is still missing
I will post these off to Philippine Airlines on Monday.

Guess who will blow their stack if Philippine Airlines don’t give me full credit for the missing points?
One needs to bear in mind that the missing miles points was an error by them not by me and I have better things to do than be on the back foot for a mistake that was not mine in the first place.