I Luv Anime

I grow up in local-made comics and foreign cartoon. While situated in a proximity to Japan, Hongkong has the benefit of viewing many of their most popular Anime and getting first-hand media coverage.

In the early 70s, the Anime being imported are all main-stream series, featuring variety of "hero" type, from humanized role-model to half-human/robots. Anime at the time are iconized as children-friendly. Air-time are concentrated around the children-friendy schedule. No matured content, let alone any "hentai” (cartoon in pornography), can be found at the time. The only way to access alternative genre is through imported Manga or translated version if lucky.

The local comics all features the non-robotic type of "heros". These characters are teenagers with little education but great talent in martial-art. They are mostly one-dimentional stereotype, with similiar age and background to the audience, who prefers these comic than any written-form novel.

While I left Hongkong in the 80s, I missed the Anime. I could still access to Hongkong comics overseas, but I missed the variety of genre in Anime and the creativity of storyline.

On-flight Entertainer

On my way from Sydney to Hongkong, I'm sitting two rows behind a young couple with their 1+ year old. Not sure why the infant is not happy, she is crying right from the start.

I feel sympathic to the couple. When you are sitting in the cabin and your infant is crying, your option is limited. You wish that she could be able to entertain on her own, like reading book or playing on-flight video-game. But instead you are her entertainer for the next eight plus hours.

While I'm trying to block-out noise and take some rest, the couple's taking turn to cheer her up.

While I'm watching on-flight movie, they're playing DVDs with laptop to entertain her.

And when cabin crew conducts the logistics and ready for landing (no more laptop), she's crying again for the next "entertainer".

From Natural Disaster to Digital Divide (Part 2)

See link to first part of this post.

The impact of Haiti's 1.12 earthquake is devastated and compounded by the country's poverty. It just doesn't have the resource to withstand disaster of such magnitude. More problem follows, with the lack of systematic infrastructure to deliver foreign aid to those who desperately needs help.

Out of all the bad news, a survivor is able to hold-on long enough, with the help of his own gadget belonging (link). His story highlights a few interesting points, one being technology (credit to survivor as well) does indeed empowering the chance of survival. Given that poor country's inability to adopt technology for safty and disaster-relieve from top-down, perhaps this will show them some light.

Social Media up against Mass Media

The proposed Express Railway Link project is supposed to benefit most Hongkong people and our children. The Legco's Finance Committee meeting draws thousand of protesters, mostly the pro-80s who, already knowing they're in for a losing battle, have voiced out their displeased.

There is no David vs Goliath ending. Government simply could not lose. They control the disclosure of sensitive information. They have the number in voting. They have the majority backing from consensus. They even dominates air-time of mass media and publicity in high-density area. The G's pushing for a convincing victory.

Government did win, but hearts are on the other side.

The other side is mostly defending their home-turf or seeking fair-play. They don't have financial or political interest. But the strong support they receive from many NGOs cannot be denied (even students show-up in school uniform). Their demonstration is well planned. They have projectors setup in the open and provide simultaneous critic during the lengthy Q&A session. I didn't get a copy of their distribution, but I hear it contains quality counter-argument and very nice printing.

We witness the counter-force of Internet and social media pulling passionate activists together, up against the tactics of mass media publicity.

Generation Gap in Usability

I got to tip my hat off to dad. He's approaching 80, but his effort in learning his way to online banking amazes me. Occasionally he needs help but it couldn't stop him.

This week he's asked for help to his newly online account provided by a mainland bank. The website (link) looks busy and "ugly". My immediate thought is how little mainlander understands usability. A supposingly quick setup of user setting and login detail takes more than fifteen minutes. I could only feel relieved afterward.

Dad then goes to work, after memorizing the login steps. He wants to walk through it all on his own. He doesn't seem to get much stressed by the clumsy design.

As gen-x, I have the baggage of perception that web design should be neat and user-friendly. But for the older user, usability has a simple and straight-foward meaning.

Time for Next Interface

My eight years old comes home one day and tells me that she is learning typewriting in school. Learning is conducted in an online-game setting, so it's supposed to be fun as well. I could tell from her facial expression. It reminds me of when I first learn typewriting. I was in secondary, but my school does not have computer. I have to attend class in a community centre. If learning to use keyboard in front of the green monitor isn't tedious enough, the class is managed by a computer system (aka LMS nowadays) instead of a person. I think I quit after a week.

Whoever invents keyboard with computer is an engineering genius, but an interface-design idiot in my opinion (no offense). Keyboard takes two hands to operate, and it is good in very few task, like documenting, but poor in anything else, like record instruction or brainstorming. It does not cope well with raw data, that is data with no order and meaning. The later arrival of mouse pointer interface is an instant success simply because it takes one less hand to operate (frees up the other). Still, it could only be used in compliment, not replacement, to keyboard.

I'm all for computer-keyboard replacement. It shows aged when handling vast data size and looking for meaning, or meta data. It also prejudices against people with vision-impaired and/or illiterate. So for those live in poverty, it is digital-divide in one-two punches.

My iPhone Journal

On my birthday last year I've received an iPhone as gift. I am so thrilled even with the simple thought of being part of iPhone-user community (the phone is not new and is locked). Since a year has passed, I thought why not drop down a few thought.

My most popular iPhone feature is listening to my iTunes collection. I try to make used the most during my 'down-time', such as morning/evening ride, rewinding session. It's such a late spring for me, as i have not owed any MP3 player until 2+ years ago. I suddenly realise that so much time have been wasted on the road and I have not making used of them.

As I buy into the idea of being productive, audio books becomes the next logical progression. Its selling point of speeding up my reading by tenfold sounds really attractive. Initial result is apparent. I could access several journals and books, equivalent to just 11 hours of audio, anywhere I go. No more wasting time: tick.

I find I could take care many of my daily workflow from work ... replying emails, reading documents, browsing through news snapshot etc. Becoming more productive: tick.

As iPhone becomes part of my daily workflow, I become more aware of backing up my personal data which is being "lock-in" with the phone itself. It is increasingly apparent that there is an attached condition of being iPhone community, that is, all my data almost have to stay within the walled-garden of Apple brand.

The garden is certainly not a bad place to be, for now. But I wish the decision is come from me.