In this age of high technology, you find an increasing number of people with more than just cellular phones — there are PSPs, iPods, smart devices with a huge identity crisis (are they phones or cameras or something else entirely?), and there are more to come for sure.

Suffice it to say that we are now in an era of heightened mobility. We now demand — nay, expect — to have our desired information readily available via our handheld gadgets. Therefore, as a publisher, I thought it important to get my blogs’ content onto other platforms other than the Web browser.

I’d like to share what I’ve found for doing exactly that: Feedm8.com.

•••Read on»

In a nutshell, the e-Services Global Sourcing Conference and Exhibition is an annual event that attracts potential buyers from all over the world to interface with Philippine IT companies and IT-enabled services. It’s an all-out showcase of what Filipino technopreneurs can bring to the global marketplace.

For the first time since its inception, the organizers of e-Services Philippines (as it is more commonly known) are on a roadshow all over the country, kicking off with the Davao leg today. We were at the offices of the Department of Trade & Industry - Region XI (which is a long-time, staunch supporter of all Philippine IT initiatives), where we were apprised of the latest developments in the preparations for this event. e-Services Philippines is organized each year by the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions (CITEM).

•••Read on»

After romancing the awesome Nokia N82 for nearly four months, WOM World is now asking for it back… (sigh)  However, I’ve gotten yet another mobile phone: the N96. While the N82, like I’ve mentioned before, is a camera phone, the N96 is reportedly a video phone. This I have to see.

I’ll take some videos and see how this phone fares. More on that in future posts!

•••Read on»

There is a plethora of glossy magazines being churned out in the country today, from the pithy to the pitiable, covering topics of interest to the general public or to a specific interest group. In my opinion, those publications that have made it a point to focus on a niche are the ones that will find loyal readers.

One such magazine that was launched last 10 October 2008 is iCreate. It’s a publication that’s very narrow in focus, but wide in possibilities. To begin with, iCreate targets Mac enthusiasts and users of other Apple technologies. However, it also styles itself as a rich resource for those who are seriously considering a switch to the world of the Mac.

•••Read on»

Microsoft Corp. has released a very attractive financing plan for small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Philippines. For a minimum purchase of P250,000 (VAT inclusive), any Filipino company is eligible to apply for this financing program from Microsoft Philippines.

It wasn’t mentioned in the official announcement, but this generous offer could most certainly be a response to SMEs’ clamor for more affordable business software applications.

•••Read on»

Google, ever attuned to the meanderings of the Web, has improved upon their already awesome Google Earth and Google Maps products. Last 7 October 2008, the Internet’s most influential organization launched MapMaker for the Philippines. As Jason Chuck, Google’s APAC Product Marketing Manager, put it during the product demo in Shangri-la Makati, MapMaker is a rich platform for user-generated content.

Hurray! At last, there’s now a way for Filipinos to create maps for their localities. I remember there was one time when I had to publish a locator map for an event, I had to take a snapshot of the area on Google Earth, then draw in the roads and landmarks using a 3rd-party graphics software. Now, by way of MapMaker, anyone with a Gmail account can freely attach various geographical data onto Google’s maps — and share this information with the world!

•••Read on»

Last 23 September 2008, Ayala Land Inc. (ALI), in partnership with the Anflocor Group, broke ground on Abreeza, Davao’s upcoming high-end real estate development for business and leisure. (Think Eden Nature Park meets Greenbelt.) In a simple but momentous ceremony, high-power representatives of the two major Philippine corporations signaled the start of building work on the 10-hectare property along J. P. Laurel Avenue.

Abreeza will be a multi-use commercial center that will house a mall, entertainment areas (including natural open spaces, comprising about 20% of the total project area), and locations reserved specifically for business-process outsourcing (BPO) operations. In fact, there are two buildings planned solely for BPO companies, according to the representatives of Ayala Land.

•••Read on»

I am lucky that I was accepted as a reviewer of gadgets by a global distributorship of mobile phones. Several times a year, I receive Nokia units (cellular phones and paraphernalia) from WOM World for review, and for participating in Nokia-specific programs. I just wish I’d get phones from Samsung (the Omnia would be nice!) and from Sony Ericsson as well.

Oh and I’d really like to get my hands on cell phone headsets, too. I got one once, but it was a big, bulky (but surprisingly lightweight) Nokia bluetooth headset. But that was it. There are so many more out there that I’m sure are worth trying.

•••Read on»

Davao City’s bid to become a leading ICT hub in the Philippines got a boost last week when Hewlett-Packard Philippines Corp. launched a corporate marketing strategy called “HP City”. This program is HP Philippines’ way of contributing to the growth of the technology sectors in Davao City.

“Apart from being one of our most important markets,” said Bernadette Nacario, Country General Manager of HP Philippines’ Personal Systems Group, “Davao will always be a significant market for HP here in the Philippines.”

A visible sign of our being an HP City is this technology company’s sponsorship of the upcoming Kadayawan sa Dabaw festival. Already we are seeing banners and streamers bearing the familiar HP logo all over the city. According to Bebi Reyes-Guzman, Marketing Communications, there will also be taxi cabs that will sport the HP emblem.

•••Read on»

This is good news to all followers of global IT trends, especially tech bloggers who watch movements among technology companies:  CrunchBase, the tech company database owned by TechCrunch.com, is now publishing their very own freely-accessible API!

To put it simply, CrunchBase is an impressive repository of IT companies and their technologies. It is an excellent starting point for researching into such companies. For example, if you were out to get an overview of Google Inc., you would do well to start here (go ahead, click on the link!).

•••Read on»